Chynna smiled. “Absolutely.” She mouthed the words “thank you” to her manager as he closed the door behind him, Eli, Derrick and Daisy.
Seconds later, it was just the two of them in the room. Noah lifted her off her feet again, walked her over to the couch and placed her bottom down on his lap. “I’ve missed you,” he said, kissing the tip of her nose.
Chynna nodded, looking into his eyes. “And I’ve missed you. I have to admit after a few days I was beginning to wonder if I’d been wrong about you. But then again, I also knew we didn’t leave things on the best of terms.”
“No, we didn’t.” Noah looked stern.
“And that was my fault,” Chynna acknowledged, touching her chest. “I thought it was better that I leave before I cause you or your family any pain.”
“But that wasn’t what I wanted.”
“I know that now. The look on your face when you thought I was going to leave without saying a word told me I had misjudged the situation.”
“I was so upset, I wanted to strangle you,” Noah said, “But then once I calmed down and the press left, I tried to call you.”
“And someone told you that I had moved on and it was fun while it lasted?” Chynna finished.
Noah nodded. “And I have to admit, I almost believed them. I almost doubted you and us and all that we’d shared during your weeks at Golden Oaks.”
“But you came here anyway?” Chynna asked with a wisp of hopefulness.
“A little birdie reminded me what I already knew, which was that I couldn’t let a voice on the phone decide my future, our future. I had to find out for myself if those weeks together meant as much to you as they did to me.”
Chynna’s eyes watered. “They meant everything to me, Noah. And I really want to talk more, but—”
“But you have to get ready for your concert?” Noah finished.
Chynna nodded, wiping away a tear. “I do, but I promise after the concert, it’s all about you,” she said, pointing to Noah, “and me.”
“Then go get ready,” Noah said, slapping her rear end as she rose to her feet. “I’ll be waiting for you when you’re done.”
Her eyes grew large. “You mean you’ll come to the concert with me?”
“Of course I will.”
Two hours later, Chynna was dressed in her first getup, with full hair and makeup for the evening. She was pacing the floor of her dressing room at the Toyota Center and warming her vocals by singing music scales while Noah sat in jeans, a royal blue shirt and a cowboy hat. He looked as handsome as ever even though he looked like he might be more comfortable on top of a horse rather than inside an indoor arena.
“Are you worried?” Noah asked, watching her closely.
“Is it that obvious?”
Noah nodded. “Just a bit, but you’ve done this many times before. Why are you nervous now?”
Chynna shrugged and reached for her bottle of water sitting on the dressing room table. “I don’t know what it is.” She took a swig. “I can’t put my finger on it, but I’ve changed somehow. I’m not the same person I was when I left, and I guess I’m trying to reconcile this new Chynna with the old one.”
“You’ll figure it out,” Noah said confidently. He’d seen her push herself beyond her own limitless and knew she was up to the task.
Deacon poked his head inside the room. “You ready, Chynna? ’Cause you’re on, kid.”
“Let’s do this,” Chynna said and started toward the door. She stopped when she got to the doorway and turned around to face Noah. “You coming?”
“Yes, ma’am.” He tipped his hat and rushed to follow her into the hall.
As was her tradition, Chynna walked into the semicircle of dancers, backup singers and band members in the hall to say a prayer for a great concert. Having Noah at her first concert since her return to the stage was a godsend. She couldn’t have asked for a better outcome except maybe having Kenya there. She sure hoped her sister was okay in LA by herself.
Kenya was happy for the solace of having Chynna’s big house all to herself. It hadn’t been easy convincing Darryl and Mark to take a night off, but what was the worst that could happen? Chynna’s mansion was Fort Knox with all its security alarms and guards at the front gate. Kenya felt safe and didn’t need the two men following her around all night.
After a long, hot soaking bath, Kenya moisturized her skin and dressed comfortably in her favorite silk pajamas from Victoria’s Secret. Then she went in search of some dinner in the kitchen. Her options were limited thanks to all the healthy choices her trainer, Chynna’s trainer, had made her keep in stock.
She really wanted something calorie-laden and comforting that would make her forget all about Lucas Kingston, but there wasn’t a tub of ice cream or package of cookies in the vicinity. She settled on a frozen gourmet pizza with spinach, feta and mushroom. She unwrapped the package and slid the pizza on the rack in the convection oven, which looked just as pristine as the day Chynna probably had it installed. She set the timer and waited for the cheese to bubble.
Kenya laughed to herself. Chynna probably didn’t even know how to work it. Kenya was the one, who had been gifted with the homespun gene, and when they were younger and their mother was working two jobs to put them through singing and acting lessons, it had been Kenya who would cook dinner for her and Chynna.
Kenya had always been the caretaker, which is partially why she’d agreed to switch places with Chynna; the other reason had been purely selfish. She’d wanted to see what it was like to be Chynna, but she hadn’t counted on falling for Lucas. Her attraction to him had completely caught her off-guard. She’d fallen harder for him than she’d ever had for any man.
She’d taken a risk going to the Boys and Girls Club and asking him to start afresh, and it hurt her that he had been unwilling to try again. Lucas only saw things in black and white, not in shades of gray. In his mind, she’d done something unforgivable, and there was no going back no matter how sorry she was. Kenya would have to make her peace with his decision and move on.
She couldn’t stay at Chynna’s indefinitely either. She had to find her own place because Fiona was right about one thing: She had to strike while the iron was hot. Her agent’s phone had been ringing off the hook, and suddenly Kenya had offers to read for roles she would never have had the opportunity to try out for if it hadn’t been for this experience. So Kenya was going to have to look at the silver lining: She may have lost the first man she’d ever loved, but she was on the road to a great career. Carter’s film was Oscar-worthy, and she was doing some of her best work. Who knew? Maybe a golden statuette was in her future.
The timer buzzed on the oven, and Kenya was about to pull the pizza out when she heard a noise outside the kitchen window. She caught a glimpse of a shadow and sucked in her breath. Is there someone out there? Kenya shook her head. She had to be imagining things, as there was no way anyone could get through those iron gates or past the security guards and their cameras.
She was just skittish. She reminded herself that she hadn’t been alone without Chynna’s entourage in weeks. That’s all it was. Nothing more.
She turned to pull the pizza out of the oven, but when she turned back around, an African-American male with tattoos down his arms and neck, stood several feet in front of her by the patio doors. He was a roughneck and completely out of place in his surroundings.
“Ah!” Startled, Kenya dropped the pizza on the floor. Who was he and how in the hell had he gotten in here past the front gate?
He didn’t make a move toward her; he just stared back at her as if he were spellbound. It gave Kenya just enough time to take off running in her socks down the hall. But the slippery marble floor caused her to slide, and she went sprawling across the marble floor in the foyer. She glanced up because the man was advancing toward her. Kenya looked around for the nearest exit as she backed up aw
ay from him on the floor, but the front door was several feet away and the living room French doors were even farther.
Kenya couldn’t panic now. She had to think calmly, rationally. “Listen, I don’t know what you want or what you’re on,” she said, rising to her feet as she continued to back away, “but there are plenty of valuables in this house. You can have your pick of the place.”
“Oh, I intend to do just that,” the man said, smiling and revealing a pair of gold teeth that sent chills through Kenya. “Be payment for going out of my way to do a favor.”
“A favor?” Kenya didn’t understand, and the man didn’t respond.
“So you’re the twin?” The man was looking at her strangely. He didn’t seem to be in a hurry because he was slowly walking toward her. “You look exactly like her.”
“So you want my sister?” Kenya managed to eke out, though her stomach was churning. Now this she could understand. Celebrities had stalkers. Is that who this man was? “Well I’m not her. My sister, Chynna, is at a concert in Houston.”
His eyes narrowed. “I know.”
“Wh-what?”
“You didn’t think I got in here all on my own, did you?” He smirked. “Someone wants you out of the way, and they sent me to make sure that happens.”
All color drained from Kenya’s face. He hadn’t come looking for Chynna. He’d come for her. But why? Maybe if she could keep him talking long enough she could distract him. “Me? What do you want with me? I’m a nobody.” She attempted a laugh, but it sounded shrill against the marble columns of the foyer.
The man began advancing toward her again. “Oh, you’re someone.” One of his long, buffed arms reached out and grabbed Kenya by her hair. “You’re someone who needs to take a hike.”
“Ah, you’re hurting me.” Before Kenya could get out another word, he slapped her across the face. The sting burned, and Kenya stumbled backward, holding her face with one of her hands.
“If you think that was something,” the man shoved her and Kenya fell against the adjacent wall, slamming into the accent table crashing the lamp atop it, “then you’re in for a real treat.”
He came toward her again, but Kenya knew she had to fight, and she ran down the hall, but she didn’t get very far. The man was taller with longer legs and threw himself at her, toppling her to the floor. She screamed and kicked at his face with her feet, but he was not letting up.
Kenya feared for her life. Who could have sent this man after her? Who would have wanted her run out of town that they would go to this extreme? Those were the last thoughts she remembered before he punched her in the face and she blacked out.
“She’s wonderful, isn’t she?” a male voice said from behind Noah. The voice sounded oddly familiar to Noah, like he’d heard it before, but he couldn’t quite place it.
“Yeah, she’s great.” Noah didn’t turn around at the distraction. He wanted to continue watching the woman he loved sing and prance across the stage in a sexy getup that he would love to take off her.
“Should be pretty clear to you seeing her out there,” said the man, “that you’re out of her league, and you have no place here.”
At that instant, the voice triggered a memory. A memory of Noah calling Chynna and being told she’d moved on and that this was the man who’d answered Chynna’s cell when Noah had called.
Noah spun around to face him. “You’re Eli, right?” he asked.
The man seemed proud that Noah knew who he was and puffed his chest out in the fancy suit he wore. “That’s right. Eli Ross, owner of R&K Records.”
“Part owner, right?” Noah’s brow furrowed. “You have a partner, don’tcha?”
Eli frowned. Clearly, he didn’t like Noah upstaging him.
“He’s mainly behind the scenes. I run the show.”
“And you run Chynna?” Noah asked, focusing a long glare at Eli.
Eli laughed nervously and then patted Noah on the arm. “You know, no one can run our girl.”
“Chynna’s not your girl, Eli. She’s mine,” Noah stated.
“Does she know that?” Eli returned smugly. “Because Chynna has never been known to stay with any one man for long. She’s kind of like a cat in heat, if you know what I mean.”
Noah grabbed Eli by the collar and shoved him up against the wall. Several inches taller than Eli, Noah held him up in the air for several moments until he saw Deacon and two bodyguards walking toward him in a hurry, and he eventually let Eli down.
“Don’t you dare talk about my woman like that, or I’ll rip you a new one, you got it!” Noah pointed his finger at the man.
Eli however seemed unfazed by Noah’s outburst and merely brushed off his lapel. “You, my friend, are a backwoods country cowboy who has no place in Chynna’s world as evidenced by your lack of decorum.”
“I’ll show you decorum.” Noah lunged for him, but Deacon and Chynna’s bodyguards reached the two men in time and separated them. Otherwise, Noah may have ripped Eli to shreds.
“Noah, please,” Deacon whispered. “Chynna is onstage right now, and she doesn’t need the fallout from you getting arrested amongst all her other PR problems.”
“Fine,” Noah said, shrugging him and the bodyguards off. “I won’t beat him to a pulp for what he just said about Chynna. But if he knows what’s good for him, he’ll get out of here.”
“You think I’m leaving?” Eli said. “Need I remind you, I run this show.”
“Eli, just leave,” Deacon said, exasperated. “If Chynna comes off stage during break and sees the two of you going at it, it’ll be in no one’s best interest. Go cool off in the VIP area.”
“Fine,” Eli said. “But I warn you my friend,” he continued, directing his gaze at Noah, “you have no place in Chynna’s world. You stick out like a sore thumb in your cowboy hat and Wranglers.” And with that comment, the smarmy man walked off.
“You okay?” Deacon asked, glancing up at Noah.
“Yeah, I’m cool, okay?” Noah tried to reassure Chynna’s manager. He hadn’t intended on making a scene but that Eli guy was trouble with a capital “T”. “But I don’t like that guy one bit.”
“Eli, oh, he’ll wear on you.”
Noah glanced behind his back. He doubted that was possible. Eli wanted to cause trouble for the two of them. It’s why he’d answered Chynna’s phone and tried to warn Noah off. Well, he was playing with the wrong cowboy, because Noah didn’t back off from a fight. He’d come to Houston with a plan, and he didn’t intend on letting some smarmy lothario to come between him and Chynna. He glanced at the stage as Chynna sang a heartfelt ballad. She sang as if she was singing directly to him, for him. Noah might not fit perfectly in Chynna’s world, but she fit in his. She was the woman for him, and he intended to make her his.
Chapter 13
Lucas was surprised when he arrived at Chynna’s estate and didn’t see any of her bodyguards stationed at the front door. He’d seen Kenya with her own security detail at the Boys and Girls club. Where are they?
Lucas exited his Ferrari and clicked the lock button. He was walking up the driveway when he heard a bloodcurdling scream that sounded an awful lot like ... like Kenya.
Another scream. It was Kenya.
Lucas took off running toward the front door and with his shoulder, slammed through it. A man was on top of Kenya, and she was screaming for her life.
He rushed over and grabbed the beefed-up black male by the shirt he was wearing and flung him across the room. He glanced down at Kenya and saw her face was bloodied and bruised and the pajama top she was wearing was gaping open to reveal her bare breasts and the bottoms were in tatters on the floor.
Had that son of a bitch been about to rape her? Fury boiled over in Lucas, and he spun around to face the man who was cowering against the wall holding his head. In several large strides, Lucas reached him and began pumme
ling his fists at the man’s face.
“Lucas, no!” Kenya cried.
Out of the corner of his eye, he could see Kenya scrambling to her feet as she clutched her pajama shirt and came toward him, but he didn’t care. This bastard had been about to harm the woman he loved. Lucas threw another punch, and another.
“Lucas, stop.” Kenya grabbed at his arm before he jabbed his fist in the man’s chin again. “Please, stop,” she cried.
Her cries reached him because he began backing away from the man lying in a heap on the floor. Stunned, he turned around to face Kenya, and he saw her through his haze of anger. She had a busted lip, the beginnings of a black eye, and she was bleeding from her forehead.
“Dear God!” He pulled off his jacket, but not before getting a handkerchief, and pushed it against her bleeding forehead. “My God, Kenya, what happened? Where are Darryl and Max?”
“I–I gave them the night off.” Tears were flowing down her cheeks. “I–I didn’t think ... think I would be in any danger.”
Instantly, Lucas reached for her and pulled her into the safety of his arms. “I’m so sorry, baby,” he crooned in her ear as he wrapped his jacket around her torn pajamas. “But you’re safe now. I’m here, and I’m calling the authorities.”
He stepped away momentarily so he could reach inside his pants pocket and pull out his cell phone.
Ten minutes later, Lucas heard the sirens of the police approaching. The man he’d beaten damn was passed out, and Lucas was sitting with Kenya on a bench in the foyer. She was clutching his jacket to her chest and shaking uncontrollably. He was doing his best to calm her, but she was a wreck. He’d never seen her so fragile or vulnerable since they’d met. She’d always been so strong and confident except perhaps when she’d asked him for a second chance, but even then she’d been in control. But now, now she was a ball of nerves, and nothing he could say was calming her down.
Lucas couldn’t believe the turn of events. He’d come here tonight to tell Kenya that he was falling in love with her and wanted to give their relationship a chance. The furthest thing from his mind had been that she would be in any kind of danger. But she had been. That man, whoever he was, had been on top of her about to do God knows what, and if he hadn’t gotten there in time ... Lucas shuddered to think about if he hadn’t, and he didn’t have any more time to dwell on it because the police rushed inside and began asking questions.
Harts of Arizona Series Page 32