Read The Closer You Get for Free Online Page B

Cam, but you just can’t take your looks for granted.
They kind of slap people in the face when you enter a room, especially men.
Brett’s only human and he’s bound to notice, but at least he’s not a lowlife
like that Mark Jensen.”
    Cammie wiped the dirt on her palms off onto her jeans, yet she
couldn’t wipe away the memories. “Do you think I’ll run into Mark on the road?”
she asked quietly.
    Bud rubbed his palm over his neck and lowered his eyes. “It
could happen.”
    She suspected he wasn’t being completely forthcoming. “Could or
will, Bud?”
    “He’s scheduled to perform in Fort Worth, so I guess it’s
possible you’ll run into him. Can you handle that?”
    “Why, of course,” she said cheerfully, but not too
convincingly. Coming in contact with Mark Jensen again was the last thing she
needed in her life right now.
    Cammie rarely thought about him, at least not fondly. He only
crossed her mind when she’d seen some article heralding his success. Still, she
wondered, if things had worked out, would she be touring with him now? Probably
not. Mark didn’t have the capacity to be faithful to one woman. If by chance she
did happen to run into him, she’d face it when the time came, knowing he’d done
her a favor by setting her free.
    Pushing the unpleasant thoughts aside, she started toward the
entrance. “Time to go, Bud. We’ve got to get on the road before dawn or we’ll be
fighting rush-hour traffic.”
    Bud grabbed her arm, preventing her from going inside. “Listen
to me for a minute. Brett’s a real good guy, but he’s lived so long in this
atmosphere, he doesn’t know any other way. I don’t want you to be caught up in
another bad relationship.”
    Neither did she. “Do you honestly think I’m that foolish?”
    “I’m just saying you need to be careful.”
    “I will,” she said. “Nothing Brett Taylor could say or do will
make me forget what I want out of life, and it’s not getting involved with
another high-strung singer.”
    Bud grinned. “That’s the spirit, Cammie. And who knows, by the
time I get back, maybe you’ll have him whipped into shape.”
    An hour later, with thoughts of Brett Taylor weighing heavily
on her mind, Cammie drove out of the lot hoping she hadn’t made a terrible
mistake.

CHAPTER THREE
    B RETT LISTENED TO the steady roar of the engine, palms resting on his chest as he
contemplated whether or not to get out of bed. From the look of the diffused
light coming into the shaded window, he assumed it was probably early morning.
He was too keyed up to rest, too frustrated to settle down. And when the phone
began to ring, he decided he was too damn tired to talk to his mother.
    He didn’t even have to check the cell to know it was her. Only
a few people had his private number. Only one of them got up with the chickens.
As much as he wanted to ignore the call, putting off the conversation only
delayed the inevitable lecture.
    Brett fumbled for the phone, sat up on the edge of the bed and
braced for the fallout from his many sins. “Hey, Mom.”
    “Don’t you ‘hey’ me, Bobby Brett Taylor.”
    “What did I do now?” Like he didn’t already know what he’d
done.
    “I can’t believe you got so close to home and you didn’t bother
to stop by.”
    He should’ve known his cousin would’ve let the cat out of the
bag. “First of all, we got into San Antonio midafternoon. Since I had some songs
to rehearse and a show to perform, that would mean by the time I made it to
Kerrville, I would’ve had all of fifteen minutes to visit.”
    “That’s fifteen minutes more than you’ve given your family in
months.”
    Here we go again. “I’m sorry. I’ll
have some time at the end of the summer to come home. Or you could come to
Nashville and see me.”
    “Who’s going to take care of the ranch and the house?”
    As usual, no good deed went unpunished. “You’ve got plenty of
people to look after the horses and the house.”
    “I don’t want