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“Those flowers better be an apology!” I point a finger at him, trying to sound mean, but knowing I’m just coming across as silly.
“For what?”
He halts in place almost comically, that big guy caught unprepared by the whims of a tiny little thing like me.
“Are you still angry because I pulled that guy out of the shot?”
“His name is Ben, you know,” I say, finishing my makeup then jumping to the closest chair. “He’s a harmless fan…”
I see Brody nodding slowly, flowers still in his hand. “But you got shaken up when I asked about him being the stalker.”
That causes me to draw a sharp breath, stir in my seat, and grab my guitar from the corner to shield myself behind it.
“That crossed my mind before,” I finally admit, slowly strumming a chord. “But… Often he doesn’t appear smart enough to pull off something like that. And then sometimes he does.”
Brody crooks his head to the left and places a hand under his chin. “What do you mean by that?”
“His behavior changes. Sometimes he is far more confident. It can be confusing.” I strum another chord.
“That sounds troubling,” Brody says, serious.
“It can be unnerving,” I lower my head and continue strumming.
“This man needs to be dealt with caution, Lily.”
Hearing him say my name momentarily distract me.
“You need to tell me more about him. May I take a seat?”
“Tell me what those flowers are for first,” I say.
Brody looks at the flowers with surprise, as if just now remembering they’re there. He then points the flowers at me.
I can’t see his eyes because of the shades, but his lips have the contour of a mysterious smile. “For you. As a congratulations for the producer in the audience.”
Taking the flowers, I feel dumbfounded, eyes open wide, trying to take in his words. “That’s news to me!”
Sandra barges in, pointing at her wrist as if there was a watch there. “Five minutes!”
“Sandra, what’s this story I’m hearing of a producer being in the audience?” I ask, standing to gently lay the flowers on the dresser, wishing I had a vase.
She pauses for a second. “Oh! It’s Lyle Ferric, the guy who launched Sweets Tyler. After I used my connections with the tour organizers to get you in as the opening act for Sweets’ tour, he decided to come here to see you live for himself. He’s the reason for the rush booking. I forgot to tell you.”
Both Brody and I look at Sandra in silence, disbelief stamped on our faces. “But you toldBrody?”
Now Sandra blinks, confused. “I did. So what? He’s my brother. I was excited!”
I shake my head. Brody follows me. I understand Sandra tends to have a million things going on in her head, but I’m still shocked she forgot to tell me about this.
“Now come on, this place ispacked!” She rushes me out of the dressing room, and Brody follows close behind.
The venue is a small concert hall in SoHo, close to where I live. To the right of the dressing room, there’s a small set of stairs leading to the stage, and from the side, I can see the band is already ready. They are different from my regular guys, having been placed there last minute.
“We barely had a chance to rehearse…” I tell Sandra, worried. Lyle Ferric has heard me on studio recordings only. If I make a mess out of this, we’re screwed.
Sandra squeezes my hand and smiles. “You’ll do great.”
“Good luck, ma’am,” Brody says with a faint note of sarcasm, accompanied by his characteristically small smile.
