Chart Toppers (Star Maker Book 3) (35 page)

Kyle
chuckled and shook his head.
 
“I
don’t think I wanna know.”
 
He
snickered and raised his eyebrows.
 
“It’s all about the discretion, right?”

His
colleagues burst into laughter, and Mark nodded.
 
“In this hospital, absolutely!”

Peter,
a first-year resident, interjected and pointed at the TV.
 
“Whoa!
 
Who is that redheaded hottie?”

Mark
rolled his eyes.
 
“Who?”

Peter
frowned.
 
“She was just on the
screen a second ago.
 
I think she’s
nominated for an award or something.”

Mark
jested.
 
“Or something.
 
She’s probably someone’s wife, genius.”

Kyle
shifted his focus to the screen and heard words that made his heart skip a
beat.
 
A wide grin spread proudly
across his face as he watched Kit walk to the stage and accept her award.
 
He nodded and let out a quiet sigh of
contentment.
 
Seeing that proved to
him that all was right in the world.

Mark
frowned at him.
 
“Dude, do you know
her or is this some weird celebrity crush thing?
 
We’re not gonna see you on the eleven
o’clock news arrested for breaking into her house, are we?”

Kyle
glanced at him and was about to answer Mark’s question when his beeper went
off.
 
He chuckled and looked at it,
smiling and snickering.
 
“I’m
out!
 
Duty calls, man.”

Mark
shook his head and called after him.
 
“I won’t forget to ask you about her later.
 
Stalker!”

Kyle
chuckled to himself as he headed out of the lounge and down the hallway toward
the operating room.

* * *

The
next few minutes were a blur for Kit as she spit out an acceptance speech for
herself and the band.
 
Before she
knew it; she was being escorted off the stage to the backstage area once again
where she dwelled with her publicist.
 

She
took her time posing for pictures holding that precious little statue in her
hand.
 
It was the sole reason she
moved to Los Angeles in the first place and agreed to manage Gypsy Tango.
 
Every moment passed like a second and
before she knew it, she was being escorted to one of the Grammy parties by her
chatty publicist.

She
mingled easily, socializing and graciously receiving congratulations from her
peers.
 
She ran into so many rockers
she hadn’t seen in years.
 
She was
thoroughly enjoying herself, a glass of champagne present in her hand and a
smile on her face at all times.
 
Since she had no idea of the fate of the night, she and Giselle had made
a pact to meet at the Diamond Records party that Jonathan was hosting at the
Beverly Hilton.
 

She
found her publicist and told her she needed to head to that party.
 
Quicker than she could comprehend, she
was ushered into a limo by her publicist and accompanied by a new pack of shiny
friends.
 
The Grammy awards she and
the band had won earlier in the night graced the backseat across from her,
gleaming.

When
Kit got out of the limousine at the Diamond party, the paparazzi was there to
greet her again.
 
She noticed
Giselle out of the corner of her eye talking with the publicist while Kit
worked the press.
 
She looked up
moments later, and they were gone.
 

Unfazed,
she headed into the party taking a momentary pause in the ladies’ room for
herself.
 
She touched up her
lipstick and then took a seat on the sofa in the accompanying lounge, praying
she wouldn’t get cornered in a conversation.

She sat
back and grinned, wishing Alexa was there to celebrate with her.
 
Under normal circumstances she would
have been, this was their industry now, but since she was only weeks away from
the birth of her second child, it was a major impossibility.
 
She was certain Alexa and Wes had
watched the broadcast, and she would be hearing from them the following
day.
 

She was
relieved that Maxine was there, although just as busy.
 
She was covering the event for
Platinum Magazine,
and Kit looked
forward to celebrating with her.
 
Thinking of both Alexa and Maxine, easily led Kit back to her past.

She
sighed, remembering Joe and Kirby at that moment, saddened that they had both
been gone from the planet for so many years now.
 
They were creeping up in her mind, and
she was disturbed to find thoughts of Kirby running rampant again.
 
She realized suppressing the memories of
him all these years was coming back to bite her.
 
Now that she had broken the seal and
allowed them back in, they were flooding her consciousness.
 
They weren’t necessarily bad.
 
They just made her heart ache
tremendously.
 
She had shared a love
with him that no man could ever replicate, not even her husband, and even
though she was in love with Sully, Kirby was always in her heart.
 

She
grinned, cherishing a fun memory of him. They watched the Grammy’s together,
every year from the moment they got together.
 
He would turn down the sound and mimic
the announcer’s booming voice saying, “And the Grammy goes to Kit McKenna.”
 
She giggled quietly, recalling it was so
much like her experience earlier when she accepted the award.
 

Kirby
had always supported her dreams of a massive career in music and pushed her in
that direction, continually encouraging her to follow her heart.
 
He had deeply believed in her talents
and was convinced she would be a big success one day.
 
Now that day was here, and she held her
hand to her heart, sighing as she thought about him.
 
Before she could fall deeper into the
moment, she was interrupted.

“Kit,
congratulations!”

The
woman standing before her with the nasally voice broke her train of thought,
and she reluctantly stood up to acknowledge and thank her.
 
She made small talk for only a few
moments and quickly made her way back out to the party.
 
The executives cornered her instantly,
congratulating her and praising her.
 
Jade Riff also appeared from out of nowhere and couldn’t stop hugging
and kissing her.
 
They were pumped
up from their win.
 

Spencer
approached and handed her a drink.
 
He
smiled at her and raised his glass.
 
“To you, Kit.
 
Bravo.
 
You fucking killed it tonight!
 
I’m really proud of you, and I know that
husband of yours is probably going nuts right about now across the pond,
celebrating your team win.
 
You two
have wanted this from day one.
 
We
all have, really.
 
Glad to see you
finally got it.
 
No one deserves it
more than you two.”

She
smiled and clinked her glass against his, taking a sip.
 
“Thank you, Spence.
 
Couldn’t have gotten here without your
help.
 
You came in and owned KMK,
making it easy for me to produce these albums.”

He
grinned and nodded.
 
“It was my
pleasure.
 
The execs are over the
moon tonight.
 
They’ve always loved
you, but tonight you can do no wrong.
 
You’re like a rock goddess that walks on water.”

She
burst out laughing.
 
“Now that’s one
I’ve never heard, but I kinda like it.
 
I’ll gladly take that title for one night.”

Spencer
and Kit mingled at the Diamond party, enjoying themselves, time passing quicker
than Kit had anticipated.
 
Giselle
approached her and leaned over, speaking into her ear over the loud music.
 
“We have to roll, gatinha.
 
We gotta get you out of that gown and
dressed for the flight.”

She was
disappointed.
 
“It’s time to go
already?”

“Yep.
 
The luggage is in.
 
The Grammys are loaded and are being
guarded by security in our limo that’s waiting to go to Santa Monica.
 
If we want to make it to London before
the guys finish their show, we have to hustle.
 
The jet is gassed and ready.”

She
frowned.
 
“Ok.
 
Let me just say a quick goodbye to the
execs, and we’re out.”

An hour
later, Kit sat on the private jet with Giselle and seven Grammys—two hers
and five theirs, taxing down the runway at lightening speed, wheels up to
London seconds later.
 

Both of
them were buzzed from all the celebration and wanted to keep the party
going.
 
Giselle had poured drinks
for both of them.
 
She clinked
glasses with Kit and cranked the volume on the stereo.
 
‘Rock and Roll,’ by Led Zeppelin blared
throughout the cabin.
 
They both
sang the lyrics at the top of their lungs in unison and burst into a fit of
giggles.
 

Giselle
yelled happily at the top of her lungs.
 
“Watch out London, here we come and this time we’re bringing Grammys!”

CHAPTER 19

After a
long flight of constant celebration with Giselle and a brief two-hour catnap, Kit
struggled to wake up. She was disoriented from the time change, and her
internal clock had no idea what time it was.
 
Local time said ten, but her body was
stuck somewhere on the West Coast.
 
She
clung to the coffee that had been made for them on the plane before they
debarked.
 
She sipped it and glanced
at Giselle, who made a face at her.

“Shit,
maybe we should have waited to party until tonight.
 
But it just
was
tonight.
 
Crap, I’m
so confused at this point.”

Kit
laughed.
 
“Me too.
 
Buck up little camper, you know those
guys are going to want to party when they see we’re in town and have brought a
bunch of new friends for them to meet.”

She
chuckled.
 
“New friends of the shiny
happy awards variety.
 
Good
point.”
 
She made herself more
comfortable on her side of the limo and sipped her coffee.

Their
limousine pulled into the arena and parked behind a pack of limousines that
were quietly assembled.
 
The drivers
stood around smoking cigarettes, drinking coffee and talking.
 
Kit chuckled knowing that within the
hour, every single one of them would be behind the wheel, car idling, exhaust
ascending to the rafters, waiting for go time.
 
They would use their supreme powers of
navigation to avoid hitting or maiming screaming fans who threw themselves at
their vehicles containing members of the band.
 
She didn’t envy their job.

Kit and
Giselle got out and headed up to the backstage area.
 
Gypsy Tango could be heard up on stage
and their song ‘Road Warrior,’ echoed loudly through the halls.
 
A security guard stopped them.
 
They both flashed their all access
passes, and when he noticed who they were, he promptly got on his
walkie-talkie, flagging them ahead rapidly.
 
Moments later, Sean appeared out of
nowhere.
 

He
hugged Kit and then Giselle.
 
“Ladies, great to see you.”

Kit
gave him a kiss on the cheek.
 
“You
too, Sean-Bon.”
 
She had started
using that nickname with him during their last world tour after he teased her
on a drunken evening that Kit-Kat was merely a candy bar.
 
She thought Sean-Bon sounded like
Bon-Bon, also a type of candy.
 
She
started using it, and it stuck.
 

She
nodded to him.
 
“Babe, we need a
bodyguard on our limo.
 
I want it
off limits to everyone.
 
Put that
limo on lockdown.
 
We’ve got some
very important ladies waiting in that car if you know what I mean.”

He
nodded and smiled.
 
“Damn, Kit.
 
You cleaned up.
 
How many do you got in there?”

She
giggled.
 
“Seven.
 
And nothing can happen to those
girls.
 
Guard that shit.
 
Get on the horn now!”

He
laughed and got on his walkie-talkie, sending two bodyguards to the limo to
make sure no one entered the back of the car.
 
He nodded.
 
“Ok, Kit-Kat, you’re set.
 
C’mon back.”

She
quickened her step so that she was walking side by side with him.
 
She leaned over speaking in a hushed
tone for discretion.
 
“How’s his
voice?”

He
shook his head.
 
“Not good.
 
The specialist arrives tomorrow?”

“Yes.
 
He’s supposed to be here way before
soundcheck so he can take a look at Sully in our room.
 
Vocal coach will be there too.”

“Good.
 
So, if you knew about the awards, I take
it you guys watched the broadcast?”

He
grinned.
 
“Some of us did.”

She
raised her eyebrows.
 
“Is this all
part of the tremor in the force thing you were talking about with the band not
getting along?”

“Maybe.
 
Who knows for sure?
 
Remo and Jimmy weren’t there.
 
They were out partying at some club with
a bunch of groupies.
 
Sull, Bry, Tony
and I were watching it in my room.”

“And?”

He
laughed.
 
“And they went nuts.
 
I will say this much, it put them all in
good spirits, so they were getting along today, which was refreshing for a
change.”

“Good.”

At this
point, they had reached the backstage area.
 
Kit removed her coat and handbag in the
dressing room and headed up to the side of the stage with Sean and Giselle in
tow.
 

She
folded her arms across her chest and watched Sully.
 
He appeared to be having a grand old
time out on the stage, but when he went to the higher register in his vocal
range, she could hear the strain.
 
She
felt her heart sink.
 
She knew it
had to be messing with his confidence.
 
She shook her head and looked at Sean exchanging a silent
understanding.
 
He nodded
sadly.
 
She shook her head again and
walked away, headed back down to the dressing room.

She
stood at the bar and made herself a stiff drink.
 
She could still hear the
performance.
 
He was
struggling.
 
Hearing him push his
voice was painful for her to hear.
 
She felt tears welling up in her eyes and forced herself to calm
down.
 
She knew he was probably
scared to death about his voice.
 
The last thing he needed was her freaking out about it too.
 
She had to put on a poker face for him
and become his biggest cheerleader.

By the
time she had knocked back a few drinks and composed herself, the band was
finishing their last encore.
 
She
knew Sully would be in the dressing room backstage momentarily.

Giselle
had the bodyguards bring up the awards.
 
She and Kit hurried to set the Grammys on the table in the dressing room
so the band would see them when they walked in.
 
They high-fived each other as they heard
the last notes of the song finish, waiting anxiously for the band to
materialize before them.

Sean
walked in and smiled at the site before him.
 
“I love it.”

The
band stumbled in moments after Sean.
 
Kit laughed as their eyes first went to her and then to the Grammys
trying to figure out who they should run to first.
 

She
giggled.
 
“Go ahead, boys.
 
Your ladies are waiting for you.”

The
guys pounced on their awards while Sully made a beeline for her.
 
He kissed her and wrapped himself around
her.
 
His voice was hoarse when he
spoke.
 
“You’re here!
 
This is the best surprise ever!”
 
He kissed her and gazed into her
eyes.
 
“We did it, babe.
 
We won, and it’s all because of you.”

She
smiled.
 
“I think you guys had
something to do with it too.
 
I
can’t make an album all by myself.”

He
chuckled.
 
“Good point.”

She
motioned to the table.
 
“Why don’t
you go meet your pretty lady?”

He
giggled and gazed into her eyes.
 
“You won’t mind, huh?
 
Don’t
be jealous now.”

She
shook her head and grinned. “I promise, I won’t be.
 
I’ve got a lady of my own, you
know.”
 
She winked.
 

The
moment Sully broke free from Kit, the band charged toward her, showering her
with one armed hugs, balancing a Grammy in their other hand while kissing
her.
 
She laughed.
 
They were relentless.
 

Giselle
popped open a few bottles of champagne, and the band didn’t hesitate to spray
her, Kit and themselves with it.
 
The mood was all around festive.
 
As Kit watched them interact, she wondered what Sean had been so
concerned about.
 
They seemed to be
getting along just fine.

Kit
remained snuggled up to Sully on the sofa until the very last minute.
 
A knock on the door served as a dismal
reminder of what they both didn’t want to face, but knew they had to.
 
She headed to the door and greeted Sully’s
throat specialist from Los Angeles, Dr. Franklin.
 

“Hey,
Doc.
 
Thanks for making the trip.”

He forced
a grin.
 
“No problem.”
 
He focused his attention on Sully as he
stood in front of him and extended his hand, nodding as he shook his hand
silently.
 
The doctor surveyed him
closely.
 
“That bad, huh?
 
Are you feeling worse than you were two
years ago?”

Sully
nodded silently.

Dr.
Franklin looked at Kit.
 
“Did he
perform last night?”

She
nodded.
 
“Yeah.
 
His voice sounded strained, especially
when he hit his higher register.
 
He
was hoarse by the end of the show.”

Sully
looked at her and cocked his head to the side giving her a surprised look that
she had paid so much attention to the state of his voice the night before and
had not mentioned anything to him.

He shifted
his attention back to his patient.
 
“Why don’t you take a seat, Sully?
 
We’ll get you all checked out.”

As the
doctor started his examination, Kit picked up the phone and called Sean.
 
“He’s here.
 
C’mon over.”

“I will
in a sec.
 
I’m going to go fetch the
vocal coach from downstairs.
 
He
just arrived.”

Kit sat
across the table watching Sully being observed by Dr. Franklin.
 
As he was doing the final part of his
examination, Kit could see that Sully was getting antsy and wanted it to be
over with.
 
Sean and the vocal coach
stood on the other side of the room speaking in hushed tones.

Dr.
Franklin finished and shared his attention between Sully and Kit.
 
He sighed.
 
“It’s not good.”
 
He glanced at Kit.
 
“How many shows do they have left?”

 
She couldn’t mask the concern on her face
or the furrowed brow that wouldn’t go away.
 
“They have two more shows here in
London, then seven shows in South America and a whole leg in North
America.
 
They’ll be on the road
until May fifteenth.
 
Can he make
it?”

The
doctor nodded but did not look optimistic.
 
“He can.
 
I can give him
steroids for his vocal chords and work with a vocal coach is good, but it’s not
a permanent solution.
 
This is going
to keep happening.
 
He needs
surgery.
 
He’s got two polyps on his
vocal chords.
 
It’s pretty
serious.
 
If this isn’t taken care
of within a reasonable amount of time, there could be permanent damage to his
voice.
 
Also, there is a chance the
polyps could be cancerous.
 
We can’t
be sure until they’re removed.”

Sully’s
eyes widened, and he looked at Kit.
 
She reached across the table for his hand, trying to remain calm and
keep her poker face on despite her mounting fears.
 
She shifted her attention back to the
doctor.
 
“Ok, so what is the short
term solution?”

“Vocal
rest as much as possible.
 
If he
uses his voice for performances and coaching only and gets the steroid shots
when needed, his vocal chords should hold up until he’s done with the
tour.
 
I want to schedule him for
surgery today.”