Read Online I Want You to Want Me (Rock Star Romance #2) by Erika Kelly - Free Book Online Page B
Authors: Erika Kelly
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close, and she saw his nostrils flare. Was he sniffing her?
“Son?” A man appeared beside him, clapping him on the back. Tall with manic eyes, he wore a short-sleeved linen shirt men his age typically wore loosely over slacks to cover their bellies.
Derek flinched. A flash of stark fear quickly hardened into anger. “Dad? What’re you doing here?”
So this was Eddie Valencia. The jazz legend looked nothing like the images she’d found on Google. Seemed he hadn’t been photographed in many years.
“Now, why the hell would you be surprised your old man showed up at one of your gigs?” He gestured to the younger man beside him. “You’ve heard of Buck O’Reilly? Buck, my son, Derek Valencia.”
The younger man tucked his long, lank hair behind his ear with one hand while the other reached for Derek’s. “You bet. Been trying for a while to get him on the show.”
Derek gestured to her. “Dad, Buck, this is Violet Davis.”
Oh, nuts. She hadn’t had a chance to talk to the guys about her role in their lives. Including her fake name. Usually, she posed as a girlfriend to avoid embarrassment for the client, but in the case of five guys, she could always be a record company representative. She should’ve talked to them about it already, but everything had moved so quickly.
“So nice to meet you.” She shook both their hands, surprised at the swipe of Eddie’s thumb over the back of hers. Unnerved, she focused on Buck. “What show is that?”
“Ever hear of
Artists Unplugged
?” Eddie asked.
“Of course.” Violet smiled.
“That’s Buck’s cable show. All the big players do it.” Under that genial persona, Violet saw a hardness as he looked at his son. Like he was taunting him.
Derek met his dad’s focused expression with one of his own. “We spent nearly a year in the studio and now we’re on tour. Been a busy time.” He paused. “You remember what that was like, right, Dad?”
Tension pulled the group taut. Without even thinking, she reached for his hand, gave it a squeeze. He had to know not to throw down publicly with his own dad.
“You’re damn right I remember.” Eddie bellowed out a laugh. “My guys, man, we’d hole up in the studio day and night. Didn’t give a damn about albums or tours or dating models. None of that shit. All we wanted to do was jam. For us, it was all about the music. But these are different times, right, Buck?”
Derek stiffened, and Violet could not believe a father could treat his own son this way. She pressed closer to him, wanting him to know she was right there with him.
“Where do you record your shows?” she asked, more to break the tension than to hear the answer.
The hipster seemed relieved. “New York. I’ve got a small studio in the West Village. I also do a blog. Hey, you guys mind if I get a picture of you? Father and son?” He whipped out his phone. In a flash, Eddie had his arm around his son. The picture was taken with Derek looking awkward and uncomfortable. Nothing like the strong, commanding man he was.
“Fuck,” Derek muttered under his breath. She gave his hand another squeeze. She’d fix it.
“How about I get a shot of the three of you? Wouldn’t that be fun for your blog?” She reached for the phone, and Buck handed it over. “Great.” As they arranged themselves, Violet pretended not to know how to work the camera. She quickly opened the gallery. “Oh, darnit. I think I deleted that one.” She glanced up at Derek, horrified to see his desperate, haunted expression. He completely hated this moment with his dad. “Okay, let’s try this again. Smile.”
She locked her gaze with Derek’s, letting him know she’d wait as long as it took for him to settle into his cool bass player persona.
The moment he did, she pressed the button. “Got it.” As she handed the phone back, she reached for Derek’s arm. “We really should get going. You’ve got press to do.”
“So what’s it going to take to get you on
“Son?” A man appeared beside him, clapping him on the back. Tall with manic eyes, he wore a short-sleeved linen shirt men his age typically wore loosely over slacks to cover their bellies.
Derek flinched. A flash of stark fear quickly hardened into anger. “Dad? What’re you doing here?”
So this was Eddie Valencia. The jazz legend looked nothing like the images she’d found on Google. Seemed he hadn’t been photographed in many years.
“Now, why the hell would you be surprised your old man showed up at one of your gigs?” He gestured to the younger man beside him. “You’ve heard of Buck O’Reilly? Buck, my son, Derek Valencia.”
The younger man tucked his long, lank hair behind his ear with one hand while the other reached for Derek’s. “You bet. Been trying for a while to get him on the show.”
Derek gestured to her. “Dad, Buck, this is Violet Davis.”
Oh, nuts. She hadn’t had a chance to talk to the guys about her role in their lives. Including her fake name. Usually, she posed as a girlfriend to avoid embarrassment for the client, but in the case of five guys, she could always be a record company representative. She should’ve talked to them about it already, but everything had moved so quickly.
“So nice to meet you.” She shook both their hands, surprised at the swipe of Eddie’s thumb over the back of hers. Unnerved, she focused on Buck. “What show is that?”
“Ever hear of
Artists Unplugged
?” Eddie asked.
“Of course.” Violet smiled.
“That’s Buck’s cable show. All the big players do it.” Under that genial persona, Violet saw a hardness as he looked at his son. Like he was taunting him.
Derek met his dad’s focused expression with one of his own. “We spent nearly a year in the studio and now we’re on tour. Been a busy time.” He paused. “You remember what that was like, right, Dad?”
Tension pulled the group taut. Without even thinking, she reached for his hand, gave it a squeeze. He had to know not to throw down publicly with his own dad.
“You’re damn right I remember.” Eddie bellowed out a laugh. “My guys, man, we’d hole up in the studio day and night. Didn’t give a damn about albums or tours or dating models. None of that shit. All we wanted to do was jam. For us, it was all about the music. But these are different times, right, Buck?”
Derek stiffened, and Violet could not believe a father could treat his own son this way. She pressed closer to him, wanting him to know she was right there with him.
“Where do you record your shows?” she asked, more to break the tension than to hear the answer.
The hipster seemed relieved. “New York. I’ve got a small studio in the West Village. I also do a blog. Hey, you guys mind if I get a picture of you? Father and son?” He whipped out his phone. In a flash, Eddie had his arm around his son. The picture was taken with Derek looking awkward and uncomfortable. Nothing like the strong, commanding man he was.
“Fuck,” Derek muttered under his breath. She gave his hand another squeeze. She’d fix it.
“How about I get a shot of the three of you? Wouldn’t that be fun for your blog?” She reached for the phone, and Buck handed it over. “Great.” As they arranged themselves, Violet pretended not to know how to work the camera. She quickly opened the gallery. “Oh, darnit. I think I deleted that one.” She glanced up at Derek, horrified to see his desperate, haunted expression. He completely hated this moment with his dad. “Okay, let’s try this again. Smile.”
She locked her gaze with Derek’s, letting him know she’d wait as long as it took for him to settle into his cool bass player persona.
The moment he did, she pressed the button. “Got it.” As she handed the phone back, she reached for Derek’s arm. “We really should get going. You’ve got press to do.”
“So what’s it going to take to get you on
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