Page 81 of State of Grace

“I’m sure you didn’t come all this way to yell at me for not returning emails.”

“I sure didn’t come here because I was running out of things to do in Vancouver. I just needed a break.” Sighing, Salem walked around the room with an almost dreamlike look on her face. Salem had worked hard to ensure that she’d always have the finer things in life, but Blake always thought she’d love a small-town life more if she gave it a shot.

“What do you want, Salem?”

“I want you to come back to Vancouver and get back to your life.” Salem crossed her arms over her chest. She was an attractive woman; Blake could admit that. Hell, Blake had dated her after all. But Salem had nothing on Alexis. Salem’s auburn hair was from an expensive salon, chosen for it’s reputation rather than talent, and her red lipstick was always way too bright.

“I don’t know if I want that life anymore.” Blake crossed her arms as they stood a few feet away from each other. She hated the fact that Salem thought she could still stroll into her life, boss her around, and that Blake would just do what she said. They hadn’t been together in years, and even then, Blake rarely did what Salem told her to do.

“You’d be throwing away your career if you bail on this.”

“Maybe, but I really don’t know if I want to continue this career anyway. I don’t expect you to understand, but over the last few weeks, I’ve really been thinking about what I want in life, and the more I think about it, the less it involves being in Hollywood anymore.”

Salem’s hazel eyes narrowed. “You’re in love.”

“Excuse me?” Blake scoffed.

“You have this look when you’re in love.” Her voice was sadder than it had been a moment before. “I know because it’s one you used to have when we were together. But it’s different now. More intense or something. I don’t know. So,” Salem paused, “are you?”

“Am I what?”

“In love?”

Blake took a few beats to compose an answer. She didn’t want to tell Salem about Alexis. It wasn’t because she was ashamed of Alexis or was unsure about their relationship. Blake was beyond proud to call Alexis her girlfriend, and she’d never been more confident in anything as she was in their relationship. But letting Salem into that part of her life meant her two worlds would mingle for the first time, and that thought didn’t sit well with Blake.

She’d wanted to stay in her safe bubble with Alexis forever. She wanted never to have to face the music of her career ever again. But that was naïve. Sooner or later, her two worlds would collide whether Blake wanted them to or not.

“What’s it matter, Salem?”

“You don’t have to tell me.” She shrugged as she sat on the kitchen chair. Blake sat across from her, waiting for her to go on. Salem wasn’t one to ever give up a fight, but all the resolve had left her body. Looking across the table at her, she looked more tired than Blake had ever remembered her being. “For what it’s worth, I’m happy you’re happy.”

“Thank you,” Blake slowly said as her eyes narrowed at Salem.

“Look.” Inhaling deeply, Salem pulled another folder out of her bag and slid it across the table to Blake. “This is the script the new studio has approved for the show. They want to use the footage we’ve already filmed and turn it into a made-for-TV movie. They also want to use the movie as a springboard for a new spin-off series. Nothing is official yet, but I am expecting all that to change on Friday.”

“What’s Friday?” Her entire world was spinning. What would the spin-off be about? Was her character to be involved? Were they bringing in new characters? Would Avery Romano simply fade into the background of oblivion?

“Their deadline to make a decision, we’ll have all the answers then.” Salem’s jaw clenched. Her words slowly registered to Blake as her heart beat faster. Tapping the folder, Salem lowered her eyes from Blake’s. “Right now the studio thinks you’re bailing. Every other cast member has been to the negotiations and has read over the mock scripts and provided feedback on what they want for their characters. Do you realize how rare an opportunity this is? This studio wants to work with you all to give your characters a happy ending, and here you are throwing your character away.”

The prospect of being involved in her character’s ending was incredibly intriguing to Blake. It could give her the freedom to have a more flexible schedule if she were a causal guest star instead of a lead. She could pop in a few times a season, make the fans happy, and still live in the Cove.

Most importantly, she could still be with Alexis.

“What,” she cleared her throat, “what do they want the spin-off series to be?”

“There’s some talk on the specifics still, but as you know, a lot of the older actors want out. They’ve played the roles for a while and are ready to move on. But,” she tilted her head from side to side, “they have talked about you, Casey, and Eric staying on and having a series with you three as the focus.”

Of fucking course.

Of course, the studio would keep Blake and Eric, who played her character’s boyfriend, and Lily, who played Harper and who many fans shipped with Blake’s character. The faux-love triangle had been going on for years, and Blake always lacked the control to change it. She’d hated the way the writers kept pushing Avery and Harper together only to pair them with men for, as Alexis would put it, hetero-normative reasons.

However, if Blake had any say and could control the narrative in any way…

“I’ve spent the last seven years of my life as Avery Romano.”

“I know that.”

“But she is a character on a television show.” She shrugged. “She doesn’t exist in real life. What if I give her a happy ending, and I lose mine.”

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