Read Online The Out of Office Girl by Nicola Doherty - Free Book Online

champagne makes it seem even funnier. I’m thrilled that he’s already talking about two of the things in the contents clause: drugs and childhood – sort of. That could be Chapter One, in fact – though we’d have to change the principal’s name, of course. We’re still laughing when Sam emerges on to our deck.
    Somehow, what with the champagne and my state of undress, I feel like we’ve been caughtdoing something illicit. But after a quick glance at us, all he says is, ‘Hey, Luther. I talked to Paula and they’re sending over the Fur Coat Blues script.’
    ‘Yeah?’ says Luther. ‘I don’t know, man. It sounds so weird.’
    ‘I think you should read it. I’ll let you know when it’s here,’ says Sam, and disappears. God, he’s bossy. Does Luther just let him talk to him like that?
    ‘Sam is a great guy,’says Luther soberly, once he’s gone. ‘He’s saved my ass so many times. And he got me Roman Holiday which is a terrific part. If you decide to move to Hollywood and break into movies, Alice, make sure he’s your agent.’ He raises his glass in Sam’s direction, then clinks it with mine.
    ‘I don’t think I will,’ I say. ‘Move to Hollywood, I mean.’ The champagne doesn’t seem to be helping my repartee.
    ‘It’s hard to get in with the real agents,’ Luther says. ‘A lot of kids coming to Hollywood end up with crappy managers instead. They just set up from their bedrooms. They’re not allowed to find work for you, but they all do. Some of them take huge percentages on crummy jobs they didn’t even get for you, charge you for headshots – some of them are basically just pimps.’
    Wow. I’m not sure whatto say to that, so I just nod, thinking how unbelievably handsome he looks, frowning, with his hair ruffling in the wind, and the sea behind him. I decide to try and turn the conversation back to him, do a little gentle probing.
    ‘So . . . who was your agent, when you did Fever ?’
    He shrugs. ‘I didn’t have one. My mom found me a lawyer who read the contract – though I doubt he knew what the hellhe was doing, because all he mostly did was fake insurance claims. And we signed it. That was it. It seems incredible now, when I look back. The truth is I was lucky.’
    ‘It must have been exciting.’
    ‘Yeah, it was great. But I’m at the stage now where I do need a team. You know, I hate that whole Hollywood circus thing. I’m not one of those people who’s like, this is my manager, this is my manager’smanager, these are my seven agents . . .’ He pauses, looking at me and I nod.
    ‘I only have one agent now, and that’s Sam. And I have my publicist Sandy, I guess. And my attorney and myaccountant. And my assistant. So maybe it’s a little circus, but that’s it. No nutritionist, no Feng Shui expert, no trainer. At least, I do have a trainer but I haven’t seen him for a while. But for this trip,I decided to go solo.’
    I nod again. I know enough to realise that this is genuinely unusual for a Hollywood star. He could have a far bigger entourage. I was right after all: he is down-to-earth.
    ‘So is your assistant . . .’
    ‘My assistant is back in LA, looking after my dogs. I’ve got a Rhodesian ridgeback and a greyhound. They get the blues if they’re left alone. You want to see a picture?’
    ‘Of course!’ I’m not the biggest doggy fan, but these are not just any dogs. He whips out an iPhone and shows me some pictures, and I think, I’m looking at Luther Carson’s dogs .
    ‘But it’s definitely good to have Sam here with me. You know, the cool thing about Sam is, he has integrity, you know? He’s not all, “Sequel, bitch”. He lets me say no to stuff.’
    I’m sure he does. ‘No’ is probably Sam’sfavourite word. I’m a bit at sea, and it’s hard to know what to ask next. So I ask the first random question that springs to mind.
    ‘So did you ever have a manager?’
    ‘Oh . . .’ Out of nowhere, it’s as if the temperature has