Irresistible Refrain

by Michelle Mankin

  “Oh, you’re both already here. Good.” Beth, the congenial PR woman for Black Cat, and Mary’s closest confidante as I’d come to realize after only a week around the studio, entered the room and insinuated herself between us. “Mary wants you to work together for a while. She feels that your voices and music sensibilities are compatible.” She handed me some sheet music. “Today she wants you to focus on some covers. Just basic stuff. Dalton will be here after lunch to record, and we’ll go from there. Sound good?”

  We both nodded. I turned back to Justin as soon as she was gone. He was looking over my shoulder. Way too close.

  “’Roadside,’ huh? Not too bad.”

  I took a step away from him. Better get this out of the way. He seemed like a nice guy, but I wasn’t going there. Not with him. Not with anybody else. Not ever again.

  Deep inhale.

  “Listen, Justin. I’m really looking forward to working with you, but I just need you to know that I’m not interested in anything else, ok?”

  He didn’t say anything for a minute. His eyes scanned my face. “Bad breakup?”

  I snorted. “Breakup would imply there had been an actual relationship in the first place.” I’d tried for a lighthearted tone, but the ‘feeling sorry for myself tears’ were stinging my eyes. “There’s just a guy that I’m never going to get over, you know?”

  “No worries. I promise not to think of you as an entrée if you promise to think of me as a friend.”

  I grinned. “I can totally do that.” I’d been so lonely up here in Vancouver. Without the guys, without my brother… I even missed Bridget’s nonstop chatter.

  By the end of the second week, Justin and I had already cranked out a half dozen original songs. We were productive in the studio, and enjoyed each other’s company. Like me Justin didn’t seem to be interested in serious relationships. Though I couldn’t help but notice that he had a lot of one-nighters. Anywhere we went women would come on to him and slip him their phone numbers.

  We fell into an easy pattern of hanging out together whenever we had free time. Justin was staying at the Sutton also, and I discovered that he felt just as isolated in Vancouver as I did. His sister lived in an apartment near the waterfront, just far enough away to be inconvenient for day to day visiting. Plus she had a busy schedule, thank God. His dad was living on Vancouver Island with his soon to be in-laws.

  I shared most of my story with him. We had the common background with substance abuse and appointed ourselves each other’s accountability partners. Since our personalities were a lot alike I wasn’t sure if that was a plus or a minus. We both liked to shop. He was really into men’s fashion. If it hadn’t been for the aforementioned one nighters, I might seriously have wondered which way JJ swung, if you know what I mean.

  The only thing I kept from him was the nitty gritty details about Bryan. Those I held tightly to myself. Though the way Justin looked at me, when I got myself tangled up again in the past, when I didn’t want to do anything but sit in my room, and when I just wanted to stare at the wall and remember, made me wonder just how much more he knew about me and Bryan than he let on.

  Today, we’d finished up another song and were in the break room at Black Cat, negotiating our afternoon plans. Justin had his hip leaning against the counter in front of me while I stirred creamer into my coffee.

  “Mintage Vintage,” I insisted, my voice a little whiny. “We did Armani Exchange yesterday. Speaking of that…” I bit my lip. Maybe I shouldn’t mention it. Justin already gave me a lot of grief about jogging alone. But yesterday at the Exchange, I’d gotten a feeling that someone was watching me. The hair had stood up at the back of my neck and everything.

  “What?” Justin prompted.

  “Nothing,” I mumbled. What could he do? It was just a feeling after all. I’d never actually seen anyone. It was probably just my imagination.

  “You don’t look like it’s nothing.” He suddenly stopped, his face brightening with a huge smile. “Avery.”

  I spun around just in time to catch her disapproving frown.

  “I thought you were visiting Dad. When did you get back in town?”

  “Today.” Avery looked back and forth between the two of us. Her expression was as tight as that stick up her ass. “Can I talk to you for a minute, in private?” she asked her brother.

  He nodded, following her out into the hall. Even though I couldn’t make out what they were saying I didn’t need to be a genius to figure out that it was about me. And knowing Miss Perfect, I could imagine that it wasn’t complimentary.

  When Justin came back in, he was alone. His expression was as cloudy as Vancouver during a rain.

  “Where’d she go?” I asked looking over his shoulder.

  “To work on some solo material.” He scrubbed a hand over his face, something I knew he did when irritated.

  I quirked a brow. “She thinks I might be a bad influence on you.”

  “I told her more like the other way around,” he confirmed. “She’s just being overprotective.”

  “Oh.” I put my hand on his arm. “Don’t worry about it. She and I just don’t get along.” I peered up at him through my lashes. “Don’t take this the wrong way, but I think your sister’s a stuck up bitch.”

  “Hmm,” he murmured in response. “Why do I get the idea that you and Avery are a cat fight just waiting to happen?”

  I squinted at my cell. It lay like a cobra on the beige couch beside me, ready to strike. I needed to make the call, but imagining the reception I was likely to receive had me recoiling.

  I’d been putting this off for weeks. He would probably hang up on me. And if he didn’t there was likely to be some yelling. It wasn’t going to be easy to atone for past mistakes with him.

  A big sigh.

  Past time to get it over with.

  I selected his number and hit send.

  He picked up on the first ring. “Lacey?” His voice was as smooth as it’d ever been but there was a hard edge to it that he’d never used with me before.

  Well, at least he wasn’t shouting. Not yet. “How are you?” I swallowed nervously.

  “I’m fuckin’ great” A loud sigh on his end. “What do you want?”

  Ok, not yelling, but close. I’d better get right to it. “I want to apologize, War. I really messed up with us, with you, and with Bryan.” I stumbled on his name. I never said it out loud anymore. Ever. I pulled on my running shoes and went jogging whenever I found myself even starting to think about him.

  What was he doing? Who was he doing it with?

  I ran a lot.

  War didn’t respond. I could hear him breathing through the phone.

  “I’m sorry. That’s all I called to say really. Except for one other thing.” I bit my lip. “Warren, you and Bryan are best friends. You need him. He needs you. You need each other.”

  “He put you up to this?”

  “No.” My chest burned. “I haven’t seen or heard from him in five weeks.” A short pause. I couldn’t stop myself from asking. “Have you?” My voice squeaked desperately.

  “No.” A pause on his side. I could hear music in the background, and a female voice speaking in Spanish.

  “Where are you?”

  “I gotta go, Lacey.”

  Dead air in my ear.

  I didn’t miss that he hadn’t accepted my apology.

  My cell rang at two in the morning. It quit before I could locate it. I stumbled back to the bedroom and crawled back under the covers.

  Just as it started again.

  Shit. Shit.

  I found it this time, between the cushions of the couch. It must have fallen in there earlier after I’d called War. I redialed the missed call.

  “Hello.” I recognized the musical voice right away.

  “Bridget? Is everything ok?”

  “Everything’s fine.”

  Very few things are fine at two a.m. “What’s going on?”

  “Listen Lace,” Bridget sniffe
d. “Could…would it be ok if Carter and I come and stay with you for a little bit?” I remembered Carter was her five year old son.

  “Sure,” I told her without hesitation. “But I’m in Canada now. Do you have a passport?”

  “Yes.” Another sniff.

  I heard a boy’s voice. “Mommy, why are you crying?”

  “I need to go now. I’ll call you back when I have the flight information. And Lace?”

  “Yeah?”

  Thanks. You don’t know how much this means to me.”

  “No problem. That’s what best friends are for.”

  Dizzy and I sat in the club chairs waiting for Lace.

  I saw her silhouette as she passed by the gold framed lobby windows. Finally. My heart began to pound hard against my ribs. I couldn’t wait to be close to her again, maybe very close if things went the way I hoped.

  She breezed into the marble foyer and stopped in front of the table that always held a large vase of fresh cut flowers. She wasn’t alone. She was with him. Again. My rapid heart rate screeched to a sudden stop. My gut twisted into a tight knot. I had wanted to give her the time she needed to regain her confidence before making my move. But maybe I had waited too long.

  Dizzy jumped up and flew across the room to greet her. I’d spilled my guts out to him weeks ago before leaving for Vancouver. I’d told him the way I felt about her, and what I was planning to do. He’d been cautiously supportive of my decision, but he hadn’t given me any indication how I would be received by her today.

  I held back, hands in my jean pockets almost shaking with the control it took not to grab her, throw her over my shoulder and just run off with her. I watched the brother and sister reunion. She looked good. Fantastic in fact. Cheeks glowing and rosy from the cold, wearing the same vintage pea coat she’d worn on the tour. The short hair still gave me pause. But I could see that the style was actually extremely flattering. The waifish cut emphasized her beautiful amber eyes which had always captivated me.

  Hell, all of her captivated me.

  Those eyes widened as she spotted me. Her gaze locked with mine and her face drained of color. The guy at her side that I’d momentarily forgotten seemed to sense her distress and moved closer and glanced in my direction.

  Justin Jones. Avery’s twin.

  Fuck me.

  I was getting a taste of my own medicine I guess. At least Marcus Anthony wasn’t around to gloat. For once in my life, I empathized with the dude. But just as I’d seen him do with Avery, I was going to do whatever it took to get Lace back.

  I gave Justin the ‘you better move away from my woman or I’ll take you out in the back alley and work you over,’ return glare.

  He raised an auburn brow. I’d seen Avery do that same thing when something amused her.

  I sauntered toward Lace, wedging myself between them.

  Amuse yourself with a view of my backside motherfucker. That’s all you’ll be getting. You can’t have her.

  “Bry,” she breathed. The sound of her voice had the usual effect, only worse because it’d been so long. Too long. I wanted to close my eyes and fill my lungs with her addictive sweet vanilla scent.

  “Lace.” I put my hand on her arm instead. I had to touch her. I needed to feel her warmth. Her skin against mine.

  She swallowed. “What are you doing here?”

  I heard the trembling uncertainty in her voice.

  “Mary flew all of us up for a meeting,” Dizzy quickly explained, his eyes flicking briefly to me.

  Good save Dizzy. I shot him back a grateful look. Damn, I needed a cigarette bad right now, but I’d been trying to quit. I’d actually been in town for two weeks, getting my plans together. And keeping an eye on her. Stalking would be too strong a word, but I pretty much knew her routine by now. I’d thought she might have even spotted me once at the Armani Exchange, but if she had, she gave no indication now.

  “Oh, I thought…” Disappointment dimmed the light of expectation in her expression. Her response gave me a boost of hope.

  “Aren’t you going to introduce me to everyone?” Justin asked from behind me.

  This dude was pissing me off. I wanted him g.o.n.e. I turned to him, my eyes narrowing, but Dizzy got in between us. He offered him a civilized hand shake, averting a full blown conflict. While the two of them played nice, I zeroed in on Lace, moved closer, using that voice on her, the tone that always made her eyes darken. “I need to talk to you.”

  It worked again. Her pupils dilated and she licked her lips. “Alright,” she whispered.

  Thank, God. All my plans hinged on her agreement. The hands had been dealt. My heart was the ante. It was time to lay my cards on the table. I touched her shoulder and felt her body vibrate beneath my palm. “I have some things I have to do first, but I’ll meet you here around six, ok?”

  She nodded.

  “Dizzy,” I called. “Got everything you need?”

  “Right here.” He patted his coat pocket discretely.

  “Good, thanks.” I shifted back to her, tracing her smooth cheek with my thumb. She shivered. “I’ll see you tonight.”

  I watched him leave the building with that easy saunter of his. I trembled with the control it took not to chase after him.

  What was going on?

  What was he up to?

  Why the delay? What was going to happen at six?

  I turned to Dizzy, the questions on my lips.

  “Uh-uh,” my brother shook his head, reading my expression. “I’m sworn to secrecy.” He hugged me. “Don’t look so worried.”

  I drew back and took in a deep breath.

  “He’s the one.” Justin hooked a thumb over his shoulder. “The guy you said you’d never get over.”

  I’d forgotten that he was even there.

  “Looks to me like the feeling’s entirely mutual.”

  “I hope so,” I sighed.

  He smiled and kissed my cheek. “Call me later.”

  “Alright.” I managed a small smile of my own before turning back to Dizzy. “That all your luggage?”

  He nodded. “Just that and my guitar.”

  “Ok.” We weren’t going to need a bellhop. “I’m on this side.” I gestured to the left. He grabbed his bags and started to follow me down the corridor. We passed the tiny gift shop and I led him to a narrow hallway that had just two small elevators. “How are King and Sager doing?” I asked trying to make small talk. I needed a distraction. What I really wanted to do was grill him about Bryan.

  “They’re good,” he replied as we rode up. “Usual K&S routine on the plane ride, both of them cutting up and trying to get a cell number from the first class flight attendant. Without Bryan to help me keep them in line it was tough.”

  “What?” I asked, my brows furrowing. “You said you all came up together.”

  “Oops.” He gave me a sheepish smile.

  I let him off the hook until I had him inside the apartment. “Dizzy Lowell.” I put my hands on my hips, confronting him. “You tell me right now. What the hell is going on?”

  He set down his cases and pulled an embossed vellum envelope out of his jacket pocket. It had my name scrawled on the front in Bryan’s handwriting. “He’ll tell you himself in a couple of hours.”

  I clutched the invitation in my hands and looked down at my formal gown. The light pink silk dress was a 1965 vintage Oleg Cassini, strapless and gathered in an elegant rhinestone encrusted bow beneath my breasts. It was a real find, very Jackie O. The dress and shoes had been delivered to my apartment moments after Dizzy and I had entered.

  My palms were sweaty as I waited in the lobby for him to pick me up. I didn’t know what to expect tonight. The invitation just said dinner and dancing and was signed, “Love, Bryan.”

  Oh yeah, I read a lot into that salutation and was mulling over the possibilities when the limo pulled into the front circle past the clipped topiaries with their twinkling white light adornments. Keeping with the sixties theme, the car was a 1968 c
ream colored Mercedes Benz.

  Wow. This was quite the elaborate set up.

  I pulled the matching silk wrap around my shoulder. It didn’t do much to ward off the damp, chilly Vancouver night air but it gave me something to do with my hands. My legs were another story. My heels felt as shaky and fragile as glass slippers as I walked out to meet him.

  A uniformed driver popped out of the vehicle and scurried to open the back door for me. I thanked him as I ducked in, expecting to see Bryan, disappointed to discover that he wasn’t there.

  The driver folded himself into the front, and tipped his cap to me in the rearview mirror. “Mr. Jackson said to tell you that you look beautiful.”

  I smirked. I couldn’t help it. How could he know that?

  “He also said to tell you that he’s waiting for you at the restaurant. It’s only a short drive from here.”

  I nodded my head, settled into the seat and tried to relax. I looked out the window as he drove. The lights of downtown sparkled in the light evening mist. I noticed we were driving downhill toward the waterfront.

  After just a ten minute drive, the driver pulled up in front of a tall glass building, turned off the engine, and came around to open the door for me. He waited as I smoothed out the ankle length skirt before offering me his arm.

  “I’m to escort you to him,” he explained.

  We rode the elevator up to the thirty-fifth floor in silence. I found myself more and more curious as to what was coming next. When the door slid open, I gasped. I didn’t even remember stepping off the elevator or the driver leaving. I just stood there in complete awe.

  The restaurant was deserted, but all around me candles flickered atop tables draped in white linen and sprinkled with red rose petals. Out the windows and beyond the waterfront, the lights of West Vancouver sparkled elegantly in the distance.

  The invitation, the gown, the car, and now this. I was overwhelmed with the emotions that swirled around inside of me. He’d gone to an awful lot of trouble. No one had ever done anything so special for me. Tears filled my eyes, and then he stepped out before me.