Page 13 of Layla Meets Her Match

I let out of breath of relief, even though I grimace at the thought of all of Mrs. Van Buren’s friends getting sick. “Tiny miracles, huh?”

She chuckles a little. She’s always trying to point out the little things to me, and it’s something I love about her. She’s called our friendship one of those tiny miracles, and it helps me to see it that way. I don’t feel guilty about our relationship when I can see it benefitting her so much—never mind how much I need the motherly love like hers in my life with my mom so far away. She doesn’t have any kids, and her husband died years before my grandma did. She’s been alone a long time.

“Certainly was,” she says. “You might want to hold off on bringing over treats for a few days.”

I bite back my own chuckle. “Okay.”

“That doesn’t mean you have to stay away. No one’s mad at you, of course,” Mrs. Van Buren hurries to add.

“I’ll come by tomorrow,” I promise. “No treats.”

We hang up, and I frown. I’m in full agreement with Mrs. Van Buren that Mila would never knowingly use bad ingredients. Baking is her passion, and she loves her customers. Even though I’m not bringing Mrs. Van Buren treats, this will be a good reason to stop by the truck early tomorrow to talk with Mila. And I do have other people to drop off the treats to. The Rays staff in various offices always enjoys it, and Mark loves to take stuff home to his kids. I’ve got options.

I pocket my phone and brace myself to head inside. The door is open, letting cool fall air into the house. A bodyguard stands at the door and nods at me when I pass him. There are enough A-listers here to warrant a few more bodyguards, and they’re likely stationed at every entrance, but Nick likes to make sure they blend in. The one at the front door is probably the only one purposefully looking intimidating in case paparazzi or rabid fans try to show up.

I have a height advantage here, which is nice. It’s easy to glance around and spot Nick on the opposite side of the room, next to the tall windows that overlook the patio and pool. As luck would have it, he’s chatting with Court’s aunt Sophie. She’s an actress and a second mom to both Court and Eli, especially since Eli lived in her guesthouse for a while before he bought his new house after settling in with the Rays. She comes to get-togethers at Eli’s house, so she’s someone I’m comfortable with.

I make my way through the crowd, but it’s slow going. A-listers and big shots they may be, but there are plenty of football fans. Luckily, I don’t have to make a lot of small talk, just accept praise for Sunday’s game and assure everyone that of course we’re going to the championships.

“Linc!” Nick grins as soon as he sees me approaching, holding out his hand for a handshake and then pulling me in for a hug. “I’m so glad you decided to come tonight.”

When he lets go, Sophie Edwards gives me a hug too and then a kiss on the cheek. “Good to see you, Lincoln.” Her raised eyebrows show her surprise at my presence. I’ve confided in her before that I envy the easy way she seems in public and wish I could be the same. She always responds that she likes me just the way I am.

“I’m all business tonight, Nick,” I say apologetically. “I have an agenda.”

He chuckles. “Fair enough. What’s on your mind?” Nick has known me long enough and well enough to get right to the point and not force conversation from me. When it’s just me, his wife, and his twin girls, it’s a lot easier for me to relax and chat with them. This party is so much more intimidating.

“I’ve been watching LA Lights. And a friend of mine played a side character for a few episodes. She was fabulous, and I think you should bring her character back to the show.” I know it sounds stupid when I say it like that, but I’m not sure how else to explain it.

Sophie perks up next to me. “Layla Delaford?” she guesses. I give a nod, and she turns to Nick. “She played the witness in those crossover episodes. The chemistry between her and Noah Tanner was effortless, Nick. At least it looked that way to me. Did you see all the TikToks after those shows aired, shipping her and Detective Leclair?”

No one needs to look far for a hype person if Sophie Edwards is in the room. I’m counting my lucky stars she’s here to help me on this. Otherwise, I would’ve sounded so awkward in my praise for Layla. And super obvious.

Nick squints at Sophie. “She played the nurse, right? She was good. Bruno loved her.”

“Everyone did,” Sophie says. “Why didn’t they keep her on recurring?”

Nick shrugs. “Something about the writers not wanting Leclair to have a romance right now. But Bruno’s doing a spin-off, a medical show that will share some characters with LA Lights.”

Sophie’s eyes widen. “That’s perfect! Nick, you wouldn’t regret hiring Layla Delaford, I’m telling you. She’s magic on the screen. I’m not just saying that.”

I feel like I should add something. “I thought she was really good. I watched half a season in one night when I shouldn’t have.”

Nick and Sophie both laugh—and they both give me knowing looks. I’m not surprised that Sophie would guess about my crush on Layla. Or that she’s been told about it by Eli or Court. To be fair, it was probably easy to read why I want to help Layla.

Nick nudges me with his elbow. “Well, come on, Linc. Let’s go talk to Bruno.”

Sophie smiles at me and waves as Nick pulls me away. “Good to see you, Lincoln.”

“You too, Miss Sophie.” I wave back at her and follow Nick toward the middle of the room. This is going way better than I could have imagined, and the studio already casting a new show that’s perfect to put Layla in? That’s another stroke of luck—or a tiny miracle, as Mrs. Van Buren would say. I brace myself to be a little bit more suave with Bruno, the director, than I was with Nick and Sophie. I can do this. Especially for Layla.

CHAPTER 9

LAYLA

Mila chose a location this morning that’s always a little bit slower than some of the others. There’s still a steady stream of customers. Mila has die-hard fans that will follow her all over the city. Lincoln Knight is just one of many. This location has several food trucks that park together, so the customers are more spread out. It’s a good opportunity for Mila to find new customers, since they’re already here checking out other food trucks, and the slower pace means she can experiment a little more with new recipes. Whatever she’s trying this morning smells delicious. There’s lemon and some kind of berry involved. I can’t wait to try it. One of the perks of being Mila’s employee is that we get a taste of anything new. Or whatever we want. Mila’s not stingy about letting us eat the treats. She always says it means we can recommend stuff easier if we’ve tasted it.

I glance at the handful of people mingling around the menu board we have out for the day. Astrid has very pretty handwriting, so writing it out has been delegated to her, and I admire the pretty, curly letters she used to advertise the cookies and cream cupcakes that have been popular this morning.

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