Falling Stars (Starstruck Series Book 2) (2 page)

“Haven’t thought that far?  Isn’t the premiere this coming week? That’s like…five days from now.”  Joann spoke up. She rarely had anything to bring to the table conversation-wise when another industry person was present, other than the dirt she dug up on TMZ.  Alisa hated that she followed all the gossip, especially gossip that surrounded Logan or Christian, but Joann was a creature of habit.  

Alisa nodded.  “Yeah, and?”

“And? Logan is still overseas, right? They’re going to wonder who your date will be for your guys’ huge debut.”

This was one red carpet she could not avoid.  It would have been appropriate for the author and her screenwriter husband to make their entrances together, but since he was out of town, Alisa dreaded the thought of making the red carpet walk alone.  

“Well, they are going to have to get over it, and who cares if I have to walk it alone.”  She took a bite of her salad and reached for her iced tea.

“Alone?” Joann and Evie chimed in sync.

“Oh, no, sweetie, you’ll have me draped over your arm before you walk that carpet alone.”  Evie took a sip of her wine.  “Walk it by yourself and I can guarantee you that other outlets will be chirping, it won’t be me you’ll have to worry about.”

A chuckle came from Alisa, knowing the truth behind those words.  The last thing she wanted was to bring attention to her date-less situation. “Fine. Sounds like a plan.”

“Good.”

It was almost 12:30.  

“Look at that. I gotta go. I’ll call you both later.”  She blew a kiss at them and left money on the table for her meal.  “Thank you for taking time out of your schedules to hang out; it means a lot. I’ll text you later.”

“Love you.” They each took turns saying as she left.

She walked to her car, the discussion leaving her with a terrible gut feeling. She had not yet found a proper date for the event.  Alisa had to put her feelings aside, however, as her meeting with Ron Suffington was an important one.  There was a new director for the sequel to
Gateway
, and she was going to meet him today.  With Logan directing the show and starring in the next summer blockbuster, Alisa knew she was going to need some help focusing on the next movie.  Ron had hired on a new director who was a big hit in the indie market.

“Alisa, I’d like you to meet Evan Gable. Notably, he’s directed
Letting Go
and
Havenhall
.  Nominated for a few awards at Sundance.”

“
Won
best new director at Cannes in 2012.” He interjected. “Few mentions for my films at TIFF, IFA.”

“A pleasure.” She shook his hand firmly as the two locked eyes.  There was something about him that oozed anything but humility.  Perhaps the fact that he was less than modest about spitting out the film festival acronyms, as if they held water around here.  They did, at least with Ron, but Alisa was still skeptical.

Evan smiled.  His teeth were so white, they were nearly blinding.  There was no mistaking it, he was definitely handsome.  His features were sharp, but they suited him. “I’ve heard so much about you, Ms. Parson.”

“Rider, actually.”

Whether or not she needed the reminder, Alisa had Ron there to establish that fact for her.  Her eyes flitted toward Ron with the hint of a glare, but he just smiled in response.

“Oh?”  Evan’s dark eyebrow rose a bit.  His eyes were so blue.

“Yes.”  Her face flushed slightly.

“Interesting.” He mused.

Alisa narrowed her eyes slightly, but Ron was ready to get the show on the road, which gave her no chance to question his remark.

The meeting went a lot smoother than the introductions.  Alisa couldn’t help but notice that Evan was looking her way whenever Ron began to talk and hide behind his laptop screen for his notes.  She wasn’t sure whether or not she should be uncomfortable or flattered, so she stayed focused on the subject matter.  

“If that’s all for today, we can schedule a meeting for tomorrow, and then again after the premiere, to go over marketing and a few other things.” Ron looked between them both.

“Sounds good,” she replied.

“Let me get you my number,” Evan held his hand out, gesturing that he take her phone.

Ron chimed in: “That’s a great idea.  Once we get the script locked down, we can begin the first phase of casting. Alisa?”  

Ron and Evan gazed at her, as she froze with her phone in her hand.

“Earth to Alisa!”

“I’m sorry
  
” she cleared her throat, “Sure. What’s your number?”

“212… here, let me.”  Evan’s hands gently caressed hers as he languidly peeled her phone out of her hand.  He watched her reaction carefully, and when he was done entering his number, returned the phone to her open hand.  “I have it on 24/7. I look forward to working with you.” He winked.

Who the hell does he think he is?

She wished she could say the same.

It was time for auditions… yet again.  Alisa was honestly grateful that she didn’t have to run from studio to studio between jobs. She and Ray were meeting a few floors above where she was now. Alisa couldn’t wait for the roles to be cast for the new principals in
Family Insurance
.

“Eww, he did what?” Ray said loudly, turning his chair to face her.  “What a creep!”

Alisa couldn’t help but laugh.  Ray had that way about him; he could cheer her up without much effort.  She demonstrated the slow movement and intrusive glances Evan had given her at their meeting and the hand grabbing, as well.  Ray shuddered.

“What else can you say about him? Good? Bad?”

“Cocky.” She rolled her eyes.

“The good, the bad, and the cocky,” Ray chuckled as he recited the words to her.

“Sounds like a terrible name for an adult film.”

“Or…” Ray’s trademark mischievous eyebrow rose. “An awesome one.”

“Honestly though, he was just so... slimy.  I don’t know that I’m going to like working with him. At. All.”  Alisa whined.

“I can believe it, sounds like a total skeeze.”  He used his own terminology to describe his disgust. “Blame Ron though, I had nothing to do with that. But now that
that
is over with… the fun part is upon us.  You ready for round two?”

Alisa took a deep breath. “How many do we have?”

“Six for Harvey, three for Theresa, and a couple for Sven. Aaron’s are in line for later this week.”

The two of them laughed.  Sven was their resident foreigner, a Swedish character, the true comic relief, and they’d had several successful reads for him during the last round.  It surprised her to know there were still people waiting to read for him.

“Let’s do this.”

Several readings in, the pair was having a blast.  They offered to read alongside those auditioning, to get a feel for their sense of understanding and character.  Amidst the hilarity, Alisa received a message from Dawn that they had reservations for dinner, meaning most of the gang would be back together. She was terribly excited.

***

That night, Alisa decided to meet Ray and David for dinner, and she was so happy that Dawn was actually able to come out.  The group met at their favorite Italian place, Salvi’s, for some pasta and wine.  She needed this night.  With Logan out of town, Alisa figured she needed a distraction.  After posing with a couple of fans who had spotted them in the restaurant, Alisa checked the time.  It was close to 10:00. She had a meeting scheduled early tomorrow, one she could not miss.

“Come out with us, babe.” David pleaded. His face was already flushed from the wine they were drinking at the restaurant.

“We just had dinner, sweetie, and I got that thing tomorrow morning…I probably shouldn’t.” She winced.

“Aw, let’s go have some fun, Cinderella. Gigi has the kids, and the husband is out of town tonight. I never get time to myself.” Dawn whined.

The three pouting faces of her friends stared at her and with every shimmering eye, every puckered and trembling lip, the guilt fell on her, hard.

“I’m going to regret this.”

“You bet!” Dawn cheered as she linked arms with Alisa.

The night consisted of visiting nightclubs and ending up at a party in Ray and David’s neighborhood. They lived down the block from B-lister, Cora Rivera, and she was having one killer blowout. The biggest mistake Alisa made was accepting rounds of shots from her friends. She was safe with the wine, and had nursed a couple of beers at the clubs, but the party was a completely different realm. Alisa was put on the spot, in a room full of stars and groupies, so she took every shot offered.

“Great party, huh?”

When she looked up, she gasped.  The room was spinning out of control, and she wasn’t able to stand properly. Suddenly there was a man there to catch her.  Lucky for her, it was someone she knew.

“Oh, God.” She stumbled, and Evan steadied her.  Alisa always told herself not to get too crazy, but with Dawn and Ray both heckling her, the peer pressure was too great. David didn’t help either.

“You gonna be all right?”

There was an awful feeling in the pit of her stomach. “I think I…”

“What, you feeling sick?”

“No, it’s just… stuffy in here.  I just need some air.”

At her request, Evan escorted her outside. He had extended his arm to her, which she gratefully accepted, and he led the way.  She surely would have been lost otherwise.  Several faces greeted her, almost blurry as she walked by, and she swore she heard David laughing somewhere in the distance.  In a few seconds, they were by the front gate, and she leaned up against the wall. Luckily far enough from the entrance so the incoming and outgoing foot traffic wouldn’t come around to ask questions or cause a scene.

“My friends…” she whimpered.  She’d lost track of Dawn, Ray, and David close to 3 shots ago.

He offered her a bottle of water and leaned against the gate beside her. “They’re in there somewhere. I’m sure I passed Dawn? … uh, in the hallway.”

Closing her eyes, Alisa opened the bottle of water and took a drink.  The cool night air was refreshing, even in the city, especially after being cooped up in the house with the crowd. She swished the water in her mouth before swallowing it. It was one of the least glamorous things she could do besides vomit in front of this stranger, but she did what she could to keep her cool.

Evan shook his head at her. “You know you did a brave thing there. I heard you mixed the big three.”

“Big three?” Alisa echoed.

“Beer, wine,
and
liquor? Phew, that’s something.”

She groaned at the thought of it.

He just smiled and rest his hand on her back, “You going to be able to get home? Who drove you?”

“Ray and David actually live down the street.” Alisa pointed but ended up getting turned around. “That way, I think.”

“Come on, hon, let’s get you home.”

The walk was slow but necessary.  She indulged him with some conversation, finally getting beyond the superficial shell of the man she had met earlier.  At first he talked about the weather, being back on the coast after living back east for some time, and how much fun he had at his first movie premiere. If she didn’t know any better, she would actually say that Evan was likeable.  He was witty, she’d give him that.  Evan’s delivery and the way he spoke made her laugh, which was nice.  Alisa was much clearer when they arrived at the front gate of Ray and David’s.

“You going to stay here tonight? Or should I drive you home?”

“I’ll be here tonight.  Thank you.”

“Okay, Cinderella.”

“You know, you’re not the first one to call me that tonight.”  She smiled as she opened the gate to walk in.

“Must mean something then?”  He helped her to the door.

“Thanks for walking me home.”

“No, thank you.  It was nice to have this chance to actually get to know the woman behind the writer… whom I’ve solely learned about from the press.”

Alisa shook her head and smiled.  “Don’t believe it all.”

For a brief moment, as their eyes met, it was almost as bad as the awkwardness after a date where the guy waits to be invited in, or the girl is expecting a grand, romantic move. Thankfully, it was mostly because she was a writer and that’s what these moments normally called for.  Alisa was married, and happily at that.  Evan was a man she barely knew…with extremely dreamy blue eyes.

Cheering from passerby’s came from the street.  Alisa assumed they were coming down from Cora’s house.

“Well, I guess that’s my cue to go then.  You have a good night, princess.”

“Good night.”

When she went inside, the guest room was already made up for her. Alisa didn’t remember falling onto the bed.  Though at some point, she obviously passed out.

Chapter Three

Her phone rang.  Without looking, she tapped on it to answer, not realizing it was a video call she was accepting.

“Good morning, sunshine.”

It was Evan, and the camera was right on her.  Once she saw the image of herself in the top corner of the video call she realized it was morning and the call she received was not a dream.  Pushing the phone away, the video cam on her side only picked up the ceiling in the guest room at David and Ray’s.  She could hear Evan laughing on the other end.

“Uh-oh, did I lose you?”  Evan called out.

Pulling the blanket over her shoulders, she fixed the nest of hair that had formed in her sleep and peeked at her phone.  Alisa was still out of sight, and Evan was still waiting there, smiling.

“Still here,” she replied meekly.

“Good.  Get your butt out of bed, darlin’, we have a meeting today with Ron.”

“That’s today?”  Alisa looked at the clock then over at her planner.  As she thumbed through the pages,
Meeting with Ron & Evan
was penciled in, and it was both circled and underlined. “Ohmygod that
is
today.”

“Mmhmm.  I guess you’re lucky I called ya?”  He sounded way too happy about that.  “You’re welcome.  So get your royal highness out of that luxurious bed and head on down.  Don’t make me come find you.”

Butterflies suddenly fluttered about in her stomach.

“Ciao.”

It took a lot of energy to roll out of bed, but she was up and at ‘em quickly.  Ron was always a stickler for punctuality, so she was glad Evan called to give her a head’s up.  It was a mission to get from Ray’s place to the studio in such a short amount of time, but she weaved in and out of traffic with ease.  After she parked, Alisa walked faster than she had in ages.  She kept her eyes on the prize.

The elevator doors separated, and Evan was standing in the reception area, chatting up the secretary. When he heard the ding, he turned to greet her.

“Look who decided to grace us with her presence.  So glad you could come from your palace.” Evan smiled at her as she walked in.  “You clean up nice.”

She blushed and playfully spat: “Shut up.”

“And not a minute late. Brava.”  He egged her on.

Nudging him in the gut with her shoulder, Alisa pushed past him and headed into the meeting room where Ron was already waiting behind the open screen of his laptop.  He peeked up over his eyewear and stood to greet them both.

“Good morning, you two.”  His hands waved over the empty chairs, where documents had already been placed.

They were about 45 minutes in, on a discussion of the script, when her phone vibrated.  It was sitting on the stack of files she had set down when she arrived. Swiping the screen on, her heart sank to see who had sent her a message.

Baby, call me ASAP
.

Logan.
SHIT!
She thought.  He promised to call her, and she’d missed both of his calls the night prior.  Between the meeting, the castings, the brunch … everything ran together.  Then the party.  Her head throbbed.

Sweetie, I’m so sorry. With Evan and Ron
. Her fingers flew over the touch screen.

Okay.  I was worried about you last night. Ray said you went out.

I did.

You never called. I thought something happened.

I’m fine, I promise. I’m so sorry.

I was so worried.  Tell me where you’re going next time ….  
He was typing something else when Ron called her name for something.

“Sorry, what?”

“I was asking what you thought about the location.”

She stared.

“In New York?”

Alisa cleared her throat, doe eyes staring between Ron and Evan. Her phone buzzed again. “Yeah. New York. Sounds good.”

Evan snickered.  

She didn’t like that very much, but she ignored him.

Logan text her one last time:
Forget it. I’m going offline. Talk to you later.

After lunch, Alisa got ready for what she hoped would be the last round of auditions.  Her mind drifted off to Logan texting her frantically during the meeting and had such dread hit her. Was he going to be upset?  She almost never attended parties without him.  Actually, she almost never attended parties at all.  Alisa needed to blow off some steam, but it was hard to find time to go to the gym or for a run these days.

She was staring out the window at the streets below, lost in thought, when there was a faint knock. “Come in.”

To her surprise, it was Evan.

“I hope you don’t mind me coming down here.  Ron mentioned you were doing auditions for the show, so I wanted to catch you before it got busy.”

Gesturing with her hand, she welcomed him into the conference room.  His attitude seemed a lot less boisterous than the day before, which was a relief.  He strode in, looking at the room carefully.

“Here to bring me more laughs and sarcastic remarks?” She didn’t look at him. Her voice sounded unenthusiastic. Alisa was too exhausted to deal with his antics.

Evan raised both hands in surrender.  He looked genuine for once. “Safety’s on.”  

Rolling her eyes, she shifted slightly where she stood.

“How are the auditions rolling, anyway?”  He asked.

Alisa shrugged.  “Tiring.  Kassidy, our CD, went on maternity leave right before we started scheduling the auditions for the new members, so a lot of the discussion is on video chat. Ray and I have been working so damn hard to keep the production rolling on time and with Logan gone…” Her voice trailed off as she turned back to stare at the world outside.  Saying it out loud was different than keeping it inside.

The sound of his heavy footsteps grew closer.  Soon, Evan was standing beside her, shoulder to shoulder.

“What’s wrong?”  Evan nudged her, bringing his gaze outside as well to search for what she was focused on.

“Nothing.”

“Come on. I grew up with four sisters.  Nothing definitely means something.”

What? Is the award-winning Evan Gable actually opening up to me?
She thought.

“So spill it.”  

“I…I just have a lot on my mind.”

“Enlighten me.”

“Well, there’s what I mentioned.  The script for our movie makes me nervous.  The auditions…the premiere. I’m pressured to find a date.”  Her mouth started running, spilling out the details of her stressed mind.  

“The script looked good. I read it over.” He turned to face her now, but she didn’t move. “I think we’ll be able to find your new leads in no time.”

Alisa faced him and pulled her hands to her side, one hand holding the audition sheets.  She wanted to set them down on the table, but she was too mesmerized by Evan to move.  He strode alongside the table, glancing over the papers, before he came to a complete stop.  Alisa tilted her head.

“You’re doing great on TV. I can tell you that much.”

“You saw that?”

“I watched your interviews with Evie, Gemma, Jimmy and Jimmy, and some of the early morning stuff when I’m actually awake, and you have done great on all fronts.  Don’t worry so much about that.”

This gave her confidence.  

“About the premiere… well, I’m going.  Just found out a couple days ago. I’ll be dateless as well, so it looks as if we’re in the same boat, my dear.” Evan smiled.  This time, Alisa found it less offensive.  Part of her heart sank, remembering when she first arrived in Los Angeles.  She was also very much heartbroken. She didn’t know the extent of Evan’s love life as she had just met him, but she was smart enough to piece together the information offered to her.

Whether or not he was extending the invitation to go together, Alisa didn’t bite.  There was so much about Evan Gable she needed to know before leaving herself vulnerable to that sort of invite.  Besides, Joann and Evie were there to go with her if she was without Logan.

There was a long stretch of silence.  Alisa was staring at the show script, trying to figure out why she couldn’t find the right actors.  They needed to get the new, extended part of the cast together soon, or the studio may have to find them themselves or just pull the plug.  Alisa had worked so hard for this; she prayed it was not the latter.

There was rustling and when she looked up, Evan had taken a packet of paper from the table.  

“Aw, come on, what do you mean you can’t take my case? I practically did all the work for you.  You can’t tell me I did all of that for nothing.”  The words seemed so familiar.  It was a line from the script set out for those auditioning.  That was the same line she’d heard over a thousand times, but she had never heard it delivered like that.

Without even thinking about it, she dropped her eyes to read the lines that were next in sequence. “I’m just saying that there’s a certain protocol
  
”

“Protocol? The case called for some investigation.” His pale blue eyes dug deep into hers as he stepped in closer to deliver the lines in the scene.

“The police conduct investigations, not us.”

“The police wouldn’t get near it, so I had to do all of this.  It wasn’t easy, but I’m pretty sure I got everything we need. Theresa, you need me.  I need you.”

“Aaron
  
”

Just like that, their faces were incredibly close to one another.  So close, in fact, she could see his pupils had dilated some, and there were specks of green, yellow, and azure in his irises. Alisa could smell the cologne he was wearing, down to each note in the formula.  

“Then they kiss. Good scene.”

She exhaled slowly, realizing she’d been holding her breath the entire time.

“Sorry… am I interrupting something?” Ray looked over from the door.  He had two lattes in his hand.

“No, actually. I was just getting out of here since I know you guys have stuff to do right now, uh…good read though. I had fun.  Thanks, Lis. I’ll be in touch.”

Is that him!?
Ray mouthed.

Alisa nervously nodded at Ray before turning back to Evan.  “Bye, Evan.”

Oh my God!

She could read Ray’s lips perfectly.  

Once the door clicked shut, he let out a deep groan. “Good lord, woman.  He is a heart attack and a half.”

“You’re telling me.”

“He doesn’t seem as bad as you keep telling me he is.  Date for the premiere?”

Alisa pointed. “Don’t. Even.”

“What? I’m just saying that he is a refreshing glass of tall, dark, and handsome.  Also, I think he read Aaron really well.”  Ray said as he got situated in his chair.

Her face turned red.  “You caught that?”

Ray nodded, “Well yeah, it was a great scene read.  Though, I was a little disappointed by the ending.”

“What do you mean?” Alisa asked.

“The big finale.” He winked.

Alisa wasn’t sure it was possible, but her face felt hotter.  The end of the scene was the kiss, that pivotal moment shared by the two new characters, the time Aaron confesses his feelings for Theresa.  It was a few episodes into the season, but Kassidy figured this was a good scene to watch for the chemistry between the two new cast members.  

She thought of the way he smelled, those piercing blue eyes that were unforgettable, and shook her head. “You stop that right now.”

“Fine, fine,” he laughed, raising both hands in surrender. “Everyone’s waiting out front.  Let’s get started, so we can get outta here.”

By the end of the session, each open listing had a handful of picks, except for Aaron.  Alisa wondered if Theresa would be played by Heather Hartford, the original pick from Ray.  They had a little over a week before the filming would start, and Ray and Alisa (for different reasons) were hoping that Logan would be back by then.

When she arrived at the house, Alisa needed to see Logan sitting on the couch drinking a beer as he caught up on the scores of his favorite sports team.  It was a fantasy to think he would actually be waiting for her.  She missed him so much.  The house was silent, however, too quiet.  The alarm didn’t beep when she walked in. Did she forget to turn it on before she left? Was someone in the house? Eyeing her phone, she saw she had no missed calls from the alarm company. Something was very, very wrong.

As she set her purse and keys down on the table, she heard a rustling in the back of the house, down the hall.  It was dark inside except the faint glow of light peeking through an open door.   Their bedroom.

Cautiously, Alisa headed down the hall, her pace slow and precise.  She was careful not to make the floorboards creak beneath her, but when she pushed the door open, it squeaked loudly, announcing her arrival.

The person standing in her bedroom caught her completely by surprise.  Logan was there; bouquet in hand, champagne in the other.  Dozens of candles were lit all over the room.  It was as if their bedroom was filled with fireflies.

She gasped, placing her hand on her chest.