Total pages in book: 72
Estimated words: 67831 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 339(@200wpm)___ 271(@250wpm)___ 226(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 67831 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 339(@200wpm)___ 271(@250wpm)___ 226(@300wpm)
This is love, all right. This is the real deal, the thing I was beginning to think wasn’t in the cards for me.
Now, all that’s left to figure out is…what am I going to do about it?
sixteen
. . .
Leo
I’m in hell.
Hell, I tell you.
Hell is being away from Caroline for even a day’s break in filming.
Hell is also watching her in the white sweater dress I bought her on Tuesday, looking sexy enough to slay dragons with a swish of her hips as she dominates the second filming of the tearoom contest—this time without fisticuffs or scones sailing through the air.
Ainsley modified the game to make it a memory challenge instead of a speed challenge, ensuring the contestants who’ve already played the game back when Meredith and Hannah were in the competition don’t have an unfair advantage.
I’m sure Caroline would have done well when it came to speed, as well—she moves with a controlled elegance that leaves no doubt she’d whip up tea sandwiches and plate them at the speed of light—but with the memorization, she truly shines. Her focus and intelligence are on full display as she commits eight orders to memory, holding each highly specific, allergy-riddled guest’s requests in mind as she’s assaulted by carefully staged “interruptions.”
Bursts of strange music and sound effects blare from the speakers in fits and starts. Meanwhile, back in the kitchen, the chef drops sheet pans on the floor at random intervals, and a steady stream of actors hired to cause trouble filter in and out of the tearoom, demanding coffee to go, permission to use the restroom, or directions to the closest subway station.
Caroline handles the distractions with ease and earns bonus points by helping the actors solve their “problems” while simultaneously plating tea trays and ensuring her guests aren’t neglected for a moment. She ends the challenge with a perfect score, ten points ahead of Millie, her closest competitor.
Jenna and Eduardo tie for third, both with respectable scores, and Ainsley makes a spur of the moment decision that they’ll both remain in competition.
“I hope that was okay,” she hisses as she joins me behind the monitors once the cast has been dismissed to grab scones and tea in the craft services tent outside. “The tie seemed like a good excuse to keep more players in the game. Eduardo and Jenna bring more drama to the table than the other two. Jenna spent her day off looking for dirt on Caroline, and Eduardo had a steamy date with Bingo the clown. Millie and Caroline just stayed in their room, snuggled up in their pajamas watching a Die Hard marathon.”
“Excellent franchise,” I murmur, jealous of Millie.
I want to be in bed in my pajamas with Caroline.
I also want to be in bed without my pajamas with Caroline, which is becoming a serious problem. Even if I can convince her that my past with Vivian shouldn’t ruin our shot at a future together, I can’t make a move until after filming is over. It would be unethical.
“It really is,” Ainsley says, nodding seriously.
“What is?” I murmur, distracted by the sound of Caroline’s laughter, drifting from the tent outside.
“The Die Hard franchise,” Ainsley says. “It’s excellent. Like you said. Especially the third movie. So underrated.”
“I love how they introduce a new narrative structure in that one,” Trevor agrees as he sidles up next to her. “And lean into the flawed hero trope.”
Ainsley flushes pink from her cheeks down to the collar of her ruffled green sweater at the appearance of her crush. “Yes! It’s perfect. One of the best action films ever, in my humble opinion.”
“It’s showing at the Chelsea Indie Cinema on Christmas Eve Day, a triple feature with the first two films starting at two o’clock,” Trevor says. “I was going to buy tickets later today. If you don’t have plans…maybe you’d like to join me?”
The joy on Ainsley’s face mirrors the euphoria that filled me when I kissed Caroline’s forehead, and she leaned into me with a sigh that made my heart grow three sizes.
Ainsley’s in love.
I’m in love.
But luckily for my right-hand woman, there aren’t any barriers standing in the way of her happy ending.
“No, I don’t have plans, and that sounds like fun. But I don’t know if I’ll be free.” She glances my way. “Leo and I are working on the rough cut of the first episode that morning. I’m not sure what time we’ll—”
“We’ll move it until after the holidays,” I say with a smile. “You should go.”
“Are you sure?” she asks, her eyes wide. “I mean, I know how important it is to get the first cut ready as quickly as possible. We’re going to have so much footage to go through and—”
“Don’t worry about it.” I set my headset on the closest monitor and reach for my coat. “We’ll be fine. The networks won’t be vetting new submissions until mid-January anyway. We’ll have plenty of time. Go. Enjoy yourself.”