“It was the only way. I wracked my brains for another idea to showcase this to the studio but this was the only thing that made any sense.” He shrugged. “I’m sorry, Bella.”
“He’s right.” John looked at the lawyer then at Bella. “I have to agree with him. If he hadn’t shown us that clip right there, I doubt I would have been happy for you to ditch the last season and move on. We have a lot of money invested in that show as you know. Suppliers would have to be apprised of the situation as would the advertisers. It doesn’t just come down to what you want. They all have a say in your future. You knew that going into the deal.” He picked up a pen and clicked it on the polished table. “I’m sorry, Bella, but I have to protect my interests and one of them happens to be your show. Your ratings are only getting higher and it’s a very delicate balance, changing a star to another format and not losing those percentage points. Not something that we do lightly. In fact, the last time we did something similar, we failed miserably. The studio can’t afford to pander to your little whims of fancy at the risk of bombing out. We stand to lose a lot of money if it goes south.”
“But I don’t know if Jake will approve.” She bit her bottom lip.
Russell pounced. “But he approved you using these photos of him in your latest book, didn’t he?”
“Yes, but that’s not the point. The scope for people seeing this show is far more than the buyers for my books.” A niggling thought came to the front. “Hang on. Those photos that Jason took. How did you get hold of them?”
“Interesting you should pick up on that, Bella.” The lawyer followed Russell’s every move. “It would appear that your photographer will be looking for a new assistant. According to Jason, the kid couldn’t help himself when he saw the photos of you two lovebirds and sold them on without permission. So, technically, we aren’t the ones breaking promises. That would be him.”
“Was anyone going to tell me this?”
Russell walked over and rested a hand on her shoulder. “Look, kid, you know he and I go way back. If you remember correctly I was the one who put you onto him for your books.”
Bella nodded her head.
“Normally Jason wouldn’t leave you in the dark like this, he’s one of the good guys. He’s gutted over the whole thing and I asked him if I could speak to you first. Put our case forward.”
“I don’t understand why anyone would be that interested in me.”
“You underestimate yourself, Bella.” John sat back and tapped the pen on the table. “Here’s what I propose. You let us run this promo at the end of the series as you see it and I’ll give you a new contract for what you want today. You can go back to your hunky hero and we can shoot your new season there.” The lawyer started scribbling on his yellow notepad. “Who knows? Your idea of taking things to the ordinary person might just take off into a whole new series.”
Right now that was the last thing she wanted to think about. “And if I don’t give you permission?” She didn’t need a reply because she knew what the answer would be.
“You come back and do the next show here. Stick to the old contract.”
Russell came and sat down beside her. “Come on, you know he won’t really mind. What’s the difference, a couple of seconds on the big screen or a permanent fixture in a cookbook layout?” He smiled encouragingly. “And at the end of it, he has you living in Cherry Lake permanently.”
*
It had been harder than he thought watching Bella drive away yesterday. Already, Jake was used to having her around. As the dust settled on the road, he’d walked back inside the quiet house. Cory was out with friends and his father had jobs to do with his rental properties, so for once, Jake wasn’t vying for space or peace.
Jake walked down the hall, glanced into Cory’s bedroom. His walls were covered with posters of his favorite soccer stars including a signed poster for Adam’s team. According to the coach, his son had the skills to go all the way to the top. Moving him to another town would be the worst thing he could do so it would be perfect if Bella managed to persuade the studio to let her move here permanently.
He continued to his room. The bed he’d shared with Lisa took up most of the space, the patchwork quilt she’d made when pregnant with Cory still graced the end of the bed. A sick sensation rumbled in his gut. Would he have to give up the last links to his wife if Bella managed to get what she wanted? Was he even ready to dispose of the things he and Lisa had shared?
He’d not given it much thought. Now the idea of throwing them out seemed too close for his peace of mind. It wasn’t as though he’d mentioned it to Bella but what woman would want another woman’s belongings in her house?
Jake stared at the large prints on the wall. Their wedding portrait and a shot of the pair of them with a tiny bundle of joy wrapped snug in his baby blanket. How could he part with these? Maybe they could stay behind if and when he moved in with her. It was in the cards if she came back. Not that they’d actually set anything in concrete but it seemed like an unspoken plan between them.
What was worse than worrying about taking his possessions was the thought of
