Can't Help Falling in Love (14 page)

    
“Call your artist,” Allison said firmly, “and don’t ever call my home number
again unless I’ve invited you to do so.”

    
I
won’t lower myself to her level by raising my voice,
Allison sleepily vowed. Instead, she
hung up on
Sharon
in the middle of her tirade, not with an
angry slam of the receiver, but by simply touching the disconnect button.
Nevertheless,
she’ll get my point that I won’t be intimidated by her or bullied into
submission. As far as I’m concerned, her client has the right to do whatever he
wishes, and I certainly don’t have any legal obligation to cow tow to her
commands!  

    
The rude awakening had started Allison’s adrenalin coursing through her blood,
and she stared wide awake at the ceiling. There was no going back to sleep,
even though Sunday was supposed to be her day of rest. She heard Karen
rummaging around in the kitchen and smelled the intoxicating aroma of fresh
coffee brewing.

    
Allison reluctantly pulled back the covers, yawned, and sat up on the side of
the bed to wiggle her feet into her furry slippers. Her morning had begun with
a bang, and she had to face the fact that
Sharon
was going to doggedly hound her every
move. She contemplated the wisdom of divorcing herself from her association
with her new client, who was inadvertently—through no fault of his own—tethered
to the human tornado blustering through Phillip Samuels’ account list.
That
way, I’ll be free to do whatever I want as his girlfriend.
But
why should I lose a valuable client because of her? Didn’t Marshall and Jeff
warn me that her aim was to steal my A-list clients? I shouldn’t just cave in
the first time she tears into me with a stabbing assault like a javelin thrower
at the Olympics. I did the right thing hanging up on her. At the very least,
I’m her equal in this business, not some withering subordinate who has to cower
in fear every time she launches into a tirade. Who does she think she is?

    
A few minutes later, she sat on a stool at their kitchen bar as Karen poured
her a steaming hot cup of fresh coffee.

    
“I heard the phone ring,” Karen said. “Do you mind me asking if everything’s
alright? You seem worried and lost in thought.”

    
Allison took her first sip and then said, “Sharon Eaton called.”

    
“At six in the morning?”

    
“Uh huh.
She was screaming mad at me.”

    
“What did you do, cut off her supply of hair dye?”

    
“Worse! I ‘defied her direct order,’ she said.”

    
“Oh? And since when is she Dictator of the Universe?”

    
“There’s a picture of me in this morning’s paper that she strongly objects to.
She thinks I’m sullying his reputation.”

    
Karen picked up the morning newspaper still lying unopened on the kitchen bar.
“Who would that happen to be, or do I need to ask?”

    
“Look on page 1 of the Entertainment section. According to her, I’ve now
officially ruined his career.”

  
  Karen unfurled the newspaper, flipped to the entertainment section,
and inspected the photo. “Oh! So I see! You’re now known as ‘the Mystery Mama!’
Allison, let’s face facts. While
it’s true that you only
recently met, you’ve started seeing one of the most eligible bachelors in the
city—if not the country.”

    
“Is that a sin? Should I have all my clothes embroidered with a large ‘A’ like
Hester
Prynne
in
The Scarlet Letter
?”

    
“There’s a delicate balancing act you have to perform when you get involved
with a celebrity, big or small. An entire career can literally go up in smoke
overnight because of one misstep in front of the public.”

    
“Was going out with him a misstep? Neither of us asked for our picture to be
taken, much less for the newspaper to run it in a 3-column by 5-inch space!”

    
“I agree with you. I don’t think either of you did anything wrong, and I don’t
see where this picture could hurt his career, but you’re going to have to be
more thoughtful from now on. Think of the campaign. Every piece of publicity
from this day forward plays a vital part in that campaign. Maybe it’s not the
best thing for the public to know that ‘Wonder Boy’ has a steady
girlfriend—especially at this critical time when we’re wanting girls to
fantasize about him as their own possible ‘Wonder Boy.’”

    
“So,
Sharon
was right?”

    
“No, but you’ve got to be careful and take pains to see beyond the nose on your
face. He’s so taken with you, I’d expect you to be in seventh heaven, but don’t
be blinded by the clouds of joy.”

    
“You’re right. I just hope she doesn’t tear into him this morning like she did
with me. She might scare him off for good, and then I’d never see him again!”

    
“Don’t bet on it. I know him, too, and I can attest to the fact that he’s not
the type to be easily frightened by an overbearing female.”

    
“Are you saying that I should expect him to view Sharon Eaton the same way as
we do?”

    
“No—probably not with our lethally explosive mixture of
loathing and revulsion—but with his tongue in cheek.
After all, he
didn’t sign a contract with
Sharon
. He signed a contract with Phillip
Samuels.
Sharon
has merely infiltrated Star Records. He
has a big sense of humor. I think he’ll view her as if she was Milton
Berle
in drag and laugh her off.”

  
  Allison laughed. “I see what you mean.”

    
Karen picked up the newspaper again. “And, by the way, did you see the article
next to your photo?”

    
“No.”

    
“It’s all about the big soiree coming up at the Peabody Hotel, where Star
Records intends to announce to the media their fall lineup of new releases.”

    
“Oh, the formal, glittering
VIP
party by the pool when
Sharon
plans to show off her diamond-studded
gown by Coco
Chanel
?”

    
Karen flipped several newspaper pages. “By the sound of this article, it seems that
all of
Memphis
’ upper crust intends to turn out that
night. But there’s something different about this article than some of the
others you might have seen.”

    
“What?”

    
“There’s a picture of Miss Sharon Eaton with Anthony ‘Big Bopper’ Rizzo and his
brother Guido.”

    
“Let me see that,” Allison demanded, grabbing the newspaper from Karen’s hand.
She gawked at the newspaper and gasped. “She’s got her arms linked around both
of them like poison ivy on a trellis! They’re two of the richest men in the
world!”

    
“And they’re also reputed to be front men for the Italian Rizzo crime family.”

    
“I can’t believe this!” Allison exclaimed. “She had the nerve to call me at
six o’clock
in the morning to lambaste me over an
innocent photo that she claims sullies the reputation of a Star Record’s
recording artist, when all the while she’s in the same paper posing with her
arms linked around racketeers! How do you like that?”

    
“Ah, but you were on page one, and she’s on page fourteen! No wonder she was upset!
Also, no one seems to know for sure if the Rizzo family is into racketeering.
They’re mainly considered to be two of
Memphis
’ most eligible bachelors. They enjoy the
lifestyle of the rich and famous, and the family fortune seems to be cloaked
under a heavy veil of secrecy.”

    
Allison slammed the paper down on the bar. “Why didn’t you tell me about this
photograph?”

    
Karen retorted. “I only saw it just now!”

    
“I wonder just how deeply involved
Sharon
is with the Rizzo crime family.”

    
“I’d guess she’s rather close to them,” Karen thought out loud. “How else would
she be in a position to be hob-knobbing with Anthony ‘Big Bopper’ and his
brother Guido?”

    
Allison stared thoughtfully off into space. “There’s more going on here than
meets the eye, Karen. Somehow, they’ve helped her obtain a position on the Star
Records Board of Directors.”

    
Karen narrowed her eyes. “Who do you think actually owns that company?”

    
“Well, I thought it was Phillip Samuels.”

    
“With a Board of Directors, they’re bound to have other investors . . . people
with big money.”

    
“Could it be—” Allison stopped short when her mind was suddenly stunned by the
thought racing through her head. “Could the Rizzo family be one of their big
investors? That would explain everything! If so, those goons who were with
Sharon
at the
Arcade
and sitting like stone images while she
insulted me were probably part of the same questionable group of people.
They’re henchmen! Now, everything’s becoming clear. In her rush to glory,
Sharon
’s taken a short cut to success, possibly
becoming involved with a family that has a veiled reputation for being engaged
in organized crime. To cloak her maneuvering with a shroud of respectability,
she plans to attempt to ingratiate herself to high society by rubbing elbows
with them in a big way!”

    
“I’ve no doubt that it’s a strategic set-up to cement her social standing with
all the right people.”

    
“Several wrongs don’t make a right. I’m having trouble believing that the
city’s upper crust will get excited about hip-swiveling rock ‘n’ roll singers.
Liberace, maybe, but not them.
It’s not their style.”

    
“She thought of that already,” Karen said, still reading. “The event is being
staged as a charity event.”

    
“Of course!”

    
“There’s more. The event’s being sponsored by M&M.”

    
“The candy manufacturer?”

    
“No, silly, Memphis Media.
They host the annual
AIM
Awards, which will be that same night at
the
Peabody
.”

    
Allison nodded.
“Advertising in
Memphis
.
I’ve always wanted to be nominated.
Maybe one day—”

    
“Your wish has come true. Here’s the list of nominees, and they—oh!—get
this—they include both you
and
Sharon Eaton!”

    
Allison’s jaw dropped and she gasped. “You’re kidding!”

    
“You’ve been nominated for Best Print Ad Campaign for Anderson Sportswear!”

    
“That’s incredible!”

    
“And
Sharon
’s been nominated for Rookie of the
Year!”

    
“For what?
She just arrived in town a few weeks ago!”

    
“Nevertheless, she’s up for the award.”

    
“I won’t be surprised if she planning on attending with one of the Rizzo
brothers. No wonder she bought a
Chanel
dress.”

    
Karen smiled wryly. “Or, they bought one for her. Some under the table money
might have also bought her that nomination, too. I’d expect at least one of the
brothers to go with her if the family bought an interest in Star Records. I’m
sure they’ll be the center of every photographer’s lens. They’ll be the
best-looking guys there. All the other men will be in their tuxedos, but those
boys will look like they just stepped from the pages of
Esquire
.”

    
Allison added, “And all the women will be prancing around in elegant, floor
length gowns and showing off their most expensive jewelry. It sounds like a
dangerous kind of gathering to hold beside a swimming pool, if you ask me. Like
you said, someone just might fall in!”

    
Both women giggled.

  
“There’s only one thing to do,” Allison told Karen. “I’ve got to show up at the
AIM
awards with the #1 new artist in the nation,
and we’ll have to somehow sweep the media’s interest so that Sharon’s coup
d'état sinks like the
Titanic
!”

    
“Why not go one better and get him on national TV the same night . . . .”

    
In unison, both sisters gasped and then shouted, “On
The
Ed Sullivan Show
!”

    
“We’re thinking alike, sister. Imagine the impact of him being on the show at
7:00
the same night he makes an in-person
appearance at the
AIM
Awards with you!”