A Melody for James (Christian Suspense)

by Hallee Bridgeman

  "Between that, and the rush of changing outfits in ten seconds about six times each show, it's exhausting. But, I sit at the piano and play every fourth song, to give myself a break. The slow songs aren't choreographed, either. The lighting sets the stage for those."

  James stopped with the coffee cup half way to his lips. "You change outfits in ten seconds?"

  She waggled her eyebrows. "Boots and all."

  "How?"

  "Trade secret. If I told you, I'd have to kill you." She laughed and got up to rinse out her cup.

  James saw a stack of CD's on the table. "Is this your new CD?"

  "Yes!" She grabbed a paper towel to wipe her hands as she came back to the table. "Didn't they do a fantastic job with the cover?"

  "You're very beautiful." Her heart swelled with his words. He tapped one. "My assistant likes country music. Could I get one from you?"

  "Sure. Of course." Melody went to a drawer by the sink and pulled out a black marker. She wondered if she should offer one to James, too, but decided against it. "Hal left me those to sign for some group, but he can get more. What's her name?"

  "Rebecca. She's brilliant and absolutely irreplaceable. I think she'd enjoy getting this on release day. I've had her working since about 5:30 this morning, so I know that she wouldn't have had time to go get it."

  As Melody sat down and removed the plastic wrap on the CD to sign it, he looked at his watch. "I have a meeting that is absolutely unavoidable in about twenty minutes. If I leave now, I might not be late." He carried his cup to the sink and turned around. Melody stood there right behind him, holding out the signed disk.

  He took the disc from her and reached out, brushing a strand of hair off of her forehead. "Are we still on for dinner tonight?"

  Her heart started beating double time. All of her senses were full of him and she suddenly wanted nothing more than for him to kiss her again. "I, um, I promised Morgan I'd ask you to eat here tonight," she said in a breathless whisper. She stared at his lips.

  He put a hand on the back of her neck and was lowering his mouth to kiss her just as his cell phone rang, breaking his stride. He sighed as he pulled it out of his pocket. "Montgomery." All laughter faded from his eyes, and he straightened up.

  "All right, Rebecca." He paused and glanced at his watch again. "If they're waiting there now, then they're early and they can continue to wait. I'll see you in about twenty to thirty minutes."

  He turned toward Melody, clearly thinking of something else. Then his expression softened back up. "Problem?" she asked him.

  "Clients. Early clients who will now have to be entertained. Hopefully, Kurt is there. I work. He talks to people. Things work better that way." She followed him to the front door. Obviously at home in her sister's house, he pulled his coat out of the closet by the door.

  "Will you come to dinner tonight?" Her eyes sparkled. "I promise I'm not cooking."

  "In that case," he said as he pulled her to him, "I will sacrifice a night alone with you, only because they're leaving Saturday." He gripped her waist and pulled her to him quickly and passionately. In that single movement, he put her exactly where he wanted her to be. Then he gave her a hard kiss that made her knees feel like two helium balloons and made any thoughts in her mind evaporate like a morning mist. "I'll be back as soon as I can."

  ¯¯¯¯

  CHAPTER 13

  HAL stayed long enough to officially meet James and attempt to grill him much like a father would a teenage boy before a daughter's first date. But, before dinner was served, he departed for the drive back to Nashville, leaving just the two couples for dinner.

  Morgan outdid herself with the meal. The beverages perfectly complimented the sumptuous food, and the conversation stayed light and cheerful.

  After dinner, Morgan and the men sat in the living room watching the lights on the tree while Melody sat idly playing tunes at the grand piano that sat near the large bay window. Every once in a while, she would enter the conversation, but mostly she just played. At one point in the evening, she started playing a very complicated classical piece that required her full concentration, so she didn't hear James remark to Morgan, "She's very good."

  Morgan stretched out on the couch and propped her feet in Kurt's lap. "Yes, she is. She minored in piano at Julliard. I always figured she'd become a concert pianist because our mother never let her play anything that wasn't classical, but as soon as mom died, Melody started writing her own stuff. The magic she can create with those ivory keys is amazing sometimes."

  "Does she write all of her songs?" James asked.

  "Yes. She won't even consider a song someone else wrote. She hears them in her head, or something." Morgan waved her hand in the air. She didn't have to understand her sister to love her and appreciate her talent. "She's stopped in the middle of a conversation with me more than once to go write down lyrics. And if any kind of major event happens in her life, she'll sit at the piano for hours on end and just write. She wrote some of her best songs after our father died, and again after Richard attacked her."

  Melody came to the end of the song, and for added flare, gave the grand finale a flourish. When she finished, James looked at his watch. "I need to go, before I fall asleep where I sit."

  "It's nice to know my playing is putting you to sleep," Melody teased, lowering the lid to cover the piano keys.

  "I assure you, it's the only thing keeping me awake." He stood and set his cup on the table next to his chair. "I'm not certain how many hours of sleep I had in the last several days, but it's not a lot. Morgan, as usual, thank you for the wonderful meal."

  "Always a pleasure to cook for an appreciative man," Morgan said, earning a light slap on the soles of her feet from Kurt. "Not to imply that you're not appreciative, darling," she added.

  James met Melody's eyes as he stood. She slid off the bench and followed him from the room. At the door, James put on his coat and brushed a strand of her hair off her cheek. "I wish I wasn't so tired," he said, pulling her close.

  She wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him, pulling away when he started to deepen the kiss. "Go home and sleep. I'll see you soon."

  "What are your plans tomorrow?" he asked, trying to delay his departure.

  "Todd and Gina are coming in town. I have to work with them for the wedding."

  "Who are Todd and Gina?"

  "Todd plays fiddle in my band," she said as she kissed him on the chin, "and Gina is a back-up singer who also happens to play the flute."

  "And tomorrow night is the rehearsal." He mimicked her kiss.

  "Tomorrow night is the rehearsal and dinner, and afterward you have to keep Kurt away from this house, and I have to keep Morgan here, away from Kurt." She kissed him one more time, hard on the mouth, and pushed him away. "I'll see you at the church tomorrow night. Go."

  "I'll leave in a minute." He pulled her back to him. "I'm not done yet."

  ¯¯¯¯

  "WE aren't going to do anything different than we did last week, guys, except the rest of the band isn't here," Melody said. She stood in the church, waiting for some men to move the podium aside. "I start singing as they're lighting the candles."

  "Where will we be?" asked Gina.

  "You two will come in through each one of those doors in the choir loft. You'll get the full idea of the timing tonight at the rehearsal," she said, gesturing with her hands.

  "I wish there was just one more instrument accompanying," Todd said. "That packs so much more of an impact for the song." His hands busily tuned his fiddle.

  "I'm not going to sing it the same way. It's going to be softer. " She stepped onto the platform and checked the microphones. "All right, let's get started."

  The church bustled with people busily decorating and cleaning. Morgan marched from one end to the other much like a drill sergeant, issuing orders, approving decorations, arranging flowers. Melody and her team ignored the busyness. This was nothing compared to the stage during sound check prior to a concert.
>
  They finished the first run without flaws, but Melody wanted to go over it at least one more time. She looked at her watch. They had at least an hour before the rest of the wedding party showed up for the rehearsal. "All right, let's try it again. Todd, can you play more classically than country? I don't know which sound I'll like better yet."

  ¯¯¯¯

  "YOU need to leave in an hour, Mr. Montgomery," Rebecca said, gathering up the letters that were on his desk.

  "I know. I'm trying to get out of here."

  "Oh, Diane Simmons called. She said to tell you that her sister's hip replacement surgery went well, but that she would not be able to come to the wedding."

  James' hand paused in the middle of signing the letter in front of him. Angela's mother had become his and Kurt's surrogate mother after Angela's death. "Does she need anything?"

  "She said she knew you'd ask that, and to tell you she didn't need anything and that she hopes to be home right after Christmas."

  He nodded and finished signing the last document, then remembered something. He grabbed his briefcase from the floor and opened it. "You listen to country music, right?"

  "Of course, sir."

  "I thought I remembered correctly. Melody Mason gave this to me for you," he said, and pulled out the My Love Song CD. Melody had added a personal note and autographed the cover.

  How did her boss know Melody Mason? She bit her tongue on a dozen different questions. "Oh, how sweet. I went to buy one of these when it was released, but everywhere I went was sold out. Please thank her for me."

  "You can thank her yourself tomorrow," he said.

  "What do you mean?"

  "She'll be at the wedding," James said as he put reports in his briefcase.

  "Why?"

  He stopped and looked at her. "She's Morgan's sister."

  "I had no idea. I knew she was from Atlanta, but I didn't realize there was a connection." She grabbed the last letter he'd signed. "These will go out today. The restaurant is prepared for your full party and a seven-thirty arrival time." James was hosting the rehearsal dinner since Kurt had no family. "The caterer should already be at your apartment for Mr. Lawson's private party, and I called the guard after their shift changed and reiterated that there are to be no women allowed to your apartment, regardless of the excuses given to him."

  "Good." James didn't trust some of Kurt's more worldly friends not to send a stripper to the bachelor party. "I'm going to go ahead and go. It's already close to five. Traffic is going to kill me as it is." He snapped his briefcase shut.

  As she left the office, she stopped at the door. "I'll see you at the wedding."

  "Rebecca." She paused, ready for the typical last minute tasks that usually ended up wiping her Friday plans clean. "Thanks for all of your help with this wedding. I would never have been able to do my part without you."

  The smallest, lightest feather could have knocked her down. "You're welcome, sir." She couldn't help smiling. She went back to her desk and looked at the brand new Melody Mason CD. She wondered if the star had anything to do with Mr. Montgomery's new more relaxed attitude.

  ¯¯¯¯

  GINGER stretched out on the sofa lounger in Morgan's bedroom wearing blue silk pajamas. She held her phone next to her face, texting like crazy. Melody sat cross-legged on the bed, wearing cotton pajama bottoms and a loose thermal top, looking through a photo album of Kurt and Morgan's engagement party. "How did I miss this party?"

  "You were still avoiding Atlanta," Morgan said, pulling a flannel nightgown over her head. "I think you were afraid you'd walk around a corner and run into Richard."

  "That's ridiculous," Ginger said, sending a text and setting her phone down. "There are, like, a million people here."

  Melody rolled her eyes, "Or, you know, like five million."

  Morgan gave her a quick glare and a harsh shake of her head, silently telling her to not make fun of Ginger. Ginger just picked up her phone again. "I'm checking the last census."

  Feeling chastised, Melody said, "It's still kind of scary to walk around here. It's one of the reasons I have a driver wherever I go."

  "You have a driver because you're über rich and famous," Ginger said, pushing herself up on her elbow. "Comes with the whole big star package."

  "I never use a driver in Nashville."

  "Maybe you don't want to look so snotty in Nashville." Ginger hypothesized.

  "I beg your pardon?"

  Morgan stepped between them. "What is up with you two?"

  Melody shrugged. "I don't know. I'm being argumentative. I'm sorry, Ginger."

  Ginger lifted a shoulder. "No prob." She fluffed her hair and slid off of the lounger. "I'm headed to bed. Big day tomorrow," she singsonged, running her finger over Morgan's dress. "I totally can't wait."

  She hugged Morgan and waved at Melody. "Sweet dreams, girls."

  After she left, Morgan climbed onto the bed next to her sister. "Why this sudden antagonism with Ginger?"

  Uncomfortable, Melody shrugged. "No idea. I haven't seen her in years. Maybe it's just from having to deal with David Patterson so much."

  "Ginger is not her father. What she is … is my best friend."

  Melody nodded. "I know. I apologize."

  "Just chill the tension." Morgan lay back against the mound of pillows and held her hand up, studying her engagement ring. "I can't believe I'm going to be married tomorrow."

  Melody set the picture album on a table by the bed and lay back next to Morgan. "Again," she laughed.

  "Right. Again." Morgan turned her head to look at Melody.

  "We haven't had the best luck with men, have we, Morg?"

  With a wistful smile, Morgan said, "I don't know how much luck has to do with it. I think listening to God works more than anything."

  Melody frowned. "You think? After what happened to me, after what I went through, when all I did was talk about and think about and talk to God?"

  "Is that what happened? Are you blaming God?"

  Melody shrugged. "He didn't do anything to stop it, did He?"

  "We have no idea what He did or didn't do. Maybe if James hadn't been there, Richard would have abducted you. Maybe he was meant to crush your skull but God protected you. Maybe you shouldn't have ever gone out with him in the first place. Maybe all of this was meant to happen and God is going to do good things with it. You can't know. You don't have the omniscience needed to know or understand. You simply have to trust and have faith."

  With a shake of her head, Melody pushed herself off of the bed. "Maybe you're right. I don't know. Here's what I do know. The world loves my music and my fans adore me. That's what's real."

  Melody struggled with her next words, her jaw clenching before she finally spoke. "Putting my faith in the same God who couldn't get down off of His throne long enough to keep a con artist from putting me into a coma for two weeks…" Melody ran her finger over the scar near her hairline. "I feel like He betrayed me, and I don't know how to reconcile that."

  "Maybe it isn't meant to be reconciled."

  "If that's the case, then that's just wholly unfair." Melody tossed her hair over her shoulder and sat on Morgan's side of the bed.

  "You could try talking to Him about it." Morgan sat up and crossed her legs.

  "I just don't know if I know how anymore." She reached forward and put her hands on her sister's shoulders. "Enough about that. I'm so happy for you. Kurt is amazing, and I think Daddy would approve."

  Morgan's smile was a little sad. "I think even mother would approve of Kurt."

  "You're right. He is entirely a people person. He would have convinced her that his marrying you was her idea."

  Morgan laughed and leaned forward, hugging her sister. "You're absolutely right."

  ¯¯¯¯

  JAMES leaned back against the couch and closed his eyes. Party debris lay scattered all around him, but Kurt had followed the last guest out the door about twenty minutes earlier. James ignored the mess and just allowe
d himself to drift inward.

  He found it peculiar just how much Melody Mason occupied his thoughts. For a week now, every time he really found focus in whatever he was working on, her face would suddenly swim across his mental landscape, or her voice would fill his ears. He wondered what that meant. Was it obsession? Lust? Something more? Something deeper?

  After giving this singular mental phenomenon what he felt amounted to adequate analysis, he reached a conclusion. He believed very sincerely that it was something deeper. He believed God brought them together in the Newark airport and he believed that, for whatever reason, God kept them apart for four long years. He trusted that God had a plan concerning all this. What frustrated James was his inability to envision the full plan and understand it so that he could implement it more efficiently and effectively.

  Intellectually he understood how controlling that thought sounded, and he didn't mean it in a worldly way, he simply didn't like the danger hovering over Melody. He didn't like this inability to make it go away. His heart's desire was to shield her and protect her.

  What were these feelings? He knew what he felt, but none of these powerful emotions made logical, rational sense. After all, true love wasn't something built on a few cups of coffee and the bluest eyes he'd ever seen. True love, sacrificial love, that kind of love grew out of respect, similar interests, mutual goals. What he had with Angela was love built on a foundation of their shared education, their company, and their science. What he had with Melody couldn't compare to that.

  Could it? Certainly, they respected one another. Could God, who is Himself love, have orchestrated events already with infinite wisdom and infinite knowledge and predestined them to be brought together despite a lack of common interest or experience?

  Or could he in his lonesome flesh simply be reacting to his best friend, his brother, finally becoming one with the love of his life? Could he just be missing that special kind of relationship he had known before? Was he selfishly struggling to try to replace what he lost with someone he cared about? How fair would that be for Melody?