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“I don’t know about that, but I don’t think it’s merely titillating. I can see how the choice is justified for the writingandthe art.” And Maggie could also see how the crafting of the scene, the very stuff they were doing in the rehearsal room, was important too. “There’s also a level beyond the characters. For you two, and I guess the crew, too, to film this scene right, we need to have a level of comfort with each other. The audience might not see or know about everything that’s going on behind the scenes, but we have to be intimate. If you sell them on Effie and Geordie’s love, and I know you will, it’ll be because of you and Cole’s intimacy. Not in a sexual way, but in an emotional one. That’s why you were well cast.”
“I don’t think anyone else sees it that way.” Cole gave Maggie a wry smile.
“But they will when they watch the show.” Maggie turned back to Tasha. “Look, I don’t mean to put pressure on you. I like Cole’s suggestion, but if you aren’t comfortable with that blocking, we don’t have to do it.”
Tasha shook her head. “No, I trust that we can do it in a way I’m cool with, and I get your point that seeing Geordie as an attentive lover adds towhyEffie would take the risks she does.”
“I’ll keep checking in with you about it when we rehearse. Also, I chatted with her this morning, and Zoya would like to film the thrusting portion in one long shot—no cuts. It makes the blocking a little trickier, but she thinks it’ll feel more real if it’s not a montage.”
“Yup, I can see that,” Tasha agreed.
When Maggie had started to break down the show’s love scenes, it had amazed her how short most of them were and how many different cuts were involved. They were marvels of editing as much as anything else. But this particular scene was the emotional core of the season. If the audience didn’t believe that these characters were soulmates, the rest of it wouldn’t work.
“And Cole, Zoya feels pretty strongly about seeing your butt in this one.” Geordie had kept his pants on for the scene with Madge, so this was different. “She’d like to see you naked from the back, both for this scene, and for the, um—”
“Sex fest?” he asked.
“Yup.” After this scene, the characters’ first time, there would be a montage of subsequent encounters. Geordie and Effie were clearly not holding back.
“I’ve been doing lots of lunges and squats,” Cole said confidently. “My gluteus maximus is pleased to be of service.”
Given how easily Cole had scaled the mountain, Maggie wasn’t surprised. He was certainly in shape. Lana Larkin would be ecstatic.
Maggie wanted to press her water bottle to her burning cheeks, but she refrained. She could only hope they’d blame her flushed face on the stuffiness of the room and not her ridiculous crush on Cole. “Excellent.The real question before we start blocking is for you, Tasha.” She held up a strapless thong. “Are you cool with this?”
“Yup.”
“They’ll paste the merkin over it on the day of filming. And Zoya’s fine with side boob and side butt only for you, but how do you feel about frontal nudity above the waist?”
Tasha gave a long sigh. “Let’s try the blocking and see if we can make it work without.”
“Absolutely.”
They walked through the blocking for the kissing, then moved on to the portion where Geordie was fingering Effie.
Maggie was watching through her camera, trying to see it like the DP would. “The key is timing his forearm thrusts with your gasps, Tasha. It’s really acting with your cleavage as much as anything else.”
“I don’t have enough bust for this.”
“Your bust looks great,” Maggie assured her.
When they’d perfected the choreography so that it looked real, they decided Effie should keep her corset on for the oral sex for modesty—“Not that there’s much that’s modest about this!”—and then would lose the rest of her costume only for the penetration-and-thrusting portion of the scene. Cole and Tasha didn’t strip all the way for the rehearsal, but at least they’d planned every beat, just like you would with dance choreography. Really, really sexy dance choreography.
Then they ran it several times.
Cole and Tasha had a rapport—frankly, achemistry—that made it mesmerizing. If some part of Maggie’s heart throbbed, dull and jealous, watching it, then that was exactly why it was a bad idea to get a crush on a coworker.
Silly heart.
After another run-through, Maggie said, “That’s not enough practice for you to memorize the blocking, obviously, but we’ll schedule a few more rehearsals before filming. The only real decision left to make is stockings on or off.”
“One on and one off?” Tasha mused. “Maybe we need to see cute options for the ribbon garters.”
“I like the idea that she knows he’s going to see them. It shows her planning this encounter, wanting it.”
“Yes! They should be different garters than what she wears earlier in the flashbacks.”
“I’m making a note to email Alexa.”
