“I’m sorry I barged into your office and provoked you into sex.”
He shook against me, laughter rumbling in his voice. “Can’t say I’m especially upset about that.”
We kissed again, softer, sweeter, the intensity of our passion momentarily quietened by release. As Killian gently eased out of me, I bit my lip. “Do you have something I can clean up with?”
He moved away, not caring to zip himself up as he opened the door of what I thought was a stationery cupboard.
“I didn’t know you had a private restroom in here.”
“Stay.” He disappeared inside. When he returned, he’d put himself back to rights and had a wet washcloth in his hand.
I reached for it but he evaded me, a possessive look in his eyes as he stepped back into my body and pressed the cool cloth between my legs. He watched me as he cleaned me up. Renewed tingling sparked to life, and I flushed at how easily this man could turn me on.
He smirked as if he knew.
“Don’t act so smug,” I huffed. “I’m the one who got you to break your no-sex-in-the-office rule.”
“True,” he agreed. “But I’m the only man who makes you crazy with jealousy. I don’t think either of us has the upper hand here.”
It was sweet of him to reassure me, but I was still feeling the pinch of jealousy. And honestly, I didn’t want to feel like the only one who got jealous. “Are you telling me that the thought of me fucking someone else doesn’t make you insane with jealousy?”
His expression darkened and he suddenly slipped two thick fingers inside me. I gasped as he leaned into me, his hand moving between my legs. “I can’t bear thinking about it,” he admitted. “It would kill me, and I’d probably kill any bastard who touched you. But there isn’t going to be someone else, Skylar. My fingers, my mouth, my cock will be the only ones pleasuring you for the rest of your life. Can I make myself any fucking clearer than that?”
Love shattered through me at the same time another orgasm did. He kissed me to soften my cry and I grabbed onto him like he was a life preserver.
God, I loved him.
I loved him so much.
The last person I’d loved with this much of my soul had died.
I clung onto him for dear life, even though I also wanted to run from how I felt.
But I didn’t.
The desire to be in his arms forever was much stronger than the fear of losing him.
* * *
IF EVE HEARD ANY OF what went on in Killian’s office that day, she never let on. As she was easier to read than an open book, I deduced that she hadn’t heard anything suspicious. Either that or she’d suddenly grown proficient at hiding her thoughts and feelings.
We continued with the album and managed to keep our relationship private from everyone but Autumn. I did my very best to stifle my worries about our future and although he never said the words, Killian showed me every day that he loved me.
And although he obviously wasn’t Mr. Touchy-Feely at the office, he also stopped being so cold and even started acting like we might be friends. If anyone thought that was weird, no one said so. Killian had invested more of his own time into this album than usual and I think everyone saw me as kind of a musical passion project for him . . . and not just . . . well, a passion project.
There were no more bouts of jealousy. I knew he didn’t call Deena back to meet up with her because he spent every evening with me. Even if he hadn’t been with me I knew in my gut that he didn’t reach out to her. Despite the bargain that drew us together in the first place, I trusted Killian to never lie to me.
As our time together wore on, however, I realized that the only way I could truly get over my fear of losing Killian was to start living outside my little bubble by the River Clyde. Although we couldn’t be in a relationship in the open yet, we needed to start being in a relationship while I was facing life and not pushing it aside. Otherwise we’d never really know how we could work as a couple in the real world.
I asked for that laptop and let Killian set up a PR meeting with my new team at the label.
That’s how I found myself, two weeks after our interlude in his office, back at Skyscraper Records but not to record. I was sitting in a private boardroom that had a view over the river, accompanied by Killian and four strangers who would soon be planning my future.
They all stared at me expectantly and I was grateful to see Eve pop her familiar, friendly face around the door.
“Refreshments?”
“Aye, please, Eve,” Killian replied congenially. I sent him an approving look. Eve was sweet. She deserved a nice boss.
Killian and the four strangers asked for coffee.
“Skylar?”
“Water, thank you.”
She beamed at me and disappeared to get our drinks.
“Skylar,” Killian drew my attention back to him, “I’d like you to meet Lois.” He gestured to a stone-faced redhead. “She’s our director of publicity.”
We shared a nod of hello.
“And this is Kit.” He introduced a tall, skinny guy with thick, black-framed glasses and a beard. “And Jaclyn,” a curvy blonde with flushed cheeks, “our flack agents. Our publicists. And this,” he nodded to a dark-skinned beauty with a short afro who stared at me intensely, “is May, our marketing coordinator.”
“Nice to meet you all.”
“Nice to meet you,” May said, surprising me with her American accent as she reached across the table to shake my hand. “My kid sister is a huge fan.”
“That’s always nice to hear. You’re not from around here.”
“San Francisco. I did a study abroad at Glasgow University and kind of fell in love with the place. After graduation, I moved here and never looked back.” It was weird but hearing a familiar accent made me feel a little less tense.
“It’s easy to fall in love with this place, especially if you like music.”
“True.” She grinned. “I can’t wait for your PR to launch so I can tell my sister I’m on your marketing team. The kid will hit the roof.”
I laughed, trying not to be nervous about the “your PR to launch” part. “If you want me to sign anything for her, I can.” God, I hadn’t signed an autograph in so long.
“Really? Great. The new album will suffice. I can’t wait to hear it.”
“Which leads nicely into our first dilemma,” Kit interrupted. He had a lovely southern English accent I could’ve listened to all day. “We,” he gestured to himself and Jaclyn, “haven’t heard the album yet, so we can’t come up with an approach for radio and media. We can’t explain or sell what we haven’t heard.”
“Yes, Kit, I’m aware,” Killian appeared beleaguered, “and I told you the album is in postproduction. You’ll hear it very soon. But this meeting isn’t about that.”
“No, it’s about managing what will be an explosive return,” Lois jumped in, “considering you disappeared off the face of the planet nearly twenty months ago. Once we have that under control, it’s about managing your exposure. Killian says you want to quieten your public image. Make it more career-focused.”
I nodded, ignoring the unpleasant fluttering in my chest. “Yes.”
She wrinkled her nose. “Unfortunately, I’m here to tell you that is incredibly naive and possibly career suicide. We live in a platform-based society where hits, likes, and interest are cultivated by personality and personal anecdotes. The world moves much more quickly than it did even fifteen years ago. Although it’s possible to grow a fan base, it’s very easy for customers to become disinterested, for their attention to be drawn elsewhere. We will need you to nurture your fan base on social media platforms.” Her condescending tone and the way she drew her eyes up and down my body made me bristle. It also made me question if Killian had explained things fully to her.
I gave her an unfiltered look of irritation. “Tellurian had nine million followers on Instagram. My personal account had just as many as that. I know the power of social media and I understand the fickle, ever-changing entertainment industry. Lois, is it?”