Date: March 1996
Location: The Jolly Judge, Edinburgh
Actress: Kelly Macdonald
Alexander's Status: Fresh off finalizing funding for Trainspotting's international rollout and quietly locking first-look deals with Miramax and PolyGram.
Actress's Status: Recently cast in her breakout role as Diane in Trainspotting, with no formal acting experience. Quietly terrified but trying to play it cool.
The pub smelled of old wood, damp wool, and secrets not yet spilled — a low-ceilinged hideaway tucked off Edinburgh's Royal Mile, flickering candlelight dancing in cut-glass tumblers. Rain ticked against the windows in a soft, conspiratorial rhythm, as if the city itself knew something was about to change. At a dark corner table, away from the young cast's laughter and the clink of celebratory pints, Alexander Kaine sat alone, one leg crossed leisurely over the other, his white hair catching the amber light like a halo meant for the damned. He looked like he belonged nowhere and everywhere — timeless, watching. Waiting.
Kelly Macdonald was trying not to bite her lip as she walked in. Her denim jacket was too thin for the cold, and her nerves were louder than her boots on the floorboards. The others were already half-drunk on euphoria and lager. She wasn't ready for either.
She slid into the only empty seat left. Of course, it was beside him.
He didn't look at her right away. Just raised two fingers to the bartender, murmured something she didn't catch. When he finally turned, it was like being caught in the beam of a lighthouse. A little blinding. A little warm. Entirely unavoidable.
"You're Diane," he said, with the quiet certainty of someone commenting on the weather he himself invented.
She blinked. "I… am, yeah."
He offered a faint smile, like someone who could see a dozen moves ahead and had already approved them all. "It's a hell of a first role."
Kelly tried to match his calm. "I didn't think I'd get it."
"That's the trick," he replied, as the bartender set down two glasses. "No one thinks they belong until the light hits them. Then everyone else pretends they always saw it."
She looked at the whisky in front of her — dark, unfamiliar, not what she would've chosen. "What is this?"
"Lagavulin. 16. It's a confession in a glass." He raised his own in a quiet toast. "Go on. You'll need to develop a taste for certainty."
Kelly hesitated, then took a sip. Smoke. Peat. Fire and honey. Her mouth surprised her before her face could.
He noticed. Of course he noticed.
"Good girl," he said, not with condescension, but like a general quietly pleased with a soldier's first kill.
"You're not part of the production, are you?" she asked, trying to sound breezy and not like her heart was learning a new beat.
"I'm everything just outside it," he said. "I gave Danny the money he needed. The good kind — no strings. Just control."
"Why this film?"
He leaned in just slightly — not enough to touch, just enough to change the air between them. "Because it tells the truth and doesn't ask for forgiveness. You know how rare that is in this town?"
"I don't know anything about this town," she admitted, suddenly small and honest. "I didn't even think I'd make it through the reading."
"You didn't," he said, swirling his glass. "You took it. And that's what makes you dangerous."
That made her laugh. "Me? Dangerous?"
Alexander turned fully now, one arm on the back of her chair, closing the space with the deliberate intimacy of someone who could leave, but never would until he was finished. "Everyone's afraid of the bombastic ones. The loud ones. But it's the quiet ones who change everything — because they're still underestimated."
She felt her pulse in her throat.
The table noise faded around them. It wasn't that the world stopped — it was that his world began.
"I saw you tonight," he said, almost softly. "When you walked in. Shoulders tight. Breath shallow. Looking for an exit, just in case."
Kelly didn't move.
He lowered his voice to a thread. "But you stayed. You sat. You drank what you didn't think you liked. You're more ready than you know."
The tension between them was no longer flirtation. It was alchemy.
"I don't suppose you—" she started, then faltered. The words weren't ready.
Alexander stood, smoothing his black cashmere coat into place, then extended his hand like a gentleman straight out of a dream that smelled like danger. She hesitated a breath too long, then put hers in his.
"Come on, Kelly," he said, helping her to her feet. "Let's go somewhere quieter. You've earned a night without pretending."
And just like that, the pub doors closed behind them, leaving only half-finished pints and a rising legend in their wake.
As Alexander leads Kelly into a dimly lit, candle-lit suite, the heavy wooden door clicks shut behind them, sealing them off from the world. The room is warm, a stark contrast to the chilly Edinburgh night, and the air is thick with anticipation. Kelly's heart pounds in her chest as she takes in the scene: a large four-poster bed draped in deep red velvet, a roaring fire casting dancing shadows on the stone walls, and the flickering glow of candles reflecting off the polished wood floor.
Alexander turns to her, his eyes intense and filled with a hunger that sends a shiver down her spine. He reaches out, gently cupping her face, his thumb brushing softly against her cheek. "Kelly," he murmurs, his voice low and husky, "you are a storm, a force of nature. I want to see you, all of you."
He leans in, his lips capturing hers in a deep, passionate kiss. Kelly melts into him, her body pressing against his as she kisses him back with a fervor she didn't know she possessed. His hands explore her body, tracing the curve of her waist, the small of her back, pulling her closer. She can feel his desire, hard and insistent, against her stomach.
Breaking the kiss, Alexander begins to undress her, his movements slow and deliberate. He slips her denim jacket off her shoulders, letting it fall to the floor. His fingers trace the neckline of her shirt, then deftly unbutton it, exposing her lace bra. Kelly's breath hitches as he leans down, his mouth hot and wet against her collarbone, his hands cupping her breasts through the lace.
Kelly's hands tremble as she reaches for his shirt, fumbling with the buttons in her eagerness. Alexander smiles against her skin, a smile that promises pleasures yet to come. He helps her, quickly shedding his shirt and pulling her against him, skin to skin. Kelly gasps at the contact, her body molding to his, her nerves alight with sensation.
He leads her to the bed, laying her down gently on the soft velvet. Kelly watches, her breath coming in short gasps, as he undresses the rest of the way, his body powerful and lean in the candlelight. He joins her on the bed, his body covering hers, his weight welcome and right.
Their kissing turns fierce, their bodies writhing against each other as they explore, taste, and touch. Alexander's hands are everywhere, tracing her curves, dipping into her navel, cupping her ass. Kelly arches against him, her body begging for more. He obliges, his fingers finding her wet and ready, stroking her gently before slipping inside.
Kelly moans, her head throwing back as pleasure courses through her. Alexander captures her mouth again, swallowing her cries as he moves his fingers, slow and deliberate, in and out of her. She bucks against his hand, her body seeking more friction, more pressure.
He complies, his thumb finding her clit, rubbing it in slow circles as his fingers continue their relentless pace. Kelly's body tenses, her orgasm building, coiling tight in her belly. Alexander feels it, his movements becoming more insistent, his breath hot against her ear as he whispers, "Let go, Kelly. I've got you."
She shatters, her body convulsing as waves of pleasure crash over her. Alexander captures her cries with his mouth, his body covering hers as he continues to ride out her orgasm with his fingers.
As her body begins to relax, Alexander moves, positioning himself between her legs. Kelly looks up at him, her eyes glazed with pleasure, her body already aching for more. He enters her slowly, inch by inch, his eyes never leaving hers. Kelly wraps her legs around him, urging him deeper, harder.
He begins to move, his hips thrusting against hers in a primal, ancient rhythm. Kelly meets him stroke for stroke, her body matching his, their breath syncing, their hearts beating as one. The room fills with the sounds of their lovemaking, the slap of skin against skin, their moans and gasps, the wet, obscene sounds of their joining.
Alexander changes the angle, his body now fully on top of hers, his elbows on either side of her head, his hands in her hair. He looks down at her, his eyes intense, his body moving with purpose. "You feel so fucking good, Kelly," he grunts, his voice strained with effort. "So tight, so wet."
Kelly wraps her arms around him, her nails digging into his back as she urges him on. "Don't stop, Alexander," she whispers. "Please, don't stop."
He doesn't, his body slamming into hers, their sweat-misted skin sliding together. Kelly can feel another orgasm building, her body coiling tight once more. Alexander feels it too, his body responding, his movements becoming more erratic, more desperate.
"Come with me, Kelly," he grunts, his body tensing. "Let me feel you come around me."
Kelly obeys, her body shattering once more, her inner muscles clenching around him. Alexander throws his head back, a guttural cry tearing from his throat as he finds his own release, his body pulsing inside hers.
They collapse together, their bodies slick with sweat, their breath coming in ragged gasps. Alexander rolls off her, pulling her into his arms, their bodies still joined. Kelly rests her head on his chest, listening to his heartbeat, her body sated, her mind blissfully empty.
But Alexander is not done. He wants more. He wants to explore every inch of her, to taste her, to make her scream his name. He rolls her onto her hands and knees, positioning himself behind her. He enters her from behind, his hands gripping her hips as he starts to move, slow and deep.
Kelly moans, her body already responding, her nerves already alight. Alexander leans over her, his body covering hers as he whispers in her ear, "I'm not done with you, Kelly. Not by a long shot."
He starts to move faster, his body slapping against hers, his breath hot against her neck. Kelly meets him thrust for thrust, her body already building towards another orgasm. Alexander reaches around, his fingers finding her clit, rubbing it in time with his thrusts.
Kelly cries out, her body tensing, her orgasm crashing over her like a wave. Alexander feels it, his body responding, his own orgasm building. He grunts, his body slamming into hers, his fingers digging into her hips as he finds his release, his seed spilling into her.
They collapse onto the bed, their bodies slick with sweat, their breath coming in ragged gasps. Alexander pulls Kelly into his arms, their bodies still joined, their hearts beating as one. Kelly rests her head on his chest, her body sated, her mind blissfully empty.
But Alexander is not done. He wants to explore every inch of her, to taste her, to make her scream his name. He rolls her onto her back, positioning himself between her legs. He enters her slowly, his eyes never leaving hers. Kelly wraps her legs around him, urging him deeper, harder.
He begins to move, his hips thrusting against hers in a primal, ancient rhythm. Kelly meets him stroke for stroke, her body matching his, their breath syncing, their hearts beating as one. The room fills with the sounds of their lovemaking, the slap of skin against skin, their moans and gasps, the wet, obscene sounds of their joining.
Alexander changes the angle, his body now fully on top of hers, his elbows on either side of her head, his hands in her hair. He looks down at her, his eyes intense, his body moving with purpose. "You feel so fucking good, Kelly," he grunts, his voice strained with effort. "So tight, so wet."
Kelly wraps her arms around him, her nails digging into his back as she urges him on. "Don't stop, Alexander," she whispers. "Please, don't stop."
He doesn't, his body slamming into hers, their sweat-misted skin sliding together. Kelly can feel another orgasm building, her body coiling tight once more. Alexander feels it too, his body responding, his movements becoming more erratic, more desperate.
"Come with me, Kelly," he grunts, his body tensing. "Let me feel you come around me."
Kelly obeys, her body shattering once more, her inner muscles clenching around him. Alexander throws his head back, a guttural cry tearing from his throat as he finds his own release, his body pulsing inside hers.
They collapse together, their bodies slick with sweat, their breath coming in ragged gasps. Alexander rolls off her, pulling her into his arms, their bodies still joined. Kelly rests her head on his chest, listening to his heartbeat, her body sated, her mind blissfully empty.