Total pages in book: 143
Estimated words: 138287 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 691(@200wpm)___ 553(@250wpm)___ 461(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 138287 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 691(@200wpm)___ 553(@250wpm)___ 461(@300wpm)
I puffed out a long breath then sighed. “Okay. Where do we start?”
Amber clapped then reached out to me, pulling off my glasses. “We’ll start with Lasik eye surgery.” She walked around me, flipping my hair. “You’ll need hair extensions too.” Her hand landed on my ass with a light slap. “And we’re going to need to do lots of squats.” When I narrowed my eyes at her, she said, “What? A lot of these dresses cannot be worn with underwear.”
Of course. That made me feel so much better.
Thank you, Amber.
When I got to St Jude’s, ten days after arriving home, I was nervous.
The memory of Nanna and the look of her terror-filled expression that day so long ago was as fresh in my mind as the day it occurred.
But as I approached her room with a bunch of daisies in my hand that fear began to lift some. When I stood at the door and peered in, I saw her lying in bed, watching the television. I knocked gently and when she turned to face me, I smiled. “Hi, Nanna.”
She blinked at me a long time and I just knew she didn’t recognize me. I felt my heart would have broken if not for the fact that I no longer had one. Rather than take it personally, I walked into the room and said, “Hello, Fay. These are for you.” I held out the flowers and her eyes settled on them.
Her voice was scratchy and I couldn’t help but noticed how much she’d aged in three short months. “Oh, I love daisies. Who are they from?”
“From me,” I told her quietly.
She frowned at me. “And who are you?”
My chest panged. “My name is Emily.”
Her eyes were never fully focused. “That is a lovely name.”
At that, I smiled, because Nanna had named me. “May I sit with you a while?”
Nanna smiled. “Oh yes, I’d like that.”
Me too, Nanna.
Me too.
After an hour-long visit, Nanna started to doze and I left her to rest while I went to the reception area to talk to somebody about switching payments. I explained to the accounts manager, “I have a new job, so if I can just give you the information, you can start taking payments as soon as you like.”
The man looked over the account and frowned. “I really don’t think that’ll be necessary.” He peered at me over his glasses. “You’re paid two years in advance.”
“What?” I said, absolutely shocked. “That’s not possible.”
I knew it wasn’t possible because I didn’t have that kind of money. And then it hit me and I paled.
“Oh no.” I rubbed my forehead. “There’s been a mistake. Please excuse me.”
The second I was out the door, I called Micah and he answered on the first ring. “Hey, I was just about to call you.”
But I needed to explain. “Micah, remember when the label went guarantor for a place at my Nanna’s nursing home?” At his acknowledgement, I sighed. “Well, I’m pretty sure they accidentally paid two years of fees for me.” And that was a lot of money.
“What?” uttered Micah. “I don’t think so. I’m in charge of that particular account, Em. I would know.” I heard him clicking keys on his computer. “Hold on. Let me check.” Minutes passed and he made a sound in his throat. “Emily, I don’t have any record of that happening. If somebody paid your fees, it wasn’t the label.”
This had to be a mistake.
“Okay, thanks for checking. I’ll have to look into it.”
Before he hung up, he said, “By the way, we found a great doctor and you’re getting your eyes done tomorrow, first thing.”
Because lasers burning my eyeballs wasn’t frightening at all. “Lovely. Thanks for letting me know.”
When I hung up, I walked back inside and spoke to the accounts manager again. “Can you tell me when this payment was made and who made it?”
He checked the computer screen, and said, “The payment was made ten days ago but there’s no record of who made it.”
I knew it had to be a mistake.
Sooner or later, St Jude’s would figure that out.
Chapter Twenty-Three
A Star is Born.
Emmy
“You’re ready,” Amber revealed with a soft smile.
My heart was racing and I was sure it could visibly be seen thumping in my chest. I reached for my bag then slid on the Tom Ford sunglasses Amber had handpicked for me.
I glanced at my reflection in the small mirror in hand. I didn’t look like myself. I looked like one of them. One of the beautiful people. And the image in the mirror confused me so suddenly that I snapped the compact shut, placing it back into the YSL bag Amber insisted I needed. When I found out how much that tiny bag was, I released an expletive so loud that Amber laughed in shock.
So much work had been done to make me look like this. A solid month of training. I hoped I could live up to the role of The Violet Dame.