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So, I do the next best thing. I stalk Carly’s account. Which, of course, is public. Because she’s the kind of girl whose personal account would be available for anyone to look at.
But there’s nothing there about her and Zach. Only a picture of what she ordered for dinner at a local Indian restaurant. Zach’s nowhere to be seen, which wouldn’t usually make me think he wasn’t there, except that he’s allergic to curry. He never eats Indian food.
“Nothing posted yet,” I tell Jeannie before scrolling through a few more of Carly’s pictures. There’s a guy who keeps showing up in a lot of her posts. Usually they’re in a group together, but always right by each other.
“Good! That’s great news! Let’s make sure to keep it that way.” Now there’s a whirring sound in the background, and the tapping sound is faster. Also, Jeannie’s breathing is heavier. “If Zach…breath, breath, breath,makes public any relationship besides the one he has with you…breath, breath, breathhe may be in breach of his…gasping breathcontract.”
“What? He’s contractually obligated to only be in a relationship withme?” Once the words are out, I’m breathless myself. Maybe from listening to Jeannie on the treadmill (I’m assuming that’s where she is), but probably from the idea of Zach being forced to be my boyfriend.
Neither one is a good image, but I especially hate the second one. I only want Zach if I’m his first choice, not hisonlychoice for stupid legal reasons.
And I hate the idea of Zach being forced to keep his engagement secret. If he loves Carly enough to marry her, he should be shouting that to anyone who will listen. There’s no way I’m going to let Zach pretend to not be engaged to Carly, even if she was willing. Which, she won’t be. I don’t have to know her well to know that much.
“Not exactly ‘contractually obligated,’ but I’ve got to go back through both your contracts to see if there’s any wiggle room in the wording.” The whirring stops, and Jeannie’s voice gets louder. “That doesn’t mean he can’t make wedding plans; he just has to keep quiet about it. In fact, the exec offered up their event planner to help them with the wedding, and it’ll come out of their pocket.”
“The wedding?”
“Oh, hell no.” Jeannie laughs. “The weddingplanner.”
“It will take more than that to convince Zach and his fiancée not to go public. That’sifI can convince them.” My own voice rises to meet Jeannie’s decibel level. “I mean, you know how crazy it sounds, right? Asking his fiancée to stay silent about their engagement so he and I can pretend we’re falling in love?”
My phone beeps with a second call, and Zach’s name appears. Usually, I jump at the chance to talk to him, but not now. This news, I don’t want to hear.
Jeannie, oblivious to the tornado happening in my chest, continues. “You think it’s crazy to give your followers what they want? To make your show a hit before it even debuts? That’s what you’ve got here, Georgia—a hit! The producers are only trying to ensure that.”
Zach’s beeping ends, probably going to voicemail.
“Georgia? Are you there?”
“Um…I’m here.”
“I want to be clear about this.” Jeannie’s voice is firm. Solid and cold as ice.
Zach’s beeping starts up again. He can’t wait to share his good news.
“The producers are convinced the romance between you and Zach will make this show a hit, and they’re not going to budge on that. I don’t care what you have to fake to make it happen. Do it. Get Zach on board. Keep his engagement a secret. Because starting Monday, the two of you falling in love is part of the script.”
And there’s the answer to my question about who’s in charge of whom.
“All right. Thanks, Jeannie.”
“You don’t have the star power yet to break a contract without serious consequences.” Her voice is only marginally softer, both in tone and volume. “But this show will get you to that place. And it’s my job to make sure of that. That’s why you hired me.”
“I know.” But it sucks. Because I don’t want to be famous more than I want Zach to be happy.
“We’ll talk soon.”
The treadmill whirring starts again, and the line goes dead.
Zach’s second call disappears.
And that’s that. I don’t have a choice. Not only that, but I’m the one who will have to break the news to Zach that he has to keep his engagement secret. Which means, I’ll have to call him right now before anyone posts anything anywhere.
I climb out of my car and head for the front door of the Garden of Eatin’, ready to dial Zach’s number. Before I can, Zach is calling me again.
Probably to tell me how happy is, which I don’t want to hear. But I can hear it now and get the pain over with right away, or I can put it off and let the pain build. Like a dull toothache that only gets worse the longer you wait to go to the dentist.
I choose now and step inside the too-warm restaurant. When I answer the phone, I do with the brightest voice I can muster. “Hey, Zach.”
