19. Grey
Chapter 19
Grey
O n Monday, I show up for our first day of shooting on the beach. We’re here all week, and there's a few thousand square yards of the Malibu coast roped off just for us. Although it’s only seven in the morning, beach-goers are already beginning to populate the rest of the beach, craning their necks as they walk by, trying to see what we’re filming.
I appreciate that the hours of this film are pretty normal, even though most of it is filmed on location. Most of my Bond scenes were filmed on location too, but it had the worst schedule. For example, there were a few scenes that happened in the streets of London at night, meaning we had to film them at night. One of the main plot points of the second movie was a heist of the British Museum, and we could only film there after-hours when there weren’t any guests. It would have been easy enough for me to switch my sleep schedule so I’d be wide awake at night, but the other half of the time we filmed during the day, so my circadian rhythm was all out of whack for the entirety of the second film. And most of the first too, if I’m being honest.
I enter my trailer still thinking about my sleep schedule, strip out of my gym clothes, and hop in the shower. I prefer to work out in the mornings, so I’ve been up since four a.m. to fit in a two-hour session with Brock. Most people would think my lifestyle sounds like hell, but I actually enjoy working out that much. Not only does it benefit my body, but it really centers me and prepares me for the day ahead. I guess I work out for the same reasons others journal or do yoga—except working out has the added bonus of making a person ripped.
As I’m stepping out of the shower and reaching for my towel, I notice a sliver of vibrant sunlight in the periphery of my vision. When I turn my head to properly look at it, I realize that a: it’s coming from my trailer door, and b: it’s getting wider. I feel adrenaline flood my system as a backlit figure appears in the now-open doorway. Although I wrap my towel around my hips as quickly as I can, I’m clearly a second too late
“Oh my god!” a familiar voice screams. Hopefully that was an “Oh my god” as in “Oh my god, he’s huge” and not “Oh my god, I’m scarred for life.”
I let out a deep breath. “Bloody hell, Aspen, you scared me. I thought you were some rando.”
She has turned her back to me now, one of her hands covering her eyes. “Why wasn’t your door locked if you were naked?” she asks indignantly.
I chuckle. “Are you seriously mad at me, when you’re the one who walked into my trailer uninvited?”
I can tell Aspen is flustered, even though I’m staring at her back. “Hey, I knocked!” she retorts. “Several times. And I knew you were in here because I saw your car in the lot, and I even confirmed it with a passing cameraman who told me he saw you walk in a few minutes ago. I thought you were just listening to music or something.”
“You can turn around, you know,” I say bemusedly. “I’m in a towel.”
“I brought something to show you and I’m not coming any closer until you’re fully clothed.” She turns her head and takes a quick glance at me over her shoulder. Her face is bright red. “And besides,” she says, turning back around, “you’re making a puddle on the floor.”
I look down at my feet and notice I am, in fact, making a small puddle. “Fine, I’ll change. No peeking, Jordan.”
“I’m not going to peek,” she responds irritably.
I quickly pat myself dry with the towel before slipping into fresh shorts and a t-shirt.
“You can look now.”
Aspen turns, but her right hand is once again covering her eyes. She separates her fingers to take a quick glimpse before deeming it safe enough to drop the hand entirely. Her eyes lock on mine, but neither of us make the first step toward the other. Even though we’re still ten feet apart, it feels like she’s right next to me with the way my chest tightens. I’ve never really thought much about how attractive Aspen is, but now that she’s in my trailer, where I was naked mere minutes ago, I’m definitely feeling some type of way. And I don’t hate the feeling. I’m fine to stand here for hours staring into her eyes. They’re so tranquil, like two windows into an alpine lake. How have I never noticed that before? Aspen doesn’t just have blue eyes—she has blue eyes, like the kind people write songs about.
Aspen looks away. “It’s pretty steamy in here.”
My voice comes out fainter than I intend. “Yeah.” I clear my throat and continue, voice normal again. “So what did you want to show me?”
“Oh!” Aspen’s eyes widen slightly, like she also forgot. She holds up a magazine she’s apparently been holding this entire time in her left hand. She closes the distance between us and hands it to me.
“What’s this?” I ask, taking it from her. It’s titled Scoop on the Stars, Weekly.
“Look at page twenty-two.”
I flip to the page and see a full-page spread on Aspen and I, with a photo of us sitting outside Eldora, laughing with our sunglasses on. Hidden Romance Blooms Between Jordan and Aldridge, the headline reads.
“‘ Hidden? ’” I laugh. “How dense are these people? If we were actually in a hidden relationship, they wouldn’t know a thing about it.”
“I know, right? It’s the fact that the entire thing is performative that cracks me up. But the headline wasn’t what I wanted to show you. Look at the photo.”
“We have our own smoothies.” I knit my brows. “Well, these people only used that photo because they’re daft, as evidenced by the headline. If they had any sense at all, they’d have used the one where we split.”
“Dumb or not, they still used this photo.”
“So, we both won. One of each went viral.”
“Yep.”
“So you came all the way in here just to tell me you didn’t lose? You’re a piece of work, Jordan.” I bite back a smile.
She doesn’t bother hiding hers. “I was just doing my part to keep your ego in check.”
“Lord knows it needs it,” I agree.
“Well, on that note, I should get to hair and makeup.”
“Same,” I agree. “But this isn’t over. We need a tiebreaker bet at some point.”
“For sure. See you on set, Grey,” Aspen says before slipping out my trailer, leaving me wondering what the hell just happened. And a follow up question: did she see my dick?