I think of the first time we met, how strong his hands felt on my arms when he pinned me against the wall in that storage closet backstage at The Tonight Show, and I hate the shiver that skates over my skin. “No. It’s all just innuendo.”
Billie bites her upper lip as she thinks. “As long as it doesn’t cross the line into physical, I think you should run with it. I hate to say it, but being seen as a lust object of Tro Gunnison—the man every woman is lusting over—could be your springboard.”
“Maybe I will let him touch me.” I glare at her as I throw the covers aside. “Then I can be his springboard. Right into jail.”
“Shiloh,” she says as I get up and slam through the bathroom door.
I get in the shower and let the hot water run over my clammy skin for what has to be half an hour before I even reach for the shampoo. When I finally come out of the bathroom, the rain has stopped and Billie is on the balcony, her hands braced on the rail and her head bent. She turns when she hears me in the room.
“I’m sorry,” she says, slipping back into the room. “I need to start thinking more like a parent if we’re really doing this guardian thing. And, as a parent, I don’t want Tro Gunnison anywhere near you.”
“Everyone knows Tro is all show, but I just don’t want that stupid ‘Lucky’ thing to stick.”
Her eyebrows raise. “Why not?”
“Because…” I trail off with a shake of my head, trying to find a way to explain the sick feeling in my stomach when I think about Tro calling me that. “The way he says it…I just hate it. It’s a stupid nickname.”
She goes to the table and flips her laptop closed. “Okay, as far as the nickname, if you really hate it, we’ll do everything we can to nip it in the bud.”
I drop onto my bed. “I’m just so frustrated. I feel like my whole career has been hijacked by the label and now…all this shit with Tro. I just want to be in control of something, you know?”
She sits next to me and loops her arm over my shoulders. “Okay, new strategy. Shiloh Luck is her own woman, so tell me about her. What parts of Shiloh do you want the world to see?”
The question ties my tongue. A knock at the door saves me from having to figure out how to answer. I get up and throw on my robe before going to the door. When I peek through the peephole, I find Max standing in the hall, shifting nervously from foot to foot.
“Who is it?” Billie asks, and Max must hear her, because his eyes widen and he assumes a more relaxed posture, one hand braced on the doorframe and the other in his jeans pocket.
I pull the door open. “Hey.”
He grins. “Told you you’d see me today.”
“Yeah, but I was thinking later, onstage.”
“Some of the guys are heading into the city for the day. You in?”
“Umm…” I turn to look at Billie, who smiles and nudges her chin toward the door.
“You should go,” she says.
“You’ll be okay?”
She holds up her teacup as if toasting. “I’m fine. Go have some fun.”
I take a deep breath then turn back to Max. “Yeah, okay. Just give me a sec to change.”
His whole face pulls into a grin and he murmurs, “I could help with that.”
I roll my eyes and close the door, then go to my bag, riffling through it for something that’s not jeans and a T-shirt. All my stage and party wear is hung up, and I didn’t bring much else that wasn’t just for knocking around the hotel or bus. I finally come out with a tank and pair of shorts.
“You’re sure you’re okay with me going out?” I ask Billie as I change, half hoping she’ll say no.
She sets her teacup down and stands. “You don’t get many chances to just be a kid anymore. I think you need to take them when they come along.”
I don’t tell her I’ve never been a kid. The only difference is that I went from no one giving a shit about me to everyone giving a shit about me. I turn for the door.
“Just text me so I know where you are, okay?” she says from behind me.
I glance over my shoulder and nod as I pull open the door.
Max is waiting in the hall when I come out. He pushes off the wall. “Ready?”
“Yeah.”
I turn for the elevators, and we’re not even halfway up the hall before his hand is on my back. “You seriously kicked ass last night. Hope you know that.”
I shrug as he reaches for the elevator button. “Thanks. You guys were great too.”
A dubious smile pulls at his mouth as the doors in front of us slide open. “Just trying to keep up.”
He gestures for me to step in ahead of him and I do. The door opens in the lobby a minute later and when we unload and I look around, I don’t see anyone familiar. “Who else is coming?”
“No one. They were up late partying last night. Still passed out.”
I spin on him. “Then why’d you say ‘the guys’?”
His smile turns guilty. “Didn’t know if your manager would let you come if it was just me.”