Key Change: A Slow Burn Rockstar Romance (Common Threads Book 3)

by Heidi Hutchinson

  “You look amazing today,” he finally declared. “It needs to be said. You’re…” He inhaled deeply and held her gaze. “Hard to resist.”

  “Resist?” she repeated with a curious smile.

  “You must know how I feel about you,” he replied, his voice rough. “It’s not a small thing.”

  Her lips parted as the smile slipped from her face.

  They stared at one another for a long minute.

  “Johnny,” she whispered softly.

  And his whole world hung on that small breath.

  “I came to talk business,” she said after a beat.

  He nodded. Obviously, that had been her purpose, but he wasn’t going to play coy with her either. Never would she be able to look at him and say she didn’t know how he felt about her.

  “I want to be your producing partner. But I don’t just want to work here for the helluva it. I want to buy in.” She took a seat on the stool by the soundboard. “I want to own a percentage. I’ll need to see your profit and loss statements, and then we can discuss what’s fair and what you want from me.”

  One side of his mouth ticked up and he crossed his arms over his chest. “Really. You want in on this dump, huh? Is that all?”

  She grinned and it hit him right in the chest.

  “I have a list of demands, but let’s just work on one at a time.”

  He arched a curious eyebrow.

  “What about living in ambiguity?”

  She barked a laugh. “I think you mean anonymity.”

  “Sure.” He shrugged.

  “I think it can be managed. I have a meeting with my landlord later to work out the details.”

  “You’re serious?” he asked, feeling something shift in his chest. He was pretty sure it was his hope trying to get to the front of all other emotions.

  Her happy expression faded and she swallowed.

  “If you’re comfortable with it.”

  He frowned, trying to figure out why he wouldn’t be comfortable with it. This was what he’d been wanting.

  “Johnny, I’m a lot of things. But I’m not someone who can offer you a peaceful life. There’s always going to be something just around the corner. I have no way of predicting who or what might come crashing through the door. I don’t know if that’s a future you’d want—”

  “It is,” Johnny stopped her.

  “It might be really chaotic at times,” she told him what he already knew.

  “Hannah Lee,” he said earnestly. “You and me? We make our own peace. Together.”

  She nodded, her eyes getting bright. He must’ve said the right thing.

  “I will give you my best,” she promised.

  His heart broke at that. Did she really not know how much that was?

  “That’s more than you realize.”

  She took a deep breath and drummed her fingers lightly on her thighs.

  “We’re still talking about working together, right?” she asked hesitantly.

  He nodded, a faint smile tugging at his lips. “Obviously.”

  She pressed her lips together and his smile grew.

  Clearing her throat, she stood. “I have another meeting to get to, then.” She slid her hands into her back pockets. “If we have an agreement, that is.”

  “I’ll get the P&Ls together. Maybe we can discuss the details soon?” He tilted his head. “In a more private location?”

  She nodded, but her gaze was on his mouth.

  “Call me later?” she asked, still staring.

  “Is there something else you want to talk about?” he asked, moving a step closer.

  Her eyes bounced up to his and she blushed. “Uhh, I don’t think so.”

  He took another step, watching as her pupils dilated. “You sure? You look like you have something important on your mind.”

  “I was remembering something is all.” She spoke quietly, her voice husky.

  Was she thinking of the time they’d kissed in the library and how it had set his soul on fire? Because he thought about it constantly.

  “Stop looking at my mouth,” he commanded, taking another step closer.

  “I’m not looking at your mouth,” she lied, voice dropping to a velvety rasp.

  They were less than six inches apart now.

  He slid his right hand under the heavy fall of her hair and ran his thumb along her jawline. He settled his left hand lightly on her hip and pulled her a fraction closer.

  She tipped her head back and parted her lips, her eyes on his.

  He glanced at her mouth and back to her eyes. “I like your sweater,” he whispered, millimeters from her lips. He flexed his fingers against the soft fabric. The white with the sky-blue underneath made her eyes look like twin blue flames.

  “I like your everything,” she whispered back.

  A rumble sounded from deep in Johnny’s chest.

  He wasn’t sure if he made the noise or if his heart spoke for him. But either way, it was hard to miss. Her eyes widened and those fiery blue irises looked right through him.

  He kissed her slowly, first her bottom lip, then her top. Taking turns with each of them. Her lips were soft. Otherworldly. He had thought he’d romanticized their kiss in the library, but no. This couldn’t be exaggerated. It couldn’t even be described.

  It had to be experienced.

  The way her mouth responded to his, with pressure and pause. Taking, giving, tasting, enjoying.

  Another rumble came from his chest and he spread his fingers over the back of her scalp, his hand at her ribs splayed wide. He needed to touch as much of her as possible.

  Her tongue slid into his mouth and he bent her backward, pressing their bodies together. She arched into him, her fingers in his hair. Her nails gently scraped his scalp, and the sensation traveled down his spine.

  He broke away from her mouth and stared down at her bright eyes and flushed cheeks.

  “Maybe we can talk about that later?” he asked.

  His body screamed at him to keep going, to spread her out on the leather sofa and explore every delicate inch of her body.

  It had been a long time since he’d felt so overwhelmed by desire. He was a grown man, not a hapless teenager, helpless to hormones and inexperience.

  But touching Hannah was an adventure all its own.

  “Sure,” she replied breathlessly. “We can talk about that later.”

  He displayed his appreciation by nipping the soft column of her throat with his teeth. She sucked a breath, and her body jolted in his arms.

  He pulled her close to his chest and righted both of them. She rested her cheek on his pectorals, and he knew she was listening to his heart come back to a decent rate.

  It didn’t embarrass him. She should know what she did to him.

  After a minute, she stepped back and tucked her hair behind her ears.

  “So…you’ll call me later?” she asked, sounding less certain than he expected.

  “Oh, yeah,” he replied with a cocky smirk.

  She rolled her eyes, but it was just an act. Then she gathered her coat and left.

  And Johnny couldn’t wipe the grin off his face for the rest of the day.

  HANNAH

  If Quinn and Alex were surprised that she was there before them, they didn’t show it.

  And truthfully, Hannah needed the extra minute alone.

  Because this was a big fucking deal.

  And while she was positive these were the next steps to take, it was terrifying.

  But she’d learned these past years of running from ghosts and building the life she wanted, the fear was temporary.

  She had shown up for herself again and again. She’d proven to herself that she could do the important work.

  But it wasn’t about her anymore.

  And it was that thought that had her excited for the next stage.

  “Remember when I first came to you and you suggested a decoy?”

  Quinn’s eyes sharpened on her. “Are you ready to co
nsider the original plan I drew up for you?”

  Alex took his customary seat on the lone stool in the freight elevator and opened his laptop.

  “How certain are you that it would really work?” She had to ask. In the two years of these clandestine meetings with these two weirdos, they had never lied to her.

  Or betrayed her.

  “I’m very certain,” Quinn replied smoothly. “May I ask what changed your mind?”

  Johnny’s face entered her thoughts and Hannah smiled.

  “Mr. Torres?” Quinn guessed.

  Hannah glanced up at his slightly amused tone.

  “Am I being stupid?” she asked him.

  Asking Quinn this question was different than asking her therapist. Her therapist would try to be objective and she’d never call anyone stupid.

  Hannah knew Quinn wouldn’t hesitate to call an idiot out.

  “I think…” Quinn took a thoughtful breath. “Sometimes we find someone. Or they find us. And there is a rescuing on both ends. And when that happens, people like us”—he dipped his head at Hannah—“will do what we must in order to protect those we love.”

  That’s what this was all about, wasn’t it?

  Johnny and Shawn and the rest of their family had restored her faith in love.

  And hope.

  And loyalty.

  “So, this decoy…” Hannah’s palms began to itch and she squeezed them into fists.

  Alex turned the laptop around, and a photo of a woman who looked nearly identical to Hannah appeared on screen. She was stepping into the back of a limo, her sunglasses aimed directly at the camera.

  “Oh, wow,” she breathed. “Who is she?”

  “I feel it would be best if you never had contact with her. And I chose her for this assignment myself. She would be a member of your full-time security team. Which you will have from now on.”

  Hannah cringed. She had wanted Piper to have as normal of a childhood as possible.

  “My people are incredibly discreet. It sounds immense, but all we’re talking about is a decoy and an undercover teacher at Piper’s school. No one will even know. Not even Piper.”

  That sounded better than being followed around by armed guards.

  “There’s also the matter of Johnny’s family.” Hannah coughed a short laugh. “They, uh, they’ve known who I am the entire time.”

  She waited for that information to sink in.

  Within seconds, Alex was typing furiously.

  “And I want to buy into Johnny’s studio. I want to stay here and make music and live my life…and be happy.” Declaring her desires out loud lifted a weight from her chest. “But I need to know they’ll be safe while I do that. Not just Piper. Johnny, Shawn, and everyone else.”

  Quinn’s lips twitched. “I think we can manage that.”

  “You’re absolutely sure your people can be counted on? I don’t have a great history of people having my back. Even when I paid them to.”

  Quinn exchanged a look with Alex, who shrugged. He narrowed his cool gaze at Hannah. “Who was disloyal? Your manager?” he asked sharply.

  What was it with this guy? Was he part mind reader, part spy, part asshole? A trifecta of dickery?

  “He was just the tip of the iceberg,” Hannah admitted.

  Alex was still typing.

  Quinn exhaled through his nose.

  “Your decoy is ready. She’ll be in LA by the end of the day, and the new narrative begins,” Alex declared, sounding satisfied.

  “That fast, huh?”

  “I’ve had this plan in place for nearly two years,” Quinn said, sounding only the slightest bit irritated with her. “It’s going to work.”

  Hannah felt his declaration settle in her bones.

  “I believe you.”

  Chapter Twenty-One

  Brightest Morning Star

  HANNAH

  When the window to the concessions opened, there was already a long line of women waiting.

  Hannah spotted Johnny instantly and her heart fluttered.

  He was in another Henley today. Black. Damn, he looked good in a Henley. It hugged his muscular shoulders and lean torso, tapering into a tight waist. His denim-clad lower half couldn’t be seen from where she was sitting, but she knew what it looked like. His jeans were probably the same soft, well broken in ones he always wore. The left back pocket more faded than the right because it was where he kept his wallet.

  “Doesn’t it bother you that those women drool over him?” Sarahi asked, obviously seeing where Hannah’s attention was pointed.

  Hannah hummed. “No. He’s very attractive. It’s the closest most of them will ever get to that kind of gorgeous. Let them look.”

  It wasn’t until she felt Sarahi’s stare on the side of her face that she realized what she’d said out loud.

  If Sarahi had been fishing for information on what Hannah felt for Johnny, that had been pretty clear.

  Sarahi snorted. “If they were looking at my husband that way, I’d have to cut them.”

  Something about the way she’d said that with her beautiful accent and so matter-of-fact had Hannah laughing.

  “Well…” Hannah sighed as her laughter settled. “I guess I’m not a jealous person. Protective, yes. But not possessive.”

  Sarahi humphed.

  Hannah knew that her casual remarks to Johnny’s cousin implied they were more together than they had established. At least, formally.

  The rest of their week had moved quickly.

  Hannah had spent every day in the studio with Johnny. Most of the time they were discussing business plans, minority ownership, and expansion.

  They also took breaks to make out sometimes.

  And when Johnny hinted at wanting to spend some more quality time together, sans the interruptions from Nikki and the other two engineers, Hannah reminded him that she had a twelve-year-old to think about.

  That was usually the bucket of cold water they both needed.

  But she did want to speak to him alone. She hadn’t quite found the right way to tell him about her new security plan orchestrated by Quinn and Alex.

  Which seemed to be working very well.

  Hannah and Piper had Googled Ashton James last night and already the decoy had made splashy appearances in key locations around Hollywood. The tabloids were eating it up.

  “Ana asked if Piper could spend the night tonight,” Sarahi broke into Hannah’s thoughts. “She’s not allowed to have slumber parties anymore after the last debacle. But I said I would make an exception for Piper since she’s family.”

  Hannah’s heart squeezed.

  “Really?” Hannah asked.

  Sarahi nodded, a secret smile on her lips. “Maybe you can make plans with someone?”

  That wasn’t subtle.

  “I think that’s an excellent idea,” Hannah replied, her stomach fluttering.

  Her eyes went back to the hot guy working the counter.

  She watched Johnny be kind and patient with every person in line. Behind him, Shawn hustled, filling orders.

  Okay, maybe she felt a little possessive.

  Because they felt like they were hers.

  Her people, her little family.

  When had that happened?

  She stood and made her way down the bleachers. Johnny spotted her coming around the court and his gaze felt heavy on her.

  He didn’t look away, even as he finished an order and handed someone their change.

  She got in line, fine with waiting her turn.

  The line moved forward and she flashed him a smile. His eyes watched her mouth and then bounced up to her eyes. His expression open.

  “What can I get for you, beautiful?” he asked, the endearment rolling off his tongue easily.

  The woman who’d been in the line before her snapped her head over quickly and scanned Hannah up and down.

  Hannah ignored her. She put her elbows on the counter and leaned toward Johnny. He mirrored her actions, his lips tip
ped up on the sides. Their faces were only inches away from each other.

  “Piper is going to a slumber party tonight and I was wondering if you had plans for dinner?

  His eyebrows lifted in interest. “Mmm, are you making something delicious?”

  She tilted her head to the side with a flirty smile. “Always.”

  His smile grew and his gaze dropped to her mouth, her shoulders, her chest, before flicking back up. “What time is good for you?”

  Any time. Now. A minute from now. Just be in my space again.

  But instead she said, “Five-ish.”

  He reached for a strand of hair near her face, wrapped it lightly around his finger, and gave it a gentle tug. It may as well have been connected to her heart because that’s where she felt the pull. “It’s a date.”

  “Are you and Johnny going to get married?”

  “What?” Hannah dropped her straight iron and almost burned her neck.

  Piper stuck her head in the bathroom.

  “Why would you ask that?”

  “Because you loooove him,” Piper said teasingly.

  Hannah snorted but didn’t argue.

  “Marriage isn’t always the best choice for everyone, pipsqueak.”

  “Ana’s mom said that if Johnny didn’t marry you, then he was a moron who didn’t deserve to have offspring.”

  Hannah nearly choked. That sounded like Sarahi.

  “We haven’t discussed it,” she said around her laughter.

  “You have a date tonight, right?” Piper came into Hannah’s bathroom and sat on the ledge of the bathtub. “Just ask him if he wants to get married.” The tween shrugged. Like marriage was akin to asking someone if they liked pink lemonade.

  “I do have a date tonight,” Hannah confirmed, turning off the flat iron. She’d fixed her hair and done a very subtle smokey eye. She couldn’t remember the last time she’d been on a date. Not that that said much, considering her functional blackouts.

  But she was going to remember this one.

  The knock on the door signaled that Damon was there to take Piper to Ana’s.

  “Do you have all your stuff?” Hannah asked, following Piper to the door.

  “Yes. I even double-checked.”