Love Like Crazy. Crystal B. Bright

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СКАЧАТЬ and raised on fear and regret.

      “Promise me,” Clinton said again.

      She swallowed. Every argument she had running around in her head disappeared. “I promise.”

      So did her dreams.

      Chapter 2

      “Lazarus, are you listening to me?”

      Never a good thing when Dad used his full first name. No one, not even his mother, still called him Lazarus. That got his attention. In order to keep his schedule, he would have to treat his father like he had taught him to treat the women he dated, think about something else while acting like he cared.

      “Listening, Pop.” Laz whipped off the towel he had around his waist and hung it over the shower rod.

      Laz flew from one side of his small Brooklyn apartment to the other to pack items into a couple of suitcases. As much as he didn’t want to ignore his father, Laz had too much to do in a short amount of time. Thankfully, he did this call on speakerphone instead of Facetime.

      Laz’s father snickered. “Doesn’t sound like you’re listening to me.”

      “Really? What do you think I’m doing?” Not that Laz cared.

      Running around naked only made sense until he finished packing. Laz had a game plan, although it did seem like his dad had some sort of sixth sense to know when he had lost his job. He hadn’t told his nosy sisters, who, even though they didn’t live with either parent, still felt the childish need to run to them with all news, particularly about him.

      “You’re not answering me.” Bradley Kyson would not be ignored.

      So that Laz’s frantic movements didn’t translate through his voice, he stopped for a moment to address his father. “I did. I’m traveling. I’m packing up right now.”

      “You’re leaving New York?” Bradley’s voice reminded Laz of some excited kid. “Coming down to D.C.?”

      Thankfully Bradley couldn’t see Laz and watch his son roll his eyes. Laz knew exactly why his father wanted him to visit. It had nothing to do with wanting to see his only son.

      “Yes, I’m leaving New York. No, I won’t be stopping to come to your home.” Laz had work to do if he wanted to keep his name relevant in the music industry. Kat and Zinner wouldn’t derail him from his goals.

      “You know you can stop here even if you just spend the night.” Bradley chuckled, but it came out like a lecherous growl. The man stayed on the prowl.

      “Yeah, yeah.” He grabbed a few suits from his compact closet and piled them on his bed.

      Bradley cleared his throat.

      “Yes, sir.” Laz ran his hand over his still damp hair. Even through his haste, he had to remember his manners, especially with his parents.

      “Where are you going this time? You’re traveling for work, right?” The lightness started to return to Bradley’s tone.

      Laz hated lying to anyone, especially to his dad. “I am traveling for work. I’m going to meet with a record company here in town, and then I’m going to hit some open mics down the east coast, looking for talent.”

      Bradley snorted. “You’re searching for talent? Why do that when you have it in spades? You didn’t give up playing piano, did you? I hope you didn’t waste all those lessons.”

      Laz felt the same uncomfortable churning in his gut that he used to get afflicted with after each lesson when he knew his parents wanted a show.

      “I still tickle the ivories now and then.” Laz glanced at the small piano in the short hallway in front of his door. He managed to find it in halfway good condition at a flea market.

      After some tuning and dragging it up two flights of stairs, he used the instrument to wind himself down each night. Luckily, he had neighbors who didn’t mind his mini nightly concerts.

      “And you still sing.”

      With that statement, Laz had to stop in his tracks when he suddenly felt lightheaded, as though a stadium full of people stood by to watch him play and sing in the buff. He took a deep breath and hoped his father didn’t hear him attempting to catch his bearings and calm himself down.

      “Only in the shower.” Laz had to get off this topic. “It’s not about me, Pop. I won’t fill seats.” No one wanted to see him floundering on stage or, worse yet, hiding behind a large piano. “Audiences want beautiful people with stellar voices. I have a keen eye and ear for both. I have a feeling, though, if I have to go past Virginia to find talent, I’ll be in trouble.”

      The last address on file at Universe for Destiny Starr had the songstress situated in Virginia. With only a post office box address and no social media accounts, he would be hard pressed to find her.

      “Or it could be a great thing. You can stop here and—”

      “Pop.”

      “What?”

      “If you’re still talking about me visiting you, I’m not doing it. I’m not going to be your wingman.” Laz distinctly remembered being a little kid when Bradley had trotted him out in malls and grocery stores to get women to come to him.

      “Don’t call yourself that. I’d like to think that we’re just two single men on the prowl.” Bradley laughed.

      “Mom didn’t think that way when you two were married.” The hairs stood on the back of Laz’s neck when he recalled his parents’ knockdown fights.

      “Watch yourself.” The serious timbre returned to Bradley’s voice. “What happened between me and your mother is our business.”

      “It would have been if you didn’t use me as bait, and we didn’t have to hear the fights. But you didn’t call me to rehash our past.” Now that Laz’s temperature rose to lava level, his skin dried enough for him to get dressed. “Besides, how can I compete with getting hot women when I’m with the original hunk of burning love?”

      The compliment seemed to work. Laz heard his father laughing through the phone like he agreed with his son’s assessment. Easing the tension between him and Bradley relaxed Laz’s shoulders.

      He slipped on a pair of boxers before throwing on his best suit pants. Laz would have to look amazing for the meeting with Section Eight, a hip-hop label known for the hardest rappers and artists who had become famous on social media first before signing their first deals.

      The thought of it turned his stomach. Laz wanted to represent talent, not just flash. Immediately, he recalled that mystery singer’s angelic voice. God, he hoped she still performed, and he could find her.

      “Can I help it if I’m still hot?” Bradley laughed louder. “And is it wrong for me to want to spend time with my only son?”

      With his father’s wandering eye and his overly eager need to please, Laz wouldn’t be surprised if he had a half brother or more out there somewhere.

      “I thought СКАЧАТЬ