Page 77 of Witch You Would
“So the thing is,” Penelope said.
“The thing is?” I repeated, my mouth dry.
“You’re real,” she said. “And you’re here. And I don’t want to miss out on where this could go, with us, because I’m waitingon someone who might not even be who I think he is.”
She couldn’t know she’d managed to hit me in the exact right spot to ruin me. But I could fix this. I could make it right.All I had to do was confess.
“I have to tell you something,” I said.
The door to the theater room opened and Mary, Isaac’s assistant, walked in.
“Hi hello!” Mary said. “I hope I’m not interrupting anything.”
I couldn’t even respond. Neither could Penelope, apparently.
“Awesome great so I’ve been looking for Leandro because Isaac wants to meet with him right now about something super important.”Mary inhaled. “So if you could please follow me out to the car outside you don’t need to bring anything except yourself okaygreat!” She stared at me, her eyes big like a lemur on cocaine.
I found my voice. “We are in the middle of something, actually.” Was I growling? I might have growled.
“It’s okay,” Penelope said, putting her hand on my arm. “We can finish talking later. You should see what Isaac wants.”
Isaac could eat my balls. “Are you sure?”
Penelope smiled, and my heart melted. “I’m sure. I’m not going anywhere.”
God, I wanted that to be true in so many ways. “Later. For sure.”
“For sure, for sure.”
Kissing her was not an option yet. Not in front of a random almost-stranger. But soon, I promised myself. Soon, and a lot.
I followed Mary out of the dimly lit theater and out of the hotel, and blinked at the sun shining overhead, impossibly bright.Nothing felt real. I didn’t know what Isaac wanted, but it had better be good, and fast, because I had to get back to Penelopeand finish what we’d started.
There was no sign of the vulture on the balcony of Isaac’s fancy room, possibly because someone—Mary?—had put a spike stripon the wall. I felt spiky myself, but Isaac looked like he’d just finished a massage and facial, or possibly smoked a shitloadof weed. He sat on his couch, an arm stretched along the back, one foot up on the clear coffee table. A smile spread acrosshis face as I sat in one of the uncomfortable chairs near him.
“Hey, Leandro, how’s it going?” Isaac asked. “Good, great. Listen, I wanted to have a little chat with you about something,mano a mano.”
That’s not what “mano a mano” meant, but okay. “Sure, yeah, what’s up?”
“I’m putting a new show together,” he continued. “It’s kind of a street magic thing, sort of like what you do already, showingup in random places and grabbing people to do tricks. Very fun stuff.”
Okay, that did sound fun.
“We’ve got a few potential options for talent, keeping an open mind right now, you know, but . . .” He tapped the side ofhis nose. “I think you’re it, guy. I’ve seen some of the dailies of you doing your thing, and you’re smooth. Funny.”
“Thanks.” He’d said a lot of the same stuff when I was asked to be a Spellebrity. I kept my derpy grin on and nodded along.
“We want you to come in for a screen test. Not today, but soon.” Isaac raised his arm and waved it around, and moments later,Mary handed him a bottle of something bright orange. Neither of them offered me anything.
“You know where to find me,” I joked. “I can do the test whenever.”
“Excellente.” He chugged some of the carrot or whatever smoothie and wiped his mouth with the back of his hand. “I don’t haveto tell you to keep this hush-hush. We’re still putting the package together, feeling out money options, you know the drill.”
I mimed zipping my lips and locking them, like Grandpa Fred always did.
“My people will call your people, et cetera, et cetera.” Isaac pointed at me with the bottle. “Speaking of your people, nicework with your partner. You’re really selling the fake-flirting stuff.”
I kept my himbo grin going, but inside I flinched. “That’s good to hear. We, uh, weren’t sure.”
