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“God, you can’t even imagine,” I admitted. “It was like seeing the weight of the world lift off her shoulders. That house had a fenced yard out back, and Mom let us get a dog. She insisted on naming him Clover because as far as she was concerned, everything we had we owed to that show.”
“And you.”
I looked up from the bite I’d just taken of the stir-fry. “Hm?”
“It was also owed to you. They wouldn’t have given you the role or the paycheck if you hadn’t been good at it.”
My face flooded with heat. The food was spicy, so I fanned my cheek with my free hand. “I guess.”
Declan studied me for a minute before asking an odd question.
“What did you call the dog?”
“I just told you. His name was Clover.”
His lip curved up in a sly grin. “That’s not what I asked.”
I looked away and took another bite of my food. After chewing and swallowing, I muttered, “Henry Higgins.”
I refused to meet his eye. I didn’t want to know if he got the reference, and if he did… whether or not he understood my connection to it.
“Mm,” he said before going back to his own dinner portion.
Silence sat heavily between us. I’d never met an awkward silence I couldn’t fill.
“I felt…”
Declan put his fork down and held up a hand. “Before you say anything, I want you to know I would love to hear it. However, you do not need to explain anything to me or talk about anything you don’t want to. I always want to know what you’re thinking, and I’d love to learn more about you, but you don’t owe me any explanations.” He watched me for a beat before continuing. “I judged you that night, Finn. The night you sped up in your fancy car representing everything I’d happily left behind in LA. I know now that was on me. I judged you instead of getting to know you. I’d like to fix that.”
I stared back at him. Had anyone in my life ever wanted to get to know the real me? The one who didn’t love chasing fame or worrying about public perception? And was it possible he meant it?
Plenty of people in my line of work had warned me away from trusting new people. I knew better than to spill secrets to a stranger. But Declan was… was different. He was the kind of man who practically radiated honor from his every pore.
“I felt like I was never good enough,” I admitted. “I had no training, no experience. They’d cast me based on my looks and the fact they could sign me super cheap, at first anyway. Then they had to put up with the results which was a kid who didn’t know what a gaffer was or a grip. Or any number of lighting and direction terms. I was constantly being told I was doing it wrong, and I felt like…”
“Eliza Doolittle.”
I nodded and let out a little huff of laughter. “Exactly.”
Declan grinned. “And poor Henry got all your backtalk and complaints.”
“But he never spilled any of my secrets. Henry Higgins was the best friend a lonely gay kid in Hollywood could have ever had. I remember when my agent was negotiating the contract for the fifth season of the show, I demanded permission to allow Henry in my trailer on set.” I laughed at the memory. “They were all stunned. I’d never demanded a single thing. Ever. My mom was horrified. She told me to let it go, but I stood my ground.”
“Don’t mess with a boy and his dog,” Declan teased.
“Did you have a dog growing up?”
He nodded. “Several. My mom had a Great Dane named Poe, who wouldn’t give the rest of us the time of day. My brothers and I had a motley crew of dogs over the years, but my favorite—my heart dog—was a corgi basset hound mix named Goose. She used to sleep on the pillow above my head.”
I had a hard time picturing a lanky, awkward teen version of Sheriff Stone with a little dog curled on the bed above his head.
“Have you thought about getting a dog here in Aster Valley? Seems like you have enough land for it. My agent cautioned me against getting one since I don’t have a yard and I travel a lot. But you have plenty of land and presumably don’t travel.”
Declan studied me again. It was becoming a little eerie. Like maybe there was an entirely different conversation going on between us in his head. Finally, he spoke.
“Do you have enough money set aside to last you and your mom the rest of your life?”
I stared at him in shock. What the fuck was he asking me? Had I gotten him all wrong? Was he interested in my money more than my childhood dog stories?
