“But—” Ty’s face dropped.
“Don’t take what I have to say the wrong way.”
“Just say it, counselor, rip the Band-Aid off,” Ty said shortly, clearly expecting the worst.
“What if I get swallowed up by this—this—lifestyle?” I gestured around the car. “This sounds so stupid considering everything, but shit just got real.
“Shit is real. You’re moving your stuff in this week,” Ty said evenly.
“You have no idea how excited I am.”
“Well then, what are you churning about?” Ty seemed genuinely confused.
“Because, even when I first met you it was important to me to have my own identity, not to be known as only a “girlfriend” of a rock star.”
“You are the girlfriend of a rock star. And you are a kick-ass lawyer. Soon you’ll be my kick-ass CEO.” Ty stroked my hair.
“Okay, but—”
“Z. Jump off the cliff with me.”
“Oh, I’m jumping. I just hope we know what we’re doing.”
Chapter 24
TYSON
After receiving both Carter’s and the Pearson’s encouragement about our living situation, it took about two weeks to fully move Zoey’s stuff over to my house. For so many years, I had been mostly on the road. While my Seattle home was my home base, I hadn’t spent much time here because I was on the road or in LA. Living with Zoey made me want to change all that.
I loved every minute of having her with me. Each day, I was stoked to see her clothes hanging in our expansive walk-in closet, her toothbrush on the sink, and our bathroom shelves full of all sorts of creams, lotions, and perfumes. Her fragrant citrus-and-floral smell permeated our bedroom, and I’d often stop just to breathe it in to make sure I wasn’t living in a dream.
Ever the academic, after she had settled in, Zoey had already researched and was knee-deep in applications to get an online Master of Nonprofit Administration degree. She was convinced that she needed the paper to ensure that no one could ever question her leadership of my foundation. I suspected that she needed to have something to keep her brain occupied. She’d probably complete the course in six months instead of two years.
I spent my days taking care of band business or getting completely lost in my studio writing songs, many of them inspired by my sweet girl. We were leaving in a few days to play the after-party at the Phantom Uprising movie premiere, and then a month later we had a Christmas show in LA. We had been nominated for a Grammy as well as a Golden Globe and Critic’s Choice Award. There was talk the song would be nominated for an Oscar, which was crazy. Enjoying a little home time was a respite because the next couple of months were going to be a whirlwind of LTZ activity that Zoey hadn’t experienced firsthand yet.
This time, I was going to be well-prepared.
Sitting at the mini conference table on the jet, Zane, Conner, and I were trying to pay attention to Jace, who was in the middle of showing all of us the algorithms and other doo-dads that tracked our online SEO and hits and whatnot. My distraction was the small, blonde dynamo who was currently curled up in a seat watching a movie while we had our meeting. She was so fucking beautiful, just wearing black leggings and an oversize LTZ T-shirt, giant Bose noise-canceling headphones around her ears, eyes focused on the screen.
Startled by Jace’s big hand snapping his fingers in front of my face, I refocused my attention him. He was standing with one hand on his hip, looking pissed.
“Fuck, Ty. I’m doing this for her own good, you could at least fucking pay attention,” Jace snarled.
“Shit. I’m sorry, she’s distracting.” I shrugged, opting for the “ah shucks” method to get me out of a tongue-lashing.
“Clearly.” Jace’s narrowed eyes morphed into his all business-mode. “Andrew and Sienna are meeting us at Katherine’s office. I think it’s best if we start with a couple of posts on the band pages before you guys start getting papped. If the media find out, she might get blindsided. We are lucky that she hasn’t been fully outed yet considering the Sirius show and the pap shots in LA.”
“I know, dude. I know.” I’d learned my lesson and wanted to contribute, but the learning curve was steep. I was used to showing up and doing what I was told. But I’d made a promise to Zoey and her dad. Taking care of my butterfly was a top priority and my responsibility.
“Her social media is shit,” Jace grumbled. “I mean, Zoey’s last post is a picture of that other dude, Ty.”
“She doesn’t do social media, she doesn’t even have Twitter.” I knew we had to anticipate everything. Zoey was right, she already was the villainess in our best-selling songs. We had to consider all angles. An old post would cast doubt on her commitment to me if the LTZ fanbase got wind of it. She’d be ripped apart as a cheater if we didn’t pull it down.
Jace put on his reading glasses and typed into his laptop. “Well, she needs to delete that shit or turn it off.”
“Okay, I’ll talk to her.” I looked over at Zoey, who was now dozing in the plush, butter-leather seat, her pink lips partially open and hair cascading all around her face. I hated to disturb her, but it was important that she had some control of her own destiny. That much I had learned over the past couple of months.
“What is the security plan for Zoey?” Zane butted into the conversation. “We’re going to be tied up for hours with rehearsal, soundcheck, and press.”
“Sergey will be with us the whole time. He’s got someone assigned to her too.” I looked over at Zoey. “I’m planning on keeping her close to ease her into this, guys, she doesn’t know how it can get.”
Jace got the subject matter back on track. “I just got an email from Andrew about the proposed strategy. I’ll reserve judgment until we find out what they’re thinking at the meeting, but we need to be prepared to take over ourselves.”
As usual, Jace was twenty steps ahead of me. Not for the first time since I became famous, I was feeling annoyed at all the bullshit. I was also annoyed on Zoey’s behalf at what she was walking into. Longing for the perfectly happy bubble of our daily routine at my house, I sat on the arm of Zoey’s seat and reached over to brush the hair out of her face. Her sleepy eyes opened. Her radiant smile lit up her face, and she leaned into my hand.
“Hi! So, did I tell you I’m on a private jet with my rock star boyfriend?”
“You like it?” I kissed her temple and then her lips.
“Off the chain.”
“Z, it’s time to go over about the plan for the weekend.” I gathered her into my arms for a minute to breathe her orangey body wash and flowery shampoo. “I don’t want to talk about any of this without your input.”
“Good,” Zoey said cheerfully as we walked arm in arm to the table and sat down across from our drummer. “I really appreciate you helping me out Jace. What do I need to know?”
“Zoey, you haven’t personally been through the media ringer yet, and rather than waiting for the media and fans to find out you are Z and take matters into their own hands, Andrew and Sienna from our marketing team want to meet with us when we land,” Jace explained.
“I’m mentally preparing.” Zoey’s entire demeanor deflated.
“Nothing we do will prevent the trolls from fucking with you.” Jace held her gaze. “It’s a lot to handle at first when people start to know who you are.”
“Babe, I want to try and get on top of this, but a lot of what we do will be up to you.” I grabbed her hand. “I want the world to know about you, but only on your terms.”
“No, I get it. I’m going to be recognized now.” Zoey gestured at herself. “What is the angle?”
After Jace thoroughly explained what he thought she should do with her social media and his own opinion on our PR plan, Zoey looked a little shell-shocked. Jace did his best to prepare her for the reality that her face would be known worldwide at some point in the next twenty-four hours because of her notoriety. We all had years to get used to it but being recognized constantly by people you didn’t know could be a
real mind-fuck until you adjusted.
I wondered if putting Zoey through all of this was worth it.
Would she think I was worth it?
“So, I guess I need to change and put on some makeup if my photo is going to be everywhere, otherwise all the trolls are going to convince you that I’m too fat and ugly to be your girlfriend.” Zoey rolled her eyes at me.
“Babe, you’re the most beautiful woman in the world. And the sweetest. I wish I could protect you from the assholes who feel the need to hide behind a computer and trash people.” I put my arms around her and kissed her to a chorus of “woo hoos” from the peanut gallery.
“We’ll protect you, Zoey,” Zane called.
“Thanks, Zane!” Zoey blew a kiss at him.
“Well, are you ready for our bubble to burst?” I exaggerated a pout, pushing my lip out at her. “I promise, I won’t let anything hurt you, Z.”
Zoey smiled up at me and reached up to stroke the stubble on my face. “I trust you.”
Zoey walked past all the guys on her way to the bathroom, grabbing her carry-on and thunking Connor on his head with her palm as she passed him. The big ginger snarled at her good-naturedly, but she just turned and kissed him on the forehead as she sashayed by. God, I loved her sass, she was really getting her mojo back.
“Wipe that cheesy fucking grin off your face, Rainier.” Jace socked me in the arm, his green eyes piercing. “Can you just attempt to play it cool for once? My God, you wear your heart on your sleeve.”
“How can I help it? I love her.” I pulled my hair back into a knot and sat in Zoey’s seat to check the flight path, noting we were touching down in half an hour. “I’m finally getting my happily ever after.”
Ten minutes later, Zoey emerged from the bathroom looking like an absolute Instagram-worthy goddess wearing a simple black tube dress, a fuzzy gray sweater with a faux-fur collar, black, knee-high boots, half a dozen silver chains, her hair tousled like she’d just been properly fucked, smoky black eyeliner and bright red lips. Simple, but stunning. All the guys stared at her open-mouthed.
“What?” She twirled around. “I have access to my own social media expert; don’t you boys underestimate me.”
“Fucking right.” Connor laughed at Jace when he blushed.
“Get over here right now, butterfly, before I have to protect you from all of these asshats.” I reached out for her hand, which she grabbed and promptly sat on my lap.
“Fucking hell!” Connor guffawed as the rest of the guys made various gagging and choking noises, which I ignored. My thoughts were occupied with nuzzling and kissing my girl until the plane touched down, sure that she would outsmart us all.
Chapter 25
ZOEY
The plane ride was the beginning of my official induction into the full-blown LTZ rock star machine, something I’d dreaded since Ty and I had been back together. Riding in a private jet was so crazy, from the special airport to the gorgeous, opulent interior. I had never experienced anything so decadent. All the guys seemed to take it in stride, so I was just trying to act cool and fit in.
I hadn’t realized how much planning went into their travel logistics to ensure their security and privacy. The digital itinerary even had two-finger authentication passwords to protect the band’s hotel location, schedule, and even their aliases for travel. Now I was included in all of the madness.
Alex had warned me that LTZ fangirls would annihilate me by using either slut-shaming tactics or the tried and true “she’s too ugly for him” method. She tried to prepare me for what would happen when the world knew that Ty was back together with Z by showing me some of the brutal things that people had said about Ronni Miller. The stuff was awful and Ronni was a very popular and well-liked actress. Z was hated but also revered. I only hoped that at some point Zoey, the woman who loved Ty with all her heart, would supersede Z.
Before we left, Alex had also given me some sound personal advice. She felt that while it was important that I listen to Jace and the publicists about the band strategy, I shouldn’t lose myself and my own brand as a lawyer and professional, and especially as the woman who not only was Ty’s significant other but would be running Ty’s foundation in a year.
She also did me a solid by helping me pack the right clothes and accessories so I could hold my own on the arm of one of the most photographed men in the world. We had fun putting together outfits and makeup looks, and admittedly it reignited my appreciation of fashion. I was ready for prime time regardless of my lack of high-end designer clothes.
When the plane landed, two black cars were waiting. Zane and Connor took the first one to the hotel. I rode with Jace and Ty and Sergey to the midtown management offices for the meeting with their publicists and Katherine Sauer, LTZ’s manager. My nerves were frazzled as we waited in Katherine’s office overlooking Times Square. Sitting on a gray, tweed couch watching the hustle and bustle down below, Ty kept his arm curled around my shoulder. Jace paced in front of the window, occasionally tapping texts to unknown recipients.
Bursting through the floor-to-ceiling glass door, Andrew and Sienna were chatting animatedly. They crossed the room to Jace, who gave them both halfhearted hugs. Andrew was slight with thinning brown hair and wore a skinny, gray-plaid suit with pants that were pegged at the ankles, and Louboutin loafers without socks. Sienna was supermodel skinny with flawless skin, her nearly black hair was slicked back in a long, sleek, ponytail. She wore a beautifully tailored caramel jumpsuit with gorgeous black Mary-jane Valentino pumps.
“Andrew, this is Zoey. Sienna, you met my girlfriend at the Space Needle.” Ty introduced me without moving from our place on the couch.
Sienna’s gaze on Ty lasted a second longer than I liked, but I tamped down my jealousy and stuck out my hand and gave her a smile. I wasn’t going to fall into a trap of wanting to kill every woman that ogled Ty in front of me, or I’d be in jail within an hour.
Both Andrew and Sienna looked me up and down, assessing. Sharing a secret eyeball communication. They both made me uncomfortable.
“You’re so adorable.” Sienna was condescending as fuck, looking through me as though I were invisible.
“Um, thanks?” I pasted a fake smile on my face, wondering how I’d survive the whirlwind of smarm.
“Katherine’s still stuck in a meeting, but we should start without her.” Andrew took a seat.
Rather than sitting next to me, Sienna sat on the other side of Ty. She familiarly placed her tablet on Ty’s knee and thumbed through some screens, showing him something I couldn’t see. My blood boiled when she reached up to brush a hair out of Ty’s face. I felt better when he flinched and scooted closer to me, wrapping his arm around my shoulders and kissing the side of my head. I placed my hand on his thigh possessively.
My hackles were up again with this chick, this time I was going to pay closer attention.
“We’ve decided that the best way to handle this is to get a cover story about Zoey out there from one of our trusted partners, that way we can control the narrative.” Sienna was undeterred by my staked claim and wasted no time before trying to bulldoze her agenda. “Zoey, I’ll be taking over your social media for you. That way I can post on your behalf. I’ll need your passwords.”
“Wait, I need to know more details, S. You know we’ve already been photographed in LA. My main objective is to make sure the fans know that I love Zoey and I’m not going to stand for any hate toward her.” Ty tried to assert some control, but I was thrown by his nickname for Sienna. He called me Z. He called her S. If he had a nickname like “ladybug” for her, shit was going to get real.
I trusted Ty, but every bone in my body knew that Sienna was not my friend.
“Tie-son,” Andrew drawled. “We’ve already set the wheels in motion. I mean, this is freakin’ Z in the flesh. We have a real opportunity to answer a lot of the questions on her mystery and why she dumped you.”
Ty winced and clutched my hand to his, rubbing my palm with his thumb s
oothingly. Sienna looked back and forth at us and our clasped hands, her face a smooth mask of hidden agenda.
I wanted to speak up, but I didn’t know what to say.
“Guys, that’s not what we’re going to do. We will not exploit Zoey like that. She is LTZ family. Understand that. She’s a person with her own career and her own privacy.” Jace held up his own tablet and showed all of us an admittingly cute picture of me sitting on Ty’s lap, which he had obviously taken on the plane ride. My hands cupped Ty’s face, his arms were wrapped around me and both of us were looking at each other with cheesy grins. “Our strategy is to be honest. I’ll handle Zoey’s Instagram. We’re going to post this picture, let it be, and adjust accordingly depending on what happens.”
“For the record?” I spoke up. “There is more to the story than the songs on Z.”
“Ooh, how interesting.” Sienna rolled her eyes and dismissed me. “We’ve done wonders to rehab your image, Ty. For the sake of the band, you’ll always be the good guy here.”
Ty fiercely defended me and himself in the process. “That was only after my image was deliberately trashed, Sienna. I’ve been a PR puppet for years, we’re done with that. I want the fans to accept Zoey.”
“You know we can’t fully control that, especially because everyone knows that Ty wrote those songs about someone. You.” Andrew glanced over at me and raised his eyebrows. “But, it’s a great opportunity to get your story out there, Zoey.”
I declined to answer, all of this was pissing me off. And scaring me.
“Exactly.” Sienna nodded enthusiastically. “Ty, the empathy you will get from reigniting the relationship with the girl who broke your heart will be amazeballs. Like I said, with one phone call we’ll have any covers we want. People? US? Vanity Fair? Full-features. Maybe even a reality show!”
“Listen to me clearly. I won’t permit anyone from the LTZ team to do anything that remotely hurts or exploits Zoey.” Ty said sternly. “Sienna, your PR plan for us is completely out of the question. After Ronni, I made it clear that I wouldn’t participate in anything remotely contrived again. Don’t fuck with me.”
ENDLESS: A Less Than Zero Rockstar Romance: Book 1: Ty & Zoey Page 22
