There he was, her midnight sun.
He held open the car door. Nina looked up at his face, because she could never pass an opportunity to gaze at him. Her trained eye saw the man beneath the veneer. He looked fragile, as if he’d been shattered and pieced back together. His extended hand trembled slightly. She accepted it without hesitation. He squeezed tight, sending shivers racing up her bare arms, before helping her out of the car. Nina repeated her mantra, more frantically this time: I’m over him. He’s nothing to me.
Under a hailstorm of flashing cameras, he stole a moment to whisper his thanks. “I can’t tell you how much I appreciate this.”
“I’m here to support the film,” she whispered back. “We didn’t work so hard for it to fail.”
This movie was as much her own as anyone else’s. She was proud to come out and support it. And with any creative project, she wanted it to be a smash hit.
“Whatever your reasons, I’m grateful you’re here.”
He pivoted and smiled for the remote pool of photographers sectioned off with velvet ropes. Nina was not the natural showman that Julian was proving to be. Her posture was stiff and her smile wobbly. She blamed her frayed nerves. It wasn’t easy to face the cameras after all that she’d been through. Her weak knees had nothing to do with how close they were standing or his hand on the small of her back.
After what seemed like an eternity, Katia escorted her off the carpet. Bettina and Pierce had arrived, and it was time for her to yield her spot. “You did great. Now grab a glass a champagne and relax.”
Valerie was waiting in the lobby. Nina’s cousin was her plus-one for the event. Perceptive as always, Valerie hadn’t missed a thing. “You two look amazing together, and, honestly, it’s time for you to kiss and make up.”
Nina kissed her cheek in greeting instead. “Shut up and show me to the concession stand.”
With champagne, popcorn and gourmet snacks, they entered the packed auditorium. An usher escorted them to the front row, where Nina was reunited with Francisco and Grace, who appeared to be on a date.
Midnight Sun was a gorgeous film. Nina lost herself in the world that she’d had a hand in creating. From the opening scene with Bettina in a white bikini, floating on her back in that magnificent pool, to the end credits with Pierce driving into a citrus-hued sunset in a stolen white Camaro, frame for frame, the film was art in motion. The performances were as strong as the setting, and the audience rewarded the actors with a standing ovation. Julian was welcomed on stage for the director’s Q&A to thunderous applause. He glowed with pride. Nina was bursting with love. She loved Francisco for having insisted he step up and direct. She loved the actors for their dedication. And she loved the audience for their warm reception.
Julian took a seat in a director’s chair next to the evening’s host, tall and lean and gorgeous. He is nothing to me.
Valerie nudged her in the ribs. “Relax! And quit glaring at the guy.”
Nina could not relax. “Why does he look so good? It’s distracting.”
“How about you, #sexgoddess?” Valerie said, teasing. “Let me guess. Your trusty LBD was at the cleaners, so you grabbed a Grecian gown.”
Nina had borrowed a play from her mother’s book: face your critics looking like a star. She’d headed straight to Fifth Avenue and enlisted an in-house stylist at Saks to help find the right dress: “I’m going to an event and I’m not sure what kind of reception I’ll get.”
“Sounds like you’re venturing into shark-infested waters.”
“Something like that. I need to look devastatingly beautiful. Can you help me?”
“Darling, that’s my expertise.”
The gauzy one-shoulder dress she wore was the first he’d put her in, but they’d kept coming back to it again and again. She appreciated the way it hugged her figure, but the pleats and folds made it easy to wear. To complete the look, the stylist had insisted on gold accessories. And to save a trip to a hair salon and stave off Miami’s humidity, Nina wore her hair in a long French braid.
“Ladies and gentlemen,” the host said, “please welcome Julian L. Knight.”
There was a fresh round of applause. Julian smiled and waved, but his gaze swept the front row until his eyes locked with hers. Nina’s aggravation dissipated. Briefly, they were alone in the packed auditorium. Nina nodded her encouragement. All those nights they’d stayed up working on the script and those long days on set, she’d been with him almost from the start. She was with him now. They might never ride off into the sunset together, but she was on his side.
“Mr. Knight, you are better known as Thunder. From action hero to movie director, that’s quite a leap. How did you go about it?”
“First I’d like to thank you for having me. I love Miami Beach, and I’m happy to be back.”
The audience cooed at his words. They loved him and Nina loved them for loving him—although, to be sure, she still hated him.
“To answer your question, the story idea came to me a long time ago. I spent years working on it, but I could only take it so far. I had to wait for the right people to come into my life. People like your hometown hero, Francisco Cortes, whom I consider a mentor and father figure at this point.” He paused for applause. Francisco twisted around in his chair and blew kisses
