was my mum. She took a more final approach to ending her heartbreak, I guess.”
My hand suddenly felt warm, and I glanced down to see Damon’s palm spread out over my knuckles. My heart beat fast. “She must have really loved him to do something so terrible just to end the pain.”
I nodded, struck by his unexpectedly eloquent and meaningful sentiment. “Some people love too much. My mother was one of them. Not that Elijah ever deserved how she felt for him. Sometimes I hate her, because she clearly loved him more than me, but then, I was grown up. She thought I didn’t need her anymore.”
“And that’s the ridiculous thing,” Damon added, as though my words were his own and he was just finishing a thought that belonged to him. “No matter how old we get, we always need them.”
I glanced at him from under my lashes and asked quietly, “What was your mum like?”
He didn’t answer right away, just stared dead ahead as though thinking about her. “She was strong and incredibly loyal. When I started to get famous, she protected me from all the people who might have tried to exploit it. Then she grew ill, and I didn’t have that protection anymore. My dad showed up at her funeral. They’d separated when I was little and I hadn’t seen him in years, but I was relieved, because I was just a lad and I didn’t want to be alone. I went to live with him, but he wasn’t Mam. He didn’t care about protecting me. Instead he used the money I earned to throw constant parties and live the high life. I went from being completely sheltered to being exposed to everything a child shouldn’t be around, alcohol, drugs, prostitutes, you name it.”
The abundance of his words went to show how strongly he felt for his mother and how badly what came after her death had affected him. I didn’t know what to say, but I suddenly understood why he’d turned his back on acting, if only to get away from a life that terrified him. People were starting to trickle in for the afternoon rehearsal, and it felt odd that we were discussing such personal things over our lunch break.
“Where is he now?” I asked.
Damon frowned. “Still in the States. Any road, I haven’t seen him since the day I was granted my emancipation. If I never do again, it’ll be too soon.”
The ferocity in his voice made me think that what he’d told me was just the tip of the iceberg. This wasn’t the first time I’d heard of showbiz parents taking advantage of their children’s success, and my gut twisted to think of Damon in a situation like that.
“I feel the same way about Elijah. It just seems so unfair that he gets to keep on living his life when he ruined my mother’s.”
Damon’s eyes met mine in understanding. We were silent for a moment, and then Farrah hurried by, probably on her way to a meeting. She waved and shot me a knowing look as I sat with Damon, and I realised that his hand was still on mine. I hastily pulled away and cleared my throat.
“We both should be getting back,” I said.
“Scared you off, did I?”
I shook my head. “No, of course not. The things I told you about Mum were just as personal….” I paused, hesitating over what to say next.
“Rose?”
Oh, hell. I really should just tell him. “People are starting to talk about us spending so much time together,” I blurted.
It was true. I hadn’t heard anything per se, but I’d stepped into my fair share of conversations lately where everybody just went quiet. That only ever happened when people were gossiping about you.
“We spend time together because we’re friends,” he stated plainly, like it was that simple.
“Yes, but, I’ve got a bit of a tendency toward developing show crushes, and Farrah knows it.” I fiddled awkwardly with the hem of my top.
“‘Show crushes’?” Damon appeared perplexed, and I couldn’t blame him. I was babbling like an idiot.
“You know, crushing on the people you work with during a show. They all probably think I’m some sort of gold digger. I don’t want anybody spreading rumours.”
This made him let out a hard, disbelieving laugh. “I live in a two-bedroom cottage and my car is a fifteen-year-old Volvo. Are you going to stop being my friend just because people are talking? Let them. I could give two fucks what they