by Krys Janae
“I know. Other than parties or events, I haven’t really met with anyone like Jenn before.” It was the truth. Gateway was filmed with a cast of pure unknowns. She hated saying that about her beloved cast, but they were all cast with that particular requirement in mind. With her books flying off the shelves and the movie premiering, they would be well-known in no time. Jenn Vega, however, was not like them. Actually, neither was Joey Rider. Both of them up for the new focal leads for the film was going to do wonders for careers, including Evan’s, and Alisa’s too. That thought did nothing to calm her nerves.
It was a long cab ride to the studio, a subsidiary of the studio back home. Ron had arranged the meeting here even though they would have preferred a more casual meeting at a restaurant. Alisa fidgeted enough for Evan to reach over and clasp her hands in his to stop her.
“You’re going to be fine.” He offered her a kind smile.
Nodding, she turned her palm up to hold his hand, and let her breath out. Alisa didn’t miss that even though she relaxed her hand to release his, he kept his grip. Alisa looked over at him knowingly, but he was turned away, looking out the window. She gulped. It would be rude to yank her hand away, but she wasn’t comfortable holding his hand.
When the cab came to a sharp halt, she took the liberty of releasing his hand quickly to brace against the seat.
Evan cleared his throat. “We’re here.”
The studio, just outside the main part of Manhattan, still had a good amount of commercial businesses and restaurants around it. Their cab was pulled up to the curb just outside of the studio offices, and Evan had left her side only to walk around the cab and open her door. She gratefully accepted the gesture with a smile and as soon as she stepped out, he offered his arm to her. Accepting that too, she linked her arm with his, and they entered the studio together.
“Evan Gable, is that you?”
“Who else would it be, sweetheart?” Evan released Alisa at once and made his way around the table to give Jenn a hug. She kissed him on the cheek.
“Hey, sis.” Joey winked at Alisa. She smiled warmly and waved in return.
“Alisa Rider.” Jenn’s lips were just as perfect in person as they were on all of the issues of Cosmo, Vanity Fair, and numerous other fashion magazines Alisa had seen her in. Jenn was smiling, and she offered a hug over a handshake. Alisa was surprised but accepted the hug gratefully. She made note that Jenn smelled fantastic.
“Ms. Vega, it’s a pleasure to meet you.”
“Please, call me Jenn. Thanks for meeting with me.”
“Of course,” Alisa responded, trying not to sound nervous.
Alisa’s heart was racing. She’d been around stars before, but never one of this caliber. If you had asked her a year ago what she’d be doing in her near future, sitting in a room with a director and two well-known actors wouldn’t have been her answer.
“Let’s talk business, shall we? Congratulations on a successful premiere, by the way. I was there but had to fly out here immediately for the show. I hope you don’t think it rude of me.”
Alisa shook her head. “No, of course not. Thank you for coming out at all.”
The next hour seemed to fly by in the blink of an eye. Joey kept the jokes rolling, Jenn was as sweet as Alisa hoped, and Evan kept the conversation on point. Ron was on conference with them through their video chat, and all negotiations went smoothly. Jenn enjoyed the early version of the script that Alisa and Logan had drafted. It was comfortable, not at all painful like she had expected.
Jenn had to take off once everything was set. The final talks would be between her agent and Ron to finalize the pay and paperwork. Joey, who needed to go through a similar process, left shortly after that. Evan and Alisa looked at each other once the door shut and after about five seconds of staring blankly at one another, the two of them could no longer contain their excitement.
She grabbed his forearms and shook him slightly, smiling from ear to ear.
Evan was smiling as well. “You did it.”
“I know! I can’t believe that just happened!”
“So you want to be in casting? You’re a natural!”
Alisa nodded proudly. She was in disbelief that she’d gone from being a self-published writer from a small town to discussing scripts and negotiating with movie stars. “Holy crap, I’m so excited we’re going to have her in our movie!”
Evan nodded in agreement. “Yes!”
“This is so amazing!”
“You are amazing.” He smiled.
The excitement diminished slowly. As Alisa got lost in his eyes, she inhaled deeply, and it took everything in her to snap out of it. She would be lying if she didn’t admit she was attracted to him. But she knew better. She had married the man of her dreams, and that man was waiting for her back home.
“Well, uh, how about lunch and then back to the hotel?”
Alisa nodded, “Sure, why not?”
After picking up some food from the Chinese restaurant around the corner, she and Evan ended up back at the hotel. They ran a few of his lines from the first episode which was ready for the table read in a few days and would shoot shortly after. They were having an amusing time. They realized it was close to six by the time they were done going through the script and the meeting notes from the morning, so she excused herself to her room to prep for the party.
As she was getting ready, Alisa propped her tablet up in the bathroom. Her party playlist was on, blaring the latest Katy Perry dance song. She was shimmying to the beat when she got a call, and without realizing it was set to video, she swiped it to answer. When she saw a smiling face on the screen, she abruptly stopped dancing, and her face got hot.
“Well hello there.” It was Ray, sitting in what looked like the conference room at the studio. It was certainly familiar considering she’d practically lived there the last two months.
“Sheezus.” She closed her eyes, defeated.
“That’s cute.”
“Ray…what’s up?”
“So there’s a little bit of bad news.” Ray started.
“Oh no! What is it? Are you okay? David and the kids? Is it Logan?”
“Calm down, Panicking Patty, it’s nothing tremendous, just a little bit to do with the cast.”
Alisa sighed loudly as she picked up the eye shadow palette and grabbed her brush. She was talented enough to multi-task, applying her makeup while she was on the call. “All right, hit me.”
“Unfortunately, our Miss Hartford had to leave the show.”
“What?! No way!”
“Yeah, she got another offer for some other show on another network and decided that role might be better than Theresa, so we’re back to looking again.”
She groaned and put her forehead to the marble counter. “Oh, Lord…more auditions? Please don’t say more auditions.”
Ray cleared his throat. “Actually, it was a short hunt. I had a thought and talked to Kassidy. She agreed our next choice was sure to be a perfect fit.”
“Oh, yeah? That’s great! Who do ya have for me?”
“I don’t know if you’re ready for this one…”
“Try me.”
“You.”
Alisa pulled the brush from her face before she drew a crooked line of the glittery powder somewhere other than on her lids. It nearly fell from her grasp, but she recovered just in time. When she gripped tightly to it, she felt the wood in the brush creaking; her strength nearly snapped it.
“How excited are you?” Ray was smiling, staring straight into the camera, but Alisa hadn’t even processed the information. She was beyond stunned. “Sweetie, blink twice if you hear me.”
She blinked once. Then a second time.
“Yes, but did you understand that? You’re going to be part of the show. Isn’t that good news?”
So many thoughts swirled around in her brain, twisting and twirling. She was sure if she were animated, there would be spinning stars floating above her head. Alisa felt as if she’d jus
t been hit with a hammer. Her mouth had gone dry. She attempted to swallow right before she turned to look at Ray.
“M-me? Why me? Didn’t we have a long list of understudies for each of our newbies? What did Logan say?”
“It was his idea.”
She grumbled to herself. “No … way.”
“Logan, Kassidy, and I talked about it after Heather left, and we think you’re a perfect fit. I heard you reading the audition pieces the other day, and I think this would be a great opportunity for you.”
“But the movie ”
“Will be handled. It’s still a ways away from the heavy production work, and you have assistance with that.”
“And the books I’m writing ”
“Sweetheart, when are you not writing?”
“I don’t know a thing about acting!”
Ray let out a hearty laugh.
“What’s so funny?”
“You had that bit part in Christian’s flick, right?”
Alisa groaned, “Ray, come on. ‘Shirtless Girl at Party’ is not the sort of credentials you really search for in a candidate for a television show.”
“It made for a cool credit on your database page, though.”
She groaned again. She wished she could somehow hide that.
“Sweetie, you are surrounded by us. Your friends. Or, you know ... I have Sofie’s number. If you want, I can set you up with--”
“No-no-no! Okay! Okay ... I’ll do it. Fine. Whatever. Ugh. You both win.”
He laughed again, amused. “Good.”
“Tell Logan he will pay for this.”
“Will do.”
“Now if you’ll excuse me, I’ve gotta get ready for Quin’s party.”
She heard him gasp.
“Quin … Stephens?”
Her smile was huge enough to show most of her teeth. “That’d be him.”
Ray whistled, “Please tell him hi for me?”
“Tell David hi for me then. Bye for now, sweetie.” Alisa waved, tapping the end call button.
This time around, she was ready in less than 30 minutes and was waiting for Evan outside his door. It was a random hunch she had to pack her little black dress for such a short trip, but she was glad she’d come prepared. Alisa even packed her purple heels and accessories to match. As she leaned up against the wall, she heard the muffled sound of shouting coming from Evan’s room and couldn’t help but eavesdrop.
“I already told you it’s over, Kirsten.”
Alisa raised her eyebrows. It sounded like he was on the phone, as she could only hear one side of the conversation.
“No. No! I don’t want no. I don’t want to see you. Quin invited me over. I’m already bringing someone. I don’t care if you flew out here just to …You know what? We’re done. Conversation over. Goodbye.”
After a few moments, the door opened and a flustered Evan looked at her with piercing eyes.
“Ready?” Alisa offered a half smile to lighten the mood. She couldn’t help but notice how handsome he looked in his tux. Sure, she’d seen him the night of the premiere all dressed up but up close and as his companion for the night, Alisa was definitely impressed. She wanted to compliment him, but she didn’t think now was the time. His expression remained the same. “Yeah. Let’s go.”
The car ride to the Upper East Side took a little longer than expected. Normally, Alisa would see this as a great opportunity to look out at the sights, but the conversation he had before they left, the conversation she wasn’t supposed to hear, was bothering her. Was he talking about Kirsten Gale? Alisa had only had one run-in with Kirsten, and it was at a coffee shop in Hollywood when she was out with Joann. Joann was a huge fan of hers and couldn’t resist the urge to say hello. When the girls approached, Kirsten had a less than thrilled attitude toward her fan and brushed them off the first chance she got.
There were other Kirstens in show business, right? It didn’t have to be her…right?
She couldn’t help but steal a glance at Evan every so often. Alisa was worried about him. This was the first time he had shut her out the entire trip. He was usually the one trying to make conversation and keep it all light, but not this time. She could tell he was going over the conversation in his head.
The car stopped in front of an enormous, very upscale building. The driver opened the door for them.
“Enjoy yourselves.” The driver nodded to the two of them.
A slight breeze blew through, and Alisa pulled her coat closer to her body.
The elevator ride 15 floors up was silent too, and Alisa kept to her side. Once the doors opened though, everything changed.
“Heyyy! You made it!” Quin reached out to shake the director’s hand.
“Wouldn’t miss it, brother.” Evan shook his hand and gave him a half-hug.
“Come here, you.” Quin unexpectedly pulled Alisa into a hug and squeezed her tightly in his big bear arms.
She instantly warmed up. Honestly, she was quite flushed. “H-hi, Quin. Er. Mr. Stephens.” He was as handsome in person as he looked in print and on TV, maybe even more so. Alisa fought every urge to ask him to do his signature catchphrase from the show, but she was sure he’d been asked to do it a million times before.
“No, no, Mr. Stephens is my dad. It’s just Quin, okay? Don’t act so shy, Alisa; we are all friends here.”
A giggle she’d been holding back escaped. “Certainly … Quin.”
“Please make yourselves comfortable, grab a drink, and have fun. Oh, give your old man my best.” Quin advised, winking at Alisa before moving on.
When he started to mingle with his peers, Evan lit up like a child on Christmas morning. He politely removed Alisa’s coat and hung it on the rack by the door, and from there it was a non-stop meet and greet. Alisa met more industry people than she could ever keep track of, and Evan seemed to know everyone in the room. It prevented any awkward scenes, she admitted; having him around made it easier to handle, and the pair fluttered among different groups like good social butterflies.
“See? You’re doing great. This will be fun.” Evan winked at her.
Her phone vibrated twice. Evie and Joann were both asking for picture proof of her attendance. Alisa figured it was a good opportunity, so she stepped in front of Quin and Evan and snapped a quick selfie with them. Looking to see how it turned out, she burst into giggles. Their expressions were priceless. She sent it off to her girlfriends, knowing they’d love it.
Quin’s here with Emma, and even Devon Eckhart is here! She informed Evie and Joann that his sidekick from the show was in attendance as well, making it even more-so of a dream for the fan girls (and boys) of the show.
As the party roared on, Alisa found herself quite comfortable among the rich and famous. The chattering stars, their adoring fans, and some of their personal friends were standing around drinking, catching up, or talking business … some were even dancing. Everyone was having a good time. It was a definite contrast from the LA scene. Alisa took a few more pics with Evan and other guests who came by to greet them and sent them off to Joann and Evie. Soon a clinking sound of metal hitting the side of a glass silenced the room.
“If I can have everyone’s attention, please?” Quin tapped the side of his glass with a pen.
A hush fell over the mass in attendance. All eyes were on Quin. He began to deliver a speech that was heartfelt and inspiring all in one. Alisa could see that he was shaking a little bit. When he brought Emma on stage, everyone whistled at her. She looked gorgeous. She graciously waved and smiled at the attendees.
“Thank you all for coming tonight. I would have had this party last week when it was my sweet Emma’s birthday, but I was out of town. I couldn’t wait to come home to celebrate with her and you all, my friends.”
Thank you, Emma mouthed.
“For those of you who don’t know, Emma and I met back on the set of my first show. She actually played my sister …”
Inappropriate comments came from different parts of the
room, and everyone laughed. Out of the corner of her eye, Alisa could see Evan on his phone. He angrily text someone she couldn’t see the name and when a call came through, he vanished. As not to create a scene, Alisa remained still.
“…You are the arrow that pierced my heart, the one that always takes my breath away. I came to realize that I can’t possibly live without you. Emma, will you marry me?”
A mixture of reactions hit the crowd, and the look on Emma’s face was priceless. She was in between tears, excitement, and happiness and couldn’t even speak, so she nodded at him. He slid the ring on her finger, a large rock, one Alisa could spot easily from where she stood; a couple of rows back and dead center to the show. Cheers soon filled the loft, and the happy couple embraced and kissed to celebrate. Alisa clapped and hollered to match the roar of the audience.
The DJ resumed the music, and the celebration rolled on.
When Evan didn’t return, she decided to step outside on the balcony where it was quiet to take a breath of fresh air. Crossing the threshold of the balcony door, Alisa wasn’t prepared for the sight. It was so picturesque. Everything. She found herself out on the balcony of a swanky New York City high-rise, very different from the buildings she was accustomed to in Los Angeles. Her gaze fell over the street, watching the tiny figures of the people walking down below. The lights in the city that never slept were so bright, like fireflies surrounding her. She was speechless. Her phone vibrated.
How’s the party? Logan asked.
Thought a party in NYC would be scary, but it’s harmless. Quin says hi.
Did he do it?
Yes!
I knew that punk could do it! Ha! Send my regards.
“There you are.” Evan strode up beside her and came to a stop. He had a champagne glass in each hand and offered her one.
“Did you catch the action?” Alisa turned her head in the direction of the happy couple who were visiting with various groups to show off her new ring. It was an impressive rock, gleaming even at a distance.
“I did,” he raised his glass to them and took a sip before bringing his attention back to her. “You all right?”