Page 8 of Wynns of Change
“Let me get rid of my bags.” Harlow ran inside, dropped her bags off and caught up with her aunt and father on the porch.
“Well?” David poured the lemonade. “How did it go yesterday?”
“Great. I finished my scenes, no problem. Jillian, Robert’s assistant, flubbed up.” Harlow filled him in on what had happened, how she’d botched her lines. “The director ended up cutting her from the scene.”
“So she won’t be in the movie?” Aunt Birdie asked. “At all?”
Harlow shook her head.
“Was her acting that bad?”
“It wasn’t good. She isn’t ready.” Despite not caring for the woman, Harlow empathized with her, having once been in her shoes and knowing the feeling of discouragement all too well. It took time, experience and hours of practice to get the scenes down perfectly. “Maybe someday, with a lot of work and practice, but she’s not there yet, not by a longshot.”
“How did Robert react to his young starlet bombing?”
“He wasn’t happy. I’m not sure he knows that Jillian’s part was totally axed from the movie.” Harlow told them she was looking at a couple of other upcoming projects, but for now, her most pressing task was to relax. “Nigel’s colleague in California planned to serve Robert the papers today.”
“He’s expecting them?”
She nodded. “His cash cow is on her way out.”
“Without a solid replacement waiting in the wings,” Aunt Birdie said. “What will he do if he’s not making the big bucks?”
“He’s smart. Robert will figure it out.” Harlow stifled a yawn.
“Look at us yapping our jaws,” David said. “Why don’t you go take a nap? After you’re rested, we’ll take a nice long walk.”
“Sounds good.” Harlow thanked him for the snack and slipped inside. She stood in the doorway, savoring the moment and taking it all in. Vancouver, Malibu, Hollywood…were worldsaway. This felt more like home than any other place she’d ever lived.
With the movie out of the way, at least for the most part, she was free to do what she wanted. Robert wasn’t there making plans for every second of her time—special appearances and interviews, arranging lunch dates with bigwigs, working to secure the next deal. To his credit, he had tried his hardest to guilt her into letting him schedule events, but Harlow had put her foot down.
She briefly wondered how Daniel Orlane was feeling today. Hopefully, the lecherous jerk realized it was no longer wise to paw at women, to touch her like he had in the bathroom the day they wrapped up the movie’s filming.
Harlow hadn’t heard a peep. Not from Orlane. Not from Robert. She’d spent a full day packing up, ready to leave Vancouver, along with doing a little sightseeing with her aunt and bestie. But no news wasn’t necessarily good news, at least not as far as Robert was concerned.
She quickly unpacked and dumped her dirty laundry in the bin. Emptying her backpack was next, followed by her sling bag, the bag she took everywhere. She plugged her phone into the charger, remembering she had set it on airplane mode.
Harlow turned it on and checked for messages. Her heart skipped a beat when she noticed a missed call from Nigel. She promptly called the attorney back.
“Hello, Harlow.”
“Hi, Nigel.”
“Are you home?”
“Home as in back on Mackinac Island? Yes. My aunt, Eryn and I got here a short time ago.” Harlow told him she had beenthinking about him, wondering if Robert was served with the divorce papers.
“He was.” Nigel cleared his throat. “Unfortunately, I have some concerning news. If you’re not sitting down, you might want to.”
Chapter 5
Harlow turned her cell phone’s volume up. “You have bad news?”
“I’m afraid so,” Attorney Beckworth replied. “It’s about your contract with Robert.”
“Contract with Robert?” she repeated.
“His management agreement. Do you recall the terms?”
