he’d ever met. Although his list of acquaintances was not long, Jody Lassiter stood out.
The radio was playing, and she thumbed her finger over the buttons until she found a morning talk show. The landscape switched from big city to sprawling suburbs that continued for miles and miles. There were intermittent spots that seemed to let the land breathe before a series of more housing tracts, buildings, and trees replaced them. So many trees.
After awhile, the trees and open pastures outnumbered the houses they saw along the freeway. Finally, she exited the freeway without a word to him.
They drove another fifteen minutes past farm land mostly, with businesses and houses interspersed. Another small town appeared in the rearview mirror and out on the highway they went. Pretty. But again, another wall of trees surrounded him, and only the tips of the blue mountains were visible above the tops of all the trees.
“This isn’t what I expected.”
“They live in the middle of nowhere. Karlee grew up here.”
“Karlee?”
She sighed and rolled her eyes without a glance his way. “Remember? Karlee? My cousin? I talked about her. Karlee is Rob’s stepdaughter and my cousin and she’s also my partner in running Zenith’s Promise. She’s engaged to Xavier Moon.”
“Oh? That’s a lot of musicians.”
“Yes. Oddly enough. Karlee must have a thing for them, being raised by one.”
She shuddered.
“You don’t approve?”
“I love Rob and Xavier has become tolerable to me, although I detested him initially. He was a conniving, stereotypical worm who used and abused people to get what he thought he deserved. I never wanted the burden of a musician’s ego. Anyway, Zenith has a private recording studio on their land. It’s a freaking compound. Guards and security, cameras and razor wire fencing. So you’d better behave.”
He almost smiled. She had his number.
They pulled off onto a side road with crunchy gravel, then turned again, and stopped before a heavy, elaborate gate that swung open. She stopped the car and parked when they reached a separate, one-story, impressive building.
He followed her silently. His mind went numb. He did not care. Whatever. This would simply be a good story he could tell when he inevitably returned to serving up beer and nuts to the local auto workers back home. Yep. Just a good story. No real worries. He didn’t aspire to any of this. Or them. No, hell no. Fuck no. He didn’t need this shit. He just lived and was.
Then something fluttered in his stomach and acid burnt his tongue.
They entered a building and voices could be heard. The small alcove was tasteful, lit with hidden lights and dark maroon paint. Soothing, yet dramatic. They came into a large, open room with huge windows, a tall, slanted ceiling, and a big, open space with hardwood floors. Couches lined one side, and musical instruments took up another, while a control board with a two-way window enclosed the recording part. The set of drums was elevated and damn. They were a brand Ross never even touched before but often drooled over. He couldn’t own a set like that, but he knew his stuff.
Rob Williams. Spencer Mattox. There they both were in the flesh.
And Xavier Moon? His stage name was Moon, but his real name was Montgomery.
They all looked up when they heard Jody calling out casually, easily and loudly, “Hello?”
“Oh, hey, Jody. Glad you made it. Come in,” Rob replied. Spencer was off to his left and he lifted his dark gaze towards them.
“Hey, Uncle Rob, Spencer… Xavier.” She stepped right up to them. “Your fiancée wasn’t feeling well this morning. You might give her a call.”
He nodded. “I already talked to her. She thinks she’s getting a cold.”
“Sucks.” Jody turned, clearing her throat, lifting her shoulders and stretching her neck. She was getting down to business and Ross stood back. Putting his hands into his jean pockets, he wanted to appear uninterested, but his hands sweated and his eye twitched.
They were super famous.
He didn’t expect to be affected by their fame. But here he was. In his entire life, he never met anyone even close to famous. Not even a reporter for the local newspaper for crap’s sake. Yet now he stood before three famous musicians. Famous for doing the very thing he might consider doing if he could.
Jody turned halfway towards him. Waving her hand, she said, “Everyone, this is Ross Karahan, and he’s a drummer. Newest arrival to Zenith’s Promise. Ross, you might have heard of them, but allow me to introduce you