Page 15 of Lost Lyrics

“Yes. Yes, of course. But...”Shit. “Are you sure my script hasn’t changed?” It would’ve been nice to have had some forewarning. But I could do this. I just had to focus. Get in the zone.

I tossed my script onto my chair, walked over to my entry spot stage-left behind the closed office door, and closed my eyes. As I smoothed my hands over my dress, I took a deep breath. I was Sienna. Marketing executive. Ready to be flustered...that is easy...and have an evening full of slow burn tension in the office with my clueless boss.Yep. Here we go.

After lighting was adjusted, hair and makeup were checked, and boom mics were in position, the crew gave the thumbs up to Frank.

“Awesome. Alright, let’s go.” Frank took a seat behind his monitor, then called out, “Quiet on set. Action.”

I knocked on the door to Braxton’s office and rushed inside. “I’m here. I came as fast as I could.” I panted like I’d run a mile, then swallowed hard, halting in my tracks, and took in the office overflowing with beautiful candles and gorgeous pink roses.Crap. I have to ad-lib. It is called for.“Um...Braxton? I’m sorry. Am I interrupting something? Didn’t you call me back to workon tomorrow’s Hamptons presentation?”

“You’re not interrupting anything. I called you in.” Ethan, in his suave suit, slowly came around to the front of his office desk. Okay, I could see why the fans of the show raved about his good looks. He had sexy, short salt-and-pepper hair and a charming smile, but no one was hotter than Flint. Ethan took my hands in his and softened his voice. “There is something I wanted to talk to you about first.”

In character, I swallowed hard, delivered my line. “Is it about the promotion?”

“No.” Ethan shook his head, slowly.

What?He should’ve said yes.Damn it! Think.What would Sienna say? She didn’t take shit from anyone. “Well, this is a bit of an overkill to show me how much you appreciate my work in the office and the amount of overtime I do. Nice touch, but I would’ve been happy with takeout Chinese.”

“This is more than a show of appreciation, Sienna.” He took a tiny step closer. “Please tell me if I am crossing the line here. But you’re impossible not to notice. I’ve seen the way you look at me. I’m not blind. Tell me I’m not imagining things.”

“Braxton.”Shit, this is so off the script.“I don’t know what you mean.”

“Yes, you do. Every time I’m in the same room as you, I feel a connection. Tell me you feel the same way. Thatthisis something.”

“Yes. But...fuck.” My blood pressure spiked. “Cut.” I stepped three feet away from Ethan and spun to Frank. I waved my palms in the air. “What the hell is this? None of this dialogue is what Braxton would say.”

“Sutton, that was fantastic.” Rhonda stepped in beside Frank. But was that a twisted, evil, yet humorous glint in her eye? She was having way too much fun with this. “Keep going. I wanna see ifthis works.”

“What am I working with, Rhonda?” I jammed my hands on my hips. “We’re supposed to be working on a client’s presentation, not wining and dining. Braxton is supposed to be oblivious to Sianna’s crush on him. This is changing everything. Why wasn’t I told?”

“I’m telling you now.” Rhonda shrugged, grinning with too much satisfaction. “Let’s have some fun with this scene, please?”

Fun? This isn’t fun. This is just ridiculous.“Fine,” I groaned. Did we have the budget to waste studio time? I didn’t think so. I turned on my heels and got back in to position. I wriggled my knees, my toes, then stretched my neck from side to side. “Sorry, Ethan. This is just weird.”

“Nah, we can do this.” Grinning, he wrinkled his nose. “You’re great at ad-libbing. I’ll give you all the cues you need. I got you.”

“Thanks.” I took a deep breath and smoothed my hands over my dress. That helped clear my head. “So, where are we picking up from?”

Ethan straightened his tie. “Tell me you feel the same way. Thatthisis something.”

“Okay.”Crap.How could I make this scene work? I was supposed to be annoyed with Braxton. My lines hadn’t changed. I had to stay true to my character. Stick with the storyline. Sienna liked Braxton, but she wouldn’t fall into his arms even if things changed. There’d be no fucking on the desk. If Braxton was suddenly interested in her, she’d be flattered and remain professional. She’d play it cool, not willing to risk her chance at promotion or jeopardize her reputation in the office. That would be believable.

“Action,” Frank called out.

Ethan repeated his line. “Tell me you feel the same way. That this is something?”

A dull throb pummeled the back of my brain. But I ignoredit and played along. “Braxton, you’re a great boss. Fun to work with. There might be something, but whatever it is, it can’t evolve into anything.”

“Why not?”

Because clearly Rhonda was on some weird, potentially drug-induced trip and is messing with the fucking storyline.I summoned a sweet smile, turning on the innocent charm. “I’m next in line for a promotion. I don’t want to be the talk of the office or for you to treat me differently.”

Ethan took my hands in his. Was that a tremble? Yeah, he didn’t like this change either. But he never broke character. “I can’t hide the way I feel about you anymore. I can’t wait to see you each morning. Your laugh and smile brighten my day. Your voice intoxicates me.” He swept a loose strand of my hair behind my ear and softened his voice. “Sienna, regardless of what people within these gossip-filled walls will say, I’d love to go out with you. Take you on a date. I see my future with you.”

What the fuck?

“Sienna, please. Be my girlfriend.”

“No.” I yanked my hand free and took a step toward Frank, but Ethan caught my arm. I yelled from the center of the set, “Frank, why are you going along with this crap? This is utter bullshit. Am I been pranked? It’s April Fool’s Day. Please tell me this is a joke.” There had to be some explanation for all this craziness.

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