Chapter 10 Cass
“Hey, guys.” I wave at my phone’s camera, then turn to show the viewers the open space behind the B of stolen winks and suggestive smiles.
I’ve quite literally been in heaven, and as my team gets done with some candid shots of the town before the final few days of filming, I can’t wait to see what the next chapter for Nia and I will be.
I have to admit, though: I’m terrified of what her decision will be regarding us, but I’m confident that she’ll make a choice she thinks is right for her.
She knows my stay in Adenbrooke is coming to an end, and I appreciate that she’s willing to keep herself and I a priority, even with her life in the town and Café Connell both working in tangent with each other.
And I may be selfish when it comes to her, but I can’t force her to do something I know she wouldn’t want to.
I’ll try, I’ll fight, but not at the expense of her comfort and happiness.
I know when to give up, but right now – with how things are – I’m just going to sit back and greedily accept every second she chooses to spend with me. One step at a time, as they say.
“Cass!”
I turn at the sound of Amanda’s voice, and watch as she trudges over to me, kicking and cursing at the snow that is covering her boots.
Nia, flustered and shocked, stumbles away from me.
“Hey,” I greet my manager with a grin.
Amanda eyes me and Nia for a beat too long – her expression hard under the dull morning light – then cracks a smile that had made me wanna piss my pants when I’d first met her 6 years ago.
When my YouTube career skyrocketed in 2015, a fellow influencer suggested I get in touch with Amanda for professional management services.
I gotta say: as a 21-year-old who had no idea what to do with the newfound fame and attention I was receiving on my content, I was relieved to have someone to guide me through the ins and outs of the media world, but my initial meeting with Amanda had felt more like a one-on-one with a school principal than anything else.
That woman is dangerously cunning, and will take no bullshit from anyone, and I mean anyone.
Not even from me and my occasionally whiny ass, if I’m being honest.
“I’m afraid we haven’t…met?” she says to Nia, then folds her arms across her chest.
Nia, who looks like she’ll plummet face-first onto the ground if my manager so much as tries to move in her direction, fidgets with the purple scarf around her neck as she shifts on her feet. “Yeah, uh… I, umm–”
“Amanda, this is Nia,” I say. “And Nia,” I jerk my chin ahead, “that’s Amanda, my manager.” I then take a long gulp of my hot cocoa, because damn, the air around us just got real thick.
Amanda quickly glances at my left wrist, and even though it’s currently hidden behind the sleeve of my sweater, I know she recalls the name from my tattoo.
She nods, then smiles curtly. “Right. Of course. Nia, yes; that’s correct.”
Nia looks like she wants a UFO to fly by and pull her up with the way she’s trying to squirm at the awkwardness of the whole…situation.
Amanda has that effect on everyone, I want to tell her, but don’t.
What I instead do is save us all from the general embarrassment that keeps growing due to the lack of interest either of the women are showing in conversing with each other by clearing my throat and wrapping an arm around Nia once again.
Amanda, of course, tracks that movement with apt interest, but doesn’t say anything.
“You wanna get outta here?” I ask Nia, as softly as I can.
She visibly relaxes under my touch as she looks at me. “Please, and thank you.”
I bite the inside of my cheek to stop myself from laughing. “Let me show you my room, then; come on.” I remove my arm from around her shoulders and grab her hand, and have only just started walking us towards the B I’ll just–”
“I think we’ve gotten off on the wrong foot here,” I tell them.
“We gotta re-evaluate and shit, don’t you agree?
” When neither of them answers, I scrub a hand over my stubble.
“How about we go to dinner together – tomorrow. Just the 3 of us. Have a sit-down, get candid, grab a few drinks. What do you think?”
Nia makes a noise that I assume stands for a yes, whereas Amanda squares her shoulders and inclines her head a little.
I flash her a winning smile. “Great; that’s settled, then.” I once again grab Nia’s hand, which is a little clammy this time around, and tell her, “Let’s go see my room, babe.”