“I’m glad you could make it tonight,” Simone said to Chloe. “Critical scene.”
“Nice of you to schedule it for when the restaurant was closed.”
“I do what I can,” she said wryly as she put on her headphones.
Chloe did the same. Now she could hear the director giving final instructions to Daisy and Liam before stepping out of the shot.
A few minutes later the assistant director called, “Picture’s up!” The set went quiet. “Roll sound, roll camera.”
“Speed.”
“Rolling.”
The clapper sounded and the scene began.
Chloe’s eyes were glued to the screen in front of her. The wind toyed with Daisy’s long blonde hair. Liam’s shirt glowed white under the mellow lights. Even without the movie magic that happened postproduction—angles, timing, music—Chloe fell into the scene. She felt the tug of emotions: one of them was fighting for love, the other fighting against it. The push and pull of their words, their tones, and their expressions had a visceral effect.
Cate pushed Ledger away and anger flared in his eyes. “That’s right. Keep pushing me away. We both know that’s not what you really want. You’re just afraid. You’re afraid to feel what I make you feel. You’re scared to death and all you want to do is run. But I’m not gonna let you do that this time, Cate. You’re gonna stay and face this once and for all.”
He took her in his arms and kissed her.
The moment their lips touched, the couple ceased to be Ledger and Cate. They were Liam and Daisy. The Liam she’d come to know and care for. The Liam who teased and flirted and charmed. The Liam whose mouth had been onherslast night.
Chloe tensed as coldness swept through her, chilling her to the bone. Jealousy took root and sprouted tendrils that squeezed and strangled.
The kiss went on for hours.
Days.
Eons.
The light smattering of applause broke her train of thought. The embrace had finally ended, and the crew showed their appreciation for the actors’ skills.
The script supervisor patted Chloe’s leg. “Don’t worry, sweetheart. He’s just acting.”
She must be so transparent. She tried for a smile. “Of course.” Liam didn’t really want to kiss Daisy Hughes. It was his job. He was only pretending.
The same way he’d pretended with Chloe. The thought made her stomach shrivel to the size of a bean.
The crew was already setting up for the next take. Sophía removed red smudges from Liam’s mouth and touched up Daisy’s lipstick. Powdered their noses. “There,misqueridos, pretty as a picture,” Chloe heard through her headset.
If she was lucky, she’d only have to watch that kiss a dozen or so more times.
Chapter32
“How’s filming going?” Spencer asked.
Liam set the phone to speaker, sprawled on a deck chair, and closed his eyes against the afternoon sun. “Great. We filmed a critical scene last night. Simone’s very happy with it.” They’d gone through twenty takes. The wind had wreaked havoc with Daisy’s hair.
“Glad to hear it. The other project seems to be coming along nicely too. The photo of that hot kiss in the rain is going viral. Your fans are eating it up.”
Liam clenched his jaw. “Good to know.” He’d done a lot of thinking since that kiss three nights ago. It seemed pretty obvious now that she’d seen the photographers and staged the moment. She was the one who’d kissed him, after all.
His presence in her life boosted her exposure, gained her followers. She’d become a media darling. Her publisher was happy. People were reading her book. Sure, it had already been a bestseller, but there was always room to grow an audience. One could never sell too many books or have too many fans. Maybe it was about the movie too. The film was obviously important to her. Did she seek celebrity status?
Fame was addictive. One little taste and people got hooked. Did Chloe relish her newfound fame? Was she craving more? It didn’t seem like the Chloe he knew. But then, he’d only known her a couple of months. And sometimes people surprised you. He’d been on the wrong end of that kind of revelation more than once.
“Liam? You still there?”
