Magic Mansion Jordan Price (best non fiction books of all time txt) đ
- Author: Jordan Price
Book online «Magic Mansion Jordan Price (best non fiction books of all time txt) đ». Author Jordan Price
The very last thing Marlene wanted was a big scene. âCâmon, get in here. Close the door behind you.â
Monty slammed the door. âItâs not right, what you did.â
âLet me explain something to you. The contestantsâ contracts are nothing like yours. Youâre an announcer. You say your lines, and you go enjoy your work visa. What they signed up for was different. Anything goes.â
âJust because you can do something doesnât mean you should. Youâre driving down the street and a puppy runs across the road. Which wayâre you gonna swerve?â
âAlthough I doubt youâre willing to let me convince you, Iâm being honest when I say these were not random acts of cruelty. We de-villainized the Professor from the taint of the Red Team, and helped Ricardo into the heartthrob role he was meant to play.â
âYeah? And what about Sue?â
AhâŠso thatâs what was eating him. âI seem to recall advising you to wait until she was eliminatedâŠand remember what you told me?â
âThis is all a big power trip for you, right?â
âYou said, âSueâs a big girl. And thereâs nothing here that says we canât see each other.â Sound familiar?â
Monty held himself so taut he was shaking, and Marlene prepared herself for a barrage. But after a few careful breaths, he only said, âSheâs gonna leave him, you know.â
âThen you have nothing to be upset about.â
Monty probably had a few more angry accusations to hurl, but instead he just shot Marlene his best blue-eyed prettyboy fuck-you glare, and turned toward the door.
âSince youâre here,â Marlene supposed she really shouldnât give in to the urge to be catty, but she didnât take very kindly to threats, âI have a note for you. Read all your lines. Seems that you skipped one in your conversation with Professor Topaz, when you were supposed to ask him how seeing his boyfriendâs obituary made him feel.â
âYeah?â Monty headed out of the trailer, then tossed back over his shoulder, âThere must have been something in it I didnât know how to pronounce.â
___
Funny, how things could turn on a dime. Earlier that week when Ricardo had slipped through the kitchen into the old servantâs quarters, his belly had been aflutter with the giddy prospect of being alone with John. Now it felt like it was full of lead.
He stared at the paper star with Mr. Topaz written on it for a moment, and considered simply turning back around and soldiering on through the rest of the showâŠbut the thought of doing that made him feel even worse than he already did. And so he knocked.
John answered. Heâd hung up his tuxedo jacket and removed his cufflinks, and his bare wrists flashed through the cuff placketsâfodder for Ricardoâs fantasies if ever there was any. But that wasnât why Ricardo was there.
Tears? No, John was dry-eyed. As somber as it was humanly possible to be? Yes, that. And Ricardo wouldnât have realized the depth of Johnâs sorrow were it not for all the shots of him smiling and laughing that had just played across the backdrop of the stage. âAre you okay?â Ricardo asked.
John closed his eyes for a moment, gathered himself, and then opened them again and said, âActually, itâs a relief.â
âWhat is? Being outed?â
âAnd having Caseyâs death thrown in my face.â
âHow could that possibly be a relief?â
âIt was the most painful thing they could have done. NowâŠanything else they follow up withâŠI frankly donât care.â
It was John who initiated the embraceâor tried to. Ricardo was all stiffness and tension. John disengaged, and murmured, âWhat is it? Are you angry with me?â
âWith you?â Ricardo wrapped his arms around his leaden stomach and shook his head. âMeeting you is the only good thing thatâs happened to me here.â Scenes from the last few weeks played through his mind like a slide show. âAnd you know what the crazy part is? I donât actually know you at all. Itâs my own damn fault, too. I fell for my own idea of Professor Topazâthat poster of you with the gloves and the coin and the one eyebrow raised? Oh yeah. I have it hanging on my bedroom wall. In my mind, that was you. Tux, top hat, and that smoldering look like you have X-ray visionâthatâs how I imagined you were. All the time. Twenty-four seven.â
âIâm sorry.â
âNo, donât you dare apologize. Itâs not you. Itâs nothing to do with you. Fan-worship isnât about the star. Itâs about the fan, whipping up some completely fabricated image in their mind and then glorying in it and pretending itâs realâbut thereâs no actual relationship there. Itâs totally one-sided. And I think what scares me the most is that I almost let myself be so carried away by the Professor Topaz who lived in my mindâŠthat I would have missed getting to know the real John.â
John reached for Ricardoâs hand, slipped his agile fingers into Ricardoâs grasp, and gently pried Ricardoâs arm away from his body. Ricardo did allow himself to be held now, but his heart was still heavy with disappointment and anger. âTheyâve taken Ricardo the Magnificent and run with him,â Ricardo said, âand I donât even recognize him now. Theyâve been doing it for weeks. I had no idea. And I wonât be a part of it anymore.â
John pressed a kiss to Ricardoâs temple. âItâs almost over.â
âNoâŠthatâs not good enough. It is over. For me. Whatever the next challenge isâIâm throwing it.â
John tightened his arms around Ricardo. âEven if you did, you wouldnât be voted off. Ricardo the Magnificent is too popular. Whether you approve of him or not.â
âThen Iâll quit.â
âYou signed a contractâand itâs not worth damaging your career for the sake of making a statement now. Once weâre out of the Mansion, youâll have plenty of chances to tell your side of the story. Everyone will be salivating for an interview. Youâll get your chance to set
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