SLEAZE: A Hollywood Comeback Story (Book #1)

Epilogue

"Sophie?" I called, as I stepped through the front door of my apartment, kicking my shoes off and adding them to the pile in the entranceway. "I'm back."

Stretched across my couch like a sunbathing cat, Sophie lowered her magazine to look at me. I don't know exactly when or how it happened, but over the course of the summer, Sophie's things had seemingly multiplied around my apartment. She'd always left a decent number of clothes at my place but it felt like my closet had recently undergone a hostile takeover. Frilly dresses now hung in a perfect row alongside my collared shirts, and although Sophie had bought me enough outfits to last a lifetime, I couldn't help but notice that a substantial number of my ratty t-shirts and jeans had mysteriously gone missing. I assumed it was Sophie's doing rather than the work of a thief, though I rarely bothered to ask and she never admitted a thing. Either way, my mom would've been over the moon to learn that Sophie had thrown away all of my beer-stained frat tanks and ripped shorts. Frankly, I wouldn't have been surprised if they were in on it together.

Along with the influx of women's clothing came a fluffy beige rug that covered the living room floor and a dozen photo frames that featured our smiling faces. Nearly every inch of surface space inside my apartment was stacked with stylish decorations and although Sophie was clearly pleased with her work, Scott had been quick to point out that it looked like my place belonged in a Martha Stewart catalogue. I laughed when he said it, feigning embarrassment, but truth be told, I didn't really mind. It was certainly homier now than it'd been when I'd been left to my own devices. In fact, I was actually pretty happy that I finally had a set of matching dishes, even if they were canary yellow and polka-dot.

"How was your day?" Sophie asked after I crossed the room and kissed her hello.

"Alright. Yours?"

"Fine. I got the schedule for the new TV show I'm filming," Sophie replied. "We're going to start shooting the pilot next week."

"That's great," I said, and Sophie gave a small shrug. "I thought you wanted to keep doing films, though."

"I do," Sophie said slowly. "But I also want to stick around L.A. for a while without worrying about which location I'm going to be sent to next. It's nice to have at least some amount of control over my life -- and to be home, to be in one place."

I nodded, trying to suppress a grin. "You just want to hang out with me, don't you?"

Sophie didn't answer, though the smile that spread across her face told me that I wasn't entirely wrong. "So, how did your meeting go?" she asked. I watched her fold her long legs so that they were tucked beneath her before sitting down beside her on the couch.

"Alright," I said, reaching for her hand but deciding to rest my fingers on her bare knee instead. She surprised me by shivering slightly and shoving me away. "Are my hands cold?"

"Freezing."

"Sorry." I rubbed my hands together to warm them up but she shook her head when I moved to touch her again. "He didn't say it, obviously, but my academic advisor seemed to think I'd made the right decision."

Sophie furrowed her eyebrows. "What'd you guys talk about?"

Leaning back, I felt something dig into the side of my hip and I withdrew the television remote from the crevice between the couch's cushions. Tossing the flicker from hand to hand, I said, "I told him that I wanted to keep working on my engineering degree and drop my film major down to a minor."

"And?"

"He asked me why."

"What'd you say?"

"I asked him if he'd turned on his TV in the last five months."

Sophie's laugh filled the room. "I guess not everyone can handle the spotlight."