Chapter 12
Staring at the screen for a moment longer, I sighed and pressed the answer button. His face popped up; a black cut-off hoodie covered his previously bare torso, though I could still see a hint of his tattoos running down his ribs through the deep slit on the sides.
“I’m intrigued as to what your students baited you into.” He grinned and leaned against the wall. He was in some sort of hallway, the echoing of his voice only making it harder for me to concentrate.
“You know, this conversation could take place over a text,” I grumbled, and he slowly chuckled.
“If you’re going to want me to agree to a favor, then you have to ask me to my face. And correctly.” He lifted a brow and gestured for me to continue.
Taking a deep breath, I spoke. “Is it true that you’re doing a two-night concert? Here?”
“Yes?” He narrowed his gaze, curious.
“Okay, well, my students need me to record myself singing one of your songs at each concert. A different song of their choosing per concert. Problem is, I don’t know which songs, and I’ve only just begun digging into your music.
” I grimaced as the corner of his mouth slid upwards in a crooked smile.
“Go on.”
“I was wondering if you’d… teach me.”
“All of my songs?”
“At least the ones you’re planning to use at the concert. So your setlists, I guess,” I sheepishly explained.
“Hmmmm.” He glanced away from the screen for half a second.
“Look, I don’t care that you had another girl show up to your hotel room yesterday. I’m not asking—”
“What?” His eyes snapped back to the camera.
“What I’m saying is I know I told you off, several times, but I’m a woman of her word, and I told my students I’d do this.”
“Yes, fine. I’ll help, but that’s not what I’m confused by.” He brushed off my request, tipping his head.
“Then what are you confused by?” I blinked and pulled my brows together, wondering what I was missing.
“What did you mean by me having another girl show up at my hotel room?”
“Yesterday, when you hung up, someone knocked on your door. I assumed—”
“That it was a girl?” he finished, and I nodded.
Asher shook his head, his luscious hair billowing back and forth. “Princess, the only girl I’ve invited back to my hotel room is you.”
“I—” I stopped, unable to think of anything to actually say.
“It was Drake, letting me know it was time to film the video that I assume you’ve seen if you’re asking me about the concerts,” he finished, and I slowly nodded, dumbfounded.
“When you say I’m the only girl? What do you mean?”
Another door opening echoed through the hallway he was standing in. Once again interrupting our conversation as he glanced away from his phone.
“Look, I’ve got to go. We’ve got tons of shit going on. I’ll send you an address. Come by Wednesday after you’re done teaching, and we can start,” he quietly said.
“Thank you,” I whispered, and he winked. Reaching forward, I went to press the end button when he spoke once more.
“Oh, forewarning.” He lifted a brow with a mischievous glint in his eyes.
“Yes?”
“Don’t open that Picsnap unless you’re alone.”
Then he tapped his screen, and the call ended.
“Don’t open it unless I’m alone? Then why the hell would you be sending that if you knew I was in school? What if I’d opened that right now, dumbass?” I said to the dead screen.
And my own classroom door swung open.
“Wow, Cosette. Language there,” my teacher bestie said with a grin.
I rolled my eyes. “What’s up, Elysia?”
She chuckled. “Have you read your emails yet?”
I shook my head. “No, I've been taking care of something else, and it’s lunch. Why?” I placed my phone on my desk.
She took a deep breath. “Be prepared. Apparently, classes on the Friday when this popular metal band, Void or whatever, is having a family night concert will be changed.”
“Why?” I asked.
“Because they are figuring that most students won’t attend the last couple periods.”
“Is this just our school?”
She shook her head. “No, this is district-wide. Small towns. Anyway, we have a meeting this Friday to discuss what’s happening next week. Or is it the week after? Whichever Friday the concert is, we have a meeting this week Friday in preparation.”
“That’s a lot of ‘Fridays,’” I replied, chuckling, and she rolled her eyes.
“It’s exhausting.” She giggled.
“Are you going to go?” I sat down in my chair, pulling my lunch bag from the mini fridge I kept beside my desk.
She shrugged her shoulders, walking in carrying her own food, and plopped herself down on the desk closest to me.
“I’m not sure. Several of my students in my classes have played me a couple of songs, and they’re actually really good.
Their lead singer has an incredible voice.
Plus, the lyrics are fairly poetic, which surprised me, if I’m being honest.”
“My students dared me to go.” I took a bite of my leftover lasagna from last night.
“What?” She gasped, salad dressing dripping down her chin.
I chuckled and nodded.
“So, are you?” She wiped it with her napkin.
“To both nights,” I hesitantly responded.
“By yourself?”
“Sydney will obviously go. She loves them. Plus, the rest of the usual party-going group that, for whatever reason, call me friend will most likely go as well.” I took another bite of lasagna and lifted my brow.
I shouldn’t offer because that would make one more person to hide everything from, but I also couldn’t leave her out.
Besides, things felt…different with Elysia.
“Would you want to come with us? I’ll get you a ticket. ”
She squealed in glee. “Would that be all right? Just for family night, that way I can maintain my ‘cool teacher’ status if I run into a student or two.”
“Perfect. I’ll plan on that,” I replied and sighed.
Both happily and also in apprehension. As long as I kept everything above board with Asher, then there was nothing to worry about.
Tera’s warning would have to play at the forefront of my mind.
Her warning should have played at the forefront of my mind when I’d asked Asher for a favor.
Okay, wait. Why hadn’t I simply asked Sydney to help?
She could play all of the songs that I needed to learn, couldn’t she?
No, she didn’t know the set lists. But Asher did. Once I got the set lists from him, I could ask for Sydney’s help on everything else.
Yes, that was it.
No, that was an excuse.
Groaning, I pushed myself away from my desk for a moment.
What was I doing?
The final bell rang two days later on Wednesday.
I still hadn’t gotten the courage up to tell Sydney about the concert.
Though she probably already knew and would ask me the day before if I wanted to go.
I needed to broach that subject soon so I could one, make sure we had an extra ticket on the first night for Elysia.
But for two, to also find a way to make it seem harmless that I needed her help learning the songs.
Or I could just keep that between Asher and me? Maybe that was the more harmless route to go, and she could just help me film the videos for my students.
Gathering my stuff as quickly as I could, I shoved it all into my bag. I still hadn’t opened Asher’s Picsnap either. Partly because I was nervous about what it might be in general. The other part was from his warning. I feared that someone would walk in at the wrong time or just happen to see it.
Or hear it. Especially if he said something dirty, I could not risk my students hearing that.
I pushed open the heavy doors and unlocked my little Honda Civic.
Lifting my leg, I slid into the driver’s seat, careful to not expose anything private beneath my blush skirt.
Luckily, I had yet to spill anything on my white blouse that I’d tucked into the hem of the skirt and belted together today.
Luck was definitely all I could credit it toward since I’d nearly splashed some soup on it at lunch.
Shutting the door, I tossed my book bag into the passenger seat and turned on my vehicle. Then I paused.
Glancing around me, I realized I was alone.
Students were home or at some after-school activity, and no teachers were in the parking lot either.
Snatching my phone from my purse, I quickly opened Picsnap and stared at the unread icon. It was a video, and it was now or never. My heart was racing in my chest as I touched the notification and grimaced, bracing for whatever came.
And then rolled my eyes.
Other than the fact that he was shirtless and the pants he was wearing left nothing to the imagination, all it was, was a recording of the new song they were releasing soon. But it wasn’t the verse that they’d shared on Vizgram. No, it was a different part.
“In your reign of my heart, Princess of allure. My soul’s bound and forever secure.”
He called me “Princess.”
The video ended, cutting out, but I remained frozen. Stuck staring at the screen. That was no accident. But he’d reminded me that I’d told him off. What was going on? That line, the song, his easy agreement to my request for a favor, were all the opposite of respecting my denial of him.
I raised an eyebrow as something sounded at the back of my mind. I’d also once told him to quit being respectful and polite toward my rejections.
Was that what he had meant all along?
Lost in thought, I mindlessly plugged the address he’d sent me into my GPS and began driving toward my destination. A destination where I would once again be alone with someone who couldn’t be good for me but felt absolutely right. Maybe he was enjoying this little game of cat and mouse.
Winding along the road, I eventually left our small town and entered the city.
Cars were honking and crammed on the street, pedestrians walking up and down the sidewalks as I continued along.
Passing the hotel he was staying at, I rounded a corner and pulled into a familiar parking lot of what looked like a massive music studio.
How was I supposed to get into the building, though, with the security I knew lurked inside?
But, once again, somehow running on lack of rational thought or simply hoping that things would work out, I parked in a stall and got out of my car.
Locking it behind me, I shrugged my purse higher up my shoulder and began walking toward the tall, beige stucco building.
The crowded parking lot was claustrophobic.
It was as if my lungs constricted on me as I walked closer and closer to the front door.
Eventually, I stopped walking and snatched my phone out of my purse. Then I pulled up Asher’s contact.
I’m here. In the parking lot.
I sent the text and waited, mindlessly tapping my finger against the side of the phone.
Finally, bubbles appeared, and then his response.
Come to the left of the building and I’ll meet you at a side entrance. We aren’t quite done with our recording session, so you’ll have to hide for a bit;)
Rolling my eyes, I sighed in relief and quickly jogged in my heels toward the side of the building. Rounding a corner between a tall fence and some massive shrubs, a side door popped open just as I reached it.
Asher smiled. “Hey, Princess.”