by Kole, Lana
Desi glanced between the two of them. “These guys? Never seen ‘em a day in my life.”
“Well, besides while we were waiting in the hallway together,” Adra added on.
“Wait…” Lyric said, narrowing her gaze on Nohen. “If you didn’t know each other before the hallway… that implies you were already here. In the hotel. And you were still late?” she inquired.
Nohen’s cheeks colored a dusty rose against his olive skin. “Yeah. I had to answer my phone, and it only took a second, but by the time I turned back around, the hallway was empty and the doors were closing. I’m sorry… again.”
He offered a soft smile, and Lyric read the concern in his gaze. How was she supposed to tell that face no?
She settled for, “No biggie. It happens,” and shrugged. “So, why’d you three choose to work together?”
Adra shrugged. “Couldn’t really tell you. Though I guess they’re the only ones who didn’t look scared when I looked at them.”
Lyric frowned. “What do you mean?”
Clearing his throat, Adra glanced around the room. “I’m… ah, I’m the only alpha here.”
Lyric sat straight up in her chair and turned her head, her gaze bouncing around the room. “What? No you’re not. There’s…”
Beta. Beta. Beta… Oh. The other alpha’s background check hadn’t come back clean.
Everyone else in the room was a beta. Well, except for her.
“Oh my god, I didn’t even realize,” she admitted.
Oops?
“It’s no big deal. I guess maybe they just see me as a threat or something? I try not to think about it.”
But despite his words, his brows dipped low, and he shook his head before turning his attention to the music.
“And they’re the only ones who even gave me a second glance,” Desi added.
“Why?”
She turned a droll look her way and held up her sticks. “Guys tend not to take girl drummers that seriously.”
Lyric felt her cheeks heat with annoyance. It wasn’t just drummers. Women in the industry ran into issues from all sides. “Isn’t it so frustrating?” she whispered.
“Don’t get me started,” Desi warned, and Lyric’s chest warmed. It was nice for someone to validate her frustrations.
“We can trade horror stories another day,” Lyric offered.
“I’d like that,” Desi agreed with a hesitant smile.
Why is this so easy?
She could have spent all day in their little corner, but shortly, she excused herself to continue trekking around the room. Andi met her halfway and pulled her to the side.
“So, what do you think so far?”
“I think… I feel like this is too easy.”
Andi arched a brow at that. “Really? After all this anxiety you’ve been having, you make a decision within two hours?”
“Well, it’s not final. But the group in the corner stands out to me. I don’t know why, but I like them.”
“Sounds good to me. So we’ve got drums, keyboard, and lead guitar. All you need is a…”
“Bassist,” Lyric said, and glanced around the group again.
The two bassists in the room were polite, but that’s about as far as it went. Sure, they’d passed the background checks and were talented enough to make it to the second round… but something made her stop short of making a decision between the two.
So now what?
That’s the question.
With a growl, Emerson slammed the car door. Fuck.
Outside the hotel, he stared up at the shiny name. His cheap boots felt out of place against the cobblestone entry, and he tried not to fidget. Instead, he stuck his hands inside his pockets and rehearsed his apology for the two thousandth time.
I’m sorry I called you a spoiled omega.
See? Easy.
Thinking the words was easy. He just hoped he could get his lips to form them with as much enthusiasm.
It was just… it had rubbed him the wrong damned way when she’d asked him out of the blue if he’d like a job. Like he hadn’t just got done putting himself through almost an hour of hell under the stage lights, putting two hundred percent of himself into a god damned set.
Why had she assumed he would be able to drop everything and go on tour? After he’d just finished performing?
I mean… I can. But why did she assume it?
It was like a slap in the face, especially since she’d been scouted at the very same show they’d played.
No. Forget it. That was years ago.
Steeling himself with a deep breath, he surrounded himself with an air of confidence he tried to convince himself to feel. But it was all a facade as he entered the too fancy hotel and followed the signs to the hotel conference hall.
Of course Lyric Ceran would choose the fanciest hotel in Uptown to host the second round of her stupid auditions.
An audition you’re crawling back to beg for.
The reminder made a scowl buckle his brows, and he forcibly smoothed his expression as he walked the halls. Eventually, the sounds of music reached him, and Emerson followed the notes drifting on the air until he found a pair of closed doors. From inside, the impressive playing of a keyboard could be heard, and despite his annoyance with the situation, he smiled.
Damn. Odd could really play those keys.
He waited, hand paused on the door handle, and… he hesitated. Odd really deserved his chance on stage for once, did Emerson dare fuck that up for him?
Before he had a chance to really decide, a shout from the end of the hallway caught his attention.
“Hey! What are you doing here?” a large man asked, a black security shirt pasted across his chest.
In a panic, and before the guard could reach him, Emerson threw the door open, slid inside, and closed it behind him before he threw the lock.
Pounding on the other side immediately followed, and he winced as the music came to a grinding halt.
Standing up straight, he ran a hand through his uncooperative curls and turned to face the room.
His roommate’s familiar face stared at him, concern and surprise etched in the dip of his brows. Several other people he didn’t know stood around, instruments in hand, but he skipped over all of them until he landed on… Lyric.
He was met with a scowling face, and he smoothed his expression out, resisting the urge to smooth his shirt down along with it.
“Hey there,” he said lamely.
“What are you doing here?” she asked. Quickly, she turned to Andi, but before she could even get another word out, Andi lifted her hands innocently.
“Don’t look at me! I didn’t contact him.” She cut a scathing glare in his direction. “Figured he wasn’t worth it after he was such an ass.”
Lyric nodded and turned back to him. “Well?”
Right. Apology time.
He took a few steps forward before he realized Lyric had tensed up, and he immediately stopped. “I wanted to… apologize. For the way I spoke to you after my set.”
Crossing her arms, she arched a single brow at him. Her long hair was tossed up in a bun, several strands hanging down to tickle her cheeks. It didn’t lessen her ferocity one bit.
“I’m sorry I called you a spoiled omega,” he continued.
A few gasps sounded around the room, and a single scoff came from a tiny female clutching two drumsticks like weapons.
With a wince, he asked, “Can I… talk to you? Without an audience?”
Lyric seemed to realize at the same moment he did that the others were standing around with rapt attention on the situation. Clearing her throat, she motioned for him and Andi to follow, and, hesitantly, he began his trek.
She led them to the other side of the conference hall, which, in a room of that size, made sure the others wouldn’t overhear them. It wasn’t until she stopped with her back to the wall, a confused expression coloring her face, that he realized footsteps sounded behind him.
He turne
d to find Odd and almost groaned out loud.
“Why are you here, Adra?” Lyric asked him.
His dark cheeks blushed as he glanced from Lyric to Emerson. “I, uh… Emerson is my roommate. That’s how he knew where to come.”
Lyric’s eyebrows inched up as she glanced between the two of them. “Uh… okay. That still doesn’t explain why he’s here.”
He took a deep breath. “I wanted to apologize… and say that if you’re still interested, I’d like to audition.”
Surprise colored her features, and she turned the expression to Andi. They seemed to have an entire conversation without saying a single word, and it made him want to smile. Which was why he determinedly kept his lips in a neutral line.
“That’s… I mean, okay, I guess. Thanks for the apology,” she said. “But I’ve…” She glanced over his shoulder and nibbled on her bottom lip in indecision as she looked to Andi again. “I’ve already got a guitarist.”
Emerson glanced over his shoulder in the direction of her gaze, finding a smaller guy—smaller by his own proportions, at least—in tight jeans, a printed button-up, and a bow tie. He was clutching a guitar, his fingers strumming absently as he stared off into space. The melody he played was intricate and seemingly effortless, and internally, he approved of her decision.
Well, I tried.
“You don’t have a bassist,” Odd blurted.
Emerson cranked his head back around and glanced from him to her and back again.
I can play bass, he thought at the same time Lyric asked, “You can play bass?”
Annoyance flashed over her features, and though he wanted to, he refrained from reading too much into it.
“I can. I actually prefer it.”
His admission seemed to confuse her. “But you seemed… well, so confident on stage. Nohen is the lead guitarist, and I’m not changing my mind.” She hesitated before continuing, “Would you be comfortable playing bass?”
Being in the background, she refrained from saying, but they all thought it.
“I don’t like being the center of attention,” he admitted.
Lyric arched a brow at that, and he swore he could read her mind just then. Yes, he’d played an entire set by himself. Yes, he’d burst into the room rather dramatically. He’d played the same show she had to try and get scouted.
None of that was by choice, necessarily.
“I had bills to pay, and I needed a gig,” he bit out. “If I have to, I can. But it doesn’t mean I like it.”
Lyric crossed her arms, challenging him. “So you’d be content playing bass on tour? Can you get along with other alphas?”
“Well, Odd’s my roommate, and he’s an alpha. So I’d say yes.”
“Oh, yeah,” she said, and glanced to Adra. “About that…”
Andi stepped forward, who’d been staring intently as he and Lyric went back and forth. “It’s a major violation of her safety to leak a location like that. What if fans had gotten ahold of it? Stormed the hotel? You put her in danger by sharing what was supposed to be confidential.”
He visibly paled, and Emerson didn’t think he’d ever seen him look so ashamed. Emerson wanted to open his mouth and admit he’d stolen the info from his roommate’s computer, but the big lump began apologizing.
“I’m so sorry. I completely understand if you wish to dismiss me from the auditions. It was completely out of line.”
“No,” Emerson growled, speaking before he glanced at his roommate before glaring at Andi and Lyric. “You cannot dismiss him. You’re in a public fucking place. For all you know, I could’ve been passing by, saw you enter, and paid the doorman off to let me in.”
Lyric narrowed her eyes. “Did you?”
Like I could afford that.
“Well, no. But I could have. Just—listen, I’ll fuck off, I’ll leave. But he’s worked hard as hell to get to where he’s at, and he needs this opportunity. Don’t toss him out of here just because you don’t like me.”
If possible, her eyes narrowed even more.
“Do you just take me for some petty bitch?” she asked, lips curling up in a sneer. She waved her hand through the air before he could answer, and her features softened as she looked to Adra. “It doesn’t matter.” Another pause as she glanced between them. “Despite sharing the location, which is a huge violation of security…” He winced again, and Emerson held his breath. “I don’t want to dismiss you,” she said with a sigh.
She glanced at Andi, whose bitch face was out in full force, and Lyric winced. Her lips parted again, but Andi threw her arms up in the air before crossing them. “Oh, fuck right off. You know as well as I do that it’s your band. If you think he’s a good fit, then he’s a good fit. But…” She marched up to Adra and glared. It was almost comical how he, a six foot tall alpha, seemed to shrink under the intense stare of her beta agent. Emerson was glad he wasn’t the one under her scrutiny. “If you cause any other security issues, I will kick your ass out so fast you won’t be able to tell which exit you came from. Do not fuck with my artist or her safety.”
He nodded frantically, the whites of his eyes wide and bright as he lifted his hands in surrender. “Yes, ma’am.”
“And as for you?” Andi growled, and he backed up a step.
Damn, she was scary.
“Don’t show your ass. If she decides to let you on tour after your little performance, you better be fucking grateful and treat her like a goddess. If I hear one complaint from her, you’re gone.”
He made like Adra and nodded. “Yes, ma’am.”
When she finally backed off, a smile curled her lips and she nodded to Lyric. “Okay, you can take it from here.”
Emerson turned his gaze to the tiny blonde and tried not to reveal how hopeful he was.
Adra had been the one to tell him what a ‘fudging idiot’ he was for turning down Lyric’s offer in the club. And once he’d processed his initial reaction and looked at his pile of bills again… he’d realized he was right.
“I can audition if you’d like,” he blurted.
Please tell me I haven’t fucked this up for the both of us.
As the day had worn on, and Lyric had watched the applicants interact with each other, it had made her decision both easier and more difficult at the same time.
The vision she’d had a few days ago was still clear in her mind. Adra on keys, Desi drumming, Nohen beside her with his guitar. But even though she tried her hardest to connect with the bassists in attendance, she couldn’t envision herself inviting them on tour.
So it was both a blessing and a curse that Emerson showed up right when she needed him most. And he could play bass? She almost resented him. Lyric studied him.
“I can audition if you’d like,” he said.
He seemed sincere, if a little embarrassed. Was he ashamed at the idea of auditioning? Did he think himself so talented?
Tired of arguing, Lyric let it go for the time being and waved her hand in the air. “Go grab an instrument. Show me what you can do.”
Emerson crossed the room, shoulders tense under the gazes of the others, and Lyric followed tentatively as he slung a strap over his neck.
“We’ve had a last minute addition,” Lyric announced. “Continue as you were.”
Curious gazes lingered, but for the most part, everyone went back to practicing as far as she knew.
Her attention was locked on Emerson, on the way his fingers danced over the strings and played with the same ease he’d shown on stage during his own set. Lyric knew if he was even half as talented on bass as he was with that acoustic guitar, she’d have her bassist.
He delivered and then some.
After his audition ended, he approached cautiously, long hair tucked behind each ear. She wanted to slide her fingers along his temples and let it free.
Clearing her throat as she approached, she gave him a single nod. “I’ll have Andi send the contract to your agent. Have legal counsel look over it if you’d like.”
&
nbsp; A tic winked to life in his jaw, but he nodded. “Got it. Contact info is in the application,” he said, and pulled a packet of papers from his back pocket.
She flipped through the papers, finding the application completed and the interview consent form already signed.
Cocky little guy, isn’t he?
“Anything else?” he asked, and she glanced up at him. Like, way up. He was taller than she remembered.
Okay, maybe not so little.
Lyric shook her head.
“Not that I can think of right now.”
The remaining weight threatened to slide off her shoulders—and all of a sudden, she saw it.
He would fit perfectly in the empty space on the stage in her mind. She imagined him as he’d been that night on stage, with his wide brimmed hat. Now that she knew he didn’t like to be the center of attention, she saw the little hints of it in his performance. The short introduction, the sparse eye contact with the crowd. The hat used to hide his eyes from their gazes.
In her mind, as she stood center stage, she could feel him to her left. He’d thrum the bassline, and all together, they’d make a perfect band.
Lyric’s lips twitched before she broke out into a full smile. “Well, alright then. I’ve made my decision.”
No one clapped or cheered like she’d imagined, but she felt lighter all the same. She officially had a touring band.
A throat clearing sounded behind her, and her excitement was dampened.
Right.
She had to tell them her decision now. And let some of them down. Part of her knew she could ask Andi to dismiss the others, but Lyric was a grown up. She was a chart topping musician, and she could pick her own damned band.
Leaving their group behind, she walked to the center of the room and got the attention of the applicants who’d been invited for the second round.
She called out a list of names that she’d memorized, and they each stepped forward…including both bassists.
“Thank you all so much for coming. I appreciate your interest in joining me on tour, and while each of you are uniquely talented, I’ve made a decision, and unfortunately, I cannot extend the invitation to you.”
