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Everyone was still laughing when Kevin said “Let’s get this in the can.”
It took five shots, largely because Cole was feeling tired and unfocused. He’d never felt good at these kind of moments when he just had to emote, and he could only hope he didn’t look as if he had indigestion.
At last the director announced they were done.
A PA handed Cole his robe, some sandals, and a cup of tea. He didn’t really drink the stuff, but he appreciated how it was thawing his hands, so he took it back to his trailer. He set the canister of warmth down long enough to change into sweats, and then he curled up at the small dinette table, clutching the paper cup.
After filming, it always took a while to quiet his mind. It was good that they’d gotten everything they needed in a single evening. A few night shoots in a row could mess up his sleep for weeks.
A knock sounded on his trailer door.
“Yeah?” he called.
“Cole? It’s me.”
Mebeing Maggie.
“It’s open.”
He really should have locked the door when he’d changed, but since the crew had seen most of his body tonight, that hadn’t seemed important.
Maggie poked her head in and smiled at him. Her hand still on the knob, she asked, “How are you doing?”
“A little cold,” he admitted.
“Apparently last night was even chillier. So I guess we’re lucky.”
“Do you want to come in?”
“Sure. May I?” She pointed to the bench across from him and only sat once he’d nodded. “Rhiannon is in the warming station. I’m sure she’d be happy to share.”
“I’m okay. I have tea.” He held up his cup. “How did the footage look?”
“You know, I wasn’t paying attention to the monitor. But Kevin sounds really pleased.”
“One down ... a lot to go.” Cole had never bothered to count how many scenes he was in, but he was number one on the call sheet. He was going to be a busy man during the next three months.
“You got off to a great start. Listen, I wanted to stop by because you had some concerns about the scene when we were rehearsing. Now that it’s done, how are you feeling?”
Apparently a postfilming check-in was one of the duties of an intimacy coordinator.
Cole set his tea on the table so he could scratch his face. He wasn’t certain how to answer Maggie’s question. He didn’t feel like celebrating, but mostly, his feelings were blank. “Playing someone who’s so different from me is ... look, on the one hand, if I can pull it off, maybe I’m a better actor than I thought I was. But on the other hand—”
“You’re a damn fine actor, Cole.” Which Maggie meant. Absolutely. Her fiery belief was—well, it felt nice.
Her belief in him wasn’t enough to obliterate the discomfort in his gut, though. The queasiness lingered, like film on a glass when you drained it. “It doesn’t feel natural. I’m not a man who’d shove a woman’s face in my crotch.”
“I’m certain you aren’t.”
Awareness pulsed in the air, like a bomb had detonated but without the destruction. Just the blast of energy and heat.
Cole was attracted to Maggie. Had been from the first moment he’d clapped eyes on her. He wasn’t going to act on it, but it was there, the shimmering gold version of whatever gilt thing he’d faked tonight.
All the restlessness in his limbs, in his mind, began to pool in the pit of his abdomen.Her. You want her,it said.
But he wasn’t going to get her.
He took a sip of his tea, which had gone lukewarm, and almost gagged. Nothing was quite as unpleasant as liquid that wasn’t hot and wasn’t cold. The taste equivalent of beige. “Well, to play Geordie, I have to find the part of me that would do that to a lover. And I don’t dig it.” It wasn’t much different from what he’d said while they were rehearsing, but it was still true.
