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It was easy to reassure him on this point. “M was not happy about Rick. At all.”
“And you believe M is a good guy.”
“He is to me. Whatever else is going on, he’ll share with me when he can, but for right now, he’s asked me to have some faith in him. I have no reason to believe that he’s not a good man, other than people’s perceptions about him. That’s not based on any sort of fact. You taught us to go with our gut and always look for what’s real and true, not gossip or rumor.”
“You have a good heart, Lyric. I don’t want to see anyone take advantage of that. I also know you’re fair and not a pushover. So if M makes you feel this much for him, then I’ll give him a chance. Rick is another story.”
“You and I are on the same page about him.”
Her dad looked up as Jax, Aria, and Melody walked out the kitchen door.
“What are you all doing here so early?”
Her dad stood up and faced her along with her siblings. “It’s time you told them about Rick.”
Melody grinned. “The guy from the bar last night, who couldn’t take his eyes off you?”
Lyric saw the determined look in her father’s eyes that she not do this alone. “You and someone else I know think alike on this.”
Approval lit her dad’s eyes.
“Is he your boyfriend?” Aria asked.
Jax eyed her, ready to go into protective-brother mode.
“No. He’s someone who started off trying to connect with me online. Things got a little too personal and uncomfortable for me. I backed off from interacting with him and focused on my singing and songs. I hoped in time he’d get the hint that I wasn’t interested. Then, while I was in Nashville, this guy showed up at the gig and approached me about writing songs together. He was pushy. I tried to get out of it without being rude, but he kept insisting, so I gave him a vague answer that we’d do something soon. I didn’t know when I met Rick in Nashville that he was the same person from online who goes by the username LyRick.” She spelled it out for them so they’d understand the play on her name and got three shocked looks. “And then he showed up out of the blue and found me at the ranch the other day.”
Jax went on alert. “He followed you here?”
“Yes,” their dad confirmed.
Jax swore under his breath. “How the hell did he know where you lived?”
She winced. “It actually wasn’t that hard. He knew I worked at the Dark Horse Dive Bar and sang here. He looked up the bar, found the town, and flew here. Then a helpful person in town told him if I wasn’t at the bar, he could find me at the ranch.”
Aria pressed her lips tight. “Once he had Wilde Wind Ranch, all he had to do was look up the address.”
“And now he’s in one of the cabins,” their dad added. “Hunt looked him up. He’s got some minor infractions, but nothing to indicate he’s aggressive.”
Lyric didn’t wholly agree with that. “He’s persistent and determined to have my attention.” Lyric wondered how the guy who looked so normal made her uncomfortable, while the guy who looked like a criminal made her feel secure, even when he kept so much from her.
Maybe it was simply that Rick’s intentions were masked in his tenacious manner, and M refused to lie or say things just to placate her. He’d laid out the truth and given her a chance to decide if she wanted in or out.
Maybe that’s what it was. One respected her choice, the other tried to impose his wants on her at every turn.
Her dad looked at her three siblings. “I want all of you on alert when this guy is around. I want you to watch Lyric’s back. If you see or hear anything, make sure Lyric and I know about it. Hopefully this guy gets the message that she isn’t interested and leaves.”
“But you don’t think that’s likely.” Jax eyed her again.
“No. He seems to think the things I say and do are all directed at him and that I want him.”
“Why not just get Viper to smack him down?” Melody suggested. “The guy is always looking out for you anyway. He’d make an impression on Rick.”
Lyric shook her head. “I don’t need anyone to handle this for me. I can deal with Rick myself.”
“I know you can, sweetheart.” Her dad smiled to let her know he meant it. “I just want it known that this guy could go from nuisance to problem. I don’t want you or them to dismiss something as nothing when it could become something dangerous.”
Lyric understood her dad and siblings were looking out for her. And maybe she needed the help, becauseRick hadn’t just crossed the line last night showing up the way he did, he hadn’t respected her wishes when she stated them. And that was a problem perhaps she couldn’t fix herself.
