Impossible Glamour (15 page)

Sophia’s lips turned into a smile. Gratitude. Amanda had just lifted a burden that even I didn’t know Sophia’d been carrying.

“You were worried that Angie didn’t like you?” I asked.

“She’s Trick’s sister, of course I was worried. They’re close and they have Pawtown together. I want to get along with his family.” She stopped talking and looked toward Amanda. “Just like I want to get along with mine.” Her voice was soft and her face held a childlike hopefulness. Sophia reached her hand toward Amanda and Amanda grasped it.

“We can do that,” Amanda said. “I don’t know that it’ll be easy always, but we can definitely try.”

Wow, I’d totally go through the Webber thing again to get to this moment. My heart warmed. This was the outcome I’d hoped for since Amanda and Sterling had discovered Daddy’s
other
family. I’d wanted all of us to find a way to become happily blended. Amanda wanted that too, and now I was realizing that deep down inside, Sophia wanted all three of us to be close, she just hadn’t known how to make that happen for all of us.

“Champagne!” Sophia yelled. “We need champagne to celebrate!”

My gaze locked with Amanda’s. She, like me, wanted to retreat to our rooms, put on jammies, and go to bed. But we would celebrate if only for one drink with Sophia, because how often did a family dynamic totally get saved?

Webber

Selena and I sat at the resort bar, which was populated by CTA agents and a couple of poor souls who didn’t realize a bunch of hard-selling, beer-swilling, tail-chasing, upscale salesmen were taking over the resort for a week. Wonder how many of the non-agent types had asked the hotel for their money back? The longer CTA was in residence, the faster the whole “team building” retreat devolved into a drug-fueled sex-fest on speed. Lots and lots of speed. Agents were high-energy, adrenaline-junkie, top-performing machines. You couldn’t lock them up in San Bernardino County and expect them to hold hands and sing songs without a few orgies on the side. Give them booze, coke, titties, and something to sell, otherwise watch them find all those things for themselves.

Wowza! No arrests yet. Though a rumor floated that Jeff had been caught in the Presidential Suite with three Norwegian swimsuit models who were visiting the US.

Selena was no different than any other CTA agent. Her appetites were legendary, and right now, this moment, I was the guy on the menu. Big Boy and I were meant to serve her well tonight. The problem? I couldn’t stop staring at her titties, and not because I wanted to suck on them. Her breasts were not a shape seen naturally. After years of exploration, I knew ta-tas, and those babies were way too round. And hard. They looked like someone had shoved softballs beneath her golden-brown skin. I couldn’t take my eyes off them because their unnatural state mesmerized me. Golf balls were too small, basketballs too big, softballs were the right size…but why would she want them so
hard?
Selena leaned closer. My gaze shot up to meet her eyes. Whoopsie.
Unfortunately, Miss Rodriguez had gotten the wrong idea. Her wicked grin was all about believing I wanted her beautiful, perfectly round boobs.

“Webber?” She put her fingertip under my chin and tilted my head up.

I shivered. Oops. I absolutely did not want her ta-tas. What I wanted was her vote for me to become a CTA partner and to get out of this evening without having to put Big Boy to work.

“You want my vote for partner.” She reached for her vodka martini and took a long sip.

“I do. My client list is the best one in the motion picture department, I’ve been at CTA going on a decade, I’ve packaged some major projects, Steve Legend is—”

“You have my vote.” Again with the wicked smile. She waved to the bartender to bring her another martini and another Jack for me. Her hand dropped to my thigh and squeezed. “Of course, there is something that I would like in return.”

Yowza! Those double-D globes might pop out from that halter dress. Big Boy perked to life, but I was unsure of his abilities after his flaccidity from the night before. Was that a onetime thing? Was it because of Ellen? Was my cock forever ruined?

Selena’s hand trailed up my thigh and I scooted back a bit on my barstool. Any other man in the entire world would lean in. Lean in, baby! Selena with her millions, her partnership, her business sense, her ta-tas, gorgeous black hair, smokin’ body, and well…appetites. Nearly every man at CTA wanted to be me tonight except for…well, me.

“Uh…” I slurped my drink. My game hadn’t been this bad since middle school. What the hell? Of course the woman scared me a little, but come on, I should at least want to bang that beauty to the moon.

She leaned forward and now pressed one hand on each thigh. Her fingertips were dangerously close to Big Boy. “What say after this drink we go up to my suite and
hammer
out the details of your partnership agreement?”

Big Boy liked to hammer, or so it seemed by his response. And yet even with Big Boy’s response, I couldn’t get my heart into the idea of hopping into the sack with Selena when what I really wanted was—

“Webber.”

Cool. Crisp. With maybe even a touch of…anger. I swiveled my barstool away from the cougar copping a feel and toward Ellen, Sophia, and Amanda Legend. Lucky me, all
three
of Steve’s daughters were here, in the bar, while Selena’s hands were on my thighs and I’d failed to perform just last night.

“The Legend ladies!” I stood. “Amanda.” I leaned in and gave her a peck on the cheek. She was the Legend I’d known the longest. “Save me,” I whispered in her ear.

She pulled back and smiled. “Webber, I think you’re fully capable of doing that yourself.”

“Selena, have you met Steve Legend’s daughters?”

“I’ve not had the pleasure, but I’ve heard amazing things about each. Sophia,” she said and looked straight at Ellen. “I’d love to talk to you about our urban division. If you’re in LA for a while, will you ring me?”

I nudged Selena in the arm, “Sorry, sweetheart, it’s an easy mistake, but that’s Ellen. The brainiac Legend.”

“What?” Selena’s eyes flashed from Ellen to Sophia.

Ellen and Sophia were like looking at a reflection in a mirror. I’d never gotten them confused though, even when Ellen was all dolled up with makeup and hair done and a dress…which was nearly never. But tonight they both had hair done and makeup and a dress and heels and to be honest, Ellen, my beautiful Ellen, was more exquisite-looking than her übermodel sibling.

Wait…
my?

“He’s right,” Ellen said. “I’m just the med student, she’s the star.”

“You two…I would never be able to tell you apart,” Selena said.

“Most people can’t.” Amanda’s gaze slid toward me. “Unless they’re family or—”

“Would you ladies join us for a drink?” I asked and nodded toward a table.

“No can do,” Ellen said, her spine ramrod straight. “They’re leaving early and I have…” Her gaze flitted toward mine. “Well, I have a thing to do tomorrow.”

Ouch. She was parroting back my lame line from the night at the pool.

“Another time.” Selena pressed her card into Sophia’s hand. “Do call. I know you’re booked out with projects for forever, but I do have some clients that would love to work with you.” Her eyes glanced over at Ellen. “And, of course, if that med school thing doesn’t work out, you know where to find me.”

Ellen visibly cringed but pressed a smile to her face. How many times in her life had she heard someone make fun of her mad brainiac skills as though they were something unimportant? Steve crowed big about Ellen. But the rest of the Legend family? They seemed to be shocked that she’d work so hard for something she wanted when it would be so easy for her to fall back into the Legend lifestyle.

“So, Webber.” Amanda turned toward me. “Wondered if you had time for breakfast in the morning before we leave. We have a surprise for Daddy we want to discuss with you.”

“Babe, Steve is my numero uno client. Of course we can do brekky in the a.m.” I shot her a grateful smile. Of course, she couldn’t know that the hound in heat by my side was attempting to get me to umphay erhay and that I didn’t want to service her needs. Regardless, Amanda had just saved me from an all-nighter with Selena.

“Webber, don’t we have the joint division head meeting in the morning?” Selena purred and grasped my arm with a more-than-loving squeeze.

“Nope, nope, nope. That’s not until the next morning. I’m free tomorrow. See you ladies then.”

Amanda nodded and the three Legends walked across the bar and toward a table on the patio.

“You are going to be one tired man at that breakfast tomorrow morning,” Selena said and nearly climbed onto my lap. “I tried to save you. Give you some time to rest after our little”—her gaze stroked from my feet over my body and up to my eyes—“well, the workout I have planned for you tonight.”

Yowza. My heart pitter-pattered in my chest, and not from excitement. Fear. Cold, hard fear. This woman would eat me alive.

She leaned forward. “I even have some special
toys
I want to use on you.”

Doh! No. Nada. Big Boy was down for the count. By special, I couldn’t help but wonder if she meant the strap-on she was rumored to use with every man she did the horizontal mambo with.

My phone buzzed in my pocket. Thank God for Dick Munch.

“Excuse me, doll.” I slipped the cell from my pants and pressed it to my ear.

“Webber?” Dick Munch was out of breath and panting in my ear. Was that fear I heard in his voice?

“Yeah man, what’s up?” I could commend him on his acting ability because from the way he was panting it sounded like there really might be an emergency happening. I turned away from Selena. “Take it down, bro,” I whispered. “You’re not on speakerphone.”

“No man, it’s the Legend. It’s Steve.”

“Okay, what about Steve?” I said and turned back to Selena and rolled my eyes like “how annoying that my biggest client would call at eleven thirty p.m.”

“Dude, he’s on his way to UCLA Med.”

My stomach flipped. “The hospital?”

“Heart attack.”

“Are you fucking around?”

“No, man,” Dick Munch said. “Wish I were, but dude, this is real. Ambulance. Paramedics. I’m on my way to the hospital now. You know how to get ahold of Amanda and Ellen? Trick and Ryan have been lighting up my line, say they’ve gone away for some girls’ night or some shit like that.”

My gaze landed on the three Legend ladies sitting poolside. They’d just gotten their drinks, and Ellen threw her head back and laughed. My heart ached for them. In less than three minutes, I was going to ruin that laugh and shatter their good time.

“Yeah, I know how to get ahold of them. I’ll take care of it.”

“Ok. Man, you’re coming back, right?”

“Yeah, dude, no worries I’ll see you soon.” I slid my phone into my pocket and looked over at Selena.

“Steve?”

I nodded.

“Go on, get back to LA. I’ll tell Jeff what’s up. You have to go.” She threw back her drink and ran her fingers over her hair.

“First I have to go tell them.” I nodded toward the table of happy women. I was about to piss on their parade, and until we heard from the doctors, who knew what we’d all return to Los Angeles to find? Fuck.

“Don’t envy you that,” Selena said and shook her head. She grabbed her clutch and pressed her lips to my cheek. “Don’t worry,Webber. You’ve still got my vote and you can owe me for later.”

“Thanks.” I nodded and took the last swallow of my drink because I was going to need every ounce of liquid courage I could get to tell Ellen, Sophia, and Amanda that their father might soon be dead.

Ellen

The look on Webber’s face when he walked up to our table in the bar was…odd. His eyes held a heaviness, his lips weren’t curled in the Webber smile that indicated he was about to say something completely inappropriate but wildly funny. My gaze slid past him toward his female companion for the evening. She still sat at the bar but was consumed with her phone. Her overenhanced mammary glands burst from the top of her dress. She was definitely more Webber’s usual flavor than I. No wonder Big Boy had problems last night. I returned my gaze to Webber.

He wasn’t laughing. He wasn’t smiling. He didn’t even cock his eyebrow with that wicked I-know-more-than-you look.

My heart pattered faster. A chill chased down my spine. “What happened? What’s wrong?”

His gaze landed on me, and he seemed to ask what the hell, Ellen, are you clairvoyant?

He cleared his throat. A heaviness, unfamiliar to his features, was on his face. “Your dad.” His voice was soft. “I don’t have details, but he’s on his way to UCLA Med.”

A giant hole opened in my belly. My fingers tingled and my breath caught in my chest.
Daddy.
For a moment it was just me and Webber. No one else existed in the world. My gaze locked with his and his concern and my fear swept between us, unspoken yet known.

“Daddy?” Sophia squeaked.

“Oh my God.” Amanda stood.

“What happened?” I tried to contain the emotional abyss that opened in my belly. I would soon be a doctor. I was supposed to stay calm in situations like this.

“They think a heart attack. He’s on his way to the hospital. Get your stuff together and let’s get you guys back. We can be there in an hour.”

Amanda was already walking from the table with her phone pressed to her ear. Webber was the bearer of this bad news because we’d all muted our phones at dinner and forgotten to turn them back on.

I heard Amanda ask, “Ryan, what do you know?”

Sophia was phoning Trick. I turned to Webber.

“Has anyone called Mama?” I asked.

“I don’t know. My assistant called me. He was on his way to the emergency room.”

“I don’t have a car up here.”

“We’ll go back in Amanda’s. We’ll find a spare agent to get Sophia and my car back to LA. Get them packed and ready, then meet me in the lobby in fifteen.”