Chapter 19

 

Mary

 

The audition went better than anything I could have hoped for. The casting director pretty much told me I had the part.

So I should have been elated.

But the thing that stuck in the back of my mind was that we’d be shooting in LA. I’d stay in a hotel for two to three months while filming, which normally wouldn’t be a problem.

But then I’d have to leave Chris.

We’d barely known each other. This was supposed to be for PR.

But the more time I spent with him, the more I didn’t want to leave.

Maybe I wouldn’t get the part after all, and I could look for something in New York…

Wait.

What the hell was I saying?

Base my entire career off where a guy lives?

Eddie and I were engaged, albeit because our agents said it would be the best move for our careers, but we didn’t even live in the same city most of the time. I was in New York for filming, and he didn’t want to leave Nashville or LA. He even bought that silly condo downtown Los Angeles, saying that it would be there for us when I transitioned to movie work.

I heard he ended up selling the place and the house in Nashville, but truth be told I’d barely thought about the guy in the last few months and even less in the last few days.

My mind had been on one person. One person who when I said we should have a real relationship looked at me like I was crazy, yet felt all of me and knew how to make me moan. How to make me feel for him emotionally and physically. Something I wasn’t sure I wanted to lose.

When I got back to my hotel, I put in an order for room service, kicked off my shoes and sunk into the plush couch of my suite.

Pulling out my phone, I looked through my emails and messages, before I finally decided to call Chris.

I thought he would never answer, and then when I was just about to hang up, I finally heard his breathed tone. “Hello?”

“Hey? Um. Are you okay?”

His heavy breathing and background noise made me wonder exactly where he was.

I’d never been cheated on, per say, but emotionally Eddie was never there. Every time I called, he was in the studio or out with his people. I felt like in the two years we were together I really only saw him when we were scheduled to walk the red carpet together at an award show.

“Hey. Sorry. Is this a bad time?” I asked, hesitantly.

“No, no. I’m just on the train, heading to my parent's house. Brian said he’d bring you to Jersey tomorrow and I guess my dad got called into work, so Mom needs some help with the party. It’s hard to say ‘no’ to my mom as you know.”

The smile was evident in his voice as he talked about this mother and it was easy to see that she was proud of her boy and would be no matter what he did.

“That’s really sweet of you.”

“Yeah, yeah. You say that because you’re not the one stringing up crepe paper and blowing up a million balloons.”

I laughed and leaned back on the couch. “No. I don’t envy you for that one, but wish I could be there to help.”

“Naw, you don’t want to deal with my mom and Aunt Rosie yelling at me in Spanish. Besides, you’re going to be a big movie star soon. How’d the audition go?”

I sucked in a breath but tried not to let it out. “Good. Really good. We’ll know soon enough if I got the part.”

I conveniently left out the LA part of the equation.

“I’m sure you did. No one is going to turn down Mary James.”

I felt tears brimming my eyes but pushed them back. It was stupid thinking that he’d basically turned me down for anything more than sexual. But I was a big girl. I could handle myself.

“I guess we’ll know soon enough, but none of this would have been possible without my awesome publicist. I should give him a fruit basket or something.”

“That or a blow job. You know, whatever you’re feeling at the moment.” A woman audibly gasped beside him. “Don’t worry. It’s my girlfriend, ma’am. And we’re talking about my hair, ya perv.”

The lady mumbled something next to him, and I had to stifle a giggle.

“Take it you're making new friends on the train?” I asked.

“Well, yeah. You know I like to ride in style and meet new people.  You never know, I could find your next gig, right here. How do you feel about dancing while this guy in a full-on Santa suit plays the saxophone? I’m sure we could get that video to go viral.”

“Is there really a guy with a Santa suit and a saxophone on the train?” I quirked an eyebrow even though he couldn’t see it.

“No, but I can make that happen for you if you wanted it.”

“I just wish you were here.” I sighed, almost immediately regretting I said the words. “I mean, you know, for support. For helping me figure out what to do with my image.”

His smile was evident through the phone. “I wish I was there too. You know for PR or whatever you want to call making you come.”

That got more gasps and shuffling of seats.

“I guess I should let you go before you get kicked off the train, and you never get to blow up all of those balloons.”

“Yeah. Yeah. I’m only a few stops away, but I’ll see you tomorrow, okay? I gave Brian the address, and as long as he and Lance don’t decide to go somewhere else, I’ll see you here.”

“Sounds good. See you then,” I replied.

“Bye.”

He hung up, and I pressed the phone to my chest. What the hell was this guy doing to me? And how could I convince him that I wanted something real without hurting my career and my heart in the process?