Page 5 of Love is a Drum Beat
He wasn’t sure he cared.
He greeted the driver and climbed into the car. It was a short ride to the studio, so after thanking the man, he stepped out, readying himself for his new publicist.
Melanie had been everything he’d needed for his career. She never pushed him to reveal his identity, and she created Rockstars Anonymous, the group he now considered his friends.
He walked in past the glass double doors. The lobby of this place never changed. Gold records adorned the walls in frames, and the tile floors echoed beneath his feet. He didn’t come here a lot, but there was a certain comfort in knowing every person in this building believed in him, even if they didn’t recognize him. Only a few select people at the label knew his face. Mr. Snyder, the head of the label, Melanie, and soon this new publicist.
He walked down the long hall to his new publicist’s office and knocked on the door.
The assistant sitting near the door looked to him. “Can I help you, sir?”
“I have a meeting with Mr. Devlin Norris.”
The assistant looked down at her appointment calendar. “Are you Mr. Winthrop?” Melanie came up with that false last name.
He almost laughed. “Yes, Dillon Winthrop.”
She pursed her lips and looked him up and down. He could imagine what she saw. A man with untamed hair and glasses, his hands stuffed in the pouch of his sweatshirt as he shifted from foot to foot, and a ball cap pulled down, casting his face in shadow.
The door opened, and a surprisingly young man smiled at him. “Sarah, hold all my calls please. Mr. Winthrop gets my full attention.”
There was something about the man’s smile Dax didn’t like. He’d had reservations when he got the email telling him of his new publicist. This was the man who outed Noah’s marriage to the press. He obviously didn’t value secrets.
And Dax’s was the king of all secrets.
He followed Devlin into his office and shut the door.
Devlin turned with another smile. “Dax Nelson. You are not what I was expecting.” He sat on the edge of his desk and crossed his arms.
“I know. I’m not what anyone expects.” He was never supposed to be this guy people fell in love with—even when they didn’t know what he looked like.
Devlin’s stare unnerved him. He felt it probing to peek into every dark crevice of Dax’s secrets.
Devlin uncrossed his arms. “Okay, I know you had a good relationship with Melanie, but I hope we can become friends too.”
He could hear Melanie’s response to that. Publicists couldn’t be friends with their clients. But that was before she went and fell in love with one.
“Sure.” It was the only answer Dax had for the man.
His smile dropped at the one-word response. “Okay, let’s start with the first thing we must discuss. Collaborations.”
As if on cue, there was a knock on the door.
Devlin got up to open it and let Mr. Snyder into the room. Dax didn’t know Mr. Snyder well, and the man intimidated him.
“Dax.” His smile didn’t quite reach his eyes. He looked tired, worn out. He stuck out his hand. “It’s good to see you.”
Dax took the man’s hand. “It is.”
Mr. Snyder and Devlin shared a look that said neither of them knew how to handle the label’s biggest star who didn’t like to speak.
“Everyone have a seat.” Mr. Snyder waved them toward the chairs near the desk and took one himself. “Dax, normally we’d meet with you in the meeting room with many of the label execs present, but you’re different. If we want to continue keeping your identity a secret, I will have to meet with you here.”
Dax nodded, though he didn’t see the need for meetings at all.
“What if we didn’t?” Devlin asked.
Mr. Snyder’s eyes snapped to him. “Didn’t what?”
