Chapter Eight
The pictures and footage of Emily’s fateful night were burned onto her phone screen. Social media was on fire with #LittleMissNashville. This was so, so not good!
Her manager was ecstatic. “You did it!” Mia swung happily at the air, doing a little dance in her high heels. “This is your big break.” She read another Flatter post. “Does Emily have a wild side? Looks like the apple doesn’t fall too far from the tree.”
That wasn’t complimentary. And if River saw it, he’d carry Emily away from Nashville kicking and screaming. Of course, she could explain to River that it was only Nash being Nash, but… no one else knew that.
“Listen to this from theDaily Rocker!” Mia’s newly plumped lips whistled over the words. “Maybe Emily might know a little something about love, after all. Who is this mysterious bad boy? Stay tuned. We’ll be following this story closely.”
Emily groaned, resting her aching head on the breakfast table. Did this mean she had to stay away from Nash? That was the last thing that she wanted… especially after last night. She stuffed those uncomfortable feelings away. Keeping away from his flirting might be a good idea. He’d only laugh when he saw what trouble he’d gotten her into. He’d definitely approve of her new image, though. What a joke!
“We need to do more photo ops with your guy friend,” Mia said. She set a pitcher of orange juice on the table, pouring a glass full with it. “Did you say that he’s West Slade’s brother?”
“Yeah.” And it was the perfect excuse to blow off getting Nash involved. “So that’s not a good idea.”
“Let me handle West,” Mia said with a sly smile. She’d been talking nonstop about West since he’d suggested firing her at the party last night. If Emily didn’t know better, she’d think that her manager was crushing on the “naughty man.”
Emily never saw what any of these ladies saw in that mean-spirited devil.
“I hate to say it, but if this was all West’s doing like he promised… then, well, he was right,” Mia allowed. “You do need that Little Miss Harvest Ranch image tarnished a smidge.”
Emily opened her mouth to object.
Mia shut it by resting her finger over her lips. “Just a smidge. I’m going to be blunt. You need to find this guy and go have yourself a fling or you’re going nowhere, honey.”
Emily snickered at the idea, though she mostly used it to hide her discomfort. Nash would never let her live that kind of a plan down. And sure, he might’ve almost kissed her last night, but she knew how he worked. He had the attention span of an alley cat. Her heart couldn’t take the kind of rollercoaster that he’d put her through. She actually liked him too much.
“No.” She shook her head. “Absolutely not.”
“Look, I’m not asking you to rob a bank or murder someone… though I might be getting close to it,” Mia muttered.
So was Emily—Nash was first on the list, but she might take down an upstart PR manager or two while she was at it.
Mia sat across from her, taking her hands. “Listen to me. The presales for your new album shot through the roof last night. The stock on your brand is up, so you know what this means, of course. Go out there and have a little fun with that bad boy or… I’m firing you.” Mia winked to show she was joking, but it didn’t seem very convincing.“But seriously, how about we invite Nash to your performance to the rodeo tomorrow night?”
“He’s already going,” Emily admitted. “Trout owns the place.” She’d gleaned that much from their conversation last night.
Mia clapped decisively. “Perfect.”
Emily’s stomach jolted. She hadn’t meant to agree with her manager’s insane plan. She couldn’t handle the pressure of tricking the world on top of performing, especially after last night. She’d been a disaster. If Nash hadn’t saved her by setting the stage on fire, she still would’ve crashed and burned.
Ugh! How could she even think of picking up a guitar again? How did River handle this?
He couldn’t in the beginning. The drugs helped him cope.
She gulped, feeling a stirring of sympathy for her older brother. She never understood before. And now she was the one who felt like she was drowning. Maybe it was time to have a heart to heart with Mia and confess how terrified she was. “Hey, uh… Mia?”
“Yes?”
Mia’s expectant face made her hesitate. Emily wasn’t sure how to confide in the self-assured professional without causing more problems. It wasn’t that Emily didn’t want to perform her music, but how was she going to find her confidence? If she didn’t soon, she’d be a huge disappointment—to herself, to River, to everybody. Her parents never would’ve wanted her to throw away her talent.
Her parents were a big part of the reason that River had convinced Emily to come out to Nashville.
They’d died more than four years ago in their car accident. Had it really been so long ago? The pain felt as fresh as it had been when she’d lost them. Though they’d been farmers, her father was an artist through and through. He’d taught his two children to sing and play the guitar. Back then, she was fearless, playing in the living room with her big brother. She loved feeling the music speak to her soul. River always kissed her on the cheek and told her how cute she was.
Her dad would’ve been so proud of her to know that she’d made it in the business and still “kept her soul,” as he called it.
The problem was that Emily couldn’t let anyone close enough to see her soul because she was still too afraid. She could hardly let her friends in. How would she share who she was with the world?