CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR
ELISE
THE SOFT RING of a text notification startled me more than it should have. I could blame my frazzled nerve on the large white mocha latte from Bakery Bliss that I consumed this afternoon, but the truth was, I was a ball of nerves because in just a few minutes I’d be face-to-face with Nathan.
It’s silly really, considering I’ve worked closely with Nathan for years and we’ve gone out of town together before. But despite all the accumulation of alone time we’d spent together, tonight felt different somehow.
With only one week left, time was running out on my position as his assistant and soon one of the three women we’ve narrowed it down to would be taking my place as his right hand.
Another woman would be reminding him to eat when he got too wrapped up in work to notice the time, and she'd keep a stash of his preferred headache medicine in her purse because she knew how often he got tension migraines from back-to-back negotiations.
A dark cloud threatened to loom over me, but I mentally swatted it away and forced myself to focus on more cheerful things such as the dinner tonight.
With how crazy Nathan’s schedule has been, he hadn’t been able to have a sit down with Darryl until tonight.
As requested, I arranged flights and booked hotel rooms from LA to Louisiana for Nathan and I the morning after the after party and now here we are, staying at The Four Seasons, the both of us getting ready in our respective suites for a dinner meeting with Darryl.
I turned my head toward my laptop, where Alessia’s face filled the screen. She was sprawled across her bed, her flannel pajama pants and Vampire Diaries hoodie a stark contrast to my outfit. While I was dressed for a night out, she was clearly ready for a night in.
She let out a low whistle the moment she got a full look at me through the screen. “Somebody looks hot!”
“You’re ridiculous.” I laughed, turning back to the mirror to apply the last coat of red lipstick.
“But you love me for it anyway.”
I didn’t even bother responding because we both knew she was right.
After our girls night in, Alessia had quickly become someone Kelsey and I considered a good friend.
She blended perfectly into our friend group and made it super easy and natural for Kelsey and I to trust her with our deepest secrets, including abusive ex boyfriends and double-identities.
“Is everything okay?”
Alessia adjusted her laptop and sighed. “I still can’t believe Kelsey is Rhodium. I mean, I believe it, obviously, but also I don’t?”
I glanced over at the screen, arching a brow. “Still processing, huh?”
“Uh, yeah.” She let out a short laugh. “One minute, I’m having a normal conversation with her, and the next, she’s casually revealing she’s one of my favorite singers like it’s no big deal. Do you know how many times I’ve screamed along to her songs in my car?”
I grinned, grabbing my perfume off the dresser. “Are you handling it okay?”
“I’m trying to play it cool,” she admitted. “I mean, she trusted me enough to tell me, which is huge. I don’t want to freak her out by fangirling too hard, but also, I am absolutely freaking out internally.”
“That’s fair.” I sat down on the edge of my bed, pushing aside the scattered clothes I hadn’t put away yet.
Alessia’s eyes suddenly narrowed at something on the screen. “Uh, Elise? Is that lingerie?”
My stomach dropped. I followed her gaze and realized, to my horror, that the delicate black lace set I’d packed was only half buried under a silk blouse.
“That is not for tonight,” I said quickly, grabbing it and tossing it into a drawer.
Alessia smirked. “Uh-huh. Because nothing says ‘strictly business’ like lacy, barely-there lingerie.”
I huffed. “It’s just something I packed. For myself.”
“For yourself?” Her brow arched. “Or for your sexy-as-sin boss? Where’s your boyfriend anyways?”
My cheeks heated. “He’s not my boyfriend. He’s my boss.” One who I’ve kissed once and was extremely attracted to. But Ale didn’t need to know that.
“The same boss that there’s a viral video of you giving him a lapdance? "
“It wasn’t a lapdance. It was a choreographed chair dance involving a male partner.” I explained.
It was definitely a lapdance, the tiny voice in my head argued but I ignored it, stood and walked over to grab my clutch that laid on the dresser.
“Whatever you say,” Alessia held up her hand in surrender. “So tell me why you’re going on a date with him tonight?”
“It’s not a date. It’s dinner with a potential new artist Nathan wants to sign to the label.” I explained, but of course, Alessia already knew this. She just liked to mess with me.
“So why are you wearing your I want to get laid dress?” Her hazel eyes looked down at my dress pointedly.
I wore my favorite red mini dress with the plunging neckline. It was long enough to pass for a formal dinner, but highlighted my curves enough to be sexy as well. This was also the dress I wore the night I had my blind date with Rhett Finley and the same night I ran into Nathan.
Did I wear it because I remember him saying that this dress wouldn’t make it out the door?
Maybe. (absolutely).
“I have no idea what you’re talking about.” I fought the urge to grin just as there was a knock at the door. “That’s him. How do I look?”
“Gorgeous.”
“Thank you.” I blew a kiss at the screen and wished her a goodnight before I shut my laptop down and headed for the door.
My heart thumped in unison with every step that I took until I reached the door, only for it to beat frantically all over again the second I opened the door and saw Nathan on the other side.
He looked devastatingly handsome in a crisp white shirt, navy pants, and brown loafers.
His eyes lit up only to darken a second later as he stared at me.
“Hi.” I hope he didn’t notice how breathless I sounded.
“Hi.”
A shiver of excitement ran down my spine at his heated gaze.
“I’m sorry if I kept you waiting.”
“It was worth the wait,” Nathan said, making an embarrassing heat skirt across my skin.
“Let’s get you an artist,” I replied as I stepped out of the room.
On the way to Bayrose, the American cuisine restaurant that was chosen for the night, Nathan and I went over his pitch for Darryl; Darryl is a young black man who became the head of his household after losing his parents in a car accident, leaving him to care for his younger brother and sister.
I reached out after I saw the video and I learned that he works at a local restaurant, doing what he can to keep everything together. One night, while he was singing as he cleaned the tables, a customer recorded him and posted it online.
The video gained a lot of attention, which led him to start posting more frequently and eventually, it landed him on my radar.
I didn’t make him any promises. I just told him I’d pass his name along if I was ever given the opportunity, which is what brought us here today.
“I know how to convince an artist to sign with me,” Nathan said when I was done.
“I’m not saying that you don’t. I’m saying, you might need to approach Darryl differently than you have with other artists in the past.” I argued. “It’s not going to be about the fame and money for Darryl. It’s more than that.”
“What are you saying?”
“Be relatable,” I told him just as the car came to a stop.
The driver rounded the car and opened the back door allowing Nathan to climb out first than me.
I silently walked next to Nathan as we entered the restaurant together.
The room was brightly lit, the latest pop song played at a low enough volume where the customers could hear it but it did not overshadow the conversations happening.
The place was packed and I’d be worried about finding a place to sit had it not been for the fact that I called and made reservations ahead of time.
I scanned the room until I saw a familiar face. Darryl smiled when he spotted me and I waved before leading Nathan over to the table.
“Darryl,” Nathan held out his hand for a handshake. “It’s nice to finally meet you.”
“It's an honor to meet you Mr. Edge.” Darryl said, shaking Nathan’s hands.
“Call me Nathan,” Nathan replied before motioning to me. “I believe you know Elise, my assistant.”
“Hi Darryl.” I held out my hand for a handshake, which he kindly returned.
We all settled in, made small talk over menus and drinks, but it didn’t take long for Nathan to steer the conversation exactly where he wanted it to go.
Darryl had barely finished his salad before Nathan leaned in, his forearms resting on the white linen tablecloth, his tone calm and conversational, but there was a charge beneath it. A focus I’d seen a hundred times in boardrooms and strategy meetings, but never quite like this.
“I want to be real with you, Darryl,” Nathan said, voice low enough to make the noise of the restaurant blur into background fuzz.
“I’ve sat across from a lot of artists, in a lot of cities, with a lot of dreams. And I’ve signed some of them.
Passed on others. But I’ve never heard a voice like yours. ”
Darryl gave a cautious nod but said nothing.
Nathan didn’t falter. “I saw that first video. The one where you were singing while wiping down tables. What struck me wasn’t just your talent, though God knows you have that.
It was the way your voice held weight. Like it carried more than just lyrics.
Like it came from someone who’s been through something and still stood tall after it. ”
My eyes drifted to Darryl, whose expression barely shifted other than a slight twitch of his jaw.