Page 47 of Beneath the Fame

“If I had, it would be doing your stubborn ass a favor,” she responded—her tone completely shifted from the faux remorse from moments before. “Being on a show doesn’t sell albums—it just gets eyes on the damn show, which you’ve already been paid for,” she continued, words that let me know I was absolutely correct in not believing herit just happenedstory. “But the world knowing you’re with Alec gets people talking, and gets people curious—which gets them streaming music. Which you should want. Because you’re a rapper,remember?”

“I hope whatever you feel like you gained from betraying my trust like this was worth it,” I said, shaking my head. “You’re fuckingfired.”

She laughed. “Van, be serious. You can’t fire me—at least for another…eight months. We have a contract.”

“I’m sure my lawyer can figure it out.”

“Relax,” she insisted. “You haven’t even seen the story yet, and you’re ready to fire me? After all I’ve done for you? As far as I’ve gotten you?”

“If I can’t trust you to have my best interests at heart, what doesanyof that matter?” I countered. “And, how far you’ve gottenme? Annie, I’m your first client to actually be successful, and the new artists you picked up since then have only found you because of me. You’ve worked these deals out, yes, and you’ve helped me navigate, but you’ve also gotten rich as hell,” I reminded her. “Offmymusic, andmytalent, andmypublic image and personality. And besidesallthat…I just…I thought we were beyond something like this?! Beyond the point that you felt comfortable exploiting my private life for a few extra dollars.”

“You got paid for this story,” she said, making my eyes go wide. “Fifty-freaking-k.”

My stomach lurched. “What’s the math on that, Annie? Twenty percent of fifty thousand is what?”

“Ten thousand,” she answered, immediately, and then went quiet.

I nodded. “Yeah. Not crazy math, but I knew you’d probably already done it. And for it to be that much, this one of thebigsites—something that was private to me, and important, and you spread it all over the internet forten thousand dollars?I would’ve given that to you, Annie.”

“It wasn’tonlyabout the money, Van, I?—”

“At this point, I don’t even care what it’s about to you,” I interrupted. “I truly do not give a shit, because I am justdone.I’m done with you. Like I said already, I’ll be contacting my legal team. Any further contact between me and you should happen through them.”

“Vanessa!”

“There isn’t anything more for us to talk about, Annie. And really…you should be grateful I’m not thinking about suing you. Yet. Be careful, okay? ’Cause that could quickly change.”

Before she could say anything else, I’d ended the call.

Instead of waffling about it either, I immediately blocked her number.

Everything in me wanted to head to the internet to survey the damage, but I knew better this time. There wasn’t any ambiguity to me about what the world might have to say.

Nothing they hadn’t already said, probably.

Somehow, that didn’t make it hurt any less.

I’d wanted the thing with Alec to be something they couldn’t taint, yet someone I was supposed to trust had been able to so casually betray it.

And forwhat?

Morefame?

I didn’t need that.

What I really needed was a bit of encouragement from Alec, but I knew he was already asleep. Instead, I focused on what he undoubtedlywouldsay…

“Man, fuck those people.”

Probably.

And he wasn’t wrong.

At some point, I was going to have to let go of the concern about what the internet had to say, and not let it seep so deeply into my psyche.

Just because they knew about me and Alec…didn’treallygive them the power to ruin it.

So I didn’t even need to let that thought process marinate.

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