Nicola Marsh - Sex, Gossip and Rock & Roll

‘Would rather study you, sweetheart.’

She rolled her eyes. ‘We’ve already been through this. Me, tour manager, you, rock star. Professional relationship, comprende ?’

‘I love it when you talk foreign.’

Hanging onto the door, he leaned so far forward he almost tumbled out of the bus and she couldn’t help but laugh.

‘Come on, Storm, play nice.’

Before he could make another innuendo about playing with her, she held up her hand.

‘Get dressed. Eat. Sign the rest of those promo photos—’

‘Yeah, yeah, I remember, then we tour the local music shops, sweet-talk the owners into promoting the concert tomorrow night, yada, yada, yada.’

He waved his hand around, making the kimono gape in front and she quickly averted her eyes before she got more than an unwanted glimpse of greying chest hair and fake-tan flabby abs.

‘And if you’re on your best behaviour, you’ll get the afternoon off to visit Sovereign Hill.’

For the first time this morning his expression turned animated. ‘Yeah, Tiger mentioned it looked cool on the Net.’

‘Kids love it,’ she said, a small part of her cynical heart softening at his obvious affection for his seven-year-old kid. Though how anyone could name their child Tiger was beyond her. ‘So snap to it.’

His lips curved into a wicked grin and for a second she could see what countless groupies over the years must’ve found appealing.

‘I’ll be much quicker if you come in here and scrub my back?’

Biting back an answering grin, she jabbed a finger in his direction.

‘I’ll scrub you out in a minute if you don’t hop to it. Now go! ‘

She just caught his muttered, ‘With legs like those, can’t blame a guy for trying,’ as he blew her a kiss and shut the door.

Shaking her head, she fished around in her handbag for her mobile, the hairs on the nape of her neck standing to attention as she sensed Luca’s presence before he spoke.

‘You handled him like a pro.’

‘It’s my job,’ she said, her breath catching as she glanced up to see Luca in head-to-toe black: black silk shirt, black trousers, black shoes.

He looked like a corporate raider rather than a corporate financier and she instantly dismissed the briefest yearning for what it would be like for him to make a raid on her.

‘The guy’s a lech.’

‘The guy probably comes on to every woman who enters his sphere every day. I can handle it.’

His blue eyes flashed with amusement as he folded his arms and propped against the side of the bus.

‘So if I step out of line, will I get that professional death glare you gave him?’

‘Nothing surer.’

Finally locating her phone, she scanned her calendar for the umpteenth time this morning, wanting to make sure they were on time at every scheduled stop.

‘By the way, did you get the updated schedule I emailed you?’

He tapped his head. ‘Got it. Memorised it.’

‘Good. Because I don’t want any hold-ups today. We need to get into those music stores, talk up the concert, promo the—’

‘You always this hyper first thing in the morning?’

She didn’t know what stalled her pulse more: his hand resting lightly on her forearm as her thumb tapped manically on her mobile keypad or the curious glint in his eyes, turning them a darker, seductive indigo.

‘Always.’

Shrugging his hand off, she scrolled through the key locations for the morning, her gaze focused on the screen.

For some reason, his laid-back attitude annoyed her. This tour was a big deal and while he probably didn’t give two hoots how it panned out, considering he’d be gone in a fortnight, she expected professionalism.

Liar .

Every thought since he’d opened that hotel door had been one-hundred-per-cent unprofessional.

‘I know what I’m doing, if that’s what you’re worried about.’

Her head snapped up and she glared at him. Another thing that annoyed her: his ability to read her when she hardly knew the guy.

‘You handle big money, so you said last night.’ With a last glance at her phone, she shoved it back in her bag. ‘How about you do your job and I’ll do mine?’

His lips twitched. ‘Sounds like the spiel you just gave old Lightning.’

She couldn’t stop the smile tugging at her mouth. ‘His name’s Storm.’

‘What sort of a lame-assed name is that?’

‘A rock star’s name, a rock star who is going to make your grandfather a lot of money if this tour goes off without a hitch so let’s make sure nothing goes wrong, okay?’

He held his hands up and backed away. ‘Hey, I’m just the money guy. You get to keep old Storm in line.’

‘Lucky me,’ she muttered, her attention captured by a curtain halfway down the bus being yanked open with Storm framed in the window doing a slow strip with his kimono while mouthing words to a song she couldn’t hear, his cocky grin infuriatingly smug.

Luca registered the momentary shock on her face and turned quickly, craning his neck, only to see an empty window where the reprobate rocker had disappeared.

He frowned. ‘I swear, if that old fool steps out of line with you, I’ll—’

‘Refer to my better judgement and skills in handling anything this job throws my way, including rockers hell-bent on clinging to their misspent youth.’

His lips compressed in an unimpressed line and a small part of her melted under his chivalry.

She didn’t need protection but the fact Luca was willing to defend her honour made her like him all the more.

‘Come on, let’s run through the projected figures for the concert while we wait for his lordship to beautify himself.’

‘With that ugly mug, it’ll take him a week at least.’

She laughed and fell into step beside him. ‘We can’t all be like you.’

The minute the words tripped from her tongue she wished she could take them back.

‘Like me?’

Floundering, she blurted, ‘Well dressed. Well put together.’

Little wonder he wore a smug grin. She rolled her eyes. ‘You know what I mean.’

‘Thanks,’ he said, touching her arm, the merest brush of his fingertips eliciting a bolt of electricity that zapped her into a heightened awareness instantly.

They had work to do.

They had a fortnight to make this the best damn tour Landry Records had ever backed.

They had a petulant rock star and his kid to please, fans to woo, crowds to draw in droves.

Yet in that moment all she could think about was how much she’d like to explore this incredibly strong attraction between them.

Gritting her teeth, she picked up the pace, resolving to focus on work.

Work was her life.

Work kept her focused and grounded and confident in a world she’d created, a world filled with certainty and guidelines, the complete opposite of her past.

No way, no how, would she let some guy, no matter how gorgeous and charming, muck up her equilibrium.

She ignored the tiny voice deep inside that whispered, What if he already has?

‘This part of your job description?’

Charli glanced up at Luca from where she was squatting next to a river of water, a flat pan in hand.

‘Whatever it takes to get the job done.’

Luca smiled as she wobbled and almost fell into the water. ‘Dedication, I like that.’

‘It’s not you I’m trying to impress,’ she said, jerking her thumb towards Storm several metres away, squatting next to his son, the two of them engrossed in sifting sand and water through the pans in search of elusive gold.

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