After the longest twenty-three-and-a-half minutes of her life, she pulled up to the front of Wild West Records, shoved the car in park, grabbed her phone and purse, and shot out of the car before the attendant could reach her.
“Rowan?” he asked.
She jolted to a halt. “Yes?”
“Marla said to go up to the twelfth floor, turn left out of the elevators, and follow the hall all the way to the end.”
“Thank you!”
She jogged to the entrance and yanked open the door, dashing across the foyer to the elevator bank and jabbing the up button. Tapping her foot, she eyed the sign for the stairwell down the hall but there was no way she’d be able to run up twelve flights of stairs. She wasn’t out of shape, but that was elite athlete level of fitness and that she was not.
Eighty-four years later, the far-left elevator opened and she repeated the whole process all over, waiting to ascend twelve floors while muttering, “Don’t stop, don’t stop, don’t stop.”
Luck was on her side and she turned sideways to slide through the doors before they opened fully. She completely ignored the framed gold and platinum records lining the hall and raced to the end. She scanned the large reception area for Marla, but the only person there was the receptionist, coming around the large desk.
“Rowan?” she asked.
“Yes,” she said breathlessly.
“They just went in. Marla didn’t tell me not to call Luke until I already had. He wasn’t answering his phone so I called the operations manager and he said Luke was in one of the sound booths and he’d go get him. I’d literally hung up the phone when she told me not to call until you got here. Mr. Doll was in a rush and I didn’t have a way to stall anymore. I’m so sorry.”
“I—Okay.” Rowan shook her head slightly, trying to let everything the receptionist said sink in. “Where are they? Can I interrupt?”
She smiled. “I think Marla is counting on it. This way.”
Leading Rowan to a set of double wood doors, she paused. “Do you want me to knock?”
“No.” Rowan turned the handle and pushed in. “Luke, stop.” She stepped into the conference room, leaving the door open behind her.
She vaguely heard Marla say, “Oh thank god.”
“Rowan?” Luke rose from his seat at the long table. “Rowan.”
His long strides ate up the space between them. He cradled her face in his hands while his eyes searched hers, then he crushed his mouth to hers.
Wrapping her arms around his neck, she held on tight while he devoured her. She poured her heart into the kiss. If he wasn’t going to give her a chance to talk, she would make him feel her love.
He ended the kiss and pressed his forehead against hers. “You’re here.”
Lifting his head, he said, “I’m sorry, Row. I can explain the pictures. I wasn’t kissing Laney—I was trying to push her away from me. I know they looked bad, but it’s the truth. I didn’t want to kiss her, but I was so surprised it took me a couple of seconds to push her away and that’s when the pictures were taken. I pushed her away and told her I love you. I should have told you when it happened but I was so afraid you’d leave again. I should have—”
She covered his mouth with her hand. “I love you. And I believe you.”
That was all he needed for the tension to leave his body. His shoulders slumped as he dropped his forehead to hers again.
“But you can’t quit music,” she said. “This is your dream and you’re living it.”
He raised his head. “It’s not. You’re my dream. This is a job—one I love, but it doesn’t mean shit if you’re not in my life. I won’t do this without you. I don’t know who took the pictures or how you got them, but if that’s the kind of petty bullshit we’re going to be faced with, I want nothing to do with it. I’m not going to put us in jeopardy ever again and if that means giving up music, then that’s what I’ll do.”
“Brett gave me the pictures,” she said.
His head jerked back. “What? Why?”
“I don’t know.” She shrugged her shoulders. “He showed up at the house with the pictures while you were here on Monday.”
Luke ran a hand through his hair. “Why would he do that?”
“I can’t tell you why he did it, but I can tell you whyIdid it,” a soft voice said from the door.
