Page 78 of Christmas in Mistletoe
“Isn’t Dad right, though? Isn’t this good news?” Victoria put a hand on her hip. “Your music’s finally getting out there.”
Ruby gritted her teeth. “But I wanted to do it on my own terms. To get into the spotlight through working, through my songs, through gigs, word of mouth.”
“You’ve built that already,” her dad said. “This is a helping hand.”
“From my girlfriend’s ex.”
“Does it matter who it’s from?” Victoria asked.
Ruby glanced up and held her gaze. “It does to me.” Disappointment rippled through her, along with red-hot anger. Could she trust Fran? Was she going to run to Delilah with every part of Ruby’s career?
She stood and grabbed her phone. “I need some air.”
Ruby ran out of the office and through the barn, out into the Christmas tree fields. She wanted to run into the rows of Nordmann firs, lie down and hide from the noise. But she couldn’t. She had to speak to Fran. Who might at this moment be all over Delilah, thanking her for this generous act. The thought made bile climb up Ruby’s throat.
She took some deep breaths, thinking back to where it had all started with Fran. The snowperson they’d rolled among the trees. The snowball fight. The incredible sex. But if she couldn’t trust her, did it all count for nothing? It was the music exec thing rearing its ugly head again, wasn’t it? Creativity versus commerce. The old struggle. Would they forever be butting heads? Could Ruby and Fran navigate their way through, even if they cleared the ex-girlfriend hurdle?
Ruby turned and jogged towards the house. She ignored her mum’s wave. She didn’t want to be near people right now. She wanted calm. Silence. She had a feeling she wasn’t going to get it.
She was steps from the farmhouse when her phone rang. She looked at the screen. It was Fran.
Ruby’s heart froze. She slowed to a halt. Did she want to talk to Fran? It would certainly clear up a few things. She decided to be brave.
“Thank goodness I caught you. Listen, have you seen your Instagram feed yet?”
“I have.” Ruby’s tone was steely.
“Shit.” Fran paused. “I need you to know, I asked Delilah not to post anything until I okayed it with you. She promised, but then she had a bit too much to drink last night at the office party and she did it anyway. I had no idea until I woke up this morning. By that time, it’d been viewed by thousands of people, so there wasn’t much I could do. But I want you to know, I didn’t ask her to do this. I know it would freak you out.”
“You’re right about that.” Ruby let herself into the house.
Chipper barked and jumped up. She walked into the lounge and he followed her in. She loved this room, but she hadn’t spent nearly enough time in here this year. There had been too much to do, with working, preparing for the gig and spending time with Fran. This year had been the best Christmas run-up she’d had in ages. She should remember that. Fran wasn’t the enemy. Or was she? Ruby had no idea what to think.
“Can Delilah take it down?” Ruby closed her eyes and massaged her temples with her fingertips.
Fran was silent for a moment. “Do you really want her to? Yes, it’s not ideal that she did it without asking, but it’s publicity that most artists would kill for.”
“I’m not most artists.”
“I know that.”
“You’re not in my brain, Fran. I always told you I wanted to do this my way. At my pace. But you had to get involved, didn’t you?”
“I asked her not to post it. This isn’t my doing.”
“But you showed her the clip in the first place.”
“Because you’re amazing. Because I’m proud of you. Because I’m your girlfriend.” She let out an exasperated sigh. “You know, I already did this with Delilah. With her, I wasn’t allowed to be me, to even exist. Now, you’re asking me to play you down, to not show everyone how brilliant you are? I can’t do it. I have to tell people how great you are. I didn’t tell Delilah because I wanted to cash in on your fame. I did it because Delilah and I are friends. She posted it because she was drunk. I’ll confront her, but she’s not answering her phone right now. She’s probably too hungover to talk.”
Ruby’s stomach churned some more. What Fran was saying made sense. But then again, Ruby’s past label experience was like an open wound that had never quite healed. Could she trust Fran? Ruby couldn’t stop the gnawing feeling Fran had been planning this all along. “It’s not just a ploy to get me to sign with you? Has our whole relationship been about that? It’s what you wanted from the start, after all.”
Silence on the other end.
More bile travelled up Ruby’s throat. A neon red sign flashed in her mind.
Oh, fuck.
As soon as the words were out of her mouth, Ruby knew they were the wrong ones. Scrap that, they weren’t just the wrong words, the meaning behind them was wrong, full stop. However, the insinuation was out there, parading around, waving its arms. Ruby had just accused Fran of using her to further her career. Told her she didn’t trust her. How could she have said that? Accused Fran so blatantly? Ruby knew in her soul it was untrue.
