“Okay. Good,” Dana said. “So, Mara?”
“I usually go by my real nickname, which is Sam, but I went with my other nickname, that only my parents and sister use, for tonight.”
“Who actually calls you Sam? I’ve never even thought to call you Sam myself,” she said as she joined the line. “You don’t seem like the kind of woman who likes nicknames.”
“No one, really. But Kyla, my assistant, does when she’s annoyed with me or just too lazy to say my full name. A few other people I’ve worked with over the years used it, too, but not many.”
“So, youdoprefer your full name?”
Samara shrugged and replied, “I do. Mara is fine, though. Sam is okay, too, but Mara works for me. I grew up with that, so I’m used to it.”
“How did you get that name? It’s pretty,” Dana said.
“Well, I don’t think it would surprise you to know thatit’s a combination of Sam and Mara.” Samara chuckled a little. “Samuel was my grandfather. My grandmother was Margaret, but she went by Mar or Mara instead of Maggie or Marge or something else. My parents just put the names together. My sister is Jaclyn because my other grandfather went by Jack, and my other grandmother’s middle name was Lynn.”
“Your parents went old-school. I like it.”
“Where did yours come from?” Samara asked as they moved up in line.
“My mom just liked it. And Lainey is really Elaine. She’s named after some politician my dad liked. Weird; I know.” Dana laughed a little. “My mom got to pick my name, though, and she chose Dana. She saw it in a baby name book, I guess.”
“It’s nice. It suits you,” Samara said.
“Are you sure you don’t want coffee? We’re up next.”
“Can I have a sip of yours just to see if I like it?”
“Sure,” she replied with a smile.
They ordered, and Dana resisted the impulse to get two orders of beignets. She handed Samara the coffee while she paid and waited to see if she liked it. Samara smelled the liquid through the little hole in the lid before she took a sip, which Dana thought was crazy because it was hot coffee, but Samara looked at her and smiled.
“Can I actually get another coffee, please?” Dana asked at the counter before they returned to the table and sat down across from Jill and Willa.
“So, Mara, you’re working with Dana on the movie, right?” Willa asked before she bit into a beignet.
“I’m working withher, more like,” Dana said and pulled a beignet out of the paper bag she’d been given.
She got them to-go in case someone recognized Samara, and they needed to run.
“She’s a great co-star. Best I’ve ever worked with,” Samara said.
“Yeah, right,” Dana replied, laughing.
“I’m serious,” Samara said.
“You’ve worked with everyone,” Dana pointed out.
Samara smiled and said, “Yeah, and they’re not you.”
Dana rolled her eyes and put her arm over the back of Samara’s metal chair.
“She’s being nice because we’re working on the movie now. She’ll say the same thing to her next co-star.”
“No, I won’t,” Samara said seriously.
Jill and Willa watched their back-and-forth for a moment before Jill leaned in and whispered something to Willa, who lifted her eyebrow at Dana.
“So, you two are engaged?” Samara asked.
