Hopeless Romantic

Sue Douglas has no time for men. At least not any more men. She scored her dream job as a publicist for an up-and-coming rock band, but they're putting her through her paces:

The bass player despises her
The lead singer lusts for her
The band manager dumped a career-ending secret on her
The band’s record company is determined to see her fail
And if she even stumbles, she could lose everything.

In the middle of it all, she meets *the* man. The one she wants in her schedule. He sees the mayhem of her life but refuses to let her go. He says he’ll only take her spare time, but there’s no time on a tour that will make or break her as a publicist.

EXCERPT

As they walked to her car, Brad tried to get Sue to confess her revenge against Darryl.  

“Trust me. Let it happen. It'll be funnier that way.” 

They stood next to the driver's door of her car, Sue grasping the handle, when Brad enveloped her in a huge bear hug. 

“Uh, thanks?” Sue tried to pull away. 

“Mike’s coming.” 

“Oh.” 

She couldn’t see Mike, but he spoke loudly, telling Darryl he wanted to make sure he said goodbye before she left. Brad moved so that he stood between her and Mike, his back to the man.  

“Tell me when Darryl gets him inside.” 

Sue peeked over his shoulder. “Shit.” She ducked her head.  

“There she is!” Mike said. 

“I don't think that's her,” Darryl said. 

“No, it is. Those are her shoes.” 

“Are you kidding me?” Sue whispered to Brad. 

“Follow my lead, okay?” 

Sue gave him a quick nod, figuring he’d shield her long enough for her to get in the car. 

“Sue?” Mike called out, getting closer. 

“You'd better go before everyone finds out about us,” Brad said in a loud voice. 

“Yeah.” Sue turned back to her car and pulled on the door handle. 

“Try not to pick up any more guys before I can get my hands on you again.” 

She gave Brad a skeptical look. What the hell was he doing? He knew Darryl could hear him, too, right?  

He goaded her silently with wide eyes.  

Why was he making this up? “I have to go,” she said.  

Brad turned as if to go back to the building, giving Sue a glimpse of Mike. She hesitated a second, upset that Brad had chosen a cruel way to get Mike out of her hair. Brad wrapped an arm around her waist and pulled her close, pinning her arms against his chest. He pressed his mouth to hers, not quite kissing her.  

Sue twisted her face away from his as she pushed against him. 

“Go with it,” Brad whispered, chasing her mouth.  

“Oh.” The sound of Mike’s cowboy boots clicking on the pavement retreated.  

Darryl coughed loudly.  

Brad pulled Sue closer and moved his head, putting his mouth against her throat. His hot, fast breath against her neck made her skin crawl. This was wrong, no matter how ardently Brad might’ve claimed it was fake. 

Brad loosened his grip, gave her a loud smacking kiss on the mouth, and twirled her toward the car. He opened the door for her. “Drive safe, baby.”  

“That was mean!” Sue smacked the steering wheel. 

“It worked.” He jogged toward the venue before Sue could say anything more.