A Captivating Conundrum (8 page)

Nicole's voice stopped me in my tracks. "It was NOT silly." She stared at the man who I really wanted to just keep eating. "When I first read her book and the idea for the series, I knew it was going to be huge. Suffice to say, before the book ever came out we sent out promotional copies to various reviewers, sites, blogs, etcetera. The book had her picture on the inside flap." Nicole's eyes grew a bit regretful. "Which is completely normal." 

Glancing at me as if I should continue, I simply moved my gaze to the window, really not wanting to go over this story yet again. I could feel him staring at my profile but I didn't make a sound.

Nicole sighed. "The book was a smash hit with these guys before it even came out and, even though you might not think so, the literary community is very small. The word started to spread through the industry insiders. Unfortunately…one of those particular people was so enthralled by…Lily's writing and her photo, that he went a little overboard."

I sighed, keeping my gaze intent on the Frisbee players outside.

"Overboard?" Matt's voice was quiet. 

Nicole sighed heavily. "He became a stalker."

"
What
?"

Nicole spoke quickly. "Look, no harm, no foul. It's all over now and she doesn't like to talk about it." 

"Yet, here we sit talking about it…again," I mumbled.

Nicole continued on, "Anyway, we thought it would be best to release the book with no picture and simply give her the pen name, Lily Stone. That way, no one would ever know her and she would be safe."

He turned to me. "So what's your real name?"

I took a deep breath. "Beth. Elizabeth Carrier."

His eyes grew soft. "Now, that sounds like a romance novel."

~ His ~

I can't really explain the shot of fear and serious anger that went through me when Nicole told me the beautiful lady's story. For some reason, I just couldn't deal with the fact that someone out there had tried to harm her, even though he obviously—thank Christ—hadn't been successful. All I could picture in my mind was slicing the head off the scumbag just for fun. Oddly enough, I also felt a little bad. I mean, after all this lovely woman had done and the stunning words she'd written, for her to not even be able to take credit for them seemed almost cruel. 

I smiled. "Beth…it fits you."

She laughed. "Boring and dull! You got it!"

I shook my head, trying to stop the fantasies from taking over my mind. "No. Warm and lovely."

"Trust me," she swallowed. "I'm more of a librarian who tells you what to do and is a real snotface about things."

"You kill them with your brains, huh?"

A strange light began to burn inside the sultry eyes, as if I was sending out a challenge. "I'm a Scorpio, son. I can tear you apart."

I wanted the challenge. "Really? Okay… What's the Italian word for family?"

"Famiglia," she responded quickly. The perfect accent shot a bolt of lightning through my soul. Why? Because I could only imagine the sexy Italian dinners we could create together in my kitchen one day.

I cleared my throat. "Okay, that was easy. How about…best movie Oscar for…1965?" I picked one out of thin air, wondering if this woman who had no time for T.V. or cinema knew this—especially from a year far before her time. 

I sat back. I could almost see that librarian appear, as the chocolate brown eyes grew darker and an imaginary card catalogue flipped open inside her head. "
The Sound of Music
,
but most people still think
Doctor Zhivago
should have taken it."

I suddenly
had
to stump her. I don't know why. Maybe it was because I was a Scorpio, too, and it was beyond a challenge now. I leaned forward. When all else fails, go for sports. "Who won the World Cup in 1982?" 

With a slight rolling of the eyes, that beautiful voice responded fast, "Italy. It was their first title in forty-eight years."

Crossing her long legs, she leaned back in her chair with her cup of coffee wearing a satisfied smile. I swear, either a fish or a chip got stuck so deep in my throat when I saw that glimpse of perfect leg from underneath the black leather skirt that my windpipe closed. I expected to die right there.

She looked out the window, quietly passing the baton back to Nicole. "So Matt, will you do Beth's role?"

I shook the fantasy from my mind, but continued to stare at Beth. "If you believe I can do it I'd love to try."

She turned back to me fast and reached out to take my hand. "I know you can do it. This is so important to Amber, and you have that emotion that can lock on to an audience. You have such skill in your face, your eyes…you are going to bring the house down with applause, and you WILL convince someone in that audience that they have to be Amber's dad."

All I could do was shake my head; I was literally enthralled, as she jumped out of her chair. I tried to stand, but she placed her hand on my shoulder and gave me a truly beautiful smile. "You
will
keep me a secret, though, right? The whole Lily Stone thing?"

"I won't say a word. I definitely don't want to share you with anybody." I'd never meant words more in my life.

"Cool! You're the absolute best, Matt McKenna!" 

I wanted to reach out. I wanted to stop her, but like a lavender breeze from the gardens outside she got past me and headed to where Bobby was waiting. I could hear her small shout of glee and I felt such pride knowing that I'd been the one to make her day. 

At the last moment, she elegantly turned and walked back toward us. That gasp once again stuck in my lungs as she smiled at me and leaned on the table to stare at Nicole. "By the way, I have a minute left on my hour. You owe me a hundred bucks."

"I really do hate you," Nicole sneered.

With that, the stunning body leaned over and kissed her friend on the cheek.  

I was beyond thrilled. I had made Beth Carrier happy, and all I could hope as she walked out the doors laughing with Bobby, was that it wasn't the last time I was able to do so.

I finally realized that the vision was gone and turned back to the agent's slightly frowning face.

"What was that bet about?" I asked.

She sighed. "I bet her there was no way she could get you to do this because you most likely wanted to sing and dance more than act."

"Actually, I like them all. But I love to act. I just hope I'm good enough for her."

Nicole rolled her eyes. "Trust me, hon, she wouldn't have told you who she was if you weren't the right guy."

My heart jumped a bit in my chest, taking her words in a whole different way.

Nicole offered me a slightly confused stare. "She must really trust you. You are trustWORTHY? Right?"

I nodded immediately. "Very. I won't sell her out."

"Good." Her gaze filled with worry. "I still get nervous sometimes."

"Did they get the guy?"

"Yeah. I mean, he was beyond a 'crush,' but he wasn't a crazy who thought he was a vampire, or anything. But because of him, Beth hates the way she looks."

I raised an eyebrow at the ridiculous statement. "
What
?"

"Well…I should rephrase that." Nicole sat back. "Beth really doesn't understand the way she looks. To her, the whole 'beauty' thing was just something that guys wanted in high school, you know? They grabbed, leered, hit on her, etcetera, but that never really changed as she got older and Beth just doesn't get it.  She blows the 'whistles' off; she ignores them and just thinks those men feel about her like how our little waitress feels about you.

I chuckled.

"Beth doesn't flaunt it. In fact, she doesn't even see it. To her, that thick, long hair is just a big mess, even though to most men she looks like a sex-kitten who should be in their bed."

I tried not to change my face in any way, hoping that Nicole didn't see the heat that her friend stirred in me.

"She wears hardly any make-up, so she figures she automatically looks bad. But as you can see, she doesn't need any."

I nodded.

"And her clothes. Most of them are just professional business outfits, and sweats when she's at home laying on the couch shooting the shit with Bobby over sports. But the girl could make a trash bag look sexy, and she just doesn't notice."

"I noticed that she blushes when a compliment is given," I said. "She turns it into a joke."

Nicole smiled. "Beth has the gift of sarcasm. But she's even unique at that because she's funny without being mean, you know?"

Sighing, Nicole offered me a look of pure love for her friend. "Look, Matt. Beth has a heart bigger than anyone ever created, and she's doing all this for Amber. All she wants is for her to have a family. But most people, as you probably already know, adopt babies. They don't want older children." 

"And Beth believes this event will change that?"

"Her work shows the true wonders of what a child can do to make a life absolutely perfect." It was as if she stared into my soul, as she continued, "You will, no doubt, hit it out of the park because Beth IS always right. She believes that couple will be in the audience and Amber's dream WILL come true." 

I cleared my throat. "I'm going to have to speak with Beth…about the material. I don't want to screw this up."   

Nicole nodded. "Beth and Bobby will head back to Connecticut this afternoon. She lives there part-time—her writing retreat, she calls it." Nicole reached into her mammoth bag. "Let me give you the phone number."

"Actually." I sat up straighter. "I will have to talk to her face-to-face." I tried to keep my tone professional, yet I could almost hear the pleading buried in my words. "So I'll need the address."

The agent simply stopped and stared at me.

"I'm not going up there to hit on her."

Her eyes grew small and worried.

"I'm going up there for the sake of the play." 

Slowly she began to nod. "You should bring your friend with you."

"I'm sorry?"

"That Chris fellow. He said he was exhausted earlier.  He might want a little downtime, too."

The wheels began spinning in my mind. I could tell that no address would be given if it was just me. And then, she smiled. I could feel the strings of a diabolical plan running between us. Her words, her nuances, her passing of the paper to me with Beth's address written in dark and sturdy letters, all made me think I had found a supporter in a plan that I didn't even have.

Chris's face when he met Bobby for the first time flashed through my mind. All he'd be is an actor needing a break, and I would be the consummate professional who needed the writer's vision to make sure my performance was the best it could be. Simple. "Chris does need some downtime."

Nicole's eyebrows furrowed on her forehead. "Beth's tough. She loves a challenge but being the subject of one is not her thing. I've never seen her let a guy through the door, so whoever tries is gonna need some serious courage to make it. I mean, if they wanted to know more about her."

I felt the strength of a lion suddenly well-up inside me. The odd part was, I wasn't thinking about the hair, the eyes, the perfect legs, or any other pieces of the package. All I could think about was the fire that'd come from Beth's soul when she professed her mission for Amber.