After All

Chapter 1: Tiff at TIFF

A/N: Hi All! Thanks for joining me on this new Damie delusion! As a point of reference, this is fantasy, not factual, so I will not be responding to comments about factual discrepancies. My only hope is that you sit back and sigh and enjoy your meanderings! I apologize for the delay in posting. WattPad and I had a bit of a disagreement, but we are good now! Please share and let me know what you think!

"We'll be there in about 15 minutes, sir."

Jamie gave a nod as he said, "Fine," and shifted his gaze out the window of the moving car making its way to the Toronto International Film Festival. It wasn't his first time here, but the first time with two films. He sighed a little, it felt good. His career was doing well and he was happy with the trajectory. He had a steady stream of offers and had finally reached the point where he could pick and choose his projects to a degree.

If only his personal life was on the same trajectory. He didn't even know how to categorize it. They weren't divorced, but they were not together in any sense of the word. They sometimes shared the same house, they went to functions together where they were both expected, and they spent time with the girls – the only reason he was still in it at all.

He didn't hate his wife, not by a longshot. They had both tried, several times as evidenced by the last two children, to make it work, but they had finally reached a point where they recognized they weren't the same people they were when they met and fell in love. She didn't love him anymore, and he didn't love her either. But they had a family that needed them both, so they reverted to a comfortable friendship/co-parenting arrangement. Neither had mentioned the 'D' word since there was nobody in the wings for either of them.

With that thought, he sighed heavier and thought of Dakota. She was never far from his thoughts, but she was out of his reach and well past whatever feelings they had once shared. He could not remember ever feeling closer to anyone in his life, and that included his wife. They just seemed to connect on a fundamental level that never lessened, no matter what life situations came at them. They had grown incredibly close during the filming of the first 50 movie, understandably given the circumstances, but at the end, they both went their separate ways, albeit with a bit of regret. He missed her more than he should. They kept in touch, texting or talking daily. He realized he was shortchanging his marriage, so did his best to refocus. The result was baby number two.

After that, contact with Dakota lessened considerably, but was still the highlight of his day when it happened. The filming of the second two 50 movies was nearly his undoing. He spent nearly every day over the course of about six months with Dakota and it was inevitable that the feelings he had for her would come back in a rush. Not only did they come back, they came like a fucking tsunami. He found himself consumed by her. And he was enough of a man to recognize that she felt the same.

They fell into some nebulous zone where filming became the better part of their relationship because they could let the chemistry shine through. They didn't have to 'act' like they were in love or passionate about and for each other. And since they couldn't do it off screen, they reveled in the ability to engage during filming.

He spent time with her family when they came to visit, and got an even better sense of who she is and what is important to her. It only made him love her more. She loved spending time with his daughters and they adored her just as much. She was a good sport and spent time with Amelia and tried her best to be supportive, fun, and non-threatening, but it was a miserable fail. Millie could see the sparks. Hell, she could feel them. Even though nothing physical had happened between us, it was apparent to anyone around us that we had a connection that went well beyond co-workers.

When Millie visited us during filming in the France, it was the first time we ever discussed the possibility of separating for a while. We decided to wait until I returned home to discuss it more once I was out of the bubble of the filming world. Once Millie left France, Dakota and I drew even closer, like our souls recognized we were nearing the end of an excuse to see each other every day. We were careful to never say out loud the words we were both feeling, but we sat together a lot in silence – holding hands and looking at the sky. I knew she could sense my feelings and I sure as hell knew what she was thinking. The crazy revolving door of her love life stopped abruptly when we were back filming together.