And so when a pair of large hands lands on my shoulders, preventing me from running headlong into a stupid hard chest—again—I almost dropkick the owner of said hands. Probably would’ve were I not holding my laptop.
“Whoa. Easy there, tiger.” Grayson must immediately realize his mistake in a) putting his hands on me and b) calling me tiger, because one look into my eyes and he’s taking a giant step backward away from me. He shoves his hands in the pockets of his too-tight jeans. “I’ll go ahead and assume from that laser beam glare that you saw the schedule change.”
I don’t bother responding, pushing past him and marching down the hallway toward my room. Even though I feel like I’ve made my desire to speak with him—which is hovering just below zero—pretty clear, I still feel him behind me as I unlock my door.
“I can see this is maybe not the best time.”
“Ya think?” I push open the door and stride into my room, attempting to close the door behind me.
Grayson’s hand jets out, stopping it before I can slam it in his face. “Just give me two minutes. Please?”
I don’t let him in, but I stand in the doorway with my hands on my hips. “You already wasted ten seconds.”
He sucks in a quick breath, running his hand through his hair. “Okay. I just... I get that things are not great between us, and to be completely honest, I don’t quite know how we ended up in the place of hating each other—although to be clear, I don’t hate you, not in the slightest—but you very clearly hate me, and I respect that, I guess. I just know tomorrow is going to be awkward, and I wanted to be sure you know that I’d never want you to feel uncomfortable or exposed in a way you aren’t okay with, and I’m sure there are a million guys you’d rather have to do this with than me, but on my end, I promise to take it seriously and be respectful no matter what.”
My mouth actually drops open. I want to hang on to the claim that he has no idea why I don’t like him, because, seriously, what a crock of shit, but I’m too shocked by the rest of his speech, which not only sounds honest and genuine, but also incredibly thoughtful?
I obviously must have misheard the entire thing becausethoughtfulis not a word one could ever use to describe Grayson West.
“Did Liz put you up to that little speech?”
He runs a hand through his hair, which I’m learning is his nervous tic. “No, not exactly. I mean she did give me the whole ‘it’s essential to be respectful’ lecture, but I wasalready going to be and I really do want to be sure you feel okay with everything that’s going to happen.”
“Hmm.” I don’t want to believe him, but unless his acting skills have markedly improved over the last few hours, I can’t help but think he might be telling the truth.
He waits a few extra seconds for me to elaborate, and when I don’t, he gives me a strained smile. “So yeah. I just know there’s enough to worry about tomorrow without having to worry if your scene partner is going to be a total asshole, so I wanted to be sure you knew I’m not going to be a total asshole.”
I purse my lips to keep in the smart-ass retort that’s on the tip of my tongue. Instead, I nod and mutter, “Okay. Thanks, I guess.”
With a small wave and another half smile, he turns and heads back to his room.
I stand frozen in my doorway for a solid minute before I regain motor function.
What the hell was that about? I shut my door, dropping my stuff on the small table in the corner of my room. Was that the closest I’ll ever get to Grayson admitting he was a total douche canoe back when we were teenagers? If so, it was a pretty pathetic apology.
On the other hand, he definitely didn’t need to come over here and say anything. He could’ve just showed up on set tomorrow, made out with me, and called it a day.
But no way in fuck does one nice sentiment overrule the past. And so I will show up tomorrow and do my job and make out with one of the hottest men on the planet.
But there will be no part of me that likes it. Zero. Zilch. Not one bit.
My Love on TopIs a Total Flop
by Gerald Winger
I understood when I walked into the theater that I was not the target audience forMy Love on Top. The teenybopper rom-com is not the kind of film I would go out of my way to see, let alone review, and yet I found myself intrigued enough by the premise—and its young stars—to make my way over to a showing.
The story is nothing new—two teenagers experience first love and first heartbreak. It’s a tale that’s tough to make fresh, and yet we’ve seen it accomplished successfully time and time again. Unfortunately, this is not one of those times.
The script, penned by Elizabeth Walston, is the one high mark of the movie, and it’s a shame the young actors couldn’t manage the performance her words deserved.
So let’s get to the writing on the wall. I would be lying if I didn’t mention one of the major draws for me personally was witnessing the film debut of Tinseltown princess Emmy Harper. Daughter of Tom Harper and Diane Brenner, Emmy has grown up in front of the world’s eyes. We’ve all been privy to her parents’ ban on her working in films until she matured. Harper is sixteen now (although she was fifteen when filming), and I can’t help but wonder if that ban should have been enforced for a few more years. Harper’s performance is lackluster in her best moments and overwrought in her worst. I imagine living up to the family legacy brought a lot of pressure to the role, and every pound of it shows, weighing down her performance into something bordering on unwatchable.
Harper’s counterpart is newcomer Grayson West. On paper, these two couldn’t be more different—her hailing from one ofHollywood’s royal families and him a complete unknown from the Midwest. One thing they share is an apparent lack of acting skills.
What could have been a heartfelt and touching story of first love turned into a boring and painful slog. What could have been the launching pad for two storied careers is instead likely the first and last time we will ever see Emmy Harper and Grayson West on the big screen.
Chapter Seven
