And he knew that she wasn’t for him.
“Brian? Are you okay?” Her voice was full of concern as she laid one perfectly pampered hand on his arm as she studied his face.
He blinked. “What? Oh.” A sheepish smile appeared on his face. “Sorry, Leighanne. I’m okay. I just spaced off for a sec.”
“Are you getting enough sleep?” She peered into his face, searching for signs of exhaustion in his blue eyes.
Brian shrugged. “Probably not. This merger and everything involved is causing me stress and sleepless nights. The transition is just taking more out of me than the actual merger did.”
“Well, if it makes you feel better, I’m still handling all of the details of our wedding,” Leighanne reminded him. “Unless, of course, there’s something specific you wanted.”
His wedding. Every time he thought of getting married to Leighanne Wallace, his gut clenched. Painfully. As ridiculous as it was, the marriage was another by-product of the merger. The Apollus family had always hoped that Brian would marry James’ cousin, Leighanne, and they’d found the merger to be the perfect tool to force him into it. He could’ve said no, Brian reminded himself. But then his father’s company would be taking a nosedive, and he didn’t want everything his late father had worked for to go down the drain. The move to Apollus had been smart, and he’d just have to suck it up and marry Leighanne.
Now, she wore his ring and, pretty as you please, was gracefully eating her lunch. His own was sitting, neglected, in front of him as he wondered why things needed to be so complicated. It should’ve been a simple matter to work with his best friend, but he wished marriage hadn’t been included under the conditions of the contract. It was too sixteenth century to be real, and yet it was.
Leighanne wasn’t so bad, he told himself. She knew why he was marrying her and was still making things easier for him. She really was a terrific person, and their life would be great.
So why did he feel like he’d jumped into the deep end of the pool without learning to swim?
“Brian?”
He sat up. “I’m sorry. Really. I’m paying attention here.” He flashed a smile before digging back into his pasta. “I think you’ll do a great job of making our wedding perfect. I trust you.”
Her smile was beautiful. “Thank you. It means a lot that you would think that. I know all of this is so strange, but I’m really pleased that you and I are getting married. You’re a wonderful man, Brian.”
He tried not to squirm. “Thanks, Leigh. I’m glad we’re getting married, too.”
In three months.
“Dude. I don’t know what the hell crawled up her ass, but she’s been nuts lately.” Nick popped M&Ms in his mouth as he waited for AJ to finish his coffee. “All I did was change one chord in her song, and she goes crazy. Now, she’s refusing to show up for a session until next week. Apollo’s not paying her to sit on her ass this week. I need her to work!”
AJ McLean rolled his eyes and, drinking down the last of the coffee, threw out the cup before turning to Nick. “Relax, Nickolas. She’s Bryna Chambers. She might be mad, she may have threatened, but she’ll be here. Just watch. She’s nothing if not prompt and a perfectionist.”
“I sure as hell hope so because I’ve gotta get another track out of her for that new guy you just helped James sign last week.” Nick pushed away from the wall he’d been leaning on and fell into step with AJ. “I don’t do R&B tracks, and the majority of my guys are rock or pop oriented. Bryna’s got R&B down pat.”
“Bryna’s got everything down pat.” AJ pressed the button for the elevator. “Maybe you shouldn’t have insulted her.”
Nick choked on his candy as AJ stepped onto the elevator. “What? I didn’t insult her! I just suggested that she change…Forget it. She better be here.”
AJ shook his head and waited for the elevator to transport them to the twenty-ninth floor where his talent search offices were. At twenty-eight, he was the youngest director that the department had seen, but his finds were solid gold and made Apollo Records millions of dollars. Besides, it helped that he’d been friends with James Apollus for years. And speaking of the man…
“I like this one, Alex.” James spun himself in the iridescent blue desk chair. In true AJ style, it was covered with flames and dragons and succeeded in raising eyebrows. His day was never complete until he’d raised at least a few.
“Thanks. It just came in yesterday, so if you break it, you buy it,” he replied as he grabbed a file off his desk and flipped through it. “What’s up with you? Not enough going on upstairs?”
James shrugged. “There’s a hell of a lot to do, but I’m feeling restless.” He looked over as Nick strolled in. “Am I paying you to lounge, Carter?”
Nick grinned. “Nope, but I bet you’re not paying yourself to lounge either, right?”
“Shut up.” He suppressed his own grin before turning back to AJ. “So, as I was saying.”
“You’re feeling restless and blah blah blah,” AJ answered absently. “Listen, I’ve got an artist coming in soon. If you want a heart to heart, do it fast. Unlike the lazy ass over there,” he jerked a finger in Nick’s direction, “I’ve got actual work to do.”
Before Nick could protest, James nodded. “Cool. The super fast version then. I need a life, guys.”
He had their attention now. “Pardon me?” AJ was definitely confused. “You’re Mr. Multimillion-dollar Man. You own this company, run it, and everything. You’ve gotten this year’s hottest bachelor award in People Magazine, got women fawning all over you, and you’re complaining that you need a life?”
“Yeah.” James nodded. “That sums it up. I want to have fun again. All I do is work. Same with Brian. We need lives.”
Nick frowned. “Why are you asking AJ for help? He doesn’t have a life either.”
“I’m happily married, Nick. I’ve got a baby on the way.” AJ shot him a look. “I have a life, thank you very much.”
“Kyra should’ve married me,” Nick teased him. “You’re a workaholic, and I’d be able to give her plenty of TLC.”
AJ rolled his eyes. “Get off it, Nick. She’s practically your sister. You can’t even think a dirty thought about her.”
“True.”
“Guys?” James waved a hand. “Can we get back to me now?”
“Yes?” AJ suppressed the urge to sigh. He was going to be so late for the meeting. Then again, he was the director and the company president was making him late. He was bound to get off easy.
“Brian and I are in desperate need of some extracurricular activities. Know of any good ones?”
Nick cocked his head curiously. “Correct me if I’m wrong, but isn’t Brian an engaged man, now? He has all the extracurricular activity he probably wants. But you on the other hand…”
“Go to a club,” AJ told James. “Pick a woman, talk to her. If she seems good, get her number. Call her after two days. Do what you want after that.” He gathered up the materials he needed. “I’ve gotta go.”
Nick and James watched him go. “Huh. That’s not how he got Kyra,” Nick said after a moment.
“Whatever. I’ll come up with something.” James stood and skirted around the desk to join Nick as they left AJ’s office. “So, why aren’t you working?”
“Bryna.” The name was said with just enough venom to make James’ brows rise.
“Nick. We’ve been over this before. If she doesn’t come today, go over to her place and get in her face about it.” He started down the hall towards the elevator. “But I don’t think you’ll need to go see her. She’ll be here.”
But she wasn’t. Nick stared at the empty studio and suppressed the urge to kick something. Of all the stubborn, egotistical producers he’d worked with, she was starting to take the cake. In the nearly twenty years he’d known her, she’d never been this temperamental.
“Maybe something’s really wrong with her,” he muttered to himself, thinking seriously now. After all, she’d never been this out of tune before. So, he’d just have to dig her out of wherever she was and find out what was bothering her.
Bryna curled up on her couch and glanced up when the pint of Rocky Road ice cream appeared in front of her face.
“Take it. Gorge.”
She sighed and took the ice cream. “Thanks, Laurel. You didn’t have to stay home from work today to take care of me, though.”
Laurel tugged on her stepsister’s auburn hair playfully. “You were feeling pitiful, and I can’t just let you sit here by yourself feeling that way. Work can kiss my ass.”
Bryna smiled, though she knew it would cost Laurel to miss a day. Her older stepsister didn’t have much money to begin with, though, by rights, she should have inherited nearly twenty million dollars nineteen years ago. Things just had a way of not working out, and both of them knew all about that. It was why they were both living away from the lavish Caine estate.
“I love you, Laurel. I don’t think I could’ve asked for a better sister.” Bryna gripped Laurel’s hand, her deep brown eyes serious.
“Well, after Theresa, it’s a good thing you’ve got me,” Laurel replied lightly, trying not to think of Bryna’s horrendous twin. She’d been groomed to be Clarissa Chambers-Caine’s Xerox copy in every way, and Laurel found it to be in her best interest to steer clear of both women. “How’s Carter?”
Bryna shut her eyes. “I hate him. And I love him.” A frustrated sound escaped her lips. “I wish he’d get a clue. Plus, he needs to quit messing with my music. The jerk.”
“Let’s burn him in effigy. Would that make you feel better?”
Bryna sat up. “You know, I take back my earlier comment. You’re the best sister a girl could ever hope for.”
Laurel grinned. “Well, I do what I can.” At the knock on the door, she frowned. “Were you expecting someone?”
“Nope.” Bryna sighed. “And I’m not going to answer it either. Let’s make a Nick out of marshmallows, graham crackers, and chocolate. We’ll melt him and eat the bastard.”
“That’s the spirit! Except.”
“Except?”
“Chocolate’s too good for him.”
