Page 98 of Something Cheeky

“That’s not your decision to make, Derek. It’s not one musicalbutthemusical. This is my chance at a do-over and I’m not going to fuck things up again.”

Derek opened his mouth but she shushed him.

“You’re under a lot of stress right now, and I refuse to let my costumes be part of that. Now, if there’s nothing else about the show you’d like to discuss, I need to get back out there and sew.”

He shook his head, worried that if he pushed back anymore, she might quit. That’s what had happened in college when their professor gave her an ultimatum about putting the actors in what amounted to yellow face.

Zoe gave him a wide berth as she walked out of the office. There was shuffling as the staff returned to their work, pretending they hadn’t heard their raised voices.

His phone vibrated. It was a text from Heather. The actors were back from their afternoon break. Derek was late but Th?o was working on some songs with them until he got back. Once again Th?o was covering for him.

Now he’d pissed off Zoe. One thing at a time. He’d talk to Zoe after rehearsal was done for the day. Maybe he could ask the producing director for a little more money so they could hire a few of Zoe’s staff in as over-hires while the rest kept her boutique open.

This day was supposed to be better than yesterday. How the hell did Annie stay so optimistic when her life was so shitty?

Chapter 42

Derek hid a yawn behind his notepad as Th?o led the actors through vocal warm-ups. Next she’d walk the cast through the song they’d finished writing last night.

He gulped the fresh coffee Heather had made for rehearsal and texted Zoe.

See you at the designer run aka our first stumble through. We start after lunch at one.

It wasn’t the first time he and Th?o pulled an all-nighter, and it wouldn’t be the last. They’d drunk obscene amounts of coffee as they finished writing two songs, including the pivotal duet between the sisters. Besides the opening number, this one had been the most difficult to write because his Vietnamese wasn’t good enough to help Th?o refine the lyrics. But he trusted her judgment on them.

It was also the sisters’ most emotional moment of the show. The duet began with T?m’s impassioned plea to her stepsister to break free from their stepmother’s abusive hold. Cám is paralyzed by the fear that her mother’s anger instilled into her as a child. Eventually T?m wins her over and they hatch a plan to bring Cám to the safety of the palace.

Today’s designer run would be rough with the two new songs, but with only twelve days until opening night, they had to stay on schedule. Rehearsing the entire show from beginning to end with as few stops was a tall order right now, but it wasn’t called a stumble through for nothing. At the very least, their design team would have a better idea about the show’s staging and emotional beats in order to finalize the lighting, sets, sound, and costumes.

Derek tapped his phone. Nothing from Zoe.

The last time he’d checked in at the costume shop, she and TJ had also stayed late to work, but then actually went home before the sun rose, unlike him and Th?o. Zoe should be awake by now because the costume shop started work an hour before rehearsals began. But the app gave no indication that she’d read his message, nor were there bouncing dots to indicate she was forming a reply.

Missed you last night.

His thumb hovered over the on-screen keyboard after he hit send.Screw it.They were dating. He could send her multiple texts without coming off as needy.

I sleep better when you’re in my arms

One—no, two—nights without spooning Zoe and he was already heartsick. He hoped she felt the same way, but the last conversation between them had been awkward at best. What if she was still mad at him? He hadn’t meant to imply that she wouldn’t be able to handle the pressure.

Th?o handed out the new sheet music, which was still warm from the copier. He didn’t have any more time to fret about textsfrom Zoe. He had only an hour or so to block the new songs then give the actors a chance to rehearse them one more time before lunch.

Zoe was an adult and would show up on time. She was too professional to show up late or, worse, not at all. He had to trust her the way she trusted him to get this musical in shape for opening night.

“Okay, folks,” he said after Th?o was finished running through the songs. “Let’s block these numbers and make the audience fall in love with Câm.”

“Calling it a train wreck is too kind,” Derek muttered so only Heather, who sat next to him, could hear. “That was the worse stumble through of my life.”

Her expression didn’t change except for a slight cheek twitch. Damn, that woman was a pro. She cleared her throat.

“Do you want to give notes now or after the break?” she asked.

Twenty minutes wasn’t long enough to fix all the problems that had walked across the rehearsal room.

“Give them an extra-long break. An hour, okay?”

Heather nodded and penciled a note into her binder.

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