Page 72 of Protecting Nicole

NICOLE

“You’re fucking insane. You asked for an inch, then took it a mile.” Knox thrusts his hand at the radio station our shared limousine is pulling away from. “First, you go off script by performing a song not contracted to the label. Then you tell him your album needs tweaks.”

“Nothing that can’t be—”

“Nothing at all. It’s been finished for months now.Months!You made the label look like incompetent fools.”

His glare lodges a brick in my throat, but I refuse to back down on the decisions I made this morning after our discussion slash argument in the limousine. “How? By striving to give the people we need to make the album a success an album worth buying? You heard what Emanual—”

“Emanual is a disc jockey getting too fucking big for his boots.”

Even though I agree with him, I continue speaking as if he never interrupted me. “He was ready to cancel my interview. The only thing that stopped him was the footage that went viral on YouTube last night.” The footage he stabbed his finger at was of me singing the only solo performance of the rain concert. The rest of the performances were duets with either Laken or River. “This is what we need. This is what we deserve.” Instead of mimicking Emanual's southern drawl, I return my voice to its standard setting. “Laken said the same. That my fans deserve to hearmysongs.”

“Laken doesn’t know what he’s talking about. He isn’t a music producer.”

My heart speaks on my behalf again for the umpteenth time over the past twenty-four hours. “I’m still willing to risk it.”

Knox’s eyes are on me, hot and heavy. “Risk what?”

“I want Laken to produce a handful of my songs.” When this idea popped into my head this morning, I thought lust had made me looney, but after having Marcus look over the work Laken and I had done the day before and hearing the crowd's response to the song we co-wrote, there’s no denying the obvious. Laken has talent by the bucketloads. He could be a star, but unlike Marcus, he only wants infamy behind the desk because it is the only way he can do a job he loves and protect River at the same time.

A fragile soul can only take so much before it cracks, and although River’s outer shell seems unbreakable, those who truly know him know it is a front he uses to protect himself.

That’s why he never argued for better when Knox made him clean the restrooms after the stinky road crew messed them up, and why he never batted an eyelid when his services went unpaid for months.

It is also why Laken continually lets Knox walk all over him.

He deserves better, and I will make sure he gets it.

“What… are you… I…” Knox breathes out a low sigh before settling on, “This is theexactreason I demand all employees sign a nonfraternization contract. Just because they knock it out of the park beneath the sheets doesn’t mean they’ll do the same out of them.” When I don’t flinch at his insinuation Laken and I have slept together, he breathes heavily out of his nose. “Apollo will never go for it. He signed off on this weeks ago.”

“That’s okay. I don’t need his approval or his studio.” I hand him the details of a contact Noah shared this morning. “The studio hasn’t been used for a couple of years, but it has everything we need to lay down some tracks.” My voice isn’t as confident during my next few sentences. “My contract states that creative control remains with the artist. That means the artist determines the songs, music compositions, and dance routines.” I flatten my palm against my chest to amplify my point.

This is my choice.

“Your album releases next week.” He stares at me like he doesn’t know me. “Next.Fucking.Week. We don’t have time to record more songs.”

“We will if we make sacrifices.” I show him the itinerary he forwarded to the team this morning. “Most of my interviews are either first thing in the morning or late at night. There are several hours to record in the middle of the day.” I seem to be getting him over the fence, so I give him one final tug. “Preorder sales for my album skyrocketed overnight. It could go platinum opening weekifwe give them an album they deserve.”

He shakes his head before running his hand through his hair. “This is insane, Nicole. You’re going to make me fucking bald. But…” His last word isn’t expected, and it is as shocking as his next two. “You’re right. The chances of your album flopping are less likely if we mix things up like you did on the rooftop.” The scrub of his jaw has him missing my swallow. When he said “rooftop,” my mind went straight to my heated night with Laken, not us singing in the rain. “But I wish you’d stop dropping shit on me like this. I don’t handle change well.” He laughs before dragging his hand under his nose, making me wonder if his backflip is because my proof can’t be denied or because he’s under the influence. Either way, he sounds playful while saying, “Even when it’ll make me a ton of money, I have to be dragged to the plate by the scruff of my shirt.”

I didn’t anticipate our conversation taking this route, but I’m incredibly grateful it did.

“So you’re willing to give it a shot?”

By “it,” I mean Laken.

Knox takes a moment to deliberate before jerking up his chin.

To show my gratitude, I wrap him up in a hug that would make River proud. “Thank you so much for believing in me and my vision. I won’t let you down. I promise.”

“I hate that you say that like I haven’t had your back all along. Neither of us would be here if I didn’t believe in you, Nik.” He holds on tight, extending our hug long enough for the paparazzi to timestamp its occurrence into the record books. “But can I ask a favor?” He waits for me to inch back and bounce my eyes between his before letting me know things aren’t as bad as I imagine. “Can I run a background search on Laken before offering him the position?”

“Knox—”

“Not just for your safety but River’s as well. I want to make sure he’s not left heartbroken again.”

I hate myself for even contemplating planting the seed of doubt he’s trying to insert in my head, but since I’m confident his PI won’t find anything that will change my mind on how I feel about Laken, I give him the go-ahead.

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