Only You by Jerry Cole (the top 100 crime novels of all time TXT) 📕

landed the role. That’s right, Bradley, the previously struggling actor was now officially a part of a TV show. And not just a part of it, but the lead! It was surreal. It was unreal. It was unbelievable. It was... it was everything!

There was one slight catch though, and it was one that was hard to get over: the role wasn’t technically official until lockdown ended. And that was assuming that once lockdown ended, things got back to normal.

“What are the chances?” Bradley had asked his agent when she’d called him with the good news. That was week two of lockdown, a time that seemed an age ago.

“Pretty high,” she had assured him... while sounding like she wasn’t sure at all.

“That’s not an answer,” Bradley had complained.

“It’s the best you’re going to get – the studio is keen. They are. Honestly, it just depends on this Covid crap. If production picks up after lockdown, I assure you that Firing Day will go full steam ahead.”

Bradley had sighed loud enough for her to hear through the phone. “Well... what am I supposed to do until then?”

“Rehearse, babe. You’re an actor.”

And so, that’s what Bradley was doing. Every day from roughly 9:30am through to 3PM – and sometimes longer – he locked himself away in the reading room and read lines. He read lines and acted them. He acted lines and he improvised more. He watched other cop shows with similar characters, he watched other shows and movies with characters he wanted to mimic or steal from or feel inspiration from. He read and reread the scripts he was sent and the notes from the producers and literally everything he could! When lockdown was over, when production picked on up, Bradley would be as ready as humanly possible.

Truth be told, he was rather impressed with himself. This was a work ethic that a younger version of himself would have never imaged possible. Yet here he was. And when considering the fact it was all during COVID... well, that just made the whole thing more impressive.

It was a shame then that Sherman couldn’t share in his enthusiasm.

Again, Sherman was a huge problem here and in all reality, this was where the majority of the tension that hung between the two men started and finished. One would think that Sherman would be happy for Bradley. One would think that he would encourage him, egg him on, push him to keep going no matter the cost. Unfortunately, it was the complete opposite.

“So... it might not even happen?” Sherman had asked a week after Bradley had gotten the good news. He’d been rehearsing every day and it had started to frustrate Sherman.

“What kind of thing is that to say?”

“I’m just saying!” Sherman had held his hands up in defense. “What if it falls through?”

“What if it doesn’t.”

“I feel like my thing is more likely.”

“Thanks, Sherman. Big thanks.”

The week after that was even worse.

“I don’t know why you’re wasting your time locked away in there, when you could be with me,” Sherman had complained as the two crawled into bed. “I’m booooored.”

“How is that my fault?” Bradley had countered. “I need to practice – and don’t say it’s pointless, please. I don’t need to hear that now.”

“All right,” Sherman had started carefully. “Even though it is.”

“Sherman!”

“What?” Again, hands held up in defense. This time though he turned on the puppy dog eyes, as if he was the victim. “I just don’t want to see you get hurt, babe. That’s all. I worry about you.”

“How kind.”

It got worse every day. Truly, it did. It was so bad that Bradley now had to brace himself each afternoon as he exited the reading room. He knew that Sherman was going to say something snarky or derogative, and he just had to prepare himself mentally so that he didn’t snap. That wouldn’t help anyone.

And sure enough, as Bradley exited the study room that afternoon at exactly 3:12PM, he heard Sherman hop up from the couch – his favorite spot – and rush to meet him at the door like a puppy waiting for his master to come home from work.

“Save the world yet?” he asked, eyes wide and smile large and excited.

“Huh?” Bradley balked. He had no idea what that meant.

“Surely that’s what you’re doing in there?” he continued, looking mighty pleased with himself as he did. “What else could be taking so long.”

“Oh...” Bradley deliberately rolled his eyes. “Funny.” He then stepped around his boyfriend and headed for the kitchen.

“What?” Sherman called out after him. “That was funny! Come on!”

Sherman hadn’t always been like this. In fact, the first two weeks of lockdown had been kind of wonderful. That first week was almost a holiday in the way the two men treated it. It was nothing but sex, eating and more sex. It was magical in every conceivable ideal and even now, Bradley could barely believe such a perfect time existed.

Even the second week had started out really well. When Bradley had first heard about the role, Sherman had been beyond congratulatory, and it was he who had suggested the reading room be used for practice. But then he got a phone call that changed everything...

Bradley could still remember the day that call came through. It had been no different to the last twelve; he and Sherman were still riding a high despite all the time they were spending together. Then Bradley heard the phone ring. He continued to practice while listening to Sherman’s voice slowly rise and spin out of control. When the phone call ended, Bradley walked out to ask what the call was about... only to stop and gape at what he saw.

Sherman was deep into his bag of cocaine. He must have thought that Bradley would still be practicing, so he