“I’ll have to take my chances, won’t I? I’d never be able to trust you again Noah. I wasn’t enough for you then and nothing has changed.” She knew that he loved her, he just didn’t love her as much as he loved himself.
He climbed out of the pool. “I’ll see you in the morning.”
“Bye Noah.”
With her calm mood completely disrupted, she got out and decided to make a slushy frozen Margarita. She called to Archie who had found a comfortable spot in the shade and went inside.
8
Griffin sat at the bar regaling his sister Faye and her fiancé Jesse with his latest dramatic chapter.
“Only you Griff. I swear,” Faye said, rolling her eyes.
He held up both hands. “I wasn’t looking for it. You can hardly blame me.”
“Wanna bet? I completely blame you. You could have said no from the git-go.” Griffin looked so flabbergasted that Faye sputtered with laughter. “See, that’s exactly how you find yourself in the middle of everything. Your adventurist side is going to be your downfall one of these days. So, tell me, has your opinion changed? What’s she like?”
“Cold.”
“I don’t believe it. She seemed kind of shy the other night.”
He bit back a sarcastic laugh, “Shy? Try stuck-up snob.”
“Did you know that her mom died in the last couple of years? The tabloids said she was devastated. I’m sure she’s still grieving.”
Griffin rubbed his chin, “I didn’t know that about her mom, but she came right out and said she didn’t like me.”
“Ha! Penelope Winters is resistant to your charms,” Faye said.
“You can say that again. Her royal highness, Ms. Penelope Winters, is barely even civil to me.”
“My little brother may have finally met his match.”
“Very funny. Maybe she’s met hers,” Griffin said.
“Damn dude, I envy your swag,” Jesse said. “I guess it comes from women throwing themselves at your feet. By the way what ever happened to Brianna? Haven’t seen her around lately.”
“Too young and too clingy. I had to cut her loose. She’s back in New York. I’ve taken myself out of the dating pool for now. If I land the part, I’ll be too caught up in filming anyway.” Griffin changed the subject. “Faye I was wondering if you’d help me practice my lines?”
Faye looked at Jesse, “We’re pretty slow, do you mind babe?”
“Go. It’s not every day you get to brush elbows with a future movie star.”
Faye and Griffin went into her office and closed the door. “I’m going to try without the script. I’ve been studying my lines all day. You’ll just read Penelope’s lines and correct me if I’m wrong,” Griffin said.
Faye bounced on her tiptoes excitedly. “This is so surreal! My little brother playing opposite Noah Davis and Penelope Winters.”
Looking slightly dazed Griffin said, “Fucking weird.”
“What page?”
“We’ll start on eighty.”
Faye read Penelope’s part and Griffin remembered almost every one of his lines and stayed in character throughout the entire scene. Faye only had to prompt him once. “Oh my God! S-t-e-a-m-y!”
“Yeah I’ve noticed,” he said, dryly.
“Griffin,” she squealed, “You are fabulous! I am so impressed. Who knew? I mean it.”
“Really? You think I did alright? Was I believable?”
Faye looked tenderly at her little brother. As confident as he appeared, she knew he carried the same scars from their fucked up childhood as she, he just hid them better. “You rocked it. Honestly, I’m shocked right now.”
He smirked and the vulnerable moment was gone like a puff of smoke. “I hope I can retain it all.”
“You’ll do fine. Go home and get some rest. No more beer tonight. You have to be sharp tomorrow.”
“Yes ma’am.”
“I’ll bet your southern accent will be a plus for all the swooning fans out there. Noah Davis has nothing on you.”
“Um, do ya think you might be a little biased?”
She pinched her fingers together. “Just a teeny tiny bit.”
“Thanks for the read-through. I’ll stop in after the screen test.”
“Break a leg.”
“See ya Faye. Night Jesse.” He put on his helmet as he left the bar and hopped onto his Ducati. He fired it up and peeled out of the parking lot.
He loved the power and thrill of his bike almost as much as he loved piloting his plane. The faster…the higher…the bigger…the better. He’d skied the highest mountains and jumped out of airplanes, but he had to admit, this acting shit had him more terrified than anything he’d ever done before.
Going full throttle, he hit the straightaway to blow off some of the nervous energy. He couldn’t as easily eradicate the image of Penelope’s full breasts, straining against the black cotton of her tee shirt and the faint outline of her nipples. The nude scenes were going to be interesting to say the least. Surely, they had ways to orchestrate the scenes for maximum comfort. His gut clenched. He felt edgy and more alive than he had in a very long time.
9
Penelope had to admit that she was impressed with Griffin’s performances so far. He always came prepared, knew his lines, and was picking up his marks very quickly. The blocking could be difficult for new actors…kind of like walking and chewing gum as the saying goes. But he was catching on extraordinarily fast. Her worries about him slowing down the filming were dissipating. Maybe she’d been wrong about him.
She toyed with a lock of hair as she waited for Stew to finish his discussion with Griffin. They were standing off in the corner quietly talking something over. Already a week into filming, today they’d shoot their first intimate scene together. No nudity yet, just an intense making out session. She had lain awake for several hours last night worrying about it. What the hell was wrong with her?
Gorgeous arrogant men were a dime a dozen in Hollywood. Why was Griffin getting under her skin? But he was. He was so damn sure of himself for one thing. It made her want to take him down a peg or two. At least he’d been keeping things professional. He wasn’t trying to ingratiate himself off camera. She told herself that she was relieved, but a nagging voice in the back of her mind called her a liar.
Stew and Griffin approached. “All set?” Stewart asked.
Penelope nodded. Her gaze roved over Griffin’s naked torso, lean and muscular with a dusting of soft dark hair covering his chest. The film was a romantic thriller. Penelope’s character was married to a United States Senator up for reelection. Noah Davis played her husband and Griffin was playing her contractor-turned-lover after being hired to remodel their million-dollar home.
“Remember Griff, she’s the aggressor here, at this point you’re still trying to resist but losing the battle,” Stewart reminded him.
He nodded then stood on his mark. Penelope saw him take a deep breath and had a fleeting twinge of compassion. “Three…two…one…action,” Stewart called.