Page 136 of Three Grumpy Groomsmen

There’s a pause on his end, then he says, “So what?”

I frown. “So, I need to be in South Carolina, Andrew. My…family is there. That’s where I need to be. I’m relocating.”

Again he asks, “So what?”

“So I can’t keep writing for a show in California!” I snap. I realize I raised my voice when several fellow travelers glance over. I lower my voice. “You know I love the show, and honestly,if you give Marley’s character to Gwyneth, I’ll hate you forever, but, I can’t do it.”

“You wrote this entire new storyline from South Carolina, right?” he asks.

“Well…yes.”

“So obviously youcando it.”

“But I can’t keep doing it.”

“Why not?”

I frown. “What do you mean? I can’t be in the writer’s room in L.A. if I’m living in South Carolina.”

“You can write from South Carolina,” Andrew says. “Obviously. You can join video calls. And surely you’d be willing to fly in once or twice a month for a couple of days, right?”

My heart starts hammering. “Well…yes.”

“Then I don’t see a problem. You’ve been with the show long enough that you know everyone, you know the show, you know how we work.” He sighs. “I’m not saying it’s ideal, but it’s a hell of a lot better than losing you. Weneedyou, Liam. You’re way too important to the show to just let you go without at least trying to make it work.”

I don’t know what to say. I sit, staring at the flat gray carpet in front of me, processing his words.

I’m too important.

They need me.

They don’t want to lose me.

Well…fuck. That’s amazing.

“Liam? Are you there?”

“Yes,” I manage. “Yes, I’m here. I…thanks.” I clear my throat. “I appreciate all of that.”

“So if you can work remotely, if we fly you in just as needed, you’ll stay on?”

“Yes,” I tell him. “Of course. I definitely want to try that.”

“Thank God.” He actually sounds relieved. “Okay. Fuck. I thought I was going to have to tell Chris and Bruce you were out. They would have wanted to kill me.”

Chris and Bruce are the executive producers. Chris is also the actor who plays Captain Daniels.

I feel myself smiling. “Thanks, Andrew. I appreciate it.”

“I don’t know what exactly is going on in South Carolina, but Toby said it has to do with Ivy,” Andrew says.

Everyone on the show has met Ivy. She’s visited me on set and has been to a couple of parties. They all, of course, loved her.

“It does,” I tell him. “We’re together. In love. I…plan to marry her.” That’s the god’s honest truth.

“Good for you,” Andrew says and I can hear the sincerity in his voice. “That’s a pretty damned good reason to uproot your life.”

I smile. The thing is, I feel like I’m actually putting roots down.

---