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. I owe him.Plus, I m nosy andwanted to meet you, and my sister wants your autographs. So your motivations are purely selfish, Jake said, laughing. Fair enough. Come on, she invited, releasing him and linking her armthrough Parker s. We re going straight to the sound booth I have tobe back on Broadway for a dress rehearsal at three.Does that work foryou guys? Can we eat first? Jimmy asked, always the pragmatist, andsomeone s stomach rumbled on cue.Sierra shot him a perky smile. Oh, I like you.What say we hit upthe deli a few streets over? They deliver, and they make a meanReuben. Sold, Chris told her, turning the charm up to eleven with asmooth smile.35Jake hung back a little after that, not wanting to get caught in thecrossfire.In reality, there was no need for all of them to spend the day inthe studio.The rhythm, lead, and bass guitar tracks had all been laidalready and were waiting for them, and so were the drum and keyboard35Somewhere in hell, a devil got his horns.134 Ashlyn Kaneparts.They had really only brought the guitars in case someone had aflash of insight about something that might sound better unlikely,though it was possible.But Jake couldn t pass up the opportunity tomeet someone from Parker s elusive past, especially someone sointeresting and, if Chris s leers were anything to go by, sexy, and theothers had agreed.Besides, they d been hard at work on tour, and they deserved abreak.It only took two rehearsals and a handful of takes before the vocaltracks were laid down.Parker and Sierra had such perfect harmonicchemistry that the first time Jake heard the raw, unmixed sound, goosebumps rose all over his body and his nipples got hard again though,okay, that could have just been the cold room.Frankly, Jake found ithard to believe that that much power and sound could come out of sucha tiny little body.Outside the soundproofed box where the two of them were hard atwork, Chris gave a low whistle. That song s going straight to numberone, he said with a shake of his head.There was no trace of jealousyin his voice, just a parental kind of pride. And a hundred thousand teenage girls emo playlists, Jakeadded with a wry smile. Well, there is that.Jake flicked a sideways glance at Chris, who was watching Sierramaybe a little too intently through the soundproof glass. So, are yougoing to make a move, or what? Honestly? Chris asked him, finally tearing himself away. Ihave no idea.You tell me is there something going on there? BecauseI know I m an asshole, but I m not really that kind of guy.I wouldn tdo that to a friend.Jake facepalmed.Across the room, Jimmy snorted indelicately,but luckily, no fights broke out. You re hilarious.For the first time, Jake allowed himself to consider the possibilitythat Parker might have been celibate for the past year and a halfbecause he d been waiting for someone for this cute, blonde, bubblyAmerican Love Songs 135someone currently heating up the studio with him. Man, you d reallyhave to ask Parker; he doesn t tell me anything.Snorting, Chris turned away from the booth and settled into oneof the cushioned chairs to wait. If he ain t told you, he ain t tellinganybody else, he reasoned, rummaging through a stack of magazinesuntil he found a back issue of Cosmo.36 Maybe there s nothing to tell, Jimmy put in, contributing forthe first time as he flipped through a mangled publication on restoringvintage motorcycles. Maybe it s none of our business, Jake said at last, sitting besideChris. If there s something to tell, he ll tell us when he s ready.If not,then it doesn t matter.The door to the sound booth finally opened, and Parker and Sierracame shooting out like popcorn. Did you hear that? Sierra whooped,high-fiving Jimmy and throwing herself down in the chair next to him. We fucking owned that last take.Pardon my French.Parker was slightly, though not significantly, calmer about it,though Jake had actually only ever seen him bouncing on the balls ofhis feet once before. It s really good, isn t it? He sounded like hedidn t quite believe his own musical prowess. Top ten for sure, genius, Jake said with a smile, stretching outone long leg to kick his foot. Nicely done. So when are we shooting the music video? Sierra wanted toknow, apparently addressing her question to Jimmy, whom she wasprodding with one tiny finger. Once the song is mixed and somebody pitches an idea we don thate, Jimmy grumbled back, putting his magazine aside. So far theyall suck. Well, they haven t had the final product to work with, Jakepointed out.Maybe with a little more feeling to work with, someonewould finally come up with a video that conveyed the kind of emotionthey were trying to evoke.36Chris loved Cosmo.136 Ashlyn Kane I don t know how they re missing it. Chris shook his head,looking at Jake. I mean, it s kind of obvious, right?Jake shrugged helplessly, because he didn t get it, either.Thenagain, he d had a huge crush on his best friend for years, so he hadplenty of experience with exactly the type of situation the songlamented. Well, they can t possibly miss it now.Y all damn nearbrought tears to my eyes. He stretched from head to toe, feeling thechill of air on his stomach as his shirt rode up. Okay, now thatbusiness is taken care of show me the sights! The sights? Sierra repeated, her tone unmistakably amused. You haven t been to New York before or something? I m pretty sureParker dropped me an e-mail the last time you buzzed through. Yeah, but Parker s tour was totally lame, Chris said, discardinghis magazine as well. It was all Empire State Building this, YankeeStadium that.Jake nodded in agreement. Exactly.I want the full-on, juicy,native-to-New-York tour.Show me where to eat, where you gotjumped the first time, the club Parker got kicked out of on his twenty-first birthday your sister, dude, he explained, off Parker s surprisedexpression. She ratted you out.I want to see the shitty neighborhoodyou lived in in college, the best cheap live entertainment  And maybe the naked cowboy? Chris threw in, smirking. Asshat. Well, we all know the naked cowboy is the best cheap liveentertainment. Sierra gave them a wide smile and slithered to her feet. But yeah, we can do that, can t we, Parker? It ll be fun. I hate New York, Parker answered, but there was no heat in hisvoice, and he was hiding his face in his hands, so he was obviouslymore embarrassed than angry.Par for the course for Parker, really. Excellent, Jake exclaimed, clapping his hands together andmaking rapid hand motions toward the door. When do we leave?American Love Songs 137THE whole entourage was pulled over at a rest stop on the highway forlunch before the long stretch of road that would bring them to Denver,and everyone was taking the time to stretch their legs a little [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]