Page 23 of Cruel Embers
But when I look at the phone, it’s not a number I recognise. My heart begins to beat faster and my palms sweat as I swipe the screen.
“Hello?”
“Hello, is this Violet Weaver?”
“Yes, speaking.”
As soon as they say they’re calling from the agency, I hold my breath until they say, “Congratulations, we’d like to call you back for a second audition.”
“Oh my God, thank you so much!”
I can hardly hear her now over the excitement coursing through my veins.
As soon as I hang up, I start squealing and jumping on the spot when Marco rounds the corner, his eyebrows drawn together.
“I got a call-back,” I say with a tremble in my voice.
He comes over and pulls me into a quick hug. “Congratulations, what did I tell you?” he asks, letting me go and stepping back.
I nod my head and bite my lip.
“You just need to have a little more confidence in yourself. Now back to work,” he says with a wide grin.
Giddy with nerves and excitement doesn’t even begin to cover it.
Grabbing my phone, I scroll through my contacts and dial.
“Hey, everything okay?”
“Yeah, of course. Sorry, it’s just I got a call-back.”
Nathan lets out a whooping sound down the phone. “Congratulations, Tink! So, when are we celebrating?”
Of course that would be his first thought.
“If I get the part,” I say, bringing my thumb to my lips and nibbling at the skin around my nail.
“When you get that part,” he counters.
I clear my throat, about to rebut his comment, but he doesn’t let me. “Nah-ah, Vi. No ifs okay. You’ve got this.”
Letting out a deep breath, I pull my shoulders back. “I’ve got this,” I say, trying to put out some positive manifestations into the world.
“Yes, you do.”
“Okay, I need to go. I’m at work and want to ring Char quickly and let her know.”
He lets out a soft chuckle. “You rang me first?”
My face heats. Yeah, I did. I try to form a response, but I’m a little lost for words at the moment.
“Well, in that case, I take that as a compliment. If I didn’t know better, I’d say I’m growing on you.”
I make a weird scoffing sound at the back of my throat. “You wish.”
“Yeah, I guess I do,” he replies quietly.
For some reason, his response makes my entire body feel warm.
