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And there was the rub. Once burnt, twice fearful of being staked out in the hot sun to be incinerated yet again.
No. He would not pull his phone out again.
Sighing, he took one final look around his studio, his sanctuary, and switched off the lights. He’d be okay. He just needed to cleave to his job, enjoy the company of his new employee, Everlee, and appreciate the vast array of musicians he hobnobbed with all the time.
Forget about romance. It was too much trouble.
Turning his key in the lock after closing the door behind him, he set the alarm he’d sprung for after suffering two break-ins the first month he’d been in business. He threw his shoulders back and tried to forget about his headache. Everything was going to be just fine. He’d run his very successful studio for twelve years. He made a decent living. And he didn’t need any complications that had luscious female contours.
He patted his door affectionately before he turned and took the stairs up to street level two at a time. His stomach needed food, pronto.
He made it to the pavement, when—
“Hey, Fleet.”
“Talia?”Shit.Had his voice just cracked?
“Yeah. It’s me,” she said somewhat hesitantly, pushing a long blonde lock behind one ear. “I, uh, hope I’m not overstepping, but Everlee gave me your address and I saw the lights on, sooo…” She finished up, looking uncomfortable.
“So you thought you’d say hello?” he finished, trying to keep his sudden, bubbling excitement at bay. He wanted to fist-pump. Talia had been thinking about him.
“Actually, I wondered if you wanted to grab a bite to eat,” she affirmed. “I’ve…been meaning to call you, but I’ve been busy.”
“Me, too,” he lied. Not necessarily about the too busy part, but about the meaning to call thing. He’dwantedto but had talked himself out of it daily for the entire month of October. Now, however… “I’d love to eat. It’s been a frustrating day. I’ve been sequestered for,” he glanced at his watch again, squinting to ignore his headache, “nine hours, trying to get tracks squared away for a difficult band. Well, not that the whole band is a challenge. Just the lead singer who’s…problematic, but it’s just not happening.”
“I’ve had a sucky day, too,” Talia admitted with a heaving breath. “With a squad member who also doesn’t play nice. Why can’t people just do their jobs and make life easy?”
“Damned good question,” he agreed. “I tell you what. We’ll bitch about our woes over chowder and beer. How does that sound?”
“Chowder, yes. Beer, no,” she answered with a flirty shrug that told him she was happy he’d agreed to eat with her. “I have drills again tomorrow, so no alcohol tonight.”
“Got it,” he said. “I probably shouldn’t either. I’m back at the boards tomorrow, early, and I just popped more than the prescribed dose of ibuprofen.”
“Headache?” she asked as they began walking toward the busy part of downtown.
He nodded. “A huge one. I’ve had a bunch this week. I’m beginning to think I need to have my eyes checked. They’ve become more frequent and are getting really annoying.”
“Yeah. Sounds like you might need glasses.” She gave him an impish grin. “You’ll probably look cute in them.”
Fleet groaned. Just what he wanted to hear. That he was cute. It wasn’t awful, but still, no man over thirty wanted that moniker. Handsome, pumped, buff; those were all words with positive connotations. Cute was…a puppy. And Fleet didn’t want to be Talia’s puppy.
And he wasn’t soft and squishy, either.
Because he worked long hours sitting in his studio, he made a point of hitting the gym and the running trails around the city, but when he had a few days to himself, he took to the mountains and hiked. Actually, he did bouldering.Yup.Nothing wimpy for him. He picked extreme trails that included swollen stream crossings and huge piles of rock just begging to be scaled.
“I know this is a completely different subject, but,” he had to ask, “I don’t suppose you like to hike, do you?” he asked.
Talia scoffed. “Are you kidding? I was born and raised just north of here, and I cut my teeth on Maine’s four-thousand footers.”
“That’s awesome,” he grinned. “Hiking is kind of my passion. Other than music that is.”
“Then we’ll definitely have to hit some trails together,” she approved. “I actually have most weekends off,whenwe’re not training.”
“Sounds good. Although…” he wasn’t tooting his own horn here, just warning her. “…I tend to do things a little balls-to-the-wall. We’re not talking a little two-hour Sunday stroll.”
Talia laughed. “You think you can scare me? Think again, Fleet. What are we talking here, a little mountaintop parkour?”
“Kind of,” he grinned back. “Do you know what bouldering is?”
