“He’ll come around,” Letty said, as she took her hand and squeezed it. “He’s just...”
“Concerned,” Alistair finished. “We all are. Why don’t we all sit?” He motioned to the huge sectional. Damon was sitting at one end, so we took the other. I pulled Eva into my side, rubbing her shoulder, wishing I could fix this. Letty perched on the arm on Damon’s side, and Alistair sat on the loveseat opposite.
“We’re glad you decided to return, Eva, but we need to address the huge elephant in the room. You and Rafe.”
“We know we messed up, and we’re sorry,” she started. “But I won’t apologize for fallin’ in love with Rafe, Mr... Alistair. I can’t do that.”
“Jesus,” he let out an exasperated breath. “You should have come to me with this. The second it became serious, I should have been informed.”
“I’m sorry... we didn’t...”
“He’s not talking to you,” I said. “He’s talking to me.”
Our manager cut me with a scathing look. “You messed up, Rafe.”
“I was trying to do the right thing, for everyone.”
“Well, you failed. Had I have been informed sooner, we could have spun it to our advantage.”
“You think I wanted to put Eva through that?”
He slammed his hand down on the table. “Dammit, Rafe, she’s in it whether you like it or not.”
“Okay, why doesn’t everyone just cool off?” Damon suggested. “Rafe knows he fucked up and Eva thought she was doing the right thing by leaving. We can’t change any of that, but we do need to figure out what we do next. The fans are already talking, it’s all over social media, the press. It’s only a matter of time before they find out the truth, or a messed-up version of it.”
“We should run an exclusive,” Letty said.
“Absolutely not,” Alistair said the same time as I grunted, "Hell, no.”
“Hear me out, okay? If the two of you come out now, we can control the story. Country’s sweetheart meets one of Rock’s heartthrobs. The younger demographic will eat it up.”
“And the Die Hearts?” I almost spat the words. We couldn’t go public. It was a sure-fire way to hang Eva out to dry.
“Bigger picture. Eva has already won most fans over. Young girls relate to her. She’s the perfect role model. Overcoming cancer to rise to fame and win the heart of a rock star.” Pride shone in Letty’s eyes as she looked at Eva. “What teenage girl wouldn’t want to buy into that?”
“It could work.”
“I’m not sure, Ali—” My girl wrung her hands in her lap.
“Consider it damage control.” Alistair narrowed his eyes. “We need to sell you as the victim here or the fans will crucify you. You left to protect Rafe and Levi. You walked away for the greater good.”
“Exactly.” Letty’s eyes lit up the way they did whenever she was scheming. “And Rafe went after her because he realized how much he needs her. How much the band needs her.”
“Set it up,” Alistair said. “I want a guaranteed exclusive with The Rock Report.”
“A face-to-face interview would work better,” Letty said. “We’re in Kansas City tomorrow, they should be able to send someone.”
“Do it.”
“Wait a second,” I rushed out, hyperaware of how Eva was shrinking in on herself. “We haven’t agreed yet.”
“Consider this your punishment. I think you’re forgetting who owns you, Rafe. The label needs me to handle this, so I’m handling it. You don’t like it? Then perhaps you should have thought about that before you went against the rules.”
“Alistair’s right,” Eva whispered. I don’t know who was more surprised. Me, Damon, or Alistair. Letty continued to look proud, grinning at Eva as if she expected nothing less from the quiet girl beside me.
“Eva,” I said, looking at her. “We don’t have to do this. There’s time to figure out another way.”
Alistair snorted at that. “I have calls to make. Letty, brief Eva on what to expect. Rafe, a word.”
Reluctantly, I got up and followed him out of the suite. “Have you spoken to Levi?”
“No.” I rubbed the back of my neck.
“He’s okay but he’s refusing to play ball. Given the circumstances, I think it’s best you stay away, for now. We have less than thirty-six hours before the next show. Cancelling is not an option.”
“Fuck,” I breathed.
“I’m going to send Eva to talk to him.”
“Like hell you are.”
“Look, Rafe, I’m going to level with you. Levi is hurting bad right now and that’s on you. I know Eva had a part to play too. But you’re his brother. His family. His anger is all on you, and as difficult as it makes things, we need to keep it there. Eva is on the tour; she’s in this whether you like it or not. I can’t have him lashing out or making life difficult for her.”
He had a point, but it was hard to think straight over the jealously coursing through me.
Alistair wanted to send Eva—my Eva—to try and comfort Levi. I didn’t like it.
I didn’t like it one fucking bit.
And yet, a part of me knew if anyone could reach him, it was her.
“Travis goes with her. He doesn’t leave her side. I mean it, Ali. Levi is volatile. If he hurts...” I swallowed the words. I didn’t believe Levi would ever hurt Eva. But I knew he couldn’t always control himself, and I’d witnessed too many near misses where my brother was concerned.
“We’ll let her settle first, but I’ll let Travis know. We all knew going into this thing that having Eva here would be a complication.” He didn’t need to say anything else. I knew what he was getting at. I’d looked him in the eye and told him she wasn’t going to be a problem.
“I never planned for it to go down like this, you know? I love my brother more than anything.”
“More than her?” His eyes darted back to the door. “Women change things; it’s the age-old tale of man.” Ali clapped me on the shoulder, squeezing gently. “Let’s just hope the band can survive this.”
Eva
* * *
“It’s so good to see you.” Letty came to my side as soon as Rafe stepped into the hall with Alistair. Her slim arms enclosed me, and I hugged her back. “It’s all going to be okay,” she whispered.
I wanted to believe her, but Damon caught my gaze over her shoulder and the knot in my stomach tightened.
“You messed up, Walker,” he said, coolly.
“It’s Walker now?” I asked as Letty released me.
“I’m not sure they’ll come back from this. I’ve seen Levi all shades of fucked up, but that was something else.”
“Damon,” Letty chided.
“It’s okay. He’s only sayin’ what everyone is thinkin’. I messed up.” If I could rewind time, I would have gone back and chosen to stay. To give Rafe time and space to deal with Levi and wait until things blew over. It was too late though. I couldn’t turn back time, and I had no choice but to own my mistakes.