Page 4 of Ever With Me

Darren.

“How the hell did you get here so fast?” Brooks asked, rubbing his forehead.

“You pay me to be fast.” Darren looked over his shoulder at the officer who’d let him in, as though to dismiss him. Then he stepped closer to the jail cell bars. “Unless you’d like to spend the night here.”

“Fuck no.” Brooks stood. He just hadn’t expected to be here for only two minutes.

Darren smirked, his perfect white teeth shining in the fluorescent lighting. “You can thank me later. Let’s go.”

Whatever small miracle Darren had pulled to get him out of this place so quickly wasn’t something Brooks would question. Not fast enough to save his concert tonight, of course, but nothing could be done about that at this point.

By the time the cops returned his belongings and he walked out to the parking lot to his awaiting car, it was already close to midnight. He should have gone on at eight. What a way to finish the tour.

Darren held out the keys. “You been drinking? That’s the last thing?—”

“Not unless you count the shots of Jack Daniel’s with the cops,” Brooks quipped sarcastically. He snatched the keys. At least Darren wasn’t threatening to drive him. Brooks had made that rule clear from day one of their partnership. He drove himself everywhere, whenever possible.

“Straight to the hotel, you hear? We’ll be having an emergency meeting to see about damage control. Ava already knows, so save your breath if you’re expecting me not to shoot straight with you here. It’s bad, Brooks. Worse than ever.”

“It’s one fucking concert. One stupid arrest. Mike’s charges won’t hold water in front of a judge, but I’m not going to even let it get to that. I already told Christine to settle it out of court. Mike loves nothing more than money, so that should keep him happy for a while.” Besides which, when he’d talked to his lawyer, she seemed to think that a settlement would be the way to go. Less noise.

“If you think I’m on your side with this, you’ve got another thing coming,” Darren snapped, glaring at Brooks.

“Think.”

“Huh?” The lamppost above them threw a shadow onto Darren’s features.

“The expression is,‘you’ve got another think coming,’”Brooks said dryly.

“No, it’s not. And who cares?”

He wouldn’t normally correct Darren about something dumb like this, but it proved the point for him. “Because you’re wrong. Youthinkyou know, but you don’t.” Brooks crossed his arms. “Just like you haven’t heard my side of what happened tonight.”

“I don’t have to.” Darren pulled out a pack of cigarettes and lit one. “I’ve heard it all before with you. And this time, you’re doing it my way, kid. Because if you don’t, we’ll both be fired.”

Brooks winced at the moniker. Darren was maybe ten years older than him. He rubbed his dark beard, his face itching from the discomfort of just about every damn thing that had happened today. Instantly, his neck felt hot, the watch around his wrist too tight, the damn black T-shirt too constricting. His jeans dug in around his waist, and he nearly ripped his flip-flops off.

Taking a calming breath, he managed, “And what’s your way?”

The tip of the cigarette glowed in the dark. “You know. I suggested it to you last fall after the Vegas?—”

“Abso-fucking-lutelynot.” The words spilled out of Brooks’s mouth faster than he could even react.Hell no.

“Yes, Brooks. We tried it your way. And your image is shot to hell. You want the public to think you’re doubling down on being a narcissistic asshole star who’s out of control? Then you better start looking and acting sorry. You need to recoup your reputation—which is barely salvageable, according to Ava. The studio isn’t happy with you, especially after that last album didn’t do so hot.”

“Maybe that has something to do with all the sampling shit you all pulled when my back was turned,” Brooks growled.Enough already.

“Samples or no, it wasn’t your best work, Brooks.”

Ouch.

But tell me something I don’t know.

“Yet . . . I’m still selling out shows, aren’t I, dickhead?” Brooks’s eyes narrowed. “You know what, Darren? You don’t have to wait to find out if Ava’s going to fire you. You’re done.” His hand enclosed around the key fob. “I’ve had just about enough of your bull?—”

“I already floated the idea to Ava, and she loves it, by the way. Thinks it’s the best PR move you could make. It did wonders for that actor fromTurntable.Ava wants to go for it.”

Of course she does.Brooks leveled his gaze at his manager, strongly considering decking him, too. Then again, when had punching anyone ever gotten him anywhere?

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