Total pages in book: 96
Estimated words: 93575 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 468(@200wpm)___ 374(@250wpm)___ 312(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 93575 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 468(@200wpm)___ 374(@250wpm)___ 312(@300wpm)
I giggled softly to myself. I felt like a teenager, sneaking around with her boyfriend so her parents didn’t catch them.
I had never experienced that growing up.
What was Nicholas Scott doing to me?
At the studio, I sat in the conference room, trying to be calm. But every time the door opened, the butterflies in my stomach erupted, only to settle down when it wasn’t Nicholas who came into the room. Aside from asking if I was feeling okay, no one mentioned yesterday. Amber sat with us, and I spoke with Bradley and Lacey, listening to their thoughts and giving mine on their characters. Andi sat at the end of the table, constantly busy on her phone. I was grateful to have her there, knowing if I needed her, she would be close.
Lacey looked puzzled, glancing at her phone more than once. “I wonder where Nick is. He was the one with the most questions,” she mused. “I thought he’d be here.”
Bradley smirked. “He had plans last night. Maybe those plans kept him up late.” He waggled his eyebrows, trying to look funny.
Lacey rolled her eyes, and I frowned. He’d had plans for after he saw me? Or had I been his plans?
Before I could say anything, Nicholas hurried in, carrying his script under his arm. He looked upset, tired, and anxious.
“Sorry,” he said. “Got stuck in another meeting. I hope I didn’t hold things up.”
“I’m kinda done,” Bradley announced, standing. “I didn’t have a lot of questions. At least not yet. I’m going to head to my trailer. Thanks, Mila.”
“Sure.”
Nicholas cleared his throat, and our eyes met, his intense gaze locking on mine. “I apologize.”
“Not a problem,” I replied, hoping I didn’t sound as breathless as I thought I did. “I was just going to get another coffee.”
Lacey stood. “I’m going to get a smoothie from craft services. Anyone else want one?”
I shook my head. “No, the coffee here is good for me, thanks.”
Amber jumped from her chair. “Great idea. We’ll take a fast break and get back at it.”
They left, and Andi walked to the window, talking on her phone. I headed to the sideboard, pouring coffee for myself. Nicholas sidled up next to me.
“You got one of those for me, Shortcake?”
I laughed quietly, already pouring a second cup. He watched me as I stirred in the cream and sugar, and I slid it his way, making my own. We stood next to each other, sipping our hot beverages.
I felt the flutter of his fingers brush along mine.
“Hi,” he whispered.
“Hi,” I whispered back. “Thanks for breakfast.”
He squeezed my pinkie. “Just returning the favor.”
I glanced at him. “You okay?”
“I am now.”
Then he stepped back and headed for the table. I followed him, sitting down, trying not to laugh as he hooked his foot around the leg of my chair and slid it closer to him while not even looking. He was busy opening up his script and pulling a pen from behind his ear.
Lacey and Amber returned, and Andi sat back at the end of the table, not seeming to notice how close Nicholas sat to me. No one did.
Nicholas turned to me. “I have a lot of questions, Mila.”
I drew in a deep breath. “I hope I have the answers.”
He cocked his head, studying me, a grin pulling on his lips. “If anyone does, it’ll be you.”
NICHOLAS
I grilled Mila for two hours. Lacey got bored and left. Amber came and went, and Mila’s agent, Andi, spent the time on the phone or her laptop, often disappearing and getting straight back to work once she seemed sure Mila was okay.
I had been late, cursing and upset that I was delayed.
MJ had shown up unexpectedly, a pile of scripts clutched in her hands. “I need you to go through these. I think the top one is a winner.”
I frowned. “I told you I wanted a break when this was done.”
She shook her head. “If this goes well, you need another one right away. I want you to keep working. Smooth out your reputation.”
I had shut my eyes, gathering my patience. “My reputation is fine.”
“If this movie does well, we need to cash in on the good PR.” She held up a script. “This one is angsty and gritty.” She frowned. “It’s a pretty long shoot. You’ll have to do some training and lose some weight for the second part of the movie, but it’s doable.”
I shook my head. “No. I don’t want a grueling schedule.”
She became irate. “Too bad, Nicholas. You need to listen to me—”
I interrupted her. “No, you need to listen to me, MJ. If I don’t think I can do it, I’m not going to.”
“Then you can kiss your career goodbye.”
“Stop being so overdramatic,” I insisted. “That’s my job.” I tried to tease her into a better mood.
She glared at me. “Then do your job. Stop wasting my time.”