Jesse's Girl (Hundred Oaks #6) by Miranda Kenneally Read Free Book Online Page B

register now. Keep the beat, okay?” His fingers effortlessly drum the keys. “Start…now!”
    I join in, and the music seems to relax both of us. Jesse starts telling me that along with Garth Brooks, Tim McGraw, and Keith Urban, he’s big into Neil Diamond, James Taylor, and Simon and Garfunkel—all the boys from way back. I confess that while I love badass girl musicians like Fiona Apple, most of the music on my iPhone is from the eighties. Prince, Madonna, Pat Benatar. My mom got me hooked on Queen.
    “I love them so much I named my Twitter account QueenQueen,” I tell Jesse.
    He smirks. “A Tennessee girl who dresses like Madonna and sings Freddie Mercury.”
    Our musical tastes are very different, which makes me nervous, considering Nate never liked anything but metal, and I don’t want to spend my entire day with Jesse listening to country. I want to listen to the music I like. So it’s great that we discover a mutual love of Bon Jovi; he starts playing “Living on a Prayer” for us to sing along to, and I can hardly believe I’m practically doing karaoke with the king of country music. My voice stays steady through the song, just like when I sing backup.
    “Your voice didn’t crack that time,” Jesse says. “That’s good.”
    “I can relax more when I’m not the only one singing.”
    We play until a gorgeous blond woman wearing this long, flowing bohemian dress sails into the studio. She lifts her sunglasses and squints at us.
    “Jesse?” she asks. “Who’s this?”
    Jesse and I stand. “Holly, meet Maya. Maya, meet Holly. She’s been my voice coach for forever.”
    The woman beams as we shake hands. “Jesse’s never brought a guest to one of our sessions before.”
    “She’s not a guest. Maya’s job shadowing me today.”
    “Ah. That’s nice of you.” Holly looks confused.
    “Maya’s a pretty good singer. No training.”
    Right then, Mr. Logan strolls in wearing a fancy navy suit, blue tie, and shoes so shiny they temporarily blind me. Two young women in crisp black suits carrying portfolios, iPads, and cell phones rush in behind him. Whoever they are, they need more hands.
    “I told you, no press,” Jesse says to the ladies. “It’s my day off.”
    “At least let us put out a statement that you’re mentoring a fan today,” one woman says.
    Jesse shakes his head. “This is a private favor for my uncle, not a stunt.”
    The other lady says, “We’ll frame it that you’re visiting important Nashville landmarks with a talented fan—”
    Jesse responds by shooing the two ladies out of the studio, shutting the door with a click behind them. It’s like watching a circus.
    “Jess, I told you I was coming to pick you up,” the manager scolds.
    “We got sick of waiting on you.”
    “Did you really drive Maya here on your motorcycle? Your uncle is going to kill me.”
    “Maybe you should’ve been on time then.”
    I’d be flipping out at Jesse, but Mr. Logan stays cool and calm, adjusting his watch before shaking my hand. “Nice to see you again, Maya.”
    “You too, sir.”
    Jesse snorts. “Sir,” he mutters, and Mr. Logan gives Jesse a noogie, then pats his back.
    “You know you’re not supposed to leave home alone without your security,” Mr. Logan says.
    “I didn’t need it. Maya provided security.”
    “Is Jesse already driving you crazy?” Mr. Logan asks me.
    “He’s not too bad,” I say.
    “Hear that?” Jesse gives Mr. Logan and Holly a look. “I’m not too bad.”
    “Finally some good press,” Mr. Logan says with a laugh, and Jesse scowls. “Well, don’t let me interrupt. Just wanted to see how things are going.”
    “It’s been, like, twenty minutes, Mark.” Jesse begins to play the Charlie Brown theme song on piano. It’s really cute.
    “I’m going to make some calls,” Mr. Logan says. He gives me another smile and goes to sit in the isolation booth where Jesse must do his singing. Through the glass, I watch Mr. Logan put a cell phone