Second to None, page 5
“That’s fair.” I tugged her into a hug. “I’m proud of you. That has to be hard.”
“You have no idea.”
“Well, you can bring him to the cast party tonight if he promises to behave.”
Amelia snorted. “Have you met Ash?”
“At least it’s guaranteed to be interesting.”
“With you and Maddox in the same room as your ex-husband? I think it was already guaranteed.”
I cringed. “Yeah. Wish me luck.”
“You’re going to need it.”
And she wasn’t wrong.
7
SAVANNAH
PRESENT
Savannah nights were my favorite in the whole world. I’d traveled all over for Academy, but nothing compared to my hometown. People thought it was strange that I claimed Savannah when I’d grown up primarily in Atlanta, but as much as I loved the city, Savannah was special. I could feel it in the sea-salt air and the sticky heat. There were no words for it, except home.
After circling for street parking for twenty minutes, I gave up and pulled into a lot. The steps down to River Street were as steep as ever in my Louboutins. I stepped onto the cobblestones and headed toward Dub’s. It wasn’t the nicest place on River Street by a long shot, but I hadn’t wanted to do anything fancy. Maddox would never have shown up.
I was nearly there when a shiny blue sports car zipped right up to the entrance of Dub’s. Everyone was staring at the expensive car, and out of it stepped Martin Harper in a three-piece suit. Phones were out, snapping pictures of the television star and my ex-husband. If they noticed me, then things were going to get very uncomfortable.
I stepped backward to avoid the crush of excitement. I almost made it to the door when I heard, “Josephine, darling!”
I took a deep breath and turned to find Martin striding through the crowd, right toward me. That was when the breath went out of the crowd. It was one thing to see Martin in a shiny sports car. It was another thing entirely to see him with me.
His arms came around my waist, pulling me against him. My arms went around his neck—because what the fuck else was I supposed to do with a dozen cameras in my face? It was like being back in LA. Fuck.
“Hi, Marty,” I muttered into his ear.
He laughed. “That ridiculous nickname still, huh?”
“You know it! Come on.” I grabbed his sleeve and pulled him into the bar to escape the cameras. “We have our own room in here.”
“Excellent. Wouldn’t want to make a scene.” I shot him a look, and he cracked up. “What? You didn’t like the Maserati?”
“You never did know how to keep a low profile.”
“Oh, darling, I’ve missed you.”
I chose not to reply to that comment at all.
When I turned around, I came face-to-face with Maddox. My steps faltered when I saw him taking in me and Martin as we walked into Dub’s together. Well, shit. This didn’t look good.
I plastered on a smile on and strode the remaining few feet forward. “Maddox!”
He arched an eyebrow at my effusive behavior. “Josie.”
“You know Martin, right?”
“I don’t believe we’ve met actually,” Maddox said.
His face was neutral, but I knew he was silently seething. He was the one who had signed up for this movie. He was going to have to see Martin and me together for the next six weeks. Might as well get this out of the way.
“Martin Harper, meet Maddox Nelson.” I introduced them. “Maddox is the genius visual effects guy that Jimmy hired.”
“Right on,” Martin said, shaking Maddox’s hand. “Glad to have you on board.”
“Sure,” Maddox said. “Should be an interesting experience.”
“Working with Josie always is,” Martin said. He winked at me. “You still like a French 75?”
I laughed. “In here?”
Martin looked around, as if just realizing that we were in a sports bar. “Touché. I’ll see what they have. Maddox?”
Maddox held up a Creature Comforts beer, a local Georgia craft brewery. “I’m good.”
Martin headed to the bar.
Maddox took a sip of his beer and cleared his throat. “So, you and Martin …”
“No!” I said as defensively as Amelia had earlier today. I released the edge from my voice. “That ship has sailed. I ran into him as I was coming inside.”
“He seems to think it’s more,” Maddox observed. He’d always been able to see through other people like that. Even if he preferred not to interact with them.
“We’ve spoken for five minutes.”
“He got a divorce last year.”
I shot him a surprised look. “Are you following gossip rags?”
He grimaced. “Nah, I just … do my research.”
I laughed. “You looked into everyone before you got here, didn’t you?”
“Made it easier to deal with all of this,” he admitted.
It was so Maddox that it made me ache. I’d missed his relentless desire to learn everything he possibly could about things that interested him. How he used those resources to build bigger and better. Everything else would fall to the wayside as he dived deeper and deeper into his projections, surfacing only when necessary for air and to shower and eat and exist outside his thoughts. But also how he used that intellect to survive being an introvert in an extrovert’s world. I had no doubt the last year had been better for him than they had been for me.
Martin returned with my drink—a gin and tonic with a slice of lime. And then the rest of the party trickled in. I threw my arms around my favorite co-worker Iris, unable to believe I hadn’t seen her in three years. After all that time on Academy, having everyone back together felt like a high school reunion. Not that I’d know because I’d never gone to mine.
And then Amelia Ballentine was at the door. She strode in, wearing a silky pink minidress, with Ash Talmadge holding the door for her. He’d changed out of his suit from earlier today and into khakis and a blue button-up. He’d rolled the sleeves up to his elbows. They cut a striking figure.
Maddox took one step to my elbow and hissed, “What the fuck is that?”
“That is Amelia Ballentine.”
“Yeah. No shit. Is she dating Ash?”
I glanced at him with a shrug. “She says no. That he isn’t over Lila.”
“Duh. Anyone who has ever been around him and Lila knows that he’s never gotten over her. They had longer gaps than two years, and he still went back to her.”
“I know that.” I shrugged. “What can I do about it? Lila is in Atlanta and happy with Cole. She’s not going back to Ash. I won’t fucking let her. So, he needs to move on, right?”
Maddox snorted. “Does he?”
I caught his eye, and we both laughed for a second. That was something we’d always agreed on at least. Ash Talmadge was hardly either of our favorite person.
“You want to say hi?”
“Fuck no,” he said. “I’m going to get another beer.”
He headed to the bar as Amelia hurried across the room and pulled me into a hug. Ash followed in her wake, shooting me a wary look but he kept his mouth shut. I could play nice as long as he did.
“Amelia, this is Martin,” I said, introducing her to the heartthrob of her teen years.
Martin kissed her hand like a proper gentleman. Ash clenched his jaw.
I patted him on the shoulder. “Good luck with that.”
“What do you mean?” he nearly growled.
“Martin’s a bigger flirt than I am. I don’t know what’s going on with you and Amelia, but I’d stick close.”
He met my green eyes with a sneer. “I don’t need relationship advice.”
I clenched my jaw shut to keep from letting any vicious words snake past my lips. We couldn’t fight here.
“All right then. Good talk.”
His eyes lifted skyward. “Why do you think I’m here anyway?”
“I have no idea.”
Ash’s gaze was intent on Amelia. “I’m not going to repeat past mistakes,” he said low enough for only me to hear.
I nodded, understanding completely. He’d made every mistake with Lila. Amelia was too good for him, if I was honest, but she was a catch. And he knew it.
Well, that was as much of Ash that I could deal with in one day.
I meandered through the room. It felt good to be in a group of people like this. To be able to just hang out and chat. People I hadn’t seen in so long. It felt like being me all over again.
Martin stayed glued to my side for most of the night. We’d always been close like this when we were filming. Even after the divorce, when it should have been awkward, it had only fueled the chemistry on-screen. We hadn’t even fought when it ended. And now, he was at my elbow like no time had passed at all.
He kept bringing me drinks to, and I’d already had one too many. If I didn’t stop, I’d have to get an Uber home and pick up my car in the morning. I was not looking forward to that. But also, I just wanted to get drunk with my friends and pretend like nothing had changed.
Amelia sidled up to me later while I was deep in conversation with Iris about her latest girlfriend. “Hey, do you see Maddox sneaking out?”
My head snapped up, and I followed her line of sight to the entrance of Dub’s. Maddox ran a hand back through his short hair and then yanked the door open. A gaggle of girls pushed in before he could escape.
“He didn’t say good-bye,” I whispered almost to myself.
Amelia gave me a little push. “He was watching you all night. Go after him.”
I didn’t wait to think about it. I was across the room and out the door the next minute. I scanned the street to see which direction Maddox had gone, but I didn’t see him.
“Fuck,” I gasped.
I strode out on the sidewalk and stood on my tiptoes to look over the crowds, but there was no sight of him. I hadn’t been that far behind him. How had he gotten away so fast?
Then, I looked across the street and to the Savannah River. My stomach flipped. Maddox was leaning his arms against the railing that looked out across the river. He hadn’t left. He’d just needed air.
I checked the traffic and skipped across the cobblestone drive. “Hey,” I called as I approached him.
Maddox turned around slowly. “Hey you.”
“You’re escaping the party already?”
He shrugged. “It’s not my scene.”
“You’re part of this movie.”
“Sure.”
“You don’t have to escape the people you’ll be working with for the next six weeks.”
“Yeah. Figured I’d leave you to your many admirers.”
I leaned my hip into the railing. “They’re coworkers. Not admirers.”
“They’re all in love with you.”
“We’re friends.”
He scoffed. “Okay.”
“Is this about Martin?”
“I don’t want to talk about any of this.”
“Okay,” I said. I tipped my head backward, letting the breeze off the river blow the long strands of my black hair. “I always think about you when I’m on the River Walk.”
Maddox was silent for a second before facing me. “Why is that?”
I gestured down the river. “We had our first kiss right there.”
“Yeah. We all know how well that turned out,” he said sardonically.
“I thought the kiss was great.”
“And then freshman year was exactly like that party inside.” He pointed back at the cast party. “You, the toast of the town, and me, ignored in a corner. Same shit, different year.”
“Don’t put that shit on me.” I looked up into his face. “You had as much to do with why it didn’t work as I did.”
“No one could measure up to Josephine Reynolds,” he said, sketching a bow.
“You’re being an ass.”
I tipped my head up to look into those bottomless eyes. Tension bristled between us. Potent and intoxicating. So close that I could steal the kiss that was within reach.
He smirked and flipped a strand of my hair. “Ah, then you might actually show interest in me.”
I shook my head. “Wow. Okay. I’m not the same person I was freshman year.”
“And yet everyone you’ve dated is an asshole.”
“So, you want to do this? What about you, Maddox? What about the girls you’ve dated since me? The mousy, brainless girls that you’re way too brilliant to have any interest in, but none of them push you. None of them balance you,” I spat back at him. He stiffened at my words. But they weren’t untrue. “Two can play at this game.”
“I don’t want to do any of this, but thank you for reminding me why this didn’t work.”
I grasped his sleeve before he could leave. “I didn’t come out here to fight.”
“Could have fooled me.”
“I just … I missed you.”
His gaze swept down to where my hand still rested on his sleeve. We’d been so good together over the years. So good that I hadn’t appreciated it. I wanted some of that back. I felt like a fool, asking for it, but I knew he felt the same. He had to.
His hand clasped my cheek. “Oh, Josie.”
“Maddox,” I whispered.
His thumb dragged across my bottom lip. And everything in me tugged toward him.
“We’re just too different,” he told me baldly.
“We don’t have to be.”
“But we are,” he said, removing his hand from my face and leaving me bereft as he left the boardwalk with my heart in his hand.
PART II
8
SCAD
JUNE 5, 2010
“Okay, Josie, you can do this,” I said, giving myself the tenth pep talk since I’d decided on this harebrained idea. “He’s going to say yes. That’s all that matters. It’s too important. You can do it.”
I punched in the six-digit code to enter the visual effects computer lab. I’d gotten the code from a friend who minored in graphics. She’d been more than willing to help me out with my scheme. Anything to avoid working with the most obnoxious graphics guy on campus, Tuck Underwood. Anything.
I took a deep breath and then sauntered into the lab as if I belonged there. I’d taken the same drawing classes required of all film majors, but it hadn’t gone well freshman year. Art was hardly my forte. It had always been more conceptual for me. And then I’d avoided any of the computer graphics classes like the plague.
My dream was to become a director. We needed more female directors in the world to actually get women correct and not just overly sexualize them for profit. Which was why Maddox and I never had classes together and rotated in completely different universes at SCAD. I saw him sometimes in passing when I was out for lunch with friends, but we’d dodged each other for the last couple years.
When I found him hunkered over the high-tech lab equipment, my feet stalled. It had been a long time since I’d been able to just look at him. His curls were as unruly as ever, falling forward into his eyes as he stared down at the keyboard, tossing his head sideways to get them out of his way when he looked up at his work. His jeans were black and ripped, and the matching black T-shirt molded to his muscles.
A memory of all our kisses during our freshman year filtered through my mind. Until it had all crashed and burned. The vibrant sunshine girl hadn’t ended up with the grumpy guy.
I swallowed. That was what my roommates had said when it completely fell apart. It was basically what Marley had said when I’d confessed to her over summer break. Afer she’d gotten out her ‘I told you so’ of course. I hated the assessment, but I still wasn’t sure if it was untrue.
I cleared my throat when I finished crossing the room. “Hey.”
“I’m busy. Give me ten minutes.” Maddox didn’t even look up when he said it.
I tried again. “Maddox.”
“Ten minutes,” he blurted out, typing furiously.
“Well, all right then.” I dropped into the seat next to him as he worked out his problem.
No one else was in the lab at this hour. Spring session had ended yesterday in the middle of a vicious thunderstorm, and the start of summer session wasn’t for two weeks. Everyone was celebrating on Tybee. My roommate had invited me to do just that, but this was more important. I had all summer for the beach.
Finally, ten minutes later, Maddox came up out of his trance. His gaze locked on me, and he startled, rocking his chair backward.
“Hi,” I said with a little wave.
“What are you doing here?”
“Why, Josie, it’s been so long since we’ve seen each other. It’s good to see you,” I said sarcastically for him.
He just steadied his chair. “Josie, why are you here?”
“I can’t come to see you?”
He shot me a don’t bullshit me look. Oh, how I’d missed him. “What do you want?”
“Why do you think I want something?”
“Why else would you be here?”
“I can’t want to see you?”
He was already shaking his head, saving his work, and closing everything out. “No.”
“Okay. Wow,” I said, meeting him as he stood.
“If you don’t need anything, I’m going to go.”
“Wait.” I sighed. “I do need help.”
“Ah, there it is. And no.”
“You don’t even know what it’s for.”
“I know that I don’t want to be involved,” he said, shouldering his backpack.
“Look, I’m working on my senior film thesis. It’s going to premiere at the SCAD Film Festival in October. I’ve been working on the concept with my advisor all quarter. I have all my positions filled—script, production, art design, actors.” I was rambling, but I couldn’t stop. “We both decided that I was going to need visual effects, erm … VFX, too.”
