Page 56 of Playing Hard to Hate
“Hungry?” I asked, opening the passenger door for her.
“Just tired.”
“If you change your mind, I have a burned bagel just for you.” I tried to lighten the mood without coming off as too pushy given our last conversation.
“You’re hilarious. When’s the comedy tour?” she joked.
“You gotta eat,” I reminded her, but she sighed and yawned.
“Room service, Fin. Good ole room service.”
I closed the door and rounded the car, checking my phone for the directions. It was then I spotted the flash of a camera and knew our secretive spot had been leaked.
Immediately, I got into the car and called Nick.
“We have a problem.” I turned the car on and put it into gear, easing off the sand onto the asphalt road.
Tatum sat up and looked at me in panic.
“I’ve been dealing with it for an hour already. You must have been followed. I’ve got pictures of you picking her up this morning, and now at the shoot. Most of them are blurry, but it’s obvious it’s her.”
“Shut it down, Nick. Fucking shut it down.”
“Keep your head low, and I’ll do what I do best. And for the love of God, stop being seen with this girl.” He ended the call, and I turned to Tatum, who looked terrified.
“Paps found us, and there’s already shit circling on the web.”
“Oh. Well, that’s not too bad, right?”
“I don’t want them following you around. You’ve got enough shit to deal with. When we get to the hotel, keep your eyes low, and wear this.” I pulled the car over, found one of my black hats in the back seat, and put it on her head.
“This is crazy, Fin. We have the other shoot in a few weeks. This is going to be a nightmare. It’s going to ruin the launch of the line, and then we won’t get paid. We won’t get paid, and I need this money.” Her voice wobbled, and I knew the tears were coming.
“Try not to worry. Any publicity is good publicity as long as we have nothing to hide. After all, we’re only friends, remember. My agent is doing his best to calm this whole shitstorm down. You have to trust me on this. Just keep those pretty eyes down onthe ground, walk straight into the hotel, and I’ll deal with the rest.”
“Okay.”
“Uh no.You must be fucking kidding me!” Tatum screamed as I walked into the lobby where she was arguing with the male hotel receptionist. “I need my own room!”
“What’s going on? You’re creating a scene,” I grunted under my breath. So much for lying low. This woman didn’t listen to a goddamn word out of my mouth.
“Well, Griffin, not only do they not have two rooms for us apparently—something about losing power in half the building and shutting those rooms down for service—they’re giving me some bullshit about it being a health concern. Apparently the only other room in the hotel they can put us in is a deluxe suite with one queen bed.”
Lowering my voice to a barely comprehensible whisper, I said, “And the problem? We’ve shared a bed before.” I pointed out, not really seeing the problem here because now I’d get even more alone time with her. I needed to diffuse this situation quickly. There could be paparazzi hiding all around, all ready to exploit us for a quick buck.
“We were five!” she screamed, turning a few heads.
Knowing Tatum would continue on her tangent if I stayed on the defensive, I knew the only option to keep my cover from being blown was to blindside Tate and go on the offensive. “We’ll take the room if you cover all the charges for room service,” I told the young guy behind the counter who was freaking out at Tatum’shysteria.
“Sir, we can’t do that.”
“Do you know who I am? I’m sure you can make an exception and tell everyone I stayed here after I left.”
“Oh, here we go. I’m a celebrity. Bow down to me,” Tate grumbled.
“Sorry, sir. Not sure who you are.”
“Oh, this is funny. Guess it doesn’t work when you’re just a rookie.” Tate giggled.She was annoying the fuck out of me. As per fucking usual.
