“Thank you, come back soon!” Charlie sang out, her voice full of forced cheer. This was what she did for a living: performed. She was going to get through this. She just needed to keep up the act for a few more days.

17

Cass

Tuesday: 4 Days Until Christmas . . .

Los Angeles

“Do you need anything?” Priya asked, knocking gently on the door. Inside the restroom, Cass stared at her reflection in the mirror, her fingers gripping the sides of the sink. She was sweaty and pale, with her stomach in knots. Cass’s insides churned every time she thought about Miguel and how they’d left things the night before. Also, she spent half the night questioning if she had it in her to pull off yet another elaborate pastry recipe today. Then when she’d arrived on set, already feeling queasy, the smell of burnt plastic (an intern had left a ladle too close to a hot element) had pushed her over the edge. Luckily, the restroom Priya directed her to was private, so no one else was witness to the unfortunate dry heaving.

“Uh, Charlie?” Cass wondered why Priya was calling her by her sister’s name, then realized someone else must be standing outside the door with her. “How about a peppermint tea?”

Cass cleared her throat. “That sounds great. Thanks.” She turned on the cold water and splashed a couple of handfuls on her thankfully still-bare face, glad at least she wasn’t ruining Priya’s hard work. Patting her skin dry with one of the paper towels, she took a deep breath before opening the door.

Austin leaned against the wall across from the restroom, arms crossed and with his signature smirk in place. “Hope that wasn’t from testing one of your own recipes, Goodwin.”

“Do you have nothing better to do than obsess over me? It’s not a good look on you,” Cass said, before walking quickly back down the hall to the makeup room. But Austin kept pace beside her, continuing his needling.

“Not feeling so hot, huh, kiddo?” His tone was concerned, but she knew it was faked. Cass clenched her jaw and resisted the urge to turn and punch Austin right in the nose.

“Leave me alone, Austin.”

She sat back in the chair, hoping Priya would return soon and Austin would slink back into the hole he had come out of. Cass had no idea how Charlie worked with such a weasel, day in and day out.

But Austin wouldn’t leave, and instead stood in the door watching her. “We should probably let Sasha know you’re sick. You know how freaked she gets about germs on set, with all the food and everything.”

Austin put his hands in his pockets as he scrutinized her in the mirror. “You’re not going to fool anyone. So, are you going to tell Sasha or should I?”

“Tell her what?” For a moment Cass was panicked, thinking he was referring to the swap. But then she realized he simply meant about her being ill. He looked far too happy at the prospect of being the one to rat Cass and her wobbly stomach out. Suddenly she couldn’t stand to let Austin feel like he had the upper hand for one more second.