Finding Forever (4 page)

She realized the notion that she and her father could communicate with each other sounded a little “out there.” Which is partly why she didn't like to talk about it. But the voice she often heard, though silent, was real and strong and unmistakably her father's. Calm. Direct. Honest. Helpful. Caring. And when necessary, even bossy.

It helped that Father McGavin, though pushing seventy, wasn't some out-of-touch old bag of Bibles.

“In the book of Job, we meet a young man named Elihu,” Brooklyn's lifelong priest began. “Elihu grew frustrated being the ‘young' guy, listening to the supposedly wiser elders arguing. So he stood up and really laid into the old men.” The priest flipped the heavy Scripture page. “It is not only the old who are wise, not only the aged who understand what is right.”

Blip, BLIP! Blip, BLIP! Blip, BLIP!

The congregation turned their attention to the redhead in the fourth row from the rear. One lady craned her neck and barked a “shush.”

Brooklyn fumbled to find her blipping phone as Father McGavin paused and cleared his throat.

Holy . . .
Brooklyn's face grew hot as she fished into her pocket in a panic.

Blip, BLIP! Blip, BLIP!

Finally she clicked the phone silent and squeezed the device between her thighs.

“Sorry,” she said, pressing her palms together and shrugging.

A minute later, once peace and worshipful order had been restored, Brooklyn snuck a glance at her text alert.

                      
Pizza later?!

Brooklyn tapped out a reply.

Ugh, Holden. I'm @ church, duh!

so is that a yes?

OK. Fine. Make it thin crust, pepperoni

A pizza order wasn't exactly the kind of “sign” from God that Brooklyn had been looking for, but at least she wouldn't be spending Saturday night alone.

“For you.” Pretty Boy flashed Taylor a dimpled smile. “Drink up.”

Taylor took a swig from the red plastic cup he gave her. Tasting the bitterness, she swallowed hard, pushing the syrupy liquid down her throat and into her stomach, where it settled warmly. She licked her lips and took another gulp, emptying the cup but for a few lonely ice cubes at the bottom.

Taylor turned her back to Pretty Boy and raised her arms straight up, showing off some booty popping of the kind she'd seen in those crazy Juicy J dance videos.

Stop talking and start twerking, babyyyy.

Taylor had always pegged guys who wore sunglasses at night as little more than pretentious posers, narcissistic to the point of making themselves entirely unattractive to her. But she decided this particular piece of human hotness was far too hot to judge solely by his cover.

The incandescence of the Milky Way shimmered above, while below, the steep canyon gave way to the L.A. basin and the city lights that shined just as brightly. Taylor stopped dancing mid-song and pulled out her cell, which she had expertly tucked into the tight-fitting chest of her dress.

She texted her assistant, Simone, who danced on the other side of the patio.

                       
So is he my secret bday present u promised?

Um, yeah . . .

Taylor looked up from her screen just long enough to lock eyes briefly with Simone. A nod and smile.

Taylor wished most Hollywood guys who hit on her looked
as hot as Pretty Boy. But sadly, they didn't. Pimple-faced fan boys with crushes. Creepy old guys. Vain actors. Stoners. Fame seekers. And perhaps most unappealing were the paparazzi rats who camped outside her house on the hunt.

A Tae Kwon Do black belt since the age of eleven, Taylor had been known to groin-kick paps, causing major headaches for her publicist, Amanda, who liked to remind her that rude photogs were just another “price of fame.” At those moments, Taylor wanted a refund.

Taylor snuck a glimpse at Pretty Boy, who still hadn't taken his gaze off her. She looked directly at him with an expressionless supermodel stare.

Taylor's unspoken truth: she wished Evan Ryan were the one making the moves on her. Evan had co-starred alongside her in the romantic comedy
Final Verse
, where they (rather convincingly) played boyfriend and girlfriend. Taylor had suffered a class-A crush on Evan from the first day of shooting, and it only got more intense after many, many,
many
make-out scenes.

Taylor decided that once their movie wrapped, Evan would be her First.

Nearly a year later, it hadn't happened. That's why he was the first person she invited to her party. A few days later, Evan had called, telling her he would love nothing more than to celebrate her birthday, but, sadly, he couldn't make it. Avoiding any place that might have alcohol or drugs, he said, was part of his “recovery” following his recent stint in rehab. Taylor promised she would make it a clean party, and Evan said he would consider it.