Page 99 of Follow the Rhythm
“You know you’re a millionaire, right?” I whispered. “You could have a way better lawyer.”
Kieran laughed, but before he could respond, Johnny wandered out from the back hallway.
“Ah, Kieran Walsh in the flesh. How are you, my boy? A terrible shame, all this. Hopefully, we can sort something out.” He was as smarmy as ever.
His eyes fell on me, and his smile turned hard. “And you brought the Omega. Lovely.”
I opened my mouth to tell him off, but Kieran beat me to the punch.
“‘The Omega’s’ name is Jess. If you talk about her like an object again, we will have problems, no matter how long we’ve known each other,” Kieran said, his voice just on the civilized side of a growl.
Johnny blanched. “Of course, of course. My sincerest apologies, Jess.” He gave a little bow in my direction, but he still imbued my name with a hint of sarcasm.
“Are we the first ones here?” Kieran asked.
“Yes, early as always,” Johnny said, leading us back to a conference room. A man who was oily in every sense of the word stood to greet us. It surprised me that he didn't leave a grease mark on his seat. “Here’s Mr. Horst. He’s agreed to be the mediator.”
“What exactly are you mediating?” I asked. “I thought this was just a meeting.”
Johnny grimaced. “Well, I wouldn’t expectyouto understand, but this is standard practice.”
Kieran frowned. “Standard practice for what?”
“For mediating a banddisbanding, as it were,” he said, as if it were obvious.
Had they decided to split up permanently? Kieran hadn’t said that, but I guessed it made sense. Or would have if Kieran didn’t look as confused as I felt.
The door opened in the lobby, and my anxiety and anticipation flared. Johnny went to greet someone who I could only presume was Ellis. My heart pounded in my ears.
Even before they entered the room, I caught Ellis’s scent. But there was something different; it was sweeter than I remembered.
Oh no, oh no, oh no,my brain chanted. My stomach was in my throat. It wasn’t that Ellis’s scent had changed. There was just a second scent mingled in, one with which I wasintimatelyfamiliar: sweet cherry and subtle vanilla.
“Well, it seems Ellis brought a guest as well,” Johnny said, annoyed.
Ellis came in first, looking much healthier than he had the last time I saw him. He was missing the purple shadows under his eyes, and his cheeks had filled out a bit. His black hair was smooth, tucked behind his ears.
His blue eyes found mine immediately, and his steps faltered.
Charlie was right behind him. “You alright?” he asked softly, his hand placed possessively on Ellis’s lower back. When Ellis didn’t respond, he looked up and noticed me. His eyes widened, and a flush crept up his throat.
A jealousy so intense that I felt physically ill hit me like a truck. Charlie’s hand curled protectively around Ellis’s, their fingers entwined, and it felt like they were squeezing my throat. I took a deep breath in through my nose, which was a big mistake because it just flooded my brain even more with their scents, and Kieran’s.
I forced myself to look away from them before I started screaming or, even worse, perfuming. Were theytogethernow? They had to be. Why else would Charlie be there? And by the way their scents mingled, it was obvious they were fucking.
That same jealousy coursed through me again, and I realized it was because they were fuckingwithout me. They didn’t seem to realize or care that they both belonged with me. To me, in fact. And that was just unacceptable.
Kieran must have sensed my distress because he slid an arm around my waist.
“Well, let’s get this show on the road, gents. Mr. Horst bills by the hour, and time’s a-ticking,” Johnny said.
Ellis cleared his throat. I couldn’t bear to look at him. I studied the chipped surface of the conference table. “About that. Why are we meeting with a lawyer?”
“Don’t be daft, son. We all know which way the wind is blowing. Don’t tell me you didn’t leak that album to engineer this exact situation,” Johnny said, surprisingly venomous. “We’re here to make sure we all get what’s ours.”
“Since I don’t know what the situation even is, that would be quite hard to do,” Ellis said acerbically.
Johnny grunted. “Karen let slip that you’re working on a solo album. And if you think you’ll be cutting me out of the deal, you’re sorely mistaken.”
