Page 18 of Second Act
Chapter 9
Andy woke up in the car just as they got to the village. He had slept for several hours and felt groggy, but the headache from his hangover was gone. The past twenty-four hours felt like a dream. He had known that Violet’s manuscript was good, but he hadn’t been sure what Dash’s reaction would be, or if he’d be interested. Andy hadn’t expected Dash to go that crazy over it. It was good news for Violet, and he was happy to be the facilitator. He hadn’t wanted to be more than that, just the messenger, a benevolent presence to do a good deed for a good woman who needed help and had an amazing talent, and was drowning alone in a backwater, where he had found her purely by chance. Fate was a strange thing, and brought people together who would never have met otherwise.
He saw Violet’s bike leaning against the house when they pulled up, and he thanked the driver for the easy journey, and asked him if he wanted to come inside for something to drink before going back to London. The driver thanked him and said he didn’t. He wasalready turning the car around to leave when Andy walked into the house.
He glanced into the study and saw Violet at the desk, frowning as she concentrated on what she was doing. He watched her from the doorway. She was beautiful with her hair loose, intent on her work. She sensed him, looked up, and smiled. He had been an angel fallen from the sky for her. She didn’t understand how or why it had happened, but she was grateful. Her deep violet eyes were warm as she looked at him, and he walked into the room.
“Working on the story?” he asked her as he approached. It felt good to be home and he was happy to see her. The house had become home to him very quickly, he was so comfortable, it felt like a safe refuge.
“Answering your correspondence,” she said, sitting back in the chair. She was afraid to ask him how it had gone in London, and Andy had warned her that Dash Hemming wouldn’t have time to read it right away. He was just delivering it to him, so she didn’t expect a response. “I assume you don’t want to fly back to LA for the premiere of Alana Beal’s new movie.” She smiled at him. “Do you know her?”
Andy hesitated and nodded. “We were dating when I got fired.” He noticed that he could say the word out loud now without wanting to cry or feeling sick. It was just a word now. “She disappeared faster than spit in the wind, as my father used to say.” He smiled when he said it.
“Nice of her,” Violet said with a disapproving look.
“She doesn’t do failures. Who she dates is part of her career plan. I haven’t spoken to her since the day it happened. She called to sayshe was sorry, but more or less what she meant was goodbye. I hear she’s dating an important director now.” Andy didn’t believe the rumor Dirk Howard had shared with him that she was dating the new head of Global Studios. Andy knew Alana well. Jeff Latham was married. Alana didn’t do scandal. All she wanted was success. Violet looked for signs of sorrow on his face, but there were none.
“Were you in love with her?” she asked softly, and he shook his head.
“It was comfortable and easy. It would have ended soon anyway. She does her job well. We dated for three years, and we had pretty much played it out by then.” Violet nodded. “I don’t think either of us was ever in love. Dating me was part of her career plan, and for me, it was easy and uncomplicated.”
“You live in a hard world.”
“We all do. It just comes in different forms, with different faces and costumes. She’s an obvious one. The dangerous ones are the ones you don’t see coming.” Violet looked away and he sat down in the chair across the desk from her. “I have something to tell you,” he said carefully, and she looked instantly worried.
“He refused to read it and gave it back to you?” That was the worst case she had imagined, underestimating his power again, even now, with no job.
“No. We had dinner last night, and a lot of wine.” He smiled at her. “You kept him up all night. He read it when he got home. He called me this morning. He loved it, Violet.Reallyloved it. He wants to do it as a movie.” She stared at him, and her mouth opened slightly and no sound came out as tears filled her eyes. She wiped them away, embarrassed, and the gesture touched him profoundly.She was so delicate and so vulnerable, and another part of her seemed so strong. Without meaning to, with his unexpected kindness, Andy had gotten behind her walls.
“Oh my God. Now what happens?” she finally said.
“It’s a long process. He’s going to look for a screenwriter to turn the manuscript into a screenplay. That’s the longest part. It’s hard to find good writers, they’re usually booked up for months or even years, and most of them write slowly and are finicky. It could take a year or two from now, but if everything goes well, I think it could happen. The writing doesn’t take as long as finding the right screenwriter to do it. That’s how I started in this business, as a screenwriter, so I know how long the process can take. It used to drive me crazy. Dash Hemming wants to find the right one. He thinks your story is brilliant. So don’t get too excited yet. It’s a long process. Next, I want to find you an agent, to handle the business end for you and get you the best deal he or she can.” He didn’t tell her that Dash wanted him to coproduce and was trying to make it part of the deal. He knew Dash would give that up if Andy was adamant about not doing it. Dash wouldn’t want to lose a property he considered brilliant, but he would keep the pressure on Andy for a while, and Andy didn’t want Violet to worry about it.
“What do I do now? Is there something I have to do?”
“We wait to hear from him. It may be quite some time, while he hunts around for a screenwriter. Months, probably. He may want to option the manuscript, so you don’t sell it to someone else, especially if we find an agent for you. It’ll give you a little money now if we sell him an option,” and he knew she needed it, or could certainly use it.
“It doesn’t feel real,” she said, still looking stunned.
“The movie business isn’t real, but it can be very exciting. And one day you see it on the screen, after all the fighting and crying and negotiating and hoping and worrying and all the work, and it’s out there forever, your story on the screen. It is very exciting.” He had lived it with his parents and his own career, before he was studio head. Wendy had watched all the movies he’d written. He had done mostly serious dramas, a few comedies he had enjoyed writing, and his first two movies for his father. “It’s just starting for you, Violet. It may take some time, but it’s going to happen.” She could hardly breathe, thinking about it. “Maybe we should go to the chippy and celebrate with dinner,” he said, grinning, and she laughed. She was euphoric. It felt unreal as she looked at him gratefully.
“I don’t know how I’ll ever thank you enough,” she said in an awed voice.
“Invite me to the premiere. I’ll come to yours.”
“I don’t know how this happened. You rented this house and needed help with your emails, and I forgot my folder on the desk and you read it, and now we’re talking about making a movie.”
“That’s how it happens in this business—luck, chance, coincidence, a lucky break. Most of the opportunities I’ve had happened that way. It’s how a lot of stars get discovered, and how a lot of great movies get made. It’s a little bit like gambling, rolling the dice. That’s what’s exciting about it. A lot of great projects never get completed, so you’re already way ahead of the game. Dash is a solid guy, and if he says he wants to make it, he will, and he has a solid gold reputation,” and she could sense that Andy did too, and didn’t make empty promises. “What are you going to do to celebrate?”
“I think I’ll take a walk on the beach. I need some air,” she said, standing up. She’d been working all day, and this was an enormous piece of news for her. She was trying to absorb it. “Do you want to come?” she asked him, and he nodded. It made him think of the day he thought he had seen her on the beach, the day after he arrived, and he thought she was crying. He was sure now that it was her, although she gave no indication of recognizing him when she came to the interview. He wondered if in her tearful grief she hadn’t even noticed him on the beach, nor remembered him later.
He was glad to be the bearer of good tidings. His mission had been accomplished, as her random benefactor. A good deed along the way for a good woman who deserved it. It had been easy for him, and he liked seeing Dash and had enjoyed dinner with him, except for the headache that morning.
“I’ll get my jacket,” he said in response to her invitation to join her for a walk on the beach. There was something so healing about the sea air, the water, and the wind on their faces. It was still chilly in April, and always windy.
He was back a few minutes later in jeans, a sweater, a light windbreaker, and running shoes. She had worn jeans too and running shoes to work and a heavy fisherman’s sweater. She didn’t think she’d see him when he got back, and hadn’t bothered to wear makeup, and had just put her hair into a big clip. She was quiet on the walk to the beach along the familiar path. She had so much to think about, with everything he’d said. She wondered how long it would take Andy’s friend to find a screenwriter and wished she could write the script herself, but she didn’t know how. The manuscript had been hard enough.
Once they got to the beach, she closed her eyes for a minute and felt the wind on her face. It felt good and clean and blew the cobwebs away, but it didn’t make his news seem any more real. They walked silently side by side for a few minutes, each of them lost in their own thoughts. There was a question he had been wanting to ask her, but hadn’t dared. But in light of their initial success with this first round, he decided to brave it.
