Page 89 of Ordinary Secrets

Arella freezes beneath me. I debate ignoring the intrusion until I sense that the person isn’t moving from the door. Reluctantly, I stand.

“I’m not done with you yet,” I whisper.

After adjusting my hard-on, I open the door to reveal a woman I’ve never seen before. She’s pretty for an Ordinary. Nothing compared to Arella though.

“Hi.” She hooks a finger behind an ear to pull back her long blonde hair. “I wanted to introduce myself. I’m Bailey.”

“Trey.” We shake hands. “This is my girl, Ari.”

Arella still looks flushed from our kiss as she offers Bailey a small wave. “Hello.”

I can’t tell how she feels. Her face gives nothing away.Is she uncomfortable? Jealous?I want to tell her she has no reason to be. This would be a great time to be a Telepath instead of an Empath, except neither works on her anyway.

I grab Arella’s hand and give it a squeeze. It’s my silent way of telling her that I’m not attracted to Bailey at all. When I look at Bailey, I just see a person. That’s it.

And that’s what Zordisshouldsee when they look at an Ordi. They shouldn’t see anything sexual. They shouldn’t see someone they want to devour all the time. Most of all, they shouldn’t see someone who makes their heart race as much as Arella makes mine.

There’s gotta be something wrong with me. In the past, I’ve read articles on the z-net about Zordis with mental conditions that cause them to have Ordi fetishes. They’re put in rehab and therapy to correct it.Do I have one of those conditions?I don’t know. Either way, it’s not something I can think about right now. It’s time for take one.

I make my way to the backyard, where the crew has set up a gazebo in the garden decorated with flowers. As we film, Arella lounges on a lawn chair, watching us. I’m glad she came to work with me today. I always perform better when she’s around.

Fifteen takes later, Mateo calls out, “Cut! That’s a wrap for the full band scenes!”

Without wasting a second, Arella hops out of her chair and begins helping the crew haul stuff back inside. I’m about to go to her when a hand on my forearm stops me.

“Ey, man. You nervous ’bout your scenes with Blondie?” Mateo nods his head toward Bailey, who’s chatting in a triangle with Liz and Emmy.

“No. Why?”

“Of course you ain’t. You’re prolly used to kissin’ strangers all the time. Bailey’s not though, so I was hopin’ you’d go break the ice with her.”

“What do you mean?” I already know what Mateo means. He’s not the first director to ask this of me. Typically, I’m down for it. Today, I’m not.

“You know, just make her feel comfortable with smacking lips with you before the cameras roll. It’ll make the shots look more natural.”

“She’s an actress.” I wave a nonchalant hand through the air. “She’ll be fine.”

“Even actresses get nervous, lover boy. Just go ease her nerves a bit, ’ight?”

With that, Mateo twists on his heel and heads inside. I have no intention of breaking the ice with Bailey. If she’s nervous, she’s just gonna have to get over it.

I glance to where Arella was earlier. She’s gone now. I scan the rest of the backyard. No Arella. She’s probably back inside.

I’m about to yank the back door open when someone calls my name.

I turn around with a fake smile on my face. “Oh, hey, Bailey.”

“Mateo said you wanted to talk to me about somethin’?”

Damn you, Mateo.“Uh, yeah,” I say, going along with it.Might as well get this over with.The faster we can get past her nerves, the faster we can film, the faster I can go home with my girl. “Let’s talk over here.”

Bailey follows me to the side of the house.

I stop under the shade of a tree and rub a hand behind my neck. “So, uh, I figured... um, that we’d kinda get used to kissing each other before the cameras roll.”

Bailey’s explosion of nerves fireworks through my head.

Great.Now she’s makingmenervous. “You cool with that?”

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