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After he’d seen Zara a few days before at Nikki’s, he’d considered sending her the music he’d made. He had almost talked himself into it.
And then additional shit had surfaced.
Now he was more worried about losing his job than what Zara thought of his shitty writing.
“Sorry, that took so long,” Johnny said, closing the door to Nikki’s office.
Asa closed the article and shoved the phone back in his pocket.
Johnny came around the desk and sat down. “It’s been crazy around here,” he said.
Asa clenched his jaw and nodded.
It had been crazy because of him.
One of the stipulations for working at XY Records was the utmost secrecy regarding one of the studio’s owners who was also Johnny’s fiancée.
Hannah Lee James, also known as Ashton James, had been one of the most paparazzi stalked celebrities in the world before she disappeared from the public eye.
She’d been living in Chicago for over a year in anonymity before Johnny’s little brother recognized her and opened a whole can of worms. Now three years later, she was part owner and production partner of the small studio.
But to keep the media out of her life, strict rules had been applied. She used aliases when she produced albums. Her security routinely went through the backgrounds of employees and anyone who came into the studio. Asa had had his entire life sifted through and dissected before he even filled out his W-2s.
But that was the gig.
Working for XY Records meant you were probably going to be exposed to the biggest names in the industry and no one would ever know.
Which Asa was perfectly fine with.
He was done chasing that fame monster.
But now that he’d been spotted with Zara and the press that had followed, he couldn’t help but think this meeting with Johnny was going to be his walking papers.
He ignored the tightness in his chest. Or tried to. But a slight buzz had begun in the back of his mind.
He hadn’t even wanted this job! He’d been doing just fine being a no-one. Not making music, not creating anything for anyone. Just playing someone else’s songs three times a week at the Blue Iguana. He had been. Just. Fine.
And then Nikki had asked him for a favor, saying it would be “good for him to get back into it.”
He should have said no.
“Look,” Asa started, clenching his sweaty hands into fists in his lap. “I know?—”
He was interrupted by a light knock on the door. It opened and Hannah stepped inside, closing it behind her.
Asa temporarily forgot what he had been about to say.
Hannah Lee James was quite possibly the most terrifyingly beautiful woman he had ever seen. Maybe in all of existence.
Her long dark hair cascaded over her shoulders and down her back. She wore black jeans and a soft blue sweater that made her icy blue eyes even brighter.
She smiled at Asa and came around the desk as Johnny stood. She took his seat and he stood behind her, brushing her hair with his fingertips.
Shit.
He’d been worried about being fired?
Hannah was probably going to murder him.
