"The guy who played Matthew was amazing! What's his name?"

"Oh my God, I was practically sobbing when Matthew confessed his feelings to Annie."

"The guy who played Matthew is seriously hot."

Hearing people gush about Jackson made me ecstatic and proud. It also gave me a secret thrill that the man all the girls were gushing about was interested in me.

I stood on my toes and craned my neck when I got to the backstage entrance. I had expected to have to give my name to some bodyguard or security person to gain entrance, but since this was a small do-it-yourself production, people just swarmed in unchecked.

I caught sight of Claire and waved my hand, catching her attention. She smiled widely and motioned for me to make my way to her through the crowd.

"Excuse me," I said repeatedly as I weaved through the crowd. I gave Claire a hug when I reached her.

"The play was great, you were amazing! I almost bawled like a baby."

Claire's eyes were dancing and she looked exhilarated. "Thanks! It never gets old, being onstage. I'm glad you liked it." Claire nodded to her right and I looked in that direction. I saw Jackson being mobbed by audience members and he looked in his element, talking and laughing easily amongst them. He caught sight of me and said something to the crowd around him. He then started moving towards me.

"What did you think?" he asked, grabbing me around the waist. His eyes were sparkling and their green depths shone with happiness.

"You were incredible! I got so caught up in the play that I forgot who you were and believed that you were Matthew."

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"Thanks," he said, giving me a quick kiss. "Now let's get out of this mob scene."

"Don't you want to soak up the adulation of your fans?" I asked wryly.

"I appreciate it, but I'd rather be alone with you."

"Actually, I told Claire earlier that we would get a few drinks with her after the show."

The corners of Jackson's mouth turned down. "Can't we do it another night? I thought we could just go back to my place."

"I know what your nefarious plans are," I said with a smirk. "You're just trying to have your way with me."

Jackson widened his eyes innocently. "I just thought you'd want to get your skirt." He then gave me a slow smile. "And I'd like to see you wearing it again with nothing else but those heels.

I laughed, shaking my head, but I couldn't deny the heat shooting up inside me at his words. "We can do that afterwards. I don't want to just abandon Claire after I agreed to drinks."

Jackson gave a small sigh but acquiesced. "Alright. You win. Let's just try to keep it to one drink. Claire has a tendency to drink a little too much after a show."

We weaved our way through the crowd towards Claire who had moved across the room to speak to some fellow castmates. Jackson was stopped every few steps by someone expressing their enjoyment of the show.

"Ready to go?" I asked Claire when we reached her. She had just finished talking to another cast member.

"Yeah, let me just grab my bag. Why don't I meet you guys outside in front of the theater?"

Claire disappeared into the crowd and Jackson and I made our way outside. He grabbed my hand and pulled me over to an awning a few doors down. We were in front of a flower shop and Jackson hid us behind a large flowering potted tree.

"Let's wait here. Otherwise, I'll have to make small talk with everyone."

I laughed at Jackson's evasive tactics. "What are you going to do when the paparazzi chase after you when you're famous?"

Jackson grinned. "I doubt that'll ever happen, but if it does, you can be my personal bodyguard."

"Considering you're probably at least six inches taller than me, I doubt I'll be a good shield for you."

Jackson leaned down and kissed my neck, working his way up to my ear and lightly biting my earlobe. "You'd be too distracting for me anyway. If you were in front of me, I couldn't keep my eyes off that sexy little ass of yours." To make his point, Jackson reached down and gave it a squeeze.

"Behave!" I laughed, shooing his hands away. "Otherwise, the owner of this flower store is going to have us arrested for public indecency."

"I can't seem to keep my hands off you," Jackson said with a wicked grin. "It's not my fault you're so irresistible."

I squealed as he made a grab for my behind again and I was pushing against his chest, trying to evade his hands, when I caught sight of Claire a few feet behind Jackson. She was watching us with an unreadable expression, but when she saw me notice her, she just gave me an amused smile.

"Hi, Claire," I said loudly, giving Jackson a look of censure.

Jackson turned around, still smiling widely. "Hi, Claire," he parroted.

"I can take a rain check on drinks if you'd like," Claire offered with a raised eyebrow.

I shook my head. "No, no, we still want to get a drink. Jackson is just trying to be charming and failing miserably. He doesn't realize women don't respond well to grab-ass."

"And here I thought I was being smooth," Jackson said with a shrug. He grabbed my hand and led us towards Claire. "Should we be predictable and go to Max's?"

"No, let's go somewhere else," Claire answered. "There's a lounge a couple of blocks away that we can go to. It won't be as noisy as Max's."

Jackson looked to me and I nodded. "Sounds good to me. I don't really care where we go."

As we walked over to the lounge I couldn't help gushing about the play.

"Seriously, it was amazing. I completely forgot who you guys were. You just became Annie and Matthew to me.

"Trent, the director, really wanted the audience to feel the despair and love between me and Jackson. During rehearsals, he used to make us sit completely still across from each other and had us just stare into each other's eyes without saying a word. He said it brought our emotions to the surface."

Jackson snickered. "I kept telling him that all I could think about was the cramp in my leg from sitting still for so long. That, and what I was going to eat for lunch later."

"Jackson," Claire said scowling. "Don't make fun of the process. I think it really helped us."

Claire looked upset so I discreetly elbowed Jackson. He grunted and then nodded at Claire in agreement, but not before giving me a rueful look.

"You're probably right," he said agreeably. "At least he didn't make me walk around clucking like a chicken."

Claire's peal of laughter lightened the mood. "Emma, you should've seen the acting teacher we used to have. He told Jackson that he epitomized the essence of a chicken."




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