Hollywood Royalty

It had been close to three months since her divorce and Grace was doing okay… Or as okay as any twenty six year old divorced single woman could be. She had spent the past couple of months staying in Bath, England in her family’s summer house but had decided that she had spent enough time wallowing in her own self-pity. It was time to finally leave England… Time to leave home and start over. London contained too many painful memories of the moments she shared with Tom. Grace was a little all too eager to rid herself of all the things holding her down to London which may have even included friends. Grace wasn’t all too keen on having friends at the moment especially celebrity friends. It was what got her in trouble in the first place thanks to the whole Tom-Taylor fiasco.

Her grandmother, on her father’s side, used to tell her a story about a couple she once knew that was good friends with another couple. The couple grew a little close and it turned out that the husband and wife from the opposite couple were having an affair. That was what friends got you. Her friends in London left voice message after voice message, giving her their condolences. Emma Watson and Bonnie Wright went on a tirade about how much of an arse Tom was and how they couldn’t believe Taylor would do such a thing. Matthew Lewis was sweet and endearing, never making a remark about Tom but instead asking her if she was okay and if she needed anything. Even George Clooney, a former costar, called and told her she was more than welcome to stay with him and his wife Amal. It was incredibly kind of them but it made Grace uncomfortable. She knew if she spent any time with them their pity would only remind her of the betrayal of the two people she was closest to in her life. The media already was enough of a reminder, Grace didn’t need her friends there looking down at her with sympathetic looks.

Grace knew that she couldn’t live in Los Angeles(Tom and her had a house in the Hills there) either so she moved to New York City. It may have been a weird move to make since her former best friend famously lived in the city but Grace was sure that the blonde popstar was more than occupied over in London. Life in New York was hard at first. It turned out that you actually didn’t need a car there which was similar to London life. It was louder than London and LA, especially at night, which made it hard for her to sleep but also think. It was a good thing for her in the end. None of her friends lived in New York either which gave her the space she needed. There were times that they would text her about meeting up but Grace just texted that she was out of town filming a movie.

It wasn’t easy adjusting to her newly divorced life… being divorced was one thing but being a divorced celebrity was entirely different. Grace Gallagher was in the press every day for a month and even after the fact she was talked about on a regular basis. She was part of one of the most scandalous Hollywood love triangles to date. A modern day Debbie Reynolds, Eddie Fisher, and Elizabeth Taylor type of scandal. Only Grace was the Debbie Reynolds in the situation. Her husband left her for her best friend of many years. If there was any person that Grace was incredibly close to, it was Taylor. Something about them clicked from the moment they first met. They were both the goody two shoes type who also had a dry, sarcastic sense of humor at the same time. They never got into any trouble and were both natural blondes who had a liking for vintage looking skirts and Christmas. Grace Gallagher and Taylor Swift were the media’s favorite best friend duo. They were even up there with famous friendships like Adam Levine and Blake Shelton.

It all ended four months ago.

Having your divorce and your best friend’s betrayal in your face constantly wasn’t exactly an ideal way of getting over a relationship. She was back in apartment life after the divorce, a small change from the large townhouse her and Tom lived in while in London together as well as a change from the house in LA. It was nice in a way since it was completely different from her life in London. It was in an upper class apartment complex that had a doorman and everything. The building was large and beautiful, leaving a beautiful view of the city from her apartment on the fifth floor. The city skyline made her miss home all the more and she wasn’t talking about LA.

She missed 30 St Mary Axe in its iconic nature that somehow resembled an Easter egg or at least in her eyes, the empire state building just wasn’t the same to her. Grace missed all the little shops and hole in the wall restaurants that turned out to have the best fish and chips in the city. The memory of taking a walk along the Thames River also filled her with misery just thinking about it as well as the fact of seeing Westminster Abbey, The Tower, and the London eye while taking the short but eventful walk. She reminisced about visiting Covenant Gardens in her school girl days, all the little tents set up with neat little trinkets all while street performers performed for your entertainment. It was dead silent at night, the streets abandoned save for a couple of shady looking people. If there was one thing she missed most of all… It was the smell of roasted nuts almost anywhere you went, a vendor standing by ready to make his day’s earning. London didn’t have the fresh and soothing smell to it like Edinburgh had but it still felt like home to her. New York smelled similar but it was completely different in the fact that the city never slept as it was famous for. New York was loud and noisy but it provided Grace with the distraction that she needed.

It only took her about a month in the city before she decided that she was way too bored and lonely to not have any companionship. One summer afternoon she went to the local animal shelter, looking for a friend, and determined to meet her soul mate. The famous actress looked at dog after dog but not seeing any particular K-9 that caught her eyes until her blue orbs landed on a rugged looking German Shepard. His name was Ash and he looked a little worn down despite being only three years old. A good chunk of his left ear was missing and he had a long scar that ran over his left eye, leaving him blind in one eye. He would’ve looked like a scary dog to most but to Grace he was perfect. Ash became her jogging partner as well as the subject of all her Instagram posts. It may have been slightly ridiculous notion having a dog as a best friend but he was what it took for Grace to leave her past in her past. He made her happy.

Ash was a new step in her life. She had invited someone else into her life, someone new, and although he wasn’t human, it was the sort of companionship that Grace needed. Her life became encompassed by three things… Ash, Work, and Netflix. It might not have been a healthy number of things in her life but it was a step closer to starting over as well as a step further from Tom’s presence in her life.

It had been several months since she had worked on a film set of any type but Grace knew that it was time to get back to work. Her agent was pretty adamant about it too so she was even more determined to work on another project. This project in particular was exceptionally important to the blonde actress. It was a film that depicted the life of her grandmother, Princess Grace and her life as a Hollywood legend and princess. For the film that had offered the part to Grace with no audition necessary. Grace knew why… Who else was better to play Grace Kelly than the granddaughter of the famous actress who also happened to look exactly like the late princess. Grace may have been a little hesitant to play the part, mostly because people would think that she was entitled. The director wanted her for the film because she was Grace Kelly’s granddaughter but she was also a very talented actress. She had been nominated for a couple of Oscars after all and that was no easy task. So with some convincing from her family who was determined to get the only person in the world who could play the part, she decided to give in and take the job. Her mother’s side of the family was just relieved that there would finally be a correct portrayal of Princess Grace.

The media went wild with the news of Grace Gallagher playing her grandmother in a film directed by one of Hollywood’s greatest directors. Truthfully, the film was unlike any other film that Grace had ever worked on. It was the first time Grace was involved with the creative process of a making a film. The writers always asked her for information about her grandfather or any details she may have heard about her grandmother. Grace told them everything she could remember although she didn’t feel like she was particularly helpful even with everyone telling her that she was. Grace also managed to convince her uncle to allow them to film in the palace in Monaco when it came time to start production in Monaco. It wasn’t very difficult to do so, her uncle was more than happy to allow them to film there since Grace was the one starring in the film.

The casting for the new film went fairly smoothly or as smoothly as it could go. They casted Robert Downey Jr. as Clark Gable which most weren’t happy with. Grace didn’t see a problem with the casting, Mr. Downey didn’t look a lot like Clark Gable but he had that same kind of charm that Clark Gable was famous for. Lily Collins was casted as Audrey Hepburn which Grace thought she was perfect for. It was kind of an emotional moment for Grace when they casted someone as Audrey Hepburn since the late actress was her mother’s namesake but Grace decided to move forward. George Clooney was casted as Cary Grant who was a good friend of her grandmother’s. Grace thought the casting of the older actor was very fitting and she was happy to work with George again. The last time she had worked with him was around six or so years ago. Lastly, there was the casting of Prince Rainier, Grace’s grandfather and the love of Grace Kelly’s life. Grace didn’t have much input into the casting but the director assured her that they would make sure they made the right pick. And so they finally casted her grandfather.

The actor they casted as the late prince of Monaco wasn’t very well known to Grace. Grace didn’t exactly know how she felt about the casting since the actor wasn’t familiar to her. His name was Pedro Pascal, an actor who was much older than herself as it turned out. Since she didn’t know much about him she decided to google search him. Grace discovered that he was a forty one year old actor, about fifteen years older than Grace, who was originally born in Chile before moving to the United States when he was very young. Pascal apparently had a role on 'Game of Thrones' before his character had a gruesome death scene like many characters before and after him. Although Grace had previously worked with another famous 'Games of Thrones' actor, Richard Madden, she had never seen the television series herself.

Grace immediately found herself curious about the actor and sought out any work of his that wouldn’t take a few seasons before she got to his part. So she watched his Netflix series 'Narcos' which was about the drug war that went on in Columbia in the late eighties, centering around Pablo Escobar. It wasn’t the kind of series that Grace typically watched but she couldn’t help but get addicted to the series. It was a sad moment when season one ended and she realized she would have to wait for the next season. Pedro Pascal was a handsome looking man but not in the same way that Tom was. The older actor was a rugged sort of handsome with his dark eyes and thick, dark hair. His nose was rather larger and almost crooked but somehow it added to his handsomeness. Grace couldn’t help but find him attractive as she watched the series and cursed herself for being silly and acting like a petty little school girl. It had been too long since she had been with a man and now she was acting foolish.

It was a Friday morning when Grace retrieved a phone call from her agent. The production was about to start on the film in close to a week so Grace was just spending what little time she had to herself before she would be shipped back to LA. Her dog Ash was resting on his bed in the living room while Grace read through a Gillian Flynn novel, the tv was set on 'Fixer Upper', making her Friday almost routine as it had been for the past four months. She had just finished the press tour for 'The Shallows' and was set on getting as much rest as she could possibly get before going back to work. When her phone rang, Grace immediately went to set her book down and lowered the volume on the tv.

“Hey, Christine.” Grace answered as she picked up her phone.

“Good Morning, Grace.” Her agent replied cheerfully.

“So what’s going on? I assume you wouldn’t call me unless there was something terribly amiss.” Grace joked.

“Well, you’re set to start filming in a week.”

“Yes, I’m well aware, Chris.”

“So one of the actors has contacted me. Apparently he would like to meet with you to discuss his role.” Grace raised a brow.

“Has he? And which actor would that be?”

“Pedro Pascal? The one that was casted as Prince Rainier.” Grace was a bit surprised to hear that. She was more than sure that it was George calling even though he already had her personal phone number. George was always playing fully little tricks on her like that, things that only he found funny.

“And did Mr. Pascal say where he would like to meet?”

“Well, he thought he would have to wait until you arrived in LA but when I told him you were living in the city, he thought you might like to meet for drinks this evening. I gave him your address and he suggested a discreet restaurant named Dorsia where neither of you will be bothered. He would really like to know more about your grandfather before filming starts.” Grace considered what her agent told her. Usually she wouldn’t say yes to meeting a complete stranger, even if he was a costar, but this costar was taking up the role of her grandfather so it would due him some good to gain more knowledge about the part he was playing.

“Very well. Did he say what time?”

“No, he decided to leave that up to you.” Grace smiled.

“Tell him that I’ll meet him there at 8:30. I have to travel to Philadelphia shortly and won’t be back for some time. I have some business that needs to be taken care of.” Grace told her. It was true that she was heading to Pennsylvania but it was only for the day since she needed to settle some business after purchasing a house and property. It was her grandmother’s childhood home that had recently gone on the market, if Grace hadn’t bought it her Uncle would have instead.

“Sounds good, Grace, I’ll make sure to give Mr. Pascal the information.” They bid each other goodbye and Grace was left alone to gather her thoughts. It was an odd thing to imagine since this was the last thing she expected. It was only a few days ago when she was watching the actor’s television show but now she was meeting him in person. It was a bit beyond belief since she had become a recent fan of his work but she was excited at the prospect of meeting him.