Time Out of Mind (Suncoast Society #43)(4)

“Good to see you, too. I know I’m early, but you know the traffic.”

“Ha! Damn sure do. Come on in.” She led him back the way she’d come and closed the door behind them, an office that was pure Tilly, functional and not frilly or fancy.

Except for the play crib in the corner, and the sleeping baby inside.

“Oh! Is this Katie?”

“Yep. She’s our little angel.” She smiled down at the child, softening her features and taking years off her age.

He’d seen her pictures on Tilly’s private Facebook page. It was good to see his friend truly happy again. “How’s Cris doing?”

“Angry, understandably. We all are, but it’s hitting him hard since we’re coming up on the one-year anniversary. Our wrongful death lawsuit is still winding its way through the courts. We’ll put whatever we get in a savings account for her college education.” She patted his shoulder. “Sit.” She pointed at a sofa before retrieving a pen and folder from her desk and bringing them over.

Handing the folder to him, she said, “This is for today. Sorry, not that I don’t trust you, because I do. But Clark insisted on it.”

“That’s fine. I’m used to it.” He opened it and scanned the document. It was a standard non-disclosure, a very basic one, but enough for their initial talk. He signed and dated it and returned it to her. “So what’s so super-secret?”

“Clark and the others will be here soon. I’ll give you the basics as I know them, in case you want to say no right off the bat. You’d be a sober companion for the next several months to a guy from the music industry. He’s currently in a private and exclusive rehab center, being discharged tonight. Where and to whose custody remains to be seen. Clark’s his business manager. The guy is due to start touring in a couple of months, and the only way his band will agree to him coming back is him staying sober until the tour starts.”

“That’s odd. What about after the tour starts? That’s usually when people have trouble maintaining sobriety.”

“That’s where I’m kind of hazy on the deets. Apparently, in the past, there never was trouble during the road trips. He was all business. But when his mind and time wasn’t heavily scheduled, he got himself into trouble.”

“Gotcha.”

“The other issue is he needs this tour, because his previous business manager is currently sitting in prison for fraud.”

“Youch. Ripped him off?”

“Big time. He’s verging on bankruptcy. He needs this tour, financially, to dig himself out of the hole. And the band can do it without him. He needs them way more than they need him. Apparently, the binding agreement they signed when they first formed the band allows them to vote him out for a short list of deeds—of which the addiction is one—and he’s done. All he’d keep is the rights to the music he wrote, which they contractually have permission to use.”

“Which would make him a lot less than if he was active with the band and raking in full royalties and concert and digital download sales, et cetera.”

“Bingo.”

So far, Doyle hadn’t heard anything he wasn’t up to tackling. “Here are my requirements. He’s not violent, isn’t up on pending charges, and isn’t a media whore. He’s also going to need to listen to me.”

“I can’t answer for the listening to you part. I think the rest of it’s all okay, but Clark can confirm that. You’ll be dealing with Clark for the negotiations. He’s Nick’s manager, or was. Now he’s sort of a partner/consultant with our production company.”

“Nick?”

“Eh, Trevor.” She smiled. “Nick’s his real name and I’m used to calling him that in private, sorry.”

He indicated the office. “Fill in a few of those gaps again on how this came about, please.”

She giggled. “Fill in gaps. That’s what she said.” She did, giving him the full story.

“Ah. Never would have thought that about him,” he said when she finished. “But it explains a few things I’ve heard floating around from time to time.”

Tilly scowled. “What things?”

“Calm down. Just paparazzi rumors. The kind that I rarely ever pay attention to unless it directly impacts a client I’m dealing with.”

“Gotcha.”

A knock on the door caught their attention.

“Come in,” she called.

Leigh opened the door. “Hey!” She slipped in, closing it behind her and walking over to give him a hug. “Good to see you again.”

“Likewise. I was really surprised when Tilly called me today.”

“Yeah, well, sorry about the short notice. Clark dropped it on us this morning, and leave it to Tilly to get to work and find you.”

“Why such short notice?”

“Clark had lined someone else up, but they dropped out after meeting the guy yesterday.”

There was one of the red flags he’d anticipated seeing sooner. “Why’s that?”

Leigh looked a little unsure. “Eh, apparently the guy is stubborn.”

“Stubborn I can handle.”

“And that’s why I called you, dude,” Tilly said.

“Clark texted me he’s close,” Leigh said. “So we can get started as soon as he’s here.”