Love's Encore Series (Books One and Two)

by Miranda MacLeod

  Just then, Cecily heard a voice speak hesitantly behind her.

  “Excuse me, but aren't you Laura from Portland Blue?”

  Cecily straightened her back in surprise and turned in her seat to see a young woman in her twenties standing nervously a few feet from the table. “Uh, yes. I am.”

  “Oh my God, I knew it! I saw you on the show last night and you were so amazing.” The woman smiled broadly as she held out a paper napkin and a pen. “Would you mind giving me your autograph.”

  “Well, uh, thank you.” Cecily was completely taken aback by her enthusiasm as she reached for the napkin and scribbled her name across it. “I'm so glad you enjoyed it!”

  “Oh, I did. I loved the whole episode, but especially Laura. She's already my favorite character. I just can't believe I'm talking to you right now!”

  “Thank you so much!” She shook her head in disbelief as the woman walked away from their table. “Oh my goodness! I've never had that happen before.”

  “What a rush, right?” Bailey grinned. “You were wondering why you chose to do this? That's why.”

  “You know what? I think you're right. I feel a hundred percent better about it now. Even all the time away from home seems kind of worth it right now.”

  “Speaking of home, you’re heading back to LA tomorrow, right?” Bailey asked.

  “Yes! Finally, I’ll get to see Rorie. And my son. Oh, and I just found out I’ll be meeting Rorie’s mother for the first time.”

  “Oh, that’s a big step,” Bailey teased. “Meeting the parents. Only, I thought you said Rorie’s parents were dead, or something.”

  “No, not dead.” Cecily took a swig of water, then continued. “Her mother left when she was really young, and her father kind of disowned her for being gay.”

  “Oh. Ouch.” Bailey wrinkled her brow. “But now the mom’s back?”

  “Yeah. She just showed up out of the blue. I guess she saw that article in Backstage Pass about Rorie and flew out from Minnesota to track her down.”

  Phinn’s eyes narrowed. “An article in Backstage Pass? That’s kind of odd.”

  Cecily gave him a puzzled look. “What do you mean?”

  “Well, Backstage Pass is an industry magazine. You don’t just buy it at the supermarket.”

  Cecily considered this. “Maybe someone else saw it and brought it to her attention when they noticed the resemblance? Rorie said she and her mom have similar features.”

  Phinn shrugged. “Yeah, maybe.”

  They continued to eat silently, then Bailey piped up again. “But, why now?”

  “Sorry?” Cecily replied.

  “Why didn’t her mom try to find her before? She waits until Rorie’s got a big spread in a magazine, and only then she shows up?”

  Phinn looked at Bailey, his eyes shining with pride. “Good point, babe! I like how you’re thinking about these things now.”

  Encouraged, Bailey continued. “Look at it this way. That magazine article didn’t just have her picture in it, it talked about how successful she is and had all those photos of her beautiful house. I mean, maybe her mom has known all along where she is, even looks her up online now and then, and just never bothered getting in touch until she found this article and thought she could get something out of it.”

  Cecily’s stomach fluttered nervously. “You mean, maybe Rorie’s mom isn’t on the up-and-up? But surely no mother would ask her own daughter for a handout.”

  Phinn snorted in response. “Bailey’s did. Well, not directly, but…”

  Bailey made a disgusted face. “It’s true. In my mother’s case, she didn’t ask for money exactly. She just started hinting loudly about wanting to start her own business selling cosmetics. And I was like, ‘Mom, you just described Mary Kay. That business already exists.’ But she kept going on about it and hinting how she just needed an angel investor and how it would be a really great opportunity for me.”

  “And did you give her the money?”

  Bailey shook her head. “Phinn stopped me, luckily. But I’ll never hear the end of it from her, and neither will Phinn. Sometimes I wish I’d just given her the money. It would have been a lot less awkward.”

  Cecily pushed her half-eaten plate away, no longer hungry. “So, what do I do? I can’t just tell Rorie I don’t trust her mom. She’s wanted this her whole life, to have her mom back. You have no idea what it means to her.”

  Phinn scratched his chin. “Just watch her first. When you meet her, listen to what she says and look for warning signs. Like, does she bring up an investment opportunity, or hint at money troubles. If she’s mostly there for her own gain, she won’t be able to resist bringing it up a little right away.”

  “And watch for her taking advantage of Rorie,” Bailey said. “Like letting her buy her expensive gifts, or suggesting things that cost a lot of money, like going to a day spa. My mom does that a lot, too. She acts all concerned for my well-being, says I look stressed, then books an appointment at the spa and comes along to ‘keep me company,’ only of course she knows I’m going to end up paying the tab.”

  “Oh, you guys,” Cecily moaned, “this is horrible! I’m starting to wonder again why anyone ever wants to get into this business. I love my job and the way what I do touches viewers like that fan who came over here a minute ago. But what you're talking about is too much! I just want to entertain people and not worry about fame and money. Why do you think I didn’t tell anyone in my new life about how much money I actually have?”

  Bailey’s eyes grew round. “You don’t think her mother could have found out about that, do you? If she discovered her daughter was dating a DuPont, that would definitely be an incentive for sniffing around.”

  Cecily gave a rueful laugh. “Not a chance. I’m basically under a gag order because of my contract. The studio seems hell-bent on keeping me as far in the closet as they possibly can.”

  Bailey gave her a sympathetic look. “Yeah, I know. But you have to admit, their whole cougar angle works a lot better if no one knows you’re a lesbian.”

  Cecily frowned, “Their what? Cougar angle?”

  “Didn’t you see the tabloids yesterday? You and Brad were front page news!”

  “We were what?”

  “Front page pictures, at least three different tabloids. They took them at dinner the other night,” Bailey explained. “You were right about there being more paparazzi than usual. Portland’s pretty laid back. So I asked around, and it turns out that it was probably someone at the studio who tipped them off to us going out.”

  “I don’t understand, though. Why?”

  Phinn cleared his throat. “Well, I heard a rumor from a friend. He worked on Who Wants to be a Bride, and he still does a lot of reality TV. Anyway, he was saying that some of the scripted shows are taking a page from the reality TV playbook, trying to dial up the off-screen to boost interest in the show. I mean, they’ve always done that type of thing, but now they’re being more deliberate about it.”

  “Oh, that would make sense,” Bailey said. “I know for certain that they’re planning a whole May-December subplot for the second half of the season between your character and Brad’s.”

  Cecily let out a sound that was a cross between a laugh and a sob. “You’re sure? I mean, I don't even have a new contract yet.” She squeezed her eyes shut and made a face as Bailey nodded. “I’d heard a rumor, but I assumed it was wrong. That’s insane! Never mind how disgusting it is that at forty-one I’m considered a ‘December.’ I mean, September, maybe… But as unrealistic as it is for the characters to have a relationship with that age gap, they want people to think it’s happening in real life, too?” Disgust crept into her tone, along with a growing irritation. “They’re keeping me from acknowledging my girlfriend’s existence so that I can pretend to be dating Brad? I never agreed to this!”

  “With Jonas as your agent, you probably did agree to it in your contract. You just don’t know it.” Bailey shrugged. “He’s sneaky that way. Don�
�t get me wrong, I couldn’t ask for a better agent. The man is brilliant at his job, but that’s because he’ll do pretty much anything. As long as you’re open to that, though, the sky’s the limit with Jonas.”

  Cecily felt her heart sink. She wasn’t open to lying about Rorie and pretending to date some Hollywood pretty boy. Not one little bit. Her head was spinning as she walked the few blocks back to her loft. This wasn’t what she had signed up for, not knowingly. She wanted to continue with the show, but not like this. The point of starting over on the west coast, of learning to take care of herself, was to be able to live more authentically as herself. What they were asking her to do was anything but that. But if she refused, she’d never get her contract renewed. She’d end up back in Orange County, doing the occasional voice acting work and scraping by. Could she live with that?

  She needed to talk to Rorie about this. Except Rorie was all wrapped up in the reappearance of her mother, a mother whom Cecily now feared was motivated by feelings other than motherly love. Never mind discussing the possibility of staying in Portland longer, how was she going to handle bringing up the subject of Rorie's mother? Rorie wouldn’t want to hear it. Suddenly, instead of relaxing her, the thought of tomorrow’s trip home cinched all the knots inside her tighter.

  The one bright spot was that she would get to see how Tyler was getting along at school. At least when it came to her son, she didn’t have anything to add to her worries.

  Chapter 17

  Cecily had arranged to meet Rorie and her mother at an ocean front cafe in Hermosa Beach, an easy drive from the airport. But the flight from Portland had been delayed, which meant that she was running fifteen minutes late by the time the cab dropped her off in front of the restaurant in the late afternoon. Spotting Rorie’s head at a table near the window, she quickened her pace.

  “Hey, aren’t you Laura on Portland Blue?” the hostess asked as she showed her to the table where the other two women were already seated. “I love that show!”

  Cecily blushed, taken aback. This was the second time in as many days that she'd been recognized by a stranger. How many other people here know who I am? The thought nearly stopped her in her tracks, and she hastily reformulated her plan for greeting Rorie, from as passionate a kiss as she could manage in front of her girlfriend’s mother, to a much more demure peck on the cheek and an only slightly lingering embrace. It wasn’t at all how she’d pictured their reunion going, but it couldn’t be helped. If the hostess recognized her, there was no telling who else in the restaurant might, and unfortunately she had some very pesky contract terms to abide by.

  “Cici, this is my mother,” Rorie said, gesturing to the woman who was seated beside her at the table.

  “It’s lovely to meet you,” the woman said. “Please, call me Grace.”

  “Grace.” Cecily shook the hand that Rorie’s mother offered. “It’s a pleasure to meet you.” And I’ll be keeping my eye on you. “I’m sorry that Tyler couldn’t join us tonight. I called to invite him, but he said he had a project due for school.”

  “You’ve talked with Tyler?” Rorie’s usually mellow tone had an edge to it that caught Cecily off guard.

  “Well, yes. I called him before my flight left Portland. I guess he and his roommate were going to be studying late at the library. It’s nice that his roommate is serious about his studies. Did you have a chance to meet him yet?”

  Rorie began to mumble a reply but they were interrupted by their server arriving to bring them menus. Cecily picked hers up and heard Rorie snicker as she slid her reading glasses from their case and perched them on the bridge of her nose. She stuck her tongue out at Rorie. “Laugh all you want. Your eyesight might be better, but I’m still younger than you.”

  “She must have gotten her good eyesight from me,” Grace commented. “I’ll be sixty-seven this August and I still don’t need reading glasses.”

  Cecily looked over to see that Rorie’s mother had blue eyes, but of a dull steel blue, not the brilliant aqua of her daughter’s eyes. Rorie’s are much prettier. The one thing Rorie’s mother did have going for her was her youthful appearance. For a woman in her mid-sixties, she could’ve passed for a decade younger. Lucky for Rorie, if she’d inherited those genes.

  When it was time to place their orders, Cecily noted with interest that Grace chose the second most expensive item on the menu. Perhaps she suspected that her daughter’s girlfriend would be watching her, looking to see if she ordered the most expensive item, and was trying to hide her true intentions. Are you playing coy, Grace? Do you really like poached salmon that much, or are you just trying to get away with something? Either way, Cecily would treat it as a red flag. There were a lot of less expensive options on the menu that she could have gone with. The field greens with chilled shrimp, for example. Cecily ordered that, with no dressing. Again. God, I miss salad dressing.

  “Babe, are you sure that’s all you want?” Rorie looked at her with mild concern. “Like I’ve already told Mama, dinner’s my treat tonight.”

  Ah-ha! She glanced at Grace. So you did know she’d be paying. What do you have to say about that poached salmon now? To Rorie, she replied with a shrug, “Television adds ten pounds.”

  Rorie cocked an eyebrow. “Good thing this gig will be over soon, or there might not be anything left of you to come home.”

  A nervous laugh gurgled in her throat as her insides tightened. Now is not the time to talk about this. “So, what did the two of you do yesterday?” Cecily asked, turning her attention to Grace. She was on high alert where this woman was concerned. No way would Rorie’s mom be allowed to take advantage on her watch.

  “Oh, you know. Shopping and a trip to the spa. Typical mother-daughter stuff, right baby?”

  Cecily’s eyes narrowed. Shopping and a spa trip? Putting aside for a minute that Rorie hated both of those activities, that checked off two of the items from Bailey’s list. Let’s see if we can check off number three, shall we? “And, I’m sorry but I don’t think Rorie told me what you do for work.” She smiled innocently while she set her trap.

  “Oh, I have a little home business back in Minnesota. It’s nothing much, but I’m hoping to expand it.”

  Bingo. Expanding a business takes money.

  “Minnesota?” That detail struck Cecily as out of place. She’d been under the impression that Rorie’s mother was a southerner. What was she doing in Minnesota?

  Rorie gave her a questioning look. “That’s where she lives now, Cici.”

  Cecily squirmed under Rorie’s stare. She’d need to keep her suspicions under wraps until she had more proof.

  “Yes, well of course I was born and raised in Louisiana. St. Martin’s parish. It was a lovely place to grow up. We used to walk down and go swimming in the Gulf during the summers.”

  “That really does sound lovely.” Cecily smiled warmly, but inside she’d gone cold. In elementary school, she’d spent a full month creating a map of her home state, cutting out all of the parishes from construction paper and marking their cities with pasted gold stars. She could still picture it in her mind, clear as day. Which is how she knew for an absolute fact that St. Martin’s parish wasn’t on the Gulf coast. That was St. Mary’s parish, which Grace should have known if she’d spent her childhood there.

  When the food arrived, Cecily took the opportunity to study Grace’s features more closely. There was a resemblance to Rorie, certainly. Same hair, at least from what Cecily could remember from college since Rorie hadn’t worn it loose since then. She’d already noted the eye color, which was blue, but not the same blue. Her nose was different, too, and her skin was much lighter, almost surprisingly so. In fact, though the immediate impression was how alike they looked, when taken point by point Cecily felt that they were not very similar at all.

  Cecily picked at her food, her appetite vanished. She’d begun the evening looking for clues that Rorie’s mother was trying to take advantage of her daughter’s success. But she’d found something more
, and the realization made her numb with shock. Is it possible that the woman sitting at this table isn’t really Rorie’s mother at all?

  “You’re distracted,” Rorie whispered, letting Cecily’s earlobe slip from between her teeth. She leaned back across the front seat of her car and turned the keys in the ignition. Nibbling on Cecily’s ear was usually a surefire way of getting her undivided attention, but not tonight. She’d seemed just as eager as Rorie to finally have a moment of privacy after saying goodbye to her mother, but now her mind seemed to be elsewhere.

  “Sorry. I must be tired from the flight.”

  “Maybe dinner with my mother first thing like that wasn’t such a good idea, after all.” Rorie maneuvered the car from the restaurant’s parking lot and headed north toward home. “I was just eager for you to meet her.”

  “No, it’s okay. But what I really want now is a quiet evening with you. Then hopefully I can see Tyler tomorrow before I head back to my place.”

  Rorie shifted uncomfortably in her seat. “Cici, about Tyler…” She could feel annoyance seeping in at the thought of that kid. He’d sworn he would tell his mother about being kicked out of the dorm before she left Portland, and then had done exactly the opposite, and left her to fix his mess.

  “Oh, no. He didn’t ask to bring all his laundry to your place, did he?” Cecily looked apologetically at her. “I told him a few weeks ago that it was too much to expect and that he’d just have to get used to the laundry room in his dorm.” She leaned her head back against the headrest and closed her eyes. “I’ll have a talk with him about it while I’m here.”

  “Actually, that’s what I needed to—”

  “Rorie, how much do you know about your mother?”

  Rorie turned her head in surprise at the interruption. “My mother?”

  “Yeah. Like, before she showed up again, had you seen pictures of her? What do you know about her history?”

  “I…um…” It had started to rain and a light mist was forming on the windshield. Rorie paused mid-sentence to search for the wipers.