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“What is going on with you, girl? Maybe we can have a slumber sesh tonight. You can complete the four quadrants. Drew, Nick, Rick, and poor little Griffin.” He laughed. So did Ivy. He was good at cutting the tension. She needed that these days.
***
And so that night, Ivy went with Griffin as he packed up his things at the Belhurst. Then he left his room but without his suitcase. Griffin went down to the bar. There he made himself extremely visible. He took selfies with everyone. The Griffineers spread the word that he was at the bar. It got crowded. But Griffin kept smiling. Taking more photos. Meanwhile, Ivy took his suitcase and left the hotel. Nobody noticed her as everyone was too busy crowding around Griffin.
“Time to get some shut-eye. These baby blues are exhausted,” Griffin told his adoring fans.
The hotel manager escorted the remaining fans out of the hotel. Once they’d all left, Griffin put on his coat and baseball cap and stepped quietly out of the hotel service entrance and into the parking lot where Ivy waited in her rental car.
“You ready?” Ivy asked.
Griffin nodded and slumped down in the seat. But it was already dark outside and there was no one watching them. She drove toward her house. The whole thing was surreal to her. She’d never ever dreamed that a famous actor would be sleeping over at her house, much less in her bedroom For the first time in a while, she smiled to herself.
At the house, Mitch and Linda welcomed Griffin with open arms. They’d never had a celebrity in their home, and they were ecstatic. Linda handed Griffin a bowl of freshly picked blueberries. She’d read that actors preferred healthy snacks. He munched happily on the berries and started to relax. The family guided Griffin upstairs to Ivy’s bedroom. He noticed the pink bedspread and pillows. The dance trophies. The stuffed animals. The princess wallpaper border.
“Sorry about all the pink,” Ivy said apologetically.
“That’s okay—I love pink.” Griffin smiled. Then he collapsed on the bed. Exhausted. Linda and Mitch kept talking until they realized that Griffin was fast asleep. In his clothes. Linda placed a blanket on top of him. The family turned out the light and tiptoed from the room.
Across the hall in Carol’s bedroom, Ivy was sharing a queen- size bed with her sister. They hadn’t shared a room since they were kids. Carol had moved home during Covid. She’d never moved back out. She was saving money while she went to graduate school. Plus, it was so comfortable. Ivy struggled to find the right position. Her legs flailed about.
“Stop kicking me,” Carol said.
“Oh, sorry. Just trying to get comfortable.” Ivy turned over, her hands accidentally hitting her sister. “Sorry.”
“I really don’t understand why you didn’t just stay with Drew for the rest of the shoot.”
“At the Belhurst?”
“If that’s where he’s staying, then yes.”
“You know how I feel about the Belhurst. It’s where I lost my virginity.”
“I honestly don’t think Drew will mind. Guys don’t care who you slept with before. As long as you’re sleeping with them.”
“I know that. Drew and I are fine. It’s just that, for me and Nick, the Belhurst was our place for that special night.”
“Which isn’t in the script, by the way.”
“Some parts of my life should be private.”
“Good night.” Then Carol turned over and went to sleep.
***
The next morning Griffin woke up and felt refreshed. He hadn’t slept so well since he was a baby. He bounced downstairs. Linda was grinding fresh coffee and Mitch was making omelets. Carol was reading the local paper and Ivy was looking over the filming schedule for the day. They all looked up when Griffin practically skipped into the kitchen singing, “Good Morning” fromSinging in the Rain, improvising some of the lyrics.
“Good morning, good morning! I slept the whole night through. Good morning, good morning to you!Wow. I love this. Do you have breakfast like this every morning?” he asked.
“Actually, yes. We do,” Linda said with a smile.
“They do,” Ivy added without looking up.
“I’m like Little Orphan Annie. I think I’m going to like it here.”
“Amari sure does,” Carol said, looking up from the local morning paper. “They did an interview with her.”
Ivy grabbed the paper. HOLLYWOOD IN GENEVA. It was by that Rory girl. It had a picture of Amari posing at the coffee shop, showing how she loved the town, loved the movie, and loved working with the local extras. How she was so glad she met Drew, Vera, and Griffin. And…
