by Naomi Niles
I arrived at Suzanna’s office about an hour later. She was a petite white woman with horn-rimmed glasses and crow’s feet at the edges of her eyes. Her lips were thin and wiry, and her nose was long and slim. She normally wore her hair in a tight ponytail and nothing more, barely wearing any makeup in the process. She was plain and simple, but when it came to business, she was a bulldog. That is what I loved about her the most. “Hey, Suzanna,” I said, extending my hand to her as I walked into her office.
“Hello, Ms. Black. It is a pleasure to see you this evening on such short notice. Please, have a seat.”
I sat on the other side of her large, wooden desk. It was polished to a dull shine, and on top of it, there were pictures of her family along the edges. Her son, two daughters, and a golden retriever that she considered one of her children as well. Her husband looked much like her. The same nose and lips, even the same glasses resting on the bridge of his nose. He never smiled in any of the pictures, though, but I didn’t care enough about it to ask her why. “So, Suzanna, what did you need me in for?”
She pulled a manila envelope out of her desk drawer and took a few papers out, then slid them in front of me. “As you know, Ms. Black, this movie is rated R, which means there will be some explicit scenes for you and your co-star.” I scanned over the document as she continued. “The production company just wants you to know what will be required of you.” She pointed with her finger, “Just take a look right there at section four. That is the part of the contract that holds the most importance.”
She folded her hands on her desk and waited patiently for me to read through the section. Client understands that there are scenes that will require her to be fully nude and, at times, perform sexual acts with her co-star. Some of these acts may be physical, while others will require you to be completely nude in front of cameramen, directors, and others who are working on set. This is to inform you of those expectations beforehand. Should you have any concerns, please voice them to your agent and/or casting director before we begin shooting.
I looked up at Suzanna after I read the section to myself. She removed her glasses and placed them on the side of her desk. Her look was solemn, compassionate. She knew what type of person I was, but at the same time, she knew what types of opportunities that something like this could bring. “Ms. Black. I completely understand if you have any apprehension about shooting this movie. We all know that this is a raunchy book, but raunchiness sells these days. Most people don’t want to see an average love story like The Notebook or something like that. They want something that is quick and passionate, and nothing brings that message home quite like this kind of movie. Now, I completely understand if you are having second thoughts about–”
“Where is the pen?”
“I’m sorry?”
I smiled. “I am ready to sign this. I just need the pen. I mean, you’ve looked it over, right? There isn’t anything that is going to take me by surprise?”
“Um,” she said, apparently unprepared for my abrupt response. “No. I looked through the verbiage and wording extensively before I called you to come out here. Everything is simple and straightforward. That section is the only one that worried me a bit.” She slid the pen in front of me.
“Well,” I said as I stroked my name onto the paper. “I am all right with it. I know that I must step out of my comfort zone for this to work and I have prepared myself for that. I’m good.” I smiled at her for reassurance, “Thank you for your concern, but I am good. I am ready to go.”
She looked over the document as I placed the ink pen back onto the desk. “All right,” she said with a smile. “I know you will do great. I don’t have a doubt in my mind.”
As she tucked the papers back into the envelope, the reality of everything began to set in. I was going to be naked in front of strangers, and possibly having sex with Ezra at the same time. A part of me cringed as I thought about how I would feel in the process, but either way, it was too late. I had already signed the paper, and I was committed to going forward with the movie, no matter what was ahead of me.
Chapter Seventeen
Ezra
“Five, six, seven, come on Ezra, push that shit. Eight. Nine. Ten.” I slammed the bar on the rack and tried to catch my breath as Jeff stood over me, clapping his hands. “Shit. 275 pounds? Ten reps? You are killing it now, Ezra. For real.”
I lifted myself off the bench and sat upright. A long mirror was positioned to my right against the wall, and as I glanced at it, I saw the definition of my biceps as the sweat rolled down my flesh. I couldn’t help but crack a smile at the progress I had made since I first began working out with Jeff. I didn’t plan on getting this big, but shit, I was happy that I did. “All right bro, we’re done. Good shit today, man. Good shit.”
I followed him into the steam room deeper inside of the gym. Since we both had a clear schedule for the rest of the day, we decided to relax a little more and release some more of the toxins from our bodies. We walked into the steaming hot room and sat down on one of the warm benches near the wall. It was hard to breathe for the first few minutes, but after that, my body had adjusted. “So,” he said, his voice breaking through the thick heat inside the room, “how are things between you and Hannah?”
“Things are good, I guess.”
“Back to normal?”
“Well,” I laughed, “I don’t know what normal is right now. I mean, I haven’t spoken to her much since we had sex.”
He laughed. “Shit, that sounds like normal to me. Have sex with a chick and then not speak to her for a while after that.”
“Nah,” I said, leaning back on the bench. “Nah, it’s not like that. I mean, we have talked a little bit, you know? Just not long, in-depth conversations or anything like that. I’ve checked on her to see how she was doing, but that’s it. I can’t get a read on her, though. I don’t know what to expect. I’ve never been in a situation like this before.”
A couple of men walked into the steam room and took seats across from us with towels draped over their heads. “Yeah, man, I can understand that a little bit. I mean, if Hannah is anything like you’ve told me, she might just be a little shy right now. She probably hasn’t fucked around in a long time. You say she is speaking to you, so I think that is a good thing for now.”
“Yeah.” I wiped a handful of sweat from my brow and threw it to the floor. I hated that Hannah and I hadn’t spoken much since we had sex, and granted, it was only a few days ago, but for some reason, I felt like karma was creeping into my life. I’d done the same thing to other women countless times, so if it happened to me, I couldn’t even be mad. I would hate it, but I couldn’t be mad. “I just hope you weren’t right. Fuck,” I said, laughing to myself, “I don’t know what I would do if I had to say, ‘Jeff, you were right, bro.’ Shit. I can’t even put the thought in my head without regretting the day it happens.”
“Shit, bro, I’m trying to tell you that I know what I am talking about. Hannah seems like the type of woman that you have to move slow with, you know? But hell, that’s just my opinion. Besides, I haven’t even met the lucky lady yet, so who knows?”
“Yeah, I’ll bring her around you eventually. Shit, Tanya is already acting crazy. She found out that I got the role in the movie and she automatically asked if I was fucking her.”
Jeff bowled over, laughing, as he clapped his hands together. “Fuck yeah, bro! Fuck yeah! Stick it to her! What did you say?”
I grabbed a nearby towel and wiped my brow. “I didn’t tell her anything, really. I let her know that I was in a movie, but that’s it. She didn’t need to know anything else.”
“Man, you gotta let me be there when you tell her. I want to see her fucked up ass face when she finds out that you have moved on and not only gotten a role in a major movie, but you’ve got another woman on your side. She is gonna hate that shit.”
Jeff seemed more excited than me when it came to bursting Tanya’s bubble, but that’s just how he was. He was intense
90 percent of the time, and that was part of the reason why I didn’t want to bring Hannah around him just yet. He was liable to say something that rubbed her the wrong way. Whether it was talking about another woman in my past, or making a comment about the way she looked. It was all harmless coming from him, but if you didn’t know his personality, you would quickly take offense to what he said. I wasn’t ready to expose her to that just yet. “You know what?” he added. “We need to go out tonight and celebrate. We’ve been so fuckin’ busy that we haven’t done anything since you’ve gotten your fuckin’ role. What do you say? Neither of us has shit to do tonight, right?”
“Nah, I’m free. Shit, I guess it would be good to go out tonight, you know? Loosen up a bit before we begin shooting. Why not?”
“I know where we can go. There is a spot over on Sunset that a few of my clients go to whenever they come out to Hollywood for a visit. Big-timers are in there, you know? Hell, it might be one of your favorite spots after you blow up.”
I laughed, “Yeah, we’ll see. We’ll see.”
After we had left the gym, I headed home to get dressed for the evening. When I walked through the door, images of the time I shared with Hannah played in my mind like a movie. The way I had her bent over on the couch. How she wrapped her legs around my waist when I had her laid on her back, and the moans that she made that were barely audible. The scratch marks she made on my back hadn’t formed hard scabs yet, and they burned a little whenever I stepped into the shower. To me, they were war wounds of a battle that I didn’t want to forget.
I ended the reel inside my mind and headed up to the shower to get myself cleaned up. Going out with Jeff always created memories that would last a lifetime. Whether he had gotten too drunk to speak coherently, or he had gotten chesty with some guys at the bar. Either way, he was always a live wire, and tonight, I needed a night like this to help relax before the rigor of filming the movie kicked into full gear.
After I had gotten out the shower, I checked my cell phone. I had a missed call and text message, both from Hannah. My heart fluttered like I was in high school again as I read through the message. “Hey, Ezra. Just checking on you to see how you were doing. I didn’t want anything, but whenever you have some time, drop me a line. Talk to you later.”
I sat down on my bed with my towel wrapped around my waist. “Hey, Hannah. Just got out the shower and I was thinking about you. If you’re not busy, maybe we can get together soon and um, ‘run lines’ again.’ Maybe get something to eat?”
“I’d love that.”
“Good. How’s the day after tomorrow sound?”
“Around here, we call that Tuesday…LOL. But that’s perfect.”
“LOL…right, Tuesday. Well, I will see you then.”
She responded with a smiley face shortly after that. After I got dressed and walked into the front room, Jeff was sitting on the couch eating one of my protein bars as if he’d purchased it. “Really, Jeff?”
He took a bite and held his hands to the side. “What?” he responded, like he wasn’t doing anything wrong.
I smiled, “Nothing, man. Nothing. Are you ready to go?”
“Hell yeah,” he said as he shoved the rest of the bar into his mouth. “I was fucking born ready. Let’s go.”
We arrived at Mason’s, the new upscale bar on Sunset. This was my first time going since it had opened a few months ago. My agent, Marc, raved about how there were so many good-looking women who fraternized inside the bar, but I wasn’t in the mood to find any more women at that time. I was focused on getting my career to another level, and even now, I still didn’t have a desire to fill that void because, as far as I knew, Hannah had already filled it. The line was just outside the door. Men and women were dressed in designer suits, and ladies carried Michael Kors purses like they were the only ones in the store that were left to buy.
I started to ease into the line, but Jeff grabbed my arm. “No, man. We are not waiting in line. I know the fucking owner. We are going straight inside.” We walked past the short line to the front door as the security guard poked his chest out like he was inviting a confrontation. Jeff wasn’t the one to test, though. He seemed as though he was always ready to show off his strength whenever the opportunity presented itself. “Hey, buddy,” he said, smiling. “I was personally invited by Ernesto.”
“Ernesto?” the security guard answered as he glared at the both of us. “Hold tight.” He pulled a cell phone out of his pocket and made a phone call. He nodded in disgust once he heard the answer. Without uttering a word, he stepped to the side and allowed us in. Jeff tapped him on his shoulder and mocked him with a smile as we walked by. Blue and white lights lit up the marble dance floor. The far wall housed a fish tank made from thick glass that would take a shitload of pressure to crack. The bar was made of glass, and the wall behind the counter housed top shelf wine and liquor bottles that were ready to crack open.
“Hey man, everything is on me tonight, all right? This is my gift to you for surviving that fucking shit storm named Tanya and still coming out on top with your movie role,” he said as he put his arm around me and led me to the bar. The music picked up as we headed further inside. Jeff pounded his hand on the bar to get the server’s attention. “Let me have a Long Island iced tea,” he looked at me, “Two of them. My boy is about to make it big in the movies!”
The bartender smiled and went to make our drinks as the women floated into the bar like angelic creatures, full of good times and long nights. I was surrounded by beautiful women, but for some reason, I couldn’t get one out of my mind. Hannah positioned herself in my head with her flawless smile and buxom breasts, sitting on my couch with her legs crossed, waiting for me to get home, and I was just as anxious to get back to her.
Chapter Eighteen
Hannah
Carrie walked downstairs while I was at the stove making breakfast. She stretched her arms and took a seat at the table as I flipped over the last batch of pancakes. “Geez, woman, it is almost 12 pm. I was about to come to your room and check on you to make sure you were still alive.”
“Shit, girl. I went out with Brent last night, and that boy knows how to party. I don’t think I got home until 5 am.”
I turned around to get a look at her. Her hair was sprawled out on top of her head like spider’s legs as she looked on with a blank, zombie-like face. “You look like shit,” I said as I laughed and checked on the pancakes. “So. You’re not telling me anything I don’t already know. You should have brought your ass with me. Shit. It’s not like we’re going to have that time to hang out together once you start filming.”
I turned off the eye of the stove and removed the golden brown pancakes from the skillet. It was my turn to cook breakfast, and it was something that I enjoyed doing. I dreamed of the day that I would wake up in my mansion, surrounded by a fortress-like gate that needed a code for one to enter. I envisioned my children walking down the long, winding stairs with sleepy faces as they dragged their feet to the table. My husband, tall and handsome with a muscular physique, trailed behind them like a security guard. He would wrap his arms around me and kiss me on my lips while we were draped in soft, velour housecoats. Our children would cry out in disgust at our display of affection, but I didn’t care, and neither did he. We wanted our children to see how a man was supposed to love his wife, and vice versa. The first example they would have is what we showed them at home.
“Hannah? Hannah, what is wrong with you?”
“Huh?” I asked as if I had been absent for the past few moments. “I’m sorry, what were you saying?”
She lifted one eyebrow in the air as I sat her plate of food on the table. “Are you on drugs?”
I laughed. “No. My mind is always moving, though. I’m always thinking about one thing or the other.”
She grabbed the syrup and poured it over her food. “Does ‘one thing or the other’ happen to be Ezra?”
“No,” I said, smiling bashfully. “Maybe.”
; “Maybe my ass, I know he is in your mind. Hell, if the dick was as good as you said, then he has a good reason to be in there.”
“God, Carrie, it is not just about sex with him. I feel like there is more to him. More to us than just… sex. Don’t get me wrong, it was good.” I drifted off momentarily as I recalled the feeling I had during the time he had my legs pinned to the back of my head. “Real good,” I added with dreamy eyes, “but I just feel like there is more between us than that.”
She swirled a forkful of pancakes around in her pool of syrup, then lifted the butter-soaked morsel into her mouth. “Yeah, there could be more to it, but good sex is good sex. When is the next time you are going to see him?”
“We have a date tomorrow. It’s been a few days since we’ve seen each other. I hope things aren’t weird between us now. It doesn’t seem like it will be, but you know, sometimes things don’t go the way you planned.”
She took another bite. “Don’t worry about that. If the chemistry was there beforehand, it would still be there after. We need to find you something to wear, though. Something that will help keep his attention. That shit in your closet is not edgy enough.”
“Please, Carrie. What I have in my closet is fine.”
“We will see.” She got up and went to the refrigerator to grab a bottle of beer. I looked at her in disgust as the poured a few drops onto her food. “What?” she snapped as my face balled up like a discarded piece of paper.
“That is nasty.”
She rolled her eyes, “Whatever, Hannah. I need my morning dose, and I usually get in in my breakfast.” She cut a piece of her pancakes and dipped it into the beer and syrup concoction. “You wanna taste it?”