“She doesn’t miss a thing around here. It would be a lot of fun,” Jake said with a shrug, urging me to agree.
I pegged him with a hard look and then gritted my teeth. “I’d love to.” I could do this one thing for him, even though I had never even listened to a podcast of any kind. Was it going to be like going on the radio? I cringed, thinking of the things she might ask me.
“I’ll have to get it all set up, but that’s wonderful. Thanks, Jake.” She was positively giddy toward him. “The other fans will love it. You always have the best ideas.”
“I’m sure they will, and it is always a pleasure.”
Portia turned her attention to me, and suddenly, it was all about her accomplishments. “I’m a social media icon when it comes to all things Jake. I have three fan pages on Facebook, and two are public. One is more informative about the movies, the other all Jake, up close and personal. And there is the third, but that one is super private for his ultimate fans, and then there’s the podcast, Jake’s Angels Instagram, and of course, I have a huge personal following as Jake’s biggest and closest superfan. I have nearly two million followers on my solo account, but it’s all about Jake. He’s such an inspiration.”
“That’s wonderful.” I wanted to gag. She was obviously obsessed and probably in love too. With people putting that much time and effort into loving him, he didn’t need a real relationship.
“I’m so excited that you are going to do the show. I’ve always wanted to pick the brain of a set consultant. How closely you must work with the entire cast, including Jake.”
“Well, I’m not that important, really. Jake is exaggerating.” I waved my hand dismissively, and then when I turned to give Jake a glance, he was not there. I looked around and spotted him walking across the lot. He seemed to be on his way back to his trailer.
“Jake would never do that,” she said with a serious tone. “Jake doesn’t lie. If he says you’re important, then you are.” She looked me up and down, and I let out a deep breath, realizing it was going to take a lot of patience to get through the rest of our talk.
I can’t believe he ditched me!
“You’re right. I’d love to talk more about that podcast, but I have a meeting, and well, I don’t want to keep the director waiting.”
“Oh, of course. I’ll be in touch.” Portia turned, and by that time, Jake was nowhere in sight.
I didn’t stick around to listen to her madness. Jake must not have been as interested as he acted, but then, that was what actors did, right? How could I trust him after that?
In his defense, I’d have bailed too. Portia seemed just awful. Surely, they hadn’t dated. She had never been his type before, and surely, fame had made him cautious.
I realized he had a whole big life there without me. And since it had been a decade, I really didn’t know him anymore, did I?
+The Jake from my past was long gone, replaced with Jake 2.0, whose smile was brighter, his boyish features changed into that of a grown man, and instead of the most popular guy in school, he was the most popular man in Hollywood.
I didn’t know anything about how this other half lived. While I had a nice, healthy nest egg, Jake was wealthy on a whole different level, and even though he insisted it hadn’t changed him and he had tried to stay humble, we were from two different worlds.
Chapter Nine
Jake
Finally, the time had come to shoot the first scene, and I found myself lost in Logan Reed’s headspace and had totally become my character. It was the best part of acting, and I was on such a roll, with such energy coursing through me, that I could have continued working for the rest of the night.
“I’m taking the amulet back to the city, and I’m not going to let anything stop me,” I said the lines as Tess fell against me.
“No, Logan. I can’t let you go alone. They’ll kill you. I’m going with you.” She looked like she was on the verge of tears, and I searched her eyes, knowing the passion that was in them.
“Stop it, Angela.” I cupped Tess’s face and moved in closer for the shot. “What kind of man would I be if I let you go back to that place? I have to do this alone. If I die, I die with dignity.” I looked deep into her eyes, knowing how much Logan loved his Angela. “You have to go back to the boat. You have to tell the others what happened. It’s for the survival of the human—”