Page 97 of Love On and Off Set

Slowly, I nodded. I didn’t share that with a ton of people. Usually they’d start asking questions about Cole, Julie, and the other stars. Since I’d never divulge anything—even if I had gossip to share—the conversations usually dried up quickly.

“And you said you were a…” He tapped the table. “Key grip?”

I nodded.

“So that’s different from a regular grip?”

I chuckled. “Yep. I’ve worked my way up to telling people how to grip. The job’s got a lot of responsibilities, but I love it.” I worked with the best people in what, to me, was the best job. I got to build things, fix problems, and then tear things apart. What was more fun than that?

“You smile when you talk about your job.”

“You don’t enjoy your job?”

A shadow crossed his face. Briefly…but enough for me to see. “Hey, what is it?”

He swallowed. “Nothing.” He shook himself—almost like Minnie when she shook off water. “So…key grip…”

“Oh God, Brody, you’re here.” Julie Reyes stepped to the table and placed a hand on my shoulder. “I am having such a shitty evening. Is everyone gone?”

I gazed up into the luminescent-green eyes of objectively one of the most-beautiful women in the world. With her white-blonde long hair, piercing eyes, and killer body, she stunned wherever she went. Oh, and she was objectively one of the nicest people I’d ever met. She might be the star of VJ, but she, like Cole, made certain to know and be kind to everyone on set.

She was shaking, so I rose and pulled her into a hug. “What’s going on?”

After a nanosecond, she wrapped her arms around my waist. “Some cyclist careened in front of my cab. The driver braked but he couldn’t stop. Totally not his fault. He was distraught, so I called 911. Then I’m giving orders about administering first aid because you know Donovan and all those lessons he ensured we took. I mean, thank God the cyclist was wearing a helmet. It cracked badly, and she was unconscious, but the paramedics thought she’d be okay, and then the police wanted statements, and by then people were filming me because my beret had flown off, and…” She patted her incredibly distinctive hair. “So they took me back to the police station to give a statement, which I guess made sense since the snow had started, and it’s freezing out, and…” She drew in a deep breath, then met my gaze. Her face fell. “Oh shit, Brody. Here I am, carrying on, and you—”

“I’m fine, Julie, really.” Because months had passed, and because I was good at shoving the pain down. “Look, can I buy you a drink? Val and his tab have gone home…”

She glanced at the large table behind us where just Svetlana sat, playing a game on her phone. She likely hadn’t realized everyone was leaving. Brilliant costume designer who spent every moment not in wardrobe on her phone playing some newfangled game. Why she’d come at all was a bit of a mystery to me, but I’d caught her talking to Teri and eating a massive basket of onion rings, so hopefully she’d gotten something out of the evening.

Julie glanced down at Robbie and her cheeks pinkened. “Oh God, you’re on a date, and here I am rambling about cabs and—”

“It’s fine.” Robbie cleared his throat. “It’s not a date, and I’d be honored if you joined us. I was thinking of ordering some food. Maybe nachos we could all share? Do you eat meat? You know what…I’ll just order the vegetarian version—”

“I like ground beef.” Julie offered a smile. Then she stuck out her hand. “Julie.”

“Robbie.” He took her hand as if mega movie stars offered their hands to him every day. I was so grateful for his discretion in that moment. Already, a couple of heads had swiveled.

I snagged a chair and placed her between Robbie and me.

Our server arrived at that precise moment with our sparkling apple ciders.

Julie decided to have one as well, and Robbie ordered the nachos.

The server grinned. “Anything else? This is on Val’s tab.”

At the same time, Julie and I burst out laughing. Yeah, that was Val. We shook our heads. Neither of us would ever take advantage of Val’s generosity.

Julie removed her coat and settled a bit. She drew in a breath, pressed a hand to her belly, and winced.

Panic settled low in my gut. Is she okay? Is this some kind of delayed stress reaction? She was in the cab when it hit the cyclist? Was she injured but just playing it down—

“I have to pee.” She grinned, hopped up, and headed toward the bathrooms.

Robbie blew out a breath. “I can honestly say I wasn’t expecting that.”

“No, you wouldn’t. If you knew Julie, though, you’d not be the least bit surprised.” She could be as raunchy as the rest of us. I was pretty sure she would’ve said piss if not for the newcomer.

“I…” Robbie fingered his glass. “That’s so scary. About the cyclist and the cab…” He swallowed.