Where is this going? If she thinks she’s about to take the shots and make me call off things with Lily, then she is sadly mistaken. I will give up every dollar I have—and willevermake—for that girl.
She became the entire world when she walked back into my life.
“You are correct.” The saliva goes down thick in my throat. “Shouldn’t Lily be present for this conversation?”
Lily has her own voice. I don’t want to take that away from her.
“We’ll have a group discussion soon, but I would like for us to talk about this alone before she gets wind of it. We need a plan of action if she freaks out.”
She’s not a fucking animal that we need to control. What in the world is Fay getting at?
Straightening my back and squaring my shoulders, I mentally prepare myself for the words that are about to come out of her mouth.
“I’m sorry for what I’m about to say. None of it is coming from my mind.” Her eyes fill with sorrow. “But the internet hates her. Usually, it’s a fifty-fifty between love and hate for a celebrity’s public relationship. However, I see people running that poor girl’s name through the dirt, and it could potentially harm her life after getting off the tour. And knowing how much she’s gone through, it isn’t fair.”
It’s like thousands of little mosquitoes are biting my skin, and the itch is instant. “Fay, you’re making me crazy. What are they saying?”
“That she’s a groupie.”
Awkward silence fills the room.
“That’s the big news?” I stare, dumbfounded, at her. “They’ve been saying that about her for a long time.”
“But it’s your old record label that’s backing up these speculations, totally making everything go out of control. You have to understand that when a very popular record label starts stating these rumors are true, it makes people start to wonder what to believe in.”
“We can’t alter the way people’s brains work …” I trail off, seeing where she’s coming from and becoming extremely frustrated at my old record label.
But my hands are tied. What comes out of people’s mouths is something I can’t control.
I rest my elbows on my knees, and my hands fist my hair.
“I’m only pointing this out because as a boss myself, negative attention like this would alarm me. Especially considering that she’s becoming an elementary teacher, being a groupie isn’t reassuring to most parents.”
“What are we going to do?” I breathe out, desperate for some guidance. “Lily can’t lose this job, Fay.”
“I wish I could give you this big, elaborate plan, but my mind is blank. I have no idea, Elijah.”
Lily might lose everything she’s worked toward for months. Her strength and perseverance led her to this job opportunity.
I’m her boyfriend. I should be helping her excel, not bringing her down. What kind of man am I?
My chest tightens, like it’s about to cave in on itself. Moments like this make my fingers itch to reach the orange bottle I became very well acquainted with. The toxic side of my career is pulling her down. Trying to bury her under the sand.
I can’t think. I can’t breathe. I feel stuck in place. I can’t lose her, not because of me.
“I need some time to think about how I want to proceed with this, Fay. Please excuse me.”
Walking out of that office like it’s on fire, I run to find my phone, wanting to talk to the only person who might know what to do.
Mama Drakos.
“Elijah Drakos, you’d better listen to me,” my mother’s raspy voice says over the line, making me wonder why it’s hoarse to begin with. “Are you a bad man?”
“No.” I falter, thinking back to every action and word I’ve ever spoken, but that only makes my head hurt.
“So, stop acting like you have already failed her.”
I pace back and forth, and the sight of my own feet makes me dizzy. “But I have! Look at what my world has done to her already.Damn it,we just started dating, and it’s all going up in flames.”
