Chapter Eight
She finally got a good look at him when he pulled off his helmet. Hmm – dark blond hair that held a little bit of curl – sexy too, since it touched his collar.
And when he tugged off his sunglasses before she walked into the recording studio lobby ahead of him, she got a glimpse of intense blue eyes that seemed to stare straight into her soul.
It was definitely him. She’d been drawn to him immediately, noticing him standing in the audience at one of her concerts in Germany. She couldn’t believe it. It was the military man with the face of an angel that she’d been unable to forget since she’d danced with him all those years ago.
In the back of her mind, the town of Crystal Rock must have registered when she’d been staring at the recording studio list.
“I’m from Crystal Rock, Wisconsin, Ma’am,” he’d said softly. “And I’m sure a big fan.”
Wren wouldn’t let him know that she remembered who he was. It was a vulnerability that she couldn’t expose to anyone.
She had a terrible history with men, and even when the break ups weren’t something that she’d initiated, somehow the story got twisted on social media as well as in the tabloids, and the blame was always put on Wren.
“Everyone’s here early,” Eve observed, wearing a wide smile as she walked into the lobby.
She tugged Wren into her arms.
“It’s great to see you again, Eve,” Wren said gently, patting her on the back. “I miss you on tour. We used to perform at a lot of the same venues. Most of the performers I work with are so much younger than me.”
Eve pulled back, looking Wren over from head to toe. “God you look great. I love that hair. It reminds me of Cleopatra.”
Wren patted her hair with satisfaction. “This is actually all your mother’s doing. I love it. It’s a heck of a lot easier to take care of than what I had.” Wren frowned. “You’ve heard about the trouble?”
Eve heaved a sigh. “I have.” She turned to the man who stood silent behind Wren, thumbing through a schedule in a folder on the desk. “Speaking of which, I’m being rude since the two of you probably haven’t met. Captain Jeff Callahan, meet Wren Matthews.”
Had he thought twice about their meeting in the past? She couldn’t tell.
He nodded. “Nice to meet you, Wren.”
“We actually met yesterday,” Wren told Eve.
“When I almost ran into her on my bike,” Jeff admitted, rolling his eyes.
Eve looked at Jeff accusingly before giving him a wink. “You’re the one that gave her the flat tire.”
“More or less,” he admitted, looking sheepish.
“You should have seen me riding on the back of his bike. I had to wrap a scarf around the wig I was wearing because I was afraid it would fly off when he drove me to the Inn.”
After laughing momentarily, Eve suddenly frowned. “You – on a bike?”
“I didn’t really have much choice at the time,” she admitted. Wren had forgotten that Eve knew about what had happened to her father, which had led to her aversion of riding on any vehicle with two or three wheels.
“Well, we should probably get started,” Eve said after studying her for a few more moments. “I have a few other techs available, but despite his Air Force career, Jeff is one of the best audio engineers I’ve ever worked with, so I thought we could see how well you two might work together.”
Wren pursed her lips. Despite Eve’s reassurances, Jeff Callahan was probably an amateur. Maybe this wasn’t going to work after all.
Looking irritable, Jeff suddenly spoke commandingly. “I can see right away that you have doubts. But as long as you’re here, let’s give it a go. I assure you that I do know what I’m doing.”
Wren blinked, glancing at Eve, who appeared to be just as surprised by Jeff’s tone of voice.
But it was exactly what Wren needed to hear. And geez, the man looked sexy as hell when he was domineering, with that indignant look on his face. It was probably why he was an officer, she realized.
Wren suddenly grinned. “Okay. You talked me into it.”
Punching Wren lightly in the shoulder, Eve couldn’t seem to stop laughing as she began showing Wren around the studio after handing over her music to Jeff, who proceeded to close himself off at the piano in the lounge to play through some of the tunes.
Eve told Wren that she had a couple of vocalists coming in at one to record, but Jeff didn’t want to take up any studio space until he had some ideas about what would pump up her music.
Pump up? What did that even mean, Wren wondered, shrugging it off.
Another fifteen minutes later, Jeff appeared at Eve’s office door, where she was chatting with Wren.
When he stared at her intently, she felt a shiver running up and down her spine. “I’ve got some thoughts about what would make one of your vocals a little more unique. Want to try some quick run-throughs before we get started in earnest tomorrow? I’d like to take away some different paced recordings of one particular song with me so I can work at the mixing this afternoon.”
“But there aren’t any musicians on hand,” Wren observed. Wren had a few regulars she liked to work with, none of them well known, but for security reasons, Marc had decided that it would be better for her not to use them for this album. Besides, until rehearsals began for the next tour, it wasn’t fair to hold them back if they had other opportunities to perform.
“I’ll send a demo over to the Inn later today using various instrumentals in the mix. If you like what I come up with, it’ll help me determine who to hire,” Jeff replied.
“I have a long list of musicians who’d love to have the opportunity,” Eve reassured her. “Don’t forget that we’ve got a big musical community here in Crystal Rock.”
“Alright.” Wren stood. “Why not?”
“How much time do we have before your other client arrives, Eve?” Jeff asked.
“Plenty,” Eve replied. “I rescheduled everyone for after lunch. I didn’t think it would be such a good idea for anyone to know about Wren being here. It might bring more trouble.” Eve sighed. “Which reminds me. Jake wants to be the one to fill you in, Jeff, about how he wants to handle the situation.”
“Alright,” Jeff answered, glancing back and forth between the two of them. “I gather whatever trouble you’re talking about doesn’t just have something to do with Wren’s fame?”
“No,” Wren replied, glancing at Eve. “If we’re going to be working together, Eve and Jake are right. You need to be filled in. Maybe you could follow me back to the Inn when we’re finished so we can speak with Jake together?”
“That’s fine.” He seemed to be searching her eyes for clues. “All we need is about an hour in the studio for now.”
“Let’s get to it,” she replied. “What particular song did you have in mind to start with?”
“The one called Searching,” he replied, gently steering her from Eve’s office through the hallway leading to one of the studios at the back of the building.
“Oh, good. That’s one of mine. I wrote it a couple years ago, and finally gave it some lyrics,” she admitted.
He paused, glancing at her face. “I didn’t know you did any writing. You’re not named as the composer.”
She shrugged. “That’s intentional. I publish under my grandmother’s maiden name. She was the reason I wanted to become a musician, but she passed away when I was really young.”
“I thought that you wanted to become a vocalist because of your mother?” he asked, obviously distracted as he motioned for her to have a seat at the piano inside the studio.
Her mother. What a piece of work she’d been.
“No,” she answered sharply.
Jeff glanced at her quickly.
“Sorry. It’s none of my business,” he said, sounding distant again.
“That’s alright. It’s a long story,” she admitted. “One that I’ve managed to keep private through the years.”
“I promise I won’t bring something like that up again,” he answered quietly, running his fingers over the piano keys. “Let’s hear you acapella first, and then we can tape that version along with some others accompanied by piano and guitar.”
“I can play both,” she admitted.
“I didn’t know that. I don’t think I’ve ever seen you do anything besides dance onstage when you’re performing,” he replied.
“It’s what was expected,” Wren answered, frowning. “At least that’s what my manager always claimed.”
Jeff struck a dissonant chord on the piano. “Since we’re going to work together, do you mind if I’m honest with you?”
Wary, she blinked. “I don’t know.”
He suddenly grinned. “That’s honest enough.”
She grinned back at him. “Okay. Tell me what you feel like you need to say.”
“You’re older. You’re trying to attract a new younger audience that doesn’t have as much interest in you. The audience you should be targeting is the one that admired you from the beginning. People who are closer to you in age.”
“In other words, I haven’t grown much as a performer,” she said crossly. Although deep inside, as much as she hated to admit it, she knew he was right. The numbers and income from the last tour had definitely shown that she didn’t have the fan base she’d once had.
“You said it, I didn’t,” he growled.
She studied him intently. He sure wasn’t mincing words. But just because she was used to people kissing up to her, didn’t mean that she couldn’t handle his criticism gracefully.
“Okay. So, let’s get to work so you can prove it,” she muttered.
Much to her surprise, he smiled widely, giving her a wink.