Aftershock by Desiree Holt Page A

told Meredith not to stick her nose in your business.” She grinned. “But as your mother, I reserve first right of interrogation. So. Is there a woman in your life you’ve been keeping secret from us?” She fetched her own plate but, instead of sitting down, stood so she faced him.
    Damn!
    Rick concentrated on buttering his toast. “She’s not a hot chick. She’s the rep from Full Moon, the agency handling our promo.”
    “So she’s not hot?” Meredith prodded.
    Rick sighed and shook his head. “She’s very nice looking but, more important, she’s smart and knows what she’s doing.”
    At least he certainly hoped so.
    “Very nice looking?” His mother raised an eyebrow. “You sound like you’re describing a spinster.”
    “Or a bad blind date,” his sister added.
    He set his toast down carefully. This was not at all what he’d expected to walk into. He expected breakfast, not the third degree. Damn that Daisy, anyway.
    “Okay. You would probably agree she’s a hot chick. But to me she’s the woman who is going to create our image. Our brand. And help make us successful. Marc invited her so she could get to know the band a little better, although that didn’t work out quite as we expected.”
    “And you offered to give her a ride?” his mother asked.
    “Sounds like a date to me,” Meredith teased.
    “She had a problem with her car. She called Marc’s house and he asked me to pick her up so she didn’t have to cancel. End of story.”
    He took a swallow of his coffee, followed by a bite of toast. The expectant silence poked at him like a hot needle. He looked from his mother to his sister and back again, a prickly feeling dancing along his spine.
    “What?”
    Kate Trajean shrugged. “You might want to bring her around sometime so we can meet her.”
    “Mom.” He shook his head. “She’s not a girlfriend. Not even a casual date. She’s part of the team Butch Meredith put together. Can we give it a rest?” He looked at Meredith. “And tell Daisy Nestor she gossips too much.”
     
    ***
     
    “I like her.”
    Emma Blake carried the breakfast dishes to the sink and began to rinse them. She and Marc had stayed up after everyone left to clean up the debris from the party. Now it was past noon, but they hadn’t been in any hurry to get out of bed. Slow lovemaking, followed by an unhurried late breakfast, suited them just fine.
    “I like her, too,” Marc agreed. “I haven’t had as much time to talk to her as I’d like.” He chuckled. “But, the first day she walked into rehearsal, you could see the sparks between her and Rick. At first it was animosity. You could see the two of them silently wrestling for control. Now it’s something different and the intensity is even stronger.”
    Emma stacked the dishes in the dishwasher. “Do you think he’s falling for her? Wow, I’d love to see him have a real relationship. He deserves it.”
    Marc shook his head. “I don’t think he wants to let himself go in that direction.”
    “Sometimes you don’t have a choice.” She grinned at him. “Look at us.”
    He brushed his lips over hers, gave a light stroke of his tongue over her lower lip.
    “Quit it.” She laughed, and hit him with a dish towel. “Let’s at least clean up before we get into any hanky-panky.”
    “Which, by the way, would do Rick some good if he let himself go.”
    “Rick has a strong sense of responsibility to the band,” Emma reminded. “It’s like family to him. Stability. Just as he saw himself as the head of the household when his dad took a powder, he’s shouldered on the same role with Lightnin’.”
    “You’re right.” Marc refilled his coffee mug and leaned against the counter. “We started this band together but he’s better at being in charge than I am. I don’t want that to be an obstacle to a special someone lighting up his life.”
    “Has he said anything to you about her? About Sydney?”
    Marc shook his head. “You know Rick. He thinks