Not Wanted in Hollywood by Leonie Gant Read Free Book Online

do
next.” I smiled encouragingly and after a short hesitation Amber
nodded slowly.
    Sitting in a booth at a diner in the
warehouse district I had a good look at Amber. Without the
dominatrix outfit and the stripper persona I could tell she was a
bit older than I had originally thought. Her blonde hair tumbled
around her face. She had the fresh faced prettiness that you could
see in any number of young girls who came to LA. There was a
hardness there as well.
    “How long have you been in LA?” I asked.
    “ I was born
here,” Amber said keeping her eyes on the mug of coffee she was
holding.
    “Do you have family?” I asked.
    She nodded.
    “Do you want me to call any of them for
you?”
    Amber shook her head emphatically.
Unfortunately I had got that response from a lot of the girls when
we had discussed any family they might have.
    “ Do you want
to talk about it?” I asked.
    Amber finally looked up at me. “Lots of guys
come in to the club looking at picking up strippers. It’s kind of a
thing they can show off to their buddies about. You learn to just
not get involved because it always ends with some form of
humiliation. It’s like they forget that we’re actually women.
Alistair just talked to me. I honestly thought he was different. I
should have known better. I’m just so stupid.”
    “ You’re not
stupid. Just because Alistair is being a jerk, it isn’t on you.
Trust me that damage was done way before you came on the scene. It
has nothing to do with you so don’t think for a moment that it
does,” I said. “Believe me when I say you can do better, I mean you
can really do better.”
    I knew I was
being emphatic but if Alistair ever got his head out of his butt
long enough for him to find a woman to commit to long term, I was
going to have to send flowers, because that was a position that
I really did not wish on anybody. Amber
shrugged and I could tell she was not convinced. A sudden thought
struck me.
    “Did Alistair talk to you about what this
film would do for you?” I asked.
    “He said that the second producers got a look
at me on the screen, with what he could do, that I would be
knocking back acting jobs. He said I was a natural.”
    I had to fight the instinct to get out of the
booth, find Alistair and kick him hard. Anyone who thinks the
casting couch no longer exists in Hollywood is completely deluded.
While there were young people desperate for a chance at stardom,
there would always be someone eager to take advantage of them. It
looked like Alistair had played upon Amber’s dream of getting away
from the club and into a better life.
    “What are you going to do now?” I asked
quietly
    “Go back to the club, keep working until I
can get out I guess.” Amber shrugged and I couldn’t help feeling
sorry for the way her shoulders slumped.
    “With Hammy dead, the club could be closing
permanently.” I hoped I was being gentle enough.
    “ Hammy’s wife
is going to take over. As far as I know she plans to open it in a
day or two and keep right on going,” Amber said.
    I choked on
my coffee. “Hammy had a wife?” How was that possible? No man who
treated women like that should be allowed to marry. There had to be
a rule.
    “ They’ve been
married forever, but I think they were separated,” said Amber. “Far
as I know Hammy hadn’t seen his wife for years. The cops notified
her of the death last night.”
    “How do you know this?” I asked.
    “She got hold of the roster of the girls and
has been calling us to make sure we don’t move on to other clubs
before she can open up again.” Amber shrugged again.
    I had to admit I admired the business acumen
Hammy’s wife had. No point in letting the unsavory murder of your
husband get in the way of running a business.
    “So are you planning to stay at the club?” I
asked.
    “ I don’t have
much choice now do I?” said Amber despondently.

Chapter Six
    Back at the office I thought about what Amber
had said. Finding Alistair