7 Rescheduling

Toph laughs from the couch behind me, "You totally set yourself up for that one."

"You're right I did, but it won't matter. Monday will be the end," I challenge with a raised brow.

He rolls his eye, "It'll have to be Tuesday. I have a radio show in the afternoon Monday then I have a meeting with Linda and some producer."

"We can't do it Tuesday, Wednesday, or Thursday," my voice comes out a little more exacerbated than I mean it to as I sit back down next to him. "We have that video game thing."

"What video game thing?" he asks.

Riel enters back into her living room with a bottle of water, "The one that they're making for the movie. We have to record our voice-overs for the characters - our catch phrases and stuff."

"That takes three days?" he rubs a hand in the back of his hair again briefly.

I shake my head as Riel shrugs. Then I answer his question, "You and I have to narrate the 'story mode' for the single player."

"So then, we'll go Friday," he reason.

It sounds legitimate before I realize it's not, "Friday I have a photo shoot and interview for GQ. They're doing a spread on me for being the 'Breakout Actor of the Year' or something."

"Congratulations!" our female friend launches herself at me, wrapping her arms around my body. "That's a big deal!"

I look over to see Toph nodding, "That is impressive. Why didn't you tell me?"

"I didn't think it was important," letting go of Riel, I shrug and continue. "I only found out a few days ago and it's just because I have a couple movies I'm going to be filming this year."

"You have one coming up right?" my best friend asks sitting forward on the couch again.

I nod, "Four weeks I start filming 'Half the Battle' with Grace Galloway. It's a 'War Zone Romance' or something. It's a good script; hopefully it'll be a good movie."

"If Grace is in it, you can bet on it being a big hit," he comments off-handedly. "She wouldn't be in anything that was less than the next big thing. But, I'll warn you, she's a bit high maintenance, from what I hear."

As she sits back down, Riel looks a little quizzical, "Isn't Grace the one that always ends up dating her costars?"

Toph snaps his gaze over to her, "She is, isn't she?"

"It doesn't matter," I assure them. "I'm not going to date someone that has a reputation like that. I'm pretty choosey on people I get into a relationship with."

"I can't disagree with you there," our dark-skinned friend laughs. "You only picked the most famous and sought after man in the world. He even had to beg."

"I didn't beg; I bet," my husband laughs.

Chuckling, I shake my head and turn back to Toph, "So then we can go in the morning on Saturday to the court."

He shakes his head and gives me a sheepish look, "I volunteered us to help paint the bar."

"Both of us?" I arch a brow at him.

He nods without words and give me one of his heart-stopping smiles.

"Well then we're going to have to wait until 3 Tuesdays from now," shaking my head, I run a hand down my face before explaining. "Not this week, but next week Monday I am going to LA to look for a place to rent while I'm staying there to film. I won't leave there until Thursday afternoon and I'm only coming back for a few hours to pack some clean clothes, sleep, and leave for England the following morning. I'm staying there until Monday morning Greenwich Mean Time which means I won't be back here until Monday night Eastern Standard."

"You're going to England?" Toph seems surprised, but I know I told him.

My forehead wrinkles together in frustration, "I told you. I even invited you to go with me. It's my sisters birthday and I'm surprising her, remember?"

"I do remember now," he nods and points at me. "She's going to be 16, right?"

"Are you coming with me? I wanted to book the tickets soon so that we can sit in first class. I don't want to spend 17 hours traveling with someone using me as a pillow."

"Can I use you as a pillow?"

"Shut up, Toph. Are you going or not?"

"Let me call Linda real quick to see if she has anything set up for then," he stands from the couch and pulls his phone from his back pocket. "What days, again?"

"February 17th through the 20th," with my words he walks into the other room already dialing his manager.

My eyes follow his ass for some reason. I can't deny that it's a nice bum.

Riel clears her throat, drawing my attention back to her, "You know he's going with you, right?"

"What do you mean?" my eyebrows scrunch together. "He just went to find out if he has an opening."

She rolls her eyes at me before straightening a pillow behind her, "I would bet my life that, even if he did have something to do, he would make Linda reschedule it."

"Why do you say that?"

"Day, he can deny it all he wants, but he remembers what happened last night. He wasn't as drunk as you were. I knew this would probably happen for you, but he has to know," she shakes her head with a look of concentration. "What I can't figure out is why he's pretending he doesn't."

"Maybe he really doesn't know?" I suggest.

Riel stands from her spot on the loveseat and moves to sit right next me. When she's settles, she puts her hands on my knee, "He's a professional actor; it's almost impossible to tell when he's lying. But I've noticed he deepens his voice slightly. It's his 'stage voice' and he's been using it all day."

"He told me he didn't remember," I look down at her hands and put one of mine on top of it. "That's what I'm going to believe until he says otherwise."

Her smile confuses me, but she clarifies, "You're so naive. Do you actually want to get the wedding annulled?"

"I want-"

She cuts off my answer to clarify, "Do you want to get it done because he wants it or because the wedding was actually a mistake?"

"Everything just happened really fast. Can we talking about this later?" I ask her hoping that we can drop the subject for now.

I can see Topher standing in the kitchen from where we're sitting. It would be rude if he heard us talking about him when he got off the phone.

She nods, "Will you call me when you get back to your apartment tonight?"

I agree as we hear Toph getting off the phone. He comes back into the living room and stares at Riel who is sitting next to me with our hands still on my knee, "Do I get my spot back?"

"No," she points to the loveseat she had been sitting in, "but you can take mine."

He rolls his eyes, but sits where she suggests.

"So, what did Linda say?" I ask a little eager.

For some reason, I really want him to go now. Obviously I wanted him to go before, since I asked him, but now I think I would be upset if he said no.

He raises his shoulders and lets them fall quickly, "I'm free. We can book the flight when we get back home. Do you want to stop and get food beforehand?" I nod at the same time that his phone goes off. He holds up a finger - signaling us to give him a second. He drops his hand as he answers, "Hello?" There's a minute where he doesn't say anything and just listens to the other person. "Linda, I told you. Just move it. It's not a big deal." He waits a couple second before speaking again, "Then cancel it. I don't care either way. He either reschedules or I don't go on." He looks over at me a little sheepishly as Linda talks to him. He nods, even though she can't see him, as he replies, "That's fine. I've been on there at least four times since I was a child. If he wants me again, he'll figure it out."

"Who are you talking about?" I ask him, raising an eyebrow.

He covers the mouthpiece for a second, "Jay Leno wants me on his show. He'll reschedule. It's not a big deal."

"When does he want you to come on?"

He holds up his finger again briefly before looking away from me, "Yea, just get back to me. I'm not budging; any day after the 21st or nothing at all." There are another few seconds of silence before he tells Linda goodbye and comes back to our conversation.

"When does he want you to come on?" I repeat myself after it becomes clear that he's not going to say anything.

He waves his hand in my direction, "Just sometime this week or something, but we have that video game thing."

Was it just me or did his voice drop a little?

"Linda didn't catch that before?" Riel challenges with a raised eyebrow. If I'm not mistaken, her tone is a little condescending and she nudges me slightly on the ribs.

I scrunch my brow at her before looking at Toph, "If you have a scheduling problem with the trip, you don't have to come. It's nothing very exciting. I'm literally just going for a couple days to my childhood home to celebrate a 16th birthday. It's not exactly a party."

"No, it's not a problem," he assures me before standing and brushing off his jeans. "You ready to go? It's getting late and I'm starving."

Shaking my head, I stand as well, "Yea, I could eat." Turning to our female friend, I reach down and pull her up with us, "Thanks Riel for filling us in on everything. I will call you later tonight."

She wraps her arms around my neck and hugs me tight, "Make sure you do." Then she puts her lips next to my ear and whispers, "You have a couple weeks to think about everything. Make sure it's what you want."

Pulling away from her, I smile and turn her around for her to hug Topher.

After we say our goodbyes, my husband and I make our way down to his car. Just as I'm opening my door, my phone starts to buzz in my pocket. When I pull it out, I see a name that I never thought would call me. It's one of those people that you keep in your phone for extreme emergency situations, but never intent to actually use it.

I sit down in the car as I watch it continue to ring in my hand.

"Who is it?" Toph asks as he joins me.

Looking over at him, I turn my phone so he can see the screen, "Why is she calling me?"

He looks confused, but only shrugs not able to think of an answer either, "Maybe something's wrong?"

"I don't care if her car blew up with her in it. I don't want her calling my phone," I tell him sternly.

He holds his hands in the air in mock defense, "I didn't tell her to call you."

I silence my phone and shake my head chuckling at his antic, "Just drive your car."

"Where do you want to eat?"

"Lombardi's is just a few blocks from here. You want to pick up a pizza then we can head back to yours?" I suggest as my phone starts ringing again.

A smile lights his features as he sees my expression fall, "Her again?"

"Yea, but I'm not answering it."

"I don't blame you," he tells me as he pulls his car out onto the street. "You want to call the pizza place to order so we can just run in and get it. I don't want to make this a spectacle."

I nod, agreeing that I don't want to make getting a pizza an autograph session.

Don't get me wrong, I love all of my fans as does Topher. But sometimes, I just want to get in and out of somewhere without being bombarded. It's fairly new to me that all this is happening, but if he gets out of the car, it takes ages to get back.

I place an order for a large white pizza with pancetta and red onions - which is our favorite from this particular eatery. Since we filmed pretty close to here, we used to come for lunch a lot.

It only takes about 15 minutes to get to Lombardi's, but we stay in the car for an extra 10 to make sure the pizza is done.

"I can just go in and get it," I offer, knowing his reluctance.

He shakes his head, "No, it's my turn to pay. I'll go get it; you stay in the car."

"Shut up," I roll my eyes at him. "It won't take me as long to get in and out. You can pay me back if it's that big of a problem."

"You're a big deal now too," he argues and runs a hand through the back of his hair. "We'll just go in together then. I'm really hungry and I'm getting tired. I'll fend off the people, if they come at us, while you pay for the pizza."

"Yea, IF they come at us," I chuckle and open my door to the sidewalk only lit by streetlamps.