Page 44 of Jason
“Now you’re making excuses.You take that other job, and you’ll get it back tenfold when your career takes off.No gain without risk, baby.”
They talked a little more about what was going on with Inez, and Inez issued her warning again before she hung up.“You are headed for a fall,” she said.
Inez was right in everything that she said.And still, Mallory hesitated.Her crush, or her attachment, or whatever it was she had for Jason Blackthorne was strong.Whatdidshe have for Jason Blackthorne?Was it love?Surely it wasn’tlove.Or was it?Sure, she admired him.He was funny and he could be so kind—she knew he was the one who had paid the receptionist’s car repair bill without her knowing it.Tamra was still talking about her secret angel.But Jason also drove her nuts with his disorganization and his lack of consideration at times.And yet…she had never been so drawn to a guy as she was to him.
She was mulling it over when her phone buzzed.She glanced at the screen and picked up the call.“Hey, Megs,” she said to her sister.“What have Mom and Dad done now?”
In the ensuing conversation about Dad’s new get-rich quick scheme—flipping houses, for God’s sake—Mallory forgot about Jason and her job offer for the night.
Chapter Thirteen
In the Bickmore lobby,Jason was sitting on one of the antique settees.He was on his phone, wrapping up the reservation of the warehouse for filming—Cass would not be happy, but he’d made an executive decision—when he noticed a pair of legs walking down the staircase and glanced up.He was slightly startled to realize those were Mallory’s killer legs coming down the stairs.She was wearing a navy dress with little white and blue flowers, and a skirt that brushed her knees.And a pair of red heels that he imagined her wearing with nothing else.
“Thanks, Ben,” he said to the man who owned the warehouse.He was an old family friend.“My lawyer will be in touch.I really appreciate it.”He clicked off and slowly stood.His back was still bothering him where he’d tweaked it yesterday.
“Wow,” he said as she walked to where he stood.“You lookgreat,Mallory.”He deliberately allowed his gaze to move appreciatively down the length of her.
“Thanks!”She looked down.“Inez got to keep this dress after her stint onCSI Miami.”She lifted her gaze to his.Her eyes were shining.She was happy to see him.
“Are you ready?”he asked.
She rolled her eyes.“Am I evernotready?”
“Rhetorical question,” he said with a grin.“That’s what makes you such a great assistant.”
Mallory smiled back, too, but it was a little thin.As if she found the word distasteful.He packed that away for the time being.
On the way to Boston, she filled him in on the latest gossip and press coverage of Darien Simmons.“TheHollywood Reporteris saying that another woman has come forward,” she said, reading off her phone.
“Great,” Jason snapped.His hand fisted against the steering wheel.“I never heard anything like this about him.Did you?”
“No, but I’m not exactly plugged in.Oh, great—here is the official statement from the lawyer.”
She read it out loud to him, and Jason dictated a couple of changes, making it a stronger denial of any knowledge and an even stronger statement of intolerance for that sort of behavior.Next, they went over the production schedule Mallory had apparently reworked this morning.Jason silently marveled at how efficient she could be.He would kill for a tenth of that efficiency.
They chatted about how quickly they needed one of the actors on board, assuming the auditions went well.
They had just entered downtown Boston when Jason asked if there was anything else they needed to talk about.His mind was already a million miles ahead—past the auditions and on to the shooting that would start in days.
“Actually,” Mallory said, and folded her hands neatly over her lap.“There is one thing.”
“Yeah?What’s that?”Jason asked as he glanced at his watch.
“I’ve been offered a job at a small film company.”
He jerked his gaze to her and in doing so, very nearly jerked the car into a parked truck.“What are you talking about?”
“It’s a small independent film company.Morning Moonlight Films?”
He’d never heard of them.He shook his head.“Doing what?CEO’s assistant?How much are they offering you?I’ll give you a raise if that’s it.”
She pressed her lips together a moment, as if she were collecting herself.“It’s not an assistant position, Jason.It’s an offer to join their stable of directors.”
“Director?” He couldn’t keep the surprise from his voice.She had no experience in directing.None.She was an assistant to a showrunner.Yeah, okay, she said she’d made some short films, but high school kids across America were making short films.That did not make her a hireable director.
“I have done some short films,” she said defensively, as if reading his mind.“They saw my work in a couple of contests, and they asked me to interview, and I did, and now, they want to add me to their roster.”
“Like, for pay?”
