Strings Attached, page 9
She knew that Geena’s studies came first, and she wouldn’t stick around forever. Once she had her bachelor’s, she could write her own ticket and go to work for a company that could pay her what she was worth. And we’ll probably have to hire two people to replace her because what are the chances I can find a new assistant manager who can double as a drum teacher?
“Good job today keeping an eye on things for me. I appreciate it.” She unlocked her truck.
“Anytime. You know you can count on me.”
“Have a good night, Geena.”
“You too.” Geena sank into her own car. “Hey, Drew?”
“What?”
Geena’s expression was gentle. “Even if Nikki is just looking for something casual, there’s no reason why you can’t do the same, you know.” She smiled. “That way, when she takes off on tour again, it won’t break your heart. You hear what I’m sayin’, girlfriend?”
Except Drew didn’t do casual. Not with a local yokel, and most certainly not with someone in show business.
Even if it was someone as gorgeous and charming as Nikki.
Chapter Thirteen
Nikki didn’t know what to do with herself. It had been so long since she’d had no commitments, she was restless. Not to mention all the pent-up sexual energy she had and no one to relieve it for her. She couldn’t hook up with Randi anymore, and picking up someone at a bar on a Tuesday afternoon held no appeal whatsoever. She didn’t want them anyway, today or any other day. And for once, she didn’t even want Jaymi. She wanted Drew.
Trouble was, she wasn’t sure if Drew wanted her. She’d definitely felt a vibe there, but something was holding Drew back. Maybe I’m reading too much into that vibe. I’m only seeing what I want to see, not something that’s actually there. Vibe or no vibe, Drew had made it clear she didn’t want to see her again.
Drew’s mood had turned as soon as she’d said something about her fame. If her reservations had to do with her profession, why were those objections so strong? Had word really gone that widespread about her one-nighters with strangers? If that was her reputation, how the hell was she supposed to change it? Did she have to become celibate for some crazy length of time or something? Make a public announcement?
She chuckled. As if people really cared about her promiscuity. People that matter would care. And she wanted Drew to be someone who mattered. If Drew was aware of her old habits, she’d have good reason to keep her distance.
She needed to get her mind off Drew and all the other crazy feelings that were shocking her system. Do something mundane. That ought to help. She decided to swing by the town hall and register the Jeep. Once that was done, she headed home, again at a loss. She slumped onto the couch and stared at her cell phone. She scrolled through her contacts and pulled up Drew’s profile. So much for not thinking about her. Was it too soon to call her? They’d only parted two hours ago, and she already wanted to see her again. I’m pathetic.
She jumped when the phone rang in her hand. Jaymi’s name and picture filled the screen.
“Nikki Razer here, your one-stop shop for all things rock and roll, trouble, and everything in between.”
“I wasn’t looking for trouble, but I’ll take one rock and two rolls to go.”
“Comin’ right up, toots.”
“How’s it going?”
“All right.” She should ask Jaymi the same question, but she already knew the answer. Jaymi was great. Shawn was great. Life was great. Everything was great, great, great. “What’s up?”
“Shawn and I have been brainstorming ideas with ways we can help Drew promote her shop. We thought maybe you could call her and arrange a time we could all meet.”
Nikki’s stomach flipped. She had an excuse to call Drew. Yessaah. “Good idea. Give me some days and times, and I’ll see what I can do.” Nikki grabbed a notepad off the kitchen counter and wrote down Jaymi’s availability.
“The sooner the better, don’t you think?” Jaymi asked. “I’m thinking if we can do a couple of things between now and Thanksgiving, we could boost her holiday sales a bit.”
“Exactly what I was thinking. Let’s hope she can see us tomorrow.”
“Yeah.”
Nikki heard Shawn’s voice in the background and couldn’t help but sigh internally.
“Nikki?”
“Yeah?” Nikki dropped into her easy chair and rubbed her forehead.
“Are you okay?”
And here she was again, back in Jaymiland. Jaymi’s sweet, concerned voice did her in every time. “Yeah, I’m fine.”
“No, you’re not. I know you better than that. You should know that by now.”
“Jaymi, I’m fine. I’ll call Drew and see what I can arrange and get back to you, okay?” She didn’t mean to sound so abrupt, but she needed to get off the phone and away from the emotions Jaymi still brought up in her.
“Okay.” She could tell by Jaymi’s tone that she didn’t believe her. “Drew’s really sweet, don’t you think?”
Nikki almost laughed. Jaymi, you know me too well. “I took her to lunch today.”
“Oh really?” There was a smile in Jaymi’s voice. “As in a date?”
“Well, I don’t think I can technically call it a date. We didn’t plan it. I showed up at the store and offered to take her for a ride in my new Jeep on her lunch break.”
“Well, that’s a start, but you’re right. I’m not sure I would count that as a date, especially if she only thought of it as a friendly gesture. Still, how’d it go?”
“I’m not sure.”
“What do you mean?”
Might as well pick Jaymi’s brain. Who else you gonna ask? She wasn’t exactly being smothered by friends. “I’m not sure how she feels about me. And she turned down my offer to take her out again.”
“I’m sorry.”
“No shit. And she seems to have a thing against famous people.”
“Well, it is a lot to consider. Famous people don’t always have the best reputations when it comes to romantic relationships.”
Nikki sank deeper into the chair. “My reputation’s going to come back and bite me in the ass, isn’t it?”
“You said it, not me.” She couldn’t tell if Jaymi was serious or if she was teasing her.
Nikki smiled. “You’re not helping, wiseass.”
“Hey, I keep telling you that you deserve better. It’s about time you listened to me.”
She picked at the fabric of the chair’s arm. “You are the wisest person I know. Even when you’re being a wiseass.”
“Leave my ass out of it. I mean it, Nikki. I think Drew likes you. Give it a chance.”
She sighed heavily. “I have no idea what I’m doing.”
“Then follow your heart and play it by ear. You’ve always been good at improvising. Love and music aren’t all that different, you know. Once a melody speaks to you, you can’t ignore it.”
“Music’s one thing, but you know me and relationships—or lack thereof. I’m not so sure I should be improvising when Drew’s feelings are on the line. She’s not like a normal groupie, you know? I’ll probably screw things up before we even get past the first verse. I can see it now: we’ll get cozy, I’ll kiss her once, and then I won’t want to stop at that. You know what a horndog I am. I got the impression she doesn’t go out with just anyone.”
“Then don’t be ‘just anyone.’”
“I’m no one if she won’t even go out with me again.”
“Well, if she does, take your time with her. Don’t try to force anything.”
“You mean, don’t even kiss her?”
Jaymi chuckled. “You’re getting ahead of yourself again. Have you considered that just becoming friends would be a good place to start?”
Friends? Randi had mentioned that, too. Would she be able to keep her attraction in check if that’s all they ever became, or would it lead to the same torture of wanting something she couldn’t have, like it had with Jaymi?
“I don’t know what the hell I’m doing, do I?”
“Exactly why you should listen to me. Attraction is great, but if you don’t build a friendship as a foundation, attraction alone amounts to nothing meaningful.”
“You’re right, I should listen to you. After all, the ‘friends first’ bit worked for you and Shawn.”
“You got that right. My parents, too. People used to ask them what their secret was, and they’d always say, ‘we just get along.’”
Nikki smiled as she recalled the ease with which Jaymi’s mom and dad had interacted with each other. “Now, that’s setting the bar high. You can’t get much better than what they had.”
“That’s for sure.”
Jaymi paused, and Nikki knew she was probably lost in a memory, fighting off the sadness that always accompanied thoughts of her mother.
“You want to see if Drew’s someone special? Promise yourself that you won’t make a move on her, and take the time to get to know her. I mean really know her. Who she is. What she wants out of life. Find out as much as you can about her. You know what I’m getting at?”
“You know, I always thought I was the toughest one in the group. I was wrong. You’re a badass when you want to be.”
“There you go, talking smack about my ass again. Come on, Nik, this is me you’re talking to. I happen to know you’re not so tough. You need to let her in, too. It has to work both ways. If you let her see the real you, she’ll find you irresistible in no time.” Jaymi paused. “And even if she’s not the one, maybe it will start you on the path to letting people in.”
“I don’t know if I can wait that long to kiss her.”
“Trust me, it’ll be worth the wait.”
“What if Drew makes the first move?”
“It’s your call. I think you’ll have it figured out by then. But only a kiss. No sex. In fact, the longer you wait for that, the better. Take things slowly. Trust me.”
“Sheesh, you really are tough. I’m hanging up before you volunteer to chaperone, too.”
“Ooh, that’s not a bad idea.”
“Good night, Jaymi.”
“Night.”
“Hey, Jaymi? Thanks.”
“Anytime.”
Her heart hurt for only a moment. She felt strangely close to Jaymi right now, which was weird considering their conversation revolved around her interest in someone else. Maybe it was just weird that she actually was interested in someone else.
Jaymi’s advice seemed solid enough. She reached under her shirt and rubbed her stomach as if it would calm its sudden dance. What if she and Drew did end up dating? What if she took things too slowly? How long should they wait to have sex? Would Drew grow impatient and lose interest? She’d already lost Jaymi to Shawn because she hadn’t made a move soon enough. And what if Drew wasn’t interested at all?
But that wasn’t even the burning question, was it? Can I offer her a meaningful relationship if she is interested? What if I really am only good for one thing? Drew had already given Nikki strong vibes that if that was the case, she wanted nothing to do with her. She respected Drew for that, but how could she possibly earn Drew’s respect in return if she sucked at the whole “friends leading to more” thing?
She knew she was good at a lot of things, but none of them were remotely related to being someone’s girlfriend. Maybe I should just forget the whole thing. Drew wasn’t a career move or an instrument she was learning to play or a song arrangement. She was a human being that deserved companionship and devotion. And emotional intimacy. Things she wasn’t sure she could give. She wasn’t sure she even knew how.
Jaymi’s advice spoke loudly through her musings. She brightened. Friendship. Now that was something she was good at. There were no guarantees, but if that’s all they were destined for, having another friend in her life wouldn’t be a bad thing.
Chapter Fourteen
After the filling lunch she’d had, Drew skipped making dinner and instead munched on a tossed salad. The cats weren’t happy about it. No meat scraps for them tonight. They got over it once she sidetracked them with a few treats and a game of spongy bouncy ball. She curled up with them on the couch and turned on the TV. She enjoyed a humbling episode of Jeopardy and then tried unsuccessfully to get into a documentary about climate change. She knew it was important to stay informed and educated, but it was impossible to absorb all those scientific facts when her thoughts kept wandering to Nikki.
With all the people in this town, why did she have to be drawn to a damn musician? And a famous one to boot? Well, duh. You work in a music store and spend very little time anywhere else. What do you expect?
She shifted Fret off her lap and went to the refrigerator. She found two wine coolers in the back corner that had been there so long they were probably flat. She popped one open and took a tentative sip. Still good. She drank down about a third of the bottle before she started to relax.
Once her body calmed down, her mind followed by drifting back to her afternoon with Nikki. As she replayed their time together so far, she had to admit she’d been tempted to give in to her attraction to Nikki, especially at the restaurant, when they’d begun to open up to each other. She still didn’t trust Nikki’s intentions.
She finished off the bottle and then dug out the other one. What the hell. She hadn’t had a drink in ages. Two wine coolers weren’t going to kill her. Maybe it’d do her some good.
She picked up her phone. Maybe she should call and apologize for how she ended things. That was it, though. A quick call to say she was sorry and nothing more. She needed to make it clear she had no interest in going out again, but she also wanted to eliminate any awkwardness between them. She couldn’t afford to lose Passion Play as customers—especially after they were kind enough to offer free publicity.
Should she, or shouldn’t she? Suddenly, her belly buzzed with nerves. She scrolled to the Ns. Nikki’s name wasn’t there. What the hell? She’d watched Nikki enter the number. Did she put it in under her last name? Nope. Not in the Rs either. She started over at the top and went slowly down the list. She reached the Ms. You’ve got to be kidding me.
Her phone chimed in her hand, and she nearly vaulted off the couch. My Favorite Customer lit up the text display.
Hey it’s Nikki. Are you home right now?
Yes. Why?
I didn’t want to disturb you at work.
Wow. Nikki was being respectful. Before she could answer, Nikki sent a follow-up.
Can you spare some time for me tomorrow?
Either Nikki didn’t know how to take a hint, or she was maddeningly persistent. Or both. She had to nip this in the bud. Now.
I told you I didn’t think we should see each other.
What if it’s a business meeting?
The phone rang. She checked the readout and answered. “Hi, Nikki.”
“I’d rather hear your voice than spend the night typing. Is that okay?”
“I suppose it would be easier. Actually, I’m glad you called.” If she wanted to clear the air, she might as well get it over with now.
“Oh really?”
She ignored the flirtatious lilt in Nikki’s voice. “I want to apologize for how I left things. I still don’t think we should see each other socially, but I don’t want to jeopardize our business relationship, so let’s just leave it at that. I had a great time at the concert, and I appreciate the gesture. But I can’t offer anything more.”
The line went dead. Or did it? She heard breathing and…was that Sarah Vaughan singing in the background? The blues-jazz singer from the 50s? She’d never met anyone her age who listened to Sarah Vaughan.
“That’s okay.”
Nikki’s voice made her jump. She was desperate to ask about Nikki’s musical choice, but disclosing a commonality so rare would only encourage her.
“So, are you free for a business meeting tomorrow or not?”
“I…sure. What kind of business meeting?”
“With me and the band. We have some promo ideas for your store and want to see what you think of them.”
She sighed with relief. That would be a perfect way to smooth the waters. Having others around should make it harder for Nikki to hit on her, too. “I’d like that. How does one o’clock sound?”
“Sounds like a plan, Stan.”
She chuckled at the variation on the Paul Simon lyric. “See you when you hop off the bus, Gus.”
“See you later, alligator.”
“That’s not the next line.”
“No shit, Sherlock.”
“Indeed, Watson. Indeed.”
“So, we’re quoting literature now?”
They both laughed. If she wasn’t careful, she’d let herself enjoy this. “Apparently. I’ll see you tomorrow, Nikki.”
“Parting is such sweet sorrow.”
Now that was more appropriate. Sorrow was exactly why she needed to stay away from this Romeo and keep things strictly business. “How about we just say good night?”
“If you insist. Good night, Drew.”
“Good night.”
Chapter Fifteen
They had barely exchanged hellos when two customers burst into DJ’s and went directly to the band members. They humbly signed autographs and chatted with them briefly. When the women turned to leave, it was obvious they had only come in to see the celebrities. That was all fine and good, but Drew needed them to shop, too. They probably weren’t even musicians. Oh well. Maybe if word got out that Passion Play members were regular customers it would still boost business.
Surprisingly, Nikki seemed unhappy with the interruption. She hid it well and gave them what they wanted, but Drew sensed she just wanted to be left alone. Odd. She took a deep breath. Now, remember, put your damn crush aside and focus on business and your livelihood.
