Hatten, Catherine - Trailer Trash [Deep Ellum] (BookStrand Publishing Romance)

by Catherine Hatten

  Deannie was in her mid-forties but had no idea that she’d even hit forty yet. She dressed and accessorized as though she were thirty-something and carried it off with great aplomb, even if she did look the slightest bit silly. She was a brilliant, very talented publishing professional and did, indeed, command a great deal of respect in her industry.

  “Deannie! Hello, so glad to finally meet you in person,” Nina said, brushing her hands off and extending one to Deannie. Handshakes were important, you could tell a lot about a person by their handshake.

  Deannie’s was firm, as was Nina’s.

  “Hi, Nina, Sherry! We’re so glad to be working with you again! We’re already getting great feedback on the last trailer DEP did with our Gloria and have high hopes for these three. I’m very pleased they’ve let me have a crack at it.” Her velvety thick voice flowed between bright-red lips and carried throughout the set.

  “Great! I’m so glad to hear the last one has been what y’all wanted, Deannie. Gloria was a pleasure to work with, and we feel like we’ve found our niche with the trailers.” Nina’s heart pounded. They were going to do well with these projects.

  “Oh, yeah, I’d say so! Definitely so. We’ve noticed quite the uptick in sales, social media hits, all that kind of stuff. We’re pretty sure your trailer contributed a lot.”

  “Wow! This is fabulous news, Deannie. Thanks so much,” Sherry said and took Deannie’s hand in her own, giving it a firm shake.

  “Yes, and we’re excited about this trailer for Mayan Ways, great book, isn’t it? After this shoot I’d like to meet to discuss the next two books in this trilogy, Mayan Consequences and Mayan Redux, and their trailers. We hope your scheduling will allow us to wrap them up in the next two weeks and”—Deannie seemed to be distracted—“and, ah…over here, here we are!” she called in a singsong voice and waved to someone across the set.

  Nina and Sherry turned to follow the direction of Deannie’s gaze, curious to see who she motioned toward them with frantic, fluttery little movements of both hands.

  Judson Lane, in all his scruffy glory and his easy grin, ambled over to them with a beautiful blonde woman at his side. When he reached them Deannie wrapped her arms around him, closing her eyes for the embrace then winking over his shoulder at Nina and Sherry, who looked at one another curiously.

  “Oh, they dropped me in front of the studio and found a parking place, in case you’re wondering. But they’re here now…” She turned from Nina and Sherry and back toward the girl. Deannie gave the girl’s hand a quick squeeze.

  “LAR let me do the casting, and I’ve found some fabulous talent for you to work with. Ladies, I’d like you to meet Judson Lane, who will play the hero of this particular trailer. And, of course, the next two in the trilogy. And Shasta Graves, our heroine.” She brimmed with pride, like a multicolored peacock.

  “Yes, hello, Mr. Lane,” Nina said, her surprise evident.

  “Ms. Graham,” Judson returned, and made a tiny bow toward Nina, “and Ms. Teal.”

  Deannie looked at the three of them with a quizzical expression. “Does anyone care to enlighten me?”

  “We met earlier. Judson arrived before the scheduled time,” Sherry chirped, eager to avoid any misunderstandings with their new favorite client.

  “That’s our Judson, on time and ready to work!” Deannie cooed, taking his arm.

  Nina flushed, remembering how she’d offered him eight dollars an hour for a one-day-only gig. She thought she might vomit but was able to hold it down by saying, “Thanks for your help earlier, Mr. Lane.”

  “I’m always happy to help,” he answered, blue eyes locking with Nina’s deep green, his voice Brad Pitt smooth.

  Deannie pulled Judson to her, clearly pressing his arm into her very ample breast. “He truly is happy to help, ladies! We’re so happy to have snatched him up! I stole him and Shasta both from a prestigious modeling agency in New York,” she breathed and batted her fake lashes up at him.

  Breaking through the awkward moment, Nina interjected, “We feel the exact same way. Now, we should get moving with makeup.”

  “Shasta, let’s get you done. And I don’t think Judson needs any.” Deannie continued to bat her lashes up at him.

  Nina realized the reason she’d mistaken him for a grip, a rather shabby-looking grip at that, was because he was already in costume. She couldn’t stop the tense little giggle that came with her words. “Of course. I’m sorry…”

  “No problem. I’m glad the getup is so convincing for our producer slash director. I hope you know I’m taking this project very seriously,” he said straight to Nina, then looked at Sherry.

  Nina had an immediate understanding that this guy had done his homework if he knew she was the producer and director of the video. He seemed deep for a pretty boy, and very masculine.

  “I get where you’re coming from, Deannie, but we’re still going to need him dirtied up a bit. I mean, the script calls for them both to look like they’ve been through hell…” Nina wanted everything perfect.

  “Oh, well, then if we must.” Deannie released his arm but stayed close.

  * * * *

  All eyes went to Shasta, the classic blonde bombshell strutting onto set. Torn clothes, dirty face, hands, arms, with her cleavage hanging out to the point you couldn’t help but look, completed the picture. This was, after all, a romance-book trailer. There was always going to be cleavage hanging out.

  Nina didn’t know exactly why, but she was pissed. Pissed at Judson Lane. Not so much because they got off to a particularly bad start, it was just…Well, he should have told them who he was when he was on set earlier. Why didn’t he? she wondered as she watched him come out of makeup and onto the set.

  Screw it. She didn’t have time now to wonder about it. Instead she and Sherry showed them their places and where the props and cameras were.

  “Places, people!” Her call to action filled the set, and everyone did as she directed.

  “Okay, the world as we know it has ended, just like the Mayan calendar predicted. Like the script says, the hero and heroine have been struggling to survive separately, doing whatever it takes to find food, clothing, shelter. Shasta, you enter the kitchen, you start digging through the cabinets, you’re starving, about to the end of your rope, near collapse. You’re caught off guard when Judson bursts into the shot. You’re very weak from hunger, but you pull the knife out of the drawer directly behind you and threaten him because you can kill if needed.”

  Shasta bobbed her head in understanding. Nina turned to Judson, just off set.

  “Judson, you’re running for your life. Strange creatures are on your heels. You’re shocked to find this clearly hungry, desperate girl here, and not happy about it. You’re barely surviving yourself and don’t want the responsibility of anyone else, especially someone wielding a knife. You begin to circle her like a predator, examining, plotting.”

  Judson gave a quick shake of his head. Nina stepped out of the shot and stood behind the camera.

  “Remember, don’t look into the camera,” she cautioned. Then, satisfied with everyone’s position, called, “Okay…action!”

  On cue, Shasta began tearing through cabinets, clutching at her stomach and looking very much like a starved lunatic. She threw open a cabinet door, found a box of crackers, and greedily took them out. Before she could open the box, Judson barreled through the door, eyes wild, holding the dark, notched-up nightstick Nina had provided just before the start of the shoot.

  His presence was magnificent, golden, as he entered the shot and began to move in a circle around the crazed girl holding the knife out toward him and shaking it in warning. He held both hands up, one holding the nightstick, which he dropped, and stepped back, keeping both hands up. Shasta lowered the kitchen knife. Judson took the knife from her, then dropped it, too.

  “You hungry? Let me help you.” His English accent was perfect, the voice husky, reassuring.

  “No! Stay away!” Shasta held her arm
s out, warning him to keep his distance. She fumbled in the drawer behind her and pulled out a rolling pin.

  Someone’s cell phone blew up.

  “Cut!”

  Nina looked around for the culprit.

  “Excuse me, I have to take this. It’s LAR,” Deannie said, her three-inch heels echoing on the tiled floor with each step she took.

  Everyone looked at Nina.

  “Okay, let’s start again. No interruptions this time. Could someone watch and make sure no one comes in till we’re done with this take?”

  After only five takes Nina was satisfied and dismissed the actors, and Deannie, until later that afternoon when they would start again at the studio. They hadn’t left yet and were waiting for Shasta to visit the little girl’s room.

  “We’ve got some pretty good actors this time.” Sherry made the observation as she and Nina cleaned the chalk dust from the pink-rose granite countertops.

  “Shhh! Not so loud,” Nina said softly, then continued as she drew nearer to Sherry. “The others were pretty good, too. You heard what Deannie said. That trailer’s been a big hit for them,” Nina finished and swiped at the granite countertop. “I do think this is gonna be a much easier shoot than the last one. And for a better book, I think,” she added and sneezed.

  “Definitely on both. Yes, I think we can wrap this in four days, not five, and move to the next pretty quick,” Sherry commented, and her expression became a little cocky. “What do you think of Judson?”

  “He seems like a good actor.”

  “Yeah, he does. Great accent, too. I thought he seemed familiar, but I can’t remember seeing him as a model before. He looks like somebody else.”

  “A brawny Larry Birkhead,” Nina answered, moving to the cabinets.

  “Huh?”

  “He resembles Larry Birkhead. You know, Anna Nicole’s baby daddy?”

  “Oh, yeah, that’s it. He sure does. Except, like you said, a good bit beefier, a little more rugged, yet with those chiseled facial features. Kind of—”

  “I get it, I get it. You think he’s cute.”

  “Yeah, I do, and I’m not the only one.”

  “Look, Sherry, I—”

  “No, not you, her.” Sherry tilted her head to the left where Deannie was hanging on Judson’s arm as he tried to drink a bottle of water.

  “Surprise, surprise,” Nina whispered.

  “What?”

  “Nothing.”

  “Deannie’s smitten with our hero, for sure. Wonder if she’ll be that way with all of her heroes.”

  “Don’t know, don’t care. She’s a client we’re lucky to have.”

  “Hey, hey, chill, Nina.”

  “Sorry, Sherry, I’m just tired.”

  “Um-hmm, could that be because you haven’t taken a day off in three months?”

  “Don’t start. I’m just making hay while the sun shines. I can’t afford a day off right now.”

  “Ladies.”

  Judson stood just behind Nina, surprisingly free of Deannie. Nina turned toward him.

  “Yes?” Nina said in her most professional voice, trying to ignore the niggling little jump in her stomach.

  “I’m just wondering what you think of the shoot so far.”

  “We have five takes of the first scene to watch back, but I think, I know, we got some good stuff. What do you think?”

  “I don’t know. It seems good. I don’t know anything about this type of thing yet.”

  Fishing for compliments. Wanting to be stroked like he’s used to on his photo shoots. Well, she wouldn’t play that game.

  “So far, so good on this first scene. If we have as good an afternoon as we’ve had this morning, we might be able to shave a half day off the project.”

  Judson nodded. “Okay, thanks.” He stood there looking at Nina quizzically.

  “Is there anything else?” she asked in her most detached tone.

  “No. Nothing else,” he answered, his eyes locked on hers. She wanted to turn away from his intent stare, from the handsome face she couldn’t help but admire. Not to mention the buff body even his clothes couldn’t hide.

  “Well, see y’all at the studio for this afternoon’s shoot. We’ll be doing some special-effects things in front of a green screen, so it’ll be a little different.”

  “I’ve worked with green screens before in photo shoots. Is it similar?” he asked and listened carefully.

  “The only difference would be in that you have to pretend to see things moving while you’re being captured on video. In other words, while you move, too, but I don’t think you or Shasta will have any trouble at all,” Nina assured him.

  “Thanks for the encouragement—”

  “Juuudson,” Deannie called from across the set, dragging his name over her tongue in what Nina thought was an almost obscene way. What had happened to the sleek professional she had seemed to be? Oh, wait, someone called Judson.

  “Over here.”

  “Oh, there you are!”

  “Yep, here I am, Deannie,” Judson answered with an almost inaudible sigh that did not escape Nina. “Here I am.”

  * * * *

  “Okay, in this fifth take of our second scene we’re going to need more heat. I don’t only want to see the heat between you two, I want to feel it. Judson, when you save Shasta from the creature that’ll be created using special effects like we talked about, push her behind you, and Shasta, wrap your arms around him like if you let go you’ll die. You’re terrified—these creatures are horrific, smelly beasts. Judson, you’re terrified, too, but your desire to protect Shasta takes over. After five beats, Shasta, hold your hands out to the dragon-like thing. Lightning bolts are shooting out of your hands—remember the monster’s mark over there to your right where the big red X is on the wall, shoot the lightning at the X. The thing is stunned, and Judson, you slay it by cutting its head off. As we discussed before, you’re in front of the green screen, so while you don’t see these awful things, viewers will because we’ll build and insert them. Don’t let this throw you off. This scene needs to look, be, survival sexy,” Nina coached, slapping her hand on her thigh as she said the last sentence.

  “Survival sexy?” Shasta put her hand on her hip.

  “Yes. It dawns on the both of you that you can, indeed, survive better together than apart, and you experience a savage, primal attraction to one another, just short of doing it on-screen. Shasta, and I know this isn’t in the script or the book, and we didn’t do it the last five takes, but after he kills the dragon, you’ll take hold of Judson’s shirt and pull him into you. Judson, you lower your lips close to hers without kissing, but close. That’s where we’ll end the take.”

  Judson and Shasta looked at each other and, together, said, “Can do.”

  “And this time, make sure all cell phones are off.” Nina looked at Deannie whose phone had blared out a Rod Stewart tune asking her if she thought he was sexy and telling her what to do about it if she did, again during the second-to-last take of the kitchen scene. The woman had blushed profusely, held up her phone while she drug her finger across her neck, and pointed down to her bare feet. Nina had spoken to her about the echoing heels and two cell-phone incidents in such a way that Deannie understood it was costing LAR, her publisher and employer, time and money. She was a businesswoman above all and wouldn’t have that.

  “Okay, good. Let’s take our places.”

  These last directions had been exactly what the scene needed. Nina was sure this was the one she’d use, and everyone seemed to agree as they watched it back together. Nina noticed the concentration on his face as Judson watched the footage standing next to her.

  “Thanks for letting us watch these back with you. It’ll help with the rest of them.” He turned to Shasta. “Don’t you agree?”

  “Definitely. Thanks, Nina,” Shasta said.

  “Oh, you’re so welcome. I think it helps everyone involved in front of and behind the camera to watch back. It makes it so clear what nee
ds to be changed or kept the same.”

  “Well, I want to take us all out to dinner to celebrate,” Deannie said.

  “That sounds great!” Sherry was always ready to eat. “Nina?”

  “Oh, I’m going to work tonight on what we got today. I’ve got to make decisions on the still shots we’re going to intersperse with the video. If we can have those lined up for the edits, the project will go a lot smoother. I appreciate the invite, though,” Nina said to Deannie.

  “No, Nina, I insist, and the customer is always right. Dress up, we’re going to Nobu. The limo will be here at the studio at six o’clock sharp to pick you up. That’s three hours from now. See you then. Oh, and make sure your other partner, Thomas, is in attendance,” Deannie finished and left with a flourish, Shasta in tow. Judson stopped in front of one of the paintings in the lobby, turned, looked at Nina, then left through the high glass-and-wood door.

  “She’s quite the commando, isn’t she?” Sherry asked Nina.

  “No kidding.”

  “It’ll do us good to spend some down time with the client, get to know them better, blah, blah, blah. Thomas won’t be back in time, though. Wonder if that’ll get us in trouble,” Sherry mused out loud.

  “It can’t be helped,” Nina snapped, irritated.

  “Don’t be like that. We’d better get going.” Sherry shut her down and picked up the screaming studio phone. “Thank you for calling Deep Ellum Productions.”

  Chapter Three

  Judson Lane was grateful.

  Grateful for his modeling success, for his new opportunities, for being out of New York City and back in Dallas…He embraced his good fortune and was prepared to do whatever it took to keep it going.

  The acting gig had fallen in his lap, a result of a modeling assignment where Deannie “discovered” him, though she’d known who he was before. He readily accepted her offer when he learned the video work would take place in Dallas, near his hometown of Fort Worth. He felt the time had come to be near his family, and this was perfect.