Page 67 of Cast to be Mine

Grace was quiet, listening.

“After that, your father spread rumors about her. Said she was difficult, unprofessional. Worse.” My jaw clenched at the memory of my father’s voice, the anger that had been simmering for decades. “Then he tried to sue her for damages when his movie fell apart.”

“Oh God.” Grace pressed a hand to her forehead. “I had no idea it was that bad.”

“The lawsuits didn’t go anywhere. But the rumors did. My mom had to fight like hell to rebuild her reputation after that.” I shrugged. “Dad’s never forgiven him. He thinks your father tried to destroy her career out of spite. And tried to break my parents up.”

Grace looked stricken. “I’m so sorry. I knew there was bad blood, but my father never told me the details. Just said your family couldn’t be trusted.” She laughed bitterly. “Sounds like he was projecting.”

“Maybe. Or maybe he genuinely believes his version of events.” I reached out, touching her knee. “Either way, it’s not your fault. You’re not your father any more than I’m my father.”

She covered my hand with hers. “This makes things complicated, doesn’t it?”

“My father would be pretty upset if he knew I was here having dinner with you,” I admitted.

She smiled wryly. “My father would be too, I think. He’d probably see it as some kind of betrayal.”

We sat with that for a moment. Our family history alone was enough to squash whatever was happening between us. Add in the professional element, and this little dinner date was a terrible idea.

I thought about my father’s warning. The decades of bad blood still simmering between our families. The many ways this could blow up in both our faces.

“How wild that I’ve never heard about this big feud,” she murmured. “Hollywood feuds are the stuff of legends.”

“I’m guessing it was kept quiet on both sides because it makes them both look bad,” I said. “Both our fathers are successful. Neither of them suffered. And it sure as hell didn’t hold my mom back.”

She nodded. “True, but still. You would think that them keeping it quiet all these years meant it was over, but the second they hear we’re working together, they act like we’re kicking off the Cold War 2.0.”

I chuckled. “Maybe we’re half-siblings.”

She cringed. “What? Ew. Gross.”

“Your dad liked my mom. Timing is all wrong but maybe there was a wild night and hello me.”

She shook her head. “You’ve been immersed in Hollywood life for too long.”

“Maybe.”

“Have you seen your father? Your brothers? You guys are like little carbon copies. There is zero denying your DNA.”

I laughed. “That would make one hell of a story, right? Maybe I’ll find a script writer. I could totally spin that.”

She burst into laughter. “I will not be auditioning for that role.”

“Why not?”

She wrinkled her nose. “I don’t even want to think about getting hot and heavy with my brother.”

“That’d be the story,” I said. “That’s the drama. Hook up. Fall in love. Find out they might be siblings. And then whole push and pull.”

“You’re nuts.”

“Probably.”

“Would you ever want to work with me again?” she asked softly.

“Yep.”

“That was quick.”