“Didn’t he release a sex tape a few months ago?”
“I thought he was in rehab.”
The gossip continued until Mark interrupted. “Yes, Luca is on the show. You are under no circumstances allowed to hound him for any reason—be it autographs, gossip, or because your grandma‘just loves him in that film.’ ” He said the last part in a mock-female voice, which made me want to headbutt him. “The only person who should be in contact with him is Matilda. Gotit?”
Everyone’s eyes landed on me, reminding me I had yet to react. Spurring myself into action, I nodded. “Got it, sounds good.”
Outwardly, I slapped on a smile and loosened my shoulders, ensuring I looked relaxed, happy, and unconcerned by the news.
But inside? I was an eye-twitching and palm-sweating mess.
I had just been partnered with Hollywood’s biggest and most notorious badboy.
Away from pryingeyes and fueled with adrenaline, I glanced at the celebrity briefing file left in my dressing room. Despite the room’s being a good size, the walls felt like they were pressing in. My shaking hands made it almost impossible to read the pages, so I put them down on the vanity and tried to control my anxiety.
Grinning and bearing my way through the stupid show every year was stressful enough without adding a mega-famous celebrity into themix.
Spotting the doughnuts I’d bought earlier, I shoved one into my mouth to distract myself.
It didn’t work.
When it came to meeting new people, “Fake it till you make it” was my motto.
It was important to be agreeable when working with the celebrities on the show, because it meant the partnership would work better. But consistently keeping it up for months sapped away my energy.
That, combined with my mother breathing down my neck more than usual during the season, meant it was an exhausting time of the year.
And that was without Luca Vasvault in the picture.
Why the sudden change of heart from the producers? Why had they chosenmeto partner with the biggest star we’d ever had? And one the public hated, at that.
I’d told myself last season that I needed to win the show to get my mother off my back, but now that I had been given the opportunity to make it further than week six, the grass didn’t feel greener. The expectations felt so much higher—more media, more attention, and more responsibility.
The overwhelming pounding of my heart caused my breath to hitch, the air feeling painfully thin.
Pay attention to your breathing and senses. Remember, your thoughts and emotions do not define you. Your thoughts will pass.I heard my old therapist’s voice play in my mind.
After a few minutes, I tried again to read the papers and was glad my hands had finally stopped shaking. Flipping through the pages, I skimmed over some paragraphs.
Luca Vasvault is a 34-year-old American actor who moved to the UK four years ago. He has starred in 11 box office hits. He hasn’t filmed since moving to the UK.
Physical: 6'2", muscular build and physically able. Medical has deemed Luca fit to compete in the show without limitations on movement, lifts, or choreography.
As standard practice, the assigned professional skater and their family must sign anondisclosure agreement, stating that he/she will not discuss…
The whole thing read like a Wikipedia page. I didn’t watch the news or keep up with celebrity gossip much, so I hadn’t heard anything about Luca recently. Deciding to rectify the situation, I sat on one of the large sofas in the corner of the room and typed his name into Google.
A sinking feeling settled in the pit of my stomach as I scrolled through the headlines.
Luca Vasvault caught entering his hotel with three mystery women in tow.
Hollywood’s ex–golden boy arrested for drunk driving in California.
Luca Vasvault vs Timothy Jamerson: Who punched whom first?
None of the articles were particularly positive toward Luca, but they were also dated four years ago, save for the few speculative articles about why he hadn’t been filming recently and what he’d been up to in theUK.
His social media pages were also inactive, with the occasional scenic shot here and there, but they all had the comments turned off, restricting any speculation from fans.
