When he lowered her to the floor, Elle, who was smiling from ear to ear, looked into Luke’s bright eyes. They were backstage and the production crew was shuffling this way and that. It seemed everyone was moving in fast-forward motion as they stood together, their eyes connecting as Luke beamed with pride.

“I think this is the best and worst day of my life,” Elle said, smoothing down his disheveled hair. Luke took her hand in his and pressed it to his chest. His heart was thumping wildly beneath his tuxedo.

“Focus on the good. Everything else will work itself out.”

Elle wanted to be as optimistic as Luke often was. She wanted to view the world as a place filled with endless opportunities and limitless potential. She wanted to ignore the turmoil building within her as she was torn between the two men in her life. Celebration seemed almost impossible when she felt this way. No matter what she did, someone would be hurt. Wouldn’t he?

As if he somehow read her thoughts, Luke pressed his lips gently to her forehead and sighed. “I’ll stay out of the way. But that doesn’t mean I’m giving up. This was your story, the two of you, and you should celebrate together. So for tonight, I’ll give you your space.”

Luke released her hand and started to walk away. “Wait,” she called after him, her voice urgent and filled with nerves. “Will you be at the after-party?”

He smiled. “Of course. Wouldn’t miss it.”

Relief came over her as she nodded and lifted her hand to blow him a kiss. In a silly, overly dramatic form, Luke pretended to leap in the air to catch it just in time. Elle giggled as he placed it in the pocket of his tuxedo. He patted the fabric, and for just a moment, he looked sad. His smile was replaced by a contemplative gaze. He raised his hand, gave her a subtle wave, and disappeared into the swarm of production assistants and staff who were preparing to announce the final awards of the evening.

“We’re so impressed with you, Elle, and I want you to know we’ve been giving your show ideas much thought.” Saul Greenberg, the network president, had cornered her beside the pool. Troy was seated next to her, his hand on her thigh as they listened to Saul, a tall, portly man, encourage Elle and her success at the award ceremony. Elle knew awards such as these were a major factor in renewed contracts and future opportunities. She was thrilled Saul was pleased.

“Is that right?”

“Indeed.” He took a drink of his cocktail, wiping his lips with the back of his hand. “In fact, I probably shouldn’t tell you this, but since this is my fifth drink, I don’t really care. We like them all—we’re having trouble deciding.”

“Well, maybe you can increase your entire fall lineup,” Elle joked, nudging him in the elbow. Saul erupted in laughter.

“You never know, young lady.” Elle cringed at being referred to as a young lady. She was thirty-five freaking years old. She forced a smile, however, knowing that Saul a) was drunk and b) could make or break her career with just one phone call. “Just keep doing what you’re doing, and the possibilities will be endless.”

“Thank you, sir.” Elle stood and smoothed down her party dress. She and Whitney had changed into shorter, more comfortable cocktail dresses before arriving at Saul’s estate. “I’m going inside to use the ladies’ room. Troy, can I get you something to drink?”

“You know”—Troy stood and took Elle’s hand in his—“my glass is getting low. I’ll get our drinks while you use the washroom.”

“Great.” Elle squeezed Troy’s hand. “It was a pleasure speaking to you, Mr. Greenberg. You have an absolutely gorgeous home.”

Saul raised his glass and winked before leaning back into his soft outdoor armchair. Elle and Troy quickly retreated into the house.

“I don’t really need to pee. I just had to get away from him. He was really making me uncomfortable.”

Troy sighed. “Same here. I’m glad you said something. I wasn’t going to pull you away from him, or anyone from the network. C’mon, let’s get another drink.”

It felt like they had been drinking for almost eight hours, and yet, Elle never reached more than a delightfully steady buzz. Thank goodness she remembered to eat, and food was plentiful at the awards show and now at Saul Greenberg’s enormous mansion. When they reached the indoor bar, Troy ordered two glasses of scotch, handing one to Elle. They toasted the evening and the success of the show before linking arms and strolling through the expansive first floor of the home. Cast, crew, and executives from all of the network’s shows were walking through the elegant estate. Elle and Troy made their way to the empty foyer to escape the loud music at the back of the house, where most of the partygoers were drinking, eating, and celebrating. Marble floors and two winding staircases led to the second floor.

“God, this place,” Troy began, taking a sip of his scotch. “I can’t even imagine. I thought your place was huge, but this is . . . well, it’s like a compound.”

Elle giggled, nodding. “I think I’d get lost here.”

“Should we go back outside? They have a dance floor, ya know.”

One thing Troy and Elle were good at was dancing. Back in college, they actually took swing dance lessons with a few of their friends and learned several routines. In each one, Troy would flip Elle’s entire body over, until she landed back on her feet. Swing dancing led to salsa, which led to ballroom dance. The one place they never argued was on the dance floor.

“Ahh, do they now, Mr. Saladino?” Elle placed one hand on her hip. “Do you still have your moves?”

“I guess we’ll find out, won’t we?” Troy offered Elle his arm, a flirtatious grin on his face. Playfully, Elle puckered her lips and narrowed her eyes, looping her arm through his and allowing him to lead her back outside. The warm breeze of the evening swept through her hair and down her back. The evening was turning out just lovely.

“Kingston!” a voice shrieked from inside the house. “Where is he? Where is that rat bastard?”

Gina.

Tearing through the crowd of partygoers, Gina searched wildly for Luke, who was talking with a small group of men near the pool. Elle watched as he craned his neck, making eye contact with Gina. And then he rolled his eyes as she stormed toward him.

“The E! network? How could you do that?”

“Calm down, Gina,” Luke responded, his voice low, so as not to draw more attention to them. But Gina was having none of it.

“Calm down? I will not calm down! You screwed me! Now the whole world thinks I’m a liar!”

“Knows,” Luke corrected her. “The whole world knows you’re a liar.”

“Screw you, Luke.”

Elle watched in awe, not having any understanding of what they were talking about. But she’d be lying if she said she wasn’t curious. In fact, curious didn’t do her emotions justice. She was dying to know. Without even realizing it, her feet inched toward them until her toes reached the concrete around the pool. Across the glistening water, she watched as their argument continued.

“You need to sleep this off.” Luke touched Gina’s elbow, but she pulled away.

“I don’t need to do anything! My publicist just spent the better half of this party screaming at me, you asshole!”

Whitney approached Luke and Gina, looking embarrassed at Gina’s ridiculous display. “What the hell is going on?”

“Him. He told E! News I lied.”

Whitney crossed her arms in front of her chest. “You did, didn’t you?”

Gina looked exasperated, flailing her arms and throwing her head back and screaming into the air, “Of course I did! And if this idiot were smart, he would’ve just gone along with it! Now I’m the laughingstock of Hollywood!”