Page 34 of Veiled

If this studio won’t produce the record, there’ll be someone else who will.

Justin begins to play, and I watch Chance as he listens. Not seeing a hint of him liking what he hears, but not seeing that he doesn’t either. He’s playing this one close to the vest, and that’s fine.

Justin sings three songs before Chance motions for him to come out of the booth, his face grim as he faces us both. “They’re good.” But he doesn’t sound happy. His eyes meet mine. “But they aren’t marketable.”

“You said yourself, they’ll sell.”

He huffs and looks over at Justin. “You need to let us play around with the music a little. We can make these work. They’re catchy, but some of it is a little dreary. That second song... I’m not sure that’s what your fans want from you.”

I watch Justin’s firm jaw set. “It’s what I want. If they’re true fans, they’ll love it because it’s me.”

“Just let us add in some, I don’t know, happy.”

I roll my eyes and huff, sick of this. I knew it was probably a bad idea to come to him. “We’ll walk. He doesn’t need the studio, but you being the one to put out his first, and maybe only, solo album, that’s a big deal.”

Chance looks around the room at all the records and then at me, his eyes narrowed. “I don’t think it’s going to work out.”

Justin tries to hide his shock, but I see it before he schools his handsome features. “Okay then,” I say, shaking Chance’s hand and steering Justin out of there. He looks bewildered as we get into the car.

“He passed.”

“It’s fine. You can self-produce, if you want, or we’ll find someone else to do it, if you want this. If not, well... I’ll book a damn bar.”

He looks over at me and shakes his head. “Am I being an idiot? Are the songs bad?”

I instantly answer him with a quick shake of my head. “They aren’t. They’re different. And to some fans, that’s going to be hard. But it doesn’t matter, Justin. They’re beautiful songs, and they should be out in the world.”

He swallows hard, his eyes troubled before he looks out the window, and I start the drive back to the cabin.

I hate this. I know I let him down, and that’s just unacceptable to me. How the hell do I keep letting this man down over and over?

“I’m a goddamn mess, huh?” he asks with a slight laugh.

“No.” I grin and turn onto the dirt road that leads up to the cabins. “Well, no more than any other artist.”

He laughs. “Maybe I should let them have all the control.”

“Nope.” I park the Jeep. “We aren’t doing that. This is how you wrote them, and you’re keeping them that way. It’s scary, but you can do this.” I decide tough love is the way to go.

He looks out over the Tennessee hills and nods, determined. “Okay. So what now?”

I smile, so damn happy we aren’t going to wallow. “Now, I’m going to work my magic.”

I wink at him and hop out of the Jeep, my phone already out, ready to make this happen for him.

Aweek later, we’re in another Nashville studio, but I have a much better feeling about this. Daisy’s studio is smaller, much smaller, but I like the vibe, and she’s thrilled when she hears the songs.

She’s ready to sign him already.

I look to Justin to see if this is what he really wants, and he seems pretty damn content. “And you won’t change them at all?”

“That’s not what we do here,” Daisy says with a kind smile. “I take on artists who write their own songs for a reason. You want your story told. I’m here to help you tell it. Not tell you how to. Your songs are beautiful.”

She’s not just saying that to seal the deal. Daisy is the real thing, and I’m grateful.

“Okay. And do I have to agree to concerts and stuff?” Justin looks nervous now, his hand going to the back of his neck in a nervous habit. “I mean, I probably can. I just...”

Daisy places her hand over his that’s on the table, and I didn’t miss the slight shake. I doubt Daisy did either. “All we do is produce the album. Yeah, we’ll promote it, but we let you decide how you want to promote it on your end. Wherever you decide to do it. We don’t want to own you,” she says kindly, and I swear I see the relief on his face instantly.

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