Love Like Crazy. Crystal B. Bright

Чтение книги онлайн.

СКАЧАТЬ had kept it simple with a landscape scene or something artistic.

      As soon as he had spotted the disc in the clear jewel case, he decided to give it a listen. If nothing else, it would either give him a good laugh or a way to pass the time.

      He still remembered the feeling he got when he heard her belting out that first note. His body went stock still as though preparing it for goose bumps to shoot all over him. Then from the top of his head down to his toes, he went from warm to molten hot. The singer had a way with controlling her voice and manipulating notes like an artist making a simple but artistically stunning stroke of paint over a canvas.

      As soon as he finished listening to the demo, he should have reached out to her. Bad timing. He had been put on assignment to deal with the Shauna Stellar situation, as Zinner put it. Then the massive cleanup afterward took the rest of his time. He wouldn’t have been focused on Destiny. He hoped beyond hope that someone else hadn’t made time for her since he had missed out on his opportunity.

      Each open mic and coffee shop and dive bar he went to offered him no inspiration. Singers came off as cutesy girls suited for Instagram, not an arena. Then again, his mind wrapped around the idea of finding this perfect singer who had invaded his life like a ghost.

      At his lowest point, he decided to try a karaoke bar. He didn’t like going to those places because people tended to copy what the original artist did when they recorded their songs. He wanted to hear originality and new voices. He had no interest in hearing someone copying Michael Jackson or Beyoncé.

      It did make him curious about the act he had missed last night that the waiter told him about when he had arrived to a place called Songbirds. The other patrons in the place concurred with the waiter’s assessment. When a snippet of this singer’s karaoke song played back through the place, Laz had to sit down.

      She sounded incredible and very close to Destiny Starr. Soulful yet gritty. Commanding, but still approachable. Just like everything else in his life, when he asked to meet her, the waiter said she had just paid her bill and left. Too little, too late.

      Damn.

      Laz also wanted to kick himself for not approaching that beauty he had seen across the room when he had gotten to the place. She looked stunning under the overhead light near the stage. He liked the way her dark brown hair framed her thin face. He also couldn’t help noticing her full, rounded breasts under her tight T-shirt and the way her waist dipped in right above her hips.

      If he had time and the inclination, he would have gone up to her and introduced himself. His personality would only get him so far. What woman would want a man without a job? At least he had prospects and ambition, which both had brought him down to Virginia.

      Laz had gone to bat for Chantel Woodley a couple of years ago. He hoped that she remembered him enough to offer him a job at Charisma Music, since it seemed like Section Eight would only give him a chance if he brought someone good to the table. No guarantees of that during this trip. He didn’t have any other prospects left after that place.

      Laz outfitted himself with one of his best suits. He made sure his hair looked perfect. On top of that, he had demo CDs in his briefcase. He would come to this impromptu meeting with all guns blazing. He would have to, considering he hadn’t made an appointment with anyone there.

      The Charisma building looked nothing like Section Eight’s huge skyscraper. The simple three-story building sat on the oceanfront side of the Virginia Beach strip. Laz had only met Fatima Evans, the founder of Charisma Music, once in his career.

      The bubbly African-American woman had left an impression on him. He could see her laid-back nature setting up shop at a serene oceanfront location. Laz found it hard to believe that a huge star like Chantel Woodley, and her equally popular country-singing husband, Truman, would continue running the business Fatima had left her from this location.

      Laz walked into the front door and couldn’t believe he didn’t get greeted by security guards that looked like bouncers. The two he saw in the lobby reminded him of men who would work for the Secret Service.

      He strolled up to the receptionist desk. This woman actually made eye contact with him and smiled.

      “Good afternoon. How can I help you?” She coupled her inquiry by leaning forward.

      “Hi. I hope you can help me. My name is Laz Kyson. I was hoping to get a meeting with Chantel or Truman.” He smiled as he stared at her.

      The young woman glanced down at her computer screen first. “I’m sorry. I don’t see an appointment for them for this afternoon.”

      “Probably not.” He chuckled to lighten the mood. “I’m the one who called yesterday about meeting them for a potential job. I’ve worked A&R at Universe.”

      He wanted to bite his tongue as soon as he mentioned Chantel’s former record label. The word must have gone out to all of her people about the place. As soon as he mentioned it, the receptionist leaned back in her chair and crossed her arms over her chest. She wouldn’t be helping him today or any day.

      “I no longer work there.” Maybe mentioning that will melt away her frosty attitude. “I was hoping I could use my talents for Charisma. It would be great to discuss it with Chantel.”

      “Mrs. Woodley does not entertain unsolicited offers.” The woman with a purple pixie cut hairdo and big green eyes shook her head as she leaned forward. “Please check our website for any open positions.”

      Laz looked around the nearly empty lobby area with the exception of two guards. “The type of position I’m looking for isn’t usually posted. I want to go beyond A&R. I want to secure talent for this label and manage them. I’m looking for someone with your beauty and an incredible voice.” He leaned forward and lowered his tone. “You wouldn’t happen to be a singer, too, would you?”

      The chubby woman with a pixie cut giggled while shaking her head. “No. Of course not.”

      Laz snapped his fingers in the air. “Just my luck. I can’t seem to catch a break.”

      “Charisma isn’t hiring managers. If you have a business card, I would be happy to pass it along to Mr. and Mrs. Woodley. If not, I can get your information.” She pulled out a pad and pen like she knew he wouldn’t have his contact information readily available. “You can give me your number, um, if you want to give it to me. Your number, I mean. Give that to me and nothing else.”

      Laz spotted her talking under her breath to herself.

      “Stop talking. You sound crazy.” Then she smiled, baring all of her small, white teeth.

      “I would love to give you anything and everything you want.” He smiled harder. “What I really need, though, is that meeting. I would like to wait if that’s okay.” Laz looked to the side and spotted a black-and-white striped couch along with a couple of chairs in a waiting area.

      “You would be wasting your time.” She shook her head. “I don’t think they’re coming in for the rest of the day. But I don’t know that for sure. They sometimes pop in.”

      “Then let’s hope today is one of those days. Besides, I’ll get to sit here and stare at you the whole time.” Laz continued to smile so that he didn’t show this young woman his frustration. “I know that with the recent birth of their twins, both Chantel and Truman have been staying close to home.” He adjusted his cuffs underneath his jacket. СКАЧАТЬ