His Every Defense (8 page)

“Shit.” Bryson took a deep breath. “What did you say your name was again?”

“Kallie Young.”

“And you work for—“

“I work directly for Hunter Reardon, and I’m very interested in your script. I absolutely loved it, and I’d like to see if I can help you get it made.”

“You’re offering to option it?” Hunter asked.

At that moment, Kallie realized that she truly had no idea what she was doing.

She didn’t know what the term ‘option’ even meant, when it came to screenplays. She stuttered and stumbled momentarily. “Well, we want to discuss that. We want all the options on the table.”

“Oh. Okay.”

He sounded confused. And why wouldn’t he be?

“If you’re interested,” she continued, “I’d like to take some time and reach out to…various contacts in the industry and see what I come up with. Can I represent your script, Bryson?”

“Yeah. By all means. I mean, I don’t have an agent or anything. I guess I thought that since you’re a production company, you’d offer me money to option the screenplay…”

“Of course, that’s a strong possibility,” she lied. “But I also want to see what other options are available for this script.”

“Right,” he said, sounding more confident now. “That makes sense. I suppose you need to find a director and some big names to attach to it. Are you going to try and partner with another production house?”

She licked her lips and wiped a bead of sweat from her temple. “Like I said, I’m keeping all options on the table right now. But I just wanted to check in with you before I reached out to my…you know…contacts in the industry.”

“Well, you have my blessing,” he laughed. “Go forth and prosper. Or help me prosper. Whatever.”

She laughed. “Great. I’ll be in touch as soon as I have anything new to tell you.”

“Thanks. Thanks so much for believing in my screenplay,” he said.

And then they were done.

***

Kallie barely slept the rest of the night. Her thoughts raced and she kept running through all kinds of scenarios—most of them embarrassing disasters that ended with her in tears, apologizing to Hunter and poor Bryson Taylor, who thought he had a professional working on his behalf now.

Hunter’s alarm went off at just before six, and he slid out of bed, threw on a pair of pants and a t-shirt, and padded downstairs.

Kallie slid up in bed, watching him go. Before long, she would need to take some kind of action. She was going to have to tell Hunter what she’d done, and ask for his help.

He would be furious, she realized. Absolutely furious.

First things first, she got in the shower and then got dressed. Because of her bad ankle (which had improved significantly enough that she could now put weight on it for short periods of time), it took her longer to shower and change.

Eventually, she went downstairs and had herself a cup of Hunter’s insanely strong coffee. It tasted like he made it out of nuclear grade coffee grinds.

She re-read Bryson’s screenplay as she drank coffee and had some toast, all the while trying to decide how to move forward with her promise to try and get the thing made.

And then a stroke of luck occurred.

About an hour or two later, Hunter emerged from his seclusion and held out his phone to her. At first, Kallie was frightened—assuming that Bryson was calling her back on Hunter’s cell.

But Hunter wasn’t annoyed or angry. “Nicole’s on the line for you,” he said simply.

Smiling brightly, Kallie took the phone from him, and he turned and went back to his office to continue working.

“Nicole?”

“Red and I were just talking. We need to help you get a new phone, if you haven’t gotten one yet. Have you spoken to anybody in your family since the…the incident?”

Kallie thought about it. “No, I haven’t. I’ve just been so focused on healing and everything.”

“Well, we’re going to bring a new phone over today. You shouldn’t be without one for so long. Besides,” she said, “how am I going to bother you if you don’t have one?”

“Okay, now I know the real reason you want me to have it.” Kallie laughed and Nicole joined in.

They spent a few minutes talking about little Riley, who apparently was thriving and happy and developing perfectly. Nicole mentioned that she’d gone and visited Red’s mother in the hospital the previous day, and that Erica had seemed drugged and in some kind of stupor. “I actually felt pity for the woman,” Nicole confided.

“I have a feeling she’ll return to normal—or as normal as Erica can get,” Kallie said. “And when she does, you’ll probably long for the days when she was in a drugged stupor.”

Nicole laughed. “You’re probably right about that.”

“I’m just glad things have gotten back on an even keel for you and Red.”

“What about you, Kallie? How are things with you?”

For some unexplained reason, Kallie broke down and told Nicole about the screenplay. Practically whispering, she told her everything—how she’d fallen in love with Bryon’s script, how Hunter hadn’t been interested and so she’d taken it upon herself to call the writer. It was embarrassing, horrifying, to say it aloud. When she was done, she felt like she’d just gone to confession. “Well, I guess you got more than you bargained for when you asked how I was doing,” Kallie said.

“I think it’s awesome that you’re doing this,” Nicole said. “Really, I do.”

“The problem is, I don’t actually know anyone in the move industry, except for Hunter. And he already told me that he has no interest in the screenplay.”

Nicole was quiet for a moment. “Let me talk to Red about this. He’s friends with a lot of actors and directors—I’m sure he knows a producer or two as well. Let me ask him what he thinks and then I’ll be in touch.”

“Nicole, you don’t have to do that—“

“We need to come by the house to bring you your new phone. We’ll talk more then. Okay?”

“Okay,” Kallie said, and once again her eyes were brimming with tears, as she was so touched by everything Nicole had done and continued to do for her.

When she went into Hunter’s office to return his phone to him, she found him with his head in his hands. “Are you okay?” she asked.

He spun in his chair and looked up at her. “What? Yeah, I’m fine,” he said dismissively. But she could tell he wasn’t really fine. The bags under his eyes were darker than ever—he looked so drawn and tired, as if he really hadn’t slept at all.

“Maybe you need to take a break from writing,” she said.

“No. That’s the last thing I need. Do you know how long it’s taken me to get to this point? I’m almost done the first draft—“ he waved himself off, as if not wanting to continue to reveal his thoughts to her.

“Talk to me, Hunter.”

“Listen, I’m fine,” he said, taking the cell phone from her.

“Nicole and Red are going to stop by later and bring me a new cell,” she told him.

“Good,” he replied, turning around to the computer once more. “I might be working when they come. Is that okay?”

“Whatever,” she said, shaking her head and leaving the room.

She was getting sick and tired of trying to figure Hunter out—especially when he seemed so determined to continually rebuild the walls that they’d broken down together.

It was as if he truly didn’t want to be understood—as if maybe he really was happier being miserable and alone.

Kallie went back to the TV room and made notes on the script. She wanted to know it backwards and forwards. On top of that, she started to write out a clearer pitch—

something she could memorize and repeat to anyone who might ask her what the movie was about.

She got so involved in her work that she lost track of time, and before she knew it, the doorbell was ringing. Kallie got slowly to her feet, picked up her crutches, and hobbled out of the TV room and down the hall to the front door. As she passed the office, she heard Hunter still typing away as if he hadn’t even noticed visitors had arrived.

When Kallie opened the door, she was happy to see Nicole and Red with baby Riley, and they hugged and said their greetings as she led them to the living room.

“We can’t stay too long,” Nicole said, sitting down with the baby, as Red stood, hands in pockets and smiled down at his little girl.

Riley’s brown eyes were wide and she grinned at Kallie, as if recognizing an old friend.

“Is that Auntie Kallie?” Nicole cooed. “Is it?”

“Hey cutie,” Kallie said, tickling Riley’s tummy. Her little feet kicked.

“My gosh, she is so strong already,” Nicole said, shaking her head. “It’s ridiculous.”

“My plan is to get her started on a weight lifting regimen ASAP,” Red joked.

“One day she’ll be a gold medal Olympian. Won’t you Ri-Ri?”

Riley just gurgled in response.

“See? She’s already chomping at the bit,” Red said.

“Honey, take Riley,” Nicole told Red. “I’ve got Kallie’s phone in my purse.”

She handed the baby off to Red, who took her in his arms and twirled her around. Riley started giggling and squealing. He twirled again.

“Easy now, Daddy,” Nicole said, as she looked through her purse and finally came up with the cell phone, which she passed on to Kallie. “Here you go. The iPhone 5. Newest model available.”

“Oh, Nicole. You really shouldn’t have.”

“Go on, you need it. And I want you to call your family. Okay?”

“Okay,” Kallie said.

“Promise me, Kallie. You’ll call them as soon as we leave?”

“I promise, I promise.” She looked at her brand new phone and blinked away a tear or two. “Guys, I don’t know what I’d do without you.”

Red looked around. “Where’s Hunter, anyway?”

“Working. It’s all he does, lately.”

Red’s eyes narrowed. “What’s he working on?”

“I don’t know. A book, I guess.”

Nicole and Red exchanged looks. “You sure you don’t want to come back with us now?” Nicole said. “We’d love to have you, and we wouldn’t expect you to nanny until you’re fully healed.”

“I don’t know. I kind of feel like I should stick it out for a little while longer here,” she said. “I think it’s important—I want to give this a chance.”

“I understand,” Nicole said. “You need to go where your heart tells you.”

Red held the baby close to his chest. “And apparently, your heart’s telling you that you’ve got a hot property on your hands.”

Kallie cocked her head. “Hot property?”

“The script. Nicole told me you’re pretty excited about it.”

“Oh, the script. They call it a property?”

Red laughed. “Some of them.”

“Well, I guess I do have a hot property. And the thing is, Hunter doesn’t think romantic comedies are good for his production company.” She bit her lower lip. “I guess I was hoping maybe I could find someone else to take a look at it.”

Red nodded, his expression growing serious. “I have a friend,” he said. “His name is Max Weisman and he’s head of Weisman Productions. They did Dirty Dogs and The Lone Star, and they also did Three Sisters.”

Kallie perked up. Three Sisters was one of her favorite movies, and it had been a huge hit. It had starred Reese Witherspoon and Ryan Gosling and it was exactly in the same vein as Bryson’s screenplay. “You’re friends with the head of the company?” she asked, breathless.

“I am. Good friends. And so when Nicole told me about your script, I put in a call to Max and asked him if he was looking for any romantic comedies.”

“You didn’t have to do that!”

“I wanted to,” he smiled. “Short story is, Max Weisman is going to speak with you on the phone this afternoon. I took the liberty of plugging his number into your new cell. It’s the only contact in there right now. And it might be the most important one you ever get.” He winked at her.

“Don’t make her nervous,” Nicole chided.

“Too late,” Kallie said, going to her contacts and seeing the name there in black and white.

Red checked his watch. “He’s expecting your call at one-thirty on the dot.”

“What do I say when I call him?”

“Just be yourself. Max is a hard-ass, but underneath the hard exterior—“

“He’s just an asshole,” Nicole said.

“No, he’s a nice guy somewhere in there,” Red grinned. “Deep, deep down.”

“Great,” Kallie said, trying to order her scattered thoughts. “I’m sure that won’t make me even more nervous than I already was.”

Red gave the baby back to Nicole and came closer to Kallie. He leaned close to her. “Listen. This movie business is a tough racket, and Max Weisman is a tough S.O.B.

But he’s also fair. He’ll give you a fair shake, so just trust yourself and trust your script.

Believe in it, Kallie.”

She nodded. “Thank you so much. I can’t ever repay you guys.”

“You don’t need to. You’re family.”

***

Hunter came out not long after Nicole and Red had gone. He went to the kitchen and Kallie heard him rustling around in the fridge.

“You hungry?” he called out.

“Not really,” she called back. It was true. She was far too nervous to be hungry.

And she was also feeling guilty. This was technically Hunter’s script and she had no right to pedal it as her own, did she?

“Come on, Kallie. Eat something. I’ll make that grilled cheese you loved so much.” He walked out of the kitchen, smiling for the first time in what felt like ages.

“Fine.” She tried to smile. When Hunter was in a good mood, he was so charming that she couldn’t really resist him.

He looked at her, folding his arms. “Is something wrong?”

“I don’t know. I’m okay.” She sighed.

This wasn’t the time to get into anything. She had to have that phone call with Max Weisman in a little while, and the last thing she needed was to be arguing with Hunter right beforehand.

“Listen, I know I’ve been a drag lately,” he said, coming closer. He sat down next to her. “I’m going nuts writing this book. It’s the bane of my existence, Kallie. I just need to finish this thing and then I swear I’ll be back to myself.”

She nodded. “Okay.”

He stared at her. “Something’s going on with you. What is it? Is it because I told you I wouldn’t read that script?”

She opened her mouth and closed it.

He sighed. “Kallie, I was tired. Of course I’ll take a look at it. First thing I’m going to do when I finish my book, is pick up that screenplay.”