Page 88 of Next Time We'll Fall

“Yeah. That’s true.” I start laughing again, and then I remember that Rafe is staring at us.

I look over, and he’s now closer to us.

Jackie heads over to us. She’s got her pen in her ear. “Hey, Juniper.”

“Yes, Jackie?”

“That guy over there”—she nods toward Rafe—“is he the man you were telling me about?”

I think about lying, but I think I pause too long, and she grins.

“Okay. I’m going to go and have a little word with him.”

“No, don’t.”

She looks back at me. “If he says he doesn’t want to talk, then we won’t talk. But if he does, then I think we’ve got ourselves a show.” Her eyes are bright with excitement. “I think I might be on my way to winning a Daytime Emmy.”

Chapter 21

RAFE

The excitement from all the women when they see August Pitt is palpable. I can tell, even from my vantage point, that he’s tall and handsome, and he has an aura about him that makes people pay attention. I guess it doesn’t hurt that he’s a famous movie star and he has a commanding presence, but I’m immediately pissed off when I see that he heads directly over to Juniper.

Not that I am surprised. In fact, that’s the reason I came to the beach this morning—partly because I just wanted to wish her a happy day, but also because I was worried. I didn’t know what to expect. And even though I knew she wasn’t on this show to find love or even do anything with anyone else, I knew she had a light and an energy to her that would attract people to her, especially someone like August.

I find myself walking closer to the set, even though there are barricades put up. I notice a lady with short hair heading toward me. She’s got a clipboard in her hand, and she’s talking into what appears to be a tape recorder, muttering something. She stops right next to me.

“Hey, are you Juniper’s friend?”

I look at her in surprise. “I am.” I thought she would have remembered me.

“Hi, I’m Jackie. I’m one of the producers on the show. I’m actually the one who got Juniper to sign up.”

“Oh, great. Nice to meet you, Jackie.”

“I understand you and Juniper went on a date last night.”

I stare at her in surprise. “We did. Why? Is Juniper trying to drop out?”

“No, of course not.” She looks at me like I’m crazy. “And Juniper’s going to be one of the stars of this show.” She tilts her head to the side. “And it looks like August has already taken a liking to her, as you can see.”

My eyes narrow as I look over at Juniper and August. She’s laughing at something he said, and I can feel myself growing angry again.

“I have a proposition for you.”

“A proposition for me?” I look at her in surprise. “What’s the proposition?”

“You like Juniper, I assume?”

“Yes. Why?”

“Well, how do you feel about perhaps having a role on this show?”

“What do you mean, a role on the show?”

“Look, reality TV shows are all about ratings. If we want to get a second season, we need drama. We need drama to bring in audience members. We need drama that’s going to go viral on social media. I want people posting on TikTok, Instagram, Threads, Facebook, YouTube about the drama that’s happening on this show. And what better drama is there than August Pitt, Hollywood leading man, falling in love with a Coconut Beach local, only to find out that she’s secretly been dating a local vetand they’re going to fight for her love?” She grins. “Or I can change the storyline up some.”

I stare at her. “What? Are you joking right now?”