“Check it out,” I say, gesturing to the part of the sidewalk that’s been turned into a craft services station. Behind the tables spread with food, and in front of a video game store that’s closed down for the afternoon, Aaron is standing with Costanza on a leash, talking to Kelsey.
Blake looks over there. “Go, Kelsey. He looks pretty happy, too. Maybe she doesn’t need our help, after all.”
Aaronissmiling widely at something she’s saying, so I think for a moment he’s right. But then Aaron hands the leash over, and Kelsey starts walking Costanza down the street, her curls bouncing with each step.
“Or maybe he was just happy to get a break from Costanza duty.” I love my dog like crazy, but I can’t blame the kid for this—I get that not everyone is an animal person to begin with, and getting pissed on daily certainly wouldn’t help. Nor did the whole spooning situation.
Kelsey looks over her shoulder, as if to see if Aaron is checking her out as she walks away, but he isn’t. He’s tapping furiously on his phone.
“Huh,” Blake says. “Yeah, that’s not good.”
“He could be really busy. He does have other duties as my assistant beyond walking Costanza.”
“Or he’s gay.”
I can tell by the mischievous gleam in his eye that Blake has got a plan here, and I’m pretty sure I know what it is, but I can’t resist playing along. And focusing on Aaron and Kelsey does make for a nice distraction.
“Or he’s got a girlfriend,” I say.
“I suppose there’s no way to know.” Blake sighs dramatically.
“You want me to go find out, don’t you? Because you think it’ll be funny to watch me try to get this information without giving away our plan to hook him up with Kelsey.”
Blake shrugs. “I mean, Kelsey really likes him, and you and I do think it would be fun to set them up, and it would be a shame if we were all just wasting our efforts—”
“Fine. I’ll do it. If only to prove I can.”
Blake holds up his hands. “I never doubt what Kim Watterson can do when she puts her mind to it. Never have, never will.”
I glare at him, but it’s totally fake, and he knows it.This, too, reminds me of the old days on set, when we’d dare each other to do stupid things, like refilling a co-star’s water bottle with vodka or sneaking one of the fake corpse heads into the director’s bathroom. Nothing that would cause anyone real trouble or get us a rep as being hard to work with—Blake knows how much that would bother me, and honestly, he wouldn’t love it either.
Finding out whether my assistant is gay or has a girlfriend isn’t exactly sneaking movie props around. But I’m not about to back down from a challenge, especially an easy one.
Except . . .
The minute I reach my assistant, and say, all too brightly, “Hey, Aaron!” I realize this may not be as easy as I thought.
Aaron looks up from his phone, surprised. And with a bit of a guilty expression. “Ms. Watterson,” he says. He stuffs his phone in his pocket. “Kelsey from wardrobe offered to take Costanza on his walk. I hope that’s okay.”
This would be the perfect segue to bring up Kelsey, but I’m not supposed to let him know we want to set them up.
“Oh, yeah, totally,” I say, sounding like a far more casual person than I actually am. And maybe a little bit like I’ve taken up smoking weed.
This would have been easier if I’d created a character to play beforehand. A character who understands the art of subtlety. But it’s too late now.
“I’ve taken care of the schedule for your interview tomorrow and emailed that to you. And I moved your appointment with your trainer back an hour, like you asked.”
“Great. All great.” I pause. “So, I realized the other day that I don’t feel like I’ve taken the time to get to know you. You know, where you grew up, what kind of movies you like, if you have a girlfriend.”
Uh-oh. I put too much emphasis on that last one. His eyebrows rise, and I feel myself flush.
Shit. I’m his boss. Does he think I’m hitting on him?That could be sexual harassment. Could he accuse me of sexual harassment just foraskingif he has a girlfriend? What would that do to my career?
“I’m not—” I start, shaking my head. “I mean, I’m with Blake now. Like, we’re together. Romantically.”
“Um, yeah. I’m aware.” Aaron looks at me like I’ve lost my mind. Which I apparently have, along with all powers of normal human interaction.
I resist the urge to glare back at Blake, who must have known this would happen. He knows how easily I get flustered when I have to talk around things.
