My Only Regret (Twisted Fate Book 1) (8 page)

“No need to apologize. I enjoy learning more about you and what makes you tick. I like your passion. I love reading as well, and as you saw earlier, there are a lot of cozy reading spaces in my house.”
 

Our food arrived, interrupting our conversation, and for once I was glad to have a distraction where Jesse was concerned. We made small talk as we sampled the dishes he had ordered.

“So, you left your job?" He began, and I nearly choked on a piece of rice. I reached for my glass of water, gasping for air. “You okay?” He leaned over and patted his hand on my back.

“Yes, sorry. I’m fine." I dabbed my napkin to my mouth and sat back in my chair. "I left because I had no other choice, it wasn't working out.”

“Oh, I thought you liked your job, though I remember you weren’t too crazy about your boss, or something like that.” I snapped my head to look at him and he quickly averted his eyes. I couldn’t believe he’d remembered that little tidbit. “So, why did you leave?” He resumed eating and stared intently at his plate of food.

“
Because he tried to feel me up and I crushed his junk.
”
I looked him square in the eye, daring him to question me further. He just sat back, curled his lip to the left, and laughed.

“You’ve got spunk. I admire that in a woman.
You and I are going to get along perfectly.” He gave a quick wink and bit into an eggroll.
Why did he have to look so good all the time?

“Well, I’d do the same to you if you were an old pervert that liked to pinch my nipples.” I snapped. He cocked his brow and smiled, and I realized the irony of our situation. I had been so distracted thinking about Steve that I'd nearly forgotten that he had treated my breasts to the same torture; only in his case I’d actually enjoyed it. I squeezed my eyes shut and let out a loud groan. I was quite sure my cheeks were bright pink, and I covered my face with my hands to hide my embarrassment.
 

“Aw, don’t hide. You’re even cuter when you’re blushing!” He leaned forward and pulled a hand away from my scarlet face. “It’s okay, Rhyann. So we’ve slept together. It happens. We’re both adults, and I think you’d agree with me when I say we both got what we needed that night. I enjoyed our time together, but we both knew it was just a one-time thing. No strings attached, you know.” He gave his shoulder a shrug and sat up straight.

“Yeah.” I responded, stiffly. “From what I hear that is your preferred method. I only hope the rest of the women you take to bed are as strong as I am. I was lonely that night and you offered me an escape. It was good while it lasted, but I’m over it. I’m glad to hear you are as well.” I pushed my chair away from the table and stood up. “If I’m going to move in tonight I should probably get home and pack.”

"Yeah, sure." He gave me a look of concern and placed a wad of cash on the table for the waitress. He followed me to the door but grabbed hold of my arm before I could head outside. "Hey, hold up. You don't have to do this you know. I mean, if it's going to be too much, I'll understand. I know I can be a selfish ass at times, but I promise I won't cross any lines. I'll respect your privacy, if that's what you want."

I stared at him, knowing in my heart that he was trying to make this easier on me, while still getting what he wanted. I also knew that I had already committed to this, and I would see it through. Three months, I could handle that, no problem.

"No, that's not what I want. Like you said, we're both adults. This will be a walk in the park."

M
el was not as easily convinced…

“What the hell do you mean you have to move in with him? You don’t even know him.” She demanded, throwing her hands in the air.

“Mel, I do know him, very intimately if you recall." I rolled my eyes, laughing. "Besides, it's only for three months. If I can't hack it I'll walk away."

"You think it will be that easy? Girl, you’ve been crushing on him for two years and now you're moving in with him without any hope of sex? How does that even make sense?"

"I don't know how to explain it except to say that he's paying me five thousand a month." Her mouth instantly fell open and her eyes practically bugged out of her head. I knew that would get her attention. That much money was hard for either of us to wrap our head around. Mel made good money, but nothing compared to that figure. "Plus, he told me that he needed me." I mumbled.

"Well, I was going to accuse you of being a gold digger but now I know the real reason you said yes." She shook her head and laughed at me. "Every woman wants to be needed but I'm not sure who's getting the better deal here. You're great at what you do, but I have a feeling you're going to get more out of it just by being in his presence."

"Yeah, well, he made it perfectly clear today that he doesn't feel that way about me. He even went so far as to say that he isn't good enough for me and that he would only hurt me. I'm not going to lie, that hurt a little bit, but at least I know going in that we will never be more than friends." I let out a sigh and continued packing. I wasn't taking everything with me tonight, only what I would need for the next week. I would have to come back and grab a few more items after I had gotten settled in. Mel and I had agreed that I would continue paying rent because I would more than likely be returning in three months anyway.

"Are you okay with that arrangement? I know how you feel about him, at least I know how you think you feel. Maybe this time together will be a good thing for you. Maybe it will show you that he isn't the one for you after all." Her eyes were full of compassion as she made that statement. Even though her words made sense, she knew this was not going to be easy on me.

"I'll get through it. You know me, I'm a master at putting on a brave face and pretending like everything is okay. I've been doing it most of my life." I gave her shoulder a nudge and grabbed my hairdryer and toothbrush.

“How am I going survive in this apartment without you here. Who in the hell am I going to complain about work with?” she curved her lips down and gave me her best pouty face. “I'm going to be so lonely.”

“Ha! Lonely is not in your vocabulary. You’ve had more men in one year than I've had in my whole life,” I joked as I headed for the bedroom, knowing she wouldn't be far behind.

“Yeah, well at least I put myself out there and try to find the right guy. You, my gorgeous friend, need to get laid again. Give it a try, Rhyann, sex feels really good. You remember sex don’t you?” She snorted, following me around the room trying to cheer me up.

“La la la la,” I laughed, plugging my ears. “I’m not talking about this."

“Okay, but it’s your loss,” she said, opening one of the suitcases I placed on the bed. “Just promise me you won’t get caught up in all the glitz and glamour and forget about me.”

“You are my best friend, and like a sister to me, I could never forget you." I pulled her in for a hug and smiled, hopeful that this would be a good decision after all.

CHAPTER SIX

R
hyann!” came a guttural cry that carried down the stairway to the kitchen. So much for a quiet morning enjoying a cup of coffee. “Have you seen a piece of paper with some lyrics and chords jotted on it? I’ve looked everywhere for it.” Even this far away I heard frantic pacing taking place.

“Can’t say that I have,” I called back, as I made my way toward the offending voice. I could almost guarantee he hadn’t checked every place. Geez, the man could exaggerate. Since I had started working for him this had become somewhat of a habit. I was beginning to think he was a touch lazy. Either that, or he liked when I did everything for him. “Stop pacing or you’ll wear a groove in the floor,” I snapped, strolling into his room. He glared and gave me the finger. “Oh, that’s classy. I thought you were a gentleman,” I retorted, sarcastically.

“I left it right beside my bed. Have you been in here snooping around again” he accused. The man was a bit of a fanatic when it came to his privacy. I rolled my eyes dramatically. “Don’t roll your eyes at me,” he mumbled. “I thought you were more mature than that.” I returned the finger gesture. “Oh, very lady like.” Which resulted in me flipping up both fingers. He couldn’t hide his grin. This was pretty typical behavior for us. We usually got along pretty well, but we bickered like an old married couple.

“That happened only one time, and I told you I was looking for Ibuprofen. I had bad cramps because of my period and ran out of my own supply,” I grumbled, joining him next to the bed.

“Stop!” He groaned, holding up a hand to silence me. “I do not want to hear about your feminine problems. I just want to find my paper.” I coughed to stifle a chuckle.

“I’m quite sure it didn’t miraculously sprout legs and run for the hills, although I can’t say that I didn’t give it fair warning,” I rolled my eyes again.

“Very funny smartass. Well where could it be then? I need it.” He threw his hands in the air.

“Oh for Heaven’s sake, let me look,” I nudged him out of the way. “What am I looking for just a piece of notebook paper?” I asked, as I crawled around on the floor beside his bed. I bent over further to look under the bed and in doing so my jean clad ass was thrust into the air. I looked over my shoulder and caught him checking me out. I arched an eyebrow and he just gave me a cute little wink. After lifting only a few items I located the missing document that had fallen between the bed and his side table. “Here,” I thrust it in his hand. “I knew it didn’t just get up and walk away.” I stated, mockingly, as I stood and brushed off my knees. “And please don’t accuse me of lurking around your room. I have better things to do with my time.” I tossed my hair over my shoulder and marched downstairs, grumbling the entire way. I swear, if anyone had observed our interactions they would have thought we hated one another. Actually, it was quite the opposite. Our snarky banter only seemed to bring us closer.

“Thank you Rhyann. You’re the best.” He called sweetly, as if nothing had happened. Honestly, the man drove me insane, and I secretly enjoyed every minute of it.

“Yeah, yeah,” I muttered.

J
esse had proven to be quite sweet, as he had previously demonstrated, but he could quickly become moody and a bit demanding. He would grumble and stomp around when he was in a writing slump, and then when the words were flowing he would be sweet and joking, I preferred the latter. I honestly didn’t take his mood swings too personally, they had almost helped me get over my infatuation. Don
’
t get me wrong, he could still make me dizzy whenever he flashed his dimples, or showed me his playful side, but for the most part we had fallen into a nice working relationship. Our light banter and playful teasing kept the mood light and made the day more interesting. Somehow, we had developed a friendship along the way that felt safe. I kept him on task, and kept the house stocked with plenty of food and beverages for the band. I even managed to tolerate the stream of females that Jesse brought home from time to time.
 

During the short span of time I have worked for him I've had the chance to spend time getting to know the rest of the band. They spend most days in the basement studio, and often stay for dinner. They've almost begun to feel like family to me. Sam Cooper is the drummer, and he has blonde hair that he usually keeps covered with a bandana. He is really funny and helps keep the mood light. Sam and I hit it off immediately, falling into some sort of a brother-sister relationship, he teases me incessantly and I punch him in the arm. What can I say? It works. David Garrison plays bass, and is bald with tattoos covering his arms, he reminds me of the actor Vin Diesel, and he has a great sense of style. He is the strong and silent type. Tyler is Jesse's older brother, and he plays lead guitar. He looks a lot like Jesse but his hair is shorter, and he doesn’t appear to have tattoos, at least none that I can see. He's married to Stefani, and she often joins him when they spend long days in the studio. Stefani is petite with dark hair and the bluest eyes I've ever seen. She's always smiling and goes out of her way to make me feel part of the group. They all grew up together, and she and Tyler started dating when the band was still playing in neighborhood garages. She is Tyler’s assistant, so we spend a great deal of time together comparing schedules and gossiping about the girls who shamelessly throw themselves at the band. She always tours with them so she has plenty of stories to tell. Most of her time is spent showing me the ropes of being an assistant to a rockstar and helping me prepare for the worldwide tour next year. The plan is to finish producing the album and then play a few headliners at various upcoming events. After listening to all of Stefani’s road stories I'm looking forward to the adventure.
 

One morning we were in the kitchen comparing calendars and drinking coffee, like we typically did. The guys had gone into town for a meeting at the record studio. With the guys gone, the house was pleasantly quiet for a change. I closed my eyes and enjoyed the rare silence. She smiled sweetly before clearing her throat and interrupting my serenity.
 

“So how are you and Jesse getting along?” During our time together I had come to the conclusion that she was unaware that we had known one another before I took this job.

 
“Alright I guess. He seems comfortable with me hanging around. At first I was leery of moving in, but I think we’ve adapted nicely. Honestly, we get along really well."

“Uh-huh, I see. And how is it watching the bimbos hanging around?” She lifted her coffee cup to her lips and raised her eyebrows a notch.

I rolled my eyes. “Oh my gosh. That’s annoying as hell, but honestly, they haven’t been coming around much.” How long had it been since the last beautiful model had come home with him after a night out with the guys? Weeks?
 

“I remember what it was like. He used to live with us before he bought this place. They would parade through my house night after night. I swear I thought I would go crazy listening to all of their high pitched giggles and moaning.” She rolled her eyes. “His room was right next to ours, and I used to pound on the wall and yell that he couldn’t be that good in bed. They disagreed.” She shook her head and laughed hysterically.