Page 16 of The Boss
“You didn’t know that you wanted to work in the music industry?” I asked.
“I wasn’t one of those kids who always knew exactly what I wanted to do with my life,” she answered. “But I’m glad I ended up here. I’m really enjoying working in A&R.”
“Did you ever consider becoming a musician?”
She laughed, a soft sound that automatically made me smile. “Mr. Lexington, if you’d ever heard me sing, you wouldn’t ask that question.”
“You could play an instrument.” I stabbed another bite of my meal. “And call me Nate. I feel like a dirty old man when you call me Mr. Lexington.”
Her smile fell. “I’m not sure that’s a good idea.”
I considered her for a moment. “At least when we’re outside work hours, then.”
The fact that she genuinely seemed reluctant to call me by my first name made me even more certain that she wasn’t the sort of woman who would use who I was to get something. If one thing could have made me more curious about her, that was it.
“Okay,” she said quietly. She turned her attention back to her food, and the conversation stalled.
“Did you find anything interesting?” I changed the subject. “Any acts you think we should take a look at?”
“There are a couple that sound interesting,” she said, the relief in her voice obvious. “I recorded all of the information that Ms. Lamas asked for if you’d like me to get it.”
I shook my head. “That’s quite all right. If they’re good enough for A&R to get involved, I’ll hear about them eventually. That’s the point of hiring people I can trust.”
I managed not to wince when I said the last word, which was impressive since trust wasn’t something I really had with anyone. Finley was pretty much it, though I did trust Stu and Suzie to do their jobs, if only because they were professionals. I supposed that meant it counted in this particular instance.
“You signed Unraveling, right?” she asked.
I drank a quarter of my bottle of water and then managed a tight smile. “I did. As well as Gorgon Poison, Felix Bower, and Rya Flowers.”
Her eyes widened slightly. “Those are the four biggest act Manhattan Records ever signed.”
I nodded. “They made the company.” I leaned closer to her. “Is that what you want to do, Ashlee? Find the next Unraveling or Rya Flowers?”
“Maybe,” she said. “I wouldn’t hate it.”
She didn’t tell me not to call her Ashlee, which I hoped meant she was okay with it. I liked this feeling of informality between us. Probably more than I should. But I didn’t like the idea of us going into the event on Friday and have her calling me Mr. Lexington.
That could end up being a problem.
Eleven
Ashlee
Today wasa weird day all the way around. Weird enough that eating take-out with my bosses’ boss after everyone else had gone home seemed like a perfectly natural way to end the day.
Nate was a much more complicated man than I’d originally thought. With his expensive suits and playboy reputation, I’d assumed he was shallow and simple. Of course, I’d known that he was intelligent. People didn’t get to be CEO and co-owner of a company like Manhattan Records if they didn’t have brains. He’d also been named to numerous lists of the city and the country’s wealthiest and hottest men, all of which talked about how brilliant he was.
Honestly, I’d thought that would make him even less likable because nothing screamed decent guy like a rich white male who not only thought he was the smartest person in the room but actuallywasmost of the time.
“Which of your artists are your favorites?” I asked, not responding to his using my first name. I wasn’t sure what to say, truthfully.
Things between us had blurred the moment I’d accepted his invitation to be his date for the event. I never should have done that, but then I’d come here to fix that mistake, only to make a worse one. Still, I couldn’t bring myself to get up and walk away, not when he was being a nice guy about everything. I didn’t want a return of the guy who’d been such a jerk earlier today.
“I don’t listen to any of the labels’ artists,” he said. “I don’t want anyone to accuse me of having favorites.”
“Why don’t you just listen to all of them, then?” I asked. “Equal opportunities?”
He shrugged. “I don’t spend a lot of outside time listening to music, so I’d rather listen to something other than what I hear at work all day.”
