Damage Control (The Hollywood Series Book 2) (48 page)

Lauren linked her hands in the small of Grace’s back and drew her even closer. “Don’t worry, okay? You won’t get rid of me just because I can’t kiss you or even hold your hand in public right now. I know it won’t be easy, but some things are worth waiting for.”

A smile curled Grace’s full lips. “There you go again, being romantic.”

“I told you I was rethinking my attitude. It’s difficult not to when you’re in love with the most wonderful woman in the world.”

Grace rolled her eyes but then grinned and kissed her. “Charmer. Speaking of rethinking… Now that you’re rethinking your professional future, maybe you should think about sending your script to a couple of producers.”

Lauren paused her gentle caresses to Grace’s back. “I don’t know.”

“If you’re worried about money… I have more than enough for the two of us.”

“Thanks,” Lauren said. “But that’s not it. I have enough saved to live off of for a while.”

“What is it, then?”

Lauren reached up and rubbed her nose, almost embarrassed to admit it. “I’m afraid of rejection. What if they don’t like my script?”

“You’ll never find out if you don’t try. They’ll love it; believe me.” Grace’s eyes glittered with conviction. “Besides, I promised to audition for the lead role if you ever made your script into a movie. I don’t think you’ll have any problems selling your script if you tell producers who comes attached with it. Well, that is, if coming out won’t put me on the list of people not to cast.”

“No,” Lauren said firmly. “You’re past the stage in your career where something like that would happen. You just have to pick your next two or three movies carefully, and you’ll be fine. That means no lesbian movies, though, including mine.”

“Oh.” The happy glow on Grace’s face dimmed. “But I promised you—”

Lauren kissed her tenderly. “I really appreciate your willingness to keep your promise. But if I do this, I need to do it on my own. I want producers to buy my script because it’s good, not because of who my parents are or what actress supports it. Can you understand that?”

Still leaning over her, Grace caressed Lauren’s face with a tenderness that made Lauren’s breath catch. “Yes. But if there’s ever anything I can do to support you, let me know, okay?”

Lauren cradled Grace’s face in both of her palms and softly brought their lips together. “Thank you. You’re wonderful. Your support means the world to me.”

“So you’ll do it?” Grace whispered against her lips. “Send your script out to producers?”

Lauren inhaled and exhaled deeply. With Grace by her side, it didn’t seem so scary anymore. “I’ll do it.”

EPILOGUE

Three months later

Grace stared at the autographed posters of former talk show guests covering the walls of the backstage greenroom, wondering if any of them had been as nervous as she was. She wished the greenroom had a window so she could watch the snow drift down on Rockefeller Plaza.

A large flat-screen TV was blaring behind her, and an intern chattered nonstop, trying to calm down one of the other guests.

“You should eat something, darling.” Her mother stepped next to her and pointed at the snacks the studio provided.

“No, thanks. I’m too nervous to eat.”

“Are you sure you want to go through with this?” her mother asked. “I really think you should—”

Grace turned her head and gave her a stern look. “Mom, we’ve talked about this. You’re not my manager anymore.”

“I’m still your mother. I worry about you.”

“I understand that.” Grace reached out and squeezed her mother’s arm. “I wish this weren’t necessary, but it’s something I have to do.”

Her mother bowed her head and fell silent.

Wow. That’s a first.
Sometimes, Grace couldn’t believe how much her life had changed in the last few months—and it was about to change even more radically. Her stomach churned.

Marlene joined them. “Are you ready?”

She didn’t feel ready at all, but her new publicist didn’t want to hear that, so Grace nodded.

“Remember not to—”

“Use the word
admit.
It’s a relationship, not a crime,” Grace repeated what Marlene had told her during their media-training sessions.

“Good. I know you’ll do just fine.” Marlene patted her shoulder and left Grace to her appraisal of the autographed posters.

Someone else stepped up behind her, and Grace knew who it was even before two warm hands came to rest on her shoulders, massaging gently for a few moments.

With a soft groan, she leaned back into Lauren.

“It’s getting close to airtime,” Lauren said. “Marlene, your mother, and I have to take our places in the audience now.”

Grace covered one of Lauren’s hands with her own, not wanting to let her go.

“You can do this,” Lauren whispered into her ear. “I’ll be right there in the first row the entire time.”

Grace gratefully squeezed her hand. The talk show would be just the beginning, though; a new media circus would follow. While she worried about what was coming, at least the hiding would be over. Sneaking around for the last three months had been hard on both of them, even though they’d known they were working toward this moment.

She nodded numbly.

Lauren pulled her around and looked into her eyes. “Do you want—?”

“No,” Grace said, knowing what Lauren was about to say. “I want to do this.” Not caring that the other guests were gaping at them or might even tweet about it, she wrapped her arms around Lauren, pulled her down a little, and kissed her. “For good luck,” she whispered when the kiss ended.

Grace’s mother watched them with the same expression she used to wear when she had watched Grace rehearse a scene and didn’t approve of her performance, but once again, she said nothing.

Lauren caressed Grace’s cheek and brushed her lips over Grace’s again before stepping back, still holding her gaze.

Not saying another word, they nodded at each other.

Then Lauren turned and left, along with Grace’s mother and Marlene.

Grace wrapped her arms around herself, instantly missing Lauren’s comforting presence. She paced the room and finally forced herself to settle down on one of the red-and-black-checkered sofas and to chat with the other guests.

After about ten minutes, Steven Ryland, the host of the daytime talk show, appeared on the flat-screen TV and greeted the audience.

The other guests chuckled about something Steven said, but Grace was too tense to laugh.

A production assistant with a headset entered and gave Grace a nod. “You’re up in five minutes.” She escorted Grace to the stage curtain.

Grace rubbed her damp palms over the above-the-knee skirt that Marlene had chosen for her to wear. She peeked through a gap in the curtain, into the audience below.

The studio easily seated two hundred, but her gaze immediately zeroed in on Lauren, who was listening raptly when Steven started to introduce Grace as the first guest and talked about
Ava’s Heart
. Next to her sat Jill; Marlene; Grace’s mother; George, her agent; and Barbara, her new manager, all there to show their support.

Her nerves settled a little.

She returned her attention to the host just in time to hear him say, “Please welcome the lovely Grace Durand!”

With her heart beating overtime, she stepped out from behind the curtain and into the bright lights. She put on her most convincing Hollywood smile and waved at the audience as she stepped onto the set, which looked like a cozy living room with two slate-blue armchairs placed at an angle to each other.

People clapped, stomped, and whistled.

She greeted Steven with two air kisses before settling into one of the armchairs. When she crossed one leg over the other, her skirt slid up and revealed a bit of thigh. Each of her moves had been carefully planned by Marlene and the rest of the team—and their plan seemed to work so far.

The audience clapped even more loudly.

“They love you,” Steven said with a grin as he sat in his own armchair.

Let’s hope they still do once this is over.
“Thank you,” she said, again waving at the audience.

“You look incredible.” Steven gestured at her. “Divorced life certainly seems to agree with you. I heard you recently joined the club of divorcees.”

“I did, although I can’t quite match your platinum membership,” she said, earning her laughter and applause from the audience.

Steven clutched his chest. “Ouch. At least my exes still love me…and my alimony payments. So, what was your divorce like?
The War of the Roses
?”

“No, I’m happy to report there were no run-over sports cars or crashing chandeliers,” Grace said. Well, for a moment, Nick had looked as if he wanted to drop a chandelier on her when she’d told him about her and Lauren, but in the end, he’d told her to do whatever made her happy.

“But I hear there’ll be chandeliers in your next movie,” Steven said. “Can you tell us a bit about it?”

“It’s a historical adventure drama called
Like Diamonds
. Shooting will start next week, and I’m very excited about it. I’m playing Abigail, the daughter of a rich banker in nineteenth-century England. She’s raised to be just a beautiful ornament in his house, but it turns out she’s really good at stealing diamonds.”

“So she’s a kleptomaniac?” Steven asked.

“More like a female Robin Hood.”

Steven nodded. “I see. So who’s playing your Maid Marian…or should I say Mario?”

“No one. There’s no love story in this one, just great action scenes, rich historical details, mixed with a bit of social criticism.”

“No love story?” Steven widened his eyes comically.

Grace shrugged. “I’m ready to branch out a little. Don’t get me wrong; I still love the romantic movies I’m known for, but I’d like to explore more diversity in my roles.”

“So it’s not that you’re fed up with love stories, now that you’re divorced?”

“Not at all. In fact…” She took a deep breath. “I’m living my own love story right now.”

Steven leaned forward. “Ooh, do tell! Who’s the lucky guy? A fellow actor?”

“Actually…” Grace clutched the armrests with both hands. Her heartbeat thrummed in her ears. She looked toward the audience, seeking Lauren. Their gazes locked. The connection centered her, reminding her what really counted in her life. She took a freeing breath, turned back to Steven, and said with a smile that wasn’t the Hollywood kind, “She’s a screenwriter.”

For a moment, Steven’s cheerful grin wavered. He blinked rapidly. “Did you just say…she?”

Grace swallowed. “Yes, I did.”

The ensuing silence probably lasted for just a second, but to Grace, it seemed to go on forever.

Then all hell broke loose. The audience cheered and applauded. Someone was booing, though, and for some reason, that voice seemed so much louder than the others.

“This isn’t a publicity stunt or a joke because the tabloids kept making up stories about you and Jill Corrigan, is it?” Steven asked.

Marlene had told her a question like that would be coming. “No,” Grace said, more calm now. “Jill and I really are just friends. Best friends. This isn’t a publicity stunt. It’s the real thing.”

“Wow.” Now Steven’s wide-eyed gaze was real. “I didn’t see that coming.”

“Neither did I, Steven,” she said. “Neither did I.” When she and Lauren had first met, she hadn’t even been sure if she wanted to hire her as a publicist. Never in a million years had she thought she would fall in love with her. But now, just seven months later, she knew one thing with crystal clarity: nothing would ever be as important to her as Lauren, not even her career.

She looked toward the first row, where Lauren gave her a tremulous smile. Grace smiled back, and even though the cameras were rolling and probably millions of people were watching, she didn’t have to act for once. No matter what the future would bring, she looked forward to spending it with Lauren.

If you liked reading about these characters, you might want to check out
Departure from the Script,
the first book in Jae’s
Hollywood Series
, which tells the story of Grace’s friend Amanda.

ABOUT JAE

Jae grew up amidst the vineyards of southern Germany. She spent her childhood with her nose buried in a book, earning her the nickname
professor
. The writing bug bit her at the age of eleven. For the last eight years, she has been writing mostly in English.

She used to work as a psychologist but gave up her day job in December 2013 to become a full-time writer and a part-time editor. As far as she’s concerned, it’s the best job in the world.

When she’s not writing, she likes to spend her time reading, indulging her ice cream and office supply addictions, and watching way too many crime shows.

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