Dare Me (ROCK GODS Book 1) Read online

  Dare Me

  Joanna Blake

  Copyright © 2017 by Joanna Blake

  All rights reserved.

  No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.

  Created with Vellum

  For my true friends

  Contents

  Dare Me

  Foreword

  Newsletter Signup

  TOC Instructions

  Six Years Ago

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Chapter 19

  Chapter 20

  Chapter 21

  Chapter 22

  Chapter 23

  Chapter 24

  Chapter 25

  Chapter 26

  Chapter 27

  Chapter 28

  Chapter 29

  Chapter 30

  Chapter 31

  Chapter 32

  Chapter 33

  Chapter 34

  Chapter 35

  Epilogue

  TOC Instructions

  Excerpt of Cuffed

  Excerpt of Cockpit

  Excerpt of Torpedo

  Excerpt of Go Long

  Excerpt of Grind

  Excerpt of Bro’

  Excerpt of A Bad Boy For Summer

  TOC Instructions

  About the Author

  Acknowledgments

  Dare Me

  She’s a superfan with a sassy mouth. I've got fame and fortune in spades - and I don't mind using them to get what I want.

  I'm kind of a big deal. As in, everyone on the planet knows who I am, and they have since I was fifteen. You'd think that doing whatever I want, not to mention the constant stream of women, would be pretty fun.

  And they were. For a while. But now I've seen it all - and it's enough to make a man pretty jaded.

  When there's a human stampede outside my concert, I jump out of my car to help. That's before I see the girl who nearly got trampled - the tiny, young, adorable superfan.

  So I invite her backstage... and before I know it, I'm inviting her to Vegas for a night of hard partying -- and hopefully more.

  She's even more innocent than she looks, and I end up taking a cold shower. The last thing I expect is for her to sneak out the morning after.

  No matter what I do, I can't get this girl out of my head -- her smart mouth, her huge blue eyes, and those crazy curves of hers are my own personal kryptonite. The fact that she doesn’t fawn all over me just adds fuel to my fire.

  I'll do anything it takes to win her - even pull out the old-school romance.

  Jewelry? Check. Roller coaster ride at 4am? Check. Following her across the country like a Goddamn puppy dog? Check.

  This girl is gonna be MINE.

  Foreword

  This book was previously released under the same title. It has been extensively rewritten and expanded.

  Enjoy!

  Xoxox,

  Joanna

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  Xoxox,

  Joanna

  STOP!

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  Thank you so much for understanding,

  Pincushion Press

  Six Years Ago

  Kendall

  The stadium shook with the screams of thousands of women. Mostly teenage girls, but not all of them. There were plenty of cougars and MILFs out there too.

  Kendall knew, because he actually read the fan mail on his Facebook page and Insta account. Or he used to, until some of it gave him nightmares.

  The opening act left the stage and the audience got even louder.

  They were beside themselves, almost like animals.

  Animals who were about to be fed fresh, delicious, boy band meat.

  Backstage, it was a different matter altogether.

  “Put the fucking glasses on.”

  “They want to connect with us, not stare at a fucking fashion spread!”

  Kendall knew the other guys felt the same way. But they were scared. They didn’t have the same pull as he did. He was the lead singer. It was his job to face off with their manager.

  “And I’m not wearing baby fucking blue.”

  “You didn’t used to care.”

  “I was fifteen, you moron. I’m a fucking adult now!”

  The older man scoffed, crossing his arms over his beer gut with a sneer.

  “You are eighteen. That means we have to card the groupies we send back. I swear to God, Kendall. You are swimming in mega bucks and teenage snatch and this is how you thank me?”

  “I don’t need your fucking help, Morey.” He smirked. “Not in either of those departments.”

  “You get out there and perform or you are in breach of contract!”

  A sarcastic British voice cut through the sound of Morey’s nasal whine.

  “Knock, knock.”

  Everyone turned to stare at the open doorway to the green room. Kendall felt the tension leave his body, grateful for the interruption.

  Finally, something to shut Morey up.

  “Hey man, is this a bad time?”

  Bruce and Nick stood in the doorway. They were two of the most famous rock stars in the world, and two of Kendall’s best friends.

  They were mentors really. Sort of like a training program for celebrities. The world they all lived in as musicians was off the charts crazy and excessive.

  His ‘big brothers’ had taught him everything he knew about navigating fame, and what to do with the rest of his career.

  First step: get out of the boy band business.

  They’d told him to start stowing money away in anticipation of the career change. Kendall was a songwriter at heart and he couldn’t wait to be taken seriously as a musician.

  These two guys had helped him every step of the way.

  All because he’d dared to speak to them backstage at an awards show during the peak of the boy band years. The peak which seemed like it was never going to end.

  They’d taken him under their wings, teaching him the ropes. What to do, and what not to do, especially when it came to women.

  And most importantly, how to find his own voice.

  At eighteen, Kendall had already seen a lot. He knew what kind of music he liked. And it wasn’t sugar sweet pop.

  But he was still working on how and when to get out of the band. Suddenly he decided that there was no time like the present.

  He had all the support and guidance he needed. And he’d avoided any scandals. He’d even saved most of his money, setting his mom and sister up in a big house to keep them safe, and protect a nice chunk of his money.

  “No guys, you are right on time.”

  Kendall stood up straight and grinned, greeting his friends. They hugged and slapped each other’s backs, nodding at the rest of the band. Bruce and Nick had taught him to treat everyone right, especially backup singers and the crew.

  And the fan
s. You didn’t have to like the attention. But you had to be gracious about it.

  “What’s going on?”

  “I’m not going on stage in this outfit.”

  Nick quirked an eyebrow at him, looking over the track suit. He nodded. Nick was the biggest rock star in England. He was the quintessential rocker.

  “Don’t blame you, man.”

  “Did they just spring it on you guys?”

  Kendall shook his head.

  “It’s a new look. I’m not having it.”

  “They should have run it by you.”

  “Yeah, but they think we are dumb kids, remember.”

  Morey chose that moment to open his big fucking mouth.

  “Wardrobe is stipulated in your contract!”

  Kendall rolled his eyes and gave Bruce a conspiratorial smile.

  “Remember what we were talking about? My exit plan?”

  Bruce and Nick exchanged a glance and then looked back at Kendall.

  “It’s about to go down.”

  “If you don’t get out there right fucking now, I’ll sue the hell out of you.”

  He turned to face his sniveling manager. The man who had made more money off the sweat of handsome teenage boys than anyone in the world.

  “Oh, I’ll perform. But for the fans and the band, not for you.”

  He tossed the sunglasses on the ground while the rest of the group looked on nervously.

  “But I’m doing it my way.”

  Kendall stared at the rest of the guys.

  “Sorry guys, this is it. Let’s give them the show of their lives. Our way.”

  He felt his heart swell with pride as they all tore off their gaudy track jackets and tossed their sunglasses aside.

  Nick and Bruce slapped his back as he left to take the stage.

  Kendall paused. He wanted one last word with Morey. The out of shape money grubber looked pale as he stepped closer to him.

  Good, he should be afraid.

  Kendall was about to rock his world, and his bank account.

  “This is the last In Tempo show I’m ever doing.”

  Chapter 1

  Kendall

  Six years later

  Kendall reached for the guitar. His arm was tan and muscular, with a tattoo of a coiled snake winding around the top of his arm, just below his shoulder.

  It was just one of many tattoos. The sort of thing that had been forbidden when he was under contract. The sort of thing that meant freedom to him now.

  He'd taught himself to play years ago on a guitar that Bruce had given him. It had been a secret. He hadn’t had the benefit of lessons. He’d learned on his own, in the back of tour buses, in hotel rooms, airports. It had all been on the down-low. Something the label would have frowned on for a good little boy bander.

  Almost as bad as smoking in public or getting caught in a strip club, not that that had been his thing either.

  They hadn't wanted him to play an instrument back then, or to write, just to perform what they put in front of him.

  He'd hated it.

  From day one, he'd had his own ideas about songs and dance moves. What to wear. The rest of the band had been much happier to go along. But for the five years of his contract, his hands were tied.

  Not until the end. The day he’d walked out after giving the best concert of his life, and never looked back.

  The lawsuits that followed had meant he couldn’t release his own music. Not right away. Morey had thrown up every roadblock he could for Kendall’s success.

  But it hadn’t worked.

  The fans had been more than happy to wait. And he’d grabbed more fans in the interim.

  The waiting had just built up expectations.

  When he finally dropped his first solo album, everything had exploded. He was the new it guy. The former pop star with a hot edge and grooves that wouldn’t quit.

  And that was just the beginning.

  Now he was free. He'd been writing and recording his own music for six years now. At first in underground studios, then with his new label. Now he had his own set up, right here in his house.

  He’d converted the pool house to a recording studio and spent a good part of most days there, experimenting and messing around with new songs.

  Some of his stuff sounded like classic rock. Others sounded more like the blues. But it all had one thing in common. It was authentic.

  It was real.

  He walked out to the deck overlooking the Pacific Ocean. He'd done this on his own. All of it. The gold records, the magazine covers, the world tours.

  He knew he owed a lot of his success to his family. His mom and sister. Maybe even more to Bruce and Nick.

  But it had started with them.

  In Tempo.

  It had been a cheesy boy band put together to churn out hits. Almost immediately he'd chaffed against the restrictions put on them. They weren't allowed creative input, or girls, or drinking. They weren't even allowed to pick out their own clothes. Try telling that to a bunch of teenage boys. Especially those with millions of fans.

  Billions of fans.

  It had been a fluke that made them the group that stood out above the rest. Well, maybe not a fluke. Most people said it was him, though it made him uncomfortable to hear.

  Kendall's looks, talent and charisma had made him the natural choice for front man. But he was the one who had ended the roller coaster ride for the rest of them when he quit abruptly after his eighteenth birthday.

  He owed those guys. He was the one who had walked away with a viable career. He still loved the fuck out of them too.

  Now he was twenty-six and an A-list recording artist in his own right. The rest of the band had floundered, making club appearances for cash, starting clothing lines, you name it.

  They knew Kendall was the star of the show, even though he denied it.

  They'd begged him to come back, year after year.

  Every year he said no. Until now.

  His guilt had gotten the better of him.

  Guilt and love for the guys he’d grown up with under extraordinary circumstances.

  Davie had called him telling him about the birth of his first born. About how hard it was to pay for the hospital, the doctors, everything. Kendall had immediately offered him money, a gift with no strings attached. But Davie still had his pride, unlike the rest of the guys. He'd asked for one thing only: to do what they did best.

  Like he said, he knew he owed them. He knew it in his gut. So tonight, he was taking the stage with the band that had started him on his meteoric rise to fame eleven years ago.

  He sighed, staring out over the ocean.

  Just a few concerts to get the guys back on their feet. Then never again. He'd just go back to his life, whatever that meant.

  As long as there was good music involved, he knew he’d make it work.

  Chapter 2

  Jess

  This was it.

  Tonight was the night.

  All her embarrassing teenage dreams were coming true.

  Tonight she would shed her responsible, adult veneer and dive head first into hormonal angst and dance her butt off.

  In Tempo was back in concert.

  The tickets had been expensive. Almost impossible to get. But now, she could afford it.

  Jessica had been waiting to see her favorite band play forever. Ever since she was thirteen years old. Money for a ticket had been far out of her reach then, just like having a ride to take her, or a friend to go with.

  It had been so far from reality, those concerts might as well have taken place on the moon. By the time she was old enough to go someplace by herself, let alone afford the cost of a ticket, the band had broken up.

  That was more than seven years ago. A lifetime. Time enough for her to grow up and finally move out, as far away from home as she possibly could.

  Home.

  Even the word was a joke. She could have laughed. But there was no other word for the place you grew up in, n
o matter how dismal it had been.

  Anyway, she wasn’t one to dwell. She was on her own now. Just the way she liked it.

  Yeah, growing up had sucked. But she was well and truly grown.

  There was so much she’d missed out on. Fun stuff like doing your nails or shopping for a prom dress. Fun stuff like first kisses.

  So now, she was making up for lost time.

  Because now, she was a fully fledged Doctor of Veterinary Medicine.

  It was finally her chance to see her favorite band. Seeing Kendall, Davie, Gerald and Tom live in concert had long since passed her by.

  Technically she could have seen them. Some of the guys had solo careers now but in her opinion it wasn't the same.

  Besides, she hadn't kept up too much with their newer stuff. She didn't have time to listen to music that much now. But back then, it had been a lifeline.

  Those songs had literally saved her life. Those videos had been her friends. Those teen magazines had been her hopes and dreams.

  Jessica pretty much ignored pop culture these days, spending most of her time at work or volunteering at the Los Feliz Animal Shelter near her apartment. But when they'd made the announcement a few months ago, even she had noticed.