Page 5 of Don’t Forget Me

An owner of a production company overseeing a meeting like this one?

“That’s…weird, why?” I asked as we walked deeper into the hallways of the building. Books and artifacts surrounded us as we stood at the center of the lobby. Papers were spilled on all the work desks of the rest of the team members. Computers, laptops, and tablets had also been left behind. Several lamps cast a golden ray upon the area, illuminating the entrance.

“Finn said something about both of them wanting to make sure the deal didn’t fall through.” Camille frowned with delicacy and bitterness all at once.

“Is everything okay?” I asked. Seeing her this upset made goosebumps run down my arms.

“The owner is a ghost from your past. And the vice president is one from mine,” she whispered. She wouldn’t even look at me as she said this.

“Blue Tower Productions, right?” I asked. She tilted her chin with sadness in her gaze.

And that’s when it came to me.

Ezra.

I let out a soft gasp as I looked in the direction of the meeting room. My eyes widened.

Room 209 was the main common area for conferences, especially used for large business meetings like movie productions, book deals, and casting narrators for audiobooks. From where I stood, his figure lit up the entire space. He was talking with another man in a black suit beside him. The man had blonde hair, almost platinum. His eyes were sharp and green. I remembered him as Zack, his best friend from childhood.

The acceleration in my pulse multiplied. I turned to Camille, who let out a small sigh.

“Cami, what are we going to do?” I whispered. “They’re here.”

I noticed the twitch in her smile, as if the muscles in her face almost betrayed her.

Camille set her hands firmly around my shoulders, looking deeply into my soul. “We have to show them that what they did to us didn’t break us. We’ve moved on. We’ve grown, and we don’t care about the past anymore.”

She was right. I have moved on from that heartbreak, from that betrayal. It no longer affected me. Besides, I’m going to get married soon.

I lifted my chin and formed a brilliant smile across my profile for the producers of Blue Tower Productions. The man in royal blue was not the greatest heartbreak of my life; he was a businessman. One that I didn’t know. One that I met in the café a few minutes ago. He was a different person. He had lived new experiences since our departure. He was not the Ezra that I knew from Blackthorn House Academy.

“Good afternoon, gentlemen,” I called, leaving my coffee cup on the floor, under the table.

Ezra turned toward me, his lips gaping as he took me in. I looked away, toward Zack. His emerald eyes swept over Cami in total adoration.

I sat down, my back straight. My fingers threatened to tremble without my command, and I refused to give mind to the pulse that beat rapidly within me.

“Hello, gentlemen. I’m Camille Allard. This is my client, Lysandra Guerrera. We are pleased to meet you.” She had the kindest expression as she sat down beside me.

Good, act like we don’t know them. That’s an amazing idea.

“It’s nice to see you again, Miss Allard,” Ezra muttered with a nod.

“Pleasure is all mine, Mister Van Dorren and Mister Francis.”

Zack had a clenched jaw as he continued to take her in.

Greer Black, the head publisher, and Elena Fleur, the editor who acquired my book, were present on my side of the table. There seemed to be tension with their darting glances and fidgeting hands. They were just as nervous to make sure this deal was a success as me. Except, I was anxious for an entirely different reason.

“Okay, everyone who needs to be in this meeting seems to be here,” Greer began. She held her hands and rested them above the table, her stare cold, and her voice just as raspy. “You may begin your proposal whenever you like, Mister Van Dorren.”

Ezra stood from his seat, and cleared his throat. Then, he clicked on a small remote and the screen on the far right began to change pictures.

“Good afternoon. I came here today to present a movie deal proposal for Lysandra Guerrera’s So Long, Scotland. My executives and I have read the book, and we believe it would be a great story for the world deserves to see on the big screen. It has touched my heart deeply, and there is a necessary theme—about love—that our society needs to hear from this book. Which is why we want to offer creative control to the author for this potential project. We acknowledge it is a piece of art that deserves to keep the brushes its artist sprawled over the canvas.”

One thing I truly hated about book-to-film adaptations was the unnecessary changes that were made to the story. And he knew that.

“Mister Van Dorren, are you saying that you want the film to be close to the original story?” Greer asked.