Page 117 of Hard Rock Tease

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don’t even thinkabout getting your dirty paws on Jayce or you’ll be sorry

i’ll make you regret every word you’ve ever said to him

Aspikeof fear shot through my chest. Another one. Another threatening message. Was it the same person as before or someone else? Why did they think there was something between me and Jayce?

I flushed as I thought about the looks he kept giving me. How could Jayce be interested in me? He was a rock star. He could have any girl he wanted. There could never be anything between us.

No, this person must just be a jealous fan. They knew I got to go behind the scenes and interact with Feral Silence. Of course they would worry I’d go after one of the guys. After all, most fans were halfway in love with at least one member of the band.

Still, I couldn’t shake off the chill that overtook my body whenever I thought of those messages.

What if someone was really out to get me?

“Hey, you okay?”

I nearly jumped out of my skin as Jayce walked through the door to the artist’s lounge. This concert venue only had one, and I’d been perched on the edge of a loveseat, trying to get some work done.

“Sorry. Did I startle you?”

Jayce looked like he was on his way to the stage, pure white guitar in hand. I thought, not for the first time, what a perfect contrast the skin of his hands made against that guitar of his. Was that why he’d chosen it? Did he know how seductive it made him look?

He must. Everything Jayce did on stage was probably calculated to bring fangirls to their knees.

His eyes flickered to the phone in my hand, no doubt taking in my clenched fist and white knuckles. I relaxed my grip and shoved my phone into my purse. The threatening message still echoed in my head. I couldn’t shake it.

“I’m good. You should get to rehearsal.” I hoped he didn’t hear the trembling in my voice.

He looked me up and down, then lay his guitar down gently on a nearby couch. He came up to me until his body was right in front of mine. I had to crane my neck up to meet his eyes. Jayce reached out and cupped my cheeks between two hands. The skin of his fingers was rough and callused from the strings of his guitar.

My lips parted in surprise. His hands were warm and broad, engulfing my cheeks, the tips of his fingers threading through the strands of hair behind my ears.

“You sure you’re okay?”

“I’m fine,” I mumbled, looking down, not wanting to meet his gaze as I lied.

“If something’s wrong, you can tell me.”

I didn’t want to worry Jayce over something so stupid. The kinds of messages I’d received were part of the reason I had my job in the first place. The band members had enough to take care of without having to worry about internet trolls and obsessed fangirls.

I faked a bright smile. “Don’t worry about me. The internet is just a creepy place sometimes. It’s my job to deal with it; that’s all.”

He studied my face carefully before nodding and letting me go.

I realized, for once, that my heart wasn’t racing and my nerves weren’t tingling. Usually being in Jayce’s presence was enough to ignite my insides and start a slow burn between my legs. He usually trapped me in that fiery gaze of his.

He hadn’t this time. He wasn’t trying to flirt with me. There’d been no tension between us, nothing sensual at all.

He was just worried about me.

My heart fluttered in a completely different way than it usually did. I felt warm inside, but it wasn’t an erotic feeling. I felt safe. Protected.

I was touched. I knew from the looks Jayce had been giving me that he was attracted to me. It was plainly obvious. But the fact that he paid attention to my well-being went beyond simple lust.

Did Jayce actually care about me?

“If you need anything, just tell me.” He picked up his guitar and headed toward the door, pausing with one hand on the doorframe.