Chapter 2
"They said," Sophie paused, "instead of denying it, they want to go public."
Delilah froze.
"What does that mean?" she asked.
"Exactly what it sounds like," Sophie said. "They want you two to actually get together."
Delilah wondered if her ears were malfunctioning.
"Wait," she said. "Sophie, say that again."
"Kennedy' people said he wants to talk to you himself," Sophie said. Her voice turned serious. "He's going to call you soon. You need to answer."
"But..." Delilah started.
"Delilah," Sophie said with a sudden sigh. "Be straight with me. Is there anything between you and him?"
"No! Nothing!" Delilah said.
"That's what's weird," Sophie said. "His people told me that after Kennedy saw the headlines, he walked straight into the meeting room and told everyone they weren't putting out a denial.
"He said they were announcing the relationship. His whole studio lost their minds."
Delilah opened her mouth but no words came out.
Her phone vibrated with an incoming call.
An unknown number.
Delilah felt her heart skip a beat.
"Sophie, someone's calling me. Might be him," Delilah said.
"Take it. Stay cool," Sophie said.
The line went dead.
Delilah stared at the unfamiliar digits on her screen. She took a deep breath and swiped to answer.
"Hello?" Delilah said.
There was a beat of silence on the other end. Then a low voice came through, tinged with a hint of amusement.
"Delilah?" It was Kennedy.
Delilah's grip on the phone tightened.
"Speaking," she said.
"Long time no see," he said. His voice was soft, almost smiling. "Last night at the reunion, I didn't really get a chance to talk to you properly."
Delilah had no idea what to say.
She remembered high school. He was the guy everyone knew, good looking, smart, a star on the court.
She was just a regular girl who sat in the desk behind him. Sometimes, she'd zone out in class and find herself staring at the back of his shoulders.
Back then, like every other girl, she'd had a secret crush on him.
But that was ten years ago.
"Um," she said. "About the headlines..."
"I saw them," he cut in. "That's why I'm calling. I wanted to ask if you'd be willing to play a part with me."
Delilah blinked.
"Play a part?" she asked.
"Yeah," he said. His tone was completely serious. "We'd be together. Fake together."
Delilah's mind went blank.
"Why?" Delilah asked.
Kennedy was quiet for a moment.
"Because I need to be in a relationship," he said.
"You? Need a relationship?" Delilah asked. She felt like the world had gone insane. "You're an A-lister. You have eighty million fans. Dating is career suicide for you."
"That's exactly why I need someone to fake it with me," he said. "Someone I can trust."
Delilah didn't know how to respond.
She heard a soft laugh through the earpiece, like he found her reaction amusing.
"Delilah," he said. "Think about it. If you say yes, we can announce it tomorrow. If you say no, my team will put out a statement saying we're just friends. Your name stays clean either way."
Delilah stayed silent for a long moment.
She thought about her current situation.
A D-list actress with less than seventeen thousand dollars in the bank, renting a rundown studio, dreaming of one day landing a supporting role.
If she "got together" with him, what would she gain? Exposure. Connections. Opportunity.
And what would she lose? Freedom. Peace of mind. And maybe the one thing she couldn't afford to lose, her feelings.
"Can I ask you something?" Delilah said.
"Ask," Kennedy said.
"Why me?"
There was a pause.
"Because you won't fall for me," Kennedy said.
Delilah went still.
"Back in high school, you barely even looked at me," he said. His voice gave nothing away. "Every girl in class wrote me a note except you. At reunions, you'd nod and keep walking.
"You never came up to talk. You're probably the only woman on the planet who isn't interested in me."
Delilah opened her mouth to speak, then shut it again.
She didn't tell him the truth. She didn't tell him that she actually had liked him back then. But that tiny crush had been ground down to dust over the past ten years.
"So," Kennedy said, "you're my safest option."
Delilah looked down at her hands.
'Safest option,' she thought. 'That's all I am to him.'
"I'll think about it," Delilah said.
"Okay," Kennedy said. "I'll wait for your answer."
The call ended.
Delilah sat on the edge of her bed, phone in hand, staring out the window at the gray morning sky.
At some point it had started raining. A fine, steady drizzle tapped against the glass with a soft, persistent sound.
She thought about a lot of things.