Dahlia took the rest of the day to cool off after Cy nearly botched things with the MUA Elite editorial team. Fortunately, Alexis called before the close of business to let her know that the interview would indeed be featured in next month’s issue. “Thanks so much, Alexis, and sorry again for the mix-up outside the conference room.”

“My writer will be fine. I upped his pay per word for this article. Talk soon, Dahlia.”

Dahlia ended the day on a better note. The next morning at work, her phone was ringing while she had one foot inside the door. She set her purse down to answer. “Dahlia Dean’s office. Dahlia speaking.

“This is Harry Bishop, set manager for Prima Studios.”

She almost gasped. Prima Studios was at the top of the growing list of movie studios cropping up in Atlanta. “Yes, Mr. Bishop? How can I help you?”

“Listen, our resident makeup artist is out with the flu. Would you be able to get Keke Cramer’s hair and makeup ready to start filming this morning?”

“Keke Cramer?”

“Yeah, you know. She was in all the big romantic comedies back in the day.”

“I know exactly who Keke is. Yes, I’d be honored to get her ready for the movie. What time do you need me to be on set?”

“We start filming in an hour.”

Wow, that was no time, and she didn’t know what kind of look the studio wanted her to create for Keke. “I’ll be bringing two assistants with me.” She thought of Brandon and his interest in special effects makeup. He’d love to go on set.

“I’ll have three passes waiting for you.”

“What look does Keke need for the movie? I’m packing my kit now.”

“This is a horror film. She plays a disco diva. So bring the glitter, I guess. We have plenty of fake blood.”

She began tossing glitter glue and vials of the sparkly stuff in her kit. “See you in a few, Mr. Bishop.” She hung up the phone and used her cell to quickly send a text to Brandon to meet her at the studio and for Nelle to spend the day studying for her afternoon exam. No need to come in this morning. I’m working at Prima Studios today.

Nelle’s reply was immediate. I’m sooo jealous I have an exam and can’t make it. She included a sad face and a crying emoji in her text.

Dahlia smiled. I’ll see if I can get an autograph for you.

She closed down her office and went right out to where Cy was in the hall. He looked at her purse and the coat she still wore. “You’re leaving already?”

“Prima Studios just called. Their makeup artist is out sick and they need someone to come help.” She did a light jog to the elevator.

Cy had no problems catching up with her. He pressed the elevator button to go down. “Don’t we need clearance to go on set?”

His willingness to go took her by surprise. “I told them I’d be bringing two assistants.”

“Dahlia, you agreed to run your schedule by me first, remember?”

“I forgot, and I’m sorry, but Keke Cramer is a veteran actress. If I do her makeup, it’ll really help my reputation and business.”

“You still should have run it by me first before you agreed to anything.”

She met his disapproving gaze. “I have to do this to make it in the industry. If I pass up opportunities like this, someone else will be there to take my place.”

“I don’t need to remind you why you need to be careful.”

Then don’t. She wanted to say the words out loud. Instead, she kept them to herself as the elevator carried them to the main floor.

“You said you’d be bringing two assistants. Who else is coming with you?”

“Brandon should be getting out from his morning meeting at the mall. He met with a manager to see if we could get a pop-up kiosk for my makeup.” She checked the time. “I sent him a text to meet me on set. He usually replies fast.”

Outside, she jumped into Cy’s BMW. Right as she closed the passenger door, her phone vibrated in her pocket. She shifted to get it out. “Oh, it’s him.” She answered the call. “Hey, Brandon. Did you get my text?”

She heard a lot of rustling on the other line. A car horn blared in her ear. She had to pull the phone away. “Brandon?”

“Dahlia, I can’t make it to the movie studio. Someone just rear-ended me as I was coming out of the mall parking lot.”

“You’re not hurt, are you?”

“I think I’m okay. The other driver hit the back of my car pretty hard, though. It took the bumper off.”

Cy gave her a look of concern as he drove. She pulled the phone away from her ear. “Brandon got rear-ended at the mall.” She heard a rush of wind and people mumbling on Brandon’s end. She resumed talking to her intern. “What did you say? I hear a lot of background noise.”

“I’m talking to the guy who bumped into me. He’s giving me his insurance info. Look, Dahlia, I have to stay and wait for someone to come tow my car. We’re in the street. A police officer sees us and is coming over to help.”

She pushed her hair away from her face. “You’re just down the street from the office. Cy and I can come meet you and take you to get checked out at a clinic.”

“No, traffic is crazy. You have to go to that movie set. I can’t make you late.”

“Brandon-”

“I’m fine. Really.”

He sounded calm over the phone, yet she knew never to be too sure about car accidents. “Alright, Brandon, get your car towed and make sure you go and get checked out by a doctor right after. You might have whiplash.”

“Will do. Gotta go.”

She rested the phone on her knee. She stared out the windshield at a red traffic light before turning to Cy. “Brandon’s getting his car towed. I told him we could come by, but he said to keep going to the set without him.”

“I heard a little bit of the conversation.”

“I want to check on him later.”

Cy nodded. “What are you going to do? Don’t you still need a real assistant to help you with makeup?”

“I do, and Nelle has an exam today.” She squeezed her eyes shut as she felt another headache coming on. She fished in her purse for a couple aspirin. “Guess that means you’re going to be my real assistant for the day. You ever work with movie stars, Cy?”

***

CY STOOD WITH DAHLIA at Prima Studios while she handed her identification to the set manager on the site where the movie was being filmed. She made up a story about him being her makeup and effects guy. Why did I agree to this?

People buzzed past him, talking and carrying food, props, camera equipment, and all kinds of items that could present a work hazard. He stepped aside as another man passed, narrowly missing getting clocked on the side of the head with a curtain rod.

“Hey, you got to watch where you’re standing.”

Where he was standing? Try learning to walk in a straight line. Cy narrowed his eyes at the careless guy as he trotted away in a crooked path.

“Cy, they need your ID,” Dahlia said.

He reached for his wallet and handed his driver’s license to the set manager. The man nodded and scribbled his name down on a piece of paper. “I just started working here last fall. You two work here before?”

“First time,” Dahlia replied to him. “You’re really busy today, Mr. Bishop.”

“We are always busy. Ever since the new set opened, we got Hollywood execs and producers calling to schedule their movies to be filmed here. It’s getting expensive out there in Cali.” The set manager gave Cy his driver’s license back. “You don’t look like a normal assistant.”

“What’s normal?” Cy countered.

He felt a tug on his shirt sleeve. Dahlia was pulling him away from the set manager. “We have to go. Keke’s waiting for us in her dressing room.”

He allowed himself to be pulled along past people dressed in bell bottoms and polyester suits. Towards the far right of the set, he saw what looked to be a backdrop for a nightclub. There was even a sparkly disco ball hanging from the ceiling. “What movie set is this again?”

“They’re filming a movie called Dead Disco Dream. It’s about a seventies serial killer who tracks victims in nightclubs.”

“Is your client playing the killer?”

Dahlia’s chocolate brown eyes widened. “Oh gosh, no. Keke’s starring as the singer who spots the killer in the club and warns everyone to get out. It’s based on the book.”

“Since when did you start reading horror novels?”

“I didn’t. I went online and skimmed through a list of Keke’s latest projects on the way here. I didn’t want to look like I didn’t know anything about my client. Some of them are really sensitive about those things.”

“I don’t know how you do it. When you asked me in the car whether I worked with movie stars before, I thought you meant as their security.”

“That could be why you didn’t get my joke.” Dahlia stopped before a door. Keke’s first name was spelled out at the top in bold black letters. Cy waited for her to make a fist and knock. She looked over her shoulder at him. “I rushed getting here. Do I look like I know what I’m doing?”

All he could see was Dahlia’s attractive upturned face, framed by her cloud of curls that defied gravity. He wanted to put his fingers in her hair. She was stunning, but that wasn’t the question she asked him. “I say you look like you can get the job done.”

“I’ll take it.” She knocked on the door.

“Besides, you have your own product line. Keke probably doesn’t.”

Dahlia put her finger to her smiling lips. Something inside him was glad he got her to smile.

“Who is it?” a woman projected her voice from inside.

“It’s Dahlia Dean. I’m going to be doing your makeup today.”

She still had her hand on the door knob. It opened so fast she was almost yanked inside. Cy caught her as she stumbled back. His face met her hair in a soft black cloud that smelled like vanilla and a hint of flowers.

“It’s about time you got here.” The actress who was Keke motioned Dahlia inside. She was very tall, well over six feet. Her long, slinky silver gown looked like it was made from the same material as the disco ball. The light caught it from different angles. Cy blinked as his eyes tried to adjust.

Dahlia steadied herself and stepped away from him. She went inside the room. “I apologize for not getting here sooner. This is my assistant, Cyrus. He’s going to help me set up.”

Why did she use his full first name?

Keke gave him a discerning look. “Cyrus? What kind of name is that?”

“Uh, Cyrus the Great is his stage name.” Dahlia talked fast. “He does Shakespearean theater on the side.”

He wanted to cringe at her bad lying.

“Well, this is a good place for him to watch and learn if he ever wants to break onto the big screen. That’s where the real money is.” Keke crossed the small space in silver platforms. They were about five inches high. “But he can watch and learn after I get my face on.”

“Alright, Miss Keke. I just need to set up and plug in my styling tools.”

“Hurry. I need to be on set in twenty minutes.” Keke sat in her dressing room chair in front of a mirror with overhead lighting.

Dahlia unzipped her bag and started taking out brushes and little pots filled with glitter. She gave a nod to Cy to open the other bag. He complied to find it was full of hair products and styling tools.

“Get that curling iron plugged in,” Keke ordered him. “I need to have Farah Fawcett hair in the next scene.”

He angled his head and gave Dahlia a look that he hoped made his message clear. He had no idea how to operate a curling iron and there was no way he was about to burn his fingers off trying.

Dahlia stuck the curling iron plug into an outlet in the wall. “Miss Keke, I’m going to be doing your hair and makeup, but my assistant will run and get us something to drink.”

“Good. I’m thirsty. I’ll have a Diet Coke.”

“Water for me.” Dahlia gave him the thumbs up.

That was a close one. Cy stepped out of the dressing room and back into the chaos that was the Dead Disco Dream movie set. He scanned the area until he caught sight of white tables along the rear. Caterers filed past the set manager, carrying food warmers. One of them tried to drag in a big blue cooler by himself. Cy jumped in to give him a hand.

“Thanks, man.” The server nodded his gratitude. “We’re one short today and I’m picking up the slack.”

“No problem.” He helped the caterer carry the cooler to the tables. They set it down against the wall.

The caterer wiped his brow. “Are you with the set crew?”

“I’m with hair and makeup.” Did he just say that?

The caterer lifted the lid of the cooler. “There’s drinks in there if you want one.”

“You got Diet Coke and water?”

“Plenty. Help yourself.”

Cy got what he needed, thanked the caterer and left. On his way past the set manager again, this time he stopped. Two police officers were talking to the set manager. Were they actors dressed for their part in the film? Those sergeant badges and their uniforms did not look like costumes.

The set manager caught him studying the scene. He got a bad feeling as the manager walked up to him.

“Where’s Dahlia? The police are here to talk to her.”

“She’s still in Keke’s dressing room, helping her get ready. Did they say what it was about?”

“No, but this isn’t looking good for the studio. I can’t have the police walking around set while we’re trying to film. The budgets on horror flicks aren’t that much, you know? You need to tell Dahlia to get out here and talk to them.”

Cy wanted to tell the set manager something. He took the high road and nodded instead. “Tell them I’m on my way to get her.”

He took long strides to get to Keke’s dressing room. Upon arrival, Dahlia and the actress opened the door and stepped out.

“Nice job, Shakespeare.” Keke swiped her Diet Coke out of his hand and kept on going, her feathered waves bouncing with every platform step.

“I didn’t mean to make you have to go and look for drinks.” Dahlia reached to take the water from him. “You could have just asked the set manager.”

“Dahlia, the police are here to talk to you. I don’t know what they want. I figure it has to do with Mary.”

Immediately, he saw the excitement from being on a movie set go out of her eyes. She gripped the water bottle tight. “Let’s hope they already found the guy and couldn’t wait to tell me about it.”

She put on a brave face, though he could see how upset she was. He put his hand on her back and walked with her to where the set manager and the police officers waited.