Page 1 of Lady and the Camp
Chapter 1
Hudson
Hudson,WeHaveaProblem
Give it up for the most basic click-bait headline of all time. Talk about phoning it in. If a gal’s entire reputation had to go down in flames, could the media at least attempt some creativity?
Because I was that gal, that Hudson whose collective years of building a social media presence was about to be scorched to cinders.
“Hudson, did you hear me?” the aggressively agitated voice on the other end of the line prompted. “This is not great news.”
Of course losing a golden opportunity brand ambassadorship with an up-and-coming organic beauty company wasn’t great news. Of course having my supposed sure thing, my guaranteed airlift to the next level—next level! they’d said—completely fall apart, exponentially magnified on a world stage, was the total and complete opposite ofgreat news.
“Listen, we both know I had no idea the feds would raid his offices and beach house,” I shot back to my talent manager. “He’s Kristoff freaking Krom, the self-proclaimedmost chill billionaire innovatorin the world. Why would I have seen through his lies if the rest of the world couldn’t?”
“Stop being cute,” my manager said, which was super insulting on several levels. Firstly, because I excelled at the business of cute. I’d made cute my literal brand. Secondly, none ofthiswas cute, and he knew it. “Because he’s your boyfriend.”
“Ex. Very, very ex-boyfriend.”
He snorted. “Huh. Tell that to the judge.”
Okay, so my now ex-boyfriend faced serious charges for embezzlement and had implicated me as an accomplice. That was bad. Very, very bad. I knew I wasn’t guilty, but Kristoff had a lot of clout on social media with his bro brigade—his legions of fans who adored every flashy move he made and fawned over his cutting edge views on investments.
Of which I had been, apparently. An investment. He’d told me as much. He’d chosen me, the online influencer known as the Beauty Butterfly, as the new spokesperson for Sheek Cosmetics, a company he’d recently bought. A departure from his usual digital currency and tech company investments.
My manager continued. “I don’t think our relationship is working.”
I choked and spit my cold-pressed kombucha outward, sending scattershot spray against my light ring and filming phone behind it. “You’rebreaking up with me? Can you even do that?”
“This is a business partnership. And you, Hudson, no longer have a business.”
“I have Beauty Butterfly. Those aremyfollowers.Mybrand.”
“You haven’t posted in three days.”
Didn’t I know it. “I can’t talk about the case publicly. Besides, it’s been a rough few days—”
“No content means no brand. The Krom case is what the public cares about. They don’t care about your face masks.”
Well, wasn’t that a kick to the veneers. Not that I had them, but I had considered it once the check cleared from this deal.
Only there wouldn’t be a deal. Certainly no check. Not even a wad of cash in small unmarked bills. Nothing. That’s what I was looking at. A whole lot of no money and a whole lot of negative attention.
“Isn’t there a saying—all press is good press, even if it’s bad?” That definitely worked in some celebrities’ favor. Bad presscreatedcareers.
My manager grumbled. “His bros are coming for me. The comments online—they’re horrible. These people are scary. Anyone connected to Krom that they don’t like, they aim to make them suffer. I’m out, Hudson. I’m out.”
The cold stab of reality hit deep. Despite the online following I’d built, my name now connected to Kristoff Krom in a negative way.
You had a shot, brushing shoulders with a billionaire, but now that’s over. And so are you.
Grabbing a tissue, I wiped my mouth, thankful I wasn’t on video. My stomach tilted. And not from the kombucha. My career was headed into full free-fall before it barely left the ground. No manager to manage me couldn’t be a good sign.
After ending the call with my manager that thusly ended our partnership, Agent Mulder flashed on my phone’s screen. Not the actual Agent Mulder since he was obviously fictional. Adding the fake name to my phone provided a buffer between reality and fiction I found rather handy at the moment.
I squeezed my eyes shut and prepared for impact. I accepted the call. “Hello?”
“Hudson Hawley?”
