Page 30 of Love on the Byline

“Ouch.”

“Tell me about it. This is what we get for not contractingbeyond the pilot phase. Anyway, I need you.”

“You want Ollie to write for you?”

“It wouldn’t be the first time.”

Blake turned to him, delight and surprise in her expression.“You’ve been holding out on me.”

“Not really.” The weather was perfect, with a clear sky anda warm summer breeze, and they grabbed a table under one of the canopies.

“I would honestly sell an organ if Ollie would agree to comework for me,” Lorna said. “You’re wasting your talent. Not that you aren’t thebest EA I’ve ever seen—Bran’s lucky to have you—but you could do so much more.”

“I believe I’ve told you the same thing,” Blake said,looking at him as if seeing him in a new light.

“See? Listen to your friend.” Lorna smiled as she lookedback and forth between them. “Are you an actress?”

“God, no!” Blake exclaimed before catching herself. “Notthat it isn’t...an admirable profession.”

He snorted before he could stop himself.

She ignored him as she continued. “I’m a journalist.”

Lorna’s brows rose. “Huhn. I would never have pegged you fora reporter.”

“She’s doing a piece on Bran.”

“Oh! Variety? Esquire?”

“Uh...no.” Blake’s lips pressed into a thin line.

He hated that she felt shame over her place of employment. Jobswere hard to come by, especially in her field. While the L.A. Gazette wouldn’thave been his first choice for her either, he was glad to see her forging herown path.

“What’s the new scene about?” he asked, hoping to steer theconversation away from Blake. “I need some context.”

Lorna pulled up the script, swiping through the pages.“Right, remember the moment where Aaliyah tells Chris about the hidden passage?Tim wants a flashback of her as a child getting lost in the walls of thehouse.”

“Is this a source of trauma for her?”

“Yes.”

“What kind of show is this?” Blake asked.

“Sort of an Agatha Christie whodunit anthology,” Lornaexplained. “Each episode will be told from the perspective of a differentcharacter.”

“How interesting!” She seemed genuinely curious. Ollie was inordinatelypleased by that.

“How old is Aaliyah when she gets lost?” she asked.

“Tim wasn’t specific, but if we go by the timeline, shewould have been around nine or ten.”

“I have some ideas,” he said.

Lorna smiled. “I knew you would.”

“When do you need it?” At the look on her face, he laughedsoftly. “Yesterday. Got it.”

Swiping something on her tablet, Lorna stood. “I sent thespecs to you and the updated script. Eat. Write. Be the genius that you are.”

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