Page 34 of Reality Girl, Ep. 3

Chapter Twelve

I normally wasn’t upat 7:00 a.m., but going to bed sober on Saturday night hadn’t happened since my first night in the house. While I tried to choke down a container of yogurt, I heard the front door open and then close.

The sound of her heels on the hardwood floor was unmistakable. My entire body tensed in anticipation of what was to come.

Just inside the kitchen door, she paused. Her mouth curled into a smile. “That was genius.”

Huh?

I scooped another spoon of yogurt into my unwilling mouth. “We should get something else to eat. This stuff makes me want to hurl.”

She cleared her throat. “Did you hear me?”

Dressed in a pair of loose-fitting floral pattern fun pants, heels, and a blouse with a plunging neckline, she looked cute. Her hair was up in a messy bun that wasn’t very messy.

It must have been her Sunday look.

I set the yogurt aside and looked at her. “Genius.”

She reached in her Neverfull. “You need to have a look at these.”

She handed me four photos. A face wasn’t visible in any of them. I recognized two of the photos as being me, when I was with Rhett. Two were of Ballerina legs, one in bed, and one of her and Eric walking down the hallway.

If I didn’t know it was her, I would have thought she was me.

I glanced at each of the photos and then looked at Kelli. “Wow.”

“We’ll have to film a few scenes of you two talking about things like sex, hooking up, life after the show – stuff like that. He’ll need to be adamant in his convictions regarding sex. Then, when they see that scene from last night?” She sat on the barstool across from me. “They’ll assume it’s you. We’ve already done some editing. It couldn’t be more perfect. We’ll end that show with you two in bed, and then, in the teaser for the next show, we’ll show him walking her to the car, and reveal her face. They’ll go crazy.”

I handed her the photos. “So, you’re glad I thought of it?”

“Ratings will be out the roof for the episode that follows this one. I need you to continue to think out of the box for the next three men. Come up with whatever you think you can get away with.”

Thank God.

“I’ll see what I can do,” I said.

“Where did you find that girl? She’s perfect.”

“At a bar.”

She took a glance at the photos, grinned, and then put them in her purse. “And, that car? It’s perfect, too. Everyone is going to detest that bitch.”

An idea came to mind, but I wasn’t sure if it was doable or not. After chewing on it for a moment, I revealed my thoughts.

“What if we had them ride off together after the last show. Maybe I find out they’re fucking, and I kick him out? And then she pulls up in her red Jaguar and picks him up to take him to the airport? The show ends with them riding away in her sports car, and me sitting on the steps in tears.”

Her eyes went wide. “Oh. My. God. Lou, you’re a fucking genius.”

“I have my moments.”

She stood. “I’ll accept nothing short of that. Make it happen.”

Hiding her joy was impossible. For the first time since we met, she appeared truly satisfied with me, the show, and what she expected the ratings were going to be. I decided to push my luck. She seemed to be so pleased that telling me no wasn’t an option.

“What about some walking around cash?” I asked. “I’m basically broke. I’ve spent almost all my money, and until this show’s over, I don’t have any income. If we’re going to be at the bar picking up girls for the show, I’ll--”

She reached in her oversized bag. “How much do you need?”