Page 55 of Force of Nature

Chapter Nineteen

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“So tell me again.”Whitney claps her hands together as she sits across from me at our favorite martini bar two blocks from the studio where I nailed my audition.

“He said that Rose was written for someone like me.” I smile widely, remembering how enthusiastic the director was after my read through with Aaron Samuels who was cast to play Falcon, the lead male.

“Gahhh. You’re so going to get this role,” she tells me, lifting her candy apple martini to her lips.

“Don’t jinx me.” I’m trying to keep my excitement at bay. “Just because he liked me doesn’t mean he won’t like the other girl more. She still hadn’t auditioned. Maybe he’ll see her and decide I suck in comparison.”

“Not likely.” She rolls her chocolate brown eyes, taking another sip of her martini.

“Either way, I’m not celebrating yet.”

“Did he tell you when you might expect to hear something?”

“He said a few days. They want to have the contracts drawn and negotiations finalized in the next couple of weeks.”

“And when do they start shooting.”

“End of June.”

“That quick. Holy hell. That’s only a month away.”

“I know, right? Talk about running right up to the wire. I guess they weren’t scheduled to start until September but the timeline got bumped up by the production company and now they’re scrambling to get locations and everything in order.”

“And sign the leading actress,” Whit tacks on.

“Yeah, that too.”

“Can I just say that I’ve missed the hell out of you?” Whit sighs, staring at me over the rim of her glass.

Whitney is the kind of girl you’d expect to find in L.A. Even in a land filled with beautiful people, she stands out like a bright yellow light. She’s gorgeous with dark eyes, dark hair, the perfect sun kissed skin. When I first met her I instantly disliked her based solely on the fact that she made me feel ugly. As soon as she opened her mouth, though, I had no choice but to love her. She’s just one of those people.

“I’ve missed you too,” I tell her. “But you know, even if I land this role I won’t be moving back here. At least not anytime soon. I’ll likely be staying wherever our main shooting site will be.”

“I know.” She pouts out her bottom lip. “But at least I will be able to come visit you on set.”

“You can come visit me now,” I remind her.

“I really should. I mean, one can only judge so much based on pictures alone.” She arches a brow, blowing right into the Thad conversation without warning. “So how are things with our Mark Knox lookalike?”

“Intense,” I admit.

“I knew it. I could tell the instant you sat down that something was different about you. You’ve slept with him, haven’t you?”

“You could say that.” I shake my head, draining the remainder of my martini in one long pull right as our waiter reappears.

“We’re gonna need two more,” Whit tells him, pointing to my now empty glass and her near empty one. “And we’ll take an order of your crab dip.” She waits until he walks away before turning her gaze back to me. “Don’t look at me like that. This conversation calls for unnecessary calories. Or have I taught you nothing?” She grins, downing the last of her drink from the glass before setting it to the side.

“Now spill.” She leans forward, resting her elbows on the table in front of her.

“I don’t really know what to say,” I admit, having not really had the chance to talk to her or anyone about this since it started a few days ago.

“Start from the beginning. Tell me everything.”

“Okay.” I give the waiter a grateful nod as he reappears with two more martinis. Taking a huge gulp, I set the glass back down and instantly dive in, figuring if nothing else maybe it’ll do me some good to talk it out with someone.

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