Page 24 of Love is a Drum Beat
“Alexa,” he commanded. “All lights on.”
The smart-bulbs flickered to life, and Jo’s eyes widened. “I want a smart house.”
One corner of his mouth curved up. “I’m going to let you get settled.” He turned on his heel and left her to get comfortable in her new surroundings.
But what about him?
There was no way he’d be comfortable with Jo Jackson under his roof.
* * *
Dax released a sigh as he played a few more chords. It wasn’t working. The guitar piece he’d written for the song didn’t fit as well as he’d hoped. He knew what Marcus would say when he produced the collaboration.
It’s fine.
Sometimes you have to leave good alone.
But for Dax, good wasn’t good enough.
Yet, something was blocking the creativity he usually had in spades. This, here in the studio, was where he could have complete control. It was the only part of his life he didn’t question. Music. It was what he’d always known.
Then, why couldn’t he fix this?
Jo hadn’t come out of her room since arriving the day before. He’d made her some soup for dinner, but she’d barely touched it. There was an exhaustion in her, and it was like she let herself give in to it.
His phone buzzed, and he didn’t know what was wrong with him. It was the second day in a row he brought his phone into the home studio. And the second day Noah’s name shone bright on the screen.
With a sigh, he answered it. “Hey, man.”
“Don’t youhey, man,me, Dax Nelson.” Okay, so Noah was in a mood. His British accent thickened whenever something was bothering him.
“I texted you that she was okay. Didn’t you get it?”
“Your text, yes I got it.” He paused. “Two words. You send me two words to tell me how my best friend is doing. She’s fine. What does fine even mean? And you didn’t mention the baby. And Jo wouldn’t tell me anything when I called.”
He let Noah’s harshness slide because he was worried just as Dax had been. “Doc wants her to rest until the baby boy comes.”
“Boy?” Noah’s voice held a hint of awe.
Dax cursed himself. Jo probably wanted to tell Noah.
But Noah kept going. “We’re having a boy? Stell, Melanie!” he called. “We’re having a boy!” Excited chatter came through the phone. “Can you believe it, Dax? I’m going to teach this kid everything I know, just like I’m teaching Stella.”
“Poor kids.” He hadn’t meant to let the words slip out. Dax wasn’t a jokester or one to give his friends a hard time. He was the calm one, the steady one. In Rockstars Anonymous, he balanced out the big personalities of Drew, Noah, and Jo.
Ben was somewhere in the middle.
Noah laughed and didn’t stop as he tried to catch his breath. “Did Dax Nelson just insult me? This is a moment in time I will never forget, mate.”
Dax plucked at a string of his guitar. “I’m not myself today.”
“Need to talk about it?”
“No.” His eyes scanned the instruments, knowing he wouldn’t find the right tune for this song at the moment. “What were you calling about?”
“Jo. She called me this morning and told me if I got on a plane to L.A., she’d punch me.”
Sounded like Jo. “And you’re calling me because…”
