Page 1 of Hard Rock Muse

1

For the fifth time in as many minutes, I stifled the urge to jiggle my toe or tug on the blouse tucked into my skirt.

I’d never been comfortable in pencil skirts. The high-waisted things were tight on my stomach, scratchy on my legs and prevented me from moving freely. Give me a pair of well worn denim or supple leather pants any day.

The meeting room I sat in looked like any other meeting room: a long table surrounded by high-backed leather chairs with an oversized projector screen on one wall. The room could have been in any number of boring office buildings.

But it wasn’t. This meeting room was in a skyscraper housing Reclaimed Records, one of the most influential music and entertainment companies in the world. They’d started off as a smaller indie record label and exploded with the success of the artists they signed. It was a building I could only ever have dreamed of stepping foot in.

And now, here I was, perched on the edge of one of those leather chairs, anxiously waiting for someone to enter the room.

I didn’t know who that someone was. This meeting had been set up over the phone by a nameless admin assistant who’d been light on the information. All I knew was these people wanted to work with me.

I wasn’t about to let the lack of a few details deter me. Whatever this gig was, I wanted it. I needed it.

The latch on the door handle clicked and the knob rotated. I sat up pin-straight, hands in my lap and turned toward the door. I had to clench my jaw to stop my mouth from dropping as one of the hottest female musicians, both in terms of popularity and looks, strode in with a determined look on her face. Her eyes zeroed in on me, giving me a quick once-over.

“Everly Davis?” asked Cerise Moreau, world famous rock god and lead singer for Cherry Lips.

I stared, stunned, before quickly standing and shaking her hand firmly.

“Yes, I’m Everly,” I replied.

“You look a little shocked,” Cerise said wryly as she took a seat across the table from me.

“I’m sorry,” I flushed. “I wasn’t told many details about this job and I had no idea it was with…”

Cherry Lips.

Oh…

Shit.

All the blood drained from my face. My hands turned clammy.

This job was with Cherry Lips. Which meant…

Just as I half-expected and half-dreaded, seconds later another figure strolled into the room.

He was dressed all in black, tall and lean with a tight t-shirt showing off muscled arms. With his dark eyes and dark hair falling into his face, he might have faded into the background like a shadow.

But the moment he stepped through the door, it was as if a light had shone from the heavens and surrounded his head like a halo, drawing every bit of my attention. I couldn’t look away.

Even as my face turned pale and my heart clenched, I couldn’t tear my eyes from this man.

Julian Woods. Keyboardist for Cherry Lips.

The man who’d shattered my heart into pieces.

When his gaze fell upon me, I didn’t catch a hint of surprise. The only reaction was the twitch in his jaw.

I used to be able to read Julian so well. To others, he had such an impassive expression, but I’d always known what he was thinking and feeling.

Not anymore. That talent had been lost to me long ago.

Julian’s eyes stayed trained as me as he walked into the room and took a seat next to his lead singer.

If Cerise noticed the tension, she didn’t comment on it. She simply leaned forward in her chair and made introductions.