“But you haven’t even taken a sip of your drink,” he said and gestured at my full glass. I had only ordered it to make it look like I would be drinking. “I won’t talk about your date, I promise.”
“Thanks, but I need to get home,” I said and swung my purse over my shoulder.
“Well, here’s my number,” he said and handed me a piece of paper. I wondered briefly if the number on a napkin trope would ever die. “Call me if you’re ever feeling lonely again.”
“Thanks,” I said and pocketed it. As I was leaving the restaurant, I realized that I didn’t even know his name.
A shadow hung near my car, giant and tall, and I looked for my miniature can of pepper spray buried deep within my purse.
“Maddie,” Gavin said and walked out of the shadows. I gasped and pulled my hand out of my purse.
“You scared the shit out of me,” I said with a slight chuckle.
Gavin didn’t la
ugh, didn’t even crack a smile. He had his hands stuffed into his pockets, with sleeves rolled up to the elbow and a shadow beneath his eyes. He hadn’t had a good night either.
“I’ll do it,” he said. There was a single light on the street that illuminated his face with a golden hue. It made his blue eyes even brighter and showed off the muscles where his sleeves hugged his arms. “I’ll do it, for a half million. But half of that up front, and the rest afterward.”
“Afterward?” I asked, but a single grimace from Gavin was my answer. After his mom died, of course.
“But if you violate any of my rules, and I mean any of them, you don’t get the money. I’ll sue the shit out of you if you break a single one. Understood?”
I gulped; it was a big agreement. A huge decision that would affect the rest of the year.
“You can’t tell anyone about it being fake. Not a single person,” he reminded me. I realized that I had told Nancie about the deal, but she wouldn’t be too difficult to convince.
“Okay,” I said after a moment’s hesitation. “Agreed.”
He nodded, and said, “I’ll draw up an official agreement and contract, and I’ll send it to your email. Text me your email when you get home.”
“Okay,” I said, unable to say anything else.
“Dinner with me and my mother on Saturday,” he said. “I don’t want to see you until then.”
“Saturday, dinner, got it.”
He nodded and turned away. “Half a million,” he mumbled with a shake of his head and walked away.
I bit my tongue to keep from screaming, but my nerves were on edge, and my heart was thumping so loud that even he probably could have heard it. Half a million dollars! Never once in my life did I ever imagine I’d have so much money. Half now, half in six months. I thought about everything that I could do with it. Move to Hollywood, start a new life, build a better career. Start with modeling and move to being an actress, maybe.
But waiting the six months would be hard for so many reasons. The guilt worsened, eating at me as I slipped into the car and turned the key. The engine stalled for a moment before roaring to life; just another reminder of how desperate for money I was. I was a terrible person. I would get the rest of the money after his mother died.
I was more than just a terrible person. I was a greedy piece of shit.
Nancie was still awake when I arrived at our apartment, sitting on the couch while munching on salt-free and butter-free popcorn. She turned to me briefly with a subtle wave and returned her attention to the TV.
“What are you watching?” I asked and sat my purse on the counter. A plate of black bean brownies sat beside the sink. I tore off a piece and chewed on it. It had been a gift from one of Nancie’s admirers, a teenager who knew she was attempting a gluten-free diet. I had been given a handful of gifts over time as well, a few free books from fans and several coupons for free candy. Nancie always tried to throw out the coupons before I could redeem them.
“Some documentary about serial killers,” she said. “It was the first one on the recommendation list, and I didn’t feel like browsing.” The TV had been depicting a gruesome death that occurred in the hills of Hollywood nearly 20 years prior, with a couple hanging over the signs and a man in the shadows watching. I shivered, remembering Nancie’s offer to move to California. A part of me secretly hoped she wouldn’t go.
“By yourself?” I sat beside her. “I don’t think I could ever watch a scary documentary alone in an apartment.”
“It’s a safe neighborhood,” she said. “Plus, I figured you’d be home soon from your date, or whatever you call it. How did it go?”
She knew I had a meeting with Gavin about the proposition, and I realized I might have possibly made a mistake in telling her. I didn’t want to lie to her; I didn’t want to lie to anyone. But Gavin had a point. If we were going to lie to his dying mother, we might as well lie to the whole world.
“I took the offer off the table,” I said. She whipped around to look at me. “I was going to go through with it, but we ended up talking all night about our lives, and what we want in the future, and really about everything. I just couldn’t do it.” I wished it was the truth.