Chapter 4

She felt weak in her knees, while reality kicked in. She thought she was going to faint, her legs almost giving up. She fixed her ponytail, cleared her throat and painted a smile on her face. Even though all she wanted to do on that moment was to scream like a little girl, she knew she had to be extra professional. She looked away from the celebrities, feeling that she had been staring at them for too long now. She noticed that Travis started to walk in her direction.

"So sorry I'm late, the traffic was crazy." She made an excuse.

"No problem, we were just about to start anyway. Come on, let me introduce you to everyone." He put his hand on her back and faced the table. He walked with her and greeted each and every person. There was a lot of people from marketing industry to stylist and make up artist, but she got to meet other band members too. She met Mark, the other backup singer, Gabi, who plays the trumpet and Jinjoo, the guitarist. They all seemed very friendly and welcoming. And, a cherry on top, it was time to meet the main stars. They all stood up and with smiles came up to them. She could feel her heart sinking.

"And here are your new bosses." Travis laughed and pointed at the three of them. "This is Kevin, Nick and Joe."

The introduction was unnecessary. Of course she knew their names. She could feel the teenager self screaming in her head in that moment. She always dreamt of meeting them. They started to walk up to her one by one, the first one to be Kevin. Always the most humble one.

"Nice to meet you, welcome to our band!" He shook her hand and gave her a reassuring smile. "I hope you're going to settle in nicely."

"Thank you, it's a pleasure to meet you too." She responded as he moved to the side. Next one was Nick. He was the confident one. He came up with hands still in his pockets as he eyed her. She felt that he was the one taking his job very seriously and that made her a little frightened.

"Hey, nice to meet you." He said while shaking her hand and moving to a side. She felt the uncertainty in his eyes. He definitely wasn't the one that was so desperate to sign her up.

And then there he was. Standing right in front of her, Joe. She couldn't lie, he was her favorite Jonas back in the day. She couldn't remember how many times she imagined meeting him and wishing he fell in love with her. Her cheeks immediately gained a red color. He was intimidating. His soft perfect skin, light stubble and curly hair, couple of strains resting on his forehead. And the eyes. Oh, the deep brown eyes. She got lost in them for a moment, before snapping out.

"Hey, nice to meet you!" He came up and gave her a big smile, which showed his white teeth. He was perfect. That's the only thought going in Ann's mind in that moment. She prayed she won't say anything stupid.

"Hey, Jeff- Joe. It's a pleasure." She stumbled on her words her tongue giving up on her. 'Fuck' she thought. But his reaction was pleasing. He pushed his head back and let out a loud laugh.

"That's a first." He looked at her and chuckled. His gaze felt... hypnotizing. But also comforting. Welcoming. And left her eager for more. "Come on, let's get you settled." He put his hand on her back and led her to an empty chair.

She noticed the strong scent of cologne that radiated from him and felt numb for a moment. His touch send shivers down her spine and she felt a weird feeling in her stomach. Butterflies. As it turns out, her teenage feeling for this man never went away. He moved the chair back and gestured her to sit down. She couldn't look him in the face anymore, feeling that she might actually pass out from the emotions. She sat and Joe pushed the chair to get her closer to the table. Hot and a gentleman.

As it turned out she was sitting directly in front of Joe, which didn't help at all. Travis started talking, but her mind was somewhere else. She was looking at him, but his words felt like a blur. All she could feel was a pair of eyes staring into her. Her heart skipped a beat and she could feel her breath rising.

'Don't look at him, don't look at him, don't look at him." She kept thinking to herself and tried to focus on Travis. But that feeling, that desire, was stronger than anything else. Unable to stop it, she turned her head and, as she thought, Joe was staring at her, not even hiding that she had his whole attention.

When their eyes met again, it made her stomach turn. She studied every detail of his face, as he did the same. Her eyes locked on his lips. They were very... kissable. 'Jesus, Ann, snap out of it.' She thought to herself but couldn't stop. He was like a drug. She wanted more. She saw that his lips were now formed in a smirk, as she realized she's been staring at them for an uncomfortable amount of time. She blushed and turned to Travis. Joe chuckled and also turned his attention to the tour manager.

She felt embarrassed, small. What did she just do? What is he going to think about her? He's going to think she's some crazy person. Or a psycho fan. On the other hand, he was the one who stared at her first.

"Yeah, I would say Mark and Ann shouldn't be just in the back, I want them to move freely on the stage." She snapped while hearing her name coming out of Joe'a mouth. She locked her eyes again on him and tried to listen what he's saying, but he was to mesmerizing. She couldn't help but notice small details, like his hand gestures when he talks, his curls swaying to his body moves or him licking his lips after finishing a sentence.

She didn't know what it was about this man that made her loose all her confidence and be so unprofessional. It was the first meeting, they were saying a lot of important things and she didn't pay any attention to that. Her only focus was him. She snapped out of her thoughts when he turned to face her again a smile forming on his lips. She got caught staring. Again. And he evidently enjoyed that.

"Like I've said before, I've seen Ann perform and I know she's a rockstar, she can't just stand in one place for three hours." He continued his speech. Looking at Ann again his eyes were now sparkling with confidence.

It was him. He was the secret celebrity that noticed her. Her heart sank at the thought. He's seen her before. He was at her gig. He was desperate to get her in the band. It was him.

"Ann?" She thought she heard her name, but everything was such a blur, she forgot there were dozens of people around them. She felt like there were only the two of them. She felt secure. "Mrs. Hart."

She jumped and turned to see Travis looking at her with crossed arms. He didn't look happy. All eyes were on her right know and she felt small. Embarrassed. She was acting like a teenager girl, but she couldn't help the effect that man had on her. She opened her mouth slightly but nothing came out. She didn't know what to say, because she didn't even know what the question was. She felt so stupid. Tears starting to form in her eyes. She knew she was about to break down. But then, like a knight in shining armor, the familiar voice saved her.

"Let's take a five, everyone." They started nodding, agreeing to the break and started to stand up from the table. But she was just sitting there, her eyes not moving. She felt like she just fucked up big times. That they are going to fire her. How could she loose her ground like this. She was ambitious, professional, always on clock. But today, she felt like a little kid on Christmas Eve. Just sitting, not understanding what everyone else is talking about. Her whole focus on a Christmas tree, waiting for the moment to finally open the presents. And her Christmas tree was Joe.

"Coffee?" Said a voice behind her. She turned to see it was Jinjoo, the guitarist.

"Yes. Definitely yes." She sniffed and wiped the tears that were resting on her bottom lashes. She smiled at the girl and followed her in the direction of the buffet. There was variety of pastries and sandwiches and two coffee machines. Jinjoo clicked a button on the machine and turned to Ann while waiting for it to fill up the cup. She had her arms crossed and eyes squinted.

"You okay?" She said.

"I don't think so, no." She said honestly. "I think I'm just... overwhelmed."

"I understand, it's your first day. It's a lot to take in. But believe me, you'll love it here. Travis is a little strict when it comes to meeting, but if he's not around, we really are a big group of friends goofing around." She gave her a warm smile while passing her the coffee. Ann was grateful that she noticed and talked to her. She felt like she was gaining a friend.

"Thank you, Jinjoo. That means a lot. I need to focus, but-" she stopped before saying too much. Unfortunately, Jinjoo saw what happened earlier.

"But you can't because of Joe?" She smirked and looked at her from under her lashes. Ann immediately got red and bit her lip from embarrassment. "Yeah, I saw. We all saw. If I can give you any advice, don't go down that path. He's my best friend, but I have to be honest with you. Yes, he's hot, but he's also a heartbreaker. He wasn't able to land a girlfriend that stayed with him for more than two months. I see that you're a sweet person, that's why I wanted to give you a heads up right away. Oh, and work romance is forbidden anyway, so..." She laughed and pat her on the arm.

"No, my God, it's not like that." She said with a shaking voice, trying to hide that it was obviously like that. "It's just... everything together. It's a lot."

"Sure." Jinjoo said with a smirk, definitely not convinced by her response. "There's an empty chair next to me, if that would be any help."

"I'll... I'll take that." Jinjoo laughed at her response and they went back to the table.

She knew she had to get herself together if she wanted the job. Taking a chair far away from Joe was definitely a helping point. She didn't look at him for the rest of the meeting. It lasted for another two hours and they managed to get everything sorted and ready for their first rehearsal which was going to be the next day. Travis thanked everyone and left the conference room. Everyone started to spread out, conversations starting to build in groups. She didn't want to be nosy and interrupt anyone, so she decided to grab something from the buffet. She realized in that moment that she hadn't eaten anything today yet. Emotions getting lower, she felt her stomach growl. She grabbed a croissant and took out her phone to text Jazz.

Jazz, this is fucking crazy. Take out the vodka, we'll need it.

"I thought I lost you for a second." Heart stopping, blood rushing, stomach turning. Everything at once, which made her drop the croissant. She tucked the strand of her hair behind her ear and crouched to pick it up. "Let me."

As soon as she crouched he did the same. They reached for the pastry at the same time, causing their hands to meet. Why did this continue to happen to her? She felt like she couldn't escape him. They stayed like that for a couple of seconds just enjoying the warmth of each other's hands. Joe was the first to snap out. He picked up the food and threw it in trash.

"Sorry about that. I'm a mess today." Ann said, trying really hard not to look at him.

"It's your first day. It happens." She nodded as a response, her eyes still focused on the floor where crumbs of the croissant were still present. "Did you try these? They are my favorite." He pointed at the plateau with chocolate cupcakes.

She shook her head, but before she could say or do anything, he rushed to the buffet and handed her one of the cupcakes, while getting another one for himself. She bit into it and felt a strong chocolate flavor.

"Amazing." She nodded slowly while closing her eyes.

"Told ya." He responded with a full mouth.

They stood there for a couple of minutes trying different sweets and engaged in small conversations over them. It was nothing big, but it made her learn more about Joe. She enjoyed talking to him. They had similar taste and similar sense of humor. It just all felt very natural. It wasn't until Ann realized everyone had already left the room. They were so absorbed in the food, that they didn't even notice how quiet it got.

"Well, I should go." Stated Ann, wanting to leave the room as soon as possible. She knew that staying all alone with Joe could not end well.

"And waste all this good food?" He said with puppy eyes. "Come on, let's sit down and talk for a bit. I want to get to know you."

He didn't even wait for her response and started to bring the food to the big table. There she was, all alone with Joe in a room that was bigger than her whole apartment. He sat at the top of the table and grabbed another cupcake. She moved the chair in front of him a bit to the back and sat back in it. She eyed him slowly while he looked out of the window. She couldn't help but smile at the view. He was breathtaking. He was wearing a shirt with no sleeves, which showed his muscled arms. She studied every tattoo he had and tried to come up with a meaning to each of them. But some of them were impossible to understand. His legs were dangling softly and she couldn't help but notice the bulge in his pants. For a short person he seemed... big. She felt a hot wave of blood rushing through her at the thought. She knew it was bad. She knew it was trouble. But she was locked up to this man.

"Take a picture, it will last longer."

She got caught. Again. But this time his smirk was different. It was... lustful. That made her embarrassment go away and she was filled with desire. She wanted that man. Even if it's just for one night. There was a vivid sexual tension between them. When she finally got the courage to look him in the eyes, her knees got weak. He was staring at her with a look, that she hadn't seen before. She felt vulnerable. Weak. She felt as though he was taking off her clothes with his gaze. His eyes focused on her lips as he bit his.

'Jesus fucking Christ what is happening.' She thought trying to wrap her mind about the fact that Joe Jonas was basically eating her with his eyes, as if she was the chocolate cupcake. She knew it was bad. She knew it wasn't going to end well. But she couldn't help it. She enjoyed what she saw.

'I'm fucked.''