Page 55 of Happy Trails & Honey Pots

Knots twisted in my stomach. I was sure she was going to have an opinion on why that was the wrong thing to do.

“Oh, that sounds fun. If anyone should play your dad, it should be you.”

I did a double take, sure that this person who had just spoken couldn’t be the woman who raised me. Sure enough, it was the same brunette-haired woman with a bob cut, almond-shaped brown eyes, and a snub nose. AJ sometimes said that she looked like Daisy. My mother did not find it amusing. I thought it was an insult to Daisy.

“And Kendall is playing Mom when she was young.”

My mother’s eyebrows would have risen if it wasn’t for all the Botox she’d gotten. These days it was difficult to decipher her emotions. Her face was permanently frozen.

“Oh, I see. You are going to have a role in the movie?”

“No. I’m not. But, yes, there’s a character of me in the movie.”

“I didn’t realizeyoufought in Afghanistan.”

“Oh, no, she didn’t, Grandma,” AJ explained naively, thinking my mother was actually confused. “But she was married to Dad, so she’s a big part of Dad’s story.”

“Oh, of course.” My mother smiled at AJ. “My mistake.”

My phone buzzed in my pocket, and I pulled it out of my back pocket.

“What have I told you about phones at the dinner table?” my mother asked rhetorically.

“I told you, I’m on call tonight,” I reminded her.

I got up and walked out to the porch. It wasn’t the hospital. I didn’t recognize the number, but I would do anything to get out of even one minute of the dinner.

After I closed the front door behind me, I answered, “Hello.”

“Hi, I’m calling for Zoe James.”

“This is Zoe.”

“Hi, Zoe, I’m Rachel Cobbs. I am going to be playing you in Fallen Hero.”

“Hi Rachel. Yes, Miles told me that you might be reaching out.”

“I was wondering if you might have some time next week before we start shooting to sit down and talk with me? I won’t take up too much of your time. I just have a few questions that I’d love to have some insight on.”

“Sure, no problem.”

We worked out a time, and she also asked if I might have some photos of myself and Austin around the ages that she would be playing, just like Kendall had. She thanked me, and wegot off the call. Before going back into the lion’s den, I took a deep cleansing breath. I reminded myself that my mother only had the power that I gave her. Nothing she said mattered. The only thing that mattered was AJ. He was my why.

With that mindset, I opened the door and walked back in.

“Was it your work?”

“No. It wasn’t.”

“Who was so important that you forgot your manners and rudely interrupted dinner?”

“It was the actress that is going to be playing me, Rachel Cobbs.”

AJ’s eyes practically popped out of his head, and he dropped his knife on his plate. “Rachel Cobbs?”

“Yeah, do you know her?” I asked. I’d never heard of her before.

“She’s Jenna on Vampire High. That’s Kendall’s favorite show! I have to go call her.”

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