Page 16 of Cinematic Destinies (Red Carpet Romance #3)

“What, exactly?” Roo asked, still looking straight ahead.

“Beauty. Pure beauty.”

The men stood silently for a moment, watching Georgia. She rose with a small bouquet of flowers in her hand, turned toward them, smiled brightly, and waved them over. Both men smiled and, without looking at one another, began walking to her.

“Cut!” Jean hollered.

The actors turned to Jean, soft smiles on their faces as if they already knew it had been something special. He smirked and said, “Don’t get too full of yourselves. Mother Nature did the heavy lifting. Let’s do it again to capture it from different angles. Places, everyone.”

AFTER A LONG DAY OF FILMING, JEAN AND the actors drove to the small local inn. Georgia and Roo unpacked in their room and then headed downstairs to meet Jean and Michael for dinner. They found Michael alone, sipping a cocktail.

“Where’s Jean?” Georgia asked as she sat down.

“There’s some kind of problem and he’s outside speaking with a couple of the crew,” Michael replied.

“What kind of problem?” Roo asked as he took the seat beside Georgia.

Michael shrugged.

“Today was magical. I hope he’s pleased,” Georgia said.

“You know by now he’s not one to show his softer side, but I saw his face today. That was as close as he gets to being fucking ecstatic.”

Georgia giggled.

Just then, Jean trudged into the room, grunting with frustration.

“What’s wrong?” Michael asked as he helped Jean sit down.

“Some bloody weather event is coming. It’s going to be pouring rain for the next two days. We won’t be able to film the landscape shots until after the weather passes.”

“Oh, no. That’s a shame,” Roo said.

“That’s what I get for shooting a picture in this damn country. The weather can change on a whim, and she is unforgiving. They tell me when it rains here, it’s relentless. There is no hope of filming on schedule.”

“What are you going to do?” Michael asked.

“We can’t go back and forth, it’s too far, so we’ll extend the location time here.

I’ll stay here and wait out the weather for the next two days, then we’ll shoot the following day, and then return the day after that.

So, looks like you’ll all be off for the next four days.

Actors are so bloody lucky. Directors get all the aggravation,” he grumbled.

“I’m sorry, Jean,” Georgia said. “If it’s any consolation, you were right. This place is stunning. We all felt like we were a part of something magical today.”

Jean huffed. “For the beautiful light we basked in today, the price is two days of rain. There is always an underside. Like those midges you so detested. The protectors of this land.”

“The midges weren’t so bad. Well, once the shock wore off,” she said.

Two staff members came in to serve their dinner: local fish bathed in a langoustine sauce, with vegetables, potatoes, and homemade bread.

They enjoyed their meal while talking about travel, art, and the glory days of location shoots.

The actors praised Jean for making “real art” the “authentic way,” to which he shrugged and snorted his responses.

Jean began telling them a story about his first film but was interrupted when a crew member came into the room.

“Mr. Mercier, we need to speak with you again, regarding some overtime issues with the locals we hired.”

Jean sighed, leaned on the table for support, and labored to his feet. “I’ll be back in a moment, I hope. Order me another bourbon.”

Once he was out of earshot, Georgia said, “Gee, today was such an achievement for him. You could feel how cinematic and timeless those scenes will be. It’s too bad he’s not able to enjoy the incredible artistry he created.”

“Honestly, I think he prefers to have something cosmic to gripe about. You know his shtick: there’s always a dark side.” Michael stopped to chuckle before adding, “Sometimes I think the universe does him favors by continually proving out his dystopian views.”

Georgia and Roo laughed.

“On the plus side, we’ve all ended up with four days off,” Michael noted.

“That’s right,” Roo said. He turned to Georgia and asked, “What do you think about a little adventure? Luckily, we have my car. We could take a trip somewhere.”

“I’m always up for an adventure,” she replied.

“How about the Blue Lagoon? I’m sure it’s terribly romantic. We could leave after breakfast in the morning, stop along the way should we see something of interest, and be there sometime in the late afternoon.”

“I’d love that. I’ve always wanted to go there.”

Roo rubbed her arm as they smiled at each other. He turned to Michael. “There’s plenty of room in the car if you’d like to come too. We can also drop you back off at the inn on the way if you prefer.”

“Thanks, but I’m gonna stay here with the old man. He may be able to use some assistance. I don’t want to leave him on his own.”

“That’s kind of you. The way you look out for him,” Georgia said.

Michael shrugged. “He’s been good to me.”

“Well, if you don’t mind, I think we’ll go upstairs and get some rest so we can get an early start tomorrow,” Georgia said. “Will you tell Jean we said good night?”

Michael nodded.

Georgia walked over and leaned down to give him a hug. “You’re a good guy, Michael Hennesey. Don’t worry, I won’t tell anyone.”

“They’d never believe you anyway,” he replied with a chuckle.

The young couple excused themselves, and Michael ordered another round of drinks for himself and Jean. Soon Jean returned and took his seat.

“Everything alright?” Michael asked.

Jean huffed. “Right as rain. Quite literally.” He took a sip of his drink and asked, “Where are our young star-crossed lovers?”

“Star-crossed? More like written in the stars,” Michael said.

Jean smiled softly. “Indeed, you are right about that.”

“They decided to take a trip to the Blue Lagoon tomorrow for a romantic getaway, so they wanted to get to bed early.”

“Ah.”

“So, while we’re alone, I’ve been dying to tell you that I’ve got your number, old man.”

Jean furrowed his brow.

“I know what the film is really about,” Michael explained. “I actually figured it out the first week, but one can never be certain with you. After today, it became clear I was right all along.”

“Do tell,” Jean said skeptically.

“It’s about you ,” Michael declared. “It’s your autobiography.”

Jean smirked. “Go on.”

“You’re the controversial, reclusive artist who’s dying.

This film is your way of setting the record straight, or perhaps amusing yourself and giving your critics the finger.

” Jean laughed and Michael continued, “I couldn’t believe it when I realized I was playing some version of you.

Talk about pressure. Plus, you could have any actor you want.

Don’t get me wrong, I’m honored but also kind of flabbergasted. Why’d you choose me?”

“I’m not one to wax on prophetically about my body of work, but Celebration has always been special to me.

The film. The summer we all spent together shooting it.

Better than anything else, it represents my work, and my work represents me.

This made you the natural choice.” Michael started to smile just as Jean added, “Besides, you were a real shit back then, navel-gazing, womanizing, self-aggrandizing. Let’s just say, it made you the ideal choice to play a twisted fucker like me. ”

Never one to take things too seriously, Michael laughed. “Aw shucks, I’m flattered.”

Jean shrugged.

“There’s more I’ve figured out about the film,” Michael said, taking a swig of his drink.

“Oh,” Jean said.

Michael nodded. “The film is about your search for beauty through your art, underneath all the dark and depressing stuff. You picked this location because of the midges. When you were telling Georgia about them, you said, ‘Sometimes the guardian of beauty is dark and ugly.’ You were talking about yourself. The landscape is like the fourth character in the film because it’s a metaphor for how you understand your role as an artist, as a truth teller.

You need to go dark so that others may see the light. ”

“I liked you better when you were shallow and vapid.”

Michael laughed. “Oh, and I’m not done. There is one thing I couldn’t quite figure out until today. Georgia’s role in the film. It’s no secret she looks just like Ella.”

Jean glanced down and then back at Michael. “Georgia is a fine actress.”

“She is. Gifted, I think. But that’s not why you hired her.

The old man is in love with her.” He paused before continuing.

“The movie is about the only woman you’ve ever truly loved: Ella.

For fuck’s sake, you named the character Giselle.

Uh, not that far off from Gabriella.” Michael took a swill of his drink, looking proud of himself.

“See, bravado will always catch up to you, mon ami .” Jean ran his finger around the rim of his glass.

“You are right, Georgia’s character is meant to be Ella, the most beautiful woman I have ever known.

But you weren’t paying attention to your own lines today.

The old man is not in love with her. To him, she is the embodiment of beauty.

She is a symbol for all the beauty in the world.

It is not romantic. Nor are my feelings for Ella.

But when I think about pure beauty in this wasteland of human shit, I think about the way her hair moves in the breeze, the arch of her back, the curve of her lips when she smiles, the gleam in her eyes when she says something irreverent and brilliant.

The film is not about a man’s search for love.

It is about his acceptance that we live in a swampland of suffering and despair, and yet, amidst it, there will always be beauty.

It can penetrate even the darkest places.

Even the darkest of hearts, such as his own. ”

Michael ran his hand through his hair. “Well, that’s some heavy shit.”

“Heavy shit indeed,” Jean agreed.

Michael raised his glass and said, “I am truly honored you trusted me with the part.”

Jean nodded. “You haven’t fucked it up yet.”

Michael laughed. “For the record, I don’t think the old man’s heart is as dark as he pretends.” He took the last swig of his drink and added, “But I’ll keep this all between us, Jean. I don’t think Finn will buy that load of crap that you don’t have the fucking hots for his wife.”