AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“You call me if there’s any problem, okay?” I declared, rubbing my arm mindlessly as Adriana only looked at me with nonchalance. “Even when there’s not a problem, we’ll video chat.”
“Relax, Thalia, we have everything under control,” Adriana assured me. Then she leaned into my ear and whispered. “Take some of this time for yourself, too, okay? You deserve it. You gotta think about yourself sometimes. Maybe even spend a little time withhim.” Adriana gave me a knowing look, but I only responded with confusion. That wasn’t what I wanted. Was it?
Another deep breath escaped my lips as I watched them leave my apartment. I ran a hand through my hair as a million thoughts raced through my head.
A part of me wished I had a simple life and that I would be happy with a simple life. Just a regular office job where I came home at the same time on the same days. Luna would grow up slowly, and turn into a strong and confident woman. She’d have a mother who wouldn’t have to leave for an extended time or work odd hours. We could have a regular house and things wouldn’t be so complicated. It might sound boring, but it would be predictable.
But deep down, I felt something else. I felt an intense desire to step into the spotlight, or at least be next to the spotlight, helping someone else shine. There was always a large part of me that still wanted to chase this childhood dream of mine of being on stage. The dream didn’t die when Luna was born.
For now, though, I had to be content with being a studio assistant. Maybe someday my day would come around again, but today I had to prioritize getting ready for someone else’s tour.
I took one last deep breath and then pushed everything out of my mind as I swirled like a tornado, packing my things in my bags.
It couldn’t even be called morning yet when I walked into the building. I wasn’t sure what to expect, but I certainly didn’t expect so much activity at what was basically still the middle of the night. A bus was being loaded up in the parking lot, and people were milling around the lobby getting everything set for take-off. I noticed Sadie in the reception area. It was usually brightly lit, but at this time of the day, everything was still dark. The only light was the glow from her tablet. She was deep into her work, but she looked up at me and smiled. It was way too big of a smile for the hour, though.
“Thalia! You’re here! That’s awesome!” How much coffee had this woman consumed already? Did she even sleep? “I know everything is a bit of a mess and a little chaotic right now. But it takes a team to get all of this going.”
I nodded dumbly, barely able to fully form coherent words. Unlike Sadie, who was already dressed in business casual, I was hoping that my leggings and T-shirt didn’t look too unprofessional. I’d crawled into bed around four hours ago and tossed and turned until it was time to finally get up.
It resulted in my absolutely haggard appearance.
“How are you so…awakeright now?” I practically yawned in Sadie’s face. “Are you sure you’re not a vampire? Because it doesn’t seem like you actually need sleep.”
Sadie laughed.
“I guess…I really just like my job? Or it could be the energy drink I finished a few minutes ago. But seriously, it’s a cliché, but if you do something you love, it doesn’t feel like work. Or, however the saying goes.”
I nodded, but really had no response. It would be nice to feel like you weren’t working.
“How about you?” Sadie interrupted the silence as I stared at random people in black T-shirts walking around. “Have you been enjoying the job? You know, this opportunity might help switch things up.”
I thought about it for a second and gave her a quick smile.
“Yeah, it’s been really rewarding working at such a state-of-the-art studio,” I started, knowing Ihadto say something about working with Damian. But my experience with him so far had been…wildly inconsistent. Sometimes I thought we were really vibing and having a good back-and-forth. Then there were times when Damian seemed almost kind, like he really wanted to get to know me, or really valued my thoughts, orsomething. But then there were a lot of times when he seemed irritated by my existence in life. He was walled off. Cold.
And of course, there was always the reminder that he didn’t remember me.
“It’s been a pleasure working with such a talented and renowned artist.” I tried to relax my jaw, realizing I was gritting my teeth.
That was all I could muster up without sounding ungrateful. But I didn’t think I was ungrateful. I never resented Damian for keeping me as his studio assistant.
“Such a showbiz answer,” an all too familiar voice interrupted my conversation with Sadie. My stomach immediately dropped when Damian himself walked up to stand with us. There was a smirk on his face, as usual, but he was actually wearing real clothes instead of the sweatpants he preferred in the studio. A leather jacket with a tight gray T-shirt that highlighted his muscular chest. His pants were simple dark denim, but the perfect fit that showed off what I remembered to be a very toned ass.
Even before he becametheDamian Apollo, he had a great sense of what clothes looked amazing on him. It would have been annoying if he hadn’t always been incredibly right.
“Mr. Apollo, good morning,” Sadie greeted. Not really in that way where she sounded like she was sucking up to the boss or anything. I never pegged Sadie as that type. Kurt, however… But Kurt wasn’t here, and I didn’t really want to give any time of my day toward him.
I nodded in Damian’s general direction. “Good morning,” I muttered. It wasn’t my best greeting, but my mind was foggy with the hour of the day and with the scent of Damian that was suddenly surrounding me and threatening to take over my body. Also, the aforementioned toned ass wasn’t helping my concentration. It was a lot easier to hate him when he was wearing hoodies and loose pants.
I really didn’t need to be reminded of how hard and muscular his body felt under my fingers or moving over me. Oh boy, was it warm in here, or just me? I fought the urge to fan myself as I felt my cheeks warm.
“I just don’t know what I’m going to do with so much flattery.” Damian’s eyes sparkled with humor. “If you keep up with that kind of effusive praise, you could probably start taking on some media interviews.”
I let out a huff and noticed Sadie’s eyes go just a little wide.
“Well, what else do you want me to say about our time together? Do you want me to wax poetic about your inspirational creative process that involves throwing pens into cups? Or should I talk about your heroic effort of getting a moth out of the studio the other day and then spending an hour writing a parody song about the whole event?”
Sadie burst out laughing, and even Damian let out a low chuckle.
