Charlotte pointed at Nate. “Just tell the director. He’ll put you on the list.”
Mind made up, Myles slid out of his seat and went to talk to Nate.
~*~
“Hey, who’s that new guy sitting with Tucker?”
From stage left, Piper followed Tyler’s gaze to the card table set up center stage for a reading of the scene in Novello’s where the Haynes sisters first meet Wallace and Davis. The prospective Bob was a bit leaner than Tucker, but just as tall. Brown hair a couple of shades darker than her own flopped endearingly into his eyes, giving him an appealing look that was saved from being too boyish by the clean angles of his jaw. “I don’t know but he’s cute!”
“Don’t get any ideas,” Tyler groused.
As if she’d be stupid enough to try to match-make Tyler with some strange guy. She had her limits. “Not for you, for me.”
“He’s not one of my customers. Maybe he’s new or from one of the surrounding towns?”
New or nearby were both completely acceptable options in Piper’s mind. In a town of five thousand, the dating pool tended to be shallow, so the arrival of new eligible bachelors merited checking out. Which was terribly Austenesque, but such was the reality of dating in a small town. “Well, I guess we’ll find out in a bit.”
They waited for their cue to join the boys.
Piper snaked her hand out to grab Tyler’s and squeezed. “I’m glad you came out tonight.”
Tyler tipped her head to Piper’s shoulder and sighed softly. “Me too. It wasn’t as bad as I thought it might be.”
Oh thank God. Piper had been terrified that she’d made some mistake forcing Tyler into this. “Good. I want to save the Madrigal, but not at the expense of legitimately hurting you.”
“I’m not that breakable anymore.”
Piper had her doubts about that.
“That’s our cue,” Tyler said.
Saved by the script.
Piper slid into character as they approached the table, adding a layer of restrained propriety to her usual manner as she introduced herself and her “sister” before taking a seat.
Unlike the others, she and Tyler didn’t have scripts in their hands. Given Nate had pulled the dialogue straight from the movie, they didn’t need any. Bob didn’t seem to need to check his often and his aggrieved expression
toward Tucker as Phil suggested he had a solid familiarity with the source material himself. Points for him, she decided.
As Tucker-Phil and Tyler-Judy got up to go dance, Piper fixed an earnest expression on her face, prepared to come clean.
“You know, I was so surprised to get that letter from Benny,” Bob said.
“Mr. Wallace, I’m afraid you’ve been brought here under false pretenses.”
Bob watched her as she went through the explanation, outlining Judy’s deception. His eyes—which were a lovely shade of caramel brown, fringed by those long lashes so often wasted on guys—fired in challenge and amusement as they verbally sparred, scooting their chairs closer together. They were completely in sync, fixed in the roles, which was the best kind of stage chemistry to have. It made the role less like acting and more like just living under really bright lights.
“Mr. Wallace, since the chances of our seeing each other again is extremely remote, I don’t think it’s important to go on arguing.”
“I’ll drink to that,” Bob said, and laid his hand over hers.
Piper felt the zing all the way down to her toes. Maybe not just stage chemistry.
“Good!” Nate’s praise from the auditorium floor shattered the moment, making it too weird to flip her hand over to lace with his, which she could’ve blamed on the part if the director hadn’t spoken.
Bob let her go and rose as she did, while the next quartet got set up to read. He followed Piper into the wings.
“That was well done,” she told him. “Are you a White Christmas fan?”