my uncle. Hell, he probably didn’t even know we’d be here. But as much as I hate this mingling shit, if the head of the record label likes us, we’ll probably get some serious attention. It pains me to say this, but we should try to be on our best behavior.”
“You? Behave at a party?” Garrett jokes. “They’d better lock up all the alcohol.”
“Shut up,” Liam says. “And take your sticks out of your back pocket, dude. You’re wearing a damn suit.”
Garrett lays a protective hand over his drumsticks. “They go everywhere with me.”
Brad laughs. “I’ll bet you even take them to bed, don’t you?”
“Sometimes. They’re inspirational. We should all sleep next to something that inspires us.”
Crew and I share a smile.
We meet Niles Armentrout, Ronni’s boss. I play nice and don’t call her Veronica when she calls me Brianna. He barely gives us the time of day; maybe Liam was right, and he didn’t know we’d be here. I’m getting the feeling Dirk is the kind of guy who works every situation to his advantage.
All the bigwigs go off and talk politics. Liam leads us out of the room. “Let’s play pool until dinner. They won’t even miss us.”
He guides us through a maze of hallways to the billiard room.
“Wow, this is incredible,” I say. “I didn’t know you lived with your uncle.”
“Not for long,” he says. “As soon as I can afford it, Mom and I are getting out of here.”
“Your mom lives here too? I’d love to meet her.”
“She doesn’t come to these things.”
“Shame.”
Thirty minutes later, the same man who let us in the front door beckons us to dinner.
“How did he know where we were?” Brad asks. “This place is ginormous.”
Liam points to a small plastic dome in the ceiling. “Cameras.”
Brad stiffens. “I hope there isn’t one in the bathroom. I might have snooped through a closet.”
Crew slaps him on the back of the head. “Fucking tool.”
On our way to the dining room, we run into a woman stumbling out into the hall. Liam runs over to her. “Mom, let me help you back to your room.” Steadying her, he escorts her into a different wing. When he returns, he doesn’t say a word about his mother almost doing a drunken face-plant in front of his friends.
Crew pats Liam on the back like he understands. The rest of us pretend nothing happened.
Over the course of the next few hours, Dirk manages to endear us to Niles, the head of IRL. I hope Liam’s right. If he decides we’re worth it, big things could happen.
When we leave, I ask Crew, “What’s in it for Liam’s uncle? Why go through all the trouble?”
“He’s a businessman. He can profit from this.”
“But I read all the contracts. His name isn’t mentioned. He won’t make money off us.”
“That’s where you’re wrong.”
“I am?”
“Yeah, big time.” He glances at the mansion. “He didn’t get this rich by inheriting money. He knows how to make it. And believe me if we make it big, he’ll profit. Maybe he’s got secret ties to IRL we don’t know about. Maybe he owns a radio station and will profit from advertising. Maybe he owns a clothing store, and we’ll end up promoting his product. Whatever it is, you can bet he’s thinking about it now. On the other hand, if Dirk Campbell thinks we have something, he’s rarely wrong, and though I don’t want to be, I’m excited he’s so into us right now.”
“Why don’t you want to be?”
“Dirk isn’t always what he seems. He’s not someone I want to be in bed with.”
I raise my eyebrows.
“It’s a figure of speech, Bria.”
Crew opens my car door. “Is there anyone you want to be in bed with?” I ask in a sultry voice.
His slow smile has all kind of promise in it. “Now I’m getting hard.”
I graze my hand seductively across the front of his pants. “What are we going to do about that?”
“Woman, you’re going to kill me.” He shuts my door and runs around to get in.
I giggle. “Yeah, but what a way to die.”
His smile vanishes and distant Crew is back. “It’s been a long day. You probably want to get back to the city.”
“Did I say something wrong?” I was secretly hoping we’d sleep together like last night. After all, it’s late and I have to be back here tomorrow anyway.
“No. Let’s get out of here. I think we both need to get some shuteye.”
Maybe he remembered his dream and is afraid of what