Chapter 32
River
I put my head down on my desk. My stomach was all over the place and my body uncomfortably warm. I didn’t have the flu, although it crossed my mind to say I did. A tap on the glass of my door jerked me out of my pity party.
I can’t do this.
Jesse looked down at his oversized watch, tapping its quartz screen. “You’re going to be late.”
I squirmed, crossing my arms. “You drove all the way from Boston to make sure I go? Couldn’t you have done your creepy camera check-in thing?”
“Yes.” Jesse chuckled to himself as he walked in and took a seat. “But this is so much more fun.”
I narrowed my eyes at him.
“So.” He tipped his head toward me. “What’s stopping you?”
I threw my hands up. “Oh, I don’t know, the fact I’m going to be singing on an album for an up and coming band and the whole world is going to hear it!”
Jesse tilted his head, one silver brow arching. “The whole world’s already heard you sing it.”
My mouth dropped, and he blinked at me. I pulled my purse out of my desk and stood.
“Fine, you made your point,” I replied, heading out my door. “I’ll be back in a few hours.”
“Take the day off, Riv.”
I stopped and turned. Jesse looked over his shoulder. “You got here at five, so technically, it’s a half day, including the time you’ll spend checking your email because you won’t be able to prevent yourself.”
“Fine. Don’t scare my employees too much,” I replied with a huff. When I turned Amber was staring out the window, drool practically slipping over of her parted lips. I glanced over my shoulder to where she was staring.
West stood leaning against his orange Audi TT, arms crossed and muscles flexing against his perfectly tight t-shirt. He had sunglasses on, and he lowered them, winking at me. My body tingled as my jaw went slack.
“Has anyone told you that your boyfriend looks like David Beckham?” Amber finally seemed to snap out of her daydream.
I laughed, smiling at her over my shoulder as I gained use of my wobbling knees again. “His nickname isn’t Beck for no reason.”
“Lucky,” Amber said before her eyes found Jesse leaning against my doorframe, eyebrows raised. Her face flushed red, and she turned back to her computer with her back straight.
I pushed the door open, and West smiled at me. “Your chariot awaits.”
“My chariot to my own personal Hell?” I said as I slid in and he shut the door for me.
He slid into the driver’s side and reached over to squeeze my thigh. “You’re going to do great.”
“I don’t know why I agreed to this.” I tipped my head back against the seat. There was a gentle breeze in the air, and it hit my damp skin, sending chills through my body as West merged onto the highway.
“Bobby.”
I pinched the bridge of my nose. “He did always convince me to do dumbass things.”
“I don’t think this is a dumbass thing at all, and the song is already a hit. You could probably sell it as a single on your own,” West said, looking at me out of the corner of his eyes.
My stomach knotted tighter at the thought of the video. I was pretty sure I wasn’t going to get out of this by just recording the song. There would be PR. I didn’t know if I could handle all the questions. I’d ignored much of the comments on the video, but I knew what people assumed. My throat thickened, and I looked out the window.
“You okay?” West asked, his voice soft. “You can back out if you want.”
“I just don’t know how you handle all of it… the press and what people assume and say,” I replied, looking over at him.
His lips curved up at the edges and he brought my hand up to his lips. “I just don’t give a shit what they say. I know who I am. I know I love you and want to spend the rest of my life with you. I’m not a cheater, I’m not a player, and I’ve never been that person. People choose an angle that sells, and that’s it.”
I chewed on my lip. “What angle is going to sell this song?”
“Love,” West said, squeezing my hand before putting it back on the steering wheel to turn into the recording studio. He got out of the car and came around to my side, opening the door. He held his hand out and pulled me up into his arms, lowering his face to mine. “You’re not alone.”
“Our song,” I replied with a swallow.
West kissed me and pulled away slowly, making my heart race. “Too bad I have a shit voice. Otherwise, you could sing it with me.”
“Yeah, I’m pretty sure that wouldn’t sell,” I replied, grimacing and he pouted. “You’re really awful. Last time you sang something the dogs started howling with you.”
“Haha,” West said, rolling his eyes as we fell into step.
When we got inside, Adam pulled West into a guy hug before turning to me.
“I wasn’t sure you’d show,” Adam said into my hair as he wrapped his arms around me.
“I didn’t have much of a choice. This one and Jesse ganged up on me.” I nodded over my shoulder at a smirking West.
“Thanks, man,” Adam said with a tilt of his chin. West replied with a shrug.
I rolled my eyes. “Let’s get this over with.”
“This way,” Adam said, leading us into the back. He tapped on a door. “You can go in here to listen, West. Riv, follow me.”
I followed him into a door directly next to it that led to the sound booth. He handed me a pair of headphones.
“We recorded the instrument tracks yesterday, so we just need to lay the vocals. You’ll hear the music through the headphones,” Adam said as I took them. He nodded to a music stand in front of us where the lyrics were laid over music notes. “The parts in pink are yours.”
I laughed. “Thanks.”
“I figured you’d appreciate that. We’ll sing the chorus together.” Adam’s eyes flicked over my face. “Are you ready for our first try?”
My chest rose up to my chin. “How many tries does it normally take?”
“Depends.” His shoulders lifted. “Sometimes it takes a few…sometimes it takes a lot.”
My breath stalled in my lungs, stars popping in the corners of my vision as I stared at the page. Adam’s hand on my elbow brought me back. I glanced over at him, and he gave me a playful grin.
“We’ve done this before. Just pretend the guys are a group of kids.” He nodded to the glass window in front of us. West and the rest of the band, along with a few people I didn’t recognize sat there. West winked at me, and my body relaxed.
“Or I can pretend West is in his underwear,” I replied, and West shook his head as he laughed. My face burned red, realizing everyone could hear what was going on.
“Or that,” Adam replied, laughing. “If you don’t mind, I’d rather not visualize that. Jealousy doesn’t suit me well.”
I arched an eyebrow at him, and he shrugged.
“I know when I’m beat,” he said. “You ready?”
I slipped the headphones over my ears and locked eyes with West.
“Yes.”