Girls on film: an A-list novel

by Zoey Dean

  Alex cracked up. "Trust you to find the one girl in America who didn't see it," Noah teased.

  "So, how do you guys know each other?" Susan asked Cammie.

  "My dad's their agent," Cammie said nonchalantly, stretching out on a chaise on the other side of Susan. "They were at our place for a barbecue the day after Christmas."

  "Where was I?" Susan mock moaned.

  "If you're around next time, I'll invite you," Cammie promised.

  Susan beamed. "Great."

  Noah put his fist to his heart, as if Anna had just wounded him. "You know how to hurt a guy."

  "If I'd known I was going to meet you, I would have seen it," Anna explained.

  She seemed to amuse him. "About a hundred million people saw it because they wanted to see it."

  Anna reddened. "I don't go to the movies all that much."

  "Gee, why not?" Dee asked.

  "Most of them aren't very good," Anna said.

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  "Oh yeah, dig yourself in even deeper," Cammie hooted.

  "Well, clearly I have to do something about this," Noah decided. He picked up the courtesy phone on the small table between the chaise longues. "Hi, this is Noah Monahan.... No, everything is fine, thanks. Listen, can you arrange to have Piper's Dream set up in my bungalow? Now would be great. Thanks. Ciao." He hung up and turned to Anna, wiggling his eyebrows in a Groucho Marx imitation while pretending to hold a cigar. "Come along, my dear. I've arranged a private screening."

  Anna was momentarily flustered. "Um, I--"

  He dropped the Groucho thing. "Hey, you're not really going to turn down a private screening of my movie, are you?"

  Was she? And if she was, then why had she sent him drinks? It wasn't like she was in any danger. She was at the Beverly Hills Hotel, for God's sake. But what about Adam?

  What about him? Anna thought. I like him. A lot. But it's not like we're engaged.

  "Of course not," Anna agreed.

  "Get down, sis," Susan exclaimed, egging her on.

  Noah held out a hand and hoisted Anna to her feet. Standing, she was just slightly taller than he was. He had open blue eyes, tousled blond hair, and a toothy, boyish grin. She slipped her cover-up on over her bathing suit. Noah looked down at Anna's feet, clad in casual Chanel leather sandals. "Great sandals," he said.

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  Which was odd. Because they were actually rather ordinary, albeit extremely well made. She'd had them forever. But maybe he just wanted to find a unique way to compliment her, Anna figured.

  "Thanks," she said.

  "Okay, so let's go." He reached for her hand again.

  Anna held back. "But how can they possibly find the movie and get it ready this quickly?"

  He grinned at her. "Anna Percy, that's what they do here: make us happy."

  "And now you're going to make each other happy," Cammie chimed, dripping insinuation.

  Anna felt like making a public disclaimer: "No. I am not going to Noah Monahan's bungalow to have sex." But she forced herself to keep her mouth shut.

  "Susan, I'll meet you back here in--" Anna looked over at Noah. "How long is it?

  "An hour fifty-two. Unless they got the director's cut, which runs thirty minutes longer."

  The notion of leaving Susan alone with Cammie did not fill Anna with confidence. But she couldn't very well hover over Susan like a bodyguard. Besides, she told herself, the Noah encounter was exactly the kind of thing she'd come to California for. Sort of.

  "So you're okay?" she asked her sister.

  Susan waved her off. "I'm fine."

  "You two go bare your souls to each other," Cammie said with a grin. "I'll take really good care of your sister."

  That's what Anna was afraid of.

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  Elegant Toes

  The decor of Noah's bungalow was American Indian chic, with colorful Navajo rugs dotting the hardwood floor. Facing the big-screen TV was a plush sofa covered in copper, brown, and eggshell carved, totem-printed fabric. An ornate framed Indian headdress hung over it.

  "Kick off your shoes, make yourself comfortable," Noah called as he headed into the kitchen. "What can I get you?"

  "A Coke is fine, thanks," Anna called back. She considered whether she should sit on the couch or on the chair kitty-corner to it. But the chair wasn't really facing the TV Besides, she was afraid he'd tease her about it, as if she was afraid to even sit on the couch with him.

  Noah came back with two bottles of Coke and handed one to Anna. He sat a comfortable distance from Anna, picked up the remote, and clicked on the TV The usual FBI warnings filled the giant screen, followed by a night skyline of Manhattan. "Alex and I wrote the first draft while we were still at Yale," Noah explained as the credits rolled.

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  Anna sipped her Coke. This was sort of fantastic, actually. She'd never before sat with an award-winning screenwriter, watching his movie. And Noah seemed like a nice guy. Not particularly "Hollywood," which Anna liked.

  On-screen, the camera panned from the skyline to the streets and night morphed to day, the streets filling up with people in overdrive. "Wouldn't you be more comfortable if you put your feet up?" Noah suggested.

  "No thanks, I'm fine," Anna said.

  The camera followed a multiply-pierced girl with green hair into the Astor Place barbershop. She walked into the back and put her ratty backpack into a locker.

  "That's Piper," Noah explained. "Hey, listen, I give the world's best foot massages. Put 'em up here."

  Anna considered. Nothing wrong with a foot massage. She swiveled a little and lifted her legs into Noah's lap. It seemed innocent enough. He reached into a small drawer in the side table and brought out some jojoba oil. On-screen, Piper was explaining to the salon owner why she was late. In the bungalow, Noah Monahan was massaging Anna's right foot.

  "God, your feet are perfect," Noah said.

  Anna had never thought about it before. She had high arches--good for dancing. And they got her from point A to point B. "Thanks."

  "Your toes are so elegant," Noah went on.

  Elegant toes? Was this weird? Anna couldn't quite decide. Maybe she was overreacting. It wasn't like Noah

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  had made a move on her. He was just massaging her foot. And doing a damned good job of it, too.

  On the screen, Piper was getting a basin of soapy water to give a customer a pedicure. "Would you like that?" Noah asked Anna.

  "Like what?"

  "I could paint your toenails for you," he offered, his voice getting breathy.

  Okay, that was definitely getting weird.

  "That's nice of you, but no thanks." She tried to lower her legs, but Noah caught her right ankle and held it tight.

  "Your feet are such a turn-on. Has anyone ever licked your toes?"

  That was enough. Anna swung her legs back down and pushed into her sandals. "I have to go."

  "Hey, listen, we don't have to--"

  "Sorry, but I just remembered someplace I need to be." Anna got up and reached for her purse.

  She babbled something or other by way of thanks, and she was out of there. Her heart was pounding as she headed back to the pool. Wait till she told Cyn. Back at the pool, Anna found Susan and Cammie deep in conversation. Fortunately, Alex was gone. Dee was in the pool, swimming laps. Anna joined her.

  "Oh, hi, that was fast," Dee commented. "Didn't you like Noah?"

  "He's fine," Anna said, not about to go into the details with Dee.

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  "I know, but he's no Ben, right?" Dee put her feet on the bottom of the pool and put her hands over her stomach.

  Anna was not up for this. "You're not pregnant, Dee."

  Dee's gaze wavered. "Well, I'm really, really late. And I'm never late. So if I am , it's Ben's. So did you talk to him?"

  "Since when?"

  "Since New Year's."

  "No." What was the point of telling Dee the truth?

  "I saw you with him at school to
day. It's really bad karma to lie, Anna."

  Anna was regretting her decision to get in the water. This girl was maddening. "The point is, Ben and I are not together. We went out on one date. That's all."

  Dee frowned. "I don't know whether to believe you."

  "This is just a guess on my part, Dee, but maybe that's because no one you hang around with ever tells the truth. In fact, maybe it's contagious."

  "Maybe," Dee agreed. "So you don't care that he and I hooked up?"

  "No, Dee. I don't."

  Whether that was completely true, Anna wasn't sure. But she started a powerful crawl toward the other end of the pool, doing a perfect kick turn at the far wall. That felt good. What didn't feel good was what she saw when her head broke the water again. It was Susan, laughing heartily at something that Cammie had just said.

  "Did you bare your soles to each other, Anna?"

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  Cammie called out. "Did you play this-little-piggie-went-to-market?"

  Anna reddened. So, Cammie knew about Noah's little fixation but hadn't bothered to warn her. Clearly she'd told Susan, though, who was joining in the giggling at her misadventure.

  So much for wild and spontaneous.

  Anna came home two hours later to find her father with his girlfriend, Margaret, on the tufted-silk living-room couch, eating Chinese takeout off Wedgwood china plates that had once belonged to Anna's great-grandmother.

  "Would you like a plate, Anna?" her father asked. "There's plenty."

  "Nice to see you again, Anna," Margaret added. Once again Anna was struck by the more than passing resemblance that Margaret Cunningham bore to Jane Percy: the same wheat-blond hair, the same tall and slender carriage, the same aristocratic features. Margaret was even wearing a Jane Percy-type outfit: fitted gray trousers and a black three-ply cashmere turtleneck.

  "I had Django drive over to the Sam Woo in Van Nuys and bring it back," Jonathan explained. "Their curry shrimp is out of this world."

  "Thanks, but I had a tuna sandwich with Susan." Anna sat in the antique wing chair opposite the couch.

  "Your sister is here? In Los Angeles? She can't be here." Anna's intention to shock him had worked.

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  "Well, I just put her in a bungalow at the Beverly Hills Hotel, so I'd have to say it's possible."

  "What about Hazelden?"

  "She checked herself out."

  "Christ. Of all the stupid, irresponsible--"

  "Jonathan, calm down," Margaret chastised.

  He swiped a weary hand over his face. "Is she at least sober?"

  Anna nodded. "I think she's really trying, Dad."

  "If she was really trying, her ass would still be in rehab!" He threw his balled-up napkin on the table in disgust. "Ask her to come see me, Anna. She and I need to talk."

  "Pick up the phone and ask her yourself."

  "You know she'll hang up on me," her father said. "The only one who has any influence with her is you."

  Anna folded her arms. "She's very angry at you, you know."

  "Well, I can't very well do anything about that if she won't see me, can I?"

  There was silence for a few moments as Anna thought this over and realized that her father made a good point. "Okay," she conceded. "I'll talk to her tomorrow. I don't know if it'll make any difference, though. Excuse me." She headed for the stairs.

  "Anna, a moment?" Margaret asked.

  Anna turned back and waited.

  "Your father told me how disappointed you were when the internship over at Randall Prescott's agency

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  fell through," Margaret said. "I feel partly responsible for that--I had a terrible argument with him over one of his clients who jumped ship. He's filed suit, in fact."

  "That's all right," Anna said automatically.

  "Actually, it isn't, but it's kind of you to say so. In any event, I think your father has told you that I'm involved in a new startup called Apex. I'm partnering with a few maverick agents from CAA and Paradigm. We're all taking our clients with us--it will cause quite a stir in the trades tomorrow."

  "I wish you the best of luck."

  Margaret smiled. "Thank you, it's very exciting. Now, here's my point. There's going to be a lot of work to do. If you're still interested in an internship, we'd love to offer you the position. It'll be after school, though, not instead of it."

  "Told you I'd come through," her father put in.

  Anna was pleased despite the fact that if she accepted, she'd still have to attend high school classes. "That sounds great. What would I be doing?"

  "Some of it will be sheer drudgery, I'm afraid. You're going to get to know the photocopy machine very well. But part of our mission is to turn young playwrights into screenwriters. Those young people need to get around town, be seen at the right places, and meet the right people. Believe me, they'd prefer to be seen with someone closer to their own age than their agent."

  "That sounds ... intriguing," Anna admitted.

  "And of course, you'd have the opportunity to do a

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  lot of reading--we'd encourage that. Wouldn't want you escorting a writer around town without being familiar with his work. He'd loathe that."

  "Or she," Anna added with a smile.

  "Touché." Margaret tipped her head at Anna. "You and I will get along just fine."

  "That's incredibly nice of you," Anna said.

  Margaret laughed. "Why do you sound so surprised?"

  Because I've disliked you from the first moment I saw you on New Year's Eve, for no better reason than that you're my father's girlfriend, Anna thought.

  She didn't say it, though.

  "I'm just pleased," were the perfect words she chose to utter.

  "Good. Can you stop by after school tomorrow and meet everyone? Your dad has the address."

  Ana turned toward the stairs again. "That's fine."

  "You won't forget about talking to Susan, will you?" her father asked.

  "No. In fact, I'll call her now."

  Anna excused herself and went up to her room. She clicked on the TV as she got ready for bed. As she brushed her teeth in the bathroom, she heard, "And now we return to Piper's Dream ."

  How ironic. Anna clicked off the TV Sometimes fame and fortune just weren't what they were cracked up to be.

  She was about to wash her face when she remembered about calling her sister. Just as she reached for the phone by her bed, it rang.

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  She picked it up. "Yes?"

  "Don't hang up. Please."

  Ben. Anna would know that voice anywhere. Her heart tap danced at double time. "Why are you calling me? There's nothing else to say."

  "If you looked into my eyes, you'd know that isn't true."

  "That's perfectly all right, I can use my imagination," she said frostily.

  "Or you could look out your window."

  She paused for a moment to absorb it all. It felt strange to be the object of such a dogged pursuit. When she felt ready, she went to the picture window that overlooked the back garden. There was gorgeous Ben in a pool of light, his electric blue eyes glowing in the evening sky. The balcony scene from Romeo and Juliet came to mind. "Come, night; come, Romeo." Anna had fallen in love with that play at age ten, when she'd seen it performed in a Broadway revival. She'd whispered Juliet's lines into her Belgian-lace-edged linen pillowcase and dreamed that one day she would love a boy and he would love her back as passionately as Juliet loved her Romeo.

  Romeo and Juliet both ended up dead , Anna reminded herself now. That's where fevered love gets you. Better to be with a guy like Adam, where there's not so much fire --

  "Will you come down? Please?" he asked.

  "How did you get in without setting off the alarm?"

  "Right after dinner the gate was open. I've been waiting for the light to go on in your room. Come down. Please?"

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  She hesitated. "What's the point?"

  "Anna." His voice cracked wit
h stress. "I can't eat, I can't sleep. I can't go back to school until I speak to you. Come on. We can't just end it like this. Didn't that night mean anything to you?"

  Pain and anger flared inside her. He sounded like he was reciting lines from a bad soap opera. And damn him, it brought tears to her eyes anyway. "That's the whole point. It did."

  "Then--"

  "Shut up. And don't move." Anna clicked off the phone and pulled on a pair of jeans. She grabbed a sweatshirt, pushed into sandals, and headed for the door. At the last moment she stopped, went to her dresser, and sprayed herself with Chanel No. 5. If she was going to kiss him off forever, then dammit, she was going to kiss him off smelling great.

  Anna went outside through the kitchen door. There was Ben, standing on the brick path that led to the gazebo, in jeans and a cable-knit sweater. The closer she got to him, the more her heart fluttered. She could actually hear the vibrations. "Anna."

  Though she preferred to believe that it was the night chill in the air, the way he said her name made her shiver.

  Mind over body , she told herself.

  She took a deep breath before she addressed him. "Ben, I'm only here so you can look into my eyes when I tell you this for the last time. It's over."

  "Why? I know you feel something for me--"

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  "Only because hormones have no conscience."

  Ben looked stung. "It's more than that. You know it is."

  "No, I don't. We don't really know each other. I had too much to drink on the plane. When we went out on New Year's Eve, I fell for the boy I wanted you to be. But you're not him."

  "I can be that guy, Anna."

  "Really?" She folded her arms. "Let's start with some honesty, then. Who is this mystery celebrity whose life you had to save on New Year's Eve?"

  Ben rubbed his bloodshot eyes. "I can't say."

  "Fine."

  She turned to head back to the house, but Ben caught her wrist. "Come on, Anna. What kind of a schmuck would I be to tell you?"

  "The kind who claims I mean something to him," Anna said, eyes flashing. "What do you think I'm going to do, post it on the Internet?"

  "You can't be serious. You won't reconsider unless I tell you her name?"

  "It's more than that. You have an excuse for everything. Why you had a relationship last year with a bitch like Cammie, why you ended up in bed with Dee, why you stranded me on New Year's Eve. And I'm sure there are a million more."