RINGOFTRUTHEBOOK (1) Read online

  As Erin sat getting her hair done, she caught a glimpse of Jake in a tailored suit. He laughed at something one of the assistants said, and it made her heart pound wildly. She wished the whole dating mess had never happened so she could drool over him without large amounts of guilt piled on. She still hadn’t told her parents, and if it had gone badly, for Jake, she knew things would be worse with her parents.

  Once Erin was ready, she followed the crew out to the street. They had blocked the wind as much as possible and a box of snow was ready to go. While it wasn’t Christmas yet, the chill to air made it easy to believe. Now they just needed to make the audience believe that as well. She shivered and pulled her shawl closer.

  “Oh, here. Take this.” Jake put his jacket over Erin’s shoulders, and kept his arm around her. “It really cooled off, didn’t it?”

  “Yes it did. I thought I’d blow away this morning.” Erin noticed how tense Jake was, and how his hands were shoved in his pocket. “Oh, now you’re freezing. Here take it back.” She tried to pull of the jacket, but Jake stopped her.

  “No, keep it. I’ll put it back on for the commercial. Why they don’t have you in a coat is beyond me.” He walked away and talked to a few people before bringing back a thick, fur-lined coat. “Here you go. This looks more appropriate for winter anyway.”

  Erin handed him back his jacket and put on the coat. “Oh, this is much better. Thank you.”

  “Okay, you four come here.” The director waited for Jake, Erin, and the other two actors. “You’re going to walk along the street and laugh at each other’s jokes. As you get closer to the camera, the men will pull out the box, slip the ring on the girl’s finger, and then hug. Short and simple. We’ll have Mr. Smith doing the voiceover part so you know the timing.”

  “Got it.” Jake and Erin took their spots and waited for their cue while Liam and Brooke stood to the side and waited for their turn.

  ***

  Erin was grateful to be back in her own warm clothes after being outside for the shoot. She walked out of the dressing room to talk to Jake, but he was nowhere to be found. She couldn’t help the crushing disappointment that washed over her.

  Debra hurried over to her. “That was fantastic. I think Mr. Smith is thrilled with how today turned out. So go home, rest up, and we’ll see you in the morning.”

  “Sounds great. I have a few ideas after today. I’ll send them over to you.”

  “Later. For now, you go home and rest. It was a long day, and you need to relax your brain. Watch a movie, read a book, whatever. Just take some downtime. You did a great job with this project, and I need you rested for the next campaign. I’ll have options sent to you by morning.”

  “Thank you.” Erin forced a smile as she left. She trudged outside and flagged down a taxi to take her home. It was too bad it wasn’t the same driver who had made her laugh before. She could have used it right then.

  Once she got to the apartment she ran upstairs and bolted the door. Determined not to feel sorry for herself, Erin buried herself in the ads for the upcoming project. She’d be going from jewelry to cars. Both were huge sellers at Christmas, but that’s about the only thing they had in common. Nate had managed to score the TV commercials for the cars, while Erin would be doing the magazine and newspaper ads.

  Erin’s phone rang with Carissa’s ringtone. “Hey, what’s up?”

  “Are you busy right now?” Carissa’s voice was partially drowned out by noises in the background.

  Erin stopped doodling on the page in front of her. “I’m working, but it’s nothing that can’t wait. You okay?”

  “Fine. I’ll be up in a sec.” Carissa hung up, and Erin set her phone done. This wasn’t the first time Carissa had suddenly shown up.

  When Erin heard the knock at the door, she got up to answer it. She opened it and was nearly plowed over by a very excited Carissa.

  “Whoa, what’s going on?” Erin shut the door, and pulled Carissa to the couch.

  Carissa pulled out a piece of paper and squealed. “Look!”

  Erin took the paper from her and read through it. Silver Script Ad Agency was hiring her back on as Erin’s partner. She squealed and leaned over to hug Carissa.

  “Debra didn’t tell me she was hiring you back. Last I heard was that her hands were tied. Are you accepting the job?” Erin would have to thank Debra as soon as Carissa left. They were about to hit their busy time, and she’d need help.

  “I told her to keep it a secret. I wanted to tell you myself. She’s giving me the small office next to yours. Apparently the cuts to the staff were done prematurely, and there’s been an influx in projects. I did tell Debra that I’d need to work from home sometimes because of my doctor’s appointments.” She paused. “Are you okay with that?”

  Erin nodded. “You already told me that’s what you preferred, and I don’t mind.”

  Carissa cheered one more time before putting the contract in her purse. “So … how was the commercial shoot?”

  “It was great. I’m exhausted, and I’m glad tomorrow is just a photo shoot.” Erin picked up the notebook she’d been working on. “Here’s what we’re doing next. Any ideas?”

  “Wait. Are those tears? Why are there tears?” Carissa took the book, but stared at Erin through narrowed eyes. “What’s going on?”

  Erin knew there was no way she’d get out of spilling her guts. “Jake told his parents about us yesterday. Today he barely spoke to me even though we had to do the commercials together. And I thought everything was perfect after that, but when I turned to talk to him, he was gone. Without even saying good-bye.”

  “You’re sure he was gone? What if he was just in the bathroom or something?” Carissa sighed. “Did you let yet another guy get away? Erin, this guy was cute. And you’ve done everything together since you met him.”

  Erin flopped back on the couch. “I’m not the one pushing him away. He’s the one who disappeared without saying good-bye.”

  “Fine. We’ll pretend you’re right for now. It’s a good thing I brought this.” She pulled out Erin’s favorite chocolate bar and tossed it to her.

  “Just what I needed. Thank you.” Erin unwrapped it and took a bite. “So what does Matt think?”

  “He thinks Jake is perfect for you.” Carissa pulled out another candy bar for herself.

  Erin threw her pillow. “You know what I mean. What does he think about the job?”

  Carissa laughed. “He’s fine with it. Although he did want to make sure we got time off for our honeymoon.”

  “I don’t know. I hear your partner is pretty awful.” Erin took a bite of her chocolate.

  “Since I’m over here, we should probably do some work. I thought of something we could do for another ad.”

  Chapter 12

  Jake stared at the ceiling, not wanting to get out of bed. He was sure things were back to normal, but then Erin had left without saying good-bye. How he was going to face her today was beyond him.

  He needed to work at the pound for a few hours or he’d lose the job, and he didn’t want to lose the steady paycheck. Even if it was less than what he needed.

  After a quick breakfast, Jake grabbed his umbrella and headed outside. He nodded to his landlord as he walked past, and dodged a toy truck in the middle of the hallway. He opened his umbrella and stepped out into the rain. It took a few minutes to grab a taxi. He gave the directions to the studio and sat back.

  Erin was already at the studio when Jake walked in. He went right to wardrobe to change into a suit and tie for the shot, wanting to avoid her for as long as possible. Unfortunately, that didn’t last long. Erin was sitting in a chair getting her makeup done—right next to where he needed to be.

  “Hey.” He sat down.

  “Hey.” She stood and started to walk away, but stopped. “This shouldn’t take too long. You’ll get your paycheck once we’re done here.”

  “Thank you.” Jake ached to pull her into his arms, but since he was stuck in the chair get
ting his hair done, he just watched her walk away. Once they were done, Jake thanked them and walked over to the set. He was surprised to see Erin’s friend—Carissa?—at the shoot, but by the way she was holding the clipboard, and directing people where to go, he figured she belonged there.

  “Oh, you’re ready,” she said. “Go pick up the ring from over there, and get in your place. We’ll get a few shots, and then change the scene a little.”

  Jake nodded and walked over to the counter. There were a few rings to choose from, so he chose the ring that looked closest to what Erin would have liked. It was a small, round diamond that wouldn’t snag, not too flashy. He picked up the smaller box and walked over to where Erin stood.

  “Ready to go?” Erin asked.

  Jake held up the box. He was just going to play it cool and professional. “Yep. Let’s do it. How do you want me to stand?”

  The photographer held up his camera. “Just act like you’re giving her the ring of her dreams, and we’ll do the rest.”

  Jake got down on one knee and held out the opened box. Erin gasped and placed her hand on her heart, as she allowed him to put the ring on her finger. Then he stood and pulled her into a hug. Erin ran her fingers through his hair and laughed. He leaned in for a kiss, and everything would have been perfect if he didn’t have to hear the clicking of the camera through the entire thing. When Jake pulled away, Erin pulled off the ring and set it in the box, avoiding Jake’s eyes.

  “Awesome. That was perfect. Wow. Okay, go find a coat while we get the fake snow and building backdrop set up.” Carissa ordered the set crew around while Jake went into the other room.

  An assistant handed Jake a long trench coat and a fedora. He looked over to see Erin trying on a fur coat. “So, Carissa works with you?”

  “She’s my partner as of last night. She’s pretty amazing, isn’t she?” Erin pulled off the coat and sorted through what was on the rack.

  “She’s great.” Jake walked over and pulled a wool coat off the hanger and handed it to the assistant. “Here, this works better with her eyes, and makes a good winter coat.”

  “Oh, thank you.” The assistant helped Erin into the coat. “Oh, I like this better. What do you think?”

  Erin glanced in the mirror. “You’re right. Thank you.”

  Jake tipped his hat. “Just trying to help, ma’am.”

  Erin laughed. “Let’s go. I need to finish this up before lunch.”

  “Sounds good to me.” Jake followed her out to the set. This time they were going to advertise a bracelet. They acted out a few scenarios while the photographer circled them, clicking away. He wanted to kiss her again, but settled for caressing her cheek and twirling her in the air.

  After the shoot was over, Jake took his jacket back to the rack and grabbed his own belongings. Erin waited for him out by Carissa and her boss.

  “Here you go. Thank you for helping us out.” Erin handed him an envelope. “This is for the commercials. We’ll send the check for today as soon as it goes through payroll.”

  “Thank you for letting me be a part of it.” Jake wanted to say more, but stopped himself. He shook their hands and left the studio.

  Since the pound wasn’t too far away from the studio, he decided to walk. The bank was on the way, and he didn’t want the check to sit in his bag the whole day. When he pulled out the check to sign it, he stopped in shock. He was expecting one or two hundred dollars at the most, but there were a couple of extra zeroes. He checked the receipt to make sure it was correct, and his jaw dropped. His pay was what they’d agreed on, but there was a hefty bonus added to it. That meant rent would be paid, and he’d have more to save up.

  Once the check was deposited, he headed to the pound. He was met with the familiar barking when he walked inside. Mr. Dayley sat at the front desk working on the computer.

  “Sorry I’m so late. The shoot ran long.” Jake took his bag and jacket to the back office and checked on the animals. Several new dogs and cats had arrived in the last few days. When he went back to the front, Mr. Dayley was helping a mother and her son. When he took them back to look at the animals, Jake took over at the desk and continued entering the bills into the program on the computer.

  When the customers had left with a terrier on a leash, Mr. Dayley turned to Jake. “So how was the shoot?”

  “It was great. I’ll have the other one starting tomorrow evening. That shouldn’t take nearly as long. I hope.” He had a lot of time to make up for after missing the last couple days.

  Mr. Dayley brushed away his concern. “We both know that’s why you’re here. I’m just glad to have some help when you can make it.”

  “Put me to work, then. What needs to be done?”

  “I’ll make a list.” He wrote a few things down and handed it to Jake, just as another family came in.

  Jake left the customers to Mr. Dayley and went to grab the mop to clean the back room and do the rest of the errands. Once the cages were done, he went to the back to get some more food for the animals. He checked on each one, enjoying the quiet monotony of the job. This was the only time he ever admitted that he missed his ranch.

  Chapter 13

  Erin pulled out the ad mockups for the car campaign, and took them to Debra’s office. Carissa had been over at Erin’s until late the night before so they could have everything ready to go to print. The photographer had shot some amazing pictures, and it was fun putting them together with all the small details for the magazines.

  When she got to the office, Nate sat in one of the chairs. He smirked at her as she handed off the prints and sat next to him.

  Debra studied each of the ads before setting them down on the desk. “I want to thank you both for getting this done so quickly. I worried about their timeframe, but I shouldn’t have doubted either of you. Nate, you have a meeting with the toy company in thirty minutes. I want you to go prepare. Erin, I want you to stick around for a minute.”

  The smug expression on Nate’s face turned to curiosity. “My presentation is all done. Is there anything else you need?”

  Erin rolled her eyes at his obvious attempt to know what was happening in the office.

  “I need you to look over them again. Now, please leave. And tell Sydney I need some coffee.” Debra waited for Nate to leave before turning back to Erin. “I got back some of the samples of photos for the jewelry ads. I couldn’t be more thrilled, and Mr. Smith agrees with me.”

  She pulled out a folder and handed it to Erin. The photos turned out better than she could have expected. Jake had definitely been right about what jacket she should wear. Her mind immediately began adding the wording on the ad as she moved to the next one.

  “Your commercials turned out well, and are being prepared to send on to the television stations, but they’ll come to you for final approval.” Debra clasped her hands together as she studied Erin. “You should be pleased with your work.”

  “Thanks. I’m glad we went with this photographer. He’s amazing.” Erin held up the photo of Jake proposing to her. She still remembered the surprise when he pulled out the exact ring she’d been eyeing moments before. Her heart had been pounding, and it wasn’t hard to show her emotion in the photos.

  “He’s very good at what he does, but it was all you two. We’ll have to remember this for future commercials.” Debra took the folder that Erin handed her. “I just sent you a few clients to go through and decide what you want to work on next.”

  Whoa. That never happened. Everything was usually assigned beforehand. Erin’s eyes widened. “Thank you. I’ll get back to you after lunch.”

  Debra smiled. “That’s perfect.”

  Carissa was sitting at her desk when Erin got back to her office. She stood and followed Erin into the room, closing the door behind her.

  “So? What did she think?” Carissa asked.

  Erin grinned. “She loved it. All of it. And check this out.” She went to her desk and pulled up the email from Debra.

  Carissa came a
round the desk and peeked over Erin’s shoulder. “Whoa. Those are some pretty big names.”

  “No kidding. And I get to choose which one to work on.” Erin scanned through the names of the businesses and what they were asking for. “Let’s see, toy commercials, winter fashion, chocolates. Anything jump out at you?”

  Carissa pointed to the fashion shoot. “This one could be fun. We haven’t done anything like this for a while, and I know this designer. He’s fantastic.”

  “Great. We’ll ask for this one. And maybe the chocolate ads. Nate is over a toy company account, so I’d prefer to stay away. Why don’t you look at the chocolate company while I study the clothing designer? Then we can decide which one to work on.”

  “Yes, Miss boss lady. I’ll be in my office if you need me.” Carissa closed the door behind her.

  Erin pulled up all the information she could find on the company and studied past advertisements, comparing them to the new line that would be coming out in the next few weeks. Carissa was right. This designer was good. Erin pulled out a few of the new designs and started on a few mockups to get some ideas. It was perfect.

  She typed a quick email to Debra before turning off her computer monitor. With Carissa helping, it was possible they could do both projects, but it depended on what Carissa had found on the chocolate company.

  She knocked on Carissa’s door. “Hey, I’m starved. Are you ready to go?”

  “I’ll grab my jacket.” Carissa went back to her desk, and Erin followed not long after.

  They left the office building and Erin purposely walked the other direction from the restaurant they’d eaten at before. The fact that Jake could be there was enough to keep her away. It hurt too much. Although, now that she thought about it, he was probably filming the soda commercial.

  They stopped at a small cafe that Carissa had been dying to try since it opened. They ordered their sandwiches and ran through a few ideas for the accounts Erin would hopefully work on.