You Had Me at Halo(50)

Dr. Hill coughed. Gosh, the least he could do was not try and distract her. Especially since it was his fault Vince wasn’t here to help out.

“What about the guy sitting next to you?” Southpark Tie and Matching Socks said. Holly hadn’t quite managed to catch his name yet.

Dr. Hill coughed again.

“Ha. Good one.” Holly laughed, still trying to not let him put her off. Boy he really wasn’t a team player was he? Not content with sending her to hell he was now trying to make her look crazy as well. “As if there’s someone sitting next to me.”

“I thought you had to leave early to do something at home,” the technician persisted. “Are you sure you didn’t go to another bar?”

“Of course, I’m—”

“I’m not invisible.” Dr. Hill coughed again and Holly turned and stared at him.

“What?” Holly blinked.

The doctor stood up and collected his numerous bags. “Vince, you win the bet. You can stop pretending I don’t exist now.” Then he turned to the four boys. “He’s a joker isn’t he?”

Holly felt her jaw hang open as Dr. Hill disappeared off down the road. Was he laughing? Honestly that man needed to have his spiritual realinger license taken away from him. He was a mockery.

He had also come bearing particularly bad news and Holly realized she had no time to lose. She got to her feet, said goodbye to the technicians and tried to remember just where Vince’s apartment was. She needed to make sure her talk with Todd tonight went perfectly. The alternative wasn’t worth thinking about.





CHAPTER NINTEEN


Ten minutes later Holly fumbled with the keys in Vince’s pocket and finally pushed open the door. She dropped down onto the couch and rubbed her pounding temples. She just needed to relax for a few moments and remind herself that everything would be okay. And of course it was a complete coincidence that a Friends repeat was just about to start.

So anyway, where did Vince keep his television?

When they’d arrived back last night, Holly had been too dazed and confused to really notice much more than the fact she was sharing her body with a guy.

However today, not only had she started to learn that Vince was actually quite sweet and kind, but she’d also discovered that too much thinking was bad for her brain. She needed to switch off for a little while or she might spontaneously combust. And that couldn’t be good for anyone.

Okay and still no sign of any television.

Holly shut the final cabinet (which she’d known had been a long shot since it was underneath the sink) and felt like screaming. Was it too much to ask for at least something to go right today?

How could he not have a television? After all that was what water cooler conversations were made of. Maybe that was why Vince was such a loner. Or was it because he wanted to be a loner that he didn’t have a television in the first place? The never-ending chicken and egg debate.

She was just twiddling her thumbs and once again studying Vince’s fingers when the phone rang. Holly jumped up to answer it before realizing that since Vince wasn’t around it could just put her right back into another landmine of trouble. On the other hand it could be Gemma with more news. Holly picked up the phone.

“Vince?” a woman said and Holly cursed herself for being so nosy.

“Er, yeah,” she answered in a cautious voice. Well at least it wasn’t Amy Jenkins, which had to be something.

“It’s Lorraine, here.”

“Oh, right.” Holly racked her brain to see if the name rang any bells. But no. “H-ow are you?”

“I’ve just had the day from hell.”

You want to bet? Holly raised an eyebrow. “Really?”

“God yes,” Lorraine groaned. “You know they say to never work with animals or children, but they should definitely add actors to that list. You wouldn’t believe what an old diva, Monica Edwards, was being today.”

Holly nearly dropped the phone.

Monica Edwards played Samantha Montgomery, the matriarch and complete bitch of The Rich and the Restless. Of course she would be a diva in real life. That’s what character acting was all about. It was a small sacrifice to pay for the dazzling performances she gave week in and week out. After all, you didn’t get ten Emmys by being halfhearted.

Which meant this was Lorraine of The Rich and the Restless fame. Talk about one degree of separation to...well...the most famous cast in the whole world. Holly tried not to jump up and down in excitement, but she was jumping on the inside.

“Yeah,” Lorraine continued. “She’s been a nightmare, which is why I wasn’t able to call you earlier.”

“Well you know, perhaps she was just being crabby because it’s Thursday,” Holly suggested. “Remember she’s married to Larry Edwards, the Great Morning host, and he’s always away during the week. Well it stands to reason she’d be a bit funny, doesn’t it?”

Lorraine seemed speechless, which Holly took as a sign to keep speaking, especially about the errors she had seen on the website text. It wasn’t like Vince had prohibited Holly from saying anything; it was just he had been worried about the time factor. And rightly so. But since Holly was taking a small break from freaking about her less than chirpy future, it really wasn’t a problem.