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Erin immediately looked down and away, and her tight-lipped smile reminded him of Megan when she got caught sneaking cookies for her and Jace before dinner.
“They told you that, huh?” She swallowed, still not quite meeting his gaze. “No, it’s not for the USO. It’s a personal project.”
“And it’s classified?” he quipped.
“Yes,” she answered with a relieved sigh.
“I was joking.”
“Oh.”
That her cheeks turned pink made Graham all the more curious.
She sighed again, and her lips disappeared momentarily as she glanced at the nearby tables of diners. “For years, I taught high school English, but over a decade ago, I came up with an idea for a screenplay. After writing the first draft, I read books on writing for film and TV, attended classes, and eventually queried agents. But, in Hollywood, it’s all about who you know.”
“I’ve heard that.”
“I couldn’t exactly leave my husband and daughters in North Carolina to go try to make connections, so it didn’t go anywhere. However, after learning from many different resources, I created a curriculum for a screenwriting class. The private school where I taught didn’t think it had a broad enough appeal for a student body our size. So, I taught it as an after-school, not for credit class. The first class only had seven students, but they were connected with others interested in filmmaking, and interest grew. Some of those kids went on to study film in college, and a few have managed to get a foothold in the industry.”
From the way Erin’s eyes lit up when she explained, Graham saw her passion.
“A few months ago, one of those students got married. She’d worked on a reality dating show, and several others from her film class were at the wedding. Ian started as a reader at HBO and now works as the assistant to a producer who’s done series with Netflix and Amazon, so everyone in the group was pitching him their ideas.” Erin gave a shy smile.
“Did you pitch an idea too?”
“I did. After seeingTop Gun: Maverick, I spun up a new story idea. It’s an Army version with a female lead. I’m partial to the Army and their aircraft since my dad was an aviation mechanic and worked on Black Hawks.”
Even knowing she volunteered at the USO, that her idea involved the military made the hair on the back of Graham’s neck and arms stand at attention.
“When Ian returned to California, he pitched the idea to his boss, who loved it. But as a kickoff for a TV series instead of a movie. They asked me to write a treatment.”
“What’s a treatment?” All of this was new to Graham.
“It’s a synopsis for the movie or TV season. A list of characters, the scenes, and the major beats to see if the story holds together. Only we hit a snag when Ian’s boss found out I was Erin, E-R-I-N, not A-A-R-O-N. As in a female, and I had no military experience. He decided I didn’t have the qualifications to write this idea, but they’d pay me $10,000 to sell them the rights to the story.”
“While they stand to make millions.”
“Possibly. Or they couldlosemillions. At my age, this is very likely myoneshot at seeing one of my ideas make it to the screen. The timing with my girls being adults and my divorce,” she added with a pained hesitancy, “I’m in a position where I can do the research and go out to LA So, I said I wouldn’t sell them the rights unless they gave me a crack at writing the scripts.”
“That makes sense since it’s your idea.” She might not have military experience, but it’s not like Hollywood typically got things even remotely right in portraying the military.
“I already have a network of Army pilots through my support over the years, but the story includes a Special Ops team as part of the overall mission and story. Other than a friend from the USO who served in the Green Berets two decades ago, I have no connections there.”
At her mention of Special Ops and her Green Beret friend, his heart raced like someone had tossed a grenade in his lap.
“I went skydiving for the experience, hoping my tandem partner would be former Spec Ops. Sadly, he wasn’t even former military.”
“Youwent skydiving?” He tried to picture that. It had been a hell-no for Bethann.
“I did. It wasn’t the same as doing it alone, much less doing a HALO or HAHO jump as I envision in one of my scenes, but I can say I’ve jumped.”
That she knew high-altitude low-opening and high-opening jumps versus calling those skydiving showed Erin had done her research.
“I hoped that by working at the USO here, I might connect with somebody who would allow me a glimpse into their world. I want to give a realistic portrayal of their life at home, training, and on mission. I’m too old for hitting the bars, but I’ll make barbecue if someone invites me to a team get-together,” she said with a smile.
Graham’s guard went higher and higher as Erin came clean about seeking out a Special Ops team for her research. He needed to put the pin back in the grenade now. “Do you know what I do in the Army?”
Her eyes widened at his tone, which sounded harsh, even to his ears. Her posture stiffened, making him keenly aware he’d shifted into battle mode.
