Sing for Me

by Penelope Reece

  Heather nodded and Simon left the room. Professor Wilson huffed, “With one boy in the hospital and the other a suspect, we’ll have to postpone rehearsals for the rest of the week. At this rate I doubt we’ll be ready for opening night. It’s Monday!”

  “Now is not the time to worry about the show,” Rhys said his tone hard and scolding. He looked at Chloe. “It’s late. They won’t be allowing Jett any visitors, so why don’t I take you guys home. You can come back tomorrow.”

  Chloe looked at Heather and she nodded. “Alright.”

  Heather stood up. She linked her arm with Chloe’s and they said their goodbye’s to Wilson, who seemed indecisive about whether he should leave too. He remained behind as they followed Rhys out of the room toward the elevators.

  The morning had started off so well – except for the nightmare – and now look. Jett was in the hospital and the police were putting the blame on Simon. Chloe prayed everything turned out okay and tried not to keep worrying about it. What mattered now was that Jett was going to make it.

  At the apartment, Chloe let Heather enter first while she stayed out on the porch to talk to Rhys.

  “It’s late. Why don’t you go in and try to get some sleep.”

  Chloe sighed. “I don’t think I can. There’s too much on my mind.” She tried to decide if she should tell him or not. “Backstage, Jett confessed that he loved me.”

  Chloe waited to see how Rhys would react. When he frowned, crossed his arms over his chest and leaned against the porch rail, Chloe continued. “I told him I didn’t feel that way about him. He was already acting strange, but after I told him, he started to get worse. It was like he’d gone crazy. I hate to admit it, he’s one of my best friends, but today he really frightened me. I really thought he was going to hurt me. He –” Her lips trembled and she stopped.

  She was going to say that he’d been acting just like Earon, but Rhys didn’t know about that. Nor could he ever. It was in the past and there was nothing she or he could do to change that. What would she gain by telling him? It may very well be the thing that drove him away again.

  Rhys moved toward her and wrapped her up in his arms. She laid her head against his chest and breathed in his scent. It was a woodsy scent, full of spice, and dangerously masculine. Rhys said nothing as she played with the button on his shirt while wishing she could just stay in his embrace forever.

  His body was warm, probably warmer than hers. The heat was penetrating through her layers of fabric and setting a fire in her belly. She grabbed the front of his jacket and clung to him.

  “When I saw him kiss you like that, I wanted to hit him,” Rhys said as he rested his chin on her head. “And then when I saw you lying on the floor and his fist raised in your direction, I wanted to kill him.”

  Chloe pulled her head back and looked up at his face. “You don’t mean that. Jett didn’t mean it. He wasn’t in his right mind.”

  “I know that now. At the time I wanted to wring his neck. Maybe I’m just being overprotective of you, but I never want to see you get hurt.”

  Chloe smiled and kissed his cheek. “Shall I hire you as my bodyguard then?”

  “You couldn’t afford me,” he said with a sly smile.

  Chloe stood on her tiptoes and wrapped her arms around his neck. “I’m sure we could arrange something,” She said and kissed him lightly on the mouth.

  “I’m sure we could,” Rhys replied and crushed his lips against hers.

  Chapter Fourteen

  “How are you feeling?” Chloe asked as she and Heather stood next to Jett’s hospital bed. It was early Friday morning and both Chloe and Heather had decided to skip classes to check up on Jett.

  “Better,” He said and suspiciously eyed his jell-o, “though I don’t think I’ll ever be able to eat or drink anything without wondering if it’s been poisoned. How’s Simon? That Detective Mason kept asking me all these questions about him. He thinks Simon did it.”

  Heather frowned. “And what do you think?”

  “I don’t think so. He was totally pissed when I handed him back the empty bottle. He complained nonstop for like five minutes on how that was his water and how thirsty he was. He even punched my arm. I don’t know. It just doesn’t make sense.”

  “Well I’m sure he didn’t do it.” Heather said adamantly. “He’s too much of a sweet guy.”

  Jett nodded. “So they plan on throwing me out tomorrow. They said all my vitals were good, but they want me to stay here one more day just so they can observe me, make sure the poison doesn’t have any lasting effects.”

  “Does this mean you’ll be able to perform Monday?”

  “I think so.”

  “That’s good news. We were all so worried about you,” Chloe said and gave his hand a squeeze.

  He looked at her, his blue eyes clear and sad. “Chloe about yesterday, I’m sorry for the way I treated you. But I meant what I said. Just I majorly flubbed the execution.”

  Chloe awkwardly cleared her throat and glanced at Heather who was suddenly absorbed with something outside the window. “I know. But you also know I meant what I said too.”

  “I know that too. But a guy can dream can’t he?” He said and smiled. Jett then let his gaze fall on Heather and the smile quickly faded. “Chloe, could I have a minute alone with Heather?”

  “Sure.” She left the room. She closed the door behind her giving them some privacy and sat down on a cushioned bench in the hallway. A bit curious, but knowing it was none of her business, she wondered what they were talking about. Maybe, hopefully, he was apologizing for all the mean things he’d said about her. He’d broken Heather’s heart. He owed it to Heather to make amends for that.

  While she waited, Chloe pulled out her phone with the intention of texting Rhys, realized cell phone use was prohibited, and grudgingly put it back in her purse. Rhys would probably be in class now anyway. Still, she couldn’t help wanting to talk to him. With class and rehearsal, and now the incident with Jett, they hadn’t had much time together.

  Before he’d left last night, Rhys had said they’d spend the weekend together. He needed to work on his musical today, but Saturday and Sunday he’d promised to be her slave and do whatever she wanted. Chloe smiled. There was only one thing she wanted, and that was to be with him. It didn’t matter what they did just as long as they were together. And kissing was involved.

  Chloe touched her lips. Her mind on the way Rhys had kissed her last night before he’d left. She’d been tempted to ask him to stay, but had known that wouldn’t have been a good idea, so she’d said goodnight and gone inside to comfort Heather.

  Yawning, Chloe rubbed her eyes. She hadn’t slept well last night. She’d woken once more to the feeling that someone had been in her room and she hadn’t been able to go back to sleep.

  Walking about the apartment, she’d double checked the door and every window. All were locked. There was no possible way someone had been there. Still, Chloe couldn’t seem to shake the feeling of someone walking over her grave. Or in her case, if felt as though that someone was standing on it.

  Even now she felt as if that person was still there. Chloe rubbed her arms, suddenly cold. She couldn’t keep going on so little sleep. What sleep she did manage to get was when she’d slept on Josie’s sofa. Even then, however, she’d dreamed of Earon. Her sleep hadn’t been peaceful.

  Feeling as though she was about to fall asleep, Chloe stood up just as Heather opened the door and stepped out into the hall.

  “Let’s go.”

  Chloe followed Heather down the hall. Judging by the quickness of Heather’s step, perhaps their little talk hadn’t gone well. She was really tempted to ask, but she kept her mouth shut. If Heather wanted to, she’d tell her.

  While they waited for the elevator, Heather asked Chloe if they could stop at the mall before they went home. Since they’d rode to the hospital in Heather’s car, Chloe didn’t feel like she had much of a choice and unenthusiastically said, “Okay.”


  The mall was located on the other side of town not far from their apartment. On the way there, with the radio blaring some new trendy song, Chloe stared out the window and hoped they wouldn’t be at the mall too long. She’d wanted to spend her day catching up on sleep.

  “So why are we going to the mall?” Chloe asked and hoped she didn’t sound too annoyed.

  “Well, I want to buy a present for Simon. You know, to cheer him up. He’s taking this whole poisoning thing really hard.”

  “Hmmm,” was all Chloe said. This wasn’t like Heather. She wasn’t the type of girl to go out of her way to make others feel better. Something was going on. As far as she knew Heather was still very much hung up on Jett. But could it be that she was now interested in Simon too?

  ****

  Rhys was at his piano trying to work on his musical score when he heard the front door open. He hurried out of the office and peered over the railing. Bill was in the entryway setting down suitcases. He didn’t look happy.

  “Hey, what are you doing home?” Rhys hollered down at him.

  Bill frowned, “Let’s just say I wanted to get my wife out of there before there was a murder.”

  Rhys chuckled as he walked down the stairs. “Who was going to be murdered?”

  “My mother,” Josie said coming through the door. “And I was the one who was going to do it. Now be a dear and help Bill with the luggage. I’m too tired.”

  Josie headed for the living room and Rhys followed Bill out to the car to help unload.

  “So it was that bad huh?”

  Bill groaned. “You have no idea. From the moment we got there those two couldn’t stop arguing about everything. They couldn’t even get along for one measly second. Henry and I had to hide out in his den to avoid the crossfire.”

  Rhys laughed but seeing the look Bill sent him from across the hood of the car, sobered quickly. “Sorry to hear it didn’t go well.”

  “It was a total waste of gas and packing.” Bill said and grunted as he picked up two of Josie’s heavy suitcases.

  When they’d gotten the car unloaded, Rhys grabbed a couple of beers from the fridge while Bill got an ice water for Josie. They then plopped down on the sofa.

  “So how do you like teaching?” Josie asked sipping at her water and frowning over the way Bill was gulping down his beer.

  “It’s not bad, though it’s not something I’d like to make permanent.” He stretched his legs out and leaned back against the sofa cushions. “How are you doing? You look… bigger.”

  Josie tried to lean over and hit him, but her tummy got in the way. Sighing, she gave up and said, “Remind me to hit you after the baby comes.”

  Rhys smirked. “If I don’t forget.”

  Bill finished off his beer and seemed unfazed by their playful banter. “So has anything exciting happened while we were in hell?”

  “Nothing much,” Rhys said. “The school’s putting on Phantom of the Opera. It opens on Monday.”

  “Bill and I will have to go check it out, if I haven’t popped by then.” Josie said excitedly. Her eyes fell on the end table and she reached over to grab something. “Whose barrette?” She gave Rhys a sly look. “Have you been entertaining while we’ve been away?”

  “Maybe,” Rhys said and took the barrette from her. Chloe must have taken it off then forgot about it. Rhys put it in his pocket to return later.

  “So who’s the girl?” Bill asked.

  Rhys looked at them and tried to decide whether or not to tell them or to just be evasive. The latter was his first choice. However, it was better to tell them now to see if either one would object. Even if they did, he wasn’t going to care and he’d make damn sure they understood that. He’d already lost her once because of everyone’s meddling and he didn’t plan on losing her again.

  “The barrette belongs to Chloe,” Rhys said and anxiously waited for their reactions.

  Rhys was expecting Josie to object but was completely caught off guard when Bill spoke first. “Chloe Haskell? What the hell is she doing here?”

  Josie flinched and kept quiet leaving it to Rhys to answer. “Didn’t you know? Chloe’s been attending the university for over a year now.” He didn’t mention about Chloe and Josie being friends. By the look on Josie’s face, Rhys knew she’d neglected to tell this to Bill. As to the why, Rhys intended to find out.

  “And what was she doing at our house?” Bill asked, his temper a bit unwarranted. Why was he so hostile?

  “I invited her,” Rhys sat straighter on the sofa in preparation for a fight. “She and I are dating.”

  Bill stood up. “I don’t like that girl. She’s nothing but trouble.”

  Rhys stood too. “Why do you say that? Why don’t you like her?”

  “You want the list?” Bill said and started to pace the floor a little. “First, she reneged on her contract. She was emotionally unstable.” He looked at Josie, “Suicidal. Hell who knows, she was probably the one who set that fire. A man lost his life because of her antics, not to mention all the money I lost because we’d had to cancel the show and refund all those tickets.”

  Rhys grabbed Bill’s arm. “What the hell are you talking about?”

  Before Bill could answer Josie had pushed herself out of the chair and tried to put herself between them. “Bill, you know as well as I do Chloe didn’t start that fire. She was in the hospital.”

  “Well that still doesn’t change anything. She was deceitful. Josie, you saw how she followed Rhys around like some love struck teen. But at night, her and Earon would lock themselves in the theatre doing God knows what. You were the one to tell me she was toying with both of them.”

  “I was wrong okay. Chloe didn’t do anything wrong. It was Earon. You don’t know how evil that man was.”

  Rhys listened to Bill and Josie while his mind tried to fit what they were saying together like pieces of a puzzle. But he didn’t have enough pieces and couldn’t figure out what the picture was supposed to be. What pieces he did get, he found he didn’t like them at all.

  His heart felt too tight for comfort. Chloe had been suicidal? What the hell did that mean? Was she depressed? Hadn’t she said as much to him when she’d talked about how hard the show was on her? But depressed was not suicidal. No one said a person was suicidal unless…

  “You both need to tell me what’s going on. Did Chloe try to kill herself?”

  Bill frowned at Josie. He seemed to be just as confused as Rhys. “Yes. It was the day before the fire. She broke the mirror in her dressing room and stabbed herself in the stomach with one of the pieces. Josie found her and rushed her to the hospital.”

  “Why would she do this?” Rhys demanded. He suddenly felt as though he’d been punched in the gut. Why had everyone kept this from him? When Sophie had told him Chloe had been in the hospital, she’d led him believe Chloe had come down with the flu. Why was everyone lying to him?

  When Bill only shrugged and gave no answer, Rhys turned to Josie and grabbed her by the shoulders. “Why the hell didn’t you tell me? I came to New York to see her and you told me she’d gone. Josie why did she do it? And what’s this about her and Earon? Tell me what you’re hiding damn it!”

  Josie bit her lip and looked worried, her eyes darting from Bill to Rhys and back again. “I shouldn’t have said anything. It’s this stupid pregnancy. It’s got me all addled.”

  Bill knocked Rhys’ arms away from Josie and took her hand. “Josie, I’m exhausted and confused. Just tell us what’s going on?”

  “Okay, okay.” Josie said rubbing her eyes. “But I promised Chloe I wouldn’t tell. She’ll probably want nothing to do with me after this.”

  “I don’t care. Just say it!” Rhys’s temper was dangerously skidding out of control. He’d spent these few weeks trying to win back the girl he loved only to find out she’d been keeping secrets from him. Not to mention the fact that she may or may not have been cheating on him with Earon.

  “Just calm the hell down,” Bill shouted
back. “All this over one girl.”

  A tear slid down Josie’s cheek. “You have no idea what Chloe’s been through. Earon was a bad man.”

  “You said that already. What did he do? Did he hurt her?” Rhys’s anger was now pointed toward the dead man. If he’d done something to her… he’d what? The man was dead. Nonetheless, he couldn’t stop the images of Earon physically abusing her and worse.” “Just tell me Josie.”

  “He –” Josie began and had to sit down. She didn’t have the strength to bear her weight any longer.

  ****

  “What do you think? A bag of candy or a cute teddy bear?” Heather asked as they stood in the candy store. “Which will make him smile the most?”

  “I don’t know. If it were me I’d want chocolate and a bear.” Chloe said eyeing the many different selections of treats. Her stomach growled. She couldn’t wait to sink her teeth into a juicy chicken sandwich and a large size French fry.

  “Okay I’ll get him the chocolate and the bear.”

  Chloe followed Heather to the cash register and watched as the cashier placed Heather’s purchases in a gift bag that Heather had paid extra for. How much did Heather really like Simon?

  “So what do you want to do after lunch?” Heather inquired while they walked toward the food court.

  “Since we’re here, I should probably get some lotion. I’m almost out.”

  “Okay. Let’s hurry there’s already a huge line.”

  After standing in line for a good ten minutes, they received their food and sat down at one of the empty tables.

  “How can you eat so much and be so tiny?” Heather asked as she nibbled on her chicken nuggets and stared at the large meal in front of Chloe.

  Chloe took a bite of her chicken sandwich, chewed then swallowed. “I have a super fast metabolism.”

  Heather groaned. “You’re so lucky. My metabolism is slower than molasses.”