The Movie (18 page)

‘Tomorrow morning. Jake, tests fall within your jut. diction, so you can arrange it. I’ll come to a screening in afternoon; we can review everyone’s tests together. To will that be good for you?’

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‘That’ll be free. I don’t have anything then I can’t shift.’ Tom had looked at her with just the faintest gleam of amusement and approval in his brown eyes, nodding his head slowly, in a way that made her heart skip over, and Jake Keller had gone the colour of a beetroot.

‘You OK with that, Jake?’ she’d pressed him coolly.

‘Sure. Fine.’

He had to agree. He knew it, she knew it, everyone in

the room knew it. And, damn, maybe this was her nasty male aggressive streak, but-admit it-she’d really enjoyed rubbing his nose in it.

Walking into the darkened screening room had felt strange. All of a sudden Eleanor had a personal stake in P,.oxana Felix, a woman she hadn’t particularly even wanted to test. It was a big deal, too: her first movie, a rock musician starring, an unknown screenwriter and a huge budget. That much she would have to give Keller, the female lead was important. And they had looked at some of the biggest females in the industry. Competition to work with Zach and Fred was intense among a whole generation of actresses, Jordan Goldman’s generation, the ‘X’-ers, to whom both director and star were pop-culture gods. The reaction had made Eleanor feel old and out of touch; she’d known Mson was a huge star, seen his sales figures and the rest of it, but she somehow had had no idea of the quasi religious feeling the guy could inspire. For the twenty somethings he was a p.rophet, their Bob Dylan. Weird. It was why people like Fred and Julia and Winona, all Hollywood royalty and way higher up the movie-business tree than Zach, were scrambling to work with him, even before they’d seen him act.

But as the various lovely faces replaced each other onscreen, testing with Mason, she’d had a sinking feeling in the pit of her stomach. It didn’t work. Not with any of them. Oh, they were all great actresses and they all looked fine, even believable in the role ofa snpermodel. But the

magic, the chemistry with Mason, that wasn’t there. See. Lights had to crackle with sexual energy. That was w only guys normally attended these tests for female leads blockbuster movies - a woman had to chart high, notj’ on her acting ability, but on what was known on the loI the ‘peter meter’. Vulgar, but effective, and for ye Eleanor Marshall had not been required to attend. We they couldn’t stop her now. Now she was president. So S got to sit in this dark baby cinema with the boys, watchi: unhappily as actress after actress triggered off little me than polite murmurs. Great skill, no sizzle. For See Lights that wasn’t gonna work.

And then, last, they’d shown tkoxana’s test. Instant reaction.

As the camera panned onto Morgan, the girlfriet making her way bac.kstage, every man in the room shift on his chir, loxana was wearing jeans and a T-shirt, } as she strutted into the centre of the screen, emanati arrogance and boredom, she was as graceful and deadly; lioness. A lioness on heat. Mason’s response to her x something else, his eyes raking over her chest and crotch they started to run the fight scene, stripping her with 1 eyes so blatantly that Eleanor, to her astonishment, fou herself getting aroused, a silken line of sexual heat traili down her belly. Now l&oxana made to slap him round t face and Mason caught lier arm, viciously, pinning her against a crate. She twisted free, defying him, the lo upon her face so feral that any minute you expected her draw back her lips and snarl at him. The excited babble the male executives stilled, the sound of their breathi heavy in the room. Zach and tkoxana went through th lines onscreen, but Eleanor could see that nobody x listening to anything but the body language. Des. seemed to rise so strongly between the two of them d she almost felt as if she’d walked into somebod bedroom. You expected to see them abandon their li

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any second and just go to it, right there. Involuntarily, Eleanor found herself looking round for Tom Goldman, wanting to see his reaction, wanting to be near him while she felt like this. Warm, slow feelings trawled across her crotch, as though a feather-light hand were stroking her there, as though Tom were breathing softly on the nape of her neck. She was actually wet. The sexual energy onscreen was so strong she felt like holding up a match, to see if it would ignite. Was she imagining things, or had the crotch on Zach Mason’s pants got tighter? And were loxana’s Felix’s high, tight nipples contracting under that cotton T-shirt?

As the test faded to darkness, Eleanor Marshall listened , to her male colleagues consciously control their breathing,

and smiled to herselE.

Fuck you, Jake Keller. This movie’s gonna work.

They’d announced no decision then and there, of course. Too much of an insult to all the other candidates. Eleanor had merely remarked that it seemed an interesting performance, and Tom had agreed with her, and then everybody had gone back to work. But privately, the casting of Morgan was a given.

Which .was why, even though there had been no announcement of casting and her behaviour was unforgivable, Eleanor Marshall knew that she wasn’t going to slap Roxana down.

loxana Felix was Heir new star.

Eleanor finished up her call to Mike Ovitz, grovelling abjecdy in apology, and quickly pressed the red light on

her phone. Tom .Goldman buzzing her.

‘Have you seen Sam?’

‘Ľeah. He’s going to talk to her. I told him to do it himself.’

Goldman grunted. ‘Good. Well, I think we better eonfirm it as soon as possible. If we keep them hanging on

for anqther two days and then announce loxana, it’lllook like we’re dicking them around.’

‘Language,’ said Eleanor automatically. ‘OK, Tom. I’ve just got offthe phone with CAA, so let me leave it an hour and I’ll put out an announcement. Yes?’

He laughed, a low, warm sound. ‘Sure. I’ll leave it to your impeccable judgement.’

There was a moment’s silence.

‘Are you coming to Isabelle Kendrick’s party tomorrow?’ Tom asked casually.

‘Only for ten minutes. We’re just going to show up and leave.’ Eleanor smiled into the receiver. ‘iF i cut the whole thing, Isabelle and’ - she nearly said ‘and Jordan’, but stopped herselfjust in time- ‘and the rest of them will stick all their little voodoo pins into me.’

‘Oh.’ He sounded disappointed, hesitant. ‘I was hoping you’d stay longer. We might get a chance to talk.’

Eleanor felt herself tense up, that same sick-excitement

feeling she’d had with Tom yesterday morning. She had to test it. ‘But we talk all the time.’ ‘Not about business.’

‘We get to see each other socially, though. We all played

tennis together only last weekend.’

A pause.

‘I meant on our own.’

A jolt of electricity surged through her.

She tried to control it. As casually as she could manage, she said, ‘Do you mean that at a big party we’d be able to slip away and talk?’

‘Yeah. Exactly.’ He was grunting again, obviously embarrassed.

Eleanor thought the sound of her own heart beating in her ears might deafen her. She couldn’t speak.

‘Whatever,’ Tom said. ‘I was just hoping you would stay.’

‘I’ll stay,’ Eleanor said.

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He hung up.

For a full minute, Eleanor Marshall gazed at the phone, attempting to still the wild, strange pulse racing through her blood.

David Tauber had taken over her life, and Megan didn’t know which part of it had been the most wonderful-the way he’d turned up in his red charger and whisked her

from her shitty little job; the champagne and pink

away

roses that he’d sent around the next morning; or actually signing the contract in the marbled offices of SKI, under the impassive gaze of Sam Kendrick himself and the baleful stare of Kevin Scott, a contract which, David had taken great pleasure in telling her, was for $.5o,ooo. A quarter of a ,million dollars! Tina and Jeanne had been utterly blown away, unable to stifle their jealousy even for the sake of sucking up to her, which was what she’d expected. Maybe it was un-nineties, but Megan had enjoyed it when she saw their mouths drop open. Although it was nothing compared with the pleasure she had in driving down to Mr Chicken in her newly leased BMW to pick Stacey up on her lunch break. Bob Jenkins had tried to slime his way back into her good graces, apologizing for ‘being a little short with you’ and attempting to kiss her butt - ‘We all knew you would make it, Megan. We could tell the second you walked in the door you were gonna be someone special.’ At vhich she’d turned round, in the middle of the hushed diner, and said loudly and sweetly, ‘Unlike you, Bob, you pimply little fuck.’ Well,.it was tree what they say. levenge is sweet.

Megan could still hardly believe it was true. She had to pinch herself every time she got up in the morning, look around her and wonder if this could actually be happening. It still took her a second or two to figure out where she was: the new apartment was so clean and spacious,

compared with what she was used to, and it was as silent as the grave. Apart from the traffic rushing by, of course, but you tuned that out in a city. No, what she meant was that she didn’t have to hear Jeanne and Tina bickering any more, didn’t have to wake up to find all the hot water gone and some unshaven jerk that Tina had brought home with her sitting in their kitchenette drinking coffee out of her mug. This place was all hers; it had a fully equipped kitchen, soft carpets in every room and even a little home office for her to write in. David had found it for her, and when he’d shown her through the door she’d had to fight back the impulse to tears.

‘It’s beautiful, David! But I can’t afford it.’

‘Sure you can.’ He’d been so certain, so confident; Megan looked at his immaculately tailored suit and platinum 1q.olex and felt like an idiot for even suggesting it. Ofcourseshe could afford it, or David wouldn’t have leased it for her.

‘We’re paying rent and amenities directly out of your account. You don’t have to worry about it. You don’t

have to worry about anything.’

‘Out of my account?’

‘We set up a facility with Norman Drew for you. They’ll be your accountants now. You’ll get on great with them, I always use them for my new clients.’

My accountants! She hadn’t known whether to laugh or cry. What would Mom say if she could see her now? Plump, plain Megan, the perennial loser, always the last one that the family thought about, installed in a chic little apartment of her own in the heart of Century City, LA. Megan knew she should have called back to tell them the news, but somehow she’d been putting it off. Her family were normally so discouraging, deep down inside she was afraid they might snipe at her, and worse, that she might care. She didn’t want any of the bloom taken off this particular rose just yet.

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‘All your new clients?’ she couldn’t help asking. ‘Does

that include Zach Mason?’

David laughed at her indulgently. Damn, what a sexy

laugh, Megan thought. Sated, as if he’d just had sex. But then everything about David Tauber made her-think of sex.

‘It does.’ He craned his head around to look inside her bedroom, noticing her Dark Angel and Metallica posters tacked up on the wall. Megan always stuck those posters up first, wherever she was - they helped keep her rooted. But for the first time she felt ashamed. He would think she was

too old for posters. ‘I see you’re a fan.’

She nodded, blushing.

‘So now you share accountants. It’ll give you something

‘else to talk about besides music when I introduce you.’

‘When you introduce us?’ Megan repeated, holding her breath.

‘Sure. At Isabelle Kendrick’s party tomorrow night. I

asked Sam if I could bring you along. Everybody will be the, re - Zach Mason, Fred Florescu, Sam, the Artemis

execs in charge of your project.’

Her projeet t.

‘And me.’ David gave her that special, lazy smile, his polished white teeth dazzling against his tanned skin. In that Gucci suit that pulled taut across his impressive chest, he reminded Megan of every college football hope she’d ever seen, or of some gdrgeous male model right out of an Armani campaign. She couldn’t dwell on her own bad skin or her plumpness when she was with him. There was no chance to consider anything physical except David. He was so perfect, she found it tough to look away from him.

As though aware of her thoughts, Tauber winked at her.

Tm no Zach Mason, I know. But you’ll let me be your escort to this party, won’t you, Megan? I can’t wait to show off my latest client.’

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hug herself.

Td love to go with you, David,’ she said shyly. ‘Great.’ Another dazzling smile, and he was turning to go. ‘Oh, and Megan’ - he handed her an American Express gold card, made out in her name - ‘you should go buy a new dress. No offence, but this is a serious party and I don’t think what you have there will cut it.’ He glanced neutrally at her plain black dress, her one ‘good’ outfit that was hanging by itself in an open wardrobe.

‘No. Sure. Of course,’ Megan said hastily, burning with embarrassment.

‘Terrific.’ He raised her hand to his mouth and kissed it, and the slight pressure of his lips burned on her skin. I’ll see you tomorrow.’

And he’d gone, leaving Megan alone with a fifteen thousand-dollar line of credit, one day to get ready for her entr& into her new life, and not a soul in the world she could talk to.

47

The Kendrick mansion was in a state of complete chaos. Only two hours to go until the party was due to begin, and a horde of immaculately groomed waiters were swarming over the grounds like black and white bees, radios crackling as though they were the Secret Service as the party director relayed his and Mrs Kendrick’s orders to various parts of the ground.

Standing on the terrace, Sam Kendrick sighed inwardly. He didn’t understand the subtleties of party-giving and he never would. The whole place looked fine to him: mini orchestra set up in the ballroom, chamber quartet out by the’ pool, which was covered in a thousand minute sandalwood candles, floating across it like perfumed fireflies, no to mention the food and different types of champagne set up all over the house and grounds. His wife had never done things by halves. There would be caviar in ice sculptures laid out all over the place, together with real truffles, plates ofoysters dim-sum and Belgian chocolates, all the normal Hollywood titbits; but Isabelle eschewed the trend towards poolside buffets in favour of a formal sit down dinner, with the seating arrangements worked out more carefully than most of his contracts. The pillars out front of the house were all wreathed with pink roses, solid columns ofcolour, and the rest of the flowers appeared to be a kind of weird mix of roses, orchids, violets and mistletoe, imported from northern Europe and flown in specially by the florist.