“I’m regretting it already.” She says it, but she’s smiling.
I smile back. “I’m going to loop Noah in. I want to tell him what’s going on and see if he has any advice for us. If it was up to me, I’d call off the entireMEMproduction and start dating you properly, but I don’t know if that’s an option. Hold on a sec.”
Mallory nods, and I tap over to Noah’s contact, inviting him to our video call.
He answers a moment later. “Holland, Mallory, what’s up?”
I outline the developments in our relationship. Mal’s face is bright red the entire time, and it’s adorable and hilarious.
Noah listens, and then he sighs. “This complicates things. In fact”—he glances around—“just so I can have plausible deniability here, let’s go ahead and say that you butt-dialed me, and I happened to hear you both talking about how you having feelings for each other.”
“Aww, feelings. Hear that, Mallory?” I cut in.
“My only feeling right now where you’re concerned is annoyed.” She points at me…or at least I think she’s pointing at me. Tough to tell through the screen of the phone. Gosh, I want to go to the inn and be close to her.
“Let Noah finish,” Mallory scolds me.
“Yeah, Holland, let me finish,” Noah parrots. “Dang, I’m already loving this entire dynamic. You two have always had sparks. This is going to be epic.”
“It’s just a date,” Mallory says.
That’s what she thinks. But she’s giving me a chance, and I’m going to make the most of it. I table the thought and listen as Noah explains how, under theMost Eligible Misterrules, I haveto finish out filming or be fined by the network for breaking my contract.
“It’s a hefty sum. Now, other leads have done it, and it’s up to you if you want to try to negotiate with the network. But…” He shrugs.
“But what?” Mallory asks.
Noah shifts his jaw. “If I were to give you advice on this butt-dial, or if you were able to read my mind here, I guess, what I’d tell you is to go on with the show. Date each other when you have the chance under the constraints ofMEM, and bide your time. If all goes well, and Holland, quote-unquote,picksyou in the end, then you can continue dating each other for real, and everyone is happy. If something changes about how either one of you feels, then Holland can eliminate you and still finish out the show, thus saving him a ton of money and headaches.”
“I don’t like the thought of stringing anyone else along,” I argue. “Mallory is the only person here I have any feelings for.”
“That’s good.” Noah nods. “That’s fair. But how is it any different now than it was two days ago when all the other women were here, you know? I’d say, keep doing what you’re doing. There’s not that many filming days left, and then you’ll be free of it, and everyone wins—you both and the network, and the millions of adoring fans who get to see your love story unfold.”
“Gag me,” Mallory mutters.
I laugh out loud. “Oh, come on, Mal. We can be cute.”
“Jury’s out,” she says.
“I’ll win you over.” I wink.
“On that note, I’m going to let you two love birds go.” Noah glances down. “Aren’t you supposed to be at Daisy’s?”
“I’m outside. Just wanted to touch base with you first.”
“This call never happened. I don’t want anyone to know I know about your feelings or the fact that you two are communicating off camera. Seriously, that’s a whole other reason to keep going with filming.” Noah looks serious. “You need to make it looklike your relationship developed when production is around…not during practices or on clandestine phone calls.”
Mallory looks chastened, and I wince. He has a point.
Noah nods, evidently satisfied. “Alright. I’m out. Be in touch if you need anything else. Butt-dial me or whatever.”
He smiles and hangs up.
He’s a good agent. I’m glad to have him in my corner, but right now, the person I care most about is on the other end of this video call and nibbling on her lip.
“Talk to me, Mal. What are you thinking? I know the idea of filming our relationship isn’t ideal.” For all the reasons she told me about earlier. Her reputation. Her credibility. People only talking about her personal life instead of what she brings to the table from a professional standpoint.
“Yeah, no. It’s not ideal at all.” She sighs. “But Noah’s right, and at this point, what harm can more camera time really do? The damage is done. I’ll have to prove myself when this is all over anyway. We may as well go through with it.”
