Page 61 of Love Out Loud

One of Noah’s bushy, dark eyebrows raises as his beard twitches into a smirk. Oh, he definitely saw Lennon and me in the Jeep, then.

Luckily, he’s professional about it. “No worries. I should have texted you. Silas is recording an audition for another project right now, so you have a few minutes to warm up.” He trails off and his smirk widens. “If you need to.”

Well, he was professional for a second anyway.

“Great. Perfect. I’ll just…do that, then.” Something about Noah’s smirk is throwing me off again. I drop my bag onto a nearby chair and move toward my booth.

“Hey, Lark,” Noah says before I can pull the door open.

“Yeah?”

“I promised Lennon I wouldn’t overwhelm you, but I have a few projects I think you’d be great for, if you were interested in continuing on. Jessica is working on her second book, too. She’s already said she’d love to have you on board for that audio. Given how hard it was to cast this one, it would be great for everyone if you wanted to do it.” His arms are folded over his chest and he’s clearly trying to adopt a casual air, but his wide eyes and clenched jaw suggest he’s very excited about these possibilities.

I’d be lying to myself if I said I wasn’t thrilled. It’s every actress’s dream to be offered another gig at the end of one. And a not-so-small part of me knows that this is a way forward for Lennon and me. That is, if I want to stay. Which would mean giving up everything I worked for back home.

No. I shake my head to clear it. We agreed not to make any decisions about anything for the next couple of weeks. But even if I don’t stay here, this is probably something I can do back in Michigan. Who knows, maybe Carl would see it as good experience and let me teach some higher-level classes. I’d be a fool not to think about this, and I probably should separate it from Lennon. It’s my career, after all, and doesn’t need to have anything to do with him. If it came to that.

“Um,” I say. “I’m definitely interested. Can I think about it for a few days? I need to figure out what’s going on back home.”

“Sure,” Noah says quickly. “Of course. These aren’t starting until after we wrap this one, so take your time. I just wanted to put it on your radar. I thought maybe…” He trails off and snaps his mouth shut.

I tilt my head and raise my eyebrows. “Maybe what?”

He glances over my shoulder to where Lennon and I sat in his Jeep a few minutes ago. “Nothing. The offers are on the table—that’s all.”

I nod. “Thank you,” I say as I enter my booth.

Silas is on the other side of the window between the booths. I can’t hear him yet, but he pauses and smiles at me, giving me a thumbs-up. Noah must have told him, too. It’s sweet that he’s happy for me. I flash him the same gesture before he goes back to the script in front of him.

My phone pings with an email. With everything this morning, I forgot to silence it before I came into the studio, so I quickly pull it from my pocket to do so, but the name on the email notification makes me pause.

From: Carl Stanton

To: Lark Caspian

Subject: Next term classes

Hello Lark,

I’m writing because your audiobook work this summer is making quite the splash among the faculty here. We are all so excited to hear it. Given the buzz around your work—and the fact that we are having a difficult time replacing Monique—I wanted to revisit our previous conversation about you teaching some of the upper-level courses next term on a trial basis. Think about it! Let’s meet when you get back.

Carl Stanton

Theater Department Chair, Arbor Hills Community College

It takes a few read-throughs before what he’s saying clicks. I didn’t even know he was aware I was recording this summer. Everything happened so fast, and with Devin leaving on top of it all, I hadn’t had a chance to say much to anyone. Not to mention that I didn’t want to get ahead of myself before it released in case it didn’t turn out as well as I’d hoped. But he knows, and he’s already impressed enough to offer me a trial run teaching some more rigorous classes. This is good. This is really good.

I have actual options, which I haven’t been able to say since undergrad. Live here and keep doing this work that has sparked a joy in me I thought was long gone. Go back to Ann Arbor and work to progress in the career I fought so hard for. Stay with Lennon, try to drag him with me, or leave him behind. And even though I know making these decisions won’t be easy, I’m not dreading them. It’s as if the whole big open sky is mine.

For the first time in a long time, I feel free.