Girl of My Dreams Read Online Free Page A

apartment.
    “What the hell did you do?” Blake roared into the receiver.
    A barrage of sound followed, forcing her to move the receiver from her ear. To put it mildly, her ex-boss was not happy.
    When Blake had finished his assault on her eardrums, Jillian said, in as calm a tone as she could muster, “Can I say something?”
    “Go ahead.”
    “I did it for you, Blake. My office groundwork was over. You needed me more on stage.”
    “Don’t lie to me. Why not admit you’re after the money? Anyone could’ve filled in, but no, you had to do it yourself. The result is now I’m out an assistant and have to train another right in the midst of running a series.”
    Jillian’s heart went out to him, but only for a second. She had enough problems. Had she done the right thing? What scared her the most was the debacle was not over. She was stuck for another round. What a mess. Still, it wouldn’t hurt if Blake acted the tiniest bit grateful.
    “Think what you want of me. What I say won’t convince you,” she said, with a sigh of resignation.
    “You’re right. Oh, and one more thing, Jillian, or should I say, Veronica? You signed a contestant’s contract. I hope you read the small print. From now on, you follow my instructions. No more hare-brained schemes, understand?”
    She almost said, Yes, Master, but settled for a meek, “I promise, Blake. I’ll do what I’m told.”
    “Good. I’ve got enough to deal with. See you Wednesday.”
    He hung up without saying goodbye. After placing the receiver on its cradle, she retreated to the couch, as far from the phone as she could.
    Before she could recover from the tirade, the phone rang again. She eyed the instrument malevolently from across the room, as if it were the culprit. She was tempted let it ring, but curiosity got the better of her. She may as well get the penance over with and hear what else he’d say. Without checking Caller I.D., she grabbed the receiver.
    “You didn’t say you were going on TV,” Denise said, her voice rising into a squeal.
    At least someone was happy.
    “I’ll tell you all about it. Wait a minute. Let me sit down. I’m kind of tired.”
    Jillian situated herself on the baby blue couch, flung off her shoes and wriggled her toes. “That’s better.”
    “Okay, now what happened?”
    “It was a last-minute thing. I didn’t know myself until right before.” Jillian explained about the food poisoning.
    “You don’t subscribe to cable, do you? Of course not. Don’t worry, I put the program on DVD. Just wait till you see yourself. The camera loved you. So did Troy Langley.”
    “Please, don’t say that. I don’t want him.”
    “You’re so rich you don’t want the hot billionaire? Oh, I get it. It’s the movie star’s son you’re after.”
    “Blake wouldn’t thank you for referring to him that way. He’s out to make it on his own.”
    “Hmm, a man’s man. Sounds promising.”
    “Well, unfortunately, he’s not for me. Right now, I’m way at the top of his must-hate list. I slipped one over on him by being a contestant, and he’s furious. He almost burst my eardrums a few minutes ago.”
    “You had good reasons. Besides, you made the show. He’ll get over it. You’ll see.”
    “It won’t matter, anyway. After the series is through, I won’t see him. He won’t want me back as a temp or otherwise. I’d hoped to get a permanent position, but even if he did want me around, which is a far stretch, the show contract states he can’t hire me permanently for at least five years.”
    “Oh, my God. And you loved working there. If I were Blake Caldwell, I’d get down on my hands and knees and thank you, not yell,” Denise said.
    “It’s not his gratitude I want, not that it matters. I never stood a chance with him in the first place.”
    “Don’t say that. You’re just as good as any of those other girls he’s seen. No, I take it back…you’re better.”
    “Thanks, Denise, but he’s got his choice of