A Wicked Song

by Jones, Lisa Renee

  “I will. Are you with Mark?”

  “Not yet. We’re meeting close to Riptide. I just got off the subway a few blocks down.”

  “You took the subway?”

  “When I’m not trying to impress you, it’s faster.”

  I laugh. “You already impressed me a long time ago, Kace August.”

  “Scratch the lunch,” he says. “I’ll meet you at home and you can show me.”

  I laugh yet again and he adds, “And the trend toward colder than normal this year remains. It’s in the thirties. Bundle up in a coat until you can snuggle up to me.”

  We say a short goodbye but that word home still lingers when I head to the door to do as Kace said and bundle up. He keeps calling his place home like I live here, too. It affects me. Deeply. I think—I think I’ve just never really felt at home my entire life here in the States.

  I’m still thinking about that conversation when I head through the lobby and then step outside to greet Steven. “Good day, Aria,” he greets, standing tall in his blue jacket. “How are you?”

  “So much better. Thank you, Steven.”

  “Excellent. Excellent. Kace told me to take good care of you. I’ve ordered the wife to get to baking.”

  “You are too kind,” I say, when I hear, “Aria.”

  Steven’s expression tightens at the sound of Alexander’s voice, a reaction that tells me he knows he’s problematic. I whirl around to find Alexander standing a bit too close, and of course, he’s in one of his perfect, expensive suits. This one is gray. “What are you doing here, Alexander?”

  “I live here. What are you doing here?” His lips thin. “You were with Kace.”

  I bristle. “Do you really want to continue a conversation that will only take us back to my fury?”

  His lips quirk. “Fury? Really? It’s that intense, is it?”

  “Yes. It is. I told you not to tell me—”

  “Did you ask him?”

  “Stop, Alexander.”

  Savage steps to my side, an unexpected action on his part, but a welcome one. “Ready to go, buttercup?” he asks.

  Alexander smirks at Savage and then eyes me. “I wonder why Kace has Savage guarding you so closely and from me of all people. He’s a man with something to hide, Aria. Ask the question.” He turns and enters the building.

  I rotate to face Savage, who just plain towers over me. “I don’t know why you did that, but thank you.”

  He motions me forward. “Let’s walk.”

  I nod and wave to Steven as Savage and I head toward my meeting. A few steps in, Savage says, “It wasn’t because Kace has me guarding you from Alexander or some secret.”

  “I know that. I believe Kace trusts me enough to know that I won’t let Alexander manipulate me or him that way.”

  “Then you know that Alexander wants to play tic-tac-toe in your pants to hurt Kace.”

  I laugh. “You are such a man of words Savage, but yes, I know but it’s more than that. He and this client I’m going to meet have something between them. He wants me to sell him any wine Ed wants to buy. It’s like a childish vendetta.”

  “With your recent interactions with Ed and Alexander,” Savage says, “we looked into both men.”

  I stop walking and face him. “And?”

  “Ed mentored Alexander.”

  “I knew he worked for him.”

  “And Ed got very close to Alexander and his then-fiancée. Suddenly, Ed and the fiancée dumped him. Feels connected.”

  “Like Ed and the fiancée got together?” I ask.

  “Could be,” Savage says. “Which makes this personal for Alexander. You don’t want in the middle of that kind of personal. I’ve seen how Alexander burns people close to him.”

  “You mean Kace.” I hold up my hand. “And no, I wasn’t asking you to tell me. That’s Kace’s story to tell.”

  “I wouldn’t have told you anyway. You’re right. That’s Kace’s story to tell.”

  A story Kace says he will never be ready to tell me, and more and more that feels like a problem. Not for me but for him.

  CHAPTER THIRTY

  Savage and I end our walk in front of Ed’s building. “Text me when you’re ready to leave,” he says.

  “Thank you, Savage.”

  “For what?”

  “Giving me another reason to trust you,” I say. “I can tell you’re a loyal person and that you truly want to protect Kace.”

  “And you, Aria. I’m protecting you. You can trust me.”

  “I know,” I say, and the statement feels right and good to a girl who has trusted no one.

  I turn and hurry inside the fancy high-rise building. It’s not long until the doorman has approved my entry and I’m upstairs. Ed answers the door and he is, as always, professional and rather regal in his carriage. He’s in dress pants, and a dress shirt, his sleeves rolled up to display a surprising amount of colorful ink. There’s a skeleton of all things, and I believe an ace card. His tie is blue to match a few bits of the ink. The tats are a side of Ed I did not expect.

  He’s a complicated, powerful man. I’m not sure he’s someone Alexander really wants to go to war with, but that’s none of my business.

  Ed leads me back to his preferred meeting spot of his library, rows of books, and heavy mahogany furnishings as our backdrop. We sit in two high back chairs with a table between us. I reach into my Gucci purse and hand him the list of wines.

  He glances at the list and his lips do an odd quirk. “It’s a fine list, an enviable list.” He glances up at me. “Have you offered it to Alexander?”

  This is a question he’s asked, and I’ve answered. But I answer again. “No. To be frank, Ed, he offered me a large retainer to ensure you get nothing you want. I’m not comfortable being part of that and you were my customer before he ever tried to become my customer.”

  “Honor is a hard trait to come by, Aria.” He hands it back to me. “I’m going to pass.”

  I blink, surprised, accepting the paper. “Do you mind me asking why?”

  “Because if you give me this wine instead of Alexander, he’ll see that as an act of war. It would put him on alert in a way I don’t want him on alert. Step away from this and sell the wine to someone else that isn’t he or I.”

  Disappointment stabs at me. I want this payday. I wanted to impress Riptide. I need this payday.

  “I do have a proposition for you,” he surprises me by saying, removing a checkbook from his pocket, and then proceeding to write a check before handing it to me. “Sometimes old school paper makes an impact. I believe this is one of those times.”

  I accept said old school paper and my lips part at the sixty-thousand-dollar figure. “What is this for?”

  “I’d like a unique piece of jewelry for a client. She’s a collector. Something one of a kind.” He glances at my hand. “Something one of kind, like your daisy, Aria.”

  I go cold inside, my throat drier than a desert. One of a kind? Like my ring? The room spins a moment but I manage to remain composed? “What does she like? Flowers? Butterflies? Classic jewels?”

  “She likes one of a kind. Find her something to blow her away. I have a lot of money riding on this.” It’s hard to think right now, but I manage to remember a jewel on the Riptide list. “I might have something.” I hold up a finger. “Give me a moment.” I tap my phone and it takes a few moments but I produce photos of a stunning emerald bracelet. Presenting him the images, I add, “It belonged to a member of a royal family.” I continue and read him the details of the family.

  He slides through the photos and then offers me my phone back. “How much?”

  I glance at my listing which reads: The client wants seventy thousand but will settle for sixty. The commission is twenty percent, of which I get forty percent. Six thousand dollars. It’s not much, but it will help with my mortgage. “Seventy-five,” I tell Ed. “It’s been validated by Riptide Auction House and com
es with paperwork.”

  He whistles. “Steep, but I’ll take it. Arrange delivery and I’ll pay the remaining balance on possession and inspection.”

  He stands and walks me to the door. “We should do that dinner, Aria. I do believe you and I could work magic together. But it’s going to require some quality conversations.”

  “We’ll see if you approve of your purchase first,” I say, sidestepping the invitation.

  “I know I will.”

  I depart and by the time I’m in the elevator, I’m already texting Savage. Once I’m outside, I dial Kace. “Are you with Mark?”

  “I am and why do you sound excited?”

  “Tell him I sold the royal stone for seventy-five thousand. I have sixty thousand of it in my hand.”

  “Did you now?”

  “Yes.” There’s a smile and lots of pride in that one word. A little win feels really big. “Tell him, Kace,” I urge.

  He murmurs the news to Mark and then says, “He wants you to meet us at Riptide. He wants to see the check himself.”

  “That man, I swear, Kace. He’s just—”

  “Should I supply a word?” he offers.

  “No. You’re with him.”

  “Exactly.”

  “You’re bad,” I scold.

  “Don’t you like that about me?”

  I smile. “Sometimes.”

  “I know when.”

  “Stop,” I order. “The check is made out to me. I need to go deposit it, so it’s going to take a few days to clear my bank.”

  “It won’t with mine,” he says. “Meet me at Riptide. I’ll handle it for you.”

  “Kace—”

  “Aria,” he says softly. “I got this. You got this. Congratulations.”

  We disconnect and I smile all over again. I did this. He’s right. And I’m proud. I head toward the subway when an SUV pulls up and the window rolls down as Savage motions me forward.

  I hurry forward and climb inside. “Where to, my dear?” Savage asks grandly.

  “I need to go to Riptide.”

  “Adrian,” Savage says. “to Riptide, where Mark Compton thinks he rules, but Crystal is queen and has him by his balls.”

  I facepalm and sink back into the soft leather of my seat, laughing, until my gaze catches on my ring. Ed called it a one of a kind. It is. It’s one of a kind and special, but he couldn’t have known that. The one true daisy in the wind. That’s what my father had called Kace, and those words just feel too close to one of a kind.

  That coincidence is still bothering me when we arrive at Riptide. Kace is at my door waiting on me when it opens, lifting me out of the backseat. My feet settle on the ground and I catch Kace’s lapels. He catches my waist. Suddenly, we’re at eye level, and a blast of awareness shakes me to the core. It’s sexual. It’s red-hot chemistry. It’s emotional. It’s so many things. I am lost in the power of this man, but that is also why I read the edge to him, the simmer of something dark, beneath his surface.

  “What is it? What’s wrong?”

  “Alexander is what’s wrong.”

  My pulse leaps. “He didn’t tell me anything.”

  “You didn’t tell me either.”

  “Savage walked me to my meeting. I didn’t think it was that big of a deal.” The wind gusts and my teeth chatter. “It’s freezing.”

  He reacts, linking our arms and we hurry toward the entrance of Riptide, all the while my mind races, not sure where this is going. The doorman opens the double glass doors for us, and warm heat welcomes us as we enter the glitzy lobby. The doorman offers to take out coats, but Kace waves him off. “We’re leaving again,” he says, without a pause. On a mission for privacy, we keep walking, and clearly, Kace is well-vetted here because no one stops our progress.

  Once we’re inside an office, Kace shuts us inside, and then I’m against the door, and his hands planted on either side of me. “Alexander—”

  “—is trouble. I know.”

  “He’s dangerous, Aria. I need you to understand that this isn’t some cockfight between two men.”

  His jaw tics. His energy ping pongs in the room. He’s not touching me so I touch him. I press my hand to his chest. “I don’t know what this is—”

  “Dangerous,” he repeats, his hand covering mine. “This isn’t jealousy. This isn’t a game.”

  “What do you think I did?”

  His lashes lower and then lift. “I don’t think you did anything.”

  “You’re angry.”

  “Not at you. I’m pissed at myself. I didn’t warn you. I didn’t say the word ‘dangerous’ because I don’t want to talk about this but that means that I didn’t protect you. I brought you to his doorstep.”

  “Wait.” I search his face. “Do you regret me being there?”

  He snags my hips and walks me to him. “No. Hell no. I regret him being here.”

  My fingers curl on his chest. “You’re confusing me.”

  “I know.”

  “That’s all? I know?”

  He releases me and leans back on the chair behind him, hands on the leather, withdrawing even before he says, “For now.”

  I know he has secrets. I know he knows we can’t hide from them forever. And so I repeat, “For now,” making sure he’s clear that for now, is not forever. “I have another situation.”

  “With Alexander?”

  “No. With Ed, my client. He looked at my ring and said he wanted something one of a kind like it. Am I being paranoid? How would he know it’s one of a kind? And he’s never mentioned it before. I mean, the timing just feels odd.”

  “I agree,” he says, “but he did buy a piece of jewelry. Referencing another piece of jewelry is logical. It’s probably nothing to worry about, but we’ll talk to Blake and Savage. And then,” he adds, twining his fingers with mine and walking me to him. “We’ll go celebrate your success, you and me, and a bottle of wine.”

  His voice is soft now, his mood with it and I press my palm to his face. “After I do some more work. Gio was a major source of income for me. I need to turn this sale into more.”

  He covers my hand with his and brings my fingers to his lips. “You know you’re not alone anymore, right?”

  “I know that. I do, but I still have responsibilities.”

  “Let me help.”

  “No.”

  “Please.”

  “Don’t say please. Please no.”

  “Yes.” He stands up, and still holding my hand, steps toward the door. “Let’s go.”

  “Where?”

  “To the bank. We’re going to make sure you’re taken care of.”

  “No.” I shove on his chest. “No. No. No.” I place myself between him and the door again. “I swear I will go back to my place, Kace if you try to do this. Don’t do this. I do not want to feel like I’m your charity case. I can’t be that.”

  He cups my head and presses my forehead to his. “Baby, you matter to me. I care about you.” His eyes find mine. “I need you to let me help and there’s more I’d say about that if we weren’t here at Riptide right now.”

  “You are helping. You’re paying for Walker.”

  “That’s not what I mean.”

  “I don’t need other help—”

  “Aria—”

  “Yet, Kace. Not yet. Maybe I won’t now that I have Riptide.”

  “And how will I know when you do? I need you to promise me you’ll tell me.”

  “I will.”

  “You promise?”

  “Yes.” I concede. “I promise. Thank you. Thank you so much.”

  “I don’t want your thanks. You know that.”

  “You have it anyway and just to be clear,” my voice softens, “you matter to me, too. I care about you, too.”

  His hand slides under my hair to my neck and he lowers his mouth to mine. “Aria Stradivari, you need to know that I’m too damn selfish to let you go. I’ve d
ecided you don’t get to run.”

  “Does this mean you’re going to stop telling me I should?”

  “Yes. It does.”

  “Thank God.”

  His lips curve and he leans in, his lips a whisper from mine, when there’s a knock on the door. “Ms. Alard. I’m waiting.”

  At the sound of Mark’s arrogant, demanding voice, we laugh, and Kace kisses me hard and fast. “I’ll kiss you properly at home.”

  CHAPTER THIRTY-ONE

  Crystal hugs me when she hears the news of my sale and gloats mercilessly on my behalf to Mark. While I do not think Mark Compton is a man most would dare cross, it becomes clear that Crystal has him wrapped around her finger. And him her. They are in love and I remotely wonder about her being sick before the Riptide event. She was a little secretive about it which is probably just me looking for secrets, because I have so many secrets. It was probably a flu bug.

  But could she be pregnant? God, could I? We didn’t use a condom way too soon. We’re still not using condoms. It’s a thought I’m forced to set aside as Crystal has me coordinate the delivery of the bracelet with Ed. Afterward, there is also the visit to the bank in which the staff treats Kace like the rock god that he is, but I’m pretty sure it’s because of the size of his bank account, not his impressive violin. It’s hours later when we head to the apartment where, as promised, Kace most definitely kisses the whole of me and quite properly. Once we’ve pulled on a few items of limited clothing, we decide to do something I haven’t done in a long time. We set aside everything going on around us. We order pizza and watch a movie. We just relax.

  Together.

  Kace and I wake up on Halloween and work out in his gym. We take turns on the treadmill and weights and I’m stunned by how fast that man runs and how hard he lifts weights, but then, it shouldn’t surprise me at all. It requires extreme discipline to play a violin the way he plays, to be the only real daisy in the wind. And he is. I know why my father called him that. His skill, his devotion to his craft, his way of speaking through his music is without reproach, and yet he’d tell you it is. He isn’t arrogant. He respects his gift and his instrument.

  When we’re done with the workout, he proves my point. He dives into his daily practice, which he seems to prefer to do shirtless, which suits me just fine, especially after he’s been pumping weights. While he plays, seducing the morning with his version of Beethoven’s 5th, I start the coffee. I’ve had time to down a full cup, set up my MacBook, and email a few customers about some of the items from the Riptide list, when he sets his violin down. I pour him a cup and we meet at the island where I hand him his coffee, and we claim stools we rotate to face each other.