“He’s on fire tonight, isn’t he?” James asked in the space between songs.
His question broke through her naughty thoughts, and her cheeks flamed at the way she was standing backstage mentally stripping off Drew’s clothes. Just because she knew every other woman in the audience was doing the same thing didn’t make her any less cool-headed about it.
“He really is.” Drew’s show tonight was truly spectacular, as if he had unearthed a new and even bigger well of creativity on stage in the same way that he seemed to have found his writing mojo.
“Like I said before, you’re good for him, Ashley. He hasn’t been happy in a long time. Not until you showed up.”
Ashley wasn’t egotistical—or delusional—enough to think that Drew’s huge breakthrough had come about entirely because of her. But she was beyond happy that she might have played at least a small part in helping him feel better about everything. “He deserves to be happy.”
“So do you,” James said as the next song started up.
Chapter Twenty-Four
Two hours later, she was about to head back toward the meet-and-greet rooms when James told her, “They’re a little behind on setting up for the fans tonight. Can you let Drew know he’s got fifteen minutes before he needs to head back?”
Drew’s guitar was still slung around his neck when he walked over to Ashley, the hunger in his eyes barely banked. She wanted to reach for him, wanted to kiss him, but she couldn’t do any of that and still keep what they were doing a secret.
“You have fifteen minutes before they’ll be ready for you to meet your fans.” She’d never been the aggressor before, but just as he’d said he’d never make it through the show if he didn’t get at least a taste of her, she suddenly knew she’d never make it through the meet and greet if she didn’t get a taste of him.
Thank God they seemed to be of one mind as they headed toward his dressing room. Ashley could barely keep herself from sprinting.
Before the show, as soon as she’d walked through his dressing room door, he’d pulled her into his arms and kissed her. Now it was her turn to pull his mouth down to hers. “Drew.” His name fell from her lips again and again between passionate kisses. But even though she loved kissing him, it wasn’t enough. Not tonight when fifteen minutes with him felt like such a huge gift.
The cautious good girl that she’d been up until last night would have been shocked by everything she’d already done with Drew tonight. And she would have been utterly astonished by everything she wanted to do with him now. But her desire for Drew was stronger than her worries and feelings of emotional overload, at least for one more night.
She put just enough space between them to reach for his guitar strap and lift it over his head. She couldn’t resist pulling off his shirt while she was at it—nor could she stop herself from lowering her mouth to his sweat-dampened skin. He groaned as she licked his chest.
Though she’d never done anything like this before, it somehow seemed perfectly natural to drop to her knees on the cement floor in front of Drew.
“Ash...” He threaded his hands into her hair as she looked up at him. “You’re so damned beautiful.”
She pressed a kiss over his stomach, and his muscles rippled beneath her tongue as it snaked over to lick his salty skin. “So are you. I want to see more of you.” She reached for his belt. “I need to see more of you.”
But instead of letting her undo his buckle, he moved one hand from her hair to hold both of hers still. “You don’t have to do this.”
Everything she’d done with him beyond kissing had been new. New and wonderful. Just as she instinctively knew this would be.
“Before the show, you said you wouldn’t make it through without getting a taste of me first. That’s how I feel right now. If I don’t get to taste you before the meet and greet, I’ll combust.”
She moved her hands back to his buckle, and this time he let her undo it. Last night on the bus she’d gotten to see his naked body for the first time, but not like this. Not up close, with the dressing room lights on to illuminate every hard inch of him. Ashley held her breath as she pulled his zipper down, breathless with anticipation instead of the nerves she’d always assumed she would feel if she ever got into this position with a guy. He helped her tug his jeans down and, finally, he was hard and hot and gorgeous, right where she wanted him.
She couldn’t wait to wrap her fingers around his thick length, and his rough groan reverberated through the room as she immediately pressed her lips to him, too.