Page 12 of Starring Role

Chapter six

Sahil watched the screenand the crowd in his home with a growing sense of unease. He'd made the wrong call; he'd listened to his gut when he should have listened to everyone else's for a change.

No, it was his pride, not his gut. He'd been fed up wasting time defending an actor he hadn't even wanted to hire. He'd wanted Cooper Hayes out, gone, replaced by a realwolf actor.

The kid could fucking act. You'd think the editor was in love with him, the way every cut showed him to best advantage: beautiful, vulnerable, strong, handsome, and ripped. Sahil's mouth went dry at the first shirtless scene, a purely Pavlovian response. He was a married man, for pity's sake, but the guy was just that hot.

Grant slipped an arm around him, nestling close. "He'sperfect. You did such an amazing thing," Grant said against his neck. He was so proud of Sahil—but he didn't know what he'd done.

The others in the room, most of them shifters and their partners, all of them disposed to dislike Cooper on principle alone, had begun to clap and cheer at one scene, as if they were children, for pity's sake. The light of the screen shone eerily on their faces.There were Tom and Sean, his dear friends, and Joey and Dylan. Charlie and Russ, who worked directly for Sahil, sat close together, holding hands, still in their honeymoon phase, watching the screen, intent and silent. Brainwashed, all of them, by Cooper's scenery-chewing.

No. No, that was unfair. He was brilliant. The softness and vulnerability about him made you want to protect him, damnit. And yet he showed strength in other ways, and an amazing range—he provided a sense of access to the character that Sahil hadn't even dreamed would be possible in one episode. The kid had done more than he'd thought they'd manage to do in a whole season: he'd made the wolf character instantly sympathetic, someone to root for, someone to love.

He'd seen some of the scenes, but not all ofthem, in order like this, polished and shined for prime-time entertainment.

I made a big mistake, thought Sahil. If the reaction of the room was anything to go by, this was the worst mistake he'd made in some time. He reached for his cell phone and hastily tapped out a text to the producer:Get Hayes back.

The wolf actors could wait; he'd introduce new characters slowly, if they couldfind some that would fit.

He slid his phone away again and released his breath. Whew. What a shame it would have been if he'd had to admit to Grant that he hadn't trusted his judgment, that he'd tried to write Cooper Hayes out of the show.

Dodged that bullet.

He sat back to enjoy the masterpiece he'd helped create—and that Hayes had brought to life.

Damn him, this kid's got talent.Iwould fall for him myself if I wasn't taken.He looked over at his husband, Grant, whose gaze was captured by the show, rapt and intent. Sahil squeezed his hand, feeling a rush of warmth for the man he loved.

Yeah, Sahil still made mistakes—plenty of them—but Grant kept on loving him. Perhaps he would tell Grant after all; learning to be honest had been pretty important for their relationship.But maybe not tonight.

#

The nightWolf Copfirst aired ("your show," as Jimmy's family called it to him, because he'd been so justly proud of it, bragging whenever he got the chance; Hope never seemed to get as invested in the productions she helped guard), everybody got together to watch it. Jimmy, his parents, aunts and uncles, his three brothers and all of his cousins. They were abig pack, and they required lots of snacks. Jimmy didn't mind that.

At first, it was boisterous, almost a party or sporting event atmosphere, with Dad yelling at everyone to pipe down, and his brothers flinging snacks at each other's heads till they had to start punching and head-locking each other, and the cousins all talking over each other and to each other and passing things back and forth,and Jimmy heading back out for more chips, popcorn, and the Chex Mix he'd made earlier. It wasn't like anybody should be that hungry, since they'd all had a big barbeque earlier in the day, but they were wolves; when they got together, they liked to eat. Jimmy was no exception. He snuck some of the leftover ribs from the fridge and was gnawing on them when Catrice yelled, "Get in here! It'sstarted!"

And then a strange thing happened. The show mesmerized them. At first a few went on talking, but by the first commercial break, you could have heard a pin drop. The couch creaked as his brothers leaned forward, watching in suspense. His mom fanned herself and bit her lip, worried for Seth. Dad scowled and clenched his fist every time someone said something rude or hurtful to Seth,or brushed past him, disrespecting his space, or anything that brought that startled, off-balance look to his eyes.