Hillbilly Rockstar

by Lorelei James

  “JT. My bus driver.”

  “The one who . . . ?” Was assaulted?

  “That’s him.”

  JT shuffled over and shook Devin’s hand. “Bet you thought you got rid of me, huh?”

  “Nah. Good to see you, man. How’re you feelin’?”

  “Better than the last time you saw me.”

  “That’s good to hear. How long have you been here?”

  “Flew in yesterday. Relieved that other dude. Told him I was back and we didn’t need his services.”

  “You said that to Reg?” Liberty asked.

  JT’s eyes slid to Liberty. After his head-to-toe once-over, she felt . . . slimed. “Who’s this?”

  When Crash opened his mouth, Liberty cut him off. She didn’t know this JT guy, and she wasn’t sure she wanted him in the security loop. “I’m Liberty. Mr. McClain’s personal assistant.”

  He snorted. “Since when do you need one of those, Devin?”

  “Since Mr. McClain’s promotion company recommended it and since Crash has other pressing duties as tour manager.”

  “Outta commission for a little while and everything changes,” he grumbled.

  “Speaking of . . . Since this isn’t the same bus, and we are doing things differently, the promotion company would like me to go over the new safety protocols with you.”

  JT glared at Crash. “I get fuckin’ attacked on Devin’s bus, been outta work three months and I come back to this bullshit?”

  “JT—”

  “I’ve been driving bus for you for three tours,” JT said to Devin. “I know fuckin’ safety protocols. Who does this bi—”

  “Choose your words carefully,” Devin warned, getting right in his face.

  “Why? Are you and her . . . ?” JT laughed. “Now I get it.” He winked and nudged Devin. “Of course I’ll listen to your personal assistant’s suggestions.”

  He made personal assistant sound like whore.

  Neither Crash nor Devin stood up for her, which wasn’t surprising, but it was disappointing. It wasn’t the first time she’d been subjected to men like JT. She’d learned to deal with them on the level they understood. JT thought she was a groupie bimbo? Fine. That made her job easier. “When the band is rehearsing, you and I will go over everything. Shouldn’t take more than an hour with the paperwork.”

  “Paperwork?”

  She nodded. “New policies. But being as you’ve been a bus driver for so many tours over the years, you should be used to the paperwork grind, right?”

  He harrumphed.

  Liberty addressed Crash. “Did the old bus have electronic log reporting?”

  “As far as I know. Why?”

  “It’s imperative that JT knows how to run the new system because the promotion company will accept written logs for no more than a week. I suggest you get Reg back here to train him because this bus isn’t going anywhere until we have a qualified driver.”

  She could sense JT fuming. Good. Once she got Crash and Devin alone, she’d express her displeasure about Reg being pulled from duty. “See you later.” She picked up her suitcase before Devin offered to help her. Wouldn’t want to look helpless.

  Crash walked away with JT as Liberty moved to the bus door to enter the code. But the bus wasn’t locked.

  “Son of a bitch.” She ditched her suitcase, pushed open the door and scaled the stairs. When she reached her bunk, she crouched down and pulled out her padlock key. “If one fucking thing is missing I will have the goddamn cops here so fast . . .” She unlocked the drawer where she’d stowed her guns, her stomach going into free fall at seeing that someone had tried to jimmy the lock.

  “Liberty, what the fuck—”

  “Ssh. I’m counting.” All four guns there. Taser there. No bullets missing from the boxes. She heaved a sigh of relief. Then she grabbed her Kahr Arms PM45 and set it on the bed. She stood and faced off with Devin.

  He looked at her and waited.

  “Here’s where I’m at. And maybe I should preface this by saying that as your personal security, not your . . . whatever we are outside of the hours I’m paid to protect you. After the Houston incident, I agreed to go to Jacksonville only because Big Sky promised me that Reg—and only Reg—would stay with the bus in Houston during the repair stage and he’d be driving the bus across country to Portland. But I get here and discover that JT bulldozed his way into getting his old job back. As head of your security, I should’ve been consulted on that decision—not informed after the fact.

  “To make matters even worse, I also get here to find that the goddamn door to the bus isn’t even fucking locked! Who the fuck knows how long it sat here with the contents unprotected!” She closed her eyes and counted to ten before she opened them again. “If the firearms registered to me were to fall into the wrong hands, it’s all on me. Not only am I in trouble with the federal government, but I would likely lose my job. Yes, I understand it was my choice to believe the promises Big Sky made me. If I would’ve had any suspicions at all that Reg would be replaced and your safety would be compromised on the first fucking day back on tour, I would’ve waited, packed up my guns in Houston and flown with them to Denver.”

  When Devin opened his mouth—she held up her hand to keep him quiet.

  “Now I have to deal with JT, who not only was extremely fucking lax on your previous tours when it came to general safety protocols for someone of your stature, but I had to listen to that smug motherfucker acting like I was just another one of your goddamn bubbleheaded groupies.”

  “Are you done?” he said coolly.

  “No. You should check to see if your guitars are still here. I know your stage clothes are on here too, so grab an outfit for tonight but everything else stays.”

  Devin’s eyes narrowed. “Why?”

  “Because you—we—won’t be staying on here tonight. And after you get your stuff, I’ll have to pass you off to arena security so I can get this handled.”

  Liberty’s heart raced as she dialed Garrett. She explained the situation to the best of her knowledge. He promised to find a Portland company that could perform a full bus security check as soon as possible. Garrett also said he’d deal with Big Sky about why she hadn’t been informed of the changes that had caused the security breaches.

  When Devin stepped out of the master bedroom, his lips were in a flat line and his eyes were hard. “One of my guitars is missing. I hope like hell that Check came and got it off the bus. And for the record, I just wanted to say I didn’t know JT was comin’ back. So what happens now?”

  “Garrett is tracking down a local security company that will go over every inch of this bus with a fine-tooth comb. I imagine the bus will be taken off site. It’ll cost a lot for the expedited service, and it’s a good thing you’re playing Portland for two nights.”

  “What do you mean they’ll check the bus off site? Check for what?”

  She met his gaze head-on. “Bombs. Bugs. Cameras. Poisonous critters. Poison in the food left on board. They’ll look for it all. Inside, outside. And no, I’m not being paranoid. The chatter online about all the ways the protestors wanted to ‘teach you a lesson’ included those types of sabotage. I’m just doing my job. There’s a huge security breach here, Devin. Fucking enormous. I’ll point out it was caused by the same guy who was involved in the last major security breach.”

  “In which he almost got beat to fucking death,” Devin said sharply. “I’m not questioning you doin’ your job, but I also need to point out something my agent mentioned to me. We cannot fire JT for bein’ injured while workin’ for me. Legally, I have to hold his job for him until he’s medically cleared. So him showin’ up ain’t such a surprise, since he knew he could have his job back whenever he wanted.”

  “Fuck.” She ran her thumb over the edge of her phone. “Big Sky will just have to pony up and pay two drivers, because I trust Reg.”

  “Fine. Now can I get to rehearsal?”

  “Let’s go.”

  The
rest of the band was happy to see Devin, as if they’d been apart ten months instead of ten days. They kicked off rehearsal, and Liberty spent half her time on the phone, the other half looking for the hired security to show up.

  Devin wasn’t happy with the sound and rehearsal went long. When he approached her in the hallway, after conferring with his band, he had that angry glint in his eye.

  “What’s wrong?”

  “Check didn’t get my guitar from the bus, so someone stole it.”

  “What was it worth?”

  “Ten grand.” He narrowed his eyes at her. “And no, I don’t want to call the cops, since it could’ve disappeared anywhere between Houston and Portland.”

  Unlikely. Her cell phone rang, and she turned away to answer it. “This is Liberty Masterson. Now? That was fast. Sure. I’ll be right there.” She hung up and motioned to the event security before she looked at Devin. “The team checking out the bus is here, and I have to sign off on a few things. These guys will get you to your ready room.”

  “Whatever. See you after the concert at the meet and greet.”

  “But . . . I thought . . .”

  Annoyance pulsed from him. “What? It’s two and a half hours until showtime. And since I didn’t play a lick of music in the week we were together, I need to get in the right headspace. Especially after all of this shit.”

  “That’s fine.” She stayed in place until she saw him enter the ready room. Then she slipped out the side door.

  Crash caught up to her. “You wanna tell me what the hell is goin’ on?”

  “Did you ask JT to rejoin the tour and let Reg go?”

  “No. JT was here when I got here.”

  “Where’s Reg?”

  “No idea.”

  “Find him. I wasn’t kidding about bringing Reg back. Tell him there was a misunderstanding with JT.”

  Crash set his hands on her shoulders, stopping her. “I have to ask this, Liberty, and don’t take offense, but is all this necessary? Or do you have it in for JT since he insulted you?”

  “His insults to me are nothing compared with his dereliction of duty.” As Liberty brusquely informed him of what she’d dealt with, Crash’s face turned redder and redder.

  “That’s it. You’re done dealing with JT. I will go over safety protocols with him.”

  “Thank you.”

  “Devin’s always had a soft spot for the guy. Don’t know why.”

  When they reached the buses, JT was squaring off with three guys who could break him like a twig. Crash stepped between them and dragged JT away. When they were out of sight, Liberty said, “You’re Marco? I’m Liberty. Let’s talk over here.” She led them around the side of the bus. “You have the paperwork?”

  “Yes.” He handed her a piece of paper with the GSC letterhead and Garrett’s signature. “There’s a warehouse two miles from here. We’ll tow it there and check it out. Prelim checks don’t show explosives.”

  She hadn’t expected them to find any, but she’d take the same precaution if it were her operation. “Good. You’ll keep in touch about what you do find?”

  “Of course. You’ll have our answer first thing in the morning about problems and any potential delays.”

  “Thank you, Marco. I appreciate your quick action on this.”

  “You’re welcome.”

  Back in the event center, JT approached her, Crash hovering behind him. “Look, Liberty, I think we started out on the wrong foot. I had no idea things had gotten so serious with what was goin’ on with Devin.”

  Really? After you were attacked in his bed on his bus, you didn’t think it might be serious?

  “And I, uh, love this job. This is my family—the band, the road crew. It about killed me not to be with them when I was recovering.” His hand tightened on his cane. “I acted like a jerk to you. I’m sorry. I guess after seein’ all this, I know why Devin needs an assistant.”

  “I appreciate the apology. Crash will keep you updated.” She headed down the hall and parked herself outside Devin’s ready room because she didn’t have anywhere else to go.

  The after-party was packed. Liberty lost track of Devin several times, but each time the room security signaled that they had eyes on him.

  The concert was, as always, incredible. Time away from the stage seemed to have reenergized him and the band. So they were flying high. There seemed to be a lot of media, which was good and would sell tickets for tomorrow night’s show.

  But Liberty was too antsy to stand around. She had a shit ton of paperwork to do. At the rate the party was going, she wouldn’t get started on it until two in the morning. There were eight security guards posted here tonight. She decided to let them watch over Devin: get him in the car and to the hotel.

  She approached Crash.

  “Hey, lady, what’s up?”

  “After all that happened today, I’ve got reports to finish and file by morning. Devin is well covered tonight, so I’m heading to the hotel.”

  Crash frowned. “Is everything all right between you two? I haven’t seen you together since this afternoon.”

  “Fine, as far as I know. Been a crazy day, so if you’re okay with it, I’ll take off.”

  “You gonna tell Devin?”

  “He’s busy. I’ll see him later.”

  As she waited back by the band and roadies’ buses, she started getting impatient. Where the hell was the car service? She was about to call them and chew ass when a little voice popped into her head.

  Entitled much?

  She stopped pacing. Dammit. This wasn’t her. She should remember that this life—car services, private jets, multiple residences, first-class hotels and gourmet food—would be a thing of the past in three weeks. All she had to do was complete the job. Then she could move up in GSC.

  You’ll have the bonus money, but you won’t have Devin.

  No matter how many times she told herself their constant togetherness was forcing these feelings, she knew that wasn’t true.

  The car pulled up and she climbed in. At the hotel, she handled her own luggage—better get used to that—and waited her turn for a guest agent.

  “May I help you?”

  “Checking in for Liberty Masterson. Big Sky Promotions.”

  “Yes, Ms. Masterson. I see we’ve had a change in the reservation. Two rooms for one night.”

  “Two rooms?”

  “Yes. Oh, I see we were able to get adjoining rooms at Mr. McClain’s request. Is that all right?”

  “That’s fine.” She declined help to her room. She tried really hard not to obsess about why Devin had asked for two rooms without telling her. She unlocked the dead bolt on her side and took a long shower.

  Once she’d slipped on her pajamas, she spread everything out on her desk. She opened her laptop and filled out a more personal accounting for GSC and a report for Big Sky. She finished in just under two hours.

  And Devin still hadn’t shown up.

  She stared out the window, unsure where the event center even was from here. She debated on cracking open a bottle of booze from the minibar. Everything was so fucked up. Keeping her fears and feelings locked up inside wasn’t healthy. She needed to talk to someone. But who? Too late to call Harper. Bailey had gone off the grid. She scrolled through her contact list, tempted to dial Joe. Even if he’d crashed for the night, he’d be wide-awake if she called.

  Between Joe’s duties at GSC and her assignment, they’d spoken only a few times in the past three months. In addition to being coworkers, she and Joe were good friends. But this situation put her on a fine line between professional and personal. If she told Joe she’d fallen for Devin, as her friend, he might pull her from duty to save her additional heartache. And as her boss, he might worry she couldn’t do her job because of her emotional ties and pull her from duty. So really, a phone call to Joe, lamenting her man woes, would end one way—with her leaving the tour. She’d made it through the hardest part, and she wasn’t walking away from that hundred gra
nd now.

  Nor was she leaving Devin’s security in someone else’s hands.

  Liberty had almost fallen asleep when she heard the movement in the adjoining room. She watched the clock. Five minutes passed. Then ten. Then fifteen.

  At the twenty-minute mark, she knew he wasn’t coming into her room.

  Maybe this was the beginning of the end.

  A strong hand traced her spine, stopping at the bottom curve of her ass.

  Warm lips landed on her shoulder. “Mornin’.”

  She rolled to her back, and immediately Devin’s mouth was on hers, gifting her with a lazy kiss.

  He murmured, “I missed you last night,” against her lips.

  “I heard you come into the other room.”

  “I tried to be quiet.” He pulled back to look into her eyes. “Crash said you had a lot of paperwork to do. So I let you be. Wondered if you’d gotten your own room because I’d pissed you off.”