be asking for yours instead. He went with Breck to see you perform the other night and he came home raving. It’s hard to make Ken laugh out loud but he swore his belly was sore the next day, thanks to you.”
Jolene blushed to her roots. Cassie was grateful that Melanie’s compliment rendered her roommate speechless.
Melanie continued. “I haven’t seen Breck in a few months. Maybe the four of us could have dinner sometime.”
Cassie stifled a smile as she watched Jolene’s eyes grow large at the prospect of being seen in public in Ken Cameron’s company.
Jolene finally found her voice. “Could Cassie come along? She could bring Zak. That is, if she ever returned his calls.” She gave Cassie a triumphant look.
Melanie’s eyebrows shot up. “Zak Mercury? He’s asking you out?”
Cassie said, “Yes, but I’m not going, despite Jolene’s fascination with someone famous offering to take me to dinner. I don’t want to mix business with pleasure.”
Melanie shook her head. “No one tells Zak no, Cassie. He’ll drive you crazy until you do go out with him. I mean like stalk you crazy.”
“Then he’d drop her like a hot potato,” Jolene added. “I know the type. I’ve told her to go kick up her heels with him and enjoy her fifteen minutes of fame but this woman has principles.”
Cassie shrugged. “A few. Not enough to keep from using Rhett’s credit card today. He was sweet enough to offer to buy something for me to wear to Ken’s premiere.”
Jolene interrupted. “Oh, come on, Cass. You’re making it sound like he’s some sugar daddy that’ll deck you out from head to toe.” She looked at Melanie. “Cassie insisted that Rhett could only pay for part of it. She said it would count as her Christmas present from him, even though she told Rhett she thought she hadn’t been working for him long enough to deserve one.”
Cassie clenched Jolene’s arm in a Vulcan death grip. “Do you tell everything you know?”
Jolene shrugged. “Pretty much. Come on, ladies. Time’s a-wasting.” She walked into the store.
Melanie touched Cassie’s arm. “She’s a breath of fresh air, Cassie. Don’t worry. I take no offense at someone in this town speaking her honest opinion. And Vanity has some great classic cuts for amazing prices. It’s a little off the beaten path. You’ll be able to find something terrific here.”
“I appreciate you going shopping with us, Melanie. When Ken offered your services, I wasn’t sure if I should take him up on it.”
Melanie smiled. “I was looking forward to meeting you today after all the nice things Ken said about you. It’s wonderful to meet a new friend. Before we were married, people liked me for me. Now that I’m a package deal with Famous Ken, I never know if people are sucking up to me because of him or if they truly find me interesting. It can get pretty lonely,” she admitted.
Cassie slipped an arm through Melanie’s. “I have no hidden agenda. I know Ken’s off-limits because he’s so happily married. All I need is advice about what to wear to his film’s debut. This is just girl stuff. I promise I won’t try to finagle a bit role in his series. I won’t press unsolicited scripts on him. Hey, I won’t even ask you to get me his autograph. Now Jolene, on the other hand, will make none of those promises.”
Melanie laughed. “Come on, Cassie. Let’s shop.”
They browsed together and then separately through the store’s selection. Cassie gave quick glances at the other customers in the boutique. Every woman in the place had the done nails and trendy haircuts that fell messily into place. Seeing the sparkling rings on the hands that pushed clothes around the racks made Cassie realize she was in the wrong place.
She knew the cost might seem reasonable to Melanie but Cassie’s heart palpitations grew as she eyeballed prices that might cause a tsunami. She hoped she could find something decent at an affordable price. She had absolutely nothing in her closet to wear. Rhett assured her that Ken’s movie red carpet would be much more low-key than what people wore to the Golden Globes or Oscars. He said she needed to look stylish but not too dressy. In fact, Rhett was wearing jeans. He said a lot of men did. Cassie knew that wouldn’t be acceptable for a woman.
She bypassed the Givenchy and Versace, desperately wanting to look as if she fit in for once. She started to ask Melanie what she