Page 11 of Everything In Between
Cal switches into business mode, sitting down behind his desk—because of course—flipping his planner open, then steepling his fingers, and giving me a hard glare. I clench my jaw at the way he’s glaring down his nose at me.If I could melt into this chair and disappear, I think I would, but I doubt Cal would permit that.
“We have you slotted for the next few months to go in and start recording. It will probably feel like a lot, but it’s important that we ride the coattails of this tour’s success and get your next album out while you’re still on everyone’s mind. The last thing we need is for this energy to fizzle out without milking it as much as possible.”
“At least you’re admitting it,” I say under my breath, not loving the idea of having the need for my career to be milked to within an inch of its life.
Callum’s attention snaps back to me and he glowers. “What was that?”
“Nothing. Go on.”
He blinks at me a few times, suspiciously studying me to figure out if I’m up to no good. Finally, he continues. “I’ll have my assistant send Bethany an outline of the recording schedule so you can have it. I don’t expect you’ll have any issues keeping to the assigned slots.”
“I’ll do my best. I have nothing coming up that I’m aware of.”
“Good. It’s an aggressive schedule, Jersey, so you’ll have to be diligent. We have no time for distractions or detours. Do you understand? This next album is going to be bigger and better than anything you’ve done before. If we can pull this off, you may be able to claim Song of the Year next year.”
“When have I ever been distracted?” I ask him. Of course, I knew he’d already be planning on how to win the coveted Song of the Year again.Bigger, better, stronger.
“Well, the VMAs, for one,” he says, snidely.
“What are you talking about?” I ask him, already feeling the exhaustion seep into me from this conversation. Surreptitiously, I glance down at the watch on my wrist to determine whether I’ve been here long enough to consider it a successful meeting.
“Your security agent told me you purposefully ignored Kelsey’s request to leave so you could go meet up with one of J-Money’s extras.” Callum says this as if he’s accusing me of a crime.
“He’s not an extra. He’s a football player in the NFL.” I inadvertently defend Hayes Vogt. I blink a few times, surprised at myself. Why am I defending him when I barely know him in the first place? Cal arches a suspicious eyebrow, likely wondering the same thing. I quickly spin the topic around on him.“And why is my security guard tattling on me?”
“He works for us. Just like you do. Andohh, an NFL player. Is that supposed to make this better?” Callum asks. “Either way, you didn’t do what was required of you. To the extreme shock ofno one.”
I let his sarcasm roll off me, doing my best to not let it affect me and give him an innocent shrug. “I don’t know. Again, I don’t see why this is a big deal. I didn’t have anywhere else to be after the show, so I don’t see the issue.”
“Kelsey had explicit instructions to keep you on task, moving you through the events of the night. How is she supposed to do her job when you don’t follow her directions?” Cal questions.“After everything I’ve done for you, you’d think you’d trust me by now.”
“Cal, I was there to network and promote. To meet people and maintain relationships. As you’ve mentioned, my schedule is tight. That usually doesn’t give me a chance to keep those relationships going. Award shows are perfect for that exact reason. What if I wanted to do a collaboration with someone in the future? I’d need to have a good relationship for them to be open to that.”
He narrows his eyes and leans toward me over his desk. “No. Yourlabelwould have to have a good relationship for them to be open to that, and you’d have to have the financial backing to make that worth their while.”
“Not everything is about money, Cal.” My chest feels tight seeing the direction this conversation is going. I should’ve known. Most of my conversations with him end up veering past the point of no return.
His voice turns dangerously low and his eyes narrow. “Sorry to disappoint you, Jersey, but I assure you, it is. Your success is because of me. Don’t forget that I’m the one with the muscle pushing you forward.”
“Are we finished here? I’m supposed to be meeting someone for lunch.” I raise my wrist to read the time. The golden watch glints in the refraction of Cal’s overhead lights as I read the time, hitting my manager in the forehead.
“Fine.” He reclines back in his chair and looks away from me. “Bethany will have the schedule by the end of the day. If you have any pressing issues, please have her call me.”
“You got it, boss.”
Officially done with this conversation, I push out of my chair and reach for my bag. Inside, I grab my phone and then peer at him sideways. Already I can feel the burn behind my eyes, and I’m breathless, like I had the wind got knocked out of me.
Before I have the chance to walk out, Callum feels the need to leave me with one last parting gift. “Oh, and Jersey? Don’t forget, you are what I’ve made you. Without me, there would be no Jersey Matthews. There would be no album, and there would be no tour.” I look over my shoulder at him, my heart sinking into my stomach. He gives me a saccharine smile before he dips his chin, officially dismissing me. “Have a nice day.”
I leaveCal’s office without another word, letting the door close roughly behind me, the sting of his brutal words seeing me out. There’s a metallic taste left in my mouth from biting my tongue, the sting reminding me I have almost nothing to show for the small acts of standing up for myself.
Bethany is waiting downstairs in the lobby. Her eyes squint at the screen of her tablet, hardly reacting as I approach her.
“Hey. What have you got there?”
She frowns. “Callum’s assistant just sent over a crazy long email with Cal’s insane schedule attached.”
I pause for a second. “That was fast. I was there a few minutes ago.”
