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"It’s just… it’s a lot of money to ship all of the equipment over there, and I want to be sure that’s what you want. I can find someone closer, but it’s not going to be as perfect. We also might have to add some CGI, which might cost more, so I—"
"We have the funds," I interrupt. "Don’t worry about anything other than finding me the perfect place to shoot this series."
"All right!" Margaret smiles then walks away.
It’s nice to find someone with such enthusiasm for their job. I leave the meeting room and head for the office I have set up to oversee everything. When I got the IP rights, I didn’t think I would ever be in this position, but everything snowballed. I do not trust anyone enough to oversee this without making compromises. Compromises mean less money spent, but it ismymoney, so I do not have to answer to anyone.
"Well, is this not a welcome surprise," I say when I get to the office.
Teal is waiting for me. She has an office on the floor below to oversee everything connected to the book, along with the other couple of clients at Next Page Publishing, the newest and hottest publishing company on the scene. She has also been helping to look after the writers for the TV series.
It is not true that I only trust myself when it comes to protecting the integrity of this project, I trust Teal too.
"It’s our two-month anniversary." She smiles.
I am suddenly lost for words. I stare at her, trying to work out if I missed something because we have not become romantically involved the last time I checked. How can we when we barely have time to see each other anymore?
"Since we signed Charlie and became a proper publishing company!"
"Yes," I confirm with some relief. "How is it looking? Do the sales meet the projections?"
"They exceed them," she replies. "I know you want this to be a success, but you should have fought Charlie more on the TV deal. We could have banked the money from the book sales first instead of going straight into an adaptation. If it doesn’t work out, you stand to lose a lot of money.A lotof money, Logan."
"I know."
It is all I have been thinking about for the last two months. A great adaptation can make or break a streaming service, but what about a person? What happens to me if this all comes crashing down around us?
"We have most of the locations scouted out for the first five episodes, so we can start filming soon. We just need to find some more investors so it is not only my money at risk. We also need to cast the entire production, find a director, hire a production team, schedule the shooting, work out the best way to distribute this, and a million other little things. At least the script is coming along nicely, right?"
"That’s kind of what I came up here to talk to you about."
"What is it now?" I ask.
I shouldn’t get so frustrated, but I had no idea that so much would and could go wrong.
"It’s not a big deal. Well, it is because this needs to be amazing, but I think I’ve sorted it out. We have three writers on the books who are adapting the work into a screenplay for the series, and one of the writers must have read all of Charlie’s previous work because they are really developing the romance scenes instead of keeping them subtle and focusing on the underlying themes of struggle and perseverance. I think he thinks this is a Charlie Morton book, but it’s not. I mean, it is, but it’s completely different and new."
"But you sorted it out?" I ask.
"Yeah, I did. We talked it out a little, and I don’t want to use my baby to get what I want, but I notice that most men are polite to me when they notice the bump. I stick it out a little more even if that means they think I’m some stupid pregnant woman. It’s a balancing act, but I think I got through to him. I’m sure I’ll have to keep on top of all three writers, but it’s been good for me. I just hope we can get the filming started before I give birth."
"We will," I sigh. I walk over to where she sits on the desk and place my hand on her bump. "I hope we will. Everything is such a process. I am sorry for loading your plate with all this extra work, but I cannot have anyone else overseeing the scripts while I make sure everything else is in place."
Teal leans into me, and I wrap my arms around her. I sometimes wonder if I should just take the plunge and make it official between us, but we’ve never really had time to talk about that stuff. I do not know if she even wants that. I do not know ifItruly want that. She will be my child's mother, but do I want to settle down with her and start a family?
"Oh, we have the book launch tonight. You will come, won’t you?" asks Teal.
"For James Greenwood, right?"
"Yeah, our second big book launch. It’s not as big as Charlie’s, but with all the publicity we are getting from her book, this one will sell. We just need to hope that it gets reviewed well. Early reviews show that it will be well received, but it’s more niche, so we won’t be able to tell until it’s out there. We are off to a bright start if we can start with two best sellers."
“Not every book will be a hit," I remind her. "And if the TV series does not work out, I might not have enough funds to keep the company going."
"You need to change your perspective." Teal holds me tight, and for a moment, I dream of a future with her.
"What you have done is something no one has done before. The show will be amazing. Even if it doesn’t make you any money, it will be out there and so will the book. As long as we keep the vision, we will give the world something special."
The intercom on my desk buzzes, and I shift slightly to press the button. However, I do not move so far that Teal has to let me go. I welcome her embrace.
