Chapter Text
Two days later, Lee is the last to leave after another rehearsal. He didn’t need to hurry back to the empty hotel room. He stands on the floor in front of the first row of seats in the theatre hall. His jacket is on one of the seats. He looks at his phone to read messages from home, the screen's glow reflecting off his face. He doesn’t see that he wasn’t alone.
“Hi,” A soft female voice says
He startles a little and looks up. It was Hannah. He could hear Tom’s voice in his head, telling him to stay away.
“Tom is not here anymore,” Lee said cautiously, keeping his voice steady.
“I wasn’t looking for him,” She says, her smile widening. “I was looking for you.”
Lee blinked, startled by the directness.
“Oh. May I ask why?”
“I know I shouldn’t, but there is something about you that I find fascinating.” She stepped closer, and Lee felt the subtle shift of air around him, a tension that made his heart beat faster.
He straightened slightly, trying to keep his distance.
“Can I stop you right there? I don’t think it’s morally right that you come on to me. You’re the girlfriend of my co-star, and I have to work with him.”
Her smile didn’t waver.
“He doesn’t own me, and we’re just talking here. If I were trying something, this wouldn’t be it.”
Lee’s eyes flicked to her. Her outfit had changed; gone was the casual jeans jacket, replaced by a light-pink wool cardigan, snug enough to hint at her shape. Underneath, a white top with thin straps peeked out. Her skirt rode above the knee, and her black three-inch heels added an elegance that quickened his pulse. If she wasn’t here to seduce him… why did it feel like she was?
“I should go,” He‘s about to take his jacket from the seat, but she steps in front of him, closing the small space between them.
They stand close. Her eyes held his, searching, curious. Lee felt the heat in his chest rise. He wouldn’t let her get to him, not completely. He wasn’t blind to the way she looked, to the intoxicating pull of proximity, but she was off-limits.
“You didn’t let me finish,” She says softly, her hand brushing lightly against his left arm for a second. The touch sent a jolt up his spine. “I saw part of the play a few days ago, and I was impressed by your stage presence. You don’t even need to say anything, and I’m still impressed. And I know it’s not an act off stage,”
Lee felt his cheeks heat, a rare occurrence for the usually composed actor. He wasn’t used to this kind of directness, especially from the girlfriend of his rival.
“Um… Thanks. I’m… flattered”
Hannah held his gaze silently. Lee didn’t feel embarrassed in the usual way. He was used to attention, but this was different. This was the girlfriend of the man he had to respect, the man he shared a stage with, and the stakes felt impossibly higher.
“I really have to go. He takes his jacket to put it on. “Won’t Tom wonder where you are?”
“No, we didn’t have any plans. Why did you think that was the reason I came here in the first place?” She says, a soft edge of mischief in her voice.
“You knew I was here?” Lee asked, brow furrowing
“I just figured. I wanted to talk to you alone.”
“Now you have. Anything else? I don’t have all evening,” He says, trying to keep his tone firm.
A small, knowing smile touched the corner of her lips.
“If you haven’t got it by now. I like you. And I mean a lot.”
The words hung in the quiet air, heavy, intimate, and dangerous. Lee’s breath hitched.
“Look, Hannah,” He says, trying to maintain composure. “I appreciate… the compliment. But I don’t mess with other people’s relationships. I don’t seduce other people’s girlfriends.”
“Is that some rule? Or are you worried your true feelings will become known?” Her tone was calm, probing, almost teasing.
Lee’s breath hitched. That single question was a laser aimed at the core of his carefully constructed life.
“It’s common sense. People who interfere with someone else's relationship have no respect for others. I’m not that kind of person. Will you excuse me, but I have to go.”
Hannah’s shoulders sank slightly. She gave a brief, almost sorrowful shake of her head. “I’ll see you at the opening night party, I suppose. It’s unavoidable,” She says quietly before he could leave through the entrance.
Lee swallowed, a knot of tension and guilt twisting in his stomach as he walked away. The faint click of her heels echoed in his mind, an unbidden reminder of the storm he was determined to resist.