Unexpected invitation

*Elijah*

“My job has been to know you better than you know yourself, so I can design a perfect way to kill you. You will respond, and the agency will wait. It… is… foolproof.” The semi-famous actress delivers her lines stiffly, devoid of any passion.

“Very nice. Thank you,” Silas says, shifting uncomfortably in his chair.

I flash a smile at her. “Yeah, that was great.”

“Really? I was so nervous,” she replies, rising to her feet.

“Seriously? I couldn’t tell at all,” I say, beaming at her. “I was just thinking, ‘God, this girl is really, really good.’ You were fantastic.” I pull her in for a warm hug, and she clings to me like she’s drowning.

Before walking out the door, she shoots me that look… the hungry one that sends chills down my spine.

As soon as she leaves, I turn to Silas, Cassandra, and the casting director, Benny. “Who the hell was that supposed to be?”

“Uh, Gretchen…” Benny stumbles over his words.

“I know who she is, but who was she supposed to be? Some CIA pod person? Is that it? Is anyone at all interested in coming in here and just being a human being?” I tap my finger on the table, my frustration bubbling over. “Huh… just a normal human being?”

Benny sighs and walks toward the door. “I’ll check.”

“Those women… I swear, I feel more connection to the goats in my backyard. At least I know they’re goats.” I know I’m overreacting, but why is it that even professional actresses act so strangely around me? I just want this movie to be good.

“We can always drop this and find the right one later on,” Silas suggests, giving me one of those looks.

I shake my head. “It’s not about me, Silas…”

The door opens, and Benny walks in with a young woman. She’s dressed in a sleeveless white blouse and a pencil skirt, her makeup simple and her dark hair pulled back in a perfect ponytail. She’s smiling, but her eyes look tired. “Guys, this is Nina Blake.”

The director approaches to shake her hand, and Benny introduces him. “This is our director, Andres Plank.”

“Welcome,” Andres says, then points to me. “And this is Elijah Grant.”

“Hi, Nina. Hey… how are you?” I walk over, pleased to notice that she maintains eye contact, smiling at me in a natural way.

“Fine, thanks. Are we sitting?” she asks, glancing at the chairs.

I nod; there’s something about her that grabs my attention. “Whatever you like.”

She smiles and takes a seat, and I follow suit. “Just whenever you’re ready,” Andres says from behind me.

*Nina*

I start reading, pouring everything I have into this moment… the pain of the hangover, the hurt from Devon cheating and lying, and the fear surrounding this audition. The nerves of sitting across from one of the world’s most famous actors weigh heavily on me. This might be my one chance.

His alert hazel eyes follow my every movement, and I’m relieved to realize that we seem to have a connection. We fall into the rhythm of each other’s lines effortlessly.

And by God, he is handsome. But what captivates me is the aura he carries… like a warm glow mixed with an underlying sadness that I see in his eyes. It makes me want to figure out why he’s sad and do something to ease that pain.

“I have spent hundreds of hours studying you.” I shake my head, letting despair wash over me, a tear sliding down my cheek. “Your habits, your body language, every inflection in your voice… for years. My job has been to know you better than you know yourself, so I can design a perfect way to kill you.”

I see emotions flicker in his eyes as I hold back for a moment. “You will respond, and the agency will wait.” I nod, choking up slightly. “It’s foolproof.”

We sit in silence, gazing into each other’s eyes, feeling an unexplainable pull that frankly scares me a bit. I quickly get up. “Thank you for letting me read.”

“No… thank you,” he says softly, still staring at me.

I nod to the others and leave the room, overwhelmed by a whirlwind of emotions… from the reading and this strange connection I felt with Elijah. No, stop being silly, Nina. It was just the reading.

As I walk out of the building, my phone starts ringing. Of course, it’s Devon. On top of everything, it’s a bit much, and I might be sniffling a little.

“Nina, wait…” I hear a voice and turn to see Elijah coming out of the building, slightly out of breath. His voice is full of awe. “That was amazing… you are amazing.”

I try to collect myself. Hearing that from Elijah Grant somehow doesn’t help; he looks slightly worried. “Hey… are you okay?”

“Yeah, it was just a really heavy scene, you know?” I brush it off with a wave of my hand, feeling slightly embarrassed. “It’s been a long twenty-four hours, so I probably shouldn’t be around actual people right now.”

“Look, I just wanted to say thank you for making my day,” he says, giving me a genuinely sweet smile. “That is what acting is supposed to be.”

Oh wow, I chuckle nervously. “Thank you, that’s very, very sweet of you to say.”

He nods, and for what feels like an eternity, we just stand there, looking at each other. Then he slowly turns to head back inside, probably for another reading. I sigh and turn toward my car.

“Are you hungry?” I hear him call as he walks back toward me, one hand in his pocket. “Can I take you out for lunch?”

I can’t help but laugh nervously. Did the world’s most eligible bachelor just invite me to lunch? What can I say but, “Sure… I’d love to.”