“You’ll need the rest because as soon as you get back, it's off on our whirlwind of locations.”
“London, Paris, Prague, Dubai, and then New York. Then we’re done with Trinity forever.”
“Did you know they're talking about doing another one with the next generation? Our baby. Can you imagine? Promise me, no cameos unless we do them together.”
“Oh wow. I hadn’t heard that. But speaking of doing something together, I read your script.”
“And?”
“I'd love to do it with you if we could make a few tweaks.”
“What kind of tweaks?”
“Well, you have it set in New York. Was there a specific reason for that?”
“Uh, not really.”
“What if he meets her speed dating in San Francisco? Still a big city. And what if she works at a vineyard?”
“Are you suggesting we film it at your place?”
“Sort of. The people who own the land that butts up to ours are retiring and moving to Palm Springs. They asked Aiden if he'd be interested in buying their land. They plan to parcel it off and then sell their two houses separately. One is a quaint bed and breakfast that could be an adorable set. Near it are two very new and very large aluminum outbuildings. Much like the ones we’re filming in now.”
“Hmm. I like the idea. It'd certainly make for an easy commute for you.”
“Knox, at one point, you were talking about buying a place out there. A getaway. The other home is a beautiful Tuscan-style villa set on the top of a hill. It has a similar view to ours, all the way to the ocean. A sweet infinity pool. I think you’d love it.” I grin at him. “It’d make for an easy commute for you too.”
“Are you suggesting I buy it and we fund this project ourselves?”
“Yeah, I am. We can always do a deal later with Captive for distribution.”
“We'd stand to make more that way, wouldn't we?”
“If it performed well, yes. If not, we could lose a lot.”
“For sure. Okay. Wow. You've given me a lot to think about. Something about finishing Trinity makes me feel like a grown up now. Does that even make sense?”
“It does,” I say sadly, sitting down next to him and handing him an apple. “I sort of feel that way too. Like we’re graduating.”
“Yeah, that’s it. We’re graduating. On to the next great thing. And don’t worry, sugar, I’ll never forget that I was your first. It seems like yesterday.”
“You’re goofy. But you’re right. You were my first screen test.” I laugh at him. “It’s amazing that we’re even friends. You were such a jerk to me.”
“Naw, I just played a jerk.”
I give him a hug. He’s going to make me start crying with all this nostalgia, so I change the subject. “So, what does grown up Knox want to do with his life?”
“Truth?”
“Yes.”
“Don’t tell anyone, but I’d like to get married and start a family. We've both put our lives on hold for these movies. Me more so than you.”
“Are you thinking of settling down with Jennifer?”
“Uh, no. Maybe I could meet a cute little wine wench?”
“I don’t even know what that is.”
“Me either. I’ve never dated a normal girl.”
“You have dated your fair share of crazies.”
He swats me on the shoulder. “I meant normal as in not in the industry, not that they were crazy. I’m talking no models. No actresses. And definitely no makeup artists from the movie set. I will never date one of those again. What a flipping disaster that was. Part of me can’t wait for this movie to be over, just so I won’t have to look at her lying, cheating face every time I need powdered.” He gives me a smirk. “You know what, you might be right. She was crazy. I mean, who in their fucking right mind would cheat on Knox “The Sexiest Man Alive” Daniels?”
“No one, Knox.” I laugh. “No one. You know what? There are some normal people coming to the wedding. Quite a few of the women do work in the wine industry, although I would avoid the term wine wench.”
“I’m supposed to go to the wedding with Jennifer.”
“Have you had the talk yet?”
“No. I was going to last night, but after the Parker Hudson interview, she was so damn happy I couldn’t. Speaking of that, did you and Vanessa have anything to do with his sudden change of heart?”
I pull up a photo and show him my phone.
“Holy shit,” he says, as he turns the phone sideways and starts blowing it up. “Shouldn’t have done that.” He laughs and covers his eyes. “Where did you get this?”
“I have good friends.”
“Sander?”
“He is one such good friend.”
“I can’t believe you used to date him.”
“Are you kidding me? He was the perfect boyfriend; he loved to shop, knew designer labels better than I did, and never, ever looked at other women.”
“Fuck. You probably did love that. So it all makes sense now.” He kisses my cheek and looks at the photo again. “I’m sure glad we’re on the same side, sugar.”
Dawson’s beach house - Malibu
DAWSON