I know what people say
They say you don't know how to love
But I want you anyway
You're like a drug and I can't get enough
You'd be great in motion pictures
'Cause baby, you really got me blind
You're the only one I wanna see
You're the only one that does it to me every time

Amelie's POV

"Well, look who finally decided to show up, " Prince held the door open for me as I walked in, my brown orbs landing on the owner of the soft voice.

Nona.

Wow. She's even more beautiful than I expected her to be.

"Oh shut up, " He chuckled, closing the door behind him after walking in, "I'm here aren't I?"

"You should've been here an hour ago. You're lucky I didn't leave."

"Sorry about that. As you can see, I was preoccupied and couldn't come in earlier."

"I see, " I watched Nona's eyes narrow slightly as they met mine, but I pretended I didn't see it and waited for her to continue, "And who is this lovely woman you've brought along with you?"

"Nona, this is my girlfriend, Amelie, " I caught the small gasp she tried to hide under her breath. It made my eyebrow raise, "Amelie, this is Nona."

"Nice to meet you, " Keeping things cordial, I held out my hand for her to shake. She took it, returning the handshake.

"Nice to meet you too, " Nona smiled, but I could tell it was forced by the tightness around her lips. Letting go of my hand, she turned her attention to Prince, "Well, should we get started then?"

"I, umm," Prince clears his throat, unfolding a piece of paper, "I wrote down some lyrics that could be used for the song. And I've got an instrumental I've been playing around with. We don't have to use it if you don't like it. I just didn't want to come here empty-handed."

"Well, I'm glad you didn't, " Taking the paper from Prince, Nona's eyes quickly roam over the words, "This is really good."

"Thank you."

"You're welcome. I was thinking we could put a line or two in that the listeners can repeat."

"Okay, " Prince leans forward in his chair, his eyes on Nona as his knee gently brushes against mine, "So, what did you have in mind?"

"Since we're sending a message about anti-violence in this song, " Tucking her hair behind her ear, Nona pauses for a moment before continuing, "I was thinking the chorus could go a little something like: 'If you're sick of evil knocking on your door, throw up the love sign once and 4 evermore. If you'd rather make love and have a little fun, throw up the love sign everybody and not the gun.'."

"That's good. Then we can come in with 'Pop Pop Pop go the pistol, bang bang bang go the gun.'."

"Yes! That's perfect! Just what I was looking for."

My eyes widen as I watch Nona grab Prince's arm, her fingers gently trailing up and down his soft flesh. Blinking once or twice, I came to the conclusion that I wasn't seeing things. This was actually happening. And what makes it worse is he's smiling at her.

Stop Amelie.

Don't jump to conclusions.

"So, what happens now?" Clearing my mind of any negative thoughts, I bring my attention back to the reason why we're here. Getting this recording process started.

"Now, I'm gonna let you both hear the instrumental and afterward, we can set up another time to continue this meeting, " Nona frowned a little once Prince says this, causing his eyebrow to raise as his hazel orbs met hers. My own eyebrow raised as I glanced between the two, wondering if I was missing something.

They're a little too familiar with each other.

"Really? You've only been here...what? 30 minutes. Do you have somewhere to be?" She asked, gently tapping her pen against her thigh. Prince smiles softly, eyebrow still raised.

"What if I do?"

"So, you're gonna ditch me instead of finishing what we've started? After I cleared my entire schedule just so I wouldn't be late?"

"Don't start, Nona," Prince sighs, running his hand over his face, "You already knew I had a prior obligation before we even made plans to meet up here. Why are you acting like this is something new I just sprung on you?"

"You're right," That tight-lipped smile was back on her lips again, "We'll pick this up another time."

"Another time? We're already here. What's wrong with now?"

"You act like you don't want to be here, so I'm giving you the opportunity to reschedule." 

"The opportunity to reschedule, " Prince scoffs, chuckling lowly, "This isn't even your studio. Since when do you have the authority to give me the opportunity to reschedule?"

"Since you've decided another woman was more important than helping out a friend, " Nona responds, her tone dripping with sarcasm. Prince rolls his eyes at her words.

It was subtle, but I caught it.

"Oh, please. We're not friends."

"Then what are we?"

The awkward pause and tight-lipped glares were almost too much for me. I was ready to step in and break the silence.

Until Prince beat me to it.

"Don't do this, Nona. Not now, " He begs quietly, his eyes never leaving hers. She continues to look at him, a small smirk playing on her lips.

"Do what? I think she needs to know what's been going on between us, " She responds, pointing a perfectly manicured finger in my direction. My eyes widen at the same time my curiosity peaks.

What is going on here?

"I think you're right. We should reschedule after all."

"Don't try and worm your way out of this. Tell her-."

"There's nothing to tell, " He quietly interrupts, taking my hand in his, "Come on, baby. Let's get out of here."

"I'll meet you outside, " Smiling softly, I slowly let go of his hand, "I want to hear her out."

"Baby, she's lying. There's no need to hear her out."

"That may be true, but I'd like to figure that out for myself."

"Okay, " I heard the quiet sigh that escaped his lips as he leaned in to kiss my forehead before walking toward the door. It almost made me question my decision.

What if there's some truth to Nona's words?

He denied it, so there's no need to worry. Right?

Right.

"You made the right decision, " Nona says quietly, her eyes meeting mine, "He's hurt us too many times to count. It's time you knew the truth."

"Look, if this is some kind of trick to get me to turn against Prince-."

"It's no trick. He lied to me about you. And about Mayte. He doesn't know that I know about her yet."

"How long have you known about her?" I couldn't ignore this. We're both being played by the same man we thought loved us.

This is not her fault. It's his.

"A while, " The pain in her voice was as evident as the tears rolling down her cheeks, "I wanted it to be a lie, but it wasn't. I saw it with my own eyes."

So did I.

"What did you do when you found out?"

"I confronted him, of course. And he denied it like I thought he would."

"But, you didn't believe him, " Nodding at my own statement, I recognized the same insecurities in her that I have in myself. I wish there was a way I could help us rid ourselves of them, but they'll always be there. Hidden deep inside of us.

Because we're in love with a man who doesn't love us as much as we love him.

"Of course not, " She responds softly, fresh tears forming in her eyes again. She uses the back of her hand to brush them away, "But my heart wanted to."

A brief silence passes between us and a soft, apologetic smile makes its way to my lips. I understood her completely at that moment.

Maybe somewhere down the road, she and I could be friends. Or at least cordial enough to speak to each other if we're ever in the same room.

"I'm sorry."

"Don't be. You have nothing to be sorry for. I should be apologizing to you."

"You don't have to, " My fingers gently graze my earlobe as I tuck my hair behind my ear, "We both had no idea about each other. The only thing he told me is he's recording a song with you. That's it. He told me nothing was going on between the two of you, but judging by the number of tears and anger, you shared more than song lyrics."

"We did, " She sniffed, "What he told you was true. We are working on a song together, as you can see, but there was more."

Oh, God...I knew it.

"How much more?"

"I tried to kiss him, but he didn't reciprocate. At first. I wondered why until he expressed to me that he didn't feel the same way. He was in love with someone else. I thought he was just saying that, so I kissed him again. He hesitated, but after a few minutes, he kissed back."

"Really?" I was skeptical about being so quick to believe a word she's saying. Then again, he's not the type to resist a pretty face for long, "He never mentioned this when he told me about you. All I know is that you'd stop by and use his studio when I'm gone. I found that out from a friend of his."

"That's true," Fresh tears formed in her eyes as they met mine again, "I was there while you were out. But at the time, I didn't know he was with you. He tried to tell me, but all I was focused on was getting him to like me. I should have listened to him."

"Di--did you two...?"

"Yes. We did."

"Please tell me you're lying, " I muttered, brows furrowed in disbelief. She shook her head no.

"I wish I was, " Her voice was quiet, tone apologetic, "He resisted as long as he could, but he's a man. It was bound to happen eventually. If not with me, then most likely with Mayte. Or someone else."

My mind immediately went to Carmen.

Has she been able to worm her way back into his good graces?

I hope not.

"Oh, I-."

"I know what you thought. I did too. If I wanted to be around him, personally or professionally, I just had to accept the fact that I wouldn't be the only woman in his life. And he couldn't love me the way I wanted him to. It's time for you to accept it too."

"What if I can't?" I felt so conflicted. I know leaving him would be the right thing to do, but my heart isn't ready to let him go.

"Then it's time to leave him, " She replied quietly, "It's time for both of us to leave him. Before he leaves us."

"Yeah."

I wish it were that easy. He would've been out of my life in a heartbeat.

"I know this is a lot for you to process, but I just wanted you to know the truth. Whether you decide to believe me or not is entirely up to you."

"Thank you for sharing this with me, " Subtly, I let out an inaudible sigh as my eyes met hers again, "I certainly have a lot to think about."

"Of course," She responds, smiling softly, "I have a feeling you'll make the right decision."

A knock on the door, took my attention away from her. Startled a bit, I stood to my feet.

"I think that's my cue to go. Thank you again."

"You're welcome. Don't let Mayte get to you. Just show her you're here to stay. And show Prince you're not threatened by her."

How did she know I was worried about her?

Was it that obvious?

"I will," Smiling softly, I was still a little confused, "But it's hard not to be."

"Yeah. I know what you mean," She smiled back, "But you can't show weakness if you want them to take you seriously. That was the mistake I made when I confronted them. Never again."

Taking advice from Nona?

Who would've thought?

"Good to know. Thank you for having this conversation with me."

"Thank you for listening."

My head was still spinning when I left the studio a few minutes later. I wanted to believe Prince when he said nothing was going on between them, but the conversation I just had with Nona convinced me otherwise.

Was he lying to me?

Was she telling the truth?

I don't know. But, it doesn't hurt to take Nona's advice. I'm tired of not being taken seriously and it's time to show a little teeth.

Especially when it comes to fighting for my relationship with Prince.

"Hey, sorry about that," Kevin smiled softly at my apologetic tone, "I lost track of time. Is he upset?"

"No, not at all," He opened the door for me, "Just a little worried about you. Is everything okay?."

"Oh, everything's fine. Thank you."

"No problem."

"Hey, baby," Prince smiled softly, watching me sit next to him and buckle my seatbelt. I looked up at him, smiling back.

"Hi," I took his hand in mine, "I apologize for taking so long. I just needed to know some things."

"It's alright. I understand."

"Are you going to be late for your photoshoot?"

"Probably," He chuckled softly, lifting my hand up to his mouth. I giggled as he gently pressed his lips on the skin there, "But they're used to it by now."

"Oh really?" Smiling, my eyes never left his, "How often are you late?"

"Majority of the time. I don't usually look at a clock or anything to keep track."

"I see. Maybe I'll start holding you accountable for being on time to your appointments."

"Maybe you should," Laughing quietly, he leaned forward, placing light kisses into the crook of my neck. I pressed my hand against his chest.

"Baby, stop," I snickered, watching as he leaned forward again, trying to kiss me, "You don't want to be all riled up when you get to the photoshoot."

"What if I'm already riled up?"

"Then maybe you should tone it down for now."

"I can't do that, " A quiet groan escaped my lips that I've been trying to fight, but I couldn't hold it in, at the feel of his fingertips pressed lightly against my thighs, "Especially when I'm around you."

"Well, try baby. Because you have to be focused on the shoot."

"The only thing I'm focused on right now is you."

"Baby, " It was so hard for me to turn him down, but I don't want to be a distraction for him. He sighed, his face still buried in the crook of my neck.

"You're gonna be the death of me, " He muttered quietly, lifting his head to look at me, "You know that?"

"Don't be so dramatic. You only have to endure it for a few hours."

"That's too long."

"No, it's not, " I squealed as he squeezed my thighs, "Just hang on a little longer."

Although we haven't been intimate in a while, Nona's words made me want to hold off a bit. Just until I find out the truth.

A/N: I hope you all enjoyed. The next chapter will be the photoshoot and we will see if Amelie gets the answers she needs. Thank you for reading and your continued patience with me ❤️🤗.