Beck and Jade decide that it's best not to immediately start trying to have a baby again. They had never intended to get pregnant in the first place, and they think the best decision moving forward is to just focus on their careers and each other. So that's exactly what they do.
It takes a few months for Jade to really start to feel one hundred percent like herself again, and to feel fully able to commit herself to some kind of project. When she finally feels ready, Mona arranges for her to audition for a part on an HBO mini-series. There is a lot of buzz and anticipation surrounding the project already, as its a print to screen adaptation of a very popular novel. Jade is nervous about the audition, its a much different role than anything she's ever played before and there's already so many expectations surrounding it. Beck helps her to run lines and prepare, but she still feels a little shaky when she walks in to read for the part. The director loves her though, and he offers her the role right there in the room.
Within a week there's a press release announcing that Jade will be playing the female lead and the public's anticipation of the project grows higher and higher. Jade decides to read the novel while she waits for filming to start to help her better get into her character's mindset. The story is set in the eighties and follows the journey of a photo-journalist, who Jade will be playing, that travels to Rome to search for answers about her mother, who had disappeared there fifteen years prior. She meets a mysterious young reporter upon her arrival, who of course has connections, and he offers to help her with her investigation. Things are obviously not what they seem, secrets are revealed, family drama plays out and ends up contributing more to the plot than Jade had expected, and overall the book itself is just addicting. After listening to her rave about how good it is, Beck decides to read the book as well and is very impressed. He's also incredibly proud that that his wife gets to be a part of bringing something so well-written and beloved to life for people to enjoy. Almost exactly one month after Jade books the role, they're both on a plane to Italy so she can begin filming on location.
The production company anticipates that filming will take approximately four months, so Beck and Jade opt to rent a place in Rome rather than live out of their suitcases in a hotel during that time. The apartment is significantly smaller than their one in New York, it's only one bedroom and one bathroom and only sits on one floor. But it is a penthouse, and there is a large terrance balcony that provides them with a beautiful view of Piazza Navona and Campo de' Fiori. It's early spring when they first arrive, so the weather is warm and they're able to take full advantage of it too. Jade describes it as a 'cozy little place', and the young couple is very much looking forward to spending the next few months together there.
"It's like the honeymoon we never had." Beck smiles as he wraps an arm around her waist, looking out at the beautiful view of the city in front of them
They hadn't been able to afford to take a honeymoon when they first got married. They were nineteen, broke, and trying to save up as much money as possible so they could afford the cost of living in New York. Their parents had sent them to Disneyland for the day, but it wasn't anything close to what either of them imagined as a real honeymoon.
"Except I'm here to work." Jade reminds him as he leans down to kiss her "And this role is a really important one, so I need to make sure I'm on my game."
"Oh don't worry. I know and understand that." Beck assures her "I'm sure we'll still be able to find plenty of time to have some fun while we're here though."
Jade enjoys working on the series more than she ever imagined that she would. Not only is the cast and crew amazing, but the locations that they get to film at are so naturally beautiful. The script pushes her and her acting abilities to their limits and helps her to grow as a professional and as a person, and before they have even finished the first episode she decides that it's her favorite project that she's ever worked on.
"What about that movie that we did together?" Beck teases her
"That was a different kind of special." Jade tells him as she climbs into bed next to him, a breath-taking view of the city visible just outside their window "The experience of getting to work together was amazing but the script wasn't really anything special, no offense to those writers or anything. But this...this is something completely different, Beck. The story is just incredible and I'm being challenged as an actress every single day. I'm just getting so much more out of it."
"I understand." Beck chuckles as they snuggle up together "The projects that challenge you and help you grow are always more enjoyable. They keep you on your toes, no two days are ever the same."
"Exactly." Jade agrees with him "And...fuck, I feel so guilty because I find myself constantly thinking that none of this would be possible if I were still pregnant right now. Like no way would I have been able to for one, even book this role, and two, just pick up and move to Italy."
"Don't feel guilty." Beck shakes his head "We weren't ready for a baby yet, everything worked out the way it was supposed to. The universe is giving us more time."
There are days when Beck follows Jade to set. He loves watching her work and is so impressed by her and proud of her every single time that he does, but he finds other ways to pass time in Italy as well. He's begun work on the script for a short film that he hopes to be able to direct himself. He carries his laptop with him almost all the time so that he can write whenever the inspiration strikes, whether that be in the penthouse, at a small cafe in the city he decided to wander into that day, or at a beachfront restaurant. He also brought his camera along, and spends days at a time taking photographs and documenting the trip.
When Jade has a day off, they almost always take advantage of it and go out and do something. They spend days at the beach, exploring the city, hiking, or once they even take the train to Venice and spend the day there. The two of them love taking advantage of the time to spend together as a couple and enjoy each other's company, even after being together for so long.
All good things must come to an end though, and eventually production on the series does wrap and it's time for them to return to New York. Neither of them realize how much they had missed being home until they arrive back there. Their time in Italy had been just what they needed at the time, but it feels good to be back.
"Looks like even overseas we can't escape the paps." Jade sighs, scrolling through an article on her iPad before tossing it to Beck for him to read
"Beck and Jade's Roman Holiday..." Beck chuckles as he reads the article's title "It's clever, I'll give them that."
"Why do they care what we're doing in our free time?" Jade sighs "I mean, look at all of those pictures. None of them have anything to do with the series at all. It's all pictures of us out to dinner, or on one of those scooters, or kissing on the beach or-"
"People care because of the series." Beck reminds her "It's highly anticipated, remember? It's creating buzz. Not to mention that you and I were both household names long before we went to Rome."
"It's still annoying."
"At least all of the pictures were taken in public." He shrugs "No one was sneaking into our apartment and setting up cameras."
"As far as we know."
"C'mon, Jade."
"Hey, someone hid in the back of Cat's uber to try and meet her." Jade reminds her husband "I don't put anything past anyone anymore."
"Is Cat in town right now?" Beck asks "We should see if her and Robbie want to get together for dinner."
"She has a show here at the end of the month." Jade shrugs "But otherwise I think she's working on another album."
"While she's still touring the last one?" Beck chuckles "Typical Cat."
When Cat's tour rolls into Madison Square Garden, both Beck and Jade attend as her special guests. They arrive hours before the show starts and Cat and Jade immediately start talking and catching up, while Beck and Robbie do the same. The two men are significantly more relaxed about their conversation, and decide to each have a beer as well while the girls talk.
It doesn't take long for Cat's fans to figure out that both Beck and Jade are present at the show. It's very common knowledge by now, especially to their fans, that Cat and Jade are best friends and have been for a very long time. As soon as someone catches a glimpse of a Jade as she passes through the backstage area, it only takes about five minutes for the information to spread all over Twitter.
Jade pops out on stage a few times throughout the show in an attempt to scare Cat, but she's never successful because the increased screams from the fans as soon as they catch sight of her give her away to her friend. During one of the songs she stays out and dances around with Cat before returning backstage to watch with Beck and Robbie. Cat brings all three of them out with her during the final encore to dance, wave to fans, and take a final bow with her. At that point her fans are absolutely losing their minds, because not only is Cat's best friend, who happens to be an already famous actress, out there with her...so is her husband, and Cat's boyfriend. The four of them laugh about how insane it was later as they take a car from the arena to Robbie's apartment, and they spend the rest of the night laughing, catching up, and drinking too much.
Jade's mini-series receives the highest television ratings of the year so far when it premieres. Over eleven million people tune in to watch the first installment, and by the time the sixth and final installment airs over thirteen and a half million are watching. Thanks to the ability to stream shows even after they have aired, the hype lasts longer than it would have five or even ten years prior. People are watching it multiple times and encouraging others to watch it as well. It's a better reaction than anyone could have ever imagined. Jade is overwhelmed with all of the positive reviews that come out of it, and Beck is so proud of her he feels like his heart could combust at any moment. They celebrate in bed together every night for almost two weeks straight.
"Careful!" Jade laughs as she swings her fist at her husband's face "If you leave your face open, I'm going to hit you!"
"Y'know, when you asked me if I would come boxing with you today, I thought you meant both of us in gloves at our own punching bags." Beck says as he puts a punch mitt up to block her punch "I didn't think I was going to be used for target practice."
"We can switch later if you want." She teases him as she hits his punch mitt "Didn't you just play a boxer in a movie?"
"Well yeah." Beck chuckles "I was acting though. It was all fake."
"So?"
"Whatever..." He smirks "Just don't actually hit my face, okay? That's the money maker."
"Oh, conceited much?"
"You know what I meant."
Jade had invited her husband along for her morning workout because she needed a sparring partner and her trainer wasn't available. Working out together isn't abnormal for them, but Jade has seemed to enjoy boxing way more than Beck ever has. He's happy to help her out though.
They dance around the ring for a little while longer, Jade taking punches and the occasional kick and Beck blocking them with the punch pads. Eventually Jade's phone, which she has plugged into the stereo system, begins ringing and she pulls her gloves off to answer it.
"Are we done?" Beck asks
"We'll see." Jade smirks as she answers the phone "Hey Cat, what's up?"
"Jadey!" Cat is pracically screaming "Have you been online at all today?"
"No, we've been at the gym. Why?" Jade asks her "Why are you screaming at me?"
"You're nominated for an Emmy!" Cat exclaims "Outstanding Lead Actress in a Limited Series!"
"Shut up." Jade almost doesn't believe her friend
"Look it up if you don't believe me!" Cat says excitedly "Jadey! I'm so proud of you!"
"Thanks, Cat." Jade grins, shooting Beck an excited glance "I gotta go now, okay? I'll call you later?"
"Kk!"
"What was that about?" Beck asks as Jade ends the call and plugs her phone back into the stereo
"Uh..." Jade hesitates with a smile, stepping through the ropes back into the boxing ring "I've been nominated for an Emmy."
"No way!" Beck exclaims as he rips the punch pads off of his hands
"Way!" Jade grins
Beck picks her up and spins her around before placing her back on the ground and pressing a passionate kiss to her lips.
"I'm so proud of you!" He tells her "We need to celebrate."
"It's only a nomination." Jade reminds him "I probably won't even win."
"But you might."
"I guess we'll just have to wait and see."
The night of the award show, Beck and Jade walk the red carpet together. She wears a stunning strapless purple gown as she poses for pictures and gives interviews. Beck is more than happy to let her steal all of the spotlight, there's been many red carpets where their roles have been reversed, and he knows how hard she worked to deserve this nomination.
The series as a whole received a total of six nominations, so plenty of Jade's cast mates as well as their director are all in attendance at the show as well. They're all seated together in the same general section of the theater. Beck and Jade have been asked to present the award together for Outstanding Direction of a Comedy Series, which is awarded relatively early on in the show. Beck reads the name from the envelope while Jade holds the statuette and eventually hands it off to the winner. She can't help but notice how exciting it is to hold it, and how badly she wants to win one of her own. She returns to her seat holding tightly to Beck's hand, already anxious about her category.
Her category finally pops up about three quarters of the way through the show. A popular late night television host walks onto the stage holding the winning envelope in one hand and the statuette in the other. He announces the nominees and their projects, and Jade smiles and waves to the camera when it lands on her as her name is listed.
"No matter what happens..." Beck whispers to her as he squeezes her hand tightly "...you're a winner in my eyes. You should be really proud of yourself."
"Thank you, baby." She smiles a bit
They share one last reassuring glance before turning their attention back to the stage.
"And the award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Limited Series goes to..." The presenter begins "Jade Oliver, for Branches."
Jade's eye grow wide with shock as Beck takes her face in his hands and kisses her. She had really wanted to win but didn't think she actually stood any chance at all, especially with all of the other actresses that were nominated in her category. She stands up and hugs Beck before making her way down the aisle to the stage to accept the award.
"Don't trip, don't trip." She mutters to herself through a smile as she climbs the stairs
The presenter hands her the statuette and gives her a congratulatory hug before stepping to the side so Jade can make her acceptance speech.
"Wow, I really did not expect this at all." Jade chuckles nervously as she speaks into the microphone "I know everyone says that when they win, but it's the truth. First of all, I really want to thank whoever decided I was worthy enough of being nominated for this award and that I should even be the one to win it. I also want to thank my amazing director, Steven, for giving me the opportunity to play this role and bring it to life, as well as to the author, Dawn, for allowing me to do so. Thank you to Mom, Dad, Chris, Angie, and Tyler, for being just...the best and most supportive family out there. Thank you to Cat Valentine, for being the best friend that a girl could ask for and being there for me through it all. And most importantly thank you to Mr. Beck Oliver, my amazing husband of five years now and my partner for even longer. You are the most amazing human being, my rock, my biggest supporter, my everything. Thank you for encouraging me to take risks and to be myself, and for supporting me through all of the ups and downs. I love you more than I did yesterday but not nearly as much as I will tomorrow. And lastly, I just wanted to tell all of the little girls out there that no dream is too big. You can do whatever you set your mind to with the right amount of hard work and perseverance. Don't let anyone out there tell you otherwise. Thank you everyone, enjoy the rest of your evening."