Reforming the Cowboy

by Marisa Cleveland

  A busty woman claimed the seat next to him. “Are you all alone?” The throaty implication in the question did nothing for Billy. He had his muse, and she was in the coffeehouse across the street.

  With a polite smile, he said, “I’m just leaving.”

  Chapter Seven

  Billy squinted across the street at where Lacey, Dina, the two suits, and the entourage gushed out of the café and onto the sidewalk. Like a force of nature, the mass moved and spread. The Latina’s obligation must be up. Her time had run out, and now she was free to party at some other place.

  The woman next to him sighed, but since arriving in South Beach, he’d focused on his music and revamping his image. More than ever he wanted to impress the one woman who took a chance on him, and she stood across the street waving farewell to her new investors and Dina Suarez. Once the commotion died down and the street cleared of her fans, he crossed the street and stood outside the coffeehouse.

  A couple women exited, and when they saw him, they asked for his picture. He obliged before he entered the café and found Chip on his laptop in a booth. He slid across from his manager. “Any luck?”

  “We could get Friday evening, but the engineer I want isn’t available.”

  “We did the right thing by staying, Chip.”

  His manager shut the laptop. “I hope so. Just go get ready for your set.”

  With Dina and her entourage gone, the space they vacated freed up room for other customers. Billy jogged upstairs for a quick shower and change, but as he squirted Lacey’s shampoo onto his head, he couldn’t keep the melancholy about leaving from his mind. Damn, he’d miss it here. Hell, he’d miss Lacey.

  He hopped out of the shower and checked his cell phone, swearing as he deleted four messages from Shawna. What the hell was that girl thinking? Like he’d spend two minutes thinking about her. Call her back? Hell would freeze over first. He didn’t have time to deal with her bullshit. He had three songs he needed to focus on before taking the stage and a fourth he wanted to jot down quickly.

  Billy shut off his phone and tossed it on the bed. He grabbed his notebook and guitar and moved to the living room. As he cradled the guitar in his lap, he thought about the song he’d written and would dedicate to Lacey.

  Lost in his own world, Billy didn’t notice the time, and when Lacey entered, he realized it was twenty minutes until show time.

  He met her questioning gaze with an apologetic smile. “I’ve got twenty minutes.”

  Her hands circled in a hurry up motion. “Have you had dinner?”

  “No.”

  “So let’s go. You probably won’t have a chance to eat until after the fireworks.”

  Placing his pick on the coffee table, he nodded. “Okay.” Her thoughtfulness hit him in the gut.

  He unhooked his guitar strap and went to find his boots. Lacey followed him into the bedroom and leaned against the door frame.

  “You had an exciting day.” He grabbed a chambray shirt and poked his arms through the short sleeves.

  “I know! And with your promotional poster outside, the place filled up even after Dina left. We have a lot of walk-ins.”

  Anchoring her shoulders under his palms, he lowered his head to steal a kiss. She tasted like sugar and espresso, and he grabbed a handful of her hair and inhaled. He kissed the side of her neck, the side of her cheek, and back to her lips again.

  Her fingers squeezed on his biceps. “Billy.”

  “You always smell so good,” he mumbled into her mouth. “And you taste delicious.”

  She stared at him with wide-eyed shock. “Where did that come from?”

  He released his hold on her. “Just a thank-you.”

  She laughed. “Feel free to thank me any time.”

  When he leaned in for another kiss, she pressed her palm to his chest. “As tempting as this is, we don’t have time right now. Let’s get you fed and on stage.”

  “I’d rather keep kissing you.” After all, he was leaving tomorrow. When would they have time if not now?

  “It’s the Fourth of July,” she stated as if speaking to a kindergartner. “You’re the headliner.”

  He shoved his hands in his front pocket and shrugged. “Babe, I’m just the flavor of the week.”

  It was her turn to roll her eyes at him, but she didn’t respond. She grabbed his hand and yanked him from the room. They made their way out of the apartment and entered the kitchen of the coffeehouse. Her staff greeted him like they’d known him his whole life, and he wondered what it would be like to have friends like them instead of back stabbers like Shawna.

  But that thought fled from him as he pushed through the door to the front of the house. He stalled midstep and backed back into the kitchen.

  “Damn, Lacey, full house.” Chip was no longer in the back booth, and not that Billy shied away from large crowds, but when had his life made such a radical incline when he wasn’t looking? All the tables were completely booked, and it was standing-room only, two deep at the bar. The noise coming from the front of the house betrayed exactly how crowded the room really was. And if he could believe it, they’d all come to hear him.

  She shoved a bottle of water at his chest. “Impressive, right? Standing-room only. For you. Or maybe it’s for my panini sandwiches or my lettuce wraps, but somehow I doubt that.”

  Her grin brightened the whole room, and Billy couldn’t believe that she’d taken such a huge chance on him and that it was actually paying off in spades. She offered him a weighted paper bag and suggested, “Why don’t you take this back to the dressing room? You have about fifteen minutes. I’ll come get you when it’s time for your first set.”

  He opened the bag and his stomach rumbled at the scent of toasted sandwiches. Nodding, he was just about to enter the front of the house when she yanked his arm and tsked. “There’s a side hallway, unless you want to get mobbed early and not have time to enjoy your dinner.”

  The way she took care of him made him wonder if he’d ever want to leave. He could stay as a big fish in her small pond and find happiness. He didn’t know how much of her cared about him or just wanted the college fantasy, and with his own goal so close, he didn’t have time to wonder.

  Shooting a questioning glance at Lacey, he asked, “Show me?”

  He followed her out the side door and down a narrow hallway, up to the wings of the stage, and back to the tiny dressing room where he first thought about kissing her. What a hell of a thought to have, at the worst possible time in his life, when neither one of them had a moment to spare beyond what they’d already shared. The realization that the two of them had boarded separate trains with separate destinations going in separate directions had him snapping open the notepad on his phone and texting the ideas for his follow-up song to the one he’d written for Lacey that he titled “On the Ledge.”

  By the time he finished typing, he had two verses drafted. Satisfied, he glanced up, but Lacey had already disappeared. He was on the last bite of his sandwich when Chip blasted into the room.

  “Don’t listen to her,” Chip insisted, shooting a scowl over his shoulder.

  Just as Billy’s gaze landed on her, Shawna brushed by Chip and shot Billy a pleading look he remembered well. Dusty-blonde hair floating right above her shoulders, and hazel eyes wide with darkened eyelashes, no one could argue her wholesome good looks. In the ten years since they’d parted ways, she hadn’t changed much, but his attitude toward her sure had.

  “We need to talk.” Shawna placed a strategic hand on his upper arm, and he noticed her lacquered nails. Always a deep red.

  Chip yanked her hand from Billy’s shoulder. “Shawna, he needs to focus. You need to leave him alone and let him do his thing.”

  Shawna’s face contorted in anger. “You don’t own him, Chip.”

  Chips nostrils flared. “Neither do you, Shawna.”

  “He needs to listen to me.” Shawna blew out a long, slow breath and sent a soulful glance in Billy’s direction. “Billy, pleas
e.”

  “He doesn’t need you distracting him right now.” Chip wedged himself between Shawna and Billy.

  Ducking his head under the guitar strap, Billy held up his hands. “You,” he pointed at Chip, “I’ll deal with later.” He angled by the two of them and exited the already tiny room made suffocating with the three of them.

  Shawna’s bewildered voice wafted behind him as they followed him to the wing of the stage. “What about me?”

  He shot her a look of disdain but refused to answer.

  She scoffed at him. “You can’t ignore me forever. You’ll have to answer me some time.”

  Chip wrapped his fingers around Shawna’s upper arm. “Come on, Shawna, he really doesn’t have time for this now.”

  The two of them passed Lacey as they shuffled in the dim lighting back to the café. Billy noticed Lacey do a double take, and he finally noticed how outrageously Shawna was dressed. Her skirt wasn’t just a mini, it was a micro. Of course, his ex wore her signature four-inch heels, and the shirt—well, he couldn’t see the front—but the back was a deep V down to the top of her bottom, revealing her naked back and her braless state.

  Lacey approached him with a sly smile. “How did someone like Chip get someone like her?” As soon as the words were out of her mouth, she slapped her hands over her lips. Billy loved how Lacey’s eyes widened, as if she couldn’t believe she’d just said that out loud.

  He scratched the side of his jaw and realized he hadn’t shaved. “Not that I want to get into it now, but she thought Chip knew the right people, and she’s that kind of girl.”

  Lacey’s hands fell limply to her side. “Shawna. I should’ve recognized her, but seeing your ex-girlfriend here is so out of context.” She gave a sharp nod. “Oh no, I hope she doesn’t cause a disturbance.”

  He saw the vulnerability in her face, and he wanted to comfort her, but a part of him resented the fact that she still associated him with trouble. He knew what it was like to be on the cusp of something huge. One foot firmly rooted in reality, still struggling to make ends meet, but the other foot slightly crossing the line into the surreal. He balanced her chin between his thumb and index finger and dropped a quick kiss on her lips. “Don’t worry about Shawna. Chip will handle her.” Besides, he was pretty sure Shawna wouldn’t make a scene—not while there was still a chance for reconciliation.

  Lacey took a step back and broke their contact. “She wants you back, right?”

  From the control panel in back of the bar, Timmy dimmed the house lights and the prerecorded country music faded to silence. He ran a hand through his hair. “Don’t worry about that now.”

  “Okay. Okay.” He hated to hear the defeat voice. “Just focus and go out there and give them what they came to hear.”

  He gave her a small nod, touched the side of her face, and strode into the spotlight. The sound of applause erupted all around him, and unlike the first night when he’d been frozen with indecision, this night he had a game plan. But knowing Shawna was in the audience, he hesitated to play the song he’d written for Lacey, instead starting with his signature sound and one the audience knew well, “Been Low.”

  …

  Lacey moved to the back of the bar, but no sooner had she poured herself a double espresso than Chip and Shawna approached her.

  “We need to talk,” Chip stated.

  She ignored Shawna and sent Chip her best glare. He had balls showing up with the ex in tow. But she couldn’t risk a scene, so she said, “My office.”

  When Shawna made a move to join them, Lacey froze. “We, Chip, as in you and me. Not her.”

  Shawna’s mouth opened to protest, but Chip cupped her hand in his. “It’s fine, Shawna. I’ve got this.”

  Shawna repositioned herself on the stool, perching with her long legs crossed, her micro-miniskirt dangerously high. Chip traced a finger along her bare skin, and Lacey cringed. Chip and Shawna were lovers. Did Billy care that his manager was screwing his ex?

  Shrugging off that concern, she led Chip into her office and motioned for him to take a chair. She leaned against the wall by the only window looking out into the café.

  Chip sank into the swivel chair and steepled his fingers in front of his face. “You’re holding Billy back. I can’t let you ruin his opportunity.”

  Through the whirl and pop of the kitchen and the sizzle and grinding of the bar, Lacey could still hear the melodic twang of her latest crush. Okay, maybe it was lust, or—heaven help her—more than lust, but either way, in her experience, crushes and lust never lasted. But what exactly did Chip mean? “I’m not holding him back. He’s leaving with you tomorrow.”

  Chip snapped upright in the chair. “But why didn’t he return to Nashville this morning? We had the studio, we had the staff.” His arm shot out in the general direction of the stage. “What’s he doing on that stage?” When she remained silent, he continued, “Help me out here, Lacey. People don’t get second chances like this in show biz. He needed to come home. I need to know this won’t be an issue once we’re gone.”

  Second chances. Yeah, she knew about those. This coffeehouse was her shot at showing the world she wasn’t a screw up. Which meant it would be better once Billy left and stopped destroying her concentration. She would hate to do something remarkably stupid like fall for him. “It won’t be. I’ll probably never see him again.”

  Chip took a long moment to inhale and exhale, and when he spoke, even though his voice sounded strained, it also sounded rational. “I don’t know what he told you, but this is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. He has a whole team of music professionals bidding against each other for the chance to have him on their label. If his one single hits the charts, then he’ll be in the studio finishing a new album in record time.”

  “I get it, Chip.” He didn’t need to drill it into her head. Once Billy left, that would be it. She shouldn’t expect anything more.

  He stared at her. “I hope you do. That dinky cell-phone YouTube video proved he’s going to be a sensation. I can’t wait to get him in a real studio. This is not a bad thing for you, Lacey.”

  “I don’t understand why you’re telling me this. You’re leaving tomorrow.” She swiped her moist palms down the sides of her jean skirt. Bidding against each other. That sounded like an amazing opportunity.

  “I just don’t want to see you get hurt or expect more from him than he can give, no matter what he says. He needs to focus on his career now, and even though he might be grateful to you for this opportunity, it’s just that. An opportunity.”

  Lacey processed the words and finally understood where Chip was taking this conversation. He was worried Billy might want more, not that she did. She cracked open the blinds and gazed across the crowded room to the stage. He would leave. Worse, a part of her wanted him to go. To succeed. “It’s my opportunity too, Chip. This café is my dream, and I won’t let anyone distract me from making it a success.”

  Chip stood to stand next to her. “Don’t sound so sad about it. This is what you wanted. You wanted a coffeehouse where you could launch careers. Billy’s success isn’t going to hurt you. Every young talent is going to want to book your café to jump-start their career.”

  She had noticed an increase in calls asking how to audition for her café. She’d trusted Billy with her livelihood, to help her open this dream café, and he’d done that. He’d given her his name and his talent, and now she had investors. Dimistar Enterprises had plans for her café’s future and their ideas weren’t capped by money or even the sky.

  She gritted her teeth. Hearts didn’t matter in business. “I know.”

  “He deserves this. More than you know. But for some reason, I think he’s scared.”

  She couldn’t imagine Billy scared of anything, but then she remembered the vulnerable look that had passed over his face the first night he took to her stage. It had been fleeting, but she hadn’t imagined it. Nor had she imagined his sweaty palm at the hospital. “Scared of what?”

&
nbsp; “Getting hurt.”

  Her gaze shot through the window and passed over Shawna, surrounded by men, preening on her barstool. Lacey shut the blinds. “Why did you stay with him? Weren’t you the manager for both of them?”

  Chip returned to the chair. “Guilt.”

  She hadn’t expected him to be honest with her. “You stayed with Billy out of guilt?”

  “Back then I cared only about the money.” Chip’s cheeks reddened. In embarrassment or anger? Lacey didn’t know. But he looked more genuine than he had since she’d met him. “I thought introducing Shawna to Marvin would help my career.”

  Marvin. The sixty-year-old billionaire record executive.

  “And you’re sleeping with her?” It was a pointed question, and none of her business, but Billy trusted his manager, and if his manager had double-crossed him once, what would stop him from doing it again? Protective feelings roared in her heart, and she hated to admit she’d rather hold Billy back then risk him getting hurt again.

  Chip grimaced. “I have no excuse. I didn’t know she’d leave me for that sleazy manager who trashed her career.”

  Lacey bit her cheek, thinking Chip was equally as sleazy. But it made sense. Once Shawna left both of them, Chip had nothing to lose by staying by Billy’s side. “And now you’re going to let him fall into her trap again?” She gestured through the wall.

  “Look, Lacey, what I did was wrong, but I had nothing to do with Shawna showing up here. She did that on her own.”

  She fisted her hands on her hips. “You two seem to be on good terms still.”

  He shrugged. “I like to keep my enemies close.”

  “I don’t trust you.”

  “You don’t have to.”

  “What if I tell Billy?”

  “He already knows.”

  “Then why did he keep you?”

  “Probably the same reason I stayed with him. Guilt. Look, Lacey, Billy wasn’t a saint. Back then, we had heaven in the palms of our hands. Took advantage, played hardball, and lost a whole lot of time. I’m trying to make that right with him now.”