by Jane Jamison
“I agree with Wyatt.” Stone dragged a hand through his hair. “Burke’s a good guy and all, but you need someone with more draw up there. Someone like me.”
Ruben took another huge bite and seemed to swallow it whole. “It’s Burke she’s going to play with. You two just got off.”
“But Burke’s not here yet.” Stone’s mind raced. What could he say to get Ruben to let him back on stage and close to her?
“So much for that argument.” Ruben waved his burger toward the holding area. “There he is now.”
“Fuck.”
Stone and Wyatt turned together. Ruben was right. Burke was already in the holding area and tuning up, ready to go on.
Once again, they looked at each other and took off. This time Stone managed to get there first. “Hey, Burke, I’ve got a proposition for you.”
Burke frowned, took a good look at Rae, then shook his head. “Naw, man, don’t even go there. I’m not giving up my time to you two horn dogs.”
“Not both of us. Just me.” Wyatt patted himself on the chest as though he’d done a praiseworthy act.
“Fuck that, Burke. Give your time to me and I’ll let you take my next two sets.” Stone had never given up a set before. Hell, he’d even come in and done one while sick as a dog with the flu. But to get next to Rae on stage? Two sets were the least he’d give.
“Wow. She must be really good.”
Didn’t he realize how hot she was? Stone was about to ask Burke if he could see two feet in front of him when Burke pushed past them and up the steps.
“Thanks, but no thanks. I’ll take my set as planned.”
They watched in dismay as Rae’s face lit up and she shook Burke’s hand. Stone felt the jealous knot in his stomach twist even tighter. He should’ve been the one to touch her. To really talk to her. To sing with her. Instead, he was stuck on the sidelines eating his heart out.
Rae’s gaze landed on him for a moment, and then she turned toward the microphone. “Hi, everyone. My name’s Rae Barnes, and I’m really thrilled to be here tonight. It’s my first time at The Dive, and if you have any say about it, I’m hoping it won’t be my last. On top of that, I’m sharing my first set with a wonderful musician. You all know Burke Horan.”
She waited for the applause to die down. “Thank you. Since this is my first time at The Dive I wanted to share a special song that I wrote that’s very dear to me. I hope you enjoy it. It’s called ‘Heartache.’”
Once Stone got his feet moving, he found the closest chair he could and pulled it even closer to the stage. She was a beauty, and when she opened her mouth and sang the first note, he’d thought he’d died and gone to heaven. She was an angel in every way. Wyatt plopped into a chair beside him.
Stone hated asking the question. He and Wyatt had gone through the same discussion several times, and he’d always come out on the side of realism. Yet he couldn’t shake the feeling. “Did you…?” He cleared his throat. “Did you feel it?”
Wyatt faced him, his mouth partly opened in surprise. “Are you saying you did?”
He wanted to deny it. After all, that was the only rational answer. Even after hearing the stories, he still couldn’t quite believe it was true. “Yeah. I did.”
“Think we can talk her into going back to our place with us?”
It was wishful thinking on Wyatt’s part, but damned if Stone didn’t want the same wish to come true. “No. She’s not the type. Besides, we have to play this cool. We wouldn’t want to scare her off. Especially if she’s the one.”
“But—”
“Boys, you know the rules. Shut up or get out.” Ruben lumbered past them on his way to the kitchen.
* * * *
Rae had spent most of her life onstage, starting to sing at the age of six. She’d done county fairs, weddings, parties, and later, even a political rally for the governor of Indiana. Other than singing on a major stage like the Grand Old Opry, she’d performed on almost every kind of entertainment platform there was. She’d even managed to cut her first CD with the financial backing of her friends. Yet despite all that practice, she got rattled when the sexiest men she’d ever seen came and sat down, front and center, to watch her.
Her palms were sweaty as she gripped the neck of the guitar and looked out over the audience. She tried to keep her gaze level, toward the rear of the place, so she wouldn’t accidentally drop it and see them. Perspiration dotted the back of her neck, and she considered drawing her hair back into a cute ponytail with the scrunchie that was in her pocket.
Were they watching her as her peers? Or as men who found her attractive? She’d had her fair share of male admirers on and off the stage, but none of them were anything like Wyatt and Stone. Lust oozed off of their bodies, and she half expected someone in the audience would call her out on how turned on she was. As if it was her fault that they were so damn sexy and drawing attention away from her singing.
Yet wasn’t that what she’d hoped for? To get their attention?
She managed to get through the song without messing up, then nodded her head at everyone. Except them, of course. That would be toying with fire, and she was already burning alive.
“Hey, you sounded really good.”
She blinked, surprised to find that she’d forgotten about Burke sitting on the stool next to her. “Oh, uh, thanks.”
“Can I give you a word of advice?” he whispered, keeping his mouth away from the mic. “I mean, as a guy who’s been on this stage longer than he’d like to remember?”
“Sure.” She was always open to getting tips from other performers. No one was ever so good that they couldn’t get better.
“Try to relax. You look like you’re as nervous as a chicken surrounded by a bunch of coyotes.”
She dragged in a breath. Getting nervous on stage wasn’t her thing. “Right. I’ll try. I guess I’m just excited to finally get to play here.”
But that was a bald-faced lie. Having the hottest guys in the place basically chomping at the bit to get at her was the problem. And the thrill. Yet that had never bothered her before. Where had all her confidence gone?
“Here’s a trick. Try picturing the audience in their underwear. It’ll take away your fear and have you laughing it up in no time. Although I wouldn’t recommend laughing out loud.”
She’d heard that old trick a thousand times before, but had never had to try it. Still, what could it hurt?
Shifting in her seat, she rested her hands on top of her guitar and listened as Burke introduced his first song. The older couple at a table to the right of the stage almost had her regretting that she could imagine them naked so easily. The waitstaff was a better fit and she didn’t mind envisioning the bartender and waiters without their clothes on. Maybe the old trick had been around all that time because it actually worked. She started to relax and feel like she usually did while on stage.
That’s better.
Then her gaze fell on Wyatt and Stone. Their clothes disappeared in a flash, leaving her with a sight no woman could resist. Her imagination went on high alert, and after getting a good look at the way their bodies had filled out their clothes, she had no problem imagining a preview of what they’d look like stripped down and ready for action.
Good gracious alive, as her southern grandmother had always exclaimed.
They were broad shouldered and lean waisted. Their brown nipples were spotlights drawing her to the mountains of their chests, to the cliffs she wanted to climb. If they’d been seated at a table, she might’ve been spared the manliness of their lower halves. But sitting with one leg propped on the other left her imagination with a wild, hot slide over their crotches to the massive, fully erect cocks that were pointed straight at her.
Good gracious alive for real.
“Psst. Rae, you’re up.” Burke nudging her arm was the only thing that brought her back to the here and now. “Are you okay?”
She jerked back, almost falling off the stool. “Um, yeah. I’m fine.”
<
br /> His gaze jumped to the sexy men and back to her. “Maybe it’s not stage fright that’s got you tied up in knots.”
Oh, hell. He knows. How many other people have figured it out?
But that didn’t mean she’d admit it. Instead, she lifted her head and hoped no one would notice when she wiped first one hand then the other on her jeans.
She launched into her second song without introducing it or even saying one word to the audience. It was an amateur move, but at that moment, she was happy that she’d managed to stay on the stool. Being a pool of lust might have her sliding off, straight onto Wyatt’s and Stone’s laps.
She kept singing, hoping that sooner or later, she’d relax. She had to, right? And yet, by the end of the hour set, she’d learn that relaxing around Wyatt and Stone was next to impossible.
* * * *
“Great job, Rae. I’m sure they’ll ask you back.”
“Let’s hope so. I wasn’t at my best tonight.” Rae kept her attention on Burke’s back as he led them offstage to the holding area. She had her guitar in the case in no time flat. “Would you mind hanging around for a minute? Ruben told me to talk to him after the set and that was before I’d even opened my mouth.”
Ruben had nodded toward the hallway during her last song, reminding her that he wanted to talk to her once she finished singing. She might as well face the music and get it over with. Whatever it was.
“I’m sure it’ll be fine.” He placed a hand on her shoulder and looked her straight in the eyes. “If this wasn’t up to snuff for you, then you still don’t need to worry. You’re a hell of a lot better than a whole lot of other folks on their best day. I’ve seen a bunch of other singers get up there and sound like a cat stuck in a tin can. And most of them were asked back.”
He was lying, trying to make her feel better. “I appreciate it. Thanks for all your help.”
“No problem. Now go on. I’ll look after your stuff.”
Burke was a great guy, giving her props when she didn’t deserve them. Although she’d managed to sing her songs, growing more confident as the time went on, she wasn’t as happy with her performance as she could’ve been. It had taken weeks to get the audition, then longer to get a time slot on the stage, and she was afraid she’d blown it on her first night. Despite what Burke had said, she’d heard the truth. If a singer blew it at The Dive, getting another audition, much less another set, wasn’t going to happen.
She hurried toward the hallway on the other side of the building. Restrooms labeled Cowboys and Cowgirls dotted one side of the hall while a supply room and an electrical room took up the other side. The hallway wasn’t that long, but it felt like she was walking a mile as she headed toward the door marked Manager.
Why the hell couldn’t one of the other managers have been on duty tonight? And yet, as her grandmother had often said, “Wishing is for people who sit back and hope for things. Smart people go out and make their wishes come true.”
She fingered the locket at her neck, hoping to gain strength from it. Her grandmother Barnes had been the strongest woman she’d ever met. Living until she was ninety-six, Louise Cornelia Barnes had shown the young Rae how to live life to its fullest. She was determined not to let her grandmother down.
Taking hold of the doorknob was like taking hold of the rest of her life. She held her head high and opened the door.
Ruben dropped the sandwich onto the napkin spread out on his desk and waved her inside. “Come on in, Rae. We need to talk.”
Damn.
She took one of the chairs in front of the huge desk that had more plates and used napkins on it than paperwork. Trying not to inhale any of the stench that floated in the air, she gripped the chair’s arms and got down to business.
“Look, Ruben, I know that wasn’t my best performance tonight, but if you’ll give me another chance, I swear I won’t let you down.” Providing neither Wyatt nor Stone was within twenty yards of her.
Ruben leaned back and brushed the crumbs off his protruding stomach. He’d give Santa a run for his money on size, but Santa wouldn’t have bits of food stuck in his beard. Rae pushed the unsettling image away.
“I think you did a fine job. Am I wrong?”
She rebounded, mentally landing on her feet. She tossed her hair, saw him follow the gesture, and warned herself not to do anything that might be misconstrued as flirting. “No. You’re not wrong at all. You know how it is. True musicians are never totally satisfied with their performances. I’m always trying to make my songs better.”
“I know you will.” He lifted his huge cup and drank half of it, making her wait. “Which is why I’m going to give you a perk I’ve never given to any of the other singers.”
She didn’t want to jinx anything by opening her mouth. Instead, she put on an expectant, hopeful face.
“I’m going to let you do a set every night.”
Had she heard him right? No one had ever gotten to sing every night. “For real? Every night?”
“Yup. And I might even let you do a Saturday night all by yourself.”
That was unbelievable. After only one night’s performance, he was ready to garner the anger of every other singer waiting for their time on stage. “Wow. That’s very generous. But what about everyone else? What about Burke? Or Wyatt and Stone?”
Ruben shrugged. “What about them? You can pick the ones you want to share a set with.” His bulging eyes narrowed. Or at least as much as they physically could. “That kind of puts you in charge, doesn’t it? Kind of like you’re my right-hand gal.”
He was right. It would give her tremendous control, not to mention lots of exposure. The other singers would do anything to have the chance he was giving her. No doubt some of them would envy her, even hate her, but that was a price she was ready to pay.
“You know why I’m doing this, don’t you, pretty lady?”
Alarm pricked up the hair on the back of her neck. When a man like Ruben called her a “pretty lady,” that was a sign that he was doing more than simply complimenting her. He was complimenting her with an agenda.
“No. Not really.” She had to play out the conversation. Had to hope he’d say it was her talent on stage and not the talent he was betting she had between the sheets that had made his decision.
“I want you to get more practice. Why? Because I want you to be on your best game when you enter The Dive’s Nashville’s New Talent Contest. Pretty lady, I want you to win it all.”
She’d already heard about the contest and had, of course, been ready to sign up that night. Every singer-songwriter worth their salt in Nashville would try out to become a finalist.
“I want to win it, too, Ruben. Thanks a lot for giving me this opportunity. Like I said, I won’t let you down. In fact, I’ll go sign up right now.”
She knew when to get the hell out, and her mind was screaming that she needed to go now and go fast. The thing she hadn’t counted on was that Ruben could move so quickly. Especially for a man his size. She had the door open when he came up behind her and slammed it shut.
“Come on now. Don’t you think you owe me a little gratitude?”
If she could’ve melted through the hardwood flooring, she would’ve. He pushed against her back, forcing her face against the door. Her hand took the knob in a death grip as the foul odor of fried chicken mixed with the room’s stench wafted over her.
“Ruben, back off.” She said it low and put a warning in her tone.
His hands slid up her thigh then forward over her stomach. She gritted her teeth and fought to remain calm. So far he hadn’t touched anything too personal.
“Damn, but you feel good. And you smell good, too. How about you turn around and pull those tight pants off. Let Big Daddy fuck you with his tongue.”
If there was anything worse than getting felt up by Ruben, it was hearing him refer to himself as Big Daddy. She hadn’t thought he could repulse her any more than he already had, but she’d been wrong.
“Ruben, ple
ase don’t ruin a good working relationship.”
“I’m not. I just want more.” He slid his hand along her inner thigh, his fingertips brushing against her crotch. Even with his massive stomach, she still felt his hardness press against the small of her back.
“If you don’t get your hand away from my crotch, I’m going to scream.”
His chuckle swept over her ear and turned her stomach. “No, you won’t. If you do, you’ll never sing here again.”
She let out a small yelp as he grabbed her arm and twisted it behind her back. “No. Don’t.” She’d be damned if she’d say the word please and beg him to stop.
Yet she couldn’t keep the whimper from escaping as he cupped her breast and pressed his fingers hard against the material of her jeans. He pushed a finger between her pussy lips.
“I bet you taste even better than you look.”
She struggled, testing his strength, and realized she didn’t have much of a chance to get away. He was big and strong. “You don’t want to do this, Ruben.”
“Pretty lady, I’ve wanted to do this from the first minute you stepped into the joint. Thing is, we can do this the easy way or the hard way. Either way’s fine with me.”
She had to get him to turn her loose. Only then could she try and make a break. “Fine. I don’t like it rough so let’s do it the easy way.”
He paused, and for a moment, she doubted that he believed her. She had to convince him. “Look, I’ve been in this business since I was a kid. Don’t you think I’ve been in this position before? I know how this works. It’s just one person scratching the other’s back.”
He released her, turning her around to face him. His gaze slid to the V of her blouse as he lifted a hand and tracked his fingernail across the top of one breast to the other. He licked his lips then wiped his mouth with the back of his hand.
“Let’s use your desk.” She was a singer-songwriter, but at that moment, she would’ve won an Oscar for acting. Putting on a sexy smile, she pushed him back until his lard barrel of a butt hit the edge of his desk.
She looked him straight in the eye. “Take your pants down, big man.”