Spur of the Moment by Theresa Alan Read Free Book Online Page B

and ran off.
    They performed well that night. In a couple of scenes, they really killed. A couple weren’t quite as good as Ana might have hoped, but nothing that would make the audience fidgety with embarrassment or anything. That was how Ana gauged the success of a show: If they didn’t make the audience cringe, the show was a hit.
    After the show, the actors went to the bar in the back of the theater to have a few drinks as they always did. Each and every one of them had vowed at one time or another to go straight home to bed after a performance. They vowed to drink less alcohol, get more sleep, cut down on their caffeine intake, and lead wholesome, healthy lives. No one, however, had actually ever done any of this. For one thing, they knew that if they went straight home after a show, they’d miss something hilarious that would be an inside joke to the other actors until the end of time. For another thing, performers got drinks for a dollar. (A dollar!) It was such a good deal that to forsake a few beers after the show was downright fiscally irresponsible.
    Before Ana joined her friends, she went to talk with Guy from Qwest. He said he liked their work and he’d like them to perform at the company holiday party in December.
    â€œHow about corporate retreats, team-building sessions, things like that?” Ana asked.
    â€œI’m sure you’ve read in the news that things are difficult in the telecom industry. We don’t have much of a budget for those things these days, though we hope things will pick up soon.”
    â€œWell, I really appreciate you coming by. We’d love to perform at your holiday party and any other events that come up. Steve Cuddy is the one to call to schedule everything. Do you have his card?”
    â€œYep, he gave it to me earlier. Thanks for your time.”
    â€œNo, thank you.”
    She shook his hand and smiled at him, but as soon as he walked away, her disappointment showed clearly in her expression. Why did he have to go and get her hopes up if he knew he didn’t have much of a budget? One lousy holiday party? They might make enough money to buy a few Christmas presents, but they’d hardly be able to quit their day jobs with one stinking holiday gig. Ana went to the table in the back where the other actors were sitting.
    â€œHey, look you guys!” It was Scott, who rode up to the table on a unicycle. With his long, gangly limbs and curly hair springing out all over the place, Ana thought he looked so cute and boyish, which made sense because he really was just a kid in a twenty-seven-year-old man’s body.
    â€œHey, give me a shot at that,” Ramiro said. As he, Scott, Jason, and Marin gathered around it with glee, Ana and Chelsey went to the bar to order a beer from Tony, the long-haired bartender. Ana had made out with him in the coatroom a few times before. Marin and Chelsey had both slept with him at one point or another, on and off when the alcohol-to-lust ratio tipped the scales. He was nobody’s idea of a good boyfriend, or, God forbid, husband, but his exquisite build and sexy smile made the occasional romp with him pretty much unavoidable.
    The two women took their beers and sat down at a table near the back of the theater. “How are things going at the gym? Any new crazy characters to tell me about?” Ana asked.
    â€œCan’t think of any. I guess the good news at work is that, what with this being America, there are always fat people who need to work their fat asses off.”
    Ana nodded, agreeing that this was indeed good fortune.
    â€œDo you ever think that someday we’re going to wake up and say to ourselves that we’re not actors with day jobs, we’re personal trainers and marketing managers and admin assistants who do comedy as a hobby?” Ana asked.
    â€œNo, no, of course not.”
    â€œWe have to go to New York. We’re never going to be able to make it big in