Czytaj książkę: «The Hottest Ticket In Town»

Contents

Cover

Back Cover Text

Introduction

Dear Reader

Title Page

About the Author

Dedication

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

9

10

11

12

13

14

15

16

17

18

19

20

21

22

Epilogue

Extract

Copyright

1

LACI MCCALL WASN’T raised to cry—not even when it seemed the whole world was falling down...like this very moment.

“Get Laci some lemon water, now!” Trent Blackstone, her manager barked to a roadie when she wavered on her feet for just a blink of an eye. “You feeling good, honey? Sold-out crowd again. Memphis loves you, baby!”

That’s right, they were in Memphis. Two days ago, it was Charleston. Next week, it would be Atlanta. A brutal tour schedule was the mark of a successful artist, so she must be on top of the world, right? Yeah, sure. Top of the world.

“You all right, Laci?” Audrey, her makeup artist asked, pausing with her powder brush in midsweep. “You don’t look so good.”

“Last I checked, you’re not a doctor, Audrey,” Trent said, gesturing for Audrey to scoot. “She’s fine. It’s just prestage jitters, ain’t it, honey? The minute you hit that stage, you’re gonna shine, just like you always do. That’s why people come to a Laci McCall show...they all wanna hear that golden angel sing.” He looked sharply at the costume designer, who was fiddling with one of the million hand-sewn sequins on Laci’s costume and said, “Make sure it’s good and tight. The last time, she looked like she was dancing around in a burlap sack it was so loose.”

“It’s as tight as it’s gonna get,” Simone retorted, glaring at Trent. “If it were any tighter I’d have to pin it to her skin!”

Laci ignored the back-and-forth between Trent and Simone, secretly grateful that Simone wasn’t about to cinch her outfit another millimeter no matter how much Trent threatened to replace her with someone else.

“You sure you’re okay, Laci-girl?” Simone asked, worry lines creasing her expression. “I can let it out a hair if it’s too tight.”

“I’m good,” Laci assured her as she tried to take a deep breath but found it difficult. She forced a smile. “It’s fine. Beautiful, as always,” she assured Simone about the glittering costume that had left Simone’s fingers in tatters after hand sewing every single little twinkling piece of hardware onto the fine fabric. “Thank you.”

“See? She’s fine,” Trent said, and Simone, satisfied her masterpiece was going to withstand a full concert, sent a final glare Trent’s way and left. Trent didn’t like Simone and vice versa, but he recognized her talent, at the very least. Trent returned to Laci with an instant smile. “Honey, you’re a vision. There ain’t nobody out there in this world that can take the shine off you. That’s a fact. Now, get out there and give the people what they crave, darlin’!”

“Yes, sir,” Laci murmured with a brief smile as she mentally prepared for a grueling two-hour set. She was just tired. No, she was exhausted. She’d tried to ask Trent to slow the schedule, but every sold-out show seemed to propel him to a more ambitious schedule. Her head pounded with the jarring force of a hammer hitting an anvil, but she gritted her teeth and trained her gaze forward, gearing up for another show. Her people were out there. Her fans made her who she was and she couldn’t disappoint them. Without them, she was just a poor Southern girl with impossible dreams and a thirst for something bigger than anyone else in her world.

Buck up, little filly, you got this. The memory of her daddy’s voice lifted her spirits and gave her the boost she needed to forget the pain in her head, the exhaustion weighing down her limbs and the fact that her costume did indeed feel pinned onto her skin. Everything was beautiful; everything was right. This was where she belonged and by damn, she would give Memphis the show they’d never forget.

“Helllllooooo, Memphis!” she cried into her microphone headset, her arms stretched wide in welcome. The minute she stepped onto the stage, the crowd swelled with adoration as the resounding chant of her name filled her with momentary joy and she launched into her current number one hit, ‟You Ain’t Goin’ Nowhere.” Her voice, the one thing about her that made her more than a pretty face, carried the sassy song and for a heartbeat, everything was fine. But then as she hit the high note, belting out her signature raspy growl, the edges of her vision clouded. The stage lights blazed like jet fuel on fire through her brain and the roar of the crowd overwhelmed her eardrums as the sensation that she was falling choked off her voice midset.

Noooooo!

The last thing she heard before she slipped into blissful unawareness was the faint din of complete and utter pandemonium.

* * *

KANE DALTON, CO-OWNER of Elite Protection Services, just finished hitting Send on a few important emails when his younger brother, Rian, blew into the office with a perplexed expression. “You’re going where?” he asked, gesturing to his phone. “Is this an April Fool’s thing, ’cause it ain’t funny. And if you are going where you say you’re going, who are you and where is my brother?”

“I see you got my text,” Kane said, sighing. “I’m catching a plane to Kentucky in about three hours. I’m just tying up loose ends. You good to hold down the fort for a few weeks?”

“No and hell no. You know I’m not the business guy in this operation—that’s your gig. Now, tell me why you’re heading to Kentucky, of all places?”

“Warren called. Cora needs some special medical treatment out of state and he doesn’t trust anyone else to watch the ranch while he’s gone. He said something about not liking the sheriff—calling him a no-good, rotten son of a bitch who’d probably put his own mama in the clink for jaywalking.” Rian arched his brow and Kane nodded as he continued, “Yeah, anyway, how could I refuse the guy? He’s like a grandfather to us. Besides, you’ve been telling me to take a vacation for months. Guess I’m cashing that chip in.”

“Aw, hell, Kane, I didn’t mean hightail it back to the worst place on the planet,” he grumbled. “If you look up Woodsville in the dictionary, it’s synonymous with hell—not exactly what I’d call a premier vacation spot for either one of us.”

“No argument there, but I’m not heading into town. I’m just gonna hold down the ranch, take care of the cattle and make sure no one comes around to mess with things.”

“And what am I supposed to do about that job you took on with that senator on his little vote-gathering tour?”

“I guess you’ll have to cover for me.” He grinned, knowing his brother hated gigs involving pampered, fat politicians who were more often than not leering at young interns and playing into the stereotype rather than doing anything of value with their lives. “Listen, I know it’s not supermodels and celebrities, but it’s a fairly straightforward gig. Watch the senator’s back while he goes on a handshaking, baby-hugging tour and it’ll be over before you know it.”

“Sounds like a real party,” Rian said sourly, then exhaled because he knew there was no getting out of it for either of them. “How’s Cora doin’?” he asked with appropriate concern. The old gal was special to both their hearts and even if it had been a while since they’d managed a visit, if she needed something, there was nothing they wouldn’t do to make it happen.

Kane didn’t have too much in the way of details, but his gut was singing off tune. “Must be pretty bad if Warren’s leaving the ranch to take her to this special place. He’d do anything for the old girl.”

Rian nodded in grim agreement. “Yeah, true enough. I feel like shit that we didn’t see them at Christmas last year.”

“Or the year before that,” Kane said, suffering a pinch of conscience, but Warren and Cora both knew the business kept them running ragged, which is why Kane knew he had to say yes. Warren never would’ve asked if it hadn’t been the only option.

“Hey, guess who I saw in the news last night,” Rian said, switching tracks, his expression turning serious. He didn’t wait for Kane to guess. “Laci.”

An iron gate swung shut inside his heart and he gave his brother a hard look. “Yeah? And? That matters to me why?”

“Stop acting like a hard-ass. I know you’re still carrying a torch for her. Shut up for a minute and I’ll tell you what I heard.”

“Yeah? So tell me.”

“She collapsed onstage last night at a concert in Memphis.”

Immediate alarm spiked and his muscles tensed even as he kept very still. “Is she okay?” he asked quietly, not sure he wanted to know. Laci was his Achilles’ heel, a weakness he had always done his best to protect by staying far away from her and her world.

“I don’t know. TMZ reported she collapsed in the middle of her number one single, and her PR machine is saying she suffered from food poisoning, but I don’t buy it.”

“Yeah? Why not?”

“Certain circles travel together, you know how that goes. People are saying that she’s flat-out exhausted. Have you seen her tour schedule? It’s insane.”

“Is she okay, or not?” he growled, fighting the impulse to drive straight to Memphis to deliver a fist sandwich to whomever wasn’t doing their job and looking out for her.

“Yeah, I’m sure if she gets some rest she’ll be okay,” Rian answered, watching him with open speculation. Suddenly a knowing smirk curved his lips and Kane swore under his breath. Here it comes... “When you gonna admit that you still care for her?”

“When you gonna drop it? We were kids...a long time ago. Neither one of us are kids now. Got it?”

“Yeah, I get it—you’re in denial and have been since the day you cut her loose. But whatever. It’s your life, bro. I just thought you might like to know.”

Kane forced a chuckle, if only to get past the awful pinch in his chest, and said, “Aw, Ri, I never knew you were such a softie at your core.”

Rian scowled at Kane’s thinly veiled sarcasm and flipped him off. “I hope your plane goes down,” he shot over his shoulder as he headed out of the office, leaving Kane to deal with the burden of knowing that Laci was lying in some Memphis hospital bed.

Kane shook his head, hating that time hadn’t healed that particular wound or erased the bone-deep need to feel Laci shuddering in his arms, or hear her breathy sighs in his ear as he took total control of her body. Time was supposed to dull that edge, right? Yeah, so someone ought to let his brain in on that little fact. Maybe if his fantasies didn’t feature Laci, he’d get over her. Maybe. But it didn’t matter who he was with or even if he was alone, Laci was there.

Irritated at himself, Kane finished his to-do list, then closed up the office to pack for a trip he didn’t want to make. Woodsville, Kentucky—home of his miserable childhood and the keeper of his most private dreams. If it hadn’t been for summers at the Bradford ranch...he didn’t know where he and Rian might’ve ended up. Probably nowhere good.

Of all the things the Bradford ranch reminded him of—fresh corn bread and hot beans simmering in a cast-iron pot, corn on the cob and steaks big enough to satisfy the appetites of two growing young men—there was only one thing that ever jumped to mind when he thought of those blistering summer days and time hadn’t dulled those memories.

Sweet as seasonal rain and with curves for days, there were still times she invaded his dreams, leaving him rock hard, aching and reaching for a woman who was never meant to be his.

Kane physically shook himself from his reverie, appalled at his own mopey melancholy. When did he become such a sap? Apparently, Woodsville brought out the worst in him.

Well, one thing was for certain, no matter where Laci was...leaving her behind had been the best thing he could’ve ever done for her—and for himself.

So what if the scar remained tender to the touch. Everyone had scars. Some people just hid them better than others.

2

LACI OPENED BLEARY eyes to blink at her unfamiliar surroundings. Where was she? Disoriented, she struggled to sit up and discovered she was lying in a hospital bed and tethered to an IV. What the... And just as panic began to cloud her thinking, her memory returned with a flash and she realized she must’ve collapsed onstage.

Lifting her arm to stare at the plastic tubing delivering who knows what into her vein, she closed her eyes again, still too tired to truly process the ramifications of what’d happened. The lights, the sold-out arena, the total collapse. She should feel guilty but she didn’t. Did that make her a bad person? Her thoughts drifted on the tide of her bone-deep exhaustion and she would’ve sunk into blessed sleep if Trent’s voice hadn’t jarred her back into awareness.

“There she is.” Trent’s drawl made her jump and reluctantly open her eyes to focus on her manager as he came into the room with a big, relieved grin. “Thought you were gonna sleep the day away, honey. How you feelin’? That’s one helluva way to grab a little R&R, you know. You scared me, girl.”

A faint smile found her lips to humor Trent, but honestly, Trent was the last person she wanted to see right now. Of course, that uncharitable thought made her cringe with guilt. Trent was the reason she was on top, making millions and selling out shows. Her daddy had always warned her about biting the hand that was handing out the goods, but right about now she was feeling kind of snappy and she didn’t trust her mouth not to say something bad. Trent didn’t seem to notice, though.

“Girl, my heart just about fell out of my chest when you collapsed onstage,” Trent said, seeming genuinely concerned. “I wish I’d known just how puny you’d been feelin’. Girl, we gotta work on our communication skills,” he said, somehow turning it back on her. Hadn’t she told Trent a million times that she was exhausted? Maybe she hadn’t been entirely clear, she realized, feeling as if she’d not only let down her fans but the man who was making all her dreams possible.

“I’m sorry,” she murmured through numb lips. She rubbed at her mouth absently, wondering why the words tasted hollow. She was sorry, she truly was, for making a mess of things, but a part of her couldn’t muster the energy to give the emotion much more than lip service and she knew that was just ugly of her. Tears burned beneath her lids as she rubbed her eyes. “I didn’t realize just how tired I was, I guess.”

“Well, all’s well that ends well, I suppose,” Trent said, pushing a tendril of hair from her eyes with a tender touch. “Now what’s important is getting you back on your cute li’l feet, right?” He didn’t wait for her answer. “The docs are pushing all sorts of fluids into you, so you might be a little puffy for tomorrow’s show. I’ll have Simone give you a little extra room in your costumes, okay, sugar? No worries there.”

“Tomorrow?” Distress colored her voice. “What do you mean?”

“Darlin’, the show must go on, as they say. Docs have assured me that you’re right as rain, all you needed was a good night’s rest and so I went ahead and rebooked your canceled show. Get this,” he said, excited. “We’re even more booked than before. Seems collapsing is good for ticket sales. Who would’ve thought? Anyway, you just focus on getting some good shut-eye and then we’ll get you back on that stage where you belong.” Back onstage? Laci wanted to scream, but she nodded instead. Trent’s stare narrowed at her lackluster response. “Is there a problem?”

I’m not ready to go back onstage. I need a break. Can’t you see that? The words bubbled on her tongue and when she opened her mouth, she really thought she was going to push them out, but instead, something lame popped out. “I’m just wore out. I’ll be fine by tomorrow night,” she promised, and in that moment, she hated herself for being a weak caricature of who she used to be. Where was her spirit? Her fire? Laci McCall didn’t used to be such a pushover. Somewhere along the way she’d sacrificed that innate quality for fame and fortune and it felt just as sickening as it sounded in her head. And yet...she continued to nod and assure her manager that all was going to be all right. Pathetic.

Trent, mollified, chucked her chin gently the way he would a kid’s and smiled. “That’s my girl. Rest up, angel, we’re back on track tomorrow.”

Laci held her weak smile until he left the room, but as soon as the door closed behind him, she dropped the smile like a lead weight. She couldn’t take the stage. She just couldn’t. Not yet. She needed...hell, she didn’t know what she needed anymore. All she did know was that if she didn’t get away from Trent and all the trappings of fame, she was going to die.

A tear oozed from the corner of her eye and slid down her cheek.

“You okay?”

The memory of a boy, handsome as sin, with hair too long and a reluctant smile too sweet, invaded her thoughts.

Times were hard, she knew, but she hadn’t expected her daddy to drop her off and leave for the summer as he had. During the summer, her daddy logged in the high country to squirrel away cash for the harsh Kentucky winter. This time, he’d dropped her off with Cora and Warren Bradford, an older couple he’d known for a long time and apparently trusted with his only child. But damn it, her daddy needed her and it didn’t feel none too good to be left behind with strangers, even if they were nice folk.

The boy, a year older than her at sixteen, climbed the ladder to join her in the hayloft. His blue eyes were something else, almost too pretty for a boy, and when he flipped his dark hair out of his eyes as he dropped beside her, her breath caught. His name was Kane Dalton—he and his brother, Rian, were ranch hands for the Bradfords—and he set her heart to jammin’ like a bluegrass picker with a jug of moonshine.

He wiped at the tear on her cheek. “What’s wrong?”

“Nothin’,” she lied with a forced smile. “Just missing my daddy, I guess.”

“He seems like a good man,” Kane said, trying to soften the blow at being left behind. “At least he’s doing something to put food on the table. My old man couldn’t care less if his kids eat. All he cares about is where he’s getting his next drunk, you know?”

She nodded, realizing she was being whiny and selfish. She’d seen the bruises on Kane and Rian, knew that their home life was worse off than they liked anyone to know. Her daddy worked harder than anyone she knew just to keep them afloat and here she was crying like a slapped baby because he’d left her behind. She braved a smile for Kane, which wasn’t hard because he created sunshine in her soul, and asked playfully, “Kane Dalton, you always know just what to say. What’s your secret?”

The blue of his eyes darkened as he ducked his head briefly before returning to her gaze, nothing boylike in that stare as he answered with an honesty that rang in her soul like crashing bells. “No secret, Laci-girl. Just tellin’ it like it is. I would never lie to you, that’s the God’s honest truth. I never would.”

And then he kissed her.

Sweet, simple, perfect.

Laci opened her eyes, still lost in the reminiscence that’d come out of nowhere. The lingering scent of hay and summer heat remained lodged in her nostrils as the memory of her first kiss blazed through her thoughts and occupied every nook and cranny of her mind.

Kane Dalton.

Where are you, country boy?

The sting of loss pricked at her tender heart and she pushed away the feelings that came with the memory of Kane and those sweltering summers spent at the Bradford ranch together. He’d left her behind, up and went into the military without so much as a goodbye or an explanation of why. He couldn’t have sent a clearer message than if he’d tattooed it on her face that she was part of his past and definitely not part of his future.

Well, screw him. Why the hell was she thinking about Kane now? There were plenty of years between that heartache and today and she wasn’t going to drag herself down with the memory of that pain.

But one thing she did know—as she eased the IV needle from her arm with a wince—she wasn’t going to lie around in this bed a minute longer, just waiting for Trent to waltz back in and prop her up onstage again when she wasn’t ready to go back. Tossing the tubing aside, she kicked free from the white, sterile bedding and stood on wobbly feet to search out her clothes.

Oh, damn. Laci grimaced when she realized her glittering costume was all she had in the room, but she wasn’t going to let that stop her from getting the hell out of Dodge for a while. Well, it is what it is, she thought, grabbing her costume and shimmying into it with a groan as it pinched and scratched. Bypassing her heels, she left her room, bold as you please, ignoring the concerned looks and puzzled glances from the nurses’ station, and walked right out the door.