An Unexpected Song by Iris Johansen Read Free Book Online

dark hair away from his face, the sunlight on his tanned skin, the way the soft fabric of his faded jeans molded the brawny muscles of his thighs, the power and strength of his hands.
    She swallowed and quickly glanced out at the valley again. She sought wildly for a change of subject. “I liked your brother. The two of you aren’t very much alike.”
    He was silent an instant, as if deciding whether or not to accept the sidestep, and finally said, “I know. Eric says I’m a throwback to an Apache great-grandfather,” Jason said. “My brother got all the charm and business sense and all I got was a muse whispering in my ear and tormenting the hell out of me.”
    “But you wouldn’t change places?”
    “No, my music’s everything,” For a moment his voice was bitter. “It has to be.”
    “What do you mean?”
    “Just what I said.” He changed the subject. “It’s no wonder your projection is so good, that your voice completely fills the theater. All this climbing must give you great lungs.”
    “It helps and the exercise keeps me from getting stressed out.” She wrinkled her nose. “Fantine’s never been an easy role for me.”
    “Why not?”
    “Because I’ve been so lucky,” she said simply. “Fantine suffered disillusion, desertion by her lover, separation from her child, loss of everythingthat made life worth living. It’s hard for me to identify with her.” She picked up a blade of grass and chewed it thoughtfully. “God gave me my voice, and that was a special joy, and then he topped it off by giving me loving parents. I haven’t suffered enough to play Fantine well.”
    “You lost your mother.”
    “But Charlie was right there bolstering me, supporting me.” She added softly, “Loving me.” She gazed absently down into the valley. “Do you know that line from Fantine’s song. ‘But the tigers came at night?’ ”
    “Yes.”
    “Well, the tigers have never come to me.” She laughed shakily. “Yet.” She glanced curiously at him. “Have they come to you, Jason?”
    “Oh, yes.” He drew up his knees and looped his arms around them. “By night and by day.”
    “I’m sorry.”
    He nodded. “I know you are.” His gaze lifted to her face. “I wish I could tell you that they will never come to you, but they come to all of us eventually.”
    “I’m not so naive I don’t realize that.” She closed her eyes and shivered as she whispered, “Lord, sometimes I get so scared.”
    He went still. “What’s wrong, Daisy?”
    For an instant she was desperately tempted to tell him. They had become very close in many ways during these past few days, and sometimes she felt so alone in her waiting that it would have been an enormous comfort to confide in someone. But she couldn’t take the easy way. She had promised Charlie, and it might be the last promise he would ever ask of her. Her eyes flicked openand she smiled with an effort. “Nothing. I was only telling you why Fantine was difficult for me.”
    His gaze narrowed on her face. “No, it’s more than that.”
    She scrambled to her feet. “It’s time we went back to the cottage. Since I don’t have a performance tonight, I promised I’d spend the evening posing for Charlie.” She dusted the seat of her jeans and started down the path. “Don’t worry, it’s much easier going down.”
    “Why won’t you talk to me?”
    “I could ask you the same thing.” She met his gaze directly. “You never really talk about yourself. The tabloids are right. You’re the original mystery man.”
    His expression became guarded. “There’s not much to tell.”
    “You can’t expect confidences if you don’t return them.”
    He smiled crookedly. “And what if I opened my jaded soul to you?”
    She hesitated, her gaze on his face. He was one of the most complicated and fascinating men she had ever met, and she suddenly realized she desperately wanted to know what circumstances had molded the man who was Jason Hayes.
    But not if it