Falling Into Love with You (The Hate-Love Duet #2) - Lauren Rowe Page 0,78
Laila within the next twenty minutes to tell her she’s doing a bang-up job on the show, better than your wildest dreams, and you want her to know you’re going to keep her on for the entire season. You’ll say, ‘We’re tearing up that early buy-out clause. We can’t imagine doing the show without you.’”
“Fine.”
“Two, I hope this goes without saying, but Laila and I will be performing our duet in the finale, as planned.”
“Yes.”
“Three, you’ll never tell Laila about this side deal of ours. Ever.”
“Wouldn’t you want Laila to know you’re her knight in shining armor?”
“No. She already feels guilty enough she’s getting half my initial salary. She doesn’t need any reason to feel even guiltier.” I hear footsteps in the hallway, getting closer. “So, do we have a deal or not?”
Nadine sighs. “Yes, we have a deal.”
“Great. I’ve got to go. Don’t forget to make that call to Laila.”
“Will do. Happy holidays.”
“Bye, Nadine.”
The door opens as I’m saying “Nadine,” and Laila steps into the room. As she approaches, I toss my phone onto the nightstand. “Hey, baby. Is Mimi ready to see me now?”
Laila sits on the edge of the bed next to me and takes my hand. “No, Sasha is in there. You were talking to Nadine?”
My heart lurches. “Yeah, she called to wish me happy holidays and tell me how thrilled everyone is with us. Apparently, our ‘fight’ on Draft Day quenched their thirst for drama, and now, they want us to go back to being a happy couple for the entire rest of the season.”
Laila’s jaw drops. “Nadine said that?”
“She did. Oh, and she also said she’s looking forward to our performance in the finale.”
Laila looks flabbergasted. “And I was so positive they were going to fire me during the break! I wasn’t going to tell you this, but when Colin and I were alone in my dressing room, he told me something confidential—something that made me all the more certain my days on the show were numbered.” She tells me her story, which makes my blood boil, and wraps up with, “See? I told you Colin is a good guy. He came straight to me with the information, rather than ambushing me for an easy hundred grand.”
“That was cool of him,” I admit. “I’m a little surprised you didn’t march outside with him, right then and there, and kiss the hell out of him for the cameras, just to get back at me for the Charlie thing. You were so pissed at me.”
She looks shocked. “Adrian, I would never do that to you, no matter how upset I was about the Charlie thing. That would have been way beyond the pale for me to do to you. Plus, why would I do that to myself? Forevermore, I’d have been The Girl Who Cheated on Adrian Savage. God help me if ever I ran into one of your diehard fans on the street after that.”
I pause for a long time, before saying, “I feel like I owe Colin a phone call. If I’m completely honest with myself, I think Colin and I were a bit more than acquaintances when I hooked up with his ex. I see Colin all the time. We have mutual friends. Colin isn’t like Kendrick or Kai to me, obviously. Not even close. But he was a friend, and I did betray him. But, despite that, when he had the chance to take that bonus, and use you to get back at me, he didn’t do it. He looked out for you, no matter what.”
“And for you, too, indirectly. Even if that wasn’t his motivation, he did save both of us from quite a bit of humiliation.”
“True.” I process everything for a moment, and then ask, “So, what did Mimi say to you? You two looked as thick as thieves.”
Laila smiles. “She just wanted to give me some advice about you. She’s so happy we’re ‘engaged’ and wants to make sure we have a long and happy marriage.” She squeezes my hand and smiles. “But guess what? I already knew pretty much everything Mimi told me about you, all on my own.”
“What’d she tell you?”
“She didn’t phrase it this way, of course. This is my own interpretation. But, basically, she told me you’re a prince who was sadly turned into an unruly beast a long time ago by a mean woman who held a grudge, for no good reason.”