An: I'm back. You'll get 5 chs this week. 🫡👍
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[Los Angeles] [Late Night]
Alex chose his usual restaurant with no camera or paparazzi rule.Â
Alex had picked a corner table, away from the windows, seeking a bit of privacy and wanting the evening to feel like a genuine dinner, not another public event.Â
Angela slid into the seat opposite him, looking around with a pleased smile. "Okay, this is definitely better than leftovers on my couch. I'll admit that right now."
Alex picked up his menu, a smile playing on his lips. "Your couch had a strong start, but I think actual food and conversation gave me the edge."
Angela chuckled, opening her own menu. "Don't get too cocky. My couch has blankets and zero expectations."
They ordered drinks, then browsed the menus for a few minutes, their conversation flowing effortlessly. After hours under studio lights, neither seemed eager to dive into talk of contracts, campaign figures, or magazine sales just yet.Â
A few minutes later, the waiter brought their drinks.
Angela took a sip of her drink and leaned back, more at ease. "I still can't believe Janet turned a simple photoshoot into an all-evening affair just because you happened to walk through the modeling area."
Alex rested an arm along the back of the booth. "That woman smelled opportunity from across the building, and suddenly I had makeup on my face like I'd never stopped."
She slowly turned her glass. "You looked way too comfortable for someone claiming he hadn't done a real shoot in three years."
He gave a slight shrug. "Some things just stick with you, I guess. Besides, once people stop shouting about lighting angles, modeling is pretty relaxing compared to directing explosions."
She raised an eyebrow. "That sentence makes your life sound pretty wild."
Alex took a sip of his drink. "My life is wild, and I stopped pretending it wasn't a long time ago."
Their food arrived shortly after, and the conversation naturally shifted to their day. Angela recounted the earlier perfume campaign, explaining how Janet kept tweaking the lighting, aiming for an expensive look for the bottle without making the whole shot resemble a jewelry ad.Â
Angela cut into her steak, shaking her head with a laugh. "At one point, there were six people crowded around a single perfume bottle, all arguing about reflections. And I'm just standing there in heels, thinking, 'Guys, I've been holding this pose for fifteen minutes, and I can't feel my left foot anymore.'"
Alex chuckled as he reached for his drink. "That's the glamorous side of modeling they never show in magazines."
Angela nodded emphatically. "Exactly. People see the final photo and assume it's all elegance. Meanwhile, there's usually someone crawling on the floor with a reflector while a stylist is whispering threats at a stubborn dress zipper."
The first drink went down easily. The second appeared before either of them realized how much time had passed, and Angela gradually became more relaxed in her conversation. Her shoulders softened, her laughter came more readily, and she started sharing stories without censoring them first.
Leaning forward, Angela rested both elbows near the edge of the table. "You want to hear about the worst photoshoot I ever did?"
Alex looked at her, his interest piqued. "That sounds potentially disastrous, which means I absolutely have to know."
Angela covered part of her face with one hand, laughing at the memory. "It was a beach campaign, about two years ago. The weather was gorgeous, the light was perfect, and everyone was feeling great. We were shooting a summer clothing spread near the water, and the photographer decided he wanted us all walking along the shoreline with picnic baskets in the background. Apparently, he thought 'picnic energy' would sell dresses."
Alex tilted his head slightly. "I already have a bad feeling about where this story is going."
Angela pointed at him with her glass. "You should, because about five minutes later, a flock of seagulls decided those picnic baskets were theirs."
Alex started smiling before she even finished. "How many seagulls are we talking about here?"
Angela spread her hands dramatically. "Enough to declare war. I swear, one second everything was fine, and the next, birds were everywhere. One model screamed and ran straight into the ocean. Another threw an entire basket in the air, which just made things ten times worse because now the seagulls thought food was raining from the sky."
Alex laughed so hard he had to put his glass down. "Please tell me someone kept taking pictures."
Angela pointed at him again, already laughing along with him. "The photographer never stopped. That lunatic kept shooting while the rest of us were being dive-bombed. I'm running down the beach with a bird trying to snatch my scarf, and this guy is yelling, 'Stay natural, stay natural!'"
Alex leaned back, shaking his head as the image formed in his mind. "Stay natural while airborne thieves are robbing the wardrobe department. That sounds like excellent leadership."
Angela laughed even harder, then wiped beneath one eye. "The best part was afterward. The editor looked through the pictures and decided some of them were actually great because everybody looked so genuinely surprised."
Alex nodded slowly, as if that made complete sense. "Fear creates authenticity, apparently."
Angela took another drink and relaxed deeper into the booth. "That should be Titan Modeling's new slogan. Authenticity through mild trauma."
Alex smiled and lifted his glass toward her. "I'll make sure legal approves it before tomorrow morning."
Angela clinked her glass lightly against his before taking another sip. The alcohol had softened the last bit of workday tension around her, and she looked completely comfortable now.
She sat there for a few seconds before another memory made her grin. "Actually, the bird thing wasn't even the most painful one."
Alex's expression shifted toward concern. "There's something worse than getting chased by aggressive seagulls?"
Angela nodded with the seriousness of someone about to deliver important testimony. "Forest shoot. Outdoor clothing campaign. Lots of trees, flowers, fake hiking equipment, and apparently one extremely angry bee with very personal boundaries."
Alex already knew he was going to laugh, though he tried to keep his face serious. "What happened?"
Angela looked around quickly, as if checking whether anyone nearby could hear, then lowered her voice. "The bee stung me right on the ass."
Alex stared at her for half a second before his control completely failed. He covered his mouth with one hand and laughed while Angela pointed toward him in outrage.
"I knew you were going to laugh," she said, although she was laughing too. "I'm standing there trying to pose like some mysterious forest woman, and suddenly it felt like somebody stabbed me with a burning needle."
Alex shook his head while trying to recover. "I'm sorry, that sounds painful. The location is just making it really difficult to react responsibly."
Angela narrowed her eyes at him while fighting another smile. "It hurt like hell, Alex. I jumped so hard the photographer thought I'd stepped on a snake."
Alex managed to calm himself enough to look concerned again. "Did you stop the shoot?"
Angela shook her head and took another sip. "Nope. We checked the sting, made sure I wasn't allergic, put some ice on it, and kept going because we only had another hour before the light disappeared."
Alex stared at her with visible disbelief. "You finished the shoot after getting stung there?"
Angela nodded proudly. "I worked through the pain like a professional."
He gave a side nod. "That's impressive, though I can picture you trying to strike a pose while secretly refusing to sit down."
Angela chuckled. "Exactly. Every time they asked me to sit for a pose, I'd find some excuse why standing would look more powerful."
Alex watched her laugh. "You're stronger than most people probably think."
Angela looked at him over the rim of her glass, her smile softening into something warmer. "You sound surprised."
Alex shook his head. "I'm not. I've seen your work reports. You don't get to where you are by being delicate."
Angela held his gaze for another moment before looking down at the table with a small smile. "That really means a lot, coming from you."
The conversation then shifted, and Angela turned the questions back to Alex. She was curious about stories from film sets, especially the kind that didn't make it into the polished interviews.
Alex didn't need much prompting.
He leaned back in the booth, a quiet laugh escaping him. "Okay, remember that Krypton scene from Supergirl?"
Angela's eyes immediately lit up. "Everyone remembers that. Half the internet acted like you'd committed financial murder when they heard how much that set cost. Was that real or just movie promotion?"
Alex grinned, showing no hint of regret. "Oh yeah. It was real, alright. That set cost millions. Months of building, custom crystal structures, launch pads, streets, interiors, sections designed to break apart, and enough practical effects to make the safety team age ten years."
Angela leaned forward, intrigued. "And then you destroyed it."
Alex nodded slowly. "Completely."
Angela started laughing before he even finished speaking. "You're nuts."
Alex held up a hand defensively. "The planet was exploding. I wanted the actors to react to something real, so we rigged the entire thing for controlled demolition."
Angela watched him, amused. "You say 'controlled demolition' like it's a normal thing."
"You should have seen the cast and crew when I gave the final go-ahead. Alexis looked at me like I'd just declared the end of the world. One assistant director asked me three times if I was sure, because once the main tower fell, there was no turning back," Alex said as he remembered the day 1 shoot of Supergirl.
"What did you tell them?" She asked.
He leaned forward slightly, mimicking the moment. "I told them Krypton only dies once, so we might as well enjoy it."
Angela burst into laughter, covering her mouth. "You actually said that?"
Alex nodded, grinning. "Then we rolled cameras and blew the whole thing up."
Angela dabbed at her eyes again. "I can only imagine what the finance people looked like watching."
Alex laughed, recalling the scene. "One guy from production accounting stood behind the monitor looking like he was watching his retirement fund go up in smoke. With every explosion, every falling wall, his face just got sadder and sadder."
Angela tried to imitate the expression, staring into the distance with exaggerated horror. "There goes another million dollars."
Alex pointed at her. "Exactly. Then after the take finished, the whole place was smoke, debris, alarms, broken crystal pieces everywhere. And pin-drop silence."
"And you were probably standing there completely happy." She raised an eyebrow.
Alex gave her an innocent expression. "The footage looked amazing."
Angela shook her head slowly. "You're definitely the kind of director who terrifies insurance companies."
Alex replied. "They keep renewing coverage, so clearly love survives."
They kept talking long after the plates had been cleared.
Angela told him about wardrobe malfunctions that had turned into accidental jokes, photographers falling backward into fountains, models trying to walk through fake snow that turned out much deeper than expected, and one campaign where a horse decided it hated the male model beside her.
Alex told stories from movie sets. He told her about actors forgetting dramatic lines because somebody's stomach growled during complete silence, stunt performers celebrating perfect takes only to discover the camera had lost focus, and the first time Andrew Garfield swung through a practical rooftop setup and accidentally scared an assistant who didn't know the rig test had started.
By the time their next round of drinks arrived, Angela had stopped checking the time entirely.
She rested one elbow against the table and said, "You're way easier to talk to than I thought you'd be."
Alex raised an eyebrow. "What did you think dinner with me would be like?"
Angela looked upward dramatically while pretending to think. "I don't know. Maybe two assistants standing behind you, somebody checking stock prices between courses, guards with guns covering the exit and entrance, and Rachel suddenly appearing from the shadows if I asked a suspicious question."
Alex agreed. "Rachel would absolutely do that last part if she thought you were suspicious enough."
Angela pointed a finger at him. "See, that's exactly what I mean. You're supposed to be this terrifying Hollywood king and the richest man in the world everyone talks about, then you sit here laughing about seagulls attacking models."
Alex leaned back comfortably. "I'm terrifying during business hours. After dinner, I'm mostly harmless."
Angela gave him a long look over the rim of her glass. "Mostly harmless sounds very carefully worded."
Alex slightly raised an eyebrow and gave her that mysterious look. "I like leaving a little mystery."
Angela took a sip and lowered her glass. "I'm starting to understand why everyone around you gets attached."
The sentence came out more honestly than she probably intended.
For a second, Angela looked like she considered taking it back, although the drinks had loosened her enough that she simply let it stay between them.
Alex's expression softened.
He rested his forearms against the table and looked at her without teasing. "You've got a habit of saying honest things after a few drinks, don't you?"
Angela gave a quiet laugh and looked toward her glass. "Apparently I do, which means you should probably stop buying them before I start telling you my childhood secrets."
Alex replied gently. "You can tell me whatever you want, whenever you want. There's no rush."
Angela looked back at him.
Something in the easy answer caught her more than any of his earlier flirting had.
She smiled, slower this time. "You're unexpectedly sweet sometimes."
Alex nodded solemnly. "Don't spread that around. I've got an image to maintain."
They kept talking about smaller things like favorite food, places they wanted to visit, embarrassing childhood habits, music they hated but secretly knew every word to.
By the time they finally stood to leave, dinner had stretched far beyond what either of them had planned.
Angela slipped into her jacket and looked toward Alex as they headed for the exit. "I'm glad you asked me out."
Alex opened the door for her. "I'm glad your couch lost the competition."
Angela stepped outside and looked back at him. "Don't get arrogant. The couch still has tomorrow night."
Alex followed her out, amused. "Then I guess I'll have to earn a rematch."
"Are you planning to ask me out again tomorrow?" She asked.
"Are you free after seven tomorrow?" He asked.
Angela stopped and looked at him. "Maybe I am."
Alex slipped his hands into his pockets. "Then maybe I'll call you tomorrow and see if that maybe turns into a yes."
Angela glanced back at him with a playful smirk. "Maybe I'll answer the phone if you're lucky."
After talking for a few more minutes, both of them got into their cars, said goodnight, and drove home. Alex sent two of his guard cars behind her to make sure she reached her hotel safely.
...
[That night]Â
Alex entered his LA penthouse and stopped for a moment. Before him was Chloe, lying on the couch, naked. The TV was on, and there was a bowl of strawberries on the table.Â
"Well," Alex said as he cleared his throat, slipped off his shoes, and shrugged out of his jacket. "You really know how to make coming home feel dangerously rewarding."
Chloe picked up a strawberry, bit into it slowly, and gave him a teasing smile from the couch. "Good, because I was starting to wonder how long I'd have to wait before you noticed the welcome package."
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[9 advance chs] [All chs available for all tiers] + [Streamer in Modern Family> 35 chs> All chs available for all tiers]
[1] Ch: 338 [Night of pleasure with Chloe] [r18] Ch: 339 [The Empire Beyond Entertainment] Ch: 340 [The Household Recognition Act] Ch: 341 [What Could Possibly Go Wrong?] Ch: 342 [A Princess, an Elephant, and Iron Man] Ch: 343 [X-Men Casting & Edited Script] Ch: 344 [Crybabies & Jazz Grandpa] Ch: 345 [Titan 2009 Event: Surprise Reveal] Ch: 346 [Titan Event: The Big Screen Reveals]