Just east of the restaurant was a small park, quiet during business hours. It was Matthew's usual spot for his morning run, and today, it was also the rendezvous point for his eting with the entertainnt journalist, Ilana.
A short way from the park entrance, a grove of trees opened into a clearing dotted with benches. Matthew chose one and waited for about half an hour before he saw the tall, fit figure of Ilana step into the glade.
"Ilana," Matthew called, waving her over. "Over here."
Ilana hurried toward him.
Matthew sized her up with a glance. Ilana wore a form-fitting tracksuit that, while not the most stylish, complented her tall, well-proportioned fra.
As Ilana approached, she sat on the bench opposite Matthew and got straight to the point. "Did you get the private photo of Britney Spears?"
Instead of answering, Matthew held out his hand. "Your phone."
Ilana didn't understand. "You want my phone?"
"Don't worry," Matthew said with a shrug. "I'm not about to rob a poor journalist."
Ilana took out her phone and placed it in his hand. Matthew flipped it open and glanced at it, knowing very few phones from this era had a recording function.
"Voice recorder," Matthew said, opening his palm again.
"I didn't bring one," Ilana replied flatly. "What would I gain by recording you? You're just a character actor."
Matthew said nothing, just cocked his head toward her.
Ilana grew slightly irritated. "Matthew Horner, don't push your luck!"
"Am I pushing it?" Matthew gestured to himself. "If I were really pushing it, I'd be making you strip naked."
Ilana smirked. "What? You want to fuck ? Here? Don't tell
that's the only reason you called
out here."
"You're not my type," Matthew countered, well aware of the woman's abrasive personality. "But how do I know you're not recording this sohow?"
Ilana smiled, and with a theatrical flair, she opened her handbag and dumped its contents onto the bench. Then she rummaged through all her coat pockets. Just as she'd said, there was no tape recorder or digital voice recorder.
"Want
to strip?" she asked, staring at Matthew defiantly.
Matthew shook his head. "That won't be necessary."
She gathered her things and then remarked, "You think too highly of yourself."
Matthew knew she was right. He was still a small-ti player, and no one in the grand sche of things gave a damn about him.
It was just a precaution. After all, there's no harm in being careful.
Straightening her handbag, Ilana looked at Matthew and held out her own hand. "Where's the photo?"
"What photo?" Matthew asked, feigning ignorance.
"The private photo of Britney Spears!" Ilana's voice rose. "Malibu. We talked about this—mutual benefit and all that."
Matthew shook his head firmly. "I don't have a private photo of Britney Spears."
Ilana shot to her feet, her expression turning fierce. Her turquoise-blue eyes glazed over with anger, which, combined with her tall, athletic build, made her look exceptionally intimidating.
"Are you wasting my ti?" she demanded. "Or is this so kind of joke?"
"Do I look like I'm joking?" Matthew asked, rolling his eyes. "Sit down. I called you because I have a story you'll be interested in."
Ilana shook her head. "Britney Spears. That's what I'm interested in."
"This is about her, too."
Hearing that, Ilana sat down again, looking much calr, her earlier outburst gone.
"Go on," she prompted. "What's the story? A scandal?"
Matthew, of course, wouldn't give it away so easily. "It's a story you can milk for a month straight. Trust , your readers will eat it up. Even—"
"Cut the crap," Ilana interrupted. "Tell
what you want from ."
She was hot-headed, but she wasn't stupid. And from her last encounter with Matthew, she knew there would be strings attached.
"There's a guy—a rival—who could be a threat to ." Though Martin Jackson wasn't the most important piece of the puzzle, Michael's chances of landing the role definitely improved with his support, and Matthew couldn't afford to be careless. "I need you to write a story about him."
After their last eting in Malibu, he had looked up the paper Ilana worked for. U.S. News & World Report. It sounded prestigious, but in reality, it was a tabloid dedicated to Hollywood and celebrity gossip.
"If you're trying to ruin his reputation, it won't work," Ilana countered. "My editor-in-chief won't approve it unless he's at least semi-famous."
Matthew pressed on. "You can tail him, dig into the leads I'll give you later. Trust , you'll be pleased with what you find."
Ilana's composure wavered as she started to consider it.
"This is just the beginning of our partnership." Matthew continued his spiel, laying it on thick to impress Ilana and make sure she wouldn't back out. "Ilana, look at my resu. I've been on set with Angelina Jolie and Winona Ryder. I worked on Ridley Scott's Gladiator, and I landed a role that was featured on the promotional poster."
Hearing this, Ilana recalled the posters she'd seen. She stared at Matthew for a mont, then asked, "You played the barbarian chieftain?"
"Yes." Matthew nodded.
Ilana realized at once that she had underestimated him.
Matthew smiled and tapped his temple. "There's a lot of information up here. And if you want to work with "—he echoed Ilana's own words back at her—"it'll be mutually beneficial."
Ilana was sold. She could already see how this could impress her editor-in-chief. "Alright, I can help," she conceded, "but I can't guarantee anything."
Matthew knew she was just a journalist and didn't hold much power herself.
"Here's his picture." Matthew pulled a printout from his hip pocket. On the front was a photo of Michael; on the back, he'd written a note. "Just say he's a die-hard fan of Christina Aguilera who's about to play the lead in a Britney Spears music video."
He added, "Preferably soti this week."
Taking the printout, Ilana glanced at it and imdiately understood the subtext. "Are you saying there's beef between Christina Aguilera—who was also on the Mickey Mouse Club—and Britney Spears?"
Matthew had already done so research online and in the tabloids. They were both famous, but there were no public stories about them attacking each other.
Matthew had read so gossip about the two on entertainnt blogs and decided to run with it. "When I was on the set for the music video, I personally heard Britney Spears's assistant say that Britney called Christina Aguilera a bitch in private."
He looked at Ilana. "You can dig into that. I'm sure they have so kind of history."
A feud between two pop princesses had to be juicy.
That's what Matthew was thinking, and so was Ilana.
"Is what you're saying true?" Ilana asked suspiciously.
"I swear," Matthew said, raising his right hand as if taking an oath. "I can swear to God I heard it with my own ears."
Ilana did so quick calculations in her head. The information was genuinely valuable. If she could dig up more details, she could make a lot of money from the article alone. And if she played her cards right, a part-ti deputy editor position wasn't out of the question.
But ever since she'd arrived, Matthew had been leading her by the nose, and she didn't like it.
"It could just be her assistant talking shit," she said thoughtfully.
Matthew raised his eyebrows. Was she trying to back out?
"Even if they aren't feuding," he said casually, a smile absent from his face, "with your skills, can't you just create a conflict out of thin air?"
"Yes!" Ilana's mouth fell open, and she slapped her thigh hard. "Why didn't I think of that? I can just manufacture the gossip!"
She stood up and hastily prepared to leave, saying just before she went, "I'll do my best to fulfill your request."
Ilana had clearly taken Matthew's words to heart.
Watching Ilana hurry away, Matthew prepared to leave as well. Now that one part of his plan was in motion, he'd have to visit the Disney studio, where the show was based, more often in the coming days to create the right opportunity.
On a side note, he needed an assistant for tomorrow.
Matthew walked all the way ho, but he still couldn't think of a suitable person. All the actors from the Angel Acting Agency were out of the question; they were all competitors, and any one of them would sell him out in a heartbeat.
Helen? Who knew what that woman was really thinking.
As he unlocked the door to his apartnt, Matthew considered who would be right for the job. Amanda. She would be perfect—she was socially inexperienced and not very worldly.
He contacted Amanda and made the necessary preparations, waiting for the day of the audition.
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