Chapter 23
JUNO
Iwatched from the sidelines as Jack Montana settled into the makeup chair. The energy in the room had shifted completely. All very professional, but different than it had been fifteen minutes ago. This was a real production, not some quick social media content.
Hollis excused himself and made his way across the sound stage to where his brother stood reviewing something on a tablet. I couldn’t hear them from this distance, but I could see Hollis gesturing animatedly, clearly asking the same question that was burning in my mind.
How the hell did he get Jack Montana for this?
Micah’s response made Hollis throw his head back and laugh.
They talked for another minute, both of them occasionally glancing toward where Jack sat getting his face touched up by a makeup artist who looked focused.
Actors didn’t get much more famous Jack Montana and doing his makeup wasn’t just another day at the office.
As good looking as Jack Montana was, Hollis was hotter, which was crazy to realize. The Blackwell DNA should be studied. The gene pool that created those divine creatures could be bottled and sold for millions. Hollis glanced over and caught me staring. That familiar heat spread through my body.
He returned to my side, shaking his head with a grin I couldn’t quite read.
“So?” I prompted.
“Apparently Micah’s been talking with Jack about a movie he wants to direct. If he can attach a star like Jack to the project, studios will be fighting over it. So they’ve been hanging out as they work on that.”
“Smart,” I said. “But that doesn’t explain why Jack agreed to do this.”
“I asked Micah the same thing. He said he used his secret weapon.”
“Which is?”
Hollis’s grin widened. “Money. He paid him lots of money.”
I felt my eyebrows shoot up. “How much money are we talking?”
“I didn’t ask. But I told him I’d pay him back, and he said no. Said this was an investment in his future too. Something about building goodwill with Jack before they start working together.”
I turned to look at Micah with new appreciation. The Blackwells were something else. They didn’t just think in terms of immediate returns. They played the long game, building relationships and opportunities that would pay off down the line. It was smart business wrapped in family loyalty.
I liked that. Despite their wealth and fame, they were a legitimately supportive bunch.
“Your family is insane,” I said, but there was no bite to it.
“Tell me about it.” Hollis crossed his arms, watching as the crew made final adjustments to the lighting. “Growing up, I thought everyone’s parents brought home Oscar winners for dinner.”
“Must have been rough.”
He caught the sarcasm in my voice and smiled. “You have no idea.”
I watched as the crew descended on Jack, adjusting lights and mics while Micah barked orders like he’d been born on set.
The man commanded attention without breaking a sweat.
He had been working on movies for a while, but according to Hollis, directing the whole show was new for him.
If today’s production was any indication, he would be just fine.
I admired the efficiency even as the whole thing felt surreal. Hollis stayed close to my side. I appreciated him being there despite the awkwardness still humming between us. The set was way out of my wheelhouse. I would have felt like a fish out of water if it wasn’t for Hollis.
He disappeared for a minute and returned with two of his green shakes in hand. “Here,” he said, handing me one with that infuriating half-smile. “Come on, try it again. Look me in the eye and tell me you don’t like it. I know it’s good.”
I rolled my eyes but took the bottle anyway. “You’re relentless.”
“Guilty.” He leaned in, voice low so the crew wouldn’t overhear. “You’ve been pretending it tastes like shit just to get under my skin. Admit it.”
I twisted the cap open, raised the bottle in mock salute, and took a slow sip. The familiar blend hit my tongue—smooth, slightly tangy, with that hint of pineapple that actually worked. It had always been fine. Better than fine, if I was honest. I’d just enjoyed needling him about it.
“Okay, fine,” I said, fighting a smile. “I like it.”
Hollis’s grin widened, triumphant and boyish. “Knew it. You’ve been full of it this whole time.”
“Sticking it to you was half the fun.” I took another sip. “Doesn’t mean I’m ready to drink it every morning.”
“Progress,” he murmured, and something in his tone made my stomach flip.
We stood shoulder to shoulder after that, watching Jack nail take after take.
The star sipped the shake on cue, delivered his lines with effortless charm, and made the whole thing look effortless.
Micah called cut and reset a dozen times, tweaking angles, but Jack never once complained.
Hollis and I exchanged amused glances every time the director shouted for another go.
Eventually they wrapped Jack’s solo shots.
Hollis was pulled in next, standing beside the actor while they ran a version where he delivered a couple of lines about the product.
He was surprisingly natural on camera. Confident, flashing that easy smile that had probably sold half his smoothies.
It worked. The chemistry between them was light and genuine.
I could watch him all day. And that was a problem.
Then Micah turned toward me. “Juno, you’re up. Get in there.”
I blinked. “Me?”
“Yeah. Just a quick reaction shot. People love when you two are on camera together. Let’s see what happens.”
“Uh, no thanks.”
Hollis looked at me and grinned. “Come on.”
“Absolutely not,” I said, taking a step back like the camera might reach out and grab me.
“Come on,” Micah said, not even looking up from his monitor. “Everyone online loved the two of you in that makeup video. The comments, the chemistry. People ate it up. Let’s just try a version where you’re standing beside Hollis.”
“No. I didn’t dress for the cameras.”
“You look great,” Hollis said. “Beautiful.”
And oh God, I would’ve walked over broken glass barefoot.
“Just stand there,” Micah said, pointing toward a spot by Hollis.
I shook my head. “You guys are the professionals.”
Hollis was watching me with that infuriating amusement, arms crossed. “Scared of the camera, Young?”
“I’m not scared of anything. I just don’t want to be part of your little commercial.”
“It’s not my commercial, it’s B Well’s commercial, and you’re basically co-launching these shakes with me.”
I hated when he made valid points. It happened more often than I wanted to admit.
“Fine,” I said, holding up a finger. “I’ll stand there. That’s it. I’m not saying a single word.”
Micah looked up, confused. “Why not? We could get a little soundbite, something like?—”
“No.” I cut him off before he could even finish the thought. “The last time I opened my mouth on camera, it got turned into a meme with more shares than I care to know. I believe the caption was something about me looking like I wanted to commit a crime. I am not doing that again.”
Hollis laughed like he found my trauma delightful. “Fair enough. She’s got a point, Micah. We don’t need her opening her mouth to cause an international incident.”
“I will end you,” I told him, but there was no heat behind it.
Micah threw his hands up. “Okay, okay. Silent Juno it is. Just get in the shot, look natural, maybe smile a little if that’s not asking too much.”
“No promises on the smile.” I walked over and stood beside Hollis, leaving what I considered a very reasonable amount of professional distance between us. He immediately closed half of it, his arm brushing mine.
“Personal space,” I muttered under my breath.
“We all need to fit in the shot,” he murmured back, not moving an inch. “Sacrifices must be made. We’re putting on a show. Find that chemistry everyone says we have.”
“They’re blind,” I muttered.
The lights adjusted. Someone dabbed powder on my nose without asking permission, but I let it happen because if it made me look better, so be it. Jack gave me an encouraging nod from his spot like we were in this together, which did absolutely nothing to calm the fluttering in my stomach.
I was sharing the stage with Jack Montana. I couldn’t wait to tell Kari.
“Okay, rolling,” Micah called. “Juno, just look at the camera. Hollis, hand her a bottle.”
Hollis turned to me with a bottle in his hand and that same insufferable half-smile from earlier, like we were sharing some private joke that only the two of us understood.
I took the bottle because it was easier than fighting about it in front of a full film crew.
I looked at the camera like I’d been told.
I tried to smile but I had a feeling it looked more like a grimace. I was not a model.
The camera moved in front of us. Jack drank his own smoothie.
“Again,” Micah said. “Hollis, full smile and look at the camera.”
The bottle was taken from my hand. A new one was put in Hollis’s hand. And we did it all again. I had no idea if I was supposed to smile big. Not smile. Look concerned. Weren’t directors supposed to tell you what to do?
“Juno, look at Jack and hold up your bottle.”
Shit. Look at him? Like in the eyes? I felt like this was the kind of thing one needed to prepare for mentally. My hands were shaking but I pushed through and did as instructed, doing my best not to dump my smoothie on the movie star.
We did that at least ten times. Hollis and Jack spoke while I stood there like a mannequin. I doubted my part was going to be kept in the final edit. I felt ridiculous.
“Cut. Perfect,” Micah said. “That’s exactly what I needed. You two look great on camera. I can feel the tension.”
“Tension?” I repeated flatly.
“Chemistry, tension, whatever you want to call it. It works.” Micah was already scrolling through the playback on his monitor, nodding to himself. “Yeah. That’s the shot. We’re done.”
“Done?” I asked. “That’s it?”
“That’s it. Got everything I need.” He waved a hand toward the crew, who immediately sprang into motion, breaking down lights and coiling cables like they’d been waiting for the signal their entire lives. “Great work, everybody. That’s a wrap for today.”
Jack came over to shake my hand again before he left, thanked me for being a good sport, and told Hollis his product was actually decent.
That seemed to make Hollis absurdly happy.
It was strange to see him look so eager.
The guy was confident. Nothing got in his way, but it was the first crack in his armor I’d seen.
Jack was swallowed up by his entourage and they took off, leaving the sound stage feeling strangely empty in his wake. I stood there for a second, adjusting to the sudden quiet after all that chaos.
“You survived,” Hollis said, coming to stand beside me again now that there wasn’t a camera forcing proximity between us.
“Barely. I can’t believe I not only met Jack Montana but stood next to him.”
“You didn’t say a word. Very disciplined.”
“I have incredible self-control. Everyone knows it.” I felt my face heat before I could stop it.
He winked at me because my recent actions proved I did not have self-control.
“Anyway,” I said, desperate to move past that particular land mine. “I should get back to the office.”
“Or,” he said. “You could let me buy you lunch. Let’s celebrate a little. Today went great.”
I should have said no but I was hungry. “Fine,” I said. “But nowhere with a wine list. I need to be functional this afternoon.”
“No wine, I promise.” He grinned, and damn him, it made my heart beat faster.