Grace Under Fire (Buchanan-Renard 14)

An older gentleman who seemed to be in charge came forward to shake hands and introduce himself. His name was Paul Emerson, and he was Xavier’s agent. He had a smooth way about him.

“Are all three of you FBI agents?”

Nick answered. “No, just Noah and I are agents.”

Emerson turned to Michael. “I noticed you aren’t armed.”

“No, I’m not.”

“But you’re one of Isabel’s guards tonight?”

“Yes.”

Isabel couldn’t resist. “Take a good look at him, Mr. Emerson. Do you think he needs a weapon?”

Nick laughed. “I can assure you he doesn’t.”

Emerson looked confused.

“You have no reason to be concerned,” Isabel said to clarify. “He’ll watch out for me.”

Noah had a bit of the devil in him. “You’ll be fine, too,” he said. “As long as you don’t piss him off.”

“Yeah, he’s got a temper,” Nick drawled.

Exasperated, Isabel explained, “They think they’re funny.”

Emerson seemed to take it all in stride when he turned back to Isabel. “You forgot to take the legal papers for your attorney to look over. I have them here.”

Isabel took the folder and handed it to Michael, who handed it to Nick to put in her bag.

Isabel thought she had hours to wait, but when she checked the time, she was shocked. There was less than an hour before the concert started. Nick and Noah left to get the lay of the land, and as soon as the door was opened, she could hear the audience chanting XO’s name and stomping their feet in rhythm. She took a drink of water from the bottle Michael offered her and handed it back. She wanted to pace, but there wasn’t room.

Xavier came out ten minutes later. He wasn’t dressed in anything glittery, but then she didn’t expect he would be. The mere thought was inconceivable. Glitter wasn’t his style. He wore black pants and a crisp long-sleeve white shirt. It was unbuttoned at the neck, and the sleeves were rolled back at the wrists. His only jewelry was a watch, and even that wasn’t fancy. His shoes were his signature. Xavier always wore white tennis shoes onstage, and tonight was no exception. He obviously chose comfort over the latest style, which made her like him all the more.

He spotted Isabel across the room and headed toward her. The way he looked at her, with such warmth in his eyes, made her heart skip a beat. They met each other in the middle of the room. When he hugged her, she was careful to turn her face away so she wouldn’t get makeup on his shirt. After greeting her, he draped his arm around her shoulders.

“Paul, what do you think? Was I right?” he asked his agent.

“Yes, you were right,” Paul called back from the other side of the room. “She really is lovely.”

Isabel didn’t like them discussing her as though she weren’t there. She pulled away from Xavier and introduced him to Michael. The two men shook hands and started talking, and within minutes they acted like best friends. They both had the same twisted sense of humor. Watching them, Isabel had an epiphany. Michael could be charming.

Xavier acted as though he had all the time in the world to chat. Then Noah and Nick returned to the suite and joined the conversation. Isabel kept checking the time. She noticed Xavier didn’t look at his watch once. She couldn’t understand how he could be so relaxed. She went into the other room to warm up her voice, then reapplied lipstick and walked back to Michael and took a drink from the bottle of water. She couldn’t pay attention to the conversation. She was too busy trying not to freak out about what was soon going to happen. Almost twenty thousand people... Oh my God... twenty thousand...

Michael leaned down and whispered in her ear, “You’re going to be great.”

She looked into his eyes. “You think?”

“I know.”

She almost believed him.

“It’s time, Xavier,” one of the staff members called.

“Okay, then,” Xavier said. “Are you ready, Isabel?”

He didn’t give her time to panic. He simply took hold of her hand and led the way. He indicated with a tilt of his head for Michael, Nick, and Noah to come with them. Isabel couldn’t keep up with his long-legged stride, and when Xavier noticed she was all but running, he slowed his pace.