Page 9 of Rebooting Conor Flynn

Around them, the crew erupted into motion—voices overlapped, stagehands assessed the equipment, someone called for the first aid kit.

Seeing the kit, Noelle struggled to sit up. “Was anyone hurt?”

“Just you.” I rose to my knees beside her and draped an arm around her shoulders—just in case she started to topple over again.

Heels tapped across the stage, and I spotted Ashley picking her way through the rubble. I supposed she needed an elaborate set to mask the fact that her singing was shite, but it posed a threat to her dancers...and to Noelle.

“Well,” Ashley skewered Noelle with a sharp gaze, “I guess you should stick to PR.”

As if Noelle suddenly realized I still had my arm around her, she scrambled to her feet, almost banging my chin with her head.

She huffed out a breath. “I am so sorry, Ashley. I did try to warn Jacques that I had two left feet.”

I held my breath. If Ashley went after Noelle for this, I’d...

Ashley shrugged. “No worries. The set wasn’t working for me, anyway. I’m going to order something different.

I jerked my thumb at the mess behind us. “Maybe something a little more lightweight. You weren’t going to climb on that throne, were you? I mean, singing from a throne is a bit much—even for you.”

Noelle poked me in the back as she shielded her mouth with her hand.

Narrowing her eyes, Ashley said, “I wasn’t going to sit on the throne and sing, just maybe roll across it for effect.”

“Bad effect.” I held up my hands. “Hey, do what you want with your set as long as you don’t put it up for my performance—and as long as it doesn’t take anyone down.”

Ashley’s nostrils flared on her perfect nose. “We are performing that duet together. You know...your only number one hit.”

Ouch. I suppose I deserved that one. Did Noelle realize that song with Ashley was my only effort outside of Five2 that reached number one? She did now.

“We can do that at the end of my set, before you come on or save it for your encore.” I touched Noelle’s hand. “Do you need some ice for that cut?”

She swept her tongue over the bead of blood forming on her lip. “I must’ve bitten it when you tackled me. I don’t think any of the stage props hit me.”

I whistled at the guy nearest the first aid kit. “Can you bring that over, mate?”

Noelle shrugged and turned to Ashley. “Let me know what direction you’re thinking for the new setup, Ashley. As we’re billing this as a summer tour, maybe go with something beachy instead. We could even use some of it for Conor and Ji-yoon.”

The stagehand tossed an ice pack at me, and I caught it with one hand.

“I hate the beach.” Ashley flipped her blonde hair over her shoulder. “But maybe you’re right. Instead of lingerie, I could wear some hot bikinis, and the male dancers could be in Speedos.” She bit the tip of her finger as her gaze shifted past me and Noelle. “Especially that dancer.”

My head and Noelle’s swiveled toward a fit, shirtless bloke with tattoos snaking up his torso.

Noelle cleared her throat. “I’m sure you can work out something with Jacques and Orlando. Just let me know so I can adjust any promo materials.”

“I could live with a beach vibe.” I didn’t really care, as long as I didn’t have to sit on a throne—and it made Noelle’s job easier. I held up the ice pack, and Noelle shook her head.

“Speaking of promo...” Noelle nudged Ashley, who was still eyeing the dancer up and down like a chef assessing a prime bit of beef “...there’s a kick-off event on the AM LA morning show outside the studio in Burbank this week. You two will be singing one song each, and you’ll talk about the tour a little bit with the host, Hayley Williams. I don’t know which songs the show plans to televise, but you’ll be performing in front of a live audience.”

Ashley’s head whipped around. “Live? Does AM LA offer...auto-tuning or anything like that? I mean, I don’t need a full-on lip sync, but my voice is not great at five am, or whenever they go on air.”

Knots twisted my gut. Was she serious? Did Ashley plan to lip sync on this tour? Had my manager gotten me into some pop extravaganza instead of a legitimate music tour? My gaze darted toward Noelle, who’d managed to keep her game face on.

“I will check with the show. I’m sure it’ll be fine.”

I held up the pack. “Ice. Now. That lip is looking a little puffy.”

Not that I’d been looking at or thinking about Noelle’s lips. Or remembering what they tasted like. I blinked as she snatched the ice pack from my hand.