Page 152 of Holly Jolly July

She comes a little closer, her eyes shining. “Come with me,” she repeats, louder, more assured. “Come to LA. Let’s make a go of it, together.”

My chest begins to heave as confusion shifts to anger. This is worse than our relationship coming in second to her career—I had been prepared for that. I’ve dealt with being overlooked my whole life. But she knows how important my role is. She knows all the reasons I can’t leave. I had just told her I wouldn’t want her giving up her dreams for me, and yet she wouldn’t do the same? Even asking, putting the onus onmeto letherdown, makes my stomach curdle.

“I can’t leave. Not now. Mariah, I just landed my dream role, in Whistler of all places. There’s going to be snow and magic and I’ll get to co-star with an incredible method actor. Christmas movies don’t mean much to you but they’re everything to me.” I swallow, trying to tamp down the sadness and anger for our final moments together. “I’ve worked so hard for this, and I can’t give that up, and for you to even ask is—”

She shakes her head, her smile widening. “Check the date, Ellie.”

I frown, my heart pounding in my ears, and lower my shaking hands to reread the ticket. “October?”

Mariah tucks a strand of teal hair behind her ear in a rare display of nerves. “And there’s a return flight for the following month, but we can move that if you need to come back earlier. Or if you get tired of me. Whichever is first.”

I take a few breaths to let this sink in, the anger and disappointment swirling in my mind calming into something else... Hope? I look into her eyes, which are brimming with glee. I collect my thoughts, and then ask, “You want me to come to LA with you?”

“Yeah. I figured, between the filming dates for your next movie, we could spend some time together. And maybe, I don’t know, you could do a few auditions, see what happens. But only if you want to.”

A smile spreads across my lips along with a sense of calm in my belly, though my pulse hasn’t slowed at all. “Even if I do come down, we’ll be apart a long time. Long-distance relationships, they’re not easy. And I can’t promise I’ll stay in LA after. It will be really hard.”

Mariah purses her lips. “Someone once told me that if something is important to you, you find a way to make it work.”

“I’m important to you?” I practically squeak, warming from her touch.

Mariah huffs, as if it’s the most obvious thing in the world. “Of course you are.” She takes another step closer, until we’re hip to hip, nearly nose to nose. “I want you to have it all, too,” she says, speaking low and quiet. “I can’t whisk you away into the country with a chicken coop and a gaggle of dogs. I know living in a big city isn’t how you imagined your future, and I don’t expect you to stay if you don’t like it. But I thought, maybe, we could try.”

My heart swells. “I don’t really think I wanted all of that. I think that’s what I’ve been told to want. All I want is to be with you. The life you described, us being together and making our dreams come true... it sounds better than anything I could have ever imagined.”

Mariah cups my cheek with her hand, so soft and warm. “I want you to go star in this movie, and kick its ass, and be the lead actress you’re meant to be. And then afterward, I want you to be with me. No matter what project comes next, I want us to figure this out—together.”

I sniffle, fighting back a roller coaster of emotions. “I’ve always wanted to be the main character.”

Mariah caresses my skin, sending tingles from the tips of her fingers down my neck. Tilting my chin toward her, she breathes, “You already are.”

I gaze into her gorgeous eyes, witnessing the love they hold for me. “That’s all I ever really wanted.”

Then I lift onto my toes and kiss her.

Cheers ring out, and for a few heated moments of desperate kissing we don’t even notice. When we part to breathe, we glance around and realize...

The cast and crew are cheering for us. They step out from behind the cover of blinding lights, surprising us with their presence.

Mariah and I both blink. I move to step away, but Mariah grips me harder and tugs me close to her side. I look up at her, and she gives me a little shrug, as if to say,Whyare we hiding this?I agree, replying with a grin and squeezing her tight.

Oscar and Julia step forward in the crowd, Yueyi and Jimmie right behind them.

“Finally!” Julia states.

“About time,” Oscar agrees.

Jimmie purses his lips, one hand on his hip, like he’d seen this coming from the very beginning.

“What?” Mariah and I ask in unison.

“We were all placing bets,” Oscar states, his tongue in his cheek.

Julia elbows Oscar in the ribs. “He lost, by the way.”

“Bets?” Mariah asks, confused.

Yueyi tuts, then glares at Oscar and Julia as if they’re misbehaving toddlers. “Due to HR protocols, there has never been any betting.”

---