by Pamela Ann
I placed the bracelet back on the table, scrambled to get my phone in the bedroom and dialed Blake. When he picked up, I didn’t even let him say hello. I was ready to chew him out.
“Knightly, you’d better explain to me and you’d better explain well! Tell me why you would give a present with your initials blatantly standing out? This present didn’t just land here on the very same day I start working with Kyle for absolutely no reason, did it?” I was seething. If it were possible to have steam coming out of my ears, the room would have been muggy.
“Poppet, calm down. I wanted you to wear something that’s from me. I commissioned it a day before you told me about your job. Is it possible that I want Kyle to stay back? Yes, I do. Do you ever plan on telling him?” his placid tone irked me somehow.
“I’ll tell him, but not yet. It’s too early for him. He barely just got here. I’m not going to risk the possibility of him spiraling out of control again.” Why was he pushing the issue? I would tell Kyle in a month or so… I think.
“It’s too early for him or for you, Sienna?” I stopped breathing from his tone of voice; he was controlling his own anger, though only barely. There was some noise in the background. “Mi amor, we have to go soon or we’ll be late!” the accented voice of a woman spoke in the background. I felt like I had been punched in the gut.
“WHO THE FUCK IS THAT?” I yelled when I heard him speak to the woman, but I couldn’t make out what was being said. My eyes started to water. Was he cheating on me?
“Oh, so now you pay rapt attention to me. I see how this is going, Sienna.”
“Blake, are you seeing someone else? You have to tell me!” My voice cracked in pain.
“Why? So you can go back to Matthews again? Do as you wish, Sienna. I have to be somewhere important. I’ll speak to you later.” He hung up without even saying goodbye.
Less than an hour before, I had been basking in Blake’s sweet sentiments. How the heck had it unfolded like this? Okay, maybe I had over-reacted a little bit there. I shrugged it off. There was no point dwelling and crying. I had to meet Kyle in three hours and start work. I’d just have to busy myself and not think of Blake for the moment. I would deal with my emotions later.
In a little over an hour, I was ready to go and still had an hour and half to kill. I went to my drawer and pulled out the card and key Marie had given me. I’d just surprise Kyle with my punctuality.
Since we were checking out rock bands, I had to look the part… well sort of. I let my hair down, put on heavy eyeliner winged at both corners, lots of mascara and rose pink lipstick. I chose a hot pink, Hervé Léger bandage top, leaving my back purely bare, and black-fitted jeans that accentuated my butt nicely with hot-pink suede pumps.
I made a last jaunt to the full-length mirror to assess everything and, suffice to say, I looked pretty hot.
Suck it, Blake!
Placing all the essentials in my black clutch, I headed out the door.
Chapter Fifty-Three
I let out a slow whistle when the cab dropped me off at the address I’d given him. When Marie said “company apartment” I thought of an actual apartment, not a gated Victorian home.
I took out the card Marie gave me and punched in the code on the keypad attached to the wall. I heard a little metal screech and the gate opened slowly. Was Kyle even home? I had acted out of impulse and had totally forgotten to call to see if he was there or not.
When I got a little closer to the door, I heard loud music streaming from the window upstairs. Jeff Buckley, yep, he was home.
Fishing out the spare key, I opened the door. The home was decorated in black, white and silver splendor and the effect was gorgeous—a little cold—but still chic and gorgeous. I found the stairs on the left side corner and went to go hunt down Kyle. The music came from the room at the end of the hall that I assumed was the master bedroom.
I stopped outside the black door and knocked, but no one answered. Clearing my throat loudly, I let myself in. The room was decorated in baroque contemporary with accents of sapphire-colored designs. My eyes landed on the table next to where Kyle slept. My breath caught when I picked up a nine by twelve picture of us. The picture was taken a year ago. We were at Zuma beach watching the sunset. I sat in between his legs and took a bunch of shots. I was looking straight into the camera as he kissed me, smiling. What bothered me was the fact that I was glowing with such happiness; it was the look of love. I placed it back slowly as I jumped from my name being called out.
“Sienna?”
I turned around and was shocked. Kyle had beads of water dripping down his body with only a black towel draping his lower half.
Oh! Fuck. Me.
Shit! Why, oh why did I put myself in this position? My heart thudded like mad as the memories of that night in Santa Monica flashed through my mind. I stood there, frozen, and couldn’t utter a damn word.
“Can I just say that top does your back incredible justice? You look so hot! I have my work cut out for me tonight if the musicians start clawing you, baby.” He strolled to where I stood and his freshly showered smell engulfed my senses.
“I had time to kill so I decided to stop by and use the key your mom gave me. I hope that’s okay?” I mumbled distractedly.
“Baby, you’re not serious! Of course it’s okay; we’re practically family.” What did he mean by that? Was it because we grew up together or because we agreed to get married at the age of twenty-seven? “I’ve never seen you with this much eyeliner, but it looks good on you; very edgy and downright sexy as hell.”
“Would it be too much to ask if you could put some clothes on?” I asked as I stared at his bright hazel eyes.
“Too many memories for you, baby?” I shook my head. “We both know you’re lying, though I’m going to let that slide.”
“Thanks. What’s with the picture frame? Why did you bring it here?” His eyes darkened as he leaned closer, his mouth against my ear. His chest was pushed against mine.
“Because we were happy. Because we were so in love and the thought of losing you left a big hole in my heart. I needed a constant reminder—something to believe in—that we’re going to get back together. We were extremely happy and perfect for each other. It’ll dawn on you someday that you are meant to be with me… and, when that time comes, I’ll be here… waiting for you.” His eyes had a little moisture in them. Oh, Kyle. Please don’t do this. Not tonight. I wiped the corners of his eyes and he smiled widely. “Did I tell you how much I love you today?” Am I forever doomed to be pulled back and forth?
“Kyle, you know how I feel about this. I already told you, please, seeing you like this… tears me up inside. It was so much easier when you had Brooke. I didn’t have to dwell on it much.”
“I know, baby. No worries, as I said, I love you and I’ll wait. However long it takes until you want me back.”
Jesus, this has got to stop. “What if that never happens? What then?”
“I know what I want. I’ll take my chances.”
“Whatever.”
He gave me a quick kiss and left to go change.
S
The venue was on Chalk Farm Road and Kyle ushered me in with a tight grip on my waist to an empty booth. As soon as we sat down, he excused himself to go to the bar to order some drinks. I guess part of the job was drinking, having fun and skillful negotiating abilities.
I hoped his binge drinking days wouldn’t affect him being around alcohol and drugs. The music industry was famous for that.
After that dreadful scene in his bedroom, he acted like nothing happened and I silently thanked him. We ended up ordering pizza and discussed the band that was playing. The Cold Conflict was the band’s name. We listened to their recorded songs earlier and I was impressed. They sounded like Lifehouse and Jeff Buckley put together and I was actually super excited to see them play. How great is this job? Kyle was going to talk to them after their set and hopefully sign them on at the end of the night.
The pla
ce was starting to get packed when we arrived. I guess the band was going on very soon. I checked my phone and was surprised I had five missed calls from Blake. Call him back or ignore? Do I really want to spend the next few hours wondering?
Pressing the call button, the other end started to ring. The place was starting to get noisy so I had to duck a little bit lower. I didn’t want to go outside since I was technically working and I didn’t want to take advantage of the fact that Kyle probably wouldn’t mind if I did take the call outside.
“Sienna, thank you for calling me back! I got worried when you didn’t pick up my calls.” The relief was evident in his voice and my stomach got the usual flip-flop from hearing it.
“Yeah, um… do you mind if we talk later? It’s getting really noisy in here.”
Of course, Kyle’s timing was perfect as he slid into the booth and glued himself next to me. “Who are you talking to, baby?” he yelled against my ear, loud enough for Blake to hear. The violent growl I heard at the other end of the phone made me flinch.
Fuck-fuckity-fuck.
“Baby, who’s that?”
I gave Kyle a death stare. “I’m talking to Blake.”
“Tell him I said hi. TCC will be on shortly; you should call him back later when we’re done,” he shouted over the growing noise.
“Sienna, if you hang up IT’S OVER!” Blake said with a snarl, but it cracked at the end.
Is he going to be this jealous all the time? We’ve been fighting non-stop.
“Listen, Blake, I’ll speak to you later, okay? The band’s about to start. Bye.” I ended the call without hearing his reply because I might have cracked from the pain it would have caused me.
TCC started to set-up. They were tuning and adjusting their instruments. The front man introduced himself as Will and thanked everyone for coming out before they started playing. After a couple of songs, my phone vibrated.
Message received from Blake Knightly, it said.
I opened the text and a picture downloaded. It was a picture of a beautiful woman. She had ebony hair and arched brows, creamy skin and striking blue eyes with a complimenting, seductive smile. Her pose was purely inviting to the person taking the picture; Blake. She had a red silk gown on that flaunted her boobs. The formal outdoor setting in the background suggested that they were at an event.
Who is this woman? Did she work for him? My hands shook violently as I read the message attached at the bottom.
Blake: I guess we can both have fun tonight. How about it, Sienna? She already said yes. She’s always willing and eager to be serviced by the boss.
No, no, no, no, no. My head spun. I felt sick.
I excused myself from Kyle who was giving his undivided attention to the band. He asked where I was going and I pointed at the restroom sign.
The bathroom was empty. I stood in front of the mirror for ten minutes just staring at my reflection. My mouth wobbled, yet I did not and would not cry. The message tore me to pieces, but I had the rest of the night to hold it together. If he wanted to fuck another woman, then I couldn’t stop him.
Good riddance, over-indulgent playboy!
A hysterical laugh bubbled out of me. Funny how it was just that morning he said he worshipped me in that damn card. I clasped my hands on the sink, my head bowed. I chanted in my head:
Breathe. Clear your head. Focus.
Breathe. Clear your head. Focus.
Breathe. Clear your head. Focus.
After twenty minutes in the bathroom, I decided to go back to the table before Kyle started looking for me. When he saw me, he gave me a thumbs-up and I smiled at him. The first set ended and Kyle gestured that he’d go meet the band and bring them around to the table.
I smiled at the platinum Patron sitting on the table. Bless the man who still knew my drink! I poured myself a double shot and cringed lovingly when I sucked the lemon slice.
Work face on, I commanded myself to function. Smile. They’re heading over.
It was a difficult thing to do, especially when my heart was breaking, but this was work. Not only would it be unprofessional of me to break down and cry, it would also reflect badly on Kyle.
Yeah, it was horrible, but that was life.
Chapter Fifty-Four
The band consisted of five rowdy men. They introduced themselves as Spike, Roger, Brandon, AJ and Will. Will immediately slid next to me and AJ on the other side, the rest filled in, leaving Kyle sitting on the right end.
The guys were fun to be around and, in the span of five minutes, we were all sharing jokes and laughing out loud. Everyone helped themselves to the drinks on the table. After Kyle noticed they were settling in, he shifted the conversation to business. He broke down the benefits of signing with them and the advantages and opportunities M.A.T.T. Music could provide. The guys each had their own sets of questions and Kyle responded to each one with great detail. Kyle was pretty amazing in action. I didn’t know why it never occurred to me to follow him around when he worked back in LA.
“So, Sienna, where do you come into the picture?” Will suggestively asked.
“I’ll be helping with correspondence between your lawyers and managers and confirming bookings for gigs and shows… the usual lot.”
“I like that! I like knowing that we have you on the team,” he said, winking at me.
What’s with men and their constant flirting, seriously?
“Hey! We’re up for the second set in five,” AJ, who had thick eyeliner on, announced to the group. They grumbled and slid off the booth.
“Save a dance for me later?” Will asked in a hushed tone.
“Sure,” I murmured.
Will winked at me before he took over the microphone.
“Did he just wink at you?” Kyle’s disbelieving face made me laugh.
“I don’t advise mixing business with pleasure, Sienna.” Yes, sir!
“I won’t. No need to worry about that.”
My purse taunted me, but I wasn’t going to check it, just in case there were more pictures waiting to be opened.
I poured myself a couple more shots before TCC ended their second set. Everyone applauded and hollered at them. They were pretty great.
The music changed into upbeat dance music and people started to fill the tiny space that was the dance floor. Will came over immediately after exiting the stage and we both agreed we’d take a shot before dancing.
Dancing with him was lively and entertaining. I was having so much fun that we ended up dancing to three songs. When we got back to the table, the men agreed to sign, but needed their manager to speak to Kyle about money. Kyle was ecstatic and promised to call their manager the next morning and hopefully, by Monday, the contract would be drafted if all went according to plan.
With business out of the way, everyone relaxed. Kyle excused both of us with the reason of “work” and needing to talk outside.
My lungs happily welcomed the fresh air. I was tipsy and buzzing quite nicely, just what I needed.
Kyle pulled me to the other side of the building that had fewer people chatting and hanging about. “You okay, baby?” He caressed my cheek softly.
“Yep, I’m stupendous!” He pulled my body closer to him and his warmth felt comforting.
You’ve really lost your marbles. I closed my eyes, feeling the hot, coursing effect of the alcohol in my body.
Blake. Blake. Blake.
My mind was fighting the images of Blake and the woman flashing in my head.
Kyle captured my mouth softly. His kiss was gentle and not fevered or demanding like Blake’s. I sighed softly as Kyle’s smell penetrated my nostrils. It reminded me of high school, the beach and yesteryears.
He closed in on me and pushed me gently against the wall. He cupped my breast and squeezed it. That instantly made me snap my eyes open. Don’t do this to yourself. Walk away before it gets messier.
Think. Brain. Think.
I placed a hand on Kyle’s chest. “I can’t do this with you right now.
I’m sorry. We’ll talk about it soon, but not tonight.”
“Does it have anything to do with Blake?” he hissed. He was grinding his teeth so loudly it made me cringe.
“Possibly. I’ll call you, okay? I’m going to go home. I don’t feel too well.”
I kissed him on the cheek before he pulled me to him, gave me a tight hug and told me again how much he loved me. He wanted to get me a cab, but I convinced him I needed a minute or two to clear my head. He finally agreed and went back inside where TCC was waiting for him to party with them.
Leaning against the building, I closed my eyes. How about I just go home and wallow? Maybe I can drink myself to sleep then I wouldn’t have to think at all.
“Sienna, is that you? It is you; what’s wrong? Did that man do something to get you upset?” My eyes flickered to life, looking for the owner of that voice. It didn’t sound familiar to me.
“It’s Troy, from Chad’s photo shoot Thursday.” Oh, yeah.
“Hey! Fancy seeing you here! And no that man didn’t get me upset, there’s just so much going on with life, that’s all.” I looked down and studied my black lacquered nails.
“Let’s get you some good food then you can spill your problems, deal?”
Boy, that made me smile. “You’re crazy! Go back to your friends, Troy.”
“I’m not leaving you when you’re sad. Let’s walk to the place. It’s only a couple of blocks and you can make a decision then if you want to go in or not. How’s that sound?”
“Okay, deal.” He doesn’t even know me and yet he’s willing to listen to my problems? That’s odd and unexpectedly very sweet of him.
We were both consumed with our own thoughts as we walked. He stopped outside a pub, hands in his pockets. “What’s it going to be, Sienna?
“What the hell. I don’t want go home this early anyway.”
We ordered hamburger sliders, fish and chips, beer for him and a margarita for me. I didn’t realize how hungry I was until after the food was set on the table. We talked, ate a bit, drank some and talked some more.
