“Guessed it in one.” Kevin piled extra jalapenos on his side of the meager nachos platter and shoved a loaded tortilla chip into his mouth. Natasha eyed the nachos like they’d kicked her dog. For real, who made a small plate of nachos?
“Is Donna really as awful as everyone says she is?” Lori asked.
“Worse,” Kevin said with a growl. “The woman is a soulless demon.”
“I think of her asLa Diabla,” Natasha added. “The devil.”
Lori sipped her margarita. “And she used to work onEverybody?”
Natasha chased a bean around the plate with a chip. “She made the shift before I was on either show.”
Kevin nodded. “Muriel took Donna with her, because she has a reputation for being the most manipulative line producer in reality competition shows.”
Lori’s eyes were wide, and she talked through a mouthful of carnitas taquitos. “What does she do?”
Natasha answered, since she had the inside scoop. “Did you see all the stuff that went down with Gina and Stone last season? That was Donna.”
“Like that secret footage of them kissing?”
“Yep. Gina didn’t know they were being filmed. Donna manipulated Stone into keeping it a secret, then aired the footage right before their semi-finals dance.” Donna’s machinations had nearly been the end of Gina and Stone’s budding romance, but the two of them had worked it out.
“What a horrible human being.”
“She was really trying to turn them into the season’s showmance.”
Lori shrugged. “I’m glad I don’t have her. Barry isn’t too bad.”
Kevin returned to the original thread of the conversation. “So, the reason they’re not pulling fromEverybodyanymore is that Muriel stole away another one of their producers, because Kristoff—who is still married, by the way—started dating someone else. She wanted to be the only sidepiece.”
“Lord, this is complicated.” Lori munched on some chips.
But Kevin wasn’t done. “Muriel is pissed, and after losing Gina, I heard they’re cracking down on behind-the-scenes hookups.”
Natasha froze with her fork stabbed into a grilled pepper popper. “What do you mean?”
“Some of the more conservative execs are concerned it will affect performance and ratings. Muriel is just bitter that true love cost her the winning pro. So, no more backstage hanky-panky for the rest of us.”
“Like what Natasha had going on with Jackson last season?” Lori asked.
When Kevin nodded, Natasha hid a sigh of relief. They didn’t mean Dimitri. But then her defenses snapped into place. “I wasn’t the only one. Joel was screwing Keiko Simon, and thatFuture Fiancéguy was—”
“Cool it, girl,” Lori said, raising her hands. “I was just citing an example. I know you’re not the only one. Even I made out with one of the backup girls my first season, but then she claimed she was just drunk, not gay. I don’t have time for that shit.”
“Backstage hookups are rampant in show biz.” Kevin shrugged. “It’s part of the game. I don’t think this will amount to anything, except people being sneakier, and a higher incidence of DTD.”
Natasha clarified for Lori. “DTD is Don’t Tell Donna. It’s something all her dancers know.”
Kevin shook his head. “Fucking Donna. I’m so glad she isn’t my producer anymore. After the second time I won, I told them I’d quit if they didn’t assign me a different line producer.”
Natasha rested her chin on her hands. “Maybe after I win a couple times, I’ll be able to request a change. But I’d have to win one time first.”
Lori picked at her napkin. “You probably would have won if you’d been paired with Jackson last year.”
“You made it to the finals and came in third place,” Natasha pointed out. “You two were great partners.”
“Yeah, but you guys were hooking up. The chemistry would have gotten you extra votes.”
Natasha had gotten together a few times with Jackson García, a TV actor with a great body and good personality. Sex with him had been fun, but nothing to write home about. And the last time she was supposed to meet him, she’d gone home with Dimitri instead.
