Jax’s eyebrow cocked higher. "Sounds like you want more than dessert."

I blushed and took the napkin away from my neck. I didn’t have time for an innuendo war with Jax—I knew where those led, and the last thing I wanted was for the band to see the two of us lip-locked. And come to think of it why wasn’t Jax concerned they’d see him serving me?

"Uh, so when’s everyone getting here, anyway? The food’s getting cold."

Jax finished making his own Riley and sipped it for the first time. He gave a half-smile, as if to say not bad. "The rest of the band’s probably gambling or hanging out in their own free suites. They weren’t invited anyway."

"Huh? Then who’d you invite?" The room suddenly felt a whole lot warmer, and I took a large swig of plum and champagne.

One of his eyebrows flicked upward, and a smile spread over his face.

"Just you, Riley."

Chapter Sixteen

DESSERT

My hand flew to my mouth, and I almost spat the drink all over the bar.

Taking a hard swallow, I set the glass down and narrowed my eyes at Jax. "You must think I’m really naive, if you thought I’d fall for this."

"Fall for what?" He had the nerve to laugh.

"The cowbell. The blindfold. The food, the drink . . ." I tallied them up on my fingers, my voice rising. "The whole thing was a setup. You didn’t want to show me the rock star lifestyle, you just wanted to get in my pants!"

Jax’s smile faded, and his eyes lost some of their luster. "Hold on," he said, reaching out to touch my arm. "I didn’t realize you were being serious. Yes, I planned tonight."

I brushed his hand away and glared at him coldly. "At least you admit it."

"And yes," he added, giving my body a head-to-toe stare that made me feel suddenly naked, "I’d be happy to spend tonight f**king you. But this isn’t a game like you’re thinking. It’s not a conquest."

I crossed my arms over my chest. "It sure looks a lot like one from here."

His mouth twisted, and he squeezed both my shoulders. "Dammit, Riley," he said. "I’m doing this because I like you. Because I care about you."

I rolled my eyes, but my heart started beating faster. "Yeah? Then why were you ignoring me all day?"

He looked taken aback. "Ignoring you? Is that really what this is about?"

"In the hot tub, you looked at me with disgust and left me without saying a word after we . . . after what we did."

"What? No . . . no." His expression looked pained. "Riley, I’d never look at you with disgust. You’re gorgeous."

"Then what was it?"

"Something changed," he said, momentarily averting his gaze. "I don’t know. When I was looking at you, I felt . . ." His eyes softened, and he shifted, seeming uncomfortable with what he wanted to express. After a pause he said, "I felt I had to do this." He gestured to the room around us. "It took some effort to get all this done, Riley. I had to arrange it quickly, and I couldn’t exactly do it with you in the room."

I stared at him for a moment before the realization hit me like a ton of bricks. Jax had put a lot of energy into planning tonight—he’d been doing exactly the opposite of ignoring me, and I hadn’t been able to see it because I’d been so worried about the way he’d treated me before the show. Which meant I’d been the jerk, not him.

I took another look at the lavish room and the food before me. Suddenly, it didn’t seem like a game. It seemed like he’d tried to make a fantasy come to life. Given different circumstances, an act like this would have made me throw my panties onto the nearest lampshade but things between Jax and me were complicated.

"Jax, I—this is . . . incredible. Really, it is. The room, all of it, it’s amazing," I said softly. "But it doesn’t change things between us. We’re still not having sex."

He brought a hand to my hair and brushed a strand away from my face. The soft touch of his fingers sent a warm shiver through me. "It changes one thing," he said. "I haven’t forgotten what you said when you agreed to sleep in my bed—that we wouldn’t have sex there. Well . . . we’re not there, now."

It was hard to even think with his hand in my hair and his beautiful face so close. I knew I should’ve moved away, but I didn’t. "There’s something you have to understand, Jax," I protested. "Masturbation is one thing. That’s just us getting out our sexual frustrations. But sex, real sex, is something else entirely. Sex changes things."

His dark eyes burned into mine, sending a flutter into my stomach. "So you’re going to miss out on the best f**k of either of our lives, just because you’re afraid of change."

The offer was tempting—especially coming from Jax’s full, luscious lips. But after the talks we’d had, the connection I’d felt with Jax in his room, becoming f**k buddies would almost seem like a step backwards.

"I’m not opposed to casual sex," I said, averting my eyes from his gaze. "But things aren’t casual between us. Not anymore."

He slid a finger underneath my chin and gently moved it upward, forcing me to look at his face again. "Listen to me carefully, Riley," he said. "Casual sex is what I have with groupies. It’s something I haven’t done in a while."

"But what ab—"

"Let me finish." His voice was rough. "Whether you say yes or no tonight, there won’t be any groupies—not as long as you’re around. Since the moment I saw you, I’ve wanted you. No one else."

I stared at him, wide-eyed and confused. Could he mean it? I felt a tremble of arousal start in my body, something I couldn’t control or conceal. "You mean, since the tour started, you haven’t . . . "

"No," he said, his voice low and dark-tinged. "Not once."

For a manwhore like Jax to ignore the groupies at the crazy shows we’d been to . . . it was one hell of a compliment, if it was true. My mouth felt dry, and it was hard to even speak. Desire, more intense than I’d ever felt, pulsed through my veins.

"I don’t know what to say," I whispered, afraid to give voice to the burning, raging need I felt in my core.

"Then don’t say anything," he said hoarsely. "Give me that after-show kiss you owe me."

My eyes closed and my lips turned upward waiting for his kiss. I felt his mouth just inches from mine . . .

And then felt his lips move to my neck, hovering a fraction of an inch above my skin. His hot breath sent flutters of aching sensation through me, and I yearned for the feel of his lips on my body. I heard a soft sigh, heavy with desire, and only realized a moment later that the sound had come from my own mouth.

I felt Jax’s hand against my bare back, beneath my shirt, and gasped as I felt him unhook my bra. He took his mouth away from my neck and brought his hands to my collar, unbuttoning the front of my shirt. I stopped his hand with mine. "Wait," I said, breathless. "What happened to the kiss?"

"You didn’t say where I could kiss you," he said, trailing his index finger along my side. "I’m still trying to make up my mind." He gently took my hand away, undid the buttons, and slid the shirt off my torso. Already unhooked, the bra fell from my shoulders onto the floor.