Page 43 of My True North
“No buts,” he said.
“Oh, come on. I know you have suggestions for improvement,” she teased.
He shook his head.
“Caleb.” Theresa fixed him with an incredulous look … and waited.
He laughed. “Okay, okay. Honestly, it’s great the way it is, but if you insist. How about we open with the chorus rather than the first verse? Then, I think a few of these stanzas could be tweaked, and we could rearrange the order.” He brought out his laptop and dropped his backpack to the floor.
“That’s more like it.” Theresa took a seat beside him. “Here’s what I was thinking for the chorus,” she said, playing a snippet of the tune she’d been working out on the piano.
“Play your part again.” Caleb positioned his hands over the keyboard an octave below her.
She did, and he launched into the perfect harmony, expanding the bit she’d offered, taking it into a fledgling melody for the first verse. All thoughts of her mother left her, and she immersed herself in the music.
“Wait, what about this?” She changed his take for the melody slightly and slid into the chorus again.
“Hmm. That works.” Caleb brought up his music writing software, and the two of them settled into the work, going back and forth, discussing ideas, tweaking as they went.
Time flew, and it was only thirst and the need to pee that forced her to bring their session to a close. “That’s enough for today,” she said, standing up to stretch. “I’m ready for a trip to the doggie beach. How about you?”
“Sounds good. We’ve made a lot of headway. Now that we’re into the groove with this new song, it won’t take much more than a couple sessions before we’re ready to record.”
At the mention of recording their song, heat rushed to Theresa’s face. Memories of their last recording session and what had followed took hold, and a different kind of heat unfurled—a sweet, aching need only Caleb could satisfy.
She didn’t dare look at him. He’d see how easily she teetered over the very line she’d been the one to draw in the sand. “I’ll be back in a minute,” she muttered, heading for the bathroom. “I’ll meet you in the kitchen. Gather the troops, would you?”
* * *
Sexual tension had arced between them when he’d mentioned recording the new song. He’d noticed the way she’d blushed and how her breath had quickened. Erotic images and memories of their lovemaking had flooded Caleb’s mind, and his blood had heated. But then it seemed like she couldn’t get away from him fast enough. He uttered a curse under his breath.
Well, that was a special kind of stupid, his sensible voice admonished, and Caleb agreed. Groaning, he rubbed his face with both hands and stifled the urge to knock his head against the sharpest edge of the piano.
He saved the work they’d done on his laptop, put it to sleep, and stuffed the computer back into his backpack. Don’t bring up what just happened, and things will settle back to normal.
Yeah, right, his rogue side added. Like you can get those images out of your head now that they’re there in high def and 3D. Thank you for that, by the way.
Doing his best to bring himself back under control, Caleb made his way to the patio door off the kitchen and slid it open. “We’re done working,” he called. “Who wants to go to the beach?”
The energy of the two little boys and a puppy heading straight for him brought a smile to Caleb’s face. Their exuberance chased the unwelcome erotic thoughts away. “Whoa! Slow down.” He laughed as Jeremy collided with Caleb’s knees.
The boy peered up at him. “Do you think we’ll find another dead jellyfish?”
Jeremy’s cheeks were flushed from playing, and his eyes sparkled. Caleb lifted him and swung him out of the way so Charlie and Sully could get through the door. “It’s possible,” he said, putting the kid back on his feet.
“Do you like burgers and fries, Caleb?” Charlie asked, looking as if his answer might be important to the boy’s future happiness.
Elli guided Charlie out of the way of the patio door so she could enter. “Theresa is taking us to a retro diner tonight,” she explained.
“Ah. I see.” He rubbed his chin as if pondering Charlie’s question. “As a matter of fact, I do like burgers and fries.”
The bodyguard was the last to enter the kitchen. “Caleb,” he said by way of greeting.
“John, good to see you’re still on the job.” He reached out his hand, and they shook. “Are you coming to the beach with us?”
“Yes, but I’ll follow in my car. There isn’t enough room for all of us in Theresa’s SUV.”
Theresa joined them then. She’d tied her hair back, and it appeared she’d recovered from their erotically-charged moment. She strode to the fridge, opened one side and started handing out bottles of water. “Charlie, here’s yours and one for Sully,” she said, handing him two. “I’ll grab his travel bowl from the garage.”
