Page 4 of Diva Pop

Jett’s world felt as if it were tipping on its axis. He shook his head, confused, nauseous. “This is crazy. What are we supposed to be now? Five Trick Pony? None of this makes any sense.”

“Jett?” Silas gestured to the chair, his tone calm and even. “Please. The label is behind the three of you all the way. They realize you’re the force that makes Three Trick Pony a powerhouse group. But it’s time to freshen things up and make some changes, because clearly, things have been eroding for a while.”

Jett let out a shaky breath and descended on his chair with as much grace as he could manage, despite feeling as if he might melt into a pile of goo at any second.

“Fine.” Jett straightened his shoulders, crossing his legs again to radiate the confidence he didn’t actually feel. “I’ll concede that the situation with Bob has imploded beyond repair. However, and no offense to your amazing reputation, we did not agree to you managing us.” Jett glanced sideways at Tory and Paul. “Right?”

Jett wanted to make sure he wasn’t making a complete ass of himself. He was already coming off like a clueless idiot as it was. To his amazement, not only Tory, but Paul nodded their heads. Hell had definitely frozen over. He and Paul couldn’t agree on what two plus two equaled.

Paul regarded Silas with a frown. “Yeah. We all signed with Bob and that’s it. He put the band together, brought us to the label and stayed on as manager and producer. End of story.” Paul shrugged. “Now that he’s quit, that means we’re free agents, right?” Paul gave Jett the side-eye. “We could get our own solo representation.”

A moment passed where Silas didn’t respond. He rubbed his bearded chin, his deep brown eyes fixed on some mysterious spot at the other end of the room. The suspense was killing Jett. At last, Silas seemed to come to a conclusion, and he planted his hands on his hips before meeting their gazes again.

“Gentlemen, I would advise you to seek the advice of a reputable entertainment lawyer and have him or her explain that contract to you. I could be misinformed, but judging from what I’m hearing, none of you ever thought to do that before you signed that legally binding agreement?”

Jett’s gut churned. His spidey senses told him he wasn’t going to like what he was about to hear.

Silas continued. “When you signed with Bob, you basically gave him complete control over your entire careers. He owned the name, the songs, the concept, the everything. When Bob brought the act to the label, he sold them your contracts. In reality, you’re the property of Charisma Records. Bob’s abrupt departure only means that instead of the label paying him a fee to manage and produce Three Trick Pony, they’re paying me for that honor.” He turned to Paul. “So, no. You’re not a free agent.”

Fuck me. Jett couldn’t believe any of this was real. How could he have been so stupid as to sign that fucking contract?

“So, wait.” Jett swiped at the sweat building at his hairline. “You’re saying this is forever?” He grunted. “I’m in Three Trick Pony until I die?”

Silas let out a sigh, but it didn’t come off as irritation. More as if he felt sorry for the three fuck-ups who’d signed a contract without representation. That alone pissed Jett off. He didn’t need anyone’s pity.

“I strongly recommend you all retain lawyers. I haven’t memorized the contract and I’m only generally versed in entertainment law.” Silas shook his head. “But no, not a lifetime of servitude. The initial contract period was for seven years.”

Jett frowned. Yeah. He remembered that much. It seemed like a good idea at the time.

“I see.” Jett straightened again, desperate to quit appearing like a pathetic little idiot in front of this sophisticated and intelligent man. Especially if he was going to be stuck working with him for the next three years. “So how do Pony Four and Pony Five figure into all this?”

The corners of Silas’ mouth twitched. “Yes, well, you can blame me for that.”

“Oh, excellent.” Jett let out a mocking laugh. “I love having someone to blame.”

Silas grunted. “I’m sure you do. But to continue, after I was retained I spent some time going over the band’s rise, and more recent dip, over the past four years. I’ve come up with some strategies to help liven things up, and one of them is to add new members. I think it’ll give the band a lot more opportunity for creativity in live shows and videos.” Silas locked eyes with him. “Let’s face it. Three Trick Pony’s popularity is based more on visuals than anything else.”

Jett had no idea whether this guy knew how condescending he was being, or if he was complimenting or insulting him.

Probably a little of both.

“Then the new guys are background dancers. Here to spice things up a bit.” He could live with that.

Silas tipped his head back, staring at the ceiling before meeting Jett’s gaze again. “No. Equal members.”

Jett clamped his lips together then shot to his feet again. He was so fucking done. “Like hell they are!” He jabbed a finger at Silas. “You know what? That’s complete bullshit. They haven’t paid their dues, haven’t suffered through what the three of us did before all the fame and glory kicked in. They don’t get to just show up and be insta-stars.” Jett sliced his hands through the air. “I'm out.”

Stomping out in a rage was a precarious proposition in the heels, but he intended to give it his best shot. Tory tried to grab his arm again, but Jett shook it off. Oh, he’d been infuriated many a time since becoming a member of Three Trick Pony.

But this was worse. This fucking hurt.

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