One Secret Night, One Secret Baby

Emma ended the call and sat there for a few minutes taking it all in again. She had to stop dwelling on Dylan McKay. Food usually kept her mind occupied. But oddly, she wasn’t hungry. In fact, the thought of eating right now turned her stomach, so she nixed that plan and picked up the TV remote. She hit the on button and her small flat-screen lit up the dark room. The channel, tuned to the local network, was airing a movie. She settled back, propping up her feet, and stared ahead.

Dylan McKay’s handsome face popped up, filling most of the screen, his bone-melting blue eyes gazing into the pretty face of Hollywood’s latest darling, Sophie Adams. The cowboy and his girl were about to ride into the sunset. The camera zoomed in for the movie-ending kiss, and just like that, something cold and painful snared Emma’s heart as Dylan’s mouth locked onto Sophie’s.

Hitting the off button did little to calm her. Why couldn’t she get away from Dylan?

Falling for the unattainable was romantic suicide. She wasn’t that stupid.

She’d just have to get over her secret dibs.

End of story.

* * *

She was ready at precisely nine o’clock. When the doorbell rang, she took a quick glance in the mirror, checking her upswept hairstyle, snowy-white pants and the sherbet-pink blazer she wore over a dotted swiss top. A tiny locket nestled at the base of her throat; that, silver stud earrings and a fashionable chunky watch were all the jewelry she’d opted for. She was going for a professional look without appearing unapproachable to the children. A little thrill ran through her body. Seeing Dylan aside, she was looking forward to meeting the kids, knowing firsthand how hard it was for a youngster to be outside the mainstream. She’d been one of those kids. Lucky for her, she had been healthy, but she’d been different, unloved and unwanted, and she’d never really felt as if she belonged.

Today was all about the kids.

She opened the door and was immediately yanked out of her noble thoughts as she took one look at Dylan standing on her doorstep. She’d expected his driver. But there Dylan was, in the flesh, his bandage gone now, the scar on the side of his head that would eventually heal only making him appear more manly, more dangerous, more gorgeous. Dressed in new jeans and a tan jacket over a white shirt, he smiled at her. “Morning. You look great.”

She didn’t feel great. She had woken up pale as a ghost and feeling boneless from tossing and turning all night. But his compliments could get to her, if she put stock in them. He was smooth. He was the consummate lady-killer. He knew which buttons to push to make females fall at his feet. And with her, she was sure, he wasn’t even trying.

“Thank you. Is Brooke with you?”

He shook his head. “Brooke cracked a tooth this morning. She called me in a panic and said she had to get it fixed right away. I guess it’s because of your event tomorrow, but she bailed. She’s got a hot date with the dentist in twenty minutes.”

Or rather a hot date with Royce next week and she couldn’t go toothless. “Oh. Poor Brooke.”

“She didn’t call you?”

Emma lifted her phone out of her purse and glanced at the screen. “Oh, yeah, she did,” she said. “Looks like a voice mail this morning. I was probably in the shower.”

Dylan’s eyes flickered and roamed over her body. Gosh, he was Flirt Central without even knowing it.

“I’m ready. Or would you like to come in?” Oh, boy, had she really invited him in? The last time he’d been here, they’d...

He glanced behind her and scanned her apartment as if seeing it for the first time. It was clear he didn’t remember coming here.

She put those thoughts out of her mind and wondered what he would think of her two-bedroom apartment tucked into an older residential area of Santa Monica. There were no views of the ocean, no trendy, glamorous furnishings or updated kitchen. But it was all hers. And she loved having...stuff of her own.

“Maybe some other time,” he said politely. “We should probably hit the road.”

After she locked up her apartment, Dylan took her arm and guided her through the courtyard to the limousine parked by the sidewalk. “Here you go,” he said as the driver opened the door. She slid in and Dylan followed. “I haven’t gotten clearance to drive yet,” he explained as he settled into the seat across from her by the window.

But it wasn’t as if being carted around in a limo was foreign to him.

“Thanks again for coming with me today.”

Again, she was struck by his sincerity. “You’re welcome. Actually, I’m looking forward to it.”

He stared at her, waiting for more.

She shrugged. “It’s just that my own childhood wasn’t ideal. If I can do something for these kids, even just as a bystander, I’m all for it. But how are you doing? This is your first venture out in public since the...”

“Accident?” His lips tightened and he sighed. “Let’s just say, I’m glad you’re here.”

“Even though you’ll have your team waiting for you there?”

“My agent and PA are great, don’t get me wrong. But they see me one way. I don’t think they get how hard this has been for me. Losing those days of my life, and losing Roy, has put me at a disadvantage I’m not used to. There are missing pages in my life.”

And she could fill in some of those blanks if she had the courage.

He reached for her hand and laid their entwined fingers on the middle seat between them. “Brooke had good reason to jump ship today. I’m just glad you didn’t bail.”

“I wouldn’t.”

“I know. That’s why I asked you to join me. I can count on you.”

They reached Children’s West Hospital, a beautiful building with white marble walls and modern lines. The limo slowed to a stop right in the circular drive that led to the entrance.

“Ready for the show?”

Several news crews were waiting like vultures, snapping pictures even before the driver got out of the limo. Dylan made headlines everywhere he went, and his first time out in public since the accident was big news. She recognized Darren, his agent, and Rochelle, his prim assistant, also waiting along the lineup. “Ready.” Emma gave off much more confidence than she was feeling.

Dylan waited two beats, sighed as if grasping for strength and then nodded to his driver, who had one hand on the door handle. The door opened and photos were snapped immediately. Dylan got out, waved to the crowd and then reached inside to take her hand. She exited the limo and was dragged into the fray by Dylan, who seemed to tighten his hold on her. A hospital official came forward to greet them and introductions were made as security guards ensured that none of the news media followed them into the hospital lobby. His agent and PA also followed behind, eyeing everyone. Still, Emma saw cameras pressed up against the windows, the paparazzi snapping photos of Dylan and his entourage as they moved along the corridors with Richard Jacoby, the hospital administrator, and a few other ranking hospital officials.

Mr. Jacoby stopped at a double-wide door and turned to their small group. “The children are excited to meet you, Dylan. We’ve gathered our recovering patients here, in the doctor’s lounge. And later, we’ll go up to see the other children who are still in treatment.”

Emma assumed that he was talking about the kids who couldn’t make it out of bed. Her heart lurched and she braced herself for what was to come.

“Afterward, we’ll shoot your promo spot with Beth and Pauly.”

“Sounds good to me,” Dylan said.

“We had a little movie premiere of His Rookie Year last night for everyone to get acquainted with who you are. Most of them already knew of you. Eddie Renquist was quite a character.”

The rated-G movie hadn’t won Dylan any awards, but he’d garnered a whole new audience of youngsters with that role. It was on Emma’s Top Ten Favorite list.

“After you,” Mr. Jacoby said, and they entered a large room filled with kids of all ages, sitting on grown-up chairs, their eyes as big as the smiles on their faces. They began waving at Dylan. With Emma at his side, he made his way over and spoke to each child. The younger boys called him Eddie and asked him all about baseball, as if he really was a star athlete like his character in the film. Dylan was quite knowledgeable actually and always reminded them he was only acting out a role. Some of them got it, others weren’t quite sure. The girls were all over the map, the teens telling him he was hot and they loved him, while the younger ones wanted to shake his hand or give him a hug.

Dylan wasn’t stingy with his hugs. He gave them freely and laughed with the kids, shook hands and recited lines from his movies when asked. Some of the kids with shaved heads had peach fuzz growing. They were the lucky ones, the ones who would eventually go home to live normal lives. Some wore back braces or leg casts; others were in wheelchairs. But all in all, every one of them reacted positively to Dylan. He was good with them and managed to bring Emma into the conversation often.

“This is my friend Emma. She plans parties and knows a lot about everything,” he said.

“Have you ever planned a Cinderella party?” one of the younger girls asked.

“Well, of course. Cinderella and Belle and Ariel are friends of mine,” she said.

A cluster of little girls surrounded her and asked her dozens of questions.