He grabbed his leather jacket and shoved his wallet in his jeans. "I need a drink."

"It's the middle of the day."

"I'm a rock star," he said, as if that was all the explanation needed. He shrugged on his jacket and pinned me with a look. "Come on. I know a place."

I followed him because, in all honestly, a break sounded pretty nice at that moment.

Composing this song was a lot harder than I'd thought - and I'd already assumed it was going to be the most challenging thing I'd ever done in my life. I tried to keep it hidden from Noah, but inside I was a mess. Sometimes it felt like I could hear, taste, smell the music I wanted to make, but getting those notes down on paper was almost impossible.

At least I hadn't cried myself to sleep yet. That was a change from back when I was in college.

I thought Noah was kidding when he drove us to the sketchiest part of town. He pulled in behind a dilapidated building. When I stepped out of the car my heel crunched down on what I was sure was a used syringe.

I turned to him with my arms folded across my fantastic tits.

"I don't care how hot you are, I don't care how much this inspires your muse, I'm not fucking you in a crack alley."

"Is that immediately where your mind went? Dirty girl."

"Then what are we doing here?"

"There's this bar I like. It's out of the way. No fans. No media."

"No concern for health and safety, either, apparently."

"You want to bitch and complain or you want to drink?"

"You're the one who wanted a drink, not me."

"Bitch and complain it is."

Scowling, I let him lead me through a series of hallways. We walked through one bar that looked pretty dingy, but he shook his head and continued on. When he finally reached a door with a restroom sign I dug my heels in.

"If crack alleys are out, I'm sure you can guess my opinion on public toilets."

"We're not fucking in the restroom either."

He pushed open the door to reveal a second bar, even more dingy than the last. I blinked as my eyes adjusted to the dim lighting. A group of biker looking guys were playing pool in one corner. A trio of skinny punks were drinking in another. A burly man with tattooed arms and a scar on his face stood behind the bar washing mugs while a girl in heavy makeup and a leather corset wiped down the counter.

I edged behind Noah as if he could hide me. "Is this some sort of secret criminal hide out?"

"So judgmental," he said. "How do you know these guys are criminals?"

I peeked out over Noah's shoulder. "I suppose they could be good guys underneath all those tattoos and leather."

Noah raised an eyebrow and gestured to his leather jacket and tattooed chest. "Are you saying that's what makes a guy bad?"

"Well, I sincerely doubt anyone's ever called you good in your life."

"I seem to recall you saying I was more than good when you came on my cock last night. In fact, I think you said I was magnificent."

"Shut up!" I hissed. "Don't say stuff like that out loud in public."

"This isn't public. It's an exclusive bar. Only those in the know ever find out about it. It's like a safe haven of sorts. A bunch of rockers and bikers and underground fighters come here to chill away from the media and police."

"Police?" I asked, incredulous.

Noah laughed. "It's a joke. This place is cool. Don't worry." He draped his arm over my shoulder and led me to the bar. As stupid as it was, that small gestured comforted me. "Hey Walt. Hey Jessie. Gotta newbie here for you."

The girl's eyes lit up. "Noah Hart, with a girlfriend?" She clapped her hands together in apparent delight.

Noah grunted and remove his arm from my shoulder.

"We're not-" I began to say, before I was cut off by the man behind the bar.

"She a fan?" He gave me a scrutinizing look.

"Who isn't?" I quipped before Noah could make a smart ass comment. "I won't swoon over your bar patrons, I promise."

"You fucking?"

I choked on my own tongue, but recovered quickly. "Noah and I working together temporarily, that's all."

The man, Walt, seemed to relax minutely, his face relaxing. "Musician?"

"Of a sort. I'm not a rock star like Noah. I'm-" I looked to him. "-helping produce Darkest Days new album."

Walt nodded once and turned to put a glass away on the shelf behind him.

"I take it that's the end of the interview portion of our evening?" I murmured to Noah.

"Walt likes to know who's coming and going."

The hot corset girl, Jessie, came over with two beers, handing one to each of us, tops already off. I took mine with a nod of thanks. If I was going to work with a rock star, I'd supposed have to learn that happy hour apparently started just after lunch time.

"You and Noah are working together?" she asked. I thought she would gush over how cool that was. Instead she wrinkled her nose. "That sounds like the worst job ever."

I couldn't help laughing as he threw her a dark look. "The last few weeks have been a challenge, yes."

"I don't know how you haven't killed him already," she stage-whispered to me, with a grin and an eye towards Noah. "He's such a Mr. Cranky Pants."

I nearly died from holding in the laughter. It was the most accurate description of Noah I'd heard so far.

"We didn't come here to gossip." Noah sat on a stool in front of the bar. "We came here to drink."

I took a seat next to him and whispered in his ear. "I thought we came here to fuck?" The naughty part of me wanted to see how he'd respond after telling Walt and Jessie we were colleagues.

He placed a hand on the skin of my upper thigh exposed by my skirt. His thumb stroked my inner thigh, nearly brushing the fabric of my panties. His eyes pierced into me as he spoke out loud in a clear voice. "If you're so eager for my cock, I'll give it to you here and now."

I pulled back with a flush and took a flustered sip of my beer. Why did I try to play these games with Noah? He always won.

I sat next to him for several long minutes as he nursed his beer. His eyes were forward, staring at nothing.

"Are we really just going to sit here?" I asked tentatively.

"What were you expecting when I said I wanted a change in scenery?"

"I don't know. A walk in the park? Going to an art museum?"

He pinned me down with a flat look. "You realize who you're talking to?"

"You're right. Silly me. I should have known better. Of course Noah Fucking Hart would choose to sit in a dive bar to get inspiration for a song that reflects his heart and soul."

"And I'm sure you go on nature walks or whatever for inspiration."

Mostly I sat in my room, tearing my hair out and crying, trying not to have a nervous breakdown as I struggled to compose even a single note.

Noah eyed me. "You're thinking something deprecating about yourself again."

"Now who's the one who's psychoanalyzing?"

"Am I wrong?"

I ignored the question and sipped on my beer.

Noah stared at me silently for a few moments before grabbing my hand. "Put your drink down. Come with me."

I frowned as he tugged me away from the bar. "I'm not finished."

"Jessie, I'm borrowing the back room for a minute," Noah called out across the room where Jessie was cleaning up tables.

"Have fun, kids!" she called back. "Don't do anything I wouldn't do."

Noah marched me through a set of double doors, leading me into some sort of store room with extra tables and chairs, boxes piled on top of one another and cases of alcohol stacked in the corner. "What are you-"

Noah spun me around, pushing me against the wall. My lungs froze at the simmering heat in his dark eyes.

"I don't do long walks on the beach. I don't do candlelit dinners." He said the words as if they tasted awful on his tongue. "I sure as fuck don't do romance."

"I know."

"But I will tell you to get over your self esteem issues and stop doubting yourself because you're talented." His eyes pierced me to my very core. "You got that?"

My heart fluttered. As abrasive as he was, the words were almost sweet, in a Noah Hart sort of way. "Yeah. I got it."

"Good." He eyed me for another few moments before a smirk crossed his face. "And now I'm gonna fuck that sweet cunt of yours so hard you'll be ruined for all other men."

My insides quivered and pulsed.

"Do it," I said. "Ruin me."

His eyes flashed with a dark burning heat. He fisted my hair in a tight, almost painful grip and tugged until his lips came crashing down on mine.

I moaned into the kiss, opening for him, letting our tongues flick and brush together. He pressed me into the wall, shoving at me with his hands and hips. There wasn't an inch of space between our bodies. He ravished my mouth until it felt bruised and swollen, until I was breathless with need.

His knee pressed between my legs, parting my thighs and hiking up the hem of my skirt. Without meaning to, I found myself grinding down against the rough fabric of his jeans. He cupped my ass, giving it a squeeze, before taking my leg and wrapping it around his hip.

I knew I shouldn't have let him pull me into the backroom. I definitely shouldn't have given in to his kiss. It was too late now. I was wet and swollen and aching. I let out a shuddering breath as his fingers explored my folds through my thin cotton panties. He slipped a single finger under the elastic and pushed into me. My mind shut off, all my inner protests ceasing.

"So fucking tight," he growled into my mouth. "Can't wait to feel you squeezing and pulsing around my cock."

My inner muscles clenched down even harder at those words. I felt him twitch in his pants, his length filling out, expanding. With shaky hands, I hurriedly unzipped his pants, my mouth watering as his heavy cock fell into my hands. I wrapped my fingers around him, stroking up and down with soft touches. The heat of him, the hardness of him in my hands, was maddening. He was absolute perfection.

Noah groaned and tangled my hair in his hand, tilting my head back to meet his gaze.

"I'm going to fuck you now." His dark eyes pierced into me. "I'm going to bury myself so deep inside that tight cunt you'll feel me for days."

Noah spun me around until my front was pressed against the wall. He took my hips in his hands and pulled me back until my ass was grinding against his cock. He flipped my skirt up, baring me to the cool air. I shivered. He ran a warm hand up and down my back, no doubt feeling every tremble, every shake.

"You need something?" he murmured in my ear.

I nodded my head, shuddering. I felt him take himself in hand, rubbing his cockhead against my wet folds. The texture of the tip was different, and I knew he'd put on protection.

"You know what I want to hear."

"Please," I whined. I placed both palms firmly against the wall, pushing back against him. "I can't..."

"Beg me," he demanded.

"I need you," I whimpered.

"Louder."

"Everyone will hear."

I could hear the smirk in his voice. "I know."

"Noah!"

"I told you. I'm going to fuck you hard and deep."

"God, yes, please."

"But I'm not going to do it unless you beg me."

I inhaled sharply as a wave of lust spiked through me.

"Do it, Noah," I said, repeating my previous words.