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Why was I such a wanker?
“I own this ranch just like they do. I’m not a fucking mooch.”
“Listen, boys, I know neither of you likes the idea of sharing the spotlight, but here’s the truth. Either you write a hit and an album to go with it, or you’re both going to find yourselves without a label and, more importantly, without me. You got it?”
That sent a wave of cold dread through me. “Are you serious?”
“Deadly.”
Gritting my teeth, I nodded. “Fine. Let’s get to writing so I can move on from this.”
“Glad you can be an adult about this. I really need to go; my flight leaves this afternoon. Killian, I mean it, give this a shot. It could turn everything around.”
Killian stayed silent, but his brow drew down into a deep frown.
“I’ll do my best not to corrupt him, Jacks.” I was only teasing, but the smirk on her face told me Killian was more of a troublemaker than I’d given him credit for.
“Maybe a little corruption is what you both need. Spark some creativity. Be bold. Make something new.”
She waggled her fingers at us both as she left in a whirl of perfume and clacking heels.
My bag and guitar case sat in the entryway, looming like the final thing we hadn’t established yet.
“So, uh...where’s my room?”
Chapter Three
KILLIAN
“You fucking knew?” I burst through Luke’s front door and rounded on him as he bounced gently with his baby in his arms.
“Shut up, you asshole. She’s almost asleep.” Luke looked at me as though he was ready to castrate me. “It’s taken me half an hour just to get her to stop crying. Mack is taking a hot bath and having some well-earned her time, and I’m pretty sure if I play my cards right and get this little lady down for bed, I just might be able to get some tonight. Don’t ruin it for me.”
“I don’t give a rat’s ass if you get some. I have an unexpected rock star in my house right now, and you and Sutton okayed it. Without telling me.”
My niece gave a little whimper, and I immediately felt like the world’s biggest douchebag. I lowered my voice to a heated whisper. “I’m supposed to write a song with him. How can I do that with someone I don’t even know?”
Luke propped the baby up on his shoulder a little higher and began this strange sort of bouncy-sway dance as he patted her back and made shushing noises. “Look, I know you don’t want to face the facts, but your manager is the scariest woman I’ve ever met, and when she called us to tell us what was going on...Sutton and I both caved pretty quick.”
“Traitors.”
He raised a brow. “Are we? It seems like this is a surefire way to get your career back on track.”
“If he wasn’t a cocky asshole, sure. The guy thinks I’m some kid who doesn’t know his ass from a hole in the ground. You should have seen the way he looked at me.”
“You think maybe it has less to do with you and more to do with his ego? There’s nothing more fragile than a rock star with a god complex.”
I snorted. “How would you know?”
“I was raised by one.”
That shut me up. Our dad might not have been a literal rock star, but he was the son of Hollywood royalty. He grew up thinking his name afforded him all the respect our grandfather commanded. And he burned plenty of bridges because of that attitude.
“I don’t know if this is going to work.”
I watched as my niece’s shoulders finally relaxed, and she became as slack as a noodle in my brother’s arms. He cradled her to him, pressing a kiss to her downy head. “She’s out. Thank God. Let me put her down, and we can talk more about this, okay?”
I shook my head. “Nah, it’s okay. You’re right. I think my own ego is getting in the way of what’s right in front of me. I’m not a solo act. I never have been. Jackie knows it. She wouldn’t have suggested this if she didn’t believe we could pull it off.”
