Chapter 15 #2
The actresses slid into the scene’s red restaurant booth, Caitlin’s pulse quickening.
She was sure that Gemma could see it hammering beneath her skin, and she wondered if her ex felt as terrified as she did about reenacting their first kiss.
Her previous courage had evaporated, her head now filling with static.
A new, unnamed sensation lay underneath the surface.
The cameras rolled, and within a few takes, they’d nailed Mrs. Ryan’s vision. Caitlin had found herself adding a few unscripted flirty touches to the scene, her fingers grazing Gemma’s arm without thought. The director ate it up, praising her improvisation.
Everything had flowed beautifully until Caitlin and Gemma found themselves facing each other on Sarah’s doorstep.
Caitlin hadn’t known what to expect, but Gemma’s trembling hands, fumbling toward her face and nearly jabbing her in the eye, had caught her off guard. Their lips barely brushed.
Mrs. Ryan wanted desperation, and Caitlin knew exactly what she and Gemma were capable of. She’d been on the receiving end of Gemma’s kisses enough times to know that they could deliver far more heat than that.
“Cut, cut, cut!” The director yelled, and Gemma recoiled from Caitlin like she had the bubonic plague.
“I’m not feeling anything,” Mrs. Ryan approached Caitlin and Gemma as she spoke.
“Lean into it, move your bodies closer, deepen the kiss, hold each other as if gravity itself might fail. This is it, ladies. This is the moment Kate and Sarah have been circling for months. All that tension, that yearning, this is where it pays off. Show it to me.” She walked back to the monitor and perched herself on the tall chair marked with her name. “Let’s go again!”
Caitlin searched Gemma’s face while they retook their places. She couldn’t tell what Gemma was thinking, but Caitlin felt as if Mrs. Ryan had just revealed her deepest, darkest secret to the entire crew. This scene was becoming way too real.
Caitlin was mentally back in her childhood bedroom, sixteen again and kissing Gemma for the very first time.
The second their lips met, the world had exploded into color, a subconscious wish suddenly coming true.
Every moment since the day that Gemma had bumped into Caitlin sophomore year finally clicked into place.
All those scattered pieces had formed one perfect picture of the two of them, finally together where they belonged.
“Take two, scene sixty-four.” The producer snapped the clapperboard sticks together, and the scene began again.
Caitlin and Gemma took a deep breath in unison, looking deep into each other’s eyes.
Caitlin noticed that same sparkle in Gemma’s golden-brown gaze from all those years ago, right before that first kiss.
Her hands found Gemma’s hips as Gemma moved to gently cup Caitlin’s face.
When Gemma tilted her head toward her, Caitlin’s eyes drifted shut in breathless anticipation.
She knew the kiss was just for the cameras, but God, Cailtin ached to feel that old electricity spark between them again.
When Gemma’s lips landed on hers, shockwaves swept through Caitlin’s body.
She gripped Gemma’s waist tighter, pulling their bodies closer until they were one.
Gemma’s fingers threaded through Caitlin’s hair.
The kiss turned desperate as Caitlin’s tongue found Gemma’s, deepening the intensity.
Fire consumed the space between them, each stealing breath from the other to survive.
Gemma’s grip turned possessive, and Caitlin’s body thrummed as they fell into a familiar rhythm, moving like they’d been doing this dance for years.
“And cut!” Mrs. Ryan yelled. “Excellent!”
The women slowed their movements, but their lips didn’t part. The room had dissolved around them, Caitlin hearing nothing but her own heartbeat pounding in time to Gemma’s as the kiss turned into something tender.
Voices filtered through. Equipment clanked. Reality crashed down on Caitlin as Gemma broke away, leaving her standing, frozen in place. Caitlin knew with absolute certainty that she had felt their old fire, still burning beneath the ashes of their years apart.
That kiss hadn’t been for the cameras. Gemma had kissed Caitlin like she meant it, like she’d been waiting all this time. But before she could ask Gemma if she was okay, Mrs. Ryan appeared beside them.
Gemma’s hands fell away too abruptly, leaving Caitlin’s skin feeling cold in their absence.
“That was perfect. The passion I just saw was incredible, it was like the damn Fourth of July in here.”
Two production assistants appeared at that moment, whisking Caitlin and Gemma away in opposite directions. They would finish the day by filming a few separate scenes.
That night, Caitlin stumbled into her hotel suite after twelve long hours on set, Gemma haunting her thoughts. She could still feel the ghost of Gemma’s lips pressed against hers. Had Mrs. Ryan been right about their spark?
Caitlin’s mind spun in circles, unable to decipher between fiction and reality.
She ordered dinner—a Caesar salad with steak and a glass of red wine. As an afterthought, she added a brownie and vanilla ice cream for dessert. As she ended her call to room service, she heard her phone ping from the coffee table.
Lara: Hey! I hope everything is going well!
I wanted to make sure you saw the email about your upcoming appearances on Good Morning America and Watch What Happens Live with Maddie and Brad for the Ticket to Rio promo.
Sandy already double checked the date and time with the Forbidden Love producers to make sure they wouldn't interfere with your shooting schedule.
Caitlin: Hey! I haven't had a chance to look, but I'm sure it's all good. You can tell them I'll be there.
Lara: Amazing! Second thing, Michelle has texted me a few times asking for your days off. Said she tried reaching out a few times but hasn't heard back from you. How do you want me to handle?
Caitlin: I'll give her a call tonight, but that's fine if you answer her.
Caitlin hadn’t meant to shut Michelle out, but between work and Gemma suddenly crashing back into her life, she just didn’t have any energy left over for Michelle.
She still hadn’t figured out the right way to explain who her co-star really was to her, but Caitlin knew that it was time to stop hiding the truth from Michelle.
“Hey,” Caitlin said when Michelle answered the phone call a few minutes later.
“Hey stranger.”
“I’m sorry I’ve been MIA.” Caitlin was feeling guilty about her disappearing act, but she started to relax at the sound of Michelle’s voice.
“It’s okay, I know you’re working. I just miss talking to you. How’s the movie been?”
Caitlin sighed. “It’s fine.”
“Do you want to talk about it?”
“We had to film a pretty big scene today, the first kiss between the lead characters, and it started a little rocky.” Caitlin needed to just rip the band-aid off. “It was just tough because, well, the love interest… is my ex-girlfriend.”
Michelle’s silence was loud enough for Caitlin to realize she had messed up.
“I know. I should have told you sooner. We hadn’t seen each other since college, and everything happened so fast once Gemma was hired for the project. I don’t want to make excuses. There had just been a lot to process in the midst of preparing for this role.”
“To be honest, I’m not sure what to say right now. Part of me feels a little betrayed that you’ve been keeping this from me, but I mean… we’re not even together, so maybe I don’t have the right to be upset? I don’t know.”
“Your feelings are totally valid, and I should have been honest with you from the start.”
“Is this why…” Michelle paused, seeming afraid to ask the question on her mind. “Is she the reason why you wanted to keep us casual? Why you wanted to wait and see what happens when you got back to LA?”
Caitlin’s brain felt like a Rubik’s Cube—a puzzle of colorful squares representing her conflicting emotions.
“I honestly don’t know if Gemma had anything to do with my decision back then, but seeing her now after all this time has been a lot to process. I’ve really enjoyed getting to know you, and I’m not ready for it to end. But I understand if you need some time to think.”
“I like you, Caitlin, so I don’t want this to end, either. Unless there’s a reason that you think it should?”
“There isn’t.” Caitlin really didn’t want to lose what she had with Michelle. Nothing was happening with Gemma anyway, even if the kiss today had felt real.
At this point, Caitlin and Gemma were barely acquaintances. They needed to have an honest conversation eventually, but Caitlin was still figuring out how she wanted it to go.
Michelle and Caitlin chatted for a bit longer, catching up on all that they had missed since the last time they spoke.
After saying goodnight, Caitlin hung up the phone and finally dug into her dinner.
She tried to sort through her thoughts as she chewed.
Part of her felt lighter now that Michelle knew about Gemma, but another part worried that it would complicate things further.
Would Michelle feel threatened, knowing that Caitlin was working so closely with her ex?
There was no way to know. For now, she would just have to wait and see how the cards played out.