Cash (Sexy Bastard #2) by Eve Jagger Read Free Book Online

attitude and leering gaze. I’m the logical choice
to bring them back, but Meyers refuses to see it that way. If I can
land a new client, it’s one step closer to proving Briggs’s
point.
    “I’m sure. And thank you.
But I really do have it under control,” I finally say.
    Briggs nods. “I believe it. Is
there anything I can do to help you?”
    I hand him my empty flute. “Watch
me work. And possibly get me another drink. I’m off to find
Mathias and conclude our deal.”
    “That’s what I like to
hear. Give ‘em hell.” He gives me a genuine smile.
    Oh, I plan to do just that.
     
    Mathias from Triton Entertainment is by
the stage. His dark hair and olive complexion make him look like some
sort of Greek god. We’ve talked on the phone, and sometimes it
felt like we were going in circles, but I’d been told by other
colleagues in the industry that he just needs to be handled right.
And if there’s anything I know how to do, it’s handle
difficult people. But speaking of which, right now I need to call in
a favor from Mathias—the favor that could clinch my career
trajectory. Triton Entertainment reps mostly music acts—country
music, specifically.
    And Meyers loves country music.
    “Mathias, Savannah Sunday.”
    “So good to meet you, finally.”
He gives me a light hug.
    “Yes, well, it’s been my
pleasure to work with you on this. I hope you got the bourbon?”
    He smiles. “I did, thank you. It
was much enjoyed. You have great taste.”
    I send up a silent prayer of thanks to
Cash for helping me pick exactly the right bourbon to get me on
Mathias’s good side. “You said you have someone special
for me to meet tonight? Someone who’s going to knock my socks
off?”
    “Absolutely. I think you’re
really going to love him.” He leans in conspiratorially. “It’s
probably best that you didn’t wear socks.”
    “He’s that good?”
    “He’ll be bigger than Tim
McGraw, and he’s got all the appeal of Luke Bryan.”
    Now this I have to see.
    “I can’t wait to meet him.”
    “I was just about to introduce
him, actually. We’re showcasing him tonight. He’s in the
market for an attorney, as you know. He wants a real fighter.”
Mathias adds a wink, and I work hard to suppress an eye roll. “You’ll
have the best view from right where you’re standing. I’ll
just say, his first song has been topping the charts and I think
we’re going to have a lot to talk about after he’s
finished up there.”
    A flashy smile, and Mathias disappears
into the crowd only to reappear moments later on the stage. The
back-up band comes on behind him and starts setting up while Mathias
announces the performer. My heart’s in my throat. This is it.
    “Ladies and gentlemen, thank you
for coming out tonight. It is my pleasure to announce our newest
artist, Tanner Jakes, and his hit song: “Old Dirt Roads.”
”
    The smile drops off my face.
    No.
    It’s just a big long scream
inside my head. No. Not possible. Fate cannot be that cruel.
    Then Tanner Jakes steps out of the
wings and saunters to the mic, the slow roll of his hips accentuated
by low-slung, worn-in, sexy as hell button-fly jeans. All six feet
three of cowboy boot-wearing, Stetson-topped perfection. He is the
poster child for country music, and my own personal nightmare. He
leans into the mic, and it squeals. His dimples appear as he makes an
apology to the crowd.
    They’re charmed. They’re
going to love him.
    I know this because I once loved him.
Fate, you fickle bitch.
    The music starts, and Mathias catches
my eye from the wings, flashing me a thumbs up. No. No thumbs up.
Suddenly there is not enough air in the room. But I’m stuck at
the front of the stage.
    Tanner looks right at me and I can’t
move. Everything that I have put between this man and me evaporates,
and the raw wounds he left on my heart start bleeding again.
    “I been out on the road so long,
    On these old dirt roads,
    Just thinkin’
bout the girl I left at