said?"
"Now come on Jerry, you know I don't kiss and tell."
"Like hell I do!"
Jerry Dermott owned the whole label. And a telecom company. And a small island. He and Nick went way back. Nick had made him his first million.
Never mind the boatloads of cash he'd made for the bastard since then.
That's how Nick knew he was going to get what he wanted from him today.
"Strictly off the record, it was a bit of a fib. I've got to keep my reputation up, don't I?"
Jerry laughed.
"I bet you'll get an earful from her tomorrow."
"No, she was there with me. She's strictly professional- too bad for me!"
Jerry laughed even louder at that. He was quite the skirt chaser himself back in the day. Nothing even close to Nick's epic list of conquests, but nobody really stood a chance against him in that department.
"What can I do for you Nick?"
"That's the thing. I'm really concerned about this upcoming tour, the appearances, everything. Since Sabrina has done such a good job so far, I would feel much more comfortable if she was there with me. In person."
He grinned at Marley who was gaping at him with his mouth open. He looked like a fish.
"For the entire tour."
"Hmmm… I'm not sure she's going to like that Nick. You're not her only client you know."
"Ah but Jerry, I should be, shouldn't I? Plus she can do some scouting. I have an opening act or two in every major city in Europe, and that's just the first leg of the trip."
"That's not a bad idea… but it's a long way to go to find new talent."
Nick could sense that the wily old bastard was wavering.
"I would really feel so much more comfortable with her as my handler. Otherwise, who knows if I can keep track of all the promotional appearance she so carefully lined up for me? I might just- not show- or even worse- I might show up drunk. You know she would never let that happen."
He held his breath while Jerry did the mental calculations. In just a second he'd come to the exact conclusion that Nick wanted him to.
Sabrina had to accompany him on tour.
Three bloody months to get her in bed. Once she was there it shouldn't take much longer than that to get her out of his system.
"I agree completely Nick. I'll have the head of A&R inform her in the morning."
"Thanks Jerry. Here's to being filthy stinking rich."
Jerry laughed again, the sound echoing around the limo's speaker system.
"Yes, here's to that. Have a good night Nick."
"Later."
Marley was looking at him as if he were extremely disappointed in him. He hadn't made that face since the time Nick pissed off his hotel balcony in Paris onto the the Rue De Le Paix.
"You shouldn't have done that Nick."
"Shut up Marley and let me enjoy my victory."
Nick leaned back in his seat and put his hands behind his head. He let his mind wander, imagining all the things he would do with her… and all the different ways he would do it. He'd be gentle with her at first. But then he'd unleash the beast. No woman had ever turned down a turn in his bed. Hell, he usually had to kick them out.
He didn't think he'd be tossing Sabrina out of his bed any time soon. He had a feeling he wouldn't