Chapter 25
Chapter
Twenty-Five
“Can I borrow you for a minute?”Gemma put her head around the door of the studio. Cassie looked up, surrounded by a group of toddlers and their moms. She couldn’t hide her surprise. Gemma didn’t usually interrupt her during class time.
“Um…”
“It’s okay. I’ll cover the class.”
Her chest tightened. Gemma didn’t usually do that either. She walked over to the door, a frown pulling at her lips. “Is everything okay?” she asked in a low voice. They’d been back from New York for a week, and she’d tried to make up for her absence by covering a few of Gemma’s classes, too. Which meant she was tired, but it was a good kind of tired.
Everything felt pretty good these days. Even Pres was in a good mood, mostly due to the fact that neither Bryan nor his team had called them. It wasn’t a big surprise that the record company didn’t want them. They’d made as much clear when they only had them play one song.
Not that she minded. It didn’t feel like their trip was wasted, not when she’d gotten to spend two days with Pres.
Her face flushed at the memory.
“Yeah, sorry,” Gemma’s voice brought her back into the present. “I didn’t mean to worry you. It’s just that your friend Alex is at the desk and he’s insistent you come talk to him right now.”
“Alex as in Alex from the band?” Well that was weird. “Why isn’t he at work?”
“Your guess is as good as mine. I asked him if it could wait until after class but he insisted. I had a feeling he’d march right in here and pull you out if I didn’t.”
Oh damn. Was he in a fit again about Presley? She hadn’t talked to Alex or Marley this week. They’d decided to take a week off from rehearsals. She’d assumed that was mostly because Alex was still feeling bitter about the audition, but she didn’t push it.
To be honest, she needed the break. And she knew that Presley did, too.
She hadn’t seen him since they got back, but she’d talked to him on the phone. They’d made arrangements for Saturday night. They were going to take Delilah to the drive in theater. Presley was pretty sure she wouldn’t stay awake for the whole movie so he planned to have her in her pajamas and make her a little bed in the flatbed of his truck.
“Alex?”
He looked up as she turned the corner into the reception area. “Finally.” He shook his head. “I’ve been calling you.”
“And I’ve been in class. My phone is in the staff room.” She inclined her head at the door next to the reception desk. “What’s so urgent?”
“You need to call the record label. Now.”
“What? Why?” She pursed her lips, trying to think of a single possible reason that the label would want to talk to her.
Alex grumbled beneath his breath, then pulled his phone out and hit a button. “Just talk to them. You can thank me later.”
She looked at the phone he was holding out like it was some kind of alien artefact. “Did we leave something behind?” she asked him. “Can’t it wait? I need to get back to my class.”
He huffed and lifted the phone to his ear. “Hi, it’s Alex from Altered Reality. Bryan called about half an hour ago. I’m with Cassie Simons. He wanted to talk to her.” There was a pause. “Yeah, I’ll wait.”
“What’s going on?” she mouthed at him.
For the first time he smiled. And it was genuine. Well okay then, she’d deal with this then get back to her students.
“Yep, she’s here,” Alex said, holding the phone out to her again.
This time she took it.
“Hello?”
“Cassie? It’s Bryan.” She tried not to smile when he didn’t give his last name. As though he was the only Bryan in the world.
“Hi Bryan.”
“Listen, we really loved the way you sang at the audition, but we decided to go with another group.”
“Oh, okay.” She shot Alex a look. Had he really dragged her out here so she could hear the rejection first hand. “No problem.”
“But I have a proposal for you,” he continued.
“What kind of proposal?” she asked him.
Alex lifted a brow, looking smug. She wrinkled her nose at him.
“The band we’ve gone with is almost there. But they need a female singer. We immediately thought of you. You’d be perfect for them. We’ve shown them your music and videos and they’re very keen on you joining them in New York.”
She laughed. “Sorry, what?”
“We want to sign you.”
Her eyes met Alex’s. “But I’m already in a band.”
He started shaking his head.
“What?” she mouthed at him.
He gave a dramatic sigh and she decided to ignore him.
“I understand that. But I’ve spoken to Alex and he thinks this is a great opportunity for you. He’s happy to release you if you’re ready to join us.”
“I…” She blinked. What did Alex have to do with it? “I don’t think I can do that.”
Alex practically ripped the phone out of her hand. “What are you doing?” he hissed.
“Did you know about this?”
“Of course I did. It’s fucking amazing.” His voice was low. “Just… let me handle it.”
She felt strange. Like there was ringing in her ears. Alex put the phone to his ear. “Hi Bryan, she’s kind of overwhelmed.” He laughed. “Yeah, right?” There was a pause. “Oh no, she just needs to sort out some work commitments, but it’s all good. Yeah, I’m her manager. Send everything over to me and we’ll work it out. Speak later.” He hung up before Cassie could even take it in.
“Why are you frowning?” he asked her. “Aren’t you happy? I’m happy for you.” He gave her a grin. “I mean, I’d be even happier if I was involved too, but this is great. What a fucking opportunity.”
Her heart was hammering against her chest. “Alex, did they just offer me a contract?”
“Yes, dummy. They did.”
“I can’t do it. Not without you all.” She shook her head. All she could think about was Presley. She wasn’t going to do this. Not without him.
“Of course you can.” Alex laughed. “We won’t mind. We’ll be delighted for you.”
“But what about the band?” she asked. But that wasn’t what she meant. Not at all.
She just couldn’t find the words to express what she was feeling.
“We’ll find another keyboardist.” He winked at her. “And at least this time it’s not my fault you’re leaving. Well it is, but at least this is a good thing.”
“That’s amazing,” Gemma said, hugging her. “I’m so happy for you.”
The class had finished and all the little ones had left the studio with their parents, leaving Cassie and Gemma alone.
“I’m not doing it,” she told her. “It’s stupid.”
Gemma lifted a brow. “A hundred thousand dollars for a few months’ work doesn’t sound stupid to me.”
“It’s not about the money. And the initial commitment is only for a few months. There’s an option clause that they can invoke.” One that could last up to five years if the tour and marketing went well.
Because there was no mistaking the fact that this was going to be a manufactured band. With a lot of record label dollars pumped in behind it.
“I’ve only just moved here,” she told Gemma. “I’m not going back to New York.”
“Is this about Presley?” Gemma asked her.
Cassie let out a long breath. She was dreading telling him about this, even though she was planning on turning it down. Mostly because he was already so over the record label thing. The same guy who’d offered her a contract was the one who’d been completely dismissive of him being a father.
She just wanted things to be like they were before they went to New York.
“He’d understand,” Gemma told her.
“No he wouldn’t. He and Jade were on the verge of breaking up when she died because she wanted to start touring again.” There, she’d said it out loud. The thing that was making her stomach feel all twisted up. “He’d do the same thing to me. I’m not even the mother of his child.”
“If he broke up with you because you’re following your dreams then he’s not the man I think he is.”
Cassie sighed. “I just… I don’t like it. Any of it. It was one thing going with the whole band. That was fun. This just feels…”
“Real?” Gemma asked.
“Yeah, I guess.” She shook her head. “It feels off. And I don’t like it.”
“Maybe you need to talk to Presley,” Gemma suggested.
Gemma was right, she knew that. Her friend was right about a lot of things. Which was why she had her life sorted out. A husband, two gorgeous kids. A successful business…
“Remember when we were younger?” Gemma asked her. “You were always the ambitious one. You wanted to be on stage. Wanted to be a star.”
Cassie swallowed. “But maybe I’ve changed.”
“Maybe you have.” Gemma’s voice was soft. “But maybe you pushed it all away because it hurt too much when your dancing career was cut short. What if you don’t take this opportunity and you regret it later?”
Hearing those words made Cassie’s chest feel tight. Gemma had been her friend since they were kids. They knew each others’ hopes and fears.
“What if I want what you have?” Cassie whispered. “A family. Love. Somewhere I belong?”
“The two aren’t incompatible,” Gemma pointed out.
“They were for you.” Gemma had given it all up, after all. “This band, it was just supposed to be fun. A way to meet people.”
Gemma’s eyes met hers. “And Pres, wasn’t he supposed to be a bit of fun, too?”
“Yes. But everything changed.”
“A good man would never hold you back from achieving your dreams,” Gemma told her. “You thought you’d lost them. But maybe you haven’t. They’re just offering themselves to you in a whole different way.”
In a way she didn’t want. And she wasn’t sure how to navigate. That was the problem. She’d finally found her happy and now it felt like it was all being threatened.
Gemma took her hand, squeezing it. “What is it you want?” she asked. “Isn’t that the most important question?”
“I want it all,” Cassie murmured.
“Sometimes that’s not possible. Sometimes we have to choose. The way I did when Riley and I moved here.”
“Do you regret it?” Cassie asked her.
“Not for a second. But I’m not you. And you were always better than me.”
“Shut up.” Cassie rolled her eyes.
“I’m serious. You have a talent. The trifecta.” Gemma grinned. “Isn’t that what they trained us for. One door closing and another opening? You just need to work it through. That’s all.”
“I need to talk to Presley,” Cassie murmured, because she didn’t want to make this decision alone.
“Yeah you do.” Gemma nodded, patting her arm. “That’s my girl.”
“Hey.” Presley was standing on her doorstep, leaning against the porch wall. “I got your message. Are you okay?”
She opened the door. She’d asked him to stop by before he picked up Delilah. And yeah, she felt guilty about that because she knew that Delilah would have to wait to see her daddy.
But she couldn’t have this conversation in front of the little girl. And she couldn’t have it on the phone either.
Most of all she didn’t trust Alex not to go shooting his mouth off in town before she had the chance to talk with Presley. She was pretty sure by the weekend everybody would know that she’d been offered a contract with a new band.
“Thanks for coming by,” she said softly. “Come in.” She stepped aside so he could walk into her hallway. He gave her a confused look then walked in, pulling her into his arms.
Damn, she didn’t know how much she needed that. She rested her head against his chest, loving the feel of his strong arms around her. Squeezing her eyes tightly, she inhaled him in.
“I missed you,” she murmured.
“Right back at you.” He ran his fingers through her hair. “What’s up? I was worried when I got your message.”
She took a deep breath, looking up at him. “Alex came to see me at the studio today.”
He blinked, surprised. “Alex did? Our Alex? Why?”
“The record label wanted to talk to me. They only had his number. So he rushed over so I could talk to them as quickly as possible.”
Presley’s eyes caught hers. She could see the concern in them, the confusion as well. “Why did they want to talk to you?” he asked her softly.
She hated this. Hated having to tell him. She wished they’d never offered her the stupid contract. Maybe if it had been a bigger town, or if she knew Alex could keep a secret she never would have had to tell Presley.
No, that was wrong. She loved him. Of course she would have told him regardless.
“They found another band,” she told him, her chest so tight it was hard to breathe. “And they want me to be part of it.”
His eyes were still on hers. And she watched as he slowly blinked, comprehending the words she’d just told him. “They offered you the gig?” he asked, his voice thick.
“I’m going to turn it down.” She’d already told Alex that. And he’d told her she needed to think about it. Let him get the contract and see what the terms were before rejecting it.
And yeah, she probably could have looked up the switchboard number and called Bryan herself. But she was certain, anyway.
“You didn’t turn it down already?” His face was expressionless. She wished she knew what he was thinking.
“No. Mostly because Alex has all the details. But they can’t do anything without my say so. I just needed to tell you. Because Alex probably will.”
“Okay.” He nodded, still betraying no emotion. “Congratulations.”
“Why?”
“Because they know a good thing when they see it. I always said you were too good for us.”
“Don’t be silly. And you’re the one who’s too good,” she told him.
“You’re not exactly impartial.” He lifted a brow.
“And nor are you.” She tried to make herself relax. “So that’s it. I just wanted you to know, that’s all. Now go see Delilah, I bet she’s jumping up and down waiting for you.”
“I’ll call you tonight,” he told her, kissing her softly. “And I’m proud of you. I mean it. You’re good at everything you do. You deserve to be recognized.”
She looped her arms around his neck, hugging him tight. This was where she belonged. In his arms. Grounded.
In love.
She was doing the right thing, turning it down. She didn’t want anything but this.
Now she just had to deal with Alex. But that was a job for tomorrow.