Touching the Billionaire - Holly Jaymes Page 0,73

I realized he was right. I jumped up. “I’m heading up to Woodstock.”

“Go get ‘em, little bro.”

I grabbed my car keys and rushed down to the garage. In record time, I was in my car and heading through Manhattan traffic and towards Woodstock. And hopefully toward happily ever after.

A Matter of Trust

Madeline

My grandmother and grandfather’s words looped through my brain over and over and over again, making it difficult to sleep. Finally, I gave up and got out of bed. At first, I went to sit on the screen porch, but the dark night and the sound of crickets did little to settle my nerves.

Why was I so agitated? Were they right? Was it possible that I misunderstood Theo and Corrine’s conversation? They were right in that I hadn’t heard the beginning part, nor had I stayed to listen to the end. But he never denied her statement that he’d been seducing me. And he had said that he had to do what he had to do. Didn't that mean he was confirming to Corrine that he had seduced me as a way to maintain the chemistry in the movie?

I went into the TV room, picked up the remote, and clicked it on, thinking maybe I’d find some old movie or maybe even an infomercial. I flipped through the channels and immediately stopped when I saw Theo on the screen on Joey Late Night. My finger hovered over the channel button to change it, but I couldn’t. Theo looked as handsome as ever. Although admittedly, his eyes seemed a little duller and his smile wasn’t quite as sincere. I wondered if he was missing me or if he’d tried to get in touch with me. I made sure that he couldn’t and except for Nadine’s report that he had come looking for me, I didn’t know if he had given up or not.

“Now in Earthshot, you didn’t really have a female co-star but in many of your other movies, you did. When you end up spending a lot of time with somebody, working on the set and having to pretend they're your wife or your girlfriend or your lover, does it ever bleed over into real life?” Joey asked Theo.

Theo didn’t answer right away, but then he said, “I guess it does sometimes, but it’s not very often that you actually fall in love.”

My heart did a loop-the-loop in my chest. Did he just say he’d fallen in love? Or was he just telling Joey that on-set relationships were just hookups?

“Are you saying that Theo Wolfe has fallen in love?”

“Yes, I have.”

I gasped.

Joey leaned over on his desk, setting his chin in his palms and looking at Theo for him to spill all the gossip. “Oh, do tell.”

“Well, of course, I never kiss and tell.” Theo’s response made me wonder if this was just a way for him to clean up his reputation.

“Is it serious?” Joey asked.

“It could be.”

What did that mean?

“Is the feeling mutual?” Then Joey waved his hand. “Oh, it must be. You’re Theo Wolfe. What woman wouldn’t want to be with you?”

I could think of one. Me. Except, deep down, I did want to be with him.

“Tell us about her. Is she in the business? Is she someone we would know? Most importantly, what type of woman captures Theo Wolfe’s heart?”

“She’s smart, outspoken, brilliant. She has a wonderful sense of humor. She’s just a really great person.”

Was he talking about me? He never said my name. He never gave any hints. Was that because this was just another ploy to dismantle his playboy image? Or was he protecting me?

“And I bet she’s beautiful, isn’t she?” Joey asked.

“She’s the most beautiful woman in the world.”

“As grand gestures go, that one’s pretty good,” my grandmother said. I turned to see her leaning against the door jamb into the TV room.

I turned off the TV and set the remote down.

“He didn’t say who he was talking about.” I stood to go back to my room.

I heard a tsking sound from my grandmother. “Madeline, at this point, your unhappiness is all your own. You can go on being mad at that young man. You can pretend like he just didn’t tell the world that he was in love with someone. But in the end, if you’re miserable, it’s all on you.”

“I'm going back to bed.” I didn’t want to be terse with my grandmother, but neither did I want to accept that she might be right. I started toward the hall