"He said after ten," Andi shouted back, already out her bedroom door and heading for the stairs.
"Honey, it's already eight. If you want to get there in time, you've got to go now."
"I know, I know," Andi mumbled as she rushed down the stairs into the kitchen. Why was it whenever she needed to be somewhere, she couldn't get out the door on time? If she hadn't needed to be at the studio until two in the afternoon, she would have been up and dressed by seven. She swept up her purse from the counter, took a quick swallow of the orange juice Maggie had left on the counter and headed for the door.
Maggie already stood in the foyer, briefcase in hand, ready to head out herself. "I hear there's an accident on the five, traffic is backed up forty-five minutes. You might want to take the two-ten."
Andi groaned. "I hate going the back way. I'm terrified I'll take a wrong turn and end up in Pasadena before I realize I'm in the wrong place."
"That's why I got you a GPS for Christmas, my dear."
Maggie led the way to the door, pulling it open, and Andi dug her keys from her purse to lock the door behind them. She walked forward, her head down, rummaging in the small bag. "How can a set of keys get lost on one tiny compartment?"
She caught in her peripheral that Maggie stopped short. "When you left Bonehead's name at the security gate, did you say he might be back?"
"I did. Why--" Andi looked up.
"You were forever misplacing your keys," Lawrence said with a smile that made Andi's stomach clench with actual nausea. "Do you remember our first Christmas together? I bought you that key chain that beeped when you clapped your hands."
"How precious. And cheap," Maggie mumbled, continuing out of the house
"What are you doing here, Lawrence?" And asked, pulling the keys from her purse. She glanced down the driveway to his rental car as she turned to lock the house door. "Where is Jake?"
"He's at the condo I rented for the week--"
"Who is with him?"
"I'm sure he's fine, Andrea. And we're not far from here. I told him I wanted a chance to speak with you." His gaze shifted to Maggie. "Alone."
"Yeah? Did you have to tie him down when you told him that?" Maggie said with an arch of her eyebrow. "Had to have, or he wouldn't have let you out of the house."
Lawrence looked away before Maggie finished, leveling his gaze on Andi in a way that made her chest tighten. She had learned his looks, his expressions, and this was his Charmer face. He'd used that same smile at every dinner party they'd ever attended, and years later she realized, while they were dating. He'd used it the night he took her to bed the first time. The orange juice in her stomach turned to acid, and she swallowed hard at the nausea induced by the memory of Lawrence Bonherre touching her.
"Could we talk?" he asked, and she noticed the small nosegay in his hand. "About yesterday. And Sunday. I didn't handle things very well."
Maggie snorted. "Oh, don't get down on yourself too much, Larry. You handled in typical butthead style."
"I don't have time," Andi said firmly, taking a step forward.
He sidestepped to stop her. "Just five minutes."
"I have someplace to be, Lawrence."
He held his empty hand out, palm up, and offered his best grin. "Please. I want to smooth things over for the sake of our son."
Andi drew in a slow breath, releasing it through her nose. Lawrence had strategically managed to park his car behind Andi's Lexus, so she wouldn't be able to leave until he let her go. Or... she could run him over. The idea had merit, but that would involve filing a police report and create impossible delays. She looked at her watch. "I can't spare more than three minutes."
"It's a start, Andrea," he said in his calmest voice.
Maggie scowled.
"Go ahead, Mags. I know you've got to go. You can't avoid the five. I'll see you tonight."
Maggie glared at Lawrence, held her hand up to her cheek like a mock phone, and headed for her red mustang convertible. "Don't forget, Andi. David needs you there," she offered with a wink.
Andi tried to hide her grin, knowing Maggie had thrown David's name out purely for effect. And while Lawrence's smile didn't waver, she caught the slight twitch at the corner of his left eye that spoke volumes to the effect of Maggie's ploy. As soon as Maggie pulled down the driveway, Lawrence took a step toward Andi, holding out the flowers.
"I came to apologize for my behavior both Sunday and yesterday. I was rude and lost my temper, but, Andrea--"
"An apology doesn't come with a 'but', Lawrence." She walked past him toward her car, clicking the automatic lock as she walked. The doors beeped, and she pulled the driver's door open, tossing her purse on the far seat. "If you're sorry, you're sorry. Leave it at that."
"You have to understand how upsetting this was for me, Andrea. I came here to see my son, but also to find a way to reconcile... to bring our family together again."
"A fifty-percent success rate isn't too bad. You saw your son."
"We're a family--"
"No!" Andi snapped, twisting around so fast to face him that her sandals ground into the gritty cobblestone of the driveway. Yesterday he'd caught her off guard and had gotten the better of her, but Andi would be damned if he did it again. "We were a family, before you decided things like wedding vows meant nothing. It's over, Lawrence. Visit with Jake, and then bring him home. The sooner we get this annual visit done and over with, the better for everyone." She turned her back on him to get in the SUV. "Now, move your car. David is waiting."
It felt good to throw out the last bit, and she hid her smirk by reaching for her sunglasses on the dash. Lawrence's fingers wrapped around her elbow and Andi jerked free.
"Don't. Touch. Me," she barely hissed through clenched teeth.
His Charmer smile wavered, but he maintained it and dropped his hand away. "I've decided not to head back to Chicago for awhile. It's more important that I'm here."
Andi grit her teeth, pressing her lips together before speaking. She needed to, otherwise her words would most likely start more trouble than they would avoid. "Jake comes home Thursday. If you decide to stay and want to see him, you'll have to give me a full forty-eight hours notice before any further visits. We have a life here, Lawrence. One that doesn't involve you."
She climbed into the Lexus without giving him the chance to say more, and slammed the door. He stood beside the car for several moments as she started the vehicle and purposefully put it in reverse. When he didn't make any move to approach his car, she let the car roll backward. Lawrence held his hands up and jogged to the car, getting it out of the way before she changed her mind about the whole 'backing over it' idea. Andi watched in her side mirrors until he cleared the end of the driveway. She pressed the accelerator hard enough to kick up a cloud of dust and make a satisfying squealing sound. She backed into the street and turned the car in the direction of the fourteen, not looking back to see which direction he headed.
The morning only got worse from there. Her feeble attempt at avoiding the traffic on the five got her stuck in another bumper-to-bumper commute not three miles from the studio. The drive that should have taken an hour -- easily getting her to the studio before the show began -- turned into an hour and forty-five minutes. As it crept closer and closer to ten, Andi tapped her hands harder and faster on the steering wheel. She forced herself to breath and not get hysterical. She hated traffic, hated driving in traffic, and hated being late. But more than that, she hated disappointing someone as important to her as David.
Finally, the traffic opened up and she thrust the car forward. The parking gods were with her and she found a spot near the entrance of the studio building, giving herself one final check in the rearview mirror as she smoothed on a touch of lip gloss. She forced herself not to jog into the building and up to the security desk.
*****
"You don't make my job easy, David."
David took a long drink from his latte, hoping the espresso would energize his system. He set the paper cup do
wn on the ready room table and shifted forward to rest his elbows on his knees. "You manage my career, Avi. Just how have I made that hard?"
Avi laughed and crossed his legs, smoothing his hand down the creased front of his dark trousers. Like usual, Avi was impeccably dressed in a dark suit and deep plum shirt with tie. "I shouldn't learn the important details in the news along with the rest of the unenlightened masses."
"What? I called you as soon as I could talk."
"The accident on set isn't what I'm talking about."
David rubbed his eyes and drained the last of the latte. He was torn between either making Avi actually say it was Andi he referred to or just acknowledging that he'd waited for Avi to bring it up all morning. In the end, he decided he wanted Avi to say it. Avi had been his manager since he turned eighteen and fired his step-father/manager, and David credited much of his adult success to Avi's guidance and hard work, but that didn't mean he wanted Avi 'managing' his private life -- no matter what spin he wanted to put on it.
So, he sat silent and watched his friend... and waited. Avi eventually huffed and shook his head.
"Okay, fine. You want me to spell it out? I will. I would have liked a heads up about Andrea Parker before pictures of the two of you making out like two teenagers in the parking lot of Chez Nous popped up in every two-bit gossip rag in the state. Before 'insiders' on the set tell stories of you visiting her trailer and screaming for her while they tried to fix your face."
"At what point exactly am I supposed to report to you?"
"Is this thing serious?"
"I hope so," David answered honestly.
Avi stared at him, and David stared back. Finally, Avi shook his head. "Damn, man. It's written all over your face."
David smiled and stood, pacing to the far wall. The caffeine had finally kicked in, making him antsy to move. If he continued sitting, he'd start fidgeting and if he started now, he wouldn't be able to quit in the interview. He checked his watch again -- 9:38 -- and shoved his hands in his pockets.
"Okay, fine. I'm not going to get an apology--"
"What am I apologizing for? Not telling you I kissed a girl? Avi, we aren't teenagers and I'm not going to tell my best friend when I've made it to first base with my girlfriend."
"I'm just saying that certain information should be released slowly."
"You make it sound like any of this is bad. I'm dating Andrea Parker, big deal. I kissed her in a parking lot, big deal."
"You're dating a woman who divorced her husband for cheating a year after breaking up with your long term girlfriend for doing the same thing."
David's neck heated and he pushed his hands deeper into his pockets, gritting his teeth. "The only people who know that are you and Josie, so what does Andi's divorce have to do with anything? I didn't even know she was divorced when I..." He realized with humor that he didn't know how to classify the whole process that brought them together. When he what? Kissed her to clarify a scene? When he sought her out for another? Or did things really start when he asked her to dinner and ended up kissing her again? "I didn't know she was divorced when I met her, and I didn't know why she was divorced until after we went out. So, none of that has anything to do with us."
"Okay, okay. Didn't mean to piss you off."
"You didn't," David mumbled, pacing again so he wouldn't look at his watch. "I'm just worried. She said she'd be here before ten."
He felt Avi watching him, but didn't look at his manager. David wasn't being completely honest, he was pissed... a little. Public scrutiny was a part of his life. He didn't rue his fate because of it, he didn't become a hermit, but he didn't work at being in the public eye. Photographs and autographs were part of the deal, so were screaming fans and gossip rags looking to sell copy. David loved what he did, always had, even when his stepfather nearly ruined it all while bleeding David dry. He'd loved it since the first time he stepped on a commercial soundstage at nine years old. He couldn't imagine being or doing anything else.
That didn't mean he wanted his love life under the public microscope.
"Are you just going to pace, or are you going to tell me about her before she gets here?"
At least the scolding tone had left Avi's voice. He was maybe fifteen years older than David, which made him feel just old enough to think he could put David in his place when needed. It worked when David was eighteen, but not at thirty-one. David smiled and sat again, his foot immediately bouncing with the after effects of the espresso.
Before he said a word, he smiled. "She's amazing, Avi. She's beautiful and sexy, and she's so smart. I could sit and talk with her for hours, or listen to her. I went to a book signing with her yesterday--"
"Yeah, I know," Avi interjected, but David continued without pause.
"And for three hours, I sat there and watched her. And listened to her talking to these people who came hours ahead of time just to see her. They'd ask her questions about her books, and when she answered, I had to listen. Her mind is just..." He waved his hands on each side of his head, trying to find the right words and to express everything he'd felt the day before. "And she's so damn beautiful."
"You mentioned that." Avi chuckled.
"And Jake--"
"Who's Jake?"
"Her son. He's a great kid."
"Damn, David. You're going from zero to sixty in two seconds flat with this woman. Spending time with her kid is dangerous. Women get vicious when their kids are involved, especially when things end badly."
"Who says things are going to end?"
Avi's eyes popped open and he adjusted his black silk tie. "You were with Josie for three years, and I never heard you talk like this once."
David scowled and slumped into the couch. "Andi isn't Josie, and Josie is no Andi. I don't even like comparing them."
"Well, there's no doubt about it. You're in love."
A soft knock interrupted any response David might have had, and the door opened slowly toward him. "Hi. I'm looking for David Bishop--"
David jumped up from the couch and yanked the door open. He swept Andi into a hug just as she looked at him, surprise registering on her face. Andi raised her arms and wrapped them around his neck, laughing softly in his ear as he lifted her feet off the floor.
"I thought you wouldn't make it," he said as he let her go, already smiling like a fool and he knew it. David looked her over from head to toe, sucking in and releasing a breath as he took in the white lined pants and the sky blue blouse that shaped to her curves just enough to tempt. A gold chain belt hung low around her hips, drawing his attention. "My god, woman. You're beautiful."
Andi smiled, sexy color blooming in her cheeks. "I'm sorry I'm late. I tried avoiding the traffic, but just got myself caught in more. And..." She stuttered over words she didn't say, blinking with a sharp shake of her head. "I was delayed leaving."
"Everything okay?" He ran his hands up and down her bare arms.
"Absolutely. Just... had to take out the garbage," she said with an unreadable smile.
He slid his arm across her shoulders, drawing her against his side to turn her toward Avi. "Sweetheart, this is Avi Siegal, my manager."
Avi stepped forward, hand extended, with a wide smile of perfectly straight, white teeth. "As much as my man here has gone on about you, I don't need an introduction. It's nice to meet you, Andi." He took her hand and clasped it in both of his.
Andi nodded, but her attention barely registered on Avi. She looked up at him, and David noted for the first time her quick breathing like she'd run to the room. "I'm not too late, right?"
"Nope. I'm heading out in a few minutes. Avi had them save a seat for you in the front row."
"Oh. I thought I'd be back here waiting for you."
Within his embrace, he felt the slight tensing of her back and shoulders. "Don't worry. Brooke promised she wouldn't point you out or anything. You're just there to see the interview."
"Although, Brooke's interviews are a hoot. You might have fun--"
David shot Avi a warning glance, shaking his head slightly.
"Or... not. Maybe another time," Avi amended.
"Can I come back to you when it's over?"
Just the way Andi asked the question sent a shot of quicksilver through David's bloodstream, and he decided no more than thirty seconds should ever pass after seeing her before he kissed her. He touched her cheek and turned her to him, meeting her with a kiss. Her lips were slick, letting his slide across them easily, and the faint taste of something sweet – like honey and raspberries – touched his tongue. David opened his mouth, letting his tongue follow the taste. Andi's hands slid over his stomach to his sides and thoughts of couches and kicking Avi out almost pushed out everything else.
A brush of air across his cheeks preceded the soft clearing of someone's throat. "I wanted to say hello before the show, but looks like someone beat me to it."
David smiled against Andi's lips and drew his lips together in a last kiss. He took her hand as he turned toward the door. Brooke Halle, an actress-cum-celebrity talk show host who did a live Monday through Friday morning program, stood in the doorway with one hand on her hip and the other on the knob. She grinned, looking between Avi and them. Brooke was the only interview David okayed with Avi because he'd interviewed with Brooke before, and she always kept things light. He didn't need any third degree interviews -- just wasn't in the mood. Knowing how long Brooke had been 'in the business', David put her in her late forties, but her young face said otherwise. In Hollywood, one could never tell if a person just aged well or had a very good surgeon.
David stepped away from Andi, but kept her fingers wrapped snug in his as he extended his free hand to Brooke, leaning in to kiss her cheek. "Good to see you, Brooke."
"Good to see you too, David. Bruises and all." She pointed at his face. "You don't look nearly as bad as the reports say. Last I heard you and Dr. 90210 were going to be good friends."
She and Avi greeted each other the same way, then turned back to them. "Andrea Parker?" she asked, extending her hand.
Andi had to let go of David's hand to take Brooke's. "Yes. Hi."
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