Piper: Yes, I am. Don’t you worry about anything.
I had lots going on, including my commercial for the LeBlanc bakeries. It was going to become one of our flagship projects—I could feel it in my bones. I was on location while we filmed it and was confident it would be a winner. I loved being on set and seeing it all come together; it was one of my favorite parts of the job. I couldn’t really do much, since I wasn’t directing or acting, but I liked to get a feel of it. Sonia and Nina also came by, which I appreciated.
We went with a wholesome story: A young mother walks with her two kids near a bakery. She’s visibly stressed and wantsto go into the bakery but can’t because her daughters are restless. An older woman watches the scene before walking inside the bakery. She comes out with lots of treats, which she hands to the young mother, whispering, “I was that mom once.” The scene ends with all four of them enjoying the treats, the bakery prominently featured in the background.
I took a ton of behind-the-scenes pictures so I would have something to show off at the next meeting with Beckett’s team. I’d also show them a rough draft of the filming. I liked to do that before the editing team polished it, just in case the client wanted something cut.
On Wednesday, two weeks later, I was at the LeBlanc-Broussard headquarters again. I was feeling a bit odd as I walked them through the slides and then played the draft video. Had I eaten something funny today? I’d been feeling slightly nauseous all day.
The second the video was over, Sonia clapped her hands. “I love it. Piper, I don’t have any notes or changes. Do you, Nina?”
“Neither do I,” Nina replied. “It really is just what I’d hoped for.”
They both looked at Beckett, who just gave me thumbs-up and grinned. “Honestly, no comments. It’s great. Can’t wait to see the final version.”
“It should be ready in three weeks,” I said.
His eyes bulged. “That long?”
I nodded and felt nauseous yet again.Damn it, what is going on? I need to lie down. I must be getting the stomach flu or something.
“Video editing is time-consuming.”
“Right. Well, we aren’t on a tight schedule,” Sonia said. “We timed things so we wouldn’t have to rush.”
“Good thinking.” I really liked Sonia. Closing my laptop, I added, “Well, that was it for me.” I truly wasn’t feeling well. I was afraid I was going to come down with a fever, or worse, throw up in front of everyone.
“You feeling okay?” Sonia asked me. “You look really pale all of a sudden.”
“No, I’m quite out of it. I think I’m going to hurry up and go, if that’s okay?”
Beckett was on his feet right away. “Of course. I’ll take care of you.”
Sonia looked at Nina, then at me and Beckett, but didn’t say anything.
Way to let the cat out of the bag.
“Well, Beckett offered first; otherwise, I would’ve asked if I could give you a ride or something,” Sonia said.
I smiled at her, feeling feeble.
Once she and Nina left, Beckett looked at me intently.
“You look like you’re going to be sick.”
“I feel like that too. I’ll Uber. I need to leave now.”
“Hell no. Like I said, I’ll take care of you.”
“Noooo. You’ve got Charlotte.”
“So? I can multitask. Come home with me tonight.”
I blinked at him. “Really? I don’t want her to get sick.”
“She’ll be fine. You’ll be in different rooms. I want to take care of you,” Beckett insisted.
I couldn’t believe this sexy man was saying these swoon-worthy things. “Okay, then. I really don’t feel well at all.” And that was the truth. I really did feel horrible.
