Chapter One
“We tried to warn you,” Matthew whispered as he breezed past quickly. Jodi follows shortly thereafter, shaking his head, his eyes mournful.
Grey was confused, to say the least. He’d just arrived at the company a few seconds ago, so he had little to no clue what his bandmates were going on about. He was headed to the studio when he was stopped by their manager, Kellan.
“Follow me.” Kellan wasn’t asking and Grey had a feeling not to press his luck. He shoved his hands in his pockets, following behind in silence. Kellan pushed open the glass doors to his office, gesturing towards the couch. “Sit.”
“A ‘hello’ would be nice,” Grey couldn’t help but to snap.
“Hello. Sit.”
Grey rolled his eyes, huffing softly as he sat next to— “Who are you?”
The man turned to glance over at Grey, sized him up quickly, and ultimately decided to disregard him, speaking to Kellan instead. “I’m not sure if this will work. He’s”—he glanced at Grey, his upper lip curling in mild disgust—“ a bit much.”
Grey had no idea what was going on, but he was inclined to agree. “Damn right I am.” He prided himself on being “a bit much”. Grey knew that when he entered a room, the first thing people noticed was his height. He wasn’t staggeringly tall, by any means, but he was 6’2”, which was taller than most. The second thing people noticed was the way his vibrant green, coiled curls complemented his deep bronze skin tone. Once they moved past the barbell in his perfectly manicured eyebrow, the myriad of differently sized studs and cuffs that adorned his ears, and the hoop and septum ring in his nose, they were often flabbergasted by the tattoos that covered his arms, hands, and the bit of color that was visible on his neck, depending on the shirt he wore.
“Ignore him, Aubrey. This can work. We’ve gone over it several times. Skylar has already agreed to it.”
Skylar? Where had he heard that name before? Grey chewed on the inside of his lip, quickly becoming lost in thought and tuning out the conversation. It finally dawned on him. “Eternal Summer!” He exclaimed. “That song is trash. Why are we talking about that kid?”
Kellan groaned loudly, placing his head in his hands. Aubrey turned his upper body to face Grey, easing long, silky black hair over his shoulder as he did. His pale cheeks burned brightly under the fire of his indignation. “That ’kid’ is 22 years old now. That song, at eight years old, is still charting, which is more than I can say for any of the music Friendly Fire has put out as of late. He has agreed to do you a favor, although it will surely tarnish his reputation.” When he finished speaking, his dark eyes were narrowed into thin, murderous slits.
Grey rolled his eyes and did little to keep the sarcasm from his voice. “Chill, dude. You get paid to kiss his ass. I don’t.”
A tired sigh preceded Kellan’s one word warning. “Grey…Had you been listening you would have learned that given your latest scandal, we now have to do extensive damage control.”
Grey pursed his full lips, tapping a brightly polished finger to his chin as he searched his most recent memories.
The latest scandal… the latest scandal…
Grey couldn’t help but laugh as he recalled the latest “scandal”. He did little to stifle his laughter as he pointed out, “Getting caught leaving a hotel is hardly worthy of being called a scandal.”
Kellan was inclined to partially agree, “That would be true had it been you and one partner.”
“I like variety,” Grey argued, shrugging his shoulders. Kellan and Aubrey stared at him in silence, their gaze unblinking. “What?”
Aubrey exhaled a frustrated breath, shaking his head. “I can’t believe Skylar agreed to this.”
“It will benefit him too,” Kellan pointed out. His tone softened as he explained, “Skylar is looking to shed the image of the teen idol. What better way to do that than to have Grey star as the lead in the upcoming video?”
Grey was slouched comfortably, but sat up ramrod straight, protesting, “I don’t want to star in some teeny bopper music video.”
“You will,” Kellan told Grey, his tone clipped. “Or you can go on hiatus until this blows over. Which means, you won’t be able to record for this next album.”
“This sounds awfully a lot like blackmail.”
Kellan shrugged, his brown skin taking on a reddish hue as he deflected, ignoring the possible legal and ethical considerations. He coughed lightly, averting his copper colored eyes away from Grey. “Be that as it may, we’re not here to discuss that aspect, because I know you’ll make the right decision.”
Grey has known Kellan long enough to recognize his tells. When he avoided eye contact, on top of a light flush, it only took a bit more pushing before Kellan cracked and Grey was let off the hook. “I don’t get how being in a music video is going to help the”—Grey over exaggerated the use of air quotes—“‘scandal’ blow over.” However, Grey didn’t account for the annoying variable in the room.
Aubrey shook his head, muttering under his breath, “I still can’t believe…” but, with more clarity he explained, “The music video will be the ‘meet-cute’. After that, you two will be seen spending more time together, and in a month, we’ll break the news that you have turned over a new leaf and found love with the nation’s pop prince. Skylar’s loyal fans will support him, which means they will support you, which cleans your public image up while, unfortunately, sullying Skylar’s.”
Kellan surprisingly came to Grey’s defense. “He’s not that bad, Aubrey. He’s a kid himself. Barely 24.”
“I don’t want my kid playing with the neighborhood stray. Forgive me if I’m a bit upset,” Aubrey griped.
Neighborhood stray? That was new.
Grey chuckled lightly, “Let me get this straight. You want me to say I found love and have settled down with the largest prude in the music industry? That’s not realistic.” He glanced at Aubrey from the corner of his eyes and was delighted to see the tips of his ears burning red. Before Grey was able to revel in the joy of easily striking a chord, Kellan betrayed him.
“Neither is having to find a replacement lead singer/guitarist before we start recording the next album, but you’re putting me in a position where I might have to make it a reality,” Kellan pointed out.
Grey scratched at his scalp, the motion bearing all of his frustration. He exhaled a sigh heavy with irritation. “And us fake dating is going to do what?”
Aubrey answered, “Give the appearance that you finally settled down. It will also give the appearance that Skylar has grown up and is no longer that 14 year old child. You’ll be ‘settling down’ with him long term.”
Grey was shocked into silence briefly before objecting loudly. “There’s no way I’m settling down long term with someone that you’re forcing on me, Kellan.” Grey’s voice rose, the volume indicative of his sense of anger. “Since when did you become my second parent?!”
“Watch it,” Kellan cautioned. “Six months to a year of a committed relationship and while that is taking place, you’ll be refraining from sleeping around, partying solo, and attending any hotels for any reason, unless myself and the band are present.”
Recognizing he’s caught in between a rock and a hard place, Grey deflated. He went from focused back to whining, “Not even for a party?!”
Kellan nodded. “Not even for a party.”
“But what if Skylar wants to fool ar—,”
“He’d never,” Aubrey snapped, interrupting. “What an asinine question.”
Wanting to tip the scales back in his favor by taking Aubrey down a peg or two, Grey nonchalantly stated, “I don’t even know what he looks like now. I can’t say yes to someone that might need a trigger warning.”
Kellan warned, “Grey…”
“Sorry, sorry,” he apologized to Kellan. Turning to face Aubrey he asked, “Is he ugly or what?”
The office door swung open and the man in question breezed in. “I think I’m conventionally attractive,” Skylar offered as he crossed the threshold, easing the door shut behind him.
Grey glanced around Aubrey to take in Skylar. He was attractive—the curly wolf cut framed his face very well, the lilac of his hair complimenting the golden shine of his eyes. His smile was bright and dimpled, practically perfect save for the small gap between his front teeth. Skylar wore skin tight white jeans that were distressed on one leg starting at his upper thigh and ending at the knee. A pop of honey brown skin bathed in bright colors peeked through the threads of denim. An oversized, white loose knit shirt was over a dusty rose midriff t-shirt, the white shirt loose enough to hang off his shoulder, exposing a smattering of yellow flowers, and their falling petals, tattooed on his clavicle. Sloppily tied boots, in the same color as his midriff shirt, are crossed at the ankle as he leaned against the desk.
“Skylar, you don’t have to do this.”
Skylar smiled over at Aubrey, shrugging a shoulder. “Helping out a fellow industry mate isn’t a chore. I’m glad to do so. Besides, this will help me as well.”
Grey looked around the room, feeling crazy. He did not believe dating for publicity or to rebrand your career to be a real thing, yet here he was, being told he had to choose between a hiatus and fake dating someone, which also meant that he wouldn’t be able to actually date someone. He looked over at Skylar again and back at Kellan. “I can’t mess around with other people either?”
“We aren’t really going to be dating,” Skylar answered before Kellan was able, his voice clear and joyful. “What you do in your private time is your business. However, it would be nice if you didn’t jeopardize both of our careers.” He smiled sweetly at Grey, fiddling with the hem of his shirt.
Grey’s head fell back against the sofa, and he groaned loudly, “Fine. Do the others know about this?”
Kellan nodded. “Everyone has been briefed. After the music video is shot, we’ll arrange a few group outings. Make it look organic—friends hanging out. Once a couple of those pictures hit social media, we’ll let speculation build, have you two like a few pictures of one another, comment on social media here and there, and then an actual date.”
Aubrey chimed in, continuing, “While all of this is going on, behind the scenes the two of you will actually be spending time together getting to know one another. We’re anticipating there being quite a bit of interest in wanting to interview one or both of you. So it has to be believable, authentic.”
“Give me your phone,” Grey demanded of Skylar, gesturing for the device.
Skylar cocked an eyebrow, a hint of disdain barely evident in his voice as he questioned, “Why would you need my phone?” but he quickly caught himself. Although, not before Grey picked up on it.
Grey’s eyebrows arched in mild bemusement. He might have misjudged Skylar. He took a second glance, eyes narrowing as Grey did his best to truly see the man standing before him. The innocent smile on Skylar’s face didn’t quite reach his eyes; there was something else there. Skylar’s arms were folded over his chest, slender fingers drumming out a steady, soundless rhythm on his forearm. Grey decided to roll with it. This could be fun, after all. “How else are you going to get a hold of me, darling?” He crossed his legs at the knee, settling back against the couch, one arm thrown over the back. Grey stares up at Skylar, an easy smile blossoming on his face and lending a slight glow to his complexion.
“Oh!” Skylar’s eyes widened, his voice taking on an innocent air as he smacked a palm lightly to his forehead. “Of course. Here you go.” Skylar extended his phone and watched as Grey called himself. Once the phone rang, he handed it back to Skylar. Grey typed in a name for the contact and held out his phone, a broad grin on his face. Skylar leaned in, and this time, he couldn’t quite catch himself before he rolled his eyes and made a sound that was between a scoff and gagging. “Princess? Really?”
“You look like the type who’d either be a pillow princess or love being called Princess. My guess is both. Whenever you wanna let me find out about the former, I’m game.” Grey winked at Skylar, holding back a laugh as he watched annoyance quickly flash in bright golden brown irises.
Skylar took a deep breath through his nose, exhaling through his mouth slowly. “I’d prefer if you’d refrain from speaking to me that way in front of our managers.”
“So, it’s all good when we’re behind closed doors? Over text? No…,” Grey trailed off and leaned forward, making a show of gasping loudly, “the phone?” He tilts his head to the side, clicking his tongue against his teeth. “A little old school, but I can work with that.”
Kellan pinched the bridge of his nose, closing his eyes tightly and taking a long pause before opening them. “You’re deliberately trying to sabotage this because you do not believe that I have another person ready to replace you. I’ve already been in contact with Mark. He’s agreed to step in for the recordings, music video, and promotions. Unless you want him taking your spot and winning over your fans, I’d suggest you take this as seriously as I wish you’d take your career.”
“Damn,” Skylar breathed. “I feel like I did something wrong,” he muttered, scrunching the bridge of his nose, and giving a quick shake of his head.
Grey’s face burned with embarrassment. Recognizing that he wanted to save face, he scoffed at himself. This was the only thing that brought Grey back down enough for the situation to begin to diffuse. He settled back on the couch, legs crossed once again and foot kicking back and forth. Grey pressed his lips into a thin line, biting the inside of his cheek to keep his mouth shut. Kellan wasn’t behaving at all in the way that Grey had grown accustomed to and in the moment, he was irrationally upset about his manager’s sudden enforcement of professional boundaries.
Aubrey cleared his throat, easing back the tension as he addressed Kellan. “The video shoot is tomorrow. Makeup and hair is at 5am. Please make sure he is on time, showered, and sober.” Aubrey glanced at him, the corner of his lip lifting in a look of disdain.
Kellan stood, circling around his desk, sweeping his arm out and gesturing towards the door, allowing Aubrey to exit first. Grey was following on their heels when Skylar called his name softly.
Grey turned and was surprised to find Skylar practically on top of him. Skylar jabbed his finger into Grey’s chest, his eyes blazing. His voice was sweet, contrasting confusingly with the words coming out of his mouth. “If you fuck this up, Grey, I will be the worst thing that has ever happened to you. You will never know another moment of peace. I will tank your career so quickly you’d swear all of it was just a fever dream. Do. Not. Fuck. With. Me. Got it?” He reached up to pat Grey’s cheek, his words now matching the tone of voice when he sweetly calls out,
“Wait for me, Aubrey!” He walked around Grey, glancing over his shoulder and rolling his eyes before following after his manager.
“...I don’t know whether to be annoyed, scared, or turned on.”
(He was definitely a bit of all three.)
