No Place Like You

by Emma Douglas

  “Yeah, like you’re such a shy and retiring type,” Zach retorted as he pushed his door open. “Anyway, self-doubt’s for losers.”

  “Ah, now that’s a Grey Harper quote I recognize,” Eli said. “Like father, like son?”

  Zach ignored him. He didn’t want to be like Grey. He wanted to be himself. Zach. Sure, he wouldn’t say no to finding the kind of success with his music that Blacklight had found, but he’d pass on the addiction and self-destructive tendencies. “Let’s do this,” he said and headed toward the studio.

  Leah was working with Nessa and her band today but it was their last day of recording and she’d said she’d be around to give him a hand after she wrapped it up with them. She’d been a little quiet this week but the last two weeks before CloudFest were always kind of insane and she had a full studio to deal with as well as trying to fit in some extra work helping out at the Harper Inc. offices with all the last-minute organizing that went on in the background to get CloudFest to the starting line smoothly.

  And after the CloudFest, they’d get some time together.

  The thought stopped him a moment. Would they? He’d need to get moving after CloudFest. Get a single out, climb onto the promo train, and hustle. He wouldn’t be around. But he’d still have to finish the album with Leah too. So he could come back to her. Would come back to her. They’d started this thing with her crazy idea that it would only be until he left, but that thought didn’t sit so well with him any more. He wasn’t ready to let her go. Wasn’t ready to not have her quick smile and her teasing and her musical mind around him. Definitely wasn’t ready to not have her in his bed.

  Hell no to that.

  So he’d just change her mind. That would be easy enough. She talked a good game but he knew she wasn’t ready either. She hadn’t said it, but things were too good between them. So he’d turn on the Harper charm and convince her.

  “Earth to Zach?” Eli said and Zach stopped walking. Realized they were inside the studio foyer and he hadn’t even noticed. He saw Leah through the window in the wall that blocked off this area from the recording studios. She was sitting at the board outside the main studio, her hair half-falling down around her face as usual as she listened intently to something Nessa was saying. Faith was sitting beside her. Huh. He hadn’t expected his sister to be here. If anyone had absolutely no time at all in the weeks leading up to CloudFest, it was Faith. But then again, Nessa was her protégé. So maybe she was turning over a new leaf and trying not to work quite so hard on the festival so she had time for the other new things in her life. Like Nessa. Like Caleb.

  “Earth to Zach,” Eli repeated and Zach shook his head.

  “Sorry, was thinking about that piano section again in ‘Air and Breath,’” he said. “I’m going to grab a coffee before we set up.”

  “Good idea,” Eli said, stifling a yawn.

  They’d been up until nearly two, talking through the songs, so neither of them had had enough sleep.

  “Better make yours a double shot,” Zach said. He headed for the kitchen and the sweet caffeine-producing goodness of the coffee machine. He was pulling down cups from the cabinet over the counter when he saw Billy come through the studio door.

  He nudged Eli. “What’s he doing here?” If it was early for Zach and Eli to be at the studio before ten it was definitely unusual to see Billy up and coherent at this hour. He started working the coffee machine.

  Eli shrugged. “No idea. But you know Billy. He likes nosing around other people’s sessions.”

  That was true. Though he hadn’t showed up for any of Zach’s sessions so far. But maybe he was here to hear Nessa. Give Faith a hand. Zach turned his attention back to the coffee, producing two coffees strong enough to dissolve steel. Eli took one sip then put his down and shoveled a few spoons of sugar into it. “Dude, are you trying to give us ulcers?”

  Zach laughed. “We’re too young for ulcers. Got to be on our game though.”

  “You need to relax,” Eli muttered. “You’ve picked guys who know what they’re doing. It will be fine.”

  Zach sipped his own coffee, trying to ignore the fact that Eli was right and it was way too strong. He was allowed to be nervous. CloudFest was a big deal. It was the kick-start he needed. And he hadn’t played with a whole new band in a while. What if they didn’t click? There was no time to fix it if it turned into a disaster. He’d spent an hour earlier in the week trying to convince Faith that she should play with him but she’d turned him down.

  “Not for this,” she’d said. “This needs to be all you. Not take two on the two of us playing together. You need the person you want to tour with you. And that’s something I’m definitely not going to do.”

  She’d looked happy that he’d asked though, softening her rejection with a hug that had felt as easy as it had when they were kids and that was something. He liked seeing his sisters happy, seeing them thriving again. Something else he’d miss when he left.

  “Bring the coffee,” he said. “We should get started.”

  But when he walked through the doors into the hallway that stretched along the length of the studios and recording rooms, Billy was talking to Faith.

  Billy nodded at Zach. “Zach. Morning.”

  “Billy,” Zach said. “Sis.”

  Faith smiled at him but he thought the expression looked a little tight. “Billy was just telling me he needs to talk to us, Zach.”

  “Us?” Zach said. He looked at Eli. “The three of us?”

  “Just you and me,” Faith said, shaking her head.

  Zach’s gut tightened. “What’s up?” he said just as Eli said, “Dad? Something wrong?”

  “Nothing’s wrong,” Billy said. “I just want to talk to these two.” He jerked his head toward the studio manager’s office. “Why don’t we go in there?”

  He wanted to talk privately? Zach didn’t like the sound of that. Billy wasn’t the “let’s talk in private” type. What the hell was going on?

  The studio manager’s office, which had been Sal’s domain for years and was now Leah’s, was tiny. Barely big enough for the three of them. Faith slid around behind the small desk, leaving Zach standing near Billy. Billy closed the door behind them.

  “What’s this all about?” Zach asked. He wasn’t in the mood for small talk.

  Billy stared at him a moment then folded his arms. “Well, it’s like this. I’m taking the secret slot at CloudFest.”

  “What the hell?” Zach said, just as Faith said, “What?”

  Billy didn’t move an inch. Didn’t look away. “You heard me.”

  Faith sat down in the chair behind the desk with a thud. “Billy—” she started to say, but Billy cut her off with a gesture.

  “No point arguing, sweetheart, it’s my right.”

  Zach stared at Billy, gut tensing. “What the hell are you talking about?”

  “He means the festival trust,” Faith said.

  “None the wiser,” Zach said tightly.

  “Harper Inc. runs CloudFest,” Faith said. “But the profits go through a trust that was set up for Blacklight. For all four of them. And part of the trust rules is that a member of Blacklight can play at the festival if they want to.”

  “I thought that was the headline slot?” Zach said. He’d never seen the legal documents but he’d thought the agreement was for the headline slot. And as far as he knew none of the guys had ever used the clause. It was a non-issue when Grey was alive and they were still all playing together. They took whatever slot in their own festival they wanted. Since then until last year when Danny had stepped in to cover Zach’s screwup, none of them had played at CloudFest since Grey had died. “I’m doing the secret set.”

  “The agreement specifies a desired slot, not the headline slot,” Billy said, sounding certain. “And I got my lawyer to check yesterday. I can have any damn slot I want. So the secret gig is mine if I want it and I do.”

  chapter seventeen

  “That slot’s mine,” Zach sai
d, fighting to sound calm. “I need it to launch my album.”

  Billy’s expression didn’t change. “Sorry, kid. I’m taking it.”

  It would have been easier if Billy had punched him, maybe. Might have been easier to take than this casual pulling the rug out from under him. “Like hell you are.”

  “Zach,” Faith said softly.

  He didn’t want to look at her but he did.

  Her eyes were huge. And apologetic. “Billy’s right. It’s his if he wants it.” She bit her lip. “I’m sorry.”

  “What the actual fuck?” Zach said. “Did the two of you cook this up? Some nice little revenge for me bailing last year? Giving me a taste of my own medicine?”

  “No!” Faith said. “Don’t be stupid. I’d never do that to you.”

  He wanted to believe her. He wasn’t entirely sure he did. In her place, he might well want a little payback.

  “Back off, Zach,” Billy said. “This isn’t personal. And Faith had nothing to do with it.”

  “Not personal?” Zach said, incredulous. “You’ve watched me all this time, seen what I’m trying to do. You knew how I wanted to launch this album and now you’re going to tell me it’s not fucking personal when you fucking bury it all?” He stepped closer to Billy, anger driving him forward. “Tell you what, Billy. It feels pretty damn fucking personal. And there’s no earthly reason for you to do this. You have more money than you know what to do with. You’re one of the most famous drummers on the planet. You don’t need this. I do.” His voice cracked and he curled his hands into fists.

  “I don’t have to give you an explanation,” Billy growled, standing his ground.

  “No, but I think you owe me one,” Zach said, gritting his teeth. He was focused on Billy but he could see Faith out of the corner of his eye. She looked pale. And miserable. He should try and calm down for her sake but he was too damn angry.

  “Owe you? What the fuck do I owe you?” Billy said. “Shit. You really are like your old man. Think the Harpers are the center of the universe. Sorry, kid, but the rest of us have things we want too. And you don’t always get to have your way.”

  Zach stared at him. “What the hell does that mean?”

  “Just that you lost your Dad. I lost my best friend. And my career.”

  “You have a new band,” Zach said. “Your career is just fine.”

  Billy shook his head. “Erroneous isn’t Blacklight. And no, I don’t mean the money. It’s not the money. You’re right, I don’t need that. And neither do you. It’s the music. Erroneous. We’re doing okay. We can do better. Get to more people. And if I can kick that along by getting us a nice splash of publicity at CloudFest, then that’s what I’m going to do.”

  “And you don’t care that you’re being an utter prick and ruining my shot in the process?”

  Billy lifted his chin. “You know what, Zach? Maybe I am a prick. But so are you. You know what this business takes. And you’ve done what you thought you had to to get to where you are so far. Just look at Faith here and the career she doesn’t have because you left her behind. So don’t bust my balls for doing exactly what you’d do. It’s not going to change my mind.”

  “Fuck you, Billy,” Zach said and then pulled the door open before he put his fist through Billy’s face or the wall.

  * * *

  When Leah knocked on the door of the guesthouse there was no answer. But she could hear Zach’s voice somewhere inside. She hesitated, not entirely sure if she should just go in even though the door was ajar. It had only been about half an hour since Zach had stormed out of the studio, with Billy stalking out only a couple of minutes later.

  Leah had gone in to see what on earth was going on and found Faith looking kind of shaky behind the desk in Leah’s office. Once Faith had explained to her what Billy had just done, Leah had felt pretty shaky herself. Billy had taken Zach’s slot at CloudFest. She had no idea what that meant other than it screwed Zach’s plans to launch his songs. Their songs.

  What the hell was Billy thinking? Faith’s retelling of the reason he’d given made no sense. All she knew was she needed to know if Zach was okay. But now that she was here, she wasn’t so sure of her welcome.

  She wanted to talk this out with him. What it meant for the songs they’d worked so hard on. What it meant for Zach. He was the one she wanted to turn to, to figure this out. To come up with the plan. Because that was what you did when you had a problem. You went to the person you loved and figured it out. The trouble was Zach didn’t love her.

  But he needed someone right now. So she was going to be it.

  She pushed open the door. “Zach?”

  No answer. The rumble of his voice seemed to be coming from the kitchen so she headed in that direction. Zach was standing by the counter, facing the window, phone to his ear. She couldn’t see his face but his posture was tense.

  “Just get him to call me, Katie,” he growled and then ended the call, shoving his phone into his pocket. For a moment he just stood there, staring out the window. Then his shoulders slumped and he muttered, “Fuck.”

  “Zach,” she said again.

  He whirled, staring at her like she was the last person on earth he expected to see. “What are you doing here?”

  The tone of his words stung a little. Did he think she wouldn’t come? Or just didn’t care if she came or not? “I came to see if you’re okay,” she said.

  “Just perfect,” he said grimly. “I assume Faith told you what happened?”

  “Yes,” Leah said. “Though it wasn’t exactly hard to figure out that something was wrong. You kind of slammed out of there.”

  “Nice of her to share my business.”

  Okay, he was upset. But she wasn’t going to let him take it out on her. “Well, firstly, I happen to work for Harper Inc. and I have been doing a lot of the scheduling work, so I needed to know, and secondly, seeing as Faith knows that you and I are seeing each other, it’s not exactly unreasonable for her to tell me. She’s worried about you.”

  “If that’s true, she should be the one here checking on me, shouldn’t she?”

  Leah frowned at him. “She didn’t tell me exactly what happened, other than Billy pulling the king of all dick moves, but I got the impression she thinks you’re mad at her.”

  “So she sent you?”

  “Yes.” She folded her arms to match his. “Though I can leave if you prefer. I just thought—”

  There was a muscle clenching on and off at the side of his jaw. She held her breath, wondering if he was actually going to say “yes, go.” But then he relaxed and sat down on one of the stools by the counter. “No. Stay. Sorry. I’m in a foul mood but I shouldn’t take this out on you.”

  “Anything I can do to help? Were you calling Jay?” It seemed the most likely option.

  “Yes,” Zach said. “But apparently he’s in meetings for another hour. So I just have to sit on my hands until then. No, scratch that, first I have to go meet the guys I’d hired for the band at the ferry and tell them they might as well turn around and go home.”

  What the hell? “What are you talking about?”

  “They’re here to play with me at CloudFest. No CloudFest, no need for a band.”

  No need for him to stay on Lansing any longer. The thought flashed into her head and she almost lost her breath. No. Not yet. She wasn’t ready for him to leave just yet. So she had to convince him to stay. “That’s ridiculous. We’ll find you another gig. And in the meantime you can rehearse with the guys. We can even spend more time recording.” She was talking too fast. She made herself stop. Breathe.

  “Isn’t the studio booked pretty solid around CloudFest?”

  “Yes, but a lot of the acts bring their own producers and engineers. Besides”—she waved her hand in the direction of Grey’s studio—“you have another studio you can use.”

  “Recording requires a producer. And you can’t tell me you have much spare time from now until the festival starts.”

  “I�
�ll have some.” She moved over to stand beside him. She wanted to put her arms around him, but the tension radiating from him didn’t exactly invite her any closer. “And I’m happy to spend it with you. Besides, you’ll need to rehearse before we can record the arrangements.”

  Zach looked unconvinced but a little more tension drained out of him. Good. More relaxed meant that he wasn’t going to do anything crazy. Like leave. At least she hoped not. She moved in, put her arms around him. “Billy’s a prick,” she said. “But we’ll figure this out. The music is too good. You’re too good. It will be fine.”

  His arms came around her and she hugged him harder. She had no idea if what she’d said was true or not. Truth was, the music business was a fickle bitch and no having a pedigree and talent like Zach was guarantee of success. They both needed this album to work. She didn’t want to think about what it might do to her chances of building a producing career if the album failed. Zach could bounce back from that but the fact that he’d taken a chance on a rookie producer and then not delivered the goods would blow back on her. So even more reason to make sure it was perfect. That he stayed until they had it right.

  And call her crazy but now that they didn’t have the looming deadline of CloudFest hanging over them, she was hoping that might just take quite some time.

  “Are you coming back to the studio?” she asked, letting go of him.

  Zach straightened. Shook his head. “I’m going to stay here. Talk to Jay. Then I’ll come back. Tell Eli to go meet the guys. I’ll meet them back at the studio later today.”

  She nodded. Faith had told Eli at the same time as her. She’d never seen Eli truly angry before but he’d gone lethally quiet, his brown eyes turning cold when Faith had delivered the news of what Billy had done. She’d always thought of Eli as Billy’s sidekick. Her first thought was that he’d most likely side with his dad, but he’d been horrified. He’d left to see if he could talk Billy out of it at the same time she’d left to find Zach. But she wasn’t going to tell Zach that. No point getting his hopes up. Sal had always said Billy was stubborn as a herd of donkeys, so she didn’t think Eli was likely to succeed in changing his dad’s mind.