Page 3 of Vegas Love (Love 1)
Did she plan this?
Did they plan this?
And that's when I realize that Cade might be right about something. Something entirely different.
"Cade, do you think Brandi and Luke were having an affair?"
"I don't know what they did when you were together, but they're definitely dating now."
"They are? Why didn't you tell me?"
"What you should be asking yourself is why didn't she tell you. I didn't tell you because I assumed you knew."
"That bitch"--I spew out every single curse word I know in one big stream--"I'm going to fire her this minute!"
"Calm down, Ash. It's not the end of the world."
"Don't tell me to calm down. You aren't all over the Internet giving a blow job to an asshole!"
Cade starts laughing. "Now, that would be a completely different kind of video. Where are you right now? The press is going to be hounding you."
"I'm in Vegas with Zach. Can we get this taken down? Can we sue them? What are my legal rights?"
"Let me handle all of that. Don't go home. I'm sure the press will be camped out. Why don't you come straight to my house. We can go over the legal stuff when you get here. In the meantime, don't talk to anyone. Not your manager. Not your publicist. Not the press. No one."
Fuck.
I scroll through my phone to see if Brandi has called me. One would assume your publicist would call you during a crisis situation such as this.
All I see are calls from people I don't want to talk to. Numbers I don't recognize.
But as I scroll down the list, I see Luke has called me.
I don't care what Cade says, I'm calling that fucker back.
When he answers, I say, "What's that saying, Luke? Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned? You're about to find out what that feels like. Maybe it will inspire you to write a decent song."
"Ashlyn, I'm sorry. I didn't know."
"You didn't know that you videotaped us having sex in your apartment?"
"No, I didn't. Look, could we meet somewhere? I really need to talk to you."
"Fuck you, Luke."
I slam my phone down on the table.
Zach's manager stares at me expectantly. "So?"
"Do you have any suggestions?"
"Yeah, you should stop seeing Zach before you ruin his career."
"What are you guys doing out here?" Zach asks from the bedroom doorway. He's wearing a hotel robe and chugging a bottle of water. "I'm hungry. Where's the room service menu?"
"What do you want, Zach?" his manager asks. "I'll make it happen."
"Breakfast. Like steak and eggs or something."
The manager nods and gets on the phone, not bothering to ask me if I'm hungry.
Not that I am.
I feel like I could puke.
His publicist rolls his eyes. "Food should be the last thing on your mind right now, Zach. Your girlfriend, here, made a sex tape with her ex and it's all over the Internet."
Zach pulls me into the bedroom and shuts the door. "If you wanted to release a sex tape, Ash, why didn't you do one with me? I never thought of it, but it would have been the perfect thing to do for my next career move."
"Are you crazy? I didn't release it! Luke must have. Anyway, I have to head back to L.A., like now, and deal with this."
"Wait until after we've had some breakfast. Please? I want to come with you. I'll stand by you, I swear. We'll face this together."
And I decide that Harper is wrong. I don't just want hot sex. I want someone who will stand by me no matter what.
I give him a grateful hug.
Zach drops me off at Cade's house in Santa Monica and then takes his manager and family publicist to my house.
Cade and I watch a live online entertainment site, which is reporting that Zach is going to make a statement.
Zach looks out at the throng of reporters and speaks very clearly. "Ashlyn and I ask for your prayers during these trying times. We ask that those responsible for this crime--and it is a crime--take the offending videos down. She's with her attorney preparing to fight this for as long as it takes to bring those responsible to justice."
"I thought we decided we weren't talking to anyone?" Cade chastises.
"I didn't talk to anyone. Well, I did call Luke. He acted like it wasn't his fault, but I don't believe him."
"I think your publicist may have had something to do with it. You need to fire her."
"Cade, I don't have any proof. I'm pissed she's dating Luke, but I don't believe she had anything to do with the tape. She's been my friend for years. She probably didn't tell me she was dating Luke because now that I'm dating Zach, she knew I wouldn't care."
"Don't you think it's all just a little fishy? How could you even trust her if you think she had an affair with Luke while you were dating him?"
I bury my face in my palms. "I don't know. I guess I feel like I need some proof before I can accuse her of something like this."
"She released a statement to the press," he says, holding up a sheet of paper.
"She's not supposed to release anything to the press without my approval. What does it say?"
"It says something similar to what Zach said. That you ask the press to respect your privacy. Your publicist is young and hungry. And I know when you got started in the business that was a good thing for you. I know you became friends. But you've outgrown her and she knows it. I think she's trying to create drama for you to create business for herself. Not to mention the fact that she's fucking your boyfriend."
"Zach too?"
"No, I meant Luke. You need to fire her immediately."
"Although in Vegas my gut reaction was to fire her, I find it hard to believe she would do something like this. We're friends."
"Ashlyn, this is your business. She works for you. She's not your friend."
"Why can't we be both?"
"You just can't. And we have another problem."
"What now?"
"I had your business manager send me her contract. I can't believe you signed it without letting me look it over. I never would have let you sign this."
He throws it on the table.
"I let you read the contract that I signed." I flip through the copy on my desk, barely able to believe my
eyes. "This says that if I fire her for cause, I still have to buy out her contract and give her a lump sum. I swear to you, I didn't sign this."
"Ashlyn, your life has been crazy. This looks like your signature."
I grab my phone, open my email, scroll back a year, and find the contract. "This is the last one I signed. It's a three-year deal. We have not renegotiated. I swear to you."
"Email me that and I'll try to get to the bottom of it. Don't say a word to her. Are you listening? I don't want you to talk to her at all. If she messages you, tell her that you're going through a really trying time and all business goes through me. Okay?"
"Okay, I can do that," I say, agreeing with him. But I really can't believe she would try to trick me. I can't believe that she would have slept with Luke when we were dating. She's been my publicist for the last five years. Even if she's just pretending to be friends with me so I'll work with her, it just doesn't make sense. I'm her biggest client.
While I wrestle with what to believe, Cade goes through a bunch of legal stuff pertaining to getting the videos removed. I have to file a police report, which he says will help our case.
It's all pretty humiliating.
As if the video wasn't humiliating enough.
Once he has all the wheels in motion, he sits me down. "I need to know what you want out of your career. Do you even want a career?"
"Of course I want a career. Acting is what I love to do."
"The sex tape is bad--really bad--and you're drunk in it. At the interviews after the Emmys, you announced that you had been doing shots. You're young and extremely talented. You wouldn't be the first to need rehab. Do you need rehab, Ashlyn? Are things out of control?"
"Cade, I don't need rehab."
"There are also rumors that you've been high on set."
"Only like three times, when I couldn't fucking take that asshole Kenton anymore. He hates me and he's so condescending. Why does he hate me?"
"He told the director you are the most talented cast member and the least likely to stay that way. He says you will burn out and fade away. With the way things are going, I can't say I disagree with him."
"I don't want that."
"Then it's time to take your career more seriously. You need to get your life in order. Let's start with your love life."
