Red Lines

by T. A. Foster

  It was hard to relax after the press fiasco, but Haven found herself laughing and talking for another hour.

  HAVEN CHECKED her phone one more time before calling Evan. So far, there were no pictures on any of the popular social media sites. Drew was probably right. There wasn’t much of a story, and who really cared about a bunch of pictures of people having coffee? She had gotten worked up for nothing.

  She leaned into the pillows on her bed, and dialed Evan’s number.

  “Hey, darlin’, I was just thinking about you.”

  “You were? What were you thinking?” She looked at the picture of the two of them she had framed next to the bed.

  “Thinking about your birthday night.”

  “Oh really?”

  “Of course. Hoping we can do that again soon.”

  “Me too,” she whispered into the phone. Sometimes these calls made her ache for him more than before she heard his voice. This was one of those times. “How was shooting today?”

  “It was all right. I had to wear a tux all day for the ball scene.”

  “Oh, I thought they would shoot that at night since the party was outside some.”

  “The magic of Hollywood, baby. We were inside the studio most of the day, and then we did just a few takes outside once the sun went down.”

  “Right.” Haven twisted her lips. She must sound like an idiot. Someone should write an insider’s guide to moviemaking.

  “While I was on set, I started thinking about some of the events coming up in the spring, and taking you out all dressed up. Maybe show off this tux with you on my arm.”

  “I-I don’t know if I’m ready for the red carpet.” Just the thought made her palms clammy.

  “We’ve got time to get you ready.”

  “Besides, what about the plan to have you and Emmy make all the appearances together?”

  He sighed into the phone. “The movie will be out by then. I think the buzz will be big enough. But, you don’t have to if you don’t want to. I know it’s a lot to ask. I was just thinking about you today in one of these gowns, that’s all. I didn’t mean to put pressure on you.”

  “Can we talk about it as it gets closer?”

  “Of course, darlin’. There’s plenty of time for that.”

  In the back of her head, she thought about mentioning Drew. Even if it didn’t make the media buzz, it was an event. She had run into one of the hottest artists on the planet, and he had confided in her he was ready to leave his label. But Drew’s warnings surfaced.

  “You there, Haven?”

  “Yeah, yeah. Sorry, just thinking about the spring and the movie premiere.”

  “You know what the best part of spring is in Texas?” he asked.

  “No, what is it?”

  “The blue bonnets. You are going to love the ranch. It’s covered in them. It’s like looking out on a blue-purple sea. It’s the only time the ranch kind of looks like the beach.” He laughed.

  She closed her eyes and tried to picture anything but pale green grasses and bales of hay in the fields. Spring. Evan was thinking about her living at the ranch in the spring.

  “I bet it’s beautiful.”

  “You know what else I think is beautiful?”

  She blushed, already knowing what his answer was going to be. “What’s that?”

  “You. But especially when you’re just about to fall asleep.”

  “Kind of like right now?” She had slipped under the covers. The time difference was two hours, but on a day like today, two hours were enough to make the exhaustion feel heavier. She had poured everything into those songs.

  “Oh, you getting in bed?”

  “I’m already in bed. I can barely keep my eyes open.”

  “I’m thinking about getting in bed too. Can I join you?” His voice dipped lower.

  She looked at the empty pillow next to her, craving him, wishing he wasn’t so many states away. “Of course.”

  “You know what I’d do if I was there with you right now?”

  Her skin prickled. “What would you do?”

  “I can think of so many things. Will you pretend I’m there?”

  She nodded. “Yes,” she whispered.

  “If I were lying next to you, first I’d turn off the lights so I would have to feel every inch of you. Is the light off?”

  Haven reached up and twisted the switch on the lamp, then settled back on her pillow. “It is now.”

  “Good. I’d start by kissing your neck. Then I’d move to your throat. But I couldn’t stay there. I’d move down your body, making sure to kiss your breast. Do you know how that would feel?”

  Slowly, her fingers slid over her body, following his words as if he were giving her a road map. “Yes.”

  He groaned into the phone. “But that wouldn’t be enough. I’d have to kiss your stomach, and you know I can’t stop there.”

  Her breathing quickened and the heaviness that had settled into her limbs felt like utter relaxation.

  “You have to help me with the next part, baby.”

  She nodded, but knew he couldn’t see her. She was working off lust fumes.

  “Ok. Tell me,” she urged into the phone, ready to take his challenge. This was the first time he had been this assertive on the phone.

  “If I were there, my hands would be all over you, touching you everywhere. I’d let my fingers trail between your legs. But first, you better take off those panties. Can you do that? Take them all the way off.”

  She almost whimpered, but she slid them over her hips and kicked them into the covers.

  “And once I could have free roam of you, I’d touch you. And keep touching you until your hips started moving, until you started purring, and you wanted more.”

  She heard his rapid breathing. “Evan, I need you here.”

  “I know. Me too. But try it. I’m with you, just not that close.” The huskiness in his voice was enough to make her shiver. “Will you try it for me?”

  “Ok, tell me.” The need had started building and her core was aching. He had done all of this to her with only words. Heated, strong words that brought images and fantasies to the front of her imagination.

  “My fingers would start slowly, and barely graze your skin, but soon you’d open up to me. And the wider you move, the farther I go. And I’d keep touching you until you begged me to let you come.” He stopped and Haven’s head rolled to the side. “I’d just keep going deeper and deeper, making you wider. Your hips moving against my hand. Feeling all of you.”

  “Evan.” It was barely a whisper.

  “Yeah, baby?”

  “I want to. Please let me. Please.” She was moving under the covers, coiled so tightly she thought she would scream if he didn’t release her.

  “God, I wish I was with you.” His voice sounded strained. “I wish I could feel you.”

  The waves struck her, and the phone slid off the pillow as she let the feeling unfold and consume her. She sighed and inhaled quietly. Somewhere in the tangled blankets was Evan’s voice.

  “Sorry, I’m here. I just lost the phone for a second.” She smiled, wishing he were here, but also feeling incredibly sexy and powerful for what she had done with her body.

  “How do you feel?” he asked.

  “Amazing. And probably more tired than before.” It was a good kind of tired.

  “Me too.”

  “Evan, that-I-eh, I’ve never done that before.” She giggled.

  “God, you really are trying to kill me, aren’t you?”

  She stared at the ceiling. “I like that we try new things. You make me try new things.”

  “Me too, darlin’. Hey, I’ll let you get some sleep. That is if you think you can sleep now.”

  “Yes, it was a long day. I wasn’t in a tux all day or anything, but I used up my creative energies.”

  “Not all of them.” He laughed.

  “Ok, I saved just enough for you. Good night, Evan.”

  “Good night.”

/>   She plugged the phone in on the charger next to her then sat up. She pulled the T-shirt over her head, feeling the cool air hit her skin. This was one night she wanted to sleep naked, even if Evan wasn’t here.

  EVAN STROLLED into the studio from his trailer. The sun was shining brightly, and the fog that had been hovering over the city had dispersed. For the first time, he felt like he could take a deep breath.

  He had studied today’s lines over a cup of coffee. Every once in a while he had to steer himself back on track. His call with Haven last night kept distracting him. It had taken weeks, but finally Dexter Red was natural to him. Today he was supposed to propose to Karina, and then there was the usual love scene. Dexter was finally willing to shed the props and the toys that kept him from fully connecting to Karina. It was going to be another emotional day, but Evan was ready for it. In some ways, he was actually shedding his barriers too.

  When he first took the part, he couldn’t think of what he and Dexter had in common on the surface, but the farther he dug into the role, he started to understand the man.

  He walked toward the snack table and grabbed a banana. “Good morning, y’all.” He smiled at the crew.

  Their eyes hit the floor and they mumbled, “Good morning,” before dispersing. He watched them scurry like ants, and then pivoted toward the set where Emmy was sitting by the window, script in hand.

  “Mr. Carlson, you’re going to need this for your scene today.” Gerald, the head of props, handed him something in a jewelry box. “Please take care of it. It’s on loan from Neil Lane through the end of the shoot. Five carats and platinum.” He looked serious.

  “Thanks, man.” Evan eyed it in his palm. Before he could ask Gerald any questions about the piece, the man was gone. Everyone sure was in a big hurry this morning. Evan shoved it in his front pocket.

  He sauntered over to his co-star. “Hey, Em. Ready for today?” He grinned. It was even sunny outside in the fake city. The penthouse windows streamed with rays of light.

  “Don’t you look surprisingly happy?” She tilted her chin toward him. “I would have thought you’d be in a bad mood this morning. Considering everything.”

  “Me? Bad mood? Never.” He sat on the leather couch. “I’m ready to kill this scene. Check this out.” He pulled the box that the prop manager had given him from his pocket. “Want to see what it looks like?”

  Emmy immediately leaned forward, her eyes widening when Evan cracked the lid on the box.

  “Oh, wow.” She reached for the ring. “This is gorgeous.” She tried it on her left hand and held it up to the fake sunshine, smiling at the rainbows bouncing around the room.

  “I guess it will work.” Evan laughed.

  “Do you think they’ll let me keep it as a movie souvenir?”

  “Doubtful. Hand it over.” Evan held the box in front of her. “It’s five carats. I’m not letting you walk out of here with that.”

  She pouted and wiggled the platinum band off her finger. “At least they got my ring size right.”

  Evan made sure the ring was secure on its velvet cushion and returned it to his pocket. It wouldn’t be long before he’d be presenting it to her in front of everyone. If she could pull off the same kind of reaction, the scene would be flawless—just like that diamond.

  “I’m going to check in with wardrobe. I think I’m supposed to be in a gray suit for this scene.”

  Emmy’s forehead furrowed. “Since when do you care about the wardrobe?”

  “Since I know how important it is to get this stuff right.”

  “I’m surprised you didn’t suggest Dexter propose in a flannel shirt and boots,” she teased.

  “Em, I have more class than that. I’ll be right back.”

  She giggled. “I’ll be here, babe.” Emmy waved.

  He noticed she pulled out her phone and began typing furiously. No telling what had her distracted.

  The wardrobe department had its own section inside the studio. On one side were racks of men’s suits, and on the other were dresses and rows of high heel shoes. Janet, the lead costume designer, was flipping through hangers on Emmy’s side of the room.

  “Hey, Janet.” Evan strolled up next to her.

  “What’s up?” She pulled out a black dress and matched it with a set of earrings she was holding.

  “We’re getting ready to shoot the proposal, and I don’t think I’m supposed to be in a sport coat.” Evan pulled on the sleeves of his jacket. “I thought I read that I needed a charcoal suit.”

  She shoved her glasses on her head and turned to face him. “Shit, yeah. That looks terrible.”

  “Well, I don’t know if I’d say terrible.” He smiled.

  Janet crammed Emmy’s dress on the rack and moved to the other side of the room. She pulled a clipboard off the front rack and folded over the first few pages.

  “Right, it’s right here. Plain as day. Who in the hell laid that jacket out for you?” She walked along the rack until she matched up the suit number with what was on her clipboard.

  “I’m not worried about that. They probably just confused the numbers or something. I only want to make sure I’m wearing the right thing.”

  He didn’t know why, but he thought Dexter was the kind of man who would make sure his proposal was completely polished all the way to the duds he was wearing. The man was nothing if not meticulous. He had certain tastes that set him apart from other roles Evan had played.

  “It’s a problem if someone on my team is giving you the wrong wardrobe. Proposal in a sport coat? What were they thinking?” She handed him the suit. “Here you go. Let me know if you need any other alterations. I don’t think we did a second fitting on this one. It seemed like you might have been too busy or something.” She returned her glasses to the bridge of her nose.

  Evan accepted the garment. All the suits were tailored to fit him perfectly. He had spent hours at the beginning of the shoot being measured. There was a chance they even had the length of his big toe, but it was finally coming together.

  “You know how it gets. I was slammed at the beginning and I let things get away from me.” He wasn’t about to tell her he had no interest in wardrobe, and that it didn’t make one bit of difference to him. This woman lived and breathed fabrics and accessories. He couldn’t insult her like that.

  “I understand. But if it doesn’t fit right, tell me right away.”

  “Thanks, Janet. I’ll let you know.”

  “And be careful with that suit. We don’t have a replacement for it on set.” She brushed past him and started flipping through Emmy’s options again.

  “Yes, ma’am. Got it. I’ll return it in perfect condition.”

  He jogged out of the wardrobe room and past Emmy holding up the suit. “Give me five and I’ll be back.”

  “All right. Don’t forget my ring!”

  He tapped his front pants’ pocket. It was still there. “Don’t worry, darlin’.”

  His trailer was humming from the air conditioner. He turned on the overhead lights and started shedding the current wardrobe to change into the charcoal suit. He had to give it to Dexter; the man had taste.

  He looked at his reflection in the mirror. He looked different. The suit coated him in an aura of sophistication. He tugged on the starched white shirt and adjusted the cufflinks monogrammed with DR for Dexter Red.

  “Not bad.” He chuckled to himself. He tucked the ring into the front pocket. His hand was on the door handle when his phone vibrated on the counter. He saw Jeff’s name pop up on the screen.

  “Hey, man, what’s up? I’ve got about ten seconds.” He took another glance at his reflection in the mirror.

  “Ok. I know it looks bad, and I know you’re probably thinking of a hundred ways to pummel the guy, but I’ll figure something out.” Jeff sounded out of breath. “We can’t exactly go on the offensive with someone that likable.”

  “Slow down, Jeff. What are you talking about?”

  “Wait, you don’t know?”<
br />
  “Know what?” He was starting to regret picking up his phone. He didn’t want to lose his Dexter Red momentum.

  “I guess you haven’t talked to Haven today?”

  “Haven? Jeff, you better tell me what’s going on. I talked to her last night and she was fine. Is something wrong?” He felt a tightening in his chest.

  “She’s fine. Don’t worry about that. But—”

  “Spit it out, Jeff. What is it?”

  “She was caught with Drew Easton having coffee. At least, I think it was coffee. I couldn’t tell exactly. The pictures are bad. The headlines are worse.”

  “The singer Drew Easton?”

  “Yeah, that one.”

  Evan rushed to the back of the trailer where his laptop sat on a makeshift desk, and sat behind the chair. He only heard half of what Jeff was saying. There she was on Celeb Watch’s front page.

  Brokenhearted again?

  Carlson left for new heartthrob singer

  Red Lines blurred

  He felt the shards of glass slice through his lungs as he forced them to work. Drew’s hand covered hers. She was running her fingers over his lips and laughing. What was this? He slammed the screen down.

  “I don’t believe it.” He felt the vein in his neck throbbing. It was Emmy and Hawaii all over again.

  “Listen, listen. I’m headed to Dallas this morning. I’ll make a detour to Austin and check in with her. I’ll get back to you tonight.” Jeff sighed. “I’m sorry, man, but I’ll handle it. In the meantime, I think you should just lie low today until we figure out how to tackle it.”

  “You’re going to go see her today?” All he could think about was hopping on the jet and heading toward Texas. He would trade places with Jeff in an instant.

  “Yes, I will get some answers today, but tell Emmy not to make any statements. I know how she likes to throw her two cents in every chance she gets. This is one time we don’t need her help. We’ve got to squash the idea that you’ve been cheated on. It doesn’t bode well for trying to make you the catch of the century.”

  “I don’t care about that crap.”