Lia and Dominic had a ritual where they Skyped once a week so that Lia could “talk” to Seamus.  Dom had brought Seamus along to the first movie they starred in and it was love at first sight for she and the canine.  Seamus wasn’t happy about being away from familiar surroundings, so he mostly spent time in Dominic’s trailer, whining.  The only time he perked up aside from being with Dom was when Lia paid even the slightest attention to him.  Then he would be beside himself, wagging his stubby tail like crazy, dropping down into the puppy play bow, running in circles and jumping around excitedly.  Dominic thought Seamus was lucky; the canine could openly express the way Dom felt about Lia whenever he saw her.

“Shamey!  How’s my big baby?  I miss you, big boy, did you miss me?”  Seamus jumped up and licked the computer screen and whined because he couldn’t actually reach Lia.

“Do you have to call him “Shamey”?  It’s like the least masculine nickname for a 90 pound rottie.”

“Shut up.  He likes it when I call him Shamey.  Don’t you baby?  My baby loves when I call him Shamey, “doggie talking” to the dog”.  Seamus barked his response.

“Okay, enough stroking the dog’s ego.  It’s time to talk to me. I’m feeling like chopped liver here.”  Dom said, chuckling.

“You big baby!  So what’s the haps big guy?  You got any new projects coming down the pike?”  

“Yeah!  I got that Mike Anderson project!  We start filming in four months”.

“Dom that’s great!  I knew you’d get it!”  Lia beamed at him.  

“Thanks, babe.  What about you?”  

“Ava Bentley wants me for the female lead of that movie adaptation for that awful and poorly written fanfic “The Red Door”.  

Dominic wrinkled his nose like he smelled something bad.  “Yeah, I heard the book was a piece of shite, but it has all the middle aged housewives creaming their knickers.  Bright side is, it’s a guaranteed hit.  Although I don’t like the idea of some guy simulating sex with you.  That’s been MY job for two movies now”.

Lia laughed.  “Yeah, I don’t necessarily want to be writhing under any other guy but you”.  Lia immediately realized what she’d said and felt a blush that began from the top of her head to the bottom of her feet.

Dominic’s mouth spread into a wide, shit eating grin.  “Is that right, Mariani?  So would you say you ENJOY writhing under me?  Should we do that more often, because I can arrange that we end up in that position in every movie we appear in together in from here on out”.

“I’m disconnecting this video call right now”.

The last thing Lia heard before she disconnected was Dom laughing uproariously.  “Jerk”, she said with a laugh.

****************************

Lia arrived at her bestie Mimi’s house two hours after her video session with Dominic.

She knocked on the door and jumped when the door flew open.  “Get in here!”

What’s the matter with you, Mimi?”

“Spider, spider, spider, spider, SPIDER!”

Lia rolled her eyes at her extremely arachnophobic, highly dramatic friend.  “Where?”

Mimi pointed to the wall over her loveseat.  On the wall was a spider about the size of a quarter.  She slipped off one of her ballet flats, walked over to the wall and smacked her shoe over the spider.

“All gone, you punk.  Get me some spray cleaner and a paper towel so I can clean up the crime scene”.

Mimi perked up like she hadn’t just been panicking like a lunatic just a minute ago and grabbed her friend up in a tight hug.

“So how was filming?” she asked.

“It was great.  Nothing but positive feedback.  It’ll probably be a few months before the movie’s fully edited and screened for the studio, but John feels real good about the outcome.  The producers seemed really pleased.”

“That’s great, mama.  And now for the important question.  How is that fine ass scottish piece of man meat?

“I don’t know to whom you are referring”.  Lia teased.

Mimi smacked Lia with a couch cushion and they both laughed.

“Dom’s fine.  I talked to him today.  He’s got a new movie in a few months”.

“So when are you going to man up and tell that man you are in love with him?”

Lia covered her face with her hands. “Ugh!  I don’t know why I can’t just say the words, Mimi.  I come close every time and then I just chicken out”.

“You’re putting too much pressure on yourself, Li Li.  Don’t think, just do”.

“Maybe”.  Lia said, deep in thought.

**************************

Dominic and Lia were having their usual late night phone call.  Lia made Dom call her every night while she was trying to get to sleep.  Her nighttime ritual was to shower, put on her pj’s and call Dominic.  His silky, deep voice always lulled her to sleep.

They had been talking for about half an hour before he could tell she was falling asleep.  “Lia, you asleep”.

“Mm-hm”, Lia mumbled.

“Okay well, I’m gonna let you drift to dream land.  Good night, sweetheart”.

“Night ”, Lia whispered groggily. “I love you, Dom”.

Dominic held his breath.  Did he hear her correctly.  “What did you say, Lia?”

Lia smiled. “You heard me”.

“I did.  But I need you to say it again”.

“I love you, Dom”, she said sounding a little more awake now.

“Again”.  Dom said huskily.

“I love you”.

“I love you, too, Lia”.

Lia’s heart swelled. “I’m going to sleep now, baby.  I’ll call you in the morning”.

“Okay.  Sleep tight, baby.  I love you”.  Now that Dominic said it, he never wanted to stop.

“I love you, too”.

After they hung up, Lia rolled over on her back and began giggling and kicking her legs like a teenaged girl who just found out that the cutest boy in school liked her.  Only this was SO much better.

Fifteen minute later when she was just about drift off to sleep her phone rang.

“Baby", Dominic said, “I’m getting on the red eye to New York. I’ll be there in about seven hours”.

Lia smiled.  “Aren’t there faster planes?”

“No, baby but I promise it will be worth the wait”.

“I can’t wait, baby”.  I love you”.

“I will NEVER get tired of hearing that”.

“Good, because I’ll never get tired of saying it”.

Dominic smiled from ear to ear.  “See you in seven hours.

When they ended the call, Lia squealed, got up and began jumping up and down on her bed.  She scared the crap out of Lollipop, but she didn’t care.  Her man was on his way.