Breaking Stars (The Celebrity 2)

“I can’t stay here forever, Quinn. I need to go home and just…” I paused from packing to choose my words. “To just put all of this in the past. I can’t do that if I keep avoiding it.”

She tilted her head and blond strands fell across her eyes. “You’re such a grown-up. One day I want to be just like you.”

I swatted her shoulder. “Don’t make fun of me.”

“I’m not! I’m seriously not. You’re just so damn well adjusted, it’s almost nauseating.”

“Thanks,” I muttered, not quite sure if that was a compliment or not.

“No, really, Paige. I think it’s because you weren’t raised in this crazy environment your whole life. You’re just more stable or something.” She waved a frustrated hand in the air. “Geez, I don’t know what the hell I’m trying to say.”

“I love you,” I said before launching into her arms and squeezing tight. “Thank you for saving me this week.”

“I love you too.” She pushed me away and leveled her gaze on mine. “That’s what best friends are for. So are you really going to try to take a break and go to school?”

I nodded. “I think so. I have a meeting scheduled with Jayson at three, so we’ll see what he says.”

“Good luck.”

“I’ll need it,” I admitted before slinging my duffel bag onto my shoulder.

“I know.”

• • •

Walking down the hallway toward my agent’s door, I stopped myself from putting on a big smile for Madison as I remembered that she no longer worked there. Making a mental note to touch base with her and schedule a lunch, I exchanged pleasantries with Jayson’s latest disaster of an assistant on my way into his oversized office.

“Paige, great. Sit down,” Jayson directed me from behind his desk.

I did as I was told. Hazard of the job, right?

“Did you read the script? Pretty great, isn’t it?” he asked without waiting for a response from me.

I hated when my agent and manager did that sort of thing. They were constantly asking me questions that they never let me answer. Both of them always expected me to agree, and I usually did, in part because I hated rocking the boat. Being agreeable kept everyone else happy.

Honestly, I loved acting. But there were times, like right now, when I really wanted a break. I longed to go to college the way my little sister was preparing to. My soul needed something normal back in my life. This world, no matter how much I adored being a part of it, was nowhere near normal.

I felt so out of touch with people my own age, the very people I should able to relate to the most. We basically had nothing in common anymore and it freaked me out. How could my fans take me seriously if I couldn’t identify with what it was like to be like them on a typical day? It occurred to me in this moment that if I was surrounded by people my own age, I’d be the outcast, not them.

Thoughts weaved and bobbed inside my head as Jayson tapped his pen on top of his desk. “Hello, Paige? Did you hear me?” He frowned as I blinked twice before meeting his narrowed gaze. “I asked if you read the script?”

I sucked in a quick breath and decided to be brutally honest for the first time since I started in this business. “I hated it,” I admitted. The script was written beautifully, but the story was awful. The ri

diculous message it conveyed was one of epic proportion. It was the same old unbelievable story, and I was tired of playing predictable, over-the-top, unchallenging roles.

“You hated it?” he sputtered as tiny balls of spit formed in the corners of his mouth.

“There was nothing special about it. I don’t see what I’d bring to the role that any other actress couldn’t.” I shrugged and straightened my back, my sincerity giving me some much-needed courage.

“What’s going on, Paige? Is this about Colin?” He cocked his head to the side, the look on his face not the least bit understanding. “Because everyone’s on your side.”

I waved my hand, cutting him off. “This has nothing to do with Colin,” I said tersely. “This has to do with the fact that you keep presenting me with the same scripts over and over again no matter how many times I tell you that I need something different. I want to be challenged. I want to grow.”

“But these parts scream your name, Paige. The public eats it up when you play these lovey-dovey roles. Especially now that you’ve been wronged by Colin. They’ll flock to the theater to support you. This movie will make buckets of money for everyone involved,” he insisted, practically foaming at the mouth.

“I don’t care about the money.”

Jayson narrowed his eyes at me. “And that’s why you have me. Because I sure as shit do.”