by Fiona Riley
“What?”
“Listen, I heard the murmurs around the office. I know that Sharon and her little minions are irate. I also know that James Drake has made three blatant jabs at you in his daily column over the last week and speculation is flying that you have something going on with Ms. Sterling. I had seven calls today alone asking for your employment records to see if you are on her payroll. The higher-ups are considering actually investigating this to make sure we have not been compromised as a media source. So tell me, what’s up?”
Hayley’s jaw went slack. “I have no idea what you’re talking about.”
Jonathan rubbed his forehead and pinched the bridge of his nose. “Why don’t I believe you, Hayley? I know this isn’t what you want to do forever, but you make more waves than anyone else here, and you still seem to end up ahead. How is that?”
Hayley shrugged, expecting to be fired. “Wait, ahead of what?”
Jonathan reached behind him and picked up a piece of paper. “Emerson’s PR rep just called, looking to set up a meeting with you tomorrow about a prospective project Emerson is at the helm of that needs media coverage. They refused any senior reporters and demanded that only you represent the Sun. No further details were given. None.” He cleared his throat. “How does someone who has never covered a major entertainment event before end up with the most coveted interview in all of Hollywood?”
“I have no idea.” Hayley was at a loss for words, which was unusual for her. Usually she had lots of words, and most of those words got her in all sorts of trouble. But right now, she was speechless.
“Are you working for Emerson Sterling?”
Hayley gaped. “What? No. I’ve never even spoken to the woman.”
Hayley racked her brain but came up with nothing. If she’d ever spoken to Emerson, she would surely remember it. That woman was unforgettable. Hayley hadn’t been able to stop thinking about the look Emerson had given her after she’d blocked Drake’s attempt to film her. She’d felt like an energy had passed between them in that moment, which she realized sounded ridiculous. But still, she’d thought of it often over this past week all the same.
Jonathan seemed to mull over her response before he stood and extended the paper toward Hayley, pulling it back briefly before finally handing it over to her. “Hayley, if I find out that you are on her payroll and have been twisting the facts of this story to meet her needs, I will not protect you from the wolves. Do you understand?”
“Yes.” Hayley nodded and looked down at the paper in her hand like it was combustible.
“I expect a full report following your meeting. They want you at the Parisian tomorrow at noon. Don’t be late.” He walked back to his chair and waved her out before she could say anything else.
Chapter Four
“So let me get this straight.” Her colleague and her closest friend in LA, Alison Pope, stared at her from across the table, her martini suspended in air. “Tomorrow at noon, you’re meeting with Emerson’s people because she personally requested you?”
“It would appear that way, yes.” Hayley finished her first martini in record time and reached for her water. She needed to slow down if she was going to have any time to review tomorrow before the meeting. Jonathan had handed off her other assignments for the rest of the week and had advised her to prepare. When Alison suggested they go to their favorite watering hole, Lilly’s, after work, she’d hesitated before agreeing. Jonathan’s words were fresh in her mind. Alison was having none of that, though, so she didn’t put up much of a fight. Now, as they split two appetizers and people watched, Alison got right to it.
“You’ve got to be kidding me.” Alison shook her head in disbelief. “All right, spill. Why is Hollywood’s hottest bachelorette asking to see you?”
Hayley shrugged. She was getting tired of all the backhanded compliments she’d received about this today. Was it really that otherworldly for someone as attractive and famous as Emerson to have an interest in her? Yes. Yes, it was. But Emerson wasn’t interested interested in her. She wanted to meet with her for some press work. Which was nearly unfathomable in and of itself. But she didn’t need everyone else pointing that out as well. She was nervous enough as it was.
“I know what you’re thinking, and yes, this is so fucking weird,” Alison supplied over her glass.
Hayley laughed. Alison just got her. They’d both started at the Sun around the same time, and though they worked in different departments, they’d managed to get close over the years. Alison’s sincerity and down-to-earth qualities were a breath of fresh air in a city known for its fakeness. “I have no idea how to prep for this. What do I even say?”
Alison paused and waved to the waiter, indicating she needed a refill, before pulling out her cell phone and typing something onto the screen.
“What are you doing?” Hayley was afraid to ask.
“Googling. Duh.” Alison accepted the new drink the waiter dropped off and returned her attention to her screen.
“Of course.” Hayley was being sarcastic, but she had fully intended to do that very same thing later during her prep. Alison was saving her a step. Sort of. Maybe she could get that second drink after all. Alison had no problem making that decision for herself, it seemed.
“Let’s go over the facts: Emerson was a child actress and teen television star, typical SMActress, right? Singer. Model. Actress. The Hollywood triple threat. She won the damn talent lottery.” Alison nodded as though this was common knowledge. It was, and it wasn’t for Hayley. Her work required her to binge on celebrity gossip—that was true—but she shied away from it in her personal life if at all possible. She knew enough to be good at her job. But she couldn’t name Beyoncé’s kids without giving herself a serious brain cramp in the process.
“She’s been on Hollywood’s hotlist every year since she was eighteen. She signed her first multi-million-dollar movie contract at nineteen and made the formal move from television to the silver screen around that time. It says here that she is one of the highest-grossing movie actresses of her generation thanks in large part to her involvement in that car movie franchise crash-boom-rah thing that Rob raves about. He loves her.” Alison snorted.
“You don’t say.” There was no love lost for Alison’s boyfriend Rob from Hayley. They’d been dating a little over a year and Hayley tolerated him at best. He was a typical postcollege frat boy who didn’t have a ton of direction in life and had taken a position in his daddy’s company out of convenience and laziness. He made good money and spoiled Alison, but Hayley knew she could do better. He was a total dud. And to make matters worse, once he found out Hayley was into women, he regularly went out of his way to say the most ignorant and suggestive things. She hated it.
“Yup. She was nominated for an Oscar for that gritty drug movie she did in her early twenties…Oh—this is news to me—it says here that she won an Emmy for a song she performed as that little cartoon frog, Zelda Frog, on that kids’ show, the Adventure Frog series. This says here that she’s done the voice work for that character since the beginning. I hear the author is a real recluse, no one ever sees her…Rafaela Silver or something. Anyway, I heard they’re making a feature film with that frog. My nieces love that series. Zelda is like the perfect feminist role model,” Alison said.
“A feminist role model frog?” Hayley was not up to date on this aspect of Emerson’s career.
“Yeah, she’s like super-smart and creative. The stories have a moral and teach empathy and kindness and all that other shit. It’s actually kinda awesome. You should watch it sometime. There’s a lot of funny, hidden adult humor.”
Hayley made a mental note to look into it.
Alison continued, “Looks like she was on the Forbes celebrity list once or twice and—oh, it says that she’s being courted to portray a young Angelina Jolie in the upcoming biopic about her life entitled Lip Service.” Alison’s jaw hung open dramatically. “Can you imagine that? With her dark hair and pouty lips with those light eyes, I
mean, she’d be perfect for that role.”
“Agreed.” Hayley thought back to the backstage exchange she’d witnessed. Emerson’s long dark hair fell in choreographed waves across her shoulders. She’d looked striking on the red carpet, but seeing her in action backstage was what had stayed with Hayley. The way her bicep flexed in her attempt to pull her arm away from Rachel’s grasp…the way her full lips parted when she snapped back at Rachel’s insults to her assistant. She probably shouldn’t have found her attractive in that moment, but she most certainly had. In fact, the fiery look Emerson gave Rachel had made Hayley shiver. But definitely not out of fear. No. That was the problem. She was attracted to Emerson because she had eyes, and Emerson was clearly perfect. And a big part of her was worried about falling to pieces in her presence tomorrow. “What if I’m a bumbling mess?”
“Like, more than usual?”
Hayley sighed. “Alison.”
“Well, she’s super hot. And you know how you get around hot women,” Alison replied.
Hayley gave her a look.
“I’m just saying, you’ve got no game, that’s all.” Alison’s expression was playful. “I’m kidding. Kidding. Seriously, don’t pout. It’s so sad looking.”
That only made Hayley pout more.
“Why are you worried? We both know you’re better than this job, Hay. You’re way too smart to be writing puff entertainment pieces. Maybe this is your chance to strike out on your own. You know, finally get that script of yours out.”
“Screenplay,” Hayley corrected.
“Exactly. Even better.” Alison smiled, and Hayley matched it. She knew Alison was teasing her. Hayley had been working on that screenplay for over two years now, and Alison had been one of her biggest cheerleaders throughout the process.
Alison continued, “All I’m saying is that this is an incredible and, let’s be honest, an insanely unrealistic opportunity to fall into your lap.”
“Rude.” But she was totally right. All day Hayley had been feeling like someone had made a grave mistake, and that when she showed up at the hotel to meet Emerson and her team tomorrow, they would be shocked, fully expecting someone else to be there instead. Like this was all some silly misunderstanding. Because it had to be, right?
“It’s true. You’ve got nothing to lose. Bat for the fences. Kick that touchdown. You know, do the thing, win the points.” Alison gave her a mock cheer from her seat.
Hayley picked up a truffle fry and waved it at Alison before popping it into her mouth. “Your sports analogies are awful.”
“And your choice to always wear that red and black plaid shirt when we go out after work for drinks is offensive. But I still hang out with you,” Alison said as she took a fry from the shared plate and dusted off the grated parmesan cheese before eating it.
Hayley wrapped her arms across her chest defensively. “Hey. I love this shirt.”
“I know. And so does everyone in this bar because you wear it all the time,” Alison replied as she reached across the table to pat her shoulder. “It is soft, though, I’ll give you that.”
Hayley nodded because duh. Alison worked primarily in the fashion department at the Sun. She always managed to look flawless and perfectly put together. In that regard, she and Hayley were very different. Hayley was all about comfort and practicality. Alison, on the other hand, was willing to endure discomfort to look good. It was very LA of her. That was something that had always impressed Hayley. She lived here, she worked here, she occasionally dated here, but she never really felt like she fit in here. Alison’s friendship helped that a little. “Look, we can’t all be fashionistas. I get cold in the air-conditioning, okay? And it reminds me of home.”
“And by home you mean Maine, right? Because it’s putting out a serious Maine vibe.” Alison’s bubbly laugh was contagious.
“Precisely.” Hayley finished her water and waved her hand at Alison’s phone. “Well, don’t stop now, we’re waist deep in research here.”
“Right. I digress. Back to the important stuff. Blah, blah, blah, she’s been featured as Best Hollywood Beach Bod for four years in a row. Yada, yada, yada, she’s gorgeous, on a million magazine covers. She donates a third of her salary to animal shelters and children’s hospitals here and in Colorado. Oh, here’s the good stuff—she’s rumored to be bisexual, although nothing has ever been formally announced.” Alison paused. “Wow. She’s beautiful, she donates her money to orphaned pets and sick kids, and she’s probably most likely definitely into women. She’s, like, perfect. I think I’m nervous for you.”
Hayley sighed and sank lower into her seat. “You are not helping, by the way.”
“You make a fair point”—Alison nodded—“sorry.”
Hayley signaled to the waiter for another drink. She was doomed no matter what. She might as well take advantage of the end of happy hour. “It’s fine. Go on.”
Encouraged, Alison continued, “Okay, that’s what her Wikipedia says, but the gossip rags tell a different tale.” She scrolled down some more.
Hayley knew a little bit of this next part. Emerson’s successes had been shrouded in controversy. Multiple reports stated that she’d slept her way—with both male and female directors—into two of her three biggest-grossing movie roles. She was reported to have a violent and volatile temper that landed her in anger management in her mid to late teens and early twenties. Rumors abounded that she was a diva on television sets in her youth, and that she made unrealistic demands while working on movies even to this day.
“Remember that little bit like eleven years ago when she was accused of lighting fire to her ex-manager’s car?” Alison stole a sip of Hayley’s newly delivered martini before stripping another fry of its cheesy goodness. The horror.
“No charges were pressed, though,” Hayley pointed out, even though she understood the societal assumed guilt was punishment enough. There were murmurings that Emerson was dropped from two projects following that media frenzy and that that was the primary reason why she started working as a voice-over actress on that kids’ show, Adventure Frog. People around the Sun said she had to get out of the limelight for a little while to let things blow over.
“Are you sure you aren’t working for her?” Alison asked.
That was probably the most ludicrous part of this whole shit show. How anyone could think that Hayley was employed by Emerson or her PR team was beyond her. Really. “Positive.”
“All right, whatever you say.” After a moment, Alison’s expression got serious. “This is all well and good, but the fact of the matter is this—the most important part of this puzzle is the Rachel piece. Agreed?”
Hayley nodded. “Yeah, there’s that.”
The internet had practically broken down when Rachel left the movie they were costarring in. Initial speculation blamed Rachel’s departure on fighting between her and Emerson over screen time, and Emerson was painted as the instigator by insiders—whoever that was. But Rachel’s recent publicity teaser turned that theory on its head. She was blaming her dismissal on a steamy affair with Emerson that unraveled because of jealousy over fame, salary, and their male costar. And if you were to believe Rachel’s media baiting, this was just the tip of the iceberg. It felt like any day now Rachel would spill a little more tea. But for the moment, she was surprisingly quiet. It was almost as if she was biding her time before the next big reveal, and the media outlets were positively salivating over it.
“Not to make this any worse for you…”
“That’s literally the worst thing to say before saying something that is going to make it worse for me.” Hayley frowned.
Alison ignored her. “The supposed sexual relationship bombshell is on every major—and minor—news outlet in the world. It’s trending on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram. Everywhere. All sorts of secret pictures of them together on set are being leaked. None of them indecent—yet—but it feels inevitable. There is a ticker on the bottom of every show on TMZ with hourly updates of any new information a
nd a loop of footage of their near run-in on the red carpet, and snippets of Rachel’s wounded but vague interview with James Drake that night even made it to three different primetime television news shows. This is the most exciting—and scandalous—thing that has happened in a long time.”
“I know. It’s—”
“Sensational. And creating a hell of a buzz.” Alison leaned back in her seat, seeming to contemplate this. “What do you think? You think there’s any truth to it?”
Hayley considered this question. It wasn’t like she’d been able to think of much else this past week with Drake dragging her in the gossip columns and Emerson’s face on every single screen on every channel and website in varying stages of reaction. Some smiling, some tight lipped, all of them beautiful. But people were already taking sides and writing their own narrative. The most popular theory was that Rachel had most likely been seduced by Emerson and duped into a relationship that ended her tenure on the film. Everything Rachel had said or implied up to this point made it appear as though she had been coaxed and coerced into any perceived misdoings on her part, further making Emerson out as the villain. Hayley wasn’t so sure. She’d seen the backstage exchange—Rachel had been the instigator. She’d seen the fear in Emerson’s eyes on the carpet. And the hurt in them later that night. There was more to this story. She was sure of it.
“I don’t know. I think there’s some truth there. But I think there’s a lot more we don’t know, too. It can’t be that simple. It can’t be that black and white.” Hayley placed her empty glass on the table and shook her head. She had told Alison a little about what she’d witnessed that night, but she kept some of her observations to herself. The ones that felt like an invasion of privacy for Emerson. Which, if she was being honest, was all of them. “Something happened between them. I’m sure of it.”