Chapter 5
GUNNAR
Blaire’s lips are soft beneath my own, and I slide my tongue over them, coaxing her open.
When she parts those beautiful full lips, I glide my tongue between them, taking what I’ve dreamed of.
She tastes of peppermint, of beauty. Of perfection. Of the melody and harmony between us. If our voices together had a flavor, this would be it.
The song…
It’s a song I’ve heard a thousand times—a song I like a lot.
But singing it with Blaire gave it so much more meaning.
Not the words even. Not the notes. Not the beautiful melody, and not the vibrant harmony when our voices came together.
It was something different. Something amazing that I’ve never experienced. We opened up to each other, felt each other. For an instant, we became each other.
My thoughts are interrupted, though, when Blaire steps back, breaking the kiss.
The audience is still going crazy with applause, whistles, shouts.
“More, more, more!”
But Blaire, her face a vibrant pink, takes a graceful bow and exits the stage.
I nod to the audience and then follow her.
Sarah grabs both of us, gushing. “Didn’t I tell you? The two of you together are magic. Come to my office first thing tomorrow and we’ll discuss the logistics. Mary Louise—she’s the songwriter—has some numbers that will be perfect for the two of you together.”
She brings our hands together, draws them to her mouth, and plants a kiss on them. “This is a match made in heaven. My God, I’ve been looking for the two of you for years. That crescendo in the middle… My God… It was phenomenal.”
Blaire’s eyes are glazed over. Does she hear what Sarah is saying?
Sarah snaps her fingers in my face. “Gunnar? Did you hear me? This is what’s going to put you on the map. Both of you.”
My gaze is zeroed in on Blaire’s lips. Her dark red lipstick is smudged.
I’m pretty sure it’s all over my mouth.
As if she can read my mind, Blaire reaches into her purse, pulls out a compact, and attempts to fix her makeup.
“And that kiss at the end?”
Sarah continues. “It cemented the whole thing. From now on, it’s Gunnar and Blaire. I’ve never seen such chemistry. If you can do this with a song made famous by two of the most talented performers in the world, just think of what you can do with something that’s written expressly for you. This is going to be huge!”
Sarah’s words are intriguing, but I can’t stop staring at Blaire’s mouth. She’s fixed her lipstick, but she can’t take away my kiss. Her lips are slightly parted, swollen, and glistening. All I can think about is touching them with mine again.
Kissing her, touching her creamy skin, cupping her cheeks, her gorgeous round breasts. Sliding my fingers over the hard nipples sticking out against the soft velvet.
“Are you hearing me, Gunnar? I need to meet with you both tomorrow, first thing. I’ll bring Mary Louise, and we’ll start…”
Sarah’s words become jumbled.
If I’m not hearing them, I know Blaire isn’t.
The guy in tweed approaches us and takes Blaire’s arm. “It’s time to go. You need your rest.”
“Who are you? Her father?”
I blurt out without thinking.
He raises an eyebrow and glares at me. “Whatever designs you have on Blaire, you can forget them right now. She has an exciting career in opera ahead of her. She doesn’t need to share the stage with some wannabe rocker.”
“Wait just a minute,”
I say. “You can’t talk to me like that. You can’t?—”
Sarah steps in front of me, holding out her hand. “I’m Sarah Leventhal, and I’m a talent agent. I’m not sure who you are, sir, but I think I can take both of these young vocalists to the top.”
“Blaire already told me about your idea,”
the man says. “I’m afraid she isn’t interested.”
Sarah crosses her arms. “If it’s all the same, sir, I think that’s Blaire’s decision.”
Blaire’s lower lip trembles, and a need to protect her surges into me. Who the hell is this clown?
“Professor Morgan is thinking about what’s best for my career,”
Blaire says.
“That’s right,”
Professor Morgan—apparently—says. “Blaire is under contract with Opera Livingston. She starts their yearlong young artist program in two weeks.”
“We can’t plan and cut an album in two weeks,” I say.
“What if we can?”
Sarah asks. “Are you in, Gunnar?”
Am I?
Can I spend two weeks with Blaire Cavileri without constantly swapping insults?
Yeah, I can do it. Especially if I get to kiss her again.
Maybe Sarah’s right. Does it matter if I’m not the next king of rock and roll? Really, I just want to sing, and she’s giving me a chance to sing with a beautiful and talented woman.
“Yeah, Sarah. I’m in.”
She turns to Blaire. “And you?”
Blaire opens her mouth but then closes it when Professor Morgan grabs her arm.
I absently curl my right hand into a fist. Who the hell does he think he is, touching her like that?
“I’m afraid Blaire is otherwise obligated,” he says.
Sarah narrows her eyes. “I think I asked her.”
Blaire tugs on her lower lip with her teeth, and damn… What that woman does to my body… One thing about being a rocker and performing at the Haven for open mic night—I hardly have a dearth of women throwing themselves at me. I usually go home with a new one every week. Then I make her pancakes the next morning, kiss her goodbye, and never see her again.
So what is it about this particular woman? She’s beautiful, yes, but I’ve been with beautiful women before. Maybe it’s her talent. Maybe it’s her spitfire personality. She has no problem telling me to go to hell, but for some reason, she freezes up in front of this professor.
And I don’t like it. I don’t like it one bit.
Finally, she opens her mouth. “I think…I’d like to try it.”
Morgan glares at her. “Blaire, it’s not a good idea.”
She turns to Morgan. “Professor, I have two weeks off. This is a chance to broaden my musical horizons. What can it hurt?”
“You need to rest your?—”
Blaire ignores him and turns to Sarah. “Are you sure I’ll be able to fulfill my obligations to Opera Livingston?”
“Honestly, I don’t see why not,”
Sarah says.
“You don’t start there for two weeks, and it’s a local company, so you’ll be here in town.
We’ll work around your schedule.
I’ll give you a call if the plan for tomorrow changes.
The industry is one of constant flux, and sometimes things change early in the morning, so keep your phone’s ringer on in case I have to wake you up.”
Blaire nods, takes out her phone, and switches it off silent mode. And then she smiles.
Blaire Cavileri—my perfect duet partner—smiles.
And the world just became a little bit brighter.