"Hello love, we meet again."
He should stop calling me that.
"I'm so sure you know my name, so drop the 'love' thing."
He chuckles when I tell him that, there's nothing funny about what I said.
"Are you okay?" He asks out of nowhere and i blink severally, well just in case I had some tears in my eyes.
"That's a stupid question."
He frowns but he wipes that off with a smirk.
"It's so sad that people can be so mean, it's not only your fans that hate you but also your fellow colleagues in the industry, I'm just wondering how you will survive all that."
I release a breath and look him in the eye. He doesn't get to speak that way to me.
"How much do you want?"
"What?"
"Name your figure, to keep you off my back." He shakes his head in disbelief.
"I'm only here to help you."
Help me indeed.
"I told you I'm perfectly fine but here you are stalking me and insisting I should give you the job so give me a figure, I'll pay you to stay away from me."
I'm hoping he doesn't mention an amount that surpasses my credit card, most of my money is controlled by my father and he only gives it to me in bits which is not a bad thing, I'm not that good when it comes to overspending.
More so since I haven't done any new projects for the past two years the money hasn't been flowing in and I wouldn't want to ask my dad for the money.
That would mean explaining and I'm sure telling him I'm paying a guy to stop being rude towards me and leave me alone would sound very weird.
"I wasn't stalking you, this is a restaurant, it's a public place."
It doesn't mean he wouldn't be stalking me, this is someone that I don't know who keeps insisting to work for me.
I'd totally be scared of him.
"Good, then you can go on with what you were doing and I'll do the same."
He smiles, he does have a beautiful smile by the way.
Or maybe it's just me who is being too observant.
"Why are you so bitter yet you haven't even listened to my proposal, it might be the one thing that you need to clear your name."
In a way he is actually right I'm being too bitter, but I wouldn't be if he was being too arrogant and rude, I repeat very rude.
"I'm just reciprocating the feeling, tell me your proposal, I'm sure it's not even that good."
He smiles again and reaches his hand to pull out his phone. I spot a shiny silver ring on his ring finger, he is married.
I don't know why I feel relieved because we will kelp this as professional as it should be.
"Throughout the ages, celebrities have used this tactic to get up from a messed up scandal, the Kardashians do it all the time, even here in our home country a lot of celebrities do it, I'm sure even you've done it in the past, and it always works."
Okay what the hell is he talking about? His eyes are fixed on the screen on his phone and he keeps scrolling.
"What is this it that they have been doing?"
He flashes the phone before my eyes and all I can see are images of celebrity couples, it doesn't make sense.
"I don't follow."
"You need to make people love you again, and what other better way that to date a celebrity they love."
Yea he is insane I'm totally getting out of here.
I knew his proposal would be stupid.
"Pascaline just listen to what I'm saying."
I can't believe he wasted my time telling me that. I turn to look at him.
"The name is Pascale, now you listen to me, you personally said I did it, and it didn't end well do you think I'd be stupid enough to date another celebrity after the scandal I'm in?"
"You won't be dating, like dating, you'll only be faking it until your name has been cleared."
When I met him initially I thought he had some sense in his head but apparently he doesn't.
"Where on earth have you ever heard that one uses a scandal to end a scandal you're not even making sense."
"It's usually called using fire to end a fire, the bigger fire always consumes the smaller one."
This guy is insane.
"You do realize what you just said doesn't make sense at all."
"Just give it a thought I'm sure it's going to work out."
Okay even if I considered the idea, which I'm not by the way, no famous person in their right senses would want to date me, I'm sure they are scared of me right now, plus the fact that they hate me.
"Those celebrities you want me to date, hate me, how is your plan going to work or did you have anyone in mind?"
"I was thinking of someone that has zero scandal on his back, someone that has earned his way to the top without a lot of useless struggles, for instance the President's son or the prime minister's son."
First of all him suggesting that other celebrities became famous through useless struggles was quite rude and sons to important leaders in the country don't date people like us.
"I'm sorry to say this but I think, all these actors, artists, socialites and name it gained their fame through useless struggles, they didn't actually work for it."
I don't know where he gets the confidence of saying that before me, who does he even think he is?
"Yet here we are, you're desperately begging for an actress to give you a job as her PR officer, isn't life so funny."
"I didn't mean it that way."
I still can't believe I'm still standing here and listening to him waste my time when all that's coming out of his mouth is poison.
He is too full of himself.
"What's your deal any way?"
"I only want to help you, what those people are doing to you is not fair, and I may not know what really happened that day but I think two years in prison is enough punishment, you don't deserve the hate."
He knows nothing about what is going on in my life so his pity look is fake, he just wants the money we've established that fact.
"For your information, I might have killed the guy."
I don't know what made me say that because the moment I hear a camera flashing and I spot a paparazzi guy with a camera recording a video I regret my words.
What is a media guy even doing in this side of the restaurant, I hate that they keep following me everywhere.
"Did you record that?" I walk towards the guy and he starts taking steps back.
"You just confessed, this is going to be a good story."
Every part of my body starts sweating, if this guy puts that recording our there I might just end up in jail again.
"I'll pay you anything for you not to publish that story." I tell him with pleading eyes but he shakes his head.
I'm moving towards him and he keeps stepping back.
"I'm sure I'll earn more from this."
"I will give you two times what you'll earn." I hear Trevor's voice from behind me and as much as I don't want him to chip in for me I'm glad he is.
"Mr Mulwa I'm just doing my job."
He knows him?
How does he know him?
"I'm sure you don't want to lose that camera, now delete all you've captured about her or I'll crash it, plus you might just be kissing your job goodbye."
There's totally something I'm missing over here.
Trevor must be someone big if he can make a journalist scared. When he asked me to ask Charlotte about him I should have done it immediately.
The guy fumbles with the camera I think deleting the video.
"Done."
"Let me see." He hands over the camera to Trevor who checks through it and gives it back.
He reaches for his pant pockets and pulls out his wallet. I decide to stop him.
"I'll pay him."
I don't want him to pay, when it was my story that was being deleted.
"You don't even have your wallet with you here and I want this guy to get lost."
He's actually right I left it in Joe's car.
He hands him a good amount of money I'm sure it's more than ten thousand. Like seriously who walks with that much money in their wallet?
The journalist murmurs a thank you and walks away scared. This country is just full of corrupt people.
"Thank you for that, I will r****d you the money."
I can't believe the tables have turned and now he's the one with the upper hand.
"So do I still get the job, or what?"
And we are back to that.
He's actually saved me from a higher scandal which would have landed my ass back in jail so I might just reconsider his proposal.
"If I'm to agree with letting you work for me, who will be the famous genuinely hardworking celebrity that I would be fake dating."
I make sure I point out the genuinely hardworking celebrity part, since he considers the rest of us as not that.
"Me."
I totally burst out a laughter, a long sacarstic laughter.
"You?"
"Yes, me, I can help you clear your name."
I feel like slapping some sense into his proud ass, all these just because he is this guy that has a crush on me and wants to date me.
"Why would I even date you? You're not even famous."
I can't believe all this was a joke to him.
"I really think you should know people, your boyfriend is here."
I turn to look behind me and Joe is walking towards us.
"You stayed here for too long I was worried." He says as he pulls me into his arms.
"I'm fine let's just go home."
"Wait, you look familiar?" He addresses Trevor who gives me that 'I told you so look'.
"I'm that person you're actually thinking of." He tells him with a smile.
"I'm Trevor, I should me on my way just make sure you get her home safe." He says and starts walking away.
"Mona? Think about my proposal." And he walks away confidently, still with that aura of pride.
"I like him." Joe says once he is out of sight.
"No you don't, let's just get out of here."
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