CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE
Delilah felt a thrill ripple through her as she waited beside her trailer, scanning the parking lot for Hazel and Samantha. It was a beautiful, sunny morning, with a fresh, sweet wind and a clear blue sky. Perfect weather for outdoor filming, and perfect weather for a pre-teen’s first visit to a Hollywood film set.
I can’t believe how I excited I am for them to be here,she thought with a laugh.I’ve never been this excited for someone to come to a film shoot before, not even when I was first starting out and celebrities still felt like celebrities instead of acquaintances.
She smiled, rising up on her tiptoes a little as she peered across the parking lot again. She loved spending time with all of the Owens women, but she had a soft spot for Samantha, whose vivacity made her think a little of herself at that age. She wanted Samantha to feel special and validated, assurances she wished she’d received when she was young.
She felt her phone buzz in her pocket, and she pulled it out and saw that she had a text from Hazel, saying that they were running a few minutes late because Samantha had lost one of her sneakers.
She sent back a quick reply, assuring Hazel it was no problem. She slipped her phone back into her pocket and decided to head back inside her trailer for a while. She’d already had a cup of coffee, but she was starting to get a hankering for another one.
She went inside her trailer, which smelled of vanilla and sandalwood. She changed out of her loafers and put on a pair of soft slippers before pouring herself a second cup of coffee. She glanced at the clock, noting that she still had half an hour before her makeup artist was due to arrive. She’d asked her to come a little early so that she had a chance to do Samantha’s makeup as well. Delilah knew that getting her makeup done by a Hollywood makeup artist would have meant the world to her at that age, and she wanted Samantha to feel special.
She was leaning against the counter, reviewing her lines for the day while she sipped her coffee, when there was a knock on her trailer door.
“Come in!” she called, looking up with a grin.
She expected Samantha and Hazel to walk through the door, but instead, it was Tom. He was wearing a light blue button-down shirt and looking incredibly handsome.
“Hi.” She gasped with delight and hurried forward to embrace him. “I wasn’t expecting you.”
“I know.” He smiled down at her, keeping his arms around her. “Vivian told me about what you’re doing for Samantha. I think it’s wonderful, and I wanted to be here to see her face. I know how big a fan of yours she is. This has got to be such a dream come true for her.”
Delilah beamed at him. “I’m glad you think it’ll make her happy. I can’t wait until she gets here.”
He laughed. “You look like a child on Christmas Eve,” he teased. “You seem absolutely giddy.”
“Ifeelgiddy.” She laughed. “I haven't been this excited about someone coming to a film set as my guest in a long time. Maybe not ever. There's something about giving this experience to someone who really cares about it that makes it all the more special, you know? I'm not just bringing along a casual acquaintance who I owe a favor to or paying special favors to someone that I want to impress. I'm just doing this because I want Samantha to be happy. It's been a long time since I just got to bless someone who didn't have a hidden agenda.”
“I can understand that,” Tom said, smiling at her. “It's always nice to know that the affection in your relationships is sincere.”
“Yes!” She nodded emphatically. “And I think that's one of my favorite things about Rosewood Beach,” she confessed. “Everyone here is so sincere. I don't have to wonder what anyone's really thinking or trying to do. People wear their hearts on their sleeves, and their hearts are kind.”
Tom took her into his arms again, squeezing her gently. “I’m so excited to have you become a part of our Rosewood Beach family,” he told her, his voice soft.
“I am too,” she said, sinking back into his arms with a contented sigh. “I'm looking forward to all of the wonderful times I'm going to have here with you and the other people in town that I've come to care so much about. No matter where my movie jobs take me, I know that Rosewood Beach is my new home.”
She and Tom shared another smile, and at that moment there was another knock on the door of her trailer.
“They're here!” Delilah exclaimed with delight. She scampered over to the door and tugged it open.
Hazel and Samantha stood on the doorstep, both wearing darling spring dresses and looking beside themselves with excitement.
“Hi!” Samantha threw her arms around Delilah immediately. “Thank you so much for doing this. I’m going to remember it forever.”
Hazel and Delilah shared a warm smile over the preteen’s head, knowing that what she’d just said was definitely true.
“It’s so sweet of you,” Hazel said, hugging Delilah in turn. “We both appreciate your offer so much.”
“Don’t mention it,” Delilah said warmly. “I’m thrilled to have you both here.”
“When do you start filming?” Samantha asked, looking around the trailer in wonder. Although it was sparsely decorated, Delilah had added a few things that made her feel more at home, such as a couple of spider plants, a vanilla candle, a pink knit throw for the couch, and a coat rack with a head shaped like a giraffe.
“In an hour,” Delilah said. “First, I have to get ready. I’ll need to get into my costume soon, and before that, I need to get my makeup done.”
“Wow.” Samantha touched one of the spider plants as if it was something exotic, and not a plant that Delilah had remembered seeing in Samantha’s grandmother’s kitchen. “Why don’t you wear your own clothes if it’s a movie set in the modern day?”
Delilah smiled. “Costumes are about helping tell the story of a movie. Sometimes that means making sure they look historically accurate, and it’s true that those types of costumes usually take a lot more effort and planning. But costume designers always use their designs to show who a character is, and sometimes costumes hint at how a character might be feeling.”
