Page 21 of Enthrall
“Well that’s hopeful,” she said. “Want help with the letter?”
“American’s Top Artist is on tonight. Don’t want to ruin your evening.”
“I’ll record it.” She jumped up and went for her remote.
A few clicks of the buttons later and she’d recorded her show. Bailey grabbed a notebook from her bookshelf and sat back down.
“How does this sound?” I began, gesturing for her to write. “Dear Mr. Booth.”
“Too formal. Call him Richard. People respond to their own names.”
“Yes, good. Richard—” I stood up and faced Bailey. “I may not have the experience you believe you need.” I shook my head. “I need.” I motioned to erase that. “What I do have is honesty. I’m able to put people at ease--”
“That’s good.” Bailey scribbled away.
“Your clients need to feel comfortable. Safe. I can do that.” I took a swig of wine and placed my glass back on the table.
“One more sip and you’re staying,” she said.
“I’ll stay.”
“I’ll get you a blanket and pillow.”
“Thank you.” I raised my hands to gesture my next thought.
A key turned in the lock and Tara came in. Despite being drenched in sweat she still looked fresh. Her tall, lithe body appeared ridiculously fit in her workout gear.
Tara’s Indian mother, Mrs. Razor, was a talented violinist who’d been discovered in Calcutta by her father, a famous conductor. He’d married her and brought her back to live with him in L.A. Tara had inherited her mother’s exotic complexion and her father’s forthrightness; a captivating mixture of east meets west.
Bailey had fallen head over heels with Tara on their first date. It really did seem mutual. That’s why all this talk of Australia was a surprise. Tara hadn’t come out to her parents yet. A sore point between her and Bailey.
“Hey babe.” Bailey greeted her.
“Hi.” Tara dropped her workout gear by the door and came over to kiss Bailey’s cheek. “I can’t wait to hear all about your job, Mia. How are the Mistresses? Isn’t Richard dreamy?”
“Hey,” Bailey chastised her.
“As if.” Tara rolled her eyes. “Well?”
“They kind of fired me,” I said.
Her face fell and she sunk to the floor in front of us and crossed her legs.
“She misspelled a word in a letter.” Bailey told her.
“Weird. Did it change the nature of the letter?” said Tara.
“No. Anyway, Cameron told me he’d have a word with him,” I said. “He thinks he can change Richard’s mind.”
There was no way I’d tell either of them about the Venus balls and Richard hinting at this as the real grounds for firing me. This whole thing felt too embarrassing as it was.
Tara held Bailey’s gaze. “I’ll grab my laptop and we’ll take a look on Craigslist.”
Bailey held up the notebook. “She’s got a second chance. She has to come up with a good reason why they should rehire her.” She gestured to the kitchen. “Pour yourself a glass and help us out.”
“I need to re-hydrate.” Tara turned to face me. “Richard’s an old soul. He’s also stubborn. I hate to tell you this but he’s not likely to change his mind.”
I felt sick, though despite this I reached for my glass and gulped it.
