Page 40 of Falling Like Stars

“Did you get the presidential suite?” I ask as we make our way through the tiny lobby and into the night. It’s eight o’clock and the sun has been gone for two hours.

“I got the closest-to-the-elevators-suite,” Zach says.

“Perks of being the boss.”

“Don’t know if that’s a perk. The guy between us is a mountain man who apparently lives here. From the sound of it, he sleeps during the day and practices dropping heavy shit all night.”

“I’ve heard him,” I say. “Professional bowler?”

“My money’s on amateur weightlifter.”

We step out into the cold and cross the street to Glenallen’s lone restaurant. Except for a long, polished bar at one end, The Orca is an old family-style restaurant, dimly lit and smelling strongly of fish. Zach and I sit across from each other at an upholstered booth. The window reveals a parking lot cleared of snowdrifts and a night that feels deeper and blacker than at home. There are a handful of patrons and none of them pay Zach any attention. Either they’ve gotten used to the film production’s presence, or they’re not impressed by celebrity. Or both.

We give our orders to the waitress who takes our menus, leaving me no place to hide. Zach’s hazel eyes find mine intently, and I wonder if this was a bad idea.

“So, this movie, my God,” I say. “It makes Covet look like a rom-com. Why do you put yourself through that?”

Zach shrugs. “I love the art of it. The challenge. Taking someone else’s words and making them my experience. Besides, it’s good to purge out hard feelings. My version of therapy.”

“You don’t act the feelings? They’re real?”

“They’re real,” he says, nodding. “This role is all about pain, guilt, regret. We all have that inside us, I think. An accumulation of a lifetime.”

You can say that again.

“Isn’t it scary? To go that deep?”

“Yes,” Zach says bluntly. “But it’s worth it. Not just for the performance but for me. I feel better when it’s done. Cleansed.”

I nod and take a pull from my water. I feel him watching me and glance up. “Yes?”

“You didn’t come all the way up here to talk to me about method acting.”

I arch a brow. “How do you know? Maybe I did.”

Maybe I need to know how to purge, too.

Zach grins. “Okay, I know you like to play hardball when it comes to our moments, so I’ll make it easy for you.” He rests his forearms on the table and leans in. “I’m really glad you’re here.”

Our moments…

A smartass remark that why I’m here might not be all about him rises to my lips, but who am I kidding? It’s all about him.

I suck in a breath. “Me too.”

His smile steals my air right back. “See? Wasn’t so bad, was it?”

“Yeah, well…” I clear my throat. “Since we’re being honest, and before we get… I mean, before things…”

“Progress?”

“I feel like I should explain myself.”

Zach’s expression grows serious. “Okay.”

I turn my water glass in circles. “I had a…hard time when I was younger and it kind of messed me up.”

To say the least.

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