by Piper Lawson
She wouldn’t care if I was sacrificed in all this. Hell, she’d probably love it.
My hand finds Harrison’s arm, the muscles corded and angry under my touch. “There’s nowhere safer than the middle of the stage. He won’t risk his business to catch you.”
Harrison exhales slowly. “I want to know the layout of the club.”
I push a tray of tea cookies Natalia must’ve left on the counter earlier toward Eva, and she balks. “I haven’t eaten a carbohydrate in ten years.”
I take two cookies and lay them on the table at opposite ends. “This is the stage. And this is the front door. The dance floor is here.” I wave my hand over the space in the middle. “Where’s Mischa’s office?”
If Harrison’s going to tell the police, it would help to have as much detail as possible.
Eva shifts forward and takes a wafer. “Here.” She sets it down between the two cookies and off to the side. “There’s a hallway here with offices and a couple meeting rooms, plus inventory to stock the bar.” She takes another three cookies, turning toward the other side of the table. “This half is VIPs. They’re serviced by their own bar.”
“Is that where he does business?” I ask.
“No. He might entertain in a VIP, but everything is decided in his office.”
“Are there any entrances near there? There must be one for inventory,” Harrison says.
Eva considers. “Loading dock services the stock room.”
Another cookie goes down, this one close to Mischa’s office.
My heart thuds. “So, if the police can get in while he’s doing that deal…”
“They can bring him down,” Harrison says.
Eva takes another cookie, and we wait for her to place it.
“Well?” Harrison prods, clearly impatient.
Eva nibbles the corner. “Well, what?”
Harrison rises. “You need to go back to him before he suspects anything. We’ll let you know when we need you.”
“You still have my number?” she asks as she follows him.
“Someone will be in touch.”
She flinches at the dismissal. It’s deluded, but I feel for her, so I walk with them to the door.
“We didn’t offer you ice,” I realize when she turns outside on the landing.
“Oh. This is a day old.” Her full lips press together, blue eyes shifting over mine. “It wasn’t an easy decision to come here.”
I think of my decision to hide my assault, how some of the women my cousin helps with her charity are victims of assault by their partners. Eva isn’t someone I’d empathize with, but seeing her like this, it’s impossible not to.
She’s halfway to her car when I chase after her, lowering my voice so only she can hear. “I know Harrison said we’d call you, but if you need help—“
“He loves you.” Her voice is wistful. Then her eyes narrow, the faintest smirk marring her pretty features. “Good luck with that.”
She might not betray Harrison, either out of loyalty or pragmatism.
But she’ll fuck me over if she gets the chance.
25
Rae
“When were you going to tell me about La Mer?” Annie demands over FaceTime when I call her on the weekend. “You’re playing the biggest club in the world, and I had to find out from social?!”
“It’s been a crazy time.”
My final show at Bliss last night was bittersweet.
I played some new stuff I’ve been working on, but with the shadow of what we’re about to do hanging over my head, I couldn’t relax into it.
“How are you and Harry?”
I think of the texts he sent me last night.
Harrison: Play me a song.
Rae: Something you can fuck your hand to later?
Harrison: Something I can fuck you to later.
“He’s Harrison,” I say at last.
“So, you’re back together.”
I roll my eyes. “It’s a work in progress. Our relationship has some… extra pressure points.”
“I’m glad you guys found each other. I had a hard time picturing the perfect guy for you. If I’m honest, I wouldn’t have picked him.”
“Smug, gorgeous, rich as sin with a reputation to match?”
“Yeah. But you’re sarcastic, unselfconscious, and anti-materialistic. He’s perfect for you.”
Since I moved in, Harrison’s been consolidating what we learned from Eva and communicating with the police. He’s spent time down at the local station and on calls with Interpol.
Still, he’s here, and he’s more attentive than a week ago.
I haven’t told him about the feeling I have about Eva. I’m not going to. I can’t make him more concerned.
Though concerned Harrison isn’t all bad.
Last night, he was tracing my palm with his thumb from the moment he picked me up in his car.
On the steps to the house, his hands were squeezing my ass.
By the time Ash shut the door to his room, Harrison had his hand up my dress and his hard mouth whispering filthy things in my ear.
He kept me up all night.
He’s also bought me gifts. When I ordered a custom outfit for my gig at La Mer from a designer in Barcelona, Harrison swooped in and paid for it before I could.
He also found my bracelet under the bed.
What a fucking domestic thing.
I haven’t taken it off since.
Even though there’s a real chance something could go wrong at La Mer, I need to believe there’s good on the other side.
“I’m ready for a vacation. It’s mathematically impossible that one tiny person can create more havoc than an entire Broadway crew pulling eight shows a week, or an international rock tour hitting twenty countries, but she manages to do it.” Annie’s voice brings me back.
“You guys should get away somewhere while you have the time off. Get Beck to go with you. I’m sure he’d watch the baby. Or Jax and Haley.” I think of her semiretired rock-star dad and coder-genius stepmom, their own kids about six and two.
“An A-list nanny,” Annie muses, her smile teasing and intrigued at once. “That’s a good idea. Maybe I can talk Dad into it. He’s been working on bringing Wicked back from the dead.” The label he and Tyler bought as an investment last year wasn’t only a business deal—it was personal. “He’d never say he’s ready for a break, but when I talked to Haley the other night, she told me she caught him scribbling on organizational charts and muttering about restructuring. Of course, he’s chewed his nails down to the nubs too.”
I laugh, picturing the former biggest rock star in the world trying to do Harrison-like things. “Jax Jamieson’s always going to crush the music part. Sounds like he needs help with the ‘running the company’ part.”
“He does, though he won’t admit it. And he doesn’t trust anyone left over from the old management.”
“He should call Harrison. Harrison might not have experience running a label, but he knows how to grow a company. And he definitely knows how to deal with the unexpected.”
“That’s a great idea. I’ll tell Dad and Tyler. They might take him up on that. Anyway… What are you doing for this huge, career-capping show?”
I glance at my computer, anticipation surging through me. “I’m working on a few things.”
I sound casual, but I’ve had ideas for this set for years. A file on my computer. Things I swap out with new tracks from time to time. Thanks to that, preparing should be simple, but it’s not.
I picture the open-air venue packed from wall to wall. The thrill of imagining it for years doesn’t match the reality now that it’s so close. I’m nervous, and it’s not only about Mischa. It’s about me.
I’ve worked toward this my entire life, and I want to do it justice.
“Go all out. Don’t save anything for next time. I knew which show on Broadway would be my last before having this baby, and I’m grateful. Because if I hadn’t…” She shakes her head.
“Take no prisoners,” I murmur. “You’re a really good friend. You and Beck both.”
Her eyes widen. “Wow. Rae Madani going emo. There must be an apocalypse I don’t know about.”
I force a shrug. “Just the usual. Guys. Gigs. Grudges.”
HARRISON
“You’re not supposed to be here.”
Leni looks up from a lounge chair locked into its most upright position on the patio. She’s wearing a pink robe that hides her bandages and holding a copy of Little Women. “It’s been days. I’m supposed to sit around and get fat on Natalia’s baking? My keeper let me out.”
I picture the nurse in my hallway who gave me a frustrated look on my way out here.
“You need to heal.”
“Fresh air. Look it up. I even grabbed some classic literature. I wanted something lowbrow but couldn’t find anything in your office.” She waves the book. “This Laurie dude has it going on. Loaded, big family house, bunch of girls who worship him… Speaking of healing,” she goes on as I stop in front of the chair, “you cleared the air with your brother yet over the way you acted?”
I narrow my eyes at her. “We have more important things to deal with.”
“Urgent, maybe. That’s not the same thing.”
I shove my hands in the pockets of my trousers. I haven’t been wearing a jacket. The feeling of constriction in my chest is enough without the added weight of another layer of clothing.
Sebastian and I don’t need a heart-to-heart. The few moments this summer when he’s opened up were surprising.
Still, I feel shitty about what went down the night I returned from London. Probably because Raegan planted this seed of an idea that I should’ve been here for him and I wasn’t. And my damn brain weighs everything she says.
“Tell me about these urgent things.” Leni’s voice drags me back.
“They’re above your pay grade. You’re here to relax.”
“Because some asshole stabbed me.”
I shift onto the next chair. “We took Eva’s evidence to law enforcement. They didn’t want to disclose anything or budge on their own plans, but when they heard the detail we had from Eva, they realized this was a rare chance to capture him in a major deal.”
I hope to God it protects Raegan rather than puts her in more danger. Because if this goes off the way it’s supposed to, the police will be inside before a single one of Mischa’s staff is tipped off.
“So, you put all your faith in the cops?” Leni cocks her head. “That’s not the Harrison King I know.”
I shake my head. “I’m trying to find a better way to monitor the situation. To have eyes not only on Raegan, but this deal.” To make sure the two don’t happen anywhere near one another.
I’ve been keeping my composure. In the moments it starts to waver, I remind myself that in a week, Mischa could be in custody and we could be free to live our own lives.
I’ve never wanted anything more. But I’m afraid to hope for it with everything hanging over our heads.
Raegan wants to go to London.
I’d take her to Machu Picchu if she wanted. Hike the damn jungle in boots and cargo shorts just to see her smirk. I’d suffer it all knowing at the end of the day she’s mine.
Through everything.
“What about the robots?” Leni asks.
“The bartending robots Sawyer sent?” I frown. Maybe she hasn’t been taking her medication. I should get the nurse…
“He has photographer robots,” she says pointedly. “Ones you could station anywhere there are patrons, right? Plus Sawyer’s company gets access to the data coming in. If the robots were installed at Mischa’s club, Sawyer could theoretically see whatever they see and pass it on to law enforcement. But you can’t order them for La Mer.”
Leni shifts forward, wincing. She drops the book, her hand going to her stomach as she takes a few wheezing breaths.
“No.” I retrieve the book from the patio, the wheels in my mind turning. “But I can order them for Debajo. Or be seen to be ordering them for Debajo. A lot of them.”
“If Mischa finds out, he’ll want them too,” she finishes.
Yes. It’s one thing I can do to take back some piece of control.
“This would need to happen fast.”
Leni holds out a hand for the book. “I’ll let you get at it, then.”
26
Rae
La Mer is shaking. The booth. The floor.
I’m in the middle of my set when a cracking sound from beneath makes me look down.
The stage is splitting between my feet, the gap widening with every thump of the bassline.
I drop to my knees and try to drag the halves back together with sweaty hands.
Instead, a piece of the stage falls into the chasm, and I fall with it.
Alice in Wonderland–style, I fall and fall.
Mischa’s face appears, threatening, and he shoots out a hand to grip my throat. “I’ve got you.”
I can’t breathe.
“I’ve got you.”
Before I pass out, the voice changes.
“Raegan. Love. I’ve got you.”
I force myself back to consciousness. It’s hard to breathe, but I focus every part of my attention on making my lungs expand, and reality comes rushing back.
When I blink my eyes open, Harrison’s over me, expression alert and concerned. We’re in his bedroom at the villa, light filtering in across the floor.
“Bad dream,” he murmurs.
I exhale, wiping a hand over my sweaty forehead. “What makes you say that?”
The sheet is tangled in my legs, and he reaches down to unwrap me. Strong hands linger on my naked calves. In fact, I’m naked everywhere and so is he, but I can’t shake the images behind my eyes.
“Everyone has nightmares before a big gig,” I say, willing my heart to stop racing.
It doesn’t have to be a sign of bad things to come. But the pit in my stomach disagrees.
Harrison tugs me into his lap, his hard body curving around mine. “My biggest regret today is that I can’t watch you.”
I wish he could watch me too. But he’s staying somewhere he can keep an eye on all the happenings tonight, not only me.
“Someone will stream it on social.”
“I can’t get a personal reenactment?” A brow lifts, a smirk playing at his beautiful lips.
Insolent bastard.
“This is your problem. You’ve always thought you should get special treatment because you’re Harrison fucking K—“
His head drops to my shoulder, running soft, devastating kisses down to my breasts. “Treat me however you want, Raegan.” He looks up at me, and his expression steals my breath. “I’ll come back for more.”
When his mouth claims mine, I meet him.
It’s urgent for reasons I don’t want to name.
My hands stroke down his chest, linger on the scars covering his pec. It doesn’t feel like a childhood prank. It’s a warning. A promise that the man my lover calls his rival will stop at nothing to destroy him.
And after what Eva said… possibly me too.
If my dream comes true and I fall down a hole tonight—if the deal doesn’t go down, or if Mischa learns we’ve helped the police—I could lose this man forever.
Harrison slips between my thighs, fills me with a familiar need I want to memorize. I’m torn between losing myself in this moment and imprinting it on my mind, my body, for fear it will never happen again.
When we separate after, my eyes drift closed. I feel him shift across the bed, reaching for pants.
“We need to get up.” His lips tickle my ear.
“Mmmm.”
He rubs my tattooed wrist, a habit that makes me smile. “When I met you, I tried to treat you like other women. I wanted to buy you gifts. I wanted to show you the world. But you don’t like anything I buy—“
“I loved the yacht, mostly because it made you sick. Plus the headphones—“
“As for the world, you’ve already seen it.” His touch skims up my palm.
“But I haven’t seen it with you.” My body is tingling from what we just did, and my heart is full of him. “I want to see where you grew up. Find a beach food truck on every continent and watch you eat from it like it’s got a Michelin star.”
“Hike in cargo shorts at Machu Picchu?” My breath hitches as I blink my eyes open. “Is that on the table?”
He chuckles. “I have a gift for you.” He reaches for the bedside table and pulls out a box.
“More jewelry?”
I open it to find a tiny camera, smaller than my fingernail.
“So you can capture what it feels like to be up there tonight and relive it whenever you want. Because today is about you. And I won’t let you forget it.”
My eyes burn. I love that he sees me, that even if he doesn’t agree with my choice to play, he’ll support me anyway.
“It’s going to work,” I say. “Mischa ordered the robot cameras for La Mer.”
A tight nod. “Sawyer will see what they see, and he’s patched the police into the feed. I’m patched in too.”
Of course he is.
He’ll be watching the stage, but more than that, the hallways and any rooms with public access.
He can’t see inside Mischa’s office, but he wants to ensure I’m as far from harm as possible.
It hits me for the first time, the possibility that I’ve made this harder on him.
I shift onto my elbows, the sheet bunched over my breasts.
“Don’t do anything crazy,” I whisper, and his brows lift. “For me or anyone else. Whatever happens today, promise we’ll still be here.”
He presses his lips to my forehead before pulling away, fastening his pants as he heads for the door.
I spring out of bed. “I mean it. I can’t lose you over this.” My heart rate accelerates, and this time it has nothing to do with the nightmare.
Barney sneaks through the crack and accosts me, delighted to find me running and naked. I go back and grab the sheet off the bed, wrapping it around me as I dodge the dog in pursuit of his owner.
