"Geez, you're scary when you're mad. You must have it bad for that girl," he said.
I couldn't take any more of the bake-off, so I went to my penthouse and started putting together a plan for Chloe's restaurant until I realized I didn't actually know that much about running a successful restaurant. The internet wasn't all that much help, and I desperately wished I hadn't ruined everything with Chloe.
59
Chloe
While Nina had her interview, I talked to Dana.
"Don't be too upset," she said. "It's better than Nina won. Otherwise you would have been fan favorite and bake-off winner. Now you're both winners. Nina has a big following too, and no one wants to see their favorite lose, especially not this close to Christmas."
"So it was rigged," I stated.
"It's TV. It's all fake," Dana said. "But still, thank you for all the hard work. The check will be deposited in your account in the New Year. I bet you land an advertising deal at least! And hopefully a good job."
"Yeah," I said, rubbing my arms. "I don't know if anyone will want to hire the runner-up."
Dana patted me on the shoulder. "At least you have Jack. You could just set up in his penthouse and live a life of luxury. You seem to have him wrapped around your little finger."
I glared at her. "I'm not after him for his money."
Dana rolled her eyes. "It's TV. Everyone sleeps around for one favor or another," Dana said. "No one looks down on you."
Before I could protest, one of the production assistants signaled her.
"Must be off!" she called over her shoulder.
I went up to the shared apartment and slowly packed. Tears started rolling down my face. I couldn't believe I had lost! I hadn’t won the competition, and I had made Jack angry.
"How is this my life?" I groaned, sinking down on the bed.
"There you are!" Anastasia said, coming into the room. "Don't be too sad!" She hugged me, but all that did was succeed in making me start sobbing.
"I'm happy for Nina," I insisted.
Anastasia stroked my hair. "I know you are! Don't cry. You will still be awarded money."
"It's going to be enough to pay off my credit card debt, but not much else," I sniffled.
"Don't fret. It's only a few hours after the competition. The finale hasn't even been uploaded yet. Watch, you'll be offered a job."
"I guess. I just want to stay in New York City."
"You will," she told me. "Let me know when you start at a restaurant. I'll come give you rave reviews."
After Anastasia left, my phone dinged with an email. It was from a manager at a restaurant in Brooklyn. He was interested in hiring me. Heart pounding, I looked up the restaurant online, and it seemed legit, so I called the number on the email.
"Maybe I could stay in New York City after all," I reassured, feeling slightly better.
A man answered after a few rings.
"Hi, this is Chloe. I'm calling about the job offer?" I said, my heart racing.
"Wonderful! We're big fans of yours," the manager said. "We're looking for a dessert chef. This is a relatively new restaurant in Brooklyn. I'd love for you to come out and take a look. Pay is competitive, but the hours are long, unfortunately. Again, we've already seen what you can do, and I'm a big fan, so the job is yours if you want it."
"Great!" I said. "It sounds like a wonderful opportunity. If you still want me after meeting in person with me, I accept the job. I'm a hard worker, and I can handle whatever you guys can throw at me."
"I know you can," the manager said with a chuckle. "I'm a huge fan of the show, your biggest fan maybe."
