Mended (Connections, #3)(17)

“Ellie agrees. She says she’ll talk to the label and she thinks they’ll be fine with it,” Nix tells me.

“Well, Ellie doesn’t manage the band,” I respond, running my hands through my hair.

“No, but it’s not just your band,” Garrett says, a little shakily.

My head snaps up and I know my eyes are focused and clear. I take a deep breath. “What did you tell her?”

“Ellie or Ivy?” Garrett asks.

“Ivy,” I bark.

“To come over and talk to you with us.” His face is determined. It’s a look that says it all. They’ve already made the decision.

“You shouldn’t have done that.” My voice wavers with uncertainty, but before I can put my issues on the table, the doorbell rings. My eyes flash to his and the pounding in my ears drowns out the sound of the bell. Walking across the dark hardwood floor in my bare feet, I take a deep breath and keep my face blank. Of course I want to see her. Fuck, I want to be with her. But she doesn’t want anything to do with me, even though apparently she wants something to do with my band.

When I open the door, there she stands—and she’s absolutely gorgeous. I tuck my hands in my pockets to control my nerves. Her beauty is only accentuated by the sunlight. Her hair is silky, her skin seems to gleam, and the sapphire earrings that my grandmother gave her follow the angular lines of her jaw . . . I can’t believe she still wears them. But it’s her eyes that capture me. They look darker, fiercer, more expressive, and they are focused on me. I can’t help but take her all in.

“Hello,” I say, ushering in her inside.

“Hi,” she says back softly, with a forced smile.

She’s biting her bottom lip and if I could have her right here, I would. Thoughts of her being mine race through my head. With her proximity, it’s hard not to regret having hurt her.

She stands in the entryway and looks around. “Nice place.”

I grin at her. “Thanks.” I wonder if she knows this condo was my grandparents’—the place they moved to when they left the house where we spent so many days and nights. This place is much smaller than their house—just two bedrooms. But it works for me. I hired a decorator who made a few minor changes when I moved in, but not much. Just enough to toughen it up.

“Are Garrett and Nix here yet?”

My eyes lock on hers. “As a matter of fact—they are.”

I motion toward the living area. “In there.”

“Hey, before we go in, I just want to say thanks for yesterday, and I’m sorry for being so rude.”

“Ivy . . .” Then I stop myself from blurting out the truth about the past. This isn’t the time or the place. “I was just concerned about you. That’s all.”

“I’m fine. Really, I can take care of myself.” She walks ahead of me before I can say anything else.

“Hi, Ivy,” Garrett says, almost like he has a schoolboy crush on her.

“Ivy.” Nix nods.

She fidgets. “Hey. Thanks for inviting me. So, have you guys talked to Xander about my suggestion?”

“We were just discussing it.” I’m trying to ignore how good her legs look in denim shorts.

“Great,” she says. “And my attorney confirmed that although my contract with Damon prohibits me from making any deals on my own, it does allow me to collaborate with other artists—he says it’s a loophole.”

“Yes!” Garrett says, pumping his fist in the air.

“Ivy, not that I don’t appreciate the offer. But what does your fiancé say about all this?” I ask her.

Nix clears his throat. “Hey, Xander, we didn’t get to that part of the news yet, but she broke it off with him.”

Ivy’s eyes collide with mine. For a moment I wonder if she’s doing this for us, but only for a moment, because I have to quickly look away from the hate I see in her face. “Damon aside, why would you want to ‘collaborate’ with us?”

“I want back in the music industry and I can’t do it on my own right now. Garrett and Nix told me River wasn’t exactly keen on hitting the road, so I wondered how you’d feel about having the two of us? I could stay on the road full-time and he could pull off whenever he needed to.”

“A few things have changed,” Garrett says. “River won’t be joining us after all. Dahlia has a complication and can’t go on the road.”

“Well, then, it looks like the situations we both find ourselves in seem to be a win/win. It’s a simple case of I help you, you help me,” she responds.

The room goes silent while I study her. It sounds like a business deal between two strangers, but we are far from that. Or are we? I bow my head, not sure what to say other than yes, because I sure as hell want her. “Okay, so if we do this, what’s next?”

“We start rehearsing. We have time to nail most of the tour songs before we have to hit the road again,” Nix says to all of us, and I’m not sure if he’s trying to persuade himself or me.

“I can meet you in the studio with Leif as early as tomorrow.”

We all turn our heads her way, but Nix is first to question her. “Leif? Who’s Leif?”

“Leif Morgan. He’s been with me from the start. He plays keyboard and bass,” she says softly, then adds, “And he travels with me. If you don’t mind?”