Page 86 of Lucky Girl (Dear Rockstar 2)

“So you… what? Want money?” I could barely get that last word out.

“It’s an investment,” Ben explained. “You’d get your money back. Plus more.”

“Well it’s not my money. You know that.” I picked up the folder but I didn’t open it. “I can ask Dale about it.”

I had no intention of doing any such thing. But I didn’t tell him that.

“Listen, I have to get to the shop,” I said, standing and slinging my purse over my shoulder. “I have some drawings to drop off.”

“Okay sure.” Ben stood too. “Listen, I can come by and talk to Dale about it. Explain it better. You can even come with me to work and see how the prototype works. He’s got a brilliant marketing plan. It will be a household name inside a year, a guarantee it.”

“Okay.” It wasn’t okay. Nothing was okay. This man, who claimed to be my father—now I was doubting everything he’d told me—didn’t find me because he wanted to meet his daughter. He saw “rock star” and thought “investment money.”

Dale was right.

Fuck.

Ben didn’t say anything as I started to walk away.

I turned back and asked, “What’s this thing called?”

“He wants to call it Americans Online,” Ben replied. “I think we should think more globally, but I’m not the guy in charge.”

“Stupid name.” I made a face. “See you later.”

I managed to make it all the way to work. I even got the drawings from my case in the back seat and turned them in to Dave without too much trouble. It was in the print shop parking lot it hit me like a two-by-four in the gut. I didn’t make it back to my car. I sobbed and sobbed, collapsed against the side of the building, hugging my knees.

“Sara?” Josh. I looked up, blinking at him through prisms. The early morning sun was bright and it was already warm. It was going to be a scorcher. “Sara, are you okay?”

“Fine,” I lied, wiping away tears and snot and make-up with the tail end of my t-shirt. “Don’t worry, I’m fine.”

“Hey come on.” He put his back against the wall and sank down next to me. “You can tell me. Wow, what happened to your eye?”

“Dale punched me in the face.” I gave a little laugh. “And that’s been the best part of my day so far.”

“He what?” His muscles tensed.

“It was an accident.” I sniffed, wiping my face again, this time with my hands. “He was trying to hit his sister.”

“What?” Josh kept asking that, like he couldn’t quite believe what I was saying.

“And Ben… the guy who got in touch when he saw me in the paper? He said he was my father. And I… I believed him.”

I swallowed past the lump in my throat.

“And all he really wants is money.” I felt the sobs rising again and couldn’t stop them. “What’s wrong with me, Josh?”

He shook his head, looking as confused as I felt.

“Why doesn’t anyone ever want me? For me? What’s wrong with me?”

“Oh Sara.” He put his arm over my shoulder and I leaned into him, letting him comfort me. “There’s nothing wrong with you. Nothing. I promise.”

“I wish I could believe you.”

“What would convince you?” I felt his hand stroking my hair, my shoulder. “You’re beautiful. You’re smart. You’re an amazing artist. You’re beautiful.”

“You said the last one twice.” I looked up at him, smiling.

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