“Why?”
“Huh?”
“You’re rather calm about this. And that’s…good, but confusing too,” I admitted.
Johnny set his hands low on his hips, showing off his prominent V-line. His lopsided smile was cocky but not obnoxious. Oddly enough, I got the impression he was trying to be…kind. Yeah, I didn’t get it either.
“Sean, it’s sex. That’s all. I didn’t fall in love with you. You’re safe.”
I snorted. “Well, I’m pretty irresistible. You won’t be safe for long.”
He threw his head back and guffawed. “I’ll keep that in mind. Don’t forget the guitar. I’ll see you at eleven on Saturday and don’t worry…this never happened. Scratch that. It happened, but we’ll pretend it didn’t. And just so you know, I would do it again and pretend again. I might need to get this daddy thing out of my system.”
Johnny winked before sauntering away. His cavalier attitude was equal parts refreshing and confusing. I couldn’t tell if he was joking about exploring his latent daddy kink or if he had an ironic sense of humor. I also couldn’t believe how quickly I’d lost control. That wasn’t like me at all. I had a reputation for being cool and collected under pressure. And I usually had a much better grip on my libido. Not tonight.
I took one last glance around the room and let out a deep breath, then grabbed the guitar from the stand and headed for the door. If Johnny wasn’t concerned about how fast we’d gone from zero to sixty, I shouldn’t be either. Right?
Right.
4
Johnny
My fingers flew across the strings of my electric guitar, coaxing a haunting harmony over the rhythm Tegan and Ky set. Justin sat a few feet away from us on the studio sofa with his legs crossed and his eyes closed. A notepad and pen lay beside him. I meant to make a smartass crack about his new no-hands songwriting technique, but I got caught up in the music. We all did. It was fucking magic.
Over the past couple of years, Justin, Tegan, Ky, and I had become a well-honed music-making machine. We’d learned how to play to each other’s strengths and to iron out weaknesses in the studio so they didn’t come back to bite us in the ass onstage. Occasionally, we’d break into smaller groups to hammer out ideas—Tegan and Ky would work on beats while Justin and I collaborated on melody. Then we’d all get together and fashion music from Justin’s lyrics. The process could be breezy or painstaking.
It was a little of both today. But that was okay. There was no sense of urgency and no timetable. We didn’t have to be here, but we wanted to be. And frankly, that was when the best music happened.
However, it looked like we’d lost Justin.
I slid off my stool and sidled next to him, lifting my guitar in a rock star pose and played a wicked riff in his ear. Justin jumped in surprise and growled while I chuckled like a loon.
“Asshole,” he grumbled, shoving my arm. “I had the words on the tip of my tongue and now…poof! They’re gone.”
“They’ll be back,” Bobby J called from the doorway. “What’re y’all still doin’ here anyway? I thought you’d be out of here before Jealousy tonight.”
“We’re done,” Justin sighed. “I can’t concentrate. Thanks, Johnny.”
I rubbed my eyes like a crying baby, then winked to piss him off. Just because. Justin chuckled at my antics and threw his pen at me.
“Where’s Dec?” Tegan slipped his drumsticks into his pocket as he stood and stretched his muscular arms above his head.
Bobby J hooked his thumb toward our neighboring studio. “He’s talking to his mom.”
“Want to grab a beer at The Zebra Den?” I asked, hanging my guitar on the wall.
“Nah, I can’t.” Bobby shook his head. “Cody’s making dinner. You’re welcome to join us.”
It was a nice offer. Cody was a good cook and by my calculations, I hadn’t played third wheel with this particular couple in a few weeks. “Thanks, that sounds—”
“Like a fabulous plan for another night,” Charlie intercepted as he sailed into the room, dislodging the bag draped over his shoulder when he opened his arms with a flourish. “I have official Zero business to discuss. I need you, Johnny. Especially you.”
“Especially me?” I flipped Bobby J off as he backed out of the studio chanting “Ooh, busted” before turning to Charlie and my bandmates. “What’s up?”
“You have a date,” Charlie announced. “Next weekend or the following one. Whichever works better for you.”
“Uh…”
“Why just Johnny?” Tegan smirked.
“He’s doing us a favor by giving me a photo-op I may or may not use for content. We need to spice up our social media feed, and it’s better business to focus on the single dude.” Charlie smiled and set his hands on his hips. “Decide which night you prefer and let me know. In other news—Tegan’s ex asked if we’d be willing to meet with his client-slash-joint-investor to discuss promoting their product.”