Finally, Maddyn smiled gently.“If it helps, I think what she’s saying is, you’ve still got the spark, Jami.You just stopped letting people see it.”
Axel draped an arm around her shoulders.“I say we give the lady a chance to work her marketing magic.Can’t hurt.”
Tony pushed to his feet, all leadership again.“All right, we’ll test the idea.Carlene, work with Jami to outline the rollout.Start small, see where it goes.”
“Will do,” she said, closing her laptop.
Livia leaned forward, resting her elbows on her knees.“And maybe, don’t overthink it,” she said kindly to Jami.“Fans see what they want to see.If you give them a little romance, they’ll build the rest.”
He exhaled, a half-laugh, half-sigh.“Great.No pressure.”
The group chuckled, the tension easing.Tony and Livia stood first, her hand sliding into his naturally.Sean followed.Axel and Maddyn left last, whispering about breakfast at Mae’s Bakery before rehearsal.
Soon, it was just Jami and Carlene.
She started collecting her notes, the quiet stretch between them thick enough to feel.
“You sure you know what you’re asking?”he said finally.
She looked up, those sharp eyes steady on his.“Completely.”
“You realize rumors spread faster than sound in this business?”
“I do.That’s why we manage them, not chase them.”
He studied her.“You really think I can sell a love story?”
“I think you already do,” she said.“You just forgot to believe in it.”
He huffed out a breath that sounded too close to a laugh.“And what if I don’t want to fake it?”
“Then don’t,” she said simply.“Find something real and let the rest of us work around it.”
He leaned forward, forearms on his knees.“Careful, Ms.Matthews.Might sound like an invitation.”
Her lips curved faintly.“Maybe it is.Maybe it isn’t.Just be ready for the cameras.”
When she left the barn, sunlight spilling around her, Jami stayed where he was, staring at the empty coffee cup she’d left on the table with the dark pink lipstick on the rim.
This whole idea was a mess waiting to happen.
So why did it feel like the first genuine spark of excitement he’d had in months?
He sat back with a thud.He exhaled long and slow.Resting his head against the sofa, two thoughts raced through his mind.Carlene was impressive, and the barn felt incredibly lonely with everyone gone.
ChapterFour
Carlene spread her notes across the Barn’s long bar, the hum of the refrigerator filling the quiet.The others had left hours ago, laughter fading into the Florida night, but she’d stayed behind to finish a few drafts.She’d told Tony she needed quiet space to outline a strategy, but the truth was, she couldn’t make herself leave.
The place was peaceful in a way that unsettled her: warm wood floors, soft lighting, the faint creak of the old beams above.Every detail in Jami Hart’s Barn spoke of purpose without pretense.It wasn’t the marble-and-glass kind of house she’d imagined a rising rock star would buy.It was comfortable.Lived in.Honest.And it was a barn!
She opened her laptop and scrolled through the day’s meeting notes.
Objective: Reinforce audience connection.
Primary Vehicle: Controlled narrative featuring Jami Hart’s personal life.
Deliverable: Campaign launch tied to upcoming tour dates.
