Chapter 9
Chapter Nine
Darcy leaned against the railing on the balcony from her hotel room, looking out at downtown Nashville.
Being able to get a room with a view was maybe one of her favorite things that had changed in her life this year. No, she didn’t feel the need to buy herself a brand-new wardrobe for her daily life, but if there was a room with a view, she wanted it.
Any time she, Emerson, and Blythe had left Pineford in the past, they’d all shared a single motel room.
Which was likely why it felt so strange being here by herself.
She’d never traveled alone anywhere in her life. Being here – even if Nashville was only a couple hours from Pineford – without the company of her sister and best friend was just strange. It was quiet.
Especially tonight, while she still felt so… rankled from her day in the studio with Juliet.
She was so keyed up from it, even sitting out on the balcony with Katherine Spencer’s new book wasn’t distracting her.
She was reasonably certain her sister and Colton would be celebrating again tonight, plus Blythe wasn’t exactly a warm-and-comforting type of person.
So, she called Emerson, tapping the speaker icon and placing her phone on the table next to her.
“So?” Emerson prompted as soon as she picked up. “How did it go?”
Darcy’s hands tightened on the ornate metal railing. “It went fabulously.”
Emerson gasped. “Really?”
“No.” She burst that bubble immediately, unable to keep up the facade, as a dry, bitter laugh escaped her. “Not even close. I, uh…” She trailed off, shaking her head. “I walked out. I’m not doing it.”
She fucking hated that. She hadn’t yet called Zayd to discuss it with him even though she’d left the studio several hours ago, because it made her feel terrible.
Besides, she still wasn’t used to having to run her decisions by a manager.
Especially not when it came to her music choices, and especially not when her emotions were involved.
And they were. She felt so small and so… dismissed by Juliet. She wasn’t embarrassed, because she stood by her decision. But she was angry and upset at the whole situation.
Out of all of the people she had to work with, it was Juliet?! Who refused to give Darcy an ounce of respect as a colleague? Maybe she had been na?ve to walk into the studio today believing that she and Juliet could possibly both be professionals.
Emerson was silent for several beats. Not totally abnormal for Emerson, but after even more seconds passed, she had to check if they were still connected.
“Hello?”
“I – sorry – I’m just processing. You walked out from performing a song for Shelby Linwood’s tribute album?
Isn’t Shelby going to be hosting that big dinner party in a couple of weeks for everyone who worked on the album, too?
So… if you don’t do this, you won’t have dinner with her, either?
” Emerson’s volume, uncharacteristically, grew louder as she went on, her incredulity dripping from her words.
Darcy groaned, dropping her head into her hands. “I guess, yeah.”
Which plainly sucked.
She didn’t know if she’d ever have this kind of opportunity again. To not only meet Shelby but to go to a large dinner party at her house? That was a situation that only happened in a dream.
“But… I don’t want to be on this album if it means putting out a song that doesn’t even sound like me.
” The thought of it made her stomach tie into tight, uncomfortable knots.
“What’s the point of that? I’d rather have Shelby Linwood not know who I am than know me for putting out a subpar cover of one of her best songs. ”
And that had been the thing that had driven her forward all day. Motivated her to keep trying with Juliet, to keep voicing her ideas. She’d obsessed, unsurprisingly, about this and had pages of notes. Not that she’d expected Juliet to agree to everything, but to at least hear her out.
“I get that,” Emerson said slowly, as though she was carefully picking through her words. “But–”
A knock on her hotel room door cut Emerson off. Darcy turned to face into her empty room with a frown.
“I don’t suppose you miraculously appeared here outside of my door?” Darcy prompted, picking her phone back up as she walked inside, crossing the room.
“I haven’t mastered that trick, unfortunately.” Emerson clicked her tongue in mock-disappointment. Ironically, her best friend did know how to perform several magic tricks that entertained a lot of the kids she’d taught music lessons to.
Darcy wasn’t as intrigued by the act of magic as Emerson was, but she’d picked up a few things from her over the years as well. “If you learn, that’s one I want to know, too.”
“I take it you don’t know who’s there?” Emerson asked, as Darcy came to a stop at the door.
“Sure don’t. As you know, I have two friends. Both currently in Pineford. You’re one of them. My sister’s the other.”
“I assume you didn’t order room service for dinner?”
“Nope.” Maybe she should. She hadn’t eaten all day, too preoccupied with the Juliet of it all.
“Maybe you shouldn’t answer.” A nervous undercurrent slipped into Emerson’s voice. “Someone random could have found out what your room number is.”
Darcy’s hand had just landed on the door handle. “I think it’ll be fine.”
Besides, she was going to peer through the hole in the door; she wasn’t insane.
“Whisper,” Emerson said back, in her own whisper. “So that they can’t hear you.”
Though a lot of Emerson’s practices were born from anxiety, she wasn’t necessarily wrong. But it was… trying… for Darcy, who did not feel that same level of concern.
If someone was at her door that she didn’t want to see, she’d tell them to get lost. If necessary, she’d call security. But nothing like that had happened to them in the last eight months.
“Whoever it is already knows I’m in here if they’re knocking,” she pointed out.
“Yes. I do know you’re there,” Juliet’s voice came from the other side of the door.
She knew what Juliet sounded like; of course she did. It would be nearly impossible for her to mistake Juliet Jacobs. But why the hell was she here?
Darcy whipped the door open so quickly, she would have maimed herself if she didn’t slide her leg back to narrowly miss being slammed with the door at the last moment.
Standing right there in the bright lights of the hotel hallway was, indeed, Juliet.
“I guess I should have whispered,” she muttered to Emerson, flatly.
“Oh. Huh. Well. I’m going to let you go,” Emerson breathed out, her dislike of meeting new people extending to even talking to them over the phone. “Bye. And bye, um, Juliet.”
“Have a lovely evening,” Juliet returned, glancing down at the phone in Darcy’s hand.
When it was clear that Emerson had hung up, Juliet slid her gaze back to Darcy’s. She held up a large bag between them. “Can I come in?”
Darcy narrowed her eyes at the bag, suspicion crawling through her. “Why? What’s in there?”
“Dinner, what do you think?”
Darcy still didn’t step back and let Juliet enter, because this was ringing all of her alarm bells.
“How would I know? You showing up on my doorstep tonight asking me to have a meal with you is one of the very last things I’d have envisioned for my evening.
Unless it was poisoned.” She darted her eyes to the bag again. “… Is it poisoned?”
Juliet hummed, arching her eyebrow up at her. “And why would I tell you if I did that? An admission of guilt? How stupid do you think I am?”
“Uh, yeah, so I had been kind of kidding, but I’m actually highly suspicious, now.” Darcy thought that was very valid.
She expected Juliet to snarl at her, to throw some sort of verbal barb back at her. That was, after all, exactly how Juliet had presented herself to Darcy in the last couple of months.
But Juliet lifted her chin, her expression bafflingly placid. “It is not poison. Obviously. It’s a peace offering.”
Then, in the most perplexing move, Juliet gave her a smile that absolutely glowed with radiance as if to cap her statement off, as if to reassure Darcy.
It was so stunning, she felt momentarily blinded by it.
In this moment, she saw the Juliet Jacobs she’d been publicly presented with for almost a decade.
That was, of course, only for a moment. Because Darcy now knew that was a facade.
She folded her arms over her chest, holding her ground. “Juliet, can you just drop whatever sweet act you’re putting on? I really don’t have the patience for it. In fact, I’d rather you be rude to me than be fake to me.”
Even if she was on bad terms with someone, she’d rather know it than pretend and play games.
So, she doubled down. “I know you don’t actually want to make peace with me. You literally told me that yesterday. So, the only way I’m letting you in is if you’re honest with me.”
Juliet’s immaculate smile froze in place, and it really was fascinating. To see the look that flickered over her face in a blink-and-miss-it moment, as she clearly internally wrestled with what she wanted to do.
Finally, Juliet came to her conclusion. Her smile faded into a serious expression, and she measuredly held Darcy’s eyes with her own.
“Fine, then. In the nature of being honest, I…” She trailed off, seeming to have to force the words out.
“I really want to do ‘Porchlight’ on this album. Working on a song like that on Shelby’s album would mean a lot to me. And I can’t do it without you.”
Darcy’s eyes widened, shock blasting through her. “Wow. I definitely didn’t expect that.”
“Don’t flatter yourself; I mean, I literally cannot do it without you. The label wants us to record as a duet or they don’t want it at all.”
Neither Juliet’s words nor her tone were light or funny or friendly in the least, but Darcy found herself smiling, anyway. There it was. The real, honest reason Juliet was here.
“So, you need me.” A smirk tugged at her lips; it was far too satisfying to say that. To watch the expression that slid over Juliet’s face as she took in Darcy’s words.