“What are you doing here?” Spencer asks, as he puts me down.
“Jarvis is an idiot. He was messing around on set… and hit his head pretty hard and got a concussion. I was hanging out with Rose and Dex when I got a call from Harriet… she said Jarvis would have to take off five days, at least… so Dex suggested that I come visit you.”
Spencer squeezes my hand and smiles.
“I’ll have to thank him next time we talk.”
We stand there, on the balcony, for the next few minutes… neither of us uttering a word as we just look into each other’s eyes. It’s so amazing to be here, with him. I feel complete.
My stomach grumbles loud enough for Spencer to hear and we both start laughing, even though it effectively ended our moment.
“Sorry,” I say.
“It’s fine… you’re cute.”
“My stomach growling is cute?”
“Well… everything you do is cute… so… yes.”
I smile and roll my eyes playfully.
“I missed you,” I say.
“I missed you, too. It’s hard to believe you’re here. I keep thinking I’m going to wake up and this will all have been a dream.”
I pinch his arm and Spencer picks me up, throws me over his shoulder and carries me back inside the room. He drops me on the couch and sits down next to me.
“I guess I’m not dreaming. Thanks for clearing that up.”
“You’re welcome.”
“So, how long can you stay?”
“Just three days,” I say, frowning.
“It’s never enough, is it?”
“No… but I have to be back in L.A. since I’m sure Harriet will want to start shooting as soon as the doctor clears Jarvis.”
“That makes sense, I’m sure she’s not happy.”
“No… she’s not. She was unbelievably stressed out right after it happened. I think she’s really putting a lot of pressure on herself, not to mention us, to make a great film… and that sent her over the edge.”
“Yeah… that makes sense.”
I scoot closer to Spencer and wrap my arm around him as I snuggle up to him.
“So, how are you?” I ask.
“Better… now that you’re here.”
“Aww. How has filming been going?”
“Fine… hard… long… but it’s good.”
“I’m glad. There’s already some buzz at home about the film.”
“I’m sure… even people here seem excited,” Spencer says.
“I know… the cab driver that brought me from the airport even knew you were in town shooting.”
“Crazy.”
“Yeah.”
We’re silent for the next few minutes. Spencer kisses the top of my head as I close my eyes and listen to his steady heartbeat.
“Have you had the chance to explore the city?” I ask.
“No… not really. Why?”
My stomach grumbles again and Spencer starts laughing.
“Sorry.”
“It’s fine. I’m guessing that you didn’t eat much on the flight.”
“Eh… I had a few bites on the long flight, but it’s been like twenty-hours, or something, since I left L.A. and I didn’t eat before my flight.”
“You poor thing.”
Spencer runs his hand through my hair and kisses my forehead before sitting up. He takes his phone out of his pocket and does a quick search for restaurants near the hotel.
“Well,” he says, “the reviews for the restaurant in the hotel are pretty good… if you want to go down there… or get room service.”
Room service would be fine, but I definitely don’t want to go to the restaurant for fear of seeing that guy again. I guess it wouldn’t be so bad, since Spencer is with me… I’d just rather avoid it altogether.
“I’d rather go for a short walk… to stretch my legs… and get something, if you don’t mind.”
“Of course not. Do you want to go now?”
“Do you mind?”
“Not at all.”
As much as I’d love to just hang out in the room, seeing a little bit of the city would be awesome and I do need to stretch my legs. Spencer stands up from the couch and helps me to my feet. I grab my purse and we head for the door.
Spencer puts his arm around my waist as we walk toward the elevator. He presses the button and the doors open a few seconds later. We step onto the elevator and he turns to me.
“I really missed you… have I said that yet?”
“Yes… but I like hearing it.”
He smiles and leans his head down to mine. I press my lips to his and close my eyes. We hold the kiss until we reach the bottom floor and the elevator doors slide open. Spencer takes my hand in his and we head for the entrance to the hotel. The doorman nods as he pulls the door open.
“So, where are we going?” I ask.
“I’m not really sure… I was kind of thinking we should just walk for a few minutes and stop at the first place that looks good. You okay with that?”
“Sounds wonderful.”
Spencer smiles at me and I squeeze his hand. It’s hard to believe we have to spend so much time apart. One of these days it won’t be this way, I know that, but that day won’t come soon enough. I’m planning to fly wherever he’s shooting once I finish Day One… which should make things a little easier. Spencer will still be gone whenever he’s shooting, but seeing him a few hours a day will still be better than nothing. Loads of people travel for work… and go periods of time without their spouses, so I guess I can’t feel that bad for myself. I just really love him and wish we could spend every waking moment together.
“So, how is everything back in L.A.?” Spencer asks.
“It’s good. Rose just auditioned for a movie the other day, but she’s still waiting to hear back. Dex is going on a trip to Napa with your mom for a few days. I guess that’s kind of it.”
“My mom actually emailed me to tell me about their trip… she’s pretty excited.”
“It seems like things are going really well between them.”
“Yeah. I mean… I think it’s hard because they are trying to do the long distance dating thing… which is never easy.”
I nod my head knowingly.
“Has your mom thought about moving to L.A.?”
“She has, but I’m not sure she’ll ever do it.”
“Even if Dex asked her to move in?”
“I’m not sure. I’d like to think she’d consider it, but she’s just not a fan of L.A. and there’s no practical reason for her to be there other than her relationship with Dex.”
“I get it… I’m not crazy about living there.”
Spencer nods and glances down at me.
“Me either, baby, but it’s the best place for us… right now, at least.”
“I know. It’s especially hard being there without you.”
“Did moving in with Dex make you feel any better?”
“Yeah… it somehow makes me miss you a little less. Not much… but enough to make it worth it.”
“I’m glad. Have you stopped by our house since the incident with your mom?”
“I did, just the other day. Everything seemed fine.”
“Good.”
I glance at Spencer, but his eyes have wandered to a statue on the bridge we’re walking over. The whole scene is surreal—the ancient buildings, the weathered statues and the sun setting behind what looks to be a church tower. I feel like someone just turned back time a few hundred years.
“It’s a beautiful city,” I say.
“It really is… just gorgeous. We actually went up in a helicopter this morning… and it was just stunning.”
“I bet.”
The whole helicopter thing still scares me, even after the handful of trips I’ve made in them over the last year. There’s just something about it that unnerves me. I guess maybe it might have to do with how small and fragile they feel… there’s no illusion of safety in a helicopter like there is in a plane.
“What time do you have to be on set in the morning?”
“Eight.”
“That’s not terrible.”
“No… it was fine, until you got here.”
I smile and shake my head.
“Well, if it makes you feel any better… I’ll be at the hotel upon your return.”
“It does.”
I’m not sure what I’m going to spend the day doing, but I’m sure I’ll have no trouble figuring it out.
“Anything else exciting going on?” Spencer asks.
“Not really… I usually tell you everything when we talk or text.”
“I saw your… um… TV appearance the other night.”
I cringe and nod slowly as I look at the ground.
“Yeah… that was unfortunate,” I say.
“Well, I thought you looked cute on the show… and in the pictures.”
I can’t help but let a laugh escape my lips. I had hoped Spencer hadn’t seen it, just because the whole thing was quite embarrassing for me.
“Brian is supposed to be looking into who took those pictures… and he’s going to let me know when he finds out.”
“What good is that going to do?” Spencer asks.
“I… I’m not sure. Isn’t there something I can do about it?”
“Maybe… but whatever.”
“It was embarrassing, though.”
“I know… I get what you mean, but don’t forget… this whole thing is a game.”
“But that was a private moment.”
“I’d argue that unless we’re inside our home… our lives are never private.”
Spencer tends to have a much better grip on the reality of being a star, which is understandable since he’s been in the spotlight for a few years now… and I’d barely consider myself to be noteworthy in any sense of the word.
“But they sold those pictures… exploiting me for profit.”
“Fair enough… but you were the one changing in a parking lot.”
I frown and shake my head. Spencer isn’t really taking my side and I’m not sure why.
“I didn’t have a choice. I couldn’t get in a trailer and Harriet was ready to start shooting… so I changed behind a trailer. It never crossed my mind that someone could be waiting with a camera… hoping to get a photo of me they could sell.”
Spencer stops, takes my other hand in his and turns me toward him. I look up into his eyes. He has a loving and understanding look on his face.
“I know, baby. It wasn’t ideal… but there’s nothing you can do about it, not now. The best thing you can do is just embrace it. Look how much of a stir on TV and the internet those two pictures caused. People will have forgotten about the content and context of the photos within a couple of days… but they will remember your name. That’s power… that’s how you solidify yourself as an actress. It’s going to help Good Night, Good Night at the box office… which is in turn good for both of us and good for Dex. I know it’s not what you imagined being an actress would be like… but try to embrace every opportunity… even if they don’t seem promising at the time.”
Spencer squeezes my hands and kisses the top of my head. He’s right… as usual. I really should have called or texted him right after it happened… because he could have delivered that speech to me the other day and prevented all the stress I’ve put myself under.
“I love you… and you’re right.”
“It’s not always easy being so lovable… and right all the time.”
We start to walk again and I elbow him in the ribs. He feigns an injury as he clutches at his side. He’s so ridiculous… and I love who he is. I can’t imagine life being any different than it is in this moment because everything is perfect.
I can feel my stomach grumble, but it’s not loud enough to alert Spencer. Well… everything is almost perfect. That will be fixed once we get something to eat.