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EPILOGUE
Roberta tried not toblink at every camera flash. She repeated the mantra she had started since getting out of the limo at the beginning of the red carpet ...don’t sweat, don’t trip.Despite the coolness of the early Southern California evening, perspiration threatened to break out in all the wrong places. The violet Grecian-style gown, cut low in the front, revealed a dangerous amount of cleavage. The silk crisscrossed in the front before falling to floor-length, where her new rhinestone-covered SJP sandals with three-inch heels peeped out from beneath the hem. As beads of sweat broke out on her forehead, she hoped the special padding under her breasts would soak up the moisture she knew was pooling there.
A squeeze to her left hand made her turn to the man beside her.
Taylor walked with her, slowing her down and stopping every few feet to pose for the cameras. A warm current surged through her at the sight of his slim, fit body tucked into a navy-blue tux with a white bowtie. She stared at him dreamily, watching him move beside her along the carpet like a sleek leopard. A light nudge brought her back to reality, warning her to straighten herself into position for the next photo shots.
Several reporters called out to Taylor as he led her down the walkway. They all knew he didn’t have any role in the new film opening tonight and questioned his presence. Regardless of their earlier discussion and agreement, he drew her closer to his side and introduced her to the media as the author of the original screenplay.
Their expressions were polite, but it was evident they didn’t care about her contribution to the movie. Only that she was on Taylor Reyd’s arm for the star-studded opening night. It didn’t matter to her. She was weightless tonight, like a helium balloon free of a tether.
Forty minutes after arriving at the curb, they reached the theater doors. The bright lights of the marquee illuminating the entrance to the complex announced the name of the film—King Louis’s Daughters.
Once inside, Roberta excused herself to the ladies’ room for a wardrobe check. She halted at the sight of so many famous actresses, also performing makeup and wardrobe checks. An upholstered chair tucked in the corner closest to her was unoccupied. She walked over to it and sat to catch her breath.
Dazed, she let her mind whirl through all the feelings and memories leading up to this night. She was a full-time writer now. Months of collaboration with her new agent had led to the sale of three books and three screenplays. All three books had sold well enough to secure her a contract with a publisher for a new trilogy, the last book currently in the editing phase. And tonight, three years later, the first of her screenplays was coming to life on the big screen.
Absent-mindedly, she twirled the extravagant engagement ring seated on her left ring finger. Just this morning, Taylor had asked her, for the hundredth time, if she had figured out a date yet. She hadn’t, of course. Between his schedule and her schedule, there was not much time left for a wedding or a reception of any appreciable length.
A chiming bell signaled a ten-minute warning before the show. Standing, Roberta smoothed her dress and joined the flow of women exiting the ladies’ room.
Returning to Taylor’s side, she marveled at how much her life had changed in the last three years. After that night at her house, when he had come to tell her he loved her, not a day had passed without Taylor in it. When he had completed filming in Melville, he had moved her and all her fur babies out to his home in California. After that, Roberta and her beloved critters went with him wherever he went out on location. He wouldn’t have it any other way.
Snuggling close to his side as the lights descended and the film began, she held her breath, eyes scanning the screen, waiting for her name to come up. When it did, Taylor gave a cheer as he kissed her. The movie screen blurred as tears swarmed her eyes. It had really happened.
She was living the dream she never hoped to dream with the man she never dared hope to have as a partner.
