With his superior hearing, Dayan could hear every word. He sorted through conversations easily, dismissing them from his mind, but not hers. Corinne. The other woman had called her Corinne. Although happy to know he had managed to steal her breath, he was busy assessing the situation. Medication. What medication? What was wrong with her heart? It was important to find out as soon as possible.
Dayan directed his attention toward Cullen. Go to the far booth and strike up a conversation with the two women. He pushed hard, making his words a command. He didn’t like using Cullen – it wasn’t in Dayan to use someone he was fond of – and now that he could once again experience emotions, he could feel the friendship he had with the human male. But he needed an emissary, someone to act quickly before Corinne bolted. He could read her fear easily enough, and he could not allow her to flee from him.
Cullen turned his head and spotted the beautiful blonde. To his astonishment he recognized her face. Lisa Wentworth. She was a model often seen on the cover of magazines. Ordinarily, he would never have the nerve to speak to her, but for some reason, he found himself covering the distance between them. He had been in love one time in his life and had lost his fiancée. Since then he had never really looked at another woman. He couldn’t help noticing Lisa Wentworth. It wasn’t just the fact that she was beautiful, it was something shining from deep within her.
“It would be an honor to get you two whatever you’re drinking,” he said as a greeting. “My name is Cullen Tucker.” He wished he had a pickup line that would make him stand out from all the men staring at her, but he hadn’t tried to attract a woman in years.
“Lisa Wentworth.” Lisa stuck out her hand and flashed a blazing smile while Corinne seemed to shrink back into the shadows, her face slightly averted, her hair spilling down like a silken shield. “This is Corinne. Corinne Wentworth.”
Cullen raised an eyebrow in inquiry. They looked nothing alike, although he thought them both beautiful. “What would you like to drink?”
“We’re both just drinking water,” Lisa offered, a flirty smile curving her soft mouth. “I’ll let you get it for us if you promise to sit with us.”
“I’ll be right back,” Cullen commented, rather pleased that Lisa wasn’t staring up at Dayan with that look he recognized in so many women. He had learned, in traveling with the band, that few of the groupies cared what the band members were like, only that they were famous and played in a band.
“What are you doing, Lisa?” Corinne hissed. “Are you crazy? You never pick up men. What are you thinking? Tell me you aren’t using him to meet the guitar player.”
“Of course I’m not. I don’t know – there’s just something about him. He’s cute. He isn’t looking at me as if I’m something to drape on his arm and show off. It gets tiring. Do you mind so much if he just talks to us? You can stare some more at Dayan while he plays.” There was a hopeful note in Lisa’s voice.
Corinne took a deep breath and let it out slowly. She wasn’t being fair to Lisa. Lisa needed to have fun. She had been taking care of Corinne for months now. Carefully Corinne hid her trembling hand out of sight in her lap and forced herself to shrug casually. “I suppose I can do that. But I’m not looking at him anymore. Just hearing him play is overwhelming. He’s almost too good.”
Lisa’s eyes were on the man at the bar, surveying him with interest. His shoulders were square and he stood very straight. She liked the way he looked her right in the eye. There was something else, something that touched her heart. She couldn’t define or explain it to Corinne, but he looked like a man with the weight of the world on his shoulders and no one to ease his burden. The plain truth was, she liked the look of him.