Queen of His Heart by Adrianne Byrd Page A

Jalila corrected. “I just can’t seem to get them with any quality men. Please don’t worry. I’m not going to do anything that’s going to embarrass the family.”
    â€œIt may be out of your hands. I’ve heard stories of how television producers like to cut and paste things to make them look more scandalous than they really are.”
    â€œMr. Armstrong wouldn’t do that.”
    â€œHow do you know?” she challenged.
    She didn’t know. “He just didn’t strike me as that kind of man.”
    â€œNo offense, baby girl,” her father said, catching her eye. “But if he’s part of that crazy Hollywood crowd,I wouldn’t trust him any further than you can throw him.”
    That was food for thought.
    â€œPlus,” her mother continued. “Has anyone ever gone on to get married on one of those shows? Or is it just that—a show?”
    â€œI believe there was one.”
    â€œOne?” Her mother laughed. “One out of how many? C’mon, Jalila. If you like those odds then you might as well keep doing what you been doing.”
    Jalila’s spirits started to plummet.
    Her father came to the rescue. “Now, Bettye. If this is something that Jalila wants to do, then I think we should support her.”
    Bettye Goodwyn didn’t respond.
    This whole scene had Jalila feeling like a ten-year-old trying to get her parents’ permission to go on a school field trip.
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    By the time Jalila returned home from her parents’, she had all but convinced herself to back out of the television show. It wasn’t like she had signed a contract or anything. How hard would it be to find another woman to take her place?
    Still, it would have been fun.
    Cujo barked excitedly as she entered the door.
    â€œHey, boy,” she cooed, patting his broad side. “Have you been a good boy?”
    Woof! Woof! He ran around in a tight circle.
    â€œC’mon. Let me get you something to eat.” As she marched toward the kitchen, her mind wandered tohow she was going to tell Mr. Armstrong that she needed to back out of the show.
    She scooped dog food into Cujo’s bowl and then washed her hands at the sink. The phone rang, and Jalila picked up the cordless without looking at the caller ID. “Hello.”
    â€œMs. Goodwyn?”
    She stiffened at the sound of the velvety smooth voice. She knew exactly who was on the other line. “Oh, hello, Mr. Armstrong.”
    â€œPlease. My friends call me Keenan.”
    â€œAll right, Keenan . What can I do for you?”
    â€œWell, I hope I didn’t call you at a bad time.”
    â€œNo. No. I’m just getting in from my parents’.” She folded her arms and leaned back against the sink. How was she going to do this? Just tell him.
    â€œActually, I was just calling you to tell you that I ran everything by my business partner and she’s on board.”
    Jalila didn’t know exactly what that meant.
    â€œFirst thing tomorrow I’m going to make some calls. We’re going to pitch the idea to a couple of studios next week, but I just wanted to tell you that I have a positive vibe about this whole thing. I’m sure that we can get picked up by ABC.”
    Jalila tried to digest all the information he was unloading. ABC? The ABC?
    â€œOf course, we’ll be racing to make the fall schedule. Nitara—that’s my business partner—she’s going to post an open casting call in all the trade papers tomorrow. Plus, she’ll reach out to a few casting directors.”
    â€œCasting call.” Jalila frowned. “Are you just lining up actors?”
    Keenan laughed. “No. I wouldn’t curse you like that.”
    She sighed in relief. “Oh, thank God.”
    â€œBeen down that road?”
    â€œI got a T-shirt around here somewhere.”
    His laughter deepened and sent a wave of delicious tingles throughout her body.
    â€œAre