Chapter 15
“Let’s get dinner tonight,” the words spill from my tongue as I pull away.
“You still have to get checked out to make sure you don’t have a fracture.”
Right, I forgot. I did just get pummeled shooting a scene not too long ago.
I’m more than flattered to have Miles’s concern.
To be frank, it hasn’t really bothered me.
Sure, I’m a little bruised, but it doesn’t feel like a fracture—even if I am a man and men always downplay their injuries.
But I’m serious! It wasn’t a real chain.
If it had been, I'd go without argument.
I convince him to let me skip out tonight and tell him I’ll go later—which I probably won’t, but at least it’ll make him feel better.
“What if it ruins your face? It’s your only asset, you know.” Miles laughs, and it’s the most beautiful sound in the world. I’d never heard him laugh like this before—especially not because of me. But I love the sound, and I want to keep hearing it forever.
“Are you going to break up with me if it does?” I inhale dramatically. He laughs again, making my heart swell.
“Maybe,” he can’t help but crack a smile.
I wish I could keep these moments forever. I haven’t felt so happy in so long; I can’t even remember the last time I felt this light and free.
Someone knocks on the trailer door, and it pains me to pull away and answer, but I do—it’s my job.
“Hey, we need you back inside.” I nod and ask Miles to wait for me until I get back and leave him alone.
I hate leaving him. Not when I’ve wasted so much time with him before. I want to hang around him for so long it’s sickening, and then I intend to hang around him longer.
I barely register what Joseph says or does, my mind too preoccupied with the date I’ll be going on.
Have I ever gone on a date with someone I actually liked?
I don’t know. I’ve taken women out for dinner, sure.
I’ve done the basics of dating, but it was always just to let off steam.
Nothing like this. If our date is just that—a date—I’d happily send him off with a kiss and a goodbye afterward and be more than satisfied.
My heart feels like it might beat right out of my chest. Oh, that’s right, we’re going on a date.
My hands start to sweat, and I instinctively check my hair and clothes in the reflection of the director’s monitor.
I feel like a teenager getting ready for prom, and I haven’t felt this way since, well, prom.
“Hey. Dude. Kane!” I finally snap out of it as Joseph’s voice gets louder. “Dude, did you even hear what I said?”
The blank stare on my face must have given him his answer because he rolls his eyes with a sigh. “You’ve been acting weird lately. And I saw you come with that assistant. Didn’t he quit? And why did you want to know where he lived?” Joseph’s bombardment grounds me back into reality.
“Trust me, man. If I have a problem, I’ll tell you.” I ignore his questions and try to give him a reassuring smile, but I can tell that he isn’t buying it.
“Okay,” he looks at me skeptically, “but it’s my ass on the line if you get into trouble.”
“Alright. I have to go, so I’ll talk to you later.” I pat him on the shoulder and dash off back toward the direction of my trailer, a painful grin spread over my cheeks.