The Fan Letter

by Nancy Temple Rodrigue

  Janice smiled knowingly when he settled down and she felt it was safe enough to come over to put a hand on his shoulder. “You care a lot, don’t you?”

  Wayne glanced at the far wall and frowned. “Yeah, I guess I do,” he replied eventually. He then added bitterly, “But I know she doesn’t return the feeling.”

  “Now, Wayne, you know she’s fond of you. I…we all are. You have to realize there are a lot of new things going on in her life. Les is very excited right now—especially after the success of the meeting at the studio.”

  The private investigator turned to look at Janice. She could see anger and something else flash across his eyes. “I don’t want her to be ‘fond’ of me. By now it should have been something a little more significant. Now all she can talk about is that blasted script she is trying to work on and that Tom Young. And whatever happened to that wonderful humanitarian Phillip Beck? She used to go on and on about him,” he snapped acidly.

  Janice shrugged as she tried to explain. “Phillip was never real to her. They never even met. Tom is flesh and blood now. It sounded like they spent a lot of time together when she went to L.A.—without me,” she added sourly to herself. “Leslie’s been pretty quiet about what happened. Even to me.” She was disappointed about that, too.

  Wayne scoffed at that. “No kidding. She hadn’t told me anything. She used to tell me everything when we went out to dinner or I spent the evening with her. Now she doesn’t have the time for us less-important ones. Sure it’s exciting, but we’re still her friends! If it weren’t for you, I wouldn’t have anywhere to go,” he claimed.

  “Well,” Janice told him, putting a soft hand over his, “I’m always here if you want to talk or spend some time or something….”

  At her words and the shifting tone of her voice, he looked at her again, but this time with different eyes. Her beautiful green eyes stared steadily at him as he appraised her. “You always have been the supportive one no matter what was going on. Ask me some day to tell you a little story about my business in Los Angeles. You might be surprised.” He stood to go and briefly put a finger under her chin.

  “I’m a good listener,” she told him. “Any time.”

  He stood with his hand on the doorknob. “Yeah, you are. See ya.”

  Janice remained seated on the sofa long after he had gone. She had known for a long time how much Wayne cared for Leslie, but she had been taken aback by the force of his anger. Right now she thought about the look in his eyes…how they had turned soft just then when he had looked, really looked, at her as possibly something other than Leslie’s best friend. Would that cause a problem with Leslie? Janice frowned as she stared at the flower arrangement on his table. Would there be any fallout with the person who had been her best friend since grade school? Yes, Leslie was fond of Wayne, but she had never seen that spark that showed something more—that same tangible something that she saw when Leslie was around Tom Young. Interesting, she concluded as she got up to make herself some lunch. Something else had intrigued her about this little visit from Wayne. She was immensely curious about his life in L.A. He had never mentioned much about it before. Perhaps now was the time for disclosures and confessions.

  She smiled to herself. She had an interesting revelation of her own for Wayne.

  The shrill siren on a fire truck blasting past the boutique caused Mona Green to look up from the jewelry display that she was rearranging. Only then did she notice the white limousine that had pulled up in front of the shop. It must have just arrived as no one had gotten out yet. She called one of her clerks. “Hey, Jan. Come here and look at this.”

  Janice peered around the corner from the back where she was working. A large shipment had just arrived and the three other women were busy checking the invoices. “Look at what?”

  Mona cocked her head towards the front door. As the two women peered at the car, they saw the driver walk around and open the back door. Janice’s eyes became wide as she recognized Tom Young right before he lowered his head and quickly ducked into the boutique, hoping not to be recognized out on the street.

  Intentions momentarily forgotten, Tom stopped suddenly just inside the door, amazed at the interior of the boutique. Not expected anything as posh and lovely as what he was viewing, he might have just stepped into a shop on Rodeo Drive back home in Beverly Hills. Finally spotting Janice, who was still frozen in place, he smiled and put a finger to his lips to convey the surprise he wanted to give Leslie. She mutely nodded as she walked over to say hello. Leslie and Paula continued working on the shipment unaware of the new arrival out front.

  Janice shook his offered hand and introduced him to the star-struck Mona. She whispered, “Tom, it’s nice to see you! I suppose this means Leslie doesn’t know you’re here?”

  He grinned. “Righto. I wanted to surprise her. Is she here?”

  Janice motioned towards the rear of the shop. “She and Paula are working on a new shipment. Do you want me to call her?”

  Tom thought a minute and whispered back, “No. Send her to one of the changing rooms. I’ll let her know I’m here myself!”

  As he went behind one of the velvet curtains, Mona, always quick on the take, handed Janice a dress and picked up another one, calling, “Leslie? Could I have your help, please?” When Leslie came out, Mona continued with the charade, “Janice, take that dress to the back. Leslie, take this one to dressing room two. I’ll go get the shoes to match.”

  Leslie gave a small sigh as she shook her head. She had been making headway in the back and couldn’t see why she was being disturbed. There appeared to be only one customer which rarely required three clerks. Unless it was Mrs. Penney, she suddenly thought with a groan. It would be just like Mona to make her wait on the difficult customer.

  She tapped lightly on the wall next to the dressing room. “Ma’am? Here’s the blue dress,” as she put her hand on the drape.

  There was a small shriek when her hand was grabbed and she was forcibly pulled into the mirrored room. Before she could further react, Tom had her in his arms and was soundly kissing her hello. When recognition fell on Leslie, she quit struggling and happily returned his gesture.

  Suddenly the drape was pulled back and the rest of the women in the store applauded the scene. Leslie blushed as she pulled away from Tom, embarrassed.

  “Now that’s the way to say hello!” Paula commented, nodding approvingly.

  Leslie, once she became composed, handled the rest of the introductions. “What brings you here, Tom? I haven’t gotten much done of the script yet,” she told him.

  He shrugged good-naturedly. “I was done filming for the season and didn’t have any other plans. Just thought I would drop in and say hi.”

  “Drop by?” Mona echoed. “Three hundred miles is not a drop by! Boy, I wish my kids were home. They’d love to meet you!”

  Tom glanced at Leslie’s blank face. “I plan on being in town for a few days. I’ll be sure to see them. I brought a few “Time Police” badges with me.”

  “Oh, that would be great!” Mona exclaimed. “They love your show. They’ve been pestering Leslie for months about you and Eddie Chase.”

  “I’m afraid you’ll find our city a little boring after what you’re used to,” Leslie remarked, her mind still revolving around work on the script.

  He gave her a half-grin that wasn’t lost of the other women watching. “Oh, I’ll find something to keep me occupied.”

  “Good. I sure could use your ideas on the script. I’m having trouble cutting it down,” the oblivious Leslie commented.

  Tom winked at Janice. “Yeah. That, too. When do you get off work?”

  Leslie checked her watch. It was two in the afternoon. “In about three….”

  “Minutes,” Mona cut in with a grin. Sometimes Leslie could be so dense. “She was just given the afternoon off, Tom.”

  “Great!” he declared. “My carriage awaits,” as he made a sweeping gesture towards the waiting limo.

  “Oh,”
Leslie hesitated, not on the same page as the others yet. “Uh, my car is out back. Can I meet you at your hotel?”

  Tom shook his head, clearly enjoying himself. “Don’t have one. I came straight from the airport. I wanted to make a grand entrance. How about if I dismiss the driver and we’ll use your car?” was the next suggestion.

  As Tom went out to retrieve his bag, Leslie groaned. “What in the world am I going to do with him here for a few days? This town is boring!”

  All the women looked at her as if she had lost her mind. “You’ve got to be joking,” Mona told her. “One of the most popular actors on your favorite show travels three hundred miles to see you and you wonder what to do with him!!?”

  “Boy, Les, you need to get out more often,” was Paula’s parting comment as she went back to work.

  Janice had been happily intrigued, just silently watching back and forth as if she was at a tennis match, taking in every word and nuance.

  “Okay,” Tom was saying, “you have the right idea here for the dialogue, but leave out the action. That goes over here. Stage directions go there. Leave off these reactions. That’s for the director to do.”

  Leslie let out a frustrated breath of air. “My. There’s more involved than I thought. I’m glad you’re here to help. Mr. Avery would have buried me if I had turned in that mess.”

  Tom shrugged. “That’s why I came to see how you were doing. Well, one reason,” he added with a sly grin.

  Leslie missed the meaning of his last remark in her preoccupation with the script. She was sitting on her sofa with her feet tucked under her bottom, lap desk in place. Tom sat next to her at an angle to see what she was writing.

  “Do you think I should start over?” she asked with a sigh. The paper looked like a mess to her.

  “That would be a good idea unless you can remember all the changes when you start typing. Why don’t you just type it from the beginning? Why bother with writing it by hand? Wouldn’t that save duplicate work?” was the same query everyone asked her.

  She nodded. “It would save work,” she agreed, “but I have a better feel for my work by doing it this way. Plus, if my papers fall into enemy hands, no one else could possibly read it!” she admitted with a laugh, holding out the script page as a prime example.

  “Boy, that’s the truth. Your letters to Phillip Beck were written a lot neater.” He made the observation just so he could watch her reaction to the other actor’s name.

  “Letters are different,” she explained and then paused, her hands falling into her lap. “Phillip. My, I haven’t written him in a long time. Not since before the convention. Hmph,” she thought out loud, not seemingly over-concerned about the lapse. “Oh, well, he’s probably thankful for the reprieve.”

  Mollified now, Tom sniffed. “You never wrote me. You can’t say you didn’t know my address.”

  “I…well…I didn’t want to bother you,” Leslie mumbled as she nervously began to shuffle some papers.

  “You still don’t believe me, do you?” Tom inquired unbelievingly as he put a blocking hand over her work.

  Leslie looked at his hand just to avoid his intense eyes. “I think you are being very nice,” she replied in a low voice.

  “We went through this before, Leslie,” he said earnestly. “Why can’t you believe I like you?”

  “Because things like this don’t happen to me,” she was blunt. “I usually get hurt. I guess I’m just trying to protect myself.”

  Tom shook his head at her protestations. “Leslie, we are going to be working closely together on these projects until the second or third episode of yours airs. Then we feel you won’t need the extra help. I’m not here because I had to be. I’m here because I want to be here. We could have used the fax machine and the phone, you know,” he pointed out. “And, I want to go with you and Janice to New York to meet the publishers.”

  This surprised Leslie. “It would be nice to have you along,” was her quiet, unexpected acceptance of his offer.

  He took the lap desk from her and set it on the coffee table. “Let’s go out to dinner. Just forget all this for now. Where do you recommend?”

  “After Charney’s all the restaurants here look like hamburger stands.”

  “Forget L.A. We’re here and I think your city is nice. Now, let’s go!”

  “Popular actor dines with local author “ read the caption of the picture that made the front page of Amherst’s only newspaper. An overwhelmed Leslie and a smiling Tom were being mobbed in a local restaurant. The next day, the picture hit the wire service with a story about the joint effort on the script. And sales of Leslie’s books jumped.

  Her Western was becoming more popular than her first book had been. At book signings, Leslie was now being asked questions like: When will the shows would on the air, and when will her next book would be out? She was gaining recognition around town, especially so after Tom’s visit.

  When the trio arrived at the LaGuardia Airport in New York they were immediately mobbed by fans. The picture that made all the papers this time showed Tom’s arm protectively around a wide-eyed Leslie and a smiling, waving Janice right behind them. The caption read “Jack and Jane flee for their lives.“

  The two-day stay in New York was hectic. The publishers treated them on the first night to a wonder luncheon at the famous Tavern on the Green restaurant in Central Park. Tom then took the two women on a carriage ride through Central Park and on to Broadway to see a play. Eddie’s wife Linda was thrilled to see Tom unexpectedly and to meet the two friends. Her new play had just opened, so she wouldn’t be home for a while. Hungry for all the news and gossip from home, she arranged for the trio to come backstage after the play.

  The next day was spent shopping on Fifth Avenue where Leslie and Janice were able to stop in briefly to say hello to one of their boutique’s main suppliers. They had just three hours in a museum, and then off to another hectic scene at the airport. Leslie didn’t even realize that she was digging her nails into poor Tom’s arm as they made their way to their gate.

  With a collective sigh, they sunk into the wide leather seats in first class—another surprise from Tom. “Is it like that everywhere you go?” Janice asked Tom as she accepted a glass of champagne from the flight attendant.

  “Like what? Oh, that. No, not always. But, thanks to the newspaper coverage, Leslie is now getting better known. I guess the combination with me in the mix will make a difference now,” as he rubbed his sore arm.

  “Do you ever get used to it?” Leslie wondered out loud.

  “You do look a little dazed,” he commented as he took her hand. “It helps to get used to the attention. But, for now, all you have to do is relax. We have five hours until we get back to California.”

  “And go through it all over again,” Leslie murmured as they titled their seats back and got comfortable.

  When the plane had leveled off and Janice had fallen asleep—as she did on every flight they had ever taken—Tom moved the armrest between his and Leslie’s seat up out of the way. Gently tugging on her, he had her lean against him so they could talk quietly as they munched on the meat and cheese platter they were served.

  “Do you think you’ll be ready next month to face Avery and Nickles with your script?”

  “If you’re there, I will be. I hope they like what we’ve done,” she sighed.

  “What you have done,” he corrected. “It’s all your work, all the way. Don’t forget that. And don’t let them change anything you feel strongly about, either,” he counseled. “It’s a good storyline the way it is.”

  “Thanks.”

  “They’ll also have you give your choice on the actress to portray Jane. I know they have already done the first interviews and will have you there for the selection.”

  Leslie groaned at this.

  “What’s wrong?” he asked. “That was one of your stipulations, unusual as it was,” Tom reminded her with a private smile. He could never figure out how she got Avery to agre
e to that.

  “I know. It’s just…I don’t know,” she broke off, looking away.

  He couldn’t read the expression on her face. “What? Talk to me, Les,” he encouraged.

  He could see her trying to figure a way not to tell him what was really bothering her. Finally, though, she took a deep breath and forged ahead. “I just can’t imagine someone else playing Jane opposite you. I’m…I mean, she’s my.… Oh, forget it. I’m being silly,” Leslie muttered, turning red.

  “Oh, I get it!” he brightened up. “You don’t want somebody else doing the love scenes with me! Is that it?”

  Leslie pulled away to her own seat. “No! Well, I mean…. Oh, stop.”

  Tom chuckled at her flustered denial. “Well, I’m happy to see I am making some progress with your after all. You’re jealous!” he stated, obviously happy at the revelation.

  Leslie’s embarrassment faded as she got a little mad. “Oh, I shouldn’t have said anything to you! You’ll probably blab to Eddie and I’ll never live this down!”

  “No, I won’t tell Eddie,” he assured her as he pulled her back to his shoulder. “Besides, you know how detached we are when we’re at work. There are lines to remember, marks to hit, cameras to worry about, Nickles yelling at us to put more passion into it. We don’t consider what we’re actually doing. Unless, of course, she is really pretty and then we flub the shot on purpose so we can retake the love scenes!”

  He felt her tense up and put an arm around her to keep her from pulling away again. “I’m kidding! You know I’ll be thinking of you when I’m kissing someone else.”

  “Hmph. That really helps,” she muttered. “Remember, I can always change the script,” she warned. “The Loner could become a dirty, smelly hermit living by himself in a cave.”

  Tom laughed at that. “Touché! Sheesh, you writers are such an over-sensitive bunch, I’ll tell you. Maybe this will help your bruised feelings.” He reached inside his coat’s inner pocket and pulled out a light blue box with a very familiar logo on it.