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Putting the phone down, Morgan considered things. Her hand ran down her shin and felt the short prickle of hair. That was not something she was turning up to the spa with.

She hadn’t really taken it in when she’d popped her wash bag in earlier, but her bathroom was a thing of opulence. A claw-legged bath with a free-standing tap gave her all kinds of ideas for later.

Unzipping the wash bag in the silence, she stopped, noticing all of the small bottles of fancy shampoos and shower gels. She shook her head at her naivety. Of course, everything would be provided. She took the razor and put her bag to one side, and stepped up to the shower, turning it on to heat up. A huge rainfall showerhead lit up, and she studied the panel that controlled the water. A musical note caught her eye, and she pressed it and waited. Gentle music began to play through hidden speakers.

She blew out her cheeks and imagined whether Alex had a shower like this in that big old beach house of hers. Of course, she did. A house like that had everything and more, didn’t it? A house Morgan could easily see herself living in.

“Stop being ridiculous.” She laughed at herself. “This really is another world.”

Chapter Eighteen

Winchester Cathedral, built over 900 years ago, really was the most perfect place to hold an event like this. As with all buildings of this magnitude, it was built to enjoy sound. Stone surfaces carried the acoustics perfectly in its reflection of the music to the audience, and Alex loved it. That tiny spark of something entered her nervous system and she felt it ignite the tiniest flicker of a flame.

The crew had been working since the early morning, installing a sound system and lighting rig, as well as the small stage area that her Steinway Model B grand piano had been wheeled onto, and she would finally get to sit down and do a sound check ready for the following night’s performance. She nodded hello to them as she passed by.

Looking around now, she could see why the crew would need more than a 12-hour turnaround. It was a massive undertaking just to set it all up, and they’d be working through the night to take it all down again.

Just walking into the impressive building had given her goosebumps.

Her phone buzzed.

Unknown number: So, how’s it going?

Alex: I’m okay at the moment, but later might be different.

Unknown number: Really? Why? What’s happening?

Alex: I’ve just got something going on that will mean I’m in the mood, if you know what I mean.

Unknown number: In that kind of mood, huh? Damn, maybe we should meet, I could use a woman in that kind of mood.

Alex: I’m sure you could but I actually like having this unknown quantity to bounce things off of.

Unknown number: I guess, I’ve actually got a bit of a crush on someone myself. Someone at work, who is so out of my league, but it’s nice to fantasise, right?

Yes, it was, Alex thought to herself with an image of Morgan floating into her mind. She was about to reply when she heard her name being shouted like a foghorn.

Francine called her stage name, and it echoed in the chamber. Alex managed to avoid rolling her eyes when she saw Francine beckoning her over to meet yet another human being she could probably have avoided, but should probably be polite to.

She smiled and waved back, and after one final look around, she headed over to meet whoever it was that Francine deemed important, mentally slapping herself for feeling so uncharitable. It was nice that people wanted to meet her, she reminded herself.

“Ms Montgomery, it’s so lovely to meet you.” The woman extended her hand from beneath the red cassock she wore so pristinely. “We’re all so very excited about the performance this evening. It’s a sellout I believe.”

It was indeed a sellout, her shows usually were, but she simply answered, “Thank you…”

“Oh, so sorry.” The woman laughed. “Cassandra Ogilvy, I’m the reverend dean here at Winchester.”

Alex continued to smile as though she had any clue what that actually meant. “Well, this is such a beautiful building. I’m about to do a sound check if you’d like to listen.”

“That would be wonderful. Do you mind an audience? I know some of the staff would love to enjoy your music too.”

“Of course, why not?” She turned to Francine. “I’ll just be—” She pointed to the piano in the middle of the hall.

“Sure, sure.” Francine shooed her off. “You go get started.”

As she approached the small stage and the grand piano, Alex felt the first tingling of excitement. Her fingers twitched, eager to reach out and touch the ivory keys and play something, anything, it didn’t matter. All that mattered was the sound, and her chance to escape this world for just a moment. It was the only time lately that she felt alive. Really alive.

There was a small step for her to use to move seamlessly onto the podium, the comfortable stool on its marker. Reaching out, she dragged her forefinger along the polished edge as she circled the instrument and allowed herself to enjoy its presence.