Sweet Possession (Sweet #5)(41)

“I think you’re a very observant woman,” he murmured.

CHAPTER 15

Connor stood in the doorway of the room Lyric had commandeered as her studio. Her guitar and sound equipment had been delivered and set up and she’d been sequestered in solitude all morning long.

She had her guitar cradled against her chest and she strummed a series of chords as her haunting voice echoed through the room and slid over his skin like silk.

It was a far cry from the noisy, raucous show she’d put on when he’d seen her in concert. He’d be hard-pressed to even believe they were the same woman if he didn’t know for sure they were.

She slapped her hand over the strings, silencing the guitar, and made a sound of frustration. Then she began again and rearranged some of the words.

If you only knew

If you could only see

If you could only come inside

And see the heart of me

She paused for a moment and then looked up and saw him standing in the door. Her hand fell away and she looked discomfited by his presence.

“It’s beautiful. Is it a new song you’re working on?”

She set aside her guitar and rubbed her hands down her pants. “Yeah. Something a little different. I’m going for a new sound for the next album. I haven’t run the songs by my label yet, so I’m not sure they’ll go for it.”

Connor took a seat in the chair across from Lyric. “And if they don’t?”

She shrugged. “I can either play by their rules and record the music they want or I can go out on my own, find another label or start my own.”

“Phillip seems pretty damn committed to keeping you. I don’t see him telling you no. I’m not sure he knows the meaning of that word when it comes to you.”

She shot him a baleful look.

Connor grinned. “Oh, come on. Admit it. No one tells you no very often. I doubt you’d listen to them if they did.”

“Depends on whether or not they’re saying what I want to hear,” she said cheekily.

He chuckled. She was pretty darn cute when she was being sassy. And not that he’d ever admit it in a million years, but he liked the blue on her. It just . . . fit.

“Connor, you need to see this,” Kane said from the door.

Connor glanced up. Kane’s expression said it wasn’t good. He got to his feet and started to tell Lyric to stay put, but Kane pressed his lips together and then said, “Bring her. She’ll need to see this too.”

Lyric shot Connor a worried look and rose to stand beside him.

Not caring how it looked, Connor held out his hand to her. She slid her palm over his and he curled his fingers tight around hers. Then he tugged her toward the door and after Kane.

They traveled down the stairs and to the living room where one of the other men had the television programming paused. Kane nodded at him and then stood back, arms crossed over his chest.

It was the local newscast, but as soon as Lyric’s face appeared, Connor flinched.

“Pop singer Lyric Jones is in town early for her rodeo appearance, and by all accounts, the star is never far out of trouble.”

The reporter segued into footage from the police station and then of Lyric leaving the station with Connor. To make matters worse, two of the police officers who’d been involved in Lyric’s detainment were interviewed. While no actual details were given, the implication was certainly clear that she’d been involved in yet another undesirable situation.

Beside him, Lyric stiffened and she stared stonily at the TV.

At the end, the reporter wrapped up by saying that her rodeo appearance was sold out.

Kane turned the television set off and turned to face Connor and Lyric. “This complicates matters.”

There was little he could say. Kane was right, but he had no desire to rip into Lyric. He was as much at fault for the incident as she was.

“It changes nothing,” Connor said flatly. “Our job is still the same. We protect Lyric, keep her out of compromising situations and make damn sure no one gets to her.”

Kane stared at Lyric, his eyes glittering. “I need your assurance this won’t happen again.”

Lyric’s head jerked up, and her lips twisted into a snarl. Connor stepped in front of her and faced Kane.

“The situation has already been handled. It was a simple misunderstanding. Lyric is my direct responsibility. Yours is to provide peripheral security.”

Kane’s lip twitched but he didn’t argue.

“I need a schedule of her appearances. Any appointments. Basically if she’s going to set foot off this property in the next ten days, I need to know about it so I can plan accordingly.”

“We’ll have you one before today is over,” Connor said.

“I have work to do,” Lyric said tightly.

She turned away and stalked back up the stairs, and in the distance, Connor heard the door to her studio slam.

He looked back at Kane. “Cut her some slack. I doubt you’re this hard-ass with all your clients. She’s not as bad as she seems. It’s all a front.”

Kane’s eyes glimmered with amusement. “I do whatever it takes to get the job done. If it means me being an ass, then that’s what happens. Your girl doesn’t strike me as the type to take things seriously if you coddle her.”

“She’s not . . .” Hell. He blew out his breath. “Agreed. I don’t think she needs coddling. I’ve been a few rounds with her myself. But she really is taking this whole thing seriously. I can’t make up my mind about her. One minute she seems so . . .”