Damn! He should have run.
‘Bruce, a word?’
He sighed as she approached. ‘Yes, Lexi?’
Here it comes.
He could say no. He couldn’t afford—literally—to do more work for free or else he’d find himself settling into the props room with Kenzie’s mate, Dylan.
Be strong. Say no.
‘Bruce, I know we already rely on you a lot. But I was wondering if you’d like to take over as stage manager.’
He massaged the back of his neck, hoping it would coax out that one short word. It refused to come so he had to settle for a mangled set of six. ‘Deputy is good enough for me.’
‘We both know you do most of the work around here. It’d be nice if you had the title to go with it.’
‘It’s not the title, Lexi.’
How could he say it without sounding desperate? The theatre couldn’t afford to pay everyone. Lexi took a salary because it was her job; everyone else was a volunteer. He only got paid for the sets to cover the cost of materials and a fraction of his time. Even then he went above and beyond to make sure they got their money’s worth. He’d lost count of the freebies he’d done on the theatre building itself. He did it because the theatre was safe, a second home, and he loved being a part of it, but if he let it take up too much of his time then he’d be in strife.
Worse strife.
She took his arm, pulled him close and lowered her voice. ‘How about a stipend?’
His neck and shoulders clenched, seizing the muscles that flanked his spine. What had she heard? ‘It’s not the money—’
‘Bruce, you don’t have to be modest. There’s always been a stipend, but Hamish never did enough to warrant it. When I took over, I wanted a strong person in that position—a partner—and I rearranged the budget so I could pay for it, but Hamish was already stage manager and he and I never got along. He was happy with the title. But I’ve kept the money there in case someone—in case you—one day became my SM.’
She thought that highly of him? He just did what he had to do. His back relaxed a little, warmth spreading through the base of his spine. ‘But you’re already paying me for the sets.’
‘And so I should! Considering what a fantastic job you do, it’d cost us four times as much to get them done by anybody else and we’d get nowhere near the same quality. But paying you for the stage manager job would be the right thing to do.’
The tension faded out of his body. ‘That’s very generous of you, Lexi,’ he murmured.
‘Don’t say that until you see how small it is, but it’d mean a lot if you were my SM and I’ll pay for that privilege.’
He snorted. ‘Sounds like you’re propositioning me.’
‘Oh, I am,’ she chuckled. ‘And luckily not in a way that you’d find attractive. What do you say?’
He already coordinated the designers and the stage crew, and if it wasn’t for his notes, over half of the decisions Lexi made during the rehearsals wouldn’t be recorded. Hamish maintained a stranglehold on the scheduling and delighted in bossing people around during the rehearsals when Lexi wasn’t available. Without Hamish’s unique management style, things would run a lot smoother and with fewer complaints. He could fit it all in. And if he wanted the money, he’d have to.
He looked around to make sure no-one was within earshot. ‘Can I ask how much the stipend is?’
‘It’s two hundred per week for the run of the production, which would make it about twelve hundred all up.’
She was right. It wasn’t much but it was something. And any money would help with his mortgage repayments. If it was going to make any difference, he had to sign on now. Besides, he didn’t want to let Lexi down after the faith she put in him.
‘Alright, I’ll be your SM.’
‘Perfect!’ She jumped in his arms, knocking the wind from his lungs.
He hugged her, lifting her feet off the ground, and she laughed. They made a great team. It was a shame they’d only have one chance. Despite the warmth, a chill scratched the edges of his heart. When—if—Rivervue closed he’d have more time … More time to sit at home alone. If he still had a home then. He put her down before he shivered.
She straightened her dress and smoothed out her demeanour. ‘Right, now that’s sorted, about the sets. Sofia hasn’t submitted a design yet, but I’m hoping for something soon. It will mean you’re going to be up against it getting them done in time.’
What else is new?
There wasn’t a single production over his twenty years in the theatre that hadn’t involved a mad panic at the end. Perhaps this time they should take it slow and make it harder for them to be evicted. But did Sofia have that kind of time?
‘Are you sure we should put her under this kind of pressure considering her health?’ The sight of her collapsing in the back garden like a shot kangaroo still caused his stomach to clench.
Lexi’s eyes pinched. ‘I can’t take it away from her, even if it would be for her own good, but let’s keep an eye on her. I don’t want you to be too stretched for time and we need to get the sets done asap.’
‘Same with the costumes.’
Lexi gnawed her bottom lip. ‘We’ll get it done.’ Her hand bat the air as if that were enough to shoo away the deadline’s buzz. He recognised her faux-confidence, the hope that everything would magically work out. He’d tried it himself and all it had done was bring him closer to eviction. ‘Right, I’ve got to talk to Kenzie and Richard. I’ll see you later.’
He needed to be bold. That’s what people expected of someone his size—the kind of person who’d run into a burning building. He’d do that
