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Dylan released a sigh. Feeling disgusted and angry at reliving memories that were still painful, even after ten years. Suddenly, as if Charm knew he was there, she glanced up and met his gaze.
It was Dylan!
Charm Outlaw drew in a ragged breath and tightened her hand around her bouquet. She broke eye contact with him to look toward the front where Ola and Piper were already standing. Although she maintained the smile on her face, she could tell by her two friends’ expressions that they knew something was wrong. What had given her away? Had they seen her glance up toward the building? Had the happy expression on her face changed for a second?
When she reached her designated place beside them, she leveled a “you won’t believe it” gaze at them in response to their questioning looks. There was no way she’d been mistaken. The man she’d seen had been Dylan. She was certain of it. His eyes had given him away. They were dark, alluring, and had always been the most beautiful pair of eyes she’d ever seen. He’d told her his Native American ancestors had been part of the Shoshone tribe.
He looked older, more mature, and he was gorgeous. Over the years she had seen him on television, photos of him on magazine covers and just this week, when they’d arrived in Cancún, she’d seen a sexy image of him on a huge billboard modeling men’s underwear. He had certainly made a name for himself. Definitely not the two-bit guitarist who would never amount to anything that her father had assumed. Dylan was a huge success as a renowned jazz guitarist and singer with numerous awards under his belt. He was a household name with a legion of fans.
She tried to force Dylan from her mind as she watched the rest of the wedding, but couldn’t help remembering the summer when she and Dylan had met.
Two
Fairbanks, Alaska, twelve years ago
“Honestly, Regan, why are you in such a hurry to get to class? It’s going to be the same boring piano lessons,” Charm said, as they alighted from the limo her father Bart had hired to transport them to class every Wednesday and Friday.
No matter how much she complained about having to take piano lessons twice a week, her whining fell on deaf ears. She could get her way with Bart about some things, but for some reason he was hell-bent on having her take these lessons. She suspected it was her brothers’ idea. They probably saw it as a way of getting rid of their sixteen-year-old pest of a sister for at least four hours out of the week. Otherwise, she would drive them crazy. That couldn’t be helped, though, since she had missed them. Especially when Maverick and Sloan had been away at college. Now they were home for the summer, and she liked giving them her attention. Jess and Cash worked for the family business, Outlaw Freight Lines, and usually traveled most of the time. Her oldest brother, Garth, was away in the military.
“I love my piano lessons, Charm. You would, too, if you gave them a try.”
She rolled her eyes at Regan’s comments. “You can talk since you’re the gifted one.” And she meant it. Music seemed to come naturally for her friend. Besides, Regan had been taking lessons a lot longer than Charm. Regan was in the advanced class while Charm was still in the beginners. So what if a lot of the students who’d begun with her were now in the intermediate class. Big deal. Who cared?
When they made it inside the University of Alaska Fairbanks music building she knew this was where she and Regan would part ways for two hours. She liked Regan and even with the three-year difference in their ages, she was the closest thing to a best friend she had. Regan’s father was the Outlaws’ corporate pilot and had been for years.
“I’ll see you in a couple of hours,” Regan said, rushing down the hall. That’s when Charm noticed the building was a little more crowded than normal. What was up? This was the beginning of summer.
That’s when she remembered that each year the University of Alaska Fairbanks held a summer music academy. It awarded over fifty scholarships to students gifted in music from around the country to come to Fairbanks for the summer to study under renowned music instructors. She knew her music teacher, Professor Jovanovich, was one of them.
When she reached her music suite, she glanced at her watch. She didn’t understand why Regan had been so eager to get here when they had a good thirty minutes to spare. Charm figured she could hang out in the college break room and wait, but she’d rather not. More than once some of the older guys had mistaken her for a young freshman and thought she was easy pickings. That’s where they made their mistake. Her five brothers had taught her how to handle guys like them. More than one had left her alone after walking away with a bruised ego.
She quietly entered the music suite and saw the student ahead of her had finished and was putting his guitar back in the case. Obviously, she hadn’t been as soundless as she’d thought, because the student and Mr. Jovanovich turned her way.
Her gaze moved past the professor to land on the student beside him. Immediately her heart went patter-pat. Who on earth was this tall, good-looking guy with almond-brown skin, striking features and a mass of straight black hair that flowed to his shoulders? He was as tall as her brothers and wore a pair of jeans and a button-up shirt that looked good on him. She figured he was a student here at the university.
“Miss Outlaw?”
She blinked when she realized Professor Jovanovich had said her name with force. Did that mean he’d said it twice to get her attention? If that was the case, he still hadn’t gotten it. At least not fully because her gaze was still on that guy.
“Yes, Professor Jovanovich?” she asked, still not breaking eye contact with the student. She couldn’t understand why she couldn’t take her eyes off him. But it seemed he couldn’t take his eyes off her either.
“Maybe introductions should be made,” Professor Jovanovich said, looking from her to the guy, then back at her. “If you will step over here, Miss Outlaw, I will introduce the two of you.”
Charm felt her feet move. It was really strange to be captivated this way. She saw good-looking guys all the time. Her five brothers were handsome and so were the guys they hung out with. Guys who would make most girls drool. She hadn’t drooled over them. She wasn’t even drooling now. However, something more substantial was taking place. It was something she couldn’t explain or define because she had no idea what it was.
When she came to a stop in front of them, Professor Jovanovich said, “Charm Outlaw, I would like you to meet Dylan Emanuel. Dylan is one of our summer scholarship recipients. He’s a guitarist and vocalist.” Then without missing a beat, the professor said, “Dylan, this is Charm Outlaw, one of my piano students.”
Dylan smiled and extended his hand. “Hello, Charm. Nice meeting you.”
She accepted his hand. It felt warm, gentle yet firm. And those dimples in his cheeks when he smiled nearly made her weak in the knees. “Hello, Dylan. Nice meeting you, too.”
She tried to place his accent, but couldn’t. She’d only visited the lower forty-eight a couple of times. It really didn’t matter since she liked the sound of his voice regardless.
It was only when Professor Jovanovich loudly cleared his throat that Dylan released her hand. That’s when Charm finally broke eye contact with Dylan to draw in a deep breath. She needed to pull herself together.
Swallowing deeply, she asked, “Are you ready for me now, Professor Jovanovich?”
“No. In fact, there’s an emergency board meeting I need to attend that shouldn’t last more than thirty minutes. I need to step out. I assume you’ve practiced your piece for today.”
