The Director's Cut (14 page)

I did my best to ignore the butterflies in my stomach as I watched Jason cooking. Thankfully, he lit into a story about surfing, which seemed to steady my breathing. A couple minutes later, Scott stuck his head in the kitchen door. I turned on the water at the sink and stuck my hands underneath, trying to look busy.

“Wow.” Scott grinned. “You two have outdone yourselves. And you're just in time. Lenora and Rex are here. Hope you've made enough for a crowd.”

“It's chicken cacciatore,” Jason said. “There will be plenty for everyone.”

Fascinating. What we were making actually had a name. He really was good.

“Well, I'm grateful,” Scott said. “Because Athena and Stephen might be stopping by too. They're bringing a bunch of stuff from her parents' gyro shop, but we'll save that for tomorrow.”

If only I'd known, I could have skipped cooking altogether. Then again, that would mean missing out on this time with Jason. Oh no, I wouldn't take that back for anything. Kat could wait until tomorrow for Greek food. Today it was Italian all the way.

Jason passed a bell pepper my way and said something about chopping it, so I got right to work. He looked through the pantry, coming out with a bag of pasta, then put some water on to boil.

“Something smells yummy in here!” Lenora's warbling voice rang out.

I looked up from the red pepper, trying not to gasp as I took her in. She wore the most fabulous black and white gown I'd ever seen in my life. Something about it seemed strangely familiar. And that hat!
Exquisite
didn't begin to describe it. It took a minute, but I finally realized where I'd seen this ensemble before.

“Oh, I know who you are!” I stood, mouth agape. “You're Eliza Doolittle from
My Fair Lady
.”

“Yes, honey, I am the one and only Eliza Doolittle.” Lenora smiled. “You got it right. And it's been quite a day at the races, let me tell you. That handsome professor, Henry Higgins, really showed me a lovely time. He's been such a nice chap to take me in after the rough life I've led as a flower girl. Not many a man would take a girl from such a rough background.”

Ironic.

The door to the kitchen swung open, and Rex entered.

“Well, here he is now.” Lenora giggled as she looked Rex's way. “Didn't we have a wonderful time at the races, Professor?”

“Um, yes.” He pursed his lips and appeared to be thinking. “When a man is with the prettiest lady at the event, how could he help but have a wonderful time?”

“Still, those other women were a bit snobbish, if you don't mind my saying so. But I didn't pay them any mind at all.”

“I only had eyes for you, Len—Eliza.” He took her hand and gave it a gentle kiss.

Her smile broadened and she began to sing, “Just you wait, Henry Higgins, just you wait!” Then she gave him a playful wink, and he swept her into his arms, planting kisses in her hair.

Jason looked at me, his eyes twinkling. Apparently he enjoyed watching the little scenes that Lenora and Rex played out.

I, on the other hand, always felt like I was invading their private space. So, back to work I went, chopping the red pepper. As Lenora stepped beside me, I looked her way and smiled. She grabbed a piece of the pepper and popped it into her mouth. “Mmm. Can't wait for dinner. All they fed us at the racetrack were those little cucumber sandwiches. I need a real meal.”

Looking at her ever-thinning physique, I could only agree. She did need a real meal. And we would give her one.

“It should be ready in about half an hour,” Jason said. The look of confidence on his face gave me hope that we really might have dinner ready in half an hour. Right now I would simply continue to follow his lead.

Interesting. The director following someone else's lead. Not that I minded. It felt good not to be in charge for a change.

“Lenora, have you been upstairs to see Kat and the baby?” I asked.

“Baby?” Her eyes took on a faraway look as she nibbled on the pepper. “There's a baby?”

I swallowed hard and didn't say anything. Surely she hadn't forgotten her own great-grandchild.

Jason piped up. “Yes, she's beautiful. Looks just like her mommy.”

Lenora finally snapped to attention. “Yes, my little girl does look like me, doesn't she? Everyone says so. She's got my blue eyes for sure. And my wrinkled skin.”

Huh?

Rex shook his head and slipped his arm through Lenora's. “Come along, Eliza dear. We've had a wonderful day at the races, but it's time for family now.”

“Ooo, family. Such a wonderful word. I've always longed for a family.”

They disappeared out the door together.

Once we were alone in the kitchen, Jason looked my way and sighed. “It's getting worse.”

“I know.” In the time I'd known Lenora, her forgetful spells had grown more noticeable. “I'm so glad she has Rex.”

“I think he's glad to have her too.”

The exchange between the two left me feeling a little misty. I used the back of my hand to swipe at my eyes.

“You okay over there?” Jason asked.

“Yeah.” I pulled up a bar stool and sat to finish cutting the pepper. “I think my defenses are down because I'm so worn out.”

“It's Saturday. People are supposed to rest on Saturday.”

“Humph.”

“What?” He looked my way. “Don't believe in rest?”

“My house is being renovated, remember?” I finished cutting the pepper, then looked his way. “You should see the mess. We tore down a wall this morning. And repaired the fiasco from a water leak yesterday.”

“Wow.” He gave me a curious look. “Tia, do you ever stop?”

“Stop?” I put down the knife.

“To smell the roses. To sleep. To relax.” He flipped the pieces of chicken in the skillet, then began to add tomatoes and other vegetables. “I mean, you work all week and all weekend too? You need to take a break.”

“Oh, sure. I stop. When I'm sleeping. But it just seems like there's never enough time to get everything done. I'd like to get this house-flipping thing behind me.”

“Why are you so set on getting the house done so quickly?” Jason asked. “Sounds like you're exhausted. Give it a rest for a few days—or weeks even.”

“Easy for you to say. You don't have to live in it.”

“Part of the fun of flipping a house is the experience itself. You know?”

“That would be great.”
If I had someone to enjoy it with.
I sighed. “The whole thing has been complicated by some family drama. It's probably better if we don't talk about that, though.” I grew silent.

After a moment's pause, he looked my way again. “I've noticed something about us, Tia.”

“Oh?”
Us?

“Yeah. We start conversations but don't finish them. I'm interested in hearing about your family drama. And the house . . . and everything.”

I started to respond, then stopped. No point in letting him know all of my personal stuff just yet. Some things were better left unspoken.

He sat on the bar stool next to me. “I'm not trying to be nosy.”

“Oh, it's not that. I'm just not comfortable talking about things that I can't do anything about.”

An uncomfortable silence rose up between us.

Jason finally broke the silence. “Tia, sometimes I get the feeling that if I could see into some sort of invisible realm, I would find walls higher than Jericho built around you.”

“W-what?” I did my best to look him in the eye. “What makes you say that?”

“It's just a feeling. We can be in the middle of a conversation about something and making progress, then all of a sudden—bam. Conversation over. It's like you reach a certain point and just shut down. You hit a wall.”

“As I said, I'm not comfortable talking about some things, that's all. Especially where my family is concerned.” I shrugged, hoping he would change the direction of the conversation. “But I wouldn't say I have walls up.” In that moment, conviction grabbed hold of me. I somehow managed to keep sitting straight, but my insides began to quiver.

“Tia . . .” Jason put his hand on my back. “I wouldn't take the time to share all of this with you if I didn't care about you. I want to see you happy.”

“I—I am happy.”

“I'm talking about the kind of happiness that comes when you've let go of the things that keep you bound up. That kind of happy. It's not going to come until you kick that wall down.”

I felt the sting of tears in my eyes. Brushing them aside, I turned to face him. “You don't understand. What's on the other side of that wall isn't pretty. If I kick it down, I'll have to face it, and I don't have the energy to right now. I really don't. Maybe after the house is done. Or maybe after this season ends. But not now.”

“When you face it, you'll probably go through pain, but the only way you'll ever experience true freedom is to look it in the eye.”

I thought about the wall I'd kicked down just this morning. Relived how good it had felt to get rid of my angst. If I could do it physically, maybe God could tear down the walls I'd put up emotionally. Still, I hadn't planned on a therapy session right here and now, in front of Jason of all people.

Before I could think any more about it, he slipped his arm over my shoulder. I felt genuinely comforted by his touch.

“I want to know more, but if you're not comfortable talking about your family, then let's talk about your house.”

“What about it?”

“I see you dragging into the studio in the morning, worn out from working through the night. You think I haven't noticed the drops of paint in your hair?”

My hand instinctively went to my hair and he chuckled.

“Not today. But I've seen it. Somewhere in the house, you've got a light tan theme going.”

“That would be the living room.”

“And a light gray.”

“Ah. The bedroom.”

“You're painting your bedroom gray?” He shook his head. “Anyway, I've noticed. And I see how tired you are.”

“I don't really know much about home repair except what I've seen on HGTV and the DIY network. I've watched my brothers, but they're not exactly experts.”

“Why not hire contractors? They could knock out the job a lot faster, I bet.”

I couldn't help the sigh that escaped. “I know this is hard to understand, but I do things for my family to help them out financially. I'm really the only one . . .” The pause that followed felt like it lasted forever.

“Ah.” He nodded. “Gotcha.”

“I'm the only one who can take up the slack.” I put my hand up. “I know, I know. Before you say it, let me just agree with you in advance. I'm in a codependent relationship with my family members, especially those with financial woes. I'm too softhearted.”

His laughter caught me off guard. “Sorry, but
softhearted
isn't exactly the word I'm used to hearing where you're concerned.”

I leaned back and closed my eyes. “Guilty as charged. But I try to be extra tough on the set because it's the only place where people seem to take me seriously. I have to come across that way. I'm the director.”

“Oh, I'm not asking you to change. As directors go, you're one of the best I've worked with.”

“R-really?”

“Really.”

“But I lose it . . . a lot. Which is hard, because I like people to think I'm poised.”

Confusion registered in his eyes. “You are poised.”

I shook my head. “Did you see me trying to get through that one rough scene on Tuesday? I was anything but poised. I lost my cool a dozen times at least. It's embarrassing, but more than that . . . it's a sign that I lose control.”

“Don't we all?” He shook his head. “Really, Tia, I think you're too hard on yourself.”

I sighed. “Yeah.”

“Seriously, do you
ever
give yourself a break?”

“I'll try. Starting now. Well, when I have some free time, anyway.”

“Promise?” he whispered.

“Yeah.”

We stood for a lovely moment or two, just enjoying the quiet as we returned to our work.

“If you had the free time, what would you do with it?” Jason asked.

“No clue. Other than sleep, you mean?”

“Yeah. Think of something you've never done before.” He snapped his fingers. “I know. Have you ever been surfing?”

“Surfing?” I shook my head. “No way. Not my thing, trust me.”

“There's something so freeing about it. When I'm out on the water, I have no choice but to let go . . . of everything. Trust. That's what it's all about.”

“I don't know, Jason. Sounds . . .”
Terrifying.

“Okay, well, what about parasailing? Ever sailed across the sky over the ocean waves below?”