Chapter 5
After that day, I made a point of scheduling my
riding lessons at different times than Jake.
We never bumped into each other again, but
the news that Jake would be my co–star broke
to me an hour before the film’s launch.
“I’m not doing it!” I told Sarah then and there.
But she just gave me a look. “You signed the
contract, Olivia. No going back now.”
My skin was crawling. Trying to stay calm, I
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asked her, “Sarah, you know why I want nothing
to do with Jake… I don’t know how I’m going
to…”
“That’s why I took this,” she cut me off. “Olivia,
the industry is small, and Jake is famous right
now. You think you’re never going to run into
him? You’re better off just being direct. You’re
exes. Why are you scared?”
I stared at her, speechless.
There were things I couldn’t tell her.
Finally, I sighed. “Okay.”
I knew she was right. I just wasn’t sure how I
was going to handle it.
A little on edge, I arrived on set and spotted
Jake in the crowd.
He was already in costume, and his face looked
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cold. The director talked him through the next
scene while he just stood there, looking
gorgeous in a white robe.
He must have known I was looking at him
because he turned my way.
After staring at me for a few seconds, he
looked away.
We didn’t talk for the whole day because we
were split between A and B teams.
Because I hadn’t done this in a while, I wasn’t
feeling it and couldn’t find my place in the
scenes.
The director was losing patience, and I got
scolded a few times.
At least I didn’t have a lot of scenes on the first
day, so I headed back to the hotel and read my
scripts.
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Sarah, seeing my sudden inspiration,
complimented me and left to deal with other
business.
I hadn’t been able to afford an assistant these
past few years, so it was just me. I was used to
doing everything myself.
After dinner, I stayed in my room and started
practicing lines.
Around 11 PM, I heard a knock on the door.
I had a face mask on and scripts in my hands,
and when I peeked through the peephole, I was
shocked.
It was Jake!
I ripped off my mask and panicked.
I needed to calm down.
If I didn’t open the door, there was nothing he
could do!
I took a few deep breaths and settled my
nerves.
Jake knocked a few more times, and I could
hear him getting impatient.
The more I relaxed.
He’d give up soon enough.
I watched him pull out his phone.
Then my ringtone filled the room.
I said nothing.
Scared, I rushed over and hung up.
The number wasn’t in my phone, so it was still
unknown
The number wasn’t in my phone, so it was still
unknown.
They called again, so I hung up and silenced my phone.
Then a message came in.
“Stop pretending. Open the door.”
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Chapter 2
“Seriously?!” I muttered to myself.
Was that Jake’s new phone number?
Before I could overthink it, Jake started
pounding on the door again, harder this time.
The hotel was packed with people from other
shows. I did not want any more speculation
about Jake and me. Groaning, I opened the
door, but only a crack.
I peeked out cautiously.
My room was luckily at the end of the hall,
around the corner, so no one could see us from
the corridor.
“What do you want?” I hissed, keeping my voice
down.
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7:57
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Jake looked like he’d just gotten out of the
shower, his dark hair still damp. He leaned
closer, his eyes level with mine. “You sure you
want to have this conversation in the hall?”
I bit my lip and reluctantly let him in.
The first thing he said was, “Heard you flubbed
your lines like fifty times today? The director
giving you hell?”
I just stared at him.
So, after three years of no contact, Jake had
decided to become petty enough to show up at
my door just to make fun of me?
“Yeah, so what? Happy now? Leave!” I
snapped, trying to contain my anger.
Jake ignored me. He looked around the room, then picked up the script I’d tossed on the bed
and started flipping through it.
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7:57
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“Where’s the trouble spot?” he asked, studying
each page.
“What are you doing?” I demanded, my voice sharp.
“Helping you with your lines. What else would I
be doing?” He looked up, all innocent.
But I didn’t trust him for a second.
I knew what I’d put him through. If the roles
were reversed, I wouldn’t be surprised if he
wouldn’t want anything to do with me and
probably be scheming revenge right now.
Especially after what he said about settling old
scores at that riding club.
I grabbed the script from his hands, threw it
aside, and pointed to the door. “Get out. I don’t
need your help. I can do this myself.”
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Compared to my outburst, Jake remained calm.
“Olivia, you’ve been a nobody for three years.
This is your one shot. Does that need to be
spelled out for you? You think the director
won’t replace you if you keep messing up
tomorrow?” His tone wasn’t harsh, but his
words hit me hard.
He was right. I did understand. That’s why I was
pushing myself so hard.
“Okay, quit crying. Your tears don’t work on me
anymore.” He picked up the script again, not
looking at me. “Dry your eyes. And don’t think
I’m scheming anything. If I wanted to screw you
over, you wouldn’t even have made it to the
opening ceremony this afternoon.”
He looked up, a humorless smile twisting his
lips. “Olivia, you’re too weak right now. There’s
no fun in messing with you.”
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C
I bit back the tears, wiped my eyes, took the script, flipped through the pages, and handed it
back to him. “Here. I’m stuck on this scene.”
Whatever. I didn’t have anything left to lose.
What was the point of being afraid? Might as
well use the free help.
Jake was a damn good actor. He had the
awards to prove it.
With his help breaking down the scene and
analyzing the emotions, the next day went much
smoother. I nailed almost every take. The
director even complimented me.
That night, Jake was back, helping me with the
script.
“This character is just the third female
character, but she’s determined to make
something of herself. In recent years, viewers
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have been loving this kind of attitude, and I
know you will too, which will bring a lot of
attention. Your manager has great intuition.”
“I understand,” I nodded.
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Sarah hadn’t given up on me when I was at my lowest. I owed it to her to pull myself together.
Jake showed up every night to go over the script unless he was filming late.
I’m pretty sure I had this character down pat.
Jake must have figured that out, too.
But neither of us said anything.
I greedily clung to those moments.
Filming was going well. Soon it was time for my
scenes with Jake.
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The story revolved around Jake, a rich kid
traveling when his family empire is mysteriously
destroyed. He’s out for revenge, so he uses the
second female lead as a pawn and conspires
with my character, the third lead. Eventually, he
finds love with the first female lead.
He was seeking the truth, wanting to exonerate
his family, blood against those who ruined his
clan.
I was the sister of the second female lead,
whose mom had wrongly accused and tortured
my mother figure until she died. I wanted
justice, too.
We hit it off immediately.
Since we’d been going over the script every
night, our scenes together flowed flawlessly.
The director was thrilled.
Our riding scenes were the best. Since we
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capture every emotion.
Jake even pulled off a one–handed mount. The
director went wild.
To celebrate a successful shoot, the director
cut the day short and announced a cast party.
During the party, he got a little tipsy, cornered
me, and said, “Honestly, I didn’t want you at first. But you are really working my nerves, I
only look to your acting, and I don’t care about
popularity, but your manager kept calling me to
give you an audition.”
He touched my glass. “But you didn’t disappoint me. I’m happy with you. Olivia, I want you in my
next show.”
His words made my eyes water.
Sniffling, I poured myself a full glass and
saluted him. “Thank you. Mr. Peterson. I
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7:58
saluted him. “Thank you, Mr. Peterson. I
appreciate it!”
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The director was practically carried out of the
party at the end of the night.
I was feeling pretty buzzed myself.
Everyone had a few too many. The other leads
were whisked away by their managers or
assistants.
I was the only one left with Jake.
“Let’s go,” Jake said, grabbing my purse.
“I can do it,” I slurred. I’d been surprisingly well-
behaved and quiet.
I stumbled out of the restaurant, trying to grab
my purse from his hands.
It was late.
7:58
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I stood outside, my head spinning. Sarah hadn’t
been able to make it, and my new assistant
didn’t start until tomorrow.
No one was waiting for me.
I leaned against the post and pulled out my
phone to call a ride.
But we were shooting way out in the boonies.
No cars available.
“Stop trying,” Jake said, appearing beside me.
He had one hand in his pocket. “Let’s just go.”
It took me a few seconds to process his words.
Then I nodded.
Jake’s RV was luxurious. I slumped into a seat,
drifting off.
I tried to stay awake.
7:58
“Just sleep. I’ll wake you when we get there,” Jake said from his seat.
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“Jake, when are you going to take revenge on
me?” The alcohol was hitting me hard. I sat up and leaned forward.
Jake was a loose cannon dangling over my head.
The higher I climbed, the more afraid I was of falling again.
Hearing the director’s words had really bummed me out. I was ashamed of being a has–been, of putting Sarah in the position of having to beg.
I was scared of slipping again, of letting her.
down again.
Jake opened his eyes.
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7:58
He sat up and turned to me.
“You want me to take revenge on you?” His expression turned icy.
I nodded, then shook my head.
I wanted to pay my debt.
But I couldn’t do that to Sarah.
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Jake leaned in, lightly pinching my cheek. “Any
kind of revenge?”
He tightened his grip.
I tried to pull away, but he held my hand.
“Jake, that hurts,” Tears sprang to my eyes.
He clenched his jaw and released me.
“Don’t cry in front of me, Olivia. I’m not falling
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Sniffling, I tried to negotiate.
“Can you…can you just target me? I don’t want
Sarah to get dragged into this…”
“You’re so considerate of others!” He scoffed,
sounding angry. He grabbed my chin again, a
cruel smile twisting his lips. “Why weren’t you
this thoughtful back then? I begged you, Olivia. You just took advantage of my feelings for you, didn’t you?”
I went silent. Tears streamed down my face.
I had said and done the cruelest things to break
up with Jake.
So, I deserved this.
Besides, he hadn’t actually done anything to
hurt me yet.
“I told vou. don’t crv!” He roughly wiped the
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tears from my eyes, his voice harsh.
I didn’t want to cry, but I couldn’t help it. The
alcohol was making it worse.
I didn’t want to break up back then. It had
broken my heart.
But I had no choice.
If I didn’t, I’d just drag him down.
Jake’s eyes glistened. His voice broke. “Olivia, shouldn’t I be the one crying?”
