Lorenzo emerged from the steamy bathroom a few minutes later, dressed in nothing but a pair of loose-fitting basketball shorts. He smiled when he saw me and climbed onto the bed, and because his eyelids were heavy, I said, “You look like you could use a nap.”
“I really could, but I’m trying to fight it.”
“Why?”
He joked, “Because I don’t want you to think you’re with an old geezer who needs to pass out after sex.”
I curled up next to him and pulled a blanket over both of us. “I’d never think that. In fact, I could use one, too.” He drifted off soon after, and I tried to do the same. But even though I was tired, my mind wouldn’t stop racing long enough for me to fall asleep.
After a while, I returned to the TV room and found my phone. That was when I discovered Sylvia had sent a text just minutes before, which read: You got the part! Call me to discuss details.
My heart leapt, and when I called her back, she answered with, “Congratulations, Will!”
“It’s really happening?”
“Yes it is. I’m meeting with the studio and one of their lawyers at nine a.m. tomorrow to negotiate your salary and draw up the contract.”
“This doesn’t feel real.” I dropped onto the couch and took a deep breath.
“I’m sure it’ll take a while to sink in,” she said. “Meanwhile, we need to get busy. I’m looking online at flights as we speak, and there’s one tomorrow night at nine-forty. Assuming you come in to sign the contract around noon, will that give you enough time to get back to Catalina, pack, and get to LAX, or should I look for a later flight?”
“You think I should fly up Thursday night? Not Friday morning?”
“It’s going to take a while to get you to Mendocino. You’ll need to fly into Santa Rosa, which is two hours away, and there’s always the possibility of flight delays. We want to make sure the wardrobe department and hair and makeup get the time they need with you before the weekend.”
“Okay, I can make it work. Do I have a place to stay when I get there?”
“You will, but I don’t know the details yet. It’ll be on the studio’s tab, since you’re filming on location. They’ll probably give you whatever they’d booked for Trent Chambers,” she said. “Oh, while I’m thinking of it, don’t cut your hair between now and Friday. Don’t shave, either. The character is described as scruffy-looking, so we want to give the hair and makeup team something to work with.”
“No problem. Hey, do you think I can bring my cat?”
“I’ll make sure of it. If whatever they reserved for Trent has a no-pets policy, I’ll have them move you someplace that allows it.”
“Thanks, Sylvia.”
“One more thing,” she said. “I’m hiring you a personal assistant for the duration of filming.”
“I can’t afford that.”
“Consider it a gift. I’ll pay their salary out of the commission I’m making on this booking.”
“That’s nice of you, but do you really think I need a P.A.?”
“Definitely. You’ll need to devote all your time and attention to the film,” she told me. “That means someone else will need to worry about things like buying groceries, fielding calls, and managing your schedule.”
“Instead of hiring someone, couldn’t I just ask a friend to come along and help out?”
“I’d strongly advise against it. You need someone who can take orders and get the job done. The fastest way to ruin a relationship is to treat a friend like an employee. You also need someone who knows their way around a movie set, can handle the press, and can also manage your social media. That means hiring a pro.”
She had a point. I thanked her again and said, “You’ll be there tomorrow when I go in to sign the contract, right?”
“Absolutely. I’ll send you the flight information in a few minutes, and we’ll discuss any last-minute details after our meeting at the studio.”
I hesitated before asking, “This is for sure, right? They’re not going to call back in an hour and say they found someone they like better, are they?”
“No, they won’t. We have a verbal agreement, and they’re not going to renege on that. The part is yours, Will.”
We spoke for a few more minutes, and when we ended the call, I murmured, “Holy shit.”
No matter what she said though, I wouldn’t totally believe the part was mine until the signed contract was in my hands. I’d just been disappointed too many times, in too many different ways.
I put my phone down and scrubbed my hands over my face. So far, the new year had been such an emotional rollercoaster. Did I really just go from quitting acting to landing the biggest role of my career? That was already almost too much to process, before adding what had happened between Lorenzo and me to the mix.