Chapter 12: Chapter 12

Nigel pulled up various social media accounts from the cast and scrolled through. He quickly saw that she was right—their content needed to be more tailored, more focused. He had his marketing team divided into specialty groups, each one focusing on one specific area. Yet in less than two days, Roslyn had managed to nail down exactly what they needed and even had a damn graph to prove her point.

After several moments of silence, Nigel placed his phone on the desk and pulled his own plate over. He picked at his food, rolling around all the information inside his head.

“If I overstepped—”

“No.” He stared across the desk. Roslyn didn’t seem insecure as she met his gaze, which just raised his admiration another notch. “You didn’t overstep. These are things I need to know and you’re going above and beyond in such a short time.”

“Good. I didn’t want to step on toes, but I was hired for a reason.”

His respect for this new hire continued to climb. Maybe she wasn’t too good to be true. Maybe she was just this amazing and he’d hit the jackpot.

With each moment he spent with her, he found her beauty taking a backseat to her brilliant mind. Looks would only get someone so far in life and Roslyn was proving to be a great asset on many levels.

Damn shame he didn’t get personal with employees. Since his position was so prestigious and everything he’d wanted when he came to New York, he wouldn’t jeopardize that for anything. He wanted his family in England to be proud of what he’d done. He didn’t want them to think he just came here and bounced from one beautiful woman to another. Yes, he dated quite a bit, but he also didn’t flounce it all over the media, and he never ever dated someone from the show...or his office staff.

Roslyn was exactly the type of woman he hadn’t known he was looking for. If she weren’t working for him, then he wouldn’t have minded getting to know her on a more personal level and building trust.

Trust was so hard to come by in this industry when most people were only looking out for themselves and how they could get ahead.

But while a more intimate kind of trust wasn’t an option between them, that didn’t mean he couldn’t enjoy Roslyn’s company, perhaps more than he did with any other employee.

“If you start with Seraphina’s account, for example.” Roslyn pulled up the page and turned her phone toward Nigel. “Even her bio could be catchier.”

Nigel felt the brewing of a headache and shook his head. “Seraphina may not be part of the show much longer.”

He hadn’t meant to let that out, but his instinct told him Roslyn could be trusted. She’d gone to great lengths to prove herself and if he wanted someone to help him grow in the rankings, she would need all the pertinent information.

Roslyn’s dark eyes widened. “Oh, um... I wasn’t aware. Not that you needed to tell me.”

“It’s okay,” he replied. “I actually just found out recently that she was considering leaving—though of course, we don’t want her to go. I was on the phone with her this morning offering her another option.

That’s why I was a few minutes late to the meeting.”

“Does she want to leave?” Roslyn asked. “What will she do?”

Nigel had kept asking her that very question. “She’s moving to Texas with a cowboy she met while she was filming down there. She and Clint are getting married.”

Roslyn smiled. “Well, that’s great news for them and for the show. That’s a huge marketing tactic and an angle that every viewer would love. A happily-ever-after for one of your favorite ladies is like gold.”

“Which is why I want her and Clint to do a spin-off,” he confided. “I’ve talked to her about it, but she’s not sure Clint would be on board.”

Roslyn’s gasped. “Yes. A spin-off would be perfect. There’s nothing more valued than a real-life love story and people put so much faith in such fairy tales.”

“Fairy tales?” he questioned. “You don’t believe in true love?”

Roslyn shrugged. “It’s not often I see it in action. I mean, I love my brothers and they love me. Actually, my oldest brother has found love, but that’s a rarity, in my opinion. I can’t say I had love from my father and he certainly didn’t have it for my mother. He cheated on her and made no qualms about it even after she passed away of a stroke. I guess I’m just jaded on the whole thing.”

Interesting. For someone so passionate about her work, it seemed that Roslyn went the complete opposite way when it came to her personal life.

“So if a man showered you with bouquets of your favorite flowers, you wouldn’t be tempted to fall a little in love?”

Roslyn laughed as she sat her phone down and reached for her bottled water. “A bouquet of flowers is so clichéd. If a man brought me a single stem with heartfelt words, that would mean more than an entire expensive bundle.”

“So you need pretty words?” he asked.

“I don’t need anything,” she corrected. “I deserve someone who is honest and wants to open his heart to me alone. I just don’t think that man exists.”

Nigel processed her words, understanding pain masked by a wall of defense.

“And what about you?” she asked. “Do you believe in true love?”