(Title TBD) by Kelly Duff
Chapter One
Chicago
Kate Harris couldn’t breathe.
The air in the Evolve Nightclub felt like a heat vent hitting her on full blast as the drum machine onstage thumped inside her ears. When she pushed aside the strands of hair clinging to her neck, her pulse danced under her fingers. Maybe it was the flashing strobes or the smell of perfumes and body spray around her, but she felt nauseous.
Wiping the back of her hand across her brow, Kate tried to remember what she’d eaten that day. If she didn’t get out of there soon, she’d puke up whatever it was all over the trendy shoes of the young girls who cheered on the techno band that, in her opinion, wasn’t all that good. Hopefully, the coworkers she’d been standing with at the bar wouldn’t notice her hasty exit. The last thing she needed was someone to question her credibility — she could do that all by herself, thank you very much.
Anxious to feel the cool spring air, she adjusted the strap of her handbag and pushed through the crowd toward the main entrance. Once outside, she grasped the railing at the cement stairs to steady herself.
The night’s breeze ruffled her striped top as she gazed up at the Chicago skyline. The sight of it eased her a bit. It was good to be home in the city she loved. Two years had been a long time to be away.
A wave of nausea hit her again, and she descended the stairs.
As she stepped onto the sidewalk, she collided with a burly older man who kept walking, cursing over his shoulder at her.
Kate stepped back, clutching her hand to her chest as she tried to catch her breath.
“Are you okay?”
A hand was suddenly on her shoulder, and she jerked away, still shaken by the first assault.
“I’m fine, I—”
Before her, the younger man looked familiar, but her brain was too fuzzy to pinpoint where she’d seen him before.
“It’s okay. I know you from the Hancock building,” he said as if he’d read her mind.
The hot guy from the elevator, she recalled.
He gestured toward the club’s entrance. “What happened back there?”
“I don’t know. I got hot all of a sudden.” She leaned against the nearest light pole to impede her dizziness. “My heart is racing like crazy.”
Hot guy closed the short distance between them, cupped her chin, and tilted her head up. His golden-brown eyes searched hers. “Are you on something?”
“What? What do you mean?” Kate pulled away, losing her balance.
He caught her by the shoulders. “Drugs. Did you take something?”
“No, I don’t—really?” Offended by his question, she almost forgot how wobbly she felt as another rush of nausea hit her.
She closed her eyes to quell the feeling, swayed forward, and the next thing she knew, she was in hot guy’s arms.
“Whoa there,” he said as he steadied her. “I think you’re having a panic attack. Let’s get you over to Northwestern to be sure.”
Before Kate could protest, he helped her into a cab.
He slid into the seat next to her. “I’m Nick, by the way.”
Kate could only nod. At least now he had a name. On their daily elevator ride, any woman would plead guilty to drooling over the dark-haired male in the fitted suits, with the expensive leather messenger bag, and the Rolex on his wrist.
When the cab reached Northwestern Hospital’s ER, Kate reached in her purse for cash, but Nick insisted on paying. He helped her out of the cab and guided her in through the sliding doors to the waiting room.
The bright florescent lights and the antiseptic smell didn’t help Kate’s nausea, but she had to admit the coolness of the place was glorious. It seemed quiet for a Thursday night. So quiet, she wondered if Nick could hear her heart thumping. It was maintaining a pretty severe rhythm.
After signing in, a woman directed them to an empty exam room down the hall. The room was furnished with monitors, an exam table, a small sink, and a television that currently was muted but tuned to the news.
Nick assisted Kate onto the exam table.
“Thanks.” Kate took a deep breath. Her whole body seemed to be buzzing, or maybe it was the sound of the lights overhead.
“I feel foolish. I’ve never had anything like this happen before. I thought maybe I had food poisoning or something. Or maybe it was the crowd. Too many people.”
“Or that band,” Nick added, raising his eyebrows. “But, I guess five-hundred twenty-somethings couldn’t be wrong.”
“I’m not so sure. The music was pretty awful.” Kate couldn’t help but chuckle.
“That’s too bad. I’m their agent,” Nick said seriously.
Kate started to stammer apprehensively, “Well, I guess—”
“I’m just messing with you.” The corners of his mouth perked up. “I represent them because their parents have money, but yeah, they seriously suck.”
Damn, he’s cute.
A short, petite nurse came into the room with a clipboard and handed it to Nick. “What brings you here today, dear?” she asked Kate directly.
“I guess I’m having a panic attack?” Kate looked at Nick to confirm.
He nodded. “Rapid heart rate, nausea, dizziness. It started about thirty minutes ago.” He sounded so sure of himself like he’d done this before.
The nurse took Kate’s vitals. “Your blood pressure and pulse are a bit high. Go ahead and fill out those forms. The doctor shouldn’t belong.” The woman smiled and left the room, shutting the door.
Nick handed Kate the clipboard. “I don’t know your name.”
There was that smile again.
“Kate.” She looked over the form and back up at him. “You don’t have to stay. I’m sure I’ll be fine.”
“Humor me. I want to see if my prognosis is right. Plus, what kind of jerk would leave you here alone?” Nick leaned back against the wall and stuck his hands in the pocket of his jeans. “Unless you want me to call someone. Do you have family in the area? A boyfriend or husband, maybe?”
Subtle, Kate thought.
“No. Neither of those. My brother lives in Barrington, but it’s way past their bedtime.”
That was all she needed—Dan coming to her rescue and her mom finding out that, oh look, Kate’s screwed up again, because that’s precisely what her mom would assume.
“So, how do you know so much about panic attacks?” Kate asked.
“My brother,” Nick said. “He has them.”
The door to the room opened, and a slender Asian woman in a white doctor’s coat entered. “Hi, I’m Dr. Shen. Tell me what happened.”
Nick gestured toward the waiting room. “I’ll step out.”
He exited and shut the door behind him.
Kate shook her head, still trying to understand it all. “It was like a wave just came over me.”
“How are you feeling now?” The doctor put her stethoscope up to Kate’s chest.
“It feels like my heart wants to jump out of my chest. I’m still pretty nauseous.”
“Are you under an extraordinary amount of stress lately?”
Kate just about laughed.
Let’s see. After being gone for two years to take care of my dying father, I’m back home in a job that was given to me most likely out of sympathy, and I have no idea what the hell I’m doing.
Yeah. The doc didn’t know the half of it.
~~~
Nick Logan stared at his cellphone as he sat in the hospital’s waiting room and contemplated his situation.
Kate.
For weeks, he’d found himself staring at the adorable young woman on the elevator. He’d practically memorized every reddish-brown highlight in her shoulder-length hair. Luckily, there were always several people separating them on the ride up the iconic office building. Otherwise, he might have creeped her out.
He was pretty sure she worked for the promoter a few floors up from his office, so he was surprised to see her at Evolve. He’d worked closely with the Windy City Events over the years and could spot their employees a mile away. With their vintage concert tees, Doc Martens, and ripped jeans, they all tried so hard to look like the artists they booked for shows. On Kate, it looked natural.
He was about to walk over and say hello, perhaps offer to buy her a drink, when he noticed the symptoms of a full-blown panic attack. It surprised him how easily his knee-jerk reaction to someone in distress had kicked in. As if it were only yesterday that he’d raced Chris to the hospital, always fearing the worst. It didn’t take much to destroy his brother’s already-tortured spirit. How many times had he picked up the pieces, Chris promising this time he’d get his shit together?
The thought made his stomach churn almost as much as the techno bullshit he’d witnessed at Evolve.
He’d been glad to leave the nightclub. Impetus Stain sucked. He should raise his rate for having to even deal with the crap those kids expected on their tech rider, half of which wasn’t even tech. But, their wealthy parents and throng of groupies thought they were “awesome AF.”
What people claimed to be good music baffled him these days, and that astonishment made him think he was starting to sound like his father. Damn, sometimes he felt old for twenty-eight, but maybe his old man was on to something.
Voices from the hallway caught his attention, and he turned as the nurse from the exam room escorted Kate toward the lobby. The color had come back into her cheeks, and she looked a helluva lot better.
She seemed surprised to see him still there.
“All good?” He stood as she approached.
“You were right,” Kate said. “The doctor gave me a Xanax and a referral in case it happens again. But man, I hope it doesn’t happen again.”
Nick smiled down at her. “Well then, let’s get you home.”
As they pushed through the doors leading to the street, she said, “I can’t thank you enough.”
“Not a problem. We can catch a cab at the busy street if you’d like.”
“I feel good enough that I’d like to walk home. My apartment is across the street from the office, so it’s only a few blocks. And I could use the fresh air.”
“I’ll walk with you,” he said. Thanks to his brother, the need to follow through on his caretaker duties had been ingrained in his DNA.
After they walked a bit, Kate said, “earlier you mentioned you represent that band back at Evolve.”
“Yep. I’m at Paradox Artist Management on thirty-five. Impetus Stain is a client. They’re a smaller act, but they seem to be gaining momentum. I was only there to have a drink with their manager.”
Kate looked distraught. “I’m sorry if I took you away from something important.”
“Are you kidding me? You did me a favor.” He chuckled. “You work at Windy City Events.”
“What gave it away?” Kate laughed.
“I know the staff pretty well, but I assumed by your daily attire—” He quickly shut his mouth, afraid he’d just admitted he’d been watching her on the elevator. “What do you do there?”
“I’m securing the second stage acts and sponsorships for Rock on the Water. That’s why I was checking out your friends tonight.”
Nick nodded. He was well-aware of the end-of-summer concert at the newly-constructed floating entertainment barge.
Kate slowed as they approached Michigan Avenue. “Look, Nick, I’d appreciate it if you kept this panic attack thing between the two of us.”
Nick knew from experience it took a considerable team to oversee all the moving parts putting on that type of show. Still, his mind was far from considering ratting her out to her coworkers, many of whom he knew. He was thinking how different it would be the next time they rode the elevator together. How she just about fell into his arms outside the nightclub and how nice it felt. How maybe he’d ask her to join him for lunch the next time they saw each other in the sandwich shop—not that he was about to start dating someone in the business. He figured they could talk shop.
“My lips are sealed,” Nick replied as they stopped at the intersection by the Hancock building.
Kate’s gaze traveled to his lips, and suddenly, the sound of the cars and pedestrians around them seemed to disappear.
“Thank you again for helping me. What you did was amazing.” Kate leaned in and hugged him.
For the second time that night, she was in his arms, and now he could smell the lilac-scented shampoo she used. Her body was soft against his, and he had to remind himself that they’d just been at the hospital. She’d been given medication, for crying out loud. He instantly took stock of where his hands were on her body, making sure he didn’t give her the wrong impression.
However, when she pulled back just enough to stare into his eyes, he knew—
Dude, she’s going to kiss you!
Had he been the one given the sedative? Because it was so unlike him to kiss someone he’d just met, no matter how pretty he thought she was.
But that’s precisely what happened.
Her fingers lightly touched his face, and their lips met for the briefest moment.
Before he realized it, Kate had pulled away and joined the crowd crossing the street, leaving him standing there frozen and speechless.
The clamor of the crowds and traffic flooded back into his ears.
Once Kate got to the other side of the street, she looked back at him, waving before she turned to head into the apartment building on the corner.
Nick rubbed his forehead and hailed a cab to go home.
With his brother sober, somewhat sane, and traveling across the other side of the world trying to find himself, Nick knew he was in a unique position to negotiate his own happiness for a change. But the chance was too great that Chris might come home any day now and need him.
No. It had to remain professional.
Because that’s what he was—a professional.
Even though her damn kiss still lingered.