Page 33 of Half Notes and Highlights
CHAPTER ELEVEN
Happily sweeping the studio floor with his new electric broom, Tyler danced to “Flowers” by Miley Cyrus blaring from the Bluetooth speaker hanging on the wall, thanks to the cute handyman next door. A deep, raspy voice suddenly boomed through the hair studio, singing along with Miley, and Tyler jumped so hard he dropped the electric broom. He spun around toward the door. “Ethan! What are you doing here?”
“I missed you, baby!”
Tyler got so excited that he ran to Ethan and jumped into his arms. Wrapping his legs around the rock star’s waist, he gave his lover a kiss that set his heart, and other parts, on fire. “Aren’t you supposed to be performing somewhere?”
“I don’t have to be in Albuquerque until tomorrow morning. Why ride all night on the bus when I can fly here, spend the night with you, then fly back. I didn’t even need to take the jet.”
A shocked grunt left Tyler’s mouth. “You’re taking a commercial flight like a regular Joe? What’s happening to you?” He snapped his fingers in front of Ethan’s face. “Are you under some kind of spell?”
Ethan gave Tyler’s butt a squeeze. “I think I am. Since I met you, I’m doing crazy things like cutting off all my hair. When I was performing this morning, I swore I saw you in the audience. I almost skipped a lyric and had to do a doubletake. But it was just a cute boy who had long brown hair and was wearing a rainbow fluffy vest.”
“I love that your hallucination gave me such a fabulous wardrobe. I don’t have a rainbow fluffy vest.”
Ethan leaned over so Tyler could climb down off him, then turned to pick up a gift bag off the floor and handed it to Tyler. “You do now.”
“Give me that.” Tyler snatched the bag, praying to the unicorn gods that it contained exactly what he thought it did. He let out an excited squeal as soon as he saw the bright colors through the tissue paper. “I don’t believe it!” He immediately put the vest on and admired himself in the mirror. “This is perfection! Thank you so, so much! I can’t believe you picked out such an amazing gift. It’s so me.”
“You’re a very easy person to shop for.” Ethan glanced at the floor and picked up the electric broom, which Tyler dropped in his excitement. “Are you done here, Cinderella, or do you still have clients coming?”
“I can’t believe you just called me Cinderella. I love it.” He took the broom and placed it on the charger. “I can clean up tomorrow morning. What did you have in mind?”
“A boat ride and dinner on the Pacific Ocean.”
“A boat ride? Don’t tell me you have your own yacht.”
“No. I don’t have time for a boat. I like boats, though, so I thought I could rent one.”
Tyler did feel like Cinderella. He sauntered up to Ethan and slowly traced one finger down the center of Ethan’s chest while he wrapped his free arm over Ethan’s neck and played with the back of his hair. “You really know how to wine and dine a wannabe princess.”
“Princess?” Ethan displayed a playful grin. “You’re the biggest queen I ever met.”
“You ain’t seen nothin’ yet, sweetheart.”
When they left the salon, two bodyguards were standing outside, but no one lingered on the sidewalk, so they safely snuck away without fanfare. The boat Ethan rented was huge. Not a yacht, but certainly not the average boat a person rents onthe pier. This thing was more like a party boat. The bodyguards accompanied them but stayed far away, while the captain led them through the beautiful Pacific Ocean with breathtaking views of nature all around.
Tyler breathed in the salty air, snuggled into the cushioned bench seat next to Ethan and watched the ocean pick up bright shades of yellow from the gorgeous sun in the sky. They sat quietly as the boat navigated without a destination in mind, just staring at the horizon and one another without saying anything. The warmth that transpired between them enveloped Tyler’s heart like a hug. He felt safe, secure, and . . . loved. Although they both confirmed that they wanted things to be strictly casual, whatever was going on between them was definitely more. He could feel it, and surely Ethan felt it as well, but neither talked about it. Maybe that’s why they were both quiet right now.
Fingers gently clutched Tyler’s hand and gave it a little squeeze.
They both smiled at one another, and the look in Ethan’s chocolate brown eyes melted Tyler’s heart into a puddle of mush. This guy was doing things to him that scared the hell out of him. He thought he was done taking chances with that fragile organ in his chest. He wanted easy and fun, but he got a whole lot of complicated. Somehow, he didn’t care. He wanted to be with Ethan, and he was going to have to deal with the consequences because Ethan was worth the risk. But that little voice in his head wouldn’t let him totally forget that things could end badly. Ethan might be downplaying his feelings for his bass player, and it could leave Tyler alone and out in the cold. He could be just a temporary fling. The idea made his heart drop to the floor and shatter into a million pieces, and he wanted to throw up.
Ethan turned toward Tyler, worry crinkling his brow. “Are you feeling seasick?”
“No,” he answered quietly, with his eyes lowered.
“Then, what is it?”
How was he supposed to answer that without turning their lovely boat ride into a disaster? “Nothing,” he said in a voice so low he didn’t think Ethan heard it. But he did.
“It’s not nothing, Tyler. You’re upset about something. What did I do wrong? Is this too much? Are you mad that I just showed up without calling? Did you have other plans tonight?” Ethan sat back, a look of realization on his face. “I’m sorry. You had plans with someone else. I had no right—”
“No. I didn’t have any other plans.” Tyler hadn’t been with anyone else since he moved to California. Granted, it had only been about a month, but he always had a prolific sex life. It’s not like there weren’t any opportunities. He fought off two possible one-night stands the other night when he hit the Sunset Strip, which was a first for him. Maybe he wasn’t looking for the playboy lifestyle anymore. The idea of coming home to one man was starting to sound a little appealing. He let his mind play with the idea of sharing a bed with the same person, night after night, waking up together, having breakfast and spending the day together. It sounded nice, as long as that person was Ethan. “I’m not mad that you showed up unexpectedly. I’m very happy you did. And this.” He motioned to the open water around them. “It’s perfect.”
“Then why do you look so sad all of a sudden?”
Tyler blew out a breath through his nostrils.I guess we’re gonna have this conversation after all. “I’m just worried I’m setting myself up for heartbreak. I’m falling for you, rock star. I know we said we want this to be casual. And I’m not saying I want something more. I don’t. Not right now anyway. I’ve had my heart smashed to pieces before, and it’s not fun. I never expected it, and I was blindsided.” He shrugged and sighed again because he had no idea what the hell he was trying tosay. “I don’t know. I think I’m just afraid we’re not on the same page.”
