She shrugged shapely shoulders. "I know it won't be easy, but I'm willing to take a chance." She walked toward the doors, her hips moving seductively under the faded denims. Christ! Shewas the most sensual and sexy woman he had ever met, barring none.
"See you at home."
Her departure left a vacuum in the room, and the scent of her signature perfume filled the air. Going back to his desk, he sat down heavily, a brooding expression on his face. He knew her. How could he not?
After five years of marriage and six months of practically living together before that, he knew the way she operated, how she thought. She had not cried and shouted. That was not her style. His wife had class and could control her emotions. She had learned the hard way never to let her feelings show, and he respected that about her, even though it could be as aggravating as hell too.
She had spent time during the first year of their marriage hiring someone to dig into her past and try to find her mother. The result had been heartbreaking. A seventeen-year-old runaway from a very strict and stifling home, who had hooked up with some unsavory characters and lost her way. By the time Eliza had discovered who she was, it had been too late. The woman had died of an overdose of heroin. Her grandparents had been strict Baptist members of a small church and had turned their backs on their only child; she had gone astray. When Eliza reached out to them, they had refused to have anything to do with her.
He understood her desperate need to have children, he truly did. He wanted to be a father as well but was not willing to sacrifice everything to make it happen. She would be sacrificing her life, and that was unthinkable.
But after the last two years and how distant he had been as well as the fact that he had almost stepped out on her, he owed her that much. He would accompany her to the clinic and hear what they had to say. Even if he was planning on saying no.
She did not have a lot of friends in the industry. She had discovered over the past fifteen years since she had been in showbiz that most of the people she worked with or socialized with were phonies, and she didn't have time for pretenses. She also realized that once she had started seeing Samuel, the women either envied or hated her. She could live with that and had learned to deal with it.
She was part of a system that was corrupt and a veritable cesspool. Eliza had made the decision a long time ago that she would be different. No sleeping around or jumping from partner to partner because she could. She had been abandoned by her parents and survived in a home where the living conditions had been barely tolerable. She could survive anything, and she had.
The discovery that her mother had died of an overdose had devastated her. Not to mention the fact that her grandparents had refused to have anything to do with her. She had survived that too.
She was a survivor, a fighter, and that's who she would continue to be. She had beaten the odds and had risen to the top. Her husband's money and connections meant nothing to her. She was not greedy. She had more money than she could ever spend in this lifetime.
She had a weakness for shoes and made no apologies for spending exorbitant amounts on footwear. She had Romano's on speed dial and whenever or wherever they had a fresh style coming in, she would get the call. It helped that she was friends with Monique Romano. She gave to charity, not just writing checks; she believed in physically helping as well and was part of a handful of charities, not because it made good publicity or a great photo op, but because she genuinely cared.
Sliding into the slick and shiny booth of one of Kelly Takahashi's trendy restaurants, she smiled as the eager and besotted waiter came hurrying over.
"I'm expecting… Oh, perfect timing, here he comes."
"Ms. Copeland, I have to tell you how sorry I am to see the end of my favorite detective series." Alvin beamed at the tall, blond-haired man who came walking up to the booth. "What can I get you, Mr. Richards?"
"A glass of mineral water to start with." Blair Richards' blue eyes landed on Eliza, his smile warm. "I see you just got here."
"I did." Lifting her glass, she told Alvin she would have a mineral water. "And some of those delicious breadsticks from the kitchen."
"Coming right up." The man bustled off immediately.
"I see you have poor Alvin drooling as usual." Blair bussed her cheeks before wrapping his arms around her for a tight hug. "It's good to see you."
"Same here." She sat back down and took a sip of her water. "I thought you would be running late."
"The meeting with Sally was over quicker than I anticipated." He waited until the water and breadsticks were set in front of them before resuming. "I have news."
Her eyes widened. "You got the part."
He grinned, his face turning that boyish look that the public adored. He was her co-star on the series where he played her partner. They had developed a close relationship that had the paparazzi speculating about it for years. It was not until a year ago, when Blair had decided that it was time to come 'out of the closet,' that the rumors had stopped. Eliza recalled years of agonizing indecision on his part as to what the revelation would do to his macho image on the show.
She was the only one aside from his longtime partner who had known about his alternate lifestyle, and she had kept his secret. One she had not even revealed to her husband, who had accused her of having an affair with her co-star. But she had encouraged her friend to come clean, and he had taken her advice. To his humble surprise, his news had endeared him even more to the public.
"I should order a bottle of the most expensive bubbly they have on the menu." He leaned forward to kiss her on the lips. "Yes, I got the part. The selection for the various supporting actors is still being done, but you're looking at the main character for the period classic, 'Plantation Regrets.'" He beamed at her, eyes twinkling.
"And honey, the story is so beautiful that it brought tears to my eyes. I smell an award coming." He took a sip of his water and nodded in satisfaction.
"I'm happy for you," she told him sincerely.
Blair eyed her for a second before bringing it up. "Sally said she thought you would be great for the female character."
"And I told her I'm done." Picking up the embossed menu, she scanned the selections and decided on the creamy lobster. "What are you having?"
"The Cobb salad, of course. They serve the best here." He nodded to the hovering waiter and placed the orders. Leaning forward, Blair took her hands in his. "Are you quite sure about this? Honey, I know you think this will save your marriage…"
