Double Time
Page 8
“That’s Brian,” Trey said.
“El-li-ot,” Logan insisted.
“You guys have taken this joke far enough. He needs to be in the hospital with his wife and new son.”
“Trey, it’s not Brian,” Dare said. “No one is f**king with you.”
“I’ll prove it’s Brian. Don’t you think I know his sound? I’ve played guitar with him for eighteen years.” Trey turned on the microphone. “Play the solo to ‘Gates of Hell.’”
There was a screech in the booth as the guitarist stopped playing in the middle of ‘Bite.’ A second later Brian’s most insanely complicated and fast solo filled the booth.
Trey scowled at Dare. “I told you it was him. No one can play that solo like he does. Not even me.”
“Why would we go to all this trouble to f**k with you, Trey?” Dare asked.
“How the hell should I know?”
Trey exited the studio and opened the door to the sound booth. “Ha ha, Brian, very funny.” Except it wasn’t Brian playing ‘Gates of Hell’ to perfection. It was that woman. Her dirty-blond hair was cut into a short, sassy style. She wore faded army-green cargo pants, combat boots, a plain white tank top, and not a stitch of makeup. She held her red Stratocaster with authority and played it as if it were her little bitch. The woman was a f**king goddess.
Chapter 3
Reagan slapped her hand on her guitar strings to stop their vibration. Trey Mills had burst into the recording booth and scared the shit out of her. He stood there in the open door gaping at her and setting her heart aflutter. The last time she’d felt like this was the day she’d met Ethan Conner, and that had turned out to be the most f**ked up experience of her life. She didn’t need this kind of nipple-tingling distraction right now. She needed to concentrate on her audition.
Max’s voice came through the speaker overhead. “Send the wannabes home. We don’t need to hear anymore. We’ve found our man.”
“Woman,” Trey called.
“What?” Max asked. “We want Elliot.”
“I’m Elliot,” Reagan said. “Reagan Elliot.”
“Well, I’ll be a son of a bitch,” Max grumbled.
“Where did you learn to play like that?” Trey asked her.
Wait just a f**king minute—did Exodus End just hire her? She’d won? Really? She played a victory screech on her guitar and carried the note with way too much whammy for polite company.
Trey stepped closer to her and she caught the scents of cherry, leather, and sex on him. “You didn’t answer me.”
“Self-taught,” she told him.
“You sound so much like Brian, I thought you were him playing a prank on me.”
“Brian?” When she realized to whom he was referring, her eyes felt like they were going to pop out of her head. “You mean Master Sinclair?”
He nodded slightly.
“Seriously?” She smiled, her heart thudding like a jackhammer. “That’s quite a compliment.”
“Especially coming from Trey,” Dare Mills said from the doorway.
There should be a law against the Mills brothers standing in the same room. Separately they were murder on a woman’s ability to think straight. Together? Reagan’s mind went entirely numb. Other areas of her anatomy were fully attentive, however. The pair looked somewhat alike. Both had green eyes. Trey’s were sultry, as if he’d just woken up after a long night of f**king some lucky girl’s brains out. Dare’s were piercing and made her feel naked, exposed, and liking it. Trey’s hair was short in the back, longer in the front. By flopping in his face, his bangs drew attention to those bedroom eyes of his and made him look mysterious. Naughty. Oh so naughty. Dare’s hair was all the same length, settling a few inches below his collarbones, and made him look wicked. Dangerous. Oh so dangerous. Trey had a bad-boy vibe, accentuated by his various piercings. Dare had a similar vibe, but more feral. Dare’s sexy shadow of beard growth made Reagan crave some whisker burn on the insides of her thighs. She wasn’t sure how long she stood there staring at them and imagining them making her a very happy woman—together, separately, together again—but they allowed her inspection as if they were used to it.
“I’m Reagan,” she gushed and rushed forward with her hand extended in Dare’s direction.
Dare gripped her hand firmly, measuring her up as a fellow musician, not as a woman. Damn it. Well, actually that was for the best if they were going to be working together. Oh yeah, they’d be working together. Awesome!
“I’m Dare Mills.”
“Yeah, you are.” She broke out in nervous laughter and wished someone would tranquilize her before she made a bigger ass of herself.
Maximilian Richardson entered the room and Trey had to grab her shoulder to keep her on her feet. Electrifying sensations radiated through her flesh from where Trey touched her. She turned to look at him in amazement. He stared back, looking just as stunned.
“We’ll want you to play a few songs with us before we have you sign an official contract,” Max said, “but you’re one hell of a guitarist. How is your band not already signed?”
She tore her gaze from Trey and forced her attention to Max. Forced her attention to Max? What the f**k was wrong with her? The leader of one of the most successful metal bands past, present, and undoubtedly future was addressing her, talking about contracts and making all of her wildest dreams come true and she was thinking how much she’d like to spend a few moments alone with Trey, just so she could hear the timber of his voice again. Well, maybe she wanted to do a few other things while alone with him, but he could talk to her at the same time. At least when his sexy mouth wasn’t otherwise occupied.
“My band broke up several months ago,” she told Max. “The lead singer’s wife had a baby. Bands don’t usually last long once members start having kids.”
Trey’s hand dropped from her arm and he shuffled past his brother, who gave him a look of empathy and a squeeze on the shoulder. Was it something she said? Her brow furrowed as she tried to figure out why Trey would care that her band had broken up. They hadn’t been all that great. No real spark between them. Once Trey was out of the room, half of her brain returned. The gushing fangirl half. “Oh my God, I’m so excited. You guys are so amazing! I’ve been a fan of yours since high school. I really appreciate you giving me this opportunity.”
“El-li-ot,” Logan insisted.
“You guys have taken this joke far enough. He needs to be in the hospital with his wife and new son.”
“Trey, it’s not Brian,” Dare said. “No one is f**king with you.”
“I’ll prove it’s Brian. Don’t you think I know his sound? I’ve played guitar with him for eighteen years.” Trey turned on the microphone. “Play the solo to ‘Gates of Hell.’”
There was a screech in the booth as the guitarist stopped playing in the middle of ‘Bite.’ A second later Brian’s most insanely complicated and fast solo filled the booth.
Trey scowled at Dare. “I told you it was him. No one can play that solo like he does. Not even me.”
“Why would we go to all this trouble to f**k with you, Trey?” Dare asked.
“How the hell should I know?”
Trey exited the studio and opened the door to the sound booth. “Ha ha, Brian, very funny.” Except it wasn’t Brian playing ‘Gates of Hell’ to perfection. It was that woman. Her dirty-blond hair was cut into a short, sassy style. She wore faded army-green cargo pants, combat boots, a plain white tank top, and not a stitch of makeup. She held her red Stratocaster with authority and played it as if it were her little bitch. The woman was a f**king goddess.
Chapter 3
Reagan slapped her hand on her guitar strings to stop their vibration. Trey Mills had burst into the recording booth and scared the shit out of her. He stood there in the open door gaping at her and setting her heart aflutter. The last time she’d felt like this was the day she’d met Ethan Conner, and that had turned out to be the most f**ked up experience of her life. She didn’t need this kind of nipple-tingling distraction right now. She needed to concentrate on her audition.
Max’s voice came through the speaker overhead. “Send the wannabes home. We don’t need to hear anymore. We’ve found our man.”
“Woman,” Trey called.
“What?” Max asked. “We want Elliot.”
“I’m Elliot,” Reagan said. “Reagan Elliot.”
“Well, I’ll be a son of a bitch,” Max grumbled.
“Where did you learn to play like that?” Trey asked her.
Wait just a f**king minute—did Exodus End just hire her? She’d won? Really? She played a victory screech on her guitar and carried the note with way too much whammy for polite company.
Trey stepped closer to her and she caught the scents of cherry, leather, and sex on him. “You didn’t answer me.”
“Self-taught,” she told him.
“You sound so much like Brian, I thought you were him playing a prank on me.”
“Brian?” When she realized to whom he was referring, her eyes felt like they were going to pop out of her head. “You mean Master Sinclair?”
He nodded slightly.
“Seriously?” She smiled, her heart thudding like a jackhammer. “That’s quite a compliment.”
“Especially coming from Trey,” Dare Mills said from the doorway.
There should be a law against the Mills brothers standing in the same room. Separately they were murder on a woman’s ability to think straight. Together? Reagan’s mind went entirely numb. Other areas of her anatomy were fully attentive, however. The pair looked somewhat alike. Both had green eyes. Trey’s were sultry, as if he’d just woken up after a long night of f**king some lucky girl’s brains out. Dare’s were piercing and made her feel naked, exposed, and liking it. Trey’s hair was short in the back, longer in the front. By flopping in his face, his bangs drew attention to those bedroom eyes of his and made him look mysterious. Naughty. Oh so naughty. Dare’s hair was all the same length, settling a few inches below his collarbones, and made him look wicked. Dangerous. Oh so dangerous. Trey had a bad-boy vibe, accentuated by his various piercings. Dare had a similar vibe, but more feral. Dare’s sexy shadow of beard growth made Reagan crave some whisker burn on the insides of her thighs. She wasn’t sure how long she stood there staring at them and imagining them making her a very happy woman—together, separately, together again—but they allowed her inspection as if they were used to it.
“I’m Reagan,” she gushed and rushed forward with her hand extended in Dare’s direction.
Dare gripped her hand firmly, measuring her up as a fellow musician, not as a woman. Damn it. Well, actually that was for the best if they were going to be working together. Oh yeah, they’d be working together. Awesome!
“I’m Dare Mills.”
“Yeah, you are.” She broke out in nervous laughter and wished someone would tranquilize her before she made a bigger ass of herself.
Maximilian Richardson entered the room and Trey had to grab her shoulder to keep her on her feet. Electrifying sensations radiated through her flesh from where Trey touched her. She turned to look at him in amazement. He stared back, looking just as stunned.
“We’ll want you to play a few songs with us before we have you sign an official contract,” Max said, “but you’re one hell of a guitarist. How is your band not already signed?”
She tore her gaze from Trey and forced her attention to Max. Forced her attention to Max? What the f**k was wrong with her? The leader of one of the most successful metal bands past, present, and undoubtedly future was addressing her, talking about contracts and making all of her wildest dreams come true and she was thinking how much she’d like to spend a few moments alone with Trey, just so she could hear the timber of his voice again. Well, maybe she wanted to do a few other things while alone with him, but he could talk to her at the same time. At least when his sexy mouth wasn’t otherwise occupied.
“My band broke up several months ago,” she told Max. “The lead singer’s wife had a baby. Bands don’t usually last long once members start having kids.”
Trey’s hand dropped from her arm and he shuffled past his brother, who gave him a look of empathy and a squeeze on the shoulder. Was it something she said? Her brow furrowed as she tried to figure out why Trey would care that her band had broken up. They hadn’t been all that great. No real spark between them. Once Trey was out of the room, half of her brain returned. The gushing fangirl half. “Oh my God, I’m so excited. You guys are so amazing! I’ve been a fan of yours since high school. I really appreciate you giving me this opportunity.”
