Page 71 of Movers and Shakers

I nodded gratefully as she led me to the table.

“And maybe exactly what we’ll be putting in the album,” Sasha added. She’d let her cousin talk for most of the meeting, but her smile told me she was also excited. “Because I amready.”

I signed all of the papers after sending them to my lawyer who gave me a confident thumbs-up, feeling a sense of relief. “Now, I just need to see how the fans are reacting to this.”

“And how do you do that?” Malia asked.

“I usually check social media.”

“Oh, and do you like that?”

“Sometimes the truth hurts, but it’s good to know what the general consensus is.”

Malia and Sasha glanced at each other as if passing words between them.

“What?” I asked.

“I have surveys I can send out,” Malia explained. “Maybe it would be best to shelve social media while you’re finishing this album. After all, you’ve been through a lot and the last thing you need is to have your creative flow interrupted.”

“And you’ll let me know if I need to change anything?”

“Of course.”

“Okay,” I said. “I don’t even know if Icanstay away. I always go back to it when I’m bored.”

“Have you considered deleting the apps from your phone?”

“Uh, no. I honestly hadn’t even thought of doing it. Thank you for that suggestion, Malia. I think it’s a great idea.”

Lila: Hey, Barry. My life is a little less of a mess right now. I got a new publicist. The single is doing so well. People love it.

Barry: Glad you’re okay.

Lila: You helped me so much with it. I could give you songwriting credit so you’d get paid for it.

Barry: I don’t need the money. Helping you with it was more than enough.

Barry: Are you okay? I know you haven’t been able to have a moment of peace in LA. I keep seeing paparazzi pictures of you everywhere.

Lila: Ugh. I’m fine. I’m used to it, no matter how much it sucks.

Lila: Also, I have this song we sang together. Want me to add your name to the album?

Barry: I don’t need to be named.

Lila: But you wrote the song? Don’t you want your glory?

Barry: I don’t need glory. I got everything I wanted.

Barry: Will you be coming back to Nashville anytime soon?

Lila: Well, I can’t leave my biggest fan hanging. When I finish the album, I’ll come and show it to you.

Barry

The last time I’d seen Lila was over two months ago. My life had been busy between running the bar, finally giving in to joining Ruth’s newfound family dinners, and watching Tom repair his relationship with his son Max—but Lila was always on my mind.

So when she randomly showed up at my front door, she looked like no time had passed at all; her hair still past her shoulders and her lashes dark, but her smile was like a breath of fresh air after being underwater.

---