Dreaming With My Eyes Wide Open (Hollywood Legends #2) (15 page)

“That doesn’t sound like you.”

“It isn’t. Nate has the ability to scramble my brain. I
don’t like it.”

No. Paige wouldn’t like it. But Irene did. Paige was
focused. They had that in common. She knew that the ability to look toward your
goal, allowing no distractions, was a curse as well as a blessing. Irene had
success. Prestige. Her bank account was nicely padded. And she was alone.

Friends were nice. Better than nice. However, they weren’t
there to hold you on a long, cold Montana night. Lately, she had
uncharacteristic moments of wistfulness. If she had taken the time to look
around once or twice on her journey, she might have that someone to wake up
with every morning.

Perhaps she was projecting her feelings onto Paige. Everyone
was different. It wouldn’t hurt her friend to remove her blinders. Straight
ahead was great. However, it did make her miss out on a big chunk of the world.
Irene had some regrets. That was a part of living. There was nothing wrong with
helping Paige avoid some of them.

“You didn’t give him a chance to explain?”

“No. I grabbed his puppy and ran.”

“I’m flattered that you ran to me.” Irene squeezed Paige’s
hand. “Would you like a piece of advice from someone who is older but not
necessarily wiser?”

“Always.”

“Grab that man and have your way with him.”

“What if he’s really changed his mind?”

“Then change it back.”

Paige’s eyes widened. “I hadn’t thought of doing that. I’m
not sure I could.”

Irene laughed. “He’s a man. He wants you. It isn’t rocket
science, Paige.”

Paige carried Beauty to her truck, her mind racing. Letting
the puppy take care of her personal business, she praised her before setting
her on the seat and climbing into the cab.

Taking a deep breath, she started the engine.

“It isn’t rocket science, Beauty.”

As she pulled out of the driveway, her nerves starting to
jangle. Science had never been her best subject. However, compared to getting
Nate Landis into bed? It had been a piece of cake.

“I NEED THIS like I need a hole in the head.”

“Your father always said that getting people interested in a
project was half the battle.”

Nate gave Chuck a rueful smile.

“My father never dealt with a fan club of adoring teenage
girls. Showing up with no warning because they want to
help
? I open my
mouth and they act as though every word is the most fascinating proclamation
since Moses came down Mt. Sinai.”

“You could tell them to go home.”

Nate noticed Chuck’s twitching lips. The man was lousy at
hiding his amusement.

“I tried. It was like kicking a bunch of overly perfumed
kittens.”

“They are… what’s the word? Fragrant?”

“That’s a kind way of putting it. And an understatement.”

Nate rubbed the back of his neck. Five days in and he had to
admit, the shoot was going well. They had several scenes in the can. He wanted
to start with some small, intimate moments that set the tone of the story.

On the surface, the dialogue was straightforward. It was up
to the actors to convey the subtext of a couple struggling to hold together a
decaying marriage.

Unlike newlyweds settling into a new life with all the
adjustments that went with the first year, they were a middle-aged couple who
had let the problems silently pile up. Chipping away. Eroding a once rock-solid
foundation. Their children were grown and gone. The small farm had seen better
days. When they looked at each other, they saw a mirror of themselves. Tired.
Feeling the years. Wondering if there was anything left for which to fight.

The unexpected arrival of their youngest daughter sparks the
first real emotion between them in years. Over the course of three weeks, they
slowly rebuild what seemed irretrievable.

It was a gentle story mixed with moments of high emotion. A
true character study. Going in, Nate had few expectations. However, the first
scene had been an eye opener. His actors were raw and mostly untrained. They
brought to their roles an honesty few seasoned veterans could achieve.
Untainted honesty.

What surprised Nate was the depth and power. He became
caught up in the scene, almost forgetting to call cut. Delighted, he held his
breath to see if that first scene was a fluke. It wasn’t. If they could
maintain the quality, this was going to turn out better than he ever imagined.

“Wilt and Edith?”

“What about them?” Chuck asked, taking a bite out of his
sandwich.

There was a table laid out with enough food to feed three
film crews. Salads, desserts. Three kinds of sandwiches and a crockpot full of
beef barley soup. Nate ladled a spoonful into his mouth, sighing with pleasure.

“They’re talented.”

“Surprised?”

“Do I sound like a snob if I say yes?”

“Nope.” Chuck handed Nate a cup of steaming coffee. “I’m
surprised, too. I’ve been to every play they’ve been in. Fifteen years, fifteen
productions. Like I said before, they have talent. What I’ve seen this week is
something else. I can’t figure out where it’s coming from.”

Nate sipped from the mug. He knew the basics of directing.
And he had Garrett on speed dial if he started to feel like he was getting in
over his head. A master, like his brother, could draw performances from his
actors. Nate had no illusions. Whatever was going on with Wilt and Edith, he
had nothing to do with it.

“Do you believe in possession?”

“No.” Nate laughed. “Not before now. Garrett says there have
been times when nothing he does can fix a scene. For whatever reason, the
actors can’t get their heads around the material. Suddenly, boom.” Nate snapped
his fingers. “Magic. As though they channeled someone else.”

“You think Katherine Hepburn pops down now and then — just
to keep her hand in?”

“Why not?” Nate winked.

“On her way, she picked up Henry Fonda.” Chuck seemed to
like the idea.

“It’s a colorful explanation.” Knowing how this kind of
thing could gain traction, Nate looked the other man in the eye. “Let’s keep it
to ourselves, okay?”

“Absolutely. Your newly formed fan club would be tweeting
that we have ghosts before we could blink.”

“Ghosts I could handle. If they asked
who is Katherine
Hepburn?
I wouldn’t be responsible for my actions. I wouldn’t know whether
to kick their texting butts off the set or cry for the state of today’s youth.”

Chuck laughed. He enjoyed Nate. He was smart and had a
quick, dry wit.

“Nate?”

“My lovely leading lady.”

Nate put a hand on Edith Potter’s shoulder. Small in
stature, the dark-haired woman had a big personality. Her brown eyes were sharp
and intelligent with a bit of a twinkle. In many ways, she reminded him of his
mother. She knew her mind and wasn’t afraid to speak it.

“Anxious to check out the dailies?” Nate asked her. Like
everything else, playing back footage of the day’s shoot was not done in a traditional
manner. Homer connected the camera to Chuck’s TV and they gathered in the
living room to watch.

“Every morning, I wake up thinking this has to be a dream,”
Edith said. “I barely knew what dailies were before we started. Now, watching
them seems like the most natural thing in the world. Me. Starring in a movie?
Who would have thought it possible?” The words were filled with pride and a
touch of self-deprecation. Nate was already a little in love.

“Was there something you needed?”

Edith nodded. “It’s Wilt.” Then she threw her head back and
laughed. “Oh, hell. I’m not sticking it all on him. I want to know, too.”

“Know what?”

“Are we making asses of ourselves? This is bigger than
anything we’ve done, Nate. Erin’s script is good.” She reached over to squeeze
Chuck’s hand. “Damn good. We want to do her proud.”

“I won’t lie, Edith.” Nate met the woman’s steady gaze with
this own. “I didn’t have a lot of faith in you or Wilt. I took a wait and see
approach.”

“Well,” Edith demanded, her hands on her hips. “What do you
see?”

“Talent. Bone deep. This week I’ve seen something that can’t
be taught. You and Wilt have a rhythm that comes from years of working
together. You’re comfortable.”

“Like old socks.”

Nate smiled. “Like people who have lived. I can’t tell you
why it’s working, Edith. However, I do have one piece of advice.”

“What’s that?”

“Keep doing it. If you do, we are going to have something
special.”

“She’ll be floating on your words for weeks. Months.”

Nate watched Edith scamper back to her little group of
friends. She whispered, making big gestures with her hands. Wilt Adair sat for
a moment, his mouth agape. Then he silently punched the air before twirling
Edith into an impromptu jig.

Laughing, Nate took another drink of his coffee. He had been
on sets where directors withheld praise of any kind. The idea was to keep
everyone on pins and needles, wondering if they were doing a good job. Happy
actors meant complacency. Complacency led to a loss of tension.

Nate understood it — in theory. It was his experience a
relaxed set yielded the same results without teeth gnashing and nail biting.
Making a movie was a naturally stressful experience. Nate refused to add to it.

“The kitchen scene is short and easy. Unless something
unforeseen occurs, we should get it in a few takes.”

“Then we wrap for the day?”

Nate nodded. “Here is the shooting schedule for the rest of
the week. If anyone can’t make it, let me know. We’ll work around them.”

He doubted that this was the first movie ever made that
catered to the actors’
day jobs
. However, until now, Nate had never
encountered one. The good part was, everyone wanted to make it work. And
somehow, they would.

“I’ll take this in the house and run off some copies.” Chuck
picked up his plate and mug. “Nate?”

“Hmm?”

“I don’t know what I would have done if you weren’t here.”

“You’d have managed.”

“No.” Chuck shook his head. “I thought I could do it.
Watching you makes it clear I was living in a dream world. I’m going to call
your father tonight and thank him for sending you. Paige didn’t know it at the
time, but writing him saved the movie.”

Paige. She was avoiding him. Which wasn’t easy considering
they shared a house. However, she managed to keep her distance. They exchanged
pleasantries at dinner, but he rarely saw her the rest of the time. With Chuck
busy with the movie, she spent her time out on the ranch.

During the day, he was too busy to think about her. Though,
if he were honest, she was never far from his thoughts.

Had he been wrong when he suggested putting on the breaks?
He was thinking of her, not himself. A selfish man would have taken her to bed
and damn the consequences. Why was taking her into consideration a bad thing?

“Any ideas?”

Beauty gave him the same adoring look she always wore when
he was around. Why couldn’t all relationships be this easy and uncomplicated?

“You think I’m perfect.” Nate picked the puppy up. “Every
man should have a woman like you in his life.”

“Because human women expect more than a tummy rub and the
occasional juicy bone.” Lottie tilted her head to the side, her lips pursed in
thought. “Check that.
All
women need an occasional juicy bone.”

Lottie had been a surprise. One of the many volunteers, Nate
expected her to lobby him to be on screen. She had the kind of face the camera
loved. Beauty didn’t always transfer to the big screen. A pretty face could
come off as blank and one dimensional if the actor didn’t have the personality
to back it up. Lottie had vibrancy to burn. Her energy and enthusiasm were
unflagging.

Surprisingly, Lottie was happy to stay behind the scenes.
She helped wherever she was needed. Moving equipment. Setting out food. Running
errands. All the while lightly flirting with every man in her path.

Everyone took Lottie for who she was. Friendly and, for the
most part, harmless. She didn’t make a play for other women’s men. Nate
appreciated that. Though he would have regretted it, if her flirting started
causing friction, he wouldn’t hesitate to ban Paige’s best friend from the set.

“How are you today, Lottie?”

Smiling, Lottie stood before him, beckoning with her finger
for him to lean down to her level. Curious, Nate set Beauty on the ground.
Instead of standing to his full height, he stopped when his eyes met Lottie’s.
A second later, he was sorry. Sweet as can be, Lottie flicked her index finger
against his forehead. Hard.

“Hey.” Nate rubbed the area, surprised by the gesture and
the pain it caused. “What the hell was that for?”

“Be glad I didn’t box your ears.” For good measure, Lottie
stood on her toes and flicked him again. This time, she hit his nose.

“Do you want me to knock you on your ass, Lottie?”

“Please,” Lottie scoffed. “You wouldn’t raise a finger to a
woman.”

Nate frowned. He crossed his eyes, trying to see if the end
of his nose was as red as it felt.

“What makes you so certain?” Now, he wasn’t feeling terribly
chivalrous.

“It’s written all over your gorgeous face. Besides, if I
thought you had it in you, I wouldn’t have stepped aside for Paige.”

“Stepped aside for…?” Nate shook his head in disbelief. “Let
me make this perfectly clear, Lottie. I was never interested in you.”

“You would have been.” When Nate opened his mouth to
protest, Lottie cut him off. “Be honest. If you had never met Paige, you would
have taken me for a spin by now.”

Probably
, Nate thought. He gave Lottie the once over.
Curvy. Pretty. Uncomplicated. Okay. Definitely. She was exactly his type. How
many Lotties had there been in his life? Not that he regretted a single one.

Nate never played unless everyone knew the rules. In that
way, he and Lottie were kindred spirits. They liked things light and easy.

Then there was Paige. It always came back to her. She filled
his thoughts like no woman before her. She knew the rules. He made them clear
up front. That was where the similarities ended. He planned on walking away
from Paige. Easy? Somehow, Nate knew the answer to that. It was a big, fat no.

When Lottie raised her hand, Nate stepped back.

“I swear. Flick me again and I’ll kick you off the set.”

“No, you won’t,” Lottie said smugly.

“Don’t make the mistake of thinking you know me, Lottie. I
have a streak of mean in me. It takes a lot to get to it, but push me enough
and I’m a ruthless bastard when I need to be.” Nate scooped up Beauty and headed
for the house.

“I’m sorry.” Lottie hurried to keep up. “You want Paige.
Paige wants you. What’s the problem?”

“This is none of your business.”

“Hello. Best friend here.” Lottie was about to rap on his
arm with her fist. The look he gave her made her think better of it. “Sorry. I
have Paige’s best interests at heart.”

“What did Paige say when you asked her?”

“She was frustratingly evasive.” Lottie stamped her foot in
frustration. “She never keeps things from me so I know you did something.”

Nate might have taken pity on her if the subject wasn’t such
a personal one. Paige chose to keep the details to herself. So did he.

“You’re going to have to stay on the sidelines, Lottie.
Whatever happens is between Paige and me until she decides otherwise. I have
nothing to say. Except, you were right. I would never intentionally hurt her.”

“What about unintentionally?”

Without another word, Nate entered the house. He took Beauty
into the mudroom, setting her down by her food and water bowls. He poured some
kibble from the bag. Leaning back against the washing machine, watching
absently as she dug in.

Nate hadn’t let Lottie in on his feelings. That didn’t mean
her words had no effect. Paige wasn’t talking to her best friend? Why? Nothing
had happened that warranted secrecy — not when it was someone with whom you
always shared the major moments of your life.