Flirting With Disaster (Camelot 3)

“Around seven, I think,” Ginny said. “In time for sound check. He said he can meet with you before the show, if he has a few minutes.”

Three or four hours to kill. At least he’d have time to find out what Mike wanted.

“What are we supposed to do until he gets here?” Katie asked.

“Judah had me reserve rooms for you at the Quality Inn down the street.”

“Thanks. Is he flying out?”

“I’m not at liberty to say.”

“Are you at liberty to tell me how to reach him?”

Sean glanced at Katie, impressed with how placid she sounded despite her disappointment. Placid wasn’t a word he normally associated with her.

“You’re welcome to ask me any questions you have.”

Katie folded her hands on the table. Her index finger found her thumbnail and poked at it.

One of her nervous habits. She usually wore a silver ring on that thumb. In the office, she would avoid his eyes and twist her ring around and around.

Ask her where Judah’s staying, he thought.

Silence.

Ask her if she knows anything about why we’re here.

She looked at him with an uncertain frown between her eyebrows.

Katie didn’t know what to say next because she wasn’t supposed to have to know. Her brother had told her repeatedly that this was Sean’s show.

But what the hell kind of show was it? Pratt had been getting threatening messages from a fan. Sean and Katie weren’t supposed to protect him from whatever danger might be associated with those threats, whatever they were. Pratt had made it clear to Caleb that his regular detail would handle his security.

All Camelot was supposed to do was get to the bottom of the problem. Somehow. For some reason.

Sean couldn’t trust any plan with such sketchy outlines, and it didn’t help that Caleb felt the same way.

Pratt’s evasive, he’d said. I don’t know what his game is. And I don’t want him sleeping with my sister—not that I have any control over that. Just keep an eye on him, okay? And keep an eye on her. Keep her out of trouble.

Sure.

“I can show you the way over there if you like,” Ginny said, rising from the booth.

This wouldn’t do. He had to talk. He had to cheat.

The trick was to pretend Katie didn’t exist.

Closing his eyes for a second, Sean put himself at the head of the mahogany conference table in the Anderson Owens boardroom. He flattened his palms on the polished wood and leaned forward. Twelve expectant faces waited to hear what he’d say. Waited to be told what to do.

Ginny’s was one of them.

A sense of purpose settled over him, of power. In the conference room, Sean was perfectly in control, steering his company in accordance with the vision that had driven him from the day he and Mike hacked into a Syntek server and Sean took command of his destiny.

He didn’t stutter in that conference room. Not ever.

Avoid hard consonants. No sibilants. Concentrate.

When he opened his eyes, he asked, “Where will he be?”