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My lips curled, and I arched a brow at my private insight into Teagan from how she responded when Raff acted like a kid.

‘All right, buddy,’ I said, putting a hand on Raff’s wet shoulder. ‘Go grab a towel from the rack and dry off. Or get back in the water,’

‘I can do a cannonball from the deep end!’ Raff told Bishop, bouncing on his heels.

‘Show me in five, kid, after your dad and I have a chat,’ Bishop said, patting his head.

‘I’ll hold you to it,’ Raff said, then dove into the pool.

Bishop chuckled and turned to Teagan, pointing to a shaded outdoor sofa near the palm trees.

‘Go sit down, Teag. Relax for a bit. I need to check some tracks with Deke.’

She nodded, slipped her sunglasses back down, and walked toward the shade.

Bishop and I prowled into the cool interior, and the glass doors slid shut behind us.

After we greeted Christine and handed her the dessert box, we went to the dining room.

‘Good to see you, brother,’ Bishop said, pulling out a chair and sitting across the table.

‘You too. Got something to share as well.’

I pulled up the software and opened the track we’d been trading back and forth for three weeks.

‘Listen to what I did with the orchestral section on the bridge.’

I hit play.

The villa’s speakers picked up the sound via the Bluetooth.

The violins came in beneath the rhythm, building a tempestuous, harmonic swell that grounded the entire chorus.

Bishop leaned back, his eyes closed, listening to the progression.

He stayed silent until the final chord faded out.

‘That transition at the four-bar mark,’ he said, opening his eyes and nodding once. ‘That’s it. It clears the clutter out of the lower end.’

‘Needed to give your electric guitar room to breathe,’ I said, leaning my elbows on the table.

‘Lock it in.’

‘Done.’

I glanced through the glass doors.

Outside, Teagan sat on the terrace, legs crossed, thumbs flying across her phone screen, isolated from everything happening around her.

‘Beau, brother,’ I said. ‘Your new woman. What’s her deal?’

Bishop shrugged.

‘She’s fun, hot, and is an up-and-coming British television presenter.’

‘How long has this been going on?’

‘A few weeks,’ Bishop said, rubbing the back of his neck. ‘We met at a dinner in London. She’s driven, passionate, and is all over me. What we have works well enough, for now.’