On-set romances... they either thrive, burn brightly then die just as quickly, or end when the director calls "Cut!" for the final time. Tom Hiddleston and Rayne Ellison met on the set of Crimson Peak and began an affair that they were able to keep...
Rayne sighed tiredly and ran her fingers through her hair as Benedict Cumberbatch left the fitting room. She'd been at it all day and still had quite a few heroes to fit before she could start costumes. Agnes frowned as she poked her head in the door.
"Have you eaten yet? Nevermind, don't answer that. I know you haven't left this room all day. You need to take a break soon."
Rayne just nodded absently as she looked at her list of actors, seeing that Tom was next. "I have two more for today, then I'll be finished. I'll eat then."
Agnes just sighed and shook her head before leaving Rayne alone. If she were honest, Rayne loved this part of the process. The hands-on part, taking a costume from initial fittings to the finished product, almost all done by her hand. Of course, others would work on the extras and the smaller parts, but Rayne handled the stars almost exclusively. Agnes helped from time to time with the sewing, but her hands wouldn't let her do the fittings anymore.
There was a knock on the door before it opened to reveal Tom walking through and closing it behind himself. He gave her a smile and she grinned back before nodding at him.
"If you'll strip down to your boxers, we'll get started."
He chuckled and Rayne mentally slapped herself. Yeah, she remembered that he wore boxers, but he didn't need to know that. Her mind had been taking her on a few trips down memory lane lately, and it was starting to work on her nerves a bit. She heard a throat clear and looked up to see Tom standing before her in just his boxers. It took her a moment to catch her breath at the sight of the body that she knew so intimately, but she did, nodding to herself as she removed one of the many tape measures from around her neck.
"Arms outstretched please."
Tom did as she requested, frowning slightly. As she started measuring his arms from shoulder to wrist, then fingertip, stopping to write the numbers down, he spoke softly.
"Darling, you look done in. Do you have to do everyone in one day?"
Rayne grinned and shook her head as she measured his bicep. "No, but I like to get a jump on things, so I've done quite a few today. I just have you and Robert left, then I'll be done for the evening."
"Rayne, you have assistants. They should be doing some of this as well."
She nodded as she stood in front of him and wrapped her arms around his back to bring the tape measure around his chest. "You're right. Ordinarily, they would be, but I am just enough of a control freak that I don't trust anyone's measurements but my own." She shrugged before moving the tape down to his waist. "I'd just be double-checking their work anyway, so why not just do it myself in the first place?"
Tom just smiled wryly as she knelt in front of him to measure his legs and inseam. Rayne blew out a breath as Tom sucked one in, her fingers grazing his thigh as she wrapped the tape around it. She frowned a bit before glancing up at him. "You've gotten bigger."
Tom didn't hide his amusement as he grinned down at her. "You never complained before, darling."
Rayne snorted out a laugh and shook her head. "That's not what I meant. Your thighs are more defined. Running a lot?"
Tom nodded. "Yes. Lately, I've had some excess... energy to run off."
Rayne said nothing, just grinned to herself as she lifted the tape to measure his inseam. She heard Tom make a choking noise as her fingers accidentally brushed against his sack. She quickly got the measurement before moving on, causing Tom to breathe an audible sigh of relief. Soon, she was done with him and allowed him to get dressed.
When finished, he started for the door, but stopped halfway there and turned back to her. "Would you like to get a coffee when you're through for the day? I've heard that's a proper first date these days."
She grinned and shook her head, causing him to frown at her. "I've made it a rule not to date anyone on the film that I'm working on. Lessons learned and all of that."
Tom looked at the floor for a moment before bringing his eyes back to hers. He had a gleam in them, and Rayne groaned internally, knowing that he had just taken what she said as a challenge rather than a refusal. "So... you won't go out with me until we're finished filming."
She nodded quickly, relieved that he understood. "Yes, that's exactly right."
He moved closer to her and her heart rate plummeted as he leaned in to speak quietly. "Well, darling, we aren't filming yet. I realize you've started your process, but... " He leaned even closer, and Rayne could feel his breath against her cheek as he whispered in her ear. "This is fair warning. I will try every way I know of to get around these rules of yours, darling. I am sure that we will both be much happier when I succeed."
Without another word, he turned on his heel and left her there, trying to breathe normally. As the door shut quietly behind him, Rayne sank down into a chair and thought that it wasn't every day that you threw down the gauntlet, rather intentionally or not, in front of the God Of Mischief.
Tom found Ben in the commissary and joined him at a table. Ben took one look at Tom's face and started chuckling. "I wondered if you would survive being that close to her."
Tom shook his head at his best friend and laughed quietly. "It took everything I had, mate, I can assure you of that." He frowned down at the table for a moment before speaking again. "She says that she won't date me until after filming is over."
Ben lifted one brow at that information. "Well, I'm sure that won't slow you down for long."
Tom grinned as an idea began to form. "No, mate, it won't. As a matter of fact, I think I found a loophole."
They sat and chatted for a bit, Ben telling Tom about something his wife, Anna, had done that was hilarious. Tom looked down at his watch every so often, silently calculating how long it would take for Rayne to measure Robert. When he thought she should be almost through, he stood up, bidding Ben farewell for the evening. He quickly made his way to the barista, where he purchased two coffees, then headed back from where he had come from.
He knocked on the door and opened it slightly before calling out. "Everyone decent in here?"
He heard Robert laugh. "Well, as decent as we ever are, sure."
He chuckled as he walked into the room, seeing Robert pulling his shirt back over his head as Rayne sat at a desk in the corner, writing down figures. He held out the coffee and grinned.
"I come bearing drinks."
He watched as Rayne looked up and bit her lip, prepared to tell him, no, but something changes her mind, be it the look on his face or the smell of the coffee. "That sounds amazing actually."
He smiled as he handed her a cup, before chuckling. When she had taken the first sip, he smiled and tipped his head at her. "Well, now we've had our first date."
Rayne looked shocked as Robert laughed out loud, slapping Tom on the back. She sputtered out a denial as both men looked on in amusement. "Whoa, wait for a second! We did not... "
Robert held up a hand to cut her off. "Sorry, sweetheart, but... " He ticked off items on his fingers as he continued. "He bought coffee. You accepted said coffee. Your drank said coffee while he drank his. That, ladies and gentlemen, constitutes a date." He walked over and kissed Rayne on the cheek, smiling at her. "You got sucked into a loophole and broke your own rule."
