His sigh was heavy with implication. “That was only a year before I sent Jennings to the bar to check you and the guys out.”
With both hands, I palmed the back of my head, trying to beat back the anxiety clamoring through my insides.
Eating me up.
God.
Anthony di Pietro, my agent, but more than that, a friend, a guy I considered an honorary member in my fucked-up family, was the tie.
Of course, I knew it was Anthony who’d sent Jennings to check out Sunder that night we were playing in Tennessee. That was no secret. How many times had Anthony vocalized his regret? Wondering if we’d have been better off if he’d never sent Jennings our way?
But none of us could have foreseen the trouble he would bring.
“The word was, Delaney Rhoads couldn’t cope with the stardom, and she’d tucked tail and ran back home. Sure, there were rumors circulating about an affair between Jennings and the emerging star, but we learn fast in this industry to ignore all of that unless it’s something that affects one of our clients directly. Most of it’s all bullshit, anyway. You know this well enough, Baz. I had no clue Delaney Rhoads even had a kid. She disappeared off the face of the earth. Forgotten in days. I never thought to ask Jennings about what had happened to her. I wasn’t representing her.
He shook his head. “Hell, I’d never even met her. Initially, I did it thinking it was a favor to Charlie. In all the times I went back over the years, Charlie never once mentioned his niece had moved back there or that she was working in his bar.”
He shrugged. “It never crossed my mind.”
Of course Charlie never mentioned her.
Secrets.
Secrets.
Secrets.
Secrets meant to protect and defend, yet here they were, threatening to ruin everything.
“I’m sorry, Baz. When I suggested you go to Charlie’s, I never imagined something I set in motion years ago could possibly affect you now.”
Yeah, I was pissed. Some kind of unknown hurt wound through me as I came to understand how this web had been spun together.
Shea and I unwittingly tied to the bastard who wanted to destroy both our lives.
But how could I regret it?
Because that would have meant never losing control with Shea.
And never losing control with her just wasn’t an option I could entertain.
I pressed the heels of my hands into my eyes. “What the hell are we going to do? He was here because of me, Anthony. He looked me straight in the eye when he took Kallie and reminded me I was going to regret fucking with him.”
A wave of helplessness washed over me, and that was not a feeling I took kindly to. How the hell did you fix something when you had no clue what went down in the first place?
Anthony gave a quick nod. “The second you mentioned his name when you called me, I had no doubt the asshole had ulterior motives.”
He always did.
But I knew it went deeper than that. This muddled maze was more than just about me. He’d hurt her, and clearly he was aiming to hurt her again. But why? To get back at me? That’s what made no fucking sense.
“Shea’s terrified for Kallie.” The words cracked on my own fear. Because the truth was? I was, too. “We can’t just leave her with him.”
Sympathy filled his eyes. “I get that, Baz. You know I’d throw myself on a bomb for my own kids. No, I don’t know Shea, but I can only imagine the hell she’s going through right now. But the one plus in this whole thing is I don’t think Jennings is witless enough to hurt a little girl who’s recently been placed in his care. He’s always meticulous. Covering his ass and letting everyone else take the fall.”
I pressed my hands to the counter and blew out a breath. “Yeah…thought as much myself. He’s devious, but not a fool.”
His tone grew cautious. “You have to ask yourself how far you’re willing to get involved in this. Every time we turn around, this mess gets deeper and deeper.”