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“That’s a very large leap from assistant, isn’t it? Would that typically happen?” Susan leaned closer to Matthew. “And how did this affect your relationship with Mr. Bingham, the label owner?”
“That jump has never happened, that I know of. Mr. Bingham was called and threatened, however, that if he didn’t give Ms. Morgan the job, the label would love their highest grossing band. He had no choice.” Matthew’s voice got quiet. “That was the beginning of the end for me. Mr. Bingham was made to think that I was a terribly incompetent manager who’d kept Ms. Morgan hidden away. I was painted as a lazy worker with no real skills. I became useless to Mr. Bingham in that moment. My days were numbered. I was just too dumb to know it.”
“I know this is getting to the hard part, Matthew, but please tell me what happened next.”
“Ms. Morgan demanded I find a way to be placed near her on JAX’s tour so I could continue doing her work. I did it. I talked the band I managed into touring with JAX and I planted myself at Ms. Morgan’s side.” He shuddered. “Then I was forced to watch a series of events that haunt me to this day. I had to watch the woman I thought I was going to marry be intimate with three other men at the same time. She made me watch. When I refused, she told the guys from JAX that I did or said horrible things to her and they tried to defend her by threatening me. They became her new pawns.”
Susan covered her mouth with her perfectly manicured hand and reached out with her other hand to gently pat Matthew’s. “I’m sorry to have to ask you to finish this, Matthew. If it wasn’t pertinent, I wouldn’t.”
“Everything blew up last week. I was done being abused and treated that way. I stood up for myself to Ms. Morgan for the first time in over three years. And I was punished for it.” He reached beside him in his chair and pulled out a pack of makeup wipes. “This is humiliating for me. I know I will never work in this industry again, but I’m also going to be a laughing stock. All because I said no to her.”
I watched in even more horror as Matthew slowly wiped his face, wincing as he did.
“She was so angry. I… I was scared of her. I’d never seen herthatmad at me. When she hit me, I was so stunned that I didn’t react.” He lifted his face to the camera and under the shine from the moist face wipe and studio lighting, large bruising across his face was revealed. Even I gasped. “She never liked when I didn’t react so she hit me again. And again. And again. I think she only stopped because she could hear people coming. I thought she wasn’t going to and I’ve never been so afraid for my life.”
“I am so sorry that happened to you, Matthew. Did you see a doctor?”
“I should have. I was too embarrassed, though. I got beat up by a girl. I could already hear the taunts.” He sniffed. “And then I got a call from Mr. Bingham the next day. He’d been informed of all these things I’d been accused of and he fired me on the spot. No severance, no conversation about options, no anything. I’ve been blacklisted. I’m so far in debt that I can’t think about it. My face is in constant pain. People inside the industry believe the worst things about me. All because I made the mistake of trusting that a woman as pretty as Ms. Morgan would be equally pretty on the inside. My life is over. I have no prospects.”
“Why come out and tell your story? Why now?”
Matthew looked into the camera and dabbed at his dry eyes. “I believe that the men of JAX are in danger of being abused and used by this woman, just like I was. She’s never going to stop. Maybe it won’t just be hitting them this time, though. Maybe she’ll go farther and really hurt someone. They don’t know the woman they’ve let into their hearts. She’s a monster. She’ll ruin them the same way she ruined me. She’s already doing it. Without me doing her job, they canceled the rest of their tour. It won’t be long until something terrible comes out. They’ll be accused of something terrible or they’ll end up dead. I believe that with all my heart.”
Susan Hess gave one last dramatic look to the camera. “You heard him, ladies and gentleman. There’s a snake amongst us and danger lurks around the corner for one of America’s favorite bands. Let me know what you think in the comment section, ladies and gentlemen. Do you fear the worst for JAX? What should be done about this? Personally, I think it’s past time that we protected the vulnerable people in our society, both men and women.”
The TV went black as someone turned it off and silence filled the room as everyone watched and waited for me to respond. My mind raced but one thought had blared through my skull louder than most.
Turning to where Xavier, Mack, and Jones stood close to me, waiting to scoop me up and rescue me if they needed to, I straightened my back and lifted my chin. “You need to leave me.”
50
Layla
Theroomeruptedaroundus, but I kept my gaze steady on the guys. Their faces twisted in anger and refusal, but I was right. “If you don’t distance yourselves from me right now, the band will be damaged. Everything you’ve worked for will be overshadowed by this. You can’t let that happen. Iwon’tlet that happen.”
“You think we fucking care about the band right now? We care aboutyou, Layla. We’re not going anywhere.” Mack shook his head at me. “I can’t believe you’d even suggest it.”
“No.” Xavier folded his arms across his chest. “I’m not going anywhere.”
I looked at Jones. “Please listen to me and talk some sense into them. Matthew is going to drag me through the dirt until he can’t gain from it anymore. I’m done. You know it’ll be impossible for me to come back from the stuff he’s putting out about me. If you guys stand by me, you’ll lose everything. You can’t do that. Jones, you know I’m right. I care about the band and the band’s success. I don’t want to be the reason it burns.”
He put his hands on his hips and glared at me. “You want us to leave you. The day after you told us you love us.”
Grandma whistled. “I’d say we should clear the room for this fight, but one of us is a little stuck in his bed. I can tell this is going to be a doozy, though, so maybe you four take this outside?”
Jagger grunted. “Doesn’t seem like there’s going to be much of a fight. Layla’s wrong. The guys aren’t leaving. End of story.”
I tossed him a dirty look. “It’s not like I want this. I woke up this morning thinking I was going to get rid of my birth control and start the rest of my life. I’m not selfish enough to pretend like getting what I want wouldn’t hurt everyone else, though. Matthew just put a nail in whatever public relationship we could’ve had. Until he’s proven wrong, which… I don’t even know where to start… Until he’s proven wrong, though, I’m a liability. He just painted me out as someone so evil that standing by me after what he said would hurt anyone. It can’t happen.”
Alex rested his hand on Xavier’s shoulder. “Let’s just take a minute and talk about it. Nothing needs to be decided right away. Who knows? With the way the media is, Matthew’s story might fade out and die pretty much right away. This could all be for nothing.”
Grandma sniffed. “You’re going to start trying for a baby?”
Nick and Hilary stood up and moved towards the door. Hilary sent me an apologetic expression. “I’m so sorry this is happening to you, Layla. Don’t do anything in a hurry, though. Just think on it.”
Nick nodded. “It isn’t selfish to love and be loved, Layla. Don’t let Matthew sentence you to a life of pain. We’re going to head out. This seems like something you need privacy for.”
Cammie inched towards the door next. “They’re right. I just met most of y’all, but I know enough already to know that y’all love each other. That’s too special to throw away.”
