I start stripping out of my clothes as I head into the bathroom. Turning on the shower I wait a moment before stepping under the steaming spray. I tilt my head back, letting it pour over my face.
All my mind should be on is music, and the magic we created in the studio today with Hayes—fuck, he was so pleased he wanted to start on a second song—but instead, all I can think about is Mia.
His daughter.
It’s wrong of me, for more reasons than one, but mostly because I can’t put my—our—career in jeopardy. Being a part of a band is about working together toward the same common goal. If one person steps out of line it throws the entire balance off and it can be hard to recover. Bands break up all the time. Ones you’ve seen splashed across magazines and those still playing in garages. I can’t risk losing my guys because of a girl. One whom I met a few days ago, one I don’t even know. I’m not the boyfriend type and I know from looking at Mia she’s not a fling type of girl. One night stands are all I know anymore. If I have no intention of being her boyfriend then I need to stay away, for my sake, hers, and the guys.
And yet, when I close my eyes all I see is her face.
Her eyes.
Her lips.
Fuck, I’m screwed.
And not in the way I want to be.
5
Mia
Exhaustion seeps into my bones, but I keep working. The Sub Club has had an almost non-stop line ever since I got to work. Kira works beside me, swiftly wrapping the subs I make. We’re a great team, and work together quickly. It’s the main reason why we’re always scheduled together. I think otherwise, because of our friendship, we wouldn’t share the same shifts most of the time.
/> Closing time is soon, and I can’t wait to sit down and have a sub of my own before I go home. I’m starving.
At least I’m caught up on homework. Once I’m out of here I can head home, shower, and dive into my bed. It sounds like heaven.
Kira checks the customer out and finally, blessedly, there is silence.
For a moment at least.
The chime over the door rings and Kira and I exchange a frustrated glance. We haven’t even had a chance to catch our breath.
“Well, well, well, look who we have here. Mia Hayes working in a sub shop. Color me shocked.” I look up to find Hollis on the other side of the glass, a hand pressed mockingly over his chest. Beside him is Rush, pretending to look around the place but really his eyes stray to Kira every two seconds.
“My parents insist on normalcy—therefore I work. Money isn’t handed to me on a silver platter despite what people may think or the media might portray.”
His lips twitch with amusement.
Plastering on a fake smile I say, “So what can I get you?”
I know in my green work shirt and hat, with sweat dampening my brow, and my hair in a sloppy ponytail I look a mess. I don’t care. I’m not ashamed of working. It’s not beneath me. If you want to have things in life, you have to work damn hard to have them. My parents might gift me with some nice things, like my car, but things like my clothes, my shoes, anything I want I pay for. Don’t get me wrong, they clothed me as a child, but now I’m an adult and it’s on me. As it should be.
“If you don’t stop leering at me I’m going to punch you in your smug ass pretty girl face,” Kira tells Rush.
Hollis and I both stifle our laughter.
Rush looks taken aback, as if a girl has never spoken to him in such a way.
Honestly, they probably haven’t.
“Well, aren’t you the sweetest thing,” he retorts.
“You haven’t seen anything yet,” she warns. Turning to me she asks, “You know these losers?”
I sigh. “Meet Hollis and Rush.” I point to each guy and they nod. “They’re in the band my dad signed,” I explain.
“Oh. In that case, give me your autograph so I can sell it on eBay,” she tells Rush and his brows raise. “I was joking.”