Beats of the Heart - Chapter 20: Chapter 20

Shawn and Miles walked out of the studio together. They were lost in their conversation and didn't notice the few workers in the lobby watching them. As soon as they exited, a slew of text messages was sent, gossiping about the CEO becoming seemingly close to someone.
Miles took a deep breath with a smile. The air had gotten colder, and he was starting to see his breath fog. "I suppose it's almost time to put the bike away and use the car more often."
Shawn looked concerned. "Please tell me you're not using the motorcycle still."
"Always. I'll ride her as long as I possibly can." Miles laughed and winked at Shawn, who was trying to stifle a laugh from his phrasing. Miles nudged him with an elbow. "What are you craving now? My treat."
Shawn grinned. "A burger and a beer."
Miles clicked his tongue. "I'm more than capable of affording more than that."
"I know. But my VP, Scott, has been on this Keto kick for the last month and a half. He's been forcing me to join him. If I have one more bunless cheeseburger, I may have to fire or kill him. I'm still debating. So for my VP's sake and my sanity, I need a goddamn burger."
Miles patted his shoulder with a chuckle. "Alright, I'll get you the best burger in the city."
"And we're taking my car," Shawn said while looking around for Miles' bike. "No way you're getting me on your bike."
Miles rolled his eyes. "Don't get your panties in a twist. I had Phase drive me today."
Shawn's shoulders relaxed a little. "Thank Christ." He nodded toward a black car parked on the side of the road. "Then you navigate."
Miles grinned and approached the car. He couldn't help but recall the last time Shawn had offered him a ride. His hand hesitated on the handle for a moment, but then Shawn opened the door for him, taking away the option of running away. Shawn smiled to encourage him, and Miles found himself sitting down.
Shawn went to the driver's side and buckled in before starting the car. Miles' eyes roamed around the interior but stopped to soak in Shawn.
Shawn reached over to lower the music, and Miles watched his muscles flex and tense with every movement. His gaze focused up Shawn's arms, to his broad shoulders, and then his neck decorated with those almost-hidden beauty marks.
Could a neck be enticing? Was he going crazy?
It took all of his effort to keep his hands to himself. He wanted nothing more than to trace the lines of his muscle up to the tendons on his neck, to brush his fingertips across Shawn's Adam's apple, to hold on to his chin...
"Miles?" Shawn called out softly, breaking Miles' reverence.
"Hmm?" Miles couldn't formulate his words for a moment.
Shawn's smile pulled at his lips. "Are you going to tell me where to go?"
"Go?" Miles flushed. "Oh! Shit. Yeah. It's closer to my place in Brooklyn if you don't mind going that far."
Shawn chuckled lightly. "Not a problem."
Miles had to focus on the road instead of Shawn and directed him to a burger joint in the heart of Brooklyn. Miles was grinning when they parked and excitedly jumped out of the car.
"It's been a while since I had time to stop by, but damn, I missed this place," his smile grew as he said this.
"May's?" Shawn read the sign of the diner. "I've never heard of it."
Miles laughed. "It's a local legend. May's a staple in the neighborhood. She's been running this joint for decades. I don't know many times she fed me for free when we didn't have enough for groceries."
Shawn's gaze didn't reveal any pity but looked impressed at the blinking neon sign. "She did that?"
"My mom used to work here in the evenings, and I often found myself here. When I needed a job, she tossed me in the kitchen. May knows nothing but how to help others." He subconsciously grabbed Shawn's hand and pulled him inside. They were greeted by the bell on the door and the servers who recognized him.
An older woman came rushing out from the back and hugged him tightly. Miles returned the hug and kissed her cheek.
"Considered me flattered. Seeing my boy walk in my diner—it's been too long."  She said happily and then looked him over. Her smile quickly turned to a frown. "Look at you! Skin and bones! I swear, Miles Ray Mendez, you have enough money for a decent meal now, but here you are looking starved for days."
Miles laughed. "I eat well enough. Just have been busy."
"Busy. Too busy to visit me after all this time? Too busy to meet with Vivian regularly on Sundays? Too busy..." Her words fell silent as she noticed Shawn still standing behind Miles. Her eyes were still sharp, and she saw Miles holding his hand.
She bloomed into a wide smile and held a hand to her chest. "Oh, my word. My nagging has interrupted your date."
Miles became wide-eyed. "Date?"
Shawn's chuckle was deep, and he tightened his grip around Miles' hand so he wouldn't escape, making Miles inhale sharply. "Shawn," He introduced himself. "Heard you had the best burgers in the state."
May grinned and pulled Shawn into a hug too. "That's true about the burgers. But it is a blessing to meet you. With our boy working night and day, I never thought I would see him date."
"May—" Miles tried to cut in but was promptly shushed by May.
"Well, it's hard to get away from my job too. This was a spontaneous date." Shawn grinned at Miles as he emphasized the word 'date'.
May was over the moon and turned back to Miles. "I had little hope because you always turned down Vivian and my matchmaking attempts. Miles, you're at that age where you should consider settling down and finding a family."
"For fuck's sake," Miles muttered.
May flicked his forehead. "Mind your language, my dear."
Miles sighed and kissed her cheek. "Sorry, ma'am."
She huffed a little. "I know it's all on your own time, but I promised your mama I would look out for you. She wanted nothing but your happiness. We all do."
"I always appreciate it, May."
She cupped his cheek affectionately before pulling them to a small booth in the back corner. "You two enjoy yourselves. We won't interrupt your date too much."
"May!" Miles tried to hiss at her to make her stop calling it a date. He loved the woman but was somewhat regretting choosing her diner.
"I know, I know. I'll leave you alone. I'm just happy to see you putting yourself out there." She put her hands up when Miles opened his mouth to protest again. "I'm leaving!"
When she left, Miles groaned and buried his face in his hands. "Christ, she is probably telling Vivian right now."
Shawn became a little concerned. "Would that be okay?  Will it cause any issues?"
Miles snapped his head up and gave him a surprised look. "What?"
"I don't know how... meddling... people are in your life," Shawn said with a wince.
Miles gave an exaggerated sigh. "They're nearly unbearable but with good intentions. Isn't it the same for you?"
Shawn chuckled. "My mom and aunt's interest in my love life is suffocating." His voice changed to show his annoyance, "'Shawn, you're in your forties now', 'Shawn, some people your age are grandparents now', 'Shawn, you're too focused on work'."
Miles laughed. "Grandparent? Really?"
Shawn ran his hand through his hair. "I swear it gives me more greys just thinking about that."
"It's a good look on you." Miles hummed lightly.
Shawn's hand paused for a moment, and then he chuckled lightly. "You're a flatterer."
Miles looked away, scrambling to find a new subject so his blatant attraction wasn't so evident. "So, what criteria is your family looking at for a future son-in-law?"
Shawn grinned. "Are you interested in the role?"
Miles jumped. "What? No! I mean—" he groaned into his hands when Shawn started to laugh. "Goddamnit, Shawn."
Shawn's laughter tapered off. "They don't care about social status and are just hoping I find someone who makes me happy."
Miles tilted his head curiously. "Really? In my experience, the families inside your tax bracket would marry for political reasons to produce an heir or something."
Shawn raised an eyebrow. "Your experience?"
Miles sighed and leaned back into the seat. "Larry has been trying to sell off Danny to the highest bidder for years—not that Danny knows."
"But Danny's 18," Shawn protested.
"I know. It's been one of our recurring arguments. Danny is just figuring out who he is. He shouldn't have to worry about that bullshit."
"Unfortunately, that's a common theme for many families in my 'tax bracket'. Technically my grandparents married for business reasons. However, my dad broke the cycle when he married my mom. He was CEO, and she was his secretary."
"Scandalous!" Miles said with a warm laugh.
Shawn laughed. "It was for a while. But my dad is stubborn, and she is far too kind to be disliked. She was quickly accepted into the family. Now, they want the same for me. It's just cumbersome to find the time and the right person to date."
"I don't get it," Miles' brow creased. "Everyone fawns over you."
Shawn frowned a little. "Most fawn over the Pierce name, not me."
"Do they think you're some pretty boy living off daddy's money?"
Shawn slapped a hand to his chest. "Aw, you think I'm pretty?"
Gorgeous. Alluring. Handsome. Sex in a suit. Miles could think of countless ways to describe him. He could create a masterpiece if he could lace his appearance into a beat.
Miles internally admonished himself for becoming some sap. To avoid risking further embarrassment, he kept his thought to himself. Instead, Miles laughed and huffed a quiet "Shut up."
The server sat down two beers and quickly jotted their orders, seemingly wanting to give them as much space as possible.
Shawn took a drink from his glass. "My parents broke the norm, but most people within their circle, like Larry Anderson, only care about pedigree and wealth."
"Pedigree? You and Danny not some show dog," Miles scoffed. "Besides, what right do they have to act all high and mighty? I grew up surrounded by criminals, but they have more integrity than Larry and his rich friends have ever displayed."
Shawn laughed. "I don't doubt that. Extortion and dirty money fill the pockets of almost every high roller you see. But no one says a word because it will only highlight their dirty hands."
Miles didn't say anything because he had gathered this the few times he had to endure an Anderson party. With Shawn as the exception, his negative opinion about the elitist circle was set in stone.
Shawn had a small smile. "My Pierce name is tied to generations of shady acquisitions, corruption, and oil rigs spilling into the ocean."
Shawn sighed and took a drink from his beer before he continued. "Like my father, I wanted to be more than the generations before me. I wanted to be more than my inheritance. So, I built Aura from the ground up. I'm proud of what I built, but not many people accept raising stars as an honorable career. Some elitist families think that it is a cheap way to earn money. Others assume I'm exploiting other people's talent to earn a buck... I suppose, in a way, I am."
Miles was taken aback by this, remembering his passion for his company in the garden the first time had had come to Miles' house. Somehow that light was dampened a little.
"You help people realize their dreams," Miles said quietly, remembering how Shawn had encouraged him before.
Shawn smiled, but it was tainted with disappointment. "I try on most days.  But when I draft contracts, I can't consider someone's dreams. I have to look at the profit. Sometimes if I don't see merit in signing a person, I single-handedly crush their dreams. Other times, like today, I have to cut someone from the company because they're not producing the results we need to sustain them."
Miles felt his chest ache. He knew that pain because he had been considering cutting Trickshot. He wasn't generating any profits, and the businessman side of him knew he needed to have a sit down with Trickshot soon.
He realized Shawn must feel the same. He may have hundreds of artists working for him, but he was a boss who was involved. He cared for his people, so it must affect him when he had to make a hard decision about an artist's future.
"Was that the phone call in the studio?" Miles asked, piecing together his current dejection and previous dark mood in the studio.
Shawn nodded. "Needless to say, it didn't end well, so Scott was debriefing me."
"I suppose I'm lucky that I have such a small group," Miles said, mainly to himself. However, he felt some discomfort because of Trickshot.
Before Shawn could notice Miles' demeanor, their food was dropped off at their table.
Shawn took a bite out of his and moaned. "Holy shit."
"Told you."
"You undersold this burger. It's the best in New England, at least." Shawn said.
"May never fails to deliver."
They eased into an easy conversation long after emptying their beers and finishing their meal. May kept her promise and left them to their own devices. However, when Shawn's phone rang again, he frowned.
"Sorry, I need to take this," he said apologetically.
Miles nodded with understanding. Shawn was busier than he was. He leaned back in his chair and stared at the Brooklyn traffic out the window. Shawn's voice was quiet, but Miles could still hear his conversation.
"Scott, what's going on?"
"I think I'm due a break from time to time."
Shawn sighed and scraped a hand over his chin.
"They had to come in now?"
"No, I get it, but..."
Another heavy sigh.
"You fucking owe me. It'll be a while, so you're entertaining them."
Shawn mumbled a goodbye and hung up the phone. Miles turned back and smiled. "Duty calls?"
"An asshole called," Shawn muttered. "A director and his crew came in. I've been trying to meet them for a while now. They have conveniently waited until I was out of the office to visit unannounced."
Miles chuckled. "Divas."
"Tell me about it." Shawn rubbed his eyes with frustration. "I can drop you off at home if you would like. I'm sure you don't want to be stuck in my office."
Miles shrugged. "The belly of the beast? I don't think I mind."
"What?"
Miles grinned. "You're giving me a chance to scope out Aura. I'm more than okay with being stuck in your office."
Shawn's tight expression relaxed, and he returned the smile. "I'm going to take that as you're a step closer to accepting my offer of merging Dirge with Aura."
"Still tentative," Miles said as he stood so he could pay.
Shawn stood as well. "Fine. But at least I have a favor I can collect whenever I want."
Miles rolled his eyes and led Shawn out of the diner after waving goodbye to the others. He may have seemed nonchalant about it, but there was building anticipation of finding out what Shawn's favor would be.