James rubbed the back of his neck. "No. Just making sure you don't need a ride anywhere in the morning."
Kurt rolled his head. "I'm not comfortable leaving with police investigating a stalker who is sending threatening notes to my wife's sister."
"I understand. I'll be here, though."
Melody came to the table and sat down. Without a word or a look to either man, she pulled her bag out from under the table and dug through it until she found a small notebook and pen. She bent her head and started writing something down. After a while, James leaned forward. "What—?"
Kurt interrupted him before he could finish his question, "She's writing a song. Don't break her train of thought, or she might lose it."
James moved closer and saw that she wrote on miniature sheets of blank music paper which he would later learn is called staff paper. Melody's pen moved swiftly, and musical notes filled the pages, her other hand tapping on the table to a beat only she could hear. He looked at Kurt. "How can she do that with the band playing?"
Kurt shrugged. "She doesn't hear anything but the song in her head."
"Fascinating." He leaned closer, trying to see the notes, but her hand moved too fast, continually blocking his vision.
Melody finished transcribing her thoughts into musical notations, capped the pen, then stowed everything back in her purse before looking up again. "I have had so much fun tonight."
Kurt smiled. "Me, too."
"It feels good to dance for fun instead of for work."
James raised an eyebrow. "Wasn't that one of your concentrations in school? Dance?"
Melody shrugged. "The workouts I do for dance can suck all of the fun out of it. I will say, the end result is well worth it and I'm not complaining. I'm thankful that I have that as a background."
James wondered at the feelings stirred up inside of him at the sight of Melody in the red dress, her black curls falling out of their up-do to dance around her shoulders, her cheeks a little flushed from the constant dancing. He wondered at the furious pounding of his heart and the ache in his soul. As he examined and dissected and contemplated his thoughts, he struggled to find some balance.
Antsy, he stood. "I'm going to step outside," he said to Kurt. "Be right back," he said to Melody, putting a hand on her shoulder as he walked by her chair.
Melody looked at Kurt. "What was that about?"
Her new brother-in-law shrugged. "It's hard sometimes to know what he's thinking. He's a little intense at times."
"He looked almost angry."
"Not really. Let him be. He'll be right back, like he said." Kurt waved at Morgan who was dancing a line dance. "James internalizes a lot of things. He clearly needs to process something."
Not satisfied with that answer, Melody stood and followed James from the room. She walked through the corridor of the hotel and came to the lobby, where she saw him going out through the big turnstile doors. She rushed after him and stepped out into the cool night. Scanning the street, she found him with his hands in his pockets gazing up at the night sky. Rubbing her arms against the chilly air, she walked up to him.
"Everything okay?"
He looked down at her, his eyes glittering with intensity behind his glasses. "I think so," he said with a smile, sliding his tuxedo jacket off of his broad shoulders. "I'm just processing a lot of information."
"Oh? What kind of information?" She wanted to protest him draping the jacket over her shoulders, but it was still warm from his body and smelled like his after shave.
He ran a finger down her cheek and smiled. "Maybe another time. I did come to a surprising conclusion. I'll share it with you one day." He glanced at his watch. "What say we blow this joint and go get a waffle and a cup of coffee? There's a 24-hour place across the street. They might even have cheese grits."
The thought of some alone time with James after a week of sharing him with Kurt and Morgan held such tremendous appeal. "I'd love that."
"Is your car here? Kurt picked me up. I was just going to take his car home for him."
"Sure." She turned to the doorman who stood a discreet distance away. "Can you have my car brought around? I don't have my ticket with me."
He stood stiff and crisp in his dark green uniform, but as soon as she spoke to him, he relaxed and nodded. "Absolutely, Miss Mason." He lifted a finger to the valet, who took off at a jog. "Be just a moment."
"Thank you." With a smile, she turned toward James. "You'll have to buy coffee. I don't have my purse with me."
James put a hand on the small of her back and walked toward the valet stand with her. "I think I can swing a cup of coffee."
Seconds later, the valet pulled up in her little car. "Thank you," she said as he slid out from behind the wheel.
"Sure thing, Miss Mason." He held the door for her as she took his place. "Have a good evening."
James got into the passenger's seat and, smiling, Melody turned to speak to him. "Ready fo—?" she began, but she didn't finish the word as her peripheral vision picked up something red in the back seat. Her heart felt like it froze in her chest and the breath abandoned her lungs.
James' eyes searched her face. "What?"
Afraid to look, but knowing she had to, she slowly turned her head. There, on the back seat, lay a single red rose with a note tied to the stem. Hot tears burned her eyes as James pulled his phone out of his pants pocket and dialed Suarez's number.
¯¯¯¯
"THE longer we wait, the higher she beefs up security and the greater the risk of getting caught," Rikard stated.
His companion shrugged. "I don't think anyone will suspect us. That's paranoia."
"It isn't your life on the line, either." He struggled to keep his voice accent-free, practicing even in private.
"You never know whose life is on the line."
He raised an eyebrow. "Certainly, you're not threatening me. After everything I've done."
"Of course not. You should know me better than that."
With a wry smile he said, "I know exactly what you're capable of." He paused, making sure that sank in. "If we wait, I may not be able to move."
"She's careless and arrogant. She thinks she's a god. You'll have ample opportunity, and if what you're saying is true, we can make other arrangements. If we wait until closer to the new year, there will be much more publicity. Publicity is what is going to matter."
"You are, of course, the boss." He waved his hand, mentally dismissing his earlier words. "I just hope I don't have to say, 'I told you so' someday."
With narrowed eyes, his companion said, "You wouldn't dare. If you hadn't failed the first time —"
A flash of white anger burned through his chest. "Do not bring that up." His accent was back, full force, and he didn't even struggle to contain it. "I lost good men because of bad intel. I had no way of knowing about the thermite. No one did. You were inside, too. You saw everything I saw."
"That's right. You're right." The voice became calmer, intended to deflect the anger. "No worries. How is the monitoring going in Albany?"
"So far, no progress. They do a lot of talking as they work, which is good. We're able to keep up with them so that if a breakthrough happens, we can make it to the patent office first."
"The concept of that much money —"
He smiled. "Years of planning and hard work will finally pay off."
"Exactly. So, don't get impatient now."
¯¯¯¯
CHAPTER 15
MELODY replied to the text she'd just received as she stepped into the hotel elevator, letting James know she was on her way down. She still wasn't exactly certain what she was doing up this early. The only thing she could think of was that it was because James wanted her to be.
Since when in the last four years did I ever cater to others' wants or needs? she asked herself.
Her whole life she'd bent and twisted to suit others, but stardom had brought out a selfish side of her personality that she didn't know for certain she liked. Everythi
ng was accomplished on her time according to her needs and wants and to her standards.
Now suddenly some man she'd taken a shine to wanted her to go to church at ten AM on the morning after the exhaustive wedding, meeting with the detectives about some maniac stalker, the rose in the car, and then a late coffee with James, just so she could go to church for the first time in over four years and … she just complied?
Melody smiled as the elevator doors closed and she began her descent. Yeah, she complied. Every minute she could spend with James felt like heaven on earth.
She knew instinctively that he'd do what he could to protect her, and consequently, she felt safe with him. No fear of notes or roses. No fear of surprise attacks and beatings so bad they required lengthy hospital stays and surgeries and weeks of therapy. Just time spent with that man who gave her happy little butterflies in her stomach and filled her head with beautiful love songs.
Love songs? Is this love? Could it be love?
She thought so. She thought so that endless day four years ago, and time never diminished the memory. Melody felt the smile turn to a silly grin on her face as she stepped out of the elevator and into the busy lobby of the hotel.
Every minute spent with James the last few days only confirmed it. Every song she'd ever sung about the emotion paled in comparison to how her heart wanted to burst from her chest at the sight of him lounging on the black leather couch near the lobby's welcoming fireplace.
"Good morning," she greeted, the grin never fading. "How are you?" Other than heart stoppingly handsome in your blue suit, she mentally added.
He stood when he saw her approaching, and she stopped, the toes of her red heels just inches away from his leather shoes. He reached out his hand and brushed a strand of hair off her cheek. Instead of releasing her hair, he slipped his fingers around to the back of her neck and pulled her close, brushing his lips over hers in a silent greeting.
Before she could sigh and step closer, he released her and stepped back. "Good morning, beautiful," he said while his eyes took her in from the top of her head, down her black sweater to her red and black houndstooth skirt, and ending at the toes of her bright red heels.
The look made her blush as much as his words. "Thank you."
He gestured toward the door. "I have my car waiting. Traffic should be moderately light this morning."
She raised an eyebrow. "This is still Atlanta, right?"
He laughed. "True. But at least it should be manageable."
They stepped out of the hotel into the crisp morning. Melody rubbed her arms through her black cashmere. "I'd have worn a jacket, but it's supposed to be warmer today." James held open the passenger door of his green sports car.
"Little different from Nashville, huh?" James asked as she slid in.
"Winters are slightly harsher, but not too bad." The seat warmer worked divinely, and Melody immediately forgot the chill of the outside air. James slid into the seat next to her and drove forward.
"I never look forward to going to London during the winter. It's a much wetter, colder climate than here."
"You've spent a lot of time there?" She watched him and admired the way he maneuvered the little car through the downtown traffic.
"The day we met, I was returning from brokering a deal and signing a contract for a four-year project in London. We just recently renewed the contract. Seems like I spend more than half my time there. I have a flat in the city, a church family, and a fully staffed office."
"Wow." She felt the pull of centrepital force as James accelerated onto the on-ramp of Interstate 20. "Is renewing it good?"
"It's wonderful. I have really been challenged by the project and hope that our government here will incorporate some of the technology we've designed and implemented."
"Can you talk about it?"
He shot her a grin as he changed lanes. "Not unless you have a pretty impressive security clearance."
Her heart skipped a little beat watching his handsome profile. "I understand."
When he moved over lanes to exit, she said, "We aren't going to Morgan's house, are we?"
"No. Didn't you know? I attend the same church as Kurt and Morgan."
"No, I didn't know."
"My house was about a mile from there. When Angela first went to church, it was to go to a women's dinner with a friend of hers. She started going to that church and begged me to go with her."
James darted forward when the light turned green. He continued, "I went with her Easter Sunday. Kurt went, too. It was beautiful and inspiring." He paused and his eyes grew dark before he murmured, "After that, she was killed."
Melody reached over and lightly touched his upper arm. "It's okay. You don't need to continue."
James glanced at her as he slowed down for the next light. "No, I'm good. Anyway, after she died, I didn't go back for a long time. But, Kurt kept going. He'd found a relationship with Christ and fell in love with God. Not long after, he met Morgan and fell in love again. When you —"
Melody raised an eyebrow. "Didn't call you back?"
With a wry smile, James said, "Disappeared. When you disappeared, I felt lost. Angela was gone. You'd stirred up some feelings that suddenly had no outlet. Work overwhelmed me at times. I knew something was missing. Kurt kept bugging me so, I went to church with him, and discovered exactly what I'd been missing."
"I'm so glad." Melody's smile felt fake, but she couldn't conjure genuine joy for him. Her heart started beating a frantic, panicked rhythm. They'd just strayed into a conversation she didn't want to have. Thinking of her own life and how it contradicted his rather than paralleled it, she looked down at her lap. "I'm glad you found direction."
She saw the familiar steeple of her home church — the church her father had helped build — appear and James pulled into a parking space in seconds flat. He shut off the ignition, but turned to look at her instead of getting out of the car. "It's more than direction," he said with a smile. "You should know that, Miss 'I want to go to seminary and become a worship leader.'"
"Hey, that's a lot of water under the bridge now. Like an ocean, really."
She watched his eyebrows draw together in a frown. "What do you mean?"
"I mean," she said, turning her entire body to face him, "that the last time I was in church, discounting Morgan's wedding and rehearsal, was at this church, four years ago, in premarital counseling with the man who claimed to be Richard Johnson."
"Seriously?"
"Yes."
"Why?"
Melody shrugged and ran her finger over the pattern of her wool skirt, unable to really keep eye contact with him. "I don't know. I just got busy. Then religion became less important to me."
"Religion." He repeated, as if tasting the word and not really liking the flavor. "So, why'd you agree to come with me this morning?"
"Because you are becoming important to me." She felt her cheeks burn. With a huff, she raised her head and looked at him. "I want to spend time with you. I want to be with you. Here, there, it doesn't matter to me."
She reached out and took his hand, sandwiching it between hers. "For four years, you've been in the forefront of my mind and heart. Everything I've done, I wanted to share with you. I was so frustrated at not being able to find you, at not knowing your whole name."
"And why do you think that is, beautiful? Why would someone you just met — why would someone I just met and spent one endless day with — why would that person take up so much of your energy and thoughts?"
"Because I —" her breath hitched.
James ripped his glasses off of his face and tossed them on the dash of the car, then reached forward and framed her face with his hands. Her cheek tingled from the touch, her head felt light. "Say it. Say it so that I know I'm not absolutely insane."
The words tumbled out of her mouth before she could stop them. "Because I fell in love with you that day, and that has never, ever gone away."
"It's never weakened," he whispered, lowering his mouth
, bringing her closer to him.
"No. Never diminished." She didn't know if he finished closing the distance, or if she did. She fisted her hands in the lapels of his suit jacket and tried her best to drag him even closer as his mouth covered hers.
Beautiful music exploded in her head as his lips moved over hers. Her heart threatened to beat itself out of her chest. Four years vanished in a breath. Years of dreams and wanting, wishes and desires. Her heart opened and the flood of emotions and longing nearly overwhelmed her.
James ripped his lips away, but did not break contact. He kept his hands on her cheeks, rested his forehead against hers. Eyes closed, just enjoying the feel of him, the smell of him, Melody felt some sanity return, felt her skittering pulse slow a bit.
She felt his thumbs brush under her eyes, felt the cool air hit the wetness on her cheeks. She pushed away and put her hands to her face, feeling the streak of tears. "I —" Her breath hitched and she dug in her purse, hoping to find a tissue. "This is so overwhelming."
James reached over and squeezed the back of her neck. "Yes. But it's real. I'm just glad I'm not the only one feeling this way. It occurred to me last night, and I had to work it out in my head."
"Is that when I followed you outside?"
"Yes. But, I decided that the timing was bad. First, you have a stalker threatening you, then a man you've only technically known for a few days claiming his undying love for you. That would be a lot for any star to take."
He released her neck and retrieved his glasses from the dashboard. Cold air swirled into the car when he got out and in seconds, he had her door open. She checked her reflection in the mirror under the visor, and seeing no real damage done by the tears, she allowed him to help her out of the car.
"Are you sure you don't want to go somewhere and just talk? Catch up?" She slipped her purse over her shoulder as he shut the door and took her hand.
"I absolutely want to do that," he said, bringing her hand to his lips and kissing the knuckles. "But first, I want to worship here with you. Is that okay?"
A Melody for James (Christian Suspense) Page 14
