“That’s crazy.” She looked at the couples dancing around them and lowered her voice. “We had one night together,” she whispered.
“That’s all I needed,” he whispered, fixating on her lips. He could feel her heart pounding against his chest and he knew she wasn’t as unaffected as she pretended to be. “Sometimes you just know, baby.”
He brushed the back of his hand against her cheek. “I’ve been with enough women to know what I want and you’re it.”
She shook her head, trying to dispute his words. “You don’t even know me.”
“I know all I need to know,” he whispered, brushing his lips against hers.
She looked around frantically. “Stop it. We can’t do this here. There people are my clients, my business associates.”
He took a deep breath, trying to rein in the intense need that was building inside him. “I don’t care what people think. I want everyone to know how I feel about you.”
“It’s highly unprofessional for someone in my position to be involved with a client, Ty. It’s a conflict of interest. My personal objections aside, there’s a very strict code of conduct in my profession that prohibits publicists and their clients from fraternizing.”
He chuckled. “It doesn’t matter how many barriers you try and put up between us. I can promise you I’m gonna tear down every last one. It may take some time, but when I want something, I don’t let anything stand in my way.”
She sighed, clearly not willing to argue the point. “We’re getting off track. I came over here to discuss your schedule.”
“Okay.”
“We’ve got a lot of work to do over the next little while. It’s not gonna be easy, especially since you’re going to be spending a lot of time in the studio and you have those tour dates with Trey.”
He smiled. “I’m not one to shy away from a challenge, darlin’. Whatever needs to be done, we’ll get it done, right?”
She slipped her hand out of his and braced her hands on his shoulders. “You make it sound so easy.”
“Why does it have to be so damned complicated, Avery?” He knew he was supposed to be focusing on the business at hand, but it was difficult to focus on anything other than the woman in his arms.
“Listen, I don’t have time to play games. We need to get together first thing tomorrow morning. I think we’ll start with the press kit. I’ll schedule the photo shoot for your headshots ASAP. I have a photographer friend who may be able to squeeze you in as a favor...”
He laughed. “Sweetheart, take a breath.” He continued to move them smoothly around the dance floor, suddenly grateful he hadn’t been born with two left feet. The little dynamo in his arms was commanding all of his concentration and had he been an inept dancer, he would have been attracting the wrong kind of attention by now.
“Ty, this is serious. We don’t have to time to screw around.”
He winked and pulled her closer. “Not even a little?”
She pushed against his shoulders to put some distance between them. “I need to know everything there is to know about Ty McCall, the man, and the artist. If you have any skeletons in your closet, I need to know about them now.”
His heart began to beat at a frenetic pace. He knew this would come out sooner or later. He just didn’t expect it to be so soon after he found her again. “Uh, I don’t know how to say this, so I’m just gonna come right out and say it. I’m married, Avery.”
Avery literally felt her knees buckle. Fortunately, Ty had his hands wrapped firmly around her waist. “What did you just say?”
He cursed and dipped his head. “I didn’t want to tell you like this, sweetheart. It’s a long story. Suffice it to say, I made a mistake when I was young and stupid.”
“I don’t understand. Where is your wife? How long have you been married?” Even the word sounded distasteful on her lips. Had she made love to another woman’s husband, or had he just married within the past two years?
Ty scowled. “Hell, I don’t know where she is. I reckon she’s somewhere, livin’ it up on her daddy’s dime.”
“How long have you been married?”
His big hands framed her face. “Eight years, but it’s a marriage in name only, I swear.”
She stepped out of his arms. She couldn’t even stand the thought of having his hands on her. Without her knowledge or consent, he had turned her into someone she swore she would never be, the other woman. “Don’t you think that’s what every lying, cheating son of a bitch says to get a woman into bed?”
He closed his eyes and pinched the bridge of his nose. “In my case, it’s true. I haven’t seen Abby in almost six years.”
“I can’t deal with this right now,” she said. She sauntered through the crowd, not even concerned about retrieving her coat. Her only thought was of putting some distance between herself and the man pursuing her.
He grabbed her wrist. “Damn it, Avery. Wait. We need to talk about this.”
She tried to shake him off, but he refused to let her go. She nodded to the woman who opened the door as she attempted to make her way to the parking attendant. “Take your hands off me,” she whispered. “’Cause I promise if you don’t, I’ll make a scene like you have never...”
He reluctantly let her go. “Please, just let me explain.”
She glared at him, hating him more with each passing minute. “You can explain tomorrow morning, in my office. I have no choice but to represent you if I want to continue working in this town.” She smiled sweetly at him as she extracted a business card from her handbag. “I should be thanking you. You were making it impossible for me not to want you again.”
He took a step closer. “Avery, I...”
She slapped the business card against his chest. “You make me sick. I can barely stand the sight of you.
“But I will act as your publicist because I’ll be damned if I let a scum-bag like you destroy the career I’ve spent a lifetime building.” She pointed a finger into his chest. “Nine o’clock tomorrow morning, my office. My time is valuable so don’t be late.”
Ty felt like someone had kicked him in the gut as he watched Avery slip behind the wheel of her car and gun the engine. He knew his deal with the devil and his spawn would come back to bite him eventually, but he’d never expected it to hurt so much when it finally did.
Luc came up behind him, wrapping an arm around his shoulder. “What the hell did you do to piss her off, Ty?”
Ty knew admitting his transgression to Luc wouldn’t be as difficult as telling Avery. Still, he was ashamed of himself and the choices he’d made. “I told her I was married.”
Luc whistled under his breath. “Shit, that couldn’t have gone over well.” Luc spared him a sidelong glance. “She told me you two slept together a while back. Were you married then?”
Ty simply nodded. He knew he couldn’t explain the situation to his new boss until Avery had time to process it.
Luc shook his head. “You are one stupid bastard.”
“Tell me something I don’t know,” Ty muttered.
“Avery has been through hell and back with men. I thought she’d finally found a good guy in you.”
Ty hung his head. “Luc, you don’t understand, man.”
“No, you don’t understand. Avery was into you, no matter how much she tried to deny it. She was just killing time with guys like me and Trey, waiting for the real deal.” Luc turned to face him, bracing a hand on his shoulder. “I would’ve bet my last dollar you were the guy she’s been waiting on.”
Ty watched Luc walk away. If he hadn’t been in the midst of a crowd of strangers, he would have dropped to his knees and bellowed his frustration at the mess he’d made of his life. He finally found the woman he’d been waiting for and the biggest mistake he’d ever made was going to rob him of the chance to have a future with her.
After too many shots of alcohol and a fitful night’s sleep, Ty woke up with a brutal headache. He groaned when he rolled over to see the neon numbers on his alarm clock flashing. There must have been a power surge last night, rendering the alarm clock useless. Checking his watch, he noted he had one hour to shower, make himself presentable, and haul his butt into town for his meeting with Avery. Her words of warning spurred him into action, but his head protested the sudden movement with a fresh wave of pain that pierced through it like a knife.
He would have preferred to have left the party when Avery did so he could go home and lick his wounds in private, but Luc wouldn’t hear of it. He told him he had to put aside his personal problems and put his game face on. It was his first opportunity to make an impression on the bigwigs in the industry. He only hoped, given his state of mind last night, that he was able to make a favorable impression.
He staggered to the adjoining bathroom, holding his head. He cursed Avery, Jack Daniels, and his own stupidity for overindulging like a reckless teenager who didn’t understand the ramifications of his actions. He had experienced too many hangovers to plead ignorance, but the overwhelming feeling of helplessness at Avery’s reaction to his announcement had led him to act recklessly and irresponsibly, which was out of character for him. He only hoped it wouldn’t hurt his career.
Before he could turn the shower on, the telephone rang. Fortunately, he left the cordless on the bathroom counter last night when he’d been contemplating a call to Avery to offer a heartfelt, albeit drunken, apology. Thankfully, he’d thought better of it. He couldn’t imagine a lady as refined as Avery would take too kindly to being woken up in the middle of the night by a drunk declaring his love for her, especially when the drunk in question was still a married man.
He glanced at the phone’s display before connecting the call. “Hey, Luc, what’s up?”
“You were a big hit last night, man.”
Ty felt a surge of pride at his boss’s unexpected praise. “Yeah? Good to hear.”
“I knew I was right about you. I hope you’re prepared for your life to change in a big way, Ty.”
As much as he wanted this chance to live his dream, it was a little overwhelming when he considered how much his life was about to change. His days of anonymity would soon be over. It would be impossible to tell who was interested in him as a person and who was hoping to secure a free ride to easy money and notoriety.
“Have you talked to Avery?” Luc asked.
“No, I have a meeting with her in about an hour.”
Luc chuckled. “Whatever you do, don’t keep her waiting. She hates to be kept waiting.”
“Got it.”
“Call me later. I want to hear all about Avery’s plans for you.”
“Will do, boss.”
Avery glanced at her diamond-studded watch as she seethed at the audacity of that man. It wasn’t enough that she was being bullied into representing him. He had so little regard for her time that he didn’t even have the decency to call when he was going to be late.
Avery’s assistant, Lisa, poked her head in the office door. “Do you want me to call your next appointment? He seems to be running a little late.”
“Give him a few more minutes.” Avery walked to her espresso machine and poured another cup of the strong brew. Thanks to Ty, she hadn’t slept more than a few hours last night. Yet another reason to resent the man.
Lisa turned when they heard the outer door to the front office open and close. “Wow,” she whispered. “That’s your new client? He’s hot.”
Avery sighed. “Lisa, will you just show him in please?”
“It looks like he brought you flowers,” Lisa whispered. “How sweet is that?”
If he thought he could win her over with flowers, he was sadly mistaken. His downhome country charm might work on the girls who flocked to him at Jimmy’s Bar, but she was too cynical to be taken in by him a second time. As far as she was concerned, Ty McCall was a client, a married client, and that meant he was off limits.
Lisa opened the door fully, allowing Avery to catch a glimpse of Ty as he stood in the waiting room, admiring her office’s upscale decor. He looked uneasy, which gave her a modicum of satisfaction. He should feel on edge because she was about to tear him a new one.
Avery walked to the doorway of her office. “That’ll be all, Lisa. Thank you.”
Ty looked at her. “Uh, hi. Sorry I’m late.” He extended the flowers. “I hope you like roses?”
Avery gave the pink roses a cursory glance, trying not to be affected by the sweet and unexpected gesture. “They’re lovely. Thank you.” She turned toward her assistant. “Lisa, would you mind putting those in water?”
“Sure, boss. Will there be anything else?”
“Hold my calls, please. Mr. McCall and I will be tied up for most of the morning. Oh, unless it’s Andrew. He’s going to try and fit us in if he gets a break in his schedule today.”
“Okay, do you want me to take care of those press releases now?”
“Please.”
Lisa took the flowers from Ty and winked. She extended her other hand. “I’m Lisa, Avery’s assistant. Ty McCall, right? I’ve seen you at Jimmy’s. You were great.”