Page 34 of Taste of Surrender
“Definitely,” I agreed, though I didn’t want to add her to Surrender any time soon. She was a solo artist, and we had ourown stuff. Plus, her vibe wasn’t what we were about. She was more pop than rock.
When the car stopped outside the club, we could feel the bass pulsating through the air. Jesse turned off the engine and handed his keys to the valet. As we all stepped out onto the sidewalk, Savannah looped her arm through mine. I felt every eye on us as we walked toward the club’s entrance and inside. I also wondered if the shadows hid any paparazzi just waiting to make a buck with a photo of me with yetanotherwoman. It seemed to be all the news outlets talked about when my picture was taken out in public. Hell, I didn’t blame them.
The dance floor was a sea of bodies, each person moving to the thumping beat. Jesse, Elliott, and Silas headed straight for the VIP section, leaving Savannah and me alone. She turned to me, her gaze locking with mine.
“Care to dance?” she asked, her voice barely audible over the music.
When I took her hand in mine, the connection sparked like wildfire. “I thought you’d never ask,” I replied, pulling her closer until our bodies were pressed together.
We danced song after song, and I leaned down and kissed her a time or two. She kissed me back, and after we were out of breath, we headed to the VIP area to join my friends.
“Got a bottle of vodka for the table,” Jesse stated. “But I need to head out.”
“We know.” I laughed.
After he said his goodbyes, Silas headed to the restroom, and I poured Savannah, Elliott, and myself a round of shots.
“You two ever have a threesome?”
I choked at Savannah’s question.
“Not with each other,” Elliott answered with a chuckle.
“Would you ever?” she pressed.
While I was into guys, no one knew still—except the ones I hooked up with who signed a Non-Disclosure Agreement andhim. It was better that way because of the band. I had an image to uphold, and I wasn’t sure what would happen if someone saw me with a guy.
“I don’t need to share,” Elliott said. “A night with me, and you’ll think I have more than two hands.”
We were all laughing when Silas came back from the bathroom. He sniffed a few times, wiped his nose, and poured a shot. Elliott and I shared a look; we knew exactly what our bandmate was doing in the restroom.
“Oh my god!” Savannah shrieked before I could even think twice about what my friend had been up to.
She was holding her phone. “What?” I asked.
“Stellar Records wants me to go on tour with you guys.”
“No way,” I replied, unsure how I felt about it. However, we had cut a song together, so I supposed she could come out on stage for that one song.
“Yeah. They heard our song and loved it.”
Our song.That song will never be mine and hers.
Every song I wrote was abouthim.
9
Jasper
Movingaround my boss’s state-of-the-art kitchen in his new condo, I put the final touches on the dinner I prepared. I’d finished culinary school in Paris two and a half years ago, and after spending some additional time in France, I had moved back home.
When I first returned to Boston, I worked at a couple of fine dining restaurants. However, I didn’t enjoy it as much as I thought I would, and I decided to switch gears and became a personal chef. It gave me more creative control over the meals I cooked, and the hours were better too.
One of my clients was Sean Ashford, a top-rated criminal defense lawyer. Working for him was great because he didn’t make many requests and liked anything I made. Due to his long work hours, I only needed to cook at his place a couple of times a week and pack away several meals he could heat up whenever he was home.
As I was cleaning up, I heard the front door open.
“Perfect timing, Sean. Dinner’s ready.” I turned around and was surprised to see his son, Ryan, instead. “Oh, hey. I didn’t know you were eating with your father tonight.”
