Rock Idol (Reality With a Twist Series) (8 page)

“Well,
the best that I can say is that you’re dressing better,” Mitch said.

Rick
was getting better at taking Mitch’s criticisms because his smile actually
broadened. “Well, that’s something! Mitch Daniels just complimented me.”

Mitch
didn’t share in Rick’s amusement. “Well, I’m glad you can find some humor in
this, because honestly, Rick, I don’t see anything funny about your situation.
I mean, you’re a nice kid, but this is the big leagues and you’re only ready
for a high school team.”

“Ember?”
Jonathan King asked.

“I
don’t suppose it will come as a surprise to anyone that Mitch and I don’t see
eye-to-eye on this,” Ember said. “Rick, I do think your overall performance is
improving. It’s not just the clothes—although they help. You also have more
poise and self-confidence—”

“All
of that is very nice, Ember,” Mitch cut in, “but when we cut away all the bells
and whistles, this is still a singing contest and on that criteria, Rick simply
isn’t doing as well as his fellow competitors.”

“I
don’t agree,” Ember said. “While he’s not the strongest singer we’ve heard
tonight, there were at least three and maybe four performances that were
clearly more deficient.”

Mitch
actually half-conceded her point. “One or two, perhaps, but I think they should
go home as well.”

“How
do you weigh in on this Fawn?” King asked.

Fawn
shook herself as if she’d been on the verge of drowsing on the stage. “What?
Oh? I, I think I agree with Mitch this time.”

Dead
silence crashed across the theater and Rick’s smile fell with it.

Fawn’s
atypical comment clearly startled King as well. “What? Did I hear you
correctly? You agree with Mitch on something?”

Fawn
glared at him, defiance etched deeply across her face. “Yes,” she insisted.
“You did! Rick just isn’t performing as strongly as I think he should be.” Her
defiant expression cracked for a moment, leaving her looking uncertainly at the
stage. Then she seemed to recollect what she was doing and turned to glare
triumphantly at Ember. She looked so childish that Ember half expected her to
stick out her tongue.

“Wow,”
King said. “Fawn didn’t like a performance. Now we’ve seen everything.”

Week Six

“Good
morning, George,” Ember said as the uniformed man opened the front doors to the
Atwood Building
and greeted her. “You look especially chipper today.”

George
smiled that look that mature fans often got when they caught sight of her—as if
they were not only seeing Ember as she was now but were also remembering
excellent moments in the past that they associated with her music. “I’m sure
it’s just the pleasure of seeing you, Ms. Blaze,” George told her.

Ember
stopped to give George more of her attention, fully aware that the paparazzi
were continuing to snap pictures as the door swung closed. “That was a really
sweet thing to say. Does Fox pay you extra to put the judges in a good mood
before the photo shoot?”

George’s
smile broke into a full-fledged laugh. “No, Ma’am!
 
You inspire the complements naturally. You
just have a way of brightening up a day.”

Sometimes
life is just good. Ember had felt a little bit apprehensive about coming today
after that nonsense with Fawn last week, but George had just put her completely
at ease again. She leaned forward and gave him a little half hug. “Well, thank
you! You brighten up the day too.”

The
surprise on George’s face was a delight to see. “Thank you, Ms. Blaze!”

“Hey,
Ember, how do you know George?” one of the paparazzi called out.

The
questions some people would ask always surprised Ember. “Everybody knows,
George. He’s been the doorman here for all three seasons of
Rock Idol
.”

The
paparazzi surged closer but Ember didn’t have time to hold a lengthy
conversation. “I’d better get up to my dressing room and let Hans work his
magic. I’d hate to hold up the shoot,” she told them. Holding up the shoot was
something a diva would do, and in rebuilding her reputation, Ember had always
been careful to avoid the negative aspects of being termed a
diva.

 
“You don’t have to hurry too much. Mr. Daniels
isn’t here yet,” George informed her.

Ember
flashed him another smile as she walked into the building. “Men never seem to
need as much time in makeup as women do. Is Fawn here?”

George’s
face lost some of its good spirits. “I did see Ms. Fields arrive about twenty
minutes ago.”

Ember
wanted to ask him why he suddenly looked less happy, but there was no way to do
that in front of the paparazzi. Still, she wondered what was up. Was the
sweet
judge
being nasty to the hired help?

“Gina!
Where the hell is Fawn?” Fox snapped.

Gina
Hartley’s head whipped around, anger and confusion warring for control of her
face. “She should be here already, Mr. Atwood. Her makeup was done and she said
she’d be right behind me when I checked on her fifteen minutes ago.”

Gina’s
explanation only seemed to add to Fox’s irritation. “Well, go find her again
and this time, hold her hand so she doesn’t get lost on the way here!”

Ember
stopped herself from shaking her head as she wondered if Fawn had been delayed
by the need for one more quick snort of cocaine. She didn’t want to get
involved in that. Fawn was Fox’s problem, and even though she was sure Fawn
needed help, Ember wasn’t going to be the one to rat her out and get her fired.

She
noticed little Kim Ryan approaching her from across the room, sporting her new
outfit. Six weeks into the season, the show traditionally worked to jazz up the
contestants’ appearance to make them look more professional. It was a big media
event and the show would push hard with interviews and advertising campaigns to
highlight the changes. To Ember’s eye, it had been pretty successful.

Kim
was the fifteen-year-old contestant, a little waif of a girl who used to dress
like she was planning to sing in church. Now wardrobe had given her a sexy
little number that showed off her midriff and most of her thighs. It was
analogous to the sort of outfits Ember had worn when she was that age, although
Kim hadn’t yet developed the breasts that would make it most effective.

This
time Ember did shake her head.
 
She
wondered how long it would be before Kim’s handlers started pushing her to get
a boob job. The girl hadn’t finished coming through puberty yet, but that
wouldn’t stop the sharks from nagging her to interfere with nature. Sometimes,
Ember didn’t like this business at all.

She
pushed the negative thoughts to the back of her mind. “Kim, you look so cute
with your hair done that way.” Kim had started the season with fairly long
blond hair. Now it was cut and shaped so that curls accentuated her face.

Kim
curled one of her new locks around her finger and seemed uncomfortable when she
had to stop because her hair was eight inches shorter than it had been.
“Thanks, Ember. It’s going to take a little getting used to, but everybody
tells me the new look suits me.”

“It
does suit you, Kim,” Ember assured her.

“I
hope so because this,” she indicated her new, much abbreviated garments, “is a
little disorienting. I mean, why didn’t they just put me in a bikini? Mitch
keeps telling us that this is a singing competition, but dressed like this I
feel like I’m going to be a calendar girl.”

Ember
couldn’t help laughing. “It all goes together, Kim. Strong vocals is the
foundation of every great singing career, but to make it you still have to
connect with the fans. Look and style helps you do that.”

Kim
wasn’t a Hillary Tempest. There was no way she was going to flat out disagree
with Ember. But she still looked unhappy in her new wardrobe.

Ember
gave her a little hug. “You’re going to be great! Have you seen pictures of me
at your age? You’re almost overdressed by comparison.” It was an exaggeration
to be sure, but the words seemed to put Kim more at ease.

Over
the girl’s shoulder, Ember caught sight of Rick standing with his roommate,
Zach Donderhue, and a memory of a little inappropriate fantasy she’d enjoyed
flashed through her brain.

She’d
been relaxing in her tub back in New York City,
soaking in the hot bubble bath. She’d started out wondering what had happened
to Darrel Brown, her first serious boyfriend back when she was just fifteen.
But somehow the face in her memories had morphed into Rick’s and it was his
lips on hers and his strong hands searching her body. He didn’t fumble like
Darrel had—not that he was overly skilled either. No, he’d purposefully kissed
his way from her breasts to her stomach to the moist swollen lips Ember had
been touching under the water...

A
shiver of remembered pleasure worked its way up her spine and she looked around
guiltily, hoping no one had notice. Across the room, Rick was still talking
with Zach. Both men looked great, but Ember couldn’t help thinking that Rick
outshone his friend. He had kept the open shirt look which had worked for him
so well last week, but Fox had expanded the size of the wardrobe expense
account this week and it really made a difference, lifting Rick to whole new
level of hot and sexy.

She
made herself professionally appraise Zach as well. His chest wasn’t showing and
he had a little too much sparkle in his clothing for Ember’s taste, but he,
too, looked professional enough to jump out on a stage as a front line act on a
concert tour.

Rick
caught her eye and smiled. It wasn’t the cocky expression that millions of
women across the country had fallen in love with, but a warmer look which
suggested he was genuinely happy to see her. An answering smile blossomed on
her face as her whole body began to tingle. She hoped no one noticed. She
didn’t want to make a fool of herself.

Rick
said something to Zach and both men crossed the room to her.

“Ember, you look fabulous!” Rick greeted her before
starting to kiss her on the cheek.

“Watch
the makeup,” Ember warned him. “Hans will kill you if you make him touch it up
again.”

Both
Zach and Rick laughed at her little joke, and both contented themselves with
shaking her hand.

“I
didn’t think it was possible, but this photo shoot feels even more chaotic than
last time,” Zach said.

Last
time they had done this they had the whole
Rock Idol
cast together. Now
they were five contestants smaller, but the frenzy of energy remained just as
great. “Nature of the beast,” Ember told him. “If it’s not high energy, it’s
not Hollywood.”

Rick
shifted the conversation in a more personal direction. “How have you been?”
From the serious look in his eye, Ember figured he wanted to add
I’ve been
worried about you
but was trying to be discreet since Zach was with them.

The notion appealed to her. She really liked the idea that
Rick had been thinking of her just like she’d been thinking of him. She
remembered touching herself in the bath again. Well, maybe he hadn’t been
thinking about her
just like
she’d been thinking of him.
But…what
if he had?

Suddenly feeling flustered, Ember tried to answer Rick’s
question and reassure him without letting Zach know that she and Fawn had a
fight before the last show. “I thought I was coming down with a bug last week,
but I was wrong. I feel good! Thanks for asking.”

From
the way his eyes continued to scrutinize her face, Ember wasn’t certain that
Rick believed her, but his words pretended he did. “That’s good! We can’ t have
the best judge off her game. What would we do if all America
heard was Mitch Daniels’ derision and Fawn’s—whatever it is that Fawn says.”

Zach
started to laugh, but a sudden unanticipated comment from Hillary Tempest cut
him off.

“You’re
only saying that because Ember’s little tips on playing up to your teenybopper
fans are keeping you in the contest, Rick. Even Fawn can see you’re a
talentless hack now. Once Ember stops pretending you’ve got a chance, you’ll be
on the next flight back to New York City.”