Release Me

by Farrah Rochon

  Her mother looked around, and obviously, unable to find any visible diseases climbing the walls, deigned the place suitable to eat in. “Fine,” she said, and Toby saw Aria sigh in relief.

  The cameras followed the two up the staircase, leaving Toby to pray that their conversation would be just another boring mother and daughter talking about shoe shopping or whatever mothers and daughters talked about.

  “Let me guess, you and Aria’s mother are not best friends?” Eli asked.

  “She thinks Aria should be a kindergarten teacher, not a singer,” Toby answered, his eyes still following Aria and her mother as they made their way up the staircase.

  “That voice was not made for singing Itsy-Bitsy Spider.”

  “Exactly,” Toby agreed. “I’m not too worried about her mother. Aria is old enough to make her own decisions. I knew once I got her to leave Houston I didn’t have to worry about her wavering. She wants this. She’s not going to let her mother stop her.”

  Now, he just had to make sure nothing else got in the way.

  ***

  Jonathan cursed underneath his breath as he filled the cup with ice cubes and poured on the whiskey. It was just his luck that one of his bartenders would call in sick on the night Ivana Culpepper came to his club.

  Jonathan was still unsure if that was really her with Sienna, or if he was hallucinating.

  She had forgone her usual bright colors and long, flowing clothes for a slim, sedate sage-colored dress. Her hair was straight instead of its usual bouncy, natural curls. Even without the wild colors, she still had that exotic aura that pulled him in.

  Sienna gave him a wave and started toward the bar, with Ivana following.

  Damn this. Charles and Brandon would have to handle the drink orders for a few minutes. He moved from behind the bar and greeted the ladies.

  “Good evening,” he said, kissing Sienna’s hand. He turned to Ivana and grabbed her fingers before she could pull away. He pressed a kiss, and nearly shivered at how soft her skin felt on his lips. He knew she would feel like silk.

  “How are you doing, Ivana?” Jonathan asked. He would figure out a way to get her to talk to him tonight even if it killed him in the process.

  “I’m fine,” she answered in her usual manner whenever she spoke to him, strained and disgusted.

  “I’m surprised to see you here. Happy, but surprised.”

  “I came to support Sienna,” she said. “This doesn’t mean I support your nightclub.”

  He didn’t care if she came with the intention of torching the place to the ground. He just wanted to see her again.

  “But she doesn’t have anything against your club either, right, Vonnie?” Sienna interjected with a trying-to-keep-the-peace voice.

  “Vonnie.” Jonathan allowed the nickname to roll across his tongue. “Not sure how I like that. Ivana is so much more exotic.”

  Her eyes narrowed to thin slits. “Do you think of me as a toy to be played with?”

  She did not want him to answer that one. He wanted to spend hours playing with her body. His entire being thrummed at the thought of what he could do with this woman.

  Apparently, Sienna saw where his mind was headed, because she quickly took Ivana by the arm and said, “I see Toby and Eli. Let’s go, Ivana.” As they turned, Sienna looked back and gave him a knowing smile and wink.

  He started after them, but Brandon called from behind the bar. There was a line forming.

  Jonathan spent the next half-hour trying to interpret Sienna’s actions while he served up drinks. The crowd at the bar thinned once the deejay started his Hits from the ‘90s dance mix. Jonathan left the bar in search of Sienna. He cornered her as she left the downstairs ladies’ restroom.

  “What’s up, Sienna?” he asked, impeding her progress.

  “Oh, Jonathan, hey. Toby was just looking for you.”

  “I’ll talk to him later. Why don’t you tell me what that wink was about?”

  “What wink?” she asked innocently.

  He assessed her with a shrewd stare.

  She folded her arms, releasing a resigned sigh. “Alright, alright. What do you want to know?”

  “How did Ivana end up in my club tonight? Did you have to drag her here?”

  “Sort of.”

  Jonathan matched her pose. “Straight answers, if you don’t mind.”

  “I asked her to come for moral support.”

  “But she said she would never set foot in my club.”

  “Well, I guess her desire to show her support for me is stronger than her feelings of hatred towards you,” Sienna laughed.

  Jonathan ignored that. He refused to believe Ivana actually hated him. A strong dislike sounded better. He could overcome a strong dislike.

  “What was that wink and smile about?” he asked again. “What is it you know, Sienna?”

  “Look, if Ivana has anything to say to you, wait for her to say it.”

  “Has she been talking about me to you?”

  “Wait for her.” Sienna’s voice turned from playful to sincere. She hesitated for a minute, as if she was unsure she should say anything further. Then she said, “If you give her time, she’ll come around. Just don’t let her push you away, Jonathan. Ivana is a terrific woman. She is one of the smartest people I know, and you’ll never find anyone with more passion and heart. But she can be stubborn. Don’t fall for her tough girl act. Just…give her time. In the end, she’ll be worth it.”

  Of that, Jonathan had no doubt.

  He would give Ivana time if that’s what she needed. But he was going to do everything within his power to break down her defenses.

  ***

  Sienna took a tiny sip from her Mojito. She’d only ordered the mint-flavored cocktail because Eli bought a round for the table, but she vowed to make this her one and only drink of the night. After the debacle at the pool hall, Sienna was hesitant to come within twenty feet of an alcoholic beverage. Liquor did crazy things to a person. Like forced them to say totally inappropriate things they would never say if they were sober. Now if only she could remember half the things she’d said that night.

  Toby had been tight-lipped about it all, but from the way he’d reacted to her this past week, Sienna feared her tongue had gotten looser than it should have.

  Thankfully, they had been too busy with preparations for the show to rehash that night.

  Things had definitely been put into motion, and in a big way. The cameras had been a constant since this morning, but amazingly, Sienna was starting to get used to them already. When she’d taken on Toby’s account, she had not expected to be in front of the cameras all that much, but it was unavoidable. Anytime she interacted with Aria, the cameras were there.

  Aria’s poise had been a welcomed surprised earlier at the radio station. Tonight, however, would be the first real test. The Hard Court looked more like a movie set than a nightclub, with all the spotlights and people with huge headsets walking around.

  Sienna said a silent prayer that tonight’s performance would go off without a hitch. If the powers that be at Cardinal Studios were not happy with how things turned out, she would be without a job. What would she do then, go back to helping out her mother five days a week? Just the thought was enough to make Sienna’s head start to pound.

  “Hey there everybody,” Monica Gardner greeted them as she arrived at the booth where she, Eli and Ivana were seated. Jonathan came walking up right behind her.

  Eli made a production of looking at his watch. “Looks like someone forgot how to tell time.”

  “Hmm, let’s see,” Monica said as she scooted into the booth. “In the last two hours I had to stabilize two MI’s, a boy who would not stop seizing, and deliver a baby since a certain OB was hanging out at a nightclub.” She smiled at her fiancé.

  “Thanks for picking up my slack, baby,” Eli said, covering Monica’s mouth with a kiss.

  Jonathan opted for the seat on the other side of the booth, which placed him directly acro
ss from Ivana. Sienna felt her sister stiffened, though Vonnie did a credible job of keeping her face devoid of any emotion. Watching the interaction between these two was becoming her new favorite pastime.

  “How are things going so far?” Monica asked. “I haven’t missed Aria’s performance, have I?”

  “No, she doesn’t go on for another half hour,” Jonathan answered. “But watching Toby is just as entertaining if you asked me. I think he’s going to have a nervous breakdown any minute now.”

  “I’ve been trying to get him to calm down,” Sienna said, “But I can understand his plight. I’m ready to have a coronary myself.”

  “At least you’re at the right table,” Jonathan said, motioning his head to the two doctors. He reached across the table and snagged an onion ring from the complimentary appetizer tray he’d sent over earlier, his eyes never leaving Ivana.

  “This is a little more than I expected,” Sienna said. “They did warn us that the performances would have more equipment, but this seems like overkill.”

  “It’s all good. As soon as word gets out that there was a camera crew at my club, the crowds are going to triple.”

  “Is that all you think about?” Ivana inquired. “How to make another dollar?” At her coldly asked question, the conversation at the table dried up like a creek in the desert.

  A devious smile curled up the corners of Jonathan’s mouth. “That’s not all I think about,” he countered in a slow, sensual, send-shivers-down-your-back voice.

  Sienna, Monica and Eli sat in silence as the two volleyed back and forth, Ivana with inaccurate accusations, and Jonathan with more sexual innuendos than one man had the right to think up on such short notice. Ivana should just admit defeat. The sexual tension radiating between these two was thicker than Granny Elise’s gravy.

  And apparently, Sienna wasn’t the only one who noticed it. Monica leaned over, whispering, “Twenty bucks says they’re in bed by the end of the night.”

  Sienna shook her head. “I know my sister. She’ll hold out for at least another week.”

  Before Monica could reply, Aria was called to the stage and Sienna tuned out every other sound around her.

  This was it. Everything they had worked for the past couple of weeks was riding on this first performance. Sienna knew how these things worked. All these reality shows had at least one fall guy. If something went wrong tonight, Aria would probably be pegged as the joke of the show. They could not let that happen. Too much was at stake.

  Sienna looked for Toby in the crowd. He stood to the right of the stage, nervousness etched across his face. Her own skin felt as tense as piano strings, but Sienna prayed she did a better job at hiding her anxiety. Just in case Aria sought them out during her performance, at least one of them should portray a picture of confidence.

  Sienna scooted from the booth and moved to the dance floor to join the rest of the standing-room-only crowd.

  As soon as the first note flowed from Aria’s mouth, Sienna’s anxiety level took a nosedive. The girl had this covered.

  Toby caught her eye from where he stood and gave Sienna a thumbs up.

  Following their strategy to kick things off with a bang, Aria opened with a high-octane dance number that had the crowd hopping. Sienna couldn’t help getting caught up in the energy. She swayed her hips to the beat, moving along with the crowd.

  The club was electrified. Aria was in her element, with a crowd that had grown to love her and an arrangement of songs that complimented her voice to perfection. Even better, the cameras were soaking it all up, spanning from one corner of the club to the other.

  After three up-tempo songs, Aria’s ended with a spine-tingling rendition of a classic Patti LaBelle favorite. Toby waited for Aria to come down from the stage, gave her a hug, then released her. They went opposite ways, Aria heading for the back while Toby started making his way toward her.

  Sienna greeted him with a hug.

  “She did an awesome job, Toby.”

  “I know,” he said, guiding her toward the table where the rest of their party sat. “I can’t believe how well everything went.”

  “Well, I can,” Jonathan said as they came upon the table. “That girl’s been lighting up the crowd with every performance. I’m making the first prediction. This show is already won.”

  “From your lips to God’s ears,” Sienna and Toby said in unison. They looked over at each other and the entire table burst out laughing, except for Ivana.

  When Sienna went to sit down, Ivana halted her.

  “I need to use the powder room. Can you show me where it is?” Ivana asked, grabbing Sienna by the arm and dragging her toward the restroom.

  “It looks like you know where you’re going just fine,” Sienna told her.

  A few steps before the restroom’s door Ivana turned to Sienna and pointed an accusatory finger at her chest.

  “What did you tell that man?” she demanded.

  “And that man would be?”

  “Don’t pretend as though you don’t know what I’m talking about. I saw you talking to him earlier. Did you talk about what we discussed over coffee, Sienna?”

  “Of course not,” Sienna said, hurt that her sister could think she would betray her that way. “Look, Ivana. Everybody else can see what’s going on between you and Jonathan.”

  “There is nothing going on.”

  “He’s a good guy,” Sienna said. “Maybe if you gave it a chance.”

  Ivana speared her with an incensed stare. “I’m out of here. Don’t expect me to come back.”

  Sienna contemplated stopping her, but then thought better of it. From the look on Ivana’s face, any attempt she made would be futile. Instead, Sienna opted for saying a quick prayer that Ivana was not foolish enough to close her eyes to the possibilities that were in front of her.

  Sienna stopped short.

  Was she doing the same thing with Toby?

  She had spent so much time bemoaning the reasons she and Toby would never be anything more than friends. Yet, when he showed a spark of interest, she’d clammed up. Now that Toby was home, free from romantic entanglements and willing to take a chance, the potential for a real relationship was finally within her grasp. All she had to do was reach out and grab it. She didn’t want to end up like Ivana, afraid to take a chance on love.

  Sienna took a labored breath as her gaze wandered over to the table where Toby sat with the others. She could only hope she would not be blind to the possibilities that lay ahead.

  Chapter Fifteen

  Sienna’s head rose at the two solid raps on her office’s open door. Toby stood in the doorway.

  “What are you doing here?” she asked.

  Toby shrugged. “I had some free time.”

  “There’s no such thing as free time this week. I thought Aria was in the studio this morning?”

  “So did I. But, apparently, the producers thought a mother and daughter-shopping trip would make for better television. So the studio and I are out and Valerie is in. I’m so happy she’s going back to Houston today.”

  “Poor Toby, feeling left out of the party.”

  He gave her an exasperated look as he sat in the chair across from her. “It’s not that,” he said. “Her being here goes against the script I have in my mind of how I want this week to play out.” He ran his hands down his face, and Sienna noticed the exhaustion evident in his drooping eyelids.

  “How much sleep have you gotten this week?” she asked.

  “I’ll sleep when all this is over. Hey, we’ll be in the studio this afternoon before the song giveaway. You’ll be there, right?”

  She nodded, closing the word processing program and pulling up the internet. “Let me ask you something,” Sienna said. She typed in the web address of her bank; she needed to make sure her check had been direct deposited. “Has Jonathan mentioned Ivana to you?” Toby started to laugh, which meant Jonathan had obviously said something. “You’d better tell me now,” she warned.

&nbs
p; “He hasn’t really said anything,” Toby said.

  “So why are you laughing?”

  “Because it’s funny.”

  Sienna slapped her hand on the desk. “You think it’s funny that Jonathan would be interested in my sister? Do you think Ivana doesn’t deserve to have someone in her life just because of her beliefs? I’m tired of everybody calling Ivana a kook. She is not crazy. She is not a witch. She does not call on spirits or do any of the other ridiculous stuff people think she does. Ivana has dedicated her life to taking care of the people everyone else in this city walks right over without seeing. She’s a—”

  Sienna stopped short as Toby lunged from the chair. He planted his hands on her desk and leaned in, their faces just inches apart.

  “And you say you don’t blow things out of proportion. You know I’ve always admired your sister, both before and after she started practicing Voodoo.”

  It was true. Ivana and Toby had always had a good relationship.

  “So why did you laugh?”

  Shaking his head, he returned to the chair. “I’m laughing because before he moved to New Orleans, Jonathan was determined not to get serious about anybody.”

  “You think he’s serious about Ivana?”

  He hunched a shoulder. “He hasn’t come right out and said anything to me, but from what I can see he sure is interested in her. Is Ivana interested in him?”

  Oh, no. She was not giving away any of Vonnie’s secrets just so Toby could run back and tell Jonathan. When her sister was ready to admit her feelings toward Jonathan, she would do so.

  Sienna shook her head. “You know how Ivana is. She’s too deep into her work to think about something as paltry as dating. The only reason I asked is because Jonathan had such a strong reaction to her being at the club last night. I was wondering if he was serious about her. I don’t want Ivana getting hurt.”

  “Always taking care of other people,” Toby said. “When are you going to start taking care of you?”

  Sienna looked away from the computer screen and gave him a blank stare. “I do take care of me.”