That seemed to do the trick. A man in his thirties, wearing a sport coat over his jeans, jumped to his feet, nearly overturning the desk chair in his haste, and rushed over to shake her hand. “Yes. Isabel MacKenna. We’ve been waiting for you.”
“Then why do you all look so surprised?”
Xavier O’Dell answered her question. He walked in from the other room and stopped just inside the doorway. “You’re very pretty, Isabel,” he said, his voice deep and husky. “You took their breath away.”
Wow. Just plain old wow. Isabel didn’t know if she was gawking or not, but she couldn’t take her eyes off him. She could describe him in one word: perfection. He was tall and lean, yet muscular through his wide shoulders. He had dark hair, intense gray eyes, and a flawless bone structure the Greek gods would weep over. Even his lips were beautiful. She had seen him on the screen countless times, but he looked even more amazing in person. There should be a golden haze all around him, she thought.
Laurant was right. Xavier really was a sex god. The way he smiled and the way he moved . . .
there was a definite bad-boy allure about him. And dear God, his voice . . . it was so sensual. His voice alone could seduce a woman. It was certainly having an effect on her.
But he was no Michael. Xavier didn’t make her knees weak or her pulse quicken. He didn’t make her want to kill him, either, the way Michael did.
Now, why had that thought entered her head? Why was Michael always interfering?
Xavier shook her hand and quickly introduced her to the men and women in the room. She didn’t remember a single name, but at least she was able to stop staring at Xavier while she met each one.
An older gentleman stepped forward to shake her hand when Xavier introduced him. “This is Robert Davison. He’s one of my attorneys and has papers for you to take with you. Have your attorneys read them over and then sign if you agree with the terms. If not, we’ll negotiate. All right?”
“Yes, all right,” she agreed, then asked, “What are the papers for?”
“The purchase of your song,” he explained.
“Oh yes, of course.” She could feel her face heating up.
“We’ll rehearse first, and then I’ll show you the stage. It’s going to be a little overwhelming for you, I imagine.”
“She’s going to need a name, Xavier,” a young man with freckles and a warm smile announced.
Confused, she said, “I have a name. Isabel—”
“Isla. It’s spelled i-s-l-a, but pronounced ‘Eye-luh.’ That’s catchy.” He added, nodding,
“Memorable.”
“She’s already memorable,” another man said.
“What about El?” a woman with pink braces on her teeth suggested. “It’s just as catchy.”
Xavier raised his hand. “Isabel, these two are Calum and Amy. They’re part of my creative team.
They’re always looking for an angle.”
“Don’t worry. We’ll come up with some other nicknames if you don’t like Isla or El,” Amy promised.
Everyone started talking at the same time. Isabel was thoroughly bewildered. She couldn’t make sense out of what was happening. She had a name. She didn’t need another . . . did she?”
Xavier put a stop to their brainstorming. “Her name is Isabel. It’s a beautiful name and we’re not going to change it.” He then took her elbow and pulled her into the other room, shutting the door and leaving the chaos outside. It was time to go to work.
It took a little while for Isabel to settle her nerves, but once she did, she was able to sing without messing up. She actually remembered all the words, which was quite an accomplishment considering the sex god was in the same room with her. Xavier was easygoing and that also helped. Once the song took over, she lost herself in her music, just as she always did, letting the melody flow through her.
They worked on two songs, one she would sing alone and one she would sing with him. After they finished rehearsing, they talked for a long time, and she was surprised by how comfortable she was becoming. Then he took her to the stage. He showed her the way she would enter, where she would stand, and where he would be if she needed him.
“The spotlight on your face will be filtered so you won’t squint,” he promised.
After they went over the plan for Friday at least three times, he told her not to worry about anything because there would be a staff member by her side at all times guiding her if she ran into a problem.