A Humble Heart (Hollywood Hearts #1)(37)

“Who’s the male lead?” she asked nervously.

“Lucas James,” Amy said.

“He’s a good actor. I guess if I messed up he would be strong enough to help me,” she said more to herself than anyone.

“It starts shooting in one week. They’re all set. I think it would be a good experience for you,” Amy said.

Dana looked at Rick. “I’m almost done with my own book, and Edward and I are a little more than halfway done with our book.”

“That’s fine. The deadline isn’t for four months. I think you should do it, Dana. It might be fun,” Rick said encouragingly.

She looked at Eric who waited patiently. Her eyes went back to Amy. “I’ll try it.”

“Good,” Eric said approvingly.

“Send the contracts to my office for both agreements by the end of the day, gentlemen, so I can go over them,” Eleanor said, giving Dana a wink.

“Here we are,” Rick said. “Let’s go, we have a long day ahead of us.” The door opened and Dana stepped out of the limo to see a long line of screaming people extending from the Barnes and Noble all the way down the street.

Several officers walked up and down the line of people keeping them from running towards her. “It’s really going to be a long day,” she sighed.

Amy and Rick walked her inside where she was greeted by the manager. She was set up at a table with a life-size cut out of her book cover. She sat down and prepared herself for the long day ahead.

“I’m ready,” she said, taking a deep breath.

A young woman was first in line. “I am such a huge fan!”

“It’s very nice to meet you...,” she prompted.

“Jen,” she said, pushing a book towards Dana. She opened it and addressed it to Jen and signed it.

“Thank you so much! I just love you,” she said, stepping out of line so the next person could step up. Dana kept her smile pleasant and casual and greeted each person hour after hour until Amy stepped forward.

“Ten more minutes and then we really have to go,” Amy said.

An angry looking woman stepped up to the table. “I stood in line for two hours to tell you how much I hate your books! I cannot believe my son wasted his hard earned money on this filth!” She slammed several books on the table.

“I’m sorry you didn’t enjoy the books, ma’am. Is there anything in particular you didn’t like about them?” Dana asked. She liked hearing what people liked about her books, but she found it more helpful when someone told her what they didn’t like.

“Everything. It was filthy and ridiculous,” the woman said, not giving Dana anything she could work with. Dana counted the books and took two twenty dollar bills out of her pocket and handed them to the woman.

“Here, I’m buying the books back from you.”

“It’s the least you could do after wasting my time!” She snatched the money out of her hand and stormed out of the store.

Several people in line yelled at her in defense of Dana. She told them it was okay and went back to signing the books as if nothing happened. She gave the books she just purchased to several fans who asked for them.

“We really have to go!” Rick said.

Dana nodded. She finished signing the last book a half hour later. Amy and Rick dragged her back to the limousine and made her change into a black cocktail dress and high heels.

“You don’t have any time to sit down and catch your breath. We are very late. When you get in there you need to start the question section of the evening,” Rick said.

“Okay,” Dana mumbled. She so did not want to do this.

Chapter 7

Dana took a deep breath and willed herself not to pass out. She hated public speaking, but it was a necessary evil. If she didn’t do things like this she could kiss her publishing contract goodbye. Not to mention her fans. She stepped past the curtain with Rick holding her arm.

She was met with a round of applause. Edward sat at one of the front tables, wearing a black suit with a black shirt. He gave her a lopsided smile and a wink, making her blush.

“We would like to open the question portion of the night,” Rick announced and then backed up behind Dana, staying in case she ran into trouble or tried to run away, probably the latter.

“Ms. Mathews?” a woman with curly black hair asked.

“Please, call me Dana,” she said warmly.

The woman smiled. “Dana, how many Christian and Bailey books can we expect?”

“I haven’t really thought about that, but I will probably keep writing about them for as long as I can write an enjoyable story that doesn’t go stale.”

“Thank you.”

“Dana,” a man stood up next, “who, if anyone, inspired Christian?”

Her eyes of their own accord darted to Edward and back to the man. “I based him on my ideal man,” she said, trying to keep it short and not give too much away. It was too embarrassing that she based him on a man she Googled every day for a year that she was now romantically involved with. What a weird world.

“Hmm, I have a resource that says you based Christian on Edward Pierce.”

She saw Edward straighten up and look at the man. This wasn’t the time to faint or freak out. She forced herself to relax. “I find that very interesting, sir. Considering I have never once mentioned any of my techniques or reasons behind the choices of my characters even to my own children. I am curious who your source is,” Dana said, giving the man an innocent smile.