“Fitzroy, I don't pay my actors to be told what they're doingwrong.They show me how they do it right.What is your problemtoday?Miss Delgado here may not be your natural inclination,but...”Brett sat down hard on the edge of the bed.He took hold ofLaurie's arm, shook it as if he could physically rattle out theawkwardness and tension there.“Do what you have to.You likeBailey Price, don't you?Think of him, or think of that littleAlbanian you managed to smuggle out here on my dollar,and—”
Laurie sat up.He tore his arm out of Brett's grasp.“Romanian,” he snarled.“His name is Sasha.He's Romanian, and youwillnotbloodytalk about him!”
A shadowof genuine fear crossed Brett's face.Then it was gone, and he waspursuing this new chance, the new opportunity.“That's right,” hesaid.“Next take, show me that kind of passion.Show it to Carmen.Make it so fifty million teenage girls want to be inside her skin.Take five, everyone, but don't either of you two get out of bed—Iwant to talk to Bud about filters.”
Hesprang up and was gone.Laurie folded his hands across the back ofhis neck, pressed his brow to the blood-red sheet.“Nicole, I'mreally sorry about this.”
“Fifty million teenage girls, huh?”
“In your skin.”
“Eew.”
Aninvoluntary chuckle shook Laurie's shoulders.He looked up.Thecameramen and production staff were turning away about theirbusiness, apparently as oblivious to Nicole as she was to herself.The sheet had fallen down around her waist, exposing her nicebreasts.Laurie looked her over, appreciating her for the comelycreature she was.“You're really lovely.I don't know what'sblocking me, but it's not you, okay?”
“Okay.You're not so bad yourself.”She gave his hair a ruffle.“Relax, all right?You're gentle, you smell good, and I bet you'rehot as hellfire when you let yourself go.I can handle a few moretakes.”
Laurienodded gratefully.He was puzzled, though.She had a rep fortearing fellow actors into shreds, and until today she'd been amere cipher to him, a flash of scarlet nail polish and ice.“You'rebeing very patient.And nice.”
“And you can't figure me out, right?Nicole's not bad when youmeet her—why is she such a cold-hearted bitch with her fans?Thatkind of thing?”
“I wouldn't have put it so bluntly, but...”
“Let me fill an idle minute by telling you why theseBlood Moonfilms willultimately bomb.”She flipped over onto her front, bunching up thesheet.“Why nobody will have fond, faded posters of Carmen to takedown off their walls when they go off to college, the way their bigsisters did of Buffy and Xena.Everybody hates me.That'swhy.”
“What, are you kidding?You can't step off the set withoutbeing mobbed.”
“Ah, but did you ever seen me step off it without Wes orBailey?Or you, for that matter?Nobody loves Carmen Duprey, noteven the lesbians.”She tucked a glossy curl behind her ear andgrinned up at Laurie, as full of mischief as she was free fromself-pity.“Especially not them.”
Lauriesnorted.“Okay, I'll buy it.Why don't the lesbians love you?Ireckon I would, if I was one.”
“I'll cherish that gallant remark.But look at me.I'm the girlwho brings two handsome vamps to their knees.I'm the helplesssexpot heroine who gets everything done for her because these greatimmortal guys just long for her so fucking much.So the baby teenfans loathe me out of jealousy, and the older ones—the moms whogrew up with kick-ass role models—can't abide my whiny little ass,because I've dragged their daughters' expectations back by fivedecades.The 'sixties might as well never havehappened.”
Laurielistened, distracted despite himself from his own griefs.It wasquite surreal, to lie here in the shadow of cactuses and camerasand hear this plain statement from a girl he'd thought shallow asthe character she played.For himself, he'd never believed thewomen around him tainted with pre-'sixties mud.Marielle had herproblems, but his aunt Elise had raised a family of boys withoutassistance and was one of the most powerful landowners in France.And Clara...Clara was a creature in her own right, a phenomenonbeyond gender.He swallowed a pang of guilt for their last parting.He hadn't even tried to contact her since.“If you believe allthat...”
“Why do I do it?”She propped herself on one elbow.“Becausethere's a market for me, Fitzroy.A new one.All these big sistersand moms—you can bet on the one thing they're finding out now.It'sfine to dream of growing up like a vampire slayer—quite anotherthing to do it.There's nothing more lonely than a warrior princessin her forties, divorced with three kids on her hands.It's toughgrowing up.Tough being on your own.I'm a guilty pleasure for alot of women these days, and...”She narrowed her eyes, tapped himlightly on one knuckle.“Well.Maybe not just women, huh, Fitzroy?It's one thing to be a pretty boy, growing up inside your borrowedskins.How's it feel to be a man, and have to stand there in yourown?”
Lauriedidn't know.He sat up, cold with the knowledge that he'd nevereven tried.“Nicole, can I borrow your mobile?”
“My what?Oh, my cell?Sure, I guess.Why?”
“Because Brett always confiscates mine.But you have specialprivileges, don't you?”
“Not really.I just throw bigger tantrums.”She yawned, herintensity already fading, and lazily extracted her phone frombeneath one scarlet pillow.“Not calling London, Ihope.”
“No, just Los Angeles.Home.”
“Okay.Knock yourself out.”She sat up restlessly.“Don't knowabout you, but I'm starting to feel a bit neglected over here.Whatthe hell is Bailey up to now?”
Lauriefollowed the direction of her gaze.It was one thing to be set upfor a surreal desert sex scene, quite another to be left on the bedwhile the production staff wandered off about other business.Brettand his new assistant were hammering on the door to Bailey'strailer.One of the cameramen was giving a leg-up to the wardrobegirl, who was trying to see in the window.Slowly but surely, everydisengaged member of the cast and crew was gatheringround.
Itwasn't at all like Bailey Price to lock his door.He only did it,he'd confided to Laurie, when he needed his privacy for aparticularly big, delicious hit.In the remote event of Laurie everdeciding to set aside his principles and join in the fun, he'dleave an extra key on top of the trailer's front wheel.
A secretkey, just for Laurie.Bailey was a crackhead.He was also asweet-natured boy who'd been sucked so deep into the Hollywooddream that he'd taken it for the whole world.A lonely bird-callfilled the air, and a moment later a huge shadow rippled across thelot.Laurie threw the crimson sheet aside, making Nicole shriek andgrab for a pillow.He took five seconds to haul on his trousers—notthe ridiculous leather pair but the tracksuit bottoms he'd left onthe sidelines, good for a barefoot dash—and then he ran.
Heshouldered through the crowd.The key was where Bailey hadpromised.Snatching it off the warm tyre, Laurie scrambled up thetrailer steps and jammed it into the lock.For a moment the doorresisted his frantic efforts, and then it swung suddenlywide.
The airinside the trailer was motionless and cold.Laurie stopped dead andBrett cannoned into him from behind.“Price!”Brett was yelling—hadnever stopped yelling since the group had begun to gather round thevan.“Price, damn you, this is your last warning.Makeup,now!”
