by Cat Schield
“You had no right.” Ivy’s voice slashed at her.
Discovering a bag of pills in her sister’s possession both angered and frightened Mia. “I’m your sister and I love you. I’m always going to do what’s best for you. Even if you hate me for it.”
“It’s your fault, you know. The reason I have the pills. You haven’t been around for me lately.”
“I’m with you all day at the studio and when you’re working with Melody on the songs you’re planning to record.” Mia was having trouble catching her breath. She hated conflict and usually gave in to whatever Ivy wanted, but not when it came to her addiction. “The only time I’m not around is when you go out with Skylar and Riley. They’re bad news, Ivy.”
“They’re fun.” Ivy scrubbed the tears from her cheeks and shook her head. “I can’t have any fun without you being all over me. You used to be fun. We used to hang out.”
“That’s not my fault.” Mia’s temper flared at the unfair accusation. It hurt that the two of them had stopped spending time together as sisters and friends. “You’re the one who treats me more like an employee than your sister.”
“You left me to go to high school.”
Mia regarded Ivy in dumb silence. “You were in a show on Broadway. I wanted to be normal.” Because she’d been just an average kid with no particular talent or ambition.
If Ivy had never become a pop star, Mia might have ended up like Eva, in a job she loved far from the music industry with its bright lights and soul-crushing pressure to make it big.
“You don’t think that’s what I wanted?” Ivy’s pupils were like pinpoints, something Mia had learned to watch for. “To go to school with my friends and just worry about passing a chemistry test or what boy might think I’m cute?”
“So why didn’t you say no?” Though Mia asked the question, she already knew the answer.
“You think it’s because I love all the money and fame.”
“I do. Ever since we were kids you always needed to be the center of attention.”
“It gets old. Sometimes all I want is to be invisible.”
“So quit.”
“And do what?” Ivy glared at her. “I don’t write music like you do. All I have is my voice and this body.”
Mia wished her sister could look beyond show business. “What about going to college. You could get a degree. Or you’re passionate about fashion. Start a clothing line.”
“Sure.” Ivy gave a bitter laugh. “Like Dad would let me quit singing and acting to become a fashion designer.”
“You don’t have to quit. Do both. See how it goes.” For the first time in what felt like forever Mia saw the old Ivy peering out at her. She impulsively took her sister’s hands. “Why don’t we take Saturday and go do something fun? Just you and me. Like when we were kids and we used to sneak off to the park.”
“I’m flying to LA with Skylar and Riley tomorrow to meet with the guy who is going to manufacture their line of purses.”
“Tomorrow?” Why hadn’t she been told any of this? “But you’re scheduled in the studio tomorrow. When are you coming back?”
“I don’t know. Skylar and Riley really need my help.”
“And by help you mean they want you to invest money.” If Mia had disliked Skylar and Riley before, the discovery of the pills made things so much worse.
“I don’t care what you think.” Ivy glared at her. “I’m going.”
“Then I’ll go with you.” If Ivy was taking painkillers again, Mia really couldn’t afford to let her sister go back to LA without her. “I’ll message Nate and explain everything.”
Well, not everything. She’d shared a lot of her secrets with him, but couldn’t tell him her fears about Ivy without explaining about Ivy’s near death overdose.
“Sure, whatever. But do it somewhere else. I’m tired and I just want to sleep.”
“Then you’re not going out tonight?”
“Geez, Mia. It’s only seven. Nothing gets going around here until at least midnight.” And then Ivy lay on her bed and buried her face in a pillow.
After covering her with a throw, Mia took the now cool cup of tea and went to her bedroom to Skype with Nate. To her surprise, he was fine with the change of plans. He told her he’d head up to LA as well to meet with Trent, and would arrange for Ivy to do a bit of recording at West Coast Records with a producer friend of his so they could keep the schedule moving forward.
By the time Mia signed off an hour later, she was feeling a whole lot better. Nate had that effect on her. But her equanimity lasted only until she went to check on Ivy and found her sister’s room in an uproar of rejected outfits, but otherwise empty.
Mia hesitated just a minute before starting a systematic search through Ivy’s room. The last time her sister had given into her addiction, she’d squirrel away pills in all sorts of places. Mentally crossing her fingers that she wouldn’t find anything, Mia began going through Ivy’s drawers and closet. After forty-five minutes of searching, she’d unearthed no contraband, but that didn’t mean Ivy couldn’t hit up Skylar or Riley tonight.
Mia would have to keep a close eye on her sister to avoid a repeat of the relapse that had happened three years ago, while Ivy was on her first concert tour. Mia had been in LA working on a demo for one of the songs Ivy hadn’t wanted to record. Preoccupied by the opportunity to have a career as a songwriter, Mia hadn’t been paying attention to her sister and Ivy had started taking pills again.
Sometimes it seemed that every time Mia tried to grab something for herself, Ivy found a way to spoil it. Which explained why keeping quiet about her relationship with Nate was so important. But at what cost? The question roused a host of emotions ranging from frustration to guilt. She’d already lost Nate to her sister’s demanding personality.
Was she planning on sacrificing her entire future to it, as well? How long could she live in Ivy’s shadow before dissatisfaction with her situation turned love into animosity? Choosing her sister over Nate had been hard the first time, even though she’d known him only a short while and could dismiss their fling as a tour romance. But now that she was working with him every day and accepting his help to develop her music, she was discovering richer layers to her feelings for him. Not sexual or even professional, but a complicated stew of romance, friendship and respect.
He was a brilliant musician and a wonderful man. When the time came to choose, how was she going to give him up again?
Six
Nate glanced Mia’s way a hundred times during their drive to Santa Monica, where they were having dinner with Trent and Savannah. She looked beautiful in a navy-and-white abstract print sundress, paired with sandals and wavy beach hair. For a dramatic evening look, she’d applied eye shadow and red lipstick. He couldn’t keep his eyes off her.
As he pulled into the parking lot, Mia gave the restaurant a doubtful look. “Are you sure this is a business meeting?”
He nodded, playing innocent when she frowned. He knew what she was thinking, but it wasn’t really a double date. Just a quiet dinner with two couples, at a seaside restaurant with lots of good food and wine. Nope. Not a double date at all.
“It seems a little...”
He fitted the car into a parking spot and cut the engine. “Out-of-the-way?”
“I was thinking more in terms of romantic.”
“Now that you mention it, I see what you mean. But I didn’t pick it. Trent did. I think it might be date night for him and Savannah. That’s not a problem, is it?”
“Sitting across the table from a newly engaged couple won’t bother me a bit.”
“Good. I wouldn’t want you to get any ideas.”
Mia shook her head. “I wouldn’t dream of it.”
They were fifteen minutes early for the reservation, but the hostess seated
them at a wonderful table overlooking the Santa Monica pier and the ocean. The sun had already dipped below the horizon and the sky was saturated with rich gold, red and deep blue.
“Tell me more about Trent and Savannah.” Mia’s eyes held a wistful glow as she turned from the view. “Start with why they both have the same last name if they’re only engaged.”
“Savannah is Trent’s former sister-in-law.”
Mia’s eyes widened adorably. “That has to be a tricky situation.”
“It’s quite complicated. They’ve known each other since Savannah was a kid. She came to live with her aunt, who happened to be the Caldwells’ housekeeper, after her mom died and her father couldn’t take care of her. From what Melody tells me, Savannah had a thing for Trent for a long time. When she went off to model in New York City he went out to visit her and they began to...” Nate paused and thought for a moment. “Date.”
“Why the pause?”
“I don’t think Trent realized how he felt about her until after they broke up and she married his brother.”
“So why did she marry him? To get back at Trent?”
“That’s not her style. She was pregnant and Rafe wanted a legitimate heir to carry on the Caldwell name. He was dying when he married her, but no one knew.”
“How old is her son?”
“Just turned a year. And the boy is Trent’s. How that happened is also complicated, but let’s just say Trent was a huge idiot for ever letting her go.”
“Did Trent know about the baby before she married his brother?”
Nate shook his head. “I think if they’d been able to talk to each other when she found out she was pregnant they might have saved themselves a lot of heartache.”
“Why didn’t she tell him?”
“That would be a good question to ask her. I don’t honestly know.”
“I’m glad Trent and Savannah found each other again.” Mia paused while Nate ordered a bottle of pinot grigio from the waiter. “I don’t remember Trent being a part of West Coast Records when Ivy signed with them. How long has he been involved? It’s his family business, isn’t it?”
“That’s another complicated thing. Trent and his father never got along, so he wasn’t involved in the record label. His brother, Rafe took over when their father retired, and mismanaged an already floundering company.”
“My dad told me there were rumors that artists weren’t being paid. That never happened with Ivy, but she was one of their bestselling artists.”
“Trent brought in auditors to look over the books. There was some embezzling on top of everything else. Hopefully, within the next six months everything will get straightened out and people will be paid what they’re owed.”
The waiter brought the wine, and as it was being poured, Trent and Savannah arrived at the table. Quick introductions were made and the newly engaged couple sat down.
“You two are early,” Trent said, his gaze sliding between Nate and Mia.
“They didn’t have a baby to get ready for bed,” Savannah said.
“How is your throat?” Trent asked. “Are you speaking yet?”
Nate shook his head and glanced at Mia.
“I’m his voice.”
Savannah’s eyes widened. “How does that work?”
Nate demonstrated. “I want to lick every inch of your body.”
“He just said you look lovely and asked how your son is.”
“I don’t think that’s what he said.” Savannah laughed. “You just turned bright red. Did he say something naughty?”
Trent cocked his head and regarded his smirking business partner. “So are you two...?”
“Lovers?” He nodded.
“No.”
Nate had little trouble conveying his feelings on that situation. “Not at the moment.”
Savannah grinned. “This feels a little bit like watching a silent movie without subtitles.”
“We’re being rude,” Mia said, shooting Nate a severe look.
“Tell them the truth. It won’t go anywhere.”
She gave a big sigh. “Nate and I became romantically involved while on tour, but nobody knows that.”
“Because?” Savannah prompted.
Nate began to sign, but Mia ignored him. “I work for my sister and she wouldn’t be happy if I was dating Nate.”
“Because?” It was Trent who prompted this time.
Mia looked as if she wished the floor would open up and swallow her. “My sister can be a bit needy.”
The sign Nate made needed no translation.
“So you’re not allowed to date?” Savannah asked. “That seems a bit much.”
“It’s not that I can’t date.” Although from what she’d told Nate, her sister had a knack for ruining every chance at romance that came Mia’s way. “It’s more that I don’t have much time for a life outside my work.”
“Mia is a fantastic songwriter. I found out on tour that she wrote all the songs Ivy claimed to have written from her first two albums.” Nate finished signing and gave her a hard look until she translated his words.
Trent gave her an equally hard look as he listened, but there was regret in there, as well. “You weren’t given credit? How did that happen?”
“I don’t know,” Mia said. “When the first albums came out I wasn’t mentioned at all. When I asked my dad about it, he said it was a group decision. They thought it looked better if Ivy was writing her own music instead of some nobody.”
From the throb in Mia’s voice, the slight continued to pain her.
“If it was something that happened because of my family’s mismanagement of the West Coast label, I would be happy to set the record straight.”
“No.” Mia added a head shake for emphasis. “It would cause too much upheaval. My family would never forgive me if word got out.”
Trent nodded. “If anyone understands how complicated family and business can be it’s me. You have my word that this stays here.”
“Thank you.”
Mia gave Trent a wobbly smile and it hit Nate hard. He wanted badly to be able to make everything right for her, but she’d never let him. The best he could hope would be to get her away from Ivy so that her future looked brighter.
They dined on the fresh catch of the day and went through several bottles of wine. Trent, Savannah and Mia carried the conversation. Nate enjoyed his forced muteness and spent most of the dinner watching Mia’s confidence bloom beneath his friends’ attention.
“Dessert?” Nate asked as the waiter cleared the plates. He wanted to prolong the night as long as possible.
Savannah looked regretful. “I wish we could, but we promised the sitter we’d get home by ten.”
Nate turned to Mia, but she was shaking her head. “How about a walk on the beach?”
She glanced out the window at the dark water. He knew she loved the ocean. They’d sneaked off to the beach a couple times while touring Australia. He would’ve liked to steal her away for some snorkeling along the Great Barrier Reef, but the schedule had been too tight for that sort of excursion.
“A short one. If I’m too late Ivy will wonder why.”
After settling the bill the two couples separated in the parking lot. Mia maintained her smile as she stripped off her sandals and put them in the car. The temperature had dipped into the upper fifties, but the breeze blowing off the Pacific was light.
Nate took her hand and they made their way toward the sand. As they crossed the broad expanse, he revisited how easy it was to be with Mia. She had an ability to stay tranquil no matter how crazy the people around her became. No doubt it was a trait she’d cultivated in dealing with her sister’s demanding ways.
Mia didn’t expect conversation or feel compelled to fill silences with chatter.
Even before his surgery, they’d spent long silent hours enjoying each other’s company, physically connected by the touch of her foot on his thigh or his shoulder against hers, or at opposite ends of a room, content to occupy the same space.
If it weren’t for Mia’s peculiar attachment to being her sister’s assistant, he could’ve delighted in having found the perfect woman. Instead his patience was worn to the thinness of onion skin by his constant need to resist the craving to pull Mia into his arms and kiss her. He was tired of pretending his interest in her was professional.
Fingers knitted together, they walked at the water’s edge, heading away from the bright lights of the Santa Monica pier. The quarter moon gave them enough light to see by. Nate stopped and used Mia’s momentum to turn her into his arms. Sliding his hand into her hair, he cupped her cheek and brought his lips to hers.
She tasted of the peppermint candy she’d snagged on the way out of the restaurant. When he licked at her lips, they parted for him, and he swept his tongue against hers, stealing her breath and the last bit of the candy disk. He’d always been good with words when it came to writing music, but this rush of emotion that hit him whenever he put his arms around her smothered his ability to form cohesive thought.
“I have a few more hours before Ivy will be home,” she murmured against his cheek as he grazed his lips down her neck. She trembled as he nipped her skin. “Feel like going back to your hotel? I’m dying to be alone with you.”
* * *
Nate didn’t bother signing his answer. He grabbed her by the hand and pulled her toward the car. Mia laughed at his eagerness. It matched the impatience burning in her chest. Why hadn’t she said something sooner? They’d wasted fifteen minutes on this walk.
Nate had one hand on the steering wheel and caressed her shoulder with the other while he drove. There was little conversation on the trip back into the city. It gave Mia time to think about what was to come and to work herself into a fine state of frenzied anticipation.
At the hotel, Nate turned his car over to the valet. When he would’ve put his arm around Mia for the walk through the hotel lobby, she shook her head.