Page 39 of The Publicist
“Hey, babe, what are you up to?” Her infectious tone makes me smile wider.
“Elena, Sam, and I are going out tonight. Elena doesn’t have to report to set tomorrow, so I decided it was time to let off some steam. Both girls are here getting ready with me.” I can hear laughter in the background.
“Ah, I guess Elena has rescued another lost bird, huh?” I ask, referring to Sam.
“Hey! I was never a lost bird.Yousent her tomebecause you fucked up. However, Sam and I have been talking a lot since I’ve arrived on set, and I think she needs some time out. She told me she’s happy just relaxing in the room, but I call bullshit. I see she wants to go out tonight, therefore, she is my guinea pig.”
“Well, sounds like you have a fun evening out all planned out. Can you put Elena on the phone for a minute?”
“Sure, hang on.” I hear some rustling and Quinn tell Elena it’s for her.
“What do you want, Caleb? Do you not understand it’s girl’s night out?” She is acting annoyed, but I know she’s happy to talk to me.
“E, don’t let anything happen to my girl tonight. Keep an eye out for her. Okay?”
“Caleb, you know I’ve got your back. Anything for my best friend. Now, I’m giving the phone back to Quinn, and you are going to hang up with her because you’re ruining girl’s night. Bye!”
More rustling and I hear Quinn’s sultry voice again. “Well, handsome, guess this is goodnight. Send me a message later, and I’ll see you when you get back Sunday night.”
“I will. Night, babe.”
“Night.”
The phone disconnects, and I am stuck in my room, bored for the remainder of the evening.
Saturday morning, I’m whisked away to the Denver Convention Center so I can meet with fans, pose for pictures, and attend a panel where my fans will ask the most ridiculous questions. Any time I do one of these, I get the same types of questions over and over. I will smile sweetly, answer the same questionagain, and repeat. I haven’t heard from Quinn since last night, but I have sent her a few messages.
I’m waiting behind the curtain at the photo ops area, waiting for the throngs of fans to make their way through. Photo ops can be fun at times, and some of the fans come up with the craziest ideas for pictures. The ones I can’t stand are the ones who want to touch my face, kiss me, or want me to kiss them. I always politely decline, but I can tell some people get upset. The next hour goes by in a blur, and I manage to pose for somewhere around three hundred photos.
Up next is my panel, so the security guard ushers me to the ballroom and I hang around backstage, waiting for my big announcement to go on stage. The crowd is hyped up, and I can tell by the shrieks and the photos earlier, the crowd consists of a lot of younger, female fans. I check my phone one more time, hoping for anything from Quinn. It’s already ten-thirty in Vancouver, but I’m disappointed to come up with nothing.
The moderator announces me, and I walk out on stage, holding my microphone and a smile. I wave to the audience and shake hands with the woman on stage in front of me. She motions for me to take a seat, and I look out into the audience.
“How’s everyone doing today?” I’m met with several screams and cheers, and I continue. “Thanks for coming out to see me today. I’m excited to be in Denver.” More screams and cheers.
Everyone settles down, and the moderator, Stacy, jumps right in. “You’ve had an exciting couple of months with lots of success. Congratulations.”
“Thanks, I appreciate it.”
“You’re currently on site filming your new movie,Keep her Safe,right?”
“Yeah, we’re filming on site in Vancouver right now.” The audience cheers and claps.
“Tell us a bit about filming?”
“Well, if any of you have read the books,” more cheering, “then you know the story picks up where the last one left off. It’s been great. We have a wonderful cast and crew, and I couldn’t be happier. The days are long, but the movie is going to look amazing when we’re done with it.” More cheers and screams.
This continues for a few minutes until Stacy tosses it to audience questions. There are a few funny questions, and the audience gets a good chuckle. There are some questions that make me a bit uncomfortable, but I laugh them off, and then there are the repeat offenders, just like I expected. We get to the last question of the panel, and it’s from a girl, probably in her early twenties. She has on a ton of makeup and is wearing a skimpy outfit that shows off a lot of skin. I have no idea who she is supposed to be, but she seems happy with how she looks.
“Hi, Caleb, I want to ask you about the pictures that surfaced of your girlfriend, Quinn, last night. What do you make of the partying, since you are trying to avoid that yourself?”
Pictures?I haven’t seen any, nor did I think to search for any today. My face falters, and I immediately smile brightly as to not give anything away. “Quinn and I are doing great. She was having a girl’s night out last night. Nothing more than innocent fun.” I laugh, and Stacy announces that’s the end of the panel. I wave goodbye to the audience and walk backstage, my phone in my hand in seconds, pulling up a Google search.
I want to punch a wall when I see the first images that come up when I search for Quinn’s name. Quinn is all over Tait, and he seems to be getting handsy with her. I look at the caption below the picture I think I might vomit.
Is Quinn cheating on Caleb? Quinn Harrison was spotted all over Tait Flanigan tonight at Feverish in Vancouver, British Columbia. Wonder how Caleb is going to take the news?
Wonder how I’m going to take it?I want to rip Tait’s fucking head off! I scroll through the photos and find more just like it—her arms draped over his shoulders, her nestling in the crook of his neck, him with his hands all over her. I’m getting a headache, and I’m seeing red. There has to be an explanation for all of this.