Wreck the Halls(89)
“That’s right. I’d love to be a part of it.” The drummer winked at the camera. “If they’ll have me, of course. The original trio. Back together.” Outside in the plaza, the crowd watching the broadcast live erupted in a deafening cacophony of cheers. The drummer chuckled and leaned back in his chair. “I guess the public has spoken.”
Beat could barely remember the rest of the segment. It might have lasted a minute or an hour. Melody and Hoda carried the conversation, which was mostly about Trina and the odds of her changing her mind about reuniting. Beat could feel Fletcher’s eyes on him the whole time and he endured it happily, because it was better than Fletcher looking at Melody.
When Hoda bid them good luck and went to commercial, Beat forced himself to stand and help Melody from the chair, keeping himself as a barrier between his real father and the girl he wanted to marry. Melody and Hoda fell into a lively conversation about her dress, leading to Melody complimenting Hoda’s wardrobe.
“I’m done for the day, Melody,” Hoda said, unclipping her microphone. “Can you sneak back to my dressing room for a moment? That’s where my phone is charging and I’d love a selfie.”
“I’d love one, too!” Melody glanced back at Beat, beautiful in her excitement. “I’ll be right back.”
He nodded jerkily, once again quelling the urge to hustle her out of there.
“Great,” said Fletcher behind him. “That’ll give us a chance to talk. Man to man.”
They were within earshot of several crew members and since Beat wouldn’t put it past the bastard to air his family’s dirty laundry in front of everyone, he strode past the drummer into the backstage area, which was now beginning to empty of crew members, the show having wrapped for the day. “There doesn’t need to be a conversation,” Beat said, turning to face his father. “Nothing has changed since the last time we talked.”
Fletcher took his time responding. “Hasn’t it?”
The nape of Beat’s neck turned like a crank. “What is that supposed to mean?”
“Cute little girlfriend you’ve got there.”
It took every ounce of his self-control not to punch the motherfucker in the face. Don’t you dare talk about her. That’s what he wanted to say, but the vise around his neck was closing. This man had brought up Melody for a reason and Beat’s blood turned icy with dread.
“Congratulations. She’s head over heels for you, man. I bet she’d do just about anything for you,” Fletcher said, removing a pack of cigarettes from the inside pocket of his suit jacket, smacking it against the heel of his hand. “For instance, pay me to keep your big secret.”
A warning screeched in Beat’s head, the veins in his temples pounding painfully.
No, this had to be a nightmare. His mouth was too dry to speak, shock immobilizing him.
“Yeah, that lovestruck way she looks at you? I guarantee she’d protect you at all costs.” He winked at Beat. “Could mean double the payday for me.”
The rage finally exploded within Beat. “Leave her out of this. Or I will kill you.”
Fletcher made a tsking sound. “Your own father?”
Beat had informed this man he wasn’t his father a hundred times, so he didn’t bother wasting his breath now. His only focus in that moment was to protect Melody any way he could. Christ, he’d brought this man into her life. He’d been swallowing Fletcher’s poison for five years and by asking Melody to be part of the show, he’d served her the same toxic brew.
No. This couldn’t go a single step further.
“It’s all for the cameras,” Beat said, desperate. Fucking desperate to keep her out of this maniac’s line of fire. “Haven’t you heard of a scripted reality show? As soon as it’s over, I’ll probably never see her again.”
The lie set his throat on fire, made his stomach pitch with nausea.
Fletcher studied him through narrowed eyes, as if trying to decipher the truth.
Despite the turmoil wreaking havoc on his insides, Beat stared back unblinkingly.
“Sorry if you thought this was some magical love story, but it’s not. You’re welcome to try and pump her for cash, but she’ll tell you to go to hell,” Beat bluffed. “And then she’ll be able to leverage that secret. It’ll lose its power and become her bargaining chip if she wants to sell the story. And you know tell-all offers are going to roll in for her. This thing is huge.”
Beat took no satisfaction in the smugness leaking from his father’s expression.
“I know what I saw. You two are the real deal,” said the drummer, but it was easy to see he wasn’t as positive as before. No, he was second-guessing the whole angle.
Good.
Leave her alone.
Don’t you dare go near my girl.
Melody walked backstage with Joseph trailing behind her, filming, but one of the Today show producers beckoned to him. Joseph looked conflicted for a moment, as if deciding whether to speak to a colleague or continue filming. In the end, he switched off the camera and approached the other crew member with a handshake. Beat dug his fingernails into his palms, drawing blood to keep from reaching for Melody. Wrapping her in a bear hug, guarding her against this man’s evil. She held up the screen of her phone so Beat could see the selfie she’d taken with Hoda and he nodded stiffly.