Hard Rocked Read Online Free PDF

area.
    Surprisingly, everyone pitched in and we had the plane emptied quickly. I did find a bathroom and we all piled on the bus to drive into the city. I stayed up front with Ryan, going over a few things and coordinating for the next day, and managed to keep from looking at Dex. Mostly.
    At some point I needed to figure out why he’d gotten to me, but all I could see behind my eyes was his sly smile and the way his eyes twinkled when he looked at me. Not that it mattered. Not that anything was going to happen between us. But I had to admit it was nice to remember the way he looked at me.
     
     
    Three hours later I sank down onto the bed in my hotel room and sighed. In the rush to get everyone settled I hadn’t had a moment to think and that was just fine. And now, finally alone, I was too tired to do anything.
    Some of the others were planning to go out, but I begged off. I needed some quiet, and a lot of sleep. We only had two days before the first show and a million things to accomplish first. I shed my clothes and left everything in piles on the floor to be dealt with in the morning.
    I climbed into bed and watched the lights of London as I fell into a deep, dreamless sleep that ended all too soon.
    When my wake-up call rang I wanted to dive back beneath the sheets and spend the day there. But I couldn’t, of course. So I got up, showered and went downstairs to grab something to eat.
    In the light of the morning and after some much-needed rest I could actually appreciate the hotel. All I’d noted the night we arrived was that it seemed to be comprised of a block of old townhomes and it had a bed I could sleep in. It was smallish and trendy, called a “boutique hotel” according to my research. So far that seemed to mean expensive and almost aggressively modern in design and décor. Bright colors and shiny surfaces were everywhere.
    Fortunately it also had a restaurant and I could smell the coffee I so desperately needed. I followed my nose to it and saw Ryan and his niece, Mia, sitting at a table together. She waved me over and I said good morning to both of them.
    “Sleep well, Rebecca?”
    “Yes, Ryan. Thank you. And yourself?” Something about talking to him turned me into some silly formal-talking television character. It irritated me and made me want to laugh at the same time.
    “Well enough, I suppose. Mia here is feeling a bit of pain, however.”
    “Why’s that?” I asked, nodding as a waiter brought over a carafe of coffee. I thought Brits mostly drank tea, but accepted that was probably a silly stereotype.
    Mia groaned. “Unlike you guys, I wanted to spend my first night in London having fun. And I did. Too much fun.”
    “I hope it was worth it.”
    “It was.”
    I grinned. “Good. Let me know if you need aspirin or anything.”
    “I will.” She turned her attention back to the plate of toast in front of her and started eating, tearing off tiny pieces and slipping them inside her mouth.
    It had been a while since I’d been that hung over, but I remembered the feeling, and sympathized. It made me feel old. Which was silly because I knew Mia was actually five years my senior. But I was getting used to it. Being the responsible, dependable one. I preferred it that way, even if I got occasionally wistful about spending my early twenties working hard instead of partying hard like so many of my peers.
    Speaking of working, by the time the waiter had taken my order Ryan pulled out his tablet and was scanning it, giving me notes on the list of things we needed to do and forwarding emails he wanted me to handle.
    “I’ve got three conference calls today, Rebecca, so I’m going to need you to take point on things.”
    “That’s fine.” I’d been hoping to get something in my stomach before thinking about it, but no such luck.
    “Excellent. Also, the bar we promised to visit tonight will need a visit sometime in the afternoon. The manager wants to talk to us about where to put the band for