Copyright:
By Odette Botha
Cover Design by: Audrey Ross
Prologue
“I am nervous; do you think I would be able to pull this off?” Katie asked Dean as she looked in the mirror.
“I am your best friend and I would be an idiot if I lied to you now, today of all days. Katie you are strong, you will pull this off because for as long as I have known you, you would rather chew your own arm off than fail or show weakness.”
Katie didn’t know if she should take that as a compliment or an insult, none the less he did have a point.
“Thank you I guess. Its just after allot of drunken pouring my heart out nights, to who ever was willing to listen, I just don’t know what to say to him if I had to see him again that’s all.
“It’s because in my head I had this pretty picture of how I would look, how he would see me and then we would just fit in to our old roles. Instead I look like the way I feel fat and ugly. He is used to being around nice looking girls, I saw it on his profile he is a real life Casanova.”
Katie knew by saying all this it wouldn’t make her feel better but she had to get it out because it was eating away at her.
“Listen to me; you had this guy long before these beautiful girls had him, you are beautiful, you are successful. You are working on a film set with the most gorgeous movie stars and you are worried about a teenage crush coming to town,” Dean said rubbing her shoulders, he knew the words were true but to get it across to Katie was hard, she was so set in the past she didn’t realise she was in fact a catch.
Chapter 1
‘What is the worst that can happen?’ I asked myself as I was sitting watching the director fight over the next scene.
I wasn’t thinking about what he was shouting about, I was thinking about my date that night.
I hadn’t seen him since I was a teenager but yet I still had all the feelings of an insecure teenager. I had since become a successful published author, most of my books except the first reached the best selling list and still I was as insecure as I was when I was just an intern at a publishing company.
‘I am Katie Roberts, what do I have to be afraid of? They are making a movie of my book’. I kept on telling myself watching the clock constantly.
In four hours I was going on a date with Jake Troy, the guy that I have always seemed to have in the back of my mind as my perfect fit. All the men I had dated after our short lived romance never lived up to him, because everyone was always compared to him.
I started watching his profile on the internet just to know what was going on in his life; it was somewhat unsettling because I started feeling like a stalker.
“Miss Roberts.”
Suddenly I was alert and back to reality.
“Yes?” I asked looking up at the personal assistant in front of me.
“Mr Scott would like to have a word with you in his trailer.”
I looked down at the script on my lap for a split second and just like that he disappeared into the crowd again.
It wasn’t the first time that Ben had spoken to me but somehow the guy was terrified of the thought of me.
“Ah Miss Roberts, glad you could give me a moment,” he said smiling as he opened his trailer door.
There was something about Joshua Scott; I couldn’t put my finger on it. Either he was just a charmer by nature or he was a very good actor. What ever it was; it wasn’t important at that moment.
I was on set to give the actors guidance on their characters, so I went to them when I was summonsed.
“Mr Scott, always a pleasure and by the way you can call me Katie.”
I took his hand to help me get into his trailer.
I walked into the trailer and looked around for an open script that he might have had problems with; why else will he want me in his trailer?
“Katie would you like some coffee?”
“No thank you Joshua. Why did you call me here?” I asked very irritated.
“You don’t waste time on questions do you?”
He looked over at me and smiled, I actually felt embarrassed at my directness.
He was charming and he had a large fan club, I personally didn’t think of him in that way. I appreciated him as an actor and I did find him very attractive, now and then I found myself flirting with him, it was innocent. I never allowed myself to openly flirt with him.
“The reason why I called you here was; I wanted to know what you thought of me?” He asked sitting down on the sofa.
“Let me get this straight you called me here; to ask me what I thought of you?”
He nodded.
“Well I like you as an actor, which is why when the casting was done for this movie I requested that you be on the list of actors to play the part of Thomas. More than that I can’t say, I don’t really know you as a person.”
He looked at the floor almost disappointed at my answer.
“Do you want to get to know me?”
I have never seen this side to Joshua before he always came across as a confident person; he had teenagers outside screaming and crying when they saw him. It never occurred to me that he might be shy or unsure of himself.
“Joshua I don’t think that’s appropriate,” I said in a soft unsure voice.
“Is it because I am a Hollywood actor?” He asked smiling.
“No not at all, I just think it would be unconvertible because we are working together. I hope you can understand, I don’t want any unpleasantness on set.”
I looked in his eyes when I said that knowing that nothing I said sunk in.
“Are you seeing someone?” He asked.
“Not that I think its any of your business but yes I might, I have a date with someone special tonight.”
I got up and walked towards the trailer door.
“Katie I hope it goes well then,” he said with a hint of a smile on his face.
“Yes me too. Joshua thank you anyway, I am sure we can get to know each other better as friends.”
I tried to make the atmosphere lighter.
“Yes that would be great.”
I opened the door and walked out before he could say anything else.
As I walked away I couldn’t help but smile. I was so insecure about myself earlier and then a Hollywood actor makes a pass at me, who would have thought?
I grabbed my cell phone out my pocket and phoned my best friend Dean immediately this was the kind of news he would have enjoyed.
Chapter 2
“Hi you will never guess what happened!” I said giggling like a school girl.
I told him the whole story and as per his instruction I did not leave out a single detail. “You should have made a date for later tonight or tomorrow,” Dean suggested. “What are you thinking, booking me out like an escort?” I asked laughing.
“Katie a Hollywood actor for heaven sake, don’t you have any fantasies about an actor?”
I should have known Dean would make a comment like that.
“I know you do,” I hit back.
“You know it,” he said laughing
“Listen all I am saying, Katie dear is you are playing the field and lets admit the obvious, we aren’t getting any younger. Maybe Jake doesn’t work out and then you are going to regret saying no to Mr Yummy.”
Dean had a point although I had never thought of the possibility of Jake not working out.
“Alright friend I have to go, I will phone you tonight after my date.”
I saw the producer walking towards me, so I just closed the phone and jerked it into my jacket pocket.
Chapter 3
Hair do
ne, makeup done. I went through the list over and over as I sat on the couch looking into the hand mirror.
‘I can do this’ I kept on telling myself.
At 7 o’clock I pulled the door closed behind me. Our date was for 7 o’clock at a French restaurant I had discovered down the road from my apartment. The one nice thing about living in the city centre was being close to everything. My car had been standing in the garage for weeks.
I looked through the glass windows of the restaurant, looking if he was there.
I was late so I figured he would have been there.
I couldn’t see him in the crowded restaurant, so I went in and stood in front of the hostess.
“Reservation for Roberts, two people for seven o clock,” I said.
The hostess looked irritated, almost as if she hated people talking to her.
“Miss Roberts please follow me,” she said as she grabbed two menus and led the way.
“Has the other person arrived yet?” I asked, almost running behind her to keep up with her pace.
“No not yet. Your waiter will be with you shortly.”
Her voice was almost angry. I couldn’t decide if I had upset her or was this only her personality.
“Good evening my name is Eddie I will be your waiter this evening. Can I bring you something to drink while you wait for your friend?”
He asked smiling.
It was a weird choice of words ‘my friend’ none the less the waiter; Eddie probably didn’t think I was waiting on a date considering that he was so late.
“Yes sweet red wine please.”
Eddie nodded and left the table as suddenly as he approached it.
I looked around the restaurant and then I looked at my watch. It was already fifteen minutes past seven and still no sign of Jake. I checked my cell phone but there were no messages.
We met up on the internet on one of the social networks. We spoke once or twice on an internet chat site and decided when he came to the city that we would meet up again. He was in the city for five days on business and this was the only night he had free.
Another fifteen minutes passed and I gulped down the glass of wine.
“Another?” Eddie asked as he leaned in with the bottle of wine.
“Why not?” I asked pushing the glass closer to him.
Just when I thought of throwing the second glass of wine down my throat like a tequila shot, I saw him.
I thought about waving but then again I didn’t want to look too obvious or desperate.
So I played it cool, I looked the other way and timed it for exactly five seconds before I looked back at the door.
“Jake Troy,” I said getting up to kiss him on his cheek.
“Katie Roberts,” He said giving me a hug.
“It’s been too long, sorry I am late I had to take care of something’s and I completely lost track of time,” he said smiling at me.
“Not a problem I was late too, I also had things… Anyways how are you?”
‘Good save Katie’ I said in my head.
“I am good, I am just so glad to see you. You look amazing, wow how did I ever let you slip?” He asked with the usual Jake charm.
“I had to go finish high school Jake and I think so did you.”
I felt relaxed all of a sudden, he was still the same person I remembered, there was nothing to be nervous of.
“When I saw your profile I just had to invite you, isn’t cyberspace fantastic? Are you still single?”
I couldn’t believe his question; that meant he followed my profile status. It changed from single, to its complicated, to in a relationship and back, to single all the time.
“Yes I am single. I am just a single gal.” And just like that I screwed up. Why couldn’t I erase those words as they came out my mouth?
“And you? Are you still single?” I asked trying to erase my previous comment.
“No I am not-” he paused for a couple of seconds before he continued,
“I am married Katie, I have been for a year now. But coming here tonight seeing you I wish I wasn’t. All the old memories just came back,”
It felt like I just witnessed a terrible car accident. I downed my wine like a tequila shot again.
“No that’s fine, we had good memories and now you are married. We can be two adults having dinner?”
As the words left my mouth I knew that wasn’t possible. I was wearing my sexiest underwear I put on makeup and had my hair done. I expected more than friendship.
“Katie boyfriends and girlfriends never stood in our way before,” he said winking at me, I couldn’t believe it.
“No Jake, she isn’t your girlfriend and we aren’t thirteen anymore. You are married.”
I was upset at the thought of him suggesting a one night stand with his wife at home.
“Can you honestly tell me that you didn’t expect more coming here?” He asked almost irritated with me.
“Yes Jake I did, I actually expected us to reconnect. What I didn’t expect was finding a womanising cheater.”
I was angry, I felt my heart beating a million miles an hour.
“You are twenty eight with no boyfriend; living on a virtual reality website and talking to married men, what did you expect would happen?”
He asked with a smog look on his face.
“Your profile stated you were single. You know what, no matter what I say I don’t need to justify who I am and what I expected, you are the married one coming on to me.”
I looked at him and realised, he was but a distant memory something I will treasure forever, looking at him through the eyes of a teenager in love is better than looking at him through a twenty eight year old single woman’s eyes. I grabbed my bag, threw money on the table and left the restaurant.
Chapter 4
When I got outside I realised that it was pouring with rain.
“Perfect,” I said as I walked slowly back to my apartment.
When I got to the apartment building I couldn’t go in. I kept on walking never realising that the straps of my shoes were cutting in to my feet. I walked about five blocks, when a car slowed down next to me. I started walking faster because I was scared that the person in the car was Jake, but then I heard a familiar voice.
“Miss Roberts do you need a lift?”
I looked back and saw his face, in any other setting it would have been pretty romantic, if I wasn’t so angry and hurt.
“No its okay I am almost home,” I answered walking even faster.
“You passed your apartment about five blocks ago. Get in I will take you home,” he answered.
“I don’t want to go home,” I said cleaning the mascara off my cheeks with the back of my hand.
“Alright I will take you to my home,” he answered.
“Mr Scott I am alright on my own, thank you.”
I wanted to get into the car with him, but I knew that I was not in the right mood for him. I would just ruin the working relationship with my confessions and sobbing.
All of a sudden I heard the car come to a complete stop and he got out. I stopped and looked at him, I must have looked so pathetic soaked from head to toe, makeup running not only from the rain but from my disappointed sobs.
“Well if you insist I will walk with you, where are we going?” He asked as he put his hands in his pockets, pulling up his shoulders.
He ran next to me as I was walking as fast as I could to get away from him. I suddenly stopped and turned to him, he was raining wet but he still managed to look every bit as handsome.
“Joshua get back into your car I will be fine.”
I couldn’t control it I just started crying. He came closer to hold me; he put his hand on the back of my head and held me close to his chest.
We must have stood there for what felt like hours, he did not let me go until I cried myself out.
“How di
d you know I was here?” I asked him, trying to fix what was left of my makeup.
“I had someone find out your plans and I followed you to see what my competition was like.”
The one thing I loved about Josh was his honesty.
I just started laughing, I didn’t know what else to do and it was amusing knowing the rich and famous also checked out the compitision as he said.
“And what did you think?” I asked smiling.
“Honestly I thought he was an idiot,” he said with a strong obvious reply.
“What am I going to do with you Joshua Scott?”
He smiled as he took a wet strand of hair out my face.
“Ah I think you will work that one out. I am wet and cold, how about we go have coffee?” He asked pointing to his car.
“A limo I didn’t even realise, I was so determined to run away from you.”
I couldn’t believe it, what would I have done if he hadn’t gotten out of the car, I would probably have been half way to China.
“It’s a good thing I don’t take no for an answer, how about that coffee? We can go back to my place, no strings attached just coffee.”
I took his hand and followed him to the car, I trusted him.
Chapter 5
Trust never came easy for me, I never trusted someone until they proved themselves to me, I guess him being there, was the proof that I could trust him.
“Take us home James, please take us through the back entrance we don’t want the lovely Miss Roberts exposed to the paparazzi,” he said to the driver.
“Back entrance? Thank you I wouldn’t want to be in the tabloids tomorrow looking like this.”
I tried to cover my knees with the wet dress.
“You always look amazing, it’s just they can be vultures,” he said.
“I know it must be hard living a normal life with them around all the time magnifying your sort comings, climbing into your privacy?”
I realised for the first time stars need to work harder than a normal person because everything they do was magnified through a lens.
I realised that what Josh had done for me was a risk, if anyone saw him holding me on that street corner it would be plastered everywhere by tomorrow.
I could see the head line; ‘Joshua Scott held unidentified woman on street corner.’
I couldn’t help but laugh.
“Why are you laughing?” He asked frowning but yet maintaining a smile.
“It’s nothing, so where do you live?” I asked trying to change the subject.