Only in Time (A Mystique Antiques Novella) (2 page)

He tuned out the chirping from his phone and the text message it announced. There were enough distractions for him to deal with, today. He didn’t need to deal with anyone else.

A voice cleared behind him, bringing his thoughts back to the question still hanging in the air. And the answer his brother wanted.

But the answer he had wouldn’t be the one his brother expected.

Shaking his head, Jonah grabbed his shaving kit off the bed, securing it inside the suitcase. Might as well apologize and get it over with. He couldn’t put off his brother for long. Regardless of whatever excuse he conjured, it wouldn’t be good enough.

“Sorry, Theo. I can’t do it. My flight leaves in three hours.”

“So what?” Theo grumbled from behind. “Fly back tomorrow instead.”

Even as grown men, his baby brother knew just how to work him. Jonah let out an exasperated sigh. “I haven’t played in a solid year. This isn’t about rearranging my schedule. It’s about you finding the right guy. Someone with some talent.”

He stole a glance at his brother, not surprised to see frustration filling Theo’s blue eyes. “You can sell that bullshit somewhere else, Jonah,” he snorted, folding his arms as he leaned against the doorframe. “Tell me you won’t, but don’t tell me you can’t. We both know better than that.”

Biting the inside of his cheek, Jonah studied Theo. His brother was as stubborn as their father. Neither would take no for an answer.

A moment of silence accomplished nothing other than a stare down between them. Then Theo stepped toward him, his set jaw proof that he wanted to argue his point, but Jonah’s phone buzzed to life. His eyes moved toward the nightstand, locking on the text bubble that lit up the screen. It had to be Fiona. Again. Which only proved the point he was trying to make.

“See!” He gripped the phone in his hand, shaking it in Theo’s direction. “I have other shit to take care of. I can’t stay.”

It only took Theo a second to reach him, his brows tightening with each step. “You lined this gig up months ago. Convinced me how important it was to prepare for our live album recording. You should be responsible for finding a replacement!” Theo’s voice cracked as it hit a higher pitch. But as quick as anger filled his face, it disappeared just the same. His eyes wavered between Jonah’s and the phone before falling to the floor. “Jonah…I wouldn’t be asking if Jeff could make it, or if we had anyone else.”

Yeah, yeah. So he’d said the first time Jonah had said no. This was about the time when guilt kicked him in the ass and he gave in. Family first. It was the promise they’d made five years ago, almost to the day when Jonah had accepted the job he should be flying back to.

In under three hours.

Shit.

Searching for the zipper, he fought back the urge to flat out refuse. “Jeff won’t be ready for the recording if he doesn’t show. Why ask for my advice if you guys aren’t going to follow it? A freaked out girlfriend is a piss poor excuse to cancel, if you ask me.”

“Doesn’t change the fact that he had to, though. For Christ’s sake, she’s pregnant, Jonah. Jeff has a whole mess to deal with. I ain’t touching it and it shouldn’t matter. Where the hell is your heart?”

“It’s where I left it. Buried at the train station.” Hating himself for the admission, he let his suitcase lid close nice and loud. The soft pile of clothes he’d thrown in muffled what should have been a nice punctuation to his irritation.

It was Theo’s turn to shake his head. He did so as he took a step back toward the dresser. “How long you gonna live in the past, Jonah? You’re not responsible for what happened.”

“No, I’m only responsible for letting her leave with the wrong impression.”

“You thought you were doing the right thing. Why don’t you try looking her up? See what she’s—”

“Don’t go there, Theo. You can’t cross burnt bridges.” Tugging on the suitcase, he let it drop to the floor. The sooner this conversation ended, the better. And there was only one sure way to do that. “Okay, I give. How long’s the set?”

Theo clapped his hands and pointed finger guns at him. “Ten songs, big bro. You will not be sorry. I think this is just the distraction you need. Wait ‘til you see the Friday night crowd this joint gets. Bodies packing the floor, ready to dance. Honeys at our feet, just dripping for a chance.” Theo pointed skyward. “Hey, that’s not bad.”

Jonah rolled his eyes, knowing his brother was off to scribble on the nearest scrap of paper. He’d end up being the one getting dragged to the gig. Theo got in a zone when lyrics came to him. The kind of deep zone Jonah only skimmed the surface of when playing guitar.

Plopping down on the bed, he leaned back until the mattress cradled his back. Guess he needed to call Fiona and get this over with. Hopefully she could get him an early morning flight. Ah, better make it a mid-morning flight. While he didn’t have much interest in the complications of any dripping honeys, if the gig ran over or any of the old crew showed up, he’d be courting a hangover for sure.

It was damned good to be home again and besides, what harm could just a few more hours do?

The line only rang once before a voice filled his ear. “About time you acknowledged my texts. Are you at the airport?”

Great. This would go well. She’d love the position he was about to put her in. “Sorry, sweet cheeks. I’ve been busy with family. And no, I’m not at the airport. In fact, I have a favor to ask. You probably won’t like it.”

A throaty laugh echoed over the phone. “I’m used to covering for your ass, Jonah. Lay it on me. And hurry. I still need to explain why I called.”

Hesitating on answering her, he stared at the ceiling, wondering what info she had for him. Hopefully it was good news. He needed something positive after the last few weeks of hell. Why were musicians such a pain to deal with sometimes?

“I need you to tell Owen that I’ll be another day getting back. Then I need you to book me a flight for tomorrow afternoon.”

He waited for a tirade of curse words to follow, but only a snort filled the line. “I’m a step ahead of you, doll. I’ve already rescheduled your flight for the fifteenth. You leave out at one.”

God, she was great… Wait! What? “Whoa, whoa, whoa! What did you just say?”

“I said your flight is rescheduled.”

“Not that part.” He sat up in the bed, grabbing his briefcase off the floor. Opening it up, he flipped to the calendar, his eyes rolling over the dates and notes. “Why am I not leaving until the fifteenth? That’s almost two weeks from now.”

“Owen wants you to meet up with a friend of his next Friday, to check out some band that grabbed his interest.”

“So Owen wants me to do his job, huh?” He smacked the briefcase shut before pushing off the bed. “Why am I not coming back until the following Tuesday?”

“Rich Taylor called about your project. He thinks he can squeeze you in next week, but not until Tuesday.”

The news brought a smile to Jonah’s face. “It’s about time.”

“Yeah,” Fiona grumbled. “You could have gotten in sooner if you’d agreed to see the woman.”

“No! I don’t want a woman handling this. I work with Rich or no one.” The words resonated over the phone, filling Jonah with regret. He’d never yelled at Fiona or voiced his opinion about working with women. He didn’t need to start now.

“You know, I never took you for a sexist, Jonah. Why can’t you see the female partner in the firm? I heard she makes the men in that office look like baboons.”

“I’m not a sexist,” he laughed, doing his best to lighten the conversation. He didn’t want Fiona mad at him. She’d been the best thing to come along with his job. Had stuck her neck out for him far more than he deserved. “You know how much I enjoy working with you, Fiona. If I were a sexiest, I wouldn’t.”

“Mm-hmm. So you say.”

“Listen, sweets, it’s nothing against women. It’s just that I’ve spoke with Rich. He knows the project inside and out. I want to deal with him. That’s all.”

“Well, you still yelled at me. But that’s okay. You can make it up to me when you get back. I’ve been dying to try out the new sushi bar over on Melrose.”

Another round of laughter left his mouth. “Fine, fine. Sushi it will be.”

Thank goodness Fiona didn’t stay mad for long. Guess it helped that she liked her boss. And Jonah liked her too. But he couldn’t deal with other women on a business level. Not on any personal level, either. If he learned anything from his mistake six years ago, it was to always keep up his guard, and never trust a woman with his dreams.

Ally followed close behind the leggy hostess, wishing she’d worn her three-inch heels. Tall women irritated her, mainly because
the suits
at her old office treated her like an inferior, looking down at her with their condescending glares whenever she asked about a promotion. If she had a few extra inches of height, she could’ve looked them in the eye and showed them the brass that ran through her veins. They wouldn’t have had any other choice but to offer her their respect.

At least John Muncy had faith in her. That’s all that mattered. His position with the company trumped
the
suits
that made Ally’s life unbearable her first few months on the job. Funny how those same evil men thought giving her the Baker account would be her demise.

But it’s the account that brought her to John’s attention. And back to Savannah.

Her eyes swept the room, taking in the fully set tables with ivory china, miniature tea light lamps, and fluted glasses as blue as the sapphire ring on her finger.

She twisted the ring with her thumb, each step taking her deeper into the restaurant. The scent of maple-glazed salmon floated to her nose, making her belly grumble.

Maybe she would order the dish once she’d been seated. Have a nice glass of pinot noir with it.

No. No wine. She couldn't. It wouldn't be fair to...

The hostess’s sudden stop caused Ally to bump into her. Watching the young girl flash her fiery eyes in her direction made Ally's cheeks burn.

“I'm so sorry,” she mumbled.

At least the hostess’s glare subsided. “If you have a seat, I'll send your waiter over.”

“Thanks,” Ally said, her eyes landing on her mother's face once the hostess parted from the table.

Like a tidal wave making landfall, a surge of emotions flooded her heart. Maybe it wouldn't feel this awkward if she'd come home for Christmas at least once in the last three years.

“Hi Ally-bear,” the tender voice said.

“Hi, Momma,” Ally answered, slipping her purse off her shoulder before lowering herself onto a chair. “I’m not late, am I?”

“Not at all.” Her mother gazed down at her watch, tapping the face with her finger. “You’re actually ten minutes early.”

“That’s what I thought. It threw me off seeing you here. Normally you’re the one who’s late.” The heat of regret filled Ally’s face as she realized how hurtful those words sounded. Especially knowing the innuendo behind them. “Sorry, Momma. I didn’t mean that to sound the way it did.”

The laugh lines around her mother's mouth deepened. “It's okay, sweetie. So, how is the unpacking going? I know how time consuming it is to settle into a new house.”

“Yeah,” Ally forced a chuckle. “I never knew I had this much stuff.

“You have a way of collecting things over the years,” her mother smiled, taking a sip of her drink.

Ally’s eyes dropped to the fluted glass in her mother’s hand. The words leaving her mother's lips seemed to disappear as she stared at the contents swirling inside. “What’s in the glass, Momma?”

The carefree smile spread across her mother's face fell with each second that ticked by. Her eyes locked onto Ally as she rubbed her lips together.

“Water. It’s just water.” She moved the glass across the table. “Want to check?”

Ally gazed at the pink lipstick on the side of the glass. She fought back the urge to grab it and bring it to her nose. They couldn't start out like this. Her mother promised things had changed. Ally wanted to believe her. Tried hard to believe. Prayed enough time passed and lessons were learned.

Hadn't she promised herself that she wasn't going to care about this anymore? Yeah, somewhere between receiving her master's degree to landing a job with Muncy, Incorporated, she vowed she'd never allow the past and the pain it held to control her life again. She couldn't.