Power Drilled (Roommates, #8)(11)

I winced in sympathy. “That’s awful.” I couldn’t even imagine what kind of megacast one would need for two broken bones. “And here I thought I was bad at bowling.”

Sitting across from me, Reid gave a faint smile. “From what I gather, there was a lot of alcohol involved. The point is, we need a videographer for this job.”

Some of the weight lifted from my shoulders. Not all of it, but the despair from this morning faded, along with most of the embarrassment I’d felt in the past few minutes. “I’m glad you thought of me.” The words were true. I was proud of the work I’d done with Lila. She had a ton of followers, and part of that was because of my videos.

“You do good work,” Jackson said again. “But if you decide to help us out, you need to know what you’re getting into.”

Reid took up the thread. “We call it a Ten-Day Turnover because we make a huge push. This isn’t a nine-to-five job; it’s basically one, long ten-day job.”

“Day and night,” Hunter added. “We go hard.”

He gave me a pointed look when he said that, but I was still processing the day and night thing. “You guys work around the clock?”

“Pretty much,” Jackson said. “But it’s not like every second of what we do needs to be recorded and posted online.”

Hunter grinned. “Just the stuff where we look hot.”

Reid let out a huff of air. “That’s not what it’s about.”

“Sure it is,” Hunter countered. “Do you really think everyone who checks out our videos is interested in home renovation?”

“Some of them are,” Jackson said, and I wondered if he was the peacemaker of the three. “But yeah, we’ve built up a brand and a following, so it’s in our best interest to give our viewers what they want.” The tip of his nose reddened slightly, and it was adorable as hell. I didn’t have much doubt about what kind of videos of these three their fans would like.

“Our groupies are called the Flip Trippers,” Hunter said.

I covered my mouth, choking back a laugh. I was dying to have a few minutes alone with my phone so I could check out what kind of videos had been posted in the past.

“Let’s talk compensation,” Reid said. He was definitely the Mr. Business of the group. “We can offer you five thousand dollars.”

My jaw dropped. “For ten days of work?” My stunned mind did the math. That was five hundred dollars a day.

Jackson smiled at the shock on my face. “Think that might help with your car repair bills?”

It definitely would. “Starting when?”

“Now, actually,” Jackson said. “Demo day is always day one.”

“Now?” My voice squeaked. If this was day one, that meant that their ten-day push would overlap with Claire’s wedding, and all the family activities leading up to it next week. But five grand… how could I say no to that? Not to mention that filming these Adonis-like men was hardly an unappealing prospect. What better way to distract myself from my ex? “As in… now?”

Jackson nodded. “Yes, if you’re interested. Do you need any special equipment?”

I shook my head. I shot Lila’s videos on my phone, using special lenses she’d purchased, and I used my laptop to edit them. “I’ve got everything I need.”

“We can give you an advance when your car’s ready,” Jackson said.

Reid frowned. “We agreed we’d pay her at the end of the Ten-Day Turnaround.”

There was a glint in Hunter’s eyes as his blue eyes swiveled my way. “We’re going to keep her too busy to go on joy rides.”

For the first time since I’d met him, Jackson looked irritated. “That doesn’t mean we can’t advance her the money. That’s what we do here—we buy the house and pay up front. We don’t earn our money until the house sells.”

Reid gave in. “All right, we can pay you the money upfront.”

I nodded, pleased that he was talking to me instead of about me, as his brothers had done.

“You can’t expect the whole amount today, though, of course,” Reid continued.

“Of course not.” I took a deep breath, trying to get a handle on the crazy idea that had just popped into my mind. “But I actually don’t want the money up front. Or at all.”

A shadow passed across Jackson’s face. “You’re not interested in the job?”

“I’m interested,” I said quickly, and then I followed an impulse. “It’s just that I’d like a different form of payment.”

Surprise flashed across Reid’s face, but he quickly composed himself. “And that would be…?”

Jackson looked curious. “I’m all ears.”

I looked over at the third member of the Flip Trips, Hunter. The grin on his face made me really wonder what he was thinking right now… and what all of them would think when they heard what I had to say.

There was only one way to find out.





5





JACKSON





After Penny’s surprising statement that she didn’t want money to work for us, my brothers both leaned forward, staring at her intently. Reid probably couldn’t conceive of the idea. He was all about finances and budgets.