by Anthology
He smiled and as he moved his hand away, letting his thumb lightly caress her cheek. “No need to apologize. There’s nothing wrong with ambition and pride in your work. I find it admirable.” He stared into her eyes a moment longer before he opened the car door and stepped out, once again holding his hand out for hers.
She took it, glad for the distraction and being able to put some distance between them. She swore to herself under her breath that she had better get it together. While he had stared into her eyes, she had been drawn into the depths of them and caught herself leaning in to kiss him.
Losing her mind, that’s what was happening. All this sea air and the glamour was making her absolutely insane. She was here to pitch her idea to this musician, who happened to be famous, loved by millions and probably desired by just as many. And who was she? A simple horse rancher, definitely not world renown or lusted after. He must have women throwing themselves at his feet. She needed to focus on what brought her here, her future with her horses, especially now that she knew her marriage was ending. Her heart dropped at the thought of Kip, and she felt a slight panic as she realized she would have to hire a divorce attorney and all of the subsequent costs that would probably accrue. She needed this to happen with Grayson’s music more than ever, her ranch depended on it.
“Rebecca, are you all right? I seem to have lost you there.” Luke asked teasingly.
She smiled at him as she got out of the car, forcing herself to ignore the heat and sparks she felt coming from their touch. “Yes, fine, thank you. Just going over figures in my head.” she explained.
He frowned slightly before placing his hand on her lower back to guide her in the right direction. “Do you always have a one-track mind or do you ever just let yourself loose and play?”
“I play!” she stammered, surprised by his question.
He smirked as he opened a side door and guided her in. “When was the last time you played?”
“I played just before I flew out here.” she stated.
“I meant without your horses, something not work related. And be honest.”
She chewed at her bottom lip trying to remember a time but was only able to recall her and Kip’s honeymoon. Even then, they had both worked on their laptops from the beach in Florida and had actually cut their trip short by three days, both anxious to get back to their work.
“I take it from your silence that you can’t recall anything?” He teased as he stopped in front of a glass office door and grabbed the handle but didn’t open the door. He turned and faced her instead, his face inches from hers.
“We may just have to rectify that while you’re here, Rebecca.”
Her name came out in almost a whisper and she felt his warm, sweet breath flow across her face. She involuntarily licked her bottom lip as she gulped. He hesitated a moment longer before opening the door and stepping aside to allow her to enter first.
She managed to cross the threshold without stumbling and entered a huge room that was separated in the middle by a large glass wall. On the far side of the room, she could see a large piano, several microphones and various types of guitars. On the side that they’d entered, there were several chairs, a large leather sofa along the side wall and a huge table of sorts, with thousands of levers and knobs that were lit up like Rockefeller Plaza’s Christmas tree. Two men were sitting at the long table, moving and adjusting some of the controls but turned to face Luke when they heard him clear his voice.
“Boys, this is Rebecca Gordon. She’s going to be sitting in for our hour together. Rebecca, these are the boys.”
They smiled at her and nodded their heads before turning back to their sparkling table. Luke pulled out a chair for her to sit in then patted her shoulder. “Sit back and relax. Hopefully you’ll enjoy yourself.” He crossed the room and opened another door that led to the other side of the room. He made his way to the piano and sat down, placing a set of headphones over his ears.
She heard his voice come through the speakers, asking them if they were ready. He started playing, his fingers moving gracefully over the keys, gliding and flowing, producing a beautiful soft melody. She was mesmerized by the sight and sound of him, the art that he was creating with his voice and his hands was breathtaking. When he started playing his second song, her body broke out in goosebumps. She heard the dulcet tones of his voice and she understood Megan’s infatuation; he was seductive, both vocally and visually. She found herself physically responding to him. His eyes were alive with the emotions the lyrics of the song spoke of, closing with apparent sadness and despair when the song’s loved one went away. His body tensed and relaxed as his fingers flew magically over the piano, every part of him moving and reacting to the music.
She was wondering about the woman who was the object of the song when she realized the song had ended and Luke had started another song, faster and more upbeat. As he sang of seducing a tantalizing woman on the dance floor, he caught her eye and quickly winked. She felt the heat rise to her face and knew she was blushing. He grinned devilishly, dimples flashing as he continued to sing. She glanced over at the “boys” to see if they were laughing at her but saw they were too engrossed with their alien dashboard to have seen the exchange.
She was surprised by how fast the hour went, enjoying the music and the camaraderie between everyone as they joked and bantered with each other in between songs or when Luke messed up. She had been careful to avoid his eyes, uncomfortable with her own attraction to him and trying to remind herself that she was a married woman but the vision of Kip poised over the brunette at his office kept flashing into her mind.
As Luke came out of the sound booth, both control guys started talking to him, asking about band scheduling, recording times and remixes. She stood up when he waved to her and indicated that they were leaving, answering their questions and explaining he couldn’t stay any longer today. He opened the door for her, waving a hand goodbye over his back as he shut the door on the still talking men.
She jumped a little when he grabbed her hand and slid it through the crook of his arm, his touch sending warm tingles throughout her body.
He sensed her shiver and squeezed her arm, pulling her closer to his body. He knew she wasn’t chilly, the warm California air surrounded them, but he used the excuse to get her closer to him. He’d watched her while he sang and felt slight disappointment when she avoided his eyes. He had been thrilled at her reaction when he had winked at her, the rosy color that filled her cheeks complimented her. He decided that she wouldn’t have blushed if she hadn’t felt something between them as he had. The fact that she had avoided his gaze after that showed him she either wasn’t interested or she didn’t know how to deal with her feelings. He hoped it was the later. Now, as they walked side by side, he felt her body tense, on guard.
“I can turn up the heat once we get in the car, if you’d like.”
She wasn’t sure if the slightly provocative tone was truly in his voice or if she was just imagining it, so she looked up at him to see if his face revealed anything. Instantly she knew it was a mistake, his green eyes already on her face, flicking to her lips. She felt herself moving closer to him, her resolve to stay focused on business diminishing, her desire to kiss him overwhelming. When she saw him lean down towards her, she started to close her eyes and the earth suddenly rushed up to meet her. She vaguely felt the pain in her wrist and knee as the concrete scraped off the skin, the embarrassment of tripping and falling taking the majority of her attention.
“Oh my God, Rebecca! Are you alright?” Luke was already scooping her up into his arms and she cringed at the concern in his voice.
“I’m fine, really, just super mortified right now.” she stammered, trying to regain any dignity that she had left. “You can put me down now.”
“But you’re bleeding. Here, we’re almost to the car, and then I’ll get you some medical attention.”
“No!” she yelped, not wanting to waste her business trip in a doctor’s office. “I’ll
be fine, if we could just go to your office, I’ll freshen up in the bathroom and I can get started on my proposition.” She caught the gleam in his eye and quickly corrected herself. “My business proposition.”
He smiled and gently slid her into the backseat of the car, his face once again inches from hers. “Of course, Rebecca. I knew exactly what you meant.” He closed the door, sliding close to her and told the driver to head home. When she started to protest, he placed his hand on her uninjured knee. “Relax, that’s where my office is. I promise.”
He grinned again as he sat back and watched her take in the scenery. She was so intriguing and he didn’t understand exactly why. She was pretty, but not stunning as were the women he was usually attracted to. She was smart, held intelligent conversation but was married, though not happily. She wasn’t built like the models and actresses he normally dated. The models and actresses he dated were usually tall and very slender, size two or zero. Rebecca was tall but definitely not a size zero, more like a twelve if he had to guess. What he found nice was that she didn’t look like she would break if he hugged her too hard. And her legs, God, her legs went on forever and were exquisitely shaped. But it was her eyes that was his undoing. Every time she looked at him, he felt he could get lost in the depths of them and he had difficulty tearing his gaze away from them.
He hoped that if he could figure her out, he would be able to control or eliminate his feelings of infatuation for her. The way things stood right now for him, the thought of her flying back to Colorado actually caused a pain in his chest. He had to have more time with her to figure out the mystery of her and put it to rest. He would make it his priority to delay her departure for as long as possible. He wasn’t due to go on the road for a couple of days and the songs he was working on in the studio were just in the beginning stages, his next album not due for release for another sixteen months. The timing was perfect though not completely unplanned.
His managers had approached him months ago about a horsewoman who had wanted to use one of his songs for a performance. He had, at the time, waved them off, telling them to use their judgment on whether she could use his song or not. He received thousands of requests every year for some organization or another to use his music and management always dealt with it. This time, Patrick Johnson, his close manager, had forgotten the demo DVD on Luke’s desk. It became mixed up with Luke’s stuff and Luke ended up taking it home. He had come across it one night while trying to work on a song, the words being frustratingly elusive to the music he had already finished in his head. After spending two hours trying to force the lyrics and a couple of glasses of wine, he picked up the DVD and popped it in his player. He recognized his song, Love Everlasting, immediately and sat back to watch the woman ride an extremely large and beautiful horse to his music. Within a few bars, he was completely mesmerized.
He knew the horse had to have been trained to perform the movements it was doing but it actually looked like the animal was dancing to his song, its rider gliding along with it, beat for beat. It was beautiful and magical. He watched it the first time, fascinated by the horse’s movement but watched it the second and third time, drawn to the woman who guided the horse through its paces. She looked like an ethereal being, astride her massive steed, creating a visual dream. He knew by the end of the night he had to meet the woman who made his music come alive with a horse’s dance.
He’d called Patrick the next day and told him he wanted to meet the woman who requested his song. Patrick had been surprised when Luke had made the request because Luke had never wanted to meet them before but he quickly agreed, knowing that Luke Grayson always got his way.
Grayson made it clear that he didn’t want the woman to know that the meeting would be with him. He wanted her to think that she would be meeting his personnel and he had enjoyed her look of surprise at lunch when she realized it was him instead. As they shared their lunch, he found her even more intriguing in person than she had been in the DVD. As their afternoon progressed, he wanted to learn more about her but he felt her wall of defense go up and knew he had to handle her with kid gloves. She was skittish and ready to bolt yet he wasn’t ready to let her leave.
Luke Grayson was quiet during their ride to his office and she began to worry that her attraction to him had screwed up her chances of using his music. What a dolt she had been to get caught up in his singing and friendly conversation. To actually think that he had been flirting with her, then to trip and fall showed her that she wasn’t focusing on her priority. She had to pull it together and close this deal, her future depended on it. Even now, he was probably thinking of what an idiot she was and of how to end this meeting as quickly and tactfully as he could. She could salvage this though. She was a fighter, she could do it. She found a Kleenex in her purse and dabbed at her bloody knee before clearing her throat.
“Mr. Grayson, if you would like, I can tell you my business plan now so I don’t take up any more of your time. I’m sure you have better things to do and I can just catch a taxi back to my motel when we’re done.”
He turned to look at her and she found her mouth go dry and the words strangle in her throat as his hypnotic green eyes gazed into hers. “Grayson or Luke if you prefer, Rebecca. Are you trying to get rid of me already?”
“Mr. um, Luke, um, Grayson.” she stammered, tingles still flowing through her body. “No, of course not. I just thought with your schedule…”
“My schedule is right on track, but thank you for considering it. I have everything under control and we can talk business soon. Do you mind if we take care of some things first? Just some minor things I need to wrap up. I’m very interested in your style of riding and would like to hear more about it and I’ll be able to focus easier if these things are not hanging over my head.” he smiled charmingly.
“Of course. I’m here to tell you anything you need to know.” she grinned back, thrilled that he was interested in her riding.
“Anything?” The suggestive tone in his voice caught her off guard and she felt her body tense and her face flush. “Relax, Rebecca. I’m teasing you.” he laughed.
She tittered lightly and looked away, nervously avoiding his eyes which caused her to lose focus too easily.
“Ah, here we are.” he chuckled, knowing he had her on edge.
She watched in awe as large, iron gates swung in towards the property. The driveway wound and disappeared into a forest of gigantic leafy trees. As they continued up the drive, the trees ended and acres of lush, green manicured lawn took their place. A large lake on the left side had a spouting fountain and a pair of swans and several ducks played and splashed in the waterfall. A rainbow formed by the falling water created a postcard picture, including a pair of white stone benches that lined the water’s edge. The cement drive turned into reddish cobblestone and around the next bend, a large mansion came into view. The driveway circled around a second pond, with an equally impressive water feature, that sat in front of the house.
The house was huge, similar to those featured in Megan’s celebrity magazines. The stone exterior was grayish white and large, floor to ceiling windows reflected the California sun. The flower beds along the walkway created a colorful pattern that was as visually appealing as the rest of the property.
The car stopped and Grayson climbed out of the car and held his hand out for her. She accepted it and gingerly stepped out, her knee protesting at the weight she put on it. When she stumbled slightly, he quickly wrapped his arms around her and she found herself dangerously close to him. His scent was intoxicating and an inferno of heat exploded in her body. She ignored the pain and pushed herself away from him.
“I’m alright, just a little stiff.” she tried to explain but again avoided meeting his eyes.
“Of course. Let’s get you cleaned up and something for the pain. Will you be okay going up the stairs?” He tenderly placed his hand at the base of her waist and the scent of lilacs filled his nose. He realized it was coming from her hair, most likely her sha
mpoo and he found it alluring.
“Yes, I’ll be fine.” she began up the stairs in her haste to move from his touch then realized her knee wouldn’t cooperate. She paused and allowed him to help her up the stairs, then waited for him to unlock the door.
He quickly moved past her and pushed the buttons into the security pad. He opened the door and stepped aside, sweeping his arm in a grand gesture. “Home sweet home.”
She stepped into a marble-floored entryway and felt her heart jump. The foyer was almost as large as her home and was open to the second level above. Two grand staircases swept up on both sides and a large waterfall gracefully flowed down the wall in between them. Large hallways flanked either side of the foyer; beautiful paintings hung the walls, with floor to ceiling windows lined in between.
“It’s absolutely gorgeous.” she whispered.
“I like it.” he replied, and then moved towards the hallway to the left. “Do you want to go to my office or take a tour first?”
Fighting her desire to see the incredible home, she knew she should stay focused. “I’d love to see your home and I thank you for your hospitality but maybe we should just focus on the business.” She heard him sigh and became instantly worried that she had insulted him. Here he was, meeting with her in person and he obviously wanted to show her his home and she snubbed him. God, could she screw this up anymore? She had to try and fix this.
“Um, if you have the time, I guess it wouldn’t hurt to take the time…” she tried to amend her rudeness.
“No, you’re right. We’ll get down to business.” He answered slightly short.
He heard the shortness in his tone and cursed himself for it but he couldn’t help himself. Any other woman he brought home had been in awe, barely able to contain themselves, racing from one room to another. Obviously she wasn’t impressed with it at all. She didn’t care for material things and that made her more of a mystery. He led her to his office and escorted her to a chair before he walked into the bathroom to get a washcloth and ointment for her wounds.
