Hollywood Heir (Westerly Billionaire #4)(25)

“Alice prefers the term eccentric.”

“You told your wife, too?”

“Of course I did. Enjoy lying and keeping secrets while you’re single. Once you’re married, there’s no hiding anything.”

Although it wasn’t meant to, that sounded pretty damn good to Eric. Even as he stood in his secret lair, he couldn’t stop thinking about the one woman he wished he could show it to.



Across town, dressed in a cotton pajama set, Sage poured another glass of wine for her similarly clad friend. Normally she would have gathered the dishes from the coffee table and rinsed them before bed, but it could all wait until morning—at least, that was what her buzz assured her.

Bella had just finished describing her latest case—a sad and brutal cautionary tale that would have been a mood killer if Sage hadn’t balanced it with alcohol. Her heart broke for Bella when she spoke of the unimaginable as if it were the norm.

Sage wasn’t blind to the ugly side of humanity. No one with a television could be, but she didn’t want to live her life looking at every person she encountered through that lens.

She knew to be aware when she walked alone.

She kept her doors locked even during the day.

None of her clients knew where she lived.

In her opinion, there was a gray area between being careful and being paranoid. She liked to think that was where she resided.

“Feel like watching a movie?” Sage asked.

Bella took a sip of wine before answering. “Whose turn is it to choose?”

“Mine,” Sage answered with a huge smile. “But I’ll be kind.”

“Please, no sappy angel movies.”

“Hey, I sat through the documentary on bee colonies.” Sage tossed a crumpled napkin at her friend.

“And you’re a better person for it.”

“Definitely, but you could benefit from something with a happy ending tonight.”

“You’re probably right. Bring it on,” Bella said with a wave of her hand.

Sage picked up the remote and began to flip through the available movie categories. She paused over the action/sci-fi section and clicked on one of the titles. Unless she was shitfaced and imagining things, Wayne Easton looked an awful lot like Water Bear Man.

“Oh God, no,” Bella said with a groan. “Anything but those movies. Could you pick something at least loosely based in reality?”

Disregarding her friend’s request, Sage played the trailer. Water Bear Man, in his tight gray spandex costume, stopped in the middle of fighting an alien creature to pose for a child with a camera. He stood with his feet apart, his hands on his hips, and his powerful chest puffed out. Sage froze the image. “Bella, is it the wine or does he look like Wayne?”

“They say everyone has a doppelg?nger.” Bella smiled. “But probably the wine.”

“I’m serious, Bella. Look at his face.”

Bella put down her wine and did for a moment. “Hang on a minute.” With a frown, she pulled out her phone and opened her photos, then held up the photo she’d taken of Wayne. “Outside of the scar, yes. They could be twins.”

Sage returned to studying the face on the screen. “What’s the actor’s name?” She read the information below the title. “Eric Westerly. Westerly. Is he related to the Delinda Westerly my mom wanted me to help?”

“He’s her grandson. Wait, you didn’t tell me Delinda Westerly was the woman you turned down. Hell, I would have gone in your place.”

“Really? Why?” Like her, Bella was not usually impressed by money. “I don’t watch a lot of television.”

“She’s not on television, that’s how powerful she is. Her family is an American dynasty and the closest they have to royalty—which is probably why one of her grandchildren married a prince and she has a king courting her.”

“Since when do you care about titles?”

Bella’s face flushed. “It’s not like that.” She picked up her glass of wine again. “What’s your fantasy version of yourself? Wings with a magic wand? Well, for me it would be to be Delinda Westerly for a day. To know the kind of people she does. Just for a second, imagine that no one in the world is off-limits to you. Think of all the interesting people you’d meet, the conversations you’d have, the difference you could make.”

“You make a difference already.” Sage threw another napkin at Bella. “And I don’t dream of having wings.” She smiled and conceded, “Although I would love a wand.”

Bella volleyed the napkin back with playful force. “No wand for you. You’re dangerous enough as you are.”

Sage leaned over and hugged her friend, jostling her arm. “And you don’t need to meet world leaders to make an impact. You make a difference every single day just by being you. I love you.”

“And I love you.” Bella patted her shirt where the wine had splashed, then put her now-empty glass down. “Even though I’m now sitting in wine-soaked pajamas.”

Sage grinned. “Sorry.”

Bella chuckled and stood. “Luckily we’re the same size. Mind if I go change?”

“Mi closet es su closet.”

Bella took another look at the man on the screen. “He does look an awful lot like your friend at the coffee shop.”