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Tessa blushed, even though she had her doubts it was actually a date. There was no way he would want to be with some Plain Jane poor girl from a little working town. He wanted sexiness and glamor.
Which led her to her other burning question.
“Isn’t he dating Lissa Keller? I’d forgotten about that, but when he asked me, I remembered seeing all the stuff online and on TV. They’re like a pretty big deal. Right?”
“They were,” Athena responded. “Until last night. That’s why he was drinking.”
“Surely he’s not rebounding already!” Iris said.
“Yeah. Anyway, no one wants to be the rebound!” Samantha added.
Tessa couldn’t disagree with that. Still, going out with a movie star—even if it was just once—sounded fun. Not many could say they’d done it! She’d have one heck of a story to tell.
“Is he a cool guy? I mean, I assume he was, or you wouldn’t be friends with him,” Tessa said to Auntie Athena.
“Well, thank you for the vote of confidence. And yes, he’s a great guy. But just know he is… how shall I say… a typical Hollywood power player. I know you’re new here. But you’re sharp. Does that make any sense to you?”
Tessa smiled. “Yeah. I think I know what you’re talking about.”
Athena nodded. “I’m not saying he’s a bad guy. He’s not. I don’t allow bad people into my orbit. The things he values most, though, might not be what you value most. That still making sense?”
“Absolutely,” Tessa said.
“But one breakfast isn’t going to hurt,” Athena added.
That was already what Tessa had decided, so she nodded. “It’s not like he’d want to date me anyway. Rebound or no rebound.”
Athena didn’t look too pleased. “Don’t sell yourself short, honey. You’re a beautiful, kind young lady. You have a lot to offer.”
Tessa thought back to all those times she’d been on her hands and knees, scrubbing the scuffs off the floors of the Donnely Building or cleaning the toilets. Her mind also raced back to her tiny apartment with its cinderblock walls and stove that only worked half the time.
Movie stars definitely didn’t date women like her.
But if one wanted to buy her breakfast, why say no?
With her mind made up, she retreated to her room, got dressed, and then went downstairs.
This would be her first full day in Los Angeles and already she was having one heck of a fun adventure.
Who knew where the morning would take her?
Chapter Seven
It felt strange opening the car door for a lady other than Lissa.
Sure, he’d done it hundreds of times before with who-knows-how-many women. And he wasn’t so old-fashioned he thought doing something like that equated cheating. He and Lissa had both been friends with the opposite gender. Damon even had lunch with his agent, Sabrina Reiser, once a week.
No big deal.
But this felt different.
He wasn’t sure why, either.
“You all good down there?” he asked as he looked into the silver sports car where Tessa sat.
“Yeah. It sits kind of low.”
“Sure does.” Damon wanted to add that the thing wasn’t as comfortable as it should be for over three hundred grand, but that would be admitting defeat.
