If the Boot Fits Read online

  Sam knew he should have felt the same way, but he didn’t. He’d posed for pictures kissing his award. Carried it around for photo ops, but as soon as he could he’d tucked it away in his bag. Still he knew he had to get it back because a week or maybe a month from now it would actually hit him that last night hadn’t been a dream or some cruel joke, and he’d actually want to hold the thing. For now, he was still off his game, still out of sorts.

  What the hell was he supposed to do next?

  And why did finding this mystery girl suddenly feel more important?

  Chapter 3

  Amanda walked a little faster toward the makeup trailer, her bright orange umbrella patterned with tiny flamingos shielding her from the rain. A little less than a week had gone by and Amanda had fully settled back into her life as lowly servant, far from the glitz and glamour of award season. She stopped just near the steps, then reached up to grab the door latch just as Dru and Henrik, the production assistant holding the black umbrella over her head, made their way across the parking lot. Amanda loved the rain, especially in LA. It cleared the air, refreshed the earth. Made it a little easier to breathe, if only for a few hours. It was much better than filming in Atlanta, where Dru’s last show had been on location. Amanda understood the producers had chosen Georgia for the tax breaks, but she did not miss the humidity.

  “We’ll see you on Monday,” Henrik said as Dru stepped under Amanda’s umbrella and up the stairs. Dru didn’t respond.

  “Thanks, Henrik,” Amanda said.

  “Hurry up,” Dru grumbled.

  “Oh, sorry.” Amanda opened the door and followed her inside where Dru’s attitude immediately changed. She couldn’t muster a single word for the production assistants, but Tally and Patience had been hired just to keep Dru happy. The wig the previous hair person had slapped on her had been dragged up and down the Internet for weeks, and Dru’s mom had quietly raised hell until they brought in a Black woman who knew how to build and install a proper lace front. Tally was one of the best in the industry, and the studio learned pretty quickly that hiring her had been the right move. Everyone on the show was now sporting a sleeker head of hair, wig or natural. Since Kaidence got her way, Dru figured why not push for a makeup artist who understood how the camera picked up Dru’s light brown skin tone without making her look oddly washed out.

  Yes, Dru was playing a space vampire, but that was all the more reason for her to look amazing. Vampires in the next galaxy did not let their looks go. Tally and Patience made Dru look sexy as hell, and she was too smart to get on their bad side.

  “Hi,” Dru said bashfully as she shuffled toward Patience. Tally was busy taking down Dru’s costar Webber’s elaborate updo at the far end of the trailer.

  “Hey, doll. You killed it out there today,” Patience said, and she pulled Dru into a light hug.

  “Thank you. It’s not every day you have to banish your most loyal servants to a deserted outpost. It was a very emotional day.”

  “I bet it was. Have a seat and let’s get you out of here.”

  Amanda brought over fresh bottled water and set it down at the station, then took the empty seat near the door. She had to finalize Dru’s schedule for the next few days before she left for Helene’s wedding.

  She checked her email again, half paying attention as Webber started talking.

  “It’s so weird seeing people like that out in the wild. She’s that glamorous. No makeup, nothing. She was an absolute ten.”

  “Who are we talking about?” Dru asked just as she popped her fake fangs out of her mouth. Amanda didn’t miss the hint of jealousy in her voice.

  “Helene Sawyer. I saw her last night grabbing takeout from Lux. It was a real Celebs Are Just Like Us moment.”

  “Oh, yeah,” Dru said. It was a struggle for her to sound gracious. Even with years of professional training. “She is so beautiful. Great actress too.”

  “Head-to-toe athleisure wear and she looked like she’d just come off the runway.”

  “Oh that reminds me,” Tally piped up. “You will never guess who I saw the other day, walking down Melrose.”

  “Who?” Webber replied.

  “Sam Pleasant.”

  Amanda froze, glancing up from her phone. It wasn’t strange to hear people talk about her best friend. Helene was a huge star now and she was gorgeous. People talked about her all the time.

  They talked about Sam Pleasant all the time too, and a week ago, Amanda wouldn’t have batted an eyelash at the mention of his name. But that was before the mind-blowing night they’d spent together. Since then, Sam Pleasant had done nothing but invade her thoughts. She was mature enough to handle a one-night stand, but that didn’t stop every detail of their time together from playing over and over again in her mind. Hadn’t stopped her from conjuring thoughts of Sam’s body moving over hers before she slipped her hand between her legs every night since it happened.

  The whole thing had been a fluke, and she knew in a few months the memories would fade, leaving her with her own You’ll Never Guess Who I Slept With a Hundred Years Ago story to blurt out in front of her grandkids one day. In the meantime, Amanda was desperately in need of a real vacation, and Sam Pleasant had made her realize how much sex had been missing from her life too. That’s all this bizarre infatuation was. Exhaustion and sex deprivation. She’d get over both eventually. Eventually. For now though . . .

  Amanda fixed her face and looked back down at her phone, ignoring the way her ears had suddenly gotten hot.

  “He is so fine,” Patience went on.

  “Helene’s wedding is this weekend and I heard the top-secret location is Sam Pleasant’s ranch. Well, his family’s ranch,” Webber said. A knot gripped Amanda’s belly. She knew the wedding was going to be held at Big Rock Ranch in Charming, California, about two and a half hours away from the city if traffic was on your side. She’d heard in passing that it was Black-owned, but she had no clue the ranch was owned by Sam’s family.

  She almost started beating herself up for not researching the ranch more, but why would she? All Helene needed her to do was show up and be emotionally supportive and happy for the lovely couple. She wasn’t working and she wasn’t in the wedding party. What wedding guest researched the owners of any venue? And what person researched a person’s family before they had a spontaneous one-night stand with them? She swallowed and pretended to focus back on her phone.

  “Not so top-secret then,” Tally laughed in reply.

  “It’ll all be in People next week. Who cares?” Dru said with her own chuckle.

  “I care,” Tally replied. “I want to see what she’s wearing.”

  “Enough about her though,” Webber said. “Back to Sam Pleasant. What did he smell like?”

  Laughter came sputtering out of Tally. Amanda would have laughed quietly too if she didn’t already know the answer to that question. Amanda was currently in hell.

  “Sorry, hun. I didn’t smell him, but he just—ugh—godly up close. Great skin.”

  “I’m so glad he won,” Patience said. “That movie was brutal, but he acted his ass off. He deserves that award.”

  “I may have slid into his DMs the other day,” Dru announced. Amanda looked up then. Luckily, Dru was looking in the mirror as Patience removed the foam latex ridges from her cheek. She didn’t catch the wide-eyed horror on Amanda’s face.

  “What did he say?” Tally asked. “What did you say?”

  “I just told him he should ask me out for a drink some time. He hasn’t responded yet, but I’m sure his DMs are flooded. He pretty much announced that he was single and looking in that GQ article. I’ll give him some time to sort through the riff-raff before he gets back to me.” She winked at Webber in the mirror before she looked back down at her phone. Amanda pretended to stretch her neck and let out a quiet, but deep breath. Dru said a lot of things. Maybe she was just lying about messaging Sam. Not that it mattered. Sam was a nonentity in Amanda’s life.

  If Dru wanted to s
hoot her shot, she was welcome to. Amanda had bigger problems. Like what the hell she was going to do if she ran into Sam at this wedding. Maybe she should tell Helene what actually happened after Kata and Rina’s party, that she hadn’t gone straight home to get some much-needed sleep. She could totally trust Helene with the dirty details of that night, but Amanda wasn’t one to kiss and tell. Especially when there wasn’t much to tell beyond the intimate bits she wanted to keep to herself. That she’d really spent the night in Sam Pleasant’s arms.

  No. It was Helene’s wedding weekend. She was not going to bother her with her petty problems. If she ran into Sam and he mentioned their night together, she would simply remind him why they were both there. For Helene and Ignacio’s special day. Not to rehash the interesting things Sam could do with his thumb. Forcing herself to shake the thoughts off, she opened the email at the top of her inbox. Valentina’s assistant had finally replied, confirming Dru’s Met Gala fitting for the following afternoon.

  She idly listened as they moved on to less interesting gossip. By the time Dru was back to her normal human self, Amanda had caught up on all her emails. She thanked Tally and Patience, then followed Dru back out into the rain.

  “Have you talked to my mom?” she asked, her tone cold again.

  “She’s still in Malibu, but she said she’ll get back in time to meet you for breakfast tomorrow.”

  “No she won’t.”

  Amanda fell silent until their short walk brought them back to Dru’s car in its reserved parking space. She held the umbrella until Dru was behind the wheel of the matte red G-Wagon she’d bought herself at the end of the last season. She never let Amanda drive, which suited her just fine. Freed up her hands to do more admin work as they made their way back to Dru’s apartment.

  Amanda buckled her seat belt and waited until they left the studio lot before she went on.

  “Your mom is going to meet you after your workout tomorrow at ten for breakfast and then at one you have your audition for the Spright holiday movie.”

  “Ugh.”

  “Remember,” Amanda said carefully. “This was the one you wanted. You were so excited when you heard they were interested in talking to you.” Yes, that had been six months ago, but that didn’t change the fact that Dru had not so secretly been dreaming of starring in a made-for-TV holiday romance since she was twelve.

  “Do you think Sam Pleasant would date a TV movie actor?” she asked wistfully.

  “I’m not sure what kind of woman he dates,” Amanda replied, which was the truth. Though she did know some more personal things about him now. Like how he looked when he was sleeping soundly.

  Dru glanced over as they slowed to a stop at the next red light. She scoffed, then looked back toward the road. “I don’t know why I’m asking you. When was the last time you went on a date?”

  “Well, it’s tricky to date when you’re trying to keep up with the hottest actress in a paranormal prime-time TV show.”

  “Whatever, don’t blame me. Mom made me give you weekends off. Surely there’s some single personal assistants’ meetup you could go to. Or like a janitor or something that’s looking for a low-rent sugar baby.”

  “I’m not sure which part of that to find more offensive and just wrong, but what if I get lucky and leave you? How will you go on without me?”

  “You won’t. You’ll be with me forever and then you’ll watch my children. The children I have with Sam Pleasant.”

  Amanda’s eye nearly twitched. “Did you really DM him?”

  “Sure did,” Dru said, the bravado back in her voice. “This show has two more seasons before it goes stale. I need to be ready to upgrade and what better way to upgrade than on the arm of someone like Sam Pleasant? Just not sure I can do that if I downgrade to TV movies.”

  The horrible and somewhat gross idea of using Sam aside, Amanda didn’t like to hear Dru disparaging other mediums that way, especially when this type of role was something she wanted. Dru was a difficult person, but there was a sensitive romantic deep inside. It was one of the first things they’d bonded over. Their mutual love of all things love. Amanda didn’t want her to pass the opportunity up just because it wasn’t a role that would put her in the running for her own Oscar.

  Plus she was right about one thing: She had three years max left on Andromeda. Who knew what was in store for her down the road? A TV movie meant a paycheck and though Dru was biracial, she still read as Black. Being offered roles was a blessing in this industry, no matter how unfair and racist that truth was. Developing a relationship with the folks at Spright absolutely wouldn’t hurt. But Amanda kept that to herself.

  “Do you want me to call your mom?” she asked. “You can cancel.”

  “No. No. I want to do it. Anyway, it can be like ironic or whatever. Plus it’s silly to turn down the paycheck when I get it. Which I will. I might swing Sam Pleasant too.”

  “I’ll be there to hold your veil,” Amanda said.

  “You still going to your friend’s little wedding this weekend?” Dru asked as they joined the line of cars waiting to take Cahuenga back over the hill. Amanda fixed a little smile on her face and nodded.

  “My flight leaves at one.” Which was sort of the truth. She was driving out to Charming at one the following afternoon. Another bit of information Dru didn’t need to know. She was under the impression that Amanda was going to the wedding of one of her college roommates in San Francisco. If she knew she was going to Helene’s wedding she would lose her mind. Or worse, demand to come along. Amanda prayed Sam Pleasant wasn’t going to be there.

  “Well, have fun. You still have to show up first thing Monday morning. Don’t get too sauced. I can’t imagine what you’re like hungover. Though I know they’ll be no evidence of it. You’re like the only person I’ve ever met who refuses to be photographed. You’re such a freak.”

  “You know I don’t drink and when you’re sober there’s no need for pictures. I’ll have the memories to forever live in my mind. Clear and untainted by the stain of tequila shots. I’ll be fresh and at your beck and call, like always.”

  “Don’t act like you don’t love it. You were nothing before me,” Dru said before she laughed. Amanda knew she was only half joking. Amanda just smiled and forced her eyes back on the endless line of traffic in front of them.

  “You’re going to run lines with me tonight?” Dru asked a few minutes later as they finally passed the Hollywood Bowl.

  “Of course. I wouldn’t miss it.”

  Amanda thought she heard Dru mutter a quiet thank-you, but she couldn’t be sure.

  * * *

  It was after nine when Amanda returned to her little studio bungalow. After she’d convinced Dru to eat some dinner, they ran lines for the Spright project, then Dru asked her to stay a little longer while she reorganized her shoes. Amanda didn’t mind.

  Okay, to be honest, she did. It had been a long week and she still needed to pack for her weekend away, and she was hoping to get home so she could make a quick phone call to her parents before they went to bed. But Dru didn’t want her to leave. It happened every time her mother ditched her for long periods of time. This week, she was hanging out with some housewives at a former soap star’s mansion. With Dru filming the show and Amanda there to keep her company, Kaidence didn’t see a need to check in in-person. Dru didn’t like to be alone. Amanda understood, but she didn’t pay her enough for that kind of overtime.

  She opened the front door to her place and turned on the lights. Just as she set down her things, she heard her phone chime. It was a text from her mom.

  Night night, my hardworking girl.

  We love you!

  Amanda sighed and pushed down the sudden feelings of loneliness brewing inside of her. Her parents had all the faith in her when they loaded up their cars and helped her move out west. She knew things wouldn’t be easy. She knew she would have to put in her time, pay her dues, but she never thought this was where her journey would bring her. She thought a
bout the screenplays gathering dust in Final Draft files on her personal laptop.

  Looking at her phone, she considered calling her mom back, since she was still awake. She decided against it though. She didn’t need to cry and if she talked to her mom, just the sound of her voice would have her bursting into tears. There were kind people in LA but no one like her parents, and sometimes she needed to pretend there wasn’t a different, far away place where she felt truly at home and truly loved. Less alone. If she let the homesickness settle in, the regret and self-doubt would immediately follow. She settled on a text.

  Good night, Mom!

  I’ll call you tomorrow.

  Hug Dad for me.

  A moment later she received a text from her dad.

  I feel the love.

  She took her time getting ready for bed. Something she didn’t understand was nagging at her as she washed her face and brushed her teeth. Something beyond the loneliness. When she climbed under the covers and tried to get back to her Sailor Moon rewatch, she couldn’t focus, even though she knew the dubbed dialogue by heart. Grabbing her phone off her charger, she flopped onto her back and found herself pulling up Sam’s GQ interview.

  She knew better. No good would come from even thinking about him any further, but the idea of Dru trying to get with him made her stomach hurt. It didn’t matter if Sam took her up on her offer. For the first time ever she and Dru wanted the same thing. Something about that was so wrong.

  She skimmed the article, trying not to look at the devastatingly beautiful picture of him walking a black horse down a trail as she looked for the declaration of his single status.

  Pleasant is so gracious, letting me visit him on his family’s ranch. I understand the honor that has been bestowed upon me when his rather particular horse, Majesty, accepts a carrot from my open palm, but I know I would be making a terrible mistake if I don’t ask the twenty-eight-year-old what he’s looking for in a partner and if there’s a current partner helping to make those wishes come true.