Lukewarm coffee dribbled out of my nose. What was happening here? Of all the celebrities in the world, this ripped man in overalls was most curious if I’d seen the editor of Vogue? I wiped my mouth with the back of my hand and glanced around the room for hidden cameras. This entire interview had to be a joke. Had Tea set me up? Had Finn set me up? Unless he’d followed me from the construction site and was hiding behind the grandfather clock, he was not a witness to this interview. “Why don’t you find out for yourself? Road trip?”

He clenched his teeth in a grimace. “Oh no. I couldn’t do that.”

“Why? It’s so close. I came here by bus and didn’t even use a half day of travel.”

“The muggings. The cockroaches. Did you ever see Rats?” He shook his upper half exaggeratedly. “I couldn’t.”

And I couldn’t believe my ears. He both revered and feared Manhattan, based only on what he saw in television and movies.

Who are you to talk? My heart hiccupped in horror. How was Garrett making assumptions about life in the big city, using iconic movies and shows like Sex and the City and The Bold Type, any different than what I’d done with small towns?

I shrugged off the comparison. This was different. Wasn’t it? I squeezed my eyes shut. This wasn’t the time for self-analysis. I had a story to write. Or not write. I wiped down the table, catching my spilled coffee before it trickled onto the wood floor.

In one last-ditch effort, I asked, “How do you feel about The Hollows? Anything you’re afraid will change for you personally or professionally with the influx of new people?” Latching on to his last comment, I added, “Are you afraid the crime rate will go up?”

I sighed. Over the next two minutes, Garrett asked if I lived near Times Square, how many times I’d been mugged, and if I’d ever gone to the Radio City Christmas Spectacular. Finally, I told him I had to bounce to FaceTime with my ex-model cousin who’d just been released from jail for drug dealing. I had no such cousin, but why not play into the fabulous yet dangerous world Garrett had conjured up for me in New York City? He ate it up. At least one of us got what they needed from this interview. I was spent, but as I clambered up the stairs to my room for a much-needed nap, I received another text from Kate.

Call me later. I want all the deets. #winning.

My lower extremities took a deep dive. If having zero material for a story due in a little more than a week was winning, I hated to think what losing looked like.

Chapter Fifteen

Chapter Fifteen