Feast of Saints (28 page)

“Anything for you, Lil,” Nat said, brushing off her concern. Still, she knew how excited he’d been to get on that committee.

“Don’t worry too much about the
Infiorata
. Just get the CGI team enough to work with, okay? I’ll take care of the rest.”

Nat paused. “But I need something to work with. I’m not sure what you’re going to find when you get there.”

Chapter 20

On Monday morning, in Maya’s dressing room, Lilly stood next to Frances as she broke the news to Maya that Janice, Maya’s previous stylist, would be coming back on board starting at midday. When Frances had brought Lilly in to take over Maya’s character, Janice had been offered the option of continuing under Lilly’s supervision. But Janice had delayed accepting the subordinate position, thinking that Maya wouldn’t have enough confidence in Lilly to leave for Italy without her. Janice had been wrong. Now Maya was reluctant to turn the responsibility for her styling back over to Janice.

“She is an excellent stylist, Maya,” reasoned Frances. “Under Lilly’s direction she will be one of the best.”

Maya balked. “Frances, Janice was with me for four years. I paid her extravagantly and gave her free reign to make decisions that affected both of us. But as soon as I asked something difficult from her, she abandoned me. Give me one good reason why I should give that ungrateful woman any more opportunities.”

“The
humilité
born from this experience will be an improvement to her character,” Frances said, her reasoned tone taking a turn toward stern. “Rise above this, Maya, and accept her back.”

Lilly inwardly wrung her hands. Frances was not a patient woman, and Maya was not one to be pushed around. Lilly wanted the opportunity Frances was offering her, but she’d come to care for Maya. Buried in Maya’s explanation for her refusal to reemploy Janice was the key issue: fear. Maya had depended upon Janice, and Janice had abandoned Maya.

“Frances, can you give us a few minutes?” she asked.

“Yes, of course,” said Frances reluctantly, assessing Maya and Lilly to gauge whether or not she needed to prepare for a mutiny.

As soon as Frances shut the dressing room door, Maya turned away from Lilly, examining her complexion in the mirror.

“You want to quit on me, too, Lilly?” Maya said. “Fine. Bring Janice back. It makes no difference.” Maya picked up a makeup sponge and began dabbing at the barely visible circles under her eyes.

Lilly pulled up a stool right next to Maya and sat. When Maya tried to hand her the sponge, she grasped Maya’s hand instead and held it, waiting for Maya to drop the emotional wall and look at her.

When Maya finally turned to her, her eyes were brimming. Lilly’s own eyes pricked with tears. Still, she forged ahead, saying what needed to be said.

“I was a short-term solution, Maya. I’m not going to be working with you on your next film, or the film after that. I’m not a stylist, and what I do has no place in a romantic comedy.

“If you truly don’t think you can forgive Janice, I’ll help you find another stylist, and I’ll work with whomever you choose to make sure Sofia is perfect. But I think you should give Janice another chance.”

“But I can’t trust her to take care of me, to make the right decisions. Not anymore,” Maya said, dejected.

“Trust your own instincts. You knew the problem that was developing with Sofia before I ever set foot in here a few weeks ago. Janice is a good stylist, but when you feel you need extra help, call in extra help. I won’t be far.

“I hope we will be friends for a long, long time. As your friend, I’ll always be available to you whenever you need me, no matter where I am.”

Maya pulled her hand out of Lilly’s, and for a moment, Lilly thought she was going to be dismissed. Maya plucked a Kleenex from the box on the counter and dabbed the corners of her eyes.

“Fine. Fine. You’re right. I’ll call that fink Janice later this morning. But at the first sign of flack, she’s out.”

“Okay. Deal,” said Lilly, touching the corners of her own eyes to banish her tears. She’d accomplished the necessary goal, but she feared she had lost a precious friend in the process.

To give them both a chance to catch their breath before making the finishing touches for the studio work, she said, “I’ll just go tell Frances. I’ll be right back.”

As much as Lilly had enjoyed working primarily on Allegrezza and Sofia, it was thrilling to be able to execute her vision for the film in a larger way. In the costume room with James, the chief wardrobe designer, she unwrapped and examined the nearly completed vestments for the procession, including the extravagant robes and hat for the bishop.

“What’s Raoul Bova like?” asked James. “He is so hot. I can’t believe I’m going to get to meet him in person.”

She smiled at James. He only let his guard down in the costume room. When it came time to actually dress Raoul he’d be impeccably polite.

“He’s hotter in person,” she said, egging on his ardor, and provoking a faux swoon from James.

James’ enthusiasm for Raoul was infectious. Raoul’s scenes were barely more than cameos, occurring only in Assisi and Spello. Next week in New York might be her last opportunity to see him. James had her looking forward to it. Quite a bit.

“Actually, he’s extremely nice,” she said, remembering the care he’d taken to teach Maya and her Italian cooking. “He’s got a warm personality. And he’s a good cook.”

“Now, that’s promising. Is he gay?” asked James, hopefully.

Lilly laughed. “Somehow that subject never came up.”

Her light-hearted conversation with James was a bright spot in what was otherwise an emotional roller coaster of a day, starting with her conversation with Maya at the morning makeup call. That was followed by a tense telephone discussion between Lilly and the New York set decorator who was unhappy with the evolving plan.

Then, when Janice arrived midday, she exuded exactly the wrong attitude, wearing her hurt pride on her sleeve and not even trying to fake interest in what Lilly was trying to teach her. Thank goodness Lilly had met her in the Lab first, before taking her to Maya’s dressing room.

Janice needed a tune up, or she was going to be fired that afternoon. Grabbing Janice by the elbow, she steered her out of the Lab, through the studio to Nat’s vacant chair. Most everyone was grabbing a quick lunch.

On side-by-side HiDef monitors, Lilly pulled up the ancestral scenes that had resulted in her taking over Janice’s job. They spoke for themselves, but when Janice feigned ignorance to the obvious problem and sneered, “I see you’ve put ten years on Maya’s face,” she hit the roof.

“This is no light-hearted romance, Janice. If that’s the depth of your talent, you can walk away right now.”

Janice stood, fuming, and although she stared in the direction of the exit, she made no move toward it.

Lilly stepped in front of her. She didn’t want to drive her away. She needed to salvage the situation.

“I know you’re better than this,” she said more calmly. “Maya and Francis both want you for this project. And so do I. But you’re going to need to drop the attitude, Janice, and show enthusiasm for what we’re doing here.”

A half hour later, back in the Lab and going over the palates for scrapes and bruising, Lilly finally understood why Maya had been so upset when she felt like Janice had abandoned her. Janice was a quick learner and talented, with a quirky sense of humor.

Holding up the palate of mixed reds and blues, she said, “It’s like a Rorschach of Weinhold’s purple face, screaming at Frances.”

Lilly squinted at the tray and snorted. It
was
.

That evening, Lilly tiredly pulled out her Allegrezza molds. Next week in New York, she wouldn’t have to worry about juggling her nightly work on Jake’s prep with everything else on her plate. Jake wouldn’t be coming to New York because Allegrezza didn’t appear in the Spello scenes.

Not having him around would be a welcome relief. Clara, too, as much as Lilly liked her. As long as she wasn’t around them, she could keep a lid on her disappointment and frustration over the
Jonathan Strange
job that threatened to bubble up each time she set eyes on them. After Wednesday, she wouldn’t have to see or speak to Jake or Clara until they were on location in Hawaii.

As she stirred gelatin over the Lab’s sink, she thought through the next three weeks’ schedule. She’d leave Thursday and be in New York through the following week. She’d only have a Saturday back in LA between locations. She’d have to spend that day packing the supplies she and Clara needed for the Hawaii shoot.

She filled the molds and picked up her inventory sheet. She’d have to make sure she had everything she needed for Hawaii before she left for New York. Here in LA, her supplier could fill her orders the same day, in an hour in emergencies. But there’d be no supplier on the island.

Her white-knuckled, frantic midnight run to Riverton, Wyoming, flashed through her mind. When the appliances had failed in the cold mountain air, the proximity of the Dow Chemical plant to their location had been a stroke of luck. There’d be no such salvation on Maui if she didn’t bring everything they needed. Her stomach turned as she imagined coming up short in Hawaii.

She took a deep, calming breath and told herself that she’d just have to be extra thoughtful, prepare for contingencies, and take two or three times what she thought she might need. Preparation was crucial.

She thought through the effects they’d be using for Jake’s character in Hawaii. They were shooting the dream sequence, a scene in which Jake’s character appears in Sofia’s dream in a much more humanly form. Sofia is transfixed by the vision of a redeemed, human Allegrezza. The applications for the dreamy, human Allegrezza would be essentially the same, but his coloring would be different. The blue undertones would be replaced with warmer colors.

She pictured the new colors on his chest, his hands, his face, his lips, and groaned. Jake hadn’t even tried them out yet.

She’d have to schedule some time this week to make him up. Maybe even do a quick screen test. The way she was feeling right now, she wasn’t sure she could keep it together if she had to work directly with him. Maybe she could try them out on someone else.

Lilly was pondering that possibility when her cell phone rang. It was Phillip.

“This is Lilly,” she said coolly by way of greeting. With her mixed up feelings over Jake, it was inevitable that Phillip would suffer from some backlash.

“Hello to you, Lilly. I’ve missed you. How was Italy?”

Unlike most folks she worked with in LA, Phillip never got straight to the point. For Phillip, that would have been rude. He always took time to ask about her and how she was doing. He sounded genuine, never perfunctory, even though she knew he had a host of important people vying for his time.

Feeling herself soften toward him, she described the villa and the countryside. Since Phillip was a foodie, she promised to pass on the secrets of making homemade rosemary gnocchi that Raoul had imparted during their cooking lesson. Phillip would have let her go on forever.

“What can I do for you this evening, Phillip?”

“It’s more about what I can do for you, Lilly. I received a call today from Duncan.” Duncan was Alison’s assistant. “The studio is offering you an assistant production credit and an increase on your contract.”

Wow. This had to be Frances’ doing.

“I…. That’s great,” she stuttered. “Do I need to sign a new contract?”

“Yes, I’ve got that here, but there is more. Are you free to join me any day for lunch this week?” Phillip asked.

“I’d like that, Phillip,” she said honestly.

She’d be grateful to have Phillip’s help figuring out what to do next. Although Jake may not be interested in her working on his next project, others were. With the accolades she’d received for
Fox Hollow
, and as word got out about her ever-expanding role on
Feast
, the trickle of offers had turned into a flood. Kyle had come home the night before bringing in Madcap and a huge stack of mail he’d collected for her while she was in Italy. It still sat on her kitchen table, and her inbox was cluttered with emails from people she didn’t know.

The week’s call sheets showed Monty and Frances in budget meetings until eleven the next day. They wouldn’t be filming until midday. She and Phillip agreed to meet for brunch by the pool at the W Hotel in Westwood.

Parking her Vespa beside the sun-speckled sidewalk in front of the W, Lilly saw Phillip waiting for her at the foot of the aqua glass steps that marked the entrance to the trendy hotel, chatting with a handsome young doorman in a dark purple pressed shirt and black slacks. Midmorning on a weekday, the crowd at the W was sedate, but by Friday evening the bouncers would be out front, and a line of well-heeled LA talent—models, hip-hopsters and aspiring actors and actresses—would twist around the block.

As she stowed her helmet, she found herself looking around for Jake. Getting ready for the brunch, she’d chosen her outfit with extra care, just in case he showed up. She was awash in cheerful color, wearing a vintage floral Arnold Scaasi halter dress. It had a crisp white faux collar and a full swing skirt. The back was bare. The lively look was completed with peep-toe, patent white four-inch heels with navy piping. Bolstered by the bright dress, she was not about to let his presence bring her down.

But when she and Phillip were seated at the poolside restaurant, the table was set for just two. Lilly looked around the pool, a popular spot for celebrity photo-shoots, refusing to admit to her disappointment.

“Let’s celebrate,” said Phillip, ordering a bottle of champagne.

“I don’t think showing up drunk for work is the wisest way to celebrate my promotion,” she said with a laughing shake of her head.

Phillip threw up his hands. “You haven’t heard?” he exclaimed.

“Heard what?” she asked, taken aback.

“The nominations were announced last night.
Fox Hollow
is in every category that was submitted,” Phillip informed her.

She sat speechless as the waiter popped the cork on a bottle of Cristal. She comprehended what Phillip was saying, she just was having trouble processing it.

Phillip raised his glass to her. “Here’s to adding ‘Oscar Nominee’ to your resume.”

“Tyler, too?” she asked. “And Gwen?”

“Yes. It’s a sweep. Best Director, Best Actor, Best Picture, Best Makeup and nine other categories.

“I can’t believe Gwen didn’t call me,” she said, taking a gulp of her champagne.