‘Poor you, huh?’ she said, their eyes meeting. ‘Publishers throwing money at you like that when you’re allstuck.’ She clutched her chest dramatically. ‘People expecting too much of you.’ Dropping her hand, she shook her head. ‘Welcome to the real world, Oliver. Where people expect too much of you all the damn time.’
Did he realise what it was like in the real world? Locked away in his posh house by the beach with little golden statues to keep him company, where he didn’t have to worry about a job and mundane things like how he was going to eat or pay the bills.
She hadn’t had that privilege when pictures and videos of her had landed in every student and faculty inbox at Oxford. As well as several porn sites. She hadn’t been able to just sit and wallow in her misfortune which was, unlike Oliver, notself-inflicted.
Sure, holing up in her old bedroom in her parents’ house and not ever coming out had been attractive and shehadindulged for a couple of weeks. But, as a poor ex-law student, it hadn’t been a plan for the rest of her life. And although she might not be living large or earning a fortune, she had carved out a niche for herself.
Even if she was hiding behind a peach emoji.
And having Richie Rich here sitting around on this couch all day bemoaning his lot was officially getting on her last nerve.
Oliver looked discomforted as he said, ‘I’m prioritising the script.’
Once again, she glanced at the disused laptop. Yeah, she could see that…
Paige changed tack. ‘You know sometimes when you’re having issues with something you’re writing, actually working on something else, something different, can help clarify things for the first project.’
He quirked an eyebrow. ‘And you know this how?’
‘I do VA stuff for quite a few authors.’ And before she put her brain full into gear she was offering her services. ‘If you like, I can help you.’
Oliver contemplated her offer for a beat. ‘How?’
‘Lots of ways. I can be a beta reader for a start.’
‘Have you done that before?’
‘No, but I am a voracious reader. One who knows nothing about your father or your relationship with him so I’m coming at it with no preconceived ideas or expectations. And as a neutral third party, you could bounce ideas off me. I can also proofread it as you go or do line editing. I can work on an outline with you. I can do up a schedule for you to keep you on track and then nag you about it every day I’m here.’
He gave a half laugh. ‘Yeah, I reckon you’d excel at that.’
Paige looked at him, deadpan. ‘I excel ateverything.’ It was true, from her law degree to her business, Paige had always kicked ass.
‘Yeah.’ He nodded slowly, his eyes locking on hers. ‘I bet you do.’
It was possibly the nicest thing a man had ever said to her. For a bastard, he was a pretty nice guy. Which was not what she should be thinking or feeling about Redondo’s runaway groom. Clearing her throat, she got back on track. ‘So? What d’you think?’
Oliver blew out a noisy breath. ‘I… wouldn’t know where to start.’
‘From the beginning?’
‘I don’t know how much I remember of that.’
‘Okay, so…’ Paige shrugged. ‘Don’t tell it chronologically.’ She moved around more so she was sitting sideways on the couch completely facing him now, one leg tucked under her, the other foot on the floor. ‘Go back and forth. Jump around. I can help you collate it into something more cohesive at the end. What’s the first memory that pops to mind when you think of your father?’
He glanced up at the trophy stash. ‘Him winning those I suppose.’
Paige shook her head. ‘No. I don’t mean things. Or clips of his acceptance speeches I can go and look up on YouTube. I mean something private. Something about him being yourdad. Not a famous actor.’
‘Our relationship was…’ He hesitated. ‘Complicated.’
‘You’re not on your lonesome there, Oliver. Lots of people have complicated relationships with their parents. It’s probably what will appeal to readers the most and exactly what the publisher wants.’
‘If they’re after some scandalous tell-all, they’ll be disappointed.’
Paige suppressed a smile at how painfully English he sounded when affronted. But she hadn’t missed the fact that he was already talking about it like it was going to happen. ‘It doesn’t have to be that but no one wants to read about a perfectly happy family blessed with unicorns and rainbows. They want to know that famous people grapple with the same issues as they do. And who knows, maybe it’ll be cathartic for you if it’s not something you’ve properly processed yet.’
She didn’t have to be a shrink to know he clearlyhadn’tprocessed things yet. Maybe him doing something so heinous as jilting Bella at the aisle had something to do with his unresolved issues. He had after all, according to Bella, proposed to her not long after his father had died.
