Page 19 of Idol Moves

Despite Tae Hyun’s neutral expression, Jason could see he was already in his professional mingling mode. That was fine for public events, but it was a party, so Jason would need to loosen him up. And he’d probably have to explain what hooch was. Hopefully, Tae Hyun wouldn’t ask about the pool house. He grabbed Tae Hyun’s hand. “Come on. Let’s get drinks.”

Jason led Tae Hyun away through the foyer into the main room. Raven’s house, like Jason’s, went top down, with the main living areas on the upper floor. The upstairs lounge also featured a wall of glass on the opposite side, offering a view of the LA basin that was almost as spectacular as his. Unlike Jason, Raven had spent a lot of time and money decorating her house. Her decor was an eclectic blend of mid-century modern and afro-futurist, with lots of dark woods and shiny chrome offset by animal prints and West African art and sculpture. Jason was always mildly jealous of Raven’s style. Or, more so the fact that she had style. Yeah, everything in his house matched, but that was because his decorator had given up on him and did everything in shades of gray.

“This house is amazing,” Tae Hyun gushed in Korean. “Raven has fantastic taste.”

Jason swallowed his jealousy and nodded. “She does,” he replied in Korean. “She’s one of my favorite people.”

“And it’s nice that I finally get to spend time with some of your friends.”

Jason almost frowned. He knew Tae Hyun hadn’t meant that as a dig. And Raven was a friend, but only because she’d considered their relationship entertaining enough to put up with Jason’s bullshit over the years. The sad fact was that almost all of Jason’s so-called friends lately were people he employed or was in some kind of business relationship with. Hell, he’d even gone into business with Tae Hyun. Was he turning into his father?

“Hey. What’s that look for? Did I say something wrong?”

Jason shook off the frown that had still snuck onto his face as he leaned in to kiss Tae Hyun’s cheek. “Of course not. Nothing you say is wrong.” He smiled. “What are you drinking?”

Tae Hyun shrugged. “Should I get something besides a gin and tonic? I wonder if they have soju.”

Jason nodded. “I’m sure there’s soju.”

“Okay,” Tae Hyun smiled. “I’ll have that.”

Jason walked up to the bar and flagged down the closest bartender. He ordered a neat Kingston for himself and a soju martini with lemon for Tae Hyun, who put his arm around Jason as they waited. Jason glanced at Tae Hyun’s hand draped over his shoulder. “That’s new.”

Tae Hyun half shrugged. “I know. Whenever you do this to me in public, I make you stop. So, I’m trying it out.” He grinned. “It feels weird, but I like it.”

Jason chuckled as he handed Tae Hyun his drink. “Good. Me, too.”

Tae Hyun sipped his drink and nodded. “This is good.”

Jason smiled. “I thought you’d like it.” He swallowed some bourbon, grateful for its comforting warmth as it slid down his throat. “What do you think of the party?”

“It’s nice. And not very crowded.” Tae Hyun did a quick glance at his surroundings. “I assumed there’d be more people.”

“There still may be more coming. But some folks will head to other parties, too.” Jason grinned. “Between the big labels and other musicians, there’s always a lot of award show after-parties.”

“Ah.” Tae Hyun nodded. “But we’re just going to this one?”

Jason chuckled. “Do you want to see some of the others? I suppose we could–”

“No.” Tae Hyun shook his head. “This is nice. At least the host knows me here.”

Jason snorted. “Everyone knows you here, Tae Hyun. You’re famous. Remember?”

“That’s not what I meant.” Tae Hyun frowned. “They may all know who I am, but I don’t know any of them. And I’m not here to be on display.”

Jason put his hand on Tae Hyun’s arm. “I’m sorry. I wasn’t trying to–”

“I know. It’s alright. I guess I feel a little out of my element.”

Jason nodded. He’d assumed as much since they were still speaking Korean. “I could introduce you to some people.”

“Sure. But let’s just enjoy these drinks and the music first.”

Jason took a generous swallow of his bourbon just as Raven emerged from the crowd with a familiar face in tow. He nodded over Tae Hyun’s shoulder. “I think you might already know someone else here, too.”

Tae Hyun turned to look just as Raven walked up beside them. “Riki?”

The familiar face in question was Riki, a Korean-American idol a few years older than Jason. She’d spent several years as leader of the K-pop girl groupSugar Partybefore going solo and splitting her time between Los Angeles and Seoul. She’d poured herself into a midnight-blue metallic body suit accented with a silver rope belt and chunky silver bracelets. And her chocolate brown hair was tightly pulled back into her trademark ponytail. She smiled at Tae Hyun. “I was wondering if you’d remember me.”

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