He was flattering her for the sake of the show. She didn’t fault him. Trip was executing his duties as PSM to perfection, dealing with the broken actress, attempting to wind her up and make her go. “How am I supposed to get out of my own head, though?”

“How about we take a few deep breaths?”

“How about I head back to California, and you put Nia onstage in my place?”

Trip’s eyes went wide, which was probably high alert in stage management land. It all seemed so overwhelming now, and she thought back to the time she’d scoffed at Alika for bringing her this project when she felt so far beyond stage work.

“Guys, can I have the room?” The even-keeled voice was instantly familiar. Carly craned her neck around Trip to see Lauren in costume and makeup for act 1. That’s when she found the air again.

“Definitely,” Trip said. He exchanged a look with Lauren, snagged Janie, and was out of there. When the door clicked closed, Lauren turned to Carly.

“What you’re feeling is totally normal.”

Carly nodded, her heart rate easing. “Maybe. I just keep thinking about all the things that could go wrong. We can’t just yell Cut! and start again, you know?”

“We should just go get crazy crust pizza.” Lauren smiled as if the thought alone sent her to heaven. “I’d get extra mozzarella, fresh tomatoes, basil, and maybe some sliced meatball on top. God, that sounds amazing.” It was the most random of statements, but the way Lauren described the pizza, Carly could almost smell the pies baking. “Should we go?”

Carly took a slow inhale and smiled. “Maybe. I’d love to watch you maneuver all that cheese.”

“Because cheese and I have a sinful love affair I will not apologize for. Give me a minute to get changed, and I’m all yours.”

Apparently talking casually about pizza, of all things, with Lauren was just what Carly needed. She stood. “Let’s do a show first.”

“Or that.” Lauren shrugged nonchalantly, like she could take it or leave it. “Means we get to kiss in just a little while. I guess we could do pizza later.”

“The extra cheesy kind.”

“Strings of cheese for days,” Lauren said. She glanced at the door. “We’re doing this?”

Carly nodded, finding the floor had returned beneath her feet. “Let’s give them the show they came for.” She took a deep, centering breath, as she got her head on straight.