Total pages in book: 74
Estimated words: 71249 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 356(@200wpm)___ 285(@250wpm)___ 237(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 71249 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 356(@200wpm)___ 285(@250wpm)___ 237(@300wpm)
Nobody else would put up with him, let alone enjoy him. Nobody except the gorgeous, fun, smart man underneath him. Jeremy wasn’t naïve; he knew relationships rarely lasted long in his world. But he also knew he’d never felt more whole, more safe, more at peace than he had since Reg had come into his life. And he knew how very rare and precious that was.
“Don’t let me drive you away,” he begged. “My parents weren’t like yours.” He swallowed down the thickness in his throat. “I haven’t ever known anybody like that in real life. But I think, if you want to, maybe… but you have to help me because I don’t know how.” He looked at Reg beseechingly. “Will you help me keep you?”
“You break my heart sometimes,” Reg whispered. “Kills me how alone you’ve been.” He pulled Jeremy down, tucked Jeremy’s head under his chin, and squeezed him close. “So glad I found you.”
With Reg’s muscular arms holding him, Jeremy felt safe, like nothing and nobody, himself included, could pry him away from this man.
“And don’t worry,” Reg said. “If you try to push me away, I’ll remind you why you need to hold on tighter instead.”
“DID YOU talk to Francis?” Jeremy asked Bill on the phone the next day. He and Reg were in Toronto for the final North American show. Then they were off to the UK. “Because I swear to you, if he comes anywhere near me, I’ll—”
“He won’t,” Bill assured him. “Francis is on his way back to LA, and I’m sending someone else to meet you after tonight’s show. She’ll work on your PR until I get things straightened out with Francis.”
“You’re not firing him?” Jeremy asked incredulously. “How could you not fire him after what he did? He—”
Reg squeezed his knee. “We’re in a cab,” he reminded Jeremy in a whisper.
Taking a deep breath, Jeremy nodded. “Anyway, he’s off my file. Just make sure he doesn’t have access to my schedule anymore.”
“Jeremy, he’s not going to spend his free time setting you up. In fact, I don’t believe he was ever trying to set you up.”
“Yeah, he did! That’s exactly what he did. I told you about—”
“It felt that way, I realize, but what I’m saying is that I don’t think it was his intent.”
“And what do you think he intended when he told every asshole with a zoom lens where I sleep at night?”
“I think,” Bill said calmly, “that he sincerely believed he was doing his job. You know the old saying, any press is good press? Well, he was getting you press.”
“That is not my saying, Bill. It’s your saying, but it’s so not my saying.”
Sighing, Bill said, “I understand, and I’m taking care of it. Calm down and focus on your show.”
Being told to calm down tended to make Jeremy exponentially less calm, which Reg must have noticed because he plucked the phone from Jeremy’s white-knuckled grip and brought it to his own ear.
“Hey, man. It’s Reg. Anything we need to know before the show tonight?” He paused. “Cool. Have her call me instead of JJ, okay?”
Jeremy’s tension started dissipating.
“Because he needs to get in his groove for the show, and I want to meet this new one and make sure she isn’t a total schmuck like the last one.”
Leaning against Reg, Jeremy could hear Bill’s voice, but he ignored it and focused on the heat and strength at his side. Reg wrapped his arm around him and played with the back of his hair.
“Dude, he was a little shit who set Jeremy up to freak out. Seems to me he should have been able to do his job without that, but whatever. The point is, you need to tell… what’d you say the new person’s name was?” A brief pause. “Okay, then tell Becky to call me with details about where JJ needs to be tonight and when. And also, let her know I’ll want to meet with her when she has a break tonight before Jeremy gets off stage.” Whatever Bill said next made Reg laugh. “Right on, man. Call me Yoko if you have to, because I’m stepping up my game.”
Jeremy looked up at Reg, who smiled and stroked Jeremy’s cheek.
“It means I’m playing intermediary between him and anything I think stresses him out from here on out. You go ahead and tell everyone they’re about to meet the new version of a rock-star wife if it makes you feel better. I don’t give a shit. My only priority is JJ.”
In that moment, Jeremy realized what it felt like to have someone care about him. He circled his arms around Reg’s waist and hugged him.
“No. You work your ass off for The Jeremy Jameson, and hats off to you, dude, you do a great job. But I care about the man, not the rock star.” He paused, and Jeremy could hear Bill ranting. “Think of it as a division of labor. You take care of the label, I’ll take care of my boyfriend. Everyone’s happy.”