Chapter 1

"CUT," BARRYcalled, and Lucas Reardon broke character and smiled as he strode off set. "That was amazing, and we got what we need here. Let's set up for the final interior apartment shots."

Once he had given his instructions, Barry, the director of the much-anticipated film Lucas was starring in, walked to where Lucas sat. "We should wrap this tomorrow, on schedule."

"I appreciate that." Filming had been running behind because of weather on location, but now that they had moved indoors, Barry had lengthened the filming days and they'd made up for lost time. Lucas only had two weeks before he was scheduled to be on set for another film, and he had been hoping for some time off. Not that he would be spending it in Tahiti or anything. He still had publicity to do for the movie releasing next month. Sometimes it seemed like he was on a treadmill, except he wasn't walking on it—he was the motor keeping the whole thing going. "If you don't need me, I'm going home for a while."

"Stay in your trailer. I'll put someone outside to make sure you aren't disturbed. We need to start at six in the morning."

Lucas nodded. "Will my two scenes be first?" God, he hoped so.

"Yes. We'll shoot the last things we need from you, and then you can go." Barry smiled, which was a rarity for him. "You are going to be so amazing in this, and working with you is a dream." He shifted his gaze to where Henry West and Vanessa Ritter stood talking to each other like a couple of chickens hatching their next plot to steal a rival's eggs. They had married eighteen months ago and seemed to feed on each other's prima-donna energy.

"Thank you," Lucas said as he followed Barry's gaze. "Never again… with either of them." He met Barry's gaze and received a nod of solidarity in return.

"Get some rest, and I'll see you in the morning." Barry dashed off to deal with his problems, and Lucas made his escape to his trailer, where his assistant waited for him.

Karen Robeson was the best assistant he had ever had. She'd been with him for a year, and Lucas hoped she stayed on. Karen looked up from her tablet, smiling as she got up, opened the refrigerator, and handed him a Diet Coke. He popped it open and drank.

"God."

"What time is your call tomorrow morning?"

"Six. I should be done by eight, so let's have everything ready to go. As soon as I'm done, I want to go home. I'm not taking meetings for at least two days."

"I know the routine," she said as she tapped away. "I've had the cleaners in the house, so it's spotless, and I stocked it today. Everything you like is there. The cars have been washed and detailed, the pool is sparkling, and I even put in an order to make sure the city is extra sparkly at night." She didn't break a smile. Lucas loved her sense of humor. She reached into her bag and pulled out a sheet of paper, which she handed to him.

Lucas opened it. "That little shit," he swore. "Henry tried to steal you away?"

Karen nodded and shivered slightly. "You know I'd never work for them."

"I do." He messaged his business manager to give Karen a thousand-dollar bonus. "And a deal is a deal." He got a thumbs-up response.

"Thanks, Lucas," she said gently and sat back down in her out-of-the-way spot, tapping away and then scowling. "Ummm…. Check your phone."

"Huh?" He never brought it with him on set. It was rude, and more than once a perfectly good take was ruined by someone's damned phone, and it wasn't going to be his. She sighed and went through to the back bedroom area and returned to press it into his hand.

Lucas read the messages from his aunt, which were coming in quickly. Then he set the phone on the counter next to the sink, entered the bedroom area, and pulled the curtain closed. "Fuck," he said, just once, and sat on the edge of the bed.

The trailer was quiet, the only sounds coming from outside, including the clomping of a horse's hooves as it passed. You never knew what to expect on a movie lot. He closed his eyes, shaking his head.

"Lucas, what do you want to do?" Karen asked after a good five minutes.

"I want…," he began, and then he retrieved his phone and called his aunt. She answered on the second ring.

"Auntie Rose," he said quietly, refusing to choke up over an old bastard who had left Lucas and his mother when he fell in love with someone four years older than Lucas was at the time. His dad's second wife had been the student aide in his middle school drama class, for God's sake.

"I know how things are between you and your father. But…." She was the only one on his father's side of the family that he spoke with at all. "Look, I'll be blunt. If you want the chance to make peace with your father, then you need to come home now. Say what you want to say, yell at the old codger, but if you have anything you want to tell him, get on a plane and get here. His days are numbered, and we're talking single digits."

Lucas swallowed hard. He didn't want anything to do with his father, but his aunt was right. If the old asshole was going to die, Lucas needed to be there, say what he wanted, and then see him off on his journey to hell—or at least that's where he hoped cheating assholes who left their wife and son hanging out to dry ended up. "I don't know."

Aunt Rose cleared her throat. "You know he's alone. Cherie is gone. Cancer… a year ago."

"I know. You told me."

"So will you come? Can you come?" The grief hung in her voice, and Lucas knew there was no way he could turn her down. "Make some sort of peace for both of you before he's gone. If nothing else, you'll know you tried."

The timing worked from a job perspective, but Lucas was worn out from weeks of long days and nights of filming, and he needed a chance to rest. It looked like he wasn't going to get it. "Okay. I'll see what I can do and let you know."

"Should I tell your father you're coming?" Aunt Rose asked.

"No," Lucas answered. "I'll let you know what I can work out." He set the phone aside and lay back on the bed, closing his eyes and just trying not to fly into a million little pieces. "Karen?" he said, not moving or opening his eyes.

"I know, Lucas. I'm already looking into flights for you."

"For us," he corrected. "I need you to come with me."

The curtain slid on its rod, and he lifted his head. "You know I can't," she told him. "I'll do whatever you need, but I can't go and leave my brother here alone."

Lucas nodded. "Sorry. I remember now." Karen had a brother in a school for kids with special needs, and Karen looked after him and made sure Lincoln knew he wasn't alone. Lucas admired her for that dedication. "Stay near him."

"What about Jerry?" she asked.

"He's out of town with his new boyfriend." For being a household name throughout much of the country, Lucas had a surprisingly lonely life. "I'll go on my own. I should be fine."

"You will not," Karen snapped, her fingers flying over her tablet. "How about Rachel? She looked after you last year when that stalker business got ugly. She's good, professional, and you liked her. She can stand in as your on-site assistant, and she can provide security if you need it."

"Then call her and make all the arrangements." Rachel was amazing, and she could kick ass. He'd seen it firsthand. Not that he expected trouble in Scottville, Michigan, but backup was always a good thing to have.

Lucas drank some more soda and then lay down and closed his eyes, trying to settle his mind. He was going home, but first he had a movie to finish, and that was where his head needed to be, not three thousand miles away.

"I have your flight all set, as well as a car. Rachel will meet you at your house tomorrow. I got you on a red-eye at ten, and you'll be in Detroit in the morning. From there you fly to Grand Rapids, and Rachel will drive you up to Scottville from there. I've sent messages to your agent and your business manager so they know what's going on. I also messaged Barry's assistant." She placed a tray next to him. "And you need to eat."

"You're a goddess, you know that?" Lucas told her.

"Rest and eat." The door to the trailer opened and closed behind her as she left. Lucas ate what he could, then reviewed the scenes for tomorrow before trying to sleep.

HE HATEDplanes, especially when he was tired. Lucas could never sleep regardless of how comfortable the seat was or how well his noise-canceling headphones worked. Fortunately, Rachel sat next to him in first class, and he could relax knowing she'd run interference for him. Airports were another matter entirely, with crowds of people trying to get where they needed. Things got tougher when a lady recognized him just outside the gate in Detroit and decided to scream his name up and down the concourse. Lucas never stopped moving and made it to his connection on time. He settled in his seat, doing his best not to be recognized.

"We're fine now," Rachel said. "The crew is aware and will keep people moving." She was almost as efficient as Karen.

By the time they landed and got in the car, Lucas could barely keep his eyes open. He got as comfortable as he could, put the seat back as far as it would go, and fell asleep, only waking when the sound of the wheels changed. "What happened?"

"The clouds opened up," Rachel said as she continued driving, water everywhere. "Reports are that this continues all the way to our destination. I slowed down, but I want to get off the road as quickly as I can. Go back to sleep if you want. It's going to take a while."

"Thanks." Lucas closed his eyes once more and let exhaustion take over. He was in the best hands possible.

"Sir," Rachel said as they got off the freeway.

"Lucas, please," he said gently.

"Do you want to go to the hotel or right up to the hospital?" Rachel asked.

"My aunt's." He showed her the address on his phone, and she pulled over, entered it into her phone, and then followed the directions through the driving rain.

Things were still largely the same as he remembered. There was the McDonald's where he'd gotten his first job, and the Meijers grocery store. They passed the hospital in Ludington and continued west into town before turning off the main street. Rachel found the house easily, and it seemed just the same too. Basically square, two stories. White with green trim.

The rain let up a little, and Rachel reached into the back seat and retrieved two black umbrellas. He took one and cracked the door, popped the umbrella open, and then got out of the car.

"Do you want me to come?"

"Yes." He wasn't going to ask her to wait in the car. "I have no idea what I'm walking into as far as the family is concerned. If things start to go south, remind me of a meeting with Spielberg and we'll get out of here." That always worked. Poor Steven took more fake meetings than anyone in Hollywood. "If I ask you to postpone my afternoon meeting, then you'll know everything is okay."

"What's your code word?" Rachel asked. "What will you say if I'm to get you out now?"

"Bananas. I hate the danged things, so if I say something nice about them or ask for one, we go now." She nodded, and Lucas hurried to the front door, which opened right away.

"I thought you were going to stand out there talking all day," his aunt said with a smile before ushering him inside. Lucas had barely gotten his umbrella down before he was hugged within an inch of his life. "It's good to see you in real life. I see all your movies." She released him and stepped back. "You look better in person, but you're too skinny."

Rachel came in and closed the door.

"Aunt Rose, this is Rachel."

"I see," she said, narrowing her gaze.

"Aunt Rose, no conclusion jumping. Rachel is here as my assistant and as security."

Aunt Rose shook her head. "She looks like a stiff breeze could blow her away."

Lucas chuckled. "Be nice. I've seen her take down men four times her size and leave them whimpering for their mamas on the sidewalk. She's not someone you want to piss off." He winked at Rachel, and she crossed her arms over her chest, looking even more badass.

"I see. Do you want some tea or coffee?" she asked both of them.

"Coffee for both of us is fine." He'd seen Rachel mainline the stuff. "Then we should go up to see Dad." Get that over with. Then maybe he could head back to the land of sunshine and swimming pools, where movie stars belonged.

Aunt Rose led the way into her bright, warm kitchen. Lucas had spent many hours at the table in this room, eating cookies and brownies as Aunt Rose helped him learn his lines for whatever play or show he could get a part in. She brought them coffee and then sat down across from him. "Your dad is fading fast. When I saw him this morning, he was talking a little, but he's really weak. His liver and kidneys are shutting down, as are other organs." She sipped from her mug, and Lucas bought his own to his lips and sipped the nectar of life with gratitude. "I didn't say anything on the phone, but he's been asking for you."

Lucas sighed. "That's a surprise."

"When you know you're going to meet your maker, you realize what's important." Aunt Rose lifted her gaze to the holy pictures on the wall. "This is a chance for both of you to have a little peace."

"What about the arrangements?"

"They've all been made already. Cremation, a simple service, and then he'll be interred with our parents. There's nothing you need to do." That was Aunt Rose. If they let her, she could run the Pentagon in her spare time. "How long will you be staying?"

Lucas shrugged.

"Karen figured three or four days," Rachel said. "But she left things open for you."

"Then I'll be here for a couple of days or so. I just finished filming and don't start another project for two more weeks."

Aunt Rose clapped her hands once, grinning. "Then you can stay for the children's benefit. We're raising money for a new addition to the hospital for pediatrics. We've been having a hard time selling tickets. It's just a few days, and it could mean so much to the area where you grew up."

Rachel finished her coffee, and Lucas switched mugs with her. "Let me think about it." He looked outside and saw the rain had let up. "Why don't we go to the hospital to see Dad?" he told Rachel. "We passed it on the way here. Then we can check in and I can rest awhile."

"Very good," Rachel said, and they all stood. Lucas hugged his aunt and promised to call her. Then he and Rachel left the house and retraced their steps. When they parked in the hospital lot, the clouds hung low, and it looked like they would open up again at any moment. Lucas went inside and up to the visitors' desk. "Adam Reardon," he told the lady.

She looked up at him. "Only family members are allowed."

"I'm his son," Lucas said, and she lifted her gaze. He realized the moment she recognized him. To her credit, she didn't yell, but she did smile brightly.

"And this lady?" she asked.

Lucas leaned forward. "She's my security. I'm sure you can imagine how it is," he said somberly, and she nodded. "I don't want to cause a fuss." He forced a slight smile, and the lady handed him visitor passes. He and Rachel went up to the second floor and down to the ICU. He headed down the hallway. Two children, about eight and ten, stood outside the room, and then a pair of littler ones stopped in the doorway.

"Bye, Grandpa Adam," one of the little ones said. The others crowded into the doorway, waving and saying goodbye. Then a figure from Lucas's past stepped out of the room.

Lucas knew him instantly. Hell, he'd know Matthew Wilson anywhere, even after all these years. He took the younger ones by the hand, and the entire little group turned Lucas's way.

Lucas couldn't breathe for a second, and he wasn't even sure Matthew noticed him. When Matthew paused and lifted the smallest little boy into his arms, Lucas said gently, "Matthew."

Matthew turned, eyes widening, and then his lips curled into a smile. "Lucas." He turned back toward Lucas's father's room. "I got special permission to bring the kids up to say goodbye." His smile faded. "This is Will, Gregory, Brianna, and Carl." He indicated each from oldest to youngest and smiled at the boy in his arms. "They're my sister Eden's children."

"Grandpa Adam is dying," Carl said before burying his face in Matthew's shirt. "Like Mommy and Daddy."

Well, that answered half the questions running through Lucas's head.

"I need to get them home," Matthew said, and their little group continued down the hall. Lucas couldn't help turning to watch Matthew go, and noticed that he looked over his shoulder before reaching the bend in the hall.

"Old friend of yours?" Rachel asked.

Lucas nodded. "The one I let get away." And the man he had thought about almost every day since he left town. He went to the room and stepped inside.

His father lay on the hospital bed, eyes closed. Lucas was tempted to leave, but then his father's eyes slid open, so Lucas came forward. "Aunt Rose said you were asking for me."

His father blinked and opened his mouth, but no words came out. He raised his hand, and Lucas took it. For so many years he had hated this man. Every time he needed to bring up a well of emotion or strong, deep hatred in a movie, he thought of him, and every director and critic remarked on the power of his performances. But now, standing here next to him, none of that mattered. His father had always seemed so big, and now there was very little left of him.

"I never understood," he whispered as he squeezed Lucas's hand.

"What, Dad?" he asked softly.

"I never understood, but I do now." He squeezed Lucas's hand a final time, and then his fingers went lax.

The beeping of the monitor stopped, and Lucas turned away. At least he had made it in time.