by Mimi Milan
I wouldn’t mind being taken in by someone like you.
The thought flashed so quickly that he hardly had time to process how he felt. He was here to think about his music – not women.
Well… not this woman.
He cleared his throat, suddenly serious. “Honestly, I just think this would be something good for both of us. You have a beautiful, unique voice and we’d sound great together. Jimmy and I are both sure album sales would be substantial.”
“Not to mention the downloads for individual tracks,” Jimmy added.
Eddie nodded. “Exactly. The revenue for that alone could change the tide for both of us. So what do you say?”
Rachel mulled it over for a moment. “Truthfully? I was kind of kicking myself for not having said yes to begin with. I guess I was disappointed about not being invited to go on the road. The more I think about it, though, the more it makes sense that kind of life isn’t for me anyway. I mean, I’ve got the family business to run. I can’t exactly take off whenever I feel like – even if it would be nice now and then. So, yeah. If this is as close to my dream I come, then I’ll take it. I’ll record with you.”
“Great!” Eddie pumped a fist in the air. He gave Jimmy an “I told you so” look. The manager only rolled his eyes. Eddie ignored him. “Follow me. This is a fast business – especially since the studio is charging us double since we booked it last minute.”
“Why did you book it last minute?” she asked.
“I wasn’t planning on recording anything new.” A provocative grin appeared and he continued in sing-song response in the same tune as his hit, “ and then I met you.”
Rachel bit back a smile. When his expression grew serious again, she did too. “Okay. Lead the way.”
He and Jimmy escorted the women to the studio, Jimmy inviting Luciana to a chair in the control room where a sound mixer waited.
“Come on in,” Eddie welcomed Rachel into the live room, his voice sullen even to his own ears. He couldn’t explain his sudden shift in mood. He should have felt more elated, and on one level he kind of did. After all, he was getting his way – as was Jimmy, who insisted people would think he was taking advantage of a disabled veteran should they be on the road together. At the same time, Rachel wanted this kind of life and it was out of her reach. He felt bad she couldn’t really live her dreams.
“Okay. We can skip the sound check since Jimmy already handled that for us earlier,” Eddie spoke as he stepped up to one mic and picked up a pair of headphones that looked slightly different from the second pair. He began to attach them to Rachel’s wrists. “The studio had a pair of these on hand. That’s why we chose to record here. They’re a set of phones capable of converting the music into vibrations. Of course, you can have the regular ones if you prefer.”
“You did this for me?” Rachel examined the phones he gave her. “Thank you. That was nice of you to go the extra mile like that.”
“No era nada.” Eddie shrugged, suddenly appearing embarrassed. “I just thought it might be something you’d like.”
“I do. Actually, I like them both. I think I’ll use them both, too.”
All business again, Eddie straightened up. He handed her the headset. “Here you go. That is what we’re singing.”
He pointed to a songbook on a stand in front of the mic. Rachel slipped the second headset on and then ran a finger across the sheet of music before her. She slowly nodded. “I can sing this.”
“Okay. Feel up to a practice run?”
“Sure.”
Eddie picked up his own set of headphones. “Remember, just come in on the changes marked for your part.”
“Okay.”
Eddie slipped into his spot in front of the mic and signaled both the sound engineer and Jimmy that they were ready. The music began. It was one of Eddie’s favorite – a slow Mexican ballad they had translated into English during a trip to Mexico a few months earlier. It was the first visit to his ancestral origins and the experience had left him overwhelmed. The food was nothing like the stuff served up in Mexican restaurants back in the states, which mostly consisted of Mexican American dishes. Nothing wrong with that, of course. It was just… different.
The people were different, too. Back home, he lived in a condo where he barely knew his neighbors. Well, that wasn’t entirely true. He knew one of them from a brief, passionate encounter. However, she kind of wrote him off when he couldn’t remember her name the next morning. The other neighbor? Some doctor who thought he was too good to acknowledge a greeting even if he was stuck in the elevator with you. Mexico had been different. He could walk down the street and complete strangers didn’t only nod, but they would invite him to sit and even have a drink with them. Talk about hospitality!
The music began and Eddie nodded at Rachel. She nodded back and he turned to the mic, his mind melting into the music. He sang through the first verse, glancing over at Rachel when the chorus began. She joined in as marked, her voice like shattered crystal at a black tie event, drawing attention from everyone in the room. It made him want to dig deeper.
Give more.
AN HOUR LATER, they were coming to the end of their fourth track. With all the work she haddone on the farm, Rachel hadn’t expected to feel this winded just from singing. Still, it was a good feeling. She was having the time of her life. Her verse ending, she turned to watch Eddie. Smiling seductively, he drew in a long breath. His eyes were full of expectancy as he crooned a slow, smooth note. The weight of his gaze grew heavy; the air between them thick with yearning as if the romantic ballad had been born out of the passionate tune they shared.
Was it her imagination, or were they standing closer together than when they first started? She once again joined in and the distance between them seemed to wane as they ended on a final harmonious note. The music faded, but the emotion she felt swelled.
Eddie apparently felt the same. He let out a slow, shaky breath. “You’re beautiful. I mean, that was beautiful.”
A flush of heat rushed to her face. She quickly glanced down, hopeful he hadn’t noticed. She wasn’t used to men casually flirting with her. Even when she was in the army, the men showed her no romantic interest and plenty of respect – much more so than the high school boyfriend who had tried to force himself on her, or Andy Thompson who wanted to steal her farm. Perhaps it had something to do with most of the men in her company having known her brother, or known of him in some way. Even the small amount of joshing she got from the comrades who were attracted to her was little more than sparks that quickly fizzled. But this?
She looked back up. Which one of them was doing the leaning? He was so close, she could feel the warmth of his breath. Just a few more inches and…
His gaze shifted. Then he completely turned away. That’s when she felt the vibration on her wrist. She hadn’t heard even a slight buzz in her ear, though, and knew the power must have been cut off. She looked up towards the control room and saw Jimmy signaling to them.
He gave a “thumbs up” and then circled his finger in the air. It was a wrap.
Eddie slipped his headphones off. She followed suit.
“Time to pack up and move along.”
Move along?
She deflated over the idea of him leaving so soon. “Wow. You weren’t kidding about this being a fast business. We just recorded and now you’ve got to head out?”
Eddie smiled sadly. “Yeah, it’s kind of like that – especially when you’re first starting out and trying to make a name for yourself. Besides having to worry about the hourly charge on the studio, we were only in town for a couple of days. Plus, I have a gig in Florida coming up. Jimmy thinks we might have to cut our time here short – save on hotel costs.”
Rachel schooled her expressions. Eddie had never said he was going to stay. If anything, it was the exact opposite. She always knew he would be leaving. She would not allow herself to feel disappointed about it now. Instead, she nodded her understanding. “True. You are on tour after al
l.”
“Right,” he agreed. A trace of sadness tinged his eyes and the very air that had seemed charged between them just moments earlier suddenly felt stale.
Rachel cleared her throat. “So I think that calls for a celebration!”
Eddie suddenly perked up. “A celebration?”
“Yes,” she insisted. “You will come over this evening and enjoy some real Southern hospitality… and food… the only way you can find it here in North Carolina.”
Eddie hooted and clapped his hands.
“Yeah, let’s do it!” He tapped the mic to test if it was still on. “Did you hear that Jimmy? Party at Rachel’s.”
Grinning, she looked up to catch Jimmy’s response. He appeared less than enthused.
“What’s wrong with him?”
Eddie shook his head. “That’s the difference between musicians and managers – only one of us knows how to have a good time. Don’t worry about it, though. He’ll be cool.”
He began packing up his equipment. Rachel glanced back up at Jimmy one last time, an uneasy sensation filling her. When she caught his eye, he smiled in a way that didn’t seem quite right before turning away and engaging with the sound manager.
She focused on Eddie again. “Okay. Well, I guess I better go and get things ready. I still have a couple of things to get done around the place.”
He clicked shut the case to his amplifier. “Or I can go with you and help out.”
“What? Are you serious?”
“Of course, I am. You didn’t think I expected you to wait on me. Did you?”
“I guess I kind of thought you would just swing by in a couple of hours.”
“Are you kidding? Surely by now you’ve realized that I’m the sort of guy who likes adventures,” he grinned wildly, “and I plan on experiencing at least some of what North Carolina has to offer before I leave.”
“What could you possibly experience at Linden Land?”
A mischievous look shone in his eyes. “Don’t you have a cow?”
She hesitated, not entirely following his line of thinking. “Um… yeah.”
“Great!” he said. “Then I want to learn how to milk one.”
Startled with shock, she stared at him. Then laughed louder than she had in a long time. “City boy, if you’re wanting to learn how to become a farmer, then you’ve come to the right place. I’ll teach you how to milk a cow. It’s the least I can do after the experience you’ve given me today.”
“Awesome. Give me a minute to finish packing up, and we’ll head over to your place.”
“It’s a deal,” she said and held a hand out for him to shake, forcing herself to ignore the spark that surged up her arm when he touched her.
8
“So what did you think?” Eddie asked after Rachel climbed off the tour bus.
“I think I’m glad I rode with Luciana so that I could have an excuse to ride back home with you.”
Eddie chuckled. “Yeah, that’s one of the things I like most about touring – the bus. It might not be as fancy as some, but it’s still a pretty cool ride. The only thing better is my ’67 Mustang.”
“Oh, yeah?” She moseyed through the flower garden and grabbed hold of a sunflower. Pulling a Swiss Army knife from her pocket, she cut it. “What color is she?”
“The car?” Eddie grinned. He ran a hand over some of the flowers. “Cherry red, of course.”
“What’s her name?”
“Uh… I appreciate cars, but I’m not a fanatic.”
“That’s okay. Cherry red? You’re still one of the bad boys.” Rachel playfully swatted him with the flower.
He smiled at her attempt to flirt.
“Only sometimes.” His hand shot out and caught the long green stem. He gently pulled on it, and in the process pulled her a little closer. His playfully asked, “Is that for me?”
Her breath caught and for a moment he could see the same desire he felt reflected in her expression. He knew he was playing with fire – teasing her like this. Aside from possible career suicide if things turned sour between them, it wasn’t fair for her either. Always on the road, women constantly throwing themselves at him… and the way he hunted them down, too? He wasn’t exactly relationship material. In fact, he wasn’t even sure if he could be faithful to just one woman. He had never been in a serious relationship before.
And what was he doing thinking about having one now? He shouldn’t even be toying with the idea. Still, there he was, positive he could drown in her gaze if he stared at her long enough. The way she looked right now, here in this welcoming country garden with the wind blowing through her coppery hair, made him think of the home he had always wanted. He leaned a little closer and her eyes grew wide. She quickly looked away.
“It’s for my mother.”
The magic between them swiftly fizzled. He released the flower and stepped back, casually shrugging. “Of course it is.”
“She loves sunflowers and I thought I’d pick one as a way of saying ‘thank you’ for watching the cat.”
Eddie grimaced. “You make it sound like a difficult task.”
“Are you kidding?” she continued. “He’s cute and all, but something of a hell raiser too. In addition to clawing the couch, he’s decided he doesn’t like using the litter box. Then I had to shut him out of my room last night, because he kept playing with my hair while I slept.”
Eddie groaned. “So much for trying to right wrongs. I guess a cat wasn’t the best gift I could’ve gotten after all, huh?””
“Don’t be too hard on yourself.” She sauntered through the garden and he followed, towards the house. They climbed the front porch steps and she reached to open the door. “Like I said, he’s cute – even angelic once he falls asleep. It’s just something about—”
Door ajar, a fluff of fur shot past her. Her mother, a wet mess of soapy suds, came running out. She skid to a stop between Rachel and Eddie. “Jumping Jehoshaphat! That cat is a real pisser.”
Eddie snorted. Rachel’s eyes grew wide. “Mom!”
“What? It ain’t like I cussed. Besides, it’s true. That cat has peed in just about every corner of this house.” She planted two gloved fists on her hips and huffed. “I think there’s something wrong with him.”
“I’ll take him down to Doc’s in the morning,” Rachel said.
“Honey, can’t you just do it now? Please? You know he takes walk-ins. And I’d hate for Mr. Kitty to be living with something sick if that’s what’s going on – not to mention I’d rather him stop using the bathroom all over my house.”
Both Eddie and Rachel looked back to where the cat had fled. He sat perched on the lowest branch of an old oak. Eddie shoved his hands in his pockets, fighting to keep the disappointment out of his voice. “I’ll go with you.”
“You sure?”
“Yeah, I’m sure. It’s mostly—”
The look on both women’s faces stopped him.
“Okay, it’s completely and irrevocably my fault that this mess happened to begin with.”
Rachel grinned. “It’s okay. I think mom is kind of getting used to him considering the fact he now has a name.”
“Mr. Kitty?” he asked Mrs. Linden.
“Seemed as good a name as any. Speaking of names,” she held her hand out, “mine is Mrs. Linden.”
They shook hands. Eddie shot an accusing look at Rachel. “Well, I’m glad someone likes the cat.”
She snickered and then finally admitted. “He really is a good tom.”
“Indeed he is,” Mrs. Linden said. “He just needs a little convincing.”
She patted Eddie’s face and then winked at her daughter before reentering the house.
“What was that all about?” Eddie asked.
Rachel only shrugged.
TWO HOURS LATER, the sun was fading into an evening sky of pink and purple hues as they climbed into Rachel’s truck with Mr. Kitty.
“Wow. A urinary tract infection? I can’t believe your mother was righ
t.” Eddie buckled up his seatbelt.
“Yeah, I guess that comes from running a farm. You get to know animals.” Rachel smiled and turned to him. “By the way, thank you for footing the bill. You really didn’t have to.”
“Are you kidding? It was the least I could do. It was never my intention to give you a sick cat.”
“I know that,” Rachel said. “I wouldn’t have pegged you for the cruel and unusual type.”
“No?” Eddie grinned. He folded his arms across his chest. “Then what type would you have pegged me for?”
Rachel shrugged. “Honestly? I don’t know. Certainly not the mean type, but also not the kind of guy who would be interested in milking a cow when he could get his milk from a carton much faster. That is, if you even drink milk at all. Seem more like a beer bud kind of guy.”
Eddie hesitated. “Yeah… I guess you’re right about that. I can’t really remember the last time I drank milk – from a cow or carton.”
“Then why did you want me to teach you how to milk a cow? And don’t say it was for the experience, please.” Rachel quickly added.
He studied her for a moment. Did he dare say how he really felt?
“Well, I wasn’t lying when I said I wanted the experience. You don’t exactly get to do stuff like that where I’m from.”
She waited for him to continue when he fell silent.
“And I guess I kind of sort of wanted to get to spend a little more time with you, too.”
Her eyes lit up. “Yeah?”
He nodded. “Even though I know it’s probably a bad idea. Even though I know I shouldn’t want to – that it could be a real career killer.”
“Why?”
“Think about it, Rachel. If things ended badly between us, then my career could hit a real sour note. People might try to accuse me of taking advantage of you because you’re… well, you know… different.” Eddie tried to sound convincing, but the words felt hallow.
