Vanessa Minnillo was
thisclose to landing a role on The CW's upcoming revival of the '90s soap
Melrose Place. That's why the former MTV VJ was devastated to learn that she'd lost the part that would have seen her working side by side with Ashlee Simpson-Wentz, the former sister-in-law of her boyfriend Nick Lachey.
"She was down to the wire to be a series regular," a friend tells
Star. "When she