“Can we have a ride in your Rolls-Royce?” Sebastian asked. He was Julia’s oldest boy and was fascinated by automobiles.
“Another time, kiddo,” Spencer said as he ruffled Seb’s hair. “I want to take your Aunt Ally on a spin.”
Seb’s shoulders slumped, and he kicked a piece of sod, but he didn’t fuss.
“I’d ask you where you’re taking me,” I said as Spencer opened the door, “but I don’t think you’d tell me, even if I did.”
“I like surprises. What’s wrong with that?”
“What if I don’t like them?”
“Don’t you?”
I had to think about that for a second. “As long as they’re good surprises.”
“This one is a good one. I’m taking you to my favorite place in all of Hollywood.”
“Is it quiet?”
“Practically soundproof.”
“Good. I’ve had a headache all day.”
He pulled away from the curb and headed north, tossing me one of his charming smiles.
I let out a long sigh as wind blew through the window, and I decided to lean into the unknown.
Twenty minutes later, I realized where he was taking me—and I smiled.
The Hollywoodland Sign.
“Have you come up here before?” Spencer asked as he stopped the car on the hill behind the sign.
“No. It never occurred to me to come up here.”
“You’ll love it.”
He led the way down a steep incline, and more than once, I had to reach out to him for help.
But it was worth it.
The sign had been built a few years before to advertise a new development called Hollywoodland, but it had quickly become iconic and so much more than an advertisement.
The hill was sandy and full of scrub brush, but the sky was clear, and the sun was bright, offering a breathtaking view of LosAngeles. To the left were green hills, and farther out was downtown Los Angeles with Richfield Tower and Los Angeles City Hall, both beautiful skyscrapers. To our right was the new Hollywood Lake, created by Mulholland Dam and the reservoir not long after the sign was erected.
“I can see the Hollywood Bowl,” I said, pointing it out as we moved around one of the whiteOs to stand in front of it. The letters were over forty feet tall and towered above us.
Spencer took a seat in the grass and patted the spot next to him, leaning up against theO. “This is the best place to think in all of Hollywood. I bring all my troubles up here.”
I sat next to him, which wasn’t easy in my skirt, and smiled. “I hope that doesn’t mean I’m trouble.”
He grinned and shook his head, and then his face became serious. “You’re the best thing that’s happened to me in a long time, Ally Bennett. You and your family. They’re great people.”
I returned his smile, knowing he was being sincere.
We sat for a moment in silence, looking at the vista, and then Spencer said, “My mother sent another letter.”
I glanced at him, surprised that he brought it up without preamble. “Was it a good letter?”
