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"And now there’s an entire busload of people depending on this tour that are out of work" And rand in the next teeks or she’s going to be out on the street "I can’t keep being selfish about this, not when it costs the happiness of so many other people"

"What about my happiness?" he asked quietly "Don’t I count?"

Oh God, he counted He counted so much But she’d just had an entire day of people’s hate and loathing in her face and her bank account had been more or less emptied by the label because she couldn’t keep it in her pants when it ca a burden to him

A burden A responsibility to be taken care of Not a lover, but ashe ever wanted to be

So she shook her head "I’ht you said you loved me" The pain in his blue eyes was stark

"I do love you," Kylie said "But that doesn’t mean I can be with you Not now Maybe not ever I’m sorry"

"I don’t understand, Kylie" He shook his head, baffled "Don’t do this Don’t separate us again Whatever it is, whatever’s bothering you, I can help Whatever your burdens, let me share them--"

But she went still at the word burdens "I’m sorry," she said She shoved her way past him, down the hall, and into the elevator that was just about to close

He didn’t co her tears to wait until she got into the cab waiting to take her to the airport

She almost ?" Cade asked Car a busy intersection in Manhattan "She adjusting?"

"She’s doing really well," Carure we can tackle one thing at a time Oh, and she’s cranky and irritable as hell, but overall, she’s doing well" She paused for a ot her head in the toilet"

He s around "Tell her the voh and she’ll be happier for it"

A pause "She says fuck you, and she can handle it," Carood Well, et you someon the other end of the phone Sheto tell him that she didn’t want Daphne to hear

He’d hired Car her pay so she’d report back to him no matter her loyalty to Daphne He wanted the full truth of as going on, not a glossed-over version And Car back

A moment later, he heard a door close on the other end of the phone and Car into an alcove in front of a closed storefront so he could continue the conversation privately

"Soit’s that dick Mr Powers Reer for Daph last year? Well, the label didn’t like hiht away They replaced him with Mr Powers, and he’s a bit of a control freak Like, he’s the one that had ive Daph the oxy to keep her on a leash Said it was less dangerous than any of the street stuff she could score, and she could still perfor to give herHe ca the label a fortune and she was a piece of shit, and how she was a drain on finances and she’d let down her fans That she was a laughingstock He said she had a week to get clean and then he’d expect her back in the studio if she couldn’t finish her tour"

"What? She’s supposed to be in rehab for at least a month"

"I know," Carmela said worriedly "Daph said he was full of shit and just throwing his weight around, but he really upset her Made her cry a little, and then she spent the rest of the afternoon chain-s out theTook a lot of pep talks to get her in a goodlabel, ht ours were bad just because ere the little peons I bet Daphne’s is horrible, too She’s hinted as much No wonder she’s such a stress monkey"