Page 16 of The Casting Couch

I stared at them both, and for the first time since walking through the front door, I realized something critical.

They weren’t showing me the door.

Not yet.

Liam stood, circling around me slowly, looking me up and down like he was inspecting a used car he wasn’t sure he could afford.

I squirmed under the attention, wishing I’d worn literally anything other than my faded jeans and stretched-out hoodie.

After a moment, Liam picked up the desk phone, pressed a button, and said, “Hey Lola?Can you come to my office for a sec?”

The moment he hung up, a fresh wave of panic hit me.“Wait… who’s Lola?Should I be worried?Is this the part where you call security and have me tased?Because, full disclosure, I’m not great with…”

Before I could finish, the door opened and in she swept.

Lola.

Blonde bun piled high like a soft-serve cone, neon-pink lipstick that could stop traffic, gold hoops big enough to double as hula hoops, and a lime-green kimono with embroidered flamingos.Her perfume hit me like a citrusy punch to the face.Sharp, sweet, and absolutely unapologetic.

“Well, well, well,” she purred, giving me a once-over like I was a steak on special at Sizzler.“Who’s the sad little stray?”

“Bradley,” Liam said.“An old friend.We’re… considering giving him work.”

Her painted-on brows lifted.“Mmm.What’s he do?More importantly, what will he look like when I’m done with him?”

Jack laughed.“That’s what we want to know.”

Lola sauntered toward me, clicking her way across the room in four-inch wedges.She planted herself in front of me and ran her long, manicured fingers through my hair, her rings cold against my scalp.

I tensed immediately.“Uh, hey, what are you…”

“Quiet, sugar,” she crooned, fluffing the front of my hair like she was trying to read my aura through my split ends.“I’m working.”

Her fingers moved with shocking gentleness now, tilting my chin up, turning my face left then right like she was mentally carving me into marble.

Then she stepped back, placed both hands on her hips, and announced: “Oh hell yes.”

I blinked.“Wait… really?”

She snapped her gum with a grin.“Oh honey, with a few hours in my Sanctuary of Beauty and a little moisturizer, you’ll be an absolute stud.Trust Mama Lola.”I stared after her as she strutted out, still half-convinced I was trapped in some bizarre dream.

I cleared my throat and rubbed the back of my neck.“I mean… that’s great and all, but… I really can’t act.”My voice cracked on the word act, like even saying it was a lie.“And I’m… uh… not super comfortable with the whole getting-naked-in-front-of-a-camera thing.”

Liam walked over to his desk, flipped open his laptop, and started typing.His fingers flew across the keyboard like he was answering an urgent email.Jack stood nearby, arms crossed, one eyebrow lifted like he was in on some inside joke I was about to hate.

A second later, Liam turned the laptop toward me with a small, almost apologetic smile.

“Then you might wanna get over that,” he said.

I leaned forward, curious, then froze.

My entire body went rigid.

On the screen… was them.

Liam and Jack.

Together.

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