Free Rock Your Body: A BWWM Romance by Susan Westwood Page B

have the best?”
    “Flattery will get you nowhere.”
    “I’m finding that out.”
    Damn. She was one tough lady.
    ***
    Tamra didn’t go into the meeting with the fragrance company. It lasted an hour and she sat doing work on her laptop until Colin came out of the meeting,  a smile on his face. He shook everyone’s hands while Tamra called for the driver.
    She wondered what went on in the meeting but Colin was a chatty guy. She had no doubt he was going to tell her. During the whole trip back to New Jersey.
    Lucky her.
    The driver was there when the left the building. Colin slid in first then Tamra was in. The driver pulled back into traffic.
    “That was a great meeting. I feel like they were listening to me,” Colin said.
    Midtown traffic was at its usual crawl. They sat in a long line for the Holland Tunnel. Tamra was eager to get back across the Hudson. She’d spent enough time in her youth in a city. She preferred the quiet and clean air of the country.
    She couldn’t breathe in the city.
    “Listening to you?”
    “Sometimes I feel like they want to pat me on my head and tell me to go play my guitar. I’ve had lawyers do that when I’ve sat in on negotiations. Larry has never treated me that way. One of the reasons he’s been my agent for so long.”
    “You don’t think at this point you’d command respect?”
    “Inside the industry, yes. Not outside. Too often stars use their fame as vehicles for other things such as political purposes. I don’t think that’s right and I’m not one to do that. I could get behind a charity but that’s it. Just because I can sing and play music doesn’t mean that my opinion matters more than anyone else’s.”
    Interesting. Not really self-absorbed. Surprising. Or was he just handing her a line?
    She didn’t want to make conversation. He clearly did. She sighed. “What did you talk about at the meeting?”
    “I want to do a fragrance. Obviously I can’t create one so this company will. We talked about what kind I wanted. I hadn’t thought about it before I went into the meeting.”
    “For instance?”
    “Well, did I want it musky or woody? I smelled a few raw materials but they are going to set up a meeting to smell some more and then I can decide what direction for them to go in. Then they’ll have a few samples for me to smell and I’ll choose the final product.”
    “A men’s cologne?”
    “Well, both men’s and women’s. They’ll give them a cool name and my name will also be on the bottle.”
    Tamra didn’t wear anything like that so she’d never thought about the process of making them. Colin seemed to be excited about the whole situation.
    He chattered away as she nodded and looked out the window.
    Then they arrived home.
     
     
    ***
    “Stay in the car,” Tamra commanded.
    “What?”
    “Your front door is open. In fact, Sean, please drive him around the block. Call 911.”
    “You’re not going in there alone,” Colin said.
    She glanced over her shoulder at him. “I’m paid to protect you. Chivalry is not needed in this situation.”
    He put a hand on her arm. “Don’t. Stay in the car. There’s no threat to me right now.”
    She seemed to chew on that. Then she closed the door. “Okay. Drive. I’ll call the cops.”
    Colin’s heart pounded. He didn’t like the idea that his personal space had been invaded. It wasn’t his actual home but this was his temporary home. He thanked the stars above that Tamra had stayed in the limousine.
    She didn’t need to be a hero. He needed her to be alive.
    Maybe she and Larry were right. Maybe there was a threat to him. But who was the threat? Who near him wanted to terrorize him?
    Sean drove them down the street and parked. The limousine had tinted windows so no one could see inside but Colin was a little antsy anyway.
    At least Tamra was safe.
    “You can calm down. You are safe here with me and Sean,” she said.
    “I know. I’m just so careful about preserving my privacy that the