Page 53 of Until the End

I kiss her again because I can’t help it. When I finally pull away from her, I smirk. “What’s the holdup, woman? I’ve been waiting forever.”

She punches me in the arm as she laughs. “Ass.”

We walk side by side down to the lobby, where Daren is waiting out front in the SUV.

“Virginia! What do you have to say in response to the comments Wesley Lockwood made about you?”

I stiffen at the sight of the journalist racing across the lobby of the hotel. Fuck. Where there’s one, a hundred more will show up. I put my body between the asshole and Ginny. At the same time, one of Ginny’s security guys comes up behind us. He keeps the journalist away as we make it to the car.

“Fucking vultures,” I spit out once we’re sitting in the back.

“I’m sorry, Miss Ginny,” Daren says from the driver’s seat. He merges his way into the traffic.

Ginny sighs. “It was only a matter of time. We’ll need to find a new place to go.”

“Want me to text Chelsea?” I offer.

“Would you mind? That would be really helpful.”

“I don’t mind at all. Send me her contact information.”

She does, and I start working with Chelsea on getting a new place for us. She’s even got guys who can pack up our stuff and get it moved while we’re at the studio. It’s nice to have connections. And money.

Ginny stares out the window of the car for a while, her mood sour since the run-in.

“You okay?” I ask.

She shrugs. “Fine.”

That’s a lie, but I’m not going to call her on it. She needs to focus on recording now. We can talk about what’s bothering her later.

“Do you know which songs you’ll work on first, or will Henry help you decide?”

Her eyes focus on me, the light slowly returning. “We’ve put together a general order, but we never stick to it.”

I hold Ginny’s hand while we drive. People go about their everyday lives, and I wonder what it would be like to live here full-time. As much as I love Ginny, I’m not sure I could do it. We’d have to make frequent trips home if we were to move. How hard would it be to live in Sonoma full-time and make frequent trips to LA?

Just add it to the long list of things Ginny and I will need to talk about soon.

We pull into an underground parking garage a little while later. I’m always surprised by how long it takes to get anywhere here. You’d think driving ten miles across the city wouldn’t take more than a few minutes, but in reality, it can take forty—or more.

Ginny leads me to the elevators, her hand holding minetightly, while Daren follows behind. The three of us are whisked up four floors until a ding signals the doors opening. A receptionist sits behind a small desk, her smile welcoming as we get off the elevator.

“Hi, Miss Miller. It’s good to see you.”

“Hey, Becky. It’s good to see you, too. Is Henry ready for us?”

“Yep. He’s in studio four.”

“Perfect.”

Daren makes a move toward the opposite hallway. “I’ll be in the lounge. Let me know when you’re ready to go, and don’t forget that you have the Pop Socket.”

His discreet reminder of Ginny’s panic button makes me respect Daren even more. He isn’t going to hover while Ginny works, but he’s going to make sure she’s protected just in case. We have no idea who her stalker could be, which means everyone is a suspect until we know for sure.

“Thanks, Daren.” Ginny heads toward the studio marked with a four on the door. It’s bigger than I expected, while also being exactly what I pictured in my head. Henry sits behind a desk filled with knobs, buttons, and sliders. His blond hair hangs around his ears in a messy but stylish way. He’s tall and lean, which for some reason puts me at ease the second he smiles at me and Ginny.

“Hey, guys.” He stands to give Ginny a hug. It’s the kind of hug you give a friend you haven’t seen in a while. It tells me two things: he has mad respect for Ginny, and he cares about her in the way only a good friend can. He turns to me with his hand out. “I’m Henry. It’s nice to finally meet the infamous Carson. Ginny’s told me a lot about you.”

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