The Accidental Movie Star (8 page)

Garrett sung the next verse until Caz shut down the musical performance. Caz said, “She’s from Texas. And we’re busy.”

Ashley rolled her eyes, amazed that Caz thought he could answer for her.

Garrett swirled the cup in his hand while he taunted Caz. “I read you’ve been extra busy since your girlfriend gave birth to twins.”

Ashley’s eyes widened, but Caz shook his head. “Tabloid lies. You like those, don’t you?”

“Or maybe it’s because you’ve been so busy trying to date both actresses on set, Lorene and Petra. I read about that too.”

His Scottish accent really dragged out the
O
’s in the word
too
; the sound made Ashley want to purse her lips and imitate him, but she wasn’t a natural mimic. She bet Caz could copy the accent. She looked at Caz’s lips in assessment. Caz’s pretty mouth said something foul in Garrett’s direction. Garrett laughed in delight.

“Positions,” the AD said.

Garrett moved into place for the scene. Caz waited until Garrett was away before putting down Ashley’s cup. She took hold of the pole and asked him, “Can you do a Scottish accent?”

“Noooo,” Caz said in perfect imitation. Then he joined the other actors under the lights.

Ashley smiled and maneuvered the pole so the microphone hovered into position. The hem of her shirt rose again, exposing several inches of her midriff, but she couldn’t do anything about the display and perform her job at the same time. Garrett’s gaze seemed to settle on her waist every time he peered off in the distance. She could only frown. Caz caught the stares too. His annoyance worked well with the scene.

Midway through, Boomer returned to take over; his eyes were on her waist too. She relinquished the pole with a smile. He earned his keep. That pole hurt. Swinging her arms to stretch them, she walked over to Powder’s station. After climbing on the makeup counter, she used her free time to sketch in her notebook.

“Take two hours,” the AD called. Some days they got fifteen minutes for lunch, some days they got a couple of hours.

“Cool.” Ashley smiled over at Powder.

Powder pursed her lips around a secret smile and she trotted toward the exit. She’d started dating a new man and was uncharacteristically quiet about this one, not even divulging his name. Ashley hoped, whoever he was, that he’d at least finished his parole. She put her notebook in her bag and shouldered the strap, planning to follow Powder’s lead and get away from the set.

“Want to grab Chinese fried rice with chicken?” Garrett asked. “Or find some kind of chocolate truffle cake with a vanilla frosting?”

Caz stopped just behind Garrett. “We have plans.”

Ashley lifted an eyebrow. “We do?”

Caz made a drinking motion with his hand. “Yes, you promised.”

Ashley smiled. Caz would be great at charades. “Oh yeah. Thanks anyway, Garrett.”

“Well,” Garret said, nodding at Caz, “you and your bird, have a nice—break.”

Caz flipped Garrett off and reached for her hand to tug her away.

Ashley raised an eyebrow.

“Bird?”

“Girl.”

“You’re not calling me that.” Ashley pointed toward the mediocre catering cart with her free hand. “Want a sandwich?”

Caz shook his head. “Do you?”

Wrinkling her nose, Ashley shook her head too. The only days she ate cart food were the fifteen-minute lunch days. Even then, she sometimes heated something up from home. Other days, she ate nearby with one of the crew and, once, she caught up with her dad and had lunch with him.

“Hey, Caz,” Cutter said. “Buddy, why don’t we hit the executive lounge? You can get us in.” He wore skinny jeans with a metallic silver shirt. The silver shimmered with each demand.

“He’s got plans.” Ashley tightened her grip on Caz’s hand. Cutter made a twisty face at her, but she didn’t care. She didn’t normally take up for Caz, but this wasn’t the first time she’d heard a crew member ask him a favor. She’d heard requests for screen time, a trip to Vegas, and introductions to female fans. She hoped British people imposed on him too, so it wasn’t just an American thing. Maybe users were just a Hollywood thing; that was probably true, classic Hollywood.

Caz smiled at her and pulled her arm close to his side. They hadn’t walked much closer to the exit before Olive intercepted them. “Need any help with your fan mail? I have a free hour and could start on yours. I do Petra’s.”

Caz said, “No. Thank you, though.”

Ashley saw another crew member headed their way. She turned away from the main exit and led Caz to a side door. On the seven-minute journey that ended at the coffee and tea kiosk, he didn’t release her arm, and she had to lengthen her steps to keep up with him. His breath sucked in when he spotted the cart and its large display of colored tea packets. Caz poked through the selection with an intensity usually reserved for typing in nuclear detonation codes. In the end, he went with the black Earl Grey.

As the attendant handed over the cup, a set of brakes squealed on one of the large tourist carts. The driver whizzed to a stop at the side of the kiosk. The dozen or so tourists offloaded and swarmed around them, reaching for menus, yelling out questions. They appeared to be half families and half couples.

She could tell the moment they recognized Caz. Their murmurs got louder and their sunglasses swiveled away from the drink menu. Caz tossed his stir stick in a nearby trash bin and turned to go back to the set, seeming oblivious to the dozen gazes now glued to him.

Ashley put a hand on his arm. “Aren’t you even going to say hi and shake a few hands?”

Caz shook his head. “Most girls are annoyed when I leave them to greet fans.”

Ashley rolled her eyes. “My friends
are
your fans. I’d be annoyed if you couldn’t spare three minutes.”

Caz turned back to the group. “Hi.”

The tour guide froze and then rushed to Caz’s side and spoke with an important voice. “This, ladies and gentlemen, is Caspian Thaymore, star of
Eternal Loss, Eternal Revenge
. Filming now.”

Ashley’s lips quirked. They’d already recognized Caz, so the tour guide’s intro was overkill.

One brave kid, about ten, held up a napkin and a pen. Caz didn’t hesitate. He signed the beaming kid’s autograph then shook a few hands and chatted a bit with each person about the tour, the weather, and tea. He even posed for photos. After he’d met each person, Ashley held her phone to her ear like someone called, went over, and said with her best serious voice, “You’re needed back on set, Mr. Thaymore.”

Caz nodded, waved, and left behind a group of wowed fans.

Ashley said, “That was so cool.”

Caz threaded his free arm though hers and Ashley let him. “What?”

“That they recognize your talent and then you made them so happy.” She squeezed his big hand and walked closer to his side. “Good job.”

“So you think I’m talented?” Caz tilted his chin at a cocky angle.

Ashley grinned but refused to respond; that was enough praise for now. She lightly closed her eyes for a second, enjoying the cool, dry air and the moment.

Caz’s steps slowed as they neared their warehouse, and he said, “We should get something to eat.”

Ashley checked the time on her cell phone. An hour and a half remained for lunch, plenty enough time to go out. She tugged loose and stepped toward the parking lot. “Okay, see you on set.”

“Let’s get something together.”

Ashley shook her head. “The press would mob you. I’ll get takeout and bring something back. What would you like?”

Caz shrugged and looked away. His free hand formed a fist and he stuffed it into his pocket. “I’m always stuck in that trailer.”

If she didn’t know him better, she’d say he wore a pout. Low blood sugar always made people cranky. Ashley said, “Price of fame,” but this time with some sympathy. She’d be sick of the trailer too.

Caz stepped closer. “I don’t have to get out of the car.”

“Fine, come on. Dad’s Audi has tinted windows anyway.”

With her agreement, his good mood restored itself.

“You could wear a wig disguise or something,” Ashley said as they got in.

“People don’t bother me as much as you think.” Caz’s seatbelt clicked on and he leaned against the headrest.

“I know LA. It’s a feeding frenzy. My dad’s dated actresses before.
Nightmare.
I’d never do it.” Ashley turned on the radio.

Caz put his left arm on the console and thumped his hand against the side of the door. “I don’t like dating actresses either.”

Ashley laughed. “What do you want for lunch?”

“Umm, dockside fish and chips or a west-end pub.”

“Homesick?” she said. Taking her right hand from the steering wheel, she touched his arm lightly. He took her hand in his and rubbed his thumb rubbed over the top, and Ashley noted the incongruity of rough fingertips below buffed fingernails. “When will you go back?”

“No time. My agent keeps the projects booked back to back.”

“They have great seafood in California. You should go over to Santa Monica or drive up the coast if you’re missing fish and chips.”

“They have great fish and chips?”

“No, but the view’s so pretty, they seem awesome. Even the tofu sauce.” Ashley hit the blinker and turned into the back parking lot of a nearby restaurant. Huge bougainvilleas edged the border, aiding in customer privacy. She found a spot as close as possible to the back door, and shook her hand free to put the car in park.

“This place is fairly dark and you order at the counter,” Ashley said, getting out of the car. “We used to take one of my dad’s model girlfriends here when she didn’t want to be recognized. I can put you in a dark booth then place our orders.”

Caz nodded. He was less demanding off set than on, but then again he had gotten his way. Ashley crossed the pavement and reached the back entrance to the off-white stucco building. “Lunch here’s worth a shot, but I won’t make any promises that you won’t get recognized and trampled.”

Caz pushed the door open and held it while she went through. “It’s not my trailer or a set sandwich. I’m thrilled.”

Inside the restaurant, the aroma of tomatoes, Mexican spices, and a sizzling grill filled the room. Caz kept his head down and averted while following her to a back booth. He slid across the cracked, red vinyl first, and Ashley handed him a menu to hold in front of his face.

“I’ll surprise you, unless you know what you want?”

Caz shook his head and spoke with firm words, “Anything other than diet sandwich on wheat.”

Ashley grinned. She’d made the wheat mistake once. The sawdust on set looked and probably tasted better than that meal. After ordering a variety, she slid in the booth beside him, providing more cover. “This is California Mexican. Be warned, the food’s not TexMex.”

“Everything’s better in Texas?”

“You know it. What would you really be eating if you were in London?”

Caz told her a little about his favorite restaurants and she talked some more about home. After their buzzer went off, Ashley fetched their lunch and slid the heavy tray in front of him. “Don’t get used to being served. This is just so we don’t get stampeded.”

“Thanks.” Caz offloaded the dishes and passed the tray across the table. He took a sip of his drink and carefully sampled the food.

Ashley bit into a tortilla chip covered in salsa, happy to have Mexican food even if the recipes weren’t as good as home. “I’m so jealous of your architecture in Europe. After I graduate, I’m going to tour some of your European cities and stare. What do you recommend?”

Caz told her stories, and she told him about her plans to major in architecture.

Beep
. The alarm on her phone signaled time to depart. “Wow, okay, we gotta go.”

Caz glanced at his watch with a frown and nodded. When they reached the back exit, he leaned forward and pushed the metal bar in, holding the door for her.

They got back without incident and Ashley pulled the car as close as she could get to the warehouse entrance, and put on her hazard lights. “I’ll drop you here.”

“Go ahead and park. I’m British, we like to walk.”

Ashley shook her head. “They’ll kill me if you’re late. You should go in.”

Caz paused a moment, then got out.

Ashley clicked off the hazard lights and put the car in gear. “That was fun though, thanks for joining me.”

“It was quite good.”

“You’ll have to go back when you get your car.”

“We could go this weekend,” Caz said.

“Can’t. Mom’s in town for a long weekend. I’m so psyched. We’re going to check out some universities.”

Caz held onto the doorframe, and his eyes took on a distant expression. “Your mom’s staying with you and your dad?”

“They get along great.” Ashley softened her voice. “Not all divorces are bad.”

Caz tapped the side of his phone. His face blanked and he shut the door. “Tell that to my parents.”

***

Ashley went over to Powder when she finally got a break. Mondays were killer.

Powder said, “How was your weekend with your mom?”

“Normal. Fun. Dad even showed up for dinner two nights in a row.”

Powder shook her head and her giant hoop earrings swung, making tiny parrots do a 360-degree spin off the bottom of the hoops. “I don’t get divorced people who still like each other. I’ve had to get more than one restraining order against my exes. That’s passion.”

Ashley didn’t respond to that theory. “How’d your weekend go?”

“I got stood up. His buddies were in town and wanted to pull some all-night road trip to Vegas. But don’t worry; I’ll make him pay before I forgive him. ”

“You should try dating normal sometime.”

Ashley gestured to Boomer lugging a chair under each arm. He plopped them down side by side.

“What’s that?”

“A reporter’ll be here later,” Powder said.

Ashley raised her eyebrows.

“She’s going to interview Caz, Petra, and Lorene. They’re calling the segment
Eternal Loss, Eternal Revenge’s Trinity of Stars
.”

“Hmm. I haven’t met Lorene.” Lorene was the supporting actress booked to play Caz’s long-lost love. She hoped she liked Lorene more than she liked Petra. It wouldn’t take much.