Page 50 of Wants and Needs
“Then I’ll stay.”
We all file into the dining room, and sit silently while the four newcomers pile food onto their plates like they’ve been starved for a week and not only a few hours.
The worst thing is, they probably had something to eat on the damn plane.
CJ might’ve sold his family’s private jets, but the Storms can’t really just go on commercial flights. Not even their bodyguards would help in those situations.
Speaking of. “Where are Rich and Tate?” I ask about them.
“At the Certon down the block,” Hawk mumbles with his mouth full. It would be disgusting on anyone else, but he has this superpower of making everything he does look endearing.
“We have two more rooms here, you know,” I point out to CJ with raised eyebrows.
He nods without looking up, somehow knowing I’m talking to him.
“I know, and they know too, but we wanted to give them their space and the night off.”
That sounds like them.
“Now, will you explain yourself?” I demand, not able to put it off any longer.
CJ barely looks up and his shoulders droop. He’s sure doing his best to look like a kicked puppy, but I’m immune to it from him.
“Milton is worried about you,” he says quickly, like a confession. “When he called about his thoughts on the brownstone, he said how much time you’re spending at work and that you only come home to sleep and then you’re right back at it. So I was planning on sending Wolf to annoy you into being social.”
I scoff at that. If anything, hanging out with Wolf all day would make me more antisocial.
“I know, I know,” CJ continues. “That wasn’t my best plan, but... a few things changed,” he says mysteriously. CJ is a straightforward man; hedging isn’t really his style.
“What things?” I press, narrowing my eyes at him.
“We knew we needed Liam,” Wolf pipes in, and now I know something is going on, but I’ll get it out of CJ eventually.
“For what?” I ask again.
“I told you how I wouldn’t have time tomorrow or on Friday, right?” Liam speaks for the first time, his voice low. He’s looking down at his glass of water this time.
“Yes.”
“It’s to work with them.”
“What do they have to do with ESoothe?” I ask, seriously confused.
“No, my other work.”
“You have another job? How did I not know this?” I mumble almost to myself.
“I—” He starts to explain, but Wolf interrupts,again. God, he’s lucky I love his surly arse.
“Liam here is basically the best piano player in the world.”
“Well—”
“One of them at least.” Wolf interrupts Liam again, and now he’s really grating on my nerves. “It’s an industry secret that when you want your track to have some sick keys, you call Liam and he records it. All of the big musicians use him and fly to New York so they get to work with him.”
“Yeah,” Hawk adds happily. “We’ve been asking him to play for us since our first album. On two or three songs, depending, but this one is big,” he finishes with his eyes wide open, looking earnestly at Liam.
I turn back to Liam who looks sheepish, no trace of his frown this time.
