Frank had just earned everything I’d ever paid him to this point with that one comment.
“What is crazy money we could ask for?” Caryn asked.
I’ll give Saul credit, he could think of crazy numbers.
“What would we be happy with?” Caryn asked.
When we met with Paul and his people, I let Saul shock them with the crazy numbers first. We were all surprised when Paul and his team came back with a much better counteroffer than we were willing to settle for. The only stipulation was we couldn’t disclose what I’d be paid. Frank took me aside and told me it would be reported in their annual report because they were a publicly held company. So, I needed to be ready to deal with my fellow cast members.
Something Saul insisted on was a signing bonus that would be guaranteed whether the movies were made or not. With a stroke of a pen, I was suddenly a multimillionaire. I’d just signed a contract that would make me more than the number-one pick in this year’s NFL draft. If I managed my money wisely, I was set for life.
◊◊◊
Upon reflection, this trip to LA had complicated my life. Before I arrived, I had almost decided my path in life would lead to football. What I’d discovered was that making movies was a real possibility, and it was something I could do for the rest of my life. I was happy that my first love, baseball, might be possible. If I made the USA Under-18 baseball team, I would play with the best players in my age group. That would give me a better idea if I had a real shot or not.
The good news was that I had options now that I didn’t have before this trip. The downside was that in a lot of ways, it had muddied the waters as to what my future held. I vowed not to rush my decision. Heck, the psychic had said that the obvious choice might not be the best. Not that I held a lot of stock in that, but just like my movie contract had proved, it was better to make an informed decision instead of rushing things.
All I really knew at this point was that I wanted to enjoy what was to come. And that I was ready to get home. In the end, it would all work itself out.
◊◊◊
Junior Year: Spring
Table of Contents:
Interlude
Chapter 1 – It’s Time to Get to Work
Chapter 2 – Unmasked
Chapter 3 – Liars
Chapter 4 – Class Project
Chapter 5 – Amateurism
Chapter 6 – No Need to Suck Up
Chapter 7 – Good Intentions
Chapter 8 – You Eat Pie
Chapter 9 – Valentine’s Day is Overrated
Chapter 10 – Playtime’s Over
Chapter 11 – Nimby
Chapter 12 – Dip My Toe into the Political Pond
Chapter 13 – Code Black
Chapter 14 – I Wonder If He Would Foresee
Chapter 15 – You’re Like a Unicorn
Chapter 16 – I Think You’ll Like This
Chapter 17 – That’s Not How the Force Works!
Chapter 18 – A Slight Miscalculation
Chapter 19 – Star Wars Effect
Chapter 20 – All These Things I’ve Said
Chapter 21 – This is All Your Fault
Chapter 22 – Do You Know Who I Am?
Chapter 23 – Thunderstruck
Chapter 24 – Lists, Plans, Decisions
Chapter 25 – Personal Responsibility and Commitment
Chapter 26 – Three’s A Crowd
Chapter 27 – You’re Just a Goofball
Chapter 28 – Cheeseburger in Paradise
Chapter 29 – Police Escorts Can Be a Lot of Fun
Chapter 30 – Our Town
Chapter 31 – Jacob Jeffrey Dawson
Chapter 32 – Life Goals
Chapter 33 – Goals and Plans
Chapter 34 – How Hard Could It Be?
Chapter 35 – Baseball Playoffs Begin
Chapter 36 – Nut Shots
Chapter 37 – That Got a Reaction
Chapter 38 – Feminazis
Chapter 39 – Banned from Walmart
Chapter 40 – Operation Prom
Chapter 41 – Universe Balanced
Chapter 42 – A Kiss to Build a Dream On
Interlude Halle James
I’ve been in love with David A. Dawson ever since I met him on the set of Star Academy. Yep, that David A. Dawson. Nation’s best high school quarterback, model, and movie star. Named one of the top ten ‘Best-Looking Teen Male Actors’ by Screen Junkies.
I’ve grown up in the business, being the daughter of Rita James, America’s Sweetheart and two-time Academy Award winner. I even went to one of those high schools where all the teen actors go, so I thought myself immune to the draw of a hot actor. Because of who I am, they all seemed to want to go out with me. I was lucky that my mom set me straight when I was young. I’d had firsthand experience watching my mom deal with men who were only interested in our money or what my mom might do for their career.
My brother Trip spotted him first. Fortunately for me, Trip and I rarely have the same taste in men. He goes for the nerdier type, and I prefer mine to have more muscles. My brother had been dating Craig Wild, who typified the former. Trip’s relationship with Craig turned out to be how we’d gotten parts in the movie.
Trip gushed about this new guy who was in makeup getting tattoos put on for his part. I was intrigued to see what had my brother so hot and bothered that he forgot to breathe. Do you ever have a premonition about something? I’m not talking about going to see a psychic or having your palm read. I’m talking about the feeling that washes over you, causes the hair to stand up on your arms, and you get goose bumps. You just know something. Well, I knew this boy with muscles upon muscles who’d taken my breath away would be the love of my life.
I made it a point to monopolize all his free time while making the movie. When the filming finished, it devastated me to realize David would be going home to some small town in the middle of the country. Trip sat me down to see if this was serious or not. My brother suggested I become a stalker and track David down in New York, where I knew he was going for a weekend.
David was perfect without trying, without even being aware. He helped me realize that our timing wasn’t right. If he’d asked, I would’ve dragged him back to my hotel room and let him have his way with me. But David was too much of a gentleman for that. Trip claimed it was a Midwestern thing. If David had been a Hollywood boy, he’d have used me and forgotten about me. It made me love him even more.
I’d accepted that I might not see him ever again when my brother needed to go into rehab. Trip arranged to get out of LA so there wouldn’t be the usual distractions, or so he explained to my mom. He suggested it would also be good for me to get out of LA. I didn’t figure out until we were packing to move that we were going to be in the same town as David.
I’d been working on my mom from a different angle. She’d found a project she wanted to work on with me called The Secret Circle, so I’d suggested David have a role in the movie. I think she found it amusing that I had a crush on the guy. I believed I was rather sly about it, but she told me later that she’d known when word got back that I was with him while filming Star Academy.