I’ve come to the conclusion that recording studios are one of the most confusing places in the world to maneuver yourself around in. When you walk in the front door everything seems simple and the cheery receptionist merely pointing to a hallway leads you to believe that finding your destination will be relatively simple. But when one hallway leads into three different hallways and each of those three hallways contains what seems like hundreds of doors, things get complicated. A few signs pointing me in the right direction would help but apparently this is a foreign concept to whoever designed the place.

I’m about to pull out my cell phone and call Justin to get him to come rescue me when a beefy janitor appears. He seems suspicious at first when I ask for him to show me what recording studio Justin is in but then relaxes, probably recognizing me from one of the countless pictures of me that has been displayed in entertainment magazines over the past two weeks. He shows me to the studio I want, but not before making me feel stupid for how effortlessly he found it.

I wait until he leaves before knocking softly on the door. I feel like one day I’m going to barge in and somehow mess up some amazing song that he’s recording or producing or whatever. I actually dreamt that last night and now I’m paranoid that it’s going to happen. It seems like something that would happen to me.

I’m expecting Justin or maybe Trace when the door opens but instead the face of a younger girl greets me. It takes me a minute to place her before I recognize her as Bridget Sparks, the girl that Justin’s producing for.

“Hi,” she says somewhat uncertainly. “Justin’s not here.”

My brow wrinkles. “He’s not?”

“He went to get coffee.”

“Okay.” I wait. Is she planning on making me stand in the hallway?

She opens the door a bit wider and moves to the side. I step into the room and glance around. Usually Trace is with Justin when he’s recording but apparently not today. Just Bridget and I occupy the room and a string of anxiety goes through me. Although I can force myself to make small talk, I absolutely hate it. It completely stresses me out.

Bridget plops down in a chair at the soundbooth and starts picking at her fingernails. I look around the studio again before taking the only other available seat on a chair near her. It’s quiet in the room and I tap my fingers against the chair armrest, trying to fill the silence.

Bridget’s all but ignoring me and I watch as she doodles in the margin of an open notebook. I smile a bit. Her writing is loopy and her i’s are dotted with hearts. She has the kind of writing I always wanted when I was younger. When I was eleven and obsessed with the Baby Sitters Club, I had tried for months to make my writing like Stacey’s before finally realizing it was hopeless. I’ll always have plain writing and there’s nothing I can do to change it.

“Are you writing a song?” I finally ask, needing to break the loud silence.

Bridget’s head jerks up, clearly surprised that I’m asking her a question. She grabs the notebook and clutches it to her chest before nodding. “Yeah.”

Her voice is soft and guarded and I would think that she really hated me except that I remember that Justin had mentioned that this girl was painfully shy. I decided to take no offence and try and keep some type of conversation going.

“So how’s your album coming along? Are you guys getting a lot done?”

She nods and is silent for a moment before speaking. “Justin says we’re about halfway done.”

“That’s great. He’s said a few times how talented you are.”

She perks up at my words and her head lifts up to look at me. “Really?”

She has such an obviously huge crush on him. It’s kind of cute. “Mm hmm. He says you have a great voice for someone so young.”

She blushes and goes back to her fingernails, her feet on the ground spinning her chair back and forth.

“How long ago did Justin leave?” I ask. I know I’ve only been here a few minutes but it feels like it’s been hours.

“A while ago.”

“So he should be back soon?”

She shrugs and I can’t help but let a small sigh escape me. Getting this girl to talk is like pulling teeth. I’m tempted to simply give up but decide to give it one more try.

“So are you from LA?”

Her eyes still don’t meet mine but at least she answers. “I’m from Chicago.”

“Oh really? So did you just move here then?”

“I’m staying with my uncle because my mom can’t afford to move to LA yet.”

“Oh. That must be hard.”

She nods and is silent again. I can’t force myself to ask any more questions at this point and neither can I simply sit here. Needing to do something, I pull out my sketchpad from my bag and open to a fresh page. I’ve just started drawing the silhouette to a dress when Bridget’s voice breaks the silence.

“What are you drawing?”

I glance up to find her intently watching me. A little surprised at her sudden interest, I lower my pad a bit so she can see. “Just an idea for a dress.”

The look on her face tells me that she brimming over with a hundred questions but before even one can reach the surface, the door opens and Justin enters the room, balancing two cups of coffee in one hand and the other hand fiddling with his cell phone. He glances up and when his eyes land on me his entire face lights up and he snaps his phone shut.

“Hey. What are you doing here?”

I put my sketchpad away and stand up. “I needed to get away from the store.” One of the cups in his hand is dangerously close to falling and I quickly grab it. He smiles his thanks and then hands the cup he’s still holding to Bridget.

“I know you said you didn’t want anything but I got you a hot chocolate anyways.”

A smile takes over her entire face. “Thanks!”

He turns his attention back to me. “Can you stay for a while or…?”

“For a bit. Kyle’s interviewing for a sales position and I’m just in the way.”

“That I find hard to believe.”

I smile and open my mouth to retort but before I can say anything, the ringing of a cell phone cuts through the air. We both turn to the sound and find Bridget digging through her bag.

“Sorry, it’s my mom,” she says and then slips past us and out of the room. As soon as the door’s closed behind her, I turn back to Justin.

“That girl is incredibly shy,” I state.

He winces a bit. “I know. She needs to get out of that or else she’ll never make it in the business. She’s better than she used to be.”

“I think she seriously dislikes me.”

He rolls his eyes. “I hardly think anyone could seriously dislike you,” he says, sitting on the very edge of the soundboard. I smile as he puts his hands on my hips and pulls me to stand in between his legs. “What gave you that impression?”

“She just would hardly talk to me.”

One hand leaves my hips and takes the coffee I’m still holding. He brings it up to his lips and takes a sip before responding. “She’s just shy.” A twinkle appears in his eyes. “Or maybe she sees you as competition.”

I laugh. “Probably. She has the hots for you.”

“Well who wouldn’t.”

I laugh again and roll my eyes at his cocky voice. “Uh huh.”

He gives my hip a squeeze and then moves his hand to my lower back, pulling me a bit closer to him. “Want to go for dinner tonight?”

“Mm…how about you come over to my place and I’ll make you something? I have food I need to use up or it’ll go bad.”

He shrugs and drinks some more coffee. “Okay.”

My eyes move across the room before returning to him. “Did I tell you about my sister?”

“What about her?”

“Her husband, Chris, got transferred to LA. So they’re moving here.”

“Really? When?”

“They’re coming here next week to house hunt. His company wants him up here as soon as possible though so it should be soon.”

“Now I’m going to use what little I know about your family and say that you’re closest with your sister, right?”

I smile a bit at his subtle jab that I still haven’t told him much about my messed up family. “Yeah. And I’ll be able to see my niece all the time if they live up here.”

“So is your sister going to like me?”

I pretend to ponder that but can’t hold back a laugh when Justin frowns. “Of course she will. You make excellent first impressions.”

His face brightens. “Do I?”

I lean my body more into him and run my hands up his sides. I’ve grown to love touching him. His body is always solid and warm and being against him gives me a sense of security. And it’s so reassuring to have a person like that with me. It only took me a few weeks in LA to realize how fickle people in this city are. It’s hard to find a real person here who you don’t have to constantly watch yourself around. I love having someone like Justin who I know isn’t out to screw me around and who I can say anything to and not have to worry about it.

“You act like you don’t know how good you are at charming people,” I smile, looping my arms loosely around his neck.

A grin stretches across his face and he dips his head down to kiss me, leaving a coffee taste in my mouth when he pulls back. “I got the invitation for the store opening today.”

I perk up. “Really? Awesome. I was hoping they’d get to everyone quickly.”

“Did you invite a lot of people?”

“About a hundred. Some of them won’t be able to come though. Any more and it would have been too crowded in there.”

“Did you invite any of your family or friends from Seattle?”

“My friend Hannah is coming up a couple days after the opening because she has her last exam on the day of the opening. And I sent invitation to my family but they’re not entirely into fashion so I’m thinking I probably won’t get any RSVPs from them.”

“Not even your sister?”

“Emma’s only six months old so it’s a lot to travel with her.”

“I guess.” He sets his coffee to the side and then joins his now free hand to the other one on my back. I smile a bit when he slides them down to rest in the back pockets of my jeans. “I really want to meet some of your people though.”

I smile at his words. “My people?”

“Sure. You’ve met my mom, you know Trace, Rachel. Those are my people.”

“You met Susan and Kyle.”

“Yeah but they’re business associates. I want to meet people who know you outside of work.”

“Well you can meet Hannah when she comes out here. She’s staying for a week.” I go on my toes and press my lips to the line of his jaw. “And trust me, besides Elodie, you don’t want to meet my family.”

He leans his head down and a shiver goes through me when his lips burn a trail from my chin to my ear. “Yes I do. I can handle your family as crazy as you think they are.”

My eyes flutter shut but I quickly snap them open again. He may be a charmer but charming won’t work on anyone but Elodie. My mom’s more than a bit of a bitch and my stepbrothers are lazy slobs. Don’t even get me started on my stepfather, Grant. He’s got the personality of a wet noodle. It’s hard for someone like Justin, who is incredibly tight knit with his family, to realize that not everyone’s family is like that. And as charming as he can be, my mom is still going to tear him to shreds and Grant is going to critique Justin’s career as much as he can. I’d like to say they do it because they’re looking out for me but I honestly think they just get pleasure out of being rude.

“Justin…” I begin to protest but can’t get much further than that with his lips still connected to my neck.

He bites gently on my ear lobe before pulling back. “Seriously. I want to meet your family. Even if they’re all horrible excuses for human beings, I want to at least have met them. It’s important to me.”

“I know,” I sigh. “I promise I’ll eventually introduce to you to every single deranged member of my family. But I’m going to protect you from them for as long as possible.”

“When I meet them I’m going to win them all over and you’re going to wonder why you tried so hard to keep me from meeting them.”

I give a small smile even though I know his words are untrue. He may believe them, but I’ve lived with my family for twenty four years and I know how they work. They won’t be won over by charm.

I guess I had moved back a bit because Justin pulls me back into him by his hands on my butt and I have to put my hands on his shoulders to keep from stumbling into him. He smiles and leans his head down to kiss me.

“Have I ever mentioned how much I like when you randomly come and visit me at the studio?” he asks against my lips.

I smile and move my hands to hold the sides of his head. “I’m not in the way?”

His lips brush against mine again. “Never.”

I don’t know how long we stand there just letting our lips meet over and over but the sound of the door opening brings me back to the present and I pull my head back just as Bridget enters the room. She blanches a bit when she sees us together and Justin’s hands pull from my back pockets. I step back and to the side, letting him straighten.

“Sorry,” Bridget says, her voice almost a whisper.

“No problem,” Justin says casually, picking up is coffee again. “How’s your mom?”

Bridget shrugs. “She’s good. She just wanted to see how recording’s going.”

“Did you tell her how amazing you’re doing?”

She blushes and plays with her cup. “Yeah right.”

He laughs. “Want to warm up a bit and then we’ll finish up the song?”

She nods and then disappears into the soundbooth. Justin turns to me once we’re alone in the room again. “So are you going back to the store before you go home?”

“I should. See how Kyle’s interview went. I’ve been there since six this morning though so I don’t think I can stay too long.”

Justin’s hands circle my hips and he pulls me a little closer to him. “Once the store’s open are you going to have some more free time? I feel like we’re hardly seeing each other because you’re there so much.”

His words are true. Actually, today is the first time I’ve seen him in four days. We talk on the phone a few times per day but it’s not the same as actually seeing him. It’s so hard though when there’s such a limited time frame that I have to get everything done for the grand opening. Sometimes I’m at the store so early and stay so late that the only thing I can think of is going to bed.

“Things will calm down once it’s been opened for a couple weeks,” I reassure him. “And then I won’t need to be there so much and I’ll have more free time.”

He gives a small sigh but nods. Smiling, I raise up on my toes and give him a quick kiss.

“And you’re coming over tonight.”

His face brightens a bit at that. “I’ll just come over when I’m done here.”

“What time do you think?”

“Maybe around six. I’ll call when I’m leaving.”

“Perfect.” I lean up to kiss him again and this time he keeps me against him a bit longer. I force myself to pull back after a minute and brush my thumb over his lower lip. “I’ll see you tonight.”

He nods and kisses me once more and squeezes my hips before letting me go. I grab my stuff and leave the studio quickly, eager to go back to the store, see how Kyle’s interview went, and then go home and make dinner for Justin and I.