The Movie Star's Secret

by Chloe Parker Boulder

  Contents

  Copyright

  Title Page

  Part One - Party

  Part Two - Filming

  Part Three - Holiday

  Part Four - Awards

  By The Same Author

  "How We Fell In Love" - Sample Chapter

  The Movie Star's Secret

  Copyright © 2017 Chloe Parker Boulder

  All rights reserved.

  This is a work of fiction.

  The names, characters and incidents portrayed in it

  are of the author's imagination.

  Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead,

  events or localities is entirely coincidental.

  Chloe Parker Boulder

  PART ONE

  Party

  Ensnared by a film director, for whom he had little regard, Cody Hiller did the only sane thing to do in the movie industry and listened politely. He was at the after-party of one of the industry's biggest awards ceremonies, in London, excited to have been asked to present an award but more excited to be here, right now, for there was someone he was desperate to talk to. The party was already steaming ahead when he got there (he'd dawdled backstage where the awards were being held, chatting with the night's host) which meant that it was impossible to spot the man he wanted to speak to from the doorway, thanks to the lighting being all disco-y reds and blues. He ventured into the crowd, in the general direction of where he thought the interesting people might be, managing to overhear snippets of conversations as he passed by—a couple of which stopped dead when they spotted him so close. He was also met with an abundance of smells, from drinks that had been spilled, perfumes that had been liberally applied and body odours that hadn't been kept in check. Because of this assault on his senses, which included the thumping bass of the music that was being pumped out, his reflexes had been thrown off, resulting in the unfortunate situation that he currently found himself in. Cody was, as he sometimes liked to remind people, the world's biggest movie star and as such, everyone wanted a piece of him (and it was always prudent not to piss off the people with power). So, having been captured in a surprise attack, by a strong hand gripping his shoulder, Cody allowed Michael, the greying, unkempt but still in-shape film director to talk at him for what he planned to be the minimum acceptable duration.

  "You'd be perfect for my next film," Michael said to him, loud enough that those in the near vicinity could hear. He guided him to the edge of the room, where it was slightly quieter. "I've already found this pretty young girl who I want in it as well. The two of you together," he sighed as though he'd just tasted the most perfect steak, grunting over its flavour. "Magic."

  As far as Cody could tell however, the film that Michael was planning on making next, sounded exactly like all the others he'd done - good-looking people running around avoiding explosions and shooting whatever it was that currently needed to be shot. It was not something that he found particularly appealing, but he nodded and smiled, contorting his face into something that he hoped would show the requisite level of intrigued politeness whilst at the same time suggesting that this was the end of the conversation, in the hope that he could find an escape route as quickly as possible.

  Unfortunately, as Michael was describing exactly how he'd film one particular scene (pointing up from on the floor), another director, who had been eavesdropping, thrust himself into their space, thus curtailing Cody's plan to get away.

  "Hoping to get your dirty hands on the lad are you, Michael?"

  Cody's stomach twisted. At thirty-two years old, he was most certainly not a lad anymore and found that being referred to as one, particularly in this manner, sent a cold and unpleasant shiver down his spine.

  Michael, flashing a wide, toothy (and borderline creepy) smile at the other director—a tall, sinewy and equally as greying man—slapped him heartily on the back and then laughed, deliberately loud enough so that others might hear and therefore notice to whom he was talking.

  "I'd sooner he were in one of my movies, John, than one of yours."

  Cody suddenly felt like a piece of meat, not an unusual feeling to someone as chiselled as himself. He was square of jaw, broad of shoulders and thin of waist. He had muscular arms and a perfectly proportioned face. Every inch the movie star.

  John laughed, taking the ribbing in good nature. "You might think he'd be perfect in your films, but we all know that he'd be more perfect in mine."

  Holding back the roll of his eyes that threatened to overcome him, Cody instructed both men to send their scripts over to his agent.

  "We'll take things from there. See which of them seems the most suitable."

  Hoping that this would be the end of things, and having spotted the man he was eager to speak to across the room, through a gap that had opened up (which surely had to mean something), Cody nodded sharply and shifted the weight to his right foot, intent on spinning himself from out of their toxicity.

  "I hear you're making another Blake Lancaster film" John said to him, placing his hand on Cody's arm and seizing him, if not tightly, then securely enough to prevent his leaving.

  Glancing down at John's hand, Cody's features hardened, his lips pinching tight. He looked back up and held John's gaze for a moment, though glaring at him had no effect, the latter's fingers stroking the fabric of Cody's suit.

  "This'll be the fourth one, won't it?" said Michael.

  John released Cody from his grip and looked at Michael with a glint of superiority in his eyes. "I'm surprised they're doing another one, after the last one."

  Cody sneered a smile at them both, not even bothering to hide his condescension. It would have been easy to say exactly the same thing to the two of them, for whom bad reviews were the norm. "We've got a really terrific script for this one. They've really taken a lot of care with it. That's the only reason I signed on to do it."

  "I don't know why some people put so much stock into how the script is," said Michael. He gave his shoulders a slight twitch, conveying the triviality of the topic. "I only use mine as a guideline. It's much better to just take things as they happen. See what inspires you on the day."

  "That seems particularly risky." John raised an eyebrow and shot a glance at Cody. Evidently he thought it would get him one-up on Michael, but Michael had caught the look too and was quick with his own jab.

  "My last two films have both made north of $800million worldwide, so it clearly works."

  Seeing that John's eyes had dropped to the floor, Cody couldn't help but smile, not just because Michael obviously knew John's achilles heel, but also because he hadn't quite done his homework.

  "How about you both come and see me when you've had three billion-dollar grossing movies in a row. Then you'll know what really works." He let that sink in for a moment before taking a step back and nodding slightly at them. "Gentlemen."

  Leaving the two of them behind, Cody pushed through the throngs of people to the other side of the room, where he was relieved to find that the person he wanted to talk to was still there. His heart skipped a beat. Not normally lacking in confidence, being this close jolted him a little. It wasn't as though he was expecting anything to happen and, honestly, wasn't even sure if he wanted anything to happen, but, despite having never met or spoken to him, Cody had a strange inclination to believe that they would get on well. And, unlike the two slimy directors that he'd practically just run away from, Arun Dayal was actually a director who he admired, one who'd been nominated for his debut feature, A Life Alone, at the night's awards, thus providing Cody with an easy starting point.

  He hesitated however, for Arun was in the middle of a conversation with two other people and, not being the rude sort, Cody was unwilling to inte
rrupt them. Unfortunately, from the corner of his eye, he saw someone who looked like they might be heading straight for him, possibly dragging him away from his goal. Having therefore no choice, Cody positioned himself directly opposite the director and proffered a hand.

  "Congratulations on the nomination tonight," he said. "Should have been a win, if you ask me."

  "Thank you," said Arun, not at all bothered by the interruption. He gave Cody a quick glance and shook his hand. "That's really nice of you."

  Arun was taller than Cody by an inch, with a head of short, black hair. He was thin and boyish-looking, with legs that were less thick than Cody's arms and a body that was equally as untoned, wearing a rented tuxedo that didn't quite fit. All told though, he didn't look too bad considering he was a thirty-six year old man who'd toiled away his life making short films that few people had seen.

  His gaze had quickly shifted back to his companions only for time to freeze for a second, as something clicked in his brain. His eyes slowly locked onto Cody's, finally recognising who he was. "Holy shit, you're Cody Hiller." There was a star-struck twinkle to the way he looked at him but there was also something else going on, something more red-blooded in his eyes.

  Cody's own eyes lit up. He loved it when his presence got the kind of reaction that it just had. "I must confess," he said, taking a step closer, his face still beaming, "when I was reading out the Best Picture winner tonight, I was awfully tempted to say your film instead."

  Arun laughed. It was almost a giggle. "That would have caused quite the controversy, seeing as how we weren't up for that award."

  The two people with him—a sour-looking young man and a bookish middle-aged woman—both feigned laughter too, but shot a knowing glance at each other.

  "It would have been pretty fucking unprofessional though," Cody said, laughing loudly.

  He'd actually had no intention of reading out the wrong film, having taken the job of presenting the night's final award very seriously. From Cody's point of view, the most important thing about the task at hand was that it showcased him in the best light. He'd concentrated on the words on the autocue, making sure that the scripted jokes came across as natural and authentic, wanting people to see that he was more than simply a dumb, good-looking movie star. The thought to read out the name of Arun's film had only occurred to him right then, upon meeting him, as it seemed like something nice to say, a little throwaway thing until his mind, which right now wasn't quite as sharp as it normally was, could come up with something better.

  "No-one would have believed you anyway," Arun said. "Little films like mine rarely get noticed at these big award shows. I was incredibly lucky to get the nomination I did get."

  "I still think you should have won."

  "I agree," said the young man to Cody's left, though neither Arun nor Cody appeared to hear him.

  "I'm glad I didn't, to be honest." Arun leant in closer to Cody, dropping his voice a touch. "Between you and me, I'm not really one for making speeches."

  "Nonsense," said Cody, dismissing Arun's statement with a shake of his head. "I bet your speech would have been fucking hilarious."

  With a flick of his wrist, because Cody was being altogether too kind, Arun feigned modesty (a stance that was noted by his two companions with another exchange of glances, the woman's chest rising as she sucked in a deep breath) before deciding that it might be better to be honest, rather than present himself as someone that he wasn't.

  "No," he said, "it would have been dreadful. Nobody wants to see a grown man wet himself on stage."

  "You'd be surprised," said Cody, quick as a flash. "Especially in this industry."

  Flicking his head up, Arun laughed heartily.

  "I don't mean me," said Cody, aware, suddenly, of what he'd just said. His eyes widened. "Fuck. No, I could do without those kinds of rumours hitting the press."

  "All publicity's good publicity, isn't it? For you actors."

  "Not when it comes to bedroom stuff, no. The public will only let you get away with it if it's the basic man and woman thing. Fetishes are an absolute no-no."

  The young man coughed delicately. He said, politely but firmly, that he and the woman were just going to go and refill their glasses. They made their exit, not bothering to wait and see if anyone would stop them. Arun saw the concerned look on Cody's face.

  "Oh, just ignore them." His features hardened. "They're being pissy with me and trying to ruin my night."

  "I didn't offend them, did I?"

  "No, don't be silly. And so what if you did. Who cares." His face softened. "Sorry. They're the guys who financed my last film and now they're trying to make budget cuts to my next one, which I'm refusing to allow, so they're talking about pulling funding. All very messy."

  "Sounds troublesome."

  Arun sighed heavily. "I'll let them stew for a bit and sort it out in the morning. I don't want to make cuts, but I guess I'm going to have to if I want to get anywhere."

  "What is it that you're working on?"

  Brightening up at the question, Arun leapt into a well-rehearsed recital of the synopsis to his distinctly gay-sounding thriller, to which Cody listened intently. Unlike earlier, when being talked at by Michael and John, his nods and smiles were all genuine. Arun had painted, even in such a short time, a picture in Cody's mind that he wanted to explore further.

  "Do you want to have to compromise on it?"

  "No, of course not, but if I want any money at all then I might have to." He shifted his gaze off and up, considering things. "No, I will have to." He shifted his eyes back onto Cody. "Such is life. It's like you said, people only want things the heterosexual way. Anything else has everyone running scared. But I want to make a resolutely gay movie and the suits with the money aren't exactly keen on that."

  "But A Life Alone was a gay-themed film."

  "Yes, but it was a low-key drama. There's a definite audience for that. This one isn't going to have Mr. and Mrs. Smith from next door beating down the multiplexes for tickets, and that's all these rich folk are interested in. How to turn their money into even more money. A gay thriller almost certainly won't do that."

  "So why are you doing it then? Why the desire to want it to be a mainstream movie if you know that it won't work?"

  "Because someone needs to. Someone's got to try and break down the walls. I don't get to see myself up on screen very often. So, because I've got the skills and the opportunity, I have to do it. Nobody else is going to do it for me. Or if they do, they'll get it wrong."

  "You're doing it for the love of the art then? The importance of it, not the money?"

  "Exactly, though a bit of money won't do any harm."

  Cody laughed. "It never does."

  "You know yourself, making movies does not come cheap. I've got all these ideas and as far as I can see, the only way I'll get to make the films I want, exactly how I want, is either with a back catalogue of success or with my own money. Option B is very much a non-starter, so for now—" He tilted his head in the direction of where his two companions from earlier had settled. "—compromise with those two miseries."

  "Seems a shame," said Cody, though he was unable to expand further as the two of them were interrupted by a rotund man, who had bounded to Cody's side.

  "Can we borrow you?" he said to Cody.

  "Of course you can, Jack, just give me a minute."

  Jack was a top-level producer at one of the big studios and not someone that Cody wished to annoy, Jack's reputation always preceding him.

  "Sorry," Cody said to Arun. "I need to go and schmooze for a bit. There's this project I'm interested in, something a little different, so I need to get the money on board."

  "We're not too dissimilar then, are we?"

  The two of them laughed.

  "I guess not," said Cody.

  "I bet you'll have a lot less hassle than I get though."

  "I am the world's biggest movie star, so you'd hope so."

  Arun laughed again, hoping it
would delay the inevitable. "Well, it's been nice meeting you." He stuck his hand out. "And thanks for the kind words about A Life Alone."

  "You're welcome." Cody shook Arun's hand. It was probably his imagination, but he could have sworn that a spark shot through him. He let go, a little reluctantly and shifted his weight, about to walk across to Jack's group, but an idea struck him and he hesitated, toying momentarily before deciding to chance it. "Are you sticking around? If so, I'll come back over once I'm done with that lot and we can chat some more. If you want to of course."

  "Yeah, sure," said Arun.

  "Cool. I'll catch up with you in a bit then."

  Arun had the feeling that Cody was just being polite. In fact, so sure was he that this was the end of their conversation, he got the urge to turn around and head back to his hotel so that he could replay the whole thing in his mind, without anything else coming along to push it all away. It had been a thrill meeting Cody, both from a professional point of view and also a personal one, for Arun had been a fan of Cody's for quite some time. He admired him as an actor, certainly, but wasn't afraid to admit that often it was simply because Cody was so stunningly handsome and sexy. If this was to be the end of the, presumably, one and only time that they'd meet, it was preferable that it ended without any false hope. But there was hope though, regardless of how illogical it all seemed. After all, Cody had said that he wanted to come back and talk to him. Thinking that it was probably a little foolish to do so, Arun found an unoccupied booth and sat down, prepared to wait.

  Cody made his way over to Jack, thinking about Arun. There was nothing to dislike, he thought to himself. This wasn't exactly a surprise, but it was nice to have it confirmed. Arun was friendly, funny, engaging and interesting. The encounter was everything that Cody could have hoped for. Well, perhaps not everything, but as he'd asked himself earlier, was there really any more that he wanted from Arun? He'd been fairly sure of the answer before, but now, having met and spoken with him, he was less convinced.