They arrived at the Millennium Records building and Elijah smiled as he looked up at it all.
“It was lovely meeting you, Elijah. Thanks for everything.”
Elijah turned to him and sighed. “Thank me one more time. I dare you.”
Grayson replied with a soft laugh. “Hey, I’m serious. But I don’t want to hold you up. At least let me pay for a cab back?”
“Don’t be ridiculous.” He looked down at his watch. His lunch break was over in four minutes, but the beauty of entering his own time was that he could fudge the numbers a little. No one had to know. “Look, I know this whole thing was weird and you didn’t ask for me to do anything but give you your phone back, but would it be okay if I gave you my phone number? Don’t think I’m expecting anything. I just… I don’t know. You don’t have to use it if you don’t want to.”
Grayson hoped that he could blame the cold temperature on the way his cheeks were undoubtedly turning red. A couple people walked past into the building, and he said hello to one, turning back to Elijah with a nod.
“I think I’d like that,” he said.
Elijah smiled, accepting the phone from Grayson’s hands.
“So I’ll text you when I get back up to my office,” he told him. “I’ve got to create a social media account for one of our new artists and I doubt it’ll be too taxing.”
Elijah saved his number and gave the phone back. “Wait until you get Tweets from teenagers calling you ‘Daddy’. We’ll see if you still feel the same.”
Grayson made a face that said he wanted nothing to do with that.
“I’ll talk to you later,” Elijah said with a smile. He waved as he took a couple steps backwards, not watching where he was going and bumping into a guy.
Grayson laughed. “Nice meeting you, Elijah.”
Elijah apologized to the man and then smiled at Grayson once more. “Nice meeting you as well.”
Grayson could do nothing but watch him walk away. It made no sense for someone to be that attractive. He usually had a type – nice guys, quiet, short-cut hair, a little on the preppy side. Elijah was far from that type. He was mysterious and had a bit of a swagger to him. Something told Grayson that he was a huge player. When Elijah disappeared into the crowd of people, he finally made himself look away and continued into the building.
Chapter 4
The following day, Elijah got back to his apartment about thirty minutes after he left work. It had been another slow day. The most exciting thing he’d done was deliver a package to another firm downtown while happening to walk past a live local news broadcast for NBC. He stood behind the reporter and cheekily winked at the camera until the man eventually waved him off. But unlike the day before, today hadn’t included finding any iPhones that belonged to hot business guys in custom made suits. In fact, today was one of those days that ranked kind of low on the Hot-Guy-Sighting meter.
Elijah hoped that he could eat, shower, and get a nap in before his buddy Tony came over. He hoped Tony would distract him from the fact that a day ago, Elijah had given his phone number to a complete stranger he met under ridiculous rom-com like circumstances, and he had yet to hear from him. That was despite Grayson saying he’d text him when he got up to his office. Elijah didn’t want to sound full of himself, but this was definitely new for him. Guys didn’t just not get in contact with him when he gave them a means to.
He took off his brown leather jacket and tossed it onto the sofa, making note to straighten up a bit at some point before the year ended. Ever since his old roommate moved out, Elijah’s small Hell’s Kitchen apartment basically looked just like that… like actual hell. Garfield happened to be borderline obsessive compulsive when it came to organization and keeping things neat, so he was good to have around. Garfield was also a decent person. He kept to himself, kept the small talk to a minimum, and wouldn’t touch Elijah’s food unless offered. Add the fact that he paid his rent on time, and one would say that Garfield was pretty much the perfect roommate. But he apparently drew the line on having Elijah screwing a guy on HIS bed; said guy biting down on HIS pillows while HIS R. Kelly CD played in the background. That hadn’t been the first time Elijah had ended up doing someone in his roommate’s bedroom, honestly. Garfield’s bed was a lot more comfortable. But Garfield didn’t need to know that.
Since then, Elijah decided that it was best to keep the apartment to himself. He had an empty second bedroom now, but who cared? Maybe he’d be serious about his music one day. He could soundproof it and turn it into a neat little studio.
His parents helped cover the second half of the rent for the first couple months, but informed their darling youngest child both verbally and in writing that he’d be on his own after that. It was fine, though. He booked gigs around the city to cover the cost until he eventually found something solid with the restaurant he played at now.
Elijah checked his phone as he walked throughout the apartment merely out of habit – not because he was wondering if Grayson Paul had finally sent him a text. He skimmed through a few messages – one from Fallon asking if she’d just seen him on the news, one from his older sister, Josephina – Josie was most likely texting because she wanted something, so he was looking forward to ignoring that one – another one from Fallon telling him that Freaky Friday was playing on cable, and two more from Tony that said he could be over at 8 and would bring food if requested. There wasn’t a text from Grayson Paul, but Elijah wasn’t checking for one in the first place. He replied to Tony, explaining the places he’d be willing to put his tongue if the kid showed up with blueberry pancakes. Elijah had been craving them all day.
He showered and changed into an Old Navy t-shirt and a dark pair of sweat pants. Instead of eating now, he decided to wait for his playdate later on. Usually, Elijah would either rehearse for his upcoming show to pass the time, or find something on TV Land to watch – Three’s Company was a favorite of his as of late – but he couldn’t deny how much a couple hours of shuteye would help. He dramatically threw himself onto the sofa because that was his usual designated nap spot. The only problem was he could feel at least five different articles of clothing and an array of objects beneath him. Elijah winced at the sharp pinch in his lower back, reaching behind himself to pull whatever it was from underneath him.
Oh. So that’s where that pizza box went.
There was no way he could have a guy over with his already crammed apartment looking like a tornado hit it. Elijah had very little going for himself at this point. His car was a burgundy 1993 Honda Accord with a dent in the passenger side door. The dent originated when his college buddies got drunk and decided to have a ‘Who can push this shopping cart into Elijah’s car with the most force?’ contest. The paint was chipping on it anyway, and the speakers didn’t work. If there was a plus side to owning the junk, he did get a nice work out on his arms every time he had to roll the windows up or down.
His car wasn’t even the worst of his problems, though. There was his bank account, too. His family and close friends thought that he needed to slow down and look for ‘the one’. They thought he wasn’t doing that because he was just another immature 23-year-old guy who was controlled by his hormones. But let’s be real – having a boyfriend and being a romantic individual was expensive. He could spend a few bucks on condoms every now and then and have a pretty decent time, and in the end, that would cost less than dinner and a movie. He had rent and utilities to pay, and he also had to make sure that he fed himself. He wasn’t financially able to treat someone to a good time at this point in his life. His Rulebook helped keep some money in his pockets, too.
Because of these things, he felt that having a clean place was the least he could do.
Elijah dragged a hand down his face as he decided to straighten up a bit. Cleaning was honestly one of the things he hated most. If only he hadn’t messed things up with sweet, sweet Garfield.
He turned the radio on at his stereo system. Z100 was playing a Top-40 song that actually didn�
�t make him want to pull each eyeball out and plug his ears with them. He nodded his head to the beat as he began to clear out the living room.
Half an hour later, he stood in the center of the room proud of what he had accomplished. There was a pile of garbage on one side and a pile of laundry on the other. It also smelled fresh thanks to that fruity air freshener Fallon had given him. Elijah rubbed at the colorful koi fish sleeve on his arm as the vee-jay introduced the next song.
“And here we are, debuting at number 6 this week on the countdown is Felicity Miller with her new single - Cashmere!” The beat began to play in the background as he continued. “Millennium threw her an album release party a week ago here in New York City and it was an absolute blast. Check out the new song, ladies and gents. ‘Cashmere’ - number 6.”
Elijah looked at the stereo with one raised eyebrow as it began to play. The song was mediocre at best, but he could see the appeal. A girl singing something sexy over a beat that made you want to dance. Millennium Records really did know how to cater to the majority.
Millennium Records.
Elijah wondered if Grayson Paul worked closely with this Felicity Miller chick. He also wondered why he was even thinking about Grayson Paul. He wasn’t that big a deal… just another super-hot guy living in New York City.
Don’t look him up, Elijah. Don’t do it.
He wasn’t going to do any more digging on Grayson Paul, because, come on. The whole Googling (if that was even a word) thing was just plain creepy. But seriously. He did want to check out that album release party that Felicity Miller had. Those types of parties were the types that his musician friends should be trying to go to. You know, to network at. He would Google that and see how big a party Millennium Record threw.
Yeah.
It wasn’t like he was going to look Grayson up. It was obvious that he wasn’t interested. If he was, he would’ve heard from him by now. Elijah was just going to look at Millennium’s website. They had a bunch of successful artists, and some of the guys he grew up with who were also musicians would kill to get a foot in the door there. Elijah wasn’t nearly as serious about his music as his friends back in Long Island were, and while Millennium may not have been responsible for making music that appealed to him, they did produce some of the hottest songs out right now. It had been that way for a while.
Elijah pulled out his laptop and took a seat on his newly cleaned sofa. He researched ‘Millennium Records’ first, typing it into the search bar and pressing enter. The official website was the first search result. He read about Harvey Paul in the About section. A moment later, he was looking through photos from the release party of the girl currently screaming/singing on the radio. She was a cute girl. A short, dark bob with a flower tucked behind her ear. Dressed very hipster-like. Perfect teeth.
Several famous people showed up to the release party. Elijah went through the pictures and stopped when he saw Grayson in the background of one on the red carpet. His ass was rather phenomenal in the red slacks he wore.
Screw it.
There was no use in lying to himself. His ‘musician friends’ back home in Long Island all thought he was an asshole. He couldn’t exactly argue. He gave in and searched Grayson’s name again. The first time he did so because he wanted to know if someone with the last name Paul working at Millennium Records happened to be a coincidence, or because there was some sort of relation. While he told Grayson that he simply looked familiar, Elijah put two and two together and figured out who he was. He was right to suspect Grayson was the King’s son, but his research – that’s what we’re calling it – hadn’t gone too in-depth. Now, Elijah was curious. Was Little Paul in a relationship? Was he even gay? There had to be something keeping him from using that number.
Maybe he’d lost his phone again.
Or maybe someone showed him a picture of Elijah’s car and scared him off.
Someone started banging on the door to his apartment so loudly that it made Elijah jump. He got up to answer it, but shortly after, he had second thoughts. What if this person was being chased by a guy in a mask who was wielding a sword that had been dipped in snake venom, and they were seeking out apartment 3B for refuge?
He sat back down.
“Elijah? I hear music! I know you’re in there.”
Whew. It was only his sister. The same sister he hadn’t texted back. Great.
“Open the door, Eli.”
Elijah reached for the stereo remote and turned it off. With a sigh, he got up and put the bag of trash in the corner. Josie knocked again, prompting him to jog over to the door, pulling it open before his annoying and nosy neighbor could stick his head out of apartment 3D.
His older sister was standing there, slightly out of breath and extremely disheveled. She was in her work uniform – the brunette was a waitress at a T.G.I. Friday’s in Times Square. Beside her was her one-year-old daughter, Elijah’s niece and favorite human, Lily. Lily was the picture of composure right now… unlike her mother. The baby stared up at him, bundled up from head to toe with her favorite Minnie Mouse binky in her mouth, while Josie’s hair was a mess and it looked like she hadn’t finished doing her makeup.
“Don’t you know how to reply to texts? You always tell me not to call, and I respect that you could be busy, but you’re never too busy to reply to a text. And why is your apartment clean? Did Garfield move back in?”
Elijah deadpanned at her. “Hello to you, too, Josephina.”
“I need a favor,” she answered.
Elijah already knew what it was. After all, there was a baby bag on her arm and a baby nestled close beside her.
“Josie, I love you and you know that,” he began, taking a glance at his watch in a manner that no doubt was to hint at the fact that he had plans. “But I’m having company over in just over an hour. Special company.” He looked up at her and his eyebrows went up in an obvious gesture for good measure. “Boy company. You can’t just drop her off here whenever and expect me to drop everything, too.”
“Whoever this guy is won’t be here for over an hour? Then that’s perfect!” She took Lily’s hand and led her past Elijah, pushing past her younger brother into the home. “Her dad is going to be here in 30 minutes to take her to his place. My shift starts in five minutes and I’m so freaking late.”
Elijah pushed the long strands out of his face towards the nape of his neck. It was in vain. His hair always curled right back over his left eye. As Lily smiled up at him, the binky fell from her lips and stayed clip to her violet winter coat. He winked back at the little girl, pulling the hat from her head. “Since when has Marvin ever been a man of his word? When’s the last time he’s even seen her?”
“He’ll be here,” Josie insisted, handing over the bag with all her daughter’s things. She pulled a hair tie from around her wrist and pushed her wild hair into a ponytail. “Trust me, if my sitter hadn’t cancelled last minute, and if Mom and Dad lived a bit closer, I wouldn’t have to bother you.”
Elijah accepted the bag and watched his older sister say goodbye to Lily. He honestly felt for her. Josie drifted from one dead-end job to the next, trying to make ends meet for her and her little girl, while Marvin was the type of guy that dads all over the world warned their daughters about. If it were up to Elijah, he would not let his niece leave with the man – if he even bothered to show up.
“Text me if you need anything, okay? And thank you again.”
“Yeah.” Elijah looked at her. “Get out of here.”
She pecked him on the cheek, waved goodbye to the little girl again, and then she was on her way.
Elijah bent down to remove Lily’s coat. Something told him he’d be in need of a cup of coffee and that he’d end up rescheduling his little get-together tonight. “How are you doing, baby girl? Did you miss Uncle Eli?”
She said no without hesitation, and Elijah laughed, shaking his head as his niece smiled in response.
“I’m teaching you some new words.”
Lily
looked down at his hand and grabbed it, taking two tentative steps forward. Elijah smiled. He picked her up and carried everything over to the sofa. This wasn’t exactly how he saw his evening going, but he couldn’t deny that he would trade anything for quality time with Lily. She was pretty much the one good thing he had and she wasn’t even his kid.
Did it annoy him that Josie did this on a semi-regular basis? Yes. Elijah was almost certain that his sister didn’t have enough to pay the sitter and he was the next best thing. If that was the case, he’d rather her be honest about it. He could set aside some time to watch her every now and then.
Lily, who was named after Josie and Elijah’s grandmother, stood up on the sofa. She looked around the apartment and made a noise that was high in pitch. Sounded like she was shocked that it didn’t look like a pig sty.
“I cleaned up in here.”
She looked at him and then back over towards the kitchen.
“I’ll put on some Nick Jr. for you, Lily. If your dad doesn’t show up in 30 minutes, I’m cancelling my plans.” He sighed, shaking his head. “Or, let me see if Fallon can watch you if Uncle Eli does have company.”
She made a babbling noise in response.
Elijah turned his thirty-two inch television set to the appropriate channel and watched as Lily turned to the source of the sound. He reached for his phone and was surprised to see a picture message.
Tony:
Should I wear this under my trench coat?
Elijah’s eyes damn near popped out of his head as he shielded the phone from his niece. “Shit. I mean shoot.”
Tony was wearing a bright green jockstrap . Elijah wasn’t crazy about the color, but he did like the way they showed off Tony’s assets. It was going to kill him to have to cancel.
Something Real Page 5
