Page 3 of One Life to Loathe

“These things are a dime a dozen. It’s not as if we’re doing Shakespeare here.”

I made a sniffing sound as I shuffled to get more comfortable in my seat. “I’ve never actually found Shakespeare that interesting.”

“We’re not even doingFast and Furiousmovies,” he argued. “We’re doing a show where a vampire and witch fall in love and their families want to go to war over it.”

I blinked. “So?” I said finally. “The pilot script was good. They’re flying us first class.”

“It’s cute that you think that’s a big deal,” Leo replied. “It’s not, though. The production company probably has a block of seats with the airline and they dole them out willy-nilly.”

“You don’t have to be so obnoxious,” I fired back. “I’m just trying to get to know you. Wearegoing to be working together. We should at least be … friendly.”

“Friendly?” Leo barked out a humorless laugh. “We’re going to film ten episodes of what will likely be the laughingstock of Netflix’s spring schedule next year. Those who watch it willbinge it in two days. Then it will be forgotten because it won’t get a second season. Netflix ruthlessly cancels things. At least we’ll get our paychecks, though. There’s that to look forward to.”

I faced forward. I couldn’t even look at him. Why had they cast Leo Freaking Powell? The guy’s reputation was the stuff of nightmares. Everybody had a story about Leo melting down. It was what he did. He got a chance at a fresh start and burned his world down within weeks of getting it. He made Shia LeBeouf and Charlie Sheen look balanced. He made Edward Norton look pleasant. He made Marlon Brando look sane.

“Whatever.” I drained the rest of my drink, no longer caring that I’d ordered rum and Diet Coke. “I was just trying to have a conversation. You don’t have to worry about it happening again. I should’ve realized you weren’t going to make an effort.”

Now I’d clearly irritated him because he leaned closer and glared. “What is that supposed to mean?”

“What do you think it means?” I shot back. I was too worked up to be pleasant and nice. “You have a specific reputation. I like to give people the benefit of the doubt, but five minutes with you and it’s obvious that your reputation is earned.”

“Is that so?” Leo’s eyes flashed with something dark and dangerous. “At least I have a reputation. Have you ever done anything?”

“I was on an episode ofGrey’s Anatomy… andLaw and Order: Special Victims Unit… and I was the fourth Kendall onGeneral Hospital.”For four episodes, I silently added. He didn’t need to know that part, though.

“Ah, well, at least you were onGrey’s Anatomy.” Leo shook his head. “This might be an exciting job for you—and good on you if this is the biggest thing you’ve ever gotten—but all this show does for me is prove that I can’t possibly fall any lower. Wait.” He held up his hand. “I guess that’s not entirely true. There’s always reality television. I could go on a ‘celebrity’season ofSurvivor.” He used air quotes, telling me exactly where his head was at.

His attitude frustrated me. Unfortunately, when I was frustrated, I found myself caught between pouting and tears. Even though it was the last thing I wanted, I could feel the tears scalding the back of my eyes now.

“You are a donkey,” was all I could grit out.

His eyes widened.

“Just because life isn’t going well for you, that doesn’t mean you have to crap on everybody else,” I hissed. It came out as a half sob because of the tears I couldn’t seem to control. I ignored them, though. “Why can’t you just let other people be happy? Why do you have to be so miserable? Why can’t you just be a human being?”

Now it was Leo’s turn to blink. He didn’t speak for a long time. Then he finally opened his mouth. “I?—”

“No.” Before I even realized what I was going to do, I slapped my hand over his mouth. “You’ve said enough. How about we just make this flight a silent zone, huh? I think that would be better for both of us.”

With that, I dropped my hand and faced forward. I refused to let him ruin my good mood. Thiswasgoing to be my big break. Iwasgoing to get to do the thing I loved most. I wasn’t, however, going to let Leo Powell ruin it for me.

No way.

No how.

Nothing doing.

From now on, he was nothing more than my co-star. We didn’t have to be friends. We didn’t have to be anything.

That would be the best thing for both of us.

2

TWO

Ifelt bad about ruining Sam’s good mood. No, really.

It wasn’t her fault that I’d basically been forced into accepting this role. I had no interest in being a vampire. None. Zilch. A television soap opera—even a high-end deal—wasn’t the sort of thing I ever imagined myself doing. I’d been backed into a corner, though. I needed to prove that I could get along with others and not wreak havoc on a set.

---