It was tempting to close himself off from the world and revel in what he had found today after a lifetime of searching.

Peace.

But he was a man who believed in keeping his word and he’d told Ridley that the next time they made love it would be perfect. She wouldn’t be distraught after a nightmare, he wouldn’t be tearing her panties off with his teeth and they wouldn’t rush this time.

He closed his eyes against the memory of her erotic pleadings. A few more moments and he would have said to hell with comfort and taken her right here in the backyard.

Mosquito bites on his ass didn’t fit his idea of perfect.

“I’ll be there in about twenty minutes. I trust that you can handle things until then.” He flipped the phone shut, ignoring Mac’s voice still chattering away.

He would have to go in to the office to come up with a game plan. There would be difficult decisions to make and he needed time to figure out what direction the group would take.

He sent a quick text to Katie to see if she could keep the boys for a little longer. Once she responded, he dropped down next to Ridley and began kissing his way up her arm. Her girlish giggle let him know she wasn’t asleep as he had previously thought and she had probably been listening to his entire conversation.

“I have to go into the office for a little while.”  She frowned slightly and threw her arms around his neck drawing him down on top of her. He laid his head on her breast and listened to the steady rhythm of her heart beating underneath his ear. “Come with me.” 

Her eyes met his. “Really? I’d love to go. But wait, what about the kids?”

“We can pick them up after we get back. I already asked Katie if she’d mind them staying a little longer. I want you to meet the new group I’m producing. Besides, I don’t want to be away from you right now.”

Ridley turned her face into his shoulder and placed her hand in the middle of his chest. The soft touch warmed him unlike anything else. “I don’t want to be away from you, either,” she finally admitted.

Watching the wind lift her hair and the golden glint of the late evening sun off her smooth cheeks made him realize how vulnerable she was.

“Come on. It doesn’t take long to get there but I don’t want to be out too late.” He held out a hand and pulled her to her feet.

It wasn’t her fault that she’d trusted the wrong person in the past. He’d done the same and didn’t want anyone judging him for it. Hadn’t she already paid the price for her mistake? The night she’d told him about the accident, the emotion in her eyes had been real. She’d been scared and she’d done the only thing she could do. Run.

I don’t believe she’s a scam artist. I don’t care what Nick says.

*   *   *   *   *

“OKAY GUYS, I briefed Jackson on the nature of the problem, so now we have to figure out how to deal with it”. Mac, Jackson’s assistant, spoke quickly as though he had somewhere else to go.

Ridley sat back in a hard plastic chair and assessed the annoying, albeit beautiful, members of Divine. She was excited to see what Jackson did at work but was a little disappointed that what she’d seen so far didn’t look much different than an ordinary office. She’d never been inside a real recording studio and had been expecting something really high-tech and different.

You’ve been watching too much TV.

“Okay, girls. I’m going to do everything I can to push the single out right away. If we’re lucky, it’ll catch on and we can book you guys as the opening act on a small tour before Kaylee gets close to her due date.”

Jackson looked at Ridley and rolled his eyes. She hid her smile behind her hand. The girls weren’t even pretending to listen.

Two of the group members, Mandy Johnson and Christina Milado, were in the corner arguing. Sasha Whitman, a friendly, slim woman with a cocoa complexion and a bright smile, was sitting just to her left. She had been asking Ridley questions about her relationship with Jackson since she’d arrived. There were only so many ways she could play dumb and pretend they were just friends.

Her gaze finally came to rest on the fourth member of the group, standing at the window, distanced from the other members as much in body as she was in spirit. She couldn’t figure out how Kaylee Wilhelm had ever hooked up with the other three girls in the first place. She had a sad, sort of haunted look about her, and seemed extremely unaware of her own talent. With her rounded figure she was not the same “bombshell” type as the other girls but she was beautiful in a unique way. She also had the best voice. Clear as a bell and capable of hitting notes that made her breath catch.

“Okay, why don’t we just address the elephant in the room. There’s no point in dancing around the problem.”

“This is a little more than a problem. This dumb whore got herself knocked up and we haven’t even had a chance to shoot our first video,” Christina said.

All conversation stopped. Everyone turned to look at Kaylee. She didn’t turn from the window.

“Tina, we aren’t going to get anywhere by you slinging insults around. If you don’t have anything constructive to offer, then you shouldn’t be here.” Jackson nailed her with a steely look when she opened her mouth to complain. Once he was sure she wasn’t going to interfere again, he turned his attention back to Kaylee.

“Kay, look, it’s not a big deal. I had a similar problem with another group and we managed to shoot the video around it. I want you to know how important you are to the group and we’ll support you no matter what you decide to do.”