Cowboy 12 Pack
Page 180
But she was gambling here. Jase’s last demo cut had been average, and she was rolling the dice this one would be better, because she knew Bobby could make just about anyone sound good. She’d watched him, heard him, make a silk purse out of a sow’s ear many times before. Jase wasn’t a sow’s ear, but he wasn’t a silk purse either. She needed that silk, and Bobby’s expertise to save her job.
Scrolling past Leo’s number, her stomach rolled when she saw a missed call from Wade Lawson. She wondered what that asshole could possibly want with her. Most likely, he wanted to taunt her over his singing breakup, get some mileage out of it, and ask her if Leo had fired her yet. As far as she was concerned they had said everything they needed to say to one another after the press party. She was done with him.
“You okay?” Jase asked, his eyes fixed on her face.
She tried to smile. “Yeah, just tired, why?”
“You’re frowning,” he said, as Leigh stood and moved into the aisle. Jase got up and moved into the aisle beside her. “I just thought maybe something was wrong,” he said with a shrug, and a half-smile.
The fact that he’d been watching her closely enough to notice sent a little unwanted thrill through her. “Nope, everything is perfect,” she said. And it would stay that way because she wasn’t calling Leo or Wade back. Like Jase, she needed her focus this weekend.
Leigh bent to reach under the seat for her briefcase. When she stood his body was pressed tightly to hers, his heat surrounded her and she could feel the steady beat of his heart against her forearm. Their eyes met and held, tension buzzed between them and his hand drifted to her waist. His eyes darkened and a soft smile kicked up the corner of his lips as his head drifted down toward hers. Leigh’s heart stutter-stepped and she pulled back.
Squeezing between him and the seat, she turned away to click the latch for the overhead bin. “I’ve got to get my bag out,” she said in a shaky voice.
Grabbing the handle of her floral carry-on bag, she yanked, tugged and then cursed. It was wedged between two overstuffed bags, and wouldn’t budge. Frustrated, Leigh yanked harder, but it just wouldn’t break loose. Jase’s sexy laugh tickled her insides as his woodsy scent surrounded her when he reached over her head to push the other bag aside.
Leigh couldn’t help but notice how the ripped muscles in his arms flexed as he grabbed the handle of her bag and tugged until it came out. His arm brushed hers, as he hefted it down to hand it to her, and a spark ignited a wildfire that sizzled through her entire body. This was not good, she thought, grabbing the bag to scoot up behind the large man in front of her, putting more space between her and Jase.
The man’s old-fashioned cologne acted like smelling salts to her senses, clearing Jase’s delicious scent from her mind. “I hope they open the door soon, so we can get out of this tin can,” she mumbled, with desperation in her tone.
The pot-bellied man in front of her suddenly turned to reach for his bag in the overhead bin and shoved Leigh back into Jase. His arm came around her waist to steady her, his fingers splayed across her stomach, causing a melting sensation in her midsection that flowed downward. Those fingers were so damned close to where she wanted them, but not nearly close enough. Biting back a frustrated moan, she brushed his hand aside and leaned forward to put some space between them. She put even more when the big guy took a step forward, then another.
Leigh followed behind the man with her nose almost tucked into the collar of his shirt, getting more frustrated by the second, as he slowly squeezed his girth, and his overstuffed bag between the seats. The temptation to put her shoulder into his back was strong every time Jase’s heat and scent singed her from behind. It took the man two full minutes to finally clear the doorway. Leigh shot past him into the jetway like a bullet, inhaling deeply to chase away Jase Sutter’s intoxicating scent as she power-walked to the gate area. Stopping only a second, she read the monitor to find the baggage claim for their flight then almost ran toward the escalator, not really caring if Jase was following her.
They wouldn’t have to worry about baggage claim, if Jase hadn’t packed so much. He’d also brought his guitar case when he could’ve just used a loaner at the studio. Now that she knew he was a first-timer though, she couldn’t very well fault him. It was just frustrating to be held up waiting on bags at midnight. He would learn the ropes when he flew more, but that didn’t help them at the moment.
Breathing hard when he caught up to her right before she stepped onto the escalator, Jase asked, “Where’s the fire, sweet thang?” He laughed as he took the step behind her, his hand on the rail entirely too close to hers.
Sweet thang? The honey in that drawl dripped through her veins.
Good God, how in the hell was she supposed to focus this weekend?
Leigh dropped her hand to her side and rubbed it on her jeans. “I’m tired,” she grated, as she took a hop to get off the escalator before her step reached the bottom. And so fucking turned on I could throw your sexy ass down in the middle of this airport and have my way with you, but that cannot happen. “Waiting for your luggage is a total pain in the ass. You need to pack lighter and don’t bring your guitar next time,” Leigh said, stomping toward the baggage carousel.
“Sorry, about that. I didn’t know,” he said, and the contrition in his voice made her feel awful for the harsh tone she’d used with him.
It wasn’t him. This was all about her. He hadn’t done one thing to make her feel the way she was feeling at the moment, other than being the sexiest, most manned man she’d ever met. And she was tired. Tomorrow, she’d feel better, be able to handle it better. But right now, she had to wait with him for his luggage.
Thirty minutes later, keys in hand, Leigh strode with purpose through the rental lot toward the compact car she’d rented. This time, she did look back to make sure Jase was following her. He was about twenty paces behind her, lugging his guitar case and stuffed duffle bag, taking his time in his loose, long-legged stride.
Damn that man was sex on two very long sticks in his faded Wranglers, cowboy boots and dusty black felt hat. A tall drink of water as Leo usually said about taller men. But everyone was tall compared to Leo. At five-six, her father was even shorter than her. Jase Sutter was really tall, about six-foot-three probably. In the dim glow of the lights lining the parking lot, he smiled at her, and she felt that sunshine warm her insides again.
Dragging her eyes back to the row of cars, she searched for the number that matched the number on the jacket the clerk had given her. Leigh needed to get over this infatuation with the singing cowboy, forget how delicious he looked in his skivvies on her porch, stop being impressed with his pretty manners and sweetness, if there was any hope she was going to get through this weekend.
They barely knew each other, she reminded herself. She needed to keep this on a professional level with him. Something she’d learned the hard way with Wade Lawson. And if he turned out to be like Wade, fighting, drinking and womanizing, she’d just cut him loose without a backward glance. Hard as nails business, regardless of how sweet he was.
What she needed to do was get laid and she’d be able to operate that way. Bobby would probably be on board with that if she gave him a sign. They’d had an on again and off again friends-with-benefits arrangement for years. Mostly off again, since she was in Dallas and he was in Nashville, but that was fine by both of them. They both knew the score and didn’t want more than temporary relief.
But Leigh just needed to focus on what she was here for. Making a useable demo track with Jase Sutter and getting her butt back to Dallas to sell it to Leo, or someone else, if that didn’t work out. With a sigh, she got into the car and buckled her seatbelt and popped the trunk latch, so Jase could put his luggage in the hatchback. When he slid into the passenger seat, and almost filled the front seat, Leigh wished she’d have gone for the more expensive full-sized car. At least then she wouldn’t be squeezed up against him, brushing his arm every time she touched the center-console gear s
hift.
By the time she pulled into the Nortell, she was a bundle of raw nerve endings. Throwing the gear shift forward, as soon as she pulled into an empty parking space, Leigh jerked the keys from the ignition and flew out of the door to breathe deeply of the crisp night air, until finally she smelled fresh air and not Jase Sutter’s intoxicating cologne.
“Can you open the trunk?” he asked, standing back there patiently.
Leigh walked around and opened it, but quickly moved away to retrieve her own bags from the back seat.
“They really need to get that R in the neon sign replaced,” Jase commented, with a chuckle, staring at the sign at the front of the property.
“It’s been out for years. I think they like the result,” Leigh replied. “You haven’t seen the rooms yet, and that name definitely fits better. The Nortell was popular in the nineteen sixties, which is probably the last time it was redecorated. But it’s cheap and clean,” she said with a shrug, as she lifted her bag and started toward the front door.
“As long as it has a bed and a toilet, I’m good,” Jase said following her. “You were in such a hurry to get out of the airport, I didn’t dare stop at the bathroom.”
“Sorry—I’m just ready for this day to be over.” And ready to get the hell away from you to get my head right.
“I’d carry your bags, but my hands are full,” he said, when they reached the sidewalk. “If you want to leave them, I’ll come back and get them in a second.”
He’d actually insisted on carrying them through the airport to their gate in Dallas, and Leigh had let him. “I’ve got it,” she replied, but he sat his bags down to open the door for her. Damned pretty manners, she thought, gritting her teeth, as she stepped inside the finger-print smudged door that looked like it hadn’t been cleaned in years.
No man in her life had ever cared enough to do those simple things for her, and Leigh didn’t think she cared, because she was more than capable of doing it for herself. But damn if this cowboy’s small automatic gestures touch her. She didn’t want to like it, but she did. A lot. Liked Jase Sutter a lot. Too much.
Jase held the door open to lean back out to get his luggage, before joining her at the counter. Leigh was surprised some woman hadn’t hog-tied this cowboy a long time ago. He was that kind of man. The marrying kind. A type that not only scared the shit out of her, but the kind she’d avoided totally. So why the hell was she so attracted to him, other than the obvious reasons? It just didn’t make sense.
When after three minutes no one came out of the back to help them, Leigh had enough. She slapped her palm against the tarnished silver bell on the green counter several times in quick succession.
Immediately, a drowsy man in a stained t-shirt walked out of the back room rubbing his red-rimmed eyes. “Yeah?” he asked grumpily.
“I have a reservation,” Leigh said, digging in her purse.
“Name?” the man asked, and the smell of body odor and onions wafted across the counter to make Jase’s stomach lurch.
If this was the best place Hearts Afire could afford, Jase thought that didn’t bode well for his chances here in Nashville, or his association with them. The studio was probably a dive in a back alley somewhere, similar to where he had his own demo recorded in a man’s amateur basement studio. The odds were he was wasting his time here, and he’d made a big mistake firing Glen.
“Anderson,” Leigh replied, pulling out her wallet to rifle inside, before handing him her credit card and driver’s license.
The man reached under the counter, hefted a ratty-looking binder onto the countertop and flopped it open. He ran his finger down the scrawled writing on the page, then looked up at her. “Two nights, single?” he said, and suspicion pulled at Jase.
“No, a double for two nights,” she corrected, with a frustrated breath.
“That’s what I have—a double bed for two nights.”
“Two beds, for two nights,” she growled, and Jase thought she might go over the counter and choke the man at any second. But it could all be an act too. She had booked them one room. Another point to think about when deciding if he’d made a mistake here.
“Don’t have a double, we’re booked up. You asked for a double bed when you called, and that’s what I reserved. There’s a songwriter’s convention in town. Every hotel in town is booked solid, including this one.”
Leigh slapped her hand down over her credit card and pushed it toward him. “I’ll take the single tonight, but I suggest you find me a double, two beds, for tomorrow. That’s what I reserved, and that’s what I want!”
“Want in one hand and—” Jase cut him a warning look, and the clerk cleared his throat. “Can’t build you another room, because you want one, missy.”
“Just charge me for one night then, I’ll find us somewhere else to stay tomorrow.”
Another place would definitely be preferable, but they wouldn’t be finding one with a songwriter’s convention in town. Even Jase knew that. If they gave up this room, they wouldn’t be finding another one and that mean they’d probably be sleeping in that cramped car tomorrow night.
“It’s fine, Leigh. I’ll sleep on the floor.” He wasn’t happy about it, but it definitely wouldn’t be the first time Jase had slept on the floor in this town. But the niggling thought that she’d done this on purpose to set up his audition tonight wouldn’t leave him. He was going to sorely disappoint her, if that was her angle, because he was going to be sleeping on the floor tonight. And while he slept, he was going to be rethinking his decision to put his career in the hands of Hearts Afire Records. Jase hadn’t signed anything yet, so he wasn’t married to them. He could still back out if he wanted.
But they were spending money for him to be in this town, giving him a chance. He wasn’t going to do anything yet. Maybe things would work out. If they didn’t, he hadn’t lost a damned thing, except for the sleep he wouldn’t be getting on the floor tonight, and maybe a little of his time. His mother was taken care of while he was gone, so he was okay with wasting a little time. He needed a break, even if it was in a seedy motel room with a woman he barely knew, and certainly didn’t trust.
Leigh glanced at him, studied him a moment, then huffed a sigh. “Fine, charge me for both nights. But I guarantee you I won’t be staying here again.”
“Suit yourself,” the clerk replied with a shrug. He slid her credit card through the machine, then handed it back to her, along with a plastic keychain with a real brass key on the ring. “Room one-seventy, second one from the end of the building. Donuts and coffee are put out in here at six in the morning. I suggest you get down her early if you want some, because they go pretty fast.”
Probably to the homeless people Jase had seen on the sidewalk when they pulled into the parking lot, he thought, as he picked up his bags to follow Leigh out of the lobby. He didn’t think to open the door for her this time, because he was too deep in thought.
Red-eye flight at the last minute, sub-compact car to get to this seedy motel, and only one room available, whether accidental or on purpose. Jase also had a feeling Leigh Anderson would opt for the stale donuts and sludge for breakfast too. Because it was free.
Working on a shoestring budget was one thing, but Hearts Afire was supposedly a successful label. Jase was about as far removed from a diva as a man could get, he was also a go-with-the-flow kind of guy who didn’t expect much, but successful labels could afford better than this for their staff and artists, especially those who hadn’t signed with them yet.
Jase was very close to deciding he had made the worst decision of his life.
Chapter Five
‡
LEIGH COULD BARELY pick up her feet as she walked down the poorly lit corridor to get to room one-seventy at the end of the building. She inserted the key into the knob, and twisted. The door stuck on the carpet when it swung inward, and she had to put her shoulder into it to get it the rest of the way open. It had been awhile since she’d stayed at this hotel, because Le
o usually footed the bills for her trips now. In the four years since she’d been here, the place had definitely gone downhill.
The last time she’d been here had been to interview for jobs in case Leo didn’t hire her. The Nortell had been cheap, but clean then, run by a nice older lady who took pride in her establishment. That woman must be gone now, and the new owners obviously couldn’t care less. She could only imagine what Jase must be thinking right now.
“I’m sorry this place is such a pit,” she mumbled, as she fumbled to find the light switch on the floor lamp by the table. Jase held the door open until she found the switch.
“It’ll have to do,” he said gruffly, as he shut the door and walked over to put his duffle bag on the floor by the scarred up dresser.
“Unfortunately, I guess it will have to do, because of that convention in town.”
“Is this where you usually stay when you’re in town?” Jase asked, as he walked toward the bathroom.
“No,” Leigh replied, setting her bag down beside his. “I usually stay at the Hutton.” Which is where she should’ve made reservations regardless of who was paying for the trip, she thought, looking down at the suspicious brown stain on the formerly red, but now burgundy carpet.
“The Hutton? Isn’t that the high end hotel on the West End?” Jase asked loudly from behind the bathroom door.
“That’s the one,” Leigh replied, as she unpacked her suitcase and put her clothes into the left side of the dresser. She walked to the closet to hang the two shirts she brought on the rusty wire hangers there.
The bathroom door opened and Jase walked out then washed his hands at the vanity. When he turned around, he put his hands on his hips. “So, why did you pick this place this time? Is it that you think my new demo will suck, so Hearts Afire doesn’t want to invest four-hundred dollars for two nights at the Hutton in case I tank? Or do you think I’m a redneck and this is the kind of place I’d choose?”