I stepped back, slightly confused. Had we been part of the same conversation?
“He’s so fucking hot,” she continued. “Did you see him inStep-Devil? I need to touch that bare ass.” She made a squeezing motion, and I cringed. She didn’t seem to notice my reaction. “I have a friend who slept with him a year or so ago. She said his dick is huge.”
As if seeing me for the first time, she stuck out her hand for me to shake. “I’m Skye.”
“Evie.”
“I think I recognize you.” She squinted and ran her gaze up and down me. “I feel like I’ve seen videos of you?”
I rolled my eyes. I got this often in public.
“Probably. I have a web channel, The—”
“Body Count Bimbo! Yes!” she squealed as her eyes widened with recognition. “I listen to you when I work out sometimes. Wow, no wonder he wants you as the main lead.”
I blushed and offered a tight smile. “I think he was just trying to throw his weight around. I think you’d be better in that role.”
Like a spring, her mood popped right back up from disappointment to excitement.
“Really? This is gonna be such a game-changer for me. Especially if we go with the good script.” Her words were casual, but the look in her honey-colored eyes was a mix of threatening and hopeful. Almost as if she were making sure I agreed with her.
“It sounds like they haven’t made a decision yet.” A sudden flare of jealousy and protectiveness came over me. Maybe I did want the lead role alongside Sebastian. It was my mother’s legacy after all. “It could be either of us.”
“True, but if you don’t even want it, that should factor in.” She spun around, flipping her long, silky blonde hair over her shoulder. “If you don’t want to fuck him on camera, I will.”
I pressed my lips together. She was clearly confident in her status on this project. Who was I to argue? I nodded and stuffed my hands into my pockets.
“Well, it was nice to meet you. I’m going to head to my hotel.”
“Ooh, where are you staying? They put me up at the Carradine.”
I faltered. Hopefully my mother’s home was ready sooner rather than later, and my hotel stay was short. I couldn’t quite read Skye, and that made me uneasy. Was she only interested in the role, or something more with Sebastian? And why did I even care? I shook my head, forcing him from my mind.
Suddenly, her competitiveness slid off, and she looped her arm through mine. “If we’re gonna be spending the next few months together, we need to become friends fast.” She started moving, and I stumbled forward, not entirely sure what was going on but too nervous to protest. She was far more confident in this world than I was, even though I’d grown up on this very lot. I thought about that as we rode to the hotel we were both staying at. How unfamiliar this all felt, despite knowing it shouldn’t be. Skye didn’t seem to notice me going in and out. She talked the entire ride. She gave me a rundown of her life and asked about mine. I was guarded and kept things vague when she asked about my family. It didn’t seem to faze her, though, because she just kept talking. And by the time we got to the hotel, I realized I was the bitch—not her. She was just a girl with goals.
“It’s gonna be so much fun, Evie.” She hugged me in the elevator. “I hope they pick me,” she said, stepping back, her wide eyes searching mine. What did she want from me? Was she waiting for me to say I wished it too?
I wasn’t sure what I wanted.
Before I could speak, the elevator dinged, and we turned to see a man holding a giant bouquet of flowers. Skye’s face lit up, and she ran to him. I followed behind at a slower pace.
“Dahlias are my favorite! Those have to be for me.” She grabbed the mixture of burgundy and pink flowers from the man. He looked slightly startled but waited as she read the card. Her jaw dropped, and she looked at me. “He wants to take me to dinner.”
“Who?” I asked.
“Sebastian, silly!” She waved the card.
The delivery man nodded and left.
Skye came back to me, holding the large arrangement. “I knew we made a connection today. He’s probably going to go with the good script. I’ll have my chance to win him over. Oh, Evie, this is amazing!” She tried to hug me again, but the flowers got in the way.
“That’s great, Skye. I’m not feeling too hot. I need to go lie down.”
“Oh? Headache? Tummy troubles?”
“Chronic nausea,” I told her, which wasn’t a lie. I dipped into my room before she could try to help me—or before I had to hear more about her and Sebastian’s possible sex scenes. I leaned against the door and let out a breath. Sebastian was taking Skye out to dinner, and I was…disappointed? Why, exactly? I didn’t come here for him, and yet…
Had I read everything wrong?
