AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Brooke acted like she didn’t hear me. She smiled at a shirtless man who jogged past on the pavement and kept watching as he passed our table and continued down the street.
“Exhibit A, ladies and gentlemen,” I muttered.
“Excuse me?”
“The entire reason you’re here is to pretend you’re in a relationship with me,” I explained it slowly, as though she was a child. “And you’re checking out random men. If anyone driving past was filming us right now…”
“Oh, relax.” Brooke let her sunglasses fall back on her nose. “Just because you’ve climbed up Tonia’s ass and set up house there doesn’t mean I have to, as well. Everyone knows that cheating scandals get more attention than a boring couple having breakfast.”
I ground my molars together.
“Do you even care about your movies? About the craft of acting? Or do you just get off on attention?”
Brooke snorted.
“Come on, as if anyone could take a steaming pile of shit likePushing Daisyseriously. I know you’re only there for the same reason I am — the studio will only place you in other movies if you agree to make this one.”
That’s not the only reason why I’m here.
I looked at my plate and thought about my siblings. How happy they had been when I opened the door of the house they now lived in with mom, and ran through the empty rooms exploring every inch of space.
“Kyla takes the movie seriously,” I said quietly. “She’s never complained, and sheneverleft her script in a nightclub.”
“Yeah, well, she would.” Brooke drained the last of her smoothie, sucking air until the liquid made a loud rattle. Her entire plate of food remained untouched. “She’s a waitress. To her, thePushing Daisyscript probably looks like Shakespeare.”
I’d never hated Brooke more than I did at that moment. I’d never imagined that thePushing Daisyscreenplay was Oscar-worthy, but this was our career. One that paid an insane amount of money. Brooke had grown up with rich parents who were big names on Wall Street, but I’d grown up in a town similar to this one in Oregon. And if it weren’t for a chance meeting in a shopping mall with a talent agent who was on vacation, I might still be living there, sleeping wherever I could find a flat surface.
“Excuse me,” I said, as my throat tightened.
“Aren’t you going to pay for the food?” Brooke asked as I walked across the street to a park that was filled with ancient trees, with branches that stretched further than any trees I’d seen before, and trunks that were wider than I was tall. I stoodunder one of them, balancing on two above-ground roots as I called Tonia’s number.
“Dean! Excellent news. There’s a photo of you having breakfast with Brooke doing the rounds on gossip websites,” she said excitedly. “And another of the two of you at a theme park. Whatever you’re doing, keep doing it.”
“That’s what I’m calling about.” I scratched my neck. “I don’t want to do this anymore.”
“Oh?” Tonia’s voice grew hard. When I didn’t elaborate, Tonia cleared her throat and asked, “Do what?”
“Pretend to be with Brooke. She’s a nightmare.”
Tonia was quiet for a moment.
“Would this have anything to do with a certain blonde nobody?” I imagined Tonia pulling up photos of Kyla on her laptop and pursing her wrinkled smoker’s lips with contempt.
“No. Yes. I mean…” I leaned against the tree trunk, staring up at the branches. WhatdidI mean?
“You only need to do this until you finish promoting the movie. After that, you can whore around all you like.”
I had enough experience in Hollywood to know that wasn’t true. After this movie, there would be another one — I’d already signed the contract. And then another. And another.
It was a full-time hamster wheel. If I stayed in Hollywood, I would forever be chasing the next piece of carrot, because the moment you stopped playing the game, your career ended.
But if I didn’t stay in Hollywood… those nights sleeping in the back of mom’s sedan came back to me with such vividness that they made me feel like I needed to vomit. Sleeping bags unzipped and spread out, the never-ending stench of bad breath, and my brother’s heels digging into my thigh as he kicked me and complained that he didn’t have enough space.
“Neither do I, dickwad.” I shoved him and accidentally elbowed my sister in the process.
“Stop it, all of you.” Mom was in the front seat, exhaustion making her naturally highvoicedeeper than usual. “This is just for one night, I promise.”
“Okay,” I said, forcing myself to get the words out. “You’re right. I’ll do it.”
