Page 68 of Hard Rock Tease

"Because!" Natalie and I both insisted.

"Being in the audience is a million times better," Nat explained.

"The viewing angles are all wrong backstage," I said. "You don't get the full concert experience."

"It's not as much fun if you can't cheer and scream and dance and rush the stage."

"There's nothing better than being in the middle of a rock concert surrounded by the energy of thousands of fans."

"If it's that important…" Ivy looked befuddled.

Ivy wasn't a rock music fan like Nat and me. Her preferred instrument was the cello. She was only here because her childhood sweetheart and current boyfriend Ren Sada was the bass guitarist for Feral Silence. Her first rock concert had been where she'd met Ren again after five long years.

"And what about you?" Nat grinned at me. "Are you going to be saving your energy for Noah Hart?"

I stammered, not knowing what to say.

"You're blushing!" Nat pointed an accusing finger at me. "Is there something to blush about? Have you been holding back on us? Is there something going on between you and him? How dare you not tell your best friends every detail of your life!"

"Nat, calm down," I hissed, batting her finger out of my face. I looked around surreptitiously. We were surrounded by throngs of fans. "Noah and I—"

Nat and Ivy leaned in close, eyes wide.

"I think we're sort of, maybe, in a kind of relationship," I hedged.

Nat gaped at me, astonished.

"What's amaybe, kind of, sort ofrelationship?" Ivy asked.

"We're sleeping together," I admitted.

Nat threw her arms around me with a cheer. "Jen's having sex with the lead singer of Darkest Days!" She pulled back and looked me directly in the eye. "Please tell me it's amazing. Please tell me it's kinky. Please tell me he has an enormous—"

"Nat!"

The lighting in the concert venue dimmed and cheers rose up.

"You're going to tell us every single detail after this concert is done," Nat demanded.

An explosion of lights and sound dazzled us. Every fan in the audience held their breath with anticipation. Nat gave me one last look and turned back to the stage as a four member band was revealed, instruments in hand.

Feral Silence's lead singer and front man Kell Pierce, with his curly blond hair flopping over his forehead, grinned madly at the audience as they cheered the band's name. He brought his hand to his ear and leaned forward, teasing the fans, indicating that we should scream louder, to which the crowd dutifully obeyed.

"Ohmigod Morris is so hot!" Nat squealed.

Although almost hidden behind his drumset, Morris's large frame, with a wide torso and chest, made him visible from the front row. He practically dwarfed Natalie in person. On stage he seemed larger than life.

Ivy's mouth popped open as a spotlight hit Ren, lighting up the long, black, glossy hair that fell over one shoulder and illuminating his sharp cheekbones and exquisite jawline. I'd wondered if he'd be playing violin for the first song, but he was holding his bass guitar loosely in his hands, long fingers caressing the strings. I saw Ivy flush and I knew she was having naughty thoughts about those fingers.

The last member of the band Jayce Evans, lead guitarist and world renowned sex god, scanned the audience with a heated gaze, causing spontaneous orgasms as his dark eyes passed over each fan. His shirtless abs were on display, causing a flurry of swoons and sighs of delight. It wasn't that Jayce only got by on his sex appeal. He was an accomplished musician. It was just that his movie star good looks didn't hurt.

I swooned and squealed and fangirl'd along with the rest of the audience, enjoying the concert as much as I always did, but some small part of me was distracted.

The last time I'd seen Noah on stage, I'd been overwhelmed by his musical prowess. I'd started having second thoughts. I didn't want that to happen this time. I wanted to enjoy his performance without drowning in self-doubt.

I just had to remind myself of all the times Noah had called me talented. I had to remember that Noah trusted me, that he had opened up to me. Noah was counting on me to help him write a song that reflected his heart and spoke to his fans.

I wasn't going to let him down.