A Hollywood Deal (Ryder & Paige 1)

“What do you want?”

“I’m okay with anything as long as we’re married. I’m not picky.” If it were left up to me, we would be eloping in Vegas.

Bethany looks at me speculatively, but she doesn’t get to ask any follow-up questions because our server returns with the food.

I take the opportunity to quickly change the subject. “So tell me… How are things with you? I remember you saying that you were thinking about a Kickstarter campaign, but…”

“Oh.” Her eyes light up. “My webcomic site got full funding!”

“No way! Seriously? You should’ve said something so I could put in some money for you. Not to mention, Ryder has lots of followers on social media, and I’m sure he wouldn’t have minded promoting your stuff.”

She grins and raises her hands, palms out. “That’s the really cool part. I never got a chance to do the Kickstarter! I got funded before we even began the campaign.”

“How?”

“Some angel investor through some LLC. He said he’s interested in art, and he likes my webcomic site and what I’ve been doing, and he’d love to see me expand. The cool thing is, he really knows a lot about running a business and who to hire and all that. So it’s an incredible opportunity for me.”

Bethany has big plans for her webcomic site. Currently it only showcases her comics, and she’s grown a huge following with witty and sharp content. She also had a bit of help two years ago when Ryder mentioned the site in an interview, but I still think it was mostly her. If she didn’t have good content, she wouldn’t have been able to capitalize on the publicity to build her audience.

Last year she put out a “best of the year” collection in a fancy glossy hardcover edition, she sold out within a week and made a hefty profit. I could not be more proud of her.

She doesn’t want to end it there, though. She wants to start featuring other artists and help them get discovered as well, start selling advertising and subscriptions so she can pay them decent money for their work and so on.

I reach over and squeeze her hand. It’s either that or squeal with glee, and I don’t want to draw too much attention to myself in public. “I’m so thrilled for you!” I scream-whisper. “My gosh, I wish you weren’t pregnant so we could celebrate in style.”

“After the baby.” She beams. “I don’t want to jinx it or anything, but I think this year’s going to be my year, you know? The baby and the site. I feel like I’m at the top of my game.”

“You are.”

Our server comes by to check on us. I order a bottle of White Jasmine Sparkling Tea since it’s the closest thing to bubbly.

We clink our glasses and sip the lovely fermented drink. My phone buzzes just then, and I check it. It’s a message from Craig Richmond’s office. I totally forgot about the lawyer. We already went over the prenup, and he’s pissy about the alimony. He thinks Ryder’s offering too little—the amount should be at least twenty mil.

Jeez. But I suppose it’s his job to grab every penny for his client.

I still haven’t decided about the alimony yet. To be absolutely honest I’ve been trying not to dwell on that…or the volcanic orgasm in Samantha’s office.

Bethany has a second glass of the sparkling tea, and I decide to ask her opinion. She’s one of the smartest people I know.

“Would you ever…” I stop for a moment.

“Would I ever what?”

Clearing my throat, I reach for my drink to wet my suddenly dry throat. The bubbly goes down smoothly. “This is hypothetical, okay?”

“Okay.”

“Would you choose money over se—I mean a man?”

She gives me a look. “You mean a career over love?”

“Something like that.”

She thinks for a moment. “I guess it would depend on the circumstances. How much money are we talking about and who’s the guy?”

“Um. More money than you could ever spend, and let’s say he’s the hottest guy you’ve ever met.”

“If all there is to him is that he’s hot, I’d choose the money.” Bethany rests her chin in a hand. “But at the same time, I might be tempted to choose differently if it was a guy I might, you know, wonder about for the rest of my life. Most people have one of those.”