Page 46 of Second Act
Jessica knew he’d never felt valued. Never believed that he mattered in any way. Which was why he’d been so focused on succeeding as an actor. In his roles, he’d found a way to pretend to be someone who was worthy of attention. She’d understood that from the first time he’d told her about his past as a foster child.
But she’d assumed he had left that behind when he rose to the pinnacle of his profession. Now millions of people wanted to know what he ate for breakfast, where he bought his socks, and whom he was sleeping with. He had all the attention he’d craved. Yet she could still see the foster child looking out of his eyes as he spoke to the kids.
She didn’t want to feel any more sympathy for Hugh, so she slipped away and down the stairs. She stopped to grab her duffel from Powell and tromped down to the basement. The dogs greeted her with surprising enthusiasm, given that she usually arrived bearing needles. But dogs were very forgiving that way. Far more than people.
She made the quiet signal, and most of them stopped barking. “Where’s Pari?” she asked, walking along the row of crates with their neatly lettered name tags. There was an empty space toward one end and no sign of Pari, so she checked the storage closet where she’d spent the night. The one Hugh had carried her out of.
The little brown-and-white mutt stood up when Jessica opened the crate’s door. “You look better than Khonsu did,” Jessica said with relief. When she called the dog’s name, Pari ambled out of the crate.
After a thorough examination, Jessica had to agree with Diego’s diagnosis. She got out the metronidazole and dosed Pari with half a tablet. After giving the ailing little creature some gentle petting, she put her back in the crate.
Pulling out a script pad and pen, she sat cross-legged on the floor and started a note to Diego. She wanted to dodge out of the centerbefore she ran into Hugh. She didn’t have an answer for him about Wednesday.
“You just can’t stay out of this closet, can you?”
The black velvet of Hugh’s voice shimmered through her, even as she inwardly berated herself for not just texting Diego about the meds so she could escape sooner. “I go where my patients are,” she said, continuing to write without looking up. “You did a nice thing, talking with the kids.”
Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Hugh’s legs fold down until he was squatting beside her, his forearms resting on his knees. “I like kids,” he said.
She finished her note and stuck it to the bottle of metro with a strip of surgical tape. “They’ll be telling everyone about meeting a famous movie star. It will make them feel important in front of their friends.” She turned to look at him, getting the full wallop of his extraordinary face about two feet from hers. Good thing she was already sitting down.
He nodded. “It’s the least I can give them.” Because he understood that any little thing that gave a disadvantaged kid a positive moment in the spotlight could help.
Damn it! She didn’t want to see this side of him right now.
“Need a lift?” He held out his hand, only the tiny twitch of one corner of his lips betraying his deliberate pun.
She couldn’t ignore his offer, so she braced herself and laid her palm on his. The strength of his fingers and his arm as he rose and pulled her up with him sent heat corkscrewing deep inside her.
“I have tickets toA Question of DesireWednesday night. I was hoping you’d come with me,” he said, her hand still enveloped in his.
Those were the most in-demand tickets on Broadway, impossible to get because the cast was filled with marquee names who were contracted for a limited run. But Hugh could get anything he wanted now, of course. “You sure know how to tempt a girl,” she said, stalling even though she knew she’d say yes. It was impossible for her to resist goingto a fabulous play with Hugh as her date. No woman possessed that kind of willpower, even if she wondered about the motive behind the invitation.
His blue eyes went smoky, but he didn’t take advantage of her opening for a flirtatious comment. “And dinner first, I hope,” he added.
His thumb traced over her knuckles, a touch that sent a tingle flickering across her skin. But she looked him straight in the eye. “Just dinner and the play.”
He nodded. “No other expectations.”
“Sounds good,” she said. But Hugh hadn’t been responsible for her previous insanity.
It was her own weakness she had to fight.
