Face the Music (44 page)

He cut me off.  “We also have his image to consider.”  Resting his folded hands on top of the desk, he leaned forward.  “The harsh reality is that male celebrities are more popular when single.  Rel
ationships tend to,
” he studied my face, “bring down the public’s opinion.”

It took a minute for me to see what he was getting at. 
When I spoke, I kept my voice low and even. 
“I appreciate your concern, Mr. Doveland, but I assure you that I am not di
stracting Chris from his work.  A
nd,
honestly
,
I don’t think he cares what peoples’ opinion
s are about our relationship.”

He leaned back in the
chair
and frowned
.  “You know him well, don’t you?  I only say
that
because that’s exactly what he told me
when I discussed this with him earlier.  W
hich is why I’m here now, talking to you.
  I
was hoping you’d
have a more open mind
about this
.
”

I cringed at the idea of him
having this conversation with Chris.

“You have a different frame of mind,” he explained, “a di
fferent perception than he does
.  I know you’ll do the right thing.”  He
patted my hand before getting up
.  “Enjoy your time off. 
I hope you’ll join us again next season.” 

I stared out into the hall after he left, the reality of his words sinking in. 
It was as though a heavy veil had been lifted from my eyes.  Part of me always knew Chris was too good to be true, but I had convinced myself to let the relation
ship happen anyway.  It felt nice
to be a part of something real.  But
,
there was truth to Mr. Doveland’s words, and I sulked in their cruel reality. 

Male performers
really were better off single.  Was it possible that Chris would lose the competition, because of me?  Or worse yet, if he did win, would I just be dead weight, dragging down his career? 
I’d gotten so caught up
in
the now that I’
d never considered the future.

My life these past few weeks was the best it had been in a very long time.  Even though I hadn’t admitted it to anyone besides my mother’s cold grave, I knew I was falling for
Chris
.  He made me happy.  He helped me forget the pain of the past.

My shoulders slumped as this new burden took residence upon my conscience. 

Not wanting
to spend another second in the
building, I got up to gather the rest of my things.  Picking up my box, I
put on my sunglasses,
took one last
look around the empty room
, and closed the door.

Jake passed me in the hall. 
He nearly skidded to a stop and took the heavy load from my arms.  “H
ere, let me get that for you.”

“Thanks
.” 

He peeked in the box and pulled out a stapler.  “What’s all this for?”

“My stuff.  I cleaned out my room.”

“Why?”

I looked at him from over the top of my dark sunglasses.  “Think about it, Jake.  Who got voted off last night?”

I could almost see the wheels turning as he put the pieces together.
 
“Oh, shit!”  He shook his head, giving me a worried look.  “So
,
that’s it, then? 
Melody’s
out
,
so you’re gone?”

“Yep, that’s it.  No kids, no reason for me to stick around.”

“That totally sucks.”  He looked at me hopefully.  “But
,
hey, it’s not like your leaving, right?  You’ll still be around
,
and we can hang out.”

“Of course.”  I tried to sound cheerful, but regret was heavy in my voice. 

When I got home
,
I got a text from Chris:

C
all me
when you get a chance

My stomach flipped.  Was this it?  Had Mr. Doveland gotten through to him? 

My head hung. 
I was living my own fantasy, and it went against all rules of nature.  I hesitated before
dialing his number
.

“
Allie!
” 
Loud music played in the background
.

“Hi.  I got your message.  W
hat’s up?”  I swallowed hard, forcing down the lump that was working its way up my throat.

“Hang on a sec.”  I heard some shuffling, and the music was turned down. 
“
Sorry, I was doing some research,” he explained.  “
Have you
cleaned out your room yet
?
  I
meant to come by and help, but I wasn’t sure when you’d be there.
”

“Y
eah.  I just got back,” I said, glancing at the box by the door. 

“Oh.”  He sounded disappointed.  “
T
hat’s good, I guess.  At least it’s done, right?”

“
Sure.
”

I listened to a few seconds of silence.  “Wanna come over
on Friday night
?
” he asked.
 
“
We could just hang out here, have dinner
,
and play video games.”

Despite my recent misgivings, I smiled.  “
That
sounds wonderful.”

I found that I had a lot more time to myself since I no longer had to go to the studio each day.  There were still three more weeks before my summer classes began, so I spent several hours over the next few days lounging around the apartment and doing nothing of importance. 

On Friday
,
I went to the hotel to meet Chris.  After crawling out of the cab, I stood across the street and glared at the unyie
lding mob of reporters.  Lately
,
the media had started hanging out by the building to snap pictures of the Stars as they came and went.  These pictures appeared everywhere- the local news,
the tabloids, even the popular,
prime-time celebrity shows. 

My shoulders tingled as stress knotted its way through my muscles.  Ignoring it, I took a deep breath and ducked my head, making haste towards the hotel’s entrance.  Reporters crowded around me,
blocking
my path.  Cameras flashed around all sides.  “Allison Banks!  Can we have a word with you?” they called.

It was dizzying.  I nudged past them and made my way into the safe h
aven of the lobby.  Thank God the
reporters weren’t allowed past the front doors. 

Chris was there, waiting for me.  “Make i
t through
the
pack of wolves okay?”
he asked, glancing at the mob.

“Yeah, I guess,” I said, following his gaze.  I despised their attentions
,
but decided I could suffer through it as long as I got to be with Chris.  Besides, they’d eventually find someone more interesting and leave me alone, right? 

He put his arm around my shoulders and kissed the top of my head.  “I thought we’d just order room se
rvice tonight, if that’s okay.”

“Sure, whatever.”

Once in his room
,
I pulled off my sweater and took a seat at his small table.  He handed me a menu, and I glanced through the selection
,
but nothing caught my eye.  I didn’t have much of an appetite.  Without saying a word, I closed it and looked at the clock.  I didn’t realize Chris was watching me.

“Everyth
ing okay?  You’re awfully quiet.” 
H
is dark eyes
studied
my face.

“I’m fine.  Just tired, I guess.  I’m not used to having all this free time.
”
 
I offered him a weak smile.  “
I think I need to take up a new hobby or something.”
 

He stood behind me and pressed his
strong fingers into the muscles of my
upper back
. 

“You’re tense.”

I gave a sarcastic laugh.  “Aren’t I always?” 

“Not like this,” he said, kneading with small, circular motions.  I leaned my head forward and let my hair fall in my face.  With a deep breath, I tried to relax as he massaged away the stress. 

The muscles responded to his touch, loosening as he worked up and down my spine. 
My
agitation
from
the
conversation with Mr. Doveland eased.  The tension all but melted away.

He seemed to notice the difference.  “Better?”  I could hear the smile in his voice.

I raised my head, but my body felt like jelly, and it took a few seconds before I regained my cent
er of balance. 
The stresses of the day were temporarily forgotten. 
I felt much better. 
“You’re good.
”

He went to the TV
and messed around with some
cables
, but I remained at the table, my eyes following his every move. 
The way
his
shirt clung to his arms and chest as he stretched was
entrancing
.
  It was too much.

“What?” he said, watching me gawk at him. 

“I think you’re a little too hot for that shirt.  Why don’t you take it off?”

He all but dropped the controller, gave me a surprised look, and sat down on the edge of the
couch
.  “I will if you will.”
  The corners of his mouth rose up into a challenging grin.

I stood, pulled my shirt up over my head, and shook
out my hair
as I walked over to him
.  “Fair enough.”

He reached out to touch my bare belly, but I tackled him, shoving his shoulders and pushing him
back
into the couch cushions
.  Within seconds
,
he flipped me
around and
had me
pinned
.  He sat on top of me and held my wrists up over my head.  I was so content that I didn’t even fight back.