Free Web NovelChapter 23: show them
I was still lying against Caspian’s shoulder, half asleep, when his phone buzzed on the nightstand. He reached for it without disturbing me much, glancing at the screen before answering.
"Yes?"
I could hear Nicole’s voice through the speaker, business-like at first. "Valerie, we have the shoot in two hours. I am downstairs in the van already, just confirming pickup time—"
She stopped mid-sentence.
There was a pause. A long one.
"Wait." Her voice sharpened. "Who is this?"
Caspian, unbothered, said simply, "Would she like breakfast before we head down?"
"VALERIE." Nicole’s shout came through loud enough that I winced and pulled the phone slightly away from my ear even though I wasn’t the one holding it. "Is that a MAN’S voice? Valerie, who is in that room with you? Do you need me to come up there? I am still in the van, I can be at your door in ninety seconds, just say the word and I will come rescue you—"
I took the phone from Caspian’s hand, fighting a laugh. "Nicole. It’s fine."
"It is clearly not fine, there is a strange man answering your phone and offering you breakfast like he lives there—"
"Nicole."
"WHO IS HE, VALERIE."
"It’s Caspian."
Silence.
Then: "...Big Boss?"
"Big Boss," I confirmed.
Another silence, this one different in texture entirely. "Oh thank god. I was about to come up there with my pepper spray."
"You do not own pepper spray."
"I was going to buy some on the way up the stairs, the point still stands." She cleared her throat, already recovering her composure with impressive speed. "So. Is he coming to the shoot?"
I glanced over at Caspian, who was watching me with the particular quiet amusement he reserved for moments like this.
"He should be," I said.
He had flown across the country. He was not about to miss watching me work now.
Thirty minutes later, the three of us arrived at the location. Because Caspian could not reveal his identity, he stayed back and watched from a distance. I stepped out of the changing room wearing a light blue lace dress that hugged my figure closely and highlighted my best features, especially my legs. I felt polished and put together, like something carefully sculpted.
The theme for the shoot was a bride chasing a runaway groom. While running after him, the bride injures her leg without him ever noticing. In the end, the diamond on her finger catches the sunlight and casts a small rainbow across his face, which finally makes him turn back. They reconcile.
The photographer from the day before was directing this one, and he pulled me aside before we began. "Valerie, the emotions shift quite a bit through this concept. Are you comfortable with that?"
"No problems," I said, nodding.
He gave me a thumbs up and reminded me to find my position, then asked if I wanted a quick run-through first.
"Not necessary," I told him plainly.
If he had not worked with me the day before, he might have doubted that answer. But after watching my professionalism on set, he trusted me completely. He gave the signal and we went straight into filming.
The commercial had no script and ran only thirty seconds, so we had to find the right emotional state fast. The scene I was filming had me chasing after the groom, my expression carrying urgency that slowly shifted into despair as I realized I could not catch up.
When filming began, I found my position without help. The moment the slate clapped down, I was gone. In my place stood an abandoned bride, looking around helplessly for someone who was no longer there. My eyes reddened but no tears fell. Between takes I remembered to add breathless panting, because that was what made it feel real.
My emotions built steadily as the scene went on, the urgency growing until it looked like I was right at the edge of falling apart.
From a distance, Caspian watched. Nicole stood beside him, eyes full of unconcealed pride. "Boss, our Valerie isn’t bad, is she? If only she hadn’t been held back by that jerk for so long."
"From now on, no one will hold her back," Caspian replied coolly, and folded his tall frame back into the car.
Nicole smiled to herself, because she already knew I was not going to give anyone that chance again. And she was even more convinced of it now, knowing exactly who was sitting in that car.
The shoot wrapped in half the time the director had planned. He was clearly impressed, and before I could leave he pulled me aside and held out a business card. "I heard your current company has no idea how to manage your career. Are you interested in stepping onto a bigger stage?"
I took the card but turned him down the same way I always did, politely and without hesitation. "I am happy where I am right now."
He did not push. He just smiled. "Even so. You are always welcome."
I thanked him and started toward Caspian’s car. Before I got far, Nicole came rushing over with her phone outstretched. "A woman named Quinn just called. Says she is the new manager Liam has assigned you. Also says once you finish shooting you need to head back, because Liam has booked you an event appearance. Three days from now." Nicole’s expression tightened. "I looked up the brand. It is not completely unknown, but customers have been filing complaints for years."
"Liam clearly wants to bury you," she added.
I took the phone from her hand and kept my voice calm. "Let’s head back first. We will talk later."
"This is something you worked so hard for, Valerie. If you take this job, everything goes to waste." Her voice cracked slightly and I could hear how much it actually hurt her.
"Nicole." I let a small smirk cross my face. "Do you really think I have not already prepared for something like this?" I had not expected Liam to drop me for Amara this fast, but I was not surprised either. "I have said it before. Being in the spotlight and being pushed out of it are only a difference of words. The two outcomes sit on a very thin line."
"I am not playing the wrong card twice."
Not far off, Caspian was waiting in the car. Our eyes met through the window and we both smiled. When I climbed in beside him he handed me his phone without saying much. "I had Theo pull everything on this Quinn who is supposedly your new manager. Her resume, her history, all of it is in there."
