Page 32 of Every Star that Shines

“I watched that one you did about modern slavery. That was really something. And, er, both your Nathan Tait ones.”

Something in his voice made her heart stick in her throat. “What did you think of those?”

“Well . . .”

She jumped in to fill the uncomfortable dead space. “My fans were right, weren’t they?” She grabbed her laptop, flinging it open. “I need to watch those again. There has got to be something I’m missing. What did I do that was so offensive?”

“Nothing,” he said. “Actually, they were both extremely well done, and I stand by my opinion that this is the stupidest cancellation I’ve ever heard of.”

“Then why do you have that tone?”

He hesitated. “What tone?”

“That one. You just did it again. You had it when you said you’d watched the Nathan Tait videos. I know that tone, Caleb Toews. There’s something you’re not telling me.”

He blew out a long stream of air. “Okay. It’s just, I thought maybe you were a little hard on Nathan in the most recent video, especially considering none of the allegations against him have been proven. I went and looked it up to be sure. Nothing has been released to the public about it yet.”

Delanie rolled her eyes. “Not you too. What is it with guys?”

“What do you mean?”

“My friend Desmond said basically the same thing. But there’s no reason to believe Nathan didn’t do it. Why are guys so quick to give other guys the benefit of the doubt, but not the women who have been hurt by them?”

“On the other hand,” Caleb said slowly, “most guys never speak up when they are the victims of abuse and hurt because it’s considered unmanly. Why would Nathan say those things about his wife if they weren’t true?”

Delanie gaped. “To make himself seem like the victim, obviously. To get out of his current predicament. He’s just using the system to get away with murder. Well, not murder, but . . . you know.”

“No, I don’t know, not when it comes to Nathan Tait’s innocence or guilt, nor how true the accusations he made against his wife are.” Caleb sighed. “That’s the point, Delanie. You made a whole video painting him as the villain, when he actually could be the victim. Yes, he may only have come forward because of what his wife said, but if she hadn’t ever gone public with her accusations, he may have suffered in silence for many more years. Don’t you remember the story of Joseph and Potiphar’s wife?”

“The Bible story?” She didn’t remember much about it from Sunday school, but she had seen Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, so she knew what he was referring to—the lustful captain’s wife trying to take advantage of the handsome young slave boy. When he rejected her come-ons out of loyalty to his master, she claimed he had raped her and had him thrown in jail because of her hurt pride, and perhaps a fear that he would reveal the truth.

Still, Nathan and Carmelina lived their lives in glass houses. And because of that, she had to admit, the media had had plenty of dirt to throw in either direction, most of it hearsay.

“Okay, I may have cherry-picked my sources a little. But that doesn’t mean he didn’t do it.”

“True. But how is lambasting him in your video without knowing the facts any different than what your fans did to you?”

Delanie spluttered. “It’s . . . It just is.” For starters, she was pretty certain her opinion didn’t matter to Nathan Tait one way or another. She had never met the man, and her following wasn’t that big. “And, anyway, that’s not the one my fans are mad about.” Only my friends, apparently. Wait . . . is Caleb a friend now?

“No, it’s not,” he agreed.

The silence stretched, and the question she had been dying to ask since Marie’s observation about Caleb’s character slammed against the back of her teeth. How did one go about asking their ex-boyfriend whom one was now working closely with if he had cheated a decade ago without making it awkward?

Perhaps it didn’t matter. It wasn’t like she and Caleb were getting back together, ever. Some things were probably better left in the past.

And some things were easier said than done.

“Hey,” he said, “I was thinking some more about what we were talking about today regarding Geppetto and Stella . . .”

“Yeah?” Delanie breathed a sigh of relief, glad Caleb was turning this conversation into less-fraught waters.

“I was wondering, what if we took some time to work with the main cast members individually? I mean, you’ll be a much better acting teacher than I would be, but I’m happy to be there to offer observations and act as a second set of eyes. We could have them come to rehearsal in pairs a little early to go over specific scenes and work out the kinks. What do you think?”

“Um, yeah. I think that’s a great idea. All of the kids would benefit from a bit more one-on-one teaching time. And that’s what this play is for, right? To help the kids develop as actors and people?”

She could hear the smile in his voice. “You bet.”

Someone knocked on Delanie’s door, and she told Caleb to hold on, then held the phone against her chest while she invited whomever it was in.

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