Something Like Box Set

Chapter 5-1

Chapter 5

I didn’t have to be on set until Friday, so I did my best to put the whole Lucas situation out of my head until then. It wasn’t easy, and I’d had to take a few cold showers, but when Friday dawned and I got out of bed, I felt ready to deal with it.

I wasn’t sure if Lucas was scheduled to shoot any scenes today, but I had a Plan B if he wasn’t. Namely, I hoped to weasel his phone number out of Dan and then leave Lucas a message, asking to talk. That way the ball was in his court, and if he didn’t do anything with it, then it wasn’t my fault.

I may have been hoping for Plan B.

My makeup call was for nine-thirty, so I showed up a bit early. I didn’t see Lucas’s Camaro in the lot. I tried not to let my relief get the better of me. It could be that he had a later call. I took a deep breath and headed into the building. I walked straight toward my dressing room, knowing I would pass Lucas’s on the way. The door was shut, and when I paused and listened, I couldn’t hear anything from inside. All right then. I’d wait. If I didn’t see him by the end of the day, I’d talk to Dan.

Court was lounging on the couch in our dressing room, an e-reader in his hand and his glasses perched on the end of his nose. He looked up when I entered, and I gave the older man a grin.

“Thought you were supposed to be shooting already.”

Court made a disgruntled noise and waved his hand. “There was a malfunction with the lighting board. There were sparks. They’re trying to sort it out.”

I nodded and moved toward my side. Court had had the room to himself before I’d been made a full-time cast member, but he was gracious about sharing his space. Okay, so maybe my side of the room was less than half, but that didn’t bother me. Court was a great guy, and we’d found a friendship.

“That’s for you,” Court said from behind me. I turned to see where he was pointing. There was a box on the low table by the couch, white and wrapped in a red bow. I quirked a brow at him as I lifted the card from the top. It had my name on it, but nothing else.

“Who’s it from?”

Court shrugged one massive shoulder. “I don’t know. Was here when I got in.”

I picked up the box, surprised at how light it was. Court sat up, moving his feet so I’d have someplace to sit. I did and placed the box in my lap. Security was fairly tight, so I wasn’t worried about who had left it. Only someone with access could have gotten in, and anything sent by fans was screened before it was given to us. Of course, I didn’t really have fans per se. I knew it had to be from someone on the inside. But I couldn’t imagine who would be leaving me a gift.

I untied the ribbon and set it aside before cautiously lifting the lid. When I saw what was inside, my breath caught. With a great deal of care, I lifted one of the slippers from the box. Hand tooled dark brown leather, supple and giving, and lined with sheepskin. They were gorgeous. And I knew, because I knew slippers, that they couldn’t have been cheap. They looked warm and cozy and exactly perfect. There was no card inside, no indication of who had left them.

Realization dawned. There was only one person who knew about my slipper collection. But I couldn’t fathom why Lucas would buy me a gift, let alone such an expensive one. I didn’t make any sense.

Unless my father was right and he had been pulling my pigtails.

The question was why he’d changed tactics and was now giving me a present. Maybe it was just an apology? Perhaps he felt bad about what he’d done, about that kiss, and was trying to make it up to me. My brain spun, trying to rationalize the slippers I held in my hands.

“Those are nice.” Court’s voice broke into my musings. “Who gave them to you?”

“No clue,” I lied, standing up fast. By Court’s expression, I hadn’t been convincing, but thankfully he didn’t push. There was a beep and then the intercom crackled to life, announcing that the lighting problem had been fixed. Court stood and placed a hand on my shoulder as he moved past me.

“Back to work for me.” He was almost to the door when he paused, then turned slightly to look over his shoulder at me. “Whoever gave those to you must think pretty highly of you.” And then he was gone.

I knew Court was right. But it still didn’t make sense. There was no help for it now. I was really going to have to find Lucas and ask him what the hell was up.

* * * *

I was in the middle of shooting a scene and on a five-minute break while they reset, when I finally saw him. It was early afternoon, and it was just a glimpse as he poked his head into the room to see what was going on. I knew he saw me, because it wasn’t until I lifted my hand in a wave that he ducked back out again. Now he was just being weird. I put it out of my mind until I finished the scene, knowing I had to be in the right mindset to get my character right.

Three hours later, we were done, and I went in search of the elusive Lucas. He wasn’t on set, or in his dressing room. I was just headed to craft services when I spotted him walking down the hall. I sped up to catch him, but by the time I did, he’d ducked onto the bullpen set and was in conference with one of the producers. I waited, trying to look inconspicuous, but I was drawing stares. Giving it up as a lost cause, I headed back to my dressing room and changed. Then I loitered in the doorway for a while, thinking I’d catch him when he came to change.

Two more hours dragged by and I felt like a fool. He had to be avoiding me, but I couldn’t figure out why. He must have been trying to tell me something with the gift, but now he didn’t want to talk to me? He was confusing as all hell. And I was the i***t waiting around.

I packed up my stuff, and the slippers, and headed out. On the way, I veered down the production office hallway and sneaked a look at the call sheet for the next day. Lucas was scheduled to be in makeup at seven-thirty, and I knew it was his habit to get to the set at least an hour early. New plan in place, I headed home.