Page 23 of Off Script

Slowly, Jada sat back down. “You want me to make him look good. How? And what would that supposedly do for me?”

“Tristan may be the one who’s getting slammed in the press, but Jada, you’re not coming up smelling like roses, either, dear.”

“Excuse me?!” Jada said with an offended gasp.

Tristan chortled. “And you say,I’mthe one who’s not helping.”

Doug was obviously flustered but went on, attempting to smooth things out. “What I mean is, right now, you’re seen as this helpless victim. That might seem sympathetic at first, but in the end, you’ll come off as someone who can’t stand up for herself. A semidecent actress who falls short by letting herself get publicly disgraced.”

“That’s not—I don’t . . .” Jada had never thought of it in that light. Sure, she knew she would be interpreted as the injured party—but not as some chump. A weenie who wouldn’t be taken seriously. But then again, she hadn’t done a deep dive into the social media comments, just the hashtags. Now that she thought about it, there were most likely hundreds of internet trolls and incels making jokes and claiming she must have done something to deserve getting berated by Tristan. And on the other side, tons of supposed feminists admonishing her for her passive attitude and saying she should have taken Tristan down.

Was Doug right? If she didn’t at least release an official statement or say something, this could be bad for her image too.

“But here’s the bright side!” Doug added cheerfully in response to her shock. “I think there’s a way that you and Tristan can mend fences and spin this viral horror show into a media goldmine.”

“How?” Jada prodded as Doug utilized a long silence to draw out the suspense.

“It comes down to a blend of careful strategy and your wonderful acting abilities.”

“And whether or not you believe the logic of trope-filled rom-coms works in real life,” Tristan remarked offhandedly, but Doug ignored him, his eyes alight with reassuring promise.

“Basically, I can send out a press release stating that this video is a misunderstanding. You two were rehearsing a scene from the movie or something. But after that, I think a clever move for you both would be to pretend there’s a different type of tension beneath the surface.”

Jada stiffened as she picked up on Tristan’s hint about rom-com logic.

“Oh, hell no!” she said, shaking her head vehemently. “I’m not going to pretend like everything’s okay and I’m actually dating this fool!”

“It would only be for a little while, until things have smoothed out with the film. I’ll even sweeten the pot. You stick with Tristan during this time, and I know we can help you go places.”

The end of Doug’s ridiculous pitch left Jada stunned. The man wanted her—her—to date that insufferable manwhore under the guise of allegedly making them both look better. What they really wanted was to use her to alleviate the allegations surrounding Tristan. On top of that, the idea that Tristan could help her career take off if they were together was offensive.

“I’m doing fine on my own. I get jobs. I’m good at what I do. And—”

“Youaregood, Jada.” Tristan interrupted her. He sounded genuine, and with his understanding eyes, he reminded her of predebacle, Twitter-friendly Tristan.

“What? You really think so?” Jada said, the momentary sincerity swaying her.

“Yes. Dead serious . . . but with my help, we’ll make you ten times better.” Tristan winked at her.

Of course, not-douchey Tristan only lasts for ten seconds,Jada reminded herself. But still curious, she asked more questions—although she instantly regretted them.

“What would I have to do?”

“We’d release a few things in the press and social media,” Doug said. “You’d also go on a couple of outings so the paparazzi could see you together.”

“How long would we do this?”

“Let’s leave it open. When you start seeing results, we’ll decide how far this should go.”

Jada deliberated, wringing her hands in her lap. It would be insane to do this. There was no guarantee that Tristan would do anything concrete to help her. They could just be stringing her along. At the same time, could she afford to pass up the chance he was offering? Dating Tristan would get her that extra star power. In this town, it was all about who you knew—or who you were sleeping with. What actress didn’t want to make it big? As shady as it seemed, using Tristan as a leg up might be her shot. A chance to play the lead in something meaningful and shine on center stage. It would beherturn to be on movie posters instead of a tiny credit line at the bottom. At the end of the day, if Tristan was willing to use her for damage control, she shouldn’t feel bad for using him for something even more important.

“Okay,” she blurted. The words were set free before she could second guess things or take them back.

“Wonderful! We can have a press release out this afternoon. Do we have a deal?” Doug asked.

“A deal with the devil,” Jada said dryly.

“Sticks and stones, babe. Sticks and stones,” Tristan said.

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