Suddenly Starlet

Suddenly Starlet--Chapter Seventeen

Chapter Seventeen

            Laney smiled as she walked with her mom out of LAX and into the 80-degree heat. Closing her eyes and tilting her head toward the sun, she breathed in the California air.

“I’m feeling all deja-vuey,” Laney said, finally turning to look at her mom. “How ’bout you?”

            Laney watched as her mom tilted her head toward the sun just as she had a few moments before.

            “I know what you mean, but look at this weather,” her mom exclaimed, motioning toward the sky.

            Laney looked to her left and squinted as she searched for their car.

            “What kind of a car do you think they’ll send?” she asked her mom, shading her eyes with her free hand.

            Mrs. Herman was rummaging around in her purse and brought out a pair of sunglasses triumphantly. Placing them daintily on her face, she too leaned out to search for a sign of their car.

            “Don’t know. But I hope it’s a convertible,” her mom answered, laughing.

            “It’s kind of weird that a car’s picking me up,” Laney said. “I mean, we could have taken a cab or rented a car or something.”

            Already bored with the great car search, Laney sat down on top of her suitcase and started picking at her fingernails. Her mom stopped looking for their car and focused her eyes on her daughter.

            “Were you listening to me at all on the plane? These sorts of things are all negotiated into your contract,” her mom said.

            Laney stopped picking her nails long enough to scratch her head.

            “You know—the piece of paper you signed the other day saying that you would do this movie?” Mrs. Herman asked her incredulously.

            Laney stared at her mom blankly and then busted out laughing.

            “I’m just joshing ya, Mom. I know what a contract is,” Laney said snorting between her laughs. “Man, you’re so easy sometimes.”

            Her mom’s face smoothed out and she glared at Laney jokingly.

            “Ha, ha. Well, we’ll see how easy I am when you need me to explain things to you later,” her mom shot back, folding her arms across her chest and grinning.

            “Um, excuse me, ma’am. Are you Mrs. Herman?”

            Laney and her mom turned to see a man standing on the sidewalk next to a sleek black car. She noticed that he was dressed in all black and was holding a sign that said, “Ms. Laney Herman.” Her mom began to step forward, but Laney beat her to it.

            “Yes. I’m Ms. Herman,” she said reaching out to shake his hand.

            The man hesitated and then smiled and took her hand in his.

            “My name’s John and I’ll be your driver today Ms. Herman,” he said and nodded his head in her mother’s direction.

            “Oh,” Laney said, suddenly embarrassed.

            “Is that your luggage?” the man asked and hurried over to the pile of bags Laney had been sitting on.

            “Maybe you should have brought a van instead,” her mother said to him jokingly.