Page 121 of Broken Romeo
“Five years!” I finish the thought for him.
“Not since after the…” He trails off, glancing between Holden and me.
Holden puts a fist to his mouth, clearing his throat. “It’s good to see you, Keith. Let’s catch up soon, okay?”
With that lame exit line, Holden scurries away and Keith stares after him, shaking his head before turning to face me. “I have to say, I’m surprised and happy to see you two together. I read in Backstage Magazine you’re working together again. I didn’t even know you were still acting.”
I shrugged, feeling my face go hot. “I think you could say I’ve been a professional auditioner since graduation. I haven’t had a lot of luck since—”
“Yeah.” I’m grateful that he cuts me off. The last thing I want to do is talk about that night.
Both Keith and I look over to where Holden took off to, where he is now glad-handing with a group of older men.
“You sure you can trust him?” Keith asks.
“No,” I answer quickly without thinking. “But I don’t really have a choice.”
Keith nods, giving me a pitying glance. “You know, after McCay and I ended things, I was so mad at her. I didn’t want her help. I didn’t want her references. I wanted to do everything on my own.”
“What Professor McCay did to you was unspeakable,” I say, looking Keith dead in the eyes.
“It was nothing compared to what we all did to you,” he says back to me.
A swallow sticks to the back of my throat. He’s right. But hearing him admit it doesn’t make it hurt any less.
“You were young,” I say. “I don’t blame you.”
“Holden was young, too. Does that mean you’ve forgiven him?”
I stare across the room at Holden’s confident swagger and smile. It’s infectious and I find myself smiling too.
“I… I don’t know yet,” I whisper. “But I think I’m getting there.”
“Keith!” Amy, our writer and composer for the show, comes up and gives Keith a big hug and kiss on the cheek before turning to me and taking my hands.
“Do you know our beautiful new starlet?” Amy asks, beaming at me.
I’m grateful to see her, and as I scan the party, I catch glimpses of other people I know. Maggie’s standing across the room with some of the people I met at the bar last week. With Amy, Holden, Nolan, and Keith, I almost feel like I belong here, too.
“Know her?” Keith pushes his glasses up his nose. “Some might say I discovered her first.”
Amy’s dark brows bounce up and down. “Oh, intriguing!” She gives my hands a squeeze. “Kate, can I steal you? Holden and Nolan want you to perform the duet from our show!”
Panicked, I look around. “Here? Now?”
“It’ll be great press for the show!” She leans in closer to me, whispering, “Plus, once people hear you sing, no one will be questioning why certain other actresses didn’t get the part. Not that it should even be a question, but I would love to see you blow them all away.”
Missy. She’s talking about Missy. I’ve loved working with Amy these last two weeks. She’s been so supportive and wonderful.
“And what if I don’t blow them all away?”
“You will,” she says. “There’s no doubt in my mind.”
Grateful tears fill my eyes, and she tugs me into a hug.
“Nolan and I will be at the piano,” she says. “Come on over when you’re ready.”
She gives a quick wave to Keith and weaves across the room through the party.