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Cassidy’s ex.”
    Drake looked the stranger up and down, trying to ascertain whether he could be the man Cassidy referred to earlier. He looked too straight-laced to get involved with someone as colorful as Cassidy. “Who the hell are you?” He couldn’t keep the bite from his voice as he realized he was jealous. He didn’t want her anymore, but that didn’t mean he wanted anyone else to have her either.
    “Let’s just say I’m a friend of hers.”
    The way he said it made Drake want to knock him off that stool, but he held his temper, hoping to get more information about the nature of their relationship. He knew he shouldn’t care what she did or who she did it with, but logic often wasn’t a factor when his battered ego was calling the shots.
    “Define friend .”
    The man laughed, shaking his head. “I keep a roof over her head when I can and she helps me with… things.”
    Curling his hand around his glass, Drake muttered, “I’ll just bet she does.”
    He hated to think she’d stooped that low, trading the body he’d once worshipped for a roof over her head, but his conscience reminded him he’d given her little choice when he blacklisted her. Aside from J.T., everyone else who called themselves his friend or even an acquaintance hadn’t even batted an eye when he told them Cassidy was never gonna make it in this business.
    His word was usually the last word in Nashville music circles and he’d earned that respect the hard way. No way would anyone take the side of a wannabe country singer who hadn’t even cut a record over a producer who’d been the talent behind two hundred and thirty million in record sales in his illustrious career.
    “Things ended badly for you two, didn’t they?” Phil asked, bringing his soft drink to his lips. “You still seem angry… bitter. I don’t have to tell you it’s not healthy to live with so much resentment.”
    He could scarcely believe her new lover had the audacity to lecture him about bygones. He would never, ever forget what Cassidy had done to him.
    Relationships had never been easy for Drake. Being wealthy and powerful meant he always had to be on guard against women who just wanted to benefit from his hard work and reputation. He thought Cassidy was different. From the first time he met her, he’d sensed there was something about her…
    As she claimed the stage, his mind drifted back to the first night he’d seen her, standing right there, in the center of the same stage. She was singing about heartache, and he felt every word as though she was singing directly to him. He assumed she was. At first, he thought someone must’ve told her he was in the audience, watching her show, that this could be her big break to play with the heavy hitters if Drake saw something special in her. But when he approached her later and asked if he could buy her a drink, she seemed surprised, as though she had no idea he was there… watching her.
    “She’s something else, isn’t she?” Phil asked, propping his chin in his hand as he gazed at the stage and the gorgeous woman singing a heart-wrenching ballad Drake had never heard before. “I never get tired of listening to her. I remember the first time I heard her sing—”
    Drake held his hand up. “If you don’t mind, I just wanna watch the show.” The last thing he wanted was to hear about how the man at his side had developed a bond with the woman who used to share his bed.
    “Sure,” Phil said, shrugging. He looked at Drake intensely, as though he was trying to read his expression before he turned his attention back to the stage.
    In spite of his attempts to block it out, her song got under Drake’s skin. He closed his eyes and listened to the incredible tone of her voice. If anything, she’d gotten even better over the past year. He couldn’t help but wonder what she’d traded for those vocal lessons.
    “You still have feelings for her.”
    Drake was shocked speechless by Phil’s assessment. By