“And I was just telling them,” Lauren said placidly, “that now that you're here, I'm sure you'll agree with me that, since this is book club, we should be discussing the book.”
“Oh, no,” said Amy enthusiastically, using her index finger to push her glasses further up her nose, “I want to hear about your screen test.”
Lauren sighed resignedly. If she couldn't even get the serious and bookish Amy on her side in the debate between whether to discuss this week's featured book or whether to discuss this week's featured gossip, which was apparently Lauren's screen test, then her cause was lost. She may as well just acquiesce and give them the blow by blow.
She took a deep breath and dove in.
“Well,” she said, “as embarrassing as it is to admit this, I kind of froze up when the camera went on.”
All of their eyes widened. They absolutely could not picture the ultra-controlled and ultra-prepared Lauren Harrison freezing up in any situation.
“Yeah,” Lauren said, in answer to their expressions of bewilderment and surprise, “I know, it was a shock to me as well. But I saw that red light go on above the camera, and...I don't know...something in me just became paralyzed.”
“Gosh,” Karina interjected sardonically, “considering that the purpose of a screen test is basically to see how you perform...you know...on camera, I guess you COULD call that a rough start!”
Amanda wrung her hands. “Oh my gosh, Lauren!” she commiserated, “I feel so miserable for you even just hearing about it! Hurry and skip to the part where it got better.”
“I have to admit,” Lauren said thoughtfully, “As much as Ben Stevens has annoyed me – and don't get me wrong, still does annoy me – he did save my bacon. He jumped in and offered to do our joint part first, so I could kind of loosen up and concentrate on him rather than the red light. Then he took me aside and told me that I just needed to pretend that I was talking to a client or a friend, to not think about the camera and what it represented. To put that completely out of my mind – but to look into the lens and see the face of someone I cared about.
“After that, it got a lot better. It went really smoothly. In fact, I kind of loved it,” she admitted, “It was sort of a rush.”
“So, how do think you did, you know, objectively?” Sam asked.
“I don't know,” Lauren admitted, “I mean, I can tell you that from my perspective, it felt good. How it looked from the outside is, of course, difficult for me to say considering I'm so close to the situation. But the director did seem enthusiastic. And Ben did tell me he's never seen someone get over stage fright that fast, and come back that strong. So I think that's a good sign.”
“I'll say,” Karina agreed.
“So,” Amanda said slyly, “By your tone of voice, can I infer that you might be turning the corner on your opinion of Ben Stevens?”
Lauren snorted. “Let's not go that far,” she said, “Just because I've seen him display humanity a grand total of twice, that doesn't mean...”
“Wait, when was the other time?” Karina, ever the sharp one, piped up.
Lauren opened her mouth, ready to tell them about the phone call that she had overheard later in the day, but snapped it shut. Although her instinct was to tell the Fabulous Four everything, always – after all, they were close and rarely hid anything from each other – when it came down to actually relaying the incident, it just felt too personal. Somehow it felt like it would be a betrayal of Ben to talk about what she had overheard.
She shook her head. She couldn't believe that she was actually considering Ben Stevens' feelings, but there it was.
“Oh, just, you know...” she said, trailing off. She took a deep breath and continued, “When he jumped in ahead of me, and then again when he gave me the advice.”
Karina narrowed her eyes suspiciously. “I don't know,” she said, “those two things really seem like part of the same incident to me.”
“Yeah, I guess I just thought of them separately,” Lauren concluded vaguely.
“Well I think it sounds really sweet, what he did,” Amanda defended, “And I've never actually thought he was so horrible, Lauren. I think he actually seems kind of nice and charming.”
“Charming, definitely,” Lauren agreed, “I'll give you charming. He's got charm to spare. But nice? Before today, I would have laughed in your face for saying nice. After today? I don't know, I guess we'll just say the jury's out.”
Sam smiled knowingly, “Anyway,” she said, “You're not really in a position to judge what he is, because you are blinded by lust.”
Lauren looked taken aback. “I most certainly am not!” she said defensively.
“Oh, sure you are,” Sam said assuredly, “I recognize the look of a woman in lust, and YOU my dear...YOU have the look of a woman in lust.”
Lauren said, “Wow, how you've become an expert in relationships in the two months since you've had one.”
Sam said in a hurt tone, “Hey, now! Just because Luke was my first boyfriend and we've only been together two months doesn't mean I haven't seen my share of people hooking up over the years. I know the signs, and YOU are exhibiting the signs! And if you're feeling defensive? Well, that's just one of the signs.”
Karina and Amanda nodded their heads in agreement. Even Amy chimed in, “I don't know Lauren. I've only been here for a few minutes, so I'm not completely up to speed on the situation. But, I have to say...you are acting a bit like you're attracted to him.”
Lauren grimaced. “Traitor,” she said to Amy. Amy just shrugged, nonplussed.
“You guys don't understand!” Lauren protested, “He's so aggravating! Seriously! He's completely annoying. I've never met someone who could enrage me as quickly as he can, or as often.”
Amanda nodded. “Yep,” she said, “That's a sure sign.”
Lauren shook her head, sure that they just didn't get her meaning. “No, you guys, you don't get it. This isn't, like, funny and sexy annoyance, whatever that even is. This is, like, actual angry annoyance.”
“Right,” Karina said reasonably, “No, we get what you're saying. I just think that that's one more sign that he gets under your skin. And THAT I do mean in a sexy way.”
“Oh, come on, you guys – seriously! This isn't some Hepburn and Tracy movie! This is real life. In real life, if someone annoys you, they just annoy you. No ulterior motives, no underlying subtext, no secret yearning. Just annoyance. Pure and simple.”
“I don't know, Laur,” Karina said, unconvinced, “I mean, except for being late that day, what has he really done that's been so annoying and aggravating?”
“He's just got so much gall, so much nerve!” Lauren said, feeling the heat start to rise in her cheeks as she got angry even thinking about it.
"Right, I know, you keep saying that," Karina said thoughtfully, "But what has he actually DONE?"
"Well," Lauren said, "I'll tell you. Take, for instance, the other day, when I came out of my office with two clients. They saw him across the street and OF COURSE, we had to go across the street, take a picture, because he's the biiiiig television star.
"And then, he made this whole big production about ME taking a picture with him. And right before the picture was snapped, he leans down to whisper in my ear, and you won't believe what he said!"
"What??" asked Sam, a huge smile of anticipation spreading across her face.
"No, Sam, you're not getting this," Lauren explained, losing her patience, "It's not, like, some fun surprise. It was really rude."
"What did he say?" said Amanda indignantly, immediately angry on her friend's behalf.
"He leaned down, and in the most presumptuous, possessive, entitled, intimate tone, whispers in my ear - 'Damn, you smell good enough to eat.' The nerve! Can you imagine?"
Lauren moved her gaze to each of the girls' faces in turn, waiting for them to be indignant on her behalf, but they just stared at her blankly.
Finally, Karina asked slowly, "Well, how did you feel when he said that,
Lauren?"
"Oh…I don't know, that’s not the point." Lauren started to say dismissively.
Karina interrupted this dismissal, however, saying, "No, stop. Actually think about it. How did it make you feel?"
Lauren sighed and looked off to the side, trying to remember exactly how she had felt in the moment. She really tried to place herself back in that place and time.
As the realization dawned on her, she started to slowly shake her head, and finally brought her hands up to her face, covering it and moaning.
"Oh, my God, I can't believe it. It can't be true!" She looked up, stricken, "I want to sleep with Ben Stevens!"
Karina started a slow clap. "Give this girl a prize!" she exclaimed, and everyone laughed. Everyone but Lauren. She still felt nothing but shock.
Amanda looked at Lauren sympathetically, and said, "Oh, Lauren. I feel for you, sweetie. It's a terrible position to be in when you're really physically attracted to someone that you don't even like on a personal level.”
Lauren nodded, dropping her face back into her hands.
Now that she fully, consciously realized her attraction to Ben, she was seeing all of the little moments, all of the unconscious physical reactions that had happened over the course of last two weeks which should have clued her in to this fairly obvious reality. She didn't know how she could have been so blind.
Her personality clash with the man had influenced her perception of him to the point that she didn't even recognize the basic physiological reactions of attraction. She had written them off as aberrations.
Lauren sighed, looking up. "Oh, Lord," she said, "what am I gonna do now?"
The girls were silent, looking at her, until - as if in answer to her question - her phone began to ring. She looked down at it.
"It's Bernie," she said.
"Better answer it," Karina said.
"Lauren swiped her finger across the face of her phone and held it to her ear.
"Hello?" she said with trepidation.
"Bubeleh! You got the gig!" came Bernie's ebullient voice, "Did I not tell you that you were perfect?"
"You did, you did tell me," Lauren said, dropping her forehead into her palm.
"You don't sound excited!"
"I'm thrilled," she said flatly - although she couldn't, in actuality, feel much beyond the rolling of her stomach.
Chapter Five
In the twelve hours since Bernie's call the night before, Lauren had been trying to wrap her mind around the fact that she and Ben would be working together for the next three weeks on pretty much a daily basis...and who knew how much longer after that, if the series got picked up? In fact, since the phone call, she had been doing nothing BUT trying to wrap her mind around that concept - not even sleeping.
However, as she headed to the first production meeting, she felt confident. She knew that no one would be able to see her sleepless night when they looked at her. She was dressed impeccably, as always, every hair in place, make-up subtle and perfect. The picture of professionalism.
She pulled up to Mountain Ridge, where the production team was temporarily renting Justin and Amanda's conference room, and walked in, taking her seat.
The director was already there, as were a couple of producers, and a PA in front of a laptop, poised to take notes.
About thirty seconds after Lauren took her seat, as she was still saying her hellos and accepting her congratulations, Ben walked in. In contrast to her supremely professional attire, he was decked out in jeans and a sweatshirt.
Lauren did a double-take. On one level, she was shocked and appalled that he would come dressed so casually to a professional meeting. In her mind, it reflected poorly not only on him, but on the real estate profession as a whole.
On a completely different level, she couldn't stop thinking about how damn hot he looked in those jeans.
Lauren covered her reaction as quickly as she could and pasted on a smile. She stood and extended her hand cordially, wanting to start things off between them on the correct professional footing, but he smiled broadly and pulled her in for a hug. This caused her to flush, and not only her cheeks.
They both took their seats and then the director began the meeting.
The director, Paul Groves, stood up and smiled warmly. "Hi, everyone," he began, "I'm sure you all know who I am, but let me just start this meeting off by introducing myself. I'm Paul and I'll be directing this pilot. I want to thank everyone for their enthusiasm for this project, which is what's gotten it this far, and will hopefully ensure its success far into the future.
"I would also like to extend a warm congratulations and welcome to our new co-host, Lauren Harrison."
The room erupted in a round of warm applause, Ben's the warmest of all, Lauren was surprised to see. When they died down, Paul continued, "We're shooting this on a tight schedule. Just three weeks. It will involve three location shoots."
At these words, a PA left his laptop and grabbed a stack of papers which he began to pass out.
"You'll see Jimmy is passing out your itineraries. We're going to be based out of Hope Falls three days per week, and on location for two - a travel day, and a shoot day.
"You'll notice that your itinerary is only for the first week of shooting. When we see what kinks need to be worked out, we'll set the schedule for the second and third week. Call times are on the last sheet. Any questions?"
Paul looked around the room, as did Lauren. She was shocked to see that no one was even really paying attention at this point. They looked almost bored, as if this was all completely standard stuff. In fact, it seemed as if, to them, the invitation for questions was merely a formality, and it was a foregone conclusion that no one would be asking any. The meeting attendees were already stuffing itineraries into messenger bags and backpacks as they got up, pushing their chairs in, chatting with each other companionably, assuming that the meeting was already dismissed.
Lauren, however, had a million questions and she raised her hand.
"Excuse me," she said, pulling out her pen and flipping open a notebook, "I have some things I'm unclear on."
The people in the room looked at her, shocked, some of them even scowling. It was clear that they had no desire to sit in a continuing meeting while she asked a bunch of rookie questions.
Ben smiled at them. "You guys go ahead and go," he said amiably, "I'll make sure that Lauren is up to speed on anything she needs to know."
The crew smiled in relief and scurried out of the room, lest he change his mind, and they be required to stay after all despite the seeming reprieve.
Lauren turned to Ben, annoyance flashing in her eyes.
"Hey!" she said, "I can't believe you just completely shut me down like that. It wasn't up to you to decide whether or not I get to ask any questions!"
Ben looked sincerely apologetic.
"I'm sorry," he said, "I realize it must have come off that way. But, you've got to remember, I know these people. I know them well enough to be certain that making them sit in a meeting while they hear answers to questions that they already know backwards and forwards, when they have a crushing workload waiting for their attention...well, it's just not the best way to make a good first day impression."
Lauren opened her mouth reflexively to argue, which seemed to be her default position with Ben, but before she spoke even one syllable she realized that he was, in fact, right.
"You've got a point," she said, only slightly begrudgingly.
Ben adopted an exaggerated faux-surprised expression.
"What is this?" he asked in a high voice, playing up his shocked tone for effect, "Lauren Harrison is thanking me? Lauren Harrison is admitting that I'm right?"
"Hardy har har," she said dryly, but with a smile. A genuine one.
Ben chuckled warmly.
"Well," he said, "the first of those things you need to know, that I promised to fill you in on, is that we have a wardrobe fitting starting in about five minutes. And if we're gonna make it on time,
we'd better get going."
--- ~ ---
Lauren followed Ben up to the small cabin on the grounds of Mountain Ridge Outdoor Adventures that production had also rented from Amanda and Justin, which they had turned into a makeshift wardrobe department.
As they made the short trek, she realized that it hadn't even occurred to her that she wouldn't just be wearing her own clothes on the shoots - although, now that she thought of it, of course she realized that was ridiculous. The producers would want to control every visual aspect of the show, including - and maybe especially - what the hosts were wearing.
She wondered how many other aspects there were of her new job that she had never, before this moment, given any thought to whatsoever.
When they reached the front door of the wardrobe cabin, Ben opened it and gestured for Lauren to go on in ahead of him.
She smiled. "Chivalry isn't dead," she said, impressed.
"It may be on life support," Ben chuckled, "But definitely not dead yet. Especially not when I'm around. I'm an old fashioned guy."
Lauren walked into the cabin and gasped. She couldn't believe the sheer amount of beautiful, sophisticated clothing she saw before her. She walked forward and reverently touched the garments. She was amazed. Racks upon racks of clothing, in her size, in her preferred style, even. Gorgeous clothing.
She was flabbergasted, honestly, that they had been able to amass such an impressive amount of obviously carefully curated and beautiful items in such a short amount of time.
"Wow," said Lauren in awe, "Am I really going to wear all of these clothes on the show?"
Just then, two cheerful middle-aged women popped up from behind the racks. One of them said, "Hey, there! You must be Lauren!"
This startled Lauren so badly that she gasped and stumbled backward, running straight into Ben.
The two women laughed heartily and walked over to Lauren.
"Sorry to scare you sweetheart," said the one who had not yet spoken, "Wasn't intentional!"
Even though they were laughing, Lauren could feel the warmth coming from them, and never for a minute got the sense that they were laughing at her, but rather that the laughter was just an extension of their natural state of happiness.
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