IDOL LIVES

Book Three of The Idol Romance Series

by KT Salvo

Idol Minds by KT Salvo

Overview & Preview

EXCERPT

 

Jason braced himself against his father’s marble-topped mahogany desk, his fingers tightening around its edge. Swirling dust motes, caught in a piercing afternoon sunbeam, mocked his stagnant grief. He wasn’t entirely sure why he’d gone to his father’s office beyond looking for a quiet place to escape the lavish funeral reception in the main garden. He’d never even been alone in that room before. It had been his father’s sanctuary, off-limits until Jason had reached adulthood. But his father was dead, a hollow echo in the stuffy, too-still air. And it was Jason’s office now.

Beside him, his father’s leather chair loomed, cold and unyielding. The lingering scent of leather polish tickled his sinuses. The desktop remained a portrait of the man–orderly, meticulous, and severe. His father’s gold-plated fountain pen rested in its stand, a defiant reminder of the man who wielded it. It was Jason’s chair now. His desk. His pen. But none of it felt like his.

The last time he’d been in that office, Jason had angrily scolded his parents for their meddling, declaring in no uncertain terms that he never wanted to see them again. A cold jab of guilt pierced his familiar rage. He’d never expected his threat to be so quickly and irreversibly fulfilled by their accidental death. Seeing their perfectly made-up corpses didn’t count. Those were just a cruel, sterile parody of his living parents.

But Jason remembered the first time he’d set foot inside that office the most. Freshly eighteen and fresh off starring in a pair of the hottest teen comedies to recently hit the big screen, he’d gone from being an unknown to becoming a hot commodity, fielding dozens of offers from the major studios who spotted a star on the rise. So he held his head high as he approached his father’s desk for the first time, sure that he’d finally managed to impress the man with something he’d accomplished on his own. But he couldn’t have been more wrong.

“It’s time to discuss your future,” Gerald Park declared in his business mogul voice, not even offering for Jason to sit. “You’ve done well for yourself, yes. But it’s time to put all that foolishness aside and get serious about joining Brightstar.”

All that foolishness. As if Jason hadn’t parlayed his handsome face, effortless charm, and natural gift for acting into a promisingly lucrative career. As if his father had never really taken him or his wishes seriously. Because, of course, he hadn’t. He’d seen acting as a distraction from what Jason should’ve been doing–what he’d wanted Jason to be doing all along. That day–the first time he’d visited that office–had been his last living in that house. But it had hardly been the first time he’d wished he never had to deal with his parents again.

Jason’s frustrated growl broke the silence as he recalled Naomi pulling him aside at Tae Hyun’s sold-out Seoul concert to give him the news. His initial shock had quickly shifted to a familiar, almost comforting anger. His parents dying just as Tae Hyun’s tour kicked off felt like their best and last fuck you. He tightened his grip on the desk, pushing back on his lingering anger. His first instinct had been to skip the funeral because to hell with them. Why should he honor his parents when they’d never honored him? But cooler heads prevailed–mostly Naomi and Tae Hyun–and he’d soon found himself on a chartered flight back to Los Angeles. Back home.

At least Jason didn’t have to plan the funeral. Like everything else, Gerald Park had micromanaged his own send-off, requiring nothing from Jason but his presence. Even that was mostly a formality. Amidst the wealthy throngs and their long-winded, self-serving speeches about his father’s grand legacy, nobody seemed to notice when Jason spoke–not even the press. That was fine. He didn’t write the damn speech anyway. But everyone–from the governor and other politicians to the swarm of corporate vultures masquerading as old friends–definitely wanted to shake his hand. Jason was the sole heir to his father’s vast fortune and holdings. That made him important. If only he could bring himself to give a shit.

Noticeably absent from the funeral was good old Ji Hoon, his uncle by marriage to his mother’s sister. That was hardly surprising considering everything that went down in Seoul. Jason couldn’t guess what his mother’s reaction to her sister missing the funeral would’ve been beyond parroting his father’s thoughtless, cold-hearted opinion. He’d always suspected a stronger, more independent woman–maybe someone like Yoo Mi–lurked beneath his mother’s tacit subservience. He’d never known whether all that was genuinely who she was or just a survival tactic she’d adopted in her marriage. She’d only ever shown him anything beyond it in explosive bursts of anger whenever she scolded him for disobeying his father. Now, his chance to find out was lost forever.

“There you are.”

Jason’s eyes snapped to the doorway where Tae Hyun stood. A mental warning sounded. The office was his father’s domain. It was forbidden territory. Jason wasn’t even supposed to be there. But that was only the hollow, ghostly echo of his father’s disapproval. “Hey.”

Tae Hyun entered, a shadow of concern mellowing his usual sunny smile to something subdued but edged with understanding more than pity. Jason had been unconsciously cataloging all the smiles he’d gotten from concerned well-wishers that day. Tae Hyun’s wistful smile, at least, wasn’t a lie. “Everyone was wondering where you’d gone.”

Jason relaxed his shoulders, chuckling as Tae Hyun rounded the corner of his father’s desk. “I seriously doubt that. I doubt anyone even noticed I wasn’t there.”

“Well, I noticed.” Tae Hyun’s hands gently settled on Jason’s shoulders, their warmth seeping through the tension and his hand-tailored Cuvier jacket. “And I wondered. How are you holding up?”

A tiny part of Jason wanted to shrug off Tae Hyun’s grasp. He’d bottled up a bar brawl’s worth of emotions, and the slightest crack in his defenses threatened to set them free. But that was the old Jason still whispering to him, impulsive and reckless. Hell, the old Jason probably would’ve already started a fight and been thrown out of his own reception. Instead, he relaxed into Tae Hyun’s arms with a weary sigh. “I don’t fucking know. Fine, I guess. I just needed to not be at the reception anymore.”

Tae Hyun deposited a trio of soft kisses on Jason’s neck, sending a wave of unexpected warmth slithering down his spine. “I don’t blame you. There has to be at least five hundred people here. Not counting the caterers. I’ve been to smaller album launch parties.”

Jason bitterly chuckled. “My father was–well, not exactly liked.” He snorted, harsh and humorless. “Okay, he definitely wasn’t liked. But he was important, so most of the other important people are here, too.”

“Important?”

Jason nodded, ignoring the sudden resurgence of his resentment at how his father’s world had so thoroughly intruded on his. “Politicians, diplomats, business and industry execs–those sorts of people. Hell, there’s more money here than a lot of small countries. And a small army of security people, too. I’m sure you’ve noticed them.”

Tae Hyun laughed, his warm breath teasing away some of the tension in Jason’s neck. “The Songs have done a good job keeping them away from me.”

Jason quietly purred as Tae Hyun gently stroked his hair, each touch lifting him a little more out of his shitty mood. “Are you going back?”

“To the reception? No, not without you. If you’re here, I’m here.”

Copyright ©️ KT Salvo

KT Salvo

August 2024

326 Pages

ROMANCE, K-POP IDOL, M/M ROMANCE

Love is their spotlight, the world their stage. But fame always demands a price.

Global power couple Jason Park and Woo Tae Hyun thought they had it all, weathering a storm of jealousy and danger to emerge on top of their game. But a surprise inheritance turns their world into an unforgiving new battleground. Jason faces unknown enemies seeking to destroy his father’s legacy, haunted by the fear of failing everyone he loves. And Tae Hyun’s dazzling tour entangles him with a captivating rival, testing his loyalty and threatening everything he’s built with Jason.

Under the spotlight’s relentless glare, whispers turn to poison, promises falter, and old wounds resurface. In this explosive conclusion to Jason and Tae Hyun’s story, will their love, once a beacon of hope, become the greatest casualty of their ambition? Or will they defy the odds, forging a path where their hearts, not the pressures of fame, determine their destiny?

PRE-ORDER NOW

In Print and for Amazon Kindle and other e-Readers

Idol Minds by KT Salvo

More from Jetspace Studio Publishing

Idol Minds by KT Salvo
Cover for Jack's on Fire, A Modern Queer Fairy Tale by Owen Lach
Cover for Jack's on Fire, A Modern Queer Fairy Tale by Owen Lach
Cover for Steal the Demon, a science-fiction novella by Robert Roth