She walked over the desk. “What are you doing here, Henry?”
“I came to see the final nail hammered into Blue Vinyl’s coffin. But you’re calling it a merger.”
“Still bitter about the verdict not going your way? You just can’t buy good sabotage these days. What is the world coming to?”
There was a knock at the door. Andre entered the study. “I heard we have an uninvited guest.”
Henry hurriedly got up from his chair.
“I guess his invitation got lost in the mail.” Kate waggled her eyebrows.
“You go back to the party,” Andre said, not taking his eye off Henry. “I’ll make sure he gets removed from the premises.”
Henry chewed on his cigar. “What are you going to do me? There are witnesses who saw me come in.”
“You should have thought about that before you decided to be a pain in the ass tonight. It’s been real Henry.” Kate had her hand on the doorknob, then hesitated. “Andre? I don’t think Clara can take another funeral right now.”
“Understood,” Andre murmured.
CHAPTER SIX
Chris threw on his baseball cap and grabbed the bag of Chinese food off the front seat of the car. Kate called and said she had to cancel their date night because Kingston was having another one of his hissy fits in the recording studio. Chris was pissed because that left him no time to spend with her before he had to leave to shoot the movie tomorrow.
Thanks to lots of yoga with Kate, he was able to clear his mind of doubts about his acting abilities and get ready to film the movie. There were enough people in the world freely judging his career; he didn’t need to jump on the bandwagon as well. He had to accept that their lives had changed dramatically.
“How you doing, Gustavo?” Chris nodded at the security guard.
“I’m good, Chris.” The security guard waved him in when he tried to sign in the visitor’s log.
The elevator doors opened, and he wandered the halls until he found studio five. The In Session button wasn’t lit. A haze of smoke hit Chris when he entered the dimly lit control room. Luckily it was only cigarette smoke. Kate would have gone ballistic if Kingston was in there lighting up doobies again. Musicians were looking at music sheets and Todd was listening to something through his headphones. Chris gave Todd a tap on the shoulder to let him know he was there. Kingston was sitting in one of the isolation booths, legs crossed with a cigarette hanging out of his mouth strumming his guitar, Bethany.
“Kingston.” Chris smiled. “I brought Chinese food from Magic Panda’s, would you like some?”
“What the hell are you doing here?” Kingston sneered. “You checking up on your girl?”
“She’s not a girl, she’s my wife, and I’m having dinner with her tonight during your recording session despite your efforts to keep her here to the wee hours of the morning.” Chris removed his cap.
“Worried I’ll steal her?” Kingston looked up at him with a feral grin.
“Kingston,” Chris laughed as he unpacked the bags of food. “I worry about a lot of things, but you taking Kate away from me is as likely as me winning the gold for the luge in the winter Olympics.”
Kingston stood up. “You’ve got a lot of damn nerve!”
“Calm down, pops. If there is going to be any righteous indignation going on, I’ll be the one to do it. You are the one trying to snake my woman.” Chris gave him an expectant look.
“I’m doing no such thing,” Kingston said and grabbed a dumpling.
“Really?” Chris bit into a spare rib. “When the loss of Marvin could no longer be used to get her running to the studio to console you, you shifted into ‘I don’t know if I can do this comeback.’ What’s next? Your gout gonna flare up?”
“Piss off,” Kingston mumbled as he attacked the moo shoo pork.
“Kingston, as a red blooded male, I don’t blame you for developing the hots for Kate. But I’ve been more than cordial about it,” Chris said. There was no shortage of men panting after his wife. He tolerated Jack; he knew the man needed more time to work Kate out of his system. The visits under the guise of friendship seemed a little strange to him, but he let it go because they’d “buried the hatchet.” If he avoided everyone in this town because of some sexual bullshit, he’d be working on a fishing trawler.
“I think I met her twenty years too late,” Kingston said while chewing.
“Twenty?” Chris balked.
“Okay, twenty five, you little fuck.”
“It wouldn't have worked then, either. Besides the fact you’re not her type, you would have cheated on her or driven her away with your incessant drug addiction.”
“You couldn’t give me that?”
“Reality is the best medicine. And my reality is that I can’t have some prehistoric rocker calling my wife all hours in the night to hold his hand over some supposedly doomed album. From what I’ve heard, it’s great—classic Hell Cats—so stop dicking around and let Todd do his job. Kate trusts him implicitly, so if you love her so much, you should trust her judgment.”
Kingston peered through the glass at Todd. “Yeah, but Kate’s better to look at.”
Todd’s middle finger flew up in response. Apparently he’d been listening to their conversation. Chris and Kingston burst out laughing.
“Apology accepted.” Chris nodded.
The door opened. “Hey, babe, when did you get here?” Kate gave Chris a kiss.
Chris stayed with Kate for the rest of the evening. He liked seeing her in action at the mixing board; the passionate way she described how a thousand different buttons contributed to a musician’s sound was amazing. She didn’t get to the studio often these days, but he was glad there was some place she felt at home to do what she did best.
CHAPTER SEVEN
Chris started filming as soon as he stepped off the plane. Kyle, the director, wasn’t too thrilled about his objections to the love scene, but he agreed to scale it back. The cast and crew were very friendly and everyone was excited about the project. He especially like working with his costar, Travis Barnes. This was Travis’s American debut after having a lot of success in his native Australia and the U.K. Travis had a great sense of humor and had unwavering optimism about his budding career.
Tonight they were in a local bar a few blocks from their hotel. The place was cozy and had a billiards room. There was even going to be an amateur night singing contest. Chris and Travis grabbed a table, both exhausted after a long day on the set.
“So, I hate to sound like the president of your fan club, but I did catch The Knock Around Boys and you were great.” Travis lit his cigarette.
“Thanks, man.” Chris ordered them a round of beers.
“So what’s up with the beautiful costars I see flitting around?” Travis rubbed his hands together.
“Molly is a lesbian. Carol is recently divorced. Ivy is doing a spiritual cleanse that requires two years of abstinence. Valerie is on again, off again with some cable TV star with his own show. And as far as I know, Allison isn’t seeing anyone,” Chris stated.
“How the hell do you know all this?”
“Why did you ask if you thought I didn’t know?” Chris laughed.
“I see the way these women flock to you, despite the fact that you’re married.” Jack pointed to his wedding band.
“Well, most of them are trying to figure out exactly how married I am. But I’ve always had this way with women, one look into my baby blues and they’re telling me their life story. I just didn’t realize it until now.” Chris sighed. Pre-marriage he wouldn’t have compiled data on why women loved to tell him all their secrets. Molly being a lesbian didn’t shock him, but why she decided to blurt it out one day was still a mystery to him.
“You and Allison had a thing. I can tell, so don’t bother trying to deny it. She’s been giving you these long lustful looks since we started shooting.” Travis laughed and puffed on his cigarette.
“We had a thing way back in the day when I w
as green and still believed love with a costar was possible. I think it’s always awkward when ex’s work together. I give it a few more days and all that awkward shit will subside.” Chris smiled.
“Speaking of awkward, you snaked your director’s wife on your last film. I’ve seen your wife, she’s beautiful. I would have done the same thing.” Travis snickered.
“Travis, I know it’s going to sound like a load of bull coming from me, but do yourself a favor and stay away from torpedoing your own career. I survived by the skin of my teeth.” He shook his head.
Travis nodded. “Are you and Jack really friends, or is that all just bullshit?”
Chris thought about the uneasy truce he and Jack had established. He didn’t want Travis thinking it was that easy to bounce back after a scandal, real or fake. It took a lot on both his and Jack’s part to be civilized. He did that for Kate but he got the feeling Jack did too. “Mostly bullshit. But Jack and I agreed that for the sake of future ventures, it would be better to let it go. He’s a brilliant director and I have the utmost respect for him.”
“Sounds very mature. But too complicated.” Travis sipped on his beer.
“I have had a hell of a year and I finally have some of peace in my life. Enjoy this time. People are talking about you. Don’t let your personal life be more entertaining than your career and you’ll be fine.” Chris put his beer down on the table. “Want to shoot some pool?”
Chris was pretty good and Travis was a reformed pool hustler, so soon it became a competition of cleaning out the patrons of their money. The singing contest was in full swing. Most of the contestants were dreadful, but a few were pretty good. Kate’s way of thinking about music was rubbing off on him. He could tell who’d picked the wrong song to display their talent, and who had refused to believe the key they were singing in was all wrong for them. He suppressed the urge to march on stage and give unsolicited advice.
A few more people from the cast filtered in when word of their pool antics started spreading. Allison eventually wandered in and took a seat at the bar. Chris took a break and went over.
“Allison.” Chris smiled.
“Christopher,” Allison said over her shoulder.
He’d forgotten she liked to call him Christopher.
“You know, we will have scenes together in a few days. You’re going to have to talk to me at some point. Unless you only want to pretend we’re getting along on social media?” Chris took a seat on the stool next to hers.
She turned to him and gave him a rueful smile. “I should have tried to make amends with you a long time ago. The way things went down—”
Chris held up his hand. “People deal with things in different ways. I just want you to know that there are no hard feelings. Everything turned out how it should. We both moved on and found happiness.”
Allison smiled and offered a handshake. Chris shook her hand, informed the bartender her drinks were on him, and went back to playing pool with Travis. He used to think maturity was overrated until he decided to give it a try.
* * *
Kate’s simple plan to snack on gourmet cheeses went awry when she knocked over the wine on the counter with the platter. Merlot sprang into action and began licking the contents cascading onto the floor and was now in need of a bath. After unsuccessfully trying to shoo him away, she slumped on the floor with the bottle of wine and took a swig.
Merlot tipped his head and whined.
“I think you’ve had enough.” She liked drinking with him. He wasn’t a loud drunk and didn’t want to talk her ear off about his love life after his third glass. Kate finally got up and looked for something to clean up the mess. Forty minutes later, the kitchen and Merlot were cleaned and he was now in his doggie bedding snoring very loudly. Kate was on her way to do the same when the doorbell rang.
“Jack, what a surprise. And you brought a guest.” Kate’s touched her throat.
“I thought I’d personally drop off the invitation to Zoe’s christening. May we come in?” Jack held up Zoe’s car seat.
“Of course.” Kate snapped out of her shock and ushered him and the baby inside. “Chris is on location in New Orleans.”
“That’s right. I’d forgotten about that,” he said casually as he lifted Zoe out of her car seat. “How have you been spending your time without him here?”
“Merlot and I just split a bottle of wine.” She laughed.
Jack spied the dog on his bed. “Ah. That’s why he’s not up snapping at me.”
“So how is fatherhood treating you? I must say I’m surprised to see you out and about with Zoe.” Kate leaned over and touched Zoe’s hand.
“You were right, as usual. She has nothing to do with how she came into this world. I was being selfish by not considering her needs while battling it out with her mother.”
“That’s very mature thinking. Don’t tell me you’re on the verge of evolving?” She laughed.
“Who needs that?”
“Are you and Brianna on speaking terms?”
“We’re civil. Would you believe she asked for a hundred thousand a month in child support?”
“Yikes.” Kate’s eyes widened.
“She didn’t get it but we’ve worked out a number we can both live with. She won’t have to work again if she doesn’t want to.” He snorted.
“The important thing is that you’re in your daughter’s life.” Kate patted his hand.
“If she grows up and hates me, it won’t be because I was an absentee dad.”
“So how are the movie projects going?”
“Pretty good. I think I’m going to be busy for the foreseeable future.”
“I know. I can’t wait to see you work on your magic on The Knock Around Boys sequel.”
“If there is one.” His smile disappeared.
“What? There’s no way there won’t be a sequel. That’s literally money in the bank for Pinnacle.”
“Not everyone at Pinnacle wants to see it take off.”
“Well, you know it’s not me. I know how much blood and sweat both you and Chris put into that project.”
“I’ve run into opposition before over bigger things. The issues coming up seem rather trivial and kind of petty.” He ran a hand through his hair.
Kate thought about it for a moment. This smelled like the shenanigans of Raymond Whitland. “Don’t worry about it. I’ll look into it. This has more to do with me, or the perception of how I wield my alleged powers at Pinnacle.”
“I didn’t think for a moment you would do something like that.” He rubbed her hand.
They talked for a while until started Zoe making restlessness noises. She was impressed at how attentive Jack was with his daughter. He’d never had patience for much and thought the rest of world should live according to his whims. Zoe was making him taking a step back and be considerate of someone other than himself.
Kate waved at Jack as he drove away in his Porsche Cayenne. She meant to tell him that it was a good sign Zoe was a happy baby. In the end, his dalliance with Brianna would cost him more than he’d ever imagined. But having a great relationship with his daughter would be an invaluable reward. The little girl was Jack’s chance to be a better man.
The bubbly sound on her laptop meant she was receiving an incoming video chat. It was eight o’clock so it had to be Chris. She was determined to have a romantic evening with her husband. He was right, she did miss him hogging the bed and waking up with his arm firmly wrapped around her as if he were scared she'd run away. She loved knowing he cared she was in his life.
Kate sat at her desk, and answered the call. “Hey, babe, how was your day?”
“Grueling. I’ve been working fourteen hours straight,” Chris groaned.
“If you need to get some rest, we can chat tomorrow,” Kate said with a smiled.
“Are you kidding me? I’ve been looking forward to talking to you all day. So what have you been up to?”
“I spilled some wine, and Merlot was kind enough to
drink it for me. He’s going to have a hangover in the morning. Jack stopped by with his daughter. She’s adorable.”
“Good ol’ Jack. That was planned.”
“Probably, but his evil ex-husband powers don’t work on me. Zoe’s getting christened next month before he leaves for New Zealand to shoot a movie. He dropped off the invite. We’re listed as the godparents.” Kate took a gulp of wine.
“Oh, really? I don’t remember saying yes to question.”
She sighed. “He must have taken our silence as consent.”
“No matter how badly he wants it to be, you are not Zoe’s mother.”
“He’ll come that realization soon enough.”
“I miss you.”
“I miss you too.” She suddenly missed him more than she thought possible. “So. What scenes are you shooting tomorrow?”
“Tomorrow is the love scene with Allison.”
Kate remained silent.
“I talked to Kyle. He’s agreed to tone it down.”
“Well that’s a relief.” she mumbled. She’d rather he not do it at all.
Chris was silent a moment. “You trust me don’t you?”
“Yes, I do.” She sighed.
“Good. I wouldn’t do anything real or imagined to hurt you. It’s just work.”
“I know.”
* * *
Chris laughed to himself. He normally said a little prayer before a love scene that his costar wouldn’t have bad breath or be concealing a horrible mouth sore. Today he was he hoping to get it over with as soon as possible. Although the director agreed to scale it back, it still felt strange knowing the woman he loved would see him pressed up against another woman, jamming his tongue down her throat.
The thing about a love scene was that it seemed all hot and passionate on screen, but the mechanics of shooting it were dreadful. There were lights everywhere, the set normally only allowed personnel essential to the filming but still there was an audience. Allison had the bulk of the work. She’d star the scene in her bra and panties while his character remained in jeans for the entire seen. As the love scene progressed, she would be naked and pressed up against the wall, and he would still be barefoot, a pair of jeans hanging low on his ass.
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