Total pages in book: 43
Estimated words: 41935 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 210(@200wpm)___ 168(@250wpm)___ 140(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 41935 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 210(@200wpm)___ 168(@250wpm)___ 140(@300wpm)
“That guy’s a bore,” she says under her breath.
“Who, Alan?”
She laughs lightly. “Well, yeah. But I meant Josh.”
I change the subject because Josh isn’t that far away, and it feels rude to be talking about him when he could overhear. “Are you on a break?”
“Yep. I think I’ll have scrambled egg whites for lunch.”
That’s a relief. I’d love to get out of the sun and get a respite from this hot hat.
“Sure. Anything else?”
“Mmm, I’ll also take half a cucumber, sliced. And extra water.”
“I’ll have to go to the grocery store for the cucumber, which is fine because I also need to pick up some more collagen.”
She furrows her brow. “I only like that one brand. The one you order online.”
“Well, it’s back-ordered. I can’t get it right now.”
She huffs out a sigh. “Why do businesses make it so hard to support them?”
I love Farrah, but a part of me wants to shake her and ask her if she has any idea how many people would love for their biggest problem to be using a new brand of collagen in their smoothies.
“But then I’ll have to wait for the eggs,” she muses. “Okay, so make the eggs and then go to the store and I’ll have the cucumber as a snack.”
“Okay.”
“Did Lisa call about that contract?”
I take Farrah’s phone out of my bag and check the screen to see if her agent called.
“Not yet.”
“Call her office. I want that contract wrapped.”
“I will.”
She glances down at her chest and then back to me. “Are you sure my boobs look good in this top?”
“They look amazing,” I assure her for the third time today.
She hesitates. “Okay.”
Later that evening, I’m sitting alone on the beach, oblivious to the people who occasionally walk past me on their beach strolls. It’s just after eight p.m. I had to fight Farrah to get out of dinner with the contestants.
As soon as I heard the chef’s menu for tonight included pate and pureed beets, I told Farrah I was having dinner on my own. Normally, she likes to have me beside her for meals when she’s working.
It’s been a day, though. I was the go-between for Farrah and Lisa over the contract for Farrah’s next film since Farrah was busy filming the show today and couldn’t talk to Lisa herself. I also had to hit up multiple grocery stores to get all the Voss water I needed.
Then there’s my dad. I just FaceTimed my parents and he didn’t look like he was feeling well. He put on a brave face and communicated with me through the computer that’s now his voice, but it was bittersweet. I haven’t seen my parents since Christmas, almost six weeks ago. Even then, I only got two days off from Farrah. She gave me a big holiday bonus to make up for the lack of time off.
I miss watching Jeopardy with my dad and eating subs from my mom’s favorite place with her while we play Scrabble.
With a heavy sigh, I take the double bacon cheeseburger from the white paper bag I picked up at a drive-through. I only had time to grab one pancake from the breakfast spread this morning, which I rolled up and ate without syrup. Instead of eating lunch, I was doing things for Farrah.
The cheeseburger smells like heaven as I unwrap it. A little grease drips onto my fingers. I sink my teeth into it for a huge bite, closing my eyes.
It tastes amazing. Eating this burger and drinking the strawberry shake I got with it is the first thing I’ve done just because I wanted to in a long time.
Filming today was pretty much just absurd. The contestants were directed to do things like flirt, give meaningful glances and touch affectionately.
It’s all so fake. Even the parts of the show that are real are gross. Today, the rock star, Dom Marone asked the Olympic gymnast Misty Meyers how much she weighs. She’s way more muscular than he is. She smiled sweetly and said she’d tell him how much she weighs if he’d tell her how many times he’s shot up or snorted the drugs that have left him borderline emaciated.
That’s probably not making Alan’s cut, but I thoroughly enjoyed it. Misty could kick Dom’s ass, and I hope, at some point, she will.
“Hey, how’s it going?”
I look up, my mouth full with a bite of my burger, and see Dalton standing there. He’s wearing athletic shorts, an Ohio State T-shirt and a backward baseball cap.
I chew as quickly as I can, putting my hand over my mouth before I answer. “What’s wrong? Does Farrah need something?”
He smiles. “Probably, but I’m not aware of anything.”
“She didn’t send you down here to get me?”
“Nope. I’m just walking on the beach. Everyone else is eating lemon sorbet.”
I nod, sipping my milkshake.