Now a Major Motion Picture (16 page)

“What?” he finally asked, his brow furrowed. “Am I that awful for the part?”

She looked at him blankly for a couple of seconds before managing to pull herself together.

“No, no,” she said. “Actually, you’re…perfect. I hadn’t heard any names yet for the lead, and I can’t imagine anyone better for it than you.”

It was true.

He smiled, his eyes crinkling again. Man, that was so
appealing
. No wonder everybody loved him.

A flash of heat ran through her, coloring her cheeks. Everybody loved him. She couldn’t believe she’d actually started to think someone like him—

He interrupted the thought.

“You really think so? You’re not just saying that because I’m sitting here, and you’re afraid to hurt my feelings?” He was still smiling.

That snapped her back to reality. She rolled her eyes.

“Yeah, I’m sure your ego is so fragile.” Despite herself, she grinned back at him.

“You might be surprised,” he said, his voice more serious. “I’m curious to get your thoughts on this before I say yes.” He paused. “I’ve read the book. There’s a lot of depth to this character. I’m sure you’ve considered the type of actor you’d like to see in the role.”

“Honestly, no.” She shrugged. “Curious about who the studio’s going to cast, sure. But I’m trying to be open-minded to the process. It’s fascinating to see other people’s interpretation of my work. Since you’re asking for my two cents, though, I think you’d be amazing in the role. Spot on.”

Noah’s image danced behind her eyes again. The comparison was too easy now, almost inevitable.

She sighed as she watched Colin take in her words, unsure what to think. Against her better judgment, she’d already allowed herself to hope there was more behind his call than friendly—or, as it was turning out, professional—interest. But there wasn’t, and now that she’d connected him to Noah, she didn’t know whether to be disappointed or relieved.

I am so destined for singledom.

She had a vision of herself at forty-five, holed up in front of her computer screen, a dozen cats slinking around her house as she continued writing out a life she’d never live. She was so lost in the gloomy picture that she didn’t notice Colin’s puzzled expression.

“Earth to Mel.” He chuckled.

“Oh, sorry.” She smiled with mock cheer. “You know, it’s actually Amelia.”

“Huh?” he asked, looking surprised.

“Mel Henry is a pseudonym. My real name is Amelia Wright.” She wasn’t sure why she’d burst out and told him that, but at least he didn’t ask why she was using a pseudonym. She guessed he had plenty of experience with people using fake names.

“Well, there’s obviously a lot I don’t know about you.” He laughed again. “Tell me more about yourself. Tell me about Memphis. I’ve been there, but never more than in and out. What’s it like?”

She felt herself start to relax. Now that he’d removed the angst over whether or not this was a date, she felt more like herself. Soon they were deep in conversation. The waitress brought another round of drinks, and she almost forgot she was sharing a table with one of the hottest actors on television.

Almost, but not quite. When the discussion shifted from her life to his, she listened with rapt attention. Colin described his work, his friends, the places he’d been, the parties he went to. She didn’t get the feeling he was trying to impress her. Instead he seemed put off by it somehow. Almost embarrassed.

“It’s just not real, you know?” His voice was earnest, intense. “I mean, there are parts of it that are great, I’m not denying that. But sometimes I just want something more, something authentic.”

His eyes drilled into hers at those words, and all at once she was mesmerized, captured in their crystalline clarity.

“You’re real,” he almost whispered, his face inches from hers as they each leaned forward, elbows on the table. Her breath caught in her throat.

He studied her lips, and she thought with sudden shock that he was going to kiss her. As if by reflex, her lips parted slightly.

Just then a loud smash erupted from a couple tables over, snapping apart their private bubble. She jerked her head up in time to see three guys push back from a round table, amber liquid spilling over its edges from the pint glass that had been knocked over, then fallen with a crash to the floor.

She glanced at Colin in alarm, and he chuckled. The moment had passed.

They’d turned their attention outward, though, which caused a new stir to break out at the tables around them.

Amelia heard her before she saw her.

“Is that Colin Marks?”

The fan at the table nearest them was out of her chair in an instant.

“Can I have your autograph?” she asked in a voice loud enough to make Amelia cringe. She caught the faint look of chagrin in Colin’s eyes as he turned, but he didn’t show it to the eager woman hovering over him.

“Sure. No problem.”

He took the marker the woman fished from the bottom of her huge bag and signed his name with a flourish on the back of the pink iPhone case she held in his face. That started a small chain reaction. Before he was finished, he’d signed five or six autographs and posed for a couple of pictures. The waitress came over to see what the commotion was about.

“Could we get our check, please?” Colin asked.

With a look of mute surprise, she turned and hurried away, returning a few seconds later with their tab. Colin pulled out his wallet and placed a couple of bills inside the small, black folder. He smiled his eye-crinkling smile, nodded at the server, and grabbed Amelia’s hand. He stood and pulled her toward the door.

* * *

Out on the sidewalk in a flash, she glanced around herself, disoriented. The streets were now teeming with people—neighborhood residents, NYU students, and tourists melding together, all out to enjoy a slice of the famous New York nightlife.

Colin still had her hand, she realized, and his skin burned against hers. She watched as he held out his other hand to flag a passing cab. When it stopped, he threw open the door, beckoned for her to enter, and followed her in. As soon as the door closed behind them, she heard him sigh.

“Where are you headed?” The driver’s accent was thick and Greek.

“Hmm, not sure. Give us a second.” Colin’s eyes narrowed, questioning her.

She shrugged.

He peered at the driver in the rearview mirror. “Columbus Circle?” He turned to her again. “What do you say to a walk in the park?”

Her eyes widened in surprise. The past ten minutes had gone by in such a blur she hadn’t had time to think, but when they’d left the bar, she’d assumed their night together was over. She opened her mouth, but nothing came out. Inexplicably, Noah’s face passed through her mind again. She pushed away the image, pursed her lips.

“Um, sure,” she said. “It’s a beautiful night.”

Colin watched her thoughtfully. “Sure is.”

She felt the blood rush to her cheeks. There it was again, that shimmer of hope. It was unfamiliar, unsettling. Her mind flashed to Noah again, and she tried to figure out why. Was it because Colin had some indistinct quality that reminded her of him? Because the movie gave the two of them some covert connection?

Because surely, surely it wasn’t guilt she was feeling.

Again she shoved Noah’s image out of her mind—for the last time, she told herself. She studied Colin studying her in the dim light of the cab. To her surprise, the air between them pulsed with electricity.

Too soon, the driver swung the car up to the curb at the southwest corner of Central Park.

* * *

Amelia stepped from the car and gulped in the soft night air. It was cooler here, no tall buildings looming to stifle the breeze. She wasn’t sure what to expect from this point, and the butterflies revisited her stomach as she watched Colin pay the driver and start in her direction. He smiled a dazzling smile, and the corners of her lips turned up in response.

As the two of them walked past Merchant’s Gate and onto the park’s meandering pathways, she made a conscious decision not to overthink what was happening. It
was
a beautiful night, and she was having a good time—the best time she’d had in a long time.

Neither she nor Colin spoke for several minutes. Her thoughts were indiscernible as she lost herself in the setting, a verdant refuge in the midst of the ultimate urban chaos. Leafy branches arched over them, shielding them from the outside world. The city grew quieter as they walked—the car engines, the honking horns, the pedestrians’ voices faded until they disappeared, and all she heard was the wind moving through the leaves, the sound of their footsteps, and the sudden whoosh of tires as a cyclist passed them, giving them a wide berth.

Amelia loved the park, and it had been years since she’d walked these paths. A sense of comfortable familiarity settled over her, and she sighed.

Colin glanced down and inched close enough to swing an arm over her shoulders, pulling her into his side. She could smell the tingly scent of his aftershave. His skin was warm.

“This is nice.”

“Mmm.” It was the only reply she could manage.

“So tell me,” he said in a quiet voice, “what’s your life like back home? What do you do when you’re not touring or writing?”

He paused long enough to glance at her expression, but not long enough for her to respond. “Are you dating anyone?”

Her heart leaped into her throat. She raised an eyebrow, determined not to let him see how much that last question affected her.

“Which question do you want me to answer first?”

His lips twitched. He stopped walking, turned to face her.

“Guess.”

Her breath caught, and a tingle raced down the length of her spine. She opened her mouth to speak, but her comeback was lost as Colin placed one finger against her lips. His eyes held hers as he slid the finger down to her chin, tilted her face up, and bent his head toward her.

Her eyes closed as his lips met hers. They were soft, gentle, warm like the rest of him.

She sighed and wound her hands up and around his neck. His arms moved to her waist and he pulled her closer, one hand pressing into the center of her back.

The kiss seemed to go on and on, and she lost herself in the overpowering sensation of it. When she finally pulled back, breathless, she nuzzled her head into his chest, amazed at how easy it felt to be there.

He wrapped his arms all the way around her and buried his face in her hair.

“Amelia.” He said it as if trying out the name on his tongue, not expecting a response.

They stood that way for a long moment before he pulled away and slid his arm across her shoulders again. They resumed their slow walk through the park, stepping in and out of the shadows cast in the glow of streetlamps.

“This is…unexpected,” he said.

She looked up at him, feeling the weight of the understatement.

“Completely unexpected.”

She had no idea what she was doing. She wasn’t prepared for this, didn’t know what to do or say next. All she knew was that suddenly she was afraid for the moment to end.

She asked the question on her mind without thinking.

“What now?”

He looked at her, but didn’t speak. She found her answer in his silence. She was leaving in the morning. This would be all the time they’d have. After all these years, she’d finally met someone, and all they’d gotten was one night. Her heart sank, but she didn’t have time to process the thought before Colin spoke.

“Now,” he said. “Now I read for a part in your movie. And hope beyond reason that it works out.”

Homecoming

Noah, June

Noah ignored the tension in the pit of his stomach as he snagged the second suitcase off the conveyor belt in the baggage claim area of Springfield’s compact Capital Airport.

He glanced over at Erin, who was bouncing up and down on the balls of her feet, and hefted the bulky rolling bag in her direction. She took the handle, slid it into its extended position, and started walking.

“Lemme make a quick pit-stop.” She stopped short by a door marked with the universal stick-figure-in-a-skirt symbol. “I’m a mess, right?”

They’d been traveling what seemed like all day, a delay in their connecting flight from Chicago adding an extra two hours to their itinerary. She should have looked rumpled and weary from the trip, he thought, but she didn’t.

Erin looked sunny and energetic, as always.

He shook his head and grinned a lopsided grin.

“You look gorgeous.”

She smirked. “Riiight.” She dropped the handle of her suitcase back into his free hand and disappeared through the door.

He dragged their bags out of the middle of the corridor and leaned against a wall, surveying the long room. The walls were off-white and plain but for a single maroon stripe, and patches of maroon and teal formed intermittent geometric patterns on the tile floor. The place looked dingy, and smaller than he remembered.

A couple passed in front of him, hand in hand. The girl had dyed-black hair and an eyebrow ring, and she swung a dingy, black backpack in her free hand. Her boyfriend wore a dark suit with a pale purple tie. Noah cocked his head, thinking
odd couple.
The guy leaned down to listen to something the girl said, and Noah glimpsed the top edge of a tattoo peeking out above his starched collar. He nodded to himself and then wondered where they’d flown from, where they were headed.

He turned his focus further outward, scanning the room. Men and women in business-black slacks and shoes walked fast, absorbed in their smartphones. Husbands and wives with kids in tow juggled car seats and diaper bags along with their suitcases. Another couple passed in front of him, the woman talking loudly.

“Did you take Marissa to Joanne’s, or did Missy pick her up?”

Her Midwestern accent was thick, and he breathed deep, as if breathing in the sound of home. The woman’s voice faded with her footsteps, and he closed his eyes and let his head drop back against the wall.