Page 81 of Beautiful Noise

“Ri, stop.”

“What?”

“Overthinking. The words are there. Once you hand them over, she’s going to do her thing and breathe life into them.”

I tried to push away but Ezren tightened his hold around my waist so I turned against him and angled my head back. “Contracts mean expectations. This is her career.”

“She knows the expectation. Clay does too and they still want you. Stop stressing, baby.” His hand gripped the back of my neck and his face lowered to mine. “I believe you can do this. They believe you can do this but none of that matters if you don’t believe it too.”

“I do,” I rushed out and he smiled sexily, arching his brow.

“You damn sure don’t sound like it.”

“I can do this,” I said with more confidence.

“Alright then.” His mouth met mine for another kiss. “You can do this and you will.” His eyes flicked past me toward the stage as Leijah wrapped up her goodnight speech with the crowd. Seconds later a mischievous grin was on my mouth. “I’m having a performance adrenaline rush and we have about twenty minutes before the VIP meet and greet.”

My core clenched with the realization of what he was expressing and I knew exactly what I was going to do about it.

I sat in one of the small lounge sections watching while a gang of women surrounded Ezren and Leijah in a corner near the step and repeat set up on one side of the small room we were in. The turn out for this VIP session was a lot larger than the others. There had to be over a hundred and fifty people who purchased tickets to meet Leijah and Ezren. What was even more promising was they were equally fanning over both as opposed to him dominating the fans’ time.

“Shit is wild, isn’t it?” The deep rasp of a male tenor startled me but when I turned my attention from Ezren and Leijah to find Clay beside me, I nodded and smiled.

“The fans love them.”

“Yeah.” He nodded, still watching the two of them before his gaze found me. “I never understood how deep this goes until the first time I experienced it firsthand with Ess. We were at a studio in New Orleans and word leaked that he was recording. Within minutes it felt like the entire city had surrounded the building just to see him. Shit is crazy.” He laughed lightheartedly, as if fully processing the memory or possibly the reality of what he was sharing. “Ess is a god in their eyes. They’ll sell their souls to have a piece of him, any piece of him they can get their hands on. A two-second conversation. A photo, hell just for him to look their way and see them. They worship his ass.” His tone was laced with amusement.

“It’s the same for you.”

His eyes flashed with appreciation before he softly shook his head. “It’s not the same. I’m behind the scenes. Even if they know my production is what seals the deal, they don’t respectmy contribution as much as they respect that Ess’s voice is what makes the work amazing.”

I understood his argument. Prior to being in Ezren’s world, I had knowledge of Clay. I was aware that he was sought after and had a name in the industry. The man was dubbed as one of the greatest but there were a lot of amazing producers. One of my favorites, Cassius Avery, was just as revered but also more visible. Whereas Clay could live a normal life, Cash couldn’t walk down the street or be in public spaces without being recognized and mobbed.

“You’re just as good as Cash…sort of…” I grinned and he laughed. “And everyone knows who he is. He has that…” I pointed to Ezren and Leijah.

“Damn, gut-fuckin-punch. Sort of? Ess said you were a tough critic but shit.”

“It’s not personal; I just have my favorites.”

“He’s your favorite and he’s where he is because of me.”

I shrugged. “To your previous point, it’s his voice that seals the deal.”

“Aight, you got that, and for the record, Cash and I have different styles so you can’t compare us but I am the fucking best at what I do.”

He was teasing but his ego was also on display.

“I’ll give you that.”

“Did Ess mention I wanted to lock down some dates with you when we get back to Atlanta?”

“He did.” My brows pinched.

“Damn, don’t give me that look. You’re not backing out, are you?”

“No, I just…” I huffed. “How does this work? What about the label and their standards? What if what I write doesn’t work…”

“It will work. You’re me, she’s Ess.”