“Nice to meet you guys,” Ruby said. “I hear you’re filming your own movie. Exciting.”
“We’re here for tips.” I laughed.
“I’m still not sure why I’m here,” Will mumbled.
“Aww, are you nervous?” Margot asked as she stroked his arm. “If it would make you feel more comfortable, you could always get naked too.”
“I’m not sure that would help.”
“Shame.” Margot winked as she moved over to fiddle with the lighting.
Will side-eyed me. “Is she flirting with me?”
“Stop being weird,” I replied, ignoring Margot’s obvious interest in Will.
“Just to bring you up to speed, we’ve filmed the first scene where they meet and a little of the backstory. We just need to finish a couple of sections and then we’re all set for the sex scene. Take a seat to start with and when we’re ready you can become more involved. See the camera angles, that sort of thing.”
“Anything that will help. Thanks.”
For the next hour or so, we sat on a settee at the back of the room. Margot gave me a copy of the script that had been approved by Caroline Dixon. I read her handwritten notes and it gave me a good insight into what she felt would or wouldn’t work. A note indicated that some of the novella didn’t translate well to film. Lines were too much. Reading them and hearing them said out loud were two different things. To her, it felt stilted and she’d added ways to get around that in the margins. It was the first time I’d thought about filming the scene like an adaptation of a story and I made a few notes to help me when I started to write my own. Margot offered suggestions of filming a few different scenes to cover all tastes. A woman and a guy, two males, two females, a mixed group and I started to consider body types and shapes that would speak to our audience.
“OK, guys, we’re going to start the sex scene. Will, if you want to, shadow the second camera but keep an eye on the others so you can get to know the right angles and what looks good.”
“Christ,” he whispered.
“Don’t get overwhelmed,” I replied as Ruby slipped one shoulder out of her robe and started rubbing an ice cube on her nipple.
“Don’t get overwhelmed?” His eyes followed the dripping water.
“Skye, come over. I’ll be giving direction, which will be your job when you’re ready to shoot your film.” Margot wiggled her finger at me, and I stood up. Will grabbed my hand, stopping me and when I turned his anxiety wasn’t just written, it was etched across his face.
“What are we doing?” he said. “This is madness, even for you.”
“We’re just here to learn,” I said joining our fingers together, the same way we did the night he held me as I tried to sleep, crying through my grief but anchored by him lying behind me.
“Stay close to me,” he asked, and I squeezed his hand in a silent yes.
“Right, this scene takes place in a bar. Charlie has stayed until closing time and Ruby is cleaning up. He talks about how he missed her at his concert, she couldn’t be there as she had to work, that kind of thing.” Margot talked with her hands and she was animated but clear. “He talks about being unable to keep away from her, they kiss, and one thing leads to another. Basically, he eats her out on top of the bar. It has to be quick and hurried and passionate because her boss is upstairs, but the thrill of being caught makes everything that much more potent.”
She crouched down out of shot and held her fingers up. “I want a camera here so we can get a great close up shot of mouth and tongue.” She pointed towards another camera. “Over there, I want ass shots. Charlie has a great ass and we need to show it off.” She waved over a guy wearing a leather bag around his waist full of make-up brushes. “Can we get a touch up here. Ruby has some shine on her nose and it’s distracting.” She turned to me and Will. “If this gets too much you can leave at any time, but I’d advise you to get as much as you can from this. Not many people have the opportunity to watch a professional in the industry film a scene like this. Ask questions, get involved. Make suggestions. I’m open to that.” I held my thumb up and smiled, trying to appear confident and not ready to vomit. I turned behind me and found Will crouching on the floor. To anyone who didn’t know him like I did, he looked strong and confident, his thighs stretching against the denim of his dark jeans, the rolls of muscle and sweet tension in his thighs. But I saw the nervous adjustment of his glasses and the small breath he blew out. He smiled at me, bit his lip, wordlessly telling me that he couldn’t believe I’d got him into this situation, but his smile told me that despite everything, he wouldn’t want to be anywhere else.
“Action!”
That one word brought me back into the room and away from thoughts of Will. Ruby began stacking barstools on top of the bar, Charlie watching her, a smile tugging at his lips, watchful and steady, but I imagined his heart pounding, watching the woman he loved with an ache in his cock as he became more turned on. There was some dialogue, a statement of how much he missed her, wanted to see her beautiful face in the crowd tonight, focusing only on her full lips as he sang. She touched her neck, her lean fingers trailing down to her collarbone before
