The Closer You Get by Kristi Gold Read Free Book Online Page B

she should learn not to take it out on
other people. Especially her boss.
    * * *
    T HEY ARRIVED AT F ORT W ORTH five hours before Brett was
scheduled to share the stage during the day-long spring music festival with some
of country music’s finest. After the star left to join the band for a quick
rehearsal, Cammie watched several buses bearing the names of notable singers
pull into the lot. She should be excited and totally thrilled by her
surroundings, but she’d been feeling a little down, maybe even a little
homesick, even though she refused to give in to those emotions. Confronting
Brett hadn’t exactly helped her despondency, particularly when she considered
she still had a month to go before she had to relinquish her duties to Bud. She
really needed a good, long nap. The world would look much better then.
    After a quick shower, Cammie stretched out on the berth and
immediately fell asleep, only to be awakened by the sound of the door closing to
Brett’s stateroom. She hauled herself out of bed and immediately went to the
refrigerator to take inventory. Three beers, one cola, a jar of picante sauce, a
tub of cream cheese and one half-eaten sub sandwich. Slim pickings.
    She tucked the cream cheese container under her chin, grabbed
the soda, then rummaged through the kitchen cabinet and pulled out a box of
crackers. The limited fare would have to do for now, or at least until she
gathered enough energy to explore the area for some real food.
    Cammie sat down at the dining table and began to spread the
crackers with cheese when Pat entered, well dressed and good-smelling. “You
handsome rascal. I’m surprised you made it all the way to the bus without
getting assaulted.”
    His grin traveled all the way to his kind eyes. “You’re great
for an old guy’s ego, Cammie. Now how much do I owe you for that one?”
    She bit into the stale cracker and took a long drink to wash it
down. “Not a thing. I meant every word.”
    Pat settled onto the couch with a skeptical grin and picked up
the guitar laid out on the sofa. He began to sing a classic country love song,
lifting Cammie’s sullen mood with the melodic strains.
    She only intended to watch, but as if the tune had molded into
a chisel bent on tapping into her soul, she was unable to stop herself. Before
she knew it, she’d opened her mouth to join him in a duet. Pat looked at her
with amazement when she hit the first note, but never broke stride with the
lyrics.
    Once they ended the final chorus, Pat shook his head. “Honey,
Bud said you were good, but he didn’t say you were that good. You put your heart
and soul into that song.”
    The sudden rush of memories brought about Cammie’s sigh. “It
was one of my mother’s favorites. She used to sing along with it on the
radio.”
    Pat’s expression turned serious. “Bud mentioned the bus
accident that took your parents. I’m real sorry about that.”
    She shrugged around the sadness. “It happened a long time ago,
when I was eight. But that’s the funny thing about music. Just when you think
the memories have faded out of sight, you only have to hear a certain song, and
it brings everything back.” The good and the bad.
    “Yep, you’re right about that.” He began to strum the guitar
again. “Do you know this one?”
    Cammie smiled. “Does the sun rise in the east?”
    As she joined Pat again in singing another classic country hit,
she realized she’d lied to Brett last night. She couldn’t deny that she still
deeply cared about music, but she didn’t plan for it to be a major part of her
life again. That would simply be too painful.
    Not long after the song ended, Cammie looked up to find Brett
standing in the kitchen, arms crossed over his chest, his shirt unbuttoned, hair
wet, feet bare, one hip cocked against the sink.
    He hesitated for another moment, then stepped forward. “What
the hell was that?” he asked.
    “I didn’t think I was that bad,” Pat answered.
    Brett caught Cammie’s