Hot Set

by Ivy Blake

  I quickly tried to cover our tracks. “Oh, no. She came by for the first time a little while before you showed up. I accidentally dropped a glass and it got all over the call sheet, so she was going to try to get me another one. I think she is trying to make things right without telling you to save my ass.”

  Simon smiled and shook his head. “Ok good. She’s new, and I’m pretty sure this is the first film she has ever worked on. So if she messes up, let me know so we can fix it.”

  I gulped and walked to the bar to pour myself a drink. I had no idea how to handle this; I wanted to tell him to go screw himself, to cut Chole some slack. But I also knew that if I did that, I ran the risk of getting us both fired on our first day. I doubt it would look good for me to be hooking up with his assistant. Just then, his phone rang, and I was thankful for the interruption.

  “Chloe, hey! Can you go ahead and get Hudson his call sheet? We’re in a bit of a hurry… Oh, good. Okay. Fine.”

  Simon hung up the phone and gave me a smile. He reached into his back pocket for one of his business cards. “Here is my number. You can call me any time you have any questions or concerns.”

  I just nodded nervously.

  “Good. Well, we are about ready to begin shooting. I will give you about ten more minutes to yourself and then make up should be stopping by to get you started.”

  “Ok.”

  After Simon left, I sighed and turned back toward the bar, grateful for the peace and quiet. My mind rushed back to thoughts of Chloe Fuck. How am I going to be able to focus with her here? I poured another drink and then lay on my bed to relax for a few minutes before the makeup team arrived.

  It was going to be a long-ass day.

  Chapter 13

  Chloe

  After work, I called a ride-share and headed home. Overall, the day went well. I mean, outside of the fact that I was a damned walking mat for Simon, but I knew that he would be rough with me, especially because I was so new.

  My thoughts rushed back to watching Hudson and the main actress go through their scenes. He was better than I thought he would be, and there were times where I just got lost in the scene. He had this ability to pull me in and not focus on anything else.

  I grabbed my phone and scrolled through my call log. My thumb hovered over the call button until I finally had the courage to press it. I cleared my throat and waited for him to answer.

  “Hi, Chloe!”

  “Hey, Hudson. How was your first day?”

  “Not too bad,” he said, more calmly than I expected. “The scenes went well, and I got to kiss this beautiful woman on the set. She is the director’s assistant, and I think she might like me.”

  “Well,” I said, smiling. “She sounds like fun. Do you think you’ll be seeing her again?”

  “I don’t see why not. At the very least, she’ll have to bring me my coffee tomorrow.”

  I rolled my eyes but couldn’t help but laugh. “Alright, alright. I don’t love talking about myself in the third person. Anyway, I was wondering if you could stop by before you went home? I want to talk to you about something, but I think it would be better face-to-face.”

  “Something bad?”

  “No, not at all. Just a concern.”

  Hudson sounded nervous. “Oh. Ok. Well, I will be there in a little bit.”

  I got home to an empty house. Mariah was going to be at work until later and Jade had a few meetings to attend after work, which is why she couldn’t pick me up from the movie shoot. I kicked my shoes off and slid into something more comfortable, yoga pants and a tank top, then waited on the couch for Hudson. Almost thirty minutes later, there was a knock on my door. Hudson had a bouquet of roses in his hands when I saw him.

  “To congratulate you on your new job,” he said, handing them to me.

  The pink and white roses smelled as if they were just cut from their beds. “Thank you, Hudson!” I said as I invited him in. “These are beautiful!”

  “But they pale in…”

  “Don’t overplay your hand with a cheesy pickup line. Let the roses do the talking.”

  He laughed. “A valid point.” I placed the roses in a vase, then put them on the coffee table. He put his arm on the back of the couch and I scooted closer to him, occupying a spot under his arm that I felt was made for me.

  “So, what did you want to talk to me about?” he asked.

  “I was just thinking about us and what we almost did today. Obviously, I loved it. Even getting to just kiss you was amazing, and honestly, if it wasn’t for that, I would’ve had a much harder day because Simon is so hard on me. But, on that note,” I put my hand on his leg, “I think we should keep our relationship, or whatever it is, low key for now. I mean, I don’t want to draw any attention to us. Well, not so much you, but me. I am just getting my footing here, so I don’t want to rock the boat.”

  “Oh. That was it?”

  “Yes. I mean, I thought it was serious.” I looked directly at him. “It wasn’t serious?”

  “Of course! I think we needed to iron out how we’ll conduct ourselves while at work, so it was necessary. I was just expecting the worst like you have a boyfriend.”

  “Oh, no. I don’t have one of those. Haven’t had one in ages, so there is nothing to worry about there.”

  “Good.” He looked down the hallway in my apartment. “So, we’re the only ones here?”

  “Yeah. My roommates won’t be home until later.”

  “Oh. Good.” We sat quietly for a few seconds until he leaned over and pressed his lips against my neck. I dipped my head backwards as he made a trail from my neck to my collarbone and to the top of my chest.

  “I think we have more than a few minutes to spare this time.”

  I didn’t even answer him. I just grabbed him by the hand and led him back into my room. With a gentle hand, Hudson lay me back on the bed and slid down my yoga pants, letting his hands linger on the skin of my thighs as he did. I leaned my head back as his tongue traced the lines of my core. He took my legs and wrapped them around his neck as he nibbled and sucked on my clit, and the sensations overwhelmed me seconds. He was like a master painter and I was his canvas, each stroke another masterpiece.

  Just as I was about to reach a precipce, Hudson slowly crawled up the length of my body and pressed his lips against mine. As our tongues interlocked, he inched his cock inside of me, and I moaned with every inch that entered me. My nails dug into his back, causing him to grimace and push deeper into me. I locked my legs around his waist and watched the look of pleasured concentration on his face as he pulsed and throbbed deep within me.

  Hudson slid off my top, exposing my breasts to the warmth of the night air coming from the open window. As he propped himself with one hand, he massaged my breast with the other. In a fit of passion, I grabbed the back of his head and pulled him down to me so we could kiss again. His hard chest brushed against my erect nippes as his body was pressed into mine, and every nerve in my body was alight.

  With a string hand, Hudson slid me to the edge of the bed and flipped me over, entering me again in a blinding flash of pure ecstasy. I wanted to scream out loud. I wanted to let the world know how good he felt inside of me, but I stifled my urge to exclaim, afraid the noise through the window would draw too much attention.

  Hudson climbed up behind me on the bed, steadying me as he slid his thick cock inside of me again, over and over, hitting every spot inside of me. He was an animal. He took control in a way that was making me even more dizzy with passion. Then he turned me over again, giving me the opportunity to look right into his eyes again… his huge, beautiful eyes.

  He leaned forward and wrapped his lips around my nipple as he slid back inside of me.

  “Shit,” I said, bracing myself on the back of the headboard. The whole bed shimmied as he fucked me from the side. My whole body puslated as he pushed my leg futher towards my head. “I am going to come, Hudson,” I whispered. “Shit!”

  He slowed his pace, moving up an
d down as I ran my finger across my clit. He kissed my calf as it was extended in the air, then put his hand into the mattress for support as he climbed on top of me and put my leg back down.

  “Do you like it when I go slow?” he asked while his chest muscles contracted.

  I nodded a dizzied yes as pulsed on top of me, slithering in and out while he twisted his hips. His cock reached every inch of me as my finger glided across my clit until I felt a rush pulsating through my legs. Ecstasy burst forth from my core and I opened my mouth to scream, but nothing came out.

  Suddenly, Hudson picked up his pace, causing the ecstasy to linger. Our bodies bounced up and down on the mattress. Another warm gust of wind shot through the window, blowing my hair to the side. His body glistened with sweat. His abs contracted each time he thrust himself deeper inside of me. His face contorted and he bit his bottom lip as he found his own pleasure, pulsing and shivering inside of me. I could feel the damp sweat on his skin, adding to my pleasure.

  After a gentle kiss, Hudson moved off me and fell onto his back. He breathed heavily as he faced the ceiling. We lay next to each other, the heat swirling around in the room like a sauna.

  “I know I said we have to keep things low-key, but that doesn’t mean we have to stop doing that,” I said with a smile.

  He chuckled to himself as he lifted his head to look at me, then he brushed a strand of sweaty hair out of my face. “That’s totally fair.”

  I cuddled up next to him and buried my head in his chest. I thought, for a moment, I could stay like that for the rest of our lives.

  Chapter 14

  Hudson

  I sat near the cameraman with a cup of coffee in my hand, preparing myself for the next shot. We were three weeks into shooting the movie and things were going better than expected. Mona, when she played her character Rebecca, was not hard to deal with at all. On camera, she was sweet, charming and hilarious, but she was a hell of an actor, because off camera, she was the exact opposite.

  “Yeah, man,” the cameraman said, “I’ve shot a few of her movies. She is a monster to the crew but because she’s ‘America’s sweetheart’ or whatever, we have to pretend she didn’t throw a scalding hot cup of tea at us for shooting her from the wrong angle.”

  “It’s definitely better to stay on her good side, though I’m not sure she actually has one,” I said as I gave him a playful punch on the shoulder.

  He laughed. “Yeah, man. You just have to come here, do your job and then leave her alone. That’s it.”

  Simon came out from behind the monitors. “Alright, everyone, places! We have to knock this scene out before we lose the light. Places!”

  I discarded my cup of coffee into the trashcan and headed to my place. Just then, Chloe walked onto the set. I smiled and gave a slight nod in her direction and she gave me a subtle smile in return. We had done a great job keeping our relationship quiet. We found ways to sneak around and steal some time together, and it definitely added an air of danger to the whole affair. But truth be told, I was looking forward to the day when we could stop sneaking and be more upfront with our mounting affection for each other.

  I averted my attention from her and walked on set next to Mona, who was already glaring at me.

  “For heaven’s sake, Hudson, can we please get this done in one take? I am utterly sick of running the same lines with you for multiple takes. I am a professional and I expect those whom I work with to be just as professional. Got it?”

  “Mona, listen. The director is not giving me any negative feedback and neither is anyone else, so I’ll do my job and you worry about yours.”

  She turned her nose up at me just as Simon started the countdown for us to begin shooting our scene. “Alright, everyone, let’s get this going! Action!” Simon yelled from the director’s chair. Chloe stood just to his right, and throughout the romantic scene, I made subtle gestures to show that I was thinking about Chloe. I made brief eye contact with her, and whenever she stood in my line of sight behind Mona, I spoke to her with more passion. It was much easier to pull the lines off when I truly felt what I said about someone.

  Chloe blushed, but tried not to make it obvious. That was the hardest thing for us, especially since we had grown so close in such a short time.

  “Rebecca, listen,” I ran the lines, and pulled Mona closer to me with Chloe in my line of sight just behind her. “Why do we have to keep pretending this isn’t real? Fuck the obstacles. They don’t matter to me. Only you matter to me.”

  Mona moved out of my grasp and turned her back to me. “I know, Maddox, I feel the same way, but… there are just so many obstacles. My family is threatening to disown me if we continue this path. I don’t know what to do. I love you,” she turned back towards me. “I truly do, but this is a mountain that I don’t know how to climb.”

  I grabbed her by the waist and pulled her closer to me. Her light brown eyes bubbled with false affection that was obvious to me, but for everyone else, they would never tell the difference. “Baby, you were never meant to climb it alone. We can climb it together.”

  She leaned closer to me, but before we could kiss, Simon yelled out, “Alright, cut! Excellent! Wonderful!” Mona rolled her eyes at me and then stormed off set. I was used to her reactions by now. Even when we were appreciated for a job well done, she behaved as if I didn’t perform to her expectations. “Five minute break, everyone.”

  Chloe brought me another cup of coffee. “Here you go, Mr. Andrews. You did a great job.”

  “Thank you. Can you do me a favor? Will you walk me to my trailer? I have something I need to run by you, and if it’s acceptable, then maybe you can take it to Simon for me.”

  “Oh, yeah, sure thing.”

  We walked down a small pathway until we got to a vacant area of the lot. I dropped the coffee out of my hand and pulled her in for a kiss. Her lips were the missing pieces to a puzzle that I had been trying to put together for the past few years. “I was waiting all day for that,” I said as we released each other.

  “Same. Simon has been on my ass ever since I got here. I can hardly catch a fucking break. But here it is.” She looked at her watch after the alarm went off. “And damn it. There it goes.” With a huff, she explained. “I am supposed to go and grab the new sides from the writers and if I don’t have them for him, he will eat me alive.”

  I grumbled to myself, trying not to think about what Simon would do if he found out we were together. “Damn. Do you want to come over to my place tonight?”

  “Absolutely.”

  She pecked me on the lips before she walked in the opposite direction. I looked down at the cup of coffee that had spilled onto the cement. As I leaned down to pick it up, I heard Simon’s voice from behind me.

  “Well, well, well.”

  Startled, I spun around while he continued, “I see you and my assistant are close”

  Fuck. “No, not at all. She was just helping me run some lines and…”

  Simon held his hand up to stop me. “No, no, Mr. Andrews. That did NOT look like you two were just running lines. That looked a little more serious than that. Be honest with me. What exactly is going on between you two?”

  “Nothing. Honestly, it is nothing. Just a little fun for now, you know?”

  “Is that what the kids call it nowadays?” Simon growled. “How about you don’t try and feed me any bullshit lies? I spend enough time around actors to know when you are full of it. And you, Hudson, are up to your eyeballs. You’re screwing my assistant.”

  “Simon,” I tried to interject, panicked.

  “You can call me Mr. Dominik from here on out, Hudson. And things are about to change on this set, I can promise you that.”

  I felt every nerve in my body begin to fire at the same time. Shit. I didn’t want to fuck things up for Chloe, and I sure as hell didn’t want to fuck things up for me. I wasn’t sure if I was going to double over in pain, or just throw up on Simon’s shoes. “Mister… Dominik… please.”

  But
Simon just shook his head. “Keep your phone on you, Hudson. When I call, you better answer. That’s all I’m saying. You better answer. Or go ahead and assume that you will never work in this town again.” He turned on his heel and started to walk away, leaving me standing in the alley, thinking that throwing up was the best option.

  Oh, god. How the hell am I going to tell Chloe?

  Chapter 15

  Chloe

  When I got home late that night, I got a phone call from my mom. I had barely spoken to her and my father since I moved to Cali a little over a month ago.

  “Hey, sweetheart. How is everything going?” mom said, slightly distracted.

  I curled up in my bed under the covers, exhausted. “It is going great, mom. The job is amazing, but I completely HATE my boss. It’s like he lives to make my life a living hell.”

  “What does he do?”

  “You would have a better chance of getting me to tell you what he didn’t do. The money is decent, and I appreciate the experience, but if this is life on the other side of the camera, I will just pursue acting 100%. Seriously.”

  “Well, this is your first time doing something like this, so you know you have to work your way up. A lot of people don’t just get to come in and become a director’s assistant, so just consider this paying your dues. We all have to go through it, so be patient.”

  “Yeah, I am trying,” I answer with a sigh.

  She paused for a few moments. The voices on the television floated into our conversation until she decided to speak again. “Have you met anyone special out there yet?”

  “Um.” I wasn’t sure how she would respond to the fact that I’d found someone in the short time that I’ve been here, especially since I was so adamant about pursuing my career before I made any time for a relationship. “Not really. I mean, I have a friend, but we are taking it slow.” Why am I lying to my mother?