Chapter 22
Hudson
After the shoot was over for that day, I checked my phone for missed messages. The studio heads usually sent out information regarding the movie, like times we had to show up for promotional events and other things related to upcoming PR. I scrolled through my emails until I landed on Chloe’s. After I read through it, it was clear that she wanted me to have a chance to explain myself. With shooting finally coming to an end, I felt that it was the best time to tell her the truth. All I could do was hope that now the movie was almost over, we might actually be safe to speak to each other. Maybe I could finally let her know what had happened.
I sent her a text.
Me: Stop by tonight. I can clear everything up and then you can make your decision after that.
I kept my phone in my hand as I walked back to my trailer, so I could respond to her as soon as she replied. I hoped that she would surprise me and be there when I showed up, but when I opened the door, I knew it was just wishful thinking. Finally, she sent me a response.
Chloe: Tonight is fine. I’ll meet you at your place right after the shoot.
Me: I’ll be there. Or do you want to ride together?
Chloe: Don’t push it.
I was just happy that she responded to me in the first place and gave me a chance to come clean. Immediately after we were finished shooting for the day, I went straight home so I could get ready. It took me days to get the smell out of the front room from when I threw up a while ago and the stain was still there. I was going to have to get the carpet replaced, but I didn’t have the time to do it right now. I grabbed a rug out of my room and laid it over the stain that persistently reminded me what an asshole I was.
I lit incense and waved the aroma around in the room so that it would be soaked by the time she showed up. It was almost 8:30 pm when the doorbell rang. I wanted to smile when I opened it, but I felt that it was too awkward for me to do that. Chloe looked exhausted from her day, and I knew I would have short leash.
“Hey, Chloe. Thanks for coming by.”
She raised an eyebrow at me. “Are you going to let me in?”
“Of course.” She walked by me and sat on the couch. I caught her scent as she walked by me and it sent me into a tailspin of emotions, thinking about the times that I felt her body close to mine. Outside of my dreams, it hadn’t happened in some time. “Do you want anything to drink? Soda? Water?”
“No, I’m fine, thank you.” Uncomfortable silence sat between us for a few moments until she spoke again. “I just wanted to give you the chance to explain yourself. I am not saying that what you say will be enough and suddenly change things between us. But I need answers and I know I’m only going to get them if I give you an opportunity to tell me the truth.”
I exhaled deeply. The incense fluttered around the room while I took a seat on the other end of the sofa, keeping a cushion between us. I didn’t want to get too close, too soon, especially since I didn’t know how she was going to take the news.
“So, Simon. Simon has this rule on set, that no one should be fraternizing. Especially talent with assistants. He threatened my job and yours and wanted me to ends things.”
“What? That’s insane, Hudson.”
“Yeah, so I kept it to myself. He said he would’ve ruined your career and mine, too. I mean, I probably could’ve fought my way back, but I know how much harder it would be for you, Chloe. If he had you blackballed, if he started rumors about you? And it’s not like it’s just hypothetical. I know he would do it because he’s done it before. I didn’t want to sabotage your career before you had a chance to begin it. So, I kept it to myself for the last two months. And that night that I was drunk? I was with his assistant, Ariel.”
She fixed her attention directly on me, confused. “I don’t understand. What were you doing with Ariel?”
“Simon sent her to try and get me in line. I was so angry that I got drunk and that’s how I ended up stumbling around on my lawn. And puking all over my carpet.”
Chloe looked down under her feet and winced. “Okay, but did something happen with Ariel? Why did you smell like perfume that night?”
“The bar was packed, Chloe. There women everywhere. People were rubbing up against me every time they went to get drinks. But I swear. Nothing happened with Ariel. She is a single mother and Simon has her over a barrel too. She is barely holding on to her job because she turned him down. I didn’t want you to be put in that same position, but neither of us knew what to do about it. All I could do was wait for the movie to finish and hope you hadn’t moved on, or ended up hating me so much, you couldn’t come back from it.”
She turned away from me and shook her head. “Wow. I mean, I guess that was the last thing I expected to hear. I had a feeling Simon was a piece of shit, but I had no idea it was this bad. Ugh, and poor Ariel. She is a sweetie. She doesn’t deserve any of this crap.”
“We are almost done with this movie. We just have to get through the last few days and then we can decide how to move forward.”
Chloe kept a straight face as she looked at the blank television screen in front of us. Suddenly, she smiled, and then seconds later, laughter erupted from like she’d just been told the most hilarious joke she’d ever heard in her life. “That son of a bitch!” she said as she continued laughing, doubling over to her knees. “This is insane and so unbelievably childish. I can’t believe him. But I guess I can. I knew this shit happened before I moved out here, but on my first movie? Come on.”
“That was my point exactly.”
“Well, I’ll tell you one thing, when I write my book, all of this is going in there. All of it. Every last word.” I laughed and scooted closer to her, hoping that maybe we were on our way to a place where she might forgive me. She can’t still hate me, can she?
“Hold on,” she said right before I put my hand on her thigh. “Do you promise all of this true? You aren’t just telling me a story or pulling a line or working me?”
“What?” I asked, confused.
She glared at me. “I’m just having trouble settling into all of this. Going from hating you one minute and realizing what a mess this has all been the next. I need to believe, really believe, you, Hudson.”
“With every fiber of being, every ounce of my soul, I promise you, Chloe. Simon is behind all of this and I just wanted to protect you. I will never hurt you again, and when this movie is over, we will fix all of it together.”
Chloe reached out and took my hand in hers, giving it a squeeze. “Good,” she said with a smile.
“So, are we ok now?”
She fixed her eyes on me, not blinking once. I expected the worse but suddenly, she leaned forward and kissed me. “I forgive you.” She kissed me again. “I missed you.” She kissed me a third time. “And don’t you ever, ever keep secrets from me again. If anything like this happens in the future, you tell me about it, and we’ll work it out. I’m not a porcelain doll. I can handle anything, and we can definitely handle things together. So, if some douchebag director tries to use me or seduce me, assume that I am also capable of making decisions myself.”
I slid my hand onto her thigh. “You’re absolutely right, Chloe. Will you give me a chance to make it up to you?” I asked with a wink.
“You read my mind.”