Nick stepped out from behind the changing screen in his dressing room and watched in amusement as Beth’s face turned the same pasty color as the white loveseat she was sitting on.
“How do I look?”
Perfect. Just great. Beth jumped to her feet and slapped the palm of her hand against her forehead. “This isn’t happening.”
Nick walked clumsily across the room, one hand acting as a belt around his waist and the other hiking up the extra length pooling at his feet. He turned to view his shrinking backside in the full-length mirror and caught Beth’s expression in the mirror. She looked like she was going to cry.
“It’s really not that bad.” He soothed.
“Not that bad?!” She snorted. “You’re kidding me, right? Nick, I can’t even see your hands, the sleeves are so long.”
He looked down at the sleeves dangling below his fingertips. “I guess I’ve lost more weight.”
“I know you have." She groaned. "That’s why I had wardrobe measure you again last week.”
“I don’t see that much of a change when I look in the mirror. I’m glad you noticed.”
“I had nightmares that this would happen. This monkey suit should fit you like a glove.” She nudged the jacket aside and cinched a few inches of excess material at his waist. “The way you jump around on stage, these pants are going to fall right off you.”
“I think this is the first time I’ve ever had to have anything altered because it’s too big.” He puffed his chest out. “It feels good.”
“You’ve worked so hard to lose those extra pounds.” She tapped her bottom lip with her index finger, a nervous habit that always helped her think clearly.
He nodded. “Thanks for noticing.”
“I promise we’ll celebrate, but after we get you into a suit that fits properly.” Beth glanced at the clock on the far wall. “You go onstage in an hour?” Nick nodded and reached for a carrot stick from the vegetable tray on the coffee table. His dressing room snacks were healthy now – vegetable and fruit trays and tons of bottled water.
“Maybe wardrobe can just pin them up or something?” He took a bite of the crispy vegetable.
“No, that won’t work.” Beth wasn’t a seamstress, but she knew enough about sewing to know that fixing the problem with Nick’s tux would take longer than an hour. She dug her cell phone from her bag and dialed the number stapled to the tuxedo garment bag.
Nick sat down on a stool and picked up the program for that evening’s performances. As he flipped through the pages and read the biographies of each artist, he found himself listening in on Beth’s conversation with the tuxedo shop owner. He was amazed at how calmly and politely she dealt with the person on the other end of the line, especially when he knew how stressed she was.
She hung up, a satisfied grin on her face. “They’ll be here in a half hour with a new tux and they’re taking the charge off of your credit card.”
She grabbed his hand and led him towards the changing area. “Slip out of this and then you can take your turn in the make-up chair while we wait for the new tux.”
Nick shook his head. “No make-up. My face is finally clearing up and that shit makes me break out.”
Beth leaned closer to study his smooth skin. “Yeah, your face does look good.”
“It’s settled then, no make-up.” He turned away and she grabbed his arm.
“Not quite, Ace. You know how the stage lights wash you out. A little foundation and powder will make you look better out there. After your performance, you can wash it right off.”
“You,” Nick pointed a finger at her, “are really good at getting me to do what you want me to do.”
“They’re just simple suggestions, Nick.”
“Uh huh.” He rolled his eyes and went to change as he was told.
“Hey, Jeff,” she yelled across the noisy room to the make-up artist she hired, “you heard the man, right? Light foundation and powder only.”
“Just the minimum, Beth. Got it.”
Nick stepped from behind the screen a few minutes later wearing a white robe and thrust the wadded up tux into Beth’s waiting hands. She rolled her eyes and meticulously folded and placed each piece onto its proper hanger, then zipped the garment bag around it.
“This shouldn’t have happened. I’m really sorry, Nick.”
“Hey,” Nick wrapped his arm around her shoulder, “people make mistakes. You did your job by calling in the new measurements. They screwed up, not you.”
“I’m sure it’s going to work out fine.” Beth pointed him towards the make-up chair and headed towards the door, the tux swinging from her index finger.
“Beth, can you do one more thing for me before you go?” She stopped and turned back to see her boss’ face being sponged lightly with foundation. “Would you send a dozen pink roses to Shelley at her home address? If you don’t have it, it’s in my Palm.”
“I think I have her address somewhere.” Beth laid the tux over a chair and pulled her notepad from her bag. “What do you want the card to say?”
“Dinner tomorrow? I’ll call you. Nick.”
“Got it. Anything else?”
“If she says yes, I’ll need reservations somewhere nice. You decide.” Note to self – call hotel Concierge.
“I’ll make reservations and we can cancel them if she can’t make it. Anything else?”
“Put Cassie’s calls through right away, okay? She’s got an interview tonight and she’s really nervous about it.”
After another five minutes of last minute instructions, Beth stepped out into the noisy hallway and took a deep breath. She hoisted the bulky tuxedo over one shoulder and headed towards the backstage door. And he wonders why I don’t eat before he performs.
~~*~~*~~*~~*~~
Nick stretched out on the bed. “So how’s my best buddy in the whole world?”
“I’m doing fine.” Twenty-five-year-old Cassie Parker tucked a strand of honey-blond hair behind her ear and rubbed her fingers over her sleepy baby blues. It had been a long day. “How was your performance?”
“I was okay.”
“Okay?” She grinned and rolled her eyes. Talented and modest. “Carter, I hardly doubt that you were just okay.”
A cool California breeze blew softly through her bedroom window, making goose bumps erupt over her bare arms. She reached down to the foot of the bed and pulled the light blanket up over her tiny frame.
“You blew their socks off, didn’t you?”
“Yeah.” He giggled.
“That’s my pal.” She took a sip of the warm tea sitting on her bedside table. “ I’m so proud of you.”
“I wish you could have been here.”
“Me too.” She said softly.
“Cass, enough about me. How was your interview? I thought about you all night.”
“The interview,” she paused, “was interesting. I felt out of place from the minute I walked through the door. The firm handles a lot of gospel artists. You know I’m not interested in going down that road."
“That’s a world away from when you were a PR intern with Backstreet.”
“Yeah.” She sighed. “Maybe I need a long vacation before I start looking seriously again. I have enough money saved to survive for a year and I think I need a break from all the craziness.”
“You could come visit me for awhile?” Nick crossed his fingers. “I’ll be on the road a lot, but you love touring.”
“Nick,” she chuckled, “I hate touring and you know it.”
“You love being with me though, you can’t deny that.”
“No,” she murmured, “I can’t deny that.”
“Cass, I’d love to see you. It’s been too long.”
“I promise to consider it. I’ll call you tomorrow, okay?”
“Sweet dreams, Cass.”
“Night, Carter.” Cassie turned off the bedside lamp and huddled beneath the covers.
Perhaps taking a break from her job search, and spending some time with Nick, might be just what she needs.
~~*~~*~~*~~*~~
“Hi.” Beth clasped her trembling hands in front of her when Nick opened his bedroom door a half hour later. “Do you have a minute?”
“Sure.” He followed her into the living room and grabbed a bottle of water from the mini-bar. He offered a second bottle to Beth and plopped down on the floor, stretching his long legs out in front of him. “I was wanting to talk to you about a few things coming up anyway.”
“Hold on.” She raised her palm in the air. “Are you telling me that you’re planning ahead, Mr. Carter?”
“I guess I am.” He grinned. “See, your good sense is rubbing off on me.”
Beth sat down on the tan sofa and curled her bare feet beneath her. “You were awesome at the benefit tonight.”
“You think so?” He sliced the label off of the water bottle with his thumb and wound the paper around his index finger. “It felt like a good performance, but I couldn’t tell if the crowd was digging it or not.”
“Even someone who doesn’t know you can tell that you love what you’re doing. The fans are seeing a different side of you.”
“Well, I am having a great time and I owe a lot of thanks to you.”
“Me?” Beth shook her head. “You do all the work, Nick.”
“Well, you’re doing much more for me than you know. I never imagined that one woman could take the weight off my shoulders, but you’ve managed to do it. The panicky feeling isn’t there anymore because I don’t have to worry about all the little details.” Nick reached for her hand and gave it a warm squeeze. “It’s so much fun having you on tour with me. Now, you said you had something you needed to talk to me about?”
“Yeah,” she sighed softly, “I quit.”
Table of Contents
Prologue