I Treasure Your Heart

by C. M. King

  We knew exactly what he meant.

  “You are shameless, Elijah, but I love you already. The twenty-sixth cannot come fast enough. We need to have another girls’ night before that,” Micha beamed, and I couldn’t have agreed more tonight had been fun.

  “We could always invite Channing along next time.” He winked.

  “Oh my, I could climb him like a tree.” Corinne giggled.

  “Oh me too, anyway, I hear movement upstairs so I’ve got to love you and leave you, ladies. Perfect night, just what I needed. Iz, I’ll be ringing you tomorrow to talk wedding place cards, favours and seating arrangements. Don’t pull that face, it all has to be done. This wedding will be perfect if it’s the last thing I do.”

  “Fine,” I snapped. “We’ll chat tomorrow then.”

  “Remember to stay fabulous, ciao.” He gave us an air kiss before disappearing from the screen.

  “He is hilarious,” Corinne remarked

  “Tell me about it.” I chuckled. I was glad that they had equally loved him as much as I did.

  “I wish he could join the tour, he would be so much fun.” Corinne sighed.

  “We have got to have a word with Tony,” Micha insisted, almost looking like she would make sure he wouldn’t take no for an answer.

  “He would be over the moon. He’s only been doing small parts, for him to be in a bigger production would mean the world to him.” It would be so good to perform together, to not have any distance between us.

  “Then we have to make it happen.” Micha grinned.

  I could only hope they could make his wish come true.

  Chapter Twenty-Three

  “So I’ve got some amazing news to tell you,” Joel breathed down the telephone. My ears instantly pricked up at the thought of good news. I let out a long yawn, last night had been amazing to hang out, but I was still overly tired.

  “Oh am I keeping you up?” he mocked and I giggled.

  “Sorry, we were watching The Notebook till nearly two. Elijah watched it with us and met the girls. He had a blast. He’s coming to see us at the end of the month so we’re all excited about that.”

  “I’m glad I was hundreds of miles away,” he replied mockingly.

  “Oh shush, you know we love our film nights,” I chided.

  “I can only imagine the oohing and ahhing over Ryan.”

  I could almost see him rolling his eyes. “How did you know we were watching Ryan?”

  “Because it’s all you do. Anyway, do you want to hear my news or should we continue on with how Ryan is so damn dreamy,” he added sarcastically.

  I pulled a face. “Ugh, please don’t mock Ryan, but go on tell me your news.”

  “Well, we’ve been doing the odd performance here and there, nothing much, small crowds in a pub, but we got asked to play at a bigger venue, where there is a big line-up. We got a good response.”

  “Oh that’s amazing,” I crooned, happy they were starting to slowly get noticed.

  “Hang on, that isn’t the good news. Afterwards we were approached by a promoter, her name’s Chantel. She’s pretty big helping out small local bands to build their audiences. She’s great on social media for driving more people our way, and she’s said she’s going to help us with the promotion side, to speak to more organisers so we can play in their venues. She said it would only take a few months before we might be able to play larger venues than just back street pubs.”

  “Wow, that’s amazing. I know how much all this means to you, you must be so excited.”

  “We are. The guys were getting a little bummed out at the lack of enthusiasm when we played. To be honest the money, we earned by the time we forked out for petrol and split it between us all it, was next to nothing.” I could almost hear how disheartened he was by it all.

  “Sounds like she could be exactly what the band needs.” I hoped so, the band needed someone to work their magic and get them the kind of notice they deserved.

  “She is, you know I don’t spend a lot of time on Facebook, so our band page was in serious need of a revamp and to be constantly updated. She’s taken that off our hands, and she’s getting in an expert to redo it. We’re getting some professional photos done free of charge through her connections, and she said our Facebook likes will soar after that. I am just so grateful we stumbled upon her, it was like fate.”

  “Sounds too good to be true.” There was a part of me wondered what the catch was.

  “I know, but she rhymed off all the bands she has helped and they are flying high now, so it’s got to be our turn next. Oh hang on, Iz, she’s just texted me saying she needs to speak to me urgently. I better see what she wants. I will ring you later, baby. Bye.”

  He hung up before I had chance to speak, which was not like Joel, but I was more than happy for him. I would just look forward to his call tonight so that he could keep me updated on his exciting news.

  * * *

  A week went by, with rehearsals and performances my days were non-stop, but I enjoyed each and every moment. Micha and Corinne were good company, but I felt bad for Corinne as with each day that passed Josh only seemed to up the taunting. It was like he was in tuned and wanted to push her as far away as possible. She never spoke anymore about it, but we saw the hurt in her eyes with each teasing word he spoke. It was like he got off on her pain and was pushing it as far as he could. There was a limit to how much a person could take, and I was just about ready to snap and unleash my fury onto him. I knew Corinne wouldn’t want me to interject. She had told us on enough occasions that she was handling it herself, but I knew I had to do something before he totally broke her spirit.

  Joel’s calls were filled with the band. Their Facebook page had been taken down while it got a revamp. They had done the photoshoot with Joel taking centre stage. I wasn’t so shocked that his looks would be the main focus, after all sex sells in that kind of industry. He was quite embarrassed by the whole thing and took a right ribbing from his bandmates, but I loved how grounded he stayed throughout it. I had asked to see an early preview of the pics but was told no by Chantel. Joel apologized as he passed the news on, her reasoning being that she wanted to unveil it all at the same time. It was pretty stupid as I was hardly a fan that would leak anything, but I bit my tongue not wanting to cause Joel any problems.

  Elijah was badgering me as to when the unveiling would be. He was more than excited to add the pics to his ever-growing collection. Eventually Joel rang to say the unveiling would happen that night, so I made sure to inform Elijah and Corinne and Micha as we waited with bated breath.

  “Is the page back online yet?” Corinne asked for the fiftieth time.

  “Nope,” I sighed, this was pure torture. Joel was busy at another gig but said he would ring after he finished. We hadn’t long finished our performance ourselves and were sat showered with wet hair waiting for the big moment. I clicked on the page again re-loading it in the rare chance it would now be online and squealed the moment I saw it in all its glory. The cover picture was breathtaking. They were all lined up looking styled but with a rocky edge with Joel was stood in the middle. His stare was breathtaking, I couldn’t take my eyes from him.

  Corinne and Micha soon joined me, and we started to flick through the pics from their photoshoot. I froze when I saw one with just a half-naked Joel.

  “Holy shit, I think I’m drooling,” Micha exclaimed, eyes wide as she took in my fiancé in all his half-naked glory.

  “He’s a little more underdressed than I hoped,” I muttered, not liking this at all. I knew I should have been prepared for this but seeing his picture there only confirmed how naïve I had actually been.

  “Izzy, they will use Joel to sell the shit out of this band. Look at him, fuck me, you are one lucky bitch,” Corinne shrieked, poking me in the ribs.

  “I could stare all day,” Micha added, sighing.

  I pursed my lips. “Okay, okay we’re moving on.” I clicked on the arrow, there was only so much a girl could take.


  “But—”

  “No buts.” There was no going back, they had drooled enough already.

  “It’s fine. I’ll save it to my phone later.” Corinne winked as I scowled. I didn’t like this one bit and it had barely been up seconds. Within minutes, the page likes had gone up from two thousand to four thousand, doubling. The amount of likes and shares were steadily growing, and I was astounded with each refresh the difference in numbers.

  My phone began to ring I clicked on without looking expecting Joel.

  “Holy shit, Izzy, did you see the pic with Joel in just those tight jeans holding a microphone? Fuck me, that body, that stare, they are going all out with this band. I downloaded the pic to my laptop. It’s already my screensaver. This is going to be huge.”

  “Yes, I saw,” I bit out, unable to get out much more.

  “Oh sweetie, I know it’s hard for you to see him being used as a way to sell the band, but good things will come from this.”

  “I know, as long as Joel is happy then I just have to suck it up, I guess,” I huffed. It was all I could do.

  “Try not to be too jealous, Iz. It will take the shine off it if he thinks you’re not happy. This is the way the music world works and unfortunately hot guys will get a lot of female fans. It’s just something you’re going to have to learn to put up with.”

  “I guess, anyway I’d better go, Joel should be calling me soon to see what I think.” I didn’t want to discuss the matter anymore.

  “Try to be happy for him, sweetie,” Elijah added, like I needed to be told again.

  “I know, Elijah,” I bit out.

  “Okay, miss snappy pants, I’m off to drool over your fiancé again. Will ring you tomorrow, bye.”

  God, he was shameless.

  I clicked the phone off and sighed. Judging by Elijah’s reaction the whole female population had seen the new band page and would be reacting the same.

  “So I take it Elijah was pleased?” Micha snorted. Yeah, that was merely an understatement.

  “We could hear him all the way over here,” Corinne added, grinning.

  “Yep, he was over the moon. He now has Joel as his screensaver.” I rolled my eyes just at the thought of him drooling.

  “You got to admit that it’s a great pic. I could see him on a magazine cover. Fuck, I’d buy that and frame it,” Micha remarked. Maybe she was a little too honest for her own good.

  “Err, can you tone it down or a least keep those thoughts to yourself? Thanks.” I did not need to know every single pervy thing that was going through their heads.

  “Sorry, Iz, do you fancy watching a film, maybe take your mind off it?” Corinne offered, but I just wanted to escape back to my room where no one would be telling me how much they were lusting after Joel.

  Locking the door, I grabbed my pyjamas and quickly changed, climbing into bed. I clicked on the remote and let the room fill with the background noise. There was a film playing but I didn’t take any notice, just stared blankly at the screen as I patiently waited for Joel to get in touch.

  An hour later, I had dosed off and woke up to the sound of my ring tone. I sat upright quickly silencing the TV and clicking on the accept button.

  “Hey Iz, sorry it’s late. We’ve just been celebrating and it was hard to get away. Chantel threw a surprise party after the gig, and well, I had to hang around and it was far too noisy to call. But what do you think? Be truthful now.” His voice was almost hesitant to ask.

  “It’s amazing, Joel.” I could do this I would not be the jealous fiancée. I had grown over the years. I was the woman he was marrying, and it was his ring I wore on my hand. I just had to suck it up and let all the women lust after him. At the end of the day, he was mine.

  “Oh thank god, that one picture of me, I was worried you’d have an issue. I wasn’t happy about taking my top off, but they have a way of persuading you and then when I saw the proofs, I was afraid you wouldn’t approve.”

  “Is that why Chantel wouldn’t let me have a sneak peek?” I could almost guarantee it was.

  “Probably, she was adamant she was using it even if it didn’t come with your approval.”

  “Charming.” I snorted. She was already starting to grate, and I hadn’t even clapped eyes on her.

  “I know, but I’m so happy you’re okay with it. I was dreading ringing in case you weren’t. It’s all out of my hands, we either accept the help or we lose it all, but it’s hard trying to keep both of you happy.” He let out a long sigh, and I could only imagine just how much pressure he was under to keep everyone happy.

  “I’m fine, stop worrying. The whole page looks so good, and the amount of likes and shares is growing all the time.” I was proud of them all, to see the start of the band receiving the fame they deserved.

  “I know, I just checked and we’re at six thousand now. Chantel said we’ll be up to ten soon, but I’m just happy where we are.” His voice had a level of excitement that made me smile.

  “Anything is a bonus, and I’m sure you will do just fine.” I could almost guarantee it.

  “I love you, Iz. Sorry I haven’t been able to ring as much, but you do understand, right?”

  “Of course I understand, Mr Rock Star,” I jested.

  “Don’t, Iz, not when it’s just us. I’d rather you just call me my main title, your fiancé.”

  “I love that word.” I sighed. In some ways I still couldn’t believe it.

  “Me too.”

  “I love this ring.” My eyes automatically fell on my hand, taking in the elegant ring that was sat perched on my finger.

  “Maybe if we start to perform more at bigger venues I could get you another—”

  “No way, this ring means everything to me. This was the ring that you proposed with, and this is the ring that will stay on my finger for as long as I live. I don’t want a big rock. I wear this ring to signify our love for each other not as a fashion accessory to show off,” I huffed. I couldn’t even believe he would say such a thing. Didn’t he know me at all?

  “You make me smile. You know I love your feisty side,” he breathed.

  “Good to hear, now no more talk of getting a new ring, it offends me to think you thought I’d ever wanted to change it.” I pouted at the thought of it.

  “I just want to give you the world,” he explained, trying to make me understand.

  “Well, all I want is you.” Nothing else mattered.

  “You have me.”

  His words made me smile. “Then I have everything I need.”

  “Promise me you’ll marry me when things settle down, after the tour I want you to be my wife.” I could almost hear the panic in his voice.

  “I promise.”

  “Really?” he asked doubtfully.

  “Elijah is slowly turning me crazy with the arrangements. Trust me, this wedding is happening.” And I would probably go crazy in the process.

  “Then that’s all I need to hear.” He sighed, sounding a lot more relaxed.

  “Joel, there you are. I was wondering where you sneaked off to—oh, sorry, are you on the phone?” a sultry voice crooned in the background.

  “Sorry, Iz, one moment. Yeah, I’m on the phone to Iz, what’s up?”

  “There are some reporters here from the local paper. They want to take a few pics and write up a quick report. It’s for their music section. We can’t do an exposé on the band if the main man isn’t there.”

  “Okay, tell him I’ll be there in five.”

  “We need you now, Joel, you can speak to your girlfriend later on. This is far more important.”

  Girlfriend? The cheek!

  '“Actually she’s my fiancée,” Joel added and I smiled. Yeah, put her in her place.

  “Girlfriend, fiancée, all of that is insignificant. I told you from the start I’m here to promote, if you want my help, you’ll come now and speak to the reporter. We need to get the ball rolling, the more exposure on the band the better,” she all but snapped. Jeez, she soon
switched personalities within seconds, the act alone sent a level of unease to run right through me.

  “Sorry, Iz, I have to go, there’s a reporter waiting. I’ll speak to you tomorrow. Love you.”

  “Love you—”

  He hung up before I’d even finished the sentence. Chantel was being pretty brutal, which I knew wouldn’t go down well with Joel, but he would have to suck it up. There was no point adding to the drama, I would bite my tongue for now.

  * * *

  Over the next week, the likes on Joel’s band page climbed and Chantel was indeed correct they’d hit the ten thousand mark and continued to grow. I was astounded at the amount of publicity they were getting, Chantel was obviously doing a good job. I had to give her that at least. Joel was constantly occupied so we were down to one call a day after my performance, but we were both that tired. I couldn’t help feel sad that the communication part of our relationship was slowly going down hill. I missed our chats throughout the day, but I had to be realistic and put up with it. Joel was working in the pub during the day and then spending nights with the band. If they weren’t performing, they were busy trying to get themselves out there. They were signed up to every social media site going. Elijah informed me Joel was on Instagram. He was following the band, but I knew it was the photos of Joel he was mainly after.

  Saturday finally arrived, the day Elijah and Sam were heading up to Manchester to see the play, and of course go for our big night out. He had talked non-stop all week. I wasn’t envious of Sam having to hear it all day long, but he was so in love he would put up with just about anything. I could just imagine the car journey now.

  I got a text through just after rehearsals saying they were here and were outside the theatre. The plan was to meet up after, but I knew he would be bursting for a catch up and I couldn’t wait to see him as well. I headed out the main doors and ducked my head outside to be greeted with an excited squeal. I was grabbed and hugged within an inch of my life.

  “Oh my god, Izzy, it’s been forever since I saw my bestie. Oh look at you, wow you look amazing.” He stood back marveling at me, smiling.