Page 40 of Love Off Script

But then doubt crept in, and there was a chance that we weren’t as close as I thought. This could be a one-sided thing, and Caz was only hanging around for work. I replayed our prior conversation, with her practically saying those exact words. This wasn’t helping my anxiety. So far, this entire day had been a disaster, and now I was about to do something that was probably stupid, and it would be recorded.

I finally arrived at Java Jive, but I didn’t get out of my car. My energy was off, and I needed to recenter myself. I took some relaxing breaths and practiced my mantra again. It worked for me earlier, so I gave it another shot. My heart was calming a bit, but the tap on my window sent it into overdrive.

“Oh my god!” I jumped in my seat, and Caz stared at me from outside.

She backed away so I could open the door. “Sorry. I didn’t mean to scare you.” She adjusted the bag she was carrying over her shoulder. “I figured we could shoot some video outside here. The natural light loves you.” She smiled, but it quickly faded. “Over there, on that bench.” She pointed as she took off.

“Are you okay?” I questioned as I tried to keep up, but her long legs kept her a few paces ahead.

“Yeah. All good. Sit here, and I’ll get set up.” She was curt, and with one motion, she unzipped her pack, revealing a portable tripod ready to capture this shoot.

I did as she had asked, but I wasn’t a fan of this spot. The sun's rays were blazing down, making my gray shirt cling to me from the trickles of sweat dripping down my body. I lifted the hem to dab at my forehead, and the sound of metal clanging against the concrete caused me to jolt.

“What happened?” I dropped my shirt and saw Caz picking up the tripod from the ground.

“I wasn’t paying attention to where I was setting it, and it toppled over. No biggie. You ready?” She had it in place and was securing her phone to the stand.

“Ready as I’ll ever be.” I offered a closed-mouth smile.

“Great. So, I’ll ask some questions, and you answer them honestly. If you’re unhappy with how anything comes out, we’ll either reshoot or edit it out. Sound good?” She was so matter-of-fact and almost cold with her delivery—it wasn’t comforting.

“I guess.”

“Hello, you sexy people. It’s me, Caz Montgomery, here. Thank you for joining me this week on My Unscripted Life. The votes are in, and after my near-death experience in the haunted prison, you had mercy on me this week.” She beamed at the camera with one raised eyebrow, exuding a charm that would probably have all the girls at home swooning.

“My task was to help Shorty, this beautiful creature to my left, tell the woman of her dreams that she wants to be more than friends. But first, we should get to know Shorty better so you can send her all the good vibes when she asks this woman out.” As she turned my way, a wave of fear washed over me, leaving me paralyzed.

“So, tell us about yourself.” She opened the floor, but I still couldn’t find my tongue. She sat there for a few more seconds before realizing I was drowning. “You’re twenty-nine years old, right?” She promoted, and at least my body cooperated and allowed me to nod. “We got a youngster here.” She winked at the phone.

“You’re also a business owner?” Her melodic voice had a calming effect that eased my tension.

“Yes. I’m part owner of Sprout and Sprigs, a meal-prep and meal-planning business that focuses on vegetarians, but we serve everyone.” I couldn’t believe I got those words out, but it would be great advertisement if we kept that in there.

“Did you hear that? She’s smart, good-looking, and ambitious. What does she need my help with?” She laughed, but I could tell she was playing it up for the camera, and my cheeks were hot from more than the sun. “Even though Shorty is a catch on her own, she and I worked together to prepare for this big day. We scoped out possible first-date locations, discussed potential conversation starters and common interests, and the biggest piece of advice I offered was for her to relax and be herself.” She placed her hand on my shoulder, but it had the opposite effect on me as I stiffened.

If she noticed, she didn’t let on as she continued. “So, I need you all to wish our girl, Shorty, here good luck—not that she needs it.” With one more smoldering look into the camera, she ended the recording. “You did a good job, but you need to breathe.” She squeezed my arm, and I loosened a little.

“I’m really nervous.”

“No shit? You had me fooled,” she joked, and I cracked a smile. “Everything is going great. Now, all that’s left is popping the question.” She squared my shoulders and pulled me to standing. “You got this. Ember would be an idiot not to see how amazing you are.” Her fingers gently brushed my skin as she tucked a loose strand of hair behind my ear, sending a shiver down my body. Her touch lingered, and her eyes locked on mine.

It felt like something passed between us for a second, but just as quickly as it started, it vanished.

“All right, go get your girl.” She stepped toward the tripod and began putting it away. “I’ll stand to the side, taping, but I promise not to interfere or be in a location where you can see me. Is that okay?”

It was weird how quickly she moved from one thing to the next. Sometimes, she was on to something else before my brain processed what had happened, but I was trying to keep up.

“Yeah. But if she laughs at me, do you promise not to air that?” Rejection was bad enough, but humiliation would be worse.

“If she laughs at you, I’ll bitch slap her,” she deadpanned, and I smiled at how protective she was.

“Well, you don’t need to get an assault charge over it,” I quipped, and she shrugged.

“You’re probably right, but I never want to see you get your feelings hurt—especially not by…” Her words dropped off, and she put her bag over her shoulder. “I’m going to put this in my car, and I’ll be inside. Why don’t you go ahead of me so you won’t be as aware of the camera?”

I nodded and moved toward the door. This was it—the make-or-break moment. I should have been excited, anxious, scared, or something. But as I walked inside, all I could feel was numb. Was that a sign?

Chapter 21

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