Chapter 5
CHAPTER
FIVE
CHRISTINE
I return to my hotel room shortly after midnight, devastatingly sober despite my best attempts otherwise. Getting some of the camera crew and a few supporting actors to join me for drinks—my treat—at the modern hotel’s rooftop bar was an easy sell.
But we all care too much about this movie going well, so the crew was responsibly off to bed by eleven forty-five, hitching a rideshare to a less extravagant hotel closer to the set.
It’s not that I didn’t drink; it’s that it takes a lot to get me drunk. I briefly consider ordering a bottle of wine to my room… but I’m not that pathetic.
Yet, anyway.
I’m just sick of killing time. Sick of not sleeping.
Reviewing the script knocks out an hour. Rehearsing fight choreo passes another.
Pacing in front of the floor-to-ceiling windows, gossamer curtains pulled aside to reveal the glittering skyscrapers of downtown Auckland, only covers all of ten minutes, but it feels like an eternity.
I suppose if the production is spending so much on my hotel room, as stipulated by a clause in my contract I didn’t realize was there, better that I’m awake to use it.
I draw a bath in the soaking tub by the window, simultaneously charmed and baffled by the all-marble bathroom separated from the bed by only a pane of clear glass. A thoughtfully curated tray offers a variety of bath oils and a cluster of rose petals.
I flick the petals one by one into the rising water.
God, I’m bored.
My assistant was so proud when she showed me this hotel. I half-wonder if she picked it out herself.
How to say I’d rather be in a motel with the rest of the team, that I’m happy to share a room? Hell, I’d rather pitch a tent on set. That way I could stare at the stars or scope out the next filming location.
Anything other than being stuck in this shiny glass box.
But I see the way the crew tenses up when I’m around. They wouldn’t be able to relax properly.
So, shiny box it is.
At least Mylo seems interesting. Based on what Bells and Gabe have said, he’s someone I can learn a thing or two from—really take my stunt work to the next level.
And he’s cute.
I’ve worried for a long time that dating a beta isn’t in the cards for me.
Which means love isn’t in the cards for me.
I thought at least I had friends to become spinsters with, but then Mor, of all people, abruptly married an omega.
I’d give her a harder time for reneging on all her bold commitments to avoid the ethical lapse, if not for how fucking happy they seem.
Plenty of alphas end up with betas—it’s easier, given how omegas avoid us alphas, for good reason—but anyone I’ve ever had chemistry with has been an omega. And I’m not interested in that level of commitment.
I sink into the hot water, letting it soak away the day’s strain and bruises. I even put on some spa music, routed through the room’s built-in speaker system.
That kills fifteen minutes.
By the time I’m wrapped in a fluffy bathrobe and sitting on the bed, it’s three AM. Which makes it… nine on the East Coast. Perfect.
My phone warbles as the screen reads, Dialing Avery Quinn.
As soon as the call connects, I chime, “Hey, Vee! What’s up?”
“Tee? What the fuck do you want?” Avery’s voice is hoarse and husky, with a hint of an old Boston accent. It comes out when she’s drunk or tired.
“Good morning to you too, bitch.”
“It’s eight. How the fuck do you want me to sound?”
“Isn’t it nine?”
“Somewhere else, maybe. Not in fucking Chicago.”
I smile and flop back onto the plush pillows. “Oh, I forgot you moved.”
“Yeah, three years ago.”
“Well, soh-ree. How’s the Windy City?” My foot taps, bleeding off excess energy.
“Are we really doing this right now?”
“Why not? I miss you. Let’s catch up.”
“Tee… entertaining you isn’t my job.”
“I know. It’s your privilege.”
There’s a low groan that borders on a growl. Then a sigh. “Fine. Let me get some coffee.”
“Eight’s not that early for you. Ms. Lawyer. Which means you’re hungover. Oooh, that’s gotta be a good story. Spill.”
“Fuck off.”
“Love you too, bitch.”
Shuffling and clunking noises filtered through the phone as Avery gets her coffee. My eyes glide out the window and over Auckland, more happy that she picked up and is humoring me than impatient, at the moment.
“Chicago is fine,” Avery finally says.
“That bad, huh?”
“No no, you’re not going to call me just to enjoy my misery. You’re the one on set in New Zealand calling me at…” There’s a pause as she does the math. “Three AM? Jesus, Tee. That bad?”
“It’s just some insomnia. And it’s been ages since we talked. We haven’t hung out since Mor’s wedding.”
“That’s not my fault. Somebody’s busy being a movie star.”
“Hey, speaking of, do I have you to thank for this super-fancy-hotel clause in my contract?”
There’s a pause, then a sadistic chuckle. I can picture Avery’s exact smug expression as she takes a sip of her coffee.
“I fucking knew it!” I punch the pillow next to me. “You asshole. Now the whole crew thinks I’m a spoiled brat.”
“Aren’t you?”
“That’s beside the point.”
“Payback for that blind date you sent me on with your cousin. She still messages me to tell me how her azaleas are doing.”
My laugh is just as vicious as Avery’s. “Ah… That was such a good one.”
“You should be more embarrassed to be related to her.”
“Eh, her dad married into the family. We don’t share a gene pool.” I flick a piece of lint off the comforter next to me.
“Sure, sure. Whatever you say.”
“New stunt person got here. Mylo Rye. Heard of him?”
Avery’s huff is almost a laugh. “Is he an A-lister in need of a divorce?”
“No.”
“Then why the fuck would I have heard of him? You know way more people in that industry than I do.”
“I dunno. Just curious.”
Avery sighs. “Tee.”
That’s her serious voice. Uh oh.
She continues, “Why’d you really call?”
I’m quiet for a long moment. I toy with the belt on my robe. “Do you think it was a mistake?”
“Think what was a mistake?”
“Signing this contract. For five movies.”
“If I thought it was a mistake, I wouldn’t have helped you review it. Tee. It’s five movies with a big studio. That’s work that’ll set you up for life. Is this why you can’t sleep?”
“I don’t like that word. Cement. What if this means I’ll always only be Electra?”
“You love Electra. I don’t see the problem.”
“I do, I just… I don’t know. It’s stupid. I’m spinning my wheels.” The city suddenly feels overbright, so I stare up at the ceiling. Fresh, white drywall. Nothing to see. I flop over to face away from the windows.
“When was the last time you got a proper night of sleep?”
“Aren’t you a bit too hungover to judge?”
“I’m not judging. I’m just asking.”
“Like… a month, maybe?”
“You should call a doctor, not me, Tee. Or, at least, call Gia. I’m useless with brain stuff.”
I trace the stitching on the duvet cover. I’m sure Avery leans against the wall, watching the golden morning light spill across Chicago, grateful for a quiet moment to gulp down some more coffee.
“You remember when we met?” I ask.
There’s a twinge of something like resignation or defeat in Avery’s voice as she lets me change the subject. “Yeah, I remember when we met. I remember having zero clue why Morgan let this spoiled little brat hang around. Still don’t…”
I laugh, and my body finally settles. “And I thought you were this cool, hotshot trial lawyer. Oh, how wrong I was.”
Avery chuckles. “Y’know, when I stepped back from trial law and started my own practice, I worried I was ruining my career.
That the partners were right, that I couldn’t hack it on my own.
So, I set out to prove them wrong. If there’s one thing I don’t doubt, Tee, it’s that if anyone tries to pigeon-hole you, you’ll prove them wrong. ”
“… Thanks, Vee. That means a lot. Even coming from a grumpy old bat.”
“You called me, asshole. Now, go the fuck to bed.”
“Yeah, yeah. Oh, one more thing.”
“Uh huh?”
“I think the Windy City is a perfect place for a windbag like you.”
The line clicks as Avery hangs up, and I smirk.
She’s the oldest of our little group of female alphas.
You could call us a pack if you extend that definition to include a friend group spread across different cities because if we spend more than a week in the same town, we bite each other’s heads off.
Given that I’m the youngest, she’s always been like an older sister to me. She’s the one I trust most for life advice.
And if Avery thinks this isn’t a mistake…
Then I’ll see it through.