Part 24 (1/2)

She practically vibrated with excitement. And just a little anxiety. How many times had Bowen looked her right in the eye and given her that charming grin while lying through his teeth? h.e.l.l, near the end, most the time he hadn't even needed a reason. He'd lie just to lie. For the heck of it.

Mason kissed her forehead. ”It's going to be fine, darlin'. You'll see.”

He squeezed her hand and stepped forward to ask the receptionist to check them in and call Bowen. As she scanned the room again, a tall man stood in the meeting area and shoved his hands in his pockets. He peeked up through long black hair and she locked her gaze with eyes like hers. But instead of seeing the hollow husk of Bowen she'd visited several weeks ago, there stood her tall, strong brother. His hair was a little s.h.a.ggy, and his head was tipped down, almost shy, but it was Bowen.

A squeal tumbled from her lips, and her feet were racing across the room before she could stop herself from jumping into his arms. Someone was crying. Deep sobs sounded around her.

When she heard her brother whisper, ”Don't cry, Kev. I'm okay. Shhhhh,” she realized the cries were coming from her. She wanted to wipe her tears away, but she couldn't imagine letting him go. Ever. She pulled her arms tighter around his neck and breathed deeply, dragging in a stilted breath. Gone was the stale acidic smell of booze and general unwellness that had followed him like a fog for so long. Bowen smelled like Bowen again: an earthy smell with hints of orange or lime or something citrusy.

”Bo, Bo, Bo,” she chanted while he stroked her hair until he set her gently on a couch against the wall and turned toward Mason.

Her brother jabbed his hand forward. ”Bowen.” She looked back and forth between the two men who owned her heart, both standing with feet wide and tight smiles, wariness clouding their eyes as they shook hands.

”So you're Dillon. The guy who broke my sister's heart, then glued it back together again.” Bowen crossed his arms, sleeves of colorful ink flas.h.i.+ng from under the cuffs of his s.h.i.+rt.

”I love your sister. Did from the beginning. And I'm not going anywhere.”

She reached across to grab Mason's hand. Bowen intercepted her hand first, turning it back and forth so the pink diamond sparkled under the harsh florescent lighting. A smile lifted the corner of her mouth. Mason had had it specially designed. A reworking of an antique setting with modern stones. A declaration of his love and an artistic version of them-contemporary and vintage, sa.s.sy and bossy, forever set in a circle on her finger. And it was so sparkly that Mason had insisted she turn the ring in toward her palm when she drove so she wouldn't be distracted by the s.h.i.+ne. It's not like she actually hit that woman on the sidewalk. Sheesh, one near miss and everyone starts getting all paranoid.

”This makes you happy?” Bowen asked, looking up from her hand and pinning his laser eyes on her. ”He makes you happy?”

Kevan could feel the skin on her face stretch as that d.a.m.n smile took over. Again. ”So freaking happy.”

Bowen brushed his hands on the front of his pants. ”What can I say? I guess it's cool with me.” He s.h.i.+fted to catch Mason's eye, and Kevan felt her pulse race. Now what? ”But I'm back in the game, my friend. You don't get to hurt her again.”

Mason stepped forward and smacked Bowen on the back. ”No worries there. I'll kick my own a.s.s if I so much as muss one of her lovely blue hairs.” He laughed. ”Truth is, Kevan can take care of herself. You raised her right.”

She rolled her eyes. ”Oh, for f.u.c.k's sake, you guys, let's get out of here.”

Bowen leaned down and picked up his duffel bag, then threw his arm around her shoulders. His strength was back. He must've been using the exercise room there. Something close to hope tingled in her fingertips and toes.

”Where we going?” he asked as they walked toward the exit.

”Home,” both Mason and Kevan said at the same time.

Bowen nodded but didn't ask for details. Good. He'd figure out soon enough that they had a new home. A new life. One that had started the day Mason had joined Jolt Marketing and they'd signed Manix Curse as their first major client.

They were no longer alone, individuals forced to navigate the treacherous real world on their own. They were a family. And family was everything.

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Beautiful Mess On sale March 2017 Here's a sneak peek at book two in Kasey Lane's sizzling Rock 'n' Ink series

BEAUTIFUL MESS.

Jax looked around at the a.s.semblage of people sitting around the conference table. At the head sat his band's manager, Joe McKellan, marketing reps Kevan and Mason, and his band, Manix Curse, which included their singer Marco, ba.s.s player Conner, and his little sister, guitar wunderkind Mandi. This was everything he'd worked toward for the past several years: success as an artist, sitting on the tip of a rocket about to launch them into the rock and roll heavens where he'd be a heavy metal G.o.d.

He glanced at his phone. In about two minutes the one chick he'd never really gotten out of his system was going to walk into the conference room, contractually obligated to share breathing s.p.a.ce with him. Boo-f.u.c.king-ya. Maybe he'd get the chance to mess up her perfectly coiffed lady bun. Maybe he'd turn on the charm and get her to go out again. One more night together. For old times' sake. Because one more night was all he'd ever get once she unburied the truth about their breakup.

Right on cue, Joe's new receptionist led Jami toward the conference room where they all waited for her. What would she say when she realized he was in the band? Did she already know? Tingles of antic.i.p.ation sparked up his spine, not unlike the spikes of adrenaline he felt zipping through his body before a show.

Had Kevan and Mason told her he'd be there? Probably.

They all stood as she walked through the open door wearing a pristine pantsuit and matching heels. She was giving off that school princ.i.p.al vibe in waves, but he knew what hid beneath her overly practical clothes. White-hot fire burned under all that navy-blue ice.

She smiled, the type of smile most would accept at face value as genuine. But he could tell the smile didn't quite make it to those cerulean-blue eyes; it was a practiced, lawyerly smile. And as she began to shake hands with everyone and make her way around the table, Jax knew without a doubt this was the all-business Jami, the one she showed the rest of the world. He wondered again if the hair in her tight bun at the base of her neck still felt soft and satiny like silk. Would it snag on his calloused fingers when he ran it through his hands? And, more important, was it still long enough to wrap around his fist as he took her from behind?

Whoa. Time to cool your jets. Business first. Fun later. If he was lucky.

He cleared his throat, trying to shake the image of her heart-shaped a.s.s under his palm as she searched for her brother and then Kevan. Then...wait for it. Bam! Her gaze fell on him like a f.u.c.king hammer and she nearly dropped her briefcase.

So that would be a no. They hadn't told her. Interesting.

Jax couldn't hide the knowing smirk that spread across his face. He'd bet dollars to doughnuts the three of them were the only ones in the room to see her smile falter and the lines momentarily mar her otherwise smooth forehead. Oh yeah. He liked ruffling her feathers. He liked it a lot.

Regaining her composure, she held out her slim hand, her nails short, s.h.i.+ny with clear polish. A funny thing for him to notice because he was a guy and all, but she'd always done that to him, made him notice the little things.

”Jackson Paige, a.k.a. Jax Pain.” Her lip curved up and the dimple in her cheek popped. The gleam in her eye said so much more than her words. ”Mason and Kevan neglected to mention you're in the band.”

His much larger hand swallowed hers and he tugged her arm. Just a little. Not enough to physically throw her off balance. ”JamiLynn Dillon, esquire.” And then without thinking about it-because if he'd thought about it he wouldn't have done it-he pulled her all the way in for what looked like a chaste hug between old friends. But he could feel her slight tremble and hear the catch in her breath. G.o.d, he'd forgotten how tiny she was. How voluptuous and small and how the curve of her body fit perfectly with his taller, leaner one. And her smell. Flowers. Sweet, simple flowers. A soft edge to the sharpness she tried to portray to the world.

”h.e.l.lo, suns.h.i.+ne. Miss me?” he whispered in her ear, brus.h.i.+ng his mouth against her soft lobe. The sharp intake of breath and the way she melted into him before she pulled away meant he could still affect her. Good.

She laughed with a confident twist to her sultry mouth. He bet only he could hear the slight tremor in her voice or see her throat move like she was swallowing dirt. ”Well, I see Jackson hasn't changed. Much.”

As everyone chuckled and shuffled back into their seats around the table, she sat between Mason and Joe. Jax sank in the seat directly next to his sister and across from Jami while actively avoiding eye contact with Mandi.

Mandi's glance flicked back and forth between Jax and Jami. Jax narrowed his eyes and shook his head, a warning to his pixie-sized sibling with the big mouth. But she smirked and her eyes shone with glee. Dammit. Surprisingly, she didn't cackle evilly or rub her hands together in excitement.

”So, Jami...may I call you Jami?” Mandi asked as Jami's smile stayed pasted to her face like an emoji sticker. ”I know you're Mason's sister, but how exactly do you know my brother?”

”We met in law school.”

”Ohhhhh, you're that-” Jax grabbed Mandi's knee under the table and squeezed hard, but not before Jami's blond and perfectly arched brows furrowed, creating a single line, like a question mark, between her eyes. Although he hadn't told Mandi about Jami, per se, he had told her about ”some chick” he'd been with in law school. That it hadn't ended well. Mandi probably a.s.sumed the mystery college girlfriend was the reason he was a serial dater. She'd be correct in that a.s.sumption, of course.

”Yes. I suppose I am.” Jami's lips went firm as she pulled the band's contracts out of her bag and turned to Joe, the decision maker and official suit of Manix Curse. ”I've gone over the contracts Joe had delivered earlier this week. While there is some predatory language and terms we'll definitely want to negotiate, the three offers are fairly solid and have the potential to be quite lucrative. Of course, we're still waiting for the formal offer and contract from the record label. I don't expect those until next week. At that time we'll counter, if necessary.”

Jax sat silently while she talked, but stretched his legs under the table, b.u.mping her foot with his and making her fumble her words briefly. She never glanced at him, but he could tell his presence was getting to her.