Hate the Player: An Enemies-to-Lovers Romantic Comedy(68)

She smiles and rubs a hand over her protruding belly. “Everything is looking good. Baby is healthy and happy in there, and less than two months to go until we get to meet him or her.”

“I think it’s a girl,” I say and Billie laughs.

“Last week, you said you thought it was a boy.”

I smirk. “Well, this week, I think it’s a girl.”

“Holy shit. Less than two months. That’s so soon,” Rocky muses after she takes a sip of her iced tea. “I can’t believe how quickly the time has already passed.”

“I know,” Billie agrees. “Although, I am getting to the point in this pregnancy where I feel like a whale and I’m just so ready to meet my baby, time is starting to drag the heck out.”

“God, I remember that feeling,” Rocky answers, understanding in her voice. “Are you planning on breastfeeding?”

“That’s the plan.” Billie nods. “So, if you have any tips or tricks, I’m all ears.”

“Girl, I could go on for days.”

Billie grins. “By all means, tell me all the things.”

While the two of them dive into the wild world of proper latch techniques and feeding schedules and how to avoid nipple confusion, a foggy memory of last night pops into my mind, and I grab my phone to get confirmation.



Me: Was I calling you Andy last night?



He responds a minute later.



Andrew: Yes, and just so you know, I do not approve.



I grin. I can’t help it.



Me: So, you don’t want me to call you Andy?



Andrew: Nope.



Me: Personally, I think it’s cute. The nickname Andy, I mean. I don’t know why you dislike the nickname Andy so much.



Andrew: Christ. Enough with the Andy bullshit.



Me: Oh boy… It appears I’ve struck a nerve. Sorry about that, Andy. My bad.



Andrew: Very funny, FIRECRACKER.



Me: I am VERY funny, ANDY.



“What do you think, Birdie?” My sister’s voice fills my ears, and I glance up from my phone to find her staring at me.

“What do I think about what?” I question, and she glances between my face and the phone in my hand.

“Who are you texting?” she asks, curiosity in her voice.

“No one,” I say, but when she narrows her eyes, it’s more than apparent she knows I’m full of shit. “I mean, just Samantha. She’s telling me about my schedule.”

“Well, tell her to leave you alone because you’re having lunch with your very pregnant and hormonal sister who needs your help picking out colors for the nursery.”

“Calm down,” I say through a laugh and pointedly set my phone screen-side down onto the table. “Now, I’m all ears, sis.”

Billie doesn’t waste any time diving back into her options for nursery décor, and while I’m trying really hard to focus on what she’s saying, in the back of my mind, I can’t stop thinking about the fact that I just impulsively texted Andrew like we’re the best of friends.

Good God, those pot brownies must have, like, an extended effect.

Uh-huh, sure they do…





Andrew





The hype is real.


We’ve been in Memphis for five days now, and this afternoon, our filming schedule is focused around that first, pivotal scene where Cal Loggins discovers Arizona Lee.

Production scored big when they managed to rent out the ideal location for the next four days. A little dive bar in downtown Memphis called the Copper Door, the establishment is an eclectic mix of worn wooden floors, country and blues memorabilia, and faded copper embellishments across the bar and walls.

I watch from behind Howie’s director’s chair as he walks up onto the stage and discusses a few things with Birdie and the rest of the actors playing Arizona’s Memphis band.

In this scene, Arizona is a nobody in country music. A gorgeous, undiscovered musician who spends her nights singing her own songs in Grass Roots, a bar her uncle Joe owns.

Birdie nods at whatever Howie tells her, and the instant he heads off set and back toward where I’m currently standing, she picks up her guitar, slides the strap around her chest, and steps back up to the microphone at the front of the stage.

This is the first time I’ve really been able to watch her in action, in her musical element. Any music we’ve recorded for the movie, we’ve done it separately. Our busy shooting schedules make it impossible for us to be in the recording studio at the same time. And whenever she’s filmed scenes that include Arizona onstage, I was busy filming Cal’s flashback scenes.

But today, I’m here, witnessing what Birdie Harris looks like up there, onstage, her undeniable talent front and center.

Her long blond hair flows past her shoulders, and her cowgirl boots tap to the beat as she and the band take a quick test run of the song. And her pint-sized body just flows with the music as her fingers strum across her guitar.

She doesn’t even have to think about what she’s doing up there. It’s all muscle memory at this point.

The song she is about to sing is called “Ramblin’ Wisdom,” and it’s one Birdie wrote specifically for this film, specifically for my character, and one that I spent more than a few hours recording. With the help of a voice coach who started working with me well before filming started, I hope I managed to do it somewhat justice on the film’s soundtrack.