Nick wanted to walk over there and throttle her, but he resisted. Because he knew what she was up to. Well, two could play that game, he mused. She wanted to act like she hadn’t just skipped on a week of work, that she’d just waltzed right back to work without an excuse for her behavior, well, then, he’d let her.
But, damn it, she hadn’t looked over at him once since he’d walked into the practice room where she was working with Matthew Davis on his ideas for his musical style. Matt had shot him evil glares for the past hour, but Bryna sat behind the piano and played scales and melodies, until Nick wanted to smash an anvil through the damn thing. He wanted her to be as annoyed as he was, but she didn’t seem to give a damn about him.
So he sat, and he waited.
When they took a break, Matt glared at him again and stalked over to where Nick sat next to a mini fridge full of bottled water. As he took two out, he narrowed his eyes at Nick. “Don’t you have work you should be doing, Carter?”
Nick merely folded his arms and blinked. “I’m doing it.”
“Right. Sitting here doing nothing is your job.” Matt sneered. “May we all be fortunate enough to have such leisurely occupations.”
“Matt.” Bryna stood next to the piano and shook her head. “Mr. Carter is simply supervising as it is part of his scope of work. Let’s just finish up this break and get back to work. You’re doing really well today.”
Matt smiled at her. “Of course. I got you water,” he added, moving over to her again.
Nick rolled his eyes. Oh, yeah. A bottle of water is so going to get her to fall for you. He couldn’t understand how Bryna had dealt with hours of the man nearly pawing her, but maybe she liked it, he thought viciously. She’d probably fucked the guy already between Saturday night and this morning. He wouldn’t put it past her. She was probably enjoying the way he fawned over her and lavished such…He frowned. No, actually, she probably didn’t.
He sighed as he watched her smile at Matt, though he wasn’t sure that he imagined the strain behind it. He could say a lot about Bryna, but he’d never seen her bask in the spotlight. In fact, she went out of her way to duck behind it. And the word “manipulator” was the last thing he’d ever call her because she didn’t have a single, manipulative bone in her body. As the piano began playing again, he shut his eyes and felt the first trickles of guilt and shame.
Bryna hadn’t done anything, really, to deserve the accusations and evil thoughts he kept hurling at her. In fact, she hadn’t deserved the words he’d said to her at the club, either. When he thought back to the origin of their current conflict, it had been the song she’d written for one of his favorite artists. As much as he hated to admit it, he’d been impressed by the song but had wanted to add his own touch to it. Because he’d wanted part of it to be his, he remembered. Was he really that proud that he couldn’t handle when someone else’s work was superior to his?
Okay, Nick admitted to himself, maybe he was. In which case, he couldn’t really fault Bryna for being angry that he’d switched around things in her song.
He stood up and quietly made his way past Bryna and Matt. And ignored the way Matt’s hand rested on Bryna’s shoulder as he sang along to her accompanying piano. When Matt’s eyes met his, Nick nodded at him and walked out of the room.
It was time he left her alone.
“What was the ice princess doing visiting James?” Kristin asked her husband and Brian as they stood in the elevator on their way to the café in the lobby for lunch.
Brian shrugged. “Not a clue. She was dressed to kill, though. And I meant that in as bad a way as possible.”
“I can’t imagine what she could possibly want to talk to him about,” Kevin said as they stepped off the elevator. “The woman’s never said a single thing to any of us for as long as I can remember. She didn’t even bother showing up to our wedding,” he reminded Kristin.
“Yeah, and that was surprising in itself. Our wedding had some of the wealthiest and most influential people there,” Kristin remembered. “That’s the kind of atmosphere she and the step-aunt from hell thrive in.”
Brian threw his jacket over the back of a chair at one of the small tables in the café. “Well, let’s not ruin our appetites thinking about them,” he suggested. “I, for one, am starving.” Kevin and Kristin exchanged amused glances, and the three of them went to order.
Fifteen minutes later, as they went over various artist files and paperwork and ate, Brian glanced up and noticed Nick crossing the lobby, his shoulders drooping and a frown fixed on his face. Excusing himself, Brian hurried after Nick.
When he caught up to the younger man, Nick was slouching in a bench by the fountain that stood in the Apollo plaza.
“Hey, Nick. Mind if I join you?” He fixed a smile on his face in response to Nick’s scowl.
“I’m really not in the mood for chitchat,” Nick muttered and yanked out a cigarette.
Brian plucked it out of his hands and broke it in two. “Smoking’s a disgusting habit. It’s like slowly killing yourself.” He settled down next to Nick. “So, tell me, have you seen Bryna today?”
Nick’s head whipped around to face him. “Why do you ask?”
“Oh, no reason.” Brian lifted a shoulder. “I mean, I just thought I’d go down the list of possible things that could cause you to be in such a grumpy mood.”
“And she’s number one?” Nick asked, incredulous.
Brian reached out and ran his fingers lightly through the pool of water around the fountain. “Well, seeing as that’s what was bothering you the last time we met, I thought I’d try my luck. How’d I do?” he asked, glancing over his shoulder at Nick.
“Bull’s eye.”
“That’s what I figured.” He leaned back and patted Nick’s shoulder. “Tell me what happened.”
Nick stared at a spot on the ground. “Nothing.”
“And?”
“And…And I guess that’s the point.” Nick sighed. “I was just so mad at her last week, Brian, because she’d gone off in a snit over the fact that I changed a chord in her song. She skipped an entire week, and I don’t think I’ve ever been that angry. She was at that club on Saturday night.”
“Oh.”
“Yep. I said some ugly things to her, Brian. Things I wish I hadn’t said and words that I don’t really think I meant at all.” He paused and wished he could go back and change things. “She hasn’t said a word to me today. I was still mad today, but she looked…unhappy. I don’t think I like knowing that it’s because of me.”
Brian wondered how much he could really meddle in his friends’ lives before he spoke again. “Because she’s a friend, right? That’s why you’ve always made fun of her, bothered her, and made her cry on more than one occasion, isn’t it? Because she’s a friend.”
“N-no.” Had he really done those things? Had he made her cry? The guilt he’d been feeling tripled as he realized that it was probably the truth. “I didn’t realize I’d…God, Brian, I didn’t realize I’d made her cry. God, I’m such a jerk.”
Brian patted his back sympathetically. “No, you’re not. You just haven’t figured out what you really want from Bryna. It’s still a wonder that she still speaks to you after all the crap you’ve pulled on her, though.”
“She’s pissed me off, too,” he tried to point out but slumped lower on the bench. “I didn’t mean to make her cry. Ever. I always thought she took it good-naturedly.”
“Oh, sure. She wouldn’t tell you that you upset her, but that’s what you’ve done since we were in school.” Brian shook his head. “You’re supposed to be god’s gift to women, Nick Carter, and, yet, you can’t figure out how to deal with one you’ve known for years.” He stood, thinking he’d given Nick plenty to think on. “Apologize to her. Start over. It’ll help both of you feel better.”
When Brian had walked back into the building, Nick continued to sit and stare at the fountain, dozens of thoughts running through his head. He had no clue what to do next, but one thing was certain. He owed Bryna a bucketful of apologies. He could only hope it wasn’t too late and that she’d still accept them.
Brian was buried, elbow-deep, in paperwork and was on the phone with the manager of one of Apollo’s most lucrative bands. They didn’t think they were getting enough creative control on their albums, and Brian had to agree with them. He’d enjoyed the music from the five-part male vocal group, but he knew that they had untapped songwriting capabilities that Apollo hadn’t made use of in the past. As the VP, he intended on correcting that and set up a time to meet with them one-on-one.
He loved his work.
Music had been one of the biggest parts of his life growing up. It seemed as though he’d been singing since the day he first learned to talk. There were home videos of him in diapers, belting out tunes like there was an audience paying him. Embarrassingly enough, his parents brought out the videos any time they had guests over. Though he knew that his father had been more than willing to sign him to a contract with the company, Brian had known that he was better backstage and at business than he was performing for others.
That didn’t mean that he didn’t sing whenever he felt like doing so. He’d been known to pick up the guitar and sing in hole-in-the-wall, smoky bars on a whim. When he’d been eighteen, instead of going on senior week to a beach with his friends, he’d crossed the Atlantic and traveled all over Europe on his own. There had been a time or two, when he’d run out of cash, that he’d ended up singing in a pub to earn a little money.
He’d had the best times whenever music was involved, Brian thought now, swiveling his chair to face the city spread out in front of him. It wasn’t every day that a guy was lucky enough to work with what he loved.
At the knock on the door, he turned back to his desk and called out a “Come in!” He wondered if it’d be Nick coming back to complain about the latest Bryna woes. As it had only been a couple hours since he’d left Nick stewing, he decided it probably wasn’t his friend.
“Leighanne.” Brian stood and came around his desk, pleasure glowing on his face as he leaned down to brush his lips over hers in welcome when she entered the office. “I didn’t know you’d be stopping by today.”
She brushed her wispy blonde bangs out of her eyes and smiled up at him. “Actually, I hadn’t planned on it either, but James called me. I was on my way up to see him and thought I’d surprise you.”
“I’m glad you did.” He beamed at her and, taking her hand, led her over to the small sitting area in his roomy office. “How’s your day been?”
Leighanne had to admit that line sounded so married, and it made her heart glow. She was so close, she knew, to falling in love with him. She could only hope it was the same for him. They’d spent all of Sunday together, talking of nothing and everything. True, she’d known him for years but only casually. She hadn’t known that they’d shared everything from a love of cheesy horror movies to old books of fairy tales. It was good, she thought, to feel comfortable and enjoy herself around the man she was engaged to. And, of course, their kisses were lovely, too.
She linked her fingers with his. “My day’s been pretty normal. I had two classes this morning and have one more tonight. In the meantime, the two instructors who work for me teach afternoons. Which is why I’m able to be here now. How was your day?”
“Productive,” he said simply. “Aside from work, I’ve gotta deal with two very frustrated and lonely lovebirds.”
“Really? Who?”
He grinned. “Nick and Bryna Chambers. She loves him and, while he’s yet to figure it out, he loves her, too. They’re at the stage where they’ll spit and claw at each other rather than admit any sort of attraction. I have a feeling things will change soon, though.”
“Aww. That’s very cute,” she decided. “James told me he’s finally asked a woman out, too.”
“Hah. Yeah. Kevin and I had to practically shove the telephone in his hands.” Brian grinned at the memory. “The people around me are pathetic about relationships. At least we’re doing well, right?” he asked, leaning close and squeezing her fingers gently.
She leaned close, too. “Oh, absolutely.” Their lips met and clung, filling her with a humming joy. “I like this,” she whispered against his mouth.
“Oh, me, too,” Brian whispered back, threading his fingers through her hair to pull her closer.
Indulging in several more moments of their embrace, Leighanne leaned back, her fingers stroking over his cheek. “I have to go.”
“You…Oh, right.” He stood and held out a hand to help her up. “Try to drop by afterwards?”
She grinned up at him as he walked her to the door. “I’ll see what I can do.” She glanced over his shoulder. “You’ve got a window-washer out there, Brian.”
“Who?” He turned and spotted the trim, little figure soaping his view of New York. “Right. Well, that’s what we pay them to do. Anyway, tell James I’ve got some files and notes for him, so I’ll be dropping by his office before I leave for the day.”
“Will do.”
He kissed the tip of her nose. “I’ll see you.”
“Bye, Brian.”
Once she was gone, he turned back to his desk and the soap-covered windows behind it. His life, he thought again, was going pretty well. He had a fabulous job, great friends, and, now, a pretty woman who would soon be his wife. All in all, he couldn’t complain.
Then why, he wondered, was there a restlessness, a feeling of waiting, still causing an itch between his shoulders?
Alex leaned back in his chair and watched Nick pace his studio. There was a semi-permanent frown fixed on his face, and he muttered to himself. Every so often, he’d turn to his friend and say things like “I suck!” and “It’s not all my fault!” Alex had to assume he was talking about Bryna. There was no one else, really, that brought out this side of Nick.
Finally, after nearly a half hour of listening, he cleared his throat. “Nick. Sit down.”
“What?”
Alex pointed to a chair. “Sit. Listen.”
Nick did as he was told and tried not to slouch. “Can you believe that this has wasted an entire day of work for me? I haven’t been productive at all. James is going to crucify me.”
“No, he won’t.” Alex tapped his fingers on the arms of his chair. “You know you have to apologize, right?” When Nick nodded, he continued. “Have you figured out how you’re going to apologize?”
Nick scowled at the mixers. “No. I want to just shake her, but, then, that’s just going to piss her off.”
“You’re such an idiot, Carter. Why do I waste time with you?” Alex rolled his eyes. “Do you think you could work that Carter charm for Bryna? Get her flowers, a present, something. If not that, then do something nice for her and apologize. Bryna’s not going to turn away from your attempts to play nice. She’s probably just as ready to get past this bullshit as you are.”
Nick nodded. “Okay. You’re probably right. Sorry for dragging you away from work.”
“No problem. I stopped by to see how Bryna and Matt were doing earlier.” Alex grinned as he decided to stir the pot a bit. “He’s got a serious case of puppy love over her. I wonder how she’ll handle it.”
Nick frowned. “If she feels the same way about him, that’s going to be a professional problem.” And a problem with me, he added silently. She couldn’t just go off and have a relationship with a guy who had no career in music yet. He had nothing to offer her. “She’ll deal with it, though. She’s good at making things work out.”
Alex rose and lifted a brow. “Then why haven’t the two of you worked things out yet? It’s only been close to twenty years.” And he left Nick sitting in the studio, his frown deeper than ever.
