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Mortification burned her skin. “Of course.” She scrambled off the bed and walked out of the room as if her limbs had been screwed into the wrong joints.
Panic had her racing, her clammy palm barely able to grip the banister to propel her up the stairs. She’d never been more embarrassed in her life.
She could only hope he didn’t fire her.
Throwing aside the curtain, she hurled herself onto her bunk. She covered her face with the pillow and let out a silent scream. Oh, my God.
How had she gotten it so wrong?
“Obviously, I wasn’t there,” Micky said. “But no way you imagined that kind of attraction. I think he remembered you worked for him and needed to stop it before it got too far.”
“In which case, he would’ve said Hey, you work for me. Let’s stop things before they get too far.” Della had her feet propped against the wall. Her bunk was dark and tiny, but the bedding was top notch. “I don’t even know if I’ll have a job this morning.” She would never forget that hand on her shoulder, ripping her out of a wholly magical moment where she’d felt more connected to him than she’d ever felt to anyone else. “God, I’m an idiot. I’m his employee, and I’m blubbering about my mommy.” And forcing him to confess his secrets.
Who the hell do I think I am, coercing him into being “real” with me?
He doesn’t have to be anything but my boss.
“Nope. Not letting you spiral with this one. He’s not going to fire you because nothing happened. If you’d kissed him, if you’d pulled out a strap-on and started nudging his butthole, then yeah, I’d agree you might be out of a job.”
Della laughed out loud. “Oh, my God. I love you so much.”
“Everything’s fine. Here’s what’s going to happen. You’re going to get up and shower, put on your Red-Carpet Red lipstick and high heels, and go into Della’s here, baby mode. You’re the best at what you do, and I guarantee he’s not going to fire you over something that didn’t happen. So, just get back out there like you’ve got a clean slate.”
“I wasn’t going to call you because I know you have to get Addi ready for school, but I’m so glad I did.” She hated to interrupt the special family time of Micky being the mother her stepdaughter had never had.
“Okay, this has to stop. You think my pregnancy and move to Calamity’s going to hurt our friendship, but it’s not true. The only thing that will change us is you. You’re the one who’s put up the barrier. I’m here, Dell. Any time of day or night, I’m right here where I’ve always been. Is my life more complicated? Sure, I’m twenty-six. That was bound to happen. But family always comes first and, girl, you’re my family. So, stop making it weird, stop coming up with reasons not to lean on me, and just fucking get over the fact that my life has changed but our friendship hasn’t.”
Whoa. “I have to change my clothes because you just dumped a bucket of cold water on me.” She blew out a breath. “I needed that. You’re absolutely right.” And after the conversation with Bex, she knew she was cutting off the friendship before Micky had a chance to hurt her.
Energy flowing in, she dropped out of the bunk and reached for her toiletry bag. “Excuse me while I go shower off the self-pity right now. I’ll talk to you later.” She shoved her feet into her sparkly flip flops. “I love you most.”
“I love Rhys most, but you’re definitely on the list.”
Della burst out laughing. “Bitch.”
“Bye, Bitch. Love you.”
As Della showered, all she could think was, Thank God I didn’t move in for a kiss. Micky was right—nothing had happened last night. But going forward…no more deep conversations. This isn’t a high school sleepover. This is a job. Nothing more.
Dressed and ready to go, Della came into the kitchen to find Bex pouring his brother’s tea into a travel mug.
“All set for your interviews?” she asked Van.
“Well, let’s see.” He feigned a thoughtful expression. “The guys in the band are like brothers to me, we’re looking forward to a break and seeing our families, I can’t wait to get back in the studio, no, I’m not the father, and no, I don’t have any rituals before I go on stage…yep. Got it.” Van grinned to let them know he really was all right and then headed off the bus.
“You’d think they’d come up with some new and interesting questions.” Della busied herself with dropping a pod into the coffee maker.
“They learned early on he can’t be manipulated. No one’s going to get him to talk, make him spill secrets, or cry. So, they give their viewers the touch they want, and all is good.”
“The touch?”
“It’s when a fan gets to connect to an artist. It could be hearing his acoustic session in a radio station or shaking his hand during a meet-and-greet.”
“Got it.” She grabbed the cream from the fridge and sugar packets from a container in the cabinet. “Okay, so I already took care of the first half of the list.”
“I saw that you’d checked them off.” To his credit, he sounded normal—not all stiff and professional like she did.
It helped her relax. She didn’t think she was getting fired. “Need me to do any errands?”
