Page 57 of Trouble Walked In

Della sucked in a breath.

He shoved the last table into place with a loud screech of legs on the wood floor. “I did it because I believed in you and your family. I always have. It was one of the main reasons I even started the label to begin with. I watched how Omega forced you to stay in that little girl pop zone way past the point of believability, and I didn’t think it was right. They were holding all of you back. Not just you, but Piper and Mattie too. So when The Bellamy Sisters contract was up, I signed you, and I pushed Piper and Mattie down their own paths, and I let Lizzie think I was the bastard that ripped her family apart.”

“Why didn’t you say something?” Della watched him like he was a volcano about to erupt. “About Lizzie, I mean? You never told me you loved her. You never said—”

“You had a solo career to launch. You’re the cornerstone of Self Evident. You know that. What you don’t know is now that we've seen some success with your first two albums, Omega Music Group's been chomping at the bit to get us under their umbrella.”

Della stiffened. “I don’t want to be part of a big label like that. Not again.”

“If you back out on this tour, I’ll have no choice but to take them up on their offer. It’s that, or shut it all down because I won’t be able to cover the losses on my own. That means my team, and your crew, won’t get paid. I can’t—I won’t—let that happen. I’ll do a deal with the devil to stop that from happening. That’s how much I care.” He took a deep breath to get his anger under control.

Della’s face was red and splotchy, and there were tears on her cheeks. He rubbed his face, then lowered his voice to a near whisper. “What about you, Della? Are you okay with everyone else paying the price for your choices?”

“No.” She said the word so softly he could barely hear it, but she said it out loud, which meant he'd finally managed to break through the shield she’d put between them.

“If you want to quit when this tour’s over, that’s one thing. But if you quit now you have to face the consequences of letting everybody down. Because I’m done doing it for you.” Renic waited for a long moment, but she stared at the window on the far side of the room and didn't say anything. He’d said all he could. The rest was up to her. “Nate will be here on Sunday. If you haven’t changed your mind by then, I’ll sign the papers.”

He picked up the floor plan and studied it. All but one table was in place, but many the chairs still needed to be shifted.

He dragged it across to the left corner, then grabbed a stack of chairs.

Della drifted toward the door. “Renic?”

He looked at her, hope flaring in his chest. “Yeah?”

“I think she loved you too.” Della bit her lip, then left without another word.

Chapter Fifteen

Thursday went a lot smoother than Lizzie had expected after the irritating start to the day. True to his word, Renic arranged the ballroom precisely to her specifications. The bare drywall was safely hidden away behind a white lattice screen and plants. He also pitched in with several other last-minute decorating chores, even though they’d had to work through lunch to get it all done.

She was intensely curious about what happened in the ballroom after she left him alone with Della, but she didn't have time to grill him on it, and Della stayed out of sight.

As the sun dipped lower, Lizzie stood near the back door with a binder in hand, going over the master list. Only two items remained without a satisfying checkmark: the twinkle lights, which needed to be placed on the path to Lookout Point, and the blankets, which needed to be stashed in the bench at the Point.

Lizzie picked up the blankets, balancing the binder precariously on top, and went outside. The porch had been transformed into a lush, twinkling forest with plants movedfrom the greenhouse. Carter and Renic were wrestling a tall stand heater into place near a table on the left.

She caught sight of Della disappearing through the door to the Carriage House and frowned. “Where’s Della going?”

Carter glanced over his shoulder at her. “She said she was tired.”

Lizzie contemplated the closed door. “Maybe I should check on her.”

“She’s fine, Lizzie,” Renic said.

A little too fast, she thought. They must have had quite the conversation. She narrowed her eyes at him, but he avoided her gaze.

Renic shifted the heater over a little and looked at Carter. “How’s that?”

Carter stepped in front of it. “Nah, more to the left.”

Renic gave Carter an exasperated look, but obligingly shifted the heater to the left.

“Too far,” Carter said.

Renic stepped back. “It’s fine.”

Lizzie covered a smirk. “This looks great, y’all. Thanks.”

---