Page 76 of Catch Me
“When someone doesn’t know how to take no for an answer.”
She cracks a small grin. “You were always a tough nut to crack.”
“I’m not that difficult to read,” I reply. “I say what it is I mean.”
“That’s what I’m talking about,” she replies as if I just proved her point. “You know damn well most people in this townaren’t anything like that. We’re constantly walking a tightrope, deciphering what someone says versus what they actually mean.
“One wrong move and you step on a landmine. Before you know it, you’ve detonated a bomb on your entire career.”
Her gaze sinks to the table, and it’s the first time I get the sense she’s letting her guard down. Just slightly.
Amber looks back at me.
“That’s not you, though,” she says. “Even when it may have gotten you into trouble or thrown a wrench into your career opportunities, you’ve always said exactly what you’re thinking. How do you do that? Don’t you fear being blacklisted?”
Amber, like so many others, is riddled with the self-doubt that’s brought on by the uncertainties of this industry.
The upside of what we do is amazing. Yes, it can come with significant financial reward, fame, and prestige, but the downside can be fucking relentless.
“I don’t,” I admit.
Her eyes widen, as if she wasn’t expecting that answer.
“My career is mine to make or break,” I tell her honestly. “If it came down to it, I would act in local community centers if that’s the only place I could get work. My job is between me and the role I’m playing, not anyone else.
“My duty is to live by the principles my family raised me with. That is to whom I owe my success. Fuck everyone else.”
Shock registers on her face, which gives way to laughter.
Our waiter brings out our plates while Amber is busy dabbing at her eyes to stem the tears from her laughter.
“You do know that’s an extremely privileged approach to take, right?” she asks while covering her lap with the cloth napkin.
“I’m aware,” I answer without a hint of shame or guilt. I’ll be the first one to admit that my perspective is born out of privilege. I don’t need the income I make from my career to survive.
Despite our relationship, and having worked closely with one another, Amber knows some but not the full extent of my family’s reach. Mostly because she doesn’t know my real last name nor has she met my family for an extended amount of time.
“Well, I guess I have my answer,” she says, sighing.
I watch as she pushes the salad around her plate.
“You had your answer before I sat down at this table.” I take a bite of my steak, enjoying the taste.
Laughter from across the room reaches my ears, grating on my nerves. I glance past Amber’s shoulders, and my body goes stiff when I see the man laughing like a clown.
Dennis James.
That motherfucker from YouTube is sitting in the same restaurant as me. All I can think of is the cackling he did in that video, making fun of Ivy. I know my Uncle Brutus’ security team has been handling Dennis James behind the scenes since I called him a few weeks ago.
“Andreas? Did you hear me?”
I cut my attention back to Amber. “What did you say?”
Her eyebrows perk up. “The producers finally cut a deal withShowMore.It’ll run for three years, and we’ll each get a cut,” she says, referring to our former teen drama.
ShowMoreis the leading streaming service in the world right now. The creator of the show, Alan Guiles, has been in discussions for close to a year attempting to score a deal with them. The holdout was over residuals.
“We’ll receive ongoing residuals?” I ask for clarification.
