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My mom smiled sweetly, and the latte in my stomach soured. “Of course. I would never interfere with production. Maybe when you have a spare moment sometime, Bibi, we could meet for coffee?”
“I would love that. We’ll be in touch.” She blew Mom a kiss as she left the trailer, and then she slid into the chair next to me. “Oh, it’s so strange to have you be the one in front of the camera.”
“It doesn’t change anything, does it?” It stung to have another producer here. Someone else was doing my job. Tina had some serious chops, so it wasn’t out of the realm of possibility that she could keep my job.
“It changes everything. In a good way, of course.” Bibi crossed her legs and leaned back in the chair. “It will be weird working without my trusted confidante.”
“I’m still here.” I hardly recognized myself. After the best cut I’d ever had, my hair was perfectly waved, and my face was flawless. I was in a short blue velvet dress. When you’re barely five foot nothing, gowns tend to overwhelm. Not that anyone would be looking at my legs with this plunging neckline. “But it does feel weird to watch everything going on around me and not feel like I’m a part of it.”
“It is weird to go in front of the camera after working behind the scenes. You think you know what will happen, but in reality, you have no idea.” Maybe Tina wasn’t so bad after all. “Things will slow down in no time.”
“For the next few weeks, you will be the center of attention, which I know is uncomfortable when you’re used to being behind the scenes. But you might find you like the spotlight.” Bibi smiled. “What do you think it will be like to go on stage?”
“I can’t believe the butterflies in my stomach.”
“I can. You’re about to pick a mate.” Bibi wiggled with excitement. “Can you tell me about what you’ll be looking for out there?”
I chuckled. “Definitely not a bear shifter. I think I’ve had my fill of those.”
Bibi’s eyes widened. She was banking on me picking Bjorn. “Why not?”
“What happened with Bjorn was a mistake.” Even though I hadn’t been able to stop thinking about him since that night. Since long before that, if I was being completely honest. “I was influenced by the Hudaknocker. Because if I was in my right mind—”
“What does your mom think about that theory?” Tina asked.
“I had to tell her why I was going in front of the camera.” Even I was sorry I’d told her. “She thought I was part of a publicity stunt forThe Mating Game. Anyway, I always tell her everything.”
Bibi put her hand over mine. “I’ll need you to tell her a little less everything while we’re filming.”
I nodded. “I get it. Once she gets a hot scoop, there’s no stopping her.”
“Which is great when it’s her show,” Tina added. “But we want to make sure that we have all the exclusives.”
Easier said than done. Mom had a way of getting information out of me, whether I meant to give it to her or not.The Scoop with Suzannehad been a sensation for a reason. But I didn’t want to let Bibi or Tina down. Weirdly, I was more concerned with what Tina thought of me. Bibi felt more like a friend than a boss at this point. There was no way we could work together so closely for such long hours without seeing the good, the bad, and the ugly in each other.
But most of all, I was terrified to face Bjorn on stage. He’d only been starring in every single one of my dirty fantasies since I’d seen him naked.
“Can you tell me about the other shifters?” I asked. I needed something, anything, to get my mind off that gorgeous, infuriating bear.
“You know I can’t do that.” Bibi rose from the chair. “But I can bring you out on stage if the glam squad is ready to hand you over.”
“She’s ready,” Marjorie said as she gave me one last press with the powder puff.
I was NOT ready, mentally, spiritually, or emotionally. I’d never forget what this walk to the stage was like because my legs felt like rubber. Everything was moving at warp speed and in slow motion at the same time. This out-of-body experience could only make me better at my job. I would definitely be able to empathize with the next contestant.
The sound guy came over to wire me, and Bibi’s mouth was moving, but I couldn’t hear anything over the roar of the crowd.
Tina waved us onto the stage.
The crowd went wild. Bibi was in her element, and I had no idea what to do, so I sank into the pink velvet chair.
“Welcome back, everyone! This is going to be one special episode, and I can hardly contain my excitement,” Bibi paused to let the crowd love her. She was so good at this. “Some of you might recognize our latest contestant as our very own Marissa Marlowe.”
Another pause to let the crowd give me love. Wait, were those boos? Of course they were.The Scoop with Suzannewent down in scandalous flames, and I was very much in the thick of things when it happened. What had I told Wendy when she had haters? That it was good for business?
The problem was, I’d channeled my mom when I gave that advice.
No, she would say, eat your haters for breakfast and then order dessert.
