The Cheat Sheet

Just as Nicole is setting down what I can only imagine is a foam board presentation of some kind (I hope there is glitter involved), Nathan surfaces from his bedroom. I don’t even want to think about whatever it was he was getting ready to say to me back there in his room. I’ve never been more thrilled about an interruption in all my life. The way it sounded, he was about to let me down easy. Listen, Bree, about what you said in the video…I’m really flattered, but I just want to make sure we’re on the same page and you know we will only ever be friends.

I shiver and turn my attention to Nathan and Nicole.

“Hi Nathan, I’m sorry to bother you at night like this. I tried calling but you didn’t answer. Clearly, you were busy.” Her grey eyes shift mischievously toward me and then back to him.

We both start spouting babbling nonsense.

“Oh, we were just…”

“Lasagna!”

“And then a stain on my shirt.”

“An apology meal, and then straight home for me!”

Nicole holds up a hand like she’s silencing a kindergarten class. “Let me spare you both. I don’t care.” She then smiles and tightens her immaculate blonde high ponytail. It has that adorable flip at the end like Barbie. “I’m here because of a time-sensitive deal I need to discuss with both of you.”

“Both of us?” Nathan and I say in unison, and I want to kick us for being so annoyingly in tune.

Nathan shifts closer to me as Nicole adjusts her foam board into an upright position on the coffee table then opens both of the flaps. This time, Nathan and I both gasp in horror. Oh, Nicole. Poor woman. Clearly the pressure of this job has taken a toll on her brain.

The presentation definitely has glitter. It also has lots of photos of me and Nathan, ripped from the deep pits of Google. They are mostly photos of us walking side by side to a coffee shop captured by paparazzi, or individual photos of us cut and pasted to look like we’re standing together. So many are stolen from my Instagram. It’s startling, but the worst part is the number of tacky hearts she’s drawn around the photos…and the included list of baby names we can choose from for our non-existent unborn child.

“Nicole…” Nathan starts, but he’s at a loss for how to finish.

Her eyes shift between the two of us and observe our mutual horror. “Oh my gosh, you think I made this?! Insulting. No, this is why I’m here tonight. A fan made this for you two and dropped it off at the agency earlier. There are more like it too.”

Well, that immediately changes things. Nathan has the same thought I do, and we both turn sharply at each other and yell, “I call it!”

I point at him. “I said it first!”

He rolls his eyes. “Not even close. It was a tie.”

No way in hell am I losing out on this creepy board. “Why do you need it? Look around, buddy—it doesn’t go with your decor in the least.”

He lifts a brow. “And it goes with yours?”

“No…” I narrow my eyes and pretend to be a contractor, measuring it with my fingers. “But it is the perfect size to hide that big crack in my bedroom wall.”

He shakes his head. “We’ll settle this the right way: a thumb war.”

I scoff. “Yeah right! I’m not falling for that again. Look at those gargantuan things you call thumbs. Not fair. What we’ll do is—”

Nicole claps, and our shoulders jump. “I’m too busy for this. Figure out who gets the creepy shrine later. Let’s go sit at the table and I’ll bring the paperwork.”

We follow Nicole to the kitchen table, and I can’t help feeling a little like I’m headed to the principal’s office. Nathan takes the seat beside me, and his hand goes to rest on the back of my chair. I’m hyperaware of it. Nothing else besides the presence of his arm at my back can hold my attention.

Nicole clasps her hands in front of her, elbows on the table. “Since everyone’s time is precious, let’s cut right to it. I’m not sure how much you’ve been on social media today. Nathan, I know you try to steer clear of it as much as possible, but I’m sure after seeing the foam board shrine and all the fan mail I had sent over earlier, you’re able to grasp a bit of how viral Bree’s video has become.”

My stomach drops. This meeting is about me specifically! Oh gosh. Have I caused serious trouble for Nathan? Is she going to say he should get rid of me? I need to offer up a solution before things get out of hand.

“If I may,” I say, rising from the table like I’m presenting a case in court. “Please allow me to say how terribly sorry I am, and I realize it’s all my fault. I take full responsibility and will do whatever I need to in order to rectify the situation. My sister offered to let me come stay with her for a few days so all the gossip can die—”

Nicole interrupts me with a cackling laugh. I blink and look at Nathan. He shrugs, looking just as confused as I feel.

“You think I want you out of the picture?” She laughs again and shakes her head. “Sit down, Bree.”

I comply quickly, bruising my tailbone when I sit down too hard.