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“Isn’t that a woman’s magazine?” Henry asked. His mum loved the magazine and read it cover to cover each month.
“Yes, it is. The editor-in-chief needed a favor from me and I helped her out in exchange for a promise to run some articles on us in her magazine.”
“On us?” Geoff asked. “Everything I do has to go through the Royal Press Office.”
“It’s on our mums actually since it’s a woman’s mag but they will mention our business units and do a bit of a showcase on each one as well,” Steven said.
“My mum will love that,” Henry said.
“I’m not so sure about this,” Geoff said.
“Just talk to her,” Steven said. “We need the publicity and this is a nice angle.”
“I’m in. You don’t need to convince me,” Henry said, glancing at his watch. “Is there anything else we need to discuss?”
“I like your idea of using the airlines to promote the album covers,” Geoff said. “So I’ll be calling you tomorrow or the next day to get a team together to move that idea forward.”
“I’ll look forward to your call,” Henry said. “Steven, I’ve got a few ideas for using the Everest Mega Store to promote my newer artists. Do you have time to meet with me this week?”
“I do. Shoot me over an e-mail with your availability and we will make it work,” Steven said. “I have to go to New York to check out our North American operation.
“Indeed,” Henry said. “So we’re doing this again next week?”
“Yes. I think a weekly check-in is a good idea,” Steven said.
Henry left his half brothers and walked slowly through the club. He didn’t worry about Malcolm because that man was a stranger to him just like Steven and Geoff, and he was the type of man who didn’t worry about the future. He’d take care of what he needed to.
And right now that involved finding out a little more about Astrid and her past employer.
He spotted her standing at the coat check. She was talking on her mobile and turned around as he came down the stairs. She waved at him and smiled.
He smiled back, thinking that talking to his assistant was going to be very enjoyable.
Astrid hung up the phone as Henry joined her. He looked good in his trendy casual clothing. He wore gray trousers and a button-down shirt left open at the collar with a navy blue sport coat that made his eyes seem brighter. He smiled at her as he approached, and she just stood there for a minute not saying anything.
It didn’t help that he was one of the rugby players she’d had an insane crush on when she was a teenager, which made it harder for her to see him as her boss now that they weren’t in the office.
“Hello, Astrid. What did you need me for?”
“A signature. Without one your staff isn’t going to get paid,” she said. They all got paid monthly, so missing a pay period could put a lot of the staff in a bind. And since she’d only just started at Everest Records she didn’t have the relationships needed to finesse the payroll clerks into giving her an extra day.
She handed him the papers and he signed them with a flourish. His signature had style just like the man.
Oh, for God’s sake, she thought. She was developing a crush on him. On her boss! This had to stop.
“Thanks.”
“No problem. Are you going back to the office now?”
“No I have a runner waiting for this packet. I’m supposed to meet you in fifteen minutes and I’d never make it on time.”
“No, you wouldn’t. Did you eat yet?” he asked.
She shook her head. There hadn’t been time. She handed the packet to the runner she’d brought with her, and he took it and left.
“Want to grab a bite?” Henry asked. “I’m hungry.”
“Sounds good.”
He led the way out of the club. “Do you have a car?”
“No. I take the underground mostly. Congestion charges and parking are outrageous,” she said.
“That they are. There’s a congestion charge around my neighborhood. I have to pay to drive home.” Traffic was a major problem in some London areas, so a charge had been introduced to ease traffic flow during certain hours.
“Not many days,” she said. “I hear you get home in the wee hours of the morning.”
He chuckled. “That’s true. But if I kept respectable hours I’d have to pay.”
“You do now with the job,” she said.
“That’s true,” he said. “What about you?”
“What do you mean?” she asked.
“Is this job keeping you respectable?”
She had no idea what Henry was after with his questions. The valet brought his car around and after she was seated in the Ferrari Enzo, Henry put the car in gear. He drove with confidence and skill, negotiating the traffic with ease. She couldn’t help but admire the way that he drove. She was beginning to believe there was little that Henry didn’t do well.
“Of course it is.”
“Did your last job, working for Mo Rollins’s group, do the same?”
She had a sinking feeling that he’d checked her employment record. Had he found out about her affair? Bethann had suggested to her before she’d taken this job at Everest Records that she should work in another industry, but the record industry was all she knew.
“I took that job really seriously, Henry. I was a good employee and supported Daniel in every way I could.”
“But he still let you go,” Henry said.
“I had a health issue,” she said. This was a nightmare, she thought. When she’d been in the throes of her affair with Daniel it had never occurred to her that someday she’d be answering questions about why she no longer worked for him.
Henry braked to a stop as they neared Kensington High Street. She knew he planned to check out Roof Gardens, the eclectic nightclub owned by Richard Branson, tonight.
“Babylon okay for dinner?” he asked.
“Yes.” She’d never eaten at the trendy high-priced restaurant before. When she’d been with Daniel, even when they’d been dating, they had tended to stay more to economical places. Daniel only spent money on his clients.
Henry pulled up to the valet stand and got out. Astrid climbed out on her side and wished for a moment she’d taken time to dress a bit differently for her day. She was already realizing that Henry was different. That didn’t mean he would treat her better than Daniel had. This was a job, she thought. Nothing more. The measure of the man she worked for was better than her previous boss. And she knew she was going to have to change and probably grow a bit to keep up with him. She shifted the strap of her large shoulder bag and hurried around to the sidewalk so she was next to him.
There were a few paps—paparazzi—who took some photos of Henry. She stepped back so he could be photographed alone. He posed and talked to the photographers and signed a few autographs before reaching for her hand and drawing her up the path to the entrance.
She knew that Henry hadn’t finished questioning her about her past and Daniel. She also decided if she played her cards right, she could keep him off the topic tonight.
“Does that happen to you often?” she asked when they checked their coats downstairs.
He smiled ruefully. “Yes. I’m used to it, though. My mum says that it’s part of our life being in the spotlight. I grew up around it. I don’t court them, but if they want a photo I give them one.”
“Isn’t it intrusive?” she asked.
He stopped and pulled her toward a quiet corner. “It’s my life. I don’t think about it. When I was a player, I didn’t like them because they were a distraction and some of the other players would let the paps keep them from concentrating on the game. But now, they are what keeps my lifestyle going forward,” he said.
“You’re a very smart man,” she said, coming to the conclusion that the showman, the charming playboy that he projected to the world was just one of the many facets of the whole man.
“Indeed. So that’s why I’m not going to let you distract me from the fact that you still haven’t told me everything about your last employer.”
Three
Astrid tossed her head to the side and gave him a look that told him he was going to have to be subtler if he wanted to find out about her past. He nodded and took her arm leading her to the maître d’ stand. They were seated shortly at an intimate table for two that had a nice view. He realized he didn’t want to look at anyone but Astrid.
She was a mass of contradictions and she fascinated him.
“I think the London music scene is really hot right now. So many little local acts are making it big, not just here but in the States.”
“But are they ready for it?” Henry asked.
“I’m not sure they are. You’ve grown up in the spotlight and you know how different it is from the paps in the States. I think that some of the groups aren’t really ready to handle the fame that they achieve so quickly. And the American market can be fickle.”
“Yes, they can. I’ve been trying to caution Steph that making it big there will mean a meteoric rise, but it could be followed by quite a crash.”
“It’s good that you’ve taken the time to talk to her. I can help with that, as well. I listened to her music earlier today and the demo that Roger dropped off. I also think I know some venues that will suit the style of music you’re looking for.”
“And what kind is that?”
“Something with a hook, of course, that is catchy and that people will remember. But I think you’re also looking for music that has some heart to it.”
He nodded. She did indeed know what he was looking for. That made him uncomfortable. He liked to play at being an easygoing guy that everyone knew and who in turn knew everyone, but in reality he kept himself distant. The only woman he could really claim to know well was his mother. And she was, by anyone’s definition, eccentric.
But Astrid was different. She was calm and quiet at times. Like now.
“How long did you work for the Mo Rollins Group and Daniel Martin?” he asked. Mo Rollins was a legendary producer who had established his own label after leaving Sony-BMG. Daniel was one of his up and coming protégé.
“Only eighteen months, but I had worked as one of the assistants to Mo’s executive assistant for more than three years before that.”
“Did you like it?” he asked. It made no sense that she’d leave that job and then come work for him. If she wanted to work in the music industry, then the job had been ideally suited for her. Henry told himself that he wasn’t asking her because he was curious about the woman. He needed to know about her past because she was part of his team and he needed to know every nuance of his team if they were going to be a success.
“I loved it,” she said, putting down her wineglass. She leaned across the table and put her hand over his. She had neatly painted nails and her hand was very soft against the back of his. Being a rugby player he’d always had calloused or bruised hands, but hers were soft and cool.
“I know you want to understand why I left such a high-profile job. There’s a lot to it…. It was a highly personal health issue and I just don’t—” She broke off, tears filling her eyes.
Henry turned his hand over under hers and held hers loosely in his grip. He understood about secrets and personal issues. He could hold off for now, but before too long he would know all of Astrid Taylor’s secrets. HR had screened her and wouldn’t have hired her f there was anything untoward in her past.
“Very well. Tonight you are going to meet Steph Cordo. Part of your role will be to act as an assistant to my stable of artists until they hire their own people,” Henry said.
“Right. I’ve done that type of work before. I can handle that.”
“I know you can handle it, Astrid. You’re very adept at doing what needs to be done,” he said.
She flushed. “My sister says it’s a gift.”
“Really? Why?”
“Um … I was always a bit of a suck up when we were younger. But being nice does open doors,” she said with a wry little grin.
“Indeed.”
Henry noticed he was still holding her hand. He stroked his thumb over her knuckles and watched her face. She flushed again and then pulled her hand back. She licked her lips, which were wide and full. Her mouth moved and he knew she was saying something, but for the life of him he couldn’t concentrate on her words.
All he could do was watch them move. Stare at her white teeth and very pink lips and wonder how her mouth would feel under his.
“Henry?”
“Hmm?”
“The waiter asked if we wanted dessert,” she said.
“Sorry, mate. I’m good. Would you like something, Astrid?”
She shook her head.
He asked for the check and Astrid excused herself to go to the ladies’ room. It was odd that the old man had decided to get in touch with him now, but Henry thought that the job at Everest was going to be a fun challenge.
He’d long since stopped thinking of Malcolm as any type of relation. The man had sent gifts at birthdays and Christmases over the years, but Henry didn’t really know him. He’d always been a sort of Dr. Who character that came in and out of his life with no real notice.
But Henry felt the need to know more about him now. Malcolm held the key to any future success his team would have because of the will. His BlackBerry rang and he glanced at the screen. Henry had a firm policy of not talking on his cell phone when he was out with another person.
Alonzo, one of the men he paid for tips on new bands, sent a text message that he had a group that Henry should check out playing later in the evening at a club a few blocks from where they were. Henry noted it.
He wasn’t one for letting any leads slip by him. Maybe that was why he hadn’t had a problem transitioning from rugby player to entrepreneur back when he’d first retired.
He glanced up as Astrid was walking toward him and simply watched her. She moved like many women did when they knew a man was watching. Her hips swayed languidly with each step and her arms moved by her sides.
“You’re staring at me, boss man.”
“You’re a very pretty girl, Astrid.”
She tipped her head to the side. “Thanks, I think.”
“You think?”
