Midnight Diamonds (21 page)

“This is a great story, but why are you telling me? Why aren’t you telling Silver?” Becky inquired with her head tilted to one side.

“Because I need you to come back to work for me, and I want you to understand the situation. I don’t love or even like Dani. I don’t want to breathe the same air as that woman, and my lawyers are doing their best to get rid of the leech, but she’s latched on too tightly.”

“Where were you married? I mean, what chapel?”

He frowned in confusion. “I have no idea. Those months are a drunken blur.”

“Do you have a copy of the marriage license?”

He felt sucker punched and stared at her for a moment. “I’ve never seen one.”

Making a face that clearly said he was an idiot, she said so. “You’re an idiot. So are your lawyers. Demand to see the license. If she can’t produce it, then do a search of the public records for that week. Are you telling me your lawyers haven’t thought of this?”

“I’ve had investigators in Vegas poring through public records, but they can’t find anything.” He grabbed one of her hands. “Please come back to work for me. You’ll be in charge of everything.”

She took her hand away. “You hurt the best friend I have in this world, Justin Rivers. You acted like it was no big deal, that life is all about you and what you want and how you can get it. Why would I work for someone who cares only about himself?”

“Because you’re the best person for the job. You’ve got fire in your soul, and I need someone like that to be my manager. Besides, I trust you.”

Becky crossed her arms and stared at him.

“All right. It’s not all about me. I care about her and not because I want her for publicity. I’m sorry she was hurt and…I miss her.”

“The ‘her’ has a name.”

“I miss Silver. I miss her smile and her laugh. I miss the way she chews on the inside of her cheek when she’s thinking. I miss the big words and being frustrated because I don’t know what she’s saying.” He paused. “I miss being with Silver.”

Becky didn’t say anything as she stood and walked away from him, pacing the room for several long moments. When she turned around, her face was set with determination.

“I want a raise.”

Justin jumped to his feet. “A raise? You only worked for me, what, two days?” When she stared at him with one eyebrow raised, he cleared his throat. “I mean, sure, a raise is a great idea. When can you start?”

She grinned at him. “Technically, I was never off the clock, so you owe me for the past two weeks with that retroactive raise.”

“I never said it was retroactive.”

“You will,” Becky replied confidently.

She walked over to a small desk—a god-awful shade of pea green—and picked up a file folder, which she handed to him.

“That file has everything you want to know about Dani. Fake driver’s licenses, her criminal record, bad checks years ago. Danielle Bailey, a.k.a. Betty Thorp, a.k.a. Belinda Weiner—not making it up—has been scamming guys for the past decade. She has a rap sheet as long as my arm for reeling in drunks and taking their money. And by the way, there is no marriage certificate on file with the state of Nevada or any other state in this country.”

“I’m not
married?” he asked, feeling hope for the first time since this whole fiasco began.

“She’s a fraud, and you were duped.” Becky held up one hand. “Not finished. In the file, you also have an affidavit from the reporter who fielded that question about the wife. Seems his only lead was an anonymous tip from a woman. My guess is Dani was biding her time to come forward after you hit the big time, but she saw the pictures with Silver, recognized you—or parts of you—and decided to become Mrs. Rivers again. More than likely, she’ll disappear once you show her this information and a nice check.” She gave him a big, cheesy smile. “How’d I do, boss?”

Justin picked her up and whirled around. They were both laughing when he set her down. “I will double your salary! Triple it! You’re worth every penny. Becky, you’ve saved my life!” Then it dawned on him. “You already had this information when I begged you to come back to work for me.”

Becky snorted. “What can I say? I’m good. Better than those high-priced lawyers you keep on retainer. Besides, I just finished getting all the information last night.”

“How can I ever thank you?” he asked as he leafed through the file. She put a hand on the pages to stop him.

“By answering one question. Justin, how do you really feel about Silver?”

He locked eyes with her. “I think I love her and I want the chance to find out.”

“You only think?” she mumbled then rubbed her hands together. “I can work with that. Send Dani packing back to her little skuzzy cave with fuzzy dice.” When she turned to him, she caught him grimacing at the room. “What? You don’t like my house?”

“Tell you what,” he said. “You get the raise if you do two things.”

“Doubled and retroactive. What do you want now?”

“First, let me pay to have my cousin Trinity redecorate this place.”

“Hey, I like this place. It has character.”

“It’s a symphony of horror.”

“Well, geez, boss, don’t hold back. What else?”

Putting his hands on his hips, Justin faced his manager. “Find out what Jeffrey Hatcher is doing with Silver.”

* * *

Silver sat with Jeffrey at a small café near the school. He’d called to follow up on their discussion about image management, so she’d agreed to have lunch with him. It certainly wouldn’t hurt for reporters to see her with him and take their minds off Justin Rivers.

“Jeffrey, do I need an image consultant?” she asked as she toyed with her chef salad.

“No. When you slapped Justin on live television, it exonerated you in the public’s eyes. They see you as a victim now.” Grinning at her, he added, “It sure made an impression on me.”

“I’m not sure what to think about that. I slap someone and you’re impressed? If I don’t need an image consultant, then why are you here?”

He shrugged. “Because I want to be. Is that all right?”

She speared a cherry tomato with her fork. “I don’t know, to be honest. It depends on the provocation.”

Jeffrey grinned at her. “Well, I can assure you that my only motivation is friendship.”

Justin’s recitation from
The Merry Wives of Windsor
floated across her mind. “I guess having another friend won’t hurt, will it?”

Silence hung in the air between them as she chewed on the tomato. The door to the café opened and she turned her head.

Hunter Rivers, dressed in a heavy work coat, black T-shirt, and black jeans, walked to their table, his boots slapping against the tile floor. “Hi, Silver!”

“Hi, Hunter,” she answered tentatively.

Hunter didn’t wait for an invitation and pulled out a chair to sit down. “I stopped by the school, but they said you’d come here for lunch.” He gave Jeffrey the once-over, then turned away from him. “How are you doing?”

“I’m good, thanks. Do you know Jeffrey Hatcher?”

Hunter shrugged like he didn’t care. Jefferson’s mouth parted in surprise as if he weren’t used to being dismissed so easily. Taking one of Silver’s carrot sticks, Hunter bit off a small piece, grimaced as if he found it distasteful, then put the uneaten portion back. Silver frowned with irritation.

“Hunter, why are you here?”

Jeffrey leaned back in his chair.

“Did you know Justin’s been asked to do a Thanksgiving concert, live from the Ryman Theater in Nashville? We’re having a get together at the house to watch and you’re invited.”

Puzzled, Silver frowned. “Why in the world would I do that?”

“Good question, but Mom told me to ask. Frankly, it doesn’t make any sense to me at all, but very little does about this whole thing. Especially when it was so obvious to everyone how you two felt about each other.” He stared and waited.

Silver stood, picking up her purse with trembling hands. Join the family watching Justin? What a bizarre invitation. “I have to get back to the school.”

“Don’t rush on my account,” Hunter said, sounding innocent.

“My class begins in a few minutes. Jeffrey, thank you for lunch. Hunter, tell your mother hello and thank you for the invitation.” She left Hunter with Jeffrey.

Hurrying back to the school, Silver scoffed at the idea of going to the Rivers’ mansion. There was absolutely no way she’d watch Justin Rivers do anything.

When she walked back into her classroom to find Becky waiting for her, the fake everything-is-great smile signaled everything was not great.

“Hey, Sil. The office said you were at lunch, so I thought I’d wait.”

“It seems to be my day for visitors. What’s going on?” Silver sat down behind her desk, sorting through papers to be handed back in her next class.

“What do you mean? I’m here to say hello to a friend.”

Silver’s hands stilled. “I had lunch with Jeffrey Hatcher, interrupted by Hunter Rivers who gave me an invitation to the Rivers’ home to watch Justin sing on a Thanksgiving show.” When Becky’s eyebrows went up nearly into her hairline, Silver continued sorting papers. “Yeah, a day of surprises. Now tell me why you’re here.”

“Well, um, you know that I love you like a sister, right? And if anyone knows how important my job is to me, it would be you. Because we’re so close. Joined at the hip. Nothing comes between us. Not even men.”

Silver gave up on the papers. Leaning back against her chair, she patiently asked, “Are you here for affirmation? Or absolution?”

“Maybe both?” Becky said weakly with a shrug. “Anyway, I’m going back to work for Justin. I won’t go into it all right now, but come to my place for dinner and I’ll tell you everything.” Leaning forward, she took one of her friend’s hands. “Sil, trust me. Justin is nothing like Chase. He’s not the two-timing self-centered jerk we thought, and you need to know why.” She hesitated a moment. “OK, he’s self-centered, but he’s an artist. And a man. They’re all weird like that.”

Silver took a deep breath to steady herself. Another shock to deal with. Nothing she couldn’t handle, though. The loud ticking of the clock reminded her that she had class in a few minutes. “Thanks for telling me, but I don’t know what you’re worried about. I think it’s great. You’re perfect as his manager.” To reassure her friend, she smiled at her.

“Really? I mean, you’re not mad?”

“Not at all. Why would I be?”

“Considering everything that’s happened…” Becky let her words trail off.

Silver stood up and hugged Becky. “It’s all in the past. Like I said, there is no reason why you should hold yourself back. You love everything country, and I think it’s a fantastic opportunity for you.”

“I feel so much better. You don’t know how long it took for me to work up the courage to tell you about it. I’ve been agonizing over it for hours.”

“When did he hire you back?”

“This morning.”

Silver chuckled and shook her head. The bell rang and students began jostling into the room. Silver smiled again. “Go for it, Becky! You’ll be awesome! See you tonight!”

With a quick hug, Becky left the room. Silver sat back down at her desk and swallowed against the threatening tears. Becky deserved this chance. No one could bring passion to a job better than her best friend, and after Hunter’s news, it sounded like Justin’s dream was coming true.

But why in the world would Connie Rivers ask her to watch Justin’s show with the family? As if she’d actually accept that invitation. Part of her wanted to be there, but at what cost emotionally? It would serve no purpose to open healing wounds again.

Blinking away the tears, she kept her head down as students laughed and talked, waiting for the last bell. What could Becky possibly say that would convince her to see the cowboy as anything other than a liar and a user? Maybe the dinner tonight would help her put everything to rest once and for all.

Despite all the unexplainable events of the past few weeks, her heart told her not to give up, which was absolute craziness because Justin had a wife. It was ridiculous to wish things could be different.

“‘If wishes were horses, beggars would ride,’” she said softly. Shakespeare got it right. And she certainly wasn’t going to beg.

But one thing hadn’t changed and probably wouldn’t for a long time.

She still loved Justin Rivers.

* * *

Silver put down the file on Danielle Rivers. It had been interesting, to say the least.

When she’d walked into Becky’s apartment earlier, she’d been both wary about and eager to hear what Becky had to say.

“Read this,” was all she’d been told. Silver had sat down at the kitchen table and gone through the sheaf of papers while Becky fixed dinner.

Now, an hour later, she grew angry on Justin’s behalf. He had been a victim as much as she had. Becky sat down across from her.

“Any questions?”

“I understand that he was taken in by this demented floozy, but why did he stay married to her? Why didn’t he have lawyers take care of things?” Silver asked. “And why didn’t he tell me about her?”

“There’s another story you need to hear, one that Justin told me a couple of days ago.” Becky shook her head when Silver opened her mouth. “It’s not my story to tell, Sil, and you might have those answers if you’d take his phone calls. But I will say this much—he’s not a flake, and he blames himself for all of this. When he came and asked me to take back this job, I’d already done the research, so it was a simple matter of negotiating certain things.”

Not commenting seemed like the best option to Silver.

Becky stood and walked to the kitchen, signaling for Silver to follow.

“I think you should go next Friday night to the Rivers’ place and watch the Thanksgiving show with them.” She turned to the stove and checked on their dinner.

Silver took a bottle of water out of the refrigerator. “Becky, Connie’s invitation is very sweet, but I’m not sure I’d feel comfortable there.”

“I understand, but you should go with me and we’ll cheer him on.” She turned to stir the spaghetti sauce on the stove. “Besides, things are different now.”

Silver narrowed her eyes. “Different? What are you not telling me?”