Page 27 of Behind the Scenes

Alexis looked out the window and saw the Boardwalk in the distance. Never before had she been so excited to see something so ordinary. She’d seen boardwalks before in California, but this one held a special feeling for her because it symbolized her first attempt at breaking free.

Free from her stalker. Free from her home. Free from everyone’s rules about how she was supposed to act now that she might be in danger.

She didn’t want to think about any of that today, though. This day was for fun with her best friend.

Turning to look at Lauren, she smiled in anticipation. “You ready?”

She nodded and straightened Alexis’s long brown wig. “I guess. I’ll follow you.”

“We’ll be back at this spot at three o’clock, Jeff. See you then!”

“Yes, miss,” he said as they piled out of the backseat into the sunny day that awaited them.

The two women bolted toward their destination, their bags on their shoulders bouncing around as they ran. Alexis hadn’t felt this free in forever. At least since she left modeling for acting. She loved the sense of independence that rushed through her as she and Lauren ran up the little street leading to the Boardwalk.

“The first thing I want to do is bury my feet in the sand!” she said with a giggle. “I need to feel the sand against my skin again.”

“Alexis, slow down!” Lauren cried as she fell behind. “I’m not in shape like you are.”

She stopped just as she reached the stairs to the Boardwalk and waited for her friend. Alexis didn’t want to stop for anything, but for Lauren, she’d slow down a little.

Looking up, she watched people’s feet and legs as they walked by. She shifted her weight from one foot to the other, anxious to get moving again, turning to see where Lauren could be. Still a few hundred yards away, she walked far too slowly for Alexis.

“Come on! We only have four hours!” she yelled to her.

“I’m coming. Give me a minute.”

Too impatient to give up another moment, Alexis waved her on. “I’ll meet you at the top. Don’t dawdle. We have too much to get to today!”

She took the stairs two at a time and reached the top just as Lauren yelled up from the bottom, “Wait for me!”

Alexis scanned the scene in front of her, loving this place. The beach and ocean lay just a few yards away, closer than she’d been to the water in far too long. Looking down, she saw real wood beneath her feet. A real wood boardwalk like she’d seen in the movies. She’d just assumed that had changed and they’d gone to something vinyl instead.

Lauren joined her, and as she struggled to catch her breath, Alexis pointed down at the Boardwalk. “It’s real wood! How cool is that?”

Confused by her excitement, her assistant didn’t even bother to look down. “I thought they all were made of wood. Isn’t that what makes them boardwalks, after all?”

“Let’s go! I want to hit the beach first before we do anything else,” Alexis said, tugging Lauren’s arm to make sure she kept up this time.

They ran across the wooden planks and down the stairs to the beach, dropping their bags in the sand. Although the calendar said October, the temperature still hovered in the low sixties, warm enough for Alexis to dip her toes into the water just to feel it against her skin.

They slid their shoes off and tossed them behind as they stepped into the ocean. Both looked down in shock at how chilly the water felt, so after just a few seconds, they ran back to grab their shoes and head to where they dropped off their bags.

Flopping down onto the sand, Alexis buried her feet beneath it and laughed. “I haven’t felt water that cold since we were kids in Minnesota. This definitely isn’t LA.”

Lauren covered her hands with the ends of the sleeves on her sweater and folded her arms across her chest. “Definitely not. I know it’s probably above sixty now, but it’s chilly.”

“Oh, that’s just because your feet are cold. Put them under the sand like I did. You’ll get warm.”

Alexis tilted her head back and closed her eyes to let the heat of the sun hit her face. This place wasn’t LA, but it was still pretty damn wonderful.

“This feels so incredible. I’m so glad we did this. Aren’t you?” she asked her friend.

When Lauren didn’t answer, she opened her eyes and looked over at her sitting there nervously looking around instead of enjoying herself. “What are you doing?”

“I’m looking.”

“For what?”

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