John had noticed Cole’s interruptions and delays. Anna had characterized it as the usual bullshit from a crew member who chafed at working under a woman, but John wasn’t sure.

“We need to talk about cover for the weather.”

Given that the forecast looked fine for the morning, John knew this guy was full of shit.

“Let’s meet an hour early, and we can go through it,” Anna offered.

It was a more than reasonable solution, but Cole looked annoyed anyway. He probably realized the whole thing was bullshit, but he had walked himself into this problem. Cole left in a huff, slamming the door behind him.

Anna set the towel on the counter. “He’s such an asshole.”

“Of course he is. Where have you been?”

Anna laughed her “I’m not sure if I’m supposed to laugh” laugh. “I was trying to give him the benefit of the doubt.”

“You should give him the boot.”

Anna sighed. “You know I can’t do that.”

He did. Any more problems on this shoot, and they had the real threat of the LA office shutting them down.

“I know you can handle him. I just wish you didn’t have to. You’re good at this job.”

“I know.” She didn’t sound arrogant. She didn’t sound resigned. She sounded sure of herself, and it was good to hear.

There were a lot of things he wanted to say—a lot of things he could say—but maybe they didn’t need to be spoken.

#

ANNA WALKED DOWN THE corridor of the hotel. At one in the morning, the building had an otherworldly feeling, like she could travel through time but not know until she reached her door.

John invaded her thoughts again, but that was nothing new. It had been a long time since anyone had pushed her on her choices. Tom had thought she was a fool for working so long on a project that had gone nowhere. Eventually, she’d come to view that in-between time like Tom did—as a waste. But John didn’t think of it that way. What if she’d been right to pour her heart into her work, even if it hadn’t turned out like she’d hoped?

Anna liked the way he stood up for her too. He didn’t make a big deal of it. It had been a long time since a colleague on set had her back. She knew it wasn’t just based on his attraction to her.

Anna turned the corner. Jenny tiptoed down the hallway ahead of her, as if not wanting to wake her.

“Do I need to talk to you about protection?” Anna asked as she approached the door to their shared hotel room.

“We aren’t in college anymore.” Jenny relaxed and sighed, opening the door.