Drake shrugged. ‘Not really. I was planning on dinner with some friends and then straight back to work on the twenty-sixth. I haven’t been home for Christmas in years, I prefer spending Thanksgiving with my folks.’
‘I always find it weird that everybody goes back to work the day after Christmas,’ Kitty said, taking a sip of wine. ‘In England everything comes to a standstill between Christmas and New Year. We spend the whole week stuffing our faces with chocolate and seeing who can drink the most without being sick.’
Drake’s cute nose wrinkled up. ‘Ugh. You English and your alcohol. Whenever we have an actor from the UK in one of our movies I just know we’re going to have problems. Hangovers and early morning shoots really don’t mix.’
She wanted to protest, maybe say something about that being better than the uptight valley boys, but if she was really honest there was more than an ounce of truth in Drake’s words. At the few Hollywood parties she’d been
to, the biggest hell-raisers always seemed to hail from somewhere in the UK or Ireland.
Looking down, she realised she’d already drained her glass of wine. Normally she’d pour out another without a second thought, but now she was hyper-aware of her alcohol consumption.
Seeing her expression, Drake quickly changed the subject. ‘So Everett tells me you’re still looking for an internship?’
‘I am,’ she said. She really wanted that second glass of wine now. ‘I haven’t found anything yet.’ She wondered whether she should mention the half-interview he’d given her, but somehow it didn’t seem like the right time.
‘If you keep on Everett’s good side, he may be able to help you. He’s pretty well connected in the business.’
No shit. She noticed he hadn’t mentioned the one she’d actually applied for though. Clearly that ship had sailed. ‘I guess I’ll get back into the search after Christmas.’ And maybe learn how not to panic as soon as she was asked a question. Yeah, that would be good, too.
‘Maybe you should see if you can get something back home,’ Drake suggested. ‘The movie industry in London is pretty healthy. Have you ever thought about going back there?’
Was he trying to get rid of her? Her interview technique must really have sucked. ‘I want to stay here,’ she told him. ‘Or in Hollywood anyway. If I can.’
‘Don’t you miss your family, though, living out here?’ Drake asked.
‘Yes, but none of them are living in London any more,’ Kitty told him. ‘One of my sisters lives in Maryland, and another is in Scotland.’ And even Cesca wasn’t spending that much time in London. ‘We talk on Skype and email, so me living over here doesn’t make that much difference.’
‘Can you pour me another glass of wine, Kitty?’ Annie called out from her chair across the room.
Oh sod it. Kitty poured herself another glass as well. After a day with the Kleins she needed it. If Drake wanted to judge her with his hyper-white smile and perma-tanned glow, then let him.
‘Why was Everett so cagey about that script the other day?’ she asked Drake, after passing Annie her glass. ‘He got really worked up about it.’
‘This project is important to him, it’s something he’s been working on for months. If anything goes wrong now I think he’ll have a fit. He sees it as his magnum opus.’
She raised her eyes to meet Drake’s. ‘A vanity project?’
‘No, not at all. It’s an important movie, one that has a real story to tell.’ He lowered his voice. ‘I really shouldn’t say any more. It’s very delicate and you know how angry he got when you came in the library.’
Kitty decided to take advantage of the thaw that had melted the atmosphere between them. ‘Are you sure you can’t tell me any more about it?’ She was desperate to know. Who wouldn’t be? It wasn’t often that a film student got to see a huge production being planned first-hand.
Not that she was seeing it. In Everett’s mind she was only the nanny, not a want-to-be intern.
‘I really can’t say anything about it at the moment.’ Drake looked almost regretful. ‘I would if I could. All I can say is that it’s big. That’s why Everett insisted I join him here.’
‘What made you arrive in a helicopter? Would a plane not do?’ She frowned, remembering the cacophony as the two of them landed in the meadow. Then she started to recall exactly what Drake and Everett’s arrival had interrupted, and a blush stole its way across her face.
Did she really have to wait until the morning to see Adam? Part of her wanted to run down there now, to see exactly what he wanted to talk to her about.
Drake laughed. ‘It was the fastest way to get from the airport. What were you doing down in the cabin anyway?’ He countered her question with another one.
For a moment she wondered if he could read her mind. ‘I had to look after the puppy,’ she squeaked, panicking. ‘He’s a present for Jonas and we’re hiding him down there until Christmas morning. It was the only place I could think of. Luckily Adam agreed to help out.’
‘You should stay away from that man,’ Drake warned, making a face as soon as she mentioned Adam’s name. ‘He’s crazy, and vicious as hell. Not somebody you want to be dealing with.’
Kitty’s breath caught in her throat. ‘What do you mean?’
‘Everett did everything he could this summer, after his brother got back from that clusterfuck in Colombia. Then Adam threw it back in his face, practically ripping the pool house apart. He even managed to give Everett a black eye. He’s an animal.’