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  While Gennie was still shooting the film in Colombia and after Bella had left Oregon last summer, she’d worked with Stefan on a film in Los Angeles. They’d immediately bonded, quickly developing a gentle rapport like brother and sister. Despite often playing angry characters, Stefan was soft spoken and sensitive. He was also a man susceptible to predatory women because he simply couldn’t fathom duplicity or manipulation and more than once had fallen for his female costars.

  “Oh, I’m so happy,” said Bella now, peering into the cupcake box. There were a dozen, in various flavors. “I call the Chocolate Velvet. Actually, I’ll try one now.”

  “Before dinner?” asked Linus, raising his eyebrows as if he disapproved. “How scandalous.”

  “No one gets as excited about cupcakes as Bella,” teased Gennie, her eyes on Stefan. “We might need to find her a support group.”

  Drake appeared from the front room, punching Bella lightly on the arm, before gesturing towards the kitchen. “Come in. As far as the cupcakes go, you best take one now before Bella eats them all.”

  Stefan closed the lid of the box as they all moved toward the kitchen. “Bella might be the only woman in Los Angeles who actually eats.”

  “Yeah,” she said, glaring at Drake. “And that’s a good thing. Right, Stefan?”

  “Absolutely, Bellalicious,” said Stefan.

  Bella stuck her tongue out at Drake. He rolled his eyes.

  “Did anyone bother you?” asked Bella of Genevieve, referring to the paparazzi.

  “It’s weird but I haven’t seen one photographer since we arrived. I don’t think they know we’re filming here,” said Gennie, taking off her baseball cap and letting her shiny brown hair fall loose about her shoulders. “And if the locals recognize us they’re too polite to approach us so far.”

  Bella looked at Gennie. There was no question she was one of the most recognizable women in the world. Bella forgot this sometimes because Gennie was unpretentious and fun, just a regular girl. But it could not be denied that she was, quite simply, stunning. She was tall and slender with eyes the color of iced tea and full lips covering impossibly white, straight teeth. Her skin was fair for a brunette and glowed with health. “I should hate you for being so damn beautiful,” Bella whispered to her as they linked arms and headed toward the large windows in the main sitting room.

  “I’m a mess,” Gennie whispered back. “I can’t figure out how to do my makeup without you.”

  “The river’s below,” said Bella to Gennie and Stefan, pointing out the window. “Is Tiffany Archer here yet?” She turned away from the window and went to warm her legs by the stone fireplace. “They follow her everywhere.”

  “I didn’t see any news people or paparazzi in town. We may have a few days of respite on that but they’ll find us soon enough,” said Gennie, following her to the fireplace. “They always do.”

  “I think you have it worse than I do,” said Stefan with smile. “Must be because you’re a huge movie star and I’m just some two-bit actor from Canada.”

  Gennie laughed. It was a real laugh, too, thought Bella. The kind that came from her chest; she hadn’t heard it for a while. And Stefan was staring at her adoringly. Already? This is the way it was with Genevieve Banks. Everyone fell in love with her eventually.

  Annie had come into the room, looking considerably better than she had that afternoon. Introductions were made and they all settled back into seats around the room.

  “Who’s Tiffany Archer?” asked Drake, picking up the thread of the earlier conversation.

  “Jeez, Drake, do you know anything about my world?” Bella pretended to be annoyed. Did he live in a box here on the side of this mountain? “She’s their costar. She’s just out of rehab and the press are all over her twenty-four seven.”

  “Is she the one who shaved her head and put the photo on Twitter?” asked Drake.

  Bella chuckled, getting up and going to the bar. She poured Annie a glass of sparkling water. “No, that was someone else. Tiffany just keeps driving her car high and drunk and getting arrested. This last stint in rehab was her fourth time, I think. I worked with her four or five years ago, before all the trouble was public. She’s a sweet girl, actually, from what I remember. But wow, I had to do some major repair on her face a couple of times. Several days she came onto set with bruises on her face and arms, which I had to cover up with heavy makeup so we could get the shots we needed. The director was not happy. He made both of us cry, actually. But anyway, when I asked her where she got the bruises she made up some story about tripping outside a bar, but I got the feeling it was something more personal. Like maybe an abusive boyfriend.”

  Annie shivered as she sat on one of the couches with a worried look on her face. “Poor girl. I hope she’s escaped him. That said, I also hope she doesn’t ruin your film.”

  “Richard’s taking a big risk but he believes everyone deserves a second chance,” said Bella. “And he thinks she’s talented. She was only seventeen when she did the film about the country singer and his rebellious daughter and she was spectacular.”

  “Richard’s the director,” Bella said to Drake, knowing he would have no idea.

  “Wasn’t she nominated for an Oscar for that one?” asked Annie.

  “Oh, look at Annie, all up with the gossip,” said Linus.

  “I didn’t know you cared about this kind of thing,” said Bella to Annie.

  Annie looked sheepish. “I don’t really. But I was at the dentist last week and there was a big article about her in People. All about her career and rehab and everything. I feel bad for her. She has that look in her eyes of a lost little girl. I want to set her down at my kitchen table and give her a bowl of pasta and then send her to bed.”

  Bella laughed as she made a martini, up with two olives, for herself. “If anything could help her, it’d be one of your meals.”

  Linus pointed at Bella’s martini. “Make one of those for me too.”

  Annie continued, serious about her subject. “Her parents were killed in a car accident, according to the article. When she was only sixteen or something. So sad.”

  “The girl’s got chops,” said Stefan. “Anyway, everyone deserves another go round in this business after they’ve made a few mistakes. She had fame come to her so fast and furious. One day she’s a girl from some small town in Idaho and the next thing she knows she’s on every billboard in the country and every magazine cover and nominated in the same category with Meryl Streep. It could cause anyone to go crazy.”

  Annie nodded, brushing back her unruly curls from her face. “That makes perfect sense. She was just a child when all that happened. It would take a strong person to get through without going a little crazy. Anyway, she’s come to the right town for a second chance. Maybe some of our good vibes will rub off on her.”

  “Her twin sister goes everywhere with her,” said Bella. “She tries to keep her on the right track but clearly it’s a tough job.” Sabrina Archer was Tiffany’s manager and assistant. Nothing went to Tiffany without first going through her sister.

  What wasn’t said, but Bella knew only too well, given her job, was that Tiffany’s looks had faded since her debut when she was eighteen. What had been exquisite, delicate beauty—she was fair skinned, a natural blond with piercing green eyes and a slightly crooked mouth that made her seem vulnerable and interesting—had faded with age and hard living into something more ordinary. She was no longer getting lead roles, not because of her reputation but because she wasn’t pretty enough to carry a film. Now destined to be a character actress, more the quirky best friend roles or the psycho neighbor, or, as was the case in this film, the sister who doesn’t get the man. It would be up to her now, in Bella’s opinion, to act so well that no one could dispute her talent. There was honor in that. No matter the sharks posing as critics or the haters that posted cruel things about her on their blogs and tweets and Facebook pages.

  “I think I saw her sister in town the other day.” Annie set
her drink on the coffee table. “I hope this doesn’t sound callous but it freaked me out a little when I saw her. I thought it was Tiffany at first and then she turned and I saw her scar.”

  “It happens all the time. Sabrina hates it. She never goes to events or parties because of it,” said Bella. Sabrina’s scar was a skinny scarlet ribbon that ran from her left cheekbone to the corner of her mouth.

  “Does anyone know what happened to her?” asked Stefan.

  “No one I know,” said Bella. It was one of those things no one could ask. Everyone knew about it and wondered how it happened but neither of the sisters talked about it.

  The conversation continued but Bella wasn’t fully listening. Where was Ben? Had he decided to skip dinner after what happened between them?

  Drake had disappeared out back to grill the meat. Bella excused herself from the group and followed him, careful not to spill what was left of her martini. The light had faded by now; it was just an orange glow behind the trees. “Is Ben coming to dinner?” she asked her brother.

  Drake, shutting the cover of his grill, looked at her sharply. “No. He decided he had something better to do, apparently.”

  She watched him. His light blue eyes were cold. “Are you mad at him?”

  He set the spatula on the bench next to his grill. “You know, Bella, I am. I don’t know what he thinks he’s doing. Kissing you this afternoon and then running off like a coward.”

  “You know he kissed me?”

  “Yes, unfortunately, I do.” He walked over to the outside cooler where he kept drinks and grabbed a beer. “I happened to see you guys. I think I’m scarred for life.” This was Drake’s attempt at humor, she knew, but it didn’t come out funny.

  “I’m sorry.” She took a big sip of her martini. It burned her throat. “It’s my fault. I blew it with him and now he can’t get past it.”

  “You know what? I call bullshit on that. You’ve done what you needed to do and you’ve let him know you’re interested. If he can’t get it together enough to give you guys another chance when he’s clearly in love with you then that’s just cowardly and not the man I thought he was.”

  She stared at her brother. He’d never taken her side before, especially when it came to her choices with men.

  “You were brave, Bella, and that matters.”

  “I just did what Annie told me to do.”

  “That’s what both of us should do at all times.” He opened the grill, turned the meat and then closed the lid once more.

  They were quiet for a moment, sipping their drinks and listening to the sizzle coming from the grill. “Drake, are you okay about the baby?”

  His eyes were sad when he smiled. “I am. So very much. But it’s hard, you know, because I miss Chloe so much. I almost feel guilty for being excited.”

  “What’re you going to do about the two rooms you have shut off?”

  He opened the grill again. Smoke came out in a puff. “I don’t know.”

  “It’s not fair to Annie.”

  “I know. She hasn’t asked me to change them. Isn’t that amazing?”

  “It is. But it’s also time.” She paused, putting her hand on his arm. “I’ll help you.”

  “Yeah. Good. Okay.”

  “Drake, I remembered something about Dad. About the day he dangled me over rooftop.”

  He turned away, taking a paper towel and wiping the platter free of the blood left from the raw meat. “What’s that?” His voice was guarded. He hated to talk of it, she knew, but her need to tell him what she remembered outweighed any feelings of protectiveness.

  “It was you who saved me. Did you know that?”

  He looked at her, his eyes blinking five times fast. “I don’t remember anything from that day. I don’t know how you possibly could. You’d just started preschool.”

  “It was you, Drake. You pulled us back. You straddled him and beat on his face until the cops came. I remembered it in therapy.”

  He leaned against the wall, shaking his head, his face twisted in pain. “He was a monster, not a man. And you were such a sweet little girl. I remember that. Mom and I both adored you.”

  Bella’s eyes filled. “I’ve carried it around for so long, you know, this idea that I was somehow bad enough to deserve what happened. I don’t know if I even realized it fully but, well, it explains so much of what I do to mess up my life. Especially with men.”

  “I know, Bellybear. I know. And this is a great place for a second chance.” He pulled her against his chest, kissing the top of her head. “Wish Mom could see how beautiful you are.”

  “Me too.”

  ***

  Bella and Gennie, wrapped in blankets, lay side by side on the lounge chairs on Drake’s deck, staring up at the night sky. It was clear, the horizon almost blue and the stars millions of silver splintered lights, brighter than anywhere Bella had ever been.

  Gennie, her gaze fixed upward, reached over and took Bella’s hand. “I’ve been a lot of places and I’ve never seen stars like this.”

  “I was just thinking the same thing.”

  “This is why we’re best friends,” said Gennie, squeezing her hand. “Kindred spirits.”

  They were silent for a moment. Looking up at the stars was like standing next to the ocean, thought Bella. One felt insignificant and yet also omnificent, as if it were possible to steal the power displayed, for nourishment and strength, possibly even courage.

  She turned to look at her friend just as Gennie swiped at her cheek with her hand.

  “Are you all right?”

  “It’s been a year today that Moody moved out,” said Gennie quietly. She dropped Bella’s hand and shifted onto her side. “Everyone says it takes a year to recover from divorce.”

  “Do you feel recovered?”

  “I’m broken, Bellie. I’ll never be able to have a relationship that works. You know that.” Gennie, regardless of her sensual performances, was unable to consummate any of her relationships. With Moody Gennie had believed there was a chance she would eventually soften and open to his touch, but it didn’t happen and finally out of frustration he’d ended the marriage. Bella did not know why Gennie could not bear a man’s touch. As close as they were, this was something Gennie refused to talk about.

  So, now, Bella said only this, “You and me. Kindred spirits.”

  Again they were quiet, shifting on the chaise lounges to look back up at the sky. After a few moments, Gennie stirred. “I’ve been thinking about your cosmetic line.”

  “Yeah?”

  “I’ll invest 49% if you can come up with the 51%, and don’t say you can’t come up with that kind of money because I know Drake will give it to you. And think of it this way—it’s actually a favor to me. I’ll need some source of income after I retire, and all the other actresses have already invested in restaurants. Seriously, once I turn forty I’m dead in Hollywood and then what am I going to do? I need a backup plan.”

  Bella laughed, turning her head to look at her friend. “How long did it take you to come up with that argument?”

  “There’s more.” Gennie met Bella’s gaze, her eyes shining in the light from the house. “I’ll do the ad campaign. My face can be the company’s face.”

  “What did you just say?” Gennie never did any sort of advertising work, believing it compromised her image as a serious actress.

  “You heard me. You know it’s the sure way to make this work. Jeez, does that sound arrogant or what? I don’t mean to sound that way.”

  Bella chuckled. “It’s only arrogant if it isn’t true, which in this case it is. But I don’t know. It seems too big. I don’t know anything about running a company.”

  “Don’t be afraid to look stupid, Bella. That’s the only difference between wildly successful people and those who think, ‘what might have been?’ I’ll get us some T-shirts made that say, ‘I’m with stupid.’”

  “What if I make you look stupid too? I can’t stand the thought of that.”

>   “I, clearly, am not afraid to look stupid, given the shit I do on a daily basis in front of a camera.”

  Could Bella really pursue this dream she’d talked about for so long? Here was a chance, offered up out of pure generosity from her best friend. How many others would get a chance like this? And yet, there it was like another person on the remaining chaise lounge: the fear of failure. The fear of looking like a fool in a world that loved more than anything to pile upon failure like it was something life-giving to those too afraid to look stupid themselves. The haters. They were everywhere.

  Bella’s eyes were drawn back up to the sky. “Under the stars here, it gives me the same feeling as standing by the ocean.”

  Bella shivered, the night air penetrating through the blanket. “It’s cold. We should go inside.”

  “Promise me you’ll think about my offer.”

  “I promise.”

  CHAPTER TWO

  THE NEXT DAY the cast and crew of “Stone River” gathered on set, or “base-camp,” as it was called in the business, for the first day of filming at a restored farmhouse. Surrounding the farmhouse were the grip, electric, props, and camera trucks, in addition to the "star-wagons" or trailers, for the director, Richard Greenwood, Gennie, Stefan, and Tiffany, all of whom were given the three-room variety. There was also a hair and makeup trailer, where Bella would do her work, along with the wardrobe truck that was like a huge walk-in closet.

  The meeting was held in a "lunch-box," which was actually an enormous pop-out trailer with ten long tables and folding chairs. Members of the crew were there now, sipping coffee and eating breakfast. Pastries and coffee were laid out on a side table and Bella chose a cherry Danish but skipped the coffee, feeling wired from nervousness, given the proximity of Graham Rouse.

  Yes, there he was, dressed in expensive slacks and a dress shirt, looking strangely out of place amongst the rest of the crew, all wearing jeans and sweaters. Stefan, talking quietly in the corner with one of the cameramen, wore work boots, jeans, and a fleece, seeming like a native to River Valley. Must be his Canadian roots, thought Bella. She made a mental note to tease him about it later.