Heart Beats

by K. L. Myers

  I roll to my side and climb out of bed, stripping out of my clothes as I head to the bathroom. Forty-five minutes later, I’m dressed and ready to go. When I open my door, I find Cayson, Kayla, and Rusty are all talking, but the room immediately goes silent when they see me.

  “What’s going on?” I ask because I know they are hiding something from me. I know they are because people don’t just stop talking when I walk into the room unless they are talking about me and don’t want me to know.

  Cayson stands, making his way toward me, wrapping his arm around my neck, and pulling me with him as he walks. “Nothing’s going on. Now, let's go get your girl.”

  I don’t question him because the thought of getting my girl sounds better to me than getting into an argument over why he is lying to me.

  We all stand there in the terminal waiting for Kathy to arrive. I spot my baby in a group of people making their way toward baggage claim. When our eyes meet, Kathy breaks out into a run toward me. I quickly open my arms, allowing her to jump into them. Her legs wrap around me, and my hands hold on to her ass, giving it a squeeze. Her lips find mine, and our tongues twirl around each other.

  “Christ, get a fucking room,” I hear Rusty say. “I don’t need to see you maul my sister in public, dickhead.”

  Cayson punches me in the shoulder as he walks past me. “Come on, superstar. Let’s get her luggage so we can get out of here.”

  The gentle sensation of tender kisses wakes me. When I open my eyes, it’s morning. Kathy sits before me fully dressed, looking like she is ready to leave. I scrub my hands over my face to get my bearings before I speak. “Morning, beautiful.”

  Kathy leans forward to kiss me, but I quickly roll over, grabbing her and tugging her beneath me. “What gives, baby? You’re all dressed. You going somewhere?”

  She nods her head in confirmation. “I’m having breakfast with Rusty and Kayla. I’ll see you after your meeting.”

  She tries to push me off her, but I’m not letting that happen. I haven’t had enough of her yet. I desperately want to keep her all to myself, or at least until I have to meet the guys this morning. I look over at the clock and see that it's already nine thirty. Shit, our meeting is in an hour. “Bright eyes, why’d you let me sleep so long? Now I’ve got no time to spend with you.”

  A devious smile forms on Kathy’s face as she speaks when she tells me that she knew me well enough to know that if she woke me up early, we’d both be naked, and I’d be late for my meeting. She’s probably right because once I have her bare and beneath me, I’m not going to want to stop. I roll to the side, letting her climb out of bed.

  “Where are you going to be when my meeting is done?” It’s a simple question, but I don’t receive a simple answer.

  “Hard to say,” Kathy responds and leaves it at that. When I give her a more questioning look, she elaborates some more. “Kayla and I are doing a girls’ morning. We’ll meet you at noon.”

  She is ready to walk out of the bedroom door when I call out to her, “That’s not a good enough answer.” She blows me a kiss and then closes the door behind her.

  35

  Rocky

  The door to the penthouse suite opens, and a young man gestures us in. The six of us enter single file as we are shown the way to a meeting room. The suite houses a conference room big enough to fit all of us plus the two executives from the label and their assistant. When I look in Neil, Tim, and Michael’s eyes, I can see the same uneasy feeling that I am sure they can see in mine. Cayson and Sean’s body language doesn’t speak of two men who are nervous about anything; it’s just the opposite. Both of them have an aura of confidence around them.

  A very tall, slender man sits at the head of the table. His self-righteous attitude exudes from him. “So, gentlemen, I’m Richard Prichard, vice president of your label’s legal department,” he begins. “It seems we have an issue regarding a few recent mishaps that the label is concerned with.” It doesn’t take long for him to run through all my fuck-ups. “More recently,” he says, “we’ve had to deal with Mr. Koehler’s sexcapades and drug usage. This has put the label in a very uneasy position.”

  Cayson sits up a little straighter in his chair, about to speak when Sean reaches over and squeezes his arm. It’s a move that indicates Cayson should hold his tongue until Dick The Prick is done talking.

  “Mr. Kohler,” Dick The Prick addresses me. “The label feels you are in breach of the morality clause of your contract. At this time, we are not going to enforce this breach of contract, but we are going to set some expectations that we feel are within our rights.”

  I lean forward, placing my arms on the table. This is what I expected, more rules they’ll want me to follow, and they’ll back it up with more threats. It’s not enough that they make more money off our music than we do. They think they own my ass. Regardless of what they want me to do, I’ve made the decision to call it quits if I don’t like their conditions. They can sue me until the cows come home. I don’t care.

  Dave Sampson, the executive vice president of our label, speaks up. “Mr. Kohler, did you hear what Mr. Pritchard just said?”

  I’m about to speak up and confess that I’ve missed the last five minutes of the conversation because I’ve tuned Dick The Prick out, but Cayson beats me to it.

  He starts to stand, but Sean once again holds him back. I watch as Cayson shrugs off Sean's hand and speaks. “So, what you’re fucking saying is that you want Rocky to agree to a weekly blood test, that if those tests confirm that he has used any drugs whatsoever, you’ll drop us and sue us for the royalties you will have lost from us not completing our fourth album?”

  The tension in the room is becoming very heated between Cayson and Dick The Prick. “Yes, Mr. Razor, that is exactly what I am saying. Is there a problem with what we are asking?”

  Cayson is about to respond, but Mr. Sampson’s phone goes off, and he excuses himself to take the call. Then everyone in the rooms sits quietly for a brief moment until Mr. Sampson returns.

  “It seems that Mr. Woodland here has resigned from the company,” Mr. Sampson advises Dick The Prick.

  Dick, looking smugger than ever, directs his next comment at Sean. “It would seem that you are no longer needed in this conversation, Mr. Woodland. Please excuse yourself and let us conclude our business without you.”

  Sean stands, squeezing Cayson's shoulder as he does. Nods are exchanged between them before Sean leaves the room. Tim and Neil both voice their opinions about this all being bullshit, but Cayson raises his voice, ending all discussions.

  “Mr. Prichard, Mr. Sampson,” Cayson calls out. “I think we are going to have to pass on those requirements. See, we’re family here, maybe not by blood but family all the same.”

  Mr. Sampson clears his throat, but Cayson doesn't give him an opportunity to speak, and he continues. “Mr. Prichard, I see you have a copy of our contract right there. May I see it, please, since I don’t have mine handy.”

  Dick The Prick slides a copy of the contract across the table to Cayson. Cayson quickly turns page after page of the fifty-page contract until he finds the page he is looking for. He reads through a specific section and then begins to read aloud.

  “During the term, Sean Woodland shall be primarily responsible for Manager’s activities under this Agreement. Notwithstanding the foregoing, it is understood and agreed that Sean Woodland may delegate day-to-day responsibilities to other employees of Manager provided Sean Woodland remains primarily responsible for the activities and services provided by Manager. Notwithstanding anything to the contract contained herein. In the event that Sean Woodland shall cease to be employed by Manager or shall cease to be primarily responsible for Manager’s activities hereunder “Key-Man Event,” Artist shall have the right to terminate the Term of this Agreement effective upon the date of Artist’s notice to Management of such Key-Man Event.”

  All eyes are glued to Cayson. I’m not the best at legal matters, but it sounded to me like Ca
yson just found a loophole in our contract that gives us the upper hand.

  Cayson continues, “You see, Mr. Prichard, Sean Woodland was an essential member of our music business team. When we signed our contract, it was important to us that he be protected. Since he is no longer employed by you as of—Cayson looks at his phone—ten minutes ago, we are free to leave your label and sign a new record deal elsewhere.”

  Both Mr. Prichard and Mr. Sampson scramble to reach for the contract, re-reading the clause that Cayson just read aloud. Both men's eyes widen as they come to terms that Cayson did, in fact, find a loophole that sets us free without any monetary ramifications. Cayson motions for the rest of us to follow him. When he reaches the door, he stops and faces the two men. “Razor’s Edge says FUCK YOU to your blood tests and FUCK YOU to your contract. Oh, and our new label will be in touch with you, Mr. Prichard, regarding all rights to our music.”

  As we all exit the room, I say, “Holy fuck, did that just happen?”

  Cayson pulls me close to his side. “No one fucks with anyone in this band. You may be a fuck-up sometimes, Rocky, but you’re our fuck-up, and we all stick together.”

  36

  Kathy

  Kayla, Rusty, Brooke, Sean, and I all sit in the bar waiting for the band’s arrival. I knew a higher power brought Brooke and Boyd into my life a month ago. I just didn’t know for sure at the time why. After I arrived in Bangkok, I saw how torn up Rocky was over thinking that he could cost the group their record deal, so I decided to have a brief conversation with Sean to see if that could really happen.

  I knew I had to read the band’s contract, but getting my hands on a copy was going to be tough. That’s when Kayla called her mom, then her mom called Cayson's mom, and before you knew it, I got a call telling me a copy of the contract would be sent to my office. Who said girl power didn’t exist? I’m a firm believer that the old adage ‘Behind every great man stands a strong woman’ is absolutely true; they’ll just never admit it.

  I didn’t want to leave Rocky by himself. I knew he wanted me to stay, but if there was any way I could protect him, I had a feeling it was in that contract. Two days later, I headed home with the intention of saving my brooding rock star from himself. It wouldn’t be long before his demons pulled him back, not with the way he was internally blaming himself for everything that happened. When I sat down and started reading through the contract, I knew I was in over my head. I graduated college with a law degree, but I wasn’t the best student, which is why I decided to sell real estate instead of practicing law. I did, though, know enough to make myself dangerous, and when I saw the Key-Man clause, I knew there was hope.

  The next day, I picked up the phone and contacted Boyd. The day I presented the keys to Valley Rossa, both Brooke and Boyd told me if I ever needed anything, not to hesitate to call. So, I called. Boyd was more than helpful since the label that held the contract for Razor’s Edge was a subsidiary of his biggest rival. It wasn’t long before I had an idea, one I knew was a risk, but I was willing to take that risk if it saved Rocky from any more heartache. I immediately picked up the phone and called Brooke and pitched her my idea. Brooke was quite the entrepreneur on her own. If anyone could give me direction, she could. Come to find out, Brooke was head over heels about my idea and willing to help in any way possible. Since I wanted to keep my new venture as part of our small group, I was willing to allow Brooke to have a financial stake in the startup with an agreement that once we paid back her financial contribution plus interest, she would have no legal part in the business.

  Next, I had to sell Kayla on the idea. It didn’t take much to get her to agree to invest with Brooke and me, and that is how Wallace and Marshall Records was formed, better known a WNM Music. It took just over three weeks to get everything in place. Money talks, and money is one thing we were not short on. I’d made a ton of money over the years, and I’d invested it wisely. Brooke’s connections through Boyd got us the hookup. Who wouldn’t want the wife of the CEO of one of the industry’s biggest conglomerates to owe them a favor? I swear I didn’t sleep for three weeks, but when all was said and done, our company was ready to take the world by storm. We didn’t need an A&R department; we had Sean for that. Boyd set us up with an attorney who recently retired from the industry, and he ended up on our payroll. Before long, Brooke had us set up with a promotional, publicity and marketing department, ready and waiting for us to sign our client. No one knew who it would be, but they were all ready to be a part of something Brooke Cooper was a part of. After all, she carried clout in the industry.

  I feel Rocky enter the room before I even see him. My heart begins to beat faster, as if it knows its counterpart is within reach. When I look up toward the entrance, five very happy men are walking toward us. It’s time to let the cat out of the bag.

  “Well, you all look happy.” I direct the statement at Rocky.

  “Bright eyes, Cayson was amazing. He fed those execs their balls on a platter. We’re free from our contract with them.” The smile on Rocky’s face as he finishes his sentence turns into a frown. “Shit, I was so happy that we weren’t being forced into doing something we didn’t want to that I forgot.” Rocky looks at Cayson. “Dude, we don’t have a label anymore.”

  Cayson lifts Kayla out of her chair and sits down, placing her on his lap. When he looks at Rocky, a shit-eating grin shines brightly on his face. “Buddy, do you think I would do something that wouldn’t work in our favor?” he questions Rocky.

  Tim, Neil, and Michael all respond in unison, “What are you hiding?”

  I place a contract on the table, then look all of them in the eyes and ask, “What will it take to get Razor’s Edge to sign today?”

  Rocky looks at me. “Bright eyes, what’s going on here?”

  I don’t have to answer. Cayson does that for me, explaining how he already knew the end game going into the meeting. It has always been in the back of his mind to talk to the guys about starting their own label when their contract was up. After all, why not put one hundred percent of the profits into their pockets instead of the label’s?

  “Have I ever led you all astray?” Cayson looks at each band member. “I’ve seen the numbers, and they’re in our favor. Sixty-two percent of the music industry is comprised of streaming music. We don’t need the label for that. Look, Kathy has done the legwork. I know what you're thinking. How could she understand the business? She doesn’t, but she has financial backers who do. I’d like to introduce you to Brooke Cooper, wife of Boyd Cooper CEO of Warner. Trust me on this, guys. Sean and I believe in this, so let’s sign the contract and make the music we want. We don’t have to give up anything. We just do it on our terms.

  Epilogue

  One Year Later

  Rocky

  The minute we arrived home from Hong Kong, I made an agreement with Kathy. We all signed the contract that day, putting our faith in her that Kayla and she would be able to keep our music going strong. I didn’t doubt her abilities because I’d seen her work ethic, but that didn’t mean I wouldn’t use it to my advantage. I told her that her commitment to us had to be equal to our commitment to her. That meant she needed to focus one hundred percent of her time on the band. She agreed, making Lela a majority holding partner in Wallace Real Estate since she was already handling the day-to-day operations. It was a win win for both of them.

  The second thing I did when we arrived home was to officially move Kathy in with me. I didn’t give her a choice; it was non-negotiable. I had an ace in my pocket: Rusty.

  Rusty is head of security for Razor’s Edge now. A new label meant new everything, which included security. I’ve been clean for a year. When I say clean, I mean no alcohol or drugs. I had to give up all my vices if I was going to get better. It wasn’t easy at all, but with the help of my girl and Rusty, I attended an endless number of Addicts Anonymous meetings, so I can proudly say I believe the worst is behind me now. Together, Rusty and I are bringing mental health issues and addiction awaren
ess to the industry. We want everyone to know they are not alone and they don’t have to turn to drugs or alcohol to cope with the pressures.

  The band took a small break when we returned home, giving Kayla and Kathy time to get everything in line and new vendors contracted. The band took this time to start working on new music. It was also time for all of us to get our lives back in order. CJ and Kayla delayed their wedding while Kayla focused on WNM with Kathy. It drove CJ crazy, but last month, a miracle happened, and Kayla announced that she is officially pregnant, which made CJ happy and probably helped him get over his incessant harassment of setting a wedding date again. I wouldn’t hold my breath that it will last for long, though.

  Tim and Neil used the time to come to terms with the fact that their wives are pieces of shit. Though nothing has changed with them yet, I see a storm brewing on the horizon.

  Michael showed up last week with Wyatt Carter's sister, Ivory. Wyatt is another guy we hung out with as kids and lived next door to Michael. We were all surprised to see Ivory with Michael, and we’re all still wondering what the story behind those two is. Something tells me it’s got to be pretty juicy knowing Michael’s sexual appetites.

  An Angel’s Light, our first album with our new label, released three months ago. It seemed we were all ready to get back into the studio once we got our shit together. The first song on the album, Angel’s Light, which is the song the album is named after, is one that I wrote. It hit the Billboard Top Ten and has been in the number-one position for eight weeks now. Sales of just that song have been off the charts, which means I’ll be joining Cayson in the songwriting department. With three months sales under our belt, we’ve been able to almost pay Brooke back her initial investment and still pay ourselves a profit.