Hollywood Divorces • Hollywood Wives: The New Generation

by Jackie Collins

  ‘Well…’ she said unsurely.

  He glanced over at her. ‘Well?’ he said, swerving the car over to the side of the road.

  ‘Well…uh…okay.’

  They exchanged smiles. Things were looking very promising.

  Epilogue

  One year later

  ‘Yknow, I’ve been thinking,’ Nick said, sitting in the kitchen of Cat’s apartment in L.A.

  ‘Oh, here we go again,’ she said. ‘Back five minutes from location, and already he’s thinking.’

  ‘No, seriously, Blondie, I’ve been thinking I should buy a house.’

  ‘Why?’

  ‘’Cause we’ve been together a year and it’s time we moved in together.’

  ‘We’re practically living together as it is,’ she pointed out. ‘You always stay here when you’re in L.A.’

  ‘I know, but it’s your apartment.’

  ‘Okay, so I’ll buy a house.’

  ‘No,’ he said. ‘I will.’

  ‘No,’ she corrected. ‘I will.’

  ‘Hey listen, just ’cause Caught is a big hit, there’s no need to get carried away.’

  ‘I’ll tell you what,’ she said agreeably, ‘we’ll split the cost and buy a house together. Then if anyone gets bored, we can buy the other one out. How about that?’

  ‘My girlfriend–such a practical little soul.’

  ‘Anyway, I’ve got a surprise.’

  ‘You’re pregnant?’

  ‘Pul-lease! You’ll have to wait ten years for that piece of news. Women shouldn’t have kids until they’re thirty!’

  ‘I didn’t need a fuckin’ speech. What’s your surprise?’

  ‘I finished my new script, and Merrill is desperate to finance it. He’s mumbling about casting Colin Farrell, only I told him it’s you or nobody.’

  ‘Gee, I dunno if I can fit it into my busy schedule.’

  ‘You want to read it?’

  ‘Of course I wanna read it. I gave you the inspiration, didn’t I? The character’s me.’

  ‘Maybe…’ she said, grinning.

  ‘Maybe my ass.’

  ‘You’re impossible, Nick. You think everything’s about you.’

  ‘So do you,’ he countered.

  Cat had to admit that being with Nick made her extraordinarily happy. There was something about him that turned her on in every way. He was never predictable, never mean to her either, and he was always supportive.

  ‘We’d better get ready,’ she said. ‘We’ve got a wedding to go to.’

  ‘Who am I gonna know?’

  ‘You’ll know everybody, Mr Movie Star.’

  ‘I was thinking,’ he said.

  ‘Not again,’ she groaned.

  ‘This time I was thinking we should take a vacation before you get all caught up in your next project.’

  ‘Where did you have in mind?’

  ‘Somewhere exotic–Mauritius, Tahiti.’ A long beat. ‘And, oh, yeah–maybe we should get married first.’

  ‘Maybe we shouldn’t,’ she said nervously. ‘I’ve done it once, that was enough.’

  ‘I’ve never done it, so perhaps I want to.’

  ‘Give it another year and we’ll see.’

  ‘Man! You are the most difficult woman I’ve ever met.’

  ‘That’s why you like me, Nick.’

  ‘That’s why, is it?’ he said, giving her one of his quizzical looks.

  ‘Yes.’

  ‘If you say so.’

  ‘I do.’

  ‘Okay, Blondie, whatever you say.’

  ‘Why are you agreeing with me?’ she asked suspiciously.

  ‘’Cause I’m gonna drug you, and marry you while you’re sleepin’.’

  ‘Cool. It’ll make a great future plot.’

  ‘C’mere,’ he said affectionately. ‘It’s time you discovered who’s really the boss.’

  She fell into his arms and happily stayed there.

  Nick was the perfect man for her.

  How lucky was that?

  The reviews of New York State of Mind were bad. Not as bad as Lola had expected but, still, they were pretty grim. And so they should be: it was not a very good movie.

  After a period of mourning she’d flown to New York for the press junket, but her heart wasn’t in it.

  On the plane to New York, she’d sat next to film director Russell Savage. Although he wasn’t her usual type, she’d found him to be an extremely interesting man. They got to talking, and she’d asked him how he’d managed to get such an amazing performance out of Shelby Cheney in Rapture, a performance so excellent that Shelby had been nominated for an Oscar. She hadn’t won, but getting nominated was reward enough.

  ‘Shelby needed a director she could trust,’ Russell had explained.

  ‘That’s exactly what I need,’ Lola had said. ‘I’ve got it in me, you know. I can do other things than be the girl with the great body and the pretty smile.’

  ‘You’re probably underrated,’ Russell had commented. ‘Most beautiful actresses are.’

  ‘Maybe we should work together,’ she’d suggested.

  ‘I’ll keep you in mind,’ he’d said.

  A week later she called him. She felt bold doing so because she had not been out with anyone since the demise of Tony. Russell seemed different. He was mature, established, not the type of man she’d ever imagined being with. However, she had a strong feeling that, if she spent enough time with him, he would surely see her potential.

  He saw more than her potential–he saw a strong, spirited woman, with plenty of ambition and quite a bit of talent. Russell Savage fell in love.

  Soon they were an item, and when Lola introduced Russell to her family they were impressed–especially Claudine, who sat her daughter down and told her that she should not let this one go.

  Lola realized Mama was right. Russell Savage was a keeper, and not just because he could advance her career. He was a kind, caring and interesting man who adored her. That was enough. For now.

  Today they were attending a wedding.

  For the first time since Tony’s death, Lola did not wear black.

  Four-month-old Linc Blackwood Junior was sitting on his grandma’s lap. A gorgeous baby, he resembled his late father, except that he had his mother’s brown eyes and full lips. It was a lethal combination.

  ‘There’s a good boy,’ Martha Cheney crooned, bouncing him on her knee as they sat in the front row of a line of chairs arranged for guests at the outdoor wedding that was about to take place.

  Inside the house, Shelby, clad in a white satin Vera Wang wedding gown, nervously hugged her father.

  ‘Are you sure I’m doing the right thing?’ she asked, for the tenth time.

  ‘It’s not me who should answer that,’ George Cheney said. ‘It’s you.’

  ‘I am doing the right thing,’ she said. ‘I know I am. Pete loves me, and he loves the baby. And, y’know, Dad, somewhere up there Linc is watching us. He’s probably livid that I’m marrying Pete, but life goes on, doesn’t it? And he’ll always have a place in my heart.’

  ‘Yes, sweetheart, life goes on.’

  ‘You called me sweetheart, Daddy. Linc was the only man who used to call me that. He is watching us today. He’s sending me a message via you. So now I feel that I have his blessing.’

  ‘You look beautiful.’

  ‘Thanks, Dad,’ she said, taking a deep breath. ‘It’s almost time. I see the wedding planner approaching us with that look on her face.’

  ‘I ready,’ George said.

  ‘Did I tell you that you look very handsome?’

  ‘Not as handsome as your bridegroom.’

  ‘Oh, you’ve seen him?’

  ‘I’m allowed to, you’re not.’

  ‘Dad!’

  The ceremony was taking place at her new house overlooking the ocean in Pacific Palisades. After Linc’s death she’d sold their Beverly Hills home and moved. There were too many memories to deal with; she’d needed to move o
n.

  This dreamy white house was a new beginning–for her and Pete.

  Pete had been very discreet: he’d told her he was there if she needed him, then left her alone for a while. From the moment they went out to dinner three months after Linc’s death, they’d never been apart.

  He was there when she had the baby. He was there when she brought the baby home. They had not actually moved in together, but when he asked her to marry him, she knew without a doubt that it was the right thing to do.

  As Shelby made her way down the flower-strewn aisle, there was a gasp of admiration from the guests. She looked a vision. So beautiful and so serene.

  Pete could not believe how lucky he was to have her. They’d gone through a lot, but it was worth it.

  They were married at sunset, with helicopters hovering overhead and paparazzi climbing trees outside. ‘I love you, Pete,’ she whispered.

  ‘You too, baby,’ he answered.

  ‘And we’ll never be apart,’ she promised.

  ‘Never. This is it, Shelby. You’re mine for keeps.’

  ‘And that’s exactly the way I want it to be,’ she said softly. ‘You and me, for ever together.’

  It was a Hollywood wedding, but Shelby knew for sure it was never going to be a Hollywood divorce.