Page 71 of Dream (Fighting Fate)

Picking up a ham and pickle sandwich, I thought over how well filming had been going. I’d been thoroughly impressed with Steven’s drive and vision. He seemed to know exactly how he wanted each scene to go, and his ability to explain what he needed from us was exceptional. There had been very few retakes needed with the scenes we’d produced so far, and I knew that had everything to do with his creativity and experience. Every scene he’d had me watch back looked incredible.

The scene we were shooting next would be my first with Hannah, and I had a nagging feeling that it was going to be awkward. It was a part that was near the end of the movie, and we were supposed to be quite familiar with each other, so considering we hadn’t even shot one scene together yet, it was going to require some skill. I just hoped Hannah was going to be as easy to work with as I’d heard.

Tina, my PA, dashed through the door, her large eyes dark as she approached. Holding out my cell phone, she tilted her head, almost appearing bored. “You have some messages.”

Taking it, I quickly scrolled through them. Most of them weren’t important, but the one from Ian didn’t bode well. I sighed, deciding to call him now and get it out of the way. At least this way I’d have an excuse to get off when Steven called for me.

He answered on the first ring. Crap. “Josh.”

“Ian. What’s up?”

“The production company are still pushing for publicity, Josh.”

My jaw clenched. “I told you, man. I’m not signing a contract that locks me in to be pretend dating anyone.”

He sighed, his frustration evident. “I don’t see why you’re fighting them on this, Josh. You’re not dating anyone, so there’s no one to hurt.”

My jaw twitched. “It doesn’t matter. I’m not signing any fucking contract, Ian.”

I heard him huff loudly. “I know. And I told them. But they still want you and Hannah to be seen together in some kind of dating capacity. Even if it’s just out for dinner or lunch or a fucking coffee every now and again. Can you at least do that?”

I pressed my lips together and rubbed my forehead, momentarily forgetting about my makeup. “Jesus Christ. I don’t know, Ian. I guess I can give it a try, but I’m not fucking signing anything.”

“You know they’ll want you to.”

“And you know I don’t care. I won’t do it,” I said, getting pissed off. “They can take my word or they can leave it. It’s their choice.”

He sighed again. “That’s what I thought you’d say. All right. Leave it with me.”

“Thanks, Ian.”

“You know I’m going to be completely gray by Christmas because of you, don’t you?” he said gruffly.

I grinned. “Ian, the silver fox. It’ll suit you, man. And the ladies will love it.”

“Urgh,” he grumbled. “I’ll call you tomorrow. Be nice to Hannah.”

As if his words summoned her, Hannah sashayed through the door toward me, her face lighting up when she saw me watching her. “Josh!” she said, opening her arms wide. “It’s been too long!”

I smirked, looking over the special effects bruise and cut on her cheek before welcoming her in for a hug. “It’s been three months.”

“Exactly! Too long.”

She clung to me a little longer than necessary, letting me know her intentions might not be strictly platonic. In the past, I would’ve played along without a care in the world, but things felt different for me now. Spending time with Liv over the summer had made me see things in an altered light. ‘Playing’ wasn’t an option for me anymore, because I now knew it was just a watered-down version of what was actually possible.

“I’m so excited to get into this,” Hannah continued. “I’ve heard you’ve been making awesome progress.”

I nodded, her excitement rubbing off on me. “Yeah, it’s been an amazing week. Steve’s fantastic to work with.”

Having worked with him before, I knew she’d understand. “He really is.” She bit her lip, her eyes turning contemplative. “Hey, listen,” she said, lowering her voice a fraction. “I know you didn’t sound too keen when we spoke on the phone, but I really think we should hang out a little between shooting, you know, just be seen together, to draw some attention to the movie, drum up a little more interest in it. What do you think?”

My eyes automatically narrowed. I was starting to feel as though everyone was teaming up to beat me down about this damned contract. I mean, I knew it was for the benefit of the movie to get people interested and all, but there had to be a balance. There had to be some distinction between my work life and my private life. If I let the line blur, how was I supposed to distinguish the difference between what was real and what was pretend? I honestly believed that was why so many people fell in love with their costars. They let the lines blur too much.

I turned on a smile. “Sure,” I said pleasantly. “I don’t see why we couldn’t hang out a little. As friends.”

Her brow twitched with confusion before she turned her smile on full beam. “Perfect. I think it’ll be good for us to get to know each other a little better.”

I tried to stop my head from jumping to the negative. Hannah and I were scheduled to spend the next four months together. It was important that our relationship maintain a positive vibe, both onscreen and off.

---