Breaking Stars - J. Sterling Page 0,32
members. Someone’s making sure the lighting is hitting us just right, and there’s a guy holding a giant boom mic to pick up all our lines and sounds.” I held my arms up to mimic what it was like to hold out the giant microphone on the heavy pole. “And there’s the director and the assistant director, the makeup artists, wardrobe.”
“Ew. That’s a lot of people watching you make out,” the redhead said as she scrunched up her face.
“Exactly.” I nodded. “Not romantic. At all.”
“Well, that stinks,” the blonde said. “So, what are you doing here anyway?”
“My car got a flat, so I’m just here until Tatum gets it fixed.”
His name slipped off my tongue with such ease, it almost surprised me as much as it did the blond girl. At the mention of him, her body language changed completely and her stance became defensive as she crossed her arms over her chest.
“Ah, so the BMW is yours, I take it?” she asked, her tone now overly sweet, but in a way that warned me to proceed with caution. “It’s a really nice car. Tatum showed it to me yesterday at the shop.”
The redhead glanced at her, then frowned and made a face.
“He showed you my car?” I asked, not quite believing her.
She nodded, her lips pressed together in a fake smile. “I’m sure Tatum will fix it up in no time. He’s good at everything he does.” Then she pinned me with a knowing look as she added, “If you know what I mean.”
My skin prickled with her words and my chest felt like it was filled with bricks as I inhaled each breath. I hated what this girl was insinuating. It was ridiculous for me to care so much about a virtual stranger, but I didn’t like thinking that Tatum belonged to anyone, much less this kind of girl. Jealous feelings flowed through me before I could think about where they came from or why they were there.
My emotions confused me. Just a few days ago I was mourning the loss of Colin and being humiliated by his actions, and today I was getting all jealous at the thought of a guy I didn’t even know had a girlfriend. Who does that?
I wanted to reach inside my chest, pull my heart out, and have a frank discussion with it about its behavior. We needed to be on the same page, or at least in the same book.
The redhead extended her hand. “I’m Celeste and this is Brina. She’s Tatum’s ex-girlfriend.” Celeste emphasized the ex part, much to Brina’s dismay, and the bricks in my chest immediately burst, making breathing much easier.
“It’s nice to meet you,” I said with a smile. The last thing I needed was enemies, or crazy ex-girlfriends causing me any more personal drama.
“And I love all your movies. You’re a great actress,” Celeste added, sounding genuine.
I gave her a quick smile. “Thank you. I really appreciate that.”
“Oh yeah, we’re big fans,” Brina chimed in. “I made Tatum watch all your movies. He was always—” Brina stopped short, her face twisted with whatever thoughts she was suddenly thinking. She didn’t finish her sentence, and I didn’t press.
“Thanks again. That’s really nice of you both. And I definitely appreciate you making your boyfriends sit through my girly flicks,” I said with a laugh.
“I don’t ever remember Tatum complaining,” Celeste teased, and Brina scowled at her.
“He hated when I made him watch your movies.”
“They usually do,” I said, trying to sound nonchalant, but my insides were bruised. The idea of Tatum hating what I did for a living hurt my feelings. Quinn was right; I was too sensitive.
Brina turned to flap her towel in the air before she settled it onto the dirt not far from mine. Celeste followed suit. “I hope it’s still okay if we hang out here with you? We like to come here to lay out during the day when we can.”
“It’s fine with me. Some company would be nice,” I admitted, although I didn’t want this to turn into some sort of Q-and-A session that would be sold to the tabloids the second I left town. I hated having to constantly be on guard and watch the things that came out of my mouth, but that was one of the harsh realities of the business I was in. Anything I said could be sold, misconstrued, or used against me if the person were malicious enough.
The girls lay down on their towels, then began