Free Duchess by Nikki Wilson Page B

her head and raised the partition between the back of the car and the driver.
    “What the heck was that?” It was all right to be Katie now.
    Kyle looked apologetic. “I don’t know. We gave them the list of approved questions, but come on, Katie. You know they never listen to those. It’s all just part of the game.” He shrugged, and suddenly she was even more irritated.
    “Maybe I don’t want to play their game.” Katie sighed. “We never should have done a television interview. I knew we should have stuck with radio interviews. If they get out of line, Duchess can just hang up the phone.”
    “The record label wanted more exposure for Duchess.”
    “Yes, they want exposure, but don’t want to expose who she is. They think they can have it all. They live in a dream world! Meanwhile, I’m here in reality, trying to juggle all the rumors and the prying news anchors. Duchess can’t handle this kind of scrutiny!” She continued to talk about Duchess in the third person mostly because it had become habit, but also because anyone could be listening.
    “Katie.” Kyle lowered his voice. “Do you know why I agreed to this insane idea of yours?”
    “Because it was so crazy, it was genius. You wanted to ride the cash wagon with me.”
    “No.” He looked at her seriously now, and she wasn’t sure she’d ever seen him like this before. “It’s because I know you, and I knew you had the best mind for this business. I saw how hard you worked at Julliard and all the extra hours you put into everything you did. I knew you wouldn’t let it fail.”
    Katie could only stare at him. That couldn’t be the reason. No one had wanted her in the business before Duchess. “Then why didn’t you pick me up with my own music? Why did you only agree to work with me after I created Duchess?” Her voice came out as a whisper.
    “Because you didn’t believe in your music the way you believe in Duchess.”
    “What?” She gasped as a heavy feeling grew in her stomach.
    “You were too timid and lacked confidence. The record label would have eaten you alive. But put a wig on you, and suddenly you became the force of nature I always knew you could be.”
    The intensity in Kyle’s voice unnerved her. He truly did believe in her. How could that be? There was an emotion in his eyes she couldn’t decipher. She looked away, uncertain how she felt about this information.
    “I guess we’d better start thinking about damage control now.” He was back to business as usual. She wondered if she had imagined what had just happened.
    “Um, yeah. Sure.” She took off her wig and stared out the window as Kyle began droning on about what they needed to do next.
    Did she only fail because she didn’t believe in herself? She scrambled to understand how that could be possible. Everything Katie had thought about herself and Duchess had been turned on its head, and she wasn’t sure it would ever be the same again.
     

Chapter Ten
     
    Chase held the flowers low so he could see over the bright blossoms and not get dizzy from the fragrant scent that emanated from the large bouquet. He knew he’d gone a little overboard in the hospital gift shop, but he hadn’t wanted to visit Shirley empty-handed. When he thought about all the things Shirley had done to help him and the other people at Veterans’ Aid over the past year and a half, the bouquet in his hands didn’t feel like enough. And to know that the whole time she’d been helping them heal from battle, she’d been engaged in her own private war against cancer—the woman’s strength made him feel like a coward.
    After the nurse buzzed him into the ICU, he walked into her room holding the flowers in front of him. Looking around, he noticed the fancy wallpaper and beautiful overstuffed couches and chairs. The opulence of the room screamed upscale hotel room. Only the hospital bed and steady beeping of the machines gave away the room’s true purpose. Shirley stared at the TV on the