Page 14 of Until the End

I roll my eyes. Of course, he’d say that. Carson has never been interested in dating. Even in high school, he’d rebuff any girl who tried to turn his head. I have no doubt he’s dated since I left home, but I haven’t had to see him do it. I’m not sure I could. Time for a subject change.

My assistant and social media manager surprised me with a visit. They’ll be here any minute.

Is that good or bad?

Good. I’m ready to get back out there. Plus, I trust them more than anyone else on my team.

I’m happy you have people you can trust. Want me to bring dinner over later?

Yes! That would be perfect.

You got it. Have a good day, Goose.

You too, Duck. *Heart emoji*

“Miss Ginny, Chelsea and Tanya are on their way up the driveway.” There’s a hint of amusement in Daren’s voicethrough the intercom. I walk to the window to see why and bust out laughing at the scene.

Tanya is hanging out the side of the car window with streamers blowing in the wind as the song “Earl Had to Die”by the Chicks blares through the car’s speakers.

I open my front door and step onto the front stairs to greet them. My driveway is long enough that I don’t have to worry about the paps getting long-range pictures of me. There’s also a fence surrounding the entire property that keeps anyone from sneaking in—it’s one of the many reasons I bought the place.

Chelsea parks in my circular driveway instead of on the side of the house by the garage. The song cuts off abruptly, leaving me grinning at the two women as they climb out of the car. They both give me massive hugs that fill my cup enough to know I’ll get through this planning session without losing my shit.

“You girls can head inside. I’ll take your bags to the guest rooms,” Daren says as he walks across the driveway to the car. He’s been my head of security for the past four years. A year before that, he was my bodyguard. Then, as I started to gain more fame, we had to expand my security into a full-time team of people. He’s still my head bodyguard, but we have a rotation of guys when security has to be twenty-four seven.

Sometimes, it’s hard to reconcile my life now to what I thought it would be when I dreamed of becoming a singer. It’s everything and nothing like I imagined. I love my fans, and singing the songs I wrote gives my heart life, but the celebrity status and everything that goes with it isn’t always easy to manage.

I obviously struggled with it so much that I trusted people who didn’t have my best interests at heart.

Arm in arm, I lead Chelsea and Tanya into my livingroom. We plop onto the couch, sitting in silence for a moment while we soak up each other’s company.

“Are you ready to tell us what happened?” Chelsea asks softly. Tanya gives my arm a squeeze for comfort, more than pressure.

I sigh. “You both already know Wesley cheated. What I haven’t told you is Cecelia’s been working behind the scenes to line her pockets.”

“That bitch!” Tanya’s vehemence on my behalf gives me the courage to tell them the rest.

I start by confessing about the manipulation and abuse I’d been dealing with over the past year. Having to tell my employees that I was under the thumb of an abuser isn’t easy, but I manage to get the words out. After telling Carson and our friends, it’s easier to accept the reality and share it with others.

“God, Ginny, I’m so sorry you were dealing with that all alone,” Chelsea says gently. “You know, Wesley flirted with me constantly a few months after you first got together. I rebuffed him every time, of course. I never said anything because he stopped after a while. I figured it was because the two of you were getting more serious. Now, I’m betting he knew I wasn’t going to give in to him, so he moved on to easier prey. The bastard. I should’ve said something. Maybe I could’ve stopped the madness.”

“I appreciate that, Chels, but I don’t think I would’ve listened. By then, Cecelia had been whispering in my ear.”

Tanya turns her body toward me. “Explain her involvement in all this.”

“After getting several texts from her that I should apologize and smooth things over with Wesley, I started doing some digging. Turns out, she’s Wesley’s godmother and reached out to sign me as a way to help Wesley get a foot in the door. His reputation on the B-list movies he’s been in has made him lessthan desirable to work with, so she thought hooking us up together would fast-track him to stardom. I also found out she was getting major kickbacks for the promotional gigs she’d been forcing me to do.”

“Everything makes so much more sense now,” Chelsea says, slapping her palm on the couch. “I had no idea why you were doing so many commercials when you hadn’t done them before.”

“Cecelia told me I should do them as a way to expand my portfolio in case I ever wanted to get out of music. Looking back, I hate how big of an idiot I was, but I trusted her.” She was also smart enough to only offer products I truly liked. She knew I’d never be part of anything I didn’t believe in.

“Have you fired her?” Chelsea gives me a no-nonsense look as if she’ll be disappointed if I haven’t.

“Yeah, Carson helped me with that conversation.” God, that was the worst. Cecelia was pissed that I dared to fire her. She didn’t believe there was anything wrong with her choices. It was the proof I needed to know I was doing the right thing.

“Has Muse Records given you any trouble?” Tanya asks.

I shake my head. “Not yet. I’ve got some time to work on the album.”

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