The Hudsons: Max, Bella and Devlin. Maureen Child

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СКАЧАТЬ a shortage of time?” Markus Hudson, Max’s father and the CEO of Hudson Pictures, countered.

      Dana liked Markus, and she saw a lot of him because he was close to Max and often stopped by the office to chat. Markus was a wonderful husband, father and son.

      While only Dana and Max occupied the office, Max’s oldest brother Dev, the COO of Hudson Pictures, plus Luc, Max’s younger brother who acted as PR director, had joined them on the conference call but had been silent thus far.

      “What kind of trouble, David?” Max asked.

      “Willow Films is making a World War II picture scheduled for release just prior to Honor.”

      Dana gasped and nearly dropped the pen she held for note taking. Willow was Hudson’s biggest rival. There wasn’t a lot of good feeling between the two film companies. In fact, the competition sometimes turned ugly.

      “Worse,” David continued, “rumor has it the story has some similarities to Lillian and Charles’s. But I can’t get anyone to tell me how similar the two films are.”

      “How accurate is your source?” Dev asked.

      “I trust it,” David replied.

      Dana could feel Max’s tension and see it in the lines on his face. His fingers fisted on his desktop. “Even if we could swing an earlier release at this late date, I don’t think I can finish Honor any faster.”

      “We’re not asking that of you, son.” Markus’s voice filled the room. “But we might need to put a PR spin on this to make our film sound bigger and better and different or Willow will kill our momentum.”

      “I’ll get on it,” Luc said. “But it would help to know more about their product.”

      “I’ll see what I can get,” David said, “but they’re pretty damned tight-lipped.”

      Adrenaline rushed through Dana’s system. One of her past boyfriends was an assistant director for Willow, and she and Doug had parted on good terms. In fact, he owed her a favor….

      She sat up straighter as she turned an idea over in her mind. Could she get the information this group needed out of Doug?

      She opened her mouth to volunteer, but sealed her lips without saying a word. Why make promises she wasn’t sure she could keep? Best to test the waters first.

      But the chance to do something to make Max notice her had fallen right in her lap. And she was determined not to blow it.

      “Long time no see, babe,” Doug said as he joined Dana at The Castaway in Burbank on Tuesday evening.

      Dana had invited Doug to the restaurant in the hills overlooking the golf course because it had been his favorite back when they were dating. Once the sun set and the city lights twinkled below, the setting would be magical. Too bad it had never sparked romance between them.

      “I’m glad you could make it on short notice.” She rose from her seat and leaned forward to kiss his cheek. As usual, the doofus turned his head at the last second and she caught him square on the mouth. He was one of those people who kissed every female, young or old, on the lips, and because he was the total package—smart, ambitious, charming and attractive in a golden-boy kind of way—he could get away with it. Unfortunately, there had never been any chemistry between them, not even a tiny fizz. But they’d given it their best shot.

      “Lucky you called when you did. The boss and I leave on recce at the crack of dawn tomorrow. I won’t be back for at least two weeks, longer if it doesn’t go well.”

      “Ooh, I’m jealous. I love scouting out potential locations. Where are you headed?”

      “Can’t say. Top secret. But it’s somewhere warm and sunny with umbrella drinks.” His blue eyes, shades paler than Max’s, glimmered with amusement. He took his seat. “Congrats on the promotion.”

      “You heard?”

      “Tinseltown is a small, gossipy community. Besides, you were once my girl, so I keep tabs on you. Liking the job so far?”

      “Most of it. It has a steep learning curve, but I’m learning from the best.” She wasn’t going to tell him Max was working her fanny off, and she was lucky to get six hours of sleep each night or that she loved every minute of the torture.

      “I’ll bet it’s a load of pressure with Honor nearing completion.”

      She smiled. He’d opened the subject, which made her job easier. As an assistant director, Doug assisted the director much the way she assisted Max. Doug didn’t actually direct and he was okay with that. She’d have preferred the more creative position. But his job meant he knew a lot about ongoing projects.

      “Yes, there is a lot of tension at the moment. I hear Willow has its own World War II film coming out soon.”

      “You heard correctly.”

      “Is it a romance?”

      One corner of his mouth rose in a teasing smile. “Could be.”

      “Oh, c’mon, Doug.”

      He leaned forward and caught both of her hands in his on the table. It was a familiar gesture, one he’d done dozens of times before. “Why should I share with you? You work for the enemy, remember?”

      “What do you have to lose? Everyone in Hollywood already knows the gist of Charles’s and Lillian’s story, and your picture is coming out first. Besides, I introduced you to the person who ended up hiring you for this job you adore, remember?”

      Doug used to live in her building and had been her premiere date on more than one occasion before they’d tried and failed to be more than just occasional stand-in dates. She’d made the job connection for him at an after party.

      “Good point.” He released her, waved down the waiter and ordered a bottle of champagne. They had been together for about a year, and he hadn’t forgotten her preference for Krug Brut Grande Cuvée. “Yes, it’s a romance. I know how much you love sappy love stories.”

      “How similar is it to Honor?”

      “It’s similar.”

      She grimaced. That wasn’t good. “That’s going to make marketing on our end difficult.”

      “Not if you play up the differences.”

      That’s exactly what Markus had said. “How are we going to know what those differences are?”

      The waiter returned with the champagne. Dana impatiently waited for the whole tasting ritual thing to pass and then opened her mouth to repeat her question. Doug halted her with a raised finger.

      “First we celebrate your promotion.” He lifted his glass. She dutifully clinked her rim to his and sipped. The golden liquid bubbled down her throat leaving a nutty, toasted finish behind, but it failed to sooth her agitated nerves. She didn’t need alcohol. She needed answers.

      Doug covered her free hand with his. “Dana, relax. I didn’t work on the film directly, so I don’t СКАЧАТЬ