Chart Toppers (Star Maker Book 3) (33 page)

“I’m
away from you. I’m away from my family.
 
It’s too hard.
 
It’s all too
much.
 
It’s never been this bad before.
 
I feel really unstable like I’m gonna
crack, babe.
 
I don’t like that
feeling.”

She got
up and sat on his chaise lounge in front of him, taking him into her arms.
 
He buried his face in her the crick of
her neck and sobbed softly.
 
She
stroked his back.
 
She’d seen him
exhausted before but never to this extent and she was concerned. “What do you
want to do, babe?”

He
finally looked up at her and put his sunglasses back on hastily in hopes of
masking his tear filled eyes.
 
He
sighed.
 
“I dunno.
 
I honestly do not know.
 
We can’t cancel dates.
 
All I know is that each one of us
feeling it, and it’s not good.
 
We’re getting along, but barely.
 
The tension is mounting more and more every day.
 
They hate me.”

Kit
frowned.
 
“They don’t hate you.”

“Ok,
then.
 
They’re jealous of all the
attention I’m getting.”

She
chuckled and stroked his cheek gently.
 
“Babe, you’re the frontman and the frontman always gets more
attention.
 
You run the show for
them; you’re right out front in the spotlight.
 
You’re more visible to fans because
you’re engaging with them every night.
 
You’re the one telling them to sing along to the song.
 

“The
average fan is not a musician like we are, baby.
 
They’re not going to be vibing with the
musicians in the band.
 
They’re
going to be vibing with you. They’re not blown away by that super cool,
difficult riff that Remo just played or that interesting, unique chord
progression that Jimmy wrote and plays brilliantly ever night.
 
They’re just thinking, wow, Sully is
cool.
 
He’s making this fun, it’s
entertaining and the band sounds good.
 
That’s all that’s going through their minds, babe.
 
That’s how it works.”

He
shook his head.
 
“Try telling them
that.”

She put
her hands on his arms to brace him. “Babe, you’re going to get through
this.
 
You’re a superstar.
 
It’s only five more months.
 
You can do it.
 
I know you can.”

He
chuckled.
 
“Is this the whole ‘what
doesn’t kill you makes you stronger,’ speech?
 
Have we reduced ourselves to overused
clichés?”

She
sighed.
 
“Baby, you are never going
to be able to live with yourself if you decide to half-ass it for the rest of
the tour, or even worse, back out.
 
I know how you are.
 
You’re a
perfectionist.
 
You push hard to
make your performances the best they can be, and you succeed.
 
Why do you think every show is sold
out?
 
You and the guys kill it every
time because of your leadership.
 
Yours,
ok?
 
Each tour you’ve gotten
stronger, and now you’re at the top of your game.
 
And we both know that getting to the top
is the easy part.
 
Staying there is
the challenge.
 
That’s where you’re
at.”

He lay
back down and shook his head.
 
“I
want to stop being Sully Foxx for a while.”

She teased.
“So… you want me to start calling you Patrick, babe?”

He
chuckled.
 
“That’s not what I meant
and you know it. I want to escape from this rock star world for like a year or
something and be able to go to the supermarket without bodyguards or a clever
disguise or being fully accosted.”

She
shook her head.
 
“Those days are way
over, baby. You’re going to have to suck it up and ride the wave while the tide
is in because one day, the tide will go back out.
 
You’ll be wondering why some other band
or singer is getting all the attention.
 
Be careful what you wish for.
 
Be grateful for how things are right now, honey.”

He
nodded.
 
“I know.
 
I want to expand creatively beyond this
rock star thing.
 
I feel like it’s
only one dimension of me.
 
I really
liked those bit acting parts that I did before we started recording ‘Triple
Tango.’
 
I was studying with that
acting coach I met through Dahlia years and years ago.”

She
grinned.
 
“And you did well with
both those parts.
 
In fact, you have
a lot of offers for stuff like that.
 
I haven’t mentioned it because you’re tied up for the next five
months.
 
If that’s something you
want to do, it’s out there waiting for you.
 
Because you’ve been working with that
acting coach for a long while now, you’re probably ready to take on some
meatier roles.”

He shot
her a look.
 
“I don’t want to play a
rock star.
 
Anything but.”

She
giggled.
 
“Ok. Then you’ll play a
porn star?”

He
laughed and raised his eyebrows.
 
“I’m flattered that you think I even can.
 
I’m gonna have to pass on the porn star
thing.
 
I have no desire to have sex
with anyone else, first off.
 
And
also, that wouldn’t be good with the fans under eighteen.”

She
chuckled.
 
“I agree.”
 
She met his eyes.
 
“Want me to give Simon a call?”

He
propped himself up on his elbows and stared at her blankly.
 
“You have got to be kidding me right
now.
 
Call your ex-boyfriend?
 
Why?”

She
shook her head and giggled. “Because, he had told me ages ago when you did have
a bit part that he could get you hooked up for bigger roles.
 
And, baby, Simon and I were never that
serious.
 
Remember, I dumped him for
you and he knew it was coming.”

Sully
raised his eyebrows, suddenly intrigued.
 
“He knew it was coming?
 
How?”

“Babe,
is this really important?
 
It’s in
the past.
 
Let’s leave it
there.
 
I thought we were talking
about your possible acting career.”

He
shook his head.
 
“Hold on that for a
minute and answer my question.”

She
sighed.
 
“Simon said when he saw us
together backstage at the Madison Square Garden show in ‘89 he knew that his
days with me were numbered.
 
He
noticed our connection.
 
He was cool
about it when we broke up.
 
And
besides, he’s engaged right now, babe.
 
He’s totally happy.
 
He was
at our wedding y’know.”

He
nodded slowly.
 
“Oh, I know
that.
 
I remember seeing him
there.
 
He’s engaged now?
 
How do you know that?
 
Do you guys still talk all the time?”

She
chuckled.
 
“No.
 
I ran into him, and he mentioned
it.
 
I’m sure we’ll be invited to
the wedding, and if it happens after the tour, we’re going.
 
It will be a good networking opportunity
for you.
 
He has major connections.
 
And don’t forget that Lew is heading up
Diamond Pictures.
 
Don’t worry,
baby.
 
We’ll work it all out.
 
These upcoming five months are going to
fly right by and before you know it, we’re going to be right back out here
catching some rays together.
 
You’ll
be figuring out which roles you want to take on.”

He
grinned.
 
“Mmm, I like that
idea.”
 
He pulled her toward him,
and she glued herself to his side in hopes of not falling off the chaise lounge
that wasn’t built to accommodate two people.
 

She
nodded. “I like that idea too.
 
You’re a good actor, babe.”

“Thank
you.”
 
He laid there with her in his
arms, thinking back over the last few years, specifically the last two.
 
“Kind of crazy to think that we’re
approaching our two year wedding anniversary.
 
Best day of my life.”
 
He planted a kiss atop her head.

She
snuggled closer to him.
 
“Me
too.
 
Two years sure have gone by
quickly.”

He
nodded.
 
“Two amazing years and it
just keeps getting better.”

CHAPTER 18

Kit and
Giselle were both frantic, answering and returning calls plus managing faxes
that were pouring in.
 
Kit had
recently hired another assistant, Lila, to help Giselle direct the workload
that had quadrupled.
 
They were
headed into Grammy week, and everything had reached a whole new level of
crazy.
 

Because
of all the nominations, Kit was on everyone’s radar.
 
She had invitations to every Grammy
party known to man, gift baskets a plenty and champagne galore.
 
Lila struggled to keep up, answering the
door to bring in gifts and grabbing any overflow calls that Kit and Giselle
weren’t able to field.

Since
the band was on the road, Kit had planned to accept the award for them if they
won and she hoped they did. Spencer and Giselle planned to accompany her to the
awards show and upon receiving her tickets, she realized that Lew Diamond, Pete
Lundy, and Jonathan Diamond were all sitting behind her.
 
She felt more secure with the extra
support.
 

Getting
a recap on the latest from the radio station in Alabama from Bill Sykes, Gypsy
Tango’s attorney, didn’t delight her.
 
They were suing for damages, and the station was completely unwilling to
settle.
 
She could feel her normal
calm, cool demeanor slipping away and immediately refocused on being
rational.
 

As she
was pitching another negotiation strategy to Bill, her stylist walked in
holding her gown with Giselle in tow.
 
They stood there staring at her, waiting for her to finish the
call.
 
When she learned Bill had
already tried that approach, her anger peaked.
 
The last words out of her mouth were curt,
“Ok then, we’ll see them court.
 
I
gotta go.”
 

She
slammed down the phone, huffed and turned to face the stylist, instantly
shifting her attitude to a positive one and putting on a smile.
 
“Hello, ladies.
 
And how can I help you?”

The
stylist laughed.
 
Giselle
chuckled.
 
“Strip.
 
You need to try this dress on and make
sure it fits for Wednesday.”

Kit
laughed and promptly started taking off her clothes.
 
She looked at Giselle.
 
“I’m sure you just heard my last comment
with Bill. As soon as we have a court date, Sully’s doctors need to be there,
and there’s a good chance we’ll have to get him there for the day.
 
I’m not sure how that’s all going to
work logistically, but it will somehow by the grace of God.”

Giselle
nodded in acknowledgment as she rushed over to her desk to answer the
phone.
 
The stylist followed Kit out
of her office and upstairs to her bedroom where there was a full-length
mirror.
 
She was pleased with her
reflection and had a brief conversation with the stylist before she jumped onto
another phone call.

Kit
finished the call and hung up the gown in her closet.
 
She was about to put a new set of
clothes on when she heard Giselle come through on the intercom.
 
“Kit! Sully on one and Sean on two.”

She
grabbed her bathrobe, hastily threw it on and sprinted down the stairs.
 
She ran into the office and looked at
Giselle.
 
“What’s going on?
 
What happened?”

She
shrugged her shoulders.
 
“I dunno,
but they’re both saying it’s urgent.”

Kit
sighed.
 
“Dammit!
 
Ok.
 
I’ll talk to Sully on one, and you pull info out of Sean on two.”
 
She hit the button for line one and
played everything off like the mania of the day didn’t exist.
 
“Hey, baby. What’s up?
 
Is everything ok with the London shows
so far?
 
G said it was urgent.”

His
voice sounded more gravely and hoarse than usual after a show, and Kit
instantly felt a pang of concern in her gut.
 
He sighed.
 
“Babe, something’s wrong.
 
I need you here.”

“Honey,
tell me what’s going on.
 
I can’t
just drop everything and come out there.
 
Talk to me.”

“See,
that’s the issue.
 
I’m having
problems with my voice and my throat.
 
I shouldn’t even be talking right now.”

“Does
your throat hurt?”

“Yes,
like hell.”

Kit forced
herself to remain calm.
 
She hoped
it was only an infection or strep throat.
 
“Have you seen a doctor?
 
Do
you have a throat infection?
 
Remember when that happened to you in Tallahassee that one time?
 
Maybe it’s just that, baby.”

He
spoke flatly, annoyed at her lack of understanding.
 
“It’s not.
 
I know.
 
I can feel the difference.
 
I want my doctor… and I want you here
too.”

She
sighed.
 
“I’ll talk to Sean about
getting Dr. Franklin out there for you.”

“And
what about you?”

“Baby,
you know I would love to be out there on the road with you, but I can’t right
now.
 
I have to go accept your
Grammy in a few days.”

He
chuckled and backed down.
 
“I like
the sounds of that.
 
Ok, babe.
 
It was worth a shot.
 
You know I’d love to talk to you all
night, but I have to rest my voice.
 
We’re only halfway through the Hammersmith Odeon shows, and I have no
idea how I’m going to make it.
 
I
think I should stop talking.”

“That’s
a good place to start.
 
It’s worked
for you in the past.
 
I love you so
much, honey.
 
You know that I would
be there if I could.”

“I
know, babe.
 
I love you too.”

Kit
hung up the phone and looked over at Giselle, who pointed to her to signal she
was sending Sean’s call over.
 
She
answered immediately.
 
“So, Sully’s
voice is going.
 
What’s happening
exactly?”

“He
called you even though he wasn’t supposed to, huh?”

“Of
course he did. Think of who were talking about here.”

Sean
sighed.
 
“Kit, it’s not looking
good.
 
He’s in bad shape.
 
It’s worse than how he was the last
time.
 
Can you get his specialist
out here?”

“Yeah.
 
I’ll get his specialist and a voice
coach out there.”

“Can
you come out?”

She
frowned.
 
Sean very rarely asked her
to join them on the road.
 
“What?
 
Did I just hear you
correctly?
 
You want me to come
out?
 
Why?
 
Sully’s a big boy.
 
He can handle this.
 
Is his back bothering him again too?”

“No,
his back is doing quite well.
 
Kit,
the wheels are starting to come off.
 
The gents aren’t getting on well.”

Her
frustration was increasing by the second as she shook her head.
 
“So?
 
They always fight once we get deep into a
tour.”

His
tone was somber.
 
“Not like this,
Kit.
 
This is a personal request
from me to you.
 
Can you please come
back out on the road?
 
You’re their
lead manager and to be perfectly frank with you, they need you right now.”

She
sighed.
 
“Right now?
 
Their timing is impeccable.
 
I can’t leave today.
 
I’ve got the Grammy’s.
 
They’re up for an award for chrissakes!
 
I can’t just blow off the awards
ceremony. I already committed to accepting the award for them.
 
I can’t flake on it.
 
I’m well known in this industry and if
I’m a no show it will look really bad for everyone.”

“I
know.
 
The timing is shitty.
 
Stay in town, get the award and then get
your ass out here.”

Kit
raised her eyebrows.
 
She had never
heard Sean be firm with her.
 
“Ok.
 
Giselle and I will fly
out after the Grammy parties.
 
I
can’t blow those off either.
 
I have
to make an appearance.
 
It’s part of
my new duties at Diamond, and it benefits the guys in a lot of ways.
 
We’ll make sure to have a jet gassed up
and waiting.
 
I’d imagine we’ll
probably be in the air by two or three in the morning.”

“Which
puts you here about ten or eleven p.m. local time.
 
Works for me.
 
Thanks, Kit.
 
This is going to help more than you
realize.
 
How long can you stay out
on the road?”

She
shook her head, trying to deny this was happening while knowing full well it
was and completely out of her control.
 
“How long do I need to be?
 
If it’s as bad as you say it is, I’d imagine a week won’t cut it.”

“No,
‘cuz they’ll be on their best behavior while you’re here.
 
If you can stay a month, that’ll give
you enough time to see the cracks and hopefully circumvent world war three.”

She
sighed.
 
“Ok, Sean.
 
You got it.
 
G will call you later with details.
 
See you soon.”

“Yeah.
 
Good luck at the Grammy’s.
 
Hope we have a win.”

Kit nodded.
 
“Me too.”
 
She hung up the phone and looked at Giselle,
who was waiting in anticipation.
 
“G, we’re going to London after the Grammy’s.
 
Pack your bags.
 
We’re out on the road with the boys for
a month.
 

“We’re
finishing out the London shows, doing the South American leg and the beginning
of the final leg.
 
And yes, we’ll be
in Rio for five days.
 
I’ll need you
to be our lead translator for press conferences, interviews, fans backstage,
and etcetera.
 
Also, we have a week
long break in the middle of those shows so call your family ‘cuz you’ll be able
to see ‘em if you want.”

She
nodded, still jotting notes, yet grinning from ear to ear, excited to be going
back to her home with time to see her family.
 
She finally looked up.
 
“Ok.
 
Anything else?”

Kit
glanced at the schedule on her computer screen.
 
“Oh damn.”
 
She shook her head and then shifted her
attention back to Giselle.
 
“Call
Moira, please.
 
Tell her I’m sorry,
but I have to cancel… again.”

She
frowned.
 
“Cancel?”
 
She pulled up the schedule on her
computer and nodded.
 
“Ok.
 
This doctor meeting thingy?
 
You put this in here on your own, didn’t
you?”
 
She wagged her finger and
joked.
 
“Don’t do that!”
 
She giggled and noticed the saddened
expression in Kit’s eyes.
 
Her grin
faded as she gently inquired, hoping Moira wasn’t ill and seeking a specialist
in Los Angeles.
 
“What is it?”

She sat
down and sighed.
 
“A meeting for the
foundation.
 
Moira made mention a
while ago that a local doctor, I think he’s a surgeon or something, made a very
generous donation to our foundation.
 
They started corresponding, and he offered to start doing introductions
to others in the medical community in hopes of helping her expand the
foundation.”

Giselle
nodded and approached Kit’s desk with her notebook in hand, taking a seat.
 
“Ok.”

She
continued.
 
“At the time, Moira was
flattered but didn’t have the bandwidth to act on it.
 
She was in Chicago, and the L.A. office
hadn’t opened yet.
 
Fast forward a
few months, and we get Tabitha on board and settled in.
 
She and Moira finally meet with this
doctor guy and things start moving forward in a big way.
 
He’s well connected.
 
Contributions and support are pouring in
from every direction, even beyond the L.A. area.
 
We have that office in Palo Alto now
because of him.”