Lauren liked those words a lot, because they were not off to a great start. At the same time, she wasn’t sure Carly understood the importance. “Well, that’s good to hear. I know Ethan is thrilled to have you on board.”

Carly nodded. “I’m grateful to be here. Trust me. I needed this.” Lauren took a moment because Carly’s beauty had not been exaggerated. She could see why Hollywood put up with her wilder ways for so long. Not to mention the fact that she was also crazy talented. A one-two punch that couldn’t be argued. “You okay?” Carly asked.

“Me?” Lauren shook herself out of it, embarrassed and attempting to recover. “Very much so. Yeah. Why?”

“You seemed to lose your focus.”

“Oh no. Just always thinking two steps ahead. Another part of being a stage manager.” It was the lamest answer, but she couldn’t very well tell Carly that she was stunned silent by how pretty she was. Not really the message she wanted to send in the moment to a colleague in her workplace.

“Anything I can do to help?” Carly also had a really nice tan going that made her skin look incredibly smooth. Likely very soft. Okay, what the hell was she doing? Lauren didn’t recognize herself or her own ridiculous behavior. She never crushed. And she still wasn’t, damn it. That’s not what this was.

“No. We only have seven minutes left on that break.”

“Good call.” She touched Lauren on the wrist as she passed, which caught Lauren off guard. She stared at Carly’s hand, briefly on her arm. “I’ll let you enjoy it then. Really nice to meet you.” Then Carly Daniel and what was left of her irresponsible iced coffee glided through the room, speaking with the other members of the cast, laughing with them, and remaining a palpable presence.

She was a force, that was for sure. Lauren just hadn’t yet categorized what kind: good, evil, or somewhere in between. Regardless, the temperature in the space had changed noticeably when Carly arrived, and Lauren had a feeling that working on Starry Nights was going to be a handful. Nothing she was wasn’t up for, however. She’d better buckle up.

* * *

Good God. That stage manager, Lauren, didn’t mess around. That’s what Carly had come to understand in just the few days she’d known her. When she’d arrived for their third rehearsal six minutes late, only six minutes, Lauren had pulled her aside and felt the need to point that out, too. How important were six minutes in the scheme of life? That was actually a great step in the right direction. Why had Lauren not noticed that? The progress. The day before she’d been twelve.