Page 13 of What Happened Last Night

Luna blinked. “What?”

“You said your brothers worked there, but you didn’t. Why not?”

The question seemed to surprise her. “I wanted to do my own thing,” she said. “The B and B is great, but everyone in my family is either in the business or doing something close to it. I wanted to get out of Bend and come to Portland. Staying felt like…” She trailed off.

“Like you’re not growing up into your own adult and making your own life,” I supplied. “I get it.”

“Do you?” She laughed, but it was covering some kind of emotion. “It’s funny that you get it, because I have to explain it over again to my mother every time I see her. Oh, and I live in the apartment above my aunt—my mother’s sister—so I have to explain it to her, too.”

“Don’t worry about them.” I tossed my wrapping, basketball style, into the nearest garbage, then tossed hers, too. “Family is important, but you can’t let them run every aspect of your life. Take it from a guy who disappointed his parents so completely that he has to instruct his assistant to screen their calls.”

“Your parents can’t be disappointed in you, Will,” she said, as if that was obvious. “They’re probably just worried.”

“Worried that I lost my sanity,” I agreed. “You didn’t want to work for your parents’ business, but you seem to genuinely enjoy the T-shirt project. Or am I misreading, and you’re just trying to do a professional job?”

She looked surprised again. “I do like it. I mean—I don’t know. I like…” She trailed off again, searching for words.

“What do you like, Luna?” I asked her. “Just say it.”

She blushed harder. I had a flash of appreciation—she looks beautiful when she blushes—and then I quickly tamped it down. Luna was my employee, and even if she weren’t, she probably had a boyfriend. There was no way a woman who looked like her, who dressed so well and had such an outgoing personality, was just sitting around, single. I needed to shut that shit off.

“It’s fun,” Luna said, oblivious to the struggle going on in my head. “I like the work of running a business—just not my family’s business. Working with family is different. I like that you listen to my ideas, even when we’re just brainstorming. My family loves me, but they’ve never listened to a single one of my ideas. Not ever. You treat me like I matter.”

I thought this over, looking at her expression, trying to read it. “Why wouldn’t you matter?” I asked.

She laughed again, another sound that covered up an emotion I couldn’t discern. “Will, I don’t think you understand what most bosses are actually like.”

“That makes sense, because I haven’t worked for anyone since my teens.”

“Okay then, I’m not going to give you any ideas. Just keep doing what you’re doing, and we’ll be fine.”

I kept my gaze on her face. She was thinking something—a lot of things, by the look of it. I realized I wished I knew what those thoughts were. I wondered what exactly was going on inside her mind.

She really was pretty. Her blue eyes, her dark lashes. Even her chin was nice. Her hair—those soft curls. I wondered what they’d feel like in my hands. If they’d feel silky sliding over my palms, tangling in my fingers.

Employee. With boyfriend. Employee. With boyfriend.

Luna’s eyes met mine for only a brief second, and then she looked away. I was making her uncomfortable.

“Well,” I said slowly, “Whatever the reason, I’m glad you’ve taken over the shirt project, because I’m dealing with the venues for the next tour.”

She nodded. She knew the calls and emails I’d been dealing with for the last few days.

The next Road Kings tour was to the Midwest. The biggest acts never hit the Midwest, so the music fans there weren’t numerous, but they were starving. The Road Kings had a fan base there, because in their long history, the Road Kings had played everywhere. Repeatedly. We didn’t need to fill a football stadium—we just needed a few thousand rock ‘n roll fans to come out and have a rowdy good time. And we could do that in Kansas just as well as we could do it in L.A.

But because the Midwest was overlooked, I wasn’t familiar with the venues there. The Road Kings didn’t need a stadium, but they were too big for a tiny concert hall. Venues of the right size were few and far between. We’d booked them, but I wanted to see them for myself.

“I have to take a trip out there,” I said.

That seemed to snap her to attention. “Give me the details and I’ll book it for you.”

“Later,” I said. “Don’t you have samples for me to see?”

* * *

We crossed the park, heading for the office. We were quiet as we got on the elevator, and when I leaned across her to press the button, I heard the soft sound of her inhale. Then she stepped back half a step.

I was definitely making her uncomfortable, then. I needed to stop staring.

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