and ready in about 45 minutes. She pieced together a simple but stylish outfit, one that she believed wouldn’t make her stick out like a sore thumb in New York. Skinny black pants and a loose fitting, violet, button down top was her outfit of the day, accessorized with a tan leather jacket and a string of pearls. Her hair was too finicky to do something elegant with, so she wrapped its length into a bun. Sliding on her purple flats, she grabbed her laptop, planner, and binder and threw them into her satchel then grabbed her key. When she exited the room, Evan was already standing in the hallway, dressed fashionably. She caught a whiff of his scent. It was delightful.
“Ready in 45 and not a minute later. Kudos on being one of the women who can throw together a stunning look in under an hour.”
“Would have been done sooner, you know ... if you had called sooner.”
“Hey, I figured you’d be up and at ‘em, considering how early we got to sleep.”
“I woke up around 4 …” She started, but her voice faded.
“Have trouble sleeping?” Evan asked, pushing the down button on the elevator.
“Something like that.” It wasn’t that she was withholding the truth; she just figured it wasn’t any of his business that her husband had called.
When the elevator doors opened the two stepped in next to each other, and he hit the button. She started to fidget.
“Breathe. Just because Jenn has an Oscar and a handful of other award nominations doesn’t mean she’s that terrifying.”
“Yeah, not helping …”
“She’s human too. I met her once.”
“Oh yeah?”
“It was just for a minute, and she was meeting hordes of other actors and directors. Joey’s going to be there too, and I’m sure your brother-in-law will make things easier for you. Plus, ya got me. It shouldn’t take much convincing, and it’s the agent you gotta look out for. People like that need negotiations, promises of financial return, and all that ...”
Alisa may have read too much into his words, but when he mentioned her brother-in-law, there was a sudden change in his tone, perhaps some scrutiny or sarcasm, but since he had rolled into his secondary thought, she decided to let it go.
“I know. Other than parties or events, I haven’t really met with anyone like Jenn before.” It was the truth. Gateway was filmed with a cast of pure unknowns. She hated saying that about her beloved cast, but they were all cast with that particular requirement in mind. With her books flying off the shelves and the movie premiering, they would be well-known in no time. Jenn Vega, however, was not like them. Actually, neither was Joey Rider. Both of them up for the new focal leads for the film was going to do wonders for careers, including Evan’s, and Alisa’s too. That thought did nothing to calm her nerves.
It was a long cab ride to the studio, a subsidiary of the studio back home. Ron had arranged the meeting here even though they would have preferred a more casual meeting at a restaurant. Alisa fidgeted enough for Evan to reach over and clasp her hands in his to stop her.
“You’re going to be fine.” He offered her a kind smile.
Nodding, she turned her palm up to hold his hand, and let her breath out. Alisa didn’t miss that even though she relaxed her hand to release his, he kept his grip. Alisa looked over at him knowingly, but he was turned away, looking out the window. She gulped. It would be rude to yank her hand away, but she wasn’t comfortable holding his hand.
When the cab came to a sharp halt, she took the liberty of releasing his hand quickly to brace against the seat.
Evan cleared his throat. “We’re here.”
The studio, just outside the main part of Manhattan, still had a good amount of commercial businesses and restaurants around it. Their cab was pulled up to the curb just outside of the studio offices, and Evan had left her side
“Ready in 45 and not a minute later. Kudos on being one of the women who can throw together a stunning look in under an hour.”
“Would have been done sooner, you know ... if you had called sooner.”
“Hey, I figured you’d be up and at ‘em, considering how early we got to sleep.”
“I woke up around 4 …” She started, but her voice faded.
“Have trouble sleeping?” Evan asked, pushing the down button on the elevator.
“Something like that.” It wasn’t that she was withholding the truth; she just figured it wasn’t any of his business that her husband had called.
When the elevator doors opened the two stepped in next to each other, and he hit the button. She started to fidget.
“Breathe. Just because Jenn has an Oscar and a handful of other award nominations doesn’t mean she’s that terrifying.”
“Yeah, not helping …”
“She’s human too. I met her once.”
“Oh yeah?”
“It was just for a minute, and she was meeting hordes of other actors and directors. Joey’s going to be there too, and I’m sure your brother-in-law will make things easier for you. Plus, ya got me. It shouldn’t take much convincing, and it’s the agent you gotta look out for. People like that need negotiations, promises of financial return, and all that ...”
Alisa may have read too much into his words, but when he mentioned her brother-in-law, there was a sudden change in his tone, perhaps some scrutiny or sarcasm, but since he had rolled into his secondary thought, she decided to let it go.
“I know. Other than parties or events, I haven’t really met with anyone like Jenn before.” It was the truth. Gateway was filmed with a cast of pure unknowns. She hated saying that about her beloved cast, but they were all cast with that particular requirement in mind. With her books flying off the shelves and the movie premiering, they would be well-known in no time. Jenn Vega, however, was not like them. Actually, neither was Joey Rider. Both of them up for the new focal leads for the film was going to do wonders for careers, including Evan’s, and Alisa’s too. That thought did nothing to calm her nerves.
It was a long cab ride to the studio, a subsidiary of the studio back home. Ron had arranged the meeting here even though they would have preferred a more casual meeting at a restaurant. Alisa fidgeted enough for Evan to reach over and clasp her hands in his to stop her.
“You’re going to be fine.” He offered her a kind smile.
Nodding, she turned her palm up to hold his hand, and let her breath out. Alisa didn’t miss that even though she relaxed her hand to release his, he kept his grip. Alisa looked over at him knowingly, but he was turned away, looking out the window. She gulped. It would be rude to yank her hand away, but she wasn’t comfortable holding his hand.
When the cab came to a sharp halt, she took the liberty of releasing his hand quickly to brace against the seat.
Evan cleared his throat. “We’re here.”
The studio, just outside the main part of Manhattan, still had a good amount of commercial businesses and restaurants around it. Their cab was pulled up to the curb just outside of the studio offices, and Evan had left her side
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