Baby On His Hollywood Doorstep

Chapter Four

If Jack had been alone, he might have spewed an entire sentence of curse words, but he wasn’t alone. The woman standing before him was hiding something, and she was holding his niece. His niece. And he didn’t have a clue as to what to do about that. About either of them. He’d never been so out of his element as when Grace had started to cry. Nor had he ever been so relieved as when Helen had shown back up in the doorway.

He’d also never seen fear in someone’s eyes like what had appeared in hers when he’d asked if she had to return to Chicago.

Damn it to hell, this shouldn’t even be his problem. It should be Joe’s.

Which is precisely what made it his. And why it fit so well. Every time he was almost there, almost to the point where everything was good and right, Joe stepped in. It had been that way his entire life. So why should it change now?

Angry like he hadn’t been in some time, he spun around. Ran a hand through his hair, and tried to think. Nothing came to him, much like a few minutes ago, when Grace had been crying.

He huffed a breath of scalding air, full of anger toward Joe for once again leaving him with a mess to clean up, and then drew in another breath. His hands were tied, like they had been so many times before.

Unlike his brother, he’d always accepted that honesty was the best policy, so he turned around. “I have to be up front with you. I don’t have a clue how to take care of a baby, nor do I have a clue where Joe is. Last I heard it was Florida, and I will call some connections I have there, see if they’ve heard from him, know where he is, but it could be days, weeks, before I learn about his whereabouts.”

She didn’t make a move, or say a word, other than to glance down at the baby in her arms.

Frustration had his nerve endings tingling. “And there’s more. I have a movie to make. The actors have been hired, the sets have been built, the script’s written. We start filming in the morning. I have two months, eight weeks from start to finish, to get it filmed, edited and ready to show. If that doesn’t happen, I’ll have to lock the doors of the studio permanently.” He’d never admitted that realization, not even to himself, but it was the truth. The movies he’d made the last couple of years had been small-budget productions, and the minimum runs they’d been given in theaters had barely been enough to pay the salaries of his crew and the actors, especially once the Broadbents had been given payments toward Joe’s debt.

Her gaze was on him, and remained there as she nodded.

At a loss, he let out a sigh. “I know that’s not your problem. That none of this is your problem.” He wished it wasn’t his problem, either, but it was. That little girl in her arms was his niece and like it or not, he couldn’t turn his back on her. “But I don’t know what to do, other than to ask you what it will take for you to agree to continue to care for Grace for the next eight weeks?”

“Eight weeks?”

The fear in her eyes returned full force. He didn’t want yet another issue, but couldn’t deny that it was his only option to deal with it. Whatever it was. “You have to level with me, doll. Tell me what’s really going on. Why you’re acting like some moll on the lam.”

Her head snapped back as if she’d been struck a blow on the chin. “I’m not a moll, and I’m not your doll, either.”

There was fire in her eyes, which was surprising considering how meek she’d been a moment ago. He hadn’t meant she was a gangster’s gal, or his doll, but that really had struck a nerve with her. Which he was going to take advantage of now that he had her full attention. “Then what are you?”

A frown filled her face, but not her eyes, they were still snapping.

“Why are you hiding and what are you running from?” he added.

She stood stock-still for so long he wondered if she was going to answer. When she did finally move, it was to lift the baby in her arms up against one shoulder and pat Grace’s small back. He held his silence. Watching her movements. Once again, the idea of filming her entered his mind. He had to push it away, which wasn’t easy. Her movements were elegant, smooth. Graceful. It was her thoughtfulness, that really held his attention. How she was contemplating her next move. The audience would see that too, and wonder, just as he was, what she was about to say.

“I came here fully expecting to give Grace to her father, that he’d know how to take care of her.”

“And then?” he asked.

She shook her head.

He could tell she was being honest, and honesty brought honesty. “I haven’t talked to my brother in over two years, but would doubt he’d know any more about taking care of a baby than I do.”

“Why haven’t you talked to him in two years?”

He was tired of standing, and figured she was too, so waved at the sofa, silently inviting her to sit down.

She watched him cautiously as she crossed the room and then perched herself on the edge of the cushion, almost as if prepared to jump up and run for the door all over again.

He sat in the chair next to the sofa, but it wasn’t standing that he was tired of, it was this—another obstacle. “I haven’t talked to Joe in two years because he was blackballed from acting in Hollywood and left the state. I tried to smooth things over, but...” He shook his head. There hadn’t been anything he could do. No one had wanted to hear him defend his brother. He’d told Joe that, and that he wasn’t going to lose his standings for Joe’s mistakes. Not again. That’s when Joe had sold out to the Broadbents and left town.

“What had he done to become blackballed?”

“Misconduct.” He shrugged. In truth, Joe’s actions had been no different than half the men in Hollywood, more maybe, he was just the one unlucky enough to get tangled up with the wrong doll. The movie industry wanted the world to believe they had standards and every once in a while, they pulled out a stool pigeon to prove a point. That had been Joe. Jack understood all this, but that didn’t mean he condoned Joe’s actions. Fooling around with a married woman was wrong and one married to a topliner was downright reckless. He shook his head. “Joe had been a good actor, had become popular, and he’d let that popularity go to his head.”

She frowned. “Will he be back? To Hollywood?”

“I honestly don’t know, but I doubt it.”

Letting out a heavy sigh, she glanced down at Grace. “Not even for his daughter?”

Jack didn’t know. Long ago he’d stopped trying to figure out his brother. There were times Joe had been there when he’d needed him. When they’d been in their teens and their parents had died. Joe had gotten them to California and then taken on any and all menial jobs he could get, while insisting Jack go to school. Filmmaking was new and raw then, and Joe hung in there when others hadn’t and finally worked his way into acting. The money he’d made then had not only kept them both in food and clothes, it had funded the start of Star’s Studio.

Although he hadn’t wanted that in the beginning—he’d wanted to try something completely different from what he’d always known—he’d stuck with it because Joe had wanted it.

They’d made money, more than they would have elsewhere, and he owed his brother for that. For all he had, and always would. He’d never forgotten that, either. Nor would.

“I won’t know that until I talk to him.” He’d make some calls in the morning, to a couple of the film companies that were popping up down in Florida. He’d heard through the grapevine that Joe had been down there, looking for work a few months ago. Trouble was, Joe might not call him back. They’d been at crossroads when Joe had left, and nothing had happened to resolve that.

“I have no idea when that might be,” he admitted. “But, I can promise, that if you give me eight weeks, enough time to get this movie made and into theaters, I’ll then take over full responsibility for Grace. I’ll pay for all of her needs starting right now. I just need you to take care of her.”

“Eight weeks...”

The tremors in her voice shifted his train of thought. He knew actors. There were people who could instantly step into a role, become a character completely, then there were others, that no matter how hard they tried, they couldn’t act. Couldn’t pretend to be anyone other than themselves.

He’d put her in that second category. She also couldn’t hide something else. She was scared. Beyond scared. Her hands were trembling and she kept glancing at Grace, almost as if the baby might pop up and fly away like some little bird.

“What aren’t you telling me?” he asked.

She looked away while gnawing on her bottom lip. Even her arms were trembling. So was her chin.

“What’s preventing you from accepting my offer?” he asked.

“Nothing.”

His hope rose. “Nothing?”

She shook her head. “Everything.”

Huffing out a breath, he asked, “Which is it? Nothing or everything?” Maybe all of his imagining her on the big screen was because she could act. Or lie. Had been lying all along. “Is Grace not who you say she is? Is she your baby and you made all this up about Vera and Joe?”

“No.” Her shoulders squared as she leveled a glare on him. “Everything I have told you about Grace and Vera is true. The letters say as much.”

He didn’t need to read the letters. He knew she wasn’t lying. He was just stuck between a rock and a hard spot. “I’m sorry. I do believe you.” Standing, he rubbed at the tension in the back of his neck. “There is one other thing that I haven’t mentioned yet. Another reason I need you to care for Grace.”

“What is it?”

“Right now, while I’m making this movie and getting it out to the public, I can’t have word spread that I’ve taken in Joe’s abandoned baby. This is Hollywood. The rules change daily. That could be enough to have me blackballed for still associating with my brother.” His own words sickened him. “I know that sounds selfish, but it’s the truth. I can’t argue for it or against it, it’s just what it is right now.”

“So you want me to pretend like Grace is my baby?”

He didn’t want to face her, but did. “I want you to go on taking care of her, not saying anything, one way or the other.” He wasn’t proud of this, but he had to think of his future, of what this movie meant, perhaps even more now than ever. He had Grace to think about. Her future.

Chapter Five

Helen couldn’t move, not even breathe. Her entire life had been full of not saying a word one way or the other. And she’d been pretending Grace was her baby. Right down to her heart. Right from the beginning.

Then her heart began to pound, her mind spun, but it wasn’t all because of her, or Grace. It was because of him. She could relate to his predicament. She didn’t know anything about making a movie, had only seen a couple in her entire life, but she could relate to being put in a situation without any control or any way out. He wasn’t seeking a way out, just some time to get things in order, so he could take care of Grace.

“You and Grace can stay at my apartment,” he said. “I’ll pay for everything. Milk, food, clothes.”

Could she do it? Take care of Grace for another eight weeks? That part would be easy. No different from what she had already been doing. Others had helped her during her desperation, despite the dangers that may have put them in. Especially Mr. and Mrs. Amery. They’d let her live above their grocery store, brought in a doctor for Vera.

Maybe this was her chance. A chance to see if she had gotten far enough away. The thrill that stirred in her stomach surprised her, as did how fast she made up her mind. “That won’t be necessary. Julia said Grace and I could stay with her.”

The look of surprise on his face made her lips tremble. They wanted to smile. She wanted to smile.

A twinkle sparked in his eyes and a dimple formed in one of his cheeks as a grin formed. “You mean you’ll help me?”

“Yes. I’ll stay. Take care of Grace for eight weeks.”

He grimaced slightly. “Maybe nine? Depending on how filming goes?”

Her smile broke free, but she was able to contain the rest of the emotions fluttering in her stomach. “We’ll see. I can’t promise how long Julia will need a dishwasher.”

He frowned. “A dishwasher?”

“Yes, she offered room and board in exchange for washing dishes.” Julia had said the deal still stood, and Helen sincerely hoped it would last for at least eight weeks.

“How will you be able to take care of Grace while washing dishes?”

“I’ll manage just fine.” Now that her mind was made up, she was anxious to get settled. An excited anxious, which hadn’t happened in some time. Securing her hold on Grace, Helen stood. “This little girl will need to eat soon.”

“I found the can opener,” he said while walking toward his desk. “But wasn’t sure if I should open the milk or not.”

“I’ll feed her at Julia’s and get her settled in for the night.”

He glanced at his watch. “The diner is already closed for the night. I’ll walk you over to the house.” He picked up the bag and nodded toward the door.

The diner was only across the street, yet she didn’t protest his offer.

He shut off the office light and walked beside her down the long hallway. “We start filming first thing in the morning, but I’ll make time to get to the bank.”

Money was a necessity, she’d understood that for years. It was that it was earned fairly that she was concerned about. “I won’t accept money from you for taking care of Grace, but I will accept a case of canned milk for her, and more when that’s gone. That’s all we’ll need.”

He looked at her quizzically, but didn’t respond as they crossed the front room of the studio. At the door, he opened it, waited for her to step outside and then shut off the light. He also locked the door after closing it.

She didn’t know what time it was, but darkness had settled, the street quiet. So quiet it echoed in her ears.

A moment later, her steps faltered as a shiver rippled her spine. “What was that?” she asked, referring to a strange sound. Like a yip and then faint howl from a dog.

“Haven’t you ever heard a coyote before?”

She tightened her hold on Grace. “No. Never.” The sound came again, and it was unnerving.

“Don’t they have coyotes in Illinois?”

“Possibly, but not in Chicago.”

“You lived there your entire life?”

“Yes.”

“And never left the city?”

“No.”

He took her elbow and stepped into the street. “Well, Los Angeles isn’t as big as Chicago, yet. It’s growing though, every day more land surrounding the city is bought up and developed. That growth is invading on the coyotes’ and other critters’ native hunting grounds.”

Another shiver rippled through her. “Native hunting grounds?”

“Yes.”

That sounded so primitive, and made her wary. “You’re just saying that to scare me.”

He frowned. “Why would I do that? I have no reason to try and scare you. This area has always had coyotes. It was cropland and orchards at one time. Julia still has a large plot of land behind her place that grows produce. The crops bring in the rabbits and the rabbits bring in the coyotes.”

That made sense, but didn’t make her feel any more comfortable. Neither did the darkness. She’d never been overly brave when it came to that. Junior had always called her a scaredy-cat because she’d refused to go anywhere in the dark alone. She’d overcome some of that, but those yipping sounds were enough to make a grown man quiver.

Not Jack though. He didn’t appear nervous at all.

He was tall, much taller than her, and broader. His white shirt showed the thickness of his arm muscles, and that did provide her a small sense of comfort. “Do they attack people?”

“Coyotes?”

“Yes.”

“No, they are more afraid of you than you are of them.”

She doubted a coyote, or any other animal could ever feel the same amount of fear toward her as she did toward them. “You don’t know that.”

“Yes, I do.”

They stepped up on the curb in front of the diner and then walked along the front of the building. There were no streetlights here, no light except for the moon, which wasn’t nearly as bright as she wished it could be. “How? How do you know that?”

“Because unlike humans, animals are smart. They won’t attack anything bigger than themselves.”

“Unless cornered,” she said, recalling she’d been told that at some time. “What if we corner one?”

“We won’t corner one. Coyotes are smarter than that.”

That didn’t satisfy her. “How do you know that?”

“Because I’ve seen plenty. They sneak into the back filming lot all the time, but as soon as they see a person, they run.” He led her around the corner of the diner building.

It was even darker back here, and she shivered again, held Grace tighter. There was a cluster of trees between them and Julia’s house, she could make that much out, and she wasn’t looking forward to walking on the little pathway that led through the trees.

The trail narrowed and she had to either step behind or in front of him.

He paused.

She nearly stumbled.

“There’s nothing to be afraid of.”

She denied the truth. “I’m not scared, I just like being prepared.” That said, she came up with a plan. “We’ll need to run if we see a coyote and I’m not sure of the way.”

He chuckled. “Do you have any idea how fast a coyote can run?”

“No. Do you?”

“Yes. Faster than both of us put together.” He tugged on her arm and started walking again. “You really are a city girl.”

She hung close to his side, and chose not to reply. She might be a city girl, but also had good reason to be afraid of the dark. Chicago might not have had coyotes, but it had all sorts of things that could attack you late at night.

In the dark.

Like this.

“Don’t fret, we’re almost there.”

She forced her feet to keep moving as they grew closer and closer to the cluster of trees.

* * *

Jack bit the inside of his cheek to keep from laughing. He might never have seen someone as scared as she was right now. Someone who’d never heard the sound before could be scared by a coyote’s howl. There was an eeriness to it like no other. But it was also easy to get used to. He remembered falling to sleep to the sound. It had been a long way between towns while his parents had been acting in playhouses across the center of the nation. During good years, they’d traveled by trains. Not so good years, it had been a wagon and horse. Once it had been a mule, one that had been too stubborn to move most of the time.

He and Joe had spent hours pulling that stupid critter forward, and had slept a lot of nights beneath that wagon. Remembering listening to coyotes was a good memory. That meant it hadn’t been raining or snowing. There had been nights he’d probably have frozen to death if Joe hadn’t snuggled up against him. Kept him warm.

A walk down memory lane wasn’t what he needed right now.

“So,” he started, looking for something else to focus on. “You lived in Chicago your entire life, but don’t have any family there?”

“No. None.”

He nodded, but didn’t say anything because concern tickled his spine. He should be able to see lights on at Julia’s house. It was just on the other side of the grove of trees.

Side by side, they stepped through the trees, and he surveyed the house. The dark house. “Julia must have already gone to bed.”

“Is it that late?” Her voice quivered slightly.

“No, actually, her car is gone,” he answered, nodding toward where it was usually parked. “She must have had somewhere to go tonight.”

“Maybe someone borrowed her car,” she said hopefully.

“Let’s go see,” he said, stepping forward.

A few minutes later, Jack wasn’t sure if he was happy or not. No one answered the door and the place was locked tight. He couldn’t leave them here, not without Julia home, and Grace was getting fussy. Hungry. Wet. Both maybe. He didn’t know.

He had offered to take them to his apartment, and would, if necessary, but he wasn’t so sure that was a good idea.

Grace let out a solid wail.

Helen talked softly to the baby, but her fussiness continued. Not an all-out cry like before, but it sounded like that’s what she was working up to.

Good idea or not, he didn’t have a choice. “Let’s go.”

“Go where?”

“To my apartment.”

“But—”

“Julia’s not home, and Grace is hungry, or wet or something.” He took hold of Helen’s elbow again and turned her back toward the trail that led through the grove of trees. “I’ll give you a ride back here in the morning.”

This time she was too busy dealing with Grace to worry about coyotes. He led her all the way to his car in the studio’s parking lot, and held the door open while she climbed in, trying her best to hush the fussy baby.

“It’s not far,” he said, dropping the bag in the backseat before closing the door and walking around to the driver’s side.

The three miles to the apartment went quickly, in some ways. To Grace, it appeared, it was way too long. She was crying in earnest by the time he parked the car.

“She’ll quiet down as soon as she’s fed,” Helen said, as if apologizing.

Like before, the sound of Gracie’s sobs did something to his heart. Though his niece would never remember this night, she was far too young, he could remember being hungry. It was a miserable feeling.

“This way,” he said, grabbing the bag out of the backseat as soon as Helen had climbed out. “Through that door and up the stairs.”

There was a total of sixteen apartments in the building. His was on the second of four floors. Solidly built of bricks, the walls were thick so he wasn’t overly concerned that Grace’s crying would disturb anyone. If it did, too bad.

Helen talked quietly to the baby, telling her everything would be all right very soon, as they hurried to the building and up the stairs. He unlocked the door and let them in, then hit the light switch, kicked the door shut and set the bag on the table near the door so he could open it all at the same time.

He found the bottle, milk and can opener. Unsure what to do, he set them on the little table. “Here, I’ll take her. The kitchen is straight ahead. You get the bottle ready.”

“Thank you,” Helen said. “I’ll hurry. I’ve rarely heard her cry like this.”

The moment he took Grace and placed her up against his chest, she stopped crying. Her little body shook slightly from the remnants of her sobs, but as her eyes met his, her little petal-shaped lips formed a smile.

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