Page 4 of Everybody Needs a Hero

“Why would anyone want to?” the man said, and Tess’s character’s eyes widened, furious, but also with a glimmer of vulnerability and pain in them. Without a reply, she fled the store.

“Cut,” the director yelled. “Perfect. That was what I was looking for.” He looked at Drew. “Didn’t I tell you she was good?” Drew clenched her teeth, loving how the scene went but hating to be so wrong about Tess. The emotion on Tess’s face had been spot on, but it didn’t change things on the grander scale. When it was clear Drew had nothing to say, the director went to intercept Tess before she left the set as Drew watched. “Excellent work today,” Drew heard him say. “We should have cast you from the start.”

There was absolutelyno other way to put it—Tess was on cloud nine. Pulling from her decades of experience and pushing her acting skills to the limit, in her mind, the day went perfectly as she nailed scene after scene. Even better, the director said he was thrilled. Add in that the angry writer kept her mouth shut as she sulked in her chair, and things couldn’t have gone better. Digging her phone out of her purse where she had flung it on the trailer’s sofa at the start of the day, Tess couldn’t wait to tell her daughter everything. Ashley would be excited for her. Although she never came out and said so, Tess knew she was a little worried about the sudden gig. To be honest, so was Tess after the altercation with the writer that morning. The woman had struck a nerve, but if Drew had meant to knock Tess off her game, the insult did the opposite. Tess hadn’t been so dialed into a role since she first started in the business.

The phone suddenly buzzed in her hand and looking at it, she smiled to see it was her daughter Ashley. That happened all the time—where one of them was about to call the other and then the phone rang. She loved their connection and believed the bond went beyond the normal mother-daughter instinct. Since day one, the two simply operated on the same wavelength. “Oh my God, it went so great,” Tess answered without even a hello, unable to keep the excitement from bubbling up in her voice. She started to pace the large, plush trailer. “Can we meet for a late dinner? Are you free? I have so much to tell you.”

“Yes,” Ashley exclaimed through the phone. “I have stuff to share too. My day was crazy.” She gave a small laugh filled with disbelief. “Someone tried to rob the coffee shop this morning.”

Pausing mid-step, Tess’s heart jumped into her throat at the idea Ashley might have been hurt. “Are you okay?” she asked, all other things she wanted to share immediately losing importance. “Did anyone get hurt? Did the robber get away? When did it happen?”

“Whoa, Mom. I’m okay. Everyone is okay,” Ashley answered. “I promise.”

Tess shook her head, trying to get her mind wrapped around what her daughter was telling her. “So, what happened?”

“It was amazing,” Ashley said. “Everyone is okay, thanks to an old college friend of mine. She was incredible. I thought stuff like that only happened in the movies.”

Tess furrowed her brow.An old college friend?she thought. Something in her daughter’s tone made the friend sound like someone special. While Ashley was in college, she talked about her projects and assignments but rarely shared about her friends. Tess had never met anyone her daughter showed interest in.

Before she could ask more about the friend, Ashley rushed on. “I’ll explain everything tonight. But get back to telling me about your day!”

For a second, Tess considered pressing Ashley for more details of the robbery but then let it go. Her daughter would tell her if there were anything to worry about. Starting to dive into how wonderful her day went, Tess didn’t get a word out before there was a hard knock at her trailer’s door. “One sec, Ashley,” she said, moving to the door and opening it a crack to peek outside. Of all the people Tess might have expected to see, it was Drew Andersen standing at the bottom of the steps, shifting her feet, and looking very uncomfortable. “Well, hi. Is everything okay?”

Drew cleared her throat. “I was hoping we could talk,” the woman said, not making eye contact. “About this morning especially.”

Based on how the writer acted standing there at the bottom of her steps, Tess guessed the talk would include an apology. She had to hide her smile of satisfaction. “Give me one minute,” she said to Drew before telling Ashley she would see her later at their usual restaurant in West Hollywood. Refocusing on Drew, Tess opened the door wider. “Do you want to come in?”

.

Swallowing hard,Drew wasn’t sure what to do with Tess’s invitation. When she planned her approach around how to talk to the actress, somehow it didn’t involve being inside Tess’s trailer. That would put her in the other woman’s territory, giving her an advantage when Drew tried to explain the situation. Still, there was no obvious reason other than being outright rude that she could provide for not joining the actress in her trailer. Knowing she was stuck, Drew nodded. “Okay,” she said, moving to the stairs, and Tess gave her a warm smile before going back inside. Working hard not to be dazzled in the wake of the famous smile, Drew followed her.

Tess was already at the trailer’s full-sized fridge, moving things around. “I always have my trailer stocked with foods I like on hand, but also, always champagne,” she said before grabbing a bottle and closing the door. Holding the thing out for Drew to read the label, the writer wasn’t sure what to do.Why are we having champagne?she wondered, not seeing any reason to celebrate. Clearly realizing Drew’s confusion, Tess laughed. It was a sweet, carefree sound that was one of the things that made the woman world famous. Unable to help herself, Drew smiled. That was the effect the woman had on a person, which is the problem.She needed to keep reminding herself of that fact and not get caught up in any nonsense to do with champagne.

Squaring her shoulders, Drew put on a serious face. “Now listen—” she started, but Tess waved her off as she walked past her to the counter.

“Not before we toast,” she said and opened the bottle with a practiced hand. “Check the cupboard. There should be at least a half dozen champagne glasses.”

Opening her mouth to protest but seeing the gorgeous woman standing before her with an open champagne bottle, she couldn’t seem to bring herself to say no. Instead, she went to the cupboard.This is ridiculous,she thought but reached for two flutes anyway. Knowing she was losing complete control of the situation, she tried again as she turned with the glasses.

“Tess, seriously, we need to talk,” she said, realizing the actress had moved much closer to pour. Drew sucked in a breath. Even after a long day of filming in the surprisingly warm March heat, Tess smelled good. Soft, a slight hint of flowers, and far too inviting. Not sure where all the unexpected attraction was coming from, Drew suddenly focused hard on Tess filling the glasses. When they were full, Tess lifted hers.

“So, let’s talk,” she said. “After we toast the amazing start to filming your movie we had today. It’s a bit of a tradition with me to celebrate a strong first day.”

Not daring to jinx the making of the film, Drew lifted her glass too. Even if Drew got her way and Tess was on her way out, karma was karma. “Fine,” she said. “What do you usually toast to?”

“To Thalia and Melpomene, of course,” she said. When Drew frowned, having no idea who the two people were, Tess laughed. “The muses of Comedy and Tragedy. Don’t worry. Most people outside of acting don’t know them. Maybe you’ve seen their masks?”

Even though she never had an interest in drama growing up, the image of the two masks—one smiling, one frowning—came to mind. “Yes,” she said. “Never knew they had names.”

Tess sipped. “I actually have a tattoo,” she said, setting the glass on the counter and pulling up her blouse to reveal her tight midsection. The small laughing and frowning faces stood out on her hip. “They have had to cover the tattoo with makeup for some of my scenes over the years, but I’ve very proud of it.” She dropped her shirt back into place. “So, what do you want to talk about?”

After seeing the woman’s skin so unexpectedly, Drew had trouble refocusing on what she had wanted to discuss. Again, she was entirely taken off guard by her reactions to Tess. “I’m concerned,” she managed to say. “About you as the nurse.”

Tess frowned. “Didn’t you like how I played the part today?”

That was a good question because Drew liked how she handled the role today, but it didn’t fix the long-term problem. “Yes, but there are much grittier scenes,” she said, and then a thought came to her. Tilting her head, she regarded the actress. “Have you read the book?”

Blushing, Tess picked up her champagne and took a sip before answering. “No,” she admitted. “I didn’t have time before shooting started. But I obviously read the script.” She lifted her chin. “And there isn’t anything in there I can’t pull off.” Drew didn’t know if she should be offended or not. From her book sales, it seemed most of the world had read the novel. Regardless, the fact Tess didn’t know the complex layers of the story would hinder her ability to play the role. Even if she wasn’t too beautiful for the part.

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