“No.” Sophie blew out a breath, shaking her head. “I’m sorry for giving you that impression. I was in a bad mood this morning, but it didn’t have anything to do with you.”
“You sure about that?” Jules asked.
Sophie sighed, fighting a smile. “Okay, maybe I was feeling a little sorry for myself when I walked in this morning, imagining what it would have been like if I’d gotten to play Bianca, but that was petty of me.”
“You can’t help how you feel,” Jules said.
“I’m happy for you, Jules. Truly.”
“Thanks,” Jules said, looking relieved. “I’m glad we’ll be working together.”
“Me too,” Sophie told her.
“So…friends?”
“Yep,” Sophie agreed, glad they’d cleared the air between them. “How did you feel about today’s rehearsal?”
“I thought it went really well,” Jules said. “You?”
“Same.”
“It’s a lot of extra pressure, playing the lead,” Jules said, frowning slightly.
“I bet. Are you nervous, you know, about the kiss?” she couldn’t help asking.
“No,” Jules answered, maybe a little too quickly. They walked for a few more steps in silence. “Maybe a little. I’ve never actually kissed anyone onstage before.”
“I haven’t either,” Sophie said.
They lapsed into silence again. Jules’s lips were pressed together in a firm line, an indication she might be more nervous about the kiss than she’d admitted.
“Have you kissed a woman before?” Sophie asked impulsively.
“No.” Jules looked over, and their gazes locked. “Have you?”
Sophie laughed. “I only kiss women. I figured you already knew that about me.”
Jules rolled her eyes. “Well, yes, I thought so, but I didn’t want to make assumptions. Better to just ask, in my experience.”
“Oh, it definitely is,” Sophie agreed. She always preferred to be direct, especially about her sexuality. And maybe it was the beer talking, or more likely her interest in Jules, but she was feeling especially direct—and nosy—tonight. “Have you thought about it?”
“Thought about what?” Jules asked, slowing to a stop as they waited for the crosswalk ahead to change.
“Kissing a woman.”
Jules’s gaze fell to her hands, which were clasped loosely in front of herself. “No.”
And there it was, the answer Sophie had been looking for since they met. Jules wasn’t into women. Sophie tried not to read too much into it, because she knew Kari had wanted to cast a queer actress in the role of Bianca, but maybe she knew something Sophie didn’t. Either way, Sophie needed to kill this crush right now, before it made things between her and Jules any more awkward than they already were.
“I think I’m more nervous about my piano solo than the kiss,” Jules said. “I mean, I’ve been dreaming about a role like this my whole life, and now that I’ve got it, I’m terrified of screwing up. And I just want to absorb every moment in case I never get this opportunity again.”
“Something tells me you will,” Sophie told her.
“Hopefully, we both will,” Jules said with a small smile in her direction. “I get the feeling you’ve been working at this as long and hard as I have.”
“Maybe longer and harder,” Sophie said.
“Oh yeah?” Jules said. “Try me.”
“Moved to the city when I was eighteen, and I’ve been auditioning ever since,” Sophie told her.
“And how old are you now?”
“Twenty-nine.”
“I guess it depends on how we define ‘working,’” Jules said thoughtfully. “I moved here at fourteen to attend LaGuardia High School. You know it, right?”
“I do.” It was the performing arts high school where Fame was set, and it was ridiculously hard to get into, not to mention expensive, because you had to be a New York City resident to attend. “How did you pull that off, residency-wise?”
“My mom moved to Manhattan with me when I was in eighth grade to establish residency, while my dad stayed with my brothers in Miami. She lived here with me until I turned eighteen, and then she went back home. My dad was starting to struggle with kidney disease, so he needed her more than I did at that point.”
“That’s very dedicated,” Sophie said.
“I’ve never wanted anything but to be a Broadway actress,” Jules told her. “And my parents have always been really supportive.”
“That’s great,” Sophie told her, feeling a twinge of jealousy. She wished her parents had been that dedicated to her dream or had enough money to send her to a fancy performing arts high school. “Sorry about your dad’s kidney disease, though.”
“Thanks.” Jules’s expression turned brittle. “He passed away five years ago.”
“Oh, shit. I’m so sorry.” Now Sophie felt like an ass, feeling sorry for herself about where she went to high school when she had two loving parents at home.
“Thanks.” Jules blinked rapidly. “Kills me a little bit that he won’t be here to see me in this show.”
“Oh, Jules.” She turned and wrapped an arm around her shoulders, just for a quick squeeze, since they really didn’t know each other well enough for hugs.
“Anyway,” Jules said, waving her hands in front of her face as she warded off tears. “My parents wanted me to go to college, so I got a degree in Theater Arts. I didn’t actually start auditioning until I was twenty-two, and I’m thirty now, so if you count years we’ve been actually auditioning, you have been at this longer than I have.”
“I think it’s safe to say we’ve both worked our asses off,” Sophie said.
“Yes,” Jules agreed, smile back in place.
“I’m this way,” Sophie said, gesturing toward Carroll Street to her right.
“Okay, well, I’ll see you tomorrow, then.”
“Bright and early,” Sophie confirmed.
“Actually, I’m not on the roster until after lunch,” Jules said. “I think Kari wanted to focus on some of the group numbers first. I may come in early to watch, though.”
“Nah, sleep in while you can,” Sophie said.
“We’ll see. I guess you could say I’m overzealous, but I’ve always loved trying to absorb every bit of a production that I can.”
“Nothing wrong with that. Night, Jules.” With a wave, Sophie crossed the street, headed toward her apartment. Exhaustion crept in as she walked those last blocks. It had been a long day. She was excited about the production, though, despite her conflicted feelings for Jules. They’d shared an insightful walk home together.
Hopefully, the inconvenient attraction would pass, since it was obviously one-sided. On that note, Sophie pulled up her Tinder app as she walked and started swiping through photos. She didn’t have time or space in her life for a relationship at the moment, but a one-night stand to reset her system? Yeah, she could fit that in. In fact, it had just become a priority.