The True Love Quilting Club

by Lori Wilde

  “I want you to meet our leading man, Beau Trainer,” Nina said, linking her arm through Malcolm’s. “He was in Iraq and had an ugly case of PTSD himself. He made some bad choices, did some regrettable things, but this play is his chance at redemption.”

  Malcolm’s face looked animated. “I would like to meet him.”

  Nina looked around at the busy theater, and then glanced back at Emma. “Have you seen Beau?”

  “Not since yesterday’s rehearsal.”

  “I’m just going to go into my office and give him a call. Proceed with what you were doing, Emma.”

  “It was nice meeting you,” Malcolm said.

  “It was an honor for me, sir.”

  Nina escorted Malcolm in the direction of her office, leaving Emma to prep for the biggest role of her life. She still couldn’t believe that a Hollywood movie executive was going to be watching her performance. It was every dream she’d ever dreamed come true.

  And yet it didn’t bring the instant joy she’d always anticipated. Maybe she’d learned to take the emotional roller coaster in stride. Or maybe it was because she’d begun to have a life that wasn’t based solely on her identity as an actress. She was a quilter now and she’d formed bonds with influential women in the community. She’d learned to drive a car and herd sheep. And she’d gotten a mute boy to speak when no one else could.

  She had accomplished a lot in a short amount of time, and it had changed her. What had once seemed like the ultimate human endeavor was simply just another career, glamorous maybe, but it didn’t define who you were deep inside. Once upon a time, she’d felt that if she wasn’t an actress, she wasn’t anything. Now, she knew that wasn’t true. She was so much more than just a performer. She was no longer defined solely by her work.

  “Ready for your stage face?” asked the makeup artist, who stood with a soft-bristled brush in her hand and a pot of powdered rouge.

  “Yes.”

  Emma followed her backstage, and while the woman applied her makeup, she mentally went over the lines she knew by heart. After the makeup came the hair-styling, and then she donned the Rebekka Nash costume. When she looked into the mirror, she was the plucky pioneer woman who believed so deeply in the man she loved that she spurned all other suitors.

  The bustle of the theater had reached fever pitch. The grips were tripping over one another in their hurry. The young acting students were looking a little green around the gills as stage fright kicked in. With her script and blocking book in her hand, Nina went over last-minute details.

  The performance started at noon. It was just before eleven, but people had already started lining up outside the ticket office.

  Nina rushed over. “Where is Beau?”

  “I thought you were going to call him.”

  Nina bit down on her bottom lip. “I did. He didn’t answer. I’ve left a dozen messages. I put the True Love quilters on his tail. Terri was going around to his apartment and I sent Patsy up to his parents’ house. Raylene’s gone down to see if he’s sousing it up at the Horny Toad. All I’ve got to say is that he better be lying dead in a ditch because if he stands me up after I went out on a limb for him…” She left her threat unfinished, but wadded up her fist.

  Immediately, Emma understood her anxiety and frustration. Here they were putting on a tribute to the soldiers of Twilight, and one of those soldiers who’d been given the male lead in the play hadn’t shown up. Then there was Malcolm Talmadge and the crew from Entertainment Tonight. Emma realized Nina had as much stake in the outcome of this play as she did.

  “Where’s Malcolm?” she asked.

  “He went to meet with the crew from Entertainment Tonight. They just got into town.”

  “Does he know Beau is AWOL?”

  “Not yet. We need a contingency plan.”

  “In case he doesn’t show.”

  She nodded curtly. “We have that young understudy from Tarleton, but honestly, he’s dreadful. I was so sure Beau would come through for me, and having a soldier in the role was the angle Malcolm used to lure the media here. That and your appeal as the plucky young woman who put Scott Miller in his place.”

  “I’m still here. Still gossip-worthy.”

  Nina managed a small smile. “Thanks for trying to cheer me up. I guess as unappealing as it is, we’ll just have to go with the understudy.”

  Raylene and Patsy came hustling down the aisle to where Nina and Emma stood off to one side of the stage.

  “He’s not at the Horny Toad,” Raylene said.

  “And Beau’s parents haven’t seen him in a week,” Patsy added.

  “Don’t give up hope,” Emma said. “Beau might still appear. He knows how important this play is to the whole town.”

  “I wouldn’t hold my breath on that,” said Terri, who’d come bounding up to them, her face flushed.

  “I hate to ask.” Nina shifted the script in her hand and pressed a hand to her stomach.

  “His landlord said he moved out last night. The apartment is empty.”

  Nina slapped her forehead with a palm. “Son of a bitch.”

  Emma had never heard the older woman curse, and it sent apprehensive shivers down her spine.

  “Hey you,” Nina said to one of the cast members who was milling about. “Go find Toby, tell him it’s his big moment and I need to see him right away. Beau’s a no-show.”

  The guy darted off to find Toby.

  “It’s all going to work out fine, Nina,” Patsy soothed. “You’ll pull it off, you always do.”

  Nina shook her head. “I’ve got more at stake than usual.” Then she told them about Malcolm and the crew from Entertainment Tonight.

  “This is your Malcolm?” Patsy said.

  Nina nodded.

  “Are we talking rekindled romance?” Terri asked.

  “Or just hot sex?” Raylene added.

  Everyone glared at her.

  “What?” Raylene raised her palms. “I’m just saying not everyone has to fall madly in love. Sometimes sex is good enough.”

  The lanky cast member sprinted toward them. “Nina, Toby’s sick.”

  “What do you mean he’s sick? He can’t be sick. He’s the understudy, and the lead actor has flaked on us,” Nina exclaimed. “He must go on. He’s just got butterflies.”

  “He’s blowing chunks all over the bathroom floor and clutching his abdomen. He looks just like my brother looked when he had to have his appendix out.”

  “Crap. Take me to him,” Nina said.

  The young man led the way and everyone followed. They found Toby, the understudy, swaying on his feet in the hallway, his face blanched of all color.

  Terri laid a palm on his forehead. “He’s burning up. I’ll call Ted and have him meet us at the hospital. You guys go on with the play.”

  Terri and the lanky kid helped Toby out the side exit.

  Nina shoved her script in Patsy’s hands and plastered her palms over her ears. “I don’t want to hear this. I’m not hearing this.”

  “Denial doesn’t solve the problem,” Raylene observed.

  Nina took a deep breath, drew herself up tall. “Okay, let me think. Let’s pretend for a minute that there’s not a Hollywood camera crew in town. Let’s pretend that I haven’t just reconnected with the love of my life and he’s here to see my young protégée perform the role she was born to perform. Let’s take that pressure out of the equation.”

  “Okay,” everyone said in unison, including the stagehands who’d been eavesdropping.

  “What are our options?” Nina asked.

  “Shut down the production,” someone called out.

  “Keep trying to get hold of Beau,” Patsy offered.

  “Find someone else to play the part.”

  “There.” Nina snapped her fingers. “That one. That’s the answer. But no one else knows the entire script, except for me and Emma and her understudy.”

  “You could play Jon Grant, Nina,” Raylene offered. “Put on a guy’s uniform a
nd a wig. You’re tall and you’ve got a deep voice. I don’t know how Emma feels about kissing you, and yeah, it’ll be a bit lezzy, but hey…”

  “Raylene!” everyone shouted.

  “Okay, okay, forgive me for thinking outside the box.”

  Just then the side door opened.

  Sam and Charlie and Patches stepped into the theater, and Emma suddenly got a mad idea.

  Sam smiled at Emma, even though he was getting weird vibes from everyone. Something beyond the normal chaos of putting on a play was going on here. Sam had come backstage to drop off Patches before he took Charlie to hang out with his folks during the play. He’d decided the play wouldn’t be appropriate for a six-year-old, but his son had insisted on at least wishing Emma good luck.

  “Could we see you a minute?” he asked Emma after he’d handed Patches over to the professional dog wrangler that Nina had hired. “There’s something Charlie wants to tell you.”

  Looking grateful for a reprieve from whatever was going on around her, Emma came over to them. Sam’s gaze hung on hers and his heart skipped. He put a hand on Charlie’s shoulder.

  She squatted in front of Charlie. “What did you want to tell me?”

  Charlie tilted his head up and gave her a dazzling grin. “Break a leg.”

  It was still a joy to hear his son’s voice. He couldn’t thank Emma enough for making that happen.

  “But I don’t really want you to break a leg,” he whispered, and darted an anxious glance at Emma’s legs. “Daddy says that’s sumpin’ you’re s’posta say ’cause it means good luck.”

  “That’s so sweet of you.” She held her arms open wide. “Can I have a hug?”

  Charlie wrapped his arms around her and squeezed her tight.

  “Well, we don’t want to get in your way.” Sam placed a hand on his son’s head. “We just wanted to wish you good luck. The play is going to be great, I just know it.” He gave her a wink and thumbs-up.

  “Ha!” Raylene snorted. “Proving you’re not the least bit psychic.”

  Nina eyed Sam speculatively. It made him nervous. “Emma, didn’t you tell me that Sam had been reading lines with you?”

  “Yes.”

  “How well do you know the play?” Nina asked Sam.

  He chuckled. “I could recite the thing backward. Emma is such a perfectionist that—”

  Nina grabbed Sam by the hand and tugged him into the theater, jostling the words out of him. “You’re a bit shorter than Beau, but that’s actually a good thing. The kiss scenes between Beau and Emma were problematic because of their extreme height differences. You’re much more suited to her petite size.”

  “Um, thanks, I think.”

  “His costumes will be long on you, but I’m betting Leandra can baste them up right quick.”

  “Wait a minute.” Sam held up his hands. “I don’t like the way this conversation is going.”

  Nina pressed her palms together in a gesture of supplication. “Please, you’ve got to help us. Beau has disappeared and Terri just rushed our understudy to the hospital. There’s no one else who knows the lines.”

  “Beau’s disappeared?”

  “He took off. Moved out of his apartment. No one’s seen him.”

  Sam blew out his breath. “He’d not been the same since he came back from Iraq.”

  “It’s my fault. I shouldn’t have taken a chance on him. I thought—” Nina stopped herself. “Never mind that. What’s done is done. What we need now is a new leading man.”

  Sam shook his head. “I’m not an actor. I’m not comfortable in the spotlight.”

  Nina leaned in close and whispered, “Look, I’m not asking for me. I’ve had my run. This is for Valerie and all the other soldiers who’ve fought for Twilight. This is for your hometown. But most of all this is for Emma. This is her big chance. She’s damn good, Sam.”

  “I know it.”

  “She’s been unlucky in the past, but now her luck has changed.”

  “Because you took a chance on her,” he said.

  She looked him squarely in her eyes. “Right, and now you’re the only one who can help her get to her destiny.”

  Sam looked over at Emma and his heart wrenched. More than anything in the world, what he wanted for her was happiness, and if that meant giving her a shot at Hollywood, that was what he’d do. Never mind that he disliked the spotlight, that he knew nothing about acting. Emma needed him, and he wasn’t about to let her down.

  “Okay,” he said. “Tell me what to do.”

  CHAPTER NINETEEN

  Quilt my name in the stars.

  —Sylvie Douglas Parks Rodriquez Cleary, failed mother, wife, and actress

  Knowing she was going onstage with an untested leading man had Emma’s stomach in knots. Sam wasn’t an actor, and while he might know the lines, he didn’t know any of the moves. How was she expected to pull off a performance good enough to wow Malcolm Talmadge? She paced. She fretted. She wrung her hands.

  Then just before the curtain was about to go up, Sam—wearing the costume of Colonel Jon Grant—looked over at her and said, “You, Emma Parks, are going to nail this. You’ve always been destined for stardom.”

  In that moment, an invincible calm settled over her, and she felt as if she could do anything.

  For the next hour and a half, she performed as she’d never performed before. Sam followed her lead, flawlessly reciting his lines. Emma took the passion she felt for him and channeled it through her body, using the power of their bond to express all the emotions of the characters she portrayed. But the most poignant moment of all was when she played Valerie and Sam played himself. As she looked into his eyes and told him good-bye, the tears that ran down her cheeks were honest and true.

  And when it was over, the crowd was on their feet in wild applause and the cast had to take three curtain calls before the audience finally began to disperse.

  Buoyed on a high unlike anything she’d ever experienced, the next few hours passed in a blur as she accepted congratulations, dined on the Thanksgiving feast hosted on the town square by the Funny Farm restaurant, and participated in the charity event auctioning off the quilts to support America’s servicemen and women.

  She was interviewed by Entertainment Tonight, but she hardly remembered any of it. What stuck in her mind most was the way Sam stood waiting in the wings. He let her have the spotlight, never getting in the way, but whenever she looked up, there he was, giving her a smile of encouragement, letting her know he supported her no matter what.

  At the end of the eventful day, Nina and Malcolm Talmadge cornered her for a talk.

  “You’re every bit as talented as Nina said you were,” Malcolm said. “Even more so, I suspect, since you were working under the handicap of having your leading man take off on you.”

  “Thank you, sir.”

  “Malcolm,” he corrected gently. “I understand you’ve been working very hard over the last few months, and I was wondering if your work ethic might allow you to jump right into a new project.”

  Nina was grinning from ear to ear. Emma’s blood pumped so hard she could scarcely breathe.

  “I have a film that’s currently in production, with Matt Damon in the lead role as a war vet who discovers he can’t go home again. The actress slated to play his younger sister has just checked into drug rehab and won’t be able to complete the project. Luckily, we haven’t yet started filming any of her scenes. The part is fairly small, but very pivotal to the movie. Can you do it?”

  “I…I’d…I need to talk to my agent of course, but yes, yes!”

  “Excellent. Let me call your agent and we’ll get all the details ironed out. I’ll also tell Entertainment Tonight that you were discovered right here in Twilight and I’m predicting big things for you. I’m sure they’d like to interview you again for a second segment on ET.”

  Nina congratulated her with a hug, then she and Malcolm went off together, leaving Emma standing on the courthouse lawn, stunned by the turn o
f events.

  She looked up, and there was Sam. “Did you hear?”

  “I heard.” He smiled. “I told you.”

  “I’m numb.”

  “You’ve worked so hard and so long it’s going to take you a bit to get used to your newfound fame. But it’ll sink in once you’re in Hollywood.”

  “I can’t even think.”

  “Before you take off on your grand new life, I’ve got something for you.” Sam had a look in his dark eyes that turned Emma’s stomach inside out. She didn’t really know what the look meant, but to her it said he thought she didn’t belong here, no matter how much he might wish she did.

  “You got me a going-away present?” Her heart felt goopy.

  “I did.” He pulled a palm-sized white box wrapped with a red ribbon from the pocket of his jacket.

  She fumbled the box as she took it from him, almost dropping it for no good reason other than her hands were shaking. Why were her hands shaking? Bette Davis. She slipped into the persona of that hard-edged actress who never let sentimentality get in the way of what needed to be done, and immediately her hands stilled. Blowing out her breath, she undid the ribbon and lifted the lid.

  There, nestled in tissue paper, lay her mother’s star brooch.

  She’d tried to get it back, but Hagzilla told her she’d sold it.

  She gazed up at him in wonderment. “Sam, how did you get this?”

  “Most pawnshops are putting their inventory online these days. I took a stab at it and did a global search for ‘star-shaped emerald brooch’ and it just popped up.”

  “Lucky.”

  “Or fated.” His eyes crinkled along with his smile.

  “How much did it cost you?” She was certain Hagzilla had made him pay through the nose to reclaim it.

  “Don’t worry about that.” He took it from her hand and pinned it to her jacket. “There.” He smiled softly. “No ‘gonna be’ to it. You, Emma Parks, are a star.”

  Life in L.A. was a whirlwind. The minute her feet touched down at LAX, she was off and running. She had a lot to learn about the movie business, and Malcolm appointed her an assistant to help her navigate the pitfalls. She was so busy she didn’t even have time to drop Sam an e-mail or text message. Maybe it was for the best. Breaking off all contact, rather than trying to hang on to something that would only cause them both pain.