LITMIR.BIZ

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first? He wondered. Mom will be outraged. Aunt Patsy will be disappointed. Dad will think it’s hilarious. The screen flashed to announce an incoming call. The number was that of his publicist. Jake flipped the phone open.

      “Hello.” He croaked.

      “Jake, you’re a genius. The studio loves this. There’s no better publicity than an upcoming wedding.” Bob’s jovial voice pierced Jake’s ear.

      “There’s no wedding, Bob. It was just a joke.”

      The opposite end of the line was silent.

      “Bob, are you there?”

      “You’re pulling my leg right. You didn’t seriously just televise a phony proposal before the release of a romantic comedy.” Bob’s voice was hopeful.

      “Sorry, but I did.” Jake admitted. He contemplated Bob’s words. He could easily summarize them. You screwed up Jake. Bob was silent again. A minute ticked by slowly. Then Bob spoke.

      “This isn’t going to go over well. Not with the studio or with your audience. At your age your fans are ready to see you settle down. They’ve grown with you, now they have families and they want to relate to you. Your movie gets released in one month the premiere is in two weeks. That’s not enough time for them to forget bad publicity. That’s what this is Jake. It’s bad publicity.”

      “I know, Bob.” Jake felt like crawling under the bed and never coming out. Millions of dollars were on the line with this film. If he turned people off they wouldn’t go see it. They would wait a few months and rent it. That’s not what the studio wanted. They wanted to replace the money they’d spent right away. Bob was quiet again.

      “Who was the girl anyway, A friend of yours?”

      Jake gulped. This story was beginning to sound a whole lot worse than when he had stood in the concession line concocting this plan. “She was the girl sitting next to me at the game.”

      “I know that, but if she’s your friend maybe she’d play along until the movie’s released.” Bob’s voice held a twinge of hope, again. Hope that Jake knew he was about to shatter. Jake swallowed hard.

      “I don’t know her.” He finally confessed.

      “You’d better find her then.” Bob’s voice had a hard edge to it now. “The media is all over this. Find the girl. Bribe her to play along for one month. Then she can dump you and all the women will love you even more for having your heart crushed.” Bob was talking quickly. “Think. Is there anything she could have said that could let you know who she is?”

      Jake turned the idea over in his head. It wasn’t a bad idea. Maybe, he could make this work to his advantage after all.

      “She’s my aunt’s neighbor. My aunt gave her tickets to the game.” His head was beginning to clear.

      “Go, Jake. Find the girl. Do whatever it takes to get her to play along for one month. That’s all we need. Once the film gets released she can dump you. Women will swarm the theaters to see you.” Bob was thrilled. “We can do this Jake. We can pull this off. Just don’t do anything without consulting me and don’t tell anyone else it was a joke, understand. Go do what you have to do and keep me informed.”

      “Gotcha.” said Jake.

      “Ciao.” Said Bob and the phone went silent.

      Jake stared at the phone. I hope this works. He thought. He quickly showered, shaved and threw on some fresh jeans and a comfortable T-shirt. When he was done he looked at himself in the mirror. “Jake Jameson you’re about to play your biggest role ever. I hope you’re up to it.” He left the guest suite of Lewis’s house where he planned on spending his week. A sensational coffee aroma wafted up the stairs. Jake made his way to the kitchen where Lisa sat reading the paper.

      “You want to see the pictures?” she asked barely looking up.

      “No thanks.” Jake made his way over to the coffee pot and poured himself a cup.

      “What kind of a ring is that? It’s hard to tell in the picture.”

      “It’s a straw with Lewis’ earring poking through.” It all seemed like such a nightmare now. Jake couldn’t believe he had actually knelt down holding a straw out to a complete stranger.

      “She seemed happy. There’s a great picture of the two of you hugging.”

      Jake peered over Lisa’s shoulder. Sam had a beautiful smile. That’s all he could tell from the picture. He remembered how she had thrown him off-guard with the hug. She had played along with it then; maybe she would keep doing so now.

      “What are your plans for today?”

      Jake thought about informing Lisa of the plan to get Sam to play along. He quickly dismissed that idea. The joke was bad enough, now this plan was even worse. “I’m going to go visit my aunt.” He told a half-truth.

      “That should be nice.” She answered. She was obviously engrossed in another article.

      Jake gulped down the coffee without adding anything. The bitter taste helped him focus. How should he approach Sam? What should he say? Numerous conversations played out in his head. He poured a second cup of coffee. He let it cool off a moment then swallowed it as quickly as the first. Well, here goes nothing, he thought.

      “See you, Lisa.” He bent down and kissed her on the cheek. She kissed back.

      “Adios.” She called after him.

      Chapter 10

      It was ten minutes to eleven, when Jake arrived at Patsy’s gated community. He was glad there was some sort of security here. If any photographers had followed him, the gate was sure to slow them down a bit. He did not need for them to find out who Sam was before he had a chance to speak to her. He waited at the gate while the call box dialed Patsy’s apartment. The phone rang three times before she picked up.

      “Hello?” said a shrill voice over the speaker.

      “Aunt Patsy, it’s me Jake. I’m at the gate.” He called into the speaker.

      “Oh!” she cried out in surprise and the gate began to open.

      Jake had chosen not to call her in advance so she wouldn’t make a fuss over him; cooking, cleaning, and preparing for his arrival. Guilt flooded over him. He had not come to see his aunt in two years. He had seen her over the holidays at family functions, but for the past two years he had traveled to Miami, but he had not taken the time to visit with her. Now he was doing so with an ulterior motive.

      Patsy flew out of her apartment as the black SUV pulled up. Her arms were wrapped around Jake’s neck before he even stepped out of it.

      “I don’t know how you two did it!” She exclaimed. “You two kept that secret so well. And to think all this time I was talking to Sam about you and she was in love already. She should be an actress because I never would have known.” She stepped back allowing Jake to get out. He could barely bring his lips into the semblance of a smile.

      Aunt Patsy would be so disappointed if she knew the truth. He thought. He looked around at the neighboring condos trying to imagine which door was Sam’s.

      “I wish you had told me you were coming. I would have made your favorite dish.” She ushered him into her tiny home. Nothing had changed since the last time he came. There was the same sectional that took up one wall. It pulled out into a sofa bed. Then a small dinette marked the space where the dining room was. Sliding glass doors looked out onto the lake. He knew the layout from having stayed there many times while growing up. He had spent many vacations there because his parents had to work. Aunt Patsy and Uncle Albert retired in Florida. They bought the condo and an R.V. They traveled throughout the year visiting different places in the R.V. and stayed in the condo during the winter months. When Uncle Albert passed away Patsy sold the R.V. and rarely traveled unless there was a special occasion. He had last seen her at his cousin Susan’s wedding

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