Page 81 of As They Are
“Henry did all the selling,” I replied, trying to match his energy. “That and the people of the town.”
Jude nodded, but his mouth was tight. The town hadn’t been so friendly with him.
We walked into Center Point. Despite his tiredness, Henry filled us in on what he knew about the diner.
Tammy met us at the front, wearing the oddest, fakest smile I’d ever seen.
I blinked, wondering if she’d been replaced with a robot version of herself, but then shook it off.
“Table for three?” I asked.
“Of course. Follow me.”
Henry and I exchanged a look. At least he was as weirded out by this as I was.
“How am I doing?” she whispered to me as I sat. The cameras would definitely hear that, but it could be cut.
“It’s . . . something,” I said.
“My mama always told me I couldn’t be a movie star,” she muttered to herself. “Now, Henry. Coffee or water today?”
“Coffee. I need it.”
“One for me too, please,” I ordered.
“Oh, you’re both tired? I don’t even wanna know the reason why.”
My cheeks grew warm. Iwishedit were what she was hinting at. My life would be better if it was sex that kept me up late at night.
But I wasn’t going to look at another person. Obviously, Henry wasn’t interested in that with me, but I knew better than to try to look for anyone else while I was technically with him. I would have to either charge up my old vibrator or find something to take its place.
“And I’ll have a beer,” Jude said.
Tammy’s smile fell. “It’s ten in the morning.”
“Still. You’ve gotta have my favorite.” His smile went to the camera. “Bud Light is all I ever drink.”
I suppressed an eyeroll. “Tammy doesn’t usually?—”
“Oh, I’ll make it happen.” She was smiling again, but this one looked sinister. “Be right back.”
“Is it just me or is she kinda weird?” Jude asked.
“The cameras are on,” I hissed back. “And she’s doing her best.”
I crossed my arms, feeling an odd sort of protectiveness making my spine straighten. Tammy didn’t have to do anything for the camera. And she certainly didn’t have to find a way to make Jude’s beer order happen.
Henry’s hand landed on my knee, and I took a breath to calm down. Any tension on camera could be used in a negative way. Madison had gone with my plan to be with Henry, but that didn’t mean she wasn’t cooking up something else in the background.
“Wren’s picked up on what we all feel. No matter how much we annoy each other, we care.” Henry’s voice was soft but firm. I didn’t know when I’d started to feel this way. Maybe it had started from the second I drove in.
“Seems like a good way for people to know everything about you.” Jude looked around with a frown. “And I bet nothing even happens here.”
“Things definitely happen here,” Henry replied. “Even if they’re not what you’d expect.”
Jude shrugged, seemingly unable to care. He always wanted the biggest and best of everything. He’d once told me it was how he’d gotten to where he was. He’d hit it big as a teen and then made his way through life always working hard. Or so I thought.
I loved working hard, so I’d thought we were made for each other. But his version of it was paper thin. It was being friendly for a camera. Kissing ass when they were rolling, and then nothing when they were off.
