If She Can Do It, I Can Too.....Right?

We all know of my slight obsession with The Hills and since I will refuse to watch it after Lauren leaves, I suppose its fair to say that I have a slight obsession with her as well- but not in a creepy way.

Anywho, turns out that in her spare time, when she doesn't have video cameras following her around, she's been writing a book for young adults. Well! I suppose that should give hope to any and all of us who have ever had aspirations of writing- if she can do it, surely we can as well right?

In case you were wondering, her book happens to be about a young girl who moves to L.A. and is a part of a reality show. Now wait. Wait just a minute. I think this book has already been written, no? Or maybe it was a movie......?

Anyway, they say its good to write what you know. I hope for her sake [and my future author sake] that the book is sucessful. Enjoy an excerpt below courtesy of Teen Vogue and tell me your thoughts.

Jane checked her watch as she rushed out of the elevator, into the world of soft lighting and trickling waterfalls. She had an excuse for being late this time, though. She'd spent most of the morning running errands for Fiona. Plus, the L.A. Candy crew was following her around for the rest of the day. They had intercepted her in the parking lot, miked her, and filmed her getting out of her car and walking to the lobby of the building. Five times. Now they were setting up in the front waiting area of Fiona Chen Events, filming her "arriving for work."

"Hi, Naomi!" Jane said, waving to the receptionist. She tried to speak at the usual accepted low decibel, but she knew that would only guarantee her a text message from Dana telling her to say it again, a little louder.

Naomi adjusted her silver headset and peered out at Jane from behind a huge bouquet of white tulips. She glanced self-consciously at the two camera guys zooming in on her. "Hi, Jane. Fiona wants to see you in her office right away," she whispered.

Jane felt her blood freeze. Fiona never called Jane into her office unless she was in trouble. It was always something like, "Jane, the last time I checked, ivory and eggshell weren't the same color," or "Jane, is this message from Jeffrey with a J or Geoffrey with a G?" What had she done this time? Either way, she preferred that her humiliating lectures take place in private—just her and Fiona behind closed doors. Guess not today. She frowned at the cameras, which were supposed to be capturing "an average workday." Well, now, the L.A. Candy viewers are going to see my average butt getting yelled at, Jane thought.

She sighed and started down the hall toward Fiona's office.

"Wait! Jane!" A man wearing an earpiece rushed up to her. "Hey, I'm Matt. I'm directing today's shoot."

What did he mean, directing? She thought they were just following her around. What needed to be directed?

"Hey. Sorry, Naomi said Fiona wants to talk to me."

"Yeah, we know. We just need a few minutes to set up," Matt explained, moving to the side as several crew members carrying cameras and other equipment passed them. "Her office looks beautiful, but it's all white. Makes it hard to shoot. They spent two hours lighting it this morning," Matt went on.

"What's wrong with white?" Jane asked.

"It just doesn't look great on camera. Color looks way better."

Jane looked down at the summery white lace dress she was wearing. Crap, she thought.

"Okay, you can go in now," Matt instructed Jane as he stepped away from the door.

Jane knocked lightly before going inside. Fiona looked up from her computer screen. "Good morning, Jane! Please come in and sit down." She sounded more pleasant than usual. She must enjoy humiliating people, Jane thought.

As she stepped into Fiona's office, Jane looked around. Two metal stands securing large lights flanked Fiona's desk. The intensity of the lights was muted by wide sheets of what looked like tracing paper wrapped around the fixtures and held in place by wooden clothespins. The same kind of paper had been taped over one of the tall windows. The result was an overall softening of the lighting in the room.

Jane sat down in one of the chairs. Fiona clasped her hands and leaned forward. "So. Jane. You're probably wondering why I called you in here today."

Jane nodded, her eyes wide.

"I realize you've been here at Fiona Chen Events for only a short time," Fiona said. "But during that short time, you've—"

—managed to screw up just about everything I've asked you to do, Jane finished silently.

"—handled the pressure very well. I think it's time for you to move up to the next step. To that end, I would like to offer you a promotion. How would you like to be my full-time assistant?"

Jane's jaw dropped. Was she serious? Fiona was offering her ... a promotion?

"Of course, it will be strictly on a trial basis," Fiona went on. "Let's say three months. During those three months, you will work harder than you have ever worked before. At the same time, you will have opportunities that you have never had before. And if you succeed, your future as an event planner in this town will be virtually guaranteed."

Fiona leaned back in her seat and stared at Jane, waiting for her answer. Suddenly, Jane noticed that Fiona was wearing makeup. When had the boss lady started wearing makeup?

"Well, Jane?" Fiona prompted her.

The camera zoomed in on Jane. She took a deep breath. Was she ready for this? A real job was better than an internship because it meant she would get paid. It also meant that she would get more responsibilities, more respect ... more everything.

"Yes!" Jane said, nodding. "I'd love to. Thank you so much!"

Fiona smiled. It was not her usual chilly, arctic, I-am-the-boss-lady-and-you-are-my-slave smile, but a cordial, friendly smile. It didn't look entirely natural on her. "Fabulous! Let me show you where you'll be sitting."

Jane opened the bottom drawer of her new desk and tucked her bag inside. She opened the two others, too—each drawer had a different vintage crystal knob—and started planning what would go where. The top drawer would be for pencils, pens, and stationery. The middle drawer would be for energy bars, breath mints, makeup, tampons, and other personal stuff.

She still couldn't believe it. She had walked into Fiona's office expecting to get reprimanded. Instead, she had gotten promoted. In her computer monitor, she saw the reflection of one of the camera operators changing angles behind her. She felt bad for him. He was edged up into the corner and had no space to move. "Roomy back there?" Jane teased. The guy shrugged and laughed a little.

"Excuse me."

Jane spun around. Standing in the doorway was a guy with short, cropped blond hair and blue eyes. He was carrying a big, sleek leather portfolio.

"Hi," Jane said, a little startled.

"Hey, there," the guy said. "I'm looking for Fiona Chen, but I think I got lost. I have an appointment to show her my portfolio."

"Across the hall," Jane said, pointing. "She actually has someone in there ... you may want to wait a minute."

"I'm sorry. The girl at the front told me to come straight back."

"Oh, no worries. She just pulled someone in there for a sec. Some mix-up with peonies. He'll be out in a minute ... a little less of a man."

The guy laughed. "I'm Paolo."

"You a model?" Jane asked, pointing at the portfolio in his hand.

Paolo laughed again. "No, no. I'm a photographer."

"Oh!"

Paolo smiled at her. He had the cutest smile. "Hey, this may be a little forward, but ... could I call you sometime? Maybe we could go out for coffee or something? I just moved here from San Francisco, and I don't know too many people in town."

Jane was taken aback by his boldness. They had met all of 60 seconds ago. Still, he did kinda look like a young Brad Pitt. Besides, when was the last time she'd been on a date? Braden didn't count. She had met him for drinks again at Cabo Cantina over the weekend, to celebrate her being on the show and moving in to a new apartment. It had been his idea. But that wasn't a date. It never was with him. "Sure," she said.

"Great!"

Jane blinked. Oh, yeah. The cameras were still rolling. Paolo was being filmed. But he didn't seem fazed by it. Did that mean he had walked into her office knowing there would be cameras? Had Dana talked to him already and gotten him to sign the release papers? Had she told him to ask her out? Or did he just happen to be there for a meeting, like he said?

Just then, Fiona's door opened and Damien, an intern, shuffled out and shamefully dropped his head.

"I'll grab your number on the way out," Paolo said before he disappeared into Fiona's office.

"Okay."

Despite just meeting him, Jane couldn't help but be excited. She looked past the camera in the hallway and spotted Dana. Jane grinned and mouthed, "He's so cute!" Dana nodded in agreement and gave her a thumbs-up. Jane noticed a release form in Dana's hand. Did that mean Paolo had been released? Did that mean it had been a setup? Jane smiled to herself as she realized she didn't care. She was already thinking about what to wear on what might turn out to be her very first on-camera date .... her first date, period, since Caleb. Okay, so Paolo wasn't Braden. So what? It was nice to have a guy interested in her. It had been a long time. Too long.

From L.A. Candy (HarperCollins), available June 16 wherever books are sold.