Page 27 of My Lucky Star
Obviously, I’d gone through Emir’s possessions to see if he’d brought any cigarettes – or whiskey. He’d quit two years ago, but relapsed a few times since, so it was possible. As luck would have it, I found nothing, which allowed me to continue basking in moral superiority. Maybe I would actually quit this time, I thought, applying another nicotine patch.
Seeing the puddles along the beach road, I settled on a pair of sneakers and finally decided to try on the casual slacks Aria had bought. They fit perfectly and, to my surprise, looked rather good. On my Instagram feed, I was mostly seen in a designer suit or shirtless. Maybe a pair of slacks and a hoodie was exactly what I needed to soften my image.
Emir met me in the hallway in jeans, a collar shirt and a suit jacket. “You look like you’re on your way to the gym.”
I picked at the shoulders of the hoodie to proudly show it off. “Is that a problem?”
Emir raised his brow. “I don’t think we’re going to the gym.”
“No, but Aria bought these clothes for me, so there must be something about... this that she likes, and I need her to be comfortable around me, otherwise we’ll never pull this off.”
Emir cocked his head, impressed. “That’s a... good point.”
He made it sound like it was the first one I’d ever made. Jerk.
A knock at the door cut off our brewing argument.
I threw some clothes over my arm and followed Emir downstairs. No way I was leaving my brother alone with Aria. If he didn’t trust me with her, it went both ways.
We found her on the doorstep in a pale-yellow sundress and a straw hat. It was on the casual side but suited her so perfectly I couldn’t help staring. She perused my outfit and her face melted into a gorgeous smile. “You’re... wearing the clothes.”
I’d never been happier with my wardrobe choice. “Of course!” I freed my hands by dumping my pile of clothing on Emir’s arm and struck a pose, hands on hips. A little exaggerated maybe.
Aria laughed. “Done a bit of modelling, perhaps?”
“You can tell?” I wagged my eyebrows, flicking hair off my face like a true diva.
I would have done anything to keep her laughing, but Emir growled from under the clothing pile. “Can we get moving?”
Aria brushed the front of her dress. “Is this okay? I have fancier outfits in the car, but I didn’t want to get them dirty on the way.”
“How dirty are we talking about?” I looked at the heap of designer clothing Emir grumpily organized over his other arm.
“Well, it might be a little wet after the rain, but it’s a short walk.”
“Where are we going?” Emir demanded, as we followed her outside.
Aria smiled. “It’s a surprise.”
I grinned, glancing at my brother – the control freak who hated surprises.
“Sounds great.” I caught Aria’s gaze, a fleeting moment of connection I wanted to extend. I wanted to tell her to ignore Emir and his moods. “Shotgun!”
Aria’s car was a tiny, grey Toyota Aqua. Cheap and definitely not cheerful.
Emir followed us and took the backseat, where he stewed in silence. Perfect. I could almost pretend he wasn’t there.
“How did you get into location scouting?” I asked Aria as she steered down the deserted beach road. On the front seat, the left-hand-side traffic felt more disorienting, and I focused my eyes on her.
Her mouth twitched. “My parents really missed me, and I thought I should try to move back home... so I had to find a job. I think I jumped on this one because I wanted to be in the vicinity of the film industry, even if I couldn’t do acting. A shadow career, you know? I know they get a bad rap, but what’s the alternative? The world only needs so many waitresses.”
“So, you’d rather be an actress?”
She looked startled. “Oh, no. Not anymore. I mean, it’s not in the cards for me.”
“Why?”
“There are no acting jobs around here. Not that I had that many jobs in Auckland, either. Supporting roles, two or three-line parts, occasional ads.”
