Real Time Read Free Page B

over and slapped him hard across the face. “How dare you! You have no right to criticize or judge me. I don’t have to sleep around to get any job!”
    She started to walk off but he angrily grabbed her arm. It was apparent a fight was about to ensue as Kevin raised his hand up to return the slap. Before he could connect, a large hand interfered, stopping him.
    “Go on upstairs, Kate,” Brock said quietly, staring Kevin down. Kate walked away toward the elevator. Once the door had closed, Brock released his grip. “I think the lady made herself clear. I advise you to stay away.”
    Brock walked away while Kevin remained standing there, angry at being stopped. He was going to follow him but thought better of it and walked over to the front desk. He asked for Kate’s room number, but when he gave her name, they told him the hotel didn’t have anyone registered by her name. He tried Nick also, but the desk clerk said she couldn’t give him any of Nick’s information, per the contract they had with the musician. She’ll have to come back out this way he thought, moving over to a chair so that he could watch the elevator. We will continue this when she comes back down , Kevin thought, settling down to wait. It had been ten years but he had finally found her.
    * * *
    U p on the eighth floor, Kate’s heart had stopped pounding from her encounter and she found her room easily. It was a suite with a sitting room, bathroom and bedroom – which was standard because Nick usually had one of the security people sleeping in the sitting room. Sometimes there would be two bedrooms attached to one sitting room, but she was glad this one was a single. Kate tossed her suitcase in the corner and sat down in one of the chairs, still shaky from the brief exchange with Kevin. She hadn’t seen him since the day he knocked her down the stairs of their apartment – her attorney had kept her from having to face him physically in court when they were going through the divorce. She had hoped after ten years he could at least be civil but it was obvious he was still angry. Kate didn’t understand why the anger was directed at her – he had gotten the scholarship they had been competing over and the job with the London Philharmonic as a featured pianist. Matter of fact, their divorce should have helped as he’d been able to move to London with no strings attached. And he had a fabulous career with them, staying on after the internship.
    Kate waited another thirty minutes to see if Brock, or even Nick, was going to show up pounding on her door for an explanation. But when no one showed, she took some clean clothes out of her suitcase and took a long, relaxing shower. It felt really good under the hot water and she reluctantly got out to dress. Kate glanced at the desk clock and saw she had about fifteen minutes until dinner – Nick would have reserved a large meeting room, or an extra room with a large sitting area, for their use as a place to hang out or eat. It was much easier to have the hotel staffs provide meals than try to go out in the city. The band had no trouble getting out and around but it was usually a nightmare for Nick. And, with a hotel this size, girls would be camping on the sidewalk in hopes of seeing someone famous; Nick definitely didn’t have the patience to deal with it on a constant scale.
    She stepped out of her room and one of the security people, Jake, pointed her in the direction of where everyone was. Dressed in what she would wear during the show, she pulled her damp hair up into a ponytail as she opened the door. Kate hesitated for a moment but everything seemed normal. She was hoping Brock hadn’t said anything to Nick and this could just go away. The nervousness about it was leaving her stomach queasy, so she opted for half a sandwich off the tray and a bottle of water. She sat in a chair the furthest away from Nick as possible watching everyone to gauge the mood. Nothing seemed out of place as everyone