Trailer Trash [Deep Ellum] (BookStrand Publishing Romance)

by Catherine Hatten

  “Mornin’, Nina! Ready to roll today?” Sherry gulped coffee as she fussed with the final touches of the set, an abandoned living room this time. Sherry’d been able to get a neighboring furniture store to loan the furniture for what the scene called for in return for a credit at the end of the trailer. The room she had created, eerily untouched, as though its owners had just poofed away as predicted by the Mayans, couldn’t be more suited for the scene.

  “Ready to roll? Indeed, I am, Sher, indeed I am!” Nina chirped in an unusually upbeat tone for so early in the morning.

  “Awesome. Want some coffee, or did you drag yourself in to Cookie’s this morning?”

  “No, didn’t have time, and I didn’t make coffee. And I’m starving.”

  “You’ve gotta eat, Nina.” Sherry’s tone was serious, matching her expression.

  “I know. I have been. I just said I’m starving. Didn’t you see how I shoved every bit of my supper down my throat last night?”

  “Yes, but you still look thin.”

  “I like being thin. I’m eating. Don’t look at me that way.”

  “Here’s where I remind you that you passed out two months ago due to skipping too many meals. Oh, and severe anemia that caused you to have two blood transfusions…” Sherry made herself stop there.

  “I remember. I plan to have meatloaf for lunch today.”

  Sherry nodded and went to get a cup of coffee for Nina. She returned with coffee and a bagel. “What do you think of our two stars after Nobu last night?”

  “I think they are very nice people who do a great job. How about that accent Judson slides into? Impressive.”

  “Totally impressive. How about Deannie? Oh my God, she was so wasted!” Sherry giggled.

  “Big time,” Nina agreed, disgusted.

  “Judson seems really nice. He certainly knows how to handle Deannie when things get tough.” Sherry kept working as she spoke.

  “Good thing. We could’ve gotten shown the door at Nobu. Drunks aren’t good for business,” Nina commented, her mind somewhere else.

  “He’s a good guy.” Sherry looked at Nina.

  “Yeah. I think he is.”

  “Nina, Judson likes you. It’s obvious.”

  “Don’t start, Sherry.”

  “I’m not. Look at me.”

  Nina kept her eyes on her work.

  “Nina, please look at me.”

  “Okay. I’m looking.” She swung around to face her friend.

  “I’m not saying to jump in the sack with him, or run off and get married or anything stupid. I’m just saying relax and let him like you. Let you like him. Would that be so hard to do?”

  “I said he seems nice. I said I think he’s a good guy.” Nina’s irritation surfaced.

  “I know, huh? And he’s really cute, too,” Sherry expounded.

  “He’s a model.” She wondered if Sherry was picking up on how much this man got to her. And how pissed she was getting at Sherry right now.

  “I mean the guy is gorgeous! You two seemed to hit it off really well last night at supper and in the car.”

  Silence.

  “Maybe he would like meatloaf for lunch, too,” Sherry nudged.

  “Sherry, I realize that you’re man crazy and all that…”

  “Damn, what’s gotten into you this morning? That wasn’t very nice.”

  “Nothing. Sorry.”

  “A visit with Kathleen wouldn’t hurt you. To see if she can—”

  “I don’t need advice from her or anybody else on my personal affairs.”

  “She said my true love was coming soon, and I’m meeting all kinds of interesting guys. Maybe you should talk to her about—”

  “Sherry, you know she’s not hung a psychic shingle in front of her store for a reason. We’re not supposed to say anything about her, well, her abilities or gift or whatever. Anyway, I like Kathleen, but she knows I’m not interested in all that psychic crap, and she’s okay with it. Besides, your true love hasn’t come yet, tons of losers, but no true love.”

  “Not right this minute, maybe, but he’s coming. I can feel it. Remember how Kathleen warned me about getting away from that last one, and she was right on.”

  “Yes, she was, but even I told you I thought he was a piece of garbage. I will say Kathleen was right about him having a criminal record, though,” Nina conceded.

  “Just talk to her, see what she says about—”

  “I. Said. No! Leave it alone.” Nina ripped a piece of bagel off with her teeth and swallowed it down with a sip of coffee. Just the thought of Judson Lane made her quiver.

  Dammit.

  “Okay, then maybe we should take Judson to lunch and get to know him even better. There’s nothing psychic about that.”

  “You know how I feel about this, and I wish you’d stop trying to hook me up with every new guy that walks in the door. I mean it. Stop it. And I don’t want to hear anymore about this guy other than the gig.” Nina’s tone was super firm, her eyes squinted.

  Sherry dropped the subject.

  * * * *

  Judson entered the studio reception area, taking in the warmth of the old brick walls in the sunlight and the live plants and furnishings, then stopped in front the painting he seemed to gravitate to.

  “Good morning, Judson,” Nina greeted in her most professional voice, drawing a clear line between them.

  He turned from the painting and tipped his head toward her. “Nina,” he said and turned back to the painting of a blonde woman sitting in front of a large window filled with trees and blooming beauty. The rich golden hues surrounding the window created a striking contrast to the burst of color outside the window. The woman’s hair was pinned up, like Nina had worn hers last night, a few tendrils brushing her neck. Her back was completely bare from the neck down to the top of her hips, which were wrapped in some type of blue shawl or robe or something.

  “This is very good.”

  “Yes, I love it. I got it from The Bohemian Way art gallery, just down the sidewalk a bit on Main.”

  “I need some art for my place and have been in there. They do have some wonderful pieces.”

  Nina nodded in agreement.

  “You’ve found a great location for your studio and your home. Deep Ellum’s a great area.”

  “It is…Okay, so, this shoot shouldn’t take long today. I think you and Shasta are doing very well. That helps a lot.”

  “Yes, I think these trailers will be nice, quick projects. I hope to do a lot more of them,” Judson revealed.

  “They are quick. The formula is basically four to six short scenes interspersed with stills and graphics, so there’s not going to be a lot of time needed with the actors. We should be able to get all three wrapped pretty quickly.” Why in the hell did she feel she had to give him a progress report?

  “Have you done many?”

  “We’ve had ten before these, and like you, we hope to have many more.”

  He looked at her, studying her. Again. “I guess I should get into makeup. Y’all have the costumes now, right? I know Deannie hung on to the first ones, just because she could.”

  “Yes, she finally let us have them, but it was okay the other way, too.”

  “Good.” He started toward makeup and costume. She fell in beside him and walked with him.

  “Sarah, Judson’s here. We’ll start the shoot in about an hour,” Nina said and leaned up against the door frame. Then pushed away from it. Then leaned up against it again.

  “Cool, we’ll be done real quick! Hey, Judson,” Sarah said, her cheeks flaming. She was clearly already very fond of Judson.

  “Hi there, Sarah. You ready for another go round?” His smile was mesmerizing. Sarah looked like she would swoon and dropped one of her brushes.

  Nina didn’t wonder how he got so good at turning that on for sweet young things and had to hold her snort of disgust. Instead she picked up a tissue and wiped an imaginary spot off Sarah’s huge mirror.

  “I’m ready
, willing, and able, sir.” Sarah gave him quite a smile herself.

  “Oh, and your clothes are in there. We should get you in costume before we do your makeup. There’s a different ragged outfit for today.”

  “Yes, we should,” he agreed and headed toward one of the two dressing rooms Sarah indicated.

  “Okay, well, I’ve got things to do. See you in a bit.”

  “Sure thing,” he said, his tone detached and not really directed at Nina.

  She went to the set and checked last-minute lighting, positioning of furniture, camera positions, all the while her mind racing.

  What was it that was so familiar about this guy? Yes, he resembled Larry Birkhead but that wasn’t it. She’d never seen any of his modeling shots, print or television. Okay, she and Sherry did an internet search on him after they learned who he was. But there was something, something…

  “I think we’re good, here, Nina. I still can’t believe we got our hands on this furniture. It couldn’t be more perfect.” Sherry sailed onto the set from wherever she’d disappeared to.

  “Have we heard from Deannie?”

  “Yeah, just now. She was looking for Judson. She’ll be here any second with Shasta. Shasta needs makeup and costume, too. That shouldn’t take long.”

  Nina nodded.

  “What’s wrong. You seem off track. You feel okay?”

  “I feel fine. I just want this to go well. You know, Sherry, I think we can build a really good, strong reputation for creating book trailers. I think we can say we’ve found ourselves a really good niche.”

  “In spite of me, yes!” Thomas interjected as he came onto the set. Thomas was a gentle giant of a man. Six-four, dark unruly hair and plenty of it with sharp, sincere hazel eyes behind the black framed glasses he wore. Denim covered his entire frame, jeans and shirt, black motorcycle boots.

  “Oh, don’t start that again, Thomas,” said Nina, voice warm. Thomas was like a brother to her and Sherry. And they were lucky girls to have him. He was the best videographer and editor on the planet. Why he chose to stay in Dallas they’d never figured out.

  “Yep, that’s me, Doubting Thomas,” he said with a grin.

  “Now, you’d never read a romance novel in your life when we pitched this to you,” Sherry reminded him. “Of course you would wonder about investing time in book trailers.”

  “Still haven’t read one, but as long as you two hand me a script and tell me what to shoot, I guess I’ll do okay.”

  “Okay? The client just informed us that first trailer we did is up for some kind of award,” Sherry informed him.

  “Award?”

  “Yes! They have award ceremonies for book trailers, that’s how popular these things are on the internet. Ours is nominated for Best Historical Romance trailer. Seriously!” Nina beamed.

  “Wow. Damn…I’m glad I listened to you gals.” He wrapped his arms around the two of them and squeezed.

  “Excuse me, I hate to break up the love fest,” Deannie said from the front doorway. Shasta stood just behind her.

  “Deannie, good morning!” Sherry left Thomas’s embrace and went to meet them.

  “Is Judson here? We were going to pick him up, but he was already gone.” Deannie’s gaze flitted around the reception area.

  “He’s in makeup,” Nina answered.

  “Thomas, our client, Deannie Marks, from LAR publishers in New York. Deannie, our partner, Thomas Ellis.” Sherry made the introductions.

  “Well, the elusive Mr. Ellis. What a pleasure to finally meet you. We missed you last night for dinner,” Deannie said and took his hand in both of hers, putting out the vibes of a man-eater as she looked Thomas up and down with her way over-made-up, hangover-puffed eyes which lingered on his dark half-ponytail style.

  Sherry stepped in again to break the uncomfortable silence. “Um, Shasta, meet Thomas. Thomas, Shasta. Now, follow me, girl. We’ve got to get you ready!”

  “Hi, Thomas,” Shasta said shyly and followed Sherry toward makeup, turning to glance at Nina and wave a quick greeting.

  “Where y’all been keepin’ him?” Deannie drawled in her best fake Texas accent.

  “Behind the scenes ma’am, behind the scenes. I do the camera work for the studio.”

  “But you weren’t here yesterday! Nina was behind the camera.” Deannie seemed a little worried.

  “No worries. Nina’s very good with a camera and stands in for me a lot when I can’t be here. I’ve watched the video back, and it’s good. Very good,” Thomas reassured Deannie.

  “Oh. Well, if you think it’s good…”

  “I do. Would you like a cup of coffee before the shoot starts?”

  “Why, yes, I would,” Deannie mewed.

  Nina watched as Thomas escorted Deannie through the door leading into the break area. She stared at Deannie’s back in disbelief. Isn’t our Thomas a little too old for you at thirty-six, you old cougar?

  “Hmph. Didn’t take her long to forget about Judson Lane,” Nina couldn’t help but mutter under her breath.

  “Pardon me?” Judson asked as he exited the makeup room.

  Nina looked up and couldn’t stop the smile slicing her face.

  “Deannie was looking for you. She’s in the break room with Thomas.”

  Judson nodded and sighed. “Yeah, she usually is. Looking for me, I mean. I forgot she was going to pick me up this morning. She’s probably pissed.”

  “I think she’s fine.”

  Chapter Five

  Nina had her director’s cap on and was in the zone.

  “Shasta, you’ve discovered that Judson was a crooked financier before the world deflated. His bank had caused your parents to lose their family home. You hate him with a passion. You can’t be in his presence and continue to breathe. He’s the most despicable person you’ve ever known. You feel this in every part of you, body, mind, spirit.”

  “Now, Judson, react defiantly as Shasta pushes you away from her, crying, devastated. She turns to walk away, and you go after her with meaning in your step. You’ve grown to love her more than life itself. You want a chance to show her she’s wrong about you. If she leaves you, you’ll die of grief. She’s the most important thing in your life. She. Can. Not. Leave. You. Your need to love her, hold her, kiss her has you in a near-maddened state. Take her in your arms, kiss her into believing you. Let us see your most passionate kiss,” Nina directed.

  “Ready? Action!”

  After the sixth take, Nina was satisfied. The shoot had gone past two o’clock, and her stomach ached with hunger.

  “Good job, all of you. I think we’ve gotten some fabulous footage here today. One more day of shooting and we’ll have enough to intersperse with the stills and graphics. We’re getting close now. See y’all in the morning at the Dallas Arboretum, 6:00 a.m. The shoot will start at 6:30 sharp. They’re opening up that early especially for us, so please don’t be late. It’s the jungle scene and may take more time than the others. Get some good rest tonight.” Nina picked her script up, straightened the table, and went to the reception area.

  “See you then,” Judson followed and said specifically to her.

  No words would come. She nodded. She had to get something to eat before she passed out.

  Judson looked at her for a moment, his eyes squinting. The sunlight shined through the huge window in the reception area, making it appear as though his beautiful form was born of the sun.

  Nina’s insides shook as she looked at him. She hated that.

  * * * *

  “Man, I thought they’d never leave,” Thomas said as he pushed himself back from his desk.

  “No kidding. I thought Deannie was gonna crawl up inside you, T,” Nina teased.

  “Aw, hell, she’s just boy crazy’s all,” Thomas retorted.

  “I don’t know, she kind of forgot all about Judson when she discovered you,” Sherry said.

  “She latched on to Judson pretty good on their way out,” Nina shot back.

  Sherry an
d Thomas looked at her at the same time.

  Thomas went to the door and held it open. “Ladies, let’s go to the AllGood to grab a bite.”

  “Sarah, John, are y’all good to go? Did you bring lunch, or do you want us to bring something back?” Nina asked.

  “No, no, y’all go on. I brought something and ate a couple hours ago,” Sarah answered.

  “I’m good,” John chimed in.

  Nina, Sherry, and Thomas were regulars at the AllGood Cafe. There was no bad choice at this place, but Nina’s favorite was the meatloaf.

  Knickknacks filled the cozy interior, old cups and saucers on shelves, framed posters placed expertly on the walls, almost a saloon-type feeling with a twist of grandma’s place. Everything from scooters to Harleys to Mercedes to pickup trucks could always be found parked outside along the busy street. Like the people who frequented the place, the furnishings were a hodgepodge of styles, a perfect reflection of Deep Ellum.

  The three partners went straight to their favorite spot, a red leather booth situated in a small corner of full glass looking out onto the street.

  “Welcome! I was startin’ to wonder about y’all. Haven’t seen ya in a couple weeks,” said Benji, an extremely cool young man working his way through college, with hopes of a recording contract. His brown hair reached his shoulders, parted down the middle, which he swished out of his brown eyes with a quick sideways flick of the head.

  “Hey, man. I was in here last week, but you weren’t,” offered Thomas.

  “Yeah, studying for four ginormous tests last week was a bitch, for sure. Like, what do y’all crave today? Nina, you want the meatloaf and mashed potatoes and gravy, right?” Benji had a definite crush on Nina.

  “You got that right.”

  “And a Cherry Coke?”

  Nina perked up. “Definitely. Thanks, Benj.”

  The others made their orders, and the conversation began.

  “Unless something last minute comes up that has to be included, I think after the arboretum we’ll be able to get the final one in the can and start on the trailer for book number two Tuesday. By the way, how in the hell did we get the arboretum to accommodate us for this?” Thomas’s question was directed to Sherry.