Chapter 18
call. Her actors hadn’t arrived yet, and she regretted not taking time to have
coffee with Clint before he’d dropped her off. Annoyed, she refused to drink the
craft services coffee when she knew there was really great Colombian in the
production trailer. If she interrupted a meeting, so what. Everyone would just
get over it.
Walking to the trailer, the only nice one of the bunch, she
hurried, more because of the cold than anything, and darted up the three stairs.
There was no one inside, but someone had been, and the pot of dark roast was
waiting for her as if she’d made an appointment.
She’d just grabbed a mug when the door in the back closed with
a bang. Turning her head, she saw it was Jason, and her desire for coffee
diminished. Not that she wasn’t going to take some; she just couldn’t look at
him without feeling a little sick.
“Hey, you stealing the coffee again?”
“As if I haven’t earned a decent cup,” she said. She poured,
careful not to let her tremble make her spill the coffee, and by the time she
put in a dash of real cream, she couldn’t stand it anymore.
She turned to face Jason, who was staring up at the monitor
plugged in above the desk.
“Why, Jason?”
He clicked off the dailies with the remote and blinked at her.
“Why what?”
“Why was it so easy to sell out Erin? After all she’s done for
you? After we all swore we’d never become that.”
“Oh, please. Look, I know you and Erin are besties, and you
think I’ve screwed her, but has she told you that I’m paying her full salary for
a first AD? It’s not all that terrible.”
“Of course it is. Good grief, how you’ve rationalized
everything you used to believe was wrong about the business. Erin is the only
thing that truly kept this shoot going. Making Baxter AD is a slap in her face,
and you know it.”
She could see the red rising up Jason’s neck, a sure sign he
was ready to blow. Well, she didn’t care. Not a whit.
“What, you think it was an easy call for me? Do you have any
idea how much money we’ve got now? Enough to make our budget on the sequel.
Without taking out any more loans. Paul Mortimer’s check isn’t all I’ve got. He
has connections to distributors. My God, after all these years, are you truly
this naive?”
“I know who you were. And who you are now. And you used to
believe the film would speak for itself. Despite everything, it’s a hell of a
movie, Jason. You didn’t need to sell out. You just got scared and sold your
soul for the easier road.”
“Christ, what, has Erin been giving you lessons on breaking my
balls?”
“I don’t need lessons to tell the truth.”
“What are you so upset about, anyway? You’ve still got your
part. You’re going to get some action on that role, sweetheart. That’s what
you’ve always wanted, and I just made sure it would happen. You should be
thanking me. I’m giving you a future that’s not working in a crappy trailer on
some other actress’s hair.”
For a moment, Lila couldn’t catch her breath. Then she got
really, really calm. She put her mug down and took a step forward, then another,
until she was right up in Jason’s face. “You know what? I quit. I’m done. I
don’t want to work with you ever again. And I sure as heck don’t want Baxter
telling me what to do for a good eight weeks. I’ll finish up on this one,
because I’ve signed a contract, but after that? No more, Jason. Not one extra
day.”
“You’re joking.”
“Do I look like I’m joking?”
“This is your shot, Lila. For God’s sake, you’ve got talent. We
wrote this character for you. Tara’s gonna get as much print as the lead. Don’t
you understand? This is the part that has all the juice. Don’t walk away when it
finally matters. You’ll be back at square one, can’t you see that?”
“I see everything quite clearly, thank you. You’re thirty years
old and you look like you’re forty, you know that? Your affair with Penelope is
doing damage to the movie, and your reputation. You sold out your most loyal
friend and told her about it after the fact. I’m absolutely certain you knew
she’d stick around, because that’s who Erin is. Honorable. And you stuck a knife
in her back. You—” Her brain and mouth both seemed to quit on her. “You stupid
fucker. I’d rather wait tables than work with you again.”
Lila’s heart was beating so hard she might just have a stroke.
She’d never felt better or been surer about anything in her life. And she’d used
the F-word. She walked out of the trailer with her head held high.
Until she realized she’d just quit without talking to Erin.
How could she have been so stupid? It wasn’t as if she could go
back and say, by the way, please don’t tell Erin. Pretty, pretty please. For old
times’ sake. And p.s. you’re still a stupid fucker.
Lila sighed.
Crap.
CLINT DIDN’T KNOW what was
going on when he saw Lila leave the trailer looking so angry she could spit, but
when he saw Jason running after her, Clint jumped out of his truck.
Jason was calling out to her, and she just kept shaking her
head, moving fast, without looking back at him. She was at work, Jason was still
her boss, and since she didn’t appear to be in any danger, Clint had no right to
interfere. But that was just too damn bad. She could chew him out later if she
wanted.
She was still a good distance away, and he doubted she’d seen
him yet. Her head was bowed as she stared at the ground in front of her.
Jason gave up his pursuit, whether it was because he’d seen
Clint, he didn’t know. Didn’t care. As he closed in on Lila, he saw how pale she
looked. The violence building inside him wasn’t anything he’d ever experienced
before, and his fists reflexively clenched. God help Jason if he was responsible
for the stricken expression on her face.
Clint stopped ten feet in front of her.
“Lila?” he said, realizing she hadn’t noticed him.
“Sweetheart?”
Startled, she glanced up and froze. “Hi. What are you doing
here?”
He held up her cell phone. “You forgot this in the truck.”
“Oh.” She patted her pocket, then held out her hand. “Thanks, I
would’ve been lost without it.”
“What’s wrong?”
“Nothing.” Her shoulders slumped. “Is Jason behind me?”
“He went back to his trailer.”
“Good.” She drew in a deep breath. “Look, I can’t talk. I’ve
got to get to work.”
He followed her gaze to the man and woman, actors with small
parts, who were here for the week.
Lila touched his arm with an unsteady hand. “Everything’s
fine,” she said. “I promise I’ll call you later.” She looked as if she was in
some kind of daze. “I just quit.”
“You what?”
“I quit,” she repeated. “You can’t say anything.”
She smiled at the approaching couple and said, “Go to the
trailer, I’ll be right there.” She looked back at Clint. “Don’t tell anyone,
okay?”
He was almost too shocked to speak. “I won’t.”
“It’s fine,” she said, her face a complete wreck. “I
promise.”
He might’ve believed her if her voice hadn’t cracked. Twice.
Both times when she’d said the word quit. Given her
loyalty to Erin, he could see her telling Jason to shove it on her friend’s
behalf. But things sure weren’t fine. He recognized regret when he heard it.
Watching her race up the trailer steps, he couldn’t make
himself move. He had an order to pick up at the hardware store. He’d figured on
hanging around and having breakfast at the diner while he waited for Jorgenson
to open. But the thought of food didn’t agree with him now.
Cast, crew and extras were arriving in herds. He’d left his
truck in a lousy spot. He had to move it before he jammed someone up. Part of
him wanted to wait around, be available if Lila had a few minutes to talk. But
what was the point? Of course he wanted to make sure she was okay, that was a
given. It was that tiny niggling of hope that worried him. The hope he still
harbored that if she really had quit and it stuck, that could mean something for
their future together.
On the other hand, if things went further south with Jason, she
could be gone by the end of the day. She wanted to be at home for Christmas. If
Jason refused to give her back the role, this was a great opportunity for her to
tell him to stick it.
He climbed into his truck and sat there taking one deep breath
after another. Just to slow his heart rate. Hell, at least he had the sense to
be concerned. Because he knew her quitting didn’t change anything. He’d figured
that out last night.
Lila had expected to be busy today. But damn, he hoped she took
a moment to call him. He sat there for another five minutes, staring at his
phone, fighting the impulse to call her. But he was blocking traffic. If he
didn’t move, someone would be coming to chase him off the lot.
He drove to town, parked in front of the diner and laid his
head back. Lila had slept well, but he hadn’t. He needed more coffee, and in a
minute he’d rally and go get some.
What he had to remember, Lila may have doubts and regrets over
quitting, but he didn’t have any doubts about his future. He couldn’t afford to,
because he belonged at the Whispering Pines, keeping the Landers’ name and
tradition alive. Clint hoped Lila was right about Seth wanting to come back to
the family. But they couldn’t count on him.
Anyway, that wasn’t the point. Tomorrow made three weeks.
That’s how long he’d known Lila. And he’d been driving himself insane about
their future? That
pretty much said it all. He was the worst kind of fool.
Clint hadn’t realized he’d closed his eyes until someone
knocked on the window. He straightened with a start. What the hell?
He let down the window. “Mom? What are you doing here? It’s
early.”
She smiled. “Early? It’s eight forty. How about buying your old
mom a cup of coffee?”
Clint stared at the dashboard clock. An hour had gone by. How
was that possible?
“Looks as though you could use some yourself.”
Dazed, he glanced at her. “Sure,” he said, and climbed out.
They sat in a small booth at the back of the diner and ordered