The rest of the week saw Star and Damian fall into a routine. Damian would pick Star and Skylar up every morning before dropping Skylar at Breakfast Club, and then in the evenings he would drive her home and they would spend the evening together, either at Star’s house, or they’d travel further out and stay at his parents’ estate.
On the Friday, Star and Damian were preparing for their business dinner. They’d collected Skylar early and headed to his parents in order to get changed and settle Skylar in for the evening. Lucas was recovering fast, and Star could tell he was dying to get back into the throes of the business. Andrew Dennison, however, had other ideas and had demanded his hard work not be in vain, telling Lucas he needed more rest and time off, and that going back to the office too early could set Lucas back and have him retiring permanently. Star had silently celebrated. The longer Lucas remained off, the more time she would have with Damian.
Mary had taken the threat seriously, even if Lucas hadn’t, and she’d coerced him into resting. Damian had agreed to spend longer in the UK office while his father recuperated.
Marcus drove them back into the City, ready for their meeting. This was a more informal meeting, the American Office and the UK office coming together to discuss their high-level plans and desires for the campaign. Damian and Star discussed their strategy in the car, their personal relationship pushed to one side for the evening. Tonight they were professionals, neither one wanting to let this opportunity slip by.
Arriving at the hotel, they were escorted to their seats. Star’s palms were clammy and she had a strong desire to wipe them down the side of her dress to dry them. Instead, she made her excuses and headed to the ladies room in order to freshen up and calm herself before the meeting. She still wasn’t convinced that this client really did want her to be on the team.
Star took a deep breath and composed herself in the mirror. Her cheeks looked flushed and butterflies jumped nervously around in her stomach. She reapplied her powder and stepped towards the door. Opening it, she was surprised to see Damian waiting for her.
“Ready?” he asked, as if knowing why she had needed to escape. “You’ve got this.”
“Tell that to the monkeys having a party in my stomach,” Star replied with a tight smile.
Placing his hand in the small of her back, Damian directed Star into the dining room, the maître d’ leading them to their table. Two men and a woman were already sitting at the table, and they rose to their feet as Damian and Star approached.
Damian stopped next to the tallest of the men, smiling brightly and holding out his hand. “Henri, great to see you,” he said, before moving to shake hands with the woman who Star quickly realised was Henri’s wife, Patrice, and the second man, whose presence froze Star’s blood. Damian was now introducing her, but Star’s gaze was fixed on the third guest, Christian Dupree. It had been nearly seven years since Star had last seen Christian and their meeting in a solicitor’s office had been short and abrupt, as he’d signed his daughter’s adoption papers, handing all responsibility for his new-born child to her. Damian touched her arm, capturing her attention, concern visible on his face.
Star shook her head. “Sorry,” she said, snapping herself back into the present, forcing a smile onto her face before shaking everyone’s hand. Christian didn’t look shocked at her presence but refrained from saying anything to let the others know they knew each other, for which she was grateful.
The rest of the meal went well. The discussions were open and honest. Henri mentioned his close friendship with Matthew Morris, who had clearly sung Star’s praises. Together, they pitched their ideas and thoughts on the new marketing campaign, listening to Henri and Christian’s take on the trans-Atlantic campaign.
Towards the end of the meal, Star again made her excuses and escaped to the ladies room. Her emotions were frazzled. Keeping up appearances while facing her daughter’s father was not easy, especially when their previous meetings had been hostile. Now she was expected to sit there and make polite conversation with him. Pulling herself together, she exited the ladies, to find Christian waiting outside the door.
“Can we talk?” he asked, pushing himself away from the wall.
“I’m not sure what you want to talk about,” Star said, moving to step past him.
“How is Skylar?” Christian said, his voice catching at the end of the sentence, which had Star spinning towards him in surprise.
“She’s well,” she said, unsure what he wanted. “I really should be getting back.” Star moved towards the restaurant.
“I’m sorry, I know tonight hasn’t been easy for you,” Christian said. “When I realised who was going to be at the meeting, I couldn’t believe it. I’ve wanted to reach out for so long.”
A hollow feeling settled in Star’s stomach. What was happening? This man had signed away all rights to his daughter like she was nothing but an inconvenience to be swept under the carpet, and had had nothing to do with her for the past six years, but was here now talking about reaching out.
“Well, it’s been over six years, Christian, and there were nine months before that – plenty of time for you to find out about your daughter. Instead, you got married and turned your back on Lily,” Star said, her voice hitching in her throat. “Now I really need to get back, otherwise Damian will wonder where I’ve got to.”
Star turned and walked away, leaving Christian in the hallway, her stomach doing somersaults and threatening to evict the gourmet food she’d just eaten.
Damian looked up, a frown marring his face. Star shook her head quickly and smiled, before retaking her seat and striking up conversation with Patrice. Christian took a while to come back, although he too looked pale and was much more withdrawn when he sat down.
It wasn’t long before the evening was over, and they were heading to the front of the hotel where Marcus was waiting.
∞∞∞
Once inside the car, Damian turned to Star, his eyebrows pulled together. “Want to tell me what’s going on?” he asked,
“Nothing,” Star told him, wanting to time to think and sort this out in her head. She needed to speak to Toby urgently.
“Don’t give me that, Star! You looked like you’d seen a ghost when we walked in and were shaking when you returned to the table after you visited the ladies room. Not to mention that when Christian came back from the men’s room, he looked like he was going to be sick. I know you – something happened!”
“No,” Star said. “Youknewme. Seven years is a long time, Damian. People change.”
“No, you haven’t. You are still the same person. Putting everyone else first.” He sighed, before saying, “It’s one of the main reasons I fell in love with you all those years ago. What did Christian say to you? And don’t say nothing, because I don’t believe you. Did he make a pass at you?”
“No, he didn’t make a pass; it would be better if that was all it was,” Star said, looking out of the window and wrapping her arms around her stomach.