Page 33 of State of Grace

“Then don’t say whatever you’re about to say.”

“…but Blake is here.”

“The f-u-c-k.” Alexis dropped the stapled script in her hand on the hardwood floor as she spun around to face Emily. Emily rapidly nodded as she jutted her head toward the stage.

“I saw her out in the audience with Bryce. And Harper’s not here, so you can cuss.”

“What is she doing here?” Darting over to the side curtain, Alexis peaked around to see that Blake was indeed sitting right beside the director. The two looked to be deep in conversation over a yellow legal pad in Bryce’s hand, and Alexis openly grimaced.

“Do you think she’s talking over the acting coach gig since Andrew flaked out on her?” Emily came up behind her as she leaned around Alexis to see Blake as well. Nodding and making a low whistling sound, Emily playfully shoved Alexis’s shoulder. “Why haven’t you introduced me to her yet?”

“I’ve only hung out with her twice.”

“Two times more than me.”

“Do you think she would take the acting coach gig?”

“I mean, even Sophia has met her.”

“Will you stop complaining and focus?” Alexis let the curtain fall back into place as she put a hand on her hip, and she faced her friend. “What is she doing here?”

“Well, rehearsals start in a few minutes, so we’ll find out then.”

“Ugh.” Walking over to her previously discarded script, she picked it up and looked it over again. They were working on the final blocking for the opening number, and Alexis was exponentially more nervous than before, the possibility ofmessing up in front of Blake seemed devastating. She ran her hand through her hair nervously as Emily came over to her.

“Do we not like her or something?”

“No, no.” She shook her head harder than she meant, and it caused her hair to flip into her face with each shake. “We like her. It’s that…it’s Blake. And,” Alexis tilted her head to one side, “I don’t know, there was this moment last night where I got the vibe that there was…I don’t know.”

“Oh,” Emily held out the word longer than necessary. “You like her.”

“No. Yes. I mean…ugh.” Putting the script under her arm, she ran her hands over her face in frustration. She wished the water bottle she’d brought with her was filled with tequila instead of water.Blake being at rehearsal was the last thing Alexis needed to happen tonight. The kiss the night before had confused her as much as it had excited her.

“I’ve never seen you like this before.”

“A hot mess?” Alexis raised her eyebrows and nodded. “Yes, you have.”

“It’s not that.” Shaking her head, Emily started to say something else. However, Bryce’s clapping hands cut her off as the cast made their way to the stage. Alexis waved her off as she headed out on stage as Emily sat at the sewing machine she’d set up backstage.

“Ok, everyone.” Bryce clapped her hands again. “Gather around. I have some news.”

Bryce Dawson had been the best thing that’d ever happened to the Cove’s theatre scene. Before Bryce created the theatrical company, the town was limited to the Moonflower Cove Elementary School’s production of You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown every year. But Bryce had brought high-quality productions to the Cove for nearly a decade, and Alexis hoped the streak of every night selling out wouldn’t come to an end thanks to her horrible performance.

“So, I’m sure you all know who this is.” Motioning to Blake, Bryce beamed with pride as rumblings made their way around the group. Alexis was the only one who wasn’t surprised to see her there. “But, for those of you that don’t, this is Blake Calloway. Blake had graciously agreed to watch tonight’s rehearsal and give me feedback, so we’ll know what we need to work on.”

A series of groans and gasps made their way through the cast. At least Alexis wasn’t the only one that was concerned about Blake’s presence at the rehearsal. Although Bryce had worked in the film industry for a brief time, Alexis was never intimidated by her. But Blake, on the other hand? Blake intimidated her.

“Now, don’t worry. Neither Blake nor myself are expecting perfection.” Everyone let out a relieved laugh. “But it will be helpful for me to have another set of eyes and ears to catch things I might be missing or things that need to be changed. Oh, and please keep our new secret helper off of social media. I will have no hesitation in recasting whichever of you decides to post about Blake being her.” Despite the laughs around the room, they all knew Bryce was serious. “Ok, so,” Bryce clasped her hands together excitedly, “let’s start with the opening number.”

Over the next three hours, they performed the opening number so many times that Alexis had lost count. Her feet were aching, and her voice was tired by the time Bryce called it a night, and they all shuffled out to their cars. Alexis had surprised herself by not feeling nervous at all performing in front of Blake. She’d even purposefully found herself catching Blake’s eyes to pull a smile from her.

“Hey, you wanna get ice cream before we head home?” Emily popped the trunk of her car as Alexis put her duffle bag into the back. Alexis had to come straight from the lunch shift to rehearsal and changed clothes in the dressing room at the theatre. She pulled the hair tie from her ponytail and let her long hair free to fall around her face. “Sophia hasn’t let me buy ice cream in forever, and I haven’t babysat Harper in weeks.”

“I love that the biggest reason you ever want to watch my kid is to take her to get ice cream so you can get ice cream yourself.”

“Did someone say ice cream?” Blake. Alexis turned toward the voice as she slammed the trunk shut. She looked stunning in jeans and a form-fitting baby blue top that made her eyes pop even in the darkened parking lot.

“Um, yes.” Emily perked up as she clasped her hands together in front of her chest. She bumped her shoulder against Alexis’s. “Alexis and I were talking about going to get ice cream before we headed home. Would you want to join us?”

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