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ASTER
My head is throbbing like an anvil repeating over and over.Thunk thunk. Ugh!
“I’m telling you. I don’t care what you think, Christy. I need a break. I cannot do this movie right now. If I don’t get some time to myself, I’m gonna lose my mind.”
My agent growls. “You’re a hot commodity right now. You need to take advantage of that and grab onto the brass ring here. This movie is gonna be big. It could launch your career into the stratosphere. You know your mother wants you to take it,” she wheedles.
And there’s the rub. I’m twenty-six years old. I want to live my life on my own terms. But everyone around me is always looking out for their own job, their own money and lives. They don’t give a damn about me. And that includes my lovely mother.
“I don’t care. I’m done and if you keep pushing on this, you’re gonna be looking for a new client. My mother is not your client. I am. And I am not doing this damn movie. So stop bothering me!” I click to hang up my cell phone and just for a moment wish that I had an old-fashioned rotary phone that I could slam the receiver down to make me feel better.
I call my friend, Fern. She picks up and I hear her giggling while she shushes someone in the background.
“Am I interrupting something?” I ask, amused. My cheeks flush though. I have a feeling I know just what I interrupted.
“Aster!”she squeals. “Where have you been, girlfriend? I’ve been trying to get in touch with you for over a month. It’s not like you to disappear like that.”
“I just found out that you called. My assistant didn’t think it was important enough to bother me.”
Fern huffs. “I should meet this person. I guess I need to make more of an impression. Be more like a dragon lady. Then maybe they’ll actually pass along my messages.”
“Don’t worry about it. I fired her. I’ve actually fired half my people. I just want to be left alone. They’re all driving me nuts. I just told my agent that I was taking at least the next six months off. I need a break. Need to recharge. She’s had me going flat-out since I was sixteen.”
“You know that’s because your mother hired her. I assume she still thinks that your mother is the client and not you.”
“How did you know?”
“I know your mother for one thing. For another, it’s hard for someone who took you on as a kid to realize that you’re not a kid anymore. I know she’s a good agent but you might need to look elsewhere if you want to be taken seriously.”
I sigh and run my hand through my long brown hair. “Logically I know that. I’m pretty close to doing it. I just hate to get into that argument with my mother. We’ve had an armed truce for awhile and I like the peace and quiet!”
Fern laughs. “I get that! So what are you doing for the next six months if you’re not working.”
“I don’t know. I guess I could just sit on my couch and veg. Eat chips and stuff. Just be a couch potato for the first time in my life.”
“You can do that anywhere. Didn’t you tell me that you wanted a place to get away from it all?”
I nod my head and then remember she can’t see me. “Yeah. I need a home base that isn’t accessible to every damn tom, dick and harry. I’ve been looking around but I haven’t found anything I like well enough yet. I just don’t know where I want to move.”
“How about Wildwood, Colorado?”
“I don’t know anybody there.”
“That’s the best part. There’s a nice cabin for sale up here on the mountain and I know just the men to fix it up for you. It needs a little work. I mean, it’s not bad but I assume you want the amenities you’re used to.”
“Hmmm. How many bedrooms, bathrooms?”
“It’s a four bedroom, three bathroom cabin. Beautiful log cabin with a view of the mountain to die for.”
I can picture it in my head and my body aches to spend time away. Just to hear nothing but the wind whistling in the pines. Nobody pounding the door asking me if I’m ready to go on set. Or to some stupid party that I don’t even want to go to.
It sounds like heaven.
“It sounds nice, Fern. But I don’t know anyone. That might be a bit much to start out with. To go from everyone is bugging me to nobody knows where I’m at.”
“I’m staying here and setting up shop. So I’ll be here if you need someone to meet up with for coffee.”
“When did that happen?” I gasp.
