A Reckless Note (Brilliance Trilogy 1)

He closes the space between me and him, all male swagger and sex appeal, and when he stops in front of me, his hand presses possessively to my hip, branding me with heat. “You look stunning, baby.”

My hand settles on his chest and I boldly say exactly what I think. “So do you. Always.”

His lips curve. “I’m glad you think so.” He takes my hand and kisses my knuckles. “We need to go. It’s getting late. Tonight, we have the local Texas division of Walker Security on board. They’re waiting on us out front.”

A few minutes later, we step outside to find a huge man in all black with a scar down his face waiting on us beside an Escalade.

“What the hell, Savage?” Kace greets, shaking his hand. “I thought we got the Texas team while here.” Kace glances at me. “This is Rick Savage, who normally works with the New York division of Walker.”

“Hello,” Savage says, fixing me in a friendly but somehow appropriately savage stare. “Don’t let the scar scare you. I killed the guy. He’s not around to bother you.”

I gape and surprise myself by laughing before he turns his attention to Kace. “My lady and I are from Texas. She wanted real Mexican food, so here we are. Besides, who better to pump you up for a show? I know what you need. You know I do. I have the radio tuned to some old-school jams, just the way you like it.”

We load into the vehicle and say hello to the driver, a man Savage calls Dirty Dan, before Savage cranks up the music. The first song “So Into You,” that blasts through the speakers is one that I remember from the nineties by a now MIA singer called Fabolous. I loved that song, and as it plays, Kace whispers the words into my ear. I’m smiling and laughing as we draw close to the hotel and the song shifts. This one though, also a nineties tune, hits home, and carves out a piece of me. It’s an Dr. Dre song featuring Eminem and Skylar Grey called “I Need a Doctor.” The words repeat over and over:

I’m about to lose my mind

You’ve been gone for so long

I’m running out of time

The vehicle stops in front of the hotel and I quickly grab my phone and send a text to Gio: Call me. Stop being an asshole. You’re scaring me. I glance up and Kace is staring at me.

“You okay?”

“Yes, of course,” I say quickly, hoping the music hides strain in my voice. “I’m excited to watch you perform.”

The Escalade is now in front of the hotel entrance and the doors open. Kace has my hand, holding onto me as we scoot across the seat toward his exit, but I manage to drop my phone. He reaches down and grabs it from the floorboard for me, but not without his gaze landing on the text.

He leans into me and slides the phone back into my purse, but in doing so he cups my face and kisses my neck, whispering, “We’ll talk when we get inside.”

I don’t know what that means, but I’m pretty sure it’s a distraction he can’t afford right now, when he’s about to perform. He steps out of the vehicle and then helps me out as well. Savage and Dirty Dan, a tall man with blond hair tied at his nape, are by our sides as we walk beneath an overhang leading to the hotel door, when I hear squeals, followed by “Oh my God, it’s him! It’s Kace August!”

Suddenly, a horde of people, women mostly, surround us, shoving things at Kace, asking for photos and autographs. Kace pulls me close and whispers, “I know this is bad timing. Just stay close.”

Savage and Dan are instantly in action, along with several other men that I assume work for them or the hotel. Kace signs a few photos, but it’s all too much, too overwhelming, all the people who scream for him, the women who tell him they love him. I just want out of the circle we’re in and finally our path is clear. Savage leads us into the building. Once there, Savage and the men escort us past the lobby to a roped-off area that leads to red carpeted stairs. We hurry up them and once we’re on the next level, Kace directs Savage and the other guards to wait. He then pulls me down a deserted hallway and around a corner, where he plants me against a wall, him in front of me, one hand on my waist, the other on the wall by my head. “I’m going to help you find your brother.”

I blanch surprised that is still where his head is right now. “You need to be thinking about the event, Kace.”