Chapter 35
Chapter 35
“It’s still about that casting couch crap,” Wyatt said, scrolling through his phone and reading to Katherine. “Word is she accidentally walked in on some big–name actress hooking up with a married director.
“Since then, she’s been blacklisted. And on top of that, the director had his eye on her, wanted her to be his mistress.”
But with Jasmine’s temper, there was no way she’d agree.
After she got kicked out of Korita’s company, every production crew in town shut its doors to her. There was even a stretch where she couldn’t land a single extra role and had to survive on random gigs.
Katherine sighed, “Poor girl. What a rough life she had.”
Wyatt looked just as sympathetic.
Katherine’s face darkened a little, her hand absentmindedly resting on her stomach. She smiled, “Don’t worry. She’s meant to make it big, and no one can stop that.”
They kept waiting for over an hour until the sky was turning dark.
Wyatt glanced at his phone and saw two messages from Derrick, both telling him to remind Katherine about the time.
“Mrs. Graham, I don’t think we can make it today. How about we come back tomorrow?” Wyatt suggested.
Katherine caught the movement of him putting his phone away. She insisted, “We said we’d wait for her. Leaving halfway through? That’s improper.”
Her gaze shifted to a car parked across from them, its driver’s side window rolled down, revealing half a face.
“How long has that car been there?” she asked.
M
Wyatt followed her line of sight. “Probably showed up right after we did. Why?”
Katherine sneered, “Come on, let’s take a lap around the lot and come back.”
Wyatt didn’t get what she was playing at, but he followed orders anyway.
The studio lot was huge, and with several crews clocking out for the day, traffic was slow. By the time they circled back, the car was gone.
“Alright, park here and keep waiting,” Katherine said.
Wyatt still didn’t get it. However, not five minutes later, Jasmine walked out of the lot in her own clothes.
“Well, just perfect timing,” Katherine said with a smile.
Wyatt suddenly understood what was happening. That car just now was keeping tabs on them.
“Whoever was in that car didn’t want her to sign with anyone, huh?” he said.
It wasn’t the first time Wyatt had seen that kind of shady move–he just hadn’t put it together earlier.
Wyatt gave Katherine another long look, thinking, ‘Didn’t think someone who seems this sweet could think three steps ahead like that.
Katherine felt his gaze but didn’t explain. She mused, ‘He’ll see plenty more sides of me later–ones that will surprise him even more.”
Jasmine’s face was stormy when she came out. Her naturally cool features pulled tight, making her look even more unapproachable. Yet in fact, she was just exhausted.
The leading actress in this drama was the same star she’d once caught with that director.
When Jasmine went back earlier, that woman leaned close to her and whispered, “Trying to get signed? Dream on it. You think some big–shot boss is gonna wait around for you forever?”
It wasn’t the first time Jasmine had heard something like that, and she had known then and there that this contract was probably dead in
the water.
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Chapter 35
She’d never even seen the contract yet, but she knew that if someone just gave her a shot–no matter the terms–she’d take it in a heartbeat.
But like that woman said, busy big shots wouldn’t waste their time waiting for a nobody like her.
Jasmine’s chest felt heavy with disappointment. She didn’t even bother looking up until a familiar voice called out from a short distance away. “Jasmine, over here.”
Katherine waved at her, grinning like she’d just spotted an old friend.
Jasmine’s head snapped up, her eyes widening bit by bit. Even her usually guarded face couldn’t hide the spark of life in that moment. “You guys really didn’t leave?” Jasmine blurted out, then caught herself. “Sorry, I made you waste so much time.” Katherine waved it off. “No big deal. You haven’t eaten yet, right? Let’s grab some food and talk.”
They came to a small restaurant near the studio. Katherine ordered a few dishes, then slid a contract across the table.
She said, “Here, take a look. This is just the basic version. If you’ve got any requests, speak up anytime.”
To Jasmine, the thin stack of paper in her hands felt heavy as a brick.
She’d had plenty of companies offer her a deal before, but every time she finally thought it through and decided to say yes, she’d either get blocked or straight–up told she wasn’t a fit.
At first, she didn’t understand why–until she learned it was just more of those dirty backstage games.
Jasmine didn’t open the contract right away. She scanned the cover, which said Riverbend Media. She’d never heard of it before.
During a break on set, she’d googled it out of curiosity–it was barely two weeks old.
Jasmine knew a new company might not know all the unspoken rules in the industry. Finally, she set the papers down and said, “There’s something I should tell you first.”
Katherine leaned on her
giving her a playful wink. “Yup.”
SRESEA
–
Jasmine summed it up simply, then said, “I’ve got people coming after me right now. A lot of companies won’t touch me because they don’t wanna offend them. If you sign me, you might get dragged into it too.”
Katherine nodded, completely unfazed. “I get it. We already looked into all that.”
“Then why would you still…” Jasmine trailed off, confused. She was certain Riverbend Media was just a small, new company. She wasn’t naive enough to connect it to Riverbend Group.
Katherine smiled, “Don’t worry. If we’re signing you knowing the risks, it means we’re not afraid of any threats. So, ready to actually read the contract now?”
Jasmine nodded and carefully went through it, line by line. She’d taken a hit by another company before, so she wasn’t about to let it happen again.
Just then, Katherine’s phone buzzed, the name on the screen making her sigh. She knew Derrick was probably calling to hurry her home.
Katherine suggested, “How about this? Take the contract with you, have a lawyer look it over, and call me if you’re good with it, okay?” Jasmine hesitated, then glanced outside at the pitch–black sky. “Alright. Sorry again for today.”
“Forget it.” Katherine waved her off. “You’re the one getting screwed. Where do you live? We can give you a ride.”
Jasmine shook her head. “Thanks, but I’m just at the motel across the street. I can just walk home.”
the mote
Katherine glanced over and found it wasn’t far. “Alright, then. We’ll leave now. Think it over and call me. You’ve got my card.” Jasmine saw them out, and Katherine made sure to pay the bill before leaving.
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Compter 39
Once they got in the car, Katherine immediately called Derrick back. “Hey, I’m on my way home. Are you home now?”
She lowered her voice, hand cupped over the phone. Wyatt caught the tone, glanced up at her through the rearview mirror, then quietly raised the privacy divider. He didn’t want to hear anything he shouldn’t know.
On the other end, Derrick said nothing at first–just breathed, slow and heavy, like he was holding something back.
Katherine’s heart skipped a beat. She asked, “Derrick, what’s wrong? Are you feeling okay?”
Right then, Derrick was sitting on the living room couch, watching the TV screen where his own face stared back at him, dark and unreadable. It took him a long breath to shake it off.
When he finally spoke again, his tone was softer. “I’m fine. Just be careful on the road. Tell Wyatt to drive slower.”
Katherine looked out at the traffic. At this speed, any slower speed, and the cars behind them would start honking.
But she still agreed. “Mm–hm. Got it.”
She added, “You wanna hang up now, or keep talking?”
rick was quiet for a beat and replied, “Don’t hang up.”
Derrick
“Okay,” she replied
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