Star Bright - Book 2

Chapter Two

Chapter Two

“There you are. I almost didn’t recognize you. You look...” Rich pauses, as though uncertain how to continue.

“Like a mess, I know,” I think to myself, but he’s in no position to comment on it.

I don’t give him a verbal reply but give him a short nod “hello” instead as I take a seat.

Rich sits down across from me. It is mid-afternoon the following day, and the coffee shop we are sitting in is a far cry from the one where I had told him off. That place was a bit of a dive and had served run-of-the-mill coffee. This place was high-end with coffee names I can’t even pronounce. I am also pretty sure I saw a famous reality star ordering in front of me when I came in earlier.

Rich looks great, as usual. My attraction to him, even though our last meeting had been so sour, is still strong. Today there seems to be something different about him. His suit looks new, and his eyes are a sparkling and bright, as if he is going to tell me something interesting.

“I wasn’t sure if you were going to return my call.” Rich takes a sip of his coffee.

“Me either,” I admit. “But I’ve had a rough week so you caught me with my guard down.”

He leans forward slightly, as if to tell me a secret. “Listen, I know our last meeting didn’t go so well. And I understand why. I wasn’t my best self then.”

“No, you weren’t,” I reply crisply. “You were a total prick.”

“I was. I see that now. I’ve missed you this week.”

I make a non-committal noise. The last week I have been solely thinking about myself, Paul, Robbs and Kiara, lost in the ghosts of my past. There has been little thinking of Rich, despite his being a jerk.

He clears his throat. “I know things got a little messy there, near the end, with the soap opera audition. But this week has been pretty eventful for me, and I’d like to make it up to you.”

“Make it up to me how?”

“There is this big blockbuster film about to hire some minor roles. Speaking roles and enough to get you noticed by some important players in town.”

“And...?”

“Well, I thought about a role for you,” Rich says. Is he being sincere? I wonder to myself. “I can get you an audition. I’m working on the hiring for the roles, too. It’s about a ninety-percent guarantee I can get you this role, Jenny.”

I stare at him, feeling unsure. On one hand, I want to jump at this chance. A role in a blockbuster film? That will bounce my income up considerably. Worrying about jobs will fade away quickly. On the other hand, what if Rich is going to tell me the other ten percent is only promised by sleeping with him? I bite my bottom lip, looking around the coffee shop, as if some answer will pop out at me.

“I know you are hesitant. I understand why. But think about it, at the very least. It is a big deal, after all.”

“You’ll have to go through my agent,” I reply on a whim.

A shadow crosses Rich’s face, briefly. “Go through Jon?”

“Yes, that’s right. He’s still my agent, and I want to go through the proper channels. You say this is a legit offer, right? So then this shouldn’t be a problem.”

“Right,” Rich replies. “Of course. I’ll go through Jon then.”

I take a sip of my coffee and force a smile, knowing this means I’ll have to talk to Jon. “Great.”

>>

Jon calls me a few hours later, leaving me a message to come in to see him to discuss an interesting offer that crossed his table. I dread the encounter. There is simply no way that Jon will not want to discuss the s*x tape. I take a cab to see him and arrive ten minutes early with my heart pounding.

As I make my way to his office, I ask myself what I am so afraid of. I realize it is his judgement. If I begin to tell him why the s*x tape exists, then I worry I will have to explain the rest. Drudging up the past is something I am avoiding. Yet it feels as if I soon will have no choice if I want to keep hope alive that Jon and I will be an item.

His assistant is at her desk. Her hair seems to grow larger each time I see her. Today it is swept up in a large bun. Her lips are bright pink to match the pink sunflower dress she’s wearing. Her nails are a neon yellow, and she gives a wave when she sees me. I wonder where in the world Jon found her. She buzzes me in and leads me to the office.

I step inside, looking around. Jon is pouring himself a cup of coffee at the other side of the office. He looks up at me when I enter and smiles. His smile is guarded. He is unsure how to approach me. I give him a smile back, although I am sure it looks forced.

“Jenny. Long time no talk,” he says.

The last time I was in here, he had asked me about the s*x tape. I merely asked him to send me the email and then bolted, avoiding his calls ever since. Now he is looking at me and I feel n***d. I wonder if he watched the video. I feel mortified.

“I got your call,” I say, sitting down on the couch near his desk. I am hoping that if I keep this unofficial, he will not feel prone to lecture me about the tape. He sits down on the chair across from me, and my heart constricts. I hoped he would sit next to me. Now I feel as if I am about to be interviewed.

Jon quickly recounts hearing from Rich and the offer he and I discussed earlier. I pretend I have no knowledge of it and when Jon wraps up, I study him. He looks tired and his hair is messy. His glasses rest on the bridge of his nose. He is looking at me kindly, as if I am a wounded bird he wants to pick up and brush off. My heart skips a beat. I’m struck by how handsome he is and how much I still have feelings for him.

“That’s an amazing offer,” I reply slowly. “What do you make of it?”

“That depends. Am I still your agent? I know we had been discussing you possibly finding other representation but we haven’t mentioned it since...” He trails off and I swallow my sense of worry.

“I think you should still represent me,” I reply. “At least for now, if that is okay. I haven’t exactly looked into going with anyone else.”

“That’s fine. I think we still have some things we need to discuss. We haven’t talked about the email I got a week ago.”

I shift in my chair, my skin suddenly itchy. “Do we have to?”

“If you get this role on this movie, and Rich isn’t pulling our leg with how much press it could possibly give you, then this person who sent the tape could go to the press. He could leak the tape. If you know who sent it, then we should contact them. Maybe even get a lawyer now before it really does comes back to ruin any future opportunities for you.”

I think of seeing Robbs in some court room, or a lawyer’s office. I think of his grinning face as he leaks the video to the Internet. Everyone seeing me having s*x. I shudder.

“If we poke this person, they could just fight back against us,” I say. “It might be better if we just ignore it.”

Jon’s eyes widen slightly in surprise. “You don’t want to do anything about this?”

“No, I think nothing will come of it,” I say, avoiding his gaze.

How can I tell him that what I fear is seeing Robbs? I feel better sticking my head in the sand and hoping it goes away than actually dealing with it. The fear of reaching out and talking to Robbs is too much for me to bear. If I even see him, I fear falling on my face and sliding back into old habits. The grip he has on me and the things he could do to me...what if I get pulled back into his claws?

But the words die in my throat. I can feel Jon silently judging me for letting this s*x tape float around out there and not wanting to reach out to the person who sent it. I shift in my seat, suddenly wanting to run out of the office.

“Anyway,” I say, in an attempt to change the subject. “Should I let you set up the audition through Rich?”

“Jenny, I still feel like we need to seriously discuss this tape. As your agent, I have to be prepared to handle anything that comes your way. If it gets out there, we’re going to have a scandal. The fact this person sent it already might be a blessing in disguise. We can take care of it before it gets out of hand.”

I think of myself, bent over the bar, Paul buried inside of me and my face flushes. I feel torn between inaction and action. In response, my body feels as if it is simply shutting down instead. How can I face someone like Robbs?

“Hey,” Jon says, his voice soft and he leans forward and rests his hand on my arm. “I don’t mean to come at you like this. I’m just concerned...as a friend now, not your agent.”

“I know.” My voice cracks. “Just a lot going on, you know? Easier to avoid it.”

“Why don’t you come over to my place? We can talk it out in a more relaxed setting. Friend to friend,” he proposes.

While I am touched at his offer, the fact he has made sure to mention the word friend twice in under thirty seconds concerns me. Just a week ago, we had been discussing becoming more than that due to our mutual feelings for each other. Now with this s*x tape hanging over our heads, we have taken three steps back.

But I brush that concern from my mind. I could use someone to lean on. I crave being around Jon as well. He could be saying the friend line for my sake, I think to myself, so I don’t feel pressured.

“That sounds nice,” I answer and sigh quietly to myself.