Part 20 (2/2)
”Hey, it's Mason. I need you to draft a new contract.”
The next morning, Kevan pulled the gla.s.s diner door open, eyes wearily sweeping the crowded room for Dan Carver, the High Energy executive. When the tour had hit Las Vegas, she continued going through the motions-smiling when appropriate, scheduling tweetups, another meet and greet, a promotional stop at a local record store, and arranging the meeting with Dan.
The smell of breakfast-eggs, greasy sausage, and pancakes-a.s.sailed her nose. Even the Elvis-themed restaurant, filled with cheery red-vinyl booths set against a glossy black-and-white backdrop couldn't lift her sullen mood. She easily spotted Dan's red hair amongst the vacationing families, hardcore gamblers on benders, and businesspeople. She walked to his booth in the corner of the room, her limbs feeling disjointed and awkward, matching her feelings.
Dan smiled openly as he stood and shook her hand. ”Good to see you again. Have to admit I'm curious as to what happened with Mason. His email was pretty cryptic. But I'm more than happy to work with you, Ms. Landry.”
At least Mason hadn't advertised their fallout to everyone. But then he wasn't good at explaining anything to anyone.
Kevan smiled stiffly, trying to keep the anguish in her heart from flooding her face and tipping her hand. ”You'll have to discuss that with Mr. Dillon.”
She slid into the seat and glanced down at the tattered menu, knowing full well she wouldn't be able to stomach any food.
Dan's skeptical expression gave the impression that he knew more than he was saying. He smiled. ”My understanding was that another commitment came up.”
A young, perky waitress interrupted to take their orders. The distraction bought Kevan a few extra minutes to better formulate her answer. Lying wasn't her thing. And frankly, it was all too much-trying to deal with the heartache, do business, and get through the last couple of tour dates. The lack of sleep and fuzzy haze that seemed to follow her around made it difficult to focus long enough to create a believable lie.
Taking a sip of her coffee, she let the bitter liquid slide down her throat and into the acidic pool of her stomach. ”He's a busy man. I'm sure it was something important.”
His smile thinned, and his eyes narrowed. ”Really? Because I've known Mason a long time, and he's not one to cancel at the last minute. Especially without an explanation.”
No s.h.i.+t, buddy. I'd like an explanation, too.
Kevan sighed. f.u.c.k it. ”Look, I'm trying to be professional, but I know you're friends. Honestly, Mason and I had a falling out. It wasn't pretty, and it wasn't fun. But he believes in Manix Curse, like I do. So if we could get back to business-”
”Bulls.h.i.+t.”
”Excuse me?” she sputtered.
He smiled over his coffee cup, took a sip, and set the cup down, slowly and deliberately. ”I said 'bulls.h.i.+t.'”
She stood and reached down for her bag. ”I can see this meeting is over-”
Dan reached out and wrapped his hand gently around her wrist. ”No. It's not. Sit down.” His smile looked sincere. ”Please.”
”I don't know what Mason told you, but I'm only here to discuss next fall's h.e.l.lfire tour with you. That's it.” She sat back down. She needed this for the band. For herself.
The waitress brought her toast and Dan's breakfast, but she couldn't summon the energy to thank the overly peppy woman.
”He told me you're a game changer for him.”
What the heck was he talking about? ”What?”
That calm, soothing smile again. She didn't know if she wanted to hug him or poke him in the eye with her fork.
”In Medford. At first he acted cool and indifferent, but within a couple of minutes, he pretty much admitted that he cared about you.”
Dan's word's banged around her head. He cared about you.
”So what?”
”I've known him for a long time, remember? He's never 'cared' about a woman. Never.”
He cared about me?
”Well, that's just peachy. He doesn't really care, now.” She stopped herself from going further and polluting Manix Curse business with her wrath.
”I thought you should know,” he said, looking uncomfortable and grabbing some paper from his briefcase. ”Shall we move on to business?”
Instead of acting resentful, he dropped any mention of Mason and got right to the deal. All in all, it was a good package for a new band, that included a percentage of ticket sales, travel, meals, and some co-promotion with several of the sponsors, as well as with other bands on the tour.
Chapter 22.
After taking a taxi back to the club, she stood in the living area of the tour bus and shared the details of the deal with the band. Her pulse raged, and she tried not to think of Mason and how the credit for the tour was really his marketing connections and genius. The band members reacted enthusiastically, hugging and yelling. Only Jax was a little less excited than the others.
”Dude, aren't you excited? A real tour.” She nudged him with her elbow.
Jax smiled. ”Yeah, of course. I'm just worried I've been away from work for too long. My client wait list is getting longer. But it's a great opportunity.”
Kevan wasn't convinced, but thought he'd be okay once the money started rolling in. But honestly, she could hardly bring herself to care much beyond a superficial interest. ”I'm sure it'll be good.”
”Okay, Debbie Downer. You seriously need to snap out of it.”
She drew back; the effort to hide her misery was getting more and more challenging. ”I'm fine. And we were talking about you.”
”We were, but now we're done.” He motioned for her to follow him outside, where he turned and faced her. ”You should call him, you know. We had a couple of interesting conversations, but he genuinely seemed into you. Maybe you mis-”
”What the f.u.c.k are you talking about, Jax? You talked to Mason about me? Who do you think you are?” She struggled to keep her voice down, clenching her fists so hard they ached.
Jax grabbed her shoulders and looked down into her eyes. ”Calm down. I was making sure he wasn't f.u.c.king with you. I told him I'd kick his a.s.s if he did.”
”You don't get to do that. My personal life is none of your business. And, for the record, I'm doing just freakin' fine.” She turned and stomped back to her RV. Mason's RV.
Kevan hauled her sluggish body up the steps and collapsed at the table. She held her head in her hands. She'd tried to purge everything in the motor home that reminded her of Mason. But since the RV was actually his, the task was impossible. Lifting her head, she glanced around the room. Every corner held a ghost of him or a shadow of a memory with him. Laughing across from her at the table. Pressing up behind her as she made breakfast. Holding her hands against the wall as he ravished her mouth with his talented and punis.h.i.+ng tongue.
She stood and reached up over the stove, searching for the bottle of Patrn Mason kept there. Grabbing the bottle and the shot gla.s.s he'd bought her in Eugene, she slammed back two quick shots, one after the other. She welcomed the sharp burn down her throat and the warmth that instantly spread through her belly.
Her head swam after the third shot of tequila, her eyes watery and so heavy. Maybe this was the answer to actually getting some sleep. Padding over to the bathroom, she rummaged through her bag and found a couple of over-the-counter sleeping tabs, popped them in her mouth, and swallowed them down with the remaining bit of booze.
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