FanGirl Squeal (RockStars of Romance Book 1) (11 page)

Just as I was about to comment that Ashley is the problem,
not me, my phone started playing Kiss’
The Devil is Me
.

“Speaking of my twin,” I groaned as I unlocked the phone and
hit speaker. “Hey Ash.”

“Ashley,” my sister corrected me. “Are you on your way to
the airport?”

“I’m fine, Ash. Thanks for asking. How are you? When are you
going to learn how to hold a proper conversation?”

“When you learn how to comb your hair,” Ashley fired back. “Are
you on your way to the airport?”

“Yes, Ash. What do you want?”

“Savannah,” she started in her cross-examination voice. “I
have something to tell you. I know you’re immediately going to assume that I set
you up, but I didn’t have anything to do with this. In fact, I just found out a
few minutes ago.”

Drama Queen
, I mouthed to Troy who tried – and failed
– to stifle his laugh.

“What is it, Ash? The suspense is literally killing me.”

“It’s Ashley,” she corrected me again. “And you should know
that Mom and Dad invited Mr. and Mrs. Reynolds to the party.” Ashley paused for
dramatic effect. “And Jacoby.”

I could not have heard her correctly. My sister may hate me,
but there’s no way she just said that Jacoby’s coming to my parents’ party. No
way in hell she said that.

“Repeat that.”

She did. “I’m so sorry, Savannah.” Ashley actually sounded
sorry. She actually had sympathy in her voice.

“But why?” I wailed into my phone. “Why is he coming? Why
does he want to be around my family? Does he know I’m going to be there?”

“Yes,” Ashley replied. “He wants to see you. Mom just told
me that he’s been asking about you and talking about getting you back, but-”

“That’s bullshit!” Ashley and I said at the same time. I was
surprised to hear her express the same sentiment as me.

“Don’t worry, sister. We may not always get along, but you
are my twin and I’m not going to let Jacoby near you. After you check-in to
your room, come to my house. We’ll figure this out together, okay?”

“Sure, Ash.”

I have my doubts that she didn’t already know about this,
but I didn’t know what else to say. Thankfully, we’d reached the three-minute
time limit for our conversation and that phone call ended. My stomach began to
twist in perfect little knots. I wanted to cry. How could my own parents betray
me like this? And how did I wake up in a universe where Ashley Ford-Houston
actually has my back? This doesn’t make any kind of sense.

“See!” I shouted tearfully. “This is why I don’t go home! I
can’t even trust my own parents!”

“Calm down, Banana.” Troy patted my knee. “He’s the past.
You have too much going for you to let that jerk mess up your weekend. Go to
that party, be FIERCE, and let that man see what he’s missing then poof, be gone!
You’re going home for one reason only and Jacoby Reynolds is not it. And don’t
be mad at your parents. You know those poor misguided souls only have good
intentions. I’m sure your momma thinks that seeing Jacoby will be good for you
in some purely psychological way that only she understands.”

I folded my arms across my chest and pouted. “I’m not
talking to him.”

“Don’t. You’re going home to celebrate love with your
family, as uppity as they might be. And enjoy the fact that Ashley did right by
you by telling you before you got to New York. You don’t even have to spend the
entire five days up there if you don’t want to. Come home after the party and
we’ll spend the rest of your vacation in Palm Springs sipping mai tais and
getting crispy in the sun.”

Troy pulled up to the Departures area of LAX and stopped the
car. He hugged me like I was about to board Hogwarts Express and he wouldn’t
see me for months. I wish. I would love to be magically transported to a
fictional place right about now. However, I’m headed to Harlem, New York. My
tummy churned and gurgled its disapproval. Between Cash and Jacoby, I don’t
know how I’m going to get through the next five days.

Ashley better not be opposed to stopping at a liquor store
when she picks me up.

“You should have let me hire a car service,” Jennifer
complained as Cash whipped his Mustang Shelby GT in and out of the crowded
Manhattan traffic.

Cash still drove like he lived in Los Angeles. He couldn’t
help it. Changing the way he drove was on the bottom of his To Do List.

“I told you to put on your seatbelt. And I like driving my
own car. I paid a lot of money for my cars. Why should they sit in the garage?
I have insurance.”

“Then hire a driver who knows how to drive in the city,” was
his mom’s snappy retort.

Cash let it go. His mom was on edge because today was the
day she met the Stone Management team and relinquished her MOMager title. She conveniently
failed to remember that quitting was her idea. As much as Cash wanted his
career managed by someone else, he never spoke that sentiment to anyone who
would tell Jennifer.

Stone Management came highly recommended by a few of Cash’s
musician friends. The husband and wife team of Bryan and Olivia Stone were used
to working with established artists and were great at taking stagnant careers
to new levels. With the number one album on Billboard, Cash didn’t think his
career was stagnant, but he definitely wanted to explore some other options.
After speaking with Bryan a few times, Cash liked their management approach and
was willing to give then a try.

Cash pulled his car up to the valet stand and opened the
door for his Mom. When they entered the building, Cash could feel his mother’s anxiety
radiating off her. He was glad that they were alone in the elevator as he
wrapped his mother in a big hug.

“It’s okay, Mom. Don’t be upset.”

Cash hated to see his mother upset over anything. There were
years that he couldn’t do anything about her tears. And he certainly didn’t
want to be the one who made her cry again. They were thick as thieves since it
was just the two of them for so long. She was the most important person in his
life and vice versa.

“Do you feel like I’m abandoning you?” Jennifer asked
bluntly; her only way of speaking. “I’ve seen what happens when parents who
manage their children part ways. Look at Usher and Beyoncé.”

“But I’m not firing you,” Cash reminded her. “This is your
choice. You’ve been taking care of me for my entire life, Mom. If you don’t
want to manage me anymore, I’m okay with that. It’ll be nice to have that
separation again, don’t you think?”

Cash hoped Jennifer shared the same sentiment or the
elevator ride to the twelfth floor could easily turn into the ride from hell.

“You’re almost thirty,” Jennifer let out a big sigh. “You
don’t need your momma overseeing everything you do. Don’t get me wrong, I
enjoyed working for you. But at the end of the day, I don’t want to work for my
son.”

At 6’4”, Cash towered over his mother. He leaned over and
kissed the top of her head. “Love ya, Ma.”

The Myers stepped off the elevator on the twelfth floor and
were greeted by a cheery blonde receptionist. She was smiling so hard that Cash
would have assumed that she had never seen a celebrity before if she didn’t
work for an artist management firm.

“Cash! Right this way! Bryan is expecting you. Olivia isn’t
able to make this meeting, but your publicist is already here. Can I get you
something to drink? Water or a glass of wine perhaps?”

“Sure,” Jennifer answered. “I’ll take a glass of red and my
son will have orange juice. The conference room is where?”

The girl was taken aback by Jennifer’s brusqueness, but
quickly recovered in order to do her job. “It’s right down the hall to your
left,” she pointed. “I’ll be right there with your drinks.”

The receptionist scurried away as Jennifer led Cash down the
hall like she’d been to the office before.

Bryan Stone reminded Cash of Jerry McGuire. He was short, with
a loud voice and was constantly in motion. He was overly excited like a Chihuahua.
He talked fast and worked even faster. Even though they had totally opposite
personalities, Cash thought they’d work well together.

“Cash!” Bryan’s voice boomed through the room. “Good to see
you again, my man! And who is this lovely young lady? Your sister?”

Jennifer was not flattered. “His mother,” she answered. “But
you already knew that.”

“Sure, sure,” Bryan replied. “Have a seat. Let’s get down to
business.”

After giving Tracy a quick hug, Cash easily tuned out his
mom and Bryan as they discussed his current business deals and endorsements. It
wasn’t that he wasn’t interested in his career. His mother made sure he stayed well
informed about what was going on. He just wasn’t interested in the turnover of
information.

He pulled out his phone and checked his email then logged
onto Instagram. He tried to keep his smile hidden as he browsed Savannah Ford’s
pictures. He felt like such a stalker, but he couldn’t help himself.

God, she was beautiful. Her smile could brighten a room that
she wasn’t even in. Her bright brown eyes looked like they held all the secrets
of the world and she was eager to spill the beans. She had the confidence of a
New Yorker, but the demeanor of a California girl. He scrolled through her
pictures, noting a few dated twenty-four hours ago. One was the taxi stand at
LaGuardia. The other was of her and an equally gorgeous girl. The caption read,
Finally back home. Harlem bound with my big sis #twinsies

Cash’s mood became a bit brighter knowing that Savannah was
already in New York and he’d be meeting her for the first time in less than
forty-eight hours. Tracy had arranged a meeting at her New York office so he
could do the interview Savannah wanted.

“So, let’s talk about that fan book Cash told me about,”
Bryan said to Jennifer.

Cash looked up from his phone and caught his mother’s eye.
She shook her head at him.

“What about it?” Jennifer asked.

“Well, after he told me about it, I decided to check out the
blogger who did it,” Bryan stated. “I needed to see what she’s about since
Tracy has already granted her an interview.”

Tracy shifted in her chair and cleared her throat. Cash knew
that she was a bit disturbed by Bryan’s announcement. “You don’t have to check
my work,” Tracy stated. “I’ve already got this under control. You’re not even
his manager yet. You won’t be until he signs that paperwork.”

“Cash,” Bryan turned to him, completely ignoring Tracy. “You
came to us because you know that we can give your career a boost. The most
important thing in the industry right now is connecting with your fans. These
people eat that shit up. They want you to be on Instagram and Twitter. They
want more than just your music, but most of all, they want to feel as if they
are important.”

“His fans already know he thinks they’re important,”
Jennifer spoke up. “His Twitter and Instagram following is huge. Why are you
worried about his fans? We’ve never had any issues with Cash connecting with
his fans.”

“Well, after hearing about the book, I had a fantastic idea.
I want this meeting with the blogger chick filmed and posted on your website
and on Instagram. People will eat that shit up! My people were able to get her
to come up here today to talk about why she did that book. I’m expecting over a
million hits on your website after we post it.”

Tracy gripped the edge of the table and pushed her chair
away from anything that was within throwing range. Cash laughed to himself.
Bryan had no idea what he’d just done.

“I’m his publicist,” Tracy stated angrily. “You should have
cleared that with me.”

Bryan raised his eyebrows. “Why? His website will be managed
by us. We’ll decide what content goes up there.”

Tracy threw Cash an icy look. He shrugged his shoulders and
slowly shook his head. Bryan was wrong on so many different things, but Cash
would have a discussion with him.

“Savannah Ford is my contact,” Tracy informed Cash’s
possible new manager. “She didn’t do the book for publicity and I know she damn
sure didn’t agree to have anything involving her put on his website. She asked
for the interview way before that book was even thought about. That’s why I
arranged it. That’s why she’s in New York.”

Bryan shrugged. “She seemed really eager to come up here
today and she’s been talking to my assistant down the hall so she’s not too
adamant about the publicity thing. Don’t get it confused. She’s a gossip
blogger, not some do-gooder fan.”

Bryan’s words caught Cash’s attention immediately. “Savannah
is here? Now?”

Bryan nodded. “She’s been here for about ten minutes. Alicia
texted me when she arrived.”

Cash pushed his chair back and stood up. He would have preferred
meeting Savannah when he was wearing something other than baggy sweats and a
sleeveless t-shirt. He took off his Red Sox cap and tried to smooth his wind
tussled hair.

“Take me to her,” he said firmly.

Bryan was wrong and Cash didn’t like that Savannah had been
lured there under false pretenses. He knew her true intentions and wasn’t about
to let anyone ambush her, especially not a manager that he hadn’t even signed a
contract with.

Bryan and Cash walked side by side down the hallway.
Jennifer and Tracy followed behind.

“Yo Bry,” Cash said just loud enough for Bryan to hear. “I
appreciate your enthusiasm, but this book thing is personal. We’re not going to
make a public spectacle over it. I think we’ll work well together, but you have
to remember that I have a team of people I trust. If this thing is going to
work, you will have to work with Tracy because she’s not going anywhere.”

“Sure, sure, my man. I have no problem with that. I was-”

Bryan was interrupted by the crash of a slamming door. A
woman in a long, strapless, fuchsia dress rounded the corner angrily. Her wrist
was full of bangles that clanged nosily together as she mumbled incoherent
words. The blonde that had greeted Cash earlier was running after her.