A Clutch of Guilty Wishes: A Dash and Eli Romantic Mystery by JD Sampson

Author:JD Sampson [Sampson, JD]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2024-03-14T00:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER THIRTEEN

"We said yes to the private swimming pool in his dressing room. We said yes to flying in salmon from Alaska. We even agreed to pay to bring his family to California, but under no circumstances does he get to choose his own wardrobe. If that's the deal breaker, then so be it. Put him on a plane back to Florida. We're done."

Dot waved for Eli to come in. He'd been hovering in her office doorway, waiting for her to get off the phone. Her secretary said he could wait inside, but he didn't want to interrupt the negotiations. He'd never seen her at work, and she was quite a force.

"Consult with your client or whatever you need to do. You have until four o'clock to decide. If I don't hear a yes by then, I'll assume it's a no and I'm moving on."

She hung up the phone and waved for Eli again as he was still in the doorway

"Demanding actor?"

"Slappy the wonder seal. I'm trying to cast him in this sweet family beach movie we have coming up, but he's so demanding."

"I heard. Pool. Alaskan salmon. But what's with the wardrobe?"

"Apparently, Slappy prefers to pick out his own clothes. Like he can't balance a ball on his nose if he's wearing green or ruffles or some nonsense. I'm not having it. I've got two other seals who would be happy to take the part for canned tuna and a bathtub, but the studio wants Slappy. He is the best. Camera loves him." She glanced at the clock on the wall. "Meeting done already?"

"Got pushed to noon. Want to join me for a coffee break?"

"Sure, but hang on a second. I think the girls might be finished with the transcript."

"Already?"

"They're fast. They have to be. Come on." She led the way down the hall to a large room with a window running nearly the entire length of the wall. Behind the glass were rows and rows of matching desks, each with a typewriter in the center, and in and out tray on the corner, and a cup of pencils. Nearly every desk had an occupant who was typing furiously.

Dot opened the door, and the sound was overwhelming. Keys tapping. The zizz of the carriage return. The crank, crank, crank of paper rolling in, and the zip when it was pulled out. In between it all the tiny ding, ding, ding signifying the end of the line.

Zizz

Tap. Tap. Tap. Ding.

Next line.

An older woman with a severe bun and glasses on a chain around her neck acknowledged Dot, then signaled for her and Eli to step into an inner office. Still noisy, but not as offensive.

"How do they stand it?" Eli asked Dot. "The noise."

"Ear plugs if they're not actively listening to dictation."

"Still." Eli watched through another half wall window as the older woman went around tapping the shoulders of two other women. Those women collected papers from their out boxes and brought it to the office. A young man followed with the chicken crate.

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