I press one last kiss to her throat, then force my lips off her heated flesh and sigh. “I’ll um…move back to my side of the bed.”
“That would probably be best,” she says.
I plant one last kiss, feather soft, on Brinley’s cheek. “Goodnight, love,” I rasp. “Sweet dreams.”
I fall asleep with visions of the good things ahead. I realize that Brinley will finally get to hear about my docuseries. I’ve accomplished a lot of things in my career, but that’s the thing I’m most proud of, and I can’t wait to share it with her. For a moment, my thoughts get tangled in the fact that I’m not supposed to know we’re going to the Emmys. I’ll have to fake my surprise when it’s finally revealed, and I hate that.
But my trajectory is too good to focus on that one little hitch, so I put it out of my mind and assure myself it doesn’t matter. The ceremony will soon be a thing of the past, and I plan to focus on my future. Hopefully, that future will include Brinley.
CHAPTER18
Brinley
I can’t believe today is Emmy day. I twist the knob of the diary nook door and pull it open. I’m all nervous energy and trepidation. I’m still torn about whether to tell Dawson about the Emmys tonight.
Seconds ago, while I was giving Moonshine and Muffin their morning rubdown, Cy called me to the nook. I sit on the stool and see two prompts on the iPad, one for me and one for Dawson. I click on mine to discover a video from, not Cy like the ones we get on the flat screen, but Marsha Langston herself.
“Good morning, Brinley,” she says. “We’re finally here—day five, the highly anticipated day of the Emmys. Rest assured that Dawson has no clue you’ll be attending tonight. In fact, shortly after you listen to this message, Cy will call you two to the direction board and announce the,” she puts up finger quotes, “planfor today, which will include filming the final scene of our screenplay.”
Marsha smooths a hand along her slick, ebony hair, tucking the bobbed strands behind one ear.
“The details aren’t far off the mark because youwillbe performing the final scene on stage, at the Emmys.”
My eyes almost bulge right out of their sockets.
“Since the Emmys are onourstudio network, we’ve decided to introduce this Celebrity season of Time Warp during the live show. We’ll air the first three scenes of the screenplay, one at a time, before our commercial breaks. Viewers will watch at home while attendees watch on the big screen.
“You and Dawson, who’ll be seated together, will head to opposite sides of the stage once directed. From there, you’ll walk out on cue and perform the final scene. The crowd will go wild.”
I can’t speak for the crowd, but my insides are going wild at the mere thought of walking onto that stage. I’d have been better off listening to this announcement from the toilet.
“And Brinley,” Marsha adds. “I’ve seen a lot of the footage so far, and I’m very encouraged by it. I doubt Dawson will give us any pushback about missing the awards, and I hope you’ll let that give you the assurance you’re looking for—you seem to be what he wants most in this world. That’s got to feel nice.”
She pauses there, her face thoughtful. “Well, good luck, Brinley. We’ll see you at the ceremony tonight.”
The screen goes blank before returning to the home screen. This time, just Dawson’s name remains. Part of me is tempted to tap it and find out what they plan to tell him. What if it’s another video from Marsha, telling him not to panic—he won’t have to miss the ceremony after all and he should just play along when Cy gives the fake announcement.
It’d be wrong to click on it, and it’s not like the production crew wouldn’t see; it’s a diary room. They’re filming in here as much as they are everywhere else. Still, I could probably make it look like an accident…
I stare at the glowing name while my thumb runs the length of the device. All I’d have to do is slide my thumb over half an inch, and I’d see just what message they have for him.
“Good morning, house guests,”comes Cy’s robotic voice.“It’s your friendly cyborg host, Cy, with an important announcement.”
I feel caught. Like the crew knew I was about to go rogue. Aw, well, there goes that idea. When I head out and make my way to the shallow, uncomfortable sofa Dawson’s sitting there with Moonshine purring on his lap. Behind Dawson, Muffin struts along the back edge of the couch, walking back and forth before settling into a ball between his shoulders.
My heart pitter-pats like it’s got paws of its own. Seeing Dawson with my cats gets me every time.
He taps the spot next to him. “Come make yourself un-comfy.”
I sit on the rock of the couch while Cy plays his lame jingle, half expecting one or both of the cats to move over to me. Neither does, but Moonshine stretches one gangly paw in my direction, extending his claws just enough to scrape my arm.
“Hello to you too,” I say.
“Today’s the day you’ve been working toward,” Cy announces, the sound bars moving across the smiley face taking over the screen. “Get ready to get ready, because you two are headed for a night on the town. You’ll head to the rooftop for a helicopter ride to a nearby, private airport. From there, you’ll go from chopper to jet and leave LA for an overnight adventure to Seattle Washington.”
I can’t help but glance over to gauge Dawson’s reaction to the fake news—Seattle. He meets my gaze with a genuine smile that reaches his eyes. “Seattle, eh? That’s cool.”
My entire body, which is more tense than I realized, goes lax. “Right?” I say, remembering that I’m supposed to be surprised by this news as well. “So awesome.”
