Page 41 of The Wrong Costar

Iwas surprisingly nervous as I walked into school on Monday morning. It wasn’t any of my classes that had my stomach tied up in knots though; it was the thought of seeing a certain Hollywood actor who had come to my rescue on the weekend.

I was never the damsel in distress and yet that was exactly how I’d acted on Saturday night. I’d completely frozen up when I’d gotten caught up in the brawl at Liam’s party. Fear had rendered my limbs useless and if it weren’t for Liam I could have gotten really hurt. He’d put himself in danger to help me and I didn’t know how to feel about it.

His actions had made me wonder if I’d been wrong about him. Was he simply the self-centered movie star I’d been introduced to or was there more to Liam Black than was obvious at first glance? I kept trying not to think about it or care about the answer, but I couldn’t seem to push thoughts of Liam from my mind.

I kept recalling how safe I’d felt in his arms when he’d rescued me from the fight. Plus, I really needed to stop remembering how my hand had tingled while he’d held onto it and how he hadn’t let go until we were safely away from the chaotic crowd that had swarmed the house. I kept trying to remind myself that Liam was a jerk, but I’d seen glimpses of a guy who actually cared on the weekend and I was left feeling confused.

I didn’t want to have conflicted feelings when it came to Liam. I didn’t want to be intrigued by the softer side of him I’d now seen, and I definitely didn’t want the warm feeling that swelled inside of me when I thought of him. It was so much easier when I was constantly focused on disliking the guy, and I wanted nothing more than to recapture that feeling once more. I thought it wouldn’t be too difficult to do, but the moment I walked into our drama class, I wasn’t sure if it would be such a simple task.

He caught my eye as I entered the auditorium and didn’t look away as I made my way down the aisle to find a seat. I wasn’t sure why he was staring at me in such a way, but he must have sensed my discomfort because his lips pulled into a smile like he thought it was funny. His smile was full of mischief and made his eyes twinkle in a dangerously handsome way. It was the kind of smile that made it all too easy to forget that the guy behind it was trouble and I quickly glanced away before I could do something stupid like smile in return. I wasn’t supposed to be sharing smiles with Liam Black.

“Why does our resident superstar look so happy to see you?” Evan asked. He was walking next to me and had apparently seen my interaction with Liam.

I shrugged. “I don’t think he’s happy because of me. He smiles at all the girls like that.”

“You sure about that?” Evan certainly didn’t look convinced. “I haven’t seen him smile atanygirls like that.”

My cheeks warmed as I shrugged again. What was I supposed to say in response to that? I definitely didn’t know why he was smiling at me. He was probably planning his next means for tormenting me. I knew in my heart that wasn’t the truth though. We found a couple of free seats, and thankfully, Evan didn’t press me for an answer as we sat down.

“Did you see the photos of his party all over the Internet?” Evan asked instead.

I nodded. “I saw one article on Sunday morning, but it wasn’t even close to the truth. They made it look like Liam started that fight, and there was speculation that the cops came and arrested him. The cops weren’t even there.”

“Yes, well, you would know what happened with Liam seeing as our dashing prince rescued you from those hideous, brawling ogres and whisked you away to safety on his white horse.”

“He didn’t whisk me away on a horse,” I grumbled. I really wished I hadn’t told Evan about how I got home on Saturday night. He was never going to let me hear the end of it.

“Sorry, I meant shiny, black Escalade.”

I rolled my eyes. “Well, I would have much preferred it if a beat-up old Ford had come to my rescue.”

Evan’s face dropped a little. “I’m sorry we got separated and I wasn’t there to help you.”

I smiled and nudged my shoulder into his. “I know you are, and, to be honest, I’m just glad you were out the back and got out safely. I’m much happier with the thought of our arrogant star putting his handsome face on the line.”

“Did you just admit that Liam is handsome?” Evan gasped. “I never thought I’d see the day.”

I groaned. Of course, that’s what Evan took out of our conversation.

Thankfully, he couldn’t continue winding me up because Madi called for everyone’s attention and began to read out the cast who were needed up on stage. I wasn’t required for the scene, but Liam was, and I couldn’t seem to draw my eyes away from him as he made his way up onstage and started to perform.

He was still clutching his script like it was a safety blanket, but he didn’t look at it once as he read his lines aloud. He seemed to be putting so much effort into the role, and I was blown away by his acting skills once again as he stalked across the stage toward Todd and growled out his lines. When the scene ended, the class started clapping, and I was surprised to find I joined in with them.

I wasn’t supposed to be impressed by Liam.

I was supposed to be focused on all the reasons why I disliked him.

It was all really hard to do when he kept surprising me though.

* * *

Mr. Randall had askedme to meet him in his classroom after school. He’d suggested I submit an early draft of our biography assignment for him to review, and I’d taken him up on it because of how important the assignment was. I had a bad feeling I was about to be told I wasn’t living up to my potential yet again.

My suspicions were confirmed when I walked into his classroom and saw the disappointed look in his eyes. I let out a hard exhale as I came to stand at his desk. “My assignment’s terrible, isn’t it?”

“Not terrible,” he replied, though I could tell from his tone of voice that it wasn’t great either. “Why don’t you take a seat, Teagan?”

I eased myself into the chair across from him and clasped my hands tightly on my lap. This meeting meant I wouldn’t be getting a ride home from school with Evan today and I’d have to walk. I had a babysitting job later tonight, so I really couldn’t take too long with Mr. Randall or I’d be late.

---