Savory and Frank step away to investigate the tiny stage while Mrs. Woodward finishes with us.

"Your contact for the evening will be Shelby Paxton. Here's her cell in case you need to call. Have a good show."

I punch the number into my phone. When I glance up, Drax is frowning as the woman trundles away.

"Back in a sec," he says and jogs after her.

"Shit, what are the odds?" Jake laughs, already half-lit and it's only four.

"What? What are you talking about?"

He's shaking his spiked head and chuckling. "Shelby. Shit."

"Shelby? Who's Shelby?"

"Only Drax's last girlfriend. Wonder what she's doing out here in the desert."

My body turns icy as the words sink in. I can't stop from watching Drax as he speaks with Mrs. Woodward, no doubt asking about this Shelby woman. I'm dying to know more, and luckily Jake is just tipsy enough that he won't even know I'm grilling him.

"Huh," I say, feigning disinterest. "Oh, is this the one he dated for a few years?"

"Yeah, that's the one. Man, he was head over fucking heels for that little cutie. Hard to blame him. Smart, gorgeous, rich. Talk about the whole package. Best thing he ever had."

"Wow, she sounds cool. Why'd he dump her?"

Subtle. But Jake doesn't have a clue.

"Yeah, right. You don't dump a chick like that. Drax was the dumpee all the way."

My guts twist up into knots. "Oh yeah?"

"Dude sulked like a pussy for about six months after she kicked his ass to the curb. Fucked with our tour, too."

"So, um, why did she leave?" If Jake had chugged one beer less today, he might have caught the jealousy in my question.

He shrugs. "She couldn't handle the lifestyle. Drax was pretty wild back then."

Unlike now? I almost snort.

"I guess she didn't want to marry a rockstar."

Whu-whu-whu?!

"Whu?"

"Oh yeah, Drax totally proposed. Got down on one knee on stage at a concert and everything. Next day, she was gone."

The knots in my stomach turn into cold, hard cannon balls. I want to puke. Of course, no one would pay any attention in this crowd. All I can manage to do is clench my jaw and keep my mouth shut.

"Probably didn't help that he was wrecked at the time. I hear girls don't like it when you ask to marry 'em all drunk and shit. Whatever. I don't want to get married anyway."

Savory waves him over to the stage and he stumbles away, leaving me swaying in disbelief. Why am I so surprised? I hardly know anything about Drax, and it's not like I had any illusions about where this relationship was going. Fantasies, maybe. Illusions, no. This was a fling, pure and simple.

Then why does my heart feel like it's being wrenched apart?

"I am so not wearing this!" I exclaim from the dressing room.

"Come on, Lola, let me see."

"No way! It's obscene, Drax."

"I bet you look sexy as hell. And like we talked about, to move product, we need a hot chick selling it. Now come out."

I peek at my reflection again and flinch even harder than the first time. I'm stuffed into a blood-red satin corset that the sales girl had to lace up for me. The 'girls' are spilling out up top and my hips are bulging out down low. My bottom half is clad in skin-tight black leggings that have somehow defied the laws of physics by wrapping around my thighs and ass without shredding their seams.

The last thing I want is to have Drax witness the horror that is me in this get-up but I know he won't let me out of this store until he gets an eyeful.

I crack the door and peer out at him. He's leaning a shoulder against the wall, arms crossed and bulging across his chest, and my heart starts thumping. Regardless of what has or will happen between us, I know deep in my tightly-bound gut that I will always have this reaction to him.

Always.

He gives me a wicked grin and a wink. "Strut your stuff, gorgeous."

I don't need the mirror to tell me I'm beet red with embarrassment but I swing the door wide and stand up straight. I don't really have any choice as the corset prevents me from slouching or, you know, breathing.

Drax's eyes bulge. Almost immediately I notice another part of him bulging. Maybe I don't look as grotesque as I think. Feeling a little boost of confidence, I make a slow turn until I'm facing him again and gasp. He's standing right in front of me!

His upper lip pulls back in a snarl. "I could devour you right now."

My entire body shudders at his growl. I can't help but sneak a peek over his shoulder. The lone sales girl is waiting on a woman who appears to be asking all sorts of questions. Good.

Meeting Drax's gaze, I let my own lips curl up into a wicked smile and hook a finger in the neckline of his T-shirt. I don't need to pull very hard for him to follow. Ah, like a lamb to the slaughter.

As I slip my arms around his neck, I kick the door closed with my foot. He already has me pressed up against the dressing room's mirror, one big hand under one of my thighs, guiding it around his waist.

Just before his lips are on me, he pauses. "I do believe I've been a bad influence on you, Miss Raines."

I want to spout off a snappy retort but the moment he kisses me, I can only think of getting more. I'm like an addict. I will never get enough. Which will only make it that much harder when whatever this is eventually -- inevitably -- ends. But for now, I'm just going with it.

The trouble with corsets is that they don't allow for quick disrobing, plus they're not known for their flexibility, both of which Drax discovers when he tries to get me naked.

"What the fuck?" he mutters as he fumbles with the complicated lacing in the back.

"Leave it," I say, batting his hands away and dropping my rump down on the room's tiny bench seat. There's no time to deal with this contraption before someone catches us, but there might just be time for something else.

Without ceremony, I deftly unhook the skull and crossbones belt buckle and have his pants around his ankles before he can so much as suck in a breath. What does it say about me that wetness pools in my skimpy thong at my discovery that he's going commando?

Of course it's not just that. I've been half-excited, half-terrified to see him for the first time since our first kiss. I mean, it has been a while, as Pepper would love to remind me. I almost want to giggle with joy at the beautiful specimen bobbing before my lips, but I'm pretty sure that Rule #1 in the Woman's Guide to Great BJs (if such a book even exists) is to not laugh the first time you see his junk.

Instead, I wrap my fingers around him, softly, and move my hand the full length of his shaft. I'm too entranced to look up at him, but I hear his quiet sigh. Encouraged, I slide the satiny soft tip across my billowing cleavage, tucking it between my breasts for a moment before letting it pop up to mouth-level.

Part of the thrill of this is the risk of getting caught, but as much as I want to take my time, to lick and explore every magnificent inch of him, I feel the need to hurry. Drax has a hand buried in my hair but he's not tugging, thank goodness. Taggart used to do that and I hated it.

Dipping my head, I open my lips to take him in when the sales girl knocks on the door. I jerk away from Drax but I notice he doesn't even flinch.

"How's it going in there?" Her voice is chipper as ever. She doesn't suspect a thing.

"Um, fine! Thanks!" I'm trying not to collapse into hysteria and Drax, as usual, is smirking.