Page 34 of The Pursuit of Happiness

I give her an apathetic look, “I found it in the back of mycloset. Happy?”

Her brows pull together, “Yeah, but where did you get it?”

“Me,” Selene speaks up.

Brody, Ivory, and I all give her puzzled looks. I don’t recall Selene getting me a mock neck let alone putting anything in my closet. What is she talking about? Selene puts her hands on her hips, “I don’t know if you fools recall, but we once had a lot of legal troubles to deal with and potential court appearances. You all needed appropriate clothing to wear to court so I put classier pieces in your closets.”

“That was half a year ago,” Brody mentions. She must be a mind reader because I was wondering the same thing. How did Selene never mention the clothes?

Selene gives us all a prideful look but it doesn’t look like the pride is for us, but rather herself. “Yes, and I do things behind the scenes all the time. Don’t act surprised now. You should all be thanking me. I gave you classy pieces to wear instead of that street corner shit you wear all the time. You can all stand to learn a few lessons from me.”

Harvey grins and I can tell he’s fighting back a laugh. Slater on the other hand, does not try even a modicum to hide his amusement. He’s full blown hysterically laughing and I can’t help but smile because damn is the sound of his laughter intoxicating. I watch as he laughs, his eyes lighting up with amusement and I get so lost in the sight of him. He hasn’t smiled so genuinely around me in a while and I know it’s because I’ve been a pain in the ass to deal with. I just can’t help it. Can a bitch spiral in peace for a little? Damn.

“So you’re telling me that somewhere in my closet there could potentially be a…turtleneck?” Ivory whisper yells, panic in her voice. To a normal human being, this wouldn’t be a catastrophe, but to Ivory Aslan who models lingerie as a hobby for fashion magazines and brands, this is the end of the fucking world.Ivory has always been very comfortable with her body, always wearing the least amount of clothing possible when we go out or perform. It’s part of her brand so the idea that a turtleneck is lingering around her house somewhere like a cockroach is making her panic.

Selene grins and Harvey wipes his face to hide his smile, “Maybe. I guess you’ll never know.”

“What other secrets are you keeping?” Brody asks suspiciously.

Selene shakes her head as she begins walking out of the studio, most likely to wreak havoc on someone over the phone. She laughs an evil laugh, the sound permeating around the room like a chill. As she opens the door she looks over her shoulder and pauses, “Just the cameras I have installed in all of your homes.”

We gasp, “WHAT?” We all shout in unison.

Seeing the fear on our faces, Selene grins and winks at us.

“She’s kidding, right? She has to be kidding?” Ivory fretts.

“I don’t know, am I?” Selene flashes us her perfect smile before stepping out of the office. Just as the door is about to close behind her she demands, “Playtime is over. Get to work or I’m sending one hundred turtlenecks to each of your houses.” The door slams shut and she’s gone, the only remnants of her presence Harvey’s smile and Sly’s laughter.

There’s also those scared expressions on Brody and Ivory’s faces too. Probably my own as well. Was she messing with us or does she really have cameras?

Brody looks over her shoulder at Harvey, “Does she actually have cameras?”

Harvey laughs, his eyes softening when they land on her, “I wouldn’t put it past her. That woman is a shark.”

Brody’s face pales and Harvey can’t help but laugh at her expression. Sly’s laughter is dying down and I don’t want it to goaway. “What’s so funny?” I ask him, a smile in my voice.

He shakes his head, regaining his breath. “I used to wonder why everyone was so scared of Selene Stone in Hollywood, but I get it now. That woman is scary. Funny too.”

Ivory assures, “You think that was scary? Try watching her Nan call her to reset her email password from Florida.”

Brody snorts a laugh, “Nan has always had a special talent for pissing Selene off.”

I add, “Yeah and an angry Selene is a scary one.”

Harvey inserts, “She’ll be even scarier if you guys don’t get to work on this album.”

“Bossy,” Brody blushes and I gag at Ivory who laughs. Sly shakes his head at me, a smile on his lips.

Harvey walks over to Brody and kisses her on the lips before taking a few steps away towards the door. “You love it. I’ll see you at home, Little Rockstar. Sing your little heart out.” He makes it to the door and says a quick goodbye to the rest of us before leaving.

Brody is still staring at the door after he leaves, hearts in her eyes. I snap to get her attention, “Focus. We have to get started.” I pull my messenger bag off my shoulder and grab my notebook from inside, flipping to the first finished song I can find. “I’ve been writing a lot and I have about four and a half songs written.

I pass Brody the notebook since she’s the one that’ll be singing the words on the paper and Sly sits at her vacated spot at the drums. He starts twirling the sticks around in his fingers and I get so distracted by how sexy it is. I always thought it was cool when Brody did it but Sly? My mind is immediately wandering back to that club hallway and I force my thoughts and body back to focus.Do not tread over to the dangerous territory, Aria. You’re better than this.

She looks up and glances at Ivory, a worried look on her face. Ivory gives her a questioning look and she reverts her attentionto me, “These are…very depressing, R. They’re dark.”

I shrug, playing it off, “Yeah well, we needed a new sound for the album since Sly is on it, so I thought some new lyrics would be cool too.”

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