“I’ve had a fortnight to think this through. I’ve got it all planned out.”
He’s been thinking about this for two weeks? Our relationship seemed to be going at lightning speed and it scared me. It had only been less than three months since we had met and we had spent a chunk of that time apart. The fear caused by these thoughts must have registered on my face.
“Don’t you trust me? Or is it something else?”
“I trust you. I’m just a little bit overwhelmed, I guess.”
“Don’t you want to be with me?” he said with a voice hopeful for the right answer.
“More than anything.”
Will smiled and relaxed. “So do you want to hear the plan?”
Colin took me back to my car in the early afternoon. As usual, I hid in the backseat until we hit the main road and it appeared to be safe.
I went home to break the news to Carrie that I would be moving out. She was a little upset with me, but understood. My rent was paid up through the end of July so the only thing that she would lose was my constant company during that time, not that it had been that constant thus far between her social plans and mine. Notwithstanding, Carrie and I would still stick to the plan of sharing a hotel room in Pasadena for the actual Bar Exam itself. I would continue to see her every night at class and I promised that we would get together for dinner and after class from time-to-time. I tried to sell her on the benefit of being able to have her boyfriend, Jeff, stay at our place more often. She smiled at that thought. More sleeping bag sex. I chuckled under my breath.
As I packed my things, I noticed one of Carrie’s tabloids with the caption on the front cover, “Love Triangle on the Set of Midnight,” along with pictures of Will, Katherine and a dark-haired beauty I assumed was Kayla. I grimaced, and successfully fought the urge to read the accompanying article, knowing that it would be full of lies. Carrie and I grabbed my bags, all of which fit in the trunk of my car, and then we headed off to class in separate cars.
After class, I met one of the security guards at the home of a friend of Will’s north of Montana in Santa Monica. Will had insisted that it was okay to leave my car in the driveway there as the friend was out of town for the next several weeks filming in Florida. My car didn’t quite go with the neighborhood. I wondered if the friend would thank Will for that.
It appeared that the security guards and I would become great friends as it was Will’s plan that they shuttle me back and forth to my car every evening. Will planned on changing his appointment with his personal trainer to the evening so that he could try to get the photographers to follow him and allow for a clearer path for me to leave for class each night.
The brawny security guard helped me place my things in the trunk of Stephen’s car and we were quickly on our way to Will’s house. I didn’t peek again so I had no idea whether it was bad or not. It must have been okay because no one seemed to get near the car as it entered the driveway and the garage.
Upon entering the house, I found Will waiting for me alone. The security guard returned to the garage to bring in more of my things from the car.
“Welcome home,” he said beaming and with emphasis on the word “home.” He approached me with green eyes sparkling and gave me a long, passionate kiss.
Home. I felt like I must have been dreaming. I am going to wake up sometime soon to find that this has all been a dream because there is no possible way that this could be my reality.
After placing my things in a corner of Will’s room, Will and I lay on the couch in the family room together with the TV tuned to some British comedy on BBC America that neither of us was really watching.
“Are you sure this is okay with Stephen and Colin? You guys have been roommates for a while. I don’t want to intrude.”
“You’re not intruding. Besides, Kate and Gemma have practically lived here for years.”
“Yes, but they don’t actually live here. Now, I do.”
“I couldn’t be happier about that. Stephen and Colin know that you make me happy so they’re fine with it. More than fine. They like you. A lot.”
“You’d tell me if there was a problem, right?”
“Yes. There’s no problem. So be happy, will you? I am and I want you to be too.” He smiled brightly.
“I am happy.” I smiled back at him, but my voice was quiet.
“You don’t sound happy.”
“Well, let me prove it to you then.”
The next morning, I climbed out of bed and dug through one of my suitcases for clothes to wear.
“You know you don’t have to leave your things in those. I have drawers and closet space all ready for you.”
I reacted like I had been shocked. Thankfully, Will didn’t notice. Unpacking my things was going to make this seem real and like a more permanent situation. I tried to concentrate on the fact that this was only for a few weeks until the Bar Exam. That thought allowed me to calm down and set about unpacking. There wasn’t a whole lot to unpack in any event.
Will had cleared a large section of the walk-in closet and several drawers in one of the built-in dressers that framed the entrance to the large closet. I could see some fresh boxes in the corner that likely contained what had been cleared. The space he gave me was far more than I was going to need. Will had already cleared space in the bathroom for me in the past so I didn’t have to leave things all over the counter. The additional toiletries and such I brought still fit into that space previously provided to me.
Chapter Twenty-Four
The next few weeks ran smoothly, better than smoothly actually. The paparazzi never got wind of my existence. As promised, Will allowed me time and space to study.
Will decided that it was his job to keep me from getting too stressed out over the Bar Exam. What that meant in practice was that I was treated to relaxing lunches and dinners on the patio, candlelight baths, massages given by him as well as, from time-to-time, a professional at one of the nicer spas in Santa Monica, and alone time for us every night when I came home from class and with an earlier start on weekends. I was completely and utterly spoiled.
I managed to see Carrie, Rachael, Pam and a few other close friends socially. The security guards snuck them in the house as they had me and we hosted a few summer barbeques/pool parties on the weekends that also included some of Will, Colin and Stephen’s friends. I continued to duck requests from Max, Daniel and John to go out with good excuses.
On the Fourth of July, we had a particularly large party that started in the afternoon and continued fairly late that night which included a number of the guys’ friends from the Rugby Club. I invited some of my college friends as well as Carrie, Pam and Rachael. I found it amusing that these Brits would throw a party to celebrate a holiday wherein the British were the bad guys. The irony was lost on them.
At this party, I finally met Katherine Sullivan and her boyfriend, Mark, both of whom stopped by briefly in the afternoon. When they arrived, I was out on the patio with Will, who was rarely more than a few feet away from me and was often holding my hand. After Katherine and Mark walked through the patio door, they headed straight for us. Katherine gave Will a kiss and a hug, and Mark shook his hand.
“Katherine, this is Shannon.” Will was beaming as he introduced me.
If it was possible, Katherine was even more beautiful in person. Photographs did not do justice to her green eyes and long lashes, and her complexion was flawless. She also was very stylish in a trendy way. I could see why she made celebrity best dressed lists. In addition, Katherine was even tinier in person than she appeared on screen. I felt intimidated and enormous.
Katherine gave me a kiss on the cheek and a hug, while saying, “It’s so nice to finally meet you. I’ve heard so much about you.”
Mark gave me a kiss on the cheek and a hug as well.
“She’s even prettier than her picture,” Katherine commented to Will.
Before I could ask, “What picture?” Will was offering to get them drinks.
/> I started to feel insecure as there could be no way Will could possibly prefer me to her. Then I noticed the way Katherine and Mark looked at each other. They were clearly in love. Interestingly, Mark was not particularly good-looking if you took into account his appearance alone. He was a little bland in appearance: medium height, brown hair, brown eyes, medium build and a beige complexion with nothing to make him stand out in a crowd. In talking to him, however, his personality and charisma made him very attractive.
When Will returned, I watched how he interacted with Katherine carefully and it was just as he had described. He treated her like a kid sister and she treated him like a big brother.
While Mark and Will engaged in what appeared to be a continuation of a long-standing and good-natured debate about which London area soccer team was the best, Katherine took the opportunity to speak somewhat privately with me.
“It really is nice to meet you at long last. Will talked about you a lot when we were on the road for Midnight 3. He seems so happy. You’re good for him.”
“From what I’ve heard, you’re a pretty good friend to him.” I tried to sound sincere and not jealous.
“Most of the time, I’m like the little sister he looks out for, but there have been a few times when I’ve had to look out for him.”
“Will told me a little bit about that. He’s lucky you were there for him.”
“He would have turned it around on his own sooner or later. He wasn’t happy and wasn’t living a lifestyle that would ever make him happy. It just wasn’t him. This business can screw you up. Sometimes actors need someone to stand up to them and tell them how it is, but not many will do that because either they have some vested interest in keeping the party going or they’re on the payroll and are afraid of being fired. I finally realized that I was in the best position to do that for Will. It worked, which was a good thing, but it was brutal.”
“What do you mean?” I was curious and hoping to hear some detail that I hadn’t heard before.
“I can say this because Will told me you know. Kayla wasn’t good for him and getting involved with her was a bad idea. It was pretty clear almost from the outset that all four of the Midnight films would be shot. Relationships in our business don’t tend to last beyond the shooting of a film. You’re kind of in a bubble during the film and you end up pretty close to your cast-mates, but it’s unreal and hard to translate into real life. So, knowing that he was going to have to work with her for years, it was just a bad idea. Plus she partied a little harder than him. He may have a few too many drinks from time-to-time, but he really is pretty straight and narrow for the most part. Regular recreational drug use was perfectly in character for her, but out of character for him.”
I was thinking that this was too much information for me, but continued to press, “How is she now?”
“You mean is she still a partier? Yes. Or do you mean how is she when it comes to Will? She’s fine I guess. It was years ago now. Not that I think she’d complain if Will changed his mind and wanted to get back with her. He tries to be sensitive to her feelings. He only gushed about you when she wasn’t around. He didn’t want to rub her nose in it. Anyway, I don’t think you’ll be seeing her today. She knows you’ve moved in with Will and she’s probably a little bent about that.”
Will leaned in at this point, “What are you two talking so intently about?”
“Nothing, just unraveling the mystery that is Will MacKenzie,” I replied with a mischievous smile.
He gave Katherine a look that said, “What have you done now?”
Katherine smiled innocently in response.
After making tentative plans to get together in September when Will and I returned from England, Katherine and Mark said their goodbyes and left for a party at the house of one of Mark’s brothers.
After they had left, Will pulled me close and kissed me. “What were you two talking about?” he asked again.
“Nothing much. But I do realize what a good friend she is to you. If I didn’t believe you before, I really believe you now that there is nothing between you two.”
“I’m glad. I told you.” He kissed me again.
“It’s not in my best interest to say this, but what are you thinking? She is absolutely gorgeous, smart and genuinely nice. How could you not be interested in her?”
Will appeared shocked by my questions. “I don’t know. It’s either there or it’s not and, for Katherine and me, it’s not. She’s not my type.”
“What’s your type?”
“You are.”
I dramatically rolled my eyes and then kissed him. “I’m glad.” I had to pull away after a few minutes because I was envisioning that someone was going to tell us to “get a room.”
By the end of the evening, we had migrated to one of the sofas surrounding the roaring fire pit. The crowd had thinned and it was just those of us who lived or mostly lived there along with a few of the guys’ closer friends. I was sitting next to Will with my legs across his lap, and leaning into him with both my arms wrapped around his left arm. Sitting there, I realized that it had been the perfect summer so far. I didn’t want it to end.
Chapter Twenty-Five
About a week after the Fourth of July party, Will took me to a birthday party for one of his Midnight cast-mates, Taylor Harrison, who played the older brother of Katherine Sullivan’s character. It was a surprise party held at Taylor’s house by his girlfriend, an up-and-coming young actress. I was as nervous as I could be. I had never really hung out with any of Will’s actor-friends before and the only people I would know other than Will were Katherine and Mark, who I had met only briefly the week before. I was never particularly good at small talk and tended to be shy with people I didn’t know well. The thought that I would stand out as being utterly ordinary in this crowd of beautiful people made me feel even worse.
I decided to make myself feel better by purchasing something new to wear despite the fact that I knew that, no matter what, I would not be able to compare to any of these trendsetters whose pictures at red carpet events graced many magazines and whose outfits would cost multiples of anything I could afford even if I did splurge a little.
I ventured to Bloomingdale’s at Santa Monica Place, and found a casual dress that I thought was trendy enough to be seen in, but didn’t look ridiculous on me. Of course, it also required new shoes, so I spent money on those as well. I would just have to cut back on my souvenir budget in Europe. I then stopped by the makeup counter and had one of the makeup artists that always seemed to be there play with my light eyes a little to make them stand out more. It worked. I was glad that the party was that night because I doubted I could redo what the makeup artist had done. It would require only a little touch-up before the party. Maybe Kate could help me if she was home.
I returned home and touched up the fake tan on my legs so that they would darken before we had to leave for the party.
I didn’t let Will see me until I was completely ready, which was inconvenient for him since he had to get ready too. I was nervous as I walked out into the living room where he sat, waiting with Stephen and Colin, and watching television.
“Wow!” he exclaimed as I walked into the room.
“So I won’t embarrass you?”
“Why would you ever think you would embarrass me?”
“Come on. Consider who we’ll be with tonight. I’m going to stand out like a sore thumb.”
“I think you’ll stand out, but not in the way you mean.”
“What do you mean?”
“My male friends are going to be jealous of me and my female friends are going to be jealous of how you look.”
“Please.” I made a face.
Colin looked at Will and asked, “Is she always like this?”
“Yes. God knows where the insecurity comes from.”
“What do you mean? I am not insecure.” Of course, I had already admitted to as much once before.
“Not when it comes to most things, but
you seem to be under the misconception that you’re ordinary looking. You are far from ordinary looking. You’re beautiful.”
“You’re biased and blind.”
“I’m not, am I Colin? Stephen? Help me out.”
“He’s not wrong,” Stephen replied.
Colin nodded in agreement.
“Hmmm.” I said simply.
“She doesn’t take compliments about her appearance too well,” Will added.
“You don’t like it when people focus on your appearance either I seem to recall.” I decided to use the tactic of “the best defense is a good offense.”
“No, but that’s because that’s all some people think I am, a pretty face and nothing more. No one would ever accuse you of that. You’re too obviously intelligent for anyone to think there’s no depth to go along with your beauty.”
“Speaking of insecurity . . . “
“All right. I get your point. Backing off now. Give me a few minutes and we’ll head off.”
Kate walked in the house at that moment. “Yeow! Wow! Look at you!”
“I look okay?”
“Beautiful.”
“We already told her that. She doesn’t believe us.” Colin informed her.
“It’s just that I get to hang out with a bunch of ordinary girls tonight, you know, Katherine Sullivan, Kayla Roberts, people like that. You can’t blame me for feeling not quite up to par.”
“They’re men. They don’t understand. I understand what you’re saying, but don’t worry. You’ll be able to hold your head high. You’re every bit as beautiful as they are. Your dress is perfect. It shows off your legs. In fact, I think you’ll look better than most, if not all, of them. Remember, some of them are really skinny in person. The camera and the wardrobe they wear in films add weight. In person, they can be pretty scary-looking sometimes.”
“Kate’s right about that,” Stephen added. “I’ve noticed it myself. Anyway, if they’re not jealous of you for the way you look, they’ll be jealous that you can go there and eat. There won’t be one among them who’s not on some radical diet. So find the most fattening thing you can and eat it in front of them. I’d like to see that.” Stephen, Colin and Kate all laughed in unison.
Away From the Spotlight Page 16