Wicked Heart (Starcrossed #3)(48)

“So, did it attack you first and you were just acting in self-defense, or—”

“Sorry. I’ll replace it.”

“No need. That trash can’s an asshole. We’re all better o without it.”

He runs his hand through his hair. I can tell he’s trying to calm himself down, but right now, he looks as though he’d like nothing more than to beat the crap out of another inanimate object. Everything in his posture screams of tension and barely controlled aggression.

“Liam, what’s going on?”

“Nothing.”

“We both know that’s not true. You’re blowing lines right and left, and that’s not like you.”

He leans back against the wall and drops his head back. “I didn’t get as much time to prepare for this week’s rehearsals as I would have liked. I don’t know the lines.”

I step into the bathroom and close the door behind me. “Well, you should have said something. I’m sure Marco will let you hold your script.”

“I can’t use the script.” I don’t miss how his hands are curled into fists.

“Are you really that averse to using your glasses? It would only be for a few days.”

“No, Elissa. It’s not about glasses. I can’t—” He pushes away from the wall and shakes his head. “I can’t believe I have to tell you this.”

A shiver runs up my spine. “Liam, you’re . . . You don’t need glasses, do you?”

He pulls in a shaky breath. “I’m dyslexic. Severely. I can make out a few words here and there, but it takes forever. All the words swim and blur in front of my eyes.”

I take a moment to process it. “Why didn’t you ever tell me?”

“Like I wanted you to know I’m a dumb-ass.”

“Oh, please. You’re one of the most intelligent men I know.”

“And yet, I can’t read a menu at a restaurant without hurting my brain.” I can see how much he hates admitting it. “Outside of my family, only my agent and my assistant know. And now you.”

“Angel doesn’t know?” He shakes his head. “Liam, she’s going to be your wife. She loves you. Telling her isn’t going to change that.”

“She’ll treat me differently. Everyone who knows does. They don’t mean to, but they do.”

“I won’t.”

“You say that now, but give it time.”

“How have you managed to hide it all these years?”

“The glasses excuse is gold; usually, no one thinks to question it. When I first started acting, Mom would run lines with me. Or record them so I could learn them in my own time. When Anthony Kent signed me, I figured he should know. He immediately lined me up with David, my assistant. He’s been with me on all the movies.”

“How on earth do you learn a whole movie’s worth of words?”

“Easy. On a movie set, we only ever get a few pages of dialogue each day. But in theater . . .” He leans against the vanity. “You guys expected me to have the whole play learned by the time I got here. Do you know how many freaking lines Petruchio has? And Shakespeare isn’t exactly the easiest stuff to remember. I thought I was doing pretty well staying ahead of the schedule. Then on the weekend, David’s dad had a heart attack back in England.”

“Oh, no . . .”

“His dad survived, but he’s in the hospital. Of course, I put David on the first plane home. I’ve been trying to learn today’s scenes by myself, but . . .” He kicks the remnants of the trash can, which flies across the room and slams into the wall. “I have to reread everything five times, and even then, I don’t know if I have it right.”

“It’s okay. We’ll figure this out.”

He sighs. “You can’t tell anyone. Please.”

“Liam, having dyslexia is nothing to be ashamed of.”

He stares at a spot on the wall, and I hate how down on himself he seems. “You don’t understand what it’s like to not be able to do something most six-year-olds can. How stupid it makes me feel. This is why I took so long to try my hand at acting. I knew it would be a major obstacle.”

“Well, Tom Cruise has done okay over the years, and he’s hugely dyslexic.”

That gets me an eye roll. “Yeah, but he also believes people are inhabited by the souls of dead aliens. Please don’t hold him up as a role model.”

My mind races. In all my years of professional theater, I’ve never come up against something like this. Still, I’m all about finding solutions, so that’s what I’ll do.

“Okay, tell me how I can help you.”

He rubs his forehead. “I don’t know. Go over the lines with me, maybe. We’re only doing one page of that scene, and then we’re going to go over some scenes from last week. If I can make it through this morning I’ll be okay, for today at least.”

I look at my watch. “How long will it take you to learn the lines?”

“A whole page? Maybe fifteen minutes.”

“Be right back.”

I race to the rehearsal room and grab my script from the production desk. Josh is there making notes on the scene Marco is running with Angel.

“Hey, what’s up? Is Liam okay?”