Say Hello, Kiss Goodbye - Jacquelyn Middleton Page 0,53
“You woke me, tiptoeing in at five a.m.”
“I woke you?” Leia scoffed above her phone. “Jordan sounds like he’s swallowing his own face.”
Sarah ignored the comment, motioning down the hall. “You dropped something when you snuck in.”
Leia craned her neck and squinted. What looked like a flat black change purse, no larger than 2”x 3”, with a kiss lock closure lay just outside the bathroom door.
“Wait a minute—is that what I think it is?” asked Sarah, a pleased smile on her lips. “Mom’s mini sewing kit. You still have that?”
“Yeah. I keep it with me, just in case I need to mend something. It must’ve fallen out of my pocket. I’ll get it in a sec.” Leia returned to her phone.
“Who’s that? Tarquin?”
“No. Shantelle.”
“Shantelle Joy? You’re still friends? I thought you lost touch.” Sarah whipped off her glasses and cleaned the lenses with her pajama top. “Didn’t she move or something?”
“Yeah, she quit Tiffany’s and moved four times, but we’re always texting, even when she’s busy on set.”
“Of what? Her bedroom? She’s a YouTuber!”
“She was a YouTuber,” said Leia, her brow creasing as another text landed. “She caught the eye of a talent scout and is acting now. A Netflix series.”
“I don’t have time for Netflix.” Sarah punctuated her disdain with an emphatic nudge of her glasses back up her nose.
“Well, she’s amazing in it—so amazing she got cast in her first movie straight after.” Leia lowered her phone and gave yawning Sarah a flash of side-eye. “She’s a good friend. Don’t be mean.”
“I’m not!” Her sister’s sleepy gape morphed into a pinched grimace. “I’m just saying I don’t watch as much TV as you do.”
At least I don’t read trashy magazines like you do. Leia shook her head. “Shantelle used to be scared to act in front of people. Now look at her, the female lead in a film with a major studio. It’s called Lost for Breath. Apparently, it’s Twilight meets Erin Brockovich!”
A smirk toyed with Sarah’s mouth. “Eco-friendly vampires? Sounds like a winning mashup.”
“Joke all you want, but it’s getting A LOT of buzz and it’s not even out until August.” Leia beamed. “Best of all, Shantelle promised to wear one of my gowns on the red carpet.”
“Really? She said that? When? Now?”
“No, ages ago. And she wants me to style her, too. She could hire anyone, but she wants someone she knows, someone she trusts. This could be massive for me. It could lead to new clients, maybe an investor or two.”
“I had no idea.” The surprise on Sarah’s face dissolved into a faint frown. “Why didn’t you tell me?”
“Because I knew you’d be weird—I know you don’t like her.”
“I never said that!”
“You didn’t have to!”
“Well, it’s not that I don’t like her, it’s just”—Sarah snickered—“what’s with the hippy-dippy horoscope shit she’s into?”
“Oh, that’s just for fun.” I think?
“That one time I met her, she talked non-stop about her psychic advisor and astrologist and how they changed her life. If that’s not annoying…” Sarah’s puffy eyes trailed away, skimming over the tiny coffee table and her Will and Kate royal wedding mug. A fuchsia lipstick stain kissed its rim. “So, what does she want, then? To drag you to a tarot reading when you get back?”
Leia shrugged and resumed reading the growing stack of texts climbing her screen.
Shantelle: My horoscope nailed it! It said I’d meet a tall stranger tonite and I have! I’m at a gorgeous party eating shrimp tacos with an elf! Take a guess! Where am I?
Leia’s half-mast eyes blinked lazily, the cobwebs refusing to clear. A tall elf? Gawd, Shantelle! I hate when you drunk-text me. She broke into a breath-halting yawn and read on.
Shantelle: Are you sleeping? God, time zones are the worst! Okay, I’ll TELL you then. I’m at a party with Will Ferrell—you know, ELF! Live…from New York…
Leia’s head snapped back. What? She squinted at the screen, re-reading Shantelle’s words. Live from New York? Oh! Her jaw dropped. “Oh, Saz! Shantelle’s at an SNL after-party!”
Sarah’s eyes bulged. “Saturday Night Live? How on earth did she get in?”
“I told you, didn’t I? She’s having a moment.”
“I HATE when people say that!” Sarah stuck out her tongue. “It’s right up there with ‘She’s living her best life.’ What else does she say?”
“I’ll read it to you.” Leia cleared her throat.
Shantelle: Crazy, right? We’re surrounded by celebs! It all started when the guys won tonight—Morgan scored the OT winner! SO PROUD of my man! An SNL producer texted him after the game