“Fuck fuck fuck fuck fuck,” Kara mumbled to herself when entered the hotel room in Newark. “Scheiße!”
She’d checked her e-mails on the way from the airport to the hotel. There’d been one from Mika that said that they’d talk when she got to Boston and one from her Agent.

Hey Kara,
Please don’t forget the interview this afternoon. They’ll be at the hotel at around 4.
Enjoy your day

She’d completely forgotten about this interview. Her mind had been occupied with a hundred different thoughts and only one of them was work related. The last few days had been crazy for her. The interview was marked red in her calendar and she’d still forgotten about this.
There were twenty minutes left for her to get ready. She groaned inwardly, because she didn’t even have time to take a shower. She took a deep breath before she opened her suitcase. There must be something inside that she could wear for this interview. If she’d remembered this interview before the trip, she would have packed something especially for the interview.
Digging out a black pair of jeans, white blouse, black vest and red heels, she smiled to herself. That would work. It wasn’t perfect, but it would be okay. She quickly changed and stepped in front of the mirror. Okay, there would be photos, so she had to look decent. She really didn’t feel like doing an interview right now.
She rimmed her eyes with Kajal, used mascara and put a dash of red lipstick on her lips. What to do with her hair? With a sigh she fluffed it up with her hands. She pushed her bangs a bit to the side and fixated everything with a bit of hairspray. There, that was a lot better. She could actually go down there and survive the photos and the interview without looking stupid.
Before she went downstairs again she put her notes, her mobile phone and the keycard in her purse. She wouldn’t need anything else, because she’d get back to her room right after the interview. That was the plan.
As soon as she entered the lobby, a young man approached her. He was dressed in jeans, a white t-shirt and a sport coat. His dark hair was disheveled and he had startling blue eyes. Kara thought that he might be around her own age, maybe a little older even. He definitely was a sight for sore eyes. Maybe this interview would be better than she’d thought. It would at least distract her.
“Miss Robinson, it’s nice to meet you.” He shook her hand while he smiled warmly at her. “My name is Nick Stride.”
“It’s nice to meet you, too. But please, call me Kara. I always feel so old when someone refers to me as Mrs Robinson.” She hated it. Mrs Robinson wasn’t her. That was her mother.
He smiled again, showing the dimples in both his cheeks. He and Kara sat down in the corner of the lobby. There weren’t a lot of people around, so it was okay for them to talk there.
“Is it okay if I record this?”
“Sure, go ahead.” She was used to this by now. It was better for the interviewer and for her as well. When she interviewed people for research purposes she usually did the same. That way she didn’t have to ask them three times, because she was busy writing.
He asked a couple of regular questions, like whether she had a boyfriend or not, why she’d started writing, what she liked to do in her free time and so on. Kara hadn’t given a lot of interviews in her career. There were always questions at her signings and reading, but that was different. They were usually about her books, not her as a person. This interview was something special. The last interview she’s given had been nearly two years ago.
“What are you doing in Newark?” Nick leaned a bit forward, resting his elbows on his thighs, looking at her with these intense blue eyes of his.
“Research for my new book. Well, kind of.” Kara took a sip from her water in front of her. It hadn’t been in the news somewhere so far, so this was pretty big news for the media. “I’m traveling with the Boston Bruins and attending their practices, home games and everything.”
“So you’re writing about hockey in your next book?”
“Yes.” Kara had to think about how to form the next sentences. “The books will still take the same direction, just that they’ll be set in the hockey world. I’m learning all the hockey terms, the way the game works and so on.”
“But, aren’t you a big soccer fan?” A confused look crossed his face, before he replaced it with a smile again.
Kara had to smile herself. “Yes I am. Born and raised as a soccer fan. I was surprised when my agent suggested it, but you know what?” She lifted her head and looked him in the eye. “I really enjoy watching hockey. The more games I see and the more I learn, the more I like this game.”
“What about the team?” Nick sat up straight again, crossing his arms over his chest. He had to admit, Kara was good-looking in his eyes. Especially when she smiled. And he was a sucker for red high heels. “How did they react?”
“Pretty good I’d say.” She uncrossed her legs and folded her hands in her lap. She never knew how to sit at an interview. When there was a table, she didn’t particularly care. “We all had to adapt to the situation, but they even gave me a jersey so that I would have something to wear to the games.”
“Really?” He raised an eyebrow. “Which number are you wearing?”
“Number 67, Benoit Pouliot. They had this jersey over when I was there, so they gave it to me.”
“Okay. How about we stop the interview here and go outside to take a photo. Nothing flashy, just a shot of you in the sunshine. Use the fact that we have great weather.” When he got up, he extended his hand to help Kara up. He lightly put his hand on her lower back to guide her outside.

“Who do you think that is?” Gregory asked Benoit when they saw the two venture outside. They’d been watching them for about ten or fifteen minutes. Greg and Benny had wanted to go to the hotel gym when they’d spotted Kara in the corner with this pretty boy.
“No idea. She didn’t mention that she’d meet anybody as far as I know.” Benoit crossed his arms over his chest.
“I don’t think that’s someone she just met. By the way he touches her, I’d say they know each other.” Campbell sat down on one of the chairs, tired of standing around. He knew that they’d wait here until Kara came back so that they could ask her who that was. “And she changed her clothes and put on more makeup than usual.”
“Yeh, I know.” He sounded irritated and he was. She looked so hot in this outfit, he had to admit that. The red heels were a definite plus, but he liked it when she wore flat shoes as well. That way the top of her head barely reached his nose. He liked it when he had to bend down a bit to kiss her. Don’t go there right now. “There she is again.”
Both men looked up and watched her with this guy. She was laughing at something he said and gave him a hug before he left the building altogether. With a huge smile on her face she nearly walked past them. “Oh, hey guys.”
“Hey Kara.” Soupy was the one to talk, Benoit kept quiet. “So, who was that guy you were just hugging there?”
“What?” She looked confused at both of them. “Were you watching me?”
“Yes.” He had no shame in admitting that. “It was far more interesting than working out.” He threw her a smile. “We’re just curious, because it looked like you know each other.”
“What?” A look of utter horror passed Kara’s face before she started to giggle. “Are you serious? His name is Nick and he just interviewed me. I had forgotten all about this interview because I hardly ever do interviews. But he gave me his number and told me to give him a call, when I’m here the next time.”
“Oh, that’s good to know then.” Soupy crossed his arms, still smiling at her. “Because he looked like a douche. We don’t want to see you in a relationship with some pretty boy. You need a real man.”
“Like you?” Now it was Kara’s turn to cross her eyes and raise an eyebrow.
“For example.” Greg’s smile widened and even Benoit couldn’t suppress the smile anymore.
Kara caught Benoit’s eye and looked away again quickly. “Don’t worry,” she said to Soupy putting her hand on his arm. “He’s a nice guy and lives here. Too far away for my liking. Besides, I’m not really looking for anything serious right now. There’s too much going on right now.”
“Good to hear. But if you should find someone, introduce him to us and we’ll tell you if he’s worthy of you or not.”
Kara laughed at that, patted Gregory’s arm and pressed a kiss to his cheek. “Thank you. I will. And now have fun working out.”
Both men turned to watch her walk away.
“I can’t get enough of seeing her walk away.” Gregory said in a low voice, but Benoit hardly registered this. She was not going out with this guy, nor would anything happen with him now. This was fucking great.

Notes

comments would still be nice. rude