And yet Tessy had. And will again. And I had no problem with that.
Her phone pinged as I climbed in and watched as her brows came together, then she went to her planner, her finger going through the times, then she responded.
After a moment, she looked up, realized we hadn't moved and frowned.
“Is something wrong?”
“Not at all. Just watching you work. You're very good at keeping me on task and I have to thank you.”
“Oh, you do make it easy, at times anyway. That was the studio. They want a meeting next week. So, it's penciled in.”
“Perfect. It's a great script. Will really play up my image.”
I started the car and backed out of the drive, making the quick trip to the bistro.
“Are you finally going to share what it's about?”
I held open the door for her, a grin on my face.
“It's a romantic action film.”
She paused right inside the doorway, a brow lifted.
“Since when did you go romance?”
“Since I got handed this script and enjoyed the lead. It's going to be fun. And different.”
“Well, that it is. I'm not sure how I'm going to be able to handle that though.”
I let that sit in my brain, needing to come back to that, because that statement was loaded with many levels that I needed to understand.
She walked over to a back corner booth, looking at the menu that was there.
“What's good?” she asked without looking up.
“Hmm, I think you'd enjoy the chicken club. You tend to like things with bacon and that pairs nicely with the chicken and their special sauce.”
Her head snapped up and I tossed her a wink. She might not think I knew much about her, and I probably didn't, but I had picked up on a few things here and there.
“Well, okay, I'll take that with a Coke, thank you.”
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
“So, he's sitting there, a shit eating on his face as we wrap up the scene and he tells me ‘no one could nail that in one take and you did it. You got a job in Hollywood’. And that started it out,” I told Tessy, leaning back in my chair an hour later.
“I can't believe the hottest director would tell you that.”
“Well, he did. I haven't shared that with anyone before. A lot of people would think I was lying.” I took a sip of my tea, smiling as I recalled that moment. “That day was a game changer. I hadn't landed anything big and wasn't sure I was going to stay in acting. But like any big name says, you just need the right role and that was mine.”
“I think it suited you. And look at you now, scripts flooding in like crazy.”
“It is. Sometimes I do wonder how this is my life, how I even got here. However, I wouldn't change a minute of it. Especially since it's giving me the power to help back.”
She grinned and I couldn't help but really return it. No fake one, no forced one. A real one. One people hardly got.
Because with her, she was getting the real me, not the one I had to showcase for Hollywood.
Damn, when was the last time I let the real me even come out? Outside of family, when was the last time anyone even wanted that?
