The Proud and the Prejudiced (7 page)

Jack ran his hand up and down her arm, and she
glanced up to see him frowning. “I’m sorry, Alice.”

She forced a smile on her face and shook her head
before tears could gather in her eyes. “No, I’m fine!” She drank down the
contents of her drink, which amounted to about three tablespoons. “I am just
ready for a few more of these and a song I can dance to.”

Perhaps it was kismet, or maybe the spirit of her
mother intervened, but as Alice finished her second drink, the opening strains
of “Like a Prayer” began, and all four of them squealed with wide-eyes as if
they’d just won a trifecta, and they ran out onto the dance floor. They jumped
up and down, shaking their hips and clapping during the refrains, she and
Eileen leaning against each other singing, “I’m down on my knees” through their
grins; then they lofted their arms above their heads, waving them through the
foggy air with the precision of ballet dancers during the slow verses.

This segued into the Eurythmics “Missionary Man,”
and Alice danced with wild abandon, knowing she couldn’t dance worth a damn but
not giving a shit. Then she caught a glimpse of Peter, sitting alone –
Where
had Winnie run off to? Gone to
powder
her nose?
– in the booth
watching them.

She screamed in Eileen’s ear. “Why did he even
come if he’s just going to sit there and pout all night? He’s just here to draw
attention to himself and make the rest of us feel uncomfortable.”

“Who?”

“Who do you think? Peter.” She motioned in his
direction with a subtle jerk of her head.

“What do you care, right? Just ignore him. He’s
not even bothering you.”

Maybe that’s what was bothering her.
No! No,
no, no, no, no, no, no!
“He’s sitting there just watching us.”

With a playful glint in her eye – or maybe it was
just the mirrored ball overhead – Eileen ran her tongue over her teeth. “Maybe
he likes to watch.”

Alice gaped at her and grinned then slapped her
upper arm. “You naughty, naughty girl!”

“Ouch!” Eileen rubbed her arm. “For what it’s
worth, Giselle said he’s staying in the booth so he
won’t
draw attention
to himself. There are enough people here not from the show that he’d probably
be swarmed with gawkers taking pictures of him with their cell phones.”

“Then I wonder why he came at all, if just to be
miserable.” Rick Astley’s voice droned through the speakers. “Ugh. I hate this
song. I’m going to go to the bathroom then get another drink. Can I get you
something?”

Eileen shook her head, and Alice scootched her way
through the crowded dance floor –
Really? For Rick Astley?
– and went to
the ladies room before heading toward the bar.

Peter got to the bar just as she did. “Can I buy
you a drink?”

“It’s ladies night. My drinks are free.”

His eyes wandered over her Culture Club t-shirt
and jeans then back up to her face where they remained. “I thought you said you
were going to dress like Madonna.”

“Jack and ginger,” she said to the bartender. “I
said I
might
. I couldn’t find my rosaries. Misplaced after years of disuse.”

“You, sir?” asked the bartender.

“Double Jack on the rocks,” he answered without
turning away from Alice.

“So, Peter, are you having
fun
?”

He nodded. “I am enjoying myself.”

“No place you’d rather be instead of
wasting
your time here?”

“Well, I guess I could think of a few places I’d
rather be.”

“OK. Name one.”

He stared at her from over his cup as he sipped
his drink, penetrating her with his eyes, setting butterflies off flittering in
her tummy. She pushed her drink away; she’d obviously had too much.

“Well?” she prodded.

“All right. I would like to be with my daughter.”

“Your daughter?”

“Yes. I don’t get to see her often. She’s amazing.
I suppose all parents think that of their children, but in my case it’s true,”
he said with a teasing smile. “So smart. She would love you.”

Me?
She flinched, surprise wrinkling her
brows. “Me? Why would you think your daughter would like me?”

He leaned on his elbow on the bar. “I don’t know.
I suppose because of your feisty McGillicutty spirit.”

Alice almost did a spit-take but managed to
suppress her laughter. “Oh, yes, the McGillicutty spirit.”

“Unfortunately, she wants to be an actress like
her mother. Turn into another Hollywood Barbie doll.”

“Like her mother? And her father’s occupation has
nothing to do with it?”

He smiled. “Touché.”

Then the electro-beat of Dead or Alive thundered
through the club, and Alice’s eyes closed and mouth opened as she jumped up.
“Oh my god, I
love
this song!”

He kicked back his Jack and set his cup down on
the bar. “Come on. Let’s go dance.”

“Listen, I didn’t say I liked this song to get you
to dance with me. I am fine dancing with my friends.”

He held his hand out to her. “I know that. Dance
with me anyway.”

His words mixed with the tempo of the music to
send a tremor through her. “I know you hate to dance – and you hate eighties
music. You probably don’t even know this song.”

“Yes. I do.” He leaned over and spoke in her ear,
that sultry voice from the silver screen carried on his warm breath against her
neck. “‘Come Home With Me.’”

He pulled back and she shivered, the blood that
had infuriated her earlier now having deserted her, leaving her skin tingling.

Then a voice behind her. “Peter!”

Saved by the dumbbell
.

Peter brought his hand up, squeezing his forehead
as he released a ragged sigh. “What is it, Winnie?”

“I have never been so annoyed. I’m sick of this
place. And I’m tired. Can’t we leave now?”

“Actually, Miss McGillicutty and I were about to –
”

“No, you two go on,” Alice said and removed
herself from between them.

“Alice, wait.”

“Thanks, Peter. I know you were being polite; but,
really, I don’t need a dance partner. Winnie needs you to take her home.” Then
she skipped off to the dance floor and away from him, in time with the frenetic
beat of the music.

CHAPTER 7

The duke appeared at rehearsals one day and
presented me with a single red rose.

“How did you know where to find me?”

“My dear lady, that is one of the privileges of
having power, money, and royal blood.” He leaned forward and gave me a kiss,
which probably would have lasted much longer had I allowed it. I had to admit,
the duke had been quite understanding and gracious about my desire to take
things very slow. “Will you join me for lunch?”

“I’d love to,” I said, and I meant it.

Over lunch, he asked, “Why didn’t you tell me
you were an actress?”

“I guess for the same reason you didn’t at
first tell me you are a duke. I didn’t want you to judge me by my title.”

“I don’t see the connection.”

“Most people see actors as failures or dreamers
or bums unless they become a star.”

“Oh, my dear, you are already a star in my
eyes, even if you weren’t an actress.”

I blushed and grinned. “You always know exactly
what to say.”

After a fabulous lunch, he took me back to the
theatre and said, “I’ll see you tonight.”

“I can’t. I have to work.”

“I’ll take care of it.”

“Robert, I have to work.”

He tapped my nose. “You are certainly no bum.”
We kissed goodbye, more than once, and parted without settling if we would see
each other or not.

I did see him that night, but rather than as a
date, as a member of the clientele. I felt sorry for him eating alone under the
gold murals, and when it wasn’t too busy, I walked over to talk to him.

He stood as I approached and had me sit on the
wall side of the table next to him. “You look absolutely radiant this evening.”

I smiled. “So do you.”

“Ha, ha! Aren’t you the charmer!” I found him
rather charming, with all the chivalry of Middle Ages’ knighthood. The waiter
eyed me when he came to the table and set a steak in front of the duke, which
he began carving. “Darling, I must leave for Britain tomorrow.”

“What? Why?”

“My love, that is where I am from. Ashes to
ashes, dust to dust. I must return from whence I’ve come.” He set down his
silverware and brought one hand to lift my chin to look into my eyes. “England
is my home.”

“So,” I said with a cry in my voice, “that’s
the end of us?” I knew my tone exaggerated my feelings. Although I certainly
found him gallant and I had enjoyed the brief time we had had together, I
couldn’t say I was crushed by his leaving.

“That is why I wanted to speak with you.” He
took my hand in both of his, kissed it, then rubbed it against his cheek. “I
want you to come to England with me.”

I was in too much of a state of shock to hide
it. “What? But we barely know each other!”

“Alexandra, I do love you. I know you don’t
want to believe me, but I do. Please say you will.”

“I…I can’t.” I pulled my hand away.

“Why not?”

“I have a play to do.”

“You do have an understudy.”

“You don’t understand. Acting is everything to
me. It’s my life.” I might have sounded overly-dramatic, but I wasn’t acting.
“I could never make you happy because I would be an adulteress. I am only
faithful to my art – it is my only love.” I thought the speech rather good for
being improvised.

“I see. Then I shall stay here with you so you
needn’t leave your one true love.”

I worried about what he might expect from me if
he stayed. “But what about ashes to dust? Returning to your homeland?”

“My darling, I would give any price for you.”

“Why?”

He slammed his palm on the table. “Because I
love you, Goddammit!” Everyone in the restaurant turned and looked at us, and
he leaned toward me and spoke in a low voice. “Can you get that through that
actor’s head of yours? Do you think I go after every woman I meet like this?
You are special to me. I refuse to let you go.”

I found his words both flattering and
disconcerting. “But I would feel guilty if you gave up your home for me.”

He took my face in his hand. “You are not
forcing me to do anything I don’t want to do. That is not within your power.”

God, help me, I prayed. “You…you just don’t
know me well enough. Once you do, you will see you don’t love me. You couldn’t
possibly love me now.”

“Don’t tell me how I feel, Alexandra. I love
you, and nothing will change that.”

“Nothing?”

“Nothing.”

“Then go. Go back to England. If, in one year,
you feel the same, come back for me. Then I will know your love is strong
enough to last.”

He looked mournful. “Why are you doing this?”

“Because I have loved and lost, and I’d rather
never have loved at all.”

“He really did hurt you.”

“He really did.”

“I shall go. I have caught a beautiful
butterfly and would love to have her near me always, but I must love her enough
to let her go so she may be happy.”

He walked out without even kissing me goodbye,
leaving behind his twenty-dollar steak. A part of me hoped he would come back
in a year, but I refused to let it show.

*****

“Come in.”

Her door opened to Mr. Peacock escorting an
extremely attractive man grinning broadly. “Alice, I wanted to introduce you to
Rich Dover. He’s been cast as…What’s Sienna’s new man’s name?”

“Raife,” she said, walking around her desk.

“Haven’t we already had a Raife?”

“I – I don’t know. I’ll look into it. Nice to meet
you, Mr. Dover.”

He took her offered hand and shook it between both
of his. “Rich, please. Glad to be here.”

“You look familiar. Where might I have seen you?”

“I’ve had small parts over the years. A murderer
here, a victim there. You are probably most familiar with my film work. Co-worker,
secondary friend. Before that I had become quite well-known as ‘Party-goer
number 3.’”

She chuckled. “Well, I do hope going from films to
soaps isn’t too much of a disappointment for you.”

He shook his head. “I am happy to be acting. The
rest is just geography.”

“That’s a refreshing attitude. I guess you know
you’re going to hit the ground running, starting tomorrow. Raife’s role is
important right from the beginning.”

“So I’m coming in as Sienna’s lover?”

“Well, eventually, but first you do have to meet.
You are going to find her crying in church because she just found out the man
she’s been dating is her brother, so you will be there to comfort her.”
I
wonder if it’s too late to change his role to a duke!

“And I’m a priest?”

“Not yet. You’re in the seminary.”

He listened and nodded as she went over his role
and never once complained about the implausibility.
Yes, he will do nicely.

Alice walked out to the set with Rich and Mr.
Peacock to introduce the new Raife to his co-stars.

“Everyone,” Mr. Peacock said, “this is Rich Dover.
He will be Sienna’s new…whatever.”

“Eloquent as ever,” Alice said, which was the last
anyone said before a crash in the corner diverted everyone’s attention to
Peter.

As they all watched in stunned silence, Peter
glared at Rich then stomped across the soundstage and out the door, which would
have slammed with a terrific racket had it not had a pneumatic closer. Instead,
with excruciating slowness, it came to rest against the jamb with a whisper.
Then all eyes turned to Rich, who stood frozen in place, as white as a ghost.

“I take it you two know one another,” Mr. Peacock
said.

“I thought I was taking his place.”

“You are with Sienna,” Alice said, “but he’s still
on the show.”

Beads of sweat had formed on his upper lip, and he
wouldn’t meet her eyes. “As you may have guessed, he and I are not friends.”

She frowned. “I don’t anticipate that you will be
having any scenes together. And he’s leaving the first week of July to film a
movie and won’t be back until after the Olympics.”

That seemed to reassure him, and he smiled at her
and blotted his mouth with his sleeve. “Sorry. You wouldn’t know it to look at
him, but he has a vicious temper.”

“Actually, I have been on the receiving end of
that temper.”

“I’ll let you finish the introductions,” Mr.
Peacock said to Alice and, with a pat on Rich’s shoulder, excused himself.

“So you’ve been a victim of the famous Walsingham
temper, too,” Rich said, fully restored to the man she had met in her office.

“Well, I wouldn’t exactly say I was a victim, but
I have seen it in action. He and I are not on friendly terms either.”

“Really? Then we’ll have to exchange stories.”

“Oh, absolutely!” she said and laughed.

“How about Saturday night? Dinner.”

She blinked back her surprise and shook her head.
“Are you asking me out on a date?”

“If you have to ask, then maybe I’m doing it
wrong.” His gaze moved to her mouth then back to her eyes. “I’m sorry. Of
course, I should have known you’d have a boyfriend or fiancé or something.”

“No, no, there’s no one. It’s just…”
Just what?
You idiot. This gorgeous guy just asked you out! Plus, Peter hates him, so
that’s got to be a plus
. “Yeah, sure. I’d like that.”

Alice hadn’t been out on a
date
-date since
she wrote Blaine off the show and out of her life. When she had broken things
off with him, she thought he would have been more professional than to ask to
leave
All My Tomorrows,
and she decided then not to become romantically
involved with any of the primary cast again. Now here she was, breaking her own
rule with yet another boyfriend for Sienna.
Well, it’s just one dinner. I’ll
just wait and see
.

Alice liked this part, the getting-to-know-you
dance where all the stories are new and there’s no history of hurt feelings
hanging just overhead. They talked and laughed and drank, and ate dinner in
there somewhere. She earned his laughter when she told him about Peter throwing
a fit when he found out about the brother-sister twist, but she omitted the
precipitating events leading up to it.

“He is not thrilled to be on a soap as it is,” she
said.

“Oh, I imagine he thinks soap operas are beneath
him.”

“You do know him, don’t you? So what’s his problem
with you?”

“We were working on a film together last year –
would have been my largest role, possibly a break-out. I displeased him, and
the next thing I know, I’m off the picture.”

“What did you do to offend him?”

He stared into his wine glass as he rolled it
between his hands. “I can’t think it is a good idea to discuss one woman when I
am out with another.”

Her eyes widened and her chest rose with a swift
intake of air. “You fought over a woman?”

“Not exactly. I didn’t know it at the time –
especially since he was married – but after the story broke about him and
Winnie, I realized that was why he got rid of me. I had something he wanted.”

“You and Winnie Johnson were together?” That did
cause him to drop a bit in her estimation.

“That’s just it, see. We had only gone out a few
times. I have no idea if it would have developed into something, but he made
sure it didn’t.”

“I can’t believe he got you fired from the movie.”

“He’s the star. I don’t have any proof of it, but
I think he has kept me from getting work in primetime, too, at least on this
network.”

“I knew he was an arrogant, womanizing ass, but I
had no idea he could be so vindictive. Well, at least
COD
is on hiatus.
Winnie had been hanging out at the set all the time –
that
would have
been awkward.”

Rich gulped down the rest of his wine. “Well,
let’s not let him dominate our evening. I’m sure we both have more interesting
stories.”

“Agreed.”

After dinner and several nightcaps, Rich brought
her home and walked her to the door.

“I-uh-I’m not going to ask you in. I had a great
time, but I don’t think we should…”

“I understand. I don’t think we should rush into
anything either, but I’d like to take you out again, if that’s OK.”

“Yes, I’d like that. You have my number.”

They stood under the light over her door looking
at each other until he touched her cheek and pushed some hair behind her ear,
leaned down, and brought his lips to hers. Sweet, moist, and tender.

He pulled back and ran his finger down her face to
her bottom lip. “I’ll call you?”

She nodded and said goodnight. Once inside, she
set down her purse and kicked off her shoes when her cell phone began to
vibrate. She didn’t recognize the number, but she answered anyway.

“Hello?”

“Hey, it’s Rich. I was wondering if you were busy
Wednesday night.”

*****

Sienna – (still sniffing) Thank you. You have been
so kind to me, Father…”

Raife – No, not Father yet. I am a religious Brother.

Sienna – (slight laugh) Yet another brother.

Raife – Just call me Raife.

(Tag Sienna smiling)

“Cut. Print.”

Mr. Peacock’s words were followed by a buzzer and
the crew stepping away from the set as Alice and Jack walked toward Rich and
Giselle, respectively.

Rich met Alice with a grin as he tugged off his
clerical collar. “So how long do I have to wear this thing?”

“Well, Giselle cannot be the only reason that
Raife doesn’t become ordained. That wouldn’t look good if she came between you
and God. We have to make it clear that you are not cut out for the clergy.”

He leaned closer to her. “I’m sure I can convince
you that’s true.”

She smiled up at him and at the pleasure she found
in flirting. That was the other problem with the script. Each time she began
writing a romantic scene for Raife and Sienna, she would picture Rich with her
instead.