Chapter 27
GRACE
Isipped the coffee Patty brought me. I got to set early, wanting to go over my lines. My phone rang halfway through a scene I wanted to nail. I’d be working with Jack and it was supposed to be a tender scene.
Gag.
I checked the screen and saw Loretta’s name.
“Hi, Loretta.”
“Grace! Tell me you’re sitting down.”
I laughed. “I’m sitting. What’s going on?”
“What’s going on is that my phone has been ringing off the hook for the past forty-eight hours.
” I could hear the excitement crackling through the line.
“I’ve got three studios asking about your availability after Breathless wraps.
Two streaming services want to discuss potential projects.
And Entertainment Tonight is begging for an exclusive interview. ”
I blinked, trying to process. “Wait, seriously?”
“Seriously. This Jack Montana thing has been a goldmine. You went from a nobody to trending on Twitter in the span of a week. Everyone wants to know who Grace Stone is.”
My stomach twisted. “But it’s not true, Loretta. None of it is true. I didn’t kiss Jack. I’m not having an affair with him.”
“I know that. You know that. But you haven’t lied about anything, sweetie. These people made their own assumptions based on some grainy parking lot photos. That’s not on you.”
“It feels dishonest,” I said quietly. “Building a career on something that never happened.”
“You’re not building a career on it. You’re getting attention because of it. There’s a difference. What you do with that attention—that’s where the talent comes in. And honey, you’ve got talent in spades.”
I stared out the window of my trailer at the beautiful surroundings. I thought about the many other sets I might get to be on if my career really took off.
Part of me wanted to tell Loretta the real reason this bothered me so much. There was someone else. Someone I actually cared about. I had to hide that situationship because the whole world thought I was wrapped up with Jack fucking Montana. And that was why it was stuck in situationship territory.
But I couldn’t tell her because we were still working together.
“I don’t want to make a name for myself because I supposedly kissed a married co-star,” I said instead. “I want to do it on talent. That’s the whole point. That’s why I changed my name in the first place.”
“And you will. Grace, listen to me. In five years, nobody is going to remember any of this Jack nonsense. But they will remember your name. They’ll remember the performances you gave. This is just the door opening. What you do once you walk through it—that’s what matters.”
“I specifically used a stage name so people would judge me on my talent,” I pressed. “Not my father’s reputation. Not some fake scandal. My work.”
“And they will. I promise you, they will.” Loretta’s voice softened. “But right now, the world is paying attention. That’s half the battle in this industry. Getting people to look. Once they’re looking, you show them what you’ve got. And sweetheart, what you’ve got is going to blow them away.”
I sighed, rubbing my temples. “I don’t know, Loretta.”
“Trust me,” she said firmly. “I’ve been doing this for thirty years.
I know how the game works. You ride this wave, you deliver an incredible performance in Breathless, and by this time next year, you’ll have your pick of projects.
The Jack stuff will be a footnote. A funny story you tell on talk shows. ”
I wanted to believe her. I really did.
“Just trust me,” she repeated. “Okay?”
“Okay,” I said finally. “I trust you.”
“That’s my girl. Now go knock ‘em dead today. And call me the second you wrap. We’ve got a lot to discuss.”
She hung up. I sat there in the silence of my trailer and tried to figure out the impossible situation I’d gotten myself into. I needed to talk to someone who wasn’t trying to manage my career. Someone who would just be real with me.
I pulled up Becky’s contact and hit call.
She answered on the second ring. “Oh my God, finally! I’ve been dying over here. Your little texts here and there are not satisfying my need for details. Spill everything.”
“I don’t even know where to start,” I said.
“I’ve been watching this Jack Montana thing blow up all over the internet and you’ve been radio silent. What the hell is going on? Did you actually kiss him?”
“No! God, no.” I flopped back on the couch, staring at the ceiling. “I would never. He’s married. You know me better than that.”
“I thought I did, but then I saw those photos and I was like, who is this woman? Because the Grace I know wouldn’t touch a married man with a ten-foot pole.”
“Can I tell you something?” I asked. “And you have to swear not to say a word.”
“Tell me!”
“It wasn’t me in those photos.”
“What?”
“It was Chantilly. Jack’s wife.” I explained the whole ridiculous situation—the kiss scene, Chantilly’s jealousy, the wig, the paparazzi catching them in the parking lot and assuming it was me.
“They’re just staying quiet because they’re attention vampires. They love that people are talking about them, even if it’s negative. More followers, more engagement, more whatever the hell they care about.”
Becky was quiet for a moment. “That is actually insane. But also kind of genius? In a deeply fucked up way?”
“Tell me about it.”
“So you’re just letting everyone think you’re a homewrecker for the sake of clicks?”
“The studio wants us to ride it out. Says it’s good publicity for the movie.” I sighed. “Loretta thinks it’s opening doors for me. She’s probably right. But it feels gross.”
“Yeah, I can see that.” Becky paused. “But if it’s not true, and everyone will eventually find out it’s not true, then maybe it’s not the worst thing? Like, you’re not actually hurting anyone.”
“I guess.”
“You don’t sound convinced.”
“It feels shady,” I said.
“Girl, you do remember where we live, right? The industry you have been dying to get into? Shady is pretty much a requirement.”
I chewed my lip, debating whether to tell her the rest. This was Becky. My best friend. The person who’d held my hair back after I drank way too many tequila shots after bad auditions. If I couldn’t be honest with her, who could I be honest with?
“There’s something else,” I said quietly.
“Ooh, I knew it. Spill.”
“What’s actually happening is…” I took a deep breath. “I’m sleeping with Micah Blackwell.”
Dead silence on the other end.
“Becky? You still there?”
“I’m sorry, what? The director? Hot director Micah Blackwell? The one you were specifically told not to sleep with?”
“That’s the one.”
“Grace!”
“I know, I know.” I pressed my free hand over my eyes. “It just happened. And then it kept happening. And now…”
“Now what?”
“Now I really like him. Like really like him.”
Another pause. “Define ‘really like.’”
“I fall asleep thinking about him. I wake up thinking about him.” I laughed softly, feeling the heat creep into my cheeks.
“Horny most of the time, if I’m being honest. I catch myself staring at him on set when I should be focused on literally anything else.
Yesterday he was being overprotective during a stunt sequence and I got mad at him for it, but also…
” I trailed off, trying to find the right words.
“Part of me kind of liked it? The way he was looking out for me.”
“That’s sweet.”
“It was sweet. I felt safe. Like someone actually cared. Not about Grace Stone the actress, but about me.”
Becky let out a long, low whistle. “Giiiiirl, you’re in trouble.”
“I know.”
“Like, serious trouble. This isn’t just a hookup, is it?”
“No.” The admission felt heavy. “I don’t think it ever was.”
Becky sighed and I could practically hear her thinking. “Okay. I’m going to say something, and I need you to actually listen.”
I could always count on Becky to give it to me straight. She didn’t know how to hold back. That’s why she was such a good a personal trainer.
“I’m listening.”
“Be careful.” Her voice was serious now, the teasing gone. “Grace, you have fought so hard for a chance like this. Years of auditions and rejections. This movie is everything you’ve been working toward.”
“I know that.”
“Do you? Because it sounds like you’re getting swept up in something that could derail all of it. I’m not saying Micah isn’t great. He sounds great. But you need to make sure this distraction doesn’t ruin everything you’ve been building.”
And that’s exactly what I needed to hear, even if I hated it. I was too caught up in the sex and the feelings and couldn’t think straight.
“You’re right,” I said quietly. “This movie is my whole future. It’s the biggest opportunity anyone will ever give me. I can’t muck it up for a guy.”
“Even if he might be the perfect guy for you,” Becky added gently.
“Even then.”
We sat with that for a moment. The impossible choice between something that felt real and something I’d been chasing my entire life.
“I hate this,” I admitted.
“I know you do. But you’ve got what, a couple more weeks of shooting? Get through the movie first. Deliver the performance of a lifetime. And then, when you’re not his employee anymore, you figure out if this thing with Micah is real.”
“That’s basically what he said.”
“Smart man. I approve.” She paused. “For the record, I really hope it works out. You deserve someone who makes you feel safe. But right now, the best thing you can do for yourself is focus on the work.”
“Yeah.” I nodded even though she couldn’t see me. “You’re right. Thank you, Becky. For being honest with me. I knew you would be the one to set me straight.”
“That’s what best friends are for. Now go be a movie star. And text me when you wrap. I want all the details.”
“Promise.”
I hung up and sat there in the silence of my trailer, trying to get my head around everything she said. She wasn’t wrong. None of what she said was wrong. This movie was my shot. My one real chance to prove I belonged.
I couldn’t blow it. Not for anyone.
Not even for Micah.