Rock Steady by Dawn Ryder Read Free Book Online Page A

been far smoother. He’d stepped into her path, unnerved her, baited her, teased her, tempted her, and made sure she was the one tumbling into his embrace.
    It was a blast.
    A total high.
    The only problem with that was the fall to the ground when she came down.
    Mega rock stars didn’t leave the sky.
    Nope. She’d end up looking up at him from the broken heap she landed in.
    Alone.

Chapter 2
    Toxsin’s fans were voracious.
    The arena sounded alive, groaning and straining as showtime neared. It was like a tangible pulse floating through the air. It was a hundred times more powerful than static electricity.
    Ramsey pulled Jewel down a series of hallways, past a couple of intense-looking security posts, and right through doors that had large warnings: “Performers Only. Violators Will Be Prosecuted.” Inside was a huge ready room of sorts, with makeup chairs and mirrors, rolling costume racks, and even a complete set of instruments for warming up.
    “This is Brenton, our road manager.”
    “Ah, the lady of the evening.” Brenton offered her his hand. Jewel reached out and shook it. He was wearing a black polo shirt with “Toxsin” embroidered over the left bicep. There were several other men wearing the same thing. Some of them had on headphones that covered their ears completely, while others had only clear pig-tail communications devices stuck in their right ears. It was far more organized than she’d expected. Which was a tad shallow of her, because she realized she was judging Ramsey without knowing very much about him. There was an attention to detail that was, frankly, almost military in nature.
    “We’ve got your seat reserved. Kate will show you the way when showtime hits,” Brenton continued. “Here’s a little pass to make sure no one stops you. Keep it hidden. Some of the regulars know what it is and might try to snatch it.”
    He handed her what looked like a hotel room key card hanging on a lanyard. It wouldn’t be hidden with the V-neck of the dress she’d worn, so she stuffed it into her bra. The road manager was somewhere in his early fifties, with a receding hairline he hid by keeping his brown hair clipped short. He clearly lifted weights, his shoulders and back having that bulky, muscular look. But his grin was easygoing, and there was a twinkle of happiness in his eyes that told her he really loved his job.
    It was quite a job though, along the line of dream-come-true ones.
    “You remember Taz and Syon?” Ramsey pointed toward a line of makeup stations, where the two rockers were sitting as their faces were touched up.
    “I think you missed Drake,” Ramsey said as he pointed at the fourth member of Toxsin.
    “Evening.” Drake unleashed a very British accent on her and winked from where he was inspecting his overall look in front of a full-length mirror.
    “And Kate, our leather artist.” Ramsey pointed toward a redhead standing by a rolling clothing rack that had leather pants and vests hanging on it. “Syon’s her bitch.”
    “And happy to be so,” Syon Braden, lead singer, sang out. He hopped out of the makeup chair and went over to his wife. There was a smack as he landed a hand on her bottom, her leather skirt popping.
    “Don’t start something you can’t finish,” she chastised her husband.
    “Oh, I can finish it alright,” Syon cooed softly to her. “And I will.”
    But he moved over to where a guitar was hanging from a stand. He picked it up and started fingering the strings.
    “Got to go to work,” Ramsey said.
    He moved over to where Syon was and picked up another guitar. Syon Braden was a legend, but Ramsey smoked him when he started to play. There was a sharp edge to the notes he coaxed out of the strings. His expression became raw while his whole body moved with the music. It was erotic, and she was mesmerized by the sight, suddenly realizing that she’d never seen a true music legend at work.
    Drake started up on the drums as Taz joined in. The staff in