Chapter 21 Not Long Ago #2
To Paloma’s surprise, Livvy responded with a bashful smile instead of words, which earned an impish grin from Rennie. Now it made more sense why they’d decided to come all this way to meet with her instead of scheduling a Zoom call: They wanted an excuse to spend time together in a lakeside town.
The three of them chatted and munched, Rennie peppering Paloma with questions about everything from music theory to preferred guitar pick brands and Livvy taking copious notes.
Food and wine, plus the breeze off the water, seemed to have smoothed out Livvy’s mood, and she got less pointy and more easily amused as the afternoon went on.
Once Rennie had enough info to prep the technical crew, Livvy took over the conversation.
“Have you ever had media training before?” she asked.
“I mean, I’ve been doing concert and music reviews for a long time, but I don’t do interview pieces, and I never got any ‘training’ before getting interviewed myself,” Paloma replied.
“Well, that’s why I’m here,” Livvy said.
“I’m happy to say that confirmed they want to do an exclusive, in-depth article about your career and influence as well as the Artemis benefit.
Their writer wants to book an afternoon next week to meet you in Detroit, grab lunch, and chat.
It’s my job to make sure you’re ready to answer whatever questions he might throw at you, and I also want you to be able to redirect the conversation if it starts going off track. ”
“Will you be there?” Paloma asked, hoping the answer was yes.
“I’ll be there to introduce you, but Platter insists that their interviews be one-on-one without any publicists or PR people at the table to make the conversation ‘authentic.’ They’ll tape all the audio, so be prepared to sign the waivers they’re sending over.”
Paloma nodded, reminding herself that she promised Jace she’d do whatever was needed. “Will do.”
Livvy took a printed page from her laptop bag and handed it to Paloma.
“Here are the talking points about the benefit I’d like you to work into the conversation.
Like, how the Artemis was the launchpad for your career and so many other bands; the venue is more than just a landmark: it’s a symbol for the city of Detroit and its place in musical history; a few nice things about Sabine, even though she still pretty much hates you. ”
“Don’t worry. I’ll be an adult about all this.”
“Do you feel comfortable covering this stuff?”
“Of course,” Paloma said, skimming the neatly bulleted list. “My history with the Artemis, my first concert there, Cutie Pie’s album release party, sitting in with other bands. None of that should be a problem.”
“Great,” Livvy said, taking out another piece of paper. “And here are the topics that might come up during the Platter interview. I don’t think there are any surprises.”
Paloma scanned the document. It read like an FBI dossier with her deepest, darkest secrets typed up and ready to be used against her. She put it face down on the table. “How many people other than Jace know this information?”
“Only me, because I need to know the facts to be ready to manage our messaging and coach you on how to answer tough questions,” Livvy said. “No one else involved in the production knows any of this.”
“I can confirm that,” Rennie said. “Like, I have no idea what you two are even talking about.”
“And we need to keep it that way,” Livvy said with a telling glance toward the door.
“Right,” Rennie said as they stood up. “Liv, I’ll drop our stuff at the Airbnb then go to that bookstore with the rainbow flag we saw when we drove through the main part of town.
Just call me when you want me to pick you up.
” They turned to Paloma. “Thank you so much for being a great host. Shit, thanks just for being. Call or text me if you think of any other tech stuff you want me to take care of, okay?”
“Thanks, Rennie. I appreciate it.”
“My pleasure.” They looked at Livvy and winked. “See you soon.”
Paloma watched Livvy watch Rennie walk away and stifled a giggle. The girl’s dark eyes were bright, her mouth turned up at the corners, her head tilted slightly to one side. She was clearly infatuated, and it was delightful to see.
“Rennie seems like a good soul,” Paloma offered.
Livvy nodded shyly. “They are the coolest person I’ve ever met.” She took out her laptop while Paloma re-reviewed the list of topics.
“Just because they ask these questions doesn’t mean we have to answer them, right?” Paloma asked.
“Correct, but sometimes it’s a better strategy to be straightforward and tell them what they want to know. Lack of information makes people curious. They’ll frame you as difficult or, frankly, make shit up if you don’t give them anything.”
Paloma understood her point. “I’m open to talking about what was happening with me: the anxiety, the grueling schedule, taking a drastic step to change course that, looking back on it, I wish I could have handled differently.
But as for Nolan and Kaden, I want to leave them out of the conversation.
Nolan and I signed nondisclosure agreements when I got pregnant to protect our privacy and our son’s until he turned twenty-one late last year, and now that Kaden is an adult, it’s up to him when it comes to talking about his life and his parents.
While I felt I had to tell Jace about his existence, I don’t want to talk about him publicly unless he’s comfortable with me doing so. Understand?”
“Yes.” Livvy leaned back and crossed her arms. “I’m surprised no one discovered your name, or Nolan’s, on his birth certificate.”
“Michigan birth certificates aren’t public record. If someone leaked that information, they’d be breaking the law.”
“Huh. Learn something new every day.” Livvy thought for a moment.
“Here’s my advice. If they happen to find out you had a baby years ago, tell them you’re not revealing the name of your child’s father, and your child will be the one to decide whether or not to tell their own story someday, then move back onto the benefit as quickly and smoothly as possible. ”
Paloma nodded. “I’m okay with that.”
“Any other topics you want to try to keep off limits?” Livvy asked as she typed.
“Anything about other LGBTQ musicians in Detroit. I can speak about my own experiences, but other people were in the closet for a host of reasons. I’m not about to out them now.”
“That’s fair. What else?”
“Anything about Jace’s and my romantic relationship,” Paloma said quietly. “The business partnership, sure, but the rest isn’t anyone’s business.”
“I hate to tell you, but that may come up,” Livvy said. “You two being together was an open secret, certainly around here. If they interview anyone local, they might mention it.”
“I want to talk about my music instead of my personal life,” Paloma asserted.
“Copy that. But what about when they ask you what happened that night, after you performed on Letterman?”
“I’ll stop the interview,” she blurted defensively.
“I wouldn’t advise that,” Livvy said. “You stop the interview, they’ll just rehash all the old rumors.”
“I am not putting Jace through this publicly. Or Nolan. Or Kaden.”
“Paloma, you have to accept that’s the question everyone wants answered. You have to be ready to address it. You don’t really have a choice.”
Paloma didn’t respond, yet Livvy’s eyes were unflinching. “I want to protect Aunt Jace as much as you do. I’m just as invested as you are. We have to figure out how to navigate this, all right?”
Paloma’s stomach felt like it was full of tar. Extricating herself from her web of deception had left her feeling lonely and bereft. But maybe she could find some solace in doing the right thing.
“All right.”
Livvy nodded. “Good. So I’ll ask you once more: Paloma, what happened that night?”