Page 37 of Finding a Melody

“Will do.” I hung up just as I was pulling into the parking lot. That short conversation was enough to make me realize how much I missed them. I rubbed my stomach, staring at the building for a couple of minutes. Then I forced myself to move.

I didn’t waste time, wanting to get this over with as soon as I could. The receptionist smiled as soon as I came in.

There wasn’t even any time to sit down before Laurens came out with a huge grin on his face. He didn’t try to go in for a hug like last time, but when we began walking to the conference room, he placed his hand too low on my back. I stepped away to force him to drop his hand, my skin feeling like there were a bunch of tiny spiders crawling all over it.

We settled down in chairs, sitting across from each other. I crossed my arms and frowned. Then had to remind myself this was my client. I needed to be professional.

I uncrossed my arms and tried to relax in my seat.

“So?” I asked carefully, trying to not sound defensive or angry. “Why the meeting?”

Laurens’ smile seemed to freeze on his face. “I do want to apologize for the sudden reschedule. Other business came up and I’ll need to travel for the next couple of weeks. I figured we can meet now, go over what you have so far, and then once I return, we can meet again.”

I nodded. “I’m fine with that.”

“Excellent. Once my travel schedule is clearer, I’ll have my secretary set up a meeting. For now, how about we see what you’ve done so far to make sure you’re on the right track and then plan to meet again in about three weeks.”

I licked my lips. “I had already sent over the two songs as you wanted. They’re still extremely rough copies, but did you have a chance to listen to them? If they align with what you want, I’ll be able to work out the rest of the lyrics and the accompanying music.”

“I did. I enjoyed them both.”

I sighed. “Having both can be difficult. They’re completely different styles, and we’re trying to find the style you want for the main character. It wouldn’t make sense for her to sing one way and then begin singing another. Songs have a style to them depending on the person. I can’t really move forward with her songs until I know what kind you want for her.”

Laurens leaned forward, resting his arms on the table. “Knowing the premise of the movie, what song would you suggest?” he asked. “You have a good ear and you understand the plot. Which do you think matches the storyline the best?”

I wanted to tell him I wouldn’t give him the two options if I thought one was better than the other. Maybe it was just me being cocky, but both songs would fit perfectly with his idea. I had also seen the audition tape of the actress they hired for the role. Both songs would fit with her too.

“What message exactly do you want to send out to the audience?” I asked. “How exactly do you see the character?”

We spent the next hour going back and forth before I finally got him to agree to a style of music. I wanted to pull out my hair at the end. When we finished, I promised to have more songs for him when he returned from his trip, and then ran away, wanting to get as far away from him as possible.

As soon as I made it outside, I released a sigh, glad to be out of that too perfect building and away from him. The only good thing out of that meeting was that he sat on the other side of the table, far away from me. We didn’t touch once.

A rustling caught my attention and I looked up, meeting dark brown eyes of a very angry biker-looking guy. He leaned against my Impala, his thick arms folded over his bulging chest.

I froze, not moving closer. The man looked like he ate glass for breakfast. A long, thin scar ran along the left side of his face, starting at his eyebrow and making its way down to his lip. His curly, black hair hung around his face, falling over his ears and the lower half of his face was covered in scruff. A motorcycle stood a few feet away from him. Tattoos peeked out along his neck from the long-sleeved black sweater he wore. He had sleeves shoved up his arms, showing more tattoos on his strong forearms.

“Are you Cadence Wiles?” he asked in a deep, scratchy voice.

I looked around, acting confused, all while my heartbeat thundered in my chest. I licked my lips, trying to grasp at a response. “Uh, no. Can I help you?” I asked, trying my best to keep still. Didn’t predators chase you if you ran?

He frowned as he looked me over slowly.

“Is this yours?” He tilted his head to my car. “I was told she would be here.”

My mouth went dry as my stomach twisted with fear and my legs nearly shook. “I’m sorry. I really don’t know who she is. That isn’t my car.”

“Where is your car?” he asked.

He glanced around. There weren’t many options. Three to be exact and the other two were way too fancy.

Crap.

“I live nearby,” I said slowly. “I walked here.”

He really did look confused after my response. I inched away from him and toward the sidewalk. I hated that I had to get closer to him to get to the sidewalk, but I forced my wooden legs to move forward. Did I walk naturally? Did I look innocent enough? Or was I being too suspicious? What would he think if I threw up right then and there?

Our eyes met as I passed by him. He was glowering as he stared at me. I forced a polite smile and kept going. I’d have to go back for my car later, but no way was I going to let him know who I was. The word Danger kept flashing through my mind in a steady fast rhythm.