Page 14 of Solace in Seven
Cassidy scoffed. “What? You think I’ll run straight to TMZ withwhatever I saw or somethin’? Boy, please. I’m not one of these lil’ groupies or somebody out here lookin’ for a quick come-up,” she said, flinging her long braids to the back.
I smirked. I enjoyed pressing her buttons. “I never said you were.”
“Besides, if anybody should be mad, it’s me. Or do I need to remind you about the little pool incident a couple days ago? I was soaking wet!”
“Mmm,” I mumbled.
“What?” she asked, folding her arms across her chest.
“Nothin’.”
“Say it!” she demanded.
I rose from the side of her bed and headed for the door. “That’s the second time this week you’ve blamed me for getting youwet,” I said, before showing myself out.
Her wall of emotional protection wasn’t the only thing I was trying to beat down, but I would save it for when she was ready.
I woke up from a nap to my phone vibrating. I’d been calling my sorry ass agent for days. and he’d finally decided to return my calls.
“Max, how convenient of you to return my calls when I’m out of the country,” I answered with sarcasm coursing through my tone.
“It’s not like that, Hendrix. It’s just?—”
“It’s just what? Business? Is that why you were urging me to get out of town two weeks ago? Did you know this trade shit was coming?” I scolded him.
“No, not at all. I was just as blindsided as you were about the news.”
I scoffed. “Bullshit.”
“C’mon, you know me, Hendrix.”
“I thought I did, but when it came time for you to do your fuckin’ job, you put me on the backburner like one of your D-list fuckin’ clients when you know I’ve made you the most money!”
“I understand your frustration, and I?—”
“I pay you to put out fires and when shit was burning down allaround me, where the fuck was your white ass at, huh!” I yelled into the receiver. “I swear to God if I find out you knew and you didn’t tell me, I’m going to smack the dog shit out of you when I see you again!” I warned him.
“Look, I know you’re feeling extremely undervalued right now and probably saying things you don’t mean, but I still appreciate you as a client, and I’m still here fighting with and for you, Hendrix. What benefits you, benefits me, remember?”
“Then you need to start acting like it instead of having me leave you ten voicemails, trying to figure out where the hell you were.”
“I know, and I apologize for that. I should’ve had my office reach out to you and tell you that I’d gone out of the country with my family, and I turned my phone off.”
My eyes rolled to the back of my head. All I heard coming out of his mouth was excuse after excuse. “Yeah, whatever.”
He sighed. “Listen, my advice to you is to enjoy your vacation. Take this down time to relax and get your head back in the game.”
“My head has always been in the game, and I don’t need you to give me advice, Max. I need you to do what I pay you to do and tell me you have some good news for me. A new endorsement deal, a new negotiation, something.”
“Just hear me out, Hendrix, because I’ve been underground trying to work some new shit out for you, okay?”
“And?”
“And, I have good news and bad news.” He sighed.
“I can’t take no more bad news, Max,” I admitted.
“The bad news is, your endorsement deal with Nike just ended and they have decided not to renew…”
