And Playing the Role of Herself...

by K E Lane

  "Well, we could use the moisture." I watched the grass fall to the ground between us.

  "Yeah, they're predicting a pretty bad fire season this year."

  Jesus.

  I'd had this exact conversation with my grandfather about a million times. I never expected to be having it with Robyn.

  I rolled on my side, and propped my head on my hand. "Robyn," I paused until she met my gaze. "I'm sorry about last night. I was having a really nice time, and I feel like I ruined it. I haven't had a new friend in a while either…I hope we can try again some time."

  She looked down at the grass again, then back at me. "How about Friday?"

  I felt the smile spread across my face. "Really?"

  She smiled back. "Eight o'clock again?"

  "That's fine…but I can probably get off a little earlier. Unless they change the shooting schedule we're on the soundstages all day. I should be finished by seven at the latest."

  "Why don't you just come over whenever you can, then?" She paused, thinking. "I might be a little later than that, myself. Josh will be here, though. Uh…oh." She bit her lip. "If that's okay?"

  "That Josh is at your house?"

  She nodded.

  "Robyn." Again, I waited until she met my gaze. "I wasn't just being nice when I said Josh was a sweetheart. I like him, very much. Of course I wouldn't mind. Why do you think I would?"

  She brushed her hands off on her pants, and pushed herself to her feet. "Come on, let's walk back." She reached down, and I grabbed her hand and let her pull me up. I scooped up my sweatshirt and tossed it over my shoulder.

  We started walking and she looked over at me. "Caid, when I talked about me and Josh before…you kinda wigged out."

  "I didn't….it wasn't…" I sighed. "It wasn't about Josh. It was never about Josh, really." I glanced over at her. "Tell me about the two of you? I didn't stay around last night long enough to hear the whole story."

  She was quiet for a while and then started speaking as we left the trail and started up the street. "Josh and I met at school…UCLA." she said. "I was two years ahead of him, but we both played sports - he was on the tennis team, obviously, and I played some volleyball - we met at an athletic awards banquet and hit if off immediately. Like you said, he's a sweetheart. We dated through most of college, even lived together for a while."

  "And then I graduated, and I went off to Europe to model, and Josh joined the circuit. We decided not to do the long distance thing, but kept in touch for the next few years, on and off. I moved back to the States, to New York, and we'd see each other occasionally, but then when I came back to LA, we started seeing each other a lot, just as friends - we'd always made better friends than lovers, and we'd both…changed a lot in that time apart."

  She glanced at me, and I nodded encouragement but stayed quiet. "Josh had just broken the top fifty at that point, and was trying to find some sponsors, and I'd only had some minor acting gigs, but together," she shrugged, "we got noticed."

  "The year I moved back to LA, I flew out to New York to watch him play in the US Open. I watched a few of his practices, we went out a few times before the matches started…And then the morning after the first match, my agent called - he'd gotten over fifty inquiries about me. And Josh was getting some interest suddenly from sponsors…"

  She shook her head. "It was surreal for both of us. We were both nothing, then suddenly, the press was all over us."

  "Anyway," she said as we got to the top of the hill, "needless to say, both our agents pushed us to do things together, and, hell…I love Josh. He's my best friend. I don't want to sleep with him, but I love him more than just about anyone it the world. It's no hardship for me to do things with him, and it's certainly good for my career." She shrugged. "So that's the story."

  "So…" I didn't know if I really wanted to know this, but I asked anyway. "What if one of you…"

  "Wants to date? Finds someone they're really interested in?" she paused, and made quoting motions with her fingers. "Falls in love?"

  "Uh…yeah." I said, wondering at the mocking tone in her voice.

  She shrugged again. "It's never been an issue before…when we started doing things together again, we were both just out of bad relationships and neither of us was looking to get serious with someone. We didn't have any fantasies about getting back together, we were just spending time with each other and being seen. We…both of us…have always pursued things on the side…"

  "Things?" I repeated, only half-joking. I didn't like how she'd said that.

  "People, affairs, trysts…whatever you want to call them…I know Josh sees other women sometimes, and he knows that I…have lovers, too." She looked slightly embarrassed. "Neither of us are saints, Caid…far from it. But we're both aware of the fact that what we do affects the other, and we're discreet…and so far, it's worked out."

  "Uh…wow. Okay…" I wasn't quite sure what to say. Congratulations, nice ruse?

  We walked for a block in silence, until we turned onto the street Robyn lived on.

  "So," she asked hesitantly, "do you still want to have dinner on Friday?"

  "Of course," I said, silencing any internal objections.

  "Great," she replied, smiling hugely.

  We turned into her drive. "Wanna come in for a bit? Have some coffee?"

  I checked my watch, thought for a second, and shook my head. "I need to go home before I go to the set…" I said regretfully.

  "Next time, bring your clothes and you can change here."

  I fought back a grin. "Okay."

  As we walked up to my car, I unlocked the doors with the keyless fob clipped inside the pocket of my pants and pulled the door open.

  Robyn stopped beside me and gently patted the car's roof. "Heya Twila."

  She talked to my car.

  If I wasn't careful, I'd fall head over heels for this woman.

  There was a good chance I already had.

  I slid into the driver's seat and felt around under the floor mat for the key. Once I found it, I put it in the ignition and turned it partway, enough to roll down the window, but not start the engine.

  Robyn leaned in, smiling. "Thanks for the run."

  I snorted. "Thanks for the whoopin'"

  She laughed, and I grinned up at her. "That wasn't really fair, you know."

  "What?" she asked innocently.

  "You said when you used to run with Josh, he crushed you." I allowed myself a glance up her long frame. "I imagine you kept up with him just fine."

  "I said he tried to crush me," she corrected, placing her hands on the windowsill and gently closing the door. She leaned against the frame for a moment. "I never said he succeeded."

  She winked and walked away, whistling.

  I laughed and started the car.

  Yep, a very good chance I already had.

  CHAPTER SIX

  "Nice job Liz, Caid…you too, Danny." Nate Wiley rapped on his bound script and pointed at the three of us on the set. "That one will work fine…let's print it and move on. You three are off for now - check with Addy for when we need you back." He turned and raised his voice further. "Micah, Henry, Joe, Arturo, Irene…you're up. Extra's for 12, check in with Brent. Brent, where are you?"

  There was a whistle from across the stage. "Over here!"

  The director pointed. "Check in with Brent over there. Regulars, let's get this blocked out, and do a run through…"

  "Thank god," Liz sighed, blowing a stray piece of hair out of her eyes and rolling the tension from her neck. "I thought he was going to make us go again."

  I just grunted, arching my back until it popped.

  "I thought we nailed it the first time," Danny grumbled. "Picky damn bastard."

  There was no venom in his words - we all liked Nate, and trusted his direction.

  The three of us moved off the squad room set where we'd done the last scene, dodging members of the crew who darted around purposefully, with a controlled sense of urgency that always accompa
nied the shoots that Nate directed.

  "Danny, back in forty-five," yelled Addison Couch, a small, curly-haired man who was several yards away, conferring with the lighting tech. "Liz, we need you at one, and Caid…" he consulted the clipboard in his hands, "two-thirty, for the bust scene."

  We all nodded, and headed for the exit of the cavernous warehouse where the soundstages were housed.

  "And Caid…" I paused expectantly, noting that Liz had stopped at the door and was waiting for me. Addy finished his conversation with the lighting tech and walked over to me, flipping through the papers on his clipboard. He eventually pulled out a small envelope and handed it to me. "This came with a script delivery from ITD…"

  I frowned, but took the envelope. I wasn't up for a guest role on In Their Defense any time in the near future…I wondered what this was for.

  "Thanks, Addy," I said absently, looking at the envelope. It was small, invitation or note card size, with my name written in bold, very precise capitol letters on the front. There were no other markings on it.

  I felt Liz move over beside me. "What's that for?"

  I shrugged. "I don't know. As far as I know, I don't have anything going on over there."

  I slipped a finger under the flap and drew out a small card.

  Caid,

  I'll give you a chance to redeem yourself. Tomorrow, same time and place.

  Loser buys coffee, winner gets taunting rights.

  Robyn

  The grin that split my face was huge, and I laughed out loud.

  Several crew members stopped what they were doing to stare.

  Okay, more than several.

  In fact, just about all of them. I wasn't known for my spontaneous laughter.

  "Caid?" Liz was frowning, and she looked genuinely concerned. "Are you okay?"

  Jeez, can't a woman laugh like an idiot anymore?

  "I'm fine," I answered, dimming the wattage of my smile but still thinking of Robyn. "Just fine."

  Liz shrugged, and started walking towards the door. "Paula's picking up from that Thai place you like so much…come by in ten."

  It was not optional.

  I'd managed to avoid talking with Liz since the 'have you ever wanted to kiss a woman' incident, but it didn't look like I was going to be able to avoid it any longer.

  I sighed internally and I nodded. "See you in a bit." At least she made the effort to get something I liked.

  In my trailer, I gratefully pulled off the black, lightweight jacket I wore for the last scene and hung it neatly on the back of the door. I unclipped the leather holster and rubber prop gun from my hip and clipped it on the hanger with the jacket so I wouldn't forget it, and then looked down at the wine colored v-neck shirt I wore. After a moment of debate, I stripped it off too, hung it on a different hanger, and pulled on the tank top I'd worn in to the set that morning. Zoe in wardrobe would kill me if I dribbled pad thai all over the v-neck and they had to find something similar to finish up with today.

  I checked my cell for messages - one from my agent Connie, who wanted to know my thoughts about shampoo commercials, and one from my brother, Perry. He and a friend were hiking a two-week section of the Pacific Crest Trail in June, ending up in Big Bear. I'd agreed to send them a re-supply package in Idyllwild and when they were through, pick the two up in Big Bear, let them stay with me a few days, and put them on a plane back to Madison where they were both in school at UW. Perry was calling to confirm dates and try to taunt me into joining him on the trip, clucking like a chicken and spouting insults about my advanced age in some kind of weird Slavic accent that made me laugh out loud.

  I made a mental note to call him later when I had more time, then I phoned Connie back and left her a reminder that I'd just gotten out of doing commercials, and I didn't want to get back into them. Finally, after some hesitation, I called the studio's main switchboard and talked the admin out of Robyn's cell number. I only felt slightly guilty that I lied to get the number - I didn't think Robyn would mind.

  I dialed the number, expecting, and hoping, to get voicemail, but that raspy voice answered on the third ring.

  "'lo," she sounded annoyed at the interruption, and I winced. Maybe I shouldn't have called her on the set.

  Too late now.

  "I got your message, Ward, and you got a deal," I told her, "but let's make it Ledos Canyon at six…we'll see how those pencil legs do in some real terrain. Six o'clock." I heard her laughter as I hung up, and smiled like a Cheshire cat.

  After puttering around for a while longer, my ten minutes were up and I strolled over to Liz's trailer, hopefully ready for whatever she was going to lay on me.

  I knocked on the trailer door and let myself in; Paula was sitting at a desk at the far end of the trailer, talking rapidly into her headset while working away on her laptop. Liz looked up guiltily from a bowl of noodles, slurping them up hurriedly.

  "Sorry, I was starving. Couldn't wait," she said when the noodles were sufficiently chewed enough that she could talk.

  I shrugged and started poking around in the other containers, my mouth watering at the smell.

  "This one's yours," she tapped a container with her chopsticks, "extra sauce, and spicy."

  "Oh, yum. Thanks."

  We both dug in hungrily, eating for several minutes without talking, the only sound in the room Paula's voice and her furious typing.

  Liz eventually sighed and sat back, stabbing at the noodles. "You took off fast after shooting wrapped last night…hot date?" Another few stabs at the defenseless noodles, then a sly look up at me. "Was it a woman?"

  I concentrated very hard on swallowing and not choking, finally managing after a few swigs from a bottle of water Liz calmly handed me. "Jesus, Liz." I coughed, and took another sip. "At least wait until I'm not eating to throw shit like that at me."

  "Shit like what? It's just a simple question, or rather two simple questions." Seeing that I wasn't going to give her water back any time soon, she leaned over and grabbed another out of the mini-fridge. "One - was it a hot date?"

  I shook my head. "No, it was not a hot date. I went to dinner…"

  She pounced on that. "With a woman?"

  "Well, one of them was…"

  "Oh, Caid, a threesome?" She looked at me speculatively. "I never pegged you for the type."

  I rolled my eyes. "Liz, do you want to know what I did last night or not? Do I even need to be present for this conversation?"

  "So you didn't have a threesome?"

  "No, I did not."

  This seemed to disappoint her greatly and she stared at me intently. "Did you want to? Because in those online story thingies, lot's of the women seemed to want to have threesomes…"

  "Jesus…" I put my food down with a sigh.

  "Is that a lesbian thing?" She looked at me expectantly.

  "I wouldn't know, Liz." Maybe I would someday, but I sure didn't now.

  "But you've wanted to kiss a woman though, right?"

  I suddenly noticed the silence in the trailer - Paula had stopped typing and was looking at me, her mouth an astonished little 'O'.

  Shit.

  "Liz…"

  "Because, you know, that makes you an almost lesbian, right?" she nodded, as though it were obvious. "So, who did you go out with last night? Oh…was it the same person who sent you that note today? I don't think I've ever seen you smile like that, Caid, it must have been…"

  "I had dinner with Robyn, and Josh Riley," I cut in, before she could get rolling about why I might be getting notes that made me smile.

  That stopped her. "Really?"

  "Really."

  "What's Josh Riley like? Is he as attractive in person? Ohhh, those blue eyes and those cute, sexy little buns…"

  Well, at least we were off the subject of me kissing women.

  "…but I've heard that he cheats on her when he's on tour. Marty said that Ken said that Anthony said that he met this girl at a club in Rio who swears she spent the night with Josh Riley�
��"

  "What?"

  Maybe Josh needed to work on his discreetness.

  "Oh, who knows if it's true or not, you know how Anthony is with the girls…"

  Indeed I did know how Anthony was with the girls, having made the mistake of letting Liz set me up with him once. A very pretty man with a serious coke problem and a desperate need to be liked…Anthony would say anything to anyone if he thought it would make him more popular.