Meet Me at the Starlight

Chapter 13

HARLOW

A sense of normalcy settled over Harlow as she jogged down Sea Blue Way with Matt the first Wednesday of April, a growing ease in her movement.

In the almost three weeks she’d lived in Sea Blue Beach, she’d developed a routine. Jogging Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. Then chores and errands in the morning before punching in at the Starlight. Last week, when the cute Tony’s pizza delivery boy, Simon Caster, mentioned how he had to part the grass to make it up the walkway, she hired him to mow her lawn and trim the hedges.

At the end of the street, Harlow crossed over with Matt and headed toward the Starlight, where they circled the rink once, then cut through the parking lot toward Pelican Bay Way before heading home.

This morning, Matt picked up the pace as they rounded the Starlight, as if working out his own tensions. Harlow struggled to keep up. By the time they arrived at her front steps, she was breathless and wiping the sweat from her eyes.

“You want water? I need water.”

When Harlow returned with two glasses, Matt said, rather out of the blue, “I stole my first kiss on this porch. Patti Evans. I was sixteen.”

“At some wild Sea Blue Beach rave?”

“Hardly. Granny’s friends, the Nickles, lived here. They were holy people, king and queen of hospitality. They loved to throw parties and host picnics. Half the town came out. If the party wasn’t at the Starlight, it was the Nickles’ place. Grandpa Morris smoked beef and pork that melted in your mouth. He and his brothers had a bluegrass band, pickin’ and grinnin’ long before Hee Haw.” Matt gulped down his water. “I kissed her just as the Fourth of July fireworks started exploding over the beach.” He laughed. “Metaphor, anyone?” He slapped the concrete step. “Kissed her right here. Wonder what she’s up to these days? So, HH, what about you?”

“Me? I didn’t even know Patti Evans, let alone kiss her.”

“Your first kiss, goofball.”

“Oh, that. Hmm, Logan Howard. My first and last crush until Xander.” Except for those first weeks on Talk to Me Sweetly, when the presence of Matt Knight made her quiver. “I was a junior, and he was a senior with gorgeous hair and a motorcycle. Dad liked him. Didn’t bat an eye when I rode off to the movies on the back of his bike. Mom was out shopping, so Dad shooed me out the door quickly. If Mom had seen me on the back of that motorcycle, she’d have chased us down. We saw Gone in 60 Seconds.”

“Love that movie.”

“Afterward, at the Dairy Queen, Logan ordered a milkshake, and I ordered a Sprite. But when he went to say hi to friends, I switched my order to water and pretended it was a soda.”

“Sounds boring.”

“Or crazy. All my life Mom regimented my diet. When modeling jobs started rolling in, she doubled down. Especially after we met Jinx and she talked of bringing me into Icon. Want another little secret? I’d never even had a milkshake until after, well, everything.”

“Never? Not even as a kid? Or at a party?”

“Not that I recall. I started modeling around Atlanta when I was seven. Until two years ago, I’d never tasted Halloween candy or Christmas cookies, ice cream or pizza. In a blind taste test, I couldn’t have told you a Hayes Cookie from an Oreo. I honestly believed if I had anything forbidden, I’d balloon up overnight. And Mom would know the moment I walked through the door. Anne Hayes is one of the original Jedis, you know. She kept a close tab on me. But I didn’t mind, really. My modeling career made her happy, and I loved making her happy.”

“Sheesh, H. But to never have had a milkshake ... I mean ... How could you stand being so controlled?”

“I thought we were talking about first kisses.”

“So we were. All right, you rode off like Easy Rider with Logan, man of great hair. Did he kiss you good night?”

“He did.” Her cheeks warmed at the memory. “We lingered at the door, and as much as I wanted him to kiss me, I was terrified. Then he put his arm around me and looked into my eyes. I’ll never forget how his lips felt—cool and soft.”

“Like a chocolate shake.”

She laughed. “Maybe. I was puckered with goose bumps. A real ‘Dear Diary’ moment. I floated inside, ready to tell my parents everything, but they were in Dad’s study, talking, and Mom was crying.” Her mother’s tears were Harlow’s kryptonite. “She’d seen me arrive home on the back of the bike. It terrified her. She was saying things like ‘I’m losing her’ and accused Dad of undermining her plans for my career. Then Dad said, ‘Isn’t it more your career, Anne? You’re still mad at me about everything.’ I never even knew Mom had a career. She met Dad in college. They married after he graduated. I crept upstairs and put Carole King on the record player. Two months later, she said Jinx wanted me in New York and whisked me away.”

“Why did you love to make your mother happy?”

“Back to first kisses.” Harlow gulped the last of her water. “I never kissed Logan again. Apparently you never kissed Patti again.”

“Nope.”

Their laughter mingled. “Oh, to not be sixteen again,” Harlow said.

“I’d be sixteen again if it meant I could meet you. Keep you from Xander Cole.”

“You met me two weeks before Xander.” She peered at him through the dappled light breaking through the leaves. “I don’t regret Xander, Matt. I loved him more than anything. He loved me, or so he said. But Davina had a hold on him he couldn’t break. She broke his heart. Broken things want to be mended. If Xander came waltzing into Sea Blue Beach and said, ‘I love you and want you back,’ I’m not sure what I’d do.”

Matt squeezed her hand. “Promise you’ll call me if he does.”

“They’ve gone public with their wedding. I won’t be hearing from him.”

“Remember when we went out to dinner? The first week of filming?”

“Of course I remember. You were charming.”

“As were you.”

“We laughed a lot, drank too much wine.”

“Talked over each other half the night because we liked all the same things.”

“You held my hand across the table.”

“You kicked me under said table when I didn’t see a hovering fan.” Matt feigned a wince.

Harlow laughed. “Oh, that’s right. She was all of sixteen. So cute and sweet.”

“She asked for my autograph . . . for her grandpa.”

Harlow hadn’t laughed this easily in two years.

“I’m sorry we lost touch, H,” Matt said.

“Well, we’re in touch now, aren’t we?”

Grinning and casting side glances at each other, they lingered in silence and the beauty of the morning. Harlow felt a bit giddy and lighthearted, more than she cared to admit, by being in Matt Knight’s presence.

“I should get going. I need to pick up a few things from Biggs before work.” She gathered their empty glasses. “My boss is a tyrant.”

“I’ve heard he’s a real piece of work.” Matt stood, stretched, and started down the walk. He paused and turned back. “I’m just going to say it. I like you, Harlow, and I want to know your story. Can I ask you about Xander or your parents or your career?”

“Is this a two-way street, Matt Knight?”

He made a face, the one that enchanted female moviegoers the world over. “With a few red lights, yes.”

She laughed. “You can ask, Matt. Doesn’t mean I have to answer. But there’s a part of me that wants to leave it all behind. Even though things went wrong between me and Xander, I’d like to believe our years together had meaning.”

At last, she’d found a few words to make sense of it all. Right there, on the porch of her Sea Blue Beach home, in the shadow of the Starlight.

In the kitchen, she gulped another glass of water and watched Matt jog through her backyard toward his dad’s place. She grabbed some grapes from the fridge, frowning at the number of takeout cartons on the shelves. Leftovers never got eaten. She collected the lot and tossed them in the trash.

What would life be like if her one dinner date with Matt had flamed into more? What if Xander had never shown up on set? Because from the moment he introduced himself, she was trapped in his orbit and had no choice but to fall in love.

After her run, she showered, fell asleep catching up on her soaps, and woke up in a sun-soaked room. Now she was running late. Mom called as Harlow headed out on her errands.

“How’s it going?” No “hello” or “how are you?” Just “How’s it going?”

“Did I tell you I have a job at a roller-skating rink?”

“You don’t skate.”

“I sell tickets, count money, wash windows, take out the trash.”

“Harlow, you’re an international beauty. Why are you working at a roller rink? How’s the diet? How much have you lost?”

In moments like these, Harlow wondered about her mother’s love. Matt’s comment on Mom’s controlling ways was nothing new. Half the modeling world had made the same observation.

To be sure, their relationship was complicated. Beyond the typical mother-daughter angst. Anne and Harlow Hayes needed each other somehow. For Mom, Harlow seemed to fill an unseen void. For Harlow, it was a profound need to please the woman who’d given her life.

“I’m not sure.”

“You’ve been down there a month, Harlow. Time is of the essence if you want the CCW job. You’re—”

“Mom, please, stop. What about you? How are the vacation plans with Dad?”

“I’m sending you a book on the Atkins diet.” The woman didn’t know the meaning of the word stop. “It’s supposed to help shed pounds quickly. I tried a few recipes. I think you’ll like it. Vacation is postponed. Maybe after you sign with CCW, we can all go.”

“Me? I’ll be working. Mom, is everything—” Dare she ask? Prod into her parents’ marriage? Harlow softened. Despite being a complicated woman, Mom loved her family. “Hey, thanks for calling. I’ve got some errands to run before work.”

Walking down her front sidewalk toward Biggs, Harlow felt at home with the sights and sounds of Sea Blue Beach. She passed the Tasty Dip with resolve and entered the grocery store’s ice-cold atmosphere. Usually after a Mom call, she reached for comfort in the form of pralines and cream. Today, comfort was the face of the big green scale.

Glancing around to ensure the coast was clear, Harlow Hayes kicked off her Keds as a trio of ladies entered, glancing at her with a sense of curiosity and sympathy.

For the first time in her life, Harlow felt a part of the general womanhood. She was down with them in the struggle. No longer one of the beautiful people who appeared to have it all together.

“Hello,” she said tentatively. “Do you know if this scale is accurate?”

“I have never stepped on that thing,” the tall one said.

“I’ve not stepped on a scale in twenty years,” the second lady said, patting Harlow’s arm. “They’re such liars.”

Harlow laughed, while the third woman gave her the once-over. “You look familiar.” But she didn’t wait for an answer. Just pushed her squeaky-wheel cart into the store. “Let’s go, y’all.”

Well, that was fun. Harlow faced Big Green. Liar or not, she had to get a handle on things if she wanted the CCW job. She cringed as the needle swung far—very far—to the right. Oh. Wow. She had no idea. If this scale lied, it lied big!

She felt punched and, frankly, sad. Not because she’d eaten all the forbidden foods of her childhood or rebelled against the standards of her mother and the modeling world, but for giving Xander and her emotions so much power.

Grabbing a shopping cart, she crossed several things off her list—pint of ice cream, peanuts, chocolate syrup—and aimed for the produce section, her confidence from the morning with Matt waning.

Maybe Mom was right. Harlow Hayes needed her.

“Hey, H, are you following me?” Matt strolled toward her with his silver-screen smile. She felt nervous, as if Big Green had plastered her weight on her forehead. But Matt’s attention and smile faded as he noticed the cashier. “Trinity. Hello. I didn’t know you were back in Sea Blue Beach. It’s been a long time since—”

“Let’s not reminisce and pretend, Matt.” Trinity took Harlow’s check, then jotted down her driver’s license number without a blink at her name, cashed her out, and handed over the short receipt. “Have a nice day.”

Harlow exited the register lane with a glance between Matt and the slender woman with even features and tawny skin.

“What’s the story behind that icy exchange?” she whispered.

“Nothing. Look, I need to cash a check. The line at the bank was too long. Wait for me?”

Harlow rested against the end of a closed cash register, the number on the big green scale running through her mind. If she was serious about CCW, she’d have to lose at least forty pounds. After the meeting, they’d ask for another ten. Even then, she’d be fifteen pounds above her supermodel weight.

Did she want to rejoin the grind? Get back into the world of haute couture, rabbit food, and protruding bones? Yes. Because it seemed to be the best way to break Xander’s hold on her.

At customer service, Matt chatted with the man behind the counter and Harlow Hayes wondered what it’d be like to lean against Matt’s thick chest.

She startled when the magazine vendor stocking the aisle dropped the most recent issue of People at her feet. Xander and Davina were on the cover, alongside the headline, The Coles’ Amazing Wedding Plans. Page 21.

Harlow squinted at the image, bending for a closer look. Oh my gosh, Davina was wearing Harlow’s Van Cleef & Arpels Amoureux diamond watch. The one Xander gave her on their first anniversary. “Magic,” he’d said. “We’re magic together.”

When he finally talked to her after the breakup, he told her it was lost.

Air. She needed air.

“Matt, I’ll see you later, okay?” She started for the exit, feeling nervous and full of her failures, but slowed when she heard the familiar whir of a camera shutter.

Paparazzi? In Sea Blue Beach? She scanned the front of the store for a photographer. Listened for more shutter sounds. Except for Matt signing a few autographs, the magazine vendor, a cashier stocking gum and candy, and Trinity, who was cleaning her register, the store was empty.

“Harlow, wait.” Matt jogged toward her. “Is everything okay?”

“Xander and Davina are on the cover of People. I was on the cover with him once. ‘The Billionaire and the Beauty.’ I don’t get it, Matt. Of all the things he told me about her, I can’t believe he . . . well, they were high school sweethearts. It’s hard to compete with that kind of history.” Now that she started talking, Harlow couldn’t stop. “Did you see a photographer anywhere? I thought I heard a shutter click. Next week I’ll probably be on the cover of National Enquirer.” She was shaking, fighting tears.

“Hey, hey, Harlow, it’s going to be all right. Don’t let Xander get to you. He’s a putz. So is she.” Matt wrapped her in his arms, as if he’d done so a thousand times. “Let’s get your stuff home and then have a little Blue Plate therapy.”

“Thanks but no thanks.” She freed herself and headed for the exit. “I just stepped on the big green scale, so I won’t be eating until 1988.”

“Very funny, H. You have to eat to lose weight, and this isn’t about food. Where’s your car? Did you walk?” He retrieved her bags from the cart and pointed to his Porsche. “We’ll drop these at your place, then go to the Blue Plate for a Diet Coke or iced tea.”

“Why are you so nice to me, Matt? And I should remind you that you’re my boss.”

“Okay, let’s drop the boss business.” He closed the trunk and walked around to the passenger door. “Why wouldn’t I be nice, H? Besides, it’s time to shed my bad-boy ways.” He glanced at her. “I’m not that guy.”

“Thank goodness you’ve come to that revelation.” Matt held her hand as she folded into the passenger seat. “And you’re nice to me because the former Most Beautiful Woman in the World is a mockery. A punch line.”

“Are you? ’Cause I’m not laughing.”