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I wait, expecting more.
I’m not often proven wrong.
“But…”
He builds the suspense by leaning forward like he’s going to ask for another ten years of my life.
I breathe a little easier when his terms aren’t as stark as predicted. “You can only pay me back with funds fromthisposition.” He circles his finger around his desk as if Nicole’s stage is in the middle. “You have to see it out to the end. No more ‘I’m not qualified for this position’ or comments about needing to protect Nicole from excessive jazz hands.”
He heard that?
“I saw the way you handled that grifter today. He was cuffed and in the back of a police van before Nicole even went on stage.” He commends me like he wasn’t the cause for additional muscle in the alleyway earlier today. “Nice work covering our bases with a police presence. It kept the crowd at bay and had them acting like true fans meeting their idol. Nicole has no fucking clue they were paid to be there.” He steers the conversation back on course like it never strayed from his objective. “How you handled things today proves you’re the right man to protect Nicole. I want your word that you’ll stay at her side twenty-four-seven. If she’s awake, you’re awake. If she’s asleep, you’re asleep. If she’s fucking—”
“I get it. You can stop spelling it out.”
“Then lets fucking shake on it so I can get back to the party.” By party, he means Nicole, who is tipsy after one too many wines. “We’re meant to be celebrating!” I assume he’s referencing Nicole’s first taste of fame, but I am proven wrong. “The kid may not be mine, so I’ll soon be free to move ahead with my plans.” He waggles his brows before holding out his hand in offering. “So, do we have a deal?”
Even while reminding myself that this isn’t about me, it is the fight of my life to accept his handshake.
I’m given an out when I recall he’s clueless about what he’s signing up for. “Don’t you want to know how much I need and what it’s for?”
He couldn’t look more cocky while shaking his head. “Your mother is in town, and the cash cow she milks anytime he looks close to getting cashed up was recently paroled. I know what the money is for, and since she is as predictable as your willingness to doanythingto protect River, my guess is fifty K.” He doesn’t give me a chance to get over my shock. “You’ll pay that back in a month, easy. Perhaps two.”
“That’s a salary in excess of three hundred thousand dollars a year. That’s too much.”
“Not when you’re guarding the next superstar of pop, and you have a point one percent share in all her future earnings,” he showboats, his tone confident. “The fact she’s your future sister-in-law is merely a bonus.”
Once again, I could have lived without his last comment, but I don’t get riled about it this time. I needed his help. He pledged allegiance without breaking a sweat, so I’ll protect his girl even with the only threat to his happiness standing directly in front of him.
18
NICOLE
“It’s going to be so much fun. I can’t wait.”
I gush along with the backup dancers while showing them to the door. It’s late, and I’m exhausted. With today’s rehearsal running over by four hours and Knox inviting everyone back to the suite for pre-celebratory drinks about my first radio interview Monday morning, my limbs feel like Jell-O.
A long soak in the tub is the only item on my itinerary tonight, but first, I need a bottle of water to soothe the spasms in my throat.
“We’ll see you Monday after your first live performance!”
Bella and Ellen wiggle their fingers at me in farewell before walking to the elevator arm in arm. Ellen’s shyness explained her stunned expression the first time we met, but Bella’s demeanor remains a mystery. She is a little standoffish—except when it comes to Laken.
Their flirty banter over the past three days would convince you that they’ve met before, and with tonight giving Bella unlimited access to Laken outside of office hours, she ramped up her efforts to get to know him better.
She clung to him like a leech and was the sole cause of my dry throat.
Ignoring how she followed him around the set was easy when you’re trying to perfect the sexed-up choreography a stern bout of jealousy encouraged, but it is virtually impossible when it’s occurring directly across from you.
When Laken didn’t shut down her flirting like he does at rehearsals, I spent half the night forcing vicious words into my stomach instead of spewing them out of my mouth for the world to hear.
My jealousy is frustrating. I honestly don’t know how to handle it. I don’t have much experience with it, and although I could ask Emily and Jenni for advice, the last time I did that, I had to fend off walking STD billboards.
I also shouldn’t be asking advice about a man who presents one way before doing a complete one-eighty only hours later. I could have sworn Laken looked remorseful when Knox stopped him in the corridor outside of my dressing room three days ago, but nothing but haughty arrogance has hardened his features since I tried to claim back some of the confidence he bashed to smithereens by saying I needed protecting from my hideous dance moves.
I’ve never felt as self-conscious as I have the past five days. I want to blame the change up on my upcoming late-night show gigs, and learning that the man paid to protect me requires an ankle monitor, but it feels like more than that.
I didn’t even balk when Knox told me about Laken’s shady past. I’m not one to judge, but hoping Laken’s new accessory would scare Bella away should have been the last thought on my mind.
