Chapter 4

" T hat was mind-blowing," Finn said, rolling onto the bed beside Ella. "You are so sexy."

"I'm going to miss you tomorrow. I've had so much fun with you these past couple of weeks, lounging about, exploring the hiking trails, talking for hours."

"It will be hard to tear myself away, especially to do press junkets. They can be so boring, and I'd much rather be here with you. But with Willow busy in New York rehearsing for her play and Charlotte in London, Michael and I are doing the lion's share of promotion. I'm eager to catch up with him and find out how on earth he got Lauren back."

Ella giggled. "Just make sure he's being a good boy so he doesn't foul it up again. Losing someone you love once is heartbreaking; to lose them twice would be unimaginable."

"It sure would," he agreed, tracing his finger along her hairline. They stared at each other for a long moment, the energy between them electric. Finally, Finn said, "What about you? I saw that you set up your laptop and notebooks on the dining room table. Planning to get started on your next project?"

"Yes! Until my office is ready, I thought I'd just plop down there, if that's okay."

"Of course it is."

"I promised Lorraine that I wouldn't peek at the room until it's done, so I don't even know what they're doing in there. She warned me there would be construction this week and it might get noisy. So, I'm meeting an old friend from college at a vegan café and bookshop in Venice Beach."

"Not an old flame, I hope," he said playfully as he tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. "Should I be jealous?"

"Never. We belong to each other, you and I," she replied, giving him a smooch. "My friend Marni lives in LA, and I've been looking forward to seeing her after all these years. We were tight in college, founding members of our school's philosophy club. Now she's the editor at an arts and culture magazine that publishes a lot of highbrow theoretical essays. She's feminist, snarky, and smart. I emailed her when I moved here, and we've been chatting ever since." He smiled and she continued, "The best part is, she told me she runs a small philosophy group, just her and a couple of other people: a philosophy professor and some sort of conceptual artist. Apparently, they meet once a week for tea or whatever and to talk about big ideas or things they've read. They're both coming tomorrow too, and she said I can join their group if I'm interested. I've always had lots of friends who are thinkers and creatives. It fuels my work, and I was worried about whether I'd have that here. This could be the solution."

"That's great, sweetheart," he said, unable to tame his smile.

"What's that grin about?" she asked.

"I just want you to be happy and fulfilled, that's all. And . . ."

"What?"

"I'm happy to see you building a life here."

"Well, that's the whole point, silly." She turned onto her side and whispered, "Sweet dreams. Now switch off the light and spoon me, my love."

"JUST A LITTLE FINISHING SPRAY AND you'll be all set," the young makeup artist said.

"Good job. You really know your stuff," Michael replied.

She giggled, batting her false eyelashes. "Well, it's easy with you." She cleared her throat and said, "Someone will come get you two as soon as the reporter is ready."

Michael turned to gawk as she exited the room.

Finn laughed. "Some things never change. The first time you and I met was in the makeup trailer in Sweden. As I recall, you ended up sleeping with the makeup artist, not to mention half a dozen extras."

"Those days are behind me, but it doesn't hurt to look," he said with a smarmy smile.

"I wonder if Lauren would feel that way."

Michael shrugged unconcernedly.

"You two looked solid in Cannes. When I saw you with your daughter the day after the premier, you seemed like a family."

"We are. It's been great."

"How the hell did you get her to take you back, any- way?" Finn asked with a chuckle.

"It wasn't easy. The night I got home from filming, I called her. Convinced her to go out to dinner with me and Sophie. We went to some tacky little place they both like, a far cry from what I'm used to. Before long, we were laughing hysterically, and the cheap decor and kid-friendly food didn't seem so bad. We could have shut that place down. Being with them felt great, like coming home. I was ready to slip right into family life."

"Wow. I'm speechless."

"Yeah, it shocked the hell out of me too. Unfortunately, Lauren was much more hesitant. I pursued her relentlessly, trying to prove myself. I wanted to show her that I'm a changed man. I showered her with flowers, chocolates, balloons, and I even sent her a singing telegram, but she was having none of it. She made me promise not to have sex with anyone else while we spent time together and got to know each other again. She said something about rebuilding trust."

"And? Did you abstain?"

Michael huffed. "Yeah, but let me tell you, it was pure torture."

Finn laughed.

"Eventually, she opened herself back up to me. The thing is, we were always in love. I guess that connection doesn't go away. Plus, we have a kid together. So, after months of that ‘proving myself' bullshit, we decided to do it for real this time. I bought us a little house, and we've been living together as a family."

"Wow, that's great."

"Yeah, well, I still kept my old apartment. You know, just in case."

Finn chuckled. "I say this to you in the spirit of friendship: don't fuck it up. Remember how much you missed her and regretted things. No matter how many women you were with, it was clear that no one could take her place. Try to get it right this time. You're lucky you got a second chance—don't blow it."

"Speaking of second chances, how's it going with Ella? You two certainly caused quite a commotion at Cannes. Are you living happily ever after?"

"Michael, it's bliss. She moved in with me right after Cannes. I can't even describe how good it feels to be with her again, forever this time. Nothing has ever felt better."

"I'm impressed."

"How so?"

"Well, just that you were able to get over her leaving you like that," Michael said. "She broke your heart. It was brutal. Plus . . ."

"What?"

"Ella's such a free spirit, so bohemian. I'm impressed you got her to settle down. Good for you. I'm happy for you."

"Yeah, thanks," Finn mumbled, looking down.

Just then, an assistant came into the room. "They're ready for you both."

"THIS PLACE IS REALLY CUTE. Super earthy-crunchy," Ella observed.

"Yeah," Marni replied, pulling her dark shoulder-length hair into a scrunchie. "Dante's vegan, so he knows all the best spots where the food tastes like real food and not children's paste. It's very Cali."

Ella laughed. "When in LA."

"We usually try to meet at one of our places, but Jade's having roommate trouble, Dante's apartment is a mess with some big art project he's working on, and my bungalow is a bit too far for everyone to schlep," Marni explained. "You'll love them. Dante's a gifted experimental artist. He studied philosophy and fine art, and he makes the most provocative installations about the embodied Black experience, referencing everyone from Bordo to Baldwin. Jade teaches philosophy at USC. She's kind of all work and no play, but she's super smart. As fate would have it, she's used your writing in her contemporary philosophy class. I guess she's a fan!"

"I'm excited to have people to talk to about work again. I had a great group of friends in Paris—artists, writers . . ."

"Well, I, for one, am thrilled you're in LA."

Ella smiled. "So, catch me up. Are you seeing anyone?"

"Who has the time? I was dating a woman kind of seriously for a while, but it didn't work out. She wanted too much. You know me: work is my life. My version of ‘having it all' is doing big things in the world and then going home to a bottle of pinot noir and a remote control I don't have to share with anyone." Ella laughed and Marni continued, "But I hear you've gone all glass slipper on me. I'm telling you, Ella, my eyes nearly popped out of my head when I saw Finn Forrester propose to you at Cannes. I was watching TV and mindlessly munching on some popcorn when I saw the news. I literally choked on a kernel. Could have died in my apartment!"

Ella laughed. "What can I say? He swept me off my feet."

"Does he respect your work? I mean, you're not going to morph into one of those Real Housewives of Hollywood zombie plastic things, right? You're a feminist icon. You can't fuck us over and jump ship now."

"Don't worry, no plans to zombie out. Finn and I are both passionate about our own work, just like we are about each other."

"Good, then let's skip ahead to the sex talk. Seriously, Ella, he's crazy hot. Ah, and speaking of hot, there's Dante," Marni said, lowering her voice. "Fair warning, he may be the most gorgeous Black man on the planet. I say that as a committed lesbian."

Ella tried to muffle her laughter as Dante approached the table. Marni jumped up and hugged him. They both sat down, and she said, "Dante, this is my good friend—"

"Gabriella Sinclair. I would know you anywhere. If you weren't taken, I'd already be wooing you. Beautiful and brilliant. Your essay on eroticism inspired one of my recent pieces."

"I'm flattered. Please, call me Ella."

"So, before Jade gets here and makes us talk about Sartre's Nausea until our ears bleed, I want the scoop. How did one of the most brilliant philosophers of our time end up in La-La Land and engaged to a Hollywood legend? Spill."

"HONEY, I'M HOME," FINN CALLED as he joined Ella in the dining room and gave her a peck. "Sorry, I've always wanted to say that."

"Perfect timing. I just poured us each a bourbon. How did your press thing go?" she asked as they sat down.

"Fine. Same old drill: trying to be enthusiastic while answering the same questions all day. Of course, the first thing every reporter asked about was you—how we met, when we're getting married. Michael was a good wingman, though. He made jokes and eventually steered them back to talking about the film."

"See? His bravado comes in handy from time to time."

Finn laughed and asked, "How was your day? Did you have a good time catching up with your friend?"

"It was great. We were super close in school but lost touch since I was always roaming around. I forgot how much I like hanging out with her. Her friends are great too. Really smart and interesting, and they're familiar with my work. I'm officially a member of their philosophy club now."

"That's great, sweetheart."

"We meet once a week and take turns hosting. I thought it might be nice to invite them here next week. Would that be okay?"

"Sweetheart, this is your home. You can have guests here any time you like. You don't need to ask anyone's permission."

Ella smiled. "I know you have that voice-over job next week, but if you're able to stop by to meet them . . ."

"I'll make a point of it."

"Would you mind if I gave Marni a call before dinner?"

"Of course not."

"I'll be quick," she said, slipping her cell phone out of her pocket to make the call. "Hey, Marni, it's Ella. I just wanted to let you know that it's no problem, we can have next week's meeting at Finn's house."

Finn winced but tried to muster a smile as Ella wrapped up her call.

Just then, Joyce came into the room to serve their dinner. "Ooh, this looks delicious," Ella remarked, admiring the pan-seared scallops atop a bed of roasted vegetables. "Joyce, I'm having a few friends over next week. I'd like to serve cake with coffee and tea in the living room. I have a few recipes in mind, but I thought maybe you could help me."

"My pleasure. Find me whenever you're free and we can go over the shopping list."

Ella turned to Finn. "This looks so good. I'm starving."

He feigned a smile and picked up his fork.

"‘FINN'S HOUSE.' THOSE WERE HER exact words," Finn said to Michael. "That's how she thinks of it, as my house, not hers."

"Relax, she's only lived there a couple of weeks. She's just getting used to things."

"I hope so, but you said yourself that Ella's never been one to settle down. Maybe . . ."

"Didn't you say she's mentioned having kids someday?" Michael asked. "She must be in this thing for real if she's making plans for a family."

"Yeah, but we talked about that in Sweden too, and she still . . ."

"Listen, I saw her on the red carpet in Cannes before you arrived. She was a nervous wreck, waiting to see you. The next day, when we all hung out, she said she'd never been happier, that she couldn't wait to marry you. She's completely head over heels for you."

Finn exhaled. "You're right. I trust what we have. I just want to do everything right this time. I have to make things perfect for her."

"I'm telling you, relax. She just needs to adjust."

"Yeah."

"But if you're really worried that this thing could blow up at any minute and you'll look ridiculous after that whirlwind of an engagement, I'll get the press to back off on the questions about Ella."

Finn sighed and his shoulders slumped.