Lin was uncharacteristically still, her expensive teeth gnawing at her bottom lip.
My stomach swooped.Oh shit.It was bad. “Tell me!”
Lin took a deep breath. “I’m going to need you to come into the office. Now.”
She hung up before I could utter another syllable. I decided not to waste any time fretting; I hurried to my room and changed out of my ragged, sofa-rot sweatpants into a more competent jeans and a shirt, the uniform of a woman who would never make such a basic mistake again.
When I arrived at the office, Lin was already there, jabbing at her keyboard with murderous intent.
“Come in,” she said briskly when she saw me appear in the doorway and I did as I was told on legs weak and shaking with anticipation. I couldn’t remember the last time I’d felt so awful. My head ached and my stomach constricted, threatening to expel the coffee I’d consumed. “Sit.” Lin pointed at theguest chair on the other side of her desk, and I sank into the seat gratefully.
“Lin, I—”
Lin held up her hand and I obediently shut my mouth. “Do you have an up-to-date passport?”
“I – ah – yeah.”
“RJ has requested that you fly out to New York,” Lin said. “ASAP.”
“Wait, what?” I thought I was hearing things. “Did you just sayNew York?” Of all the things I had expected to hear from Lin, this wasn’t it.
“As soon as we get the visa sorted, you’re to head out there,” Lin said. “A kind of secondment, if you will.”
“Butwhy?” I felt like I might simultaneously collapse into a puddle while bursting into flames with excitement. “You said RJ was mad with you for sharing the script.”
“Oh, he was.” Lin’s eyes widened. “He takes confidentiality very seriously. But once he calmed down, he read your report.”
My every nerve strained. “And?”
Lin permitted a small smile. “He liked it.”
“Helikedmy analysis?”
“He did.” Lin nodded. “So much so that he wants you to fly over to New York and work with him on polishing up the draft ready for the pitch.”
Relief and pride surged through me. RJ liked my work. He believed in me, believed I could get his script made! All I had to do was make the right recommendations and … Oh God, here followed crushing, overwhelming fear. “He does know I’m not a scriptwriter, right?”
“He does.” Lin’s lips thinned.
“Lin, I haven’t touched a script since, like, forever.” Since university, technically speaking.
“And here I thought you were an expert.” Lin’s voice was loaded with sarcasm. “Because your report read like it was written by one.”
“I was only offering suggestions,” I gabbled. “Feedback for an actual writer to use. Is this … Are you sure this isn’t a wind-up?”
“Oh, I am certain,” Lin said. “I explained that you were merely providing critical analysis and that your writing skills are limited. I mean, you dabble in publicity copy, but that’s it.”
“I wouldn’t saydabble,” I said defensively.
“Fine, whatever.” Lin shrugged. “RJ is something of a maverick. Despite your total lack of professional experience, he really dug your ideas about making his script more commercially successful. Now, he’s in the thick of getting his latest movie out into the world, so you’ll be working with his creative assistant on this.”
“But … but …” I was truly lost for words. “There are a million writers and creatives out there with credits as long as their arm, why me?”
Lin rolled her eyes. “Oh my God, Lucie, do you want to do this or not?”
Did I want to fly out to New York and work with a critically acclaimed director? “Of course I do, it just doesn’t seem real.”
“Trust me, it’s real,” Lin said ominously. “I don’t care what it takes, you make sure that script is the best one ever written. I need RJ happy, because I can’t afford to lose him. And if I learn that RJ isn’t happy for even one second, you’ll be out of a job.”
