He wasn’t wrong there.
“If you get past that, it’ll make it easier to act like a total see you next Tuesday. It’ll get rid of Jacoby, so no chance of anyone finding out that you’re not actually a twatsicle. Sure, you won’t have anyone to entertain you for the next two or so months, but that’s okay. If you want to successfully imitate Tiffany, you must submerge yourself in the role. And since she doesn’t have friends, then you can’t have any, either.”
“Gee, thanks for nothing.” I couldn’t argue that he had a point, but that did nothing to help my case. “So what you’re saying is…I need to sleep with my neighbor and then act like a crazy person, all so I can be a believable snob on camera?”
“Glad you’re coming around, sunshine.”
I rolled my eyes, wishing he hadn’t taken the controller from me so I could throw it at him.
Regardless of how much I wanted to smack him for what he had to say, he was right. I only had a little over two weeks before the cameras showed up, and if I wanted to stay incognito, I needed to get serious. I didn’t, however, need to sleep with Jacoby to do this.
Or did I?
6
Jacoby
It’d been a couple of days since I last saw Tiffany.
Well, I’d technically seen her, but it was from a distance. I had been working hard, so I chalked it up as ships passing in the night.
“You invited her, right?” Jessa busied herself in the kitchen, making sure she had everything she needed for her barbecue.
I grabbed a pickle from the tray and bit off the end. “I told you I did, so I did.”
After leaving Tiffany’s house the other day, I came to talk about it with my sister. I didn’t go into detail about the entire visit, as that would’ve been inappropriate, but I did discuss with her the unexplainable flip in character. Jessa thought it made the most sense to invite her over for her annual poolside barbecue. That way, she could see it for herself.
“Did she say if she’s coming?” She smacked my hand away before I could grab another pickle. “And is she bringing her friend?”
Okay, it was truth time. “Well, I didn’t exactly ask Tiffany; I asked Dave, her best friend. He said they would love to come.”
My sister gave me the side-eye stare that had always successfully scared me growing up. “Jacoby Michael Abbott.” The full name was enough to make my breath stall in my lungs, too afraid to make its way out, but the hand on her hip, reminding me so much of our grandmother, made me feel like a small child all over again.
“Jessa Roseann Estrada,” I mocked, knowing it would get to her—in a good way.
Just as I had hoped for, her lips split into an infectious smile. My sister was a beautiful girl both inside and out. “My middle name isn’t Roseann”—I knew that—“and don’t turn this back on me. I asked you to do one thing, Coby. One. And that was to make sure the infamous Tiffany Lewis shows up today.”
“And I did. I promise.” I grabbed the tray of snacks and carried them to the storage fridge for her. “If I would’ve asked her personally, there was a good chance she’d give me the runaround. So I thought it would make more sense to ask her best friend, who’s only here until the end of the week, because—for whatever reason—he seems intent on getting us to hang out.”
“Whatever, I just hope you’re right.”
“Why do you care so much if she comes? Won’t your own friends be here?”
She finished arranging another tray of fancy finger food before setting her stare on me. “Aside from the fact that I would like to know who I have living next door to me, I am interested to see if she’s anything like the press makes her out to be. You said it yourself that she’s nothing like what you’ve seen online, so I’d like to see if it’s an act, or if she puts on a show in front of the cameras.”
“Okay, but please be normal. We don’t need her to get so comfortable with you that she invites herself over while filming. We both agree that having the cameras around is a horrible idea.”
Jessa held her hands up in a defensive stance. “Trust me, little brother…the last thing I want is to be in the headlines.” The again was silently implied.
“Good, glad we can agree on that.”
She passed me another tray to put away. “When you’re done, do you think you can help Marcus with the tables out back?”
I nodded, put the rest of the food away, and then kissed my sister on the cheek before heading to the back yard to help my brother-in-law finish the set up for the party.
* * *
I was grateful that my sister liked to keep her personal events small and lowkey, but every time someone came through the side gate, I held my breath wondering if it was Tiffany. After so long, it made it feel like this small get-together was a massive party.
Finally, after what seemed like forever, Tiffany came strolling into the back yard on Dave’s arm. Something seemed different about her today, more so than her attire. The couple of times we’d hung out, she was very relaxed—glasses, leggings, baggy tees, and usually flip-flops. Today, though, she had on a loose-fitting dress that, admittedly, looked amazing on her, and heels. I blamed the grass for her unsteady steps, which was probably why she clung to Dave like her
