to be some mega-blockbuster like Avatar or Titanic. He would go for anything where conversation was key—suspense, romance, a comedy.
That made him think of Cassie again. Telling him to dump one of the best agents in the business and go for what he wanted. Not keeping Irv seemed like sacrilege. Being disloyal wasn’t in Rhett’s nature. Putting up with what he had from his agent, though, wasn’t either. Rhett knew there always came a time to make a stand. Maybe that time had arrived. It gave him a shiver of anticipation to venture into something new. He wanted it. Badly.
Yet he was perceived a certain way in Hollywood. He hadn’t been here that long but typecasting happened to everyone. He feared he’d been poured into the action hero mold and left to dry.
Rhett slammed his fist into his pillow. Enough thinking. Nothing would change between now and sunrise. He turned the pillow over again and buried himself in it.
As his mom, the ultimate Gone with the Wind fan always said, tomorrow’s another day.
◆◆◆
“Get up, Jolene. Your alarm’s blared for fifteen minutes now.”
Cassie handed her roommate a cup of black coffee, the only way Jolene would drink it. Jolene’s arm snaked out from under the covers and found her phone, shutting the dinging off. She grabbed at the mug, pulling it back under. She finally sat up, her eyes red and puffy. Cassie wondered if it was from too much drinking or man trouble.
Or both. With Jolene, you could never tell. Cassie had listened to too many sob stories from her roommate. She had no desire for Jolene to launch into another one this morning.
“How was your day working for Mr. Super Action Hunk? Is he rolling in the bucks? What did you do? Order tickets to Bali? Put up his twenty-foot Christmas tree? Sort a thousand pieces of his fan mail?”
Cassie sat on the edge of the bed. “Rhett’s really nice, Jo. The house is huge but not showy. It’s very tastefully decorated. He even took me out to lunch.”
Jolene sipped the coffee. “Somewhere good, I hope.”
“Actually, it was delicious Italian food. Very good but off the beaten path.”
“Ah, doesn’t want to be seen dining with the help.”
“No, nothing like that. If I’ve learned one thing about Rhett Corrigan, it’s that he cherishes privacy. He’s not the type to hang out at the coolest place in town. Especially if it’s crawling with paparazzi.”
Jolene finished off her coffee and set the mug down. “He’s okay as a boss? He treats you better than that creep Manny?”
Cassie smiled. “Better than okay. He gave me a Range Rover to drive. I have a credit card to do business with and a new cell phone. Also, he has a poker game once a week and I got to meet some famous people. One of them even knew you.”
Jolene’s mouth dropped. “Rhett Corrigan has a friend that knows me?”
“Zak Mercury. Said he’d caught your act before.”
Jolene threw the covers back. “Zak Mercury? We just saw him on Kimmel!”
“Zak said he’d like us to go see you perform sometime.”
Her roommate gave her a piercing look. “Us as in you and him us?”
Cassie blushed. “He asked me out but I told him no. I didn’t think it would be smart for me to date one of the boss’ poker buddies.”
Jolene grabbed Cassie’s shoulders and shook her. “Are you a fool? Zak Mercury is ultra hot. As in looks and career. He’s going places, Cass. Hitch on to his star and ride it with him to the moon."
Cassie shook her head. “No, he’s not for me. He’s nice but I’m not interested.”
Jolene got out of bed and looked her up and down. “You look ready. Come sit with me and talk. And by the way, I think you are totally insane. Bring Zak Mercury my way, Sister. I will become his life-long worshipper.”
Cassie followed Jolene into the tiny bathroom and sat on the commode. They’d been through this routine a hundred times. Jolene would brush her teeth, put on her makeup, and try to tame her hair while they talked. About guys, about work, about anything in the news. Jolene Farrell lived to talk. Sometimes, she’d even try out new bits on Cassie as she curled her lashes and spritzed on cologne.
“Who else was there? Besides Zak whom you’re not interested in Mercury.”
“Rhett’s trainer, Leo. A fireman named Chris who goes back twenty-five years knowing him. Darin Hart.”
Jolene’s mouth dropped. “Darin Hart. As in Darin just fuck me