Page 2 of Her Dark Melody
“Juno called me, and we both agreed – ithasto be you, Ebony. You are so ready for this. You’ve been working your ass off, now it’s time to get some more actual experience. It’s going to be a pretty big deal.” Livia looked as excited as Ebonyfelt.
“Really? God, that’s incredible.” Ebony had missed performing, but the next moment she was filled with anxiety as Livia told her the scope of theevent.
“Although the facility is for people with few means, this event is high society – it’s a few thousand dollars a plate, all the money going to the facility, ofcourse.”
Ebony felt her legs shaking and had to sit down. “So, I’ll need to perform asong?”
“A set, maybe seven to ten tracks. It’ll be in Seattle,” Juno added as an afterthought, “and it might mean spending Christmas in Seattle. Romy says she’d be happy to have you stay with her if you don’t want to be stuck in ahotel.”
Ebony smiled. “Back home toSeattle.”
Juno grinned. “Word. Obe and I will come up for the holidays so you won’t be alone, but we can’t actually be there for the performance,sadly.”
“Atlas Tigris is the chairman of the event. He told me that if the performance goes well, he might need you for more charity events and has offered to pay you twice the going rate. You can do this, Ebony, you could do it in your sleep, and working for the Tigri family comes with immense benefits. Their step-dad, Stanley Duggan, is a heavy hitter in the music industry, and he’s a sweethearttoo.”
“You don’t have to sell me on this, I’m in. When is thegig?”
“December 20th, for the fundraiser, but Atlas may need you for the New Year’s Eve party too. Think you can handlethat?”
Ebony felt a wave of relief flood over her. Worrying about the pregnancy could wait until after this. “I can handle it.” she grinned at her friends. “I won’t let youdown.”
Seattle
Atlas Tigri glancedat the clock. Almost ten p.m. Even when he had been in pharmaceuticals, he’d never worked this late, thisoften.
“It’s because you’re doing something you love,” his brother Mateo had once said to him mildly. “You’re going to go that extramile.”
Mateo was right. Ever since Atlas had decided to set up this facility to take care of battered men and women who needed surgical and medical help, he’d been putting in twenty-hour days but never once feltexhausted.
The only time he felt lonely was when he spent time with his friends, Romy and Blue. Both surgeons, they were madly in love with the other. They welcomed him as part of their family, but as much as he adored them, their happiness made him realize how much he missed having someone in his life. Someone for justhim.
His family was his life. His twin brother Mateo was the person he was closest to; he shared not just the same glorious handsome face, black curls and green eyes with Atlas, but a similar personality – although Mateo tended to be louder than Atlas. Mateo had a seven-year-old son, Fino, whose mother had dumped the newborn on Mateo and taken off, never to be heard from again. Mateo adored Fino, and his son worshipped hisfather.
Seeing them together made Atlas yearn for kids of his own, but the truth was, he didn’t have time to seek a partner out. At various fundraisers for the facility, he’d attracted the attention of some of Seattle’s socialites, but he just couldn’t create a spark that wasn’t there. He found them shallow andvapid.
“Hey, you. Stillawake?”
Romy Sasse was at the door to his office now, her long hair pulled up into a messy ponytail, spots of fresh blood on her white coat. She flopped into a chair opposite him. Atlas studied her pale, drawnface.
“Youokay?”
“Just had an emergency brought in. Women got cut up pretty badly by her ex. Asshole.” Romy’s jaw tightened. “She didn’t makeit.”
“God, I’m sorry, Romy.” Atlas saw how exhausted his friend looked. Romy had given birth to twins only three months previously but had eschewed most of her maternity leave. Now Atlas wondered if she regretted leaving her job at Rainier Hope Hospital to come here. It wasn’t like she got paid to do this – not that Romy or her husband needed themoney.
For the last nine months, she had worked tirelessly with Atlas to set up this center for abused partners, and for the most part, they knew they had done a great thing for Seattle. Days like today, though, and Romy looked downhearted. “You can’t save them all, Romy.” Atlas got up and poured her a cup of hot coffee. Romy took itgratefully.
“I know, boss.” She sighed, sipping her drink. “Look, let’s focus on something else. Harriet told me that everything is planned for thefundraiser?”
Atlas smiled. “It is indeed. Juno called me, told me her singer friend was allset.”
“Ebony? That’s great…honestly, Atlas, when you hear her sing…she’s incredible. Such a lovely persontoo.”
“Stanley told me she had impressed some recording people in L.A. but they didn’t pick up her option because she wouldn’t change her genre topop?”
“That’sright.”
“Good for her, sticking to her guns. Showsintegrity.”
