“Nick,” she said. “Michael Grayson is on line one for you.”
Nick glanced at the clock on his desk. “It’s barely seven thirty. What makes him think I would bloody be here this early?’
Terry laughed, shaking her head. “Everyone knows you are a workaholic, Nick. I’m going down to personnel and will be back. I have Judy watching the door.”
Nick picked up the receiver and pressed the flashing light that was line one. “Marshall.”
“Hey, Nick,” Michael Grayson answered. “How’s it going?”
“Very well, I must say. I took full ownership of the studio this week,” Nick answered.
“So I hear. All Jerry has been talking about is his retirement and where he wants to go.”
“It was time,” Nick said. “What can I do for you, mate?”
“Well, I have a small problem. One of my studio guys was in a car accident over the weekend and that puts me short a keyboard player,” Michael said, pausing for a moment. “I’m wondering if there’s any possibility I could borrow Kate Thomas for a couple of weeks?”
“Maybe,” Nick said. “You’ll have to talk to her. She keeps her own schedule.”
“I thought I had to ask you first.”
“You did,” Nick answered. “But all my people work their own schedules when I don’t have anything in the works. She takes the jobs she wants to do unless I am recording or touring, which will be next after I hire a manager to run this place.”
“I have some ideas on that too, Nick, if you want to sit down and have lunch later this week.”
“Works for me. Call Terry and schedule something on my calendar before it’s all filled up. And I’ll have Kate give you a call.”
Nick finished the call and decided to go in search of his wife. It was weird sometimes, thinking of her that way, but in the year and a half since they were wed in Italy, only a few people knew they were actually married. Their professional relationship had stayed relatively the same, except that they shared the same suite now when Nick was touring and the guys knew the truth; they all approved enthusiastically. Kate had been adamant she still wanted to work and did not want Nick paying her way for everything. Their compromise had been he would continue to pay her like any other studio person and when they were on tour, which was workable when Nick only owned half the studio. Now that he was taking full ownership, it might not make sense. But it would be something he would have to discuss with Kate.
He went down to studio three where he knew she’d been working on an album for one of their artists. This one was being rushed so it would be available in the stores when the artist went on tour in a couple months. It made the sales much more lucrative if the new album was new in the stores when the show hit that city. Nick walked into the sound booth and smiled when he saw Kate. Kate was a gift – both musically and personally. Nick knew Grayson wanted her because she could sight read and it would keep whatever sessions planned on schedule. Kate grinned back at him, grabbed her water bottle, and made her way out of the studio into the booth. Nick walked back out into the hallway and Kate followed.
“What’s up?” she asked.
“I had an early morning call from your previous employer.”
“What did Michael want?” she asked.
“He was asking if he could borrow you to help finish an album. It seems one of his keyboard players was in a car accident.”
“And your answer was?” she asked.
“I told him to ask you, love,” Nick replied. “I wanted to tell him I wasn’t your scheduling boy, but I didn’t think he has the sense of humor to handle it very well.”
Kate laughed. “I love your diplomacy, Nick. I’ll call him and find out,” she answered, giving him a quick hug before walking back into the studio.
When Nick got home, he found Kate in the kitchen making dinner. The same year and a half spent with Consuelo gave her all kinds of dinner ideas and it had manifested into some absolutely delicious meals. Nick came up behind her, wrapping his arms around her waist.
“Hello, love,” he said, kissing her neck.
Kate leaned into him. “Some days I don’t like my job, Nick.”
“Then quit,” he said. “Only work for me.”
“I can’t do that. I can’t just sit around and drink lattes with the other non-working women. I called Michael.”
“And?”
“He thinks you’re a bad influence,” she giggled. “He kept trying to tell me I made the wrong decision to come work for you. But he didn’t even hesitate when I quoted him a figure about three times more than what I used to make over there.”
“Serves him right. What about that son of his? Thought he could play keyboards.”
“I know Michael lets Justin on some records. This one’s out of his league, though. This is for Barry Ramsey.”
Barry Ramsey was a highly known contemporary singer. He was in his mid-sixties and had a successful career on Broadway and when lounge singers were all the rage. His music was soft and electronic keyboards would not have been a good fit. “So you’re going to work for the competition?”
“Hey, you said I could.”
“I know, love,” he said, turning her around to face him. “Sometimes I just want you all to myself.”
His lips met hers and for a moment the here and now dropped away. Their chemistry was always that way – it was like a fairy tale come true. Kate broke off, turning back to what she had cooking on the stove. “You’re incorrigible, Nick,” she said.
“I know,” he answered smiling. “After this, don’t take anything else for a while. Trent should be done with this session’s worth of classes in the next three weeks.” Trent was going to Harvard to get his MBA during the breaks with Nick.
“Are you planning to put Trent to work when he gets finished?”
“Absolutely. Been saving the number three spot for him and he knows it too. Best of both worlds – gets a corporate job along with keeping his job as my drummer, which he said he wasn’t looking to leave.”
“You have all your music ready to go?” Kate asked.
“The arrangements came in today via FedEx,” Nick answered. “I am anxious to go do something with it. All this office stuff is starting to make me climb the walls.”
“What about the manager problem? If you don’t find someone to run this, you’ll spend all your spare time on the phone instead of most of it,” she said, teasing him.
“Grayson mentioned he might have a solution. I’m supposed to find out what over lunch at the Foxwood Club on Wednesday.”
“I’m pretty sure I know what he has in mind,” she said.
“What might that be, love?”
“Michael’s been grooming his eldest son, David. I’ll bet he’s ready to put him in place but it leaves the issue of the general manager he already has, Arlan Reynolds.”
“How well do you know Arlan?” he asked.
“Pretty well. He ran the studio over there with a tight fist,” she answered.
“Think he would be the right solution?”
“I do. He’s no nonsense and is not afraid of long hours or extra work days. He would definitely keep you off the phone on the next tour. Or at least cut a good amount down.”
“That’s what I need,” Nick agreed. “Hopefully it’s something which will work out, because I can’t do another year trying to run this.”
Chapter Twelve
Nick went to his lunch meeting with anxious feelings. It would be bloody nice to have someone that could run this without a lot of interference from me, he thought. Walking to the front door of the Foxwood Club, he was reminded again how blessed he was to have Kate for a wife. She had shown up about thirty minutes before he was going to leave with a jacket and a tie which matched the shirt and pants he had gone to work in. He was surprised to see her - he knew she was over at Satellite working on Barry Ramsey’s record. Kate had laughed at him and told him she knew he wouldn’t have been prepared. He scoffed at her but let her “dress
him up” as it was, tying his tie and making sure everything was a good fit. As he continued to the entrance, all the men around him were in three piece suits and a few in a casual jacket and tie. He laughed to himself when he saw the sign at the front which read ‘jacket and tie required’. He would have to find out how she knew.
Michael Grayson was already there and stood as the hostess brought Nick over to his table. They shook hands and sat down. Michael had a good fifteen years on Nick – his dress and demeanor resembled his brother, Trevor. He was every inch the executive from the pinstriped suit to the diamond tie pin. They were day and night together; no one would believe Nick owned the second largest record company in the world – not with his hair starting to reach his shoulders and his casual appearance.
“Glad you could make it, Nick. This has been on my mind awhile,” Michael started.
“I need the help,” he admitted honestly. “I may own the company but, bottom line, I’m a musician. This last year has been bloody claustrophobic.”
Michael laughed. “I could see where being desk bound could get old quick. In my case, it’s all I have ever done.”
“This is a nice place,” Nick commented, looking around.
“I’m surprised you’re not a member. You most certainly fit the qualifications.”
Nick smiled. “It’s not my thing, mate. Last time I put on a jacket and tie was at my father’s funeral almost two years ago, and I had to borrow both from his closet. I can’t remember past that. “
“Here’s my dilemma,” Michael started, wasting no time with preamble. “I’ve wanted my business to remain a family business. I have little to no interest in going public.”
Nick nodded. He had the same sentiments about Empire.
“So my oldest son, David, has been learning the business since he got out of college. And I think he’s ready to come in and take over as my general manager. But doing so leaves me with the one I currently have. Arlan Reynolds has been with me for over twenty years. I don’t feel right dumping him out of a job. I’m hoping I can talk you into hiring him over at Empire.”
“Have you talked to him about this?” Nick asked.
“Not specifically. I wanted to get your thoughts first. I know he’s thinking he’s on borrowed time.”
“I need someone who can run the day to day operation with little or no input from me. I want to be back out on the road most of the time,” Nick explained. “I want to handle the big stuff - who I sign, financial decisions, that sort of thing. My last road tour I was on the phone more than I was on stage.”
“Arlan is your man, then. He could easily run my business on his own, except I want to be involved with the day to day stuff,” Michael told him. He pulled a folder off the chair next to him. “Here’s a copy of his personnel file; the last two yearly evaluations, pay scale, and an information sheet.”
Nick took the file, setting it on the table beside him. “I’ll go through it this week and let you know. I want to get on this quickly as I’m wanting to get back into the studio. Having to run everything has also cut down on my songwriting time. I get extremely irritated when I don’t get to put my time where I really want to. I’m starting to drive my folks a little crazy.”
“On the subject of studio time, thank you for letting me use Kate,” Michael said. “Barry loves her.”
“You’re welcome, mate. If she has the time open, use her as much as you want. She has her own schedule.”
Michael looked at him. “You have a pretty open mind, Nick. I don’t know I’d have let her work for you when she was working for me.”
“I don’t own the woman, Michael. It would be detrimental for me to even try and I enjoy my free time.” Michael had a confused look on his face and Nick couldn’t help but laugh. “I’m sorry, mate. I forget sometimes not everyone knows. Kate’s my wife.”
“Wife? But she goes by Kate Thomas.”
“Her idea. She doesn’t want to get jobs because my name is attached to hers,” Nick told him. “And she’s not going to sit back and do nothing simply because she’s married to me. She’s a bigger work machine than I am. We’ve been married almost a year and a half.”
“You didn’t waste any time.”
Nick smiled. “To tell you the truth, I fell head over heels in love with her. I’d pretty much given up on marriage after twenty years. And then boom.”
“And I thought I knew everything happening in the music world,” Michael mused. “I sure didn’t see that coming.”
“I didn’t see it coming either, mate,” Nick answered laughing. “And, in the beginning, I started with the ideals I would only see her as an employee. Some crazy things happened and they turned my thoughts around.”
“You know her history?” Michael asked.
Nick nodded. “I know it. I also got to see the ending when her bastard ex-husband tried to kidnap her at knife point out of a London hotel.”
“Okay, I really need to get out more. It isn’t common knowledge either, is it?”
“We did our best to keep it hushed up in the press,” Nick told him. “Her ex ended up committing suicide in his jail cell after he was arrested. Which suited me just fine because I was going to beat the bloody hell out of him once he got out of jail.”
Michael chuckled. “Sounds like the right thing to me. She was a mess when I got her. I didn’t need another keyboard player at the time but her dad is a good friend of mine. She turned out to be one of my best investments until you got a hold of her.”
“Hey – I didn’t go recruiting. She auditioned like everyone else,” Nick said, holding his hands up, defending himself.
“True, you didn’t,” Michael agreed. “Still smarts though.”
Nick laughed with him and the waiter brought over their lunch. The rest of the time was spent talking about other facets of the music business and some of the events each had attended. Michael complemented him on his Academy award nomination last winter for best song from the James Bond movie, although Nick didn’t win. It was still a big deal to be nominated.
After lunch, Nick went through the folder of information and was back on the phone with Michael before the afternoon was done. Nick wanted to talk to Arlan – see if this was something he would want to take on. Based on evaluations, and what Kate had told him, he was interested. He told Michael he had an offer he wanted to make and Michael agreed to set up a meeting there at Satellite so Nick could meet with him. Knowing they both wanted to do this quickly, Michael set up the interview for Friday morning – two days after the lunch.
* * *
Nick was escorted into Michael’s office by his secretary. Michael was behind the big oak desk that encompassed most of the room and there was another man sitting in one of the chairs in front of it. Michael made the introductions and Arlan stood to shake Nick’s hand. Afterward, Michael left Nick alone with Arlan. Nick liked what he saw on the outside. Arlan was equally his height but had the build of a linebacker. He seemed only a little nervous which pleased Nick. He didn’t want anyone who would be star struck over him. Having run this place for twenty years, he wouldn’t expect that behavior, but one never knew.
“It is good to meet you, Nick,” Arlan said, as they sat down. “My kids love your records.”
Nick smiled. “So you’re not a fan?”
Arlan smiled back, shaking his head. “Sorry. I’m country all the way.” Nick could see that Arlan was confused as to why he was there. For Nick, it was like walking into the enemy camp.
“That’s okay, mate,” Nick answered. “I won’t hold it against you. Did Michael tell you what his long-term plans are here at the studio?”
“He wants to give my job to his son. But then it has been his plan since I’ve been here.”
“He also doesn’t want to send you away with a pink slip,” Nick told him. “That’s where I come in. I want you to work for me at Empire.”
Arlan was obviously surprised. “You’re serious?”
“Absolutely. I need someone to ru
n the place – the day to day operation. I’m a musician, not an administrator, and the last year of being one has reminded me smartly of that fact.”
“You seem to have a lot of faith in me,” Arlan said.
“I’ve done my homework and I won’t lie to you, mate. Your workload will more than double what you do now, because I want no part of the daily work, which Michael is well involved with here. I want to go back to recording my records and going out on the road with my band. And in the interim, make the big decisions. So I need someone to run the place and I’m willing to pay for it.”
Nick handed him a folded piece of paper. In it was a salary offer, along with quarterly bonus figures. Arlan’s eyes widened when he saw the figure, which was more than double what he was currently earning, not counting the bonuses. “This is way too much, Nick.”
“I guarantee you’ll earn it. Here is how I see things,” Nick answered seriously. “This will put you the number two man in charge, answering only to me. You will have full autonomy to run things as you see fit, within reason, of course. Hiring, firing, scheduling; anything which has to do with the daily running of things. The only exception to this is I have five musicians on the studio payroll who are contracted to me personally and, unless I’m recording or on the road, they’re free to come ask you for work. You just can’t put them in any kind of rotation or planning schedule.”
“I can handle it,” he answered. “Is Kate Thomas one of those?”
“She’s my keyboard player,” Nick answered, smiling. “And my wife.”
“She seemed much happier when she came in to work on Barry Ramsey’s album,” Arlan told him. “I understand why now.”
“So do we have a deal, mate?” Nick asked, standing up and holding out his hand.
Arlan stood up and took his hand in a firm handshake. “We do indeed. When do you want me to start?”
“I’ll get the contract drawn up and whenever Michael is good to let you go, I’m ready. I want to get into the studio yet this year and go out on the road before the holidays, so the sooner the better.”
* * *
Nick and Arlan walked out of Michael’s office and rode the elevator down to the lobby. As they stepped off, Nick smiled when he saw Kate walking toward him with an older grey haired man which, as he got closer, he recognized as Barry Ramsey. Kate was all smiles walking up to the two men, Ramsey in tow.
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