I knew someone. Well, I knew someone who knew someone. Hadn’t Henry said his father was friends with the president of his production company?
Sure enough, Colin’s gaze flickered with fear as he waited for me to continue.
“I think Bob Wentworth would be interested in hearing what this intern has to say,” I said with more confidence than I felt. “He’s a longtime friend of the Landons and if I tell him that you stole my—”
“Whoa, whoa...stole?” He blinked furiously as he verbally backpedaled. “I wouldn’t say I stole it.”
He kept talking and I waited for a flicker of triumph.
It didn’t come.
Truth be told, I just felt sick for trading in on a name. For using fear and power and Henry’s father’s resources to get my way.
The breath rushed out of me so quickly it left me lightheaded.
That was exactly what Henry had been trying to avoid.
Colin moved closer to me and his voice turned hard again so I was forced to pay attention. “Look, even if you tell Wentworth, he won’t care. All he cares about is making a hit. With Henry attached as the lead and as the screenwriter, Wentworth won’t care whose feelings are hurt.” Colin gave me something close to a sneer. “See, Izzy, that’s why you’ll never make it here. You do care.”
I stared at him with my lips parted in shock as emotion after emotion rippled through me.
He was right. I might not know this Bob Wentworth but I knew what Henry had told me about his own father. Even if Henry didn’t want his name attached Colin would find a way to leak it and no one would care how that hurt Henry.
But Colin was right. I did care.
I cared about Henry.
Whether he deserved my loyalty or not, it was his. And whether I liked it or not, he’d stolen my heart.
I might never be able to forgive him, but I couldn’t hate him and….
I could never hurt him.
I’d only end up hurting myself if I tried.
Something inside me shifted and settled with that thought. And just like that, I knew what I had to do.
If it came to my dream or hurting Henry…
There was really no choice at all.
I crossed my arms and tilted up my chin, more confident than ever in my decision. “Alright, Colin. Let’s make a deal.”
Chapter Twenty-Two
Henry
My car idled on the street in front of Izzy’s apartment. The colorful Christmas lights they’d strung over the front door made the place look cheery, though Kendal’s expression was anything but. I could see her standing at the window next to a tacky hot pink Christmas tree, arms crossed, ready to kick me off the doorstep for the second time in as many weeks.
It didn’t seem to matter how much groveling I did, Izzy’s roommates had come to the same conclusion as she had—I was persona non grata. I was hoping the holiday would grant me some forgiveness, but Christmas had come and gone and still I was no closer to making amends.
Sighing, I put my car in gear and pressed the call button on my dash. I’d called Izzy’s number so many times in the last few weeks it was the only contact in my redial queue. But as usual, my call went straight to voicemail.
I hung up, swearing under my breath as my temper flared.
It had been almost three weeks of radio silence and I was tired of it. Yes, I’d screwed up, but how was I supposed to fix things with Izzy if she wouldn’t talk to me?
I got it…she was avoiding me. But it felt like she was taking things to the extreme. I hadn’t even seen her around the lot. And I’d been looking; loitering around the coffee cart and her office building like a complete stalker.
Little good it did me.
I hadn’t even caught a glimpse of the girl who’d stolen my heart. She’d disappeared from my life completely, leaving behind an empty hollow feeling I didn’t want to get used to.
She’d left me no choice. I pulled a U-turn and headed back toward the studio. Maybe Izzy’s roommates were happy to bar me from seeing her or giving her my messages, but I had a feeling Polarizing Pictures wouldn’t be so hostile. Especially if they wanted me to sign the contract they’d been dangling in front of me for almost a week.
It was a fair offer. Better than what I’d hoped for, which meant the studio expected to make a ton of money, but there was one flaw in all the paperwork—Izzy’s name was nowhere to be found.
It’s why I’d been trying to call her. Okay, so that was only one of the reasons I wanted to talk to her, but it was a pretty big one. I didn’t want my mistakes to keep her from working on this project. It was because of her that my dream of bringing my script to life was even happening. It was only fair that her dreams should come true, too.
That’s why I’d been holding off on signing the contract. I wanted to talk to Izzy so we could find a way to make this work. Because if she wasn’t on board, then neither was I.
It would kill me to say no to Polarizing Pictures, but I would…for her.
Either we both got our dreams or not at all.
And I wasn’t leaving the lot today until Izzy heard me say those exact words.
“She’s not here,” the receptionist repeated.
“What do you mean she’s not here? She has to be here.”
The woman just blinked at me with annoyance as I tried to get a grip on my deflating confidence.
Izzy had to be here. This was my last hope. I’d tried everything else.
I put my hands on her desk and leaned closer. “Check again. Isabelle Ellis. She works on this floor. I was here a few weeks ago to speak with her.”
“I remember,” the receptionist said, not looking at me kindly at all.
“Then you’ll remember that I’m working with her.”
“Not anymore.”
“Excuse me?”
“Isabelle Ellis doesn’t work here anymore.”
The world tunneled and I couldn’t hear anything over the thundering of my pulse as I stared at the unapologetic woman in front of me. She had to be mistaken. Because if Izzy wasn’t here…if she’d been fired…because of me…
Suddenly I felt sick. I needed to sit down or maybe I needed to run, or punch something. Honestly, I didn’t know what I needed. Well, that wasn’t true. I knew exactly what I needed, but she wasn’t here, and it was all my fault.
Colin waltzed into the lobby, grinning like a shark who smelled blood. “Henry!” he greeted, much too boisterously. “Just the man I want to see. Step into my office and we’ll get that contract taken care of.”
“I’m not signing anything,” I muttered, anger tinging each syllable.
“Come now, Henry, the offer is fair.”
“Fair? Do you really want to talk about what’s fair?” I asked. “Firing Izzy wasn’t fair. And it was a big mistake.”
“Firing her?” Colin laughed. “I wish I fired her. But she saved me the trouble by quitting.”
The blows just kept coming.
Hearing that Izzy had quit was almost worse than thinking she’d been fired. I knew how driven she was. The level of devastation it would’ve taken for her to walk away from something she believed in…
All the emails she’d thought she was sending to Leo came rushing back to me. That script had meant as much to Izzy as it did to me. And she’d just walked away?
My heart squeezed painfully as it finally broke in all the ways it hadn’t already. Having Izzy find out the truth in such a hurtful way had rocked me, but I’d still thought we had a chance. That with time and understanding we’d find a way through this, maybe even back to where we’d been before. But now…now I knew there was no coming back, no repairing what I’d broken.
Without another word to Colin, I turned around and hit the elevator button. I stepped on and as the doors shut, I let my heart plummet right along with the steel box.
“Henry, wait!”
I was nearly to the glass doors in the lobby when I heard my name being called. When I saw who was calling me, I gr
oaned.
Today just keeps getting better.
I turned, bracing myself to face Izzy’s witch of a co-worker. The last thing I was in the mood for was another verbal sparring match with the entitled brunette. But before I could say so, Taylor launched into a rushed whisper as she pulled me into a shadowed hall. “I need to talk to you.”
“Taylor, I’m not in the mood for whatever you have to say—”
“It’s about Izzy,” she snapped, which made me give up my struggle.
I followed her willingly until we were alone in a darkened hallway where a sign announcing Office Space for Lease let us know we wouldn’t be interrupted.
“You said you knew something about Izzy?” I asked, crossing my arms in front of the unpredictable girl.
“Yeah, I know a lot of things about Izzy actually,” she shot back, mimicking my affronted stance.
“Like what?”
“Like she didn’t just quit.”
That had my attention. “But Colin said—”
“Forget what Colin said. He’s a two-bit bottom-dweller. He’ll say anything to get what he wants—which was Izzy, out of his way.”
“I don’t understand.”
Taylor narrowed her heavily mascaraed eyes at me. “Of course you don’t.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?”
“It means Izzy and her bleeding heart made a deal to protect you, but I’m not sure you’re worth it.” Taylor examined her crimson manicure. “I wouldn’t have done it. I even told her as much.”
“Are you going to tell me what you’re talking about or am I supposed to try to crack the code here?”
Taylor rolled her eyes. “Izzy went to bat for you against Colin. They had a pretty heated argument. She threatened to go to the studio head when he tried kicking her off the project. Colin, being the cockroach he is, tried to bribe her not to with a permanent position, but she gave it all up for you.”
“What? Why?”
“Because it would’ve meant she’d have to play by his rules, which included outing you as the screenwriter of that incredible script she uncovered in the slush pile.”
My eyes widened. “You know about that?”
“Relax, everyone who works here has signed an NDA so your precious secret’s safe.” Again, she looked at her flawless nails. “Not that Colin follows the rules,” she said more to herself than me.
“Taylor, stop with the cryptic commentary and just tell me what happened!”
“Have you really not figured it out yet?”
I gave her a seething glare which conveyed I most definitely wouldn’t still be standing here if I had.
“Colin was going to out you as the screenwriter to get more exposure for the studio. Izzy made him promise not to.”
“How?”
“By resigning.”
“What?”
“She promised to walk away, letting Colin do the final pitch and get full credit for finding the script as long as he kept your secret.” Taylor shook her head. “Izzy left to protect you. She’s a better woman than I am. The least you could do is respect her enough to make the damn film so she didn’t go back to middle-of-nowhere Iowa for nothing.”
My eyes bulged. “Izzy’s in Iowa?”
“Duh. She left weeks ago.”
No wonder I hadn’t seen her. I needed to fix this, but how?
My brain was still processing all this new information as I pulled Izzy’s ex co-worker into a quick embrace. “Thank you, Taylor. But you’re wrong about the film. I respect Izzy too much to make it without her.”
My heart soared as a plan clicked into place. I was already backing away from Taylor, not wanting to waste another second. “Tell Colin I’m not signing that contract unless Izzy’s the one who gets credit for it.”
“They’ll never agree to it,” Taylor called after me.
“Fine, it means nothing without Izzy anyway.” And as I said the words, I realized I’d never said anything truer.
Jogging now, I pulled my phone from my pocket and dialed. Shari picked up on the second ring.
“Hey,” I said breathlessly. “I need you to call Van Nuys and tell them to get the plane ready as soon as possible.”
“Oh, um. Okay. Where are you going?”
“Iowa.”
Chapter Twenty-Three
Izzy
“Come on, Iz. It’s New Year’s Eve. Can’t you at least pretend you’re having fun?” Fallon gave me a pout that made me sigh deeply.
“I’m sorry. I’m not trying to suck the life out of this party, but…”
“But Henry broke your heart, Colin’s a creep, your dream is over blah, blah, blah!”
I looked at Fallon with utter shock. Apparently, my allowance for wallowing was over.
I’d been back home for a few weeks now. My parents and my best friend had been over the moon when I returned, but it seemed my pity party was starting to grate on everyone’s last nerve. My parents even helped Fallon push me out of the house tonight.
Ever the worriers, they normally didn't like the idea of me going out on New Year’s Eve. But Fallon was determined that we attend the annual party at our town’s only all ages bar with our friends from high school who were all home from college for Christmas break.
The problem with Fallon and my parents’ grand plan to get me out of the house was that it only made me miss everything I’d left behind that much more. I’d been sitting here for an hour, nursing a glass of cheap champagne and listening to the others talk about their first semesters.
I, of course, had nothing to contribute. I couldn’t relate to months of keggers and sorority pledging. I had nothing to add when talk turned to finals and home games.
And no one wanted to hear about what I’d been up to. I’d figured that out two weeks ago when Fallon had dragged me to a party at Missy Wagner’s house. I’d been met with blank stares and then snickering when Missy accused me of exaggerating about knowing Henry Landon.
“What? You got coffee for him once and now you guys are best buds?” she’d snort-laughed into her wine cooler.
I’d of course run away to cry in the bathroom. Not because Missy’s words were so very hurtful but because they’d conjured up memories of passionate kisses and breathless laughter and I’d been hit with a tidal wave of longing and regret.
I missed Henry. Even though he’d hurt me, I still missed him.
I missed all of them. I missed Kendal, Carolina, and my other roommates. I missed the creative buzz I got from working with Leo, even though his identity was a lie. Heck, sometimes I even missed the other interns. Taylor might have been a witch, but at least she’d understood my drive and my passion because she’d shared it too.
Fallon had found me in Missy Wagner’s upstairs bathroom and dragged me out. But now we were here.
And so was Missy.
“Why did Fallon even bring her?” I heard Missy whisper to her friend.
And by ‘whisper’ I meant stage whisper—loudly enough for half the bar to hear. Her best friend Lila gave me an apologetic grimace and I forced a smile in return. It wasn’t Lila’s fault her bestie had turned into a mean girl at college. In fact, in my head I’d been referring to Missy as Taylor 2.0 ever since her party.
It seemed all of us had changed these past few months, some for the better—like Lila, who had a new confidence about her as she told us about the friends she’d been making and the psychology class she adored.
She was finding herself at college, and Fallon was doing the same. I hadn’t missed the way my best friend had matured in the short time we’d been apart. Before we’d left I’d always thought of her as the melodramatic one, but now…
Well, now I could sadly admit that between the two of us, she’d become the voice of reason.
“Look, you know I love you, Izzy, but it’s tough love time,” Fallon said as she leaned in toward me so I could hear her over the crowd. “In a few hours we’ll be starting a new year. It’s time to start over. I know what happe
ned in LA sucks and I feel for you, I really do. But you gotta leave that behind. You can’t let one bad moment define all your other moments.”
It was more than just one bad moment, but I got her point. I swallowed the lump in my throat and managed a nod. “I know. You’re right. I’m trying,” I said, pasting on a painful smile.
“Ugh, well try harder. That smile is pitiful.”
That made me laugh.
“That’s better,” Fallon said, throwing me a wink.
“Thanks for putting up with me, Fallon.”
“Always,” she said breezily.
I sucked in a breath, covering the searing pain of the memory that word conjured with a cough.
“You okay?”
“Yeah. I just need a drink,” I said holding up my empty champagne glass.
“I’m buying,” she said holding up her fake ID with a devious grin.
I watched Fallon disappear into the crowd gathered around the bar and I wondered if what she said was true. Could I really start over when I still felt like I’d left so much unfinished?
Better question—did I have a choice?
I tried to pay attention to the conversation that had started up around me—some gossip about which couples from our class had survived long distance relationships and which hadn’t.
It was hard to even feign an interest so I let my mind wander to the future.
Fallon had a point. Maybe it was time to stop focusing on the past and start making plans for the future. I was supposed to head to Ohio State with Fallon when the next semester started in a couple of weeks, and it was time to start thinking about what I’d do there.
I’d major in screenwriting obviously. I’d seek out any and all internship opportunities that I could. Likely nothing as amazing as the chance to work for a major production company but I’d take what I could get.
I moved my empty glass in circles on the table in front of me and watched Fallon try to flag down the overworked bar staff.
Young Adulting Page 17
