Grounded By You Page 8

  “You seem really great,” Sam said. “But there’s somebody in my life. I think.”

  Delaney’s eyes narrowed. “Everybody thinks you’re single.”

  “I was. I mean, I am,” Sam sputtered. “It’s a recent development.”

  “This lifestyle wreaks havoc on relationships,” Delaney said. “I don’t have any experience with it on this kind of scale, but even in the theater world it’s tough. You spend long hours day after day with the same people. You put all your energy and emotions into creating the character you are playing. It’s hard just to turn that switch off at the end of the day.”

  “But it’s not real,” Sam said. He didn’t like hearing what Delaney was saying even though he heard the ring of truth in it. “It’s acting. And fake relationships don’t keep you warm at night.”

  “Who said it has to be fake?” Delaney said.

  At first Sam thought that she was joking, but then he realized that she was serious. Dead serious.

  “I’m not like that,” Sam said. “I’m not looking for the right relationship to further my career. The movie is a job and hopefully, if I play the role right, it’ll lead to more jobs. This other stuff is a distraction from that, and I want to have a normal life.”

  “It’s the other stuff that sets the stage for the illusion that people see on the screen,” Delaney said. “People go to see movies to escape reality, but they love the idea that fantasy and reality can collide. That’s why they are fascinated with celebrities and follow their every move.”

  “I didn’t expect that you’d be on their side,” Sam muttered as he took a long draw of his beer.

  “I’m not on anybody’s side but my own,” Delaney said, flipping her hair over her shoulder revealing a bare shoulder. She leaned onto the table. “I like you, Sam. I’ve told you already that I hope we can be friends. I respect your decision on this, but just know that I’m not opposed to taking this relationship to the next level if the opportunity presented itself.”

  “I can’t believe you’d say something like that. You don’t know anything about me,” Sam said. “Why in the world would you want to date me?”

  “I know that you’re a struggling actor, just like me. I know that you grew up living and breathing this novel. I sincerely think that’s why you understand exactly what motivates Jackson and why you brought a certain authenticity to your audition that was lacking in everyone else’s. I know you’re twenty-three, and if acting didn’t pan out you were planning to become a journalist. You moved to New York six months ago, and you’re favorite past-time is rock-climbing. You are a Pisces, and your mother’s name is Francine. I know more about you than you think.”

  Sam leaned back against the back of the booth. He was arguing with a beautiful woman about why she shouldn’t want to date him. If it had happened two weeks ago, he might have given in. But that was before Millie came back into his life, and he wasn’t willing to give that up. Not if there was any shot at being with her.

  “I’m flattered, Delaney. Really I am. But it’s just friends for me,” he said.

  He would have expected her to back away and perhaps even look annoyed, but Delaney only smiled softly at him. She brought her glass to her lips and winked at him.

  “Friends is a very good place to start.”

  CHAPTER TEN

  For the hundredth time, Millie considered telling the car to turn around and take her back home. She didn’t want to attend the company event, especially now that she had told her father that she wasn’t planning to work for him, but he had insisted.

  She expected him to yell and argue with her when she told him the news. His actual reaction was strange and unexpected.

  The silent treatment had been almost worse than screaming. She wanted to call Sam and talk to him about what happened, but she hated feeling weak plus he had promised to call her on Saturday. She knew that he had a busy schedule, and the last thing she wanted to do was bother him with her trivial problems.

  Instead, she spent the next day and a half in the studio working on her next piece. What happened with Sam inspired her, and she found that the images on the canvas were taking shape much more quickly than they had in the past. Her heart and mind felt lighter. Her whole life was changing in new and unexpected ways, and it was as thrilling as it was frightening, but all in good ways.

  When she arrived home from her art studio to get ready, she found a package waiting for her. Her mother sent over a dress for her to wear to the dinner. Millie knew better than to argue. Until she knew exactly how her father had reacted to her news, she intended to do her best to stay on her family’s good side. She had expected to at least hear something from Josh, but her brother hadn’t responded to her texts and calls either. So Millie had no idea what she was walking into that evening, and that bothered her more than anything else. She felt woefully unprepared for what was about to happen.

  Her phone rang when she was five minutes from the restaurant. It was Josh.

  “Where have you been? I’ve been trying to get a hold of you for the last day and a half,” she snapped.

  “We’ve been in closed negotiations for the last few days, and things have been heated. I’ve had a lot on my mind,” Josh said.

  Millie immediately felt bad. Her brother sounded tired. “What is this thing again tonight?”

  “The guys working on this deal have been putting in a lot of overtime lately, but the pay-off for the company is going to be huge,” Josh said. “Dad thought it would be a good idea to take them out and let them blow off some steam.”

  “And so why exactly do I have to be there? This sounds like little more than a more civilized version of a bachelor party. Minus the strippers,” Millie said.

  “You’re a St. John, and when this deal goes through, we’re set for life. It’s a sign of respect for all the work that these guys are putting in to secure your future.”

  Millie rolled her eyes. “God, you make it sound like we are in the Mafia.”

  “We take care of our own,” Josh said. “Dad likes showing a united front. You know that.”

  She did know that. Soon after her father’s company really took off, the weekend trips up the coast stopped and were replaced by shows, society dinners, charity balls, fundraisers, art show openings, and myriad of other activities that her mother deemed appropriate for raising the family’s visibility. Her father gave her mother free reign over that and dutifully showed up wherever he was told to be. He stressed the importance of showing the solidarity of their family saying that there was nothing more impressive than a handsome, well-rounded family to attract potential business partners.

  Somewhere along the way, it seemed the shell hardened around her parents’ smiles and the actual emotional bonds dissipated. It was a relief to escape to school where, for the first time, Millie’s time was her own. She didn’t have to worry about impressing anyone anymore. Still, it hadn’t escaped her notice that she moved and behaved as if someone was always watching her. It had been ingrained into her psyche, and she hated her parents a little for that.

  “I’ll be there in a minute,” she said.

  “Dad reserved a room in the back.”

  “Got it.”

  As the car pulled up to the restaurant, she noticed a small group of photographers off to the side of the entrance. They milled around smoking cigarettes but didn’t seem interested in her car. Living in the city, Millie had seen her share of celebrities out and about going on with their daily lives. She wondered who was dining inside to have attracted the small swarm of attention seekers.

  It made her think about Sam. She felt butterflies in her stomach as she thought about seeing him the following day. The memory of their kiss still made her insides melt. If he was that good of a kisser, she found herself eagerly anticipating what other skills he possessed.

  “Get a grip, girl,” she said to herself. It wasn’t like Millie hadn’t had her fair share of sexual encounters, but those were different. She considered it her rebelli
ous stage where she did the love ‘em and leave ‘em dance. For a while, Kate had been her partner in crime, but then Kate did the unthinkable. She went off and fell in love. As scary as that prospect was, it no longer made Millie want to run away screaming.

  She was proud of herself. She was maturing in a whole new way. She also felt good about the fact that it wasn’t because of a guy. She just liked the idea now of having one particular guy being part of her new path. There was something decidedly romantic about it.

  Moving into the restaurant, Millie handed her coat to the hostess and gave her a nod before heading toward the back. The low buzz of conversations paired with the dim lighting further encouraged her romantic thoughts. She wished that she could curl up in one of the back booths with Sam and talk the night away as opposed to having to spend it with a bunch of suits. She prepared to be bored out of her mind.

  She had almost reached the back when she passed a table and heard a familiar name on the woman’s lips. The woman was trying to be discrete as she spoke on her cell phone with her head turned away from the table in Millie’s direction.

  “Carter Samuel Groveson is here! In this restaurant right now. If I can get a picture, I’ll send it to you.”

  Millie immediately scanned the restaurant again as a smile danced across her face. The evening was looking up all of the sudden. She even thought of asking Sam to join her at her father’s dinner if he could slip away. Her father would hate it, but wouldn’t dare say anything in front of all his employees.

  When her eyes found him, her feet took a step in his direction but stopped when she saw the wave of dark chestnut hair shimmering around the shoulders of his companion. Sam had a small smile on his face, and then the woman’s face came into view.

  It was Delaney Rose.

  Millie scanned her memory of their conversation the day before. He said he had some dinner thing, but he didn’t mention that it was alone with his exquisitely beautiful co-star. She felt the same sharp jolt of jealousy that she remembered having that night the summer before when she saw Sam talking to the pretty redhead. Only this time was different. Back then, they hadn’t kissed yet. They had still been solidly in friend territory.

  She had a choice. She could ignore him, or she could go over and say hello. She squared her shoulders, intending to stop being a coward. She told herself it was just a dinner. They were going to be filming a movie together. Then she saw Delaney reach over and put her hand on Sam’s shoulder. There was something about the way that the actress touched him that seemed familiar and intimate. The thing that made her want to pounce was that Sam didn’t appear to be making any move toward shaking her hand off. Seething inside, Millie wanted nothing more than to smack the sultry smile off the other woman’s face.

  “Did you need some help finding your way to the back room?” A familiar voice caused Millie to jump and whirl around. She found herself face to face with Will Colson.

  “No, um, I just got distracted for a second,” she said.

  “By the movie stars?” Will said with a raised eyebrow. “The entire restaurant is buzzing about it.”

  “There are movie stars here?” she said faintly.

  Will put his hand on the small of her back and propelled her forward. “Don’t ask me what has everyone all up in arms about them. Although I won’t deny that Delaney Rose is a very attractive young woman.”

  Millie had never felt as if she had to compete with another woman in her life. Her mother tried, unsuccessfully, many times to get her to consider modeling when she was in her early teens and in prep school, but Millie had no interest. She already felt as if she had to compensate for her looks to be taken seriously. She wondered if Delaney’s petite, curvy frame was the kind of figure that Sam preferred. Millie was tall and long-limbed, and she definitely didn’t have the same cleavage that Delaney so readily showcased.

  It didn’t appear that Will had put two and two together yet that the man he met on her doorstep was, in fact, one of the movie stars currently being gossiped about.

  “I thought about acting for awhile,” she said, changing the subject. Her mind was full of dark, angry thoughts about what she was going to say to Sam the next time she saw him. A horrible thought crossed her mind. Was he playing with her emotions to get back at her? Had it all been an act?

  “I bet you were fantastic on stage,” Will said. “I remember Josh telling me you got the lead in one of your college productions.”

  “Lady Macbeth,” Millie said absently.

  She heard the roars of masculine laughter as they approached the private dining room. Suddenly she had a headache, and she wanted to leave. She didn’t want to be there, and she certainly didn’t want to be under her parents’ watchful eyes all evening.

  Turning to Will, she put her arm up to stop him. “You know, this dinner thing sounds like a complete bore. Do you want to go get a drink somewhere else? I know this quiet jazz club a few blocks from here.”

  It was reckless and stupid for her to give any indication that she was interested in him, but Millie’s anger got the better of her.

  “Sure,” Will said, his eyes lighting up. “But what about your father?”

  “He’s always telling me that I need to show more interest in the business. I’m sure you count,” Millie said, giving him her most charming smile. “There’s just one more thing we have to do though before we go.”

  She took his hand and guided him back out into the open restaurant. There was a part of her that said what she was about to do was stupid, immature, and wrong, but she didn’t care. Wild Millie was back, and she was about to go on a rampage.

  They drew up to Sam and Delaney’s table, and her heart did a flip flop at how handsome he looked in his navy blue suit. He didn’t look like the Sam she knew though, and maybe that was part of the problem. The success thing was going to his head.

  “What a coincidence running into you here,” Millie said, keeping her voice even. She deliberately didn’t let go of Will’s hand. “Sam, you remember Will Colson?”

  She saw the confusion and surprise on Sam’s face, and then watched as his eyes dropped to their joined hands. The expression of anger was there and gone so quickly that she wondered if she had imagined it.

  Will reached his other hand out. “I didn’t even recognize you. Millie didn’t connect those dots for me. Carter Samuel Groveson. Wow. Congratulations on your upcoming movie.”

  Sam’s face was unreadable as he shook Will’s hand. “Delaney Rose, this is Amelia St. John and her friend, Will.”

  Millie noted his use of her full first name. It sounded strange and cold on his lips.

  “Nice to meet you,” Delaney said.

  Millie reluctantly shook the woman’s hand. They both looked each other over. Close-up, the actress was even more breathtaking.

  “We were just on our way out,” Millie said. “But I thought we’d stop and say hello.”

  “That was so thoughtful. We were just talking about what we were going to do for the rest of the evening. Do you have any suggestions?” Delaney asked.

  Millie started to shake her head when Will inserted himself into the conversation.

  “Millie was just telling me about a jazz club a couple of blocks over. Maybe you should come with us.”

  She barely stopped short of hitting Will in the arm. She saw Sam looked equally stunned.

  “That sounds terrific!” Delaney exclaimed. “Can we go?” She turned to look at Sam.

  “I’m sure that Millie and Will don’t want us to intrude,” Sam said tersely.

  Millie did mind, but Will answered for them again. “It’s not a problem at all.”

  “Give me the address, and we’ll meet you there as soon as we settle the bill,” Delaney said.

  Reluctantly, Millie gave her the address and directions. As she and Will left the restaurant, she wondered how in the hell that twist of fate had come about. She was about to go on a double date with Sam and Delaney Rose. But only if she didn’t kill one or both
of them first.

  CHAPTER ELEVEN

  Delaney was practically bouncing in her seat. “Doesn’t that sound fantastic? I’ve been dying to get out and do something normal for weeks.”

  “With people you don’t know?” Sam asked. “You consider that normal?”

  “You obviously know her, and I know you,” Delaney said, rolling her eyes. “We have to get used to hanging around people and being sociable. We’re going to have fans trying to get our attention all the time. Now isn’t the time to become an introvert, Sam.”

  “I’m just not sure that I’m in the mood for a double fake date,” Sam said, running his hand through his hair. “I’m actually feeling kind of tired.”

  “No way,” Delaney said, shaking her head. “We are young and in the prime of our lives. We’re frikkin honest to God movie stars! It’s time to live it up a little bit. It would probably be good for you.”

  The only thing that Sam wanted to know was what was going on between Millie and Will Colson. After what happened at her apartment, he thought that all of the games were over between them. Now he wasn’t so certain, and Sam definitely wasn’t interested in going down that road with her again. She owed him some answers, and this time, Sam was going to get them.

  “You’re right,” he said. “We’ll go out, and we’ll have a good time. Socialize with the people.”

  Delaney looked at him suspiciously. “Okay, that was too easy. What gives?”

  “What do you mean?” Sam waved at their waiter and made the indication that they wanted their bill. “You said we needed to get out. I agree. I’ve been stuck at the gym, in my apartment, or in front of a camera ever since the news came out. It’s time I start enjoying some of this fame, right?”

  Delaney didn’t say anything else as Sam paid the bill with a card that Victoria gave him earlier in the day. She said it was for the small expenses that were part of the movie, and the four hundred dollar bill they had somehow managed to run up at the restaurant seemed to qualify. After all, he and Delaney were supposed to be on their first date. It seemed appropriate.