I laid on my stomach and picked up some of the meat and cheese on the platter, kicking my feet back and forth.

"I can't believe you splurged on the expensive lactose-free cheese," I said as I placed it on a piece of croissant and bit it.

Dimitri smirked. "I don't want to listen to your ass all night long, or you complaining that you can't poop," Dimitri laughed as he sipped his coffee, reclining back against the pillows with the sheets around his hips. I smiled at him and put some butter on the rest of my croissant and chewed slowly as I looked out at the view outside our window.

Dimitri said to make up for the lousy birthday I ended up with, mainly because I got the flu on my birthday, and was bedridden for two days, he promised that he would upgrade our suite in Paris. And he pulled through, he promised that Paris would be everything that I thought it would be.

And I also ended up having some of the best sex of my life. So many times since this tour started I wanted to bring it up, bring up what our relationship was turning into. But I was scared to because that would mean I had to admit something that I was scared of since the beginning. Our friendship came so easily, so smoothly. We had enough chemistry to make high school romance movies seem weak and small.

"What are you thinking about so hard?" Dimitri asked as he handed me my coffee. I took a sip and shrugged.

"Do you think that you'd ever date someone after Greta? I mean, seriously?"

Dimitri took another sip of his coffee. "I haven't given much thought of it," he said after a moment, "Nobody wants to be with someone in this life. It's so fast-paced and uncertain. I mean, I'm not even in California half the time. I couldn't put someone through that. It wouldn't be fair to them," he explained, What about you. Have you thought about dating once this is over?"

I licked my upper lip and met his eyes. "I'm not sure," I said quietly and rolled when my phone went off. I picked up my phone and checked the message from Mildred, smiling that she still messaged me good morning and good night even though we were on completely different time zones.

"You know, if I didn't have a fear of that someday someone could hack my personal accounts, I'd take a picture of you like that," Dimitri mused quietly. I tilted my head back so I could look at him.

"You mean naked with a sheet around my hips?" I laughed with a grin, stretching my arms above my head. Neither of us had felt the need to get dressed after our nightly and morning activities.

He nodded. "You're gorgeous. I don't think you have any idea of how beautiful you are," he said quietly, a soft and longing look on his face. I grinned at him and rolled back onto my stomach.

"I have some idea," I winked and playfully shoved a piece of croissant into his mouth. He nipped at my finger and then kissed it once he swallowed the bread.

Dimitri was far from happy that Victor showed up. The fans loved that we sang together, but Victor was pissed. France, Germany, Italy, and Greece, every show had outstanding ratings and reviews. Dimitri had become viral during the tour, not just from the show, but many of our playful and romantic moments had been caught on video, whether it was just us out at a park, or going to some tourist traps that we found at each location. Despite Poland having the best reviews on the show, he flew all the way here to tear a strip off Dimitri from diverting from the set playlist.

I watched him pace as he chewed Dimitri out, and I sighed. I was done hearing his voice. He didn't do anything wrong. It was the same as if someone sang a cover of a song and posted it on YouTube.

"And you!" Victor said turning on me, "You should know better. You're not a singer; you're a nobody. The only reason people associate with you is because of him. So don't think that you can just do whatever you want."

"Excuse me? I don't work for you; you don't get to speak to me that way," I retorted but he scowled at me.

"Get out. I need to speak with Dimitri, privately," he said, waving a hand at me dismissively.

"Victor," Dimitri started but he snapped at Dimitri too. I shook my head and got up, picking up my laptop.

"I'll be downstairs. Don't waste too much time, Victor. You might croak before you get to the point," I said and left the room, heading downstairs to the bar. I sat at the bar and ordered a gin and tonic, taking it to sit in one of the plush chairs in the lounge.

I opened my laptop and balanced it in my lap, opening the last document I worked on and took a sip of my drink. I was almost finished with the piece I was working on for a demo with Dimitri when a man sat down across from me, setting something on the table between us. I didn't look up right away, but I watched him push it toward me in my peripherals.

I looked up from my screen and swallowed thickly. It felt like someone had dumped a bucket of ice on me.

"Where did you get that?" I asked quietly, looking up at the man. He had thick curly black hair that peaked out from beneath a fedora, a scarf around his neck and an expensive suit. He screamed money, but at the same time, he gave me a bad vibe.

"How do you think I got it?" the man asked, rubbing his finger against the hair of his goatee. The edges of the photo were worn, the side a little bent like it had been in a wallet for years. I leaned forward and picked up the photo, turning it over.

Rosemarie Delilah Hathaway.

"Who are you?" I asked quietly, setting the photo back on the table.

"My name is Ibrahim," he said, "But my friends call me Abe."

I nodded. "How did you know I was here? Are you following me?"

"No. I'm here in case I need to peel Viktor off the floor if he provokes Dimitri," he said and leaned comfortably in the chair.

"And how did you get that picture?" I asked again, feeling a little uneasy.

He shrugged softly. "Your mother had a moment of weakness," he said, "But then she went back to pretending that I never existed."

I swallowed thickly again and reached for my glass, taking a long drink. I knew what he meant, but I didn't want to acknowledge what he meant. I had so much change in my life, I didn't think that I was ready for more change.

"How did you meet my mom?" I asked quietly, closing my laptop and looking at the sticker on the back of it.

"She worked in private security for a while," he said and I nodded.

"I didn't know that," I said after a moment. He looked confused.

"You didn't? I figured she would have gone back to it after she had you."

I shook my head. "No, never did. I don't remember her ever having a job for more than a few months at a time," I said and downed the rest of my drink, setting it down on the table with a quiet thud.

"That doesn't sound like Janine," he commented and I snorted a laugh.

"You didn't know her," I said plainly. "So, why approach me now?"

He looked confused at my question.

"What do you mean?"

"I grew up without you, I'm an adult now. Why decide now to approach me? You could have found me long before now if you wanted to."

"By the time I figured out where you were, you were adopted by the Lewistons. I wasn't about to bulldozer your life by making myself known then," he said quietly, "Your mother let slip in a drunk phone call that you had been adopted. I didn't know that she had put you up for adoption after she sent me that picture."

"She didn't put me up for adoption, I was removed from her custody when I was twelve," I corrected him, crossing my arms over my chest, "I grew up in the home of a woman who made it clear every day that she hated me, that I was a mistake. She told me that all the time. Told me how much I looked like my father and how he robbed her of everything."

Abe looked disappointed and shook his head.

"I had no idea. I'm sorry," he whispered.

"No, you had no idea," I replied and looked up when one of the waiters came back and asked if I'd like another drink. Abe ordered one for himself too, taking his hat of and setting it on the table.

"And your adopted family? They treated you well?" he asked, rubbing a hand over his wrist absently.

I nodded. "Yeah. I mean, my first foster family died, and the Lewistons took me in when nobody else would," I said and ran my hand through my hair.

"How long after I was born did you know about me?"

"I think you were three when I found out," he said with a swallow, "I begged your mother to let me meet you, but she refused."

I nodded. "You said something about pulling Viktor off the floor?"

"Viktor and I work together."

"Ah, so you're one of the people making Dimitri count down the days until his contract is up," I said dryly and crossed my arms over my chest.

Abe raised his brows. "Pardon me?"

"He hates being with this label," I said plainly.

"He does?"

I nodded my head. "You guys have been trying to turn him into something he isn't. Limiting what he's allowed to perform, who he's allowed to work with. Victor is up there right now, chewing a strip off of him because Dimitri asked me to sing with him again last night."

Abe leaned forwards on his knees and shook his head a little bit.

"What are you talking about?"

I blinked at him and shook my head. "How do you not know this?"

"I don't interact with Dimitri directly., I'm more of a go-between from Victor and Dimitri and the label. I usually listen to what Victor reports back and bring it to the executives. This is news to me."

I shook my head, not sure what to believe. The waiter set down our drinks and I reached for mine, taking a drink of it. I moved my laptop off my lap and set it on the table, crossing my legs. The lounge was still deserted, and I was grateful for it. I didn't want anyone else to witness the meeting between us.

"I only know about you through the media," Abe said after a moment with an awkward chuckle, running his hands through his hair, twisting the ends. I stared at the gesture and felt my lips quirk a little. That was something I would do.

"Then that's not a lot," I chuckled.

"No, and sadly, it's not the happy stuff," he said quietly.

I pursed my lips. "I write," I offered.

"You do?"

I nodded. "I wrote half of the song we performed last night."

He smiled and nodded. "I will have to find a recording of it. I'm sure someone had posted it somewhere," he said. I nodded and rubbed my shoes together.

"Well, you can tell Victor that if he ever speaks to me the way he did upstairs again, he'll have no balls left," I said as I took a sip of my drink.

"Oh?"

"Yeah, telling me I'm a nobody and that people only want to be involved with me because of Dimitri."

Abe raised his brows. "He said that?"

I nodded. "He's a prick. I've heard him fight with Dimitri on the phone so many times. We took a small trip when we were in France, going to see the sights and dinner for a late birthday, and he was furious that he didn't go to the events that he wanted him to go to promote the label and him. It was ridiculous. It was something at a museum that Dimitri had no interest in whatsoever," I explained.

"He's shown up at Dimitri's house without a reason, demanded changes in his songs because he didn't like them. He's even told Dimitri to end things with me on more than one occasion because I am altering his image for the bad. He wants him to get back together with the woman who used him and broke his heart."

Abe tented his fingers together and pursed his lips.

"That's very disappointing to hear," he said quietly. I nodded and sighed quietly, taking a slow sip of my drink. I noticed Tasha walking around just outside the bar on her phone, and I could tell that she looked anything but impressed.

"I wonder what kind of fire she's trying to put out now," I whispered. Abe craned his head and frowned.

"Nothing good from her expression," he said and took a drink from his glass, almost emptying it.

"Can I say something without it sounding forced or ungenuine?"

I nodded.

"If I had had the opportunity, I would have taken you. I didn't know right away, but the minute I found out about you, I begged your mother to let me meet you. The only reason I didn't interfere with your adoption was because of your case worker. She said that you had settled in well and were healing. Not just physically, but emotionally. I didn't want to disrupt that. I didn't want to cause you any more trauma or hardship. But it didn't mean I didn't think about you. I wanted to approach you as soon as I realized your connection to Dimitri, but I didn't feel it was my place," he explained, looking me in the eyes as he spoke.

"I know that I have no right to ask to be in your life because while I am your biological father, I cannot replace Eric Dragomir or Barry Lewiston. Barry more so, was your dad. Even if it was only for a few years, he was your dad. But I would like to get to know you, but only if you want me to know you."

I nodded. I was touched at his words. He was right; Barry was my dad for intents and purposes, but there was the part of me that wanted to know my father. The little girl that yearned to be loved by her parents and know her family, was crying out for the opportunity to know who she came from.

"Can I think about it?" I asked quietly after a few moments.

"Of course," he said earnestly, "Take all the time you need. This is my personal number, you can call it anytime," he said and took a business card out of his jacket and a pen, writing it on the back of the card. I took it and nodded.

"What happened with your mother? For a while, she was contacting me for money, but I knew that it was for drugs," he said.

I frowned. "She overdosed," I said quietly, "And then I found out she committed credit card fraud in my name."

Abe sighed. "That's terrible," he said. I nodded and took a deep breath when I saw Victor walk by.

I stood up and smiled at him tightly, feeling slightly awkward now. I needed to go upstairs and make sure Dimitri was okay, but I wasn't sure how to leave this. Abe walked around the table and offered me his hand. I took it and shook it, jumping a little when he kissed my cheek.

"Have a good night, Rose. And don't worry about Victor; you'll be able to sing with Dimitri again tomorrow night if you want to," he said as he let go of my hand.

"Good night," I said and pulled some cash out of the pocket in my phone case but Abe waved his hand at me.

"Let me," he said and walked towards the bar. I sighed and drank the last of it before heading towards the bar. I ran my hand through my hair and I walked out towards the elevators.

"Rose?"

I turned and smiled softly at Dimitri.

"Hey. I didn't see you come down," I said, but my smile dropped at the look on his face, "What?"

"What were you doing with Abe Mazur?" he asked, his voice almost cold.

"I had a drink?" I said before gasping, turning to go back into the bar to get my laptop but stopped dead in my tracks.

"You might need this," Abe said holding it out to me, "Can't do much work without it."

I chuckled and took it from him. "No, I can't. Thanks," I said. He nodded and said good night to Dimitri. I watched him walk out the door and stop to talk to Victor on the sideway, his hands gesturing in our direction.

I turned around and looked at Dimitri again, but he shook his head a little bit.

"Why?" he asked. I raised my brows at him and scoffed at the demanding tone in his voice.

"Because he sat down across from me because I was the only person in the bar. Asked if he could join me and then paid for my drink," I explained, "Why are you in such a twist about that?"

Dimitri looked at Abe and Victor with a look of disgust.

"Greta went to Abe to get signed at the label," he said bitterly and I nodded.

"How did it go with Victor?" I asked trying to change the subject.

"What did you two talk about?"

I blinked at him. "Excuse me?"

"What did you and Abe talk about?" Dimitri asked. I noticed Tasha out of the corner of my eye and she had a perplexed look on her face. I wasn't really ready to disclose what I had learned with Abe. I hadn't proceeded it yet, and I wasn't really sure I wanted to talk about it with anyone yet.

"Nothing important," I said, but the answer didn't please him.

"Rose?"

"Dimitri, that's enough," Tasha said stepping in, putting a hand on his chest and pushing back a few steps. "She had a conversation with someone. She doesn't owe you an explanation to that."

Dimitri sighed and turned around, jamming the button to go back up. I crossed my arms over my chest and sucked on my teeth. Tasha looked between us and made a confused look, but I shook my head. We were all silent in the elevator and I could feel the tension rolling off of Dimitri.

When we got back into our suite he went into his room without a word, closing the door behind him with a thud. I didn't understand why it was such a problem, but it hurt that that was his reaction to me talking to someone. I went into my room and set the card on the dresser and headed into the bathroom to shower.

I turned the shower head to the sharp jets and let it beat down on my back. The more extra things in did on the tour, the more aggravated my back was. I knew that working on my core would help with the pain, but sometimes it just ached in a way I could only describe as a flu ache. It would penetrate deep in my back, all the way down to the bottom of my tailbone. I could ignore the numbness and tingling sensations, but an ache like this was hard to ignore.

Once I finished washing my hair, I stepped out and washed my face. I looked through my toiletry bag and found the cream I used to help with the pain and rubbed it on my back, working it into the top of my butt and washed my hand thoroughly. I wrapped the towel back around me and stepped into my room.

"Hi," I said when I saw Dimitri standing next to the dresser.

"He gave you his number?" he asked, holding up the business card. I nodded slowly and Dimitri nodded curtly, tossing the card back down on the dresser, muttering under his breath as he walked out of the room. I shook my head and got dressed, opting for baggier clothes so that they wouldn't be tight against the cream.

I went into the kitchenette and pulled out a bottle of water, opened the bottle of prescription pain medication I had and frowned, only finding two left in the bottle. I popped one into my mouth and took a long drink of water, tilting my head back as I swallowed the pill.

I opened the door when there was a knock on it, and Tasha looked bewildered when she walked in.

"Where is he?" she asked.

"Having a hissy fit in his room," I muttered. Tasha sighed and shook her head but what to the door, knocking on it. When he didn't answer, she opened it.

"Why aren't you answering your phone?" she asked, putting her hands on her hips.

"What?"

"Victor's fired," she said. I blinked and gaped at her.

"What?!" Dimitri asked again.

"I just got a call. Victor's been fired and Abe Mazur is taking over as your primary contact. He wants to meet with you to review your contract," Tasha said. I sat down on the small couch and pulled my legs up. Could what I have said really mean enough to warrant Victor being fired, or was it a coincidence?

Tasha walked out of the room and shook her head, crossing her arms over her chest.

"Did you say anything to Abe about Victor?" Tasha whispered.

"I just said that he wasn't very pleasant to work with," I said, wincing and shifting on the couch.

"You okay?"

I nodded. "Yeah, my back just hurts. Do you know if there is a way to refill this here?" I asked holding up the bottle. Tasha took it and looked at the bottle.

"You're out already? We refilled this two weeks ago?"

I nodded and Tasha frowned, sitting down on the couch beside me.

"How bad is it?" she asked quietly.

"It's about a seven," I said quietly, "It's kept me awake the last few nights. I can't get comfortable and I keep getting the numb tingling sensation into my butt and the back of my thighs."

Tasha sighed. "I'll see about getting this refilled. And find a physiotherapist who will have time to see you. You need to see someone," Tasha said picking up her phone, "Was it massage that worked best for you?"

"Cupping," I said tiredly and Tasha nodded, scrolling through her phone.

"Can I take this?" she asked as she shook the bottle. I nodded and she stood up.

"I'll have Maria go get you a heating pad and something for you to take until we get this refilled," Tasha said as she walked to the door, looking at me with a sad expression.

"Is it travelling up your back too? The tension and such?"

"A little," I admitted.

"Try putting a pillow under your legs, it might help," she said before slipping out of the room. I sighed and rested my head against the back of the couch before standing up and heading towards my room. As I walked, I saw Dimitri's shadow dart away from the door.

Let me know what you think! :)