CHAPTER 9
“Holy shit.” Jess lifted the paper straw sticking out of her iced coffee to her lips and looked around the theater at everyone gathered for the auditions. After taking a sip she set the cup down on the table. “This is crazy.”
“Right?” Brynn couldn’t believe the parent turnout.
Actually, she could believe it, and it had nothing to do with the iconic play that they would be doing. A modern-day retelling of Romeo and Juliet was sure to be a crowd pleaser but that wasn’t what had drawn this particular group here today.
Axel had been in town a little over a week. In that time, word had spread about the work he was doing. Or more accurately, how good he looked doing the work he was doing. Axel in a crisp, white T-shirt, faded blue jeans, steel-toed boots, and a tool belt that hung low on his hips was serious mom porn. Brynn had had to check her own mouth for drool on more than one occasion.
From her office in the administration building, she had an unobstructed view to the front of the theater. And if she opened her window, she could pick up most of the conversations. She’d sipped her coffee each morning and watched moms stop by to “check on the progress” of the restoration. The first day, it was one mom. The second day, it was three moms. By Friday, it had been like ants at a picnic. They usually came with a snack or a drink in hand for Axel. She really couldn’t blame the women for their outpouring of hospitality.
Even though it wasn’t her style, she got it. Besides being drop dead gorgeous, Axel had an air of mystery surrounding him that people weren’t used to around here. Even Mrs. Dobrinski was unable to find out anything about him. This morning on her walk around the lake, Mrs. D had asked her to join the Needlepoint Mafia. The knitting club was by invitation only and was considered to be the most “exclusive” club in Whisper Lake. Both Ali and Jess had been asked to join, but both women considered their invitations pity asks.
Ali’s came after she lost her brother and Jess’s was while she was recovering from her heart transplant. Brynn hadn’t had any interest in being part of a club that excluded people, but she had wanted to learn to knit for a while now. And she wasn’t about to pass up any excuse to hang out with her friends.
Jess and Ali had been so excited when she’d texted them earlier to tell them the momentous news. It was agreed that she’d most likely been asked to join for the sole purpose of extracting information on one Axel Vaughn. The man that was both a master woodworker and a master of evasion.
“Do parents usually come to auditions?” Ali asked, referring to the moms that lined the walls at the back of the theater.
“No,” Brynn said as she shook her head.
When Mrs. Stein had given her the rundown, she’d mentioned that she held open auditions because she believed in transparency with casting. She’d only ever had a couple of parents show up. Teenagers typically weren’t thrilled at the thought of their parents coming to school.
Brynn knew the reason that they were all here, but unfortunately she also knew that they might be in for a big disappointment. She hadn’t seen Axel this afternoon. And she had to admit, she’d definitely kept an eye out. He was probably making himself scarce. The same way he had all week.
Their relationship seemed like it was going in reverse.
The first night she’d met him he saw her naked, she’d copped a feel, and they’d had dinner together. There’d definitely been a “vibe” (Jess’s words) between them, and in the following days they’d run into each other a few times, had a few cute exchanges, like when he’d noticed that she straightened her hair when her ex-husband hadn’t even noticed that she’d chopped ten inches off. Or when he’d rescued her from her near-nose dive in front of the theater.
But now…nothing. Crickets.
Other than seeing him through windows, whether it was the window from her office or a window at home, they’d had zero interaction. At this point Ryder had talked to him more than she had. Over the past weekend, her son had been Axel’s shadow as he made various repairs around the property.
As tempting as it had been for Brynn to make some lame excuse and go check on them, she’d resisted. She’d given it a lot of thought, and considering he hadn’t initiated another conversation with her since she’d showed him the theater, she was beginning to think that the dinner they’d had together the first night may have been born out of obligation. He’d had so few interactions with anyone in town, and turned down every request for dinner, or coffee, or any social engagement, which was basically a herculean feat in Whisper Lake. It had to be purposeful.
“Is Mandy Richards really putting on a full face of makeup using her iPhone camera as a mirror?” Ali asked.
Brynn scanned the women flanking the rear wall of the theater and sure enough, that was exactly what Mandy Richards was doing.
“Forget Romeo and Juliet, I think you should hold auditions for The Real Desperate Housewives of Whisper Lake.” Jess smirked.
“Excuse me.” Chrissy Caldwell cleared her voice as she approached the table.
Out of all the women in attendance, Brynn could say with complete and utter certainty that Chrissy was actually here to watch her daughter audition. The woman had four children and somehow managed to attend every practice, game, performance, and recital. She was the president of the PTA, a Girl Scout troop leader, and an assistant soccer and softball coach. She made Christina Applegate’s character from Bad Moms look like a slacker.
She also happened to be Fiona’s mom.
“It’s three past four.” She tapped on her Apple watch with her perfectly manicured, French-tipped nail. “Are we going to be starting soon? Cassidy and Kimber have ballet at five.”
“Don’t get your tutu in a bunch, Prissy.” Jess could never pass up an opportunity to use Chrissy’s childhood nickname.
Chrissy took the bait and glared at Jess. “They don’t have tutus in contemporary ballet.”
“We’ll be starting shortly.” Brynn responded before Jess could say more.
Her answer was enough to satisfy Chrissy, and she turned and walked back to where her youngest two children were sitting and doing their homework on makeshift workstations that included reading lights so they could see in the dim theater and clipboards to use to write on. Jess had always given Chrissy a hard time and Ali tolerated her, but Brynn was seriously impressed with the woman. She was like a parenting Pinterest board come to life.
“Well, I better get this party started. And thanks again for being here guys.”
“Of course,” Ali assured her.
“We always got your back.” Jess gave her a thumbs up.
Brynn had recruited her friends to be there for the audition and casting process. They were basically there for moral support. She’d asked for backup after receiving several emails from parents asserting that they were sure she’d do a great job and that Mrs. Stein had promised their child a lead which they were sure she would be honoring.
As grateful as she was for the extra cash this gig offered, so far it had been a slightly daunting process. There was a lot that went into a theater production and she didn’t want to let the kids down. She was grateful for her friends’ support. It wasn’t that they were brimming with experience, but three heads were better than one. At least these three heads were.
Brynn stood and turned around to address the crowd. She didn’t have a microphone but the acoustics were so good she didn’t need one. “Thank you all for coming out. I’m happy to see so much interest in the production. I want to remind everyone to be respectful during the auditions. And that means all cell phones need to be turned off or silenced.” She heard a wave of grumbling from the kids seated in the auditorium. “And that goes for parents, too.” That got an even greater reaction. “No texting, talking, or filming allowed. Also, no applause, please. You can congratulate your children after all auditions are complete.” Brynn glanced down at the signup sheet and called the first name.
She took her seat as Ezra Stewart confidently took the stage. For his audition, he chose to do the Alec Baldwin ABC (always be closing) monologue from Glengarry Glen Ross. He wasn’t half-bad. Brynn was excited to see what the rest of the kids brought to the table.
That initial burst of excitement began to wane, though, after the next five auditions.
“Who knew that three minutes could feel like twenty?” Jess whispered beneath her breath after a particularly painful monologue from Steel Magnolias.
Up next was Ali’s nephew Ricky. Brynn knew that they were in for a treat. He’d participated in the Whisper Lake Playhouse teen program over the summer and had delivered a standout performance as Danny Zuko in Grease.
“Hey, do you still have the boys’ costumes from Halloween last year?” Jess asked Ali and Brynn as Ricky made his way up to the stage. “I want to decorate the shop window in horror movie characters for the festival this year.”
KJ, Ricky, and Ryder had been dressing up in themed or matching costumes since kindergarten. They’d dressed up as everything from Rock, Paper, Scissors to the main characters in Three Amigos, Trailer Park Boys and Ghostbusters. Last year they’d gone as Freddy Krueger, Jason Voorhees, and Michael Myers.
When Patrick, Ali’s brother, was alive, he hadn’t been too handy with a sewing machine, so Brynn had always taken care of the boys’ costumes.
“Yeah.” Both Brynn and Ali nodded.
“Do you know what they’re going as this year?”
Brynn and Ali looked at each other and shook their heads.
“I hope they haven’t outgrown dressing up together.” Ali’s melancholy tone was contagious and Brynn felt herself getting sentimental as Ricky took the stage.
The boys were growing up. With each day that passed, Ricky was becoming more and more the spitting image of his father. He was already talking about what colleges he wanted to go to. KJ had his first serious girlfriend. Brynn had a feeling that her own son was up next in that department. She glanced to the side of the room where Ryder was waiting to audition. He’d never shown an ounce of interest in plays or acting, but Fiona had suggested that he go out for the play and there he sat.
Ricky began his audition and Brynn didn’t recognize the monologue he was doing. In the piece he was portraying a kid who was getting bullied on social media. When he finished the entire room was silent, sans a few sniffles. Brynn herself had several tears sliding down her cheeks. His performance had been so raw and real, her heart broke for him.
After the twins lost their father, they’d reacted very differently. KJ had gone a little wild and gotten into his fair share of trouble. Ricky had shut down. He’d always been a reserved kid but he’d become even quieter and withdrawn. Every time she’d seen Ricky hanging out at her house, he had his head in a book. She’d tried her best to keep an eye on the boys without being too obvious, since that was a crime punishable by her son not speaking to her.
She’d recommended a therapist that specialized in adolescent trauma to Ali and her friend had made sure that both twins went to weekly sessions. But Brynn had still worried. She knew that Ali did too. She couldn’t count the number of talks they’d had about it.
But over the past few months, both Brynn and Ali’s worries had disappeared. Through acting, Ricky was finding a healthy way to process his grief and express himself. She couldn’t be any happier for him.
As he exited stage left, Jess leaned over her and whispered to Ali, “Holy shit, when did he turn into Daniel Day-Lewis?”
“I know, right?” Ali wiped a tear that had fallen down her cheek.
“What is that from?” Brynn asked quietly as she dug tissues from her purse and handed one to Ali and used another to dry her own eyes.
“He wrote it,” Ali said under her breath. “But don’t tell anyone, he doesn’t want anyone to know.”
Well, they’d obviously just found their Romeo. And since Ryder was auditioning as well, no one could claim that Ricky had gotten the part because Ali was helping out.
“I’d hate to follow that,” Jess spoke quietly without moving her lips.
Brynn turned back to the stage and saw that Fiona was up next.
The girl’s lips were in a tight line and her hands were noticeably shaking as she walked up the stairs. Brynn wasn’t sure if her nerves were due to her overbearing mother who’d spent the last ten minutes coaching her in the corner, or due to her following Ricky. But whatever the root cause of her anxiousness, the second she took the stage she relaxed. Transformed. Took control of the entire room.
Fiona took a breath and spoke directly to the room. She thanked them all for coming. Her voice cracked and Brynn saw a tear fall down her face. For a moment, she wasn’t sure if it was still acting or not. But when she started talking about Tim, her older brother who had won her a teddy bear at the fair, Brynn knew that she was in character. Fiona was the oldest of four children.
As the piece went on, Brynn realized that Fiona was giving a eulogy and her “brother” had overdosed. It was sweet, funny, and heart-wrenching. By the time she was done, there wasn’t a dry eye in the place and Brynn was heartbroken for Tim, who didn’t even exist.
When Fiona walked off the stage, Brynn and Jess immediately checked in with Ali. She’d had to give a real eulogy for Patrick not too long ago.
“Are you okay?” the women whispered in unison.
“I’m fine.” Ali wiped her cheeks as she nodded. “I’ve heard it before. Ricky wrote that one, too.”
“Holy shit,” Jess’s jaw dropped. “That kid is seriously talented.”
Brynn was about to agree when her phone buzzed.
“Excuse me but I think those are supposed to be turned off,” Jess teased as Brynn pulled her device from her purse.
Brynn stuck out her tongue at Jess before she glanced down and saw that the message was from Axel. Her mother had given her his number and told Brynn that she’d given him hers, but he’d never contacted her via phone before.
Is that Snapchat Fiona?
She looked around the theater and saw that he was working up in the back corner of the balcony. Their eyes met for a moment and then she responded.
Yep.
She pressed send and bubbles appeared before a new message quickly followed.
She’s really talented. So is the kid before her. I think you found your Romeo and Juliet.
Her thumbs quickly typed back.
I think you’re right.
A thrill rushed through her as she set her phone back down.
That had been the most interaction that she’d had with Axel for the past week. Logically, she knew the textversation was not a big deal and that she shouldn’t be feeling giddy. So he remembered her son’s sort-of girlfriend’s name. So what?
But she was giddy. She decided to blame her reaction on the fact that she was surrounded by teenagers all the time and apparently, her emotions were taking their cues from the high schoolers.
She felt eyes on her and glanced up to see her friends looking at her.
“Hey, Thumper.” Jess’s brows lifted and she lowered her chin toward the clipboard that lay on the table they were seated behind. “You might want to call the next kid.”
“Oh right.” Embarrassment flooded Brynn when she realized that she’d totally checked out.
“Stephanie Moss.”
As the auburn-haired girl made her way up to the stage, Brynn asked beneath her breath, “Thumper?”
That was a new one.
Jess didn’t respond. Instead she visually volleyed the conversation over to Ali.
“Because you’re twitterpated,” Ali happily explained.
“What? I am no—”
Jess’s stare leveled her as she interjected, “So that wasn’t Axel?”
Okay, Jess might have a point. She might be just a little, tiny, itty bitty bit twitterpated. She sat up straighter. That didn’t mean she had to do anything about it.