CHAPTER 217: CHAPTER 218: CALL OUT TWICE (3)

"Okay, I’ll be right there." Vera agreed readily, not forgetting to add sweetly at the end, "See you in a bit, hubby."

"Uh-huh!"

On the other end of the phone, Kris Cooper responded. His tone had softened considerably, and Vera finally breathed a sigh of relief. She hung up, got dressed, and went out.

Outside the door, Rowan Nichols and the director were there, along with Merlin Bradley.

"Miss Vera, I am truly sorry." Rowan Nichols bowed obsequiously, his tone extremely polite, "I truly didn’t expect things to turn out this way. I’m so sorry you were put through that..."

The director also chimed in with a fawning expression, "Yes, Miss Vera, it was my fault earlier. I actually thought she was just acting, not realizing she was using the scene to cause trouble. Are you alright? You weren’t hurt, were you? Or perhaps... we could take you to the hospital to get checked out."

"It’s fine, it’s fine," Vera smiled. "You don’t need to worry."

"Well..." The director smiled. "Are you... interested in playing the second female lead?"

Her? Playing the second female lead?!

Vera hurriedly waved her hands. "No, no, definitely not. I... how could I possibly act?"

"You acted so well just now, even better than a professional actor!" Rowan Nichols laughed.

The director chimed in, "Your acting is very natural. As long as you’re willing, I guarantee this show will make you famous."

Although Kris Cooper had never openly shown much affection towards Vera, the director, with his years of experience and shrewdness, had managed to glean some clues. Whatever her relationship with Kris Cooper, it was clearly out of the ordinary. Cooper’s deliberate talk of replacing the second female lead might just be a hint for Vera to take the role. The second female lead was essentially a decorative role anyway, not requiring much acting skill. Vera’s performance just now had indeed shown a lot of flair; she was even more absorbed in her role than Maggie Clarke. Besides, she was very photogenic; her small face and distinctive features would look great on camera.

Taking all this into account, the director eagerly invited Vera to join the cast.

"This... I really can’t!"

Vera declined immediately. She was already swamped; she had no time to act, not to mention she wasn’t cut out for it.

Being an actress had never been part of her life plan; it was something she had never even considered.

"How about this?" Seeing that her refusal wasn’t feigned, the director considered for a moment, then took out a business card. "This is my card. Please go back and think it over. We can offer you 20% more than Maggie Clarke’s salary, for a total of 1.2 million."

1.2 million?!

When that figure was mentioned, Vera’s heart involuntarily skipped a beat.

To her, in her current situation, that sum was quite attractive.

The director smiled, handing her the card. "This is my number. We’re on a tight schedule for this show, so please think it over and get back to me by the end of this weekend. If you really don’t want to do it, we’ll look for someone else."

"Okay." Vera took the card. "I’ll think about it."

After bidding them farewell, she quickly left with Merlin Bradley, heading towards the office building at the back.

"Oh my god, a million, Vera!" Merlin Bradley clutched Vera’s hands, trembling with excitement. "And it’s the second female lead! You might become a huge star overnight... then you’ll be a superstar..."

"It’s not that easy to become famous. The entertainment industry is a tough business."

Vera appeared much calmer than her. After all, she had once been the daughter of a wealthy family; for her back then, such a figure would have seemed as inconsequential as a hundred USD did to her now.