Hope furrowed her brow in Angelica’s direction, confused. Not quite sure what she’d just agreed to, Angelica brushed it off, figuring they’d deal with it later if it was an issue. She looked to Hope. “I think we’re supposed to meet with the LoSapios in a few minutes.”
“Right. So we’re shooting that first?” Hope asked.
“Yes. Then introductions.” Angelica opened her iPad to double check her times and make sure that she wasn’tcompletely off base. Her entire stomach was in knots, and she wasn’t sure that she could manage to drink the coffee Lyric had brought her. She glanced at it, her stomach roiled, and she decided against it.
That would be a bad idea.
“Who’s filming this?” Angelica asked, looking directly at Rex.
“We both are. So we can figure out how we work.” Rex didn’t seem pleased by that response, but Angelica wasn’t going to push it either. There were a lot of interpersonal changes that needed to be handled this season, and she had to work hard to navigate them just like everyone else.
“Everything’s set up, whenever you’re ready.” Cadence looked directly at Angelica, as if she’d figured out who was actually in charge here.
Angelica nodded, slipping out from her chair. “Main office?”
“Yep!” Cadence followed her, only a step behind and right over Angelica’s shoulders. “Sy is already setting the LoSapios up and giving them the rundown of what will be discussed in this meeting.”
“Good.” Angelica clenched the iPad tightly in her fingers. She wasn’t used to someone being physically this close to her, and the only other person who had dared to do that was Hope. Angelica looked over her shoulder and smiled at Cadence. “We’ll see what Ali and Melissa have to say about the disaster they’ve created. Shall we?”
Hope’s scoff was loud enough to catch Angelica’s attention. She turned even more to look behind her, finding Rex and Hope eyeing her and Cadence curiously. Though Hope looked far more ticked off than Rex did. He just seemed… embarrassed? Angelica wasn’t sure if that was the right way to put that, but she’d stick with it for now.
The office was painted a light sage green, and the furniture in there looked to be updated. Which was a stark contrast from therest of the hotel. Ali and Melissa sat by the desk with Sy standing next to them and talking. Angelica smiled as she walked in and extended her hand.
“Morning. I’m Angelica Shields.”
“Oh my God!” Ali stood up immediately, walking straight to Angelica and covering her hand. “Oh my God! I can’t believe it’s actually you, and you’re actually here. Do you know what you’ve done for queer women on screen? You’ve made it so natural. So perfect.”
Angelica’s lips parted in shock, and she shook Ali’s hand, pulling her fingers free as soon as was reasonably acceptable. “I’m not sure I know what you’re talking about, but this is Chef Hope Lawrence.”
That was an escape she would use any time that she could.
Ali moved directly to Hope, shaking her hand with the same enthusiasm. Angelica smiled at Melissa, who seemed far more controlled and wary of the entire situation. Angelica held her hand out to Melissa and introduced herself, seeing where they were going to stand on this one. She seemed pleasant enough, at least for now.
After everyone was seated, lighting checked, sound checked, and the whole world smashed into one tiny office, Rex finally called action, and they were ready to film their first scene of the third season.
“Why don’t you tell us the story of this hotel, how you acquired it, and what your hopes and dreams are for it?” Angelica opened her iPad to take notes.
But she wasn’t greeted with a story. She was thrown into absolute silence. She was waiting to write, but nothing was being said. Looking up, she met Melissa’s hardened gaze and then Ali’s wide eyes.
“No? Do you want to just shut this place down today and be done with it?”
“No,” Ali finally said, shaking her head vehemently. She glanced around the room nervously. Perhaps it was the cameras finally being on that was throwing her off her game.
Angelica glanced at Hope, trying to figure out what she was missing and how they were going to smooth this over into useable footage, but Hope was still glowering in the corner. Angelica clenched her jaw and focused back on the LoSapios. “Did you buy the hotel when you two met?”
“I owned it,” Melissa said, her voice gruff. She tossed Ali an exasperated look as she finally spoke. “Actually, I was in the process of renovating it when it came up for sale, and so I bought it.”
“You were renovating it?” Angelica’s eyebrows raised up. “Did you work in construction?”
“Yes, ma’am.” Melissa nodded firmly, her jaw tightening. “Women can do that.”
“I didn’t say they couldn’t.” Angelica flicked a glance to Hope, begging for some help in this situation. “How did you and Ali meet?” Perhaps that was the way to get them talking. But from how talkative Ali had been when they’d entered the room, Angelica was shocked to find her quiet now.
Melissa looked at Ali, as if expecting her to speak.
So it wasn’t just Angelica who was being thrown off by the situation, which was good to know. Angelica crossed her legs, the edge of her short skirt riding up higher than she wanted it to, but she refused to pull it down. Hope’s gaze landed on her knee and then dragged upward, throwing Angelica’s body into a tailspin of what-ifs.
Fuck.
