Behind Closed Doors (25 page)

“Who were you with today when I called you?” Jayce asked.

“Emily. We went shopping for dresses for the event on Tuesday night. Then we stopped for a manicure and pedicure on the way back to the house.”

“Gorgeous,” he said grabbing my hand and admiring my cherry red nails as he kissed each of my fingers. “What dress did you choose?” he asked, seeming genuinely interested.

“A little red dress,” I answered, not giving anything else away.

“That’s all I get?” he asked. “Surely you have pictures in your phone. Show me.”

“Nope,” I smiled. “No pictures. You will just have to wait until Tuesday.”

“Well that’s something to look forward to and hopefully afterwards, I will get to take you home and peel the dress off you.”

“I look forward to it.”

I bent forward to kiss his lips, but his phone rang, interrupting the moment. He pulled it out of his pocket and looked at the screen. He glanced at me nervously and I stood from his lap.

“Sorry, I have to get this.” He walked toward the kitchen.

I knew immediately who it was. I could tell by the look on his face. A familiar feeling of jealousy swept over me. I could hear Jayce talking in the other room, he was trying to keep his voice quiet, but the conversation carried through into the living room.

“I can’t go to New York, I have too much going on here.”

Jayce stopped talking and I could hear her shrill voice on the other end of the phone.

“I know. I’m sorry, Sam.” He paused. “You do that then.... Okay. Bye.”

He looked at me. His face a little flushed.

“Sorry about that.”

“It’s fine,” I said as I stood up. “Look, I have to get going.”

I brushed past Jayce and headed for my purse that was on the kitchen counter. He grabbed my shoulder, turning my body to face his.

“I haven’t told her about the divorce yet,” he said, searching my eyes. “But I will, the next time I see her. I have to do it in person.”

“I understand.”

“You sure you don’t want to stay?” he asked hopefully.

“Not tonight,” I said.

He lifted my chin and kissed me on the lips. It was a gentle, comforting kiss.

“I’m worried about you.” His voice was low.

“Why?”

“I worry that I’m bad for you, that I put too much pressure on you.”

“I wouldn’t be here if I didn’t want to be,” I told him.

“Do you regret meeting me?” he asked and I was shocked by the question.

“No. Why, do you regret meeting me?”

“Not for a moment,” he said without hesitating. “I would never regret anything that has made me smile this much.”

His response made me giddy and I couldn’t suppress the goofy smile that spread on my lips.

“I’m glad,” I said.

“Now, promise me, no more kisses with Marc?” he asked. I could see the pained expression on his face when he said Marc’s name.

“I promise.” I said, pecking him lightly on the lips.

“And no kisses with anyone else for that matter,” he said, his lip quirked up on one side.

“What are you saying?” I asked playfully. “Am I yours and only yours?”

“You better believe it.” He placed his hands territorially on my hips as if to say ‘
mine
.’

He pulled me into his arms and kissed my lips hard. There was no use fighting it. I knew well and truly that my heart belonged to him.

Chapter 24

I stood backstage at the studio, waiting to find out which three singers would go through to the 
Dreamers
 finale. The results from the duets show would seal our fate and Jayce’s feedback on my performance had been, well… limited. He didn’t like my second performance, he made that abundantly clear, but whether he liked my singing or not, I was still unsure. We hadn’t talked of my performance again after the blow up in his dressing room. I preferred it that way. The last thing I wanted was preferential treatment because I was sleeping with my coach.

“You ready for this?” Emily stood next to me, looking in the mirror as she combed her fingers through her wavy brown locks. I exhaled and nodded at the same time.

She turned to me with a serious expression on her face. “If I don’t make it, I will be okay with that.” Tears welled in her eyes as she continued, “as long as you are in the final three, Ky.”

“Em,” I whispered as I embraced her tiny frame. I couldn’t find the words to tell her I wished her the same. Instead, I just held her for an excessively long time.

The mood was lightened when Marc strolled over and wrapped his arms around both of us, squeezing us tightly together.

“This was too tempting to just stand by and watch,” he said as he finally released us from his hold.

Thankfully, things between Marc and I hadn’t been awkward since the kiss. The others in the house hadn’t sensed that anything happened between us and I wanted to keep it that way. Emily had expressed, on more than one occasion, that she thought Marc and I would be perfect together and I didn’t need to give her a reason to hold on to that hope.

“I spoke to my mom before,” Emily said. “She is freaking out. She is more nervous than me.”

“She’s so sweet,” I said. I still envied Emily’s relationship with her parents, in particular her mom. But I couldn’t deny, my relationship with my own parents had improved. They called me on the weekend, surprising me when they admitted they’d watched the last performance show. My dad gushed about my singing and told me if I made the finale they would be flying down to see it in person. I was shocked by their reaction to my new found fame and oddly enough, the distance between us, had actually made us closer.

“Okay, follow me.” The talent coordinator appeared in the doorway and motioned us to follow her toward the arena. She arranged us in the order she wanted us to walk out on stage. I was between Leo and Yuri. I could hear Nadia on stage, talking excitedly into her microphone, but I couldn’t make out exactly what she was saying. The crowd erupted, which signaled it was time for us to go on stage. Most of the contestants entered the arena, waving or clapping to the audience. There were hands flying everywhere. Me? I just concentrated on putting one foot in front of the other, still terrified of tripping on stage. We stood in a line of six with Nadia in the middle. She announced that she was going to ask us a question each to get things started. She asked Emily about her time in the competition and how hard it was to be away from her boyfriend. Nadia then asked Marc if he was still single, which he confirmed and the girls in the audience howled their approval. I was dreading the question Nadia was about to ask me. I prayed it did not relate to romance… or Marc… or a romance with Marc in any way.

“Kyla,” she started and I could feel my cheeks turn pink. I smiled uncomfortably as I waited for the question. Any question, just not 
that
 question.

“You had two great performances last week. Which one was your favorite?”

That was it?
 I almost sighed with relief at the unobtrusive question.

“I had fun with both performances,” I lied as I remembered Marc grinding into my ass. “But I really liked what myself and Yuri had going on.”

I threw a smile in Yuri’s direction before looking back into the crowd. I was careful not to look at Jayce, although I knew he’d appreciate my response more than most.

“Let’s get down to business,” Nadia said and my heart was immediately racing. “It’s time to announce our final three singers.”

The lights in the studio dimmed, setting the dramatic mood perfectly, both for the live, and at home audience.

“Earlier today our beloved coaches wrote down which dreamer they will be taking through to the finale. In this envelope, I have those three names.”

The noise in the studio reduced to a low drone and I could feel my own heart thumping loudly in my chest. Nadia ripped into the envelope and I felt sweat start to bead across my brow as my nerves got the better of me.

“Coaches, anything you wish to say?” Nadia asked, prolonging the inevitable announcement longer than she needed to.

“I think I speak for all of us when I say this wasn’t easy,” Pixie started. “We talked for hours amongst ourselves and we were astounded by how talented our final six singers are.”

The crowd clapped on cue.

“You’re all winners.” Dion added, succinctly putting an end to the judges’ comments. I was surprised that Jayce didn’t add anything further, but perhaps that was for the best.

Once the room settled, Nadia continued talking.

“The first singer going through to the 
Dreamers
 finale, from Dion’s team is…”

Max and Marc stood to the left of stage and the spotlight set on them as Nadia pursed her lips, ready to say one name.

“Marc!” Nadia finally announced and the crowd of teenage girl’s started screaming. Max and Marc left the stage with their arms wrapped over each other’s shoulders in a brotherly kind of way.

“Now, to announce the second singer through to the finale,” Nadia paused dramatically. “From team Pixie…”

I crossed my fingers behind my back superstitiously. I loved both Emily and Yuri, but I desperately hoped Emily would sing in the finale. In many ways, she had given me the support and strength to continue in the competition, whether she knew it or not.

“From team Pixie,” Nadia repeated. “Yuri!”

I tried to hide the disappointment on my face as Yuri and Emily embraced next to me. Amongst the chaos, I managed to grab on to Emily and give her a brief hug. When she pulled away, I saw tears in her eyes as her dream was snatched out from underneath her.

“You’ve got this, Ky,” she whispered, before she was ushered off the stage.

A single tear fell down my cheek as the spotlight set on Leo and me, the only contenders left on stage.

“Good luck,” Leo whispered into my ear.

I smiled at him and clutched his hand in my own. I told myself repeatedly that I would be happy no matter what happened next. I only hoped it was the truth.

Nadia avoided the reveal for an uncomfortably long time. I don’t even remember what she was saying. My eyes dropped to the floor and I concentrated on my breathing, as Leo still held onto me. I seriously hoped I wasn’t about to pass out.

“Who will join Marc and Yuri in the 
Dreamers
 finale?” Nadia paused for a moment longer.

I almost grabbed the card from Nadia’s hand and read it myself. The long drawn out announcement was now overdue.

“Going through to the finale is… Kyla!”

The next thing I knew, my feet had left the ground, literally. Leo picked me up and spun me around on the spot as the crowd cheered loudly behind us. Once Leo planted my feet safely on the ground, I turned to the crowd and gave them a quick wave. I looked in Jayce’s direction, eager to see his face, but with the lights shining brightly in my eyes, I couldn’t see him clearly.

Once we were backstage, I hugged Leo once again.

“I’m so sorry,” I said and I meant it. A few stray tears trickled down my cheeks and Leo wiped them away.

“Don’t be sorry,” he croaked and I thought he might cry, but when he spoke again, his words were stern. “You have to win this thing now, Kyla.”

I nodded my head at him and we walked arm in arm toward the green room. I found Emily sitting on a chair, smiling as if nothing had happened.

I bent down and took her into my arms. With tears in my eyes, I pulled back and looked at her face. She wasn’t crying. She didn’t even look upset.

“I’m so happy for you, Kyla,” she said, “and tonight we’re going to get really wasted!”

I laughed at her casual response, but at the same time, I both respected and envied her resilient attitude.

We went back to the house to get ready for the celebration party. Although I was upset that Emily didn’t make it to the finale, I was happy that she was staying at the house one last night. Even though it took longer than usual to get ready as we fought over the bathroom mirror.

I took a sip of champagne, while I waited for Emily to finish her makeup.

“Come on, Em.” I shouted.

“I’m almost done. I want to look hot. It doesn’t come as naturally to me as it does for you.”

“Oh, please,” I dismissed her comment and adjusted my dress.

Finally, Emily reappeared from the bathroom in her short blue dress with matching wedge heels. She looked stunning.

“You look gorgeous, Em,” I stepped forward to take a closer look. “Your hair looks great.”

I heard my phone beep, indicating a new text message and I read the message from Marc out loud.

“Em, Marc just texted and told us to hurry up. The limo is downstairs.”

I threw my phone back on the bed and walked toward the door.

“You’re not taking your phone?” Emily asked.

“Wont fit in my clutch.” I held up my red clutch, which was barely big enough for my powder compact and lip-gloss.

We made our way downstairs and Leo let out a wolf whistle as we descended the winding staircase.

“Thank you, thank you,” Emily quipped as she strutted her way from the bottom step to the front door. Leo, Yuri and Max were all gathered around, drinking a beer each, as if it was any other night. Their manner was casual, but I had to admit, they all looked dashing in their new suits.

Marc approached me, an unreadable expression on his face.

“Wow, Kyla!” his mouth moved into a crooked smile. “Just, wow!”

I smiled, as I looked him up and down. He was looking mighty fine in his black and white ensemble.

“You don’t look too bad yourself, Marc,” I said in a low voice, so only he could hear me.

“Hey, can you take a photo of Emily and me?” I handed Marc my phone and begged Emily to stand still long enough to get a nice shot.

Marc handed my phone back and I inspected the photos. Emily and I were total opposites. There she stood, a good 4 inches shorter than me, in her short blue dress with wavy dark brown hair and golden skin. My complexion was pale, complemented by my deep red dress that accentuated my curves.

“Let’s go,” Leo shouted as he held the front door open. We filed out of the house, each complimenting one another on our glamorous transformations. Everyone was in high spirits as we piled into the limousine and settled in for the short ride to The Beverly Hilton.