Hours later as she lay in the crook of his arm they held each other for some time, taking in the magnitude of the moment. Dahlia took in the sounds of the stereo playing softly in the adjacent bathroom as Guy made jokes that moved her to laughter.
Outside the sun had begun to set and a black limousine sat patiently in the driveway.
* * *
On Hollywood Boulevard high-intensity searchlights crisscrossed the night sky as a crowd gathered in front of Grauman’s Chinese Theatre. Movie stars were arriving in stretch limos to the applause of an adoring crowd. On the red carpet TV reports interviewed the who’s who of movie stardom while photographers shot photos of the celebrities walking the red carpet. It was a quintessential Hollywood experience and neither Guy nor Dahlia cared that they were going to be late for the premiere of Passionate.
* * *
“Dahlia! Guy!”
“Here, Dahlia!”
“Guy, smile!”
Dahlia Morrow Boudreaux could not have been happier as she stepped out of the limousine in front of the Kodak Theatre on Hollywood Boulevard for the Eighty-Eighth Academy Awards. The paparazzi were desperate for her attention as cameras flashed around her, complete strangers screaming her name.
“We love you, Dahlia!”
The only other celebrity receiving more attention than her was Guy Boudreaux; the man looked like a million bucks in his Christian Dior silk tuxedo. The crowd was screaming his name as loudly.
“Guy! Over here, Guy! We love you, Guy!”
At the start of the red carpet the couple posed together, Guy’s arm wrapped gently around Dahlia’s waist, his large hand perched against the swell of her pregnant belly. They were both smiling sweetly as their gazes skated over the landscape of actors and film critics, photographers and television hosts who had turned out to celebrate their successes. The attention lavished on the two of them was astounding; both were overwhelmed by the public fascination with their love story.
It had taken more than hard work to get her and Guy to this moment, and as Dahlia paused in reflection and her own hand gently caressed the swell of new life that warmed her spirit, she was overcome with joy, savoring the beauty of it all.
As they continued their slow stroll down the red carpet, pausing for snapshots and interviews, they stopped to acknowledge the other stars of the evening, Best Actress nominee Zahara and her new husband, Owen Kestner. The two couples posed for pictures, and Zahara congratulated them both on their pregnancy.
“Owen and I are thinking about adopting a baby from overseas,” she whispered into Dahlia’s ear.
Dahlia smiled, her eyes wide with wonder as the two moved ahead of them. An eager reporter pulled at Guy’s attention, curious to know how they would celebrate if he won the Oscar for Best Actor.
Guy paused, his brilliant smile washing over her. “Tonight isn’t about me,” he said, his tone thoughtful and reflective. “This is Dahlia’s night. Passionate has been a challenge from start to finish, and my part pales in comparison to all that she did to bring this film to life.”
Dahlia smiled as Guy took her hand, lifting it to his lips to kiss the backs of her fingers. Cameras flashed furiously around them. As they made their way inside, Dahlia couldn’t have been happier. Nothing could have made that moment more perfect, she thought as she walked the red carpet with the man she was head over heels in love with, evidence of their love growing inside of her.
Absolutely nothing at all.
* * * * *
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ISBN: 9781460303795
Copyright © 2013 by Deborah Fletcher Mello
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This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events or locales is entirely coincidental. This edition published by arrangement with Harlequin Books S.A.
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Passionate Premiere Page 17