‘Do you mean that?’
‘You’re a good actor, Cade Morgan,’ she murmured. ‘You worked hard for this opportunity.’
The tension eased from his face. ‘And I owe everything to you,’ he said quietly. ‘You were the reason I made it.’ He took her hands from his chest and clasped them in his. ‘Tell me you don’t hate me for walking out on Johnny and Alana.’
Don’t cry, she told herself, and she shook her head. ‘I could never hate you, Cade.’
‘Tell me you know I’m ready for this, Padgett.’
‘Of course you are,’ she said carefully.
And he was, she thought. He was ready for this film, even though it would take him out of her life.
At least she knew his love had been real, even if it had only been for a little while.
Nothing lasts forever, Cade had said, but he was wrong. The memory of him would last a lifetime.
There was a knock at the door. ‘Shannon? Cade? Are you guys ready now?’
She took a deep breath. No, she thought, she would never be ready. After they’d taped their final love scene, Cade would be gone. How would she survive a lifetime on nothing but memories?
Cade touched her cheek. ‘Shannon?’ he murmured.
She lifted her chin and forced a smile to her face, praying he wouldn’t notice the dampness in her eyes.
‘I'm ready,’ she said. ^Come on, Johnny Wolff. Let’s go out there and knock ’em dead!’
She was never going to make it. Her throat was closing and her vision was blurring... Quickly, she turned and reached for the door, but Cade was there first, turning her towards him with a crushing grasp.
‘I don’t give a damn about Johnny Wolff,’ he growled.
‘What?’ she whispered, looking up at him. His eyes were dark with anger. ‘What’s the matter? I don’t understand...’
‘You’re the one who doesn’t understand, Padgett. You accused me of not being able to separate reality from fantasy. Hell, you’re the one with a problem. The film and the soap are fantasy. This—you and me—this is real.’
His indigo eyes were burning into hers, demanding something more. What was left? A flashy finish? A crescendo of violins?
‘Cade,’ she said, ‘I... I...’ And suddenly she could no longer control herself. Tears filled her eyes. ‘Damn you!’ she said brokenly. ‘Damn you, Cade Morgan. I’ve wished you well and I’ve smiled and I’ve said all the right things. What more do you want? You already have my heart!
He drew her towards him. ‘I want you to say yes, you’ll go to Tahiti with me, yes, you’ll marry me.’
‘What?’ she said stupidly.
Cade’s arms closed around her. ‘I love you, Padgett.’ He shook his head at the baffled expression on her face. *1 guess I should have had a scriptwriter for this scene. All I can think of are a thousand clichés— there must be an original way to say “I love you” to the woman you want to share your life with.’
‘Share your life with,’ she repeated softly.
He nodded. ‘We can honeymoon in Tahiti.’
‘Honeymoon in Tahiti,’ she whispered.
Cade grinned. ‘There’s an echo in here,’ he said. ‘Have you noticed?’ He stroked the curls back from her face and kissed her. ‘I wonder if it would repeat every word. Like, if I said, I love you, would that echo say…’
Shannon laughed. ‘I love you.’
‘And I want to marry you.’
‘And I want to marry you,’ she said.