smiled, reminiscing. “I thought he was just giving me a line, but he showed me his ID and persuaded me to go on to Michael Donovan’s film colony at Twin Pines with him until I made up my mind. I didn’t really take much persuading. I had just left the Rainbow People and I didn’t have a definite destination in mind anyway.”
Kendra’s eyes widened in shock. “The Rainbow people?”
Billie’s expression looked shrewd. “How very odd that you and Joel should have the same reaction,” she said softly. “It’s an Indian tribe whose lands are situated near the Puget Sound in Washington. They have an Indian name which is a real tongue twister so most people just call them the Rainbow People. I lived with them for six months before I met Joel on that highway in Oregon.”
Rainbows again. She seemed destined to be reminded of that night. Kendra’s eyes dropped to the rich broth she was spooning from the thermos. “So Joel talked you into taking the part,” she prompted.
Billie nodded. “I tried to tell him I couldn’t act, but he said it didn’t matter. The role was practically all action anyway and what he really needed was my face. He said it was a face that people would care about. With a role that has as many cliffhangers as
The Perils of Pauline,
it’s very important that the audience care whether I make it across that canyon.” She grinned. “Or rather, that you make it across. Anyway, I stayed at Twin Pines for a week while Joel and Michael were having their discussion. There’s not a heck of a lot to do in the backwoods of Oregon, so we spent most evenings just sitting around talking, trading our life stories. You become close pretty quickly under circumstances like those.”
“I guess you do,” Kendra said slowly. It was ridiculous to feel this sharp twinge of jealousy. She didn’t want to know the Joel Damon with whom Billie had become friends. It was too dangerous for her. As long as she could convince herself her feelings were only physical, she was safe. “It surprises me that Joel would let anyone slip beneath the armor of cynicism he wears.”
“He’s not all that hard to know,” Billie said, her expression earnest. “He uses cynicism to protect himself from getting hurt. He wants to give to people, but he’s afraid that if he does, there will be just another betrayal.”
“
Another
betrayal?”
“Who knows how many there have been in his life?” Billie’s eyes were compassionate. “His childhood must have been an emotional horror story. His mother was married six times and evidently shuttled him off to private schools whenever she got the opportunity. Her father was Giles Damon, the steel tycoon, and she would never have had a child at all if he hadn’t wanted an heir for the business and exerted a little pressure in the only area the bitch would feel it.” Her lips tightened. “Her monthly allowance.”
“Aren’t you being a bit hard on her?” Kendra asked lightly. Oh Lord, she didn’t want to think about Joel Damon as a vulnerable, sensitive child. A child hurting and alone, who would run away to a Norman fortress to draw strength from its ancient permanence. “Perhaps she actually wanted a child herself.”
Billie shook her head. “She made no bones about the fact she was coerced into having Joel. She thought it was wildly amusing to tell how she’d researched bloodlines to find just the right stud who would fulfill her father’s requirements. She finally chose an Italian prince who was making a very luxurious living as a gigolo on the French Riviera. They went through a marriage ceremony to legitimize the union and Joel was born seven months later. The prince was then paid off handsomely and divorced.” Billie smiled grimly. “Oh yes, she kept the title. She told everyone it was the only thing she’d gotten out of the marriage that was worth anything. With a background like that can you blame Joel for not wanting to get close to anyone?”
The gigolo.
Kendra’s eyes widened in shock. “The Rainbow people?”
Billie’s expression looked shrewd. “How very odd that you and Joel should have the same reaction,” she said softly. “It’s an Indian tribe whose lands are situated near the Puget Sound in Washington. They have an Indian name which is a real tongue twister so most people just call them the Rainbow People. I lived with them for six months before I met Joel on that highway in Oregon.”
Rainbows again. She seemed destined to be reminded of that night. Kendra’s eyes dropped to the rich broth she was spooning from the thermos. “So Joel talked you into taking the part,” she prompted.
Billie nodded. “I tried to tell him I couldn’t act, but he said it didn’t matter. The role was practically all action anyway and what he really needed was my face. He said it was a face that people would care about. With a role that has as many cliffhangers as
The Perils of Pauline,
it’s very important that the audience care whether I make it across that canyon.” She grinned. “Or rather, that you make it across. Anyway, I stayed at Twin Pines for a week while Joel and Michael were having their discussion. There’s not a heck of a lot to do in the backwoods of Oregon, so we spent most evenings just sitting around talking, trading our life stories. You become close pretty quickly under circumstances like those.”
“I guess you do,” Kendra said slowly. It was ridiculous to feel this sharp twinge of jealousy. She didn’t want to know the Joel Damon with whom Billie had become friends. It was too dangerous for her. As long as she could convince herself her feelings were only physical, she was safe. “It surprises me that Joel would let anyone slip beneath the armor of cynicism he wears.”
“He’s not all that hard to know,” Billie said, her expression earnest. “He uses cynicism to protect himself from getting hurt. He wants to give to people, but he’s afraid that if he does, there will be just another betrayal.”
“
Another
betrayal?”
“Who knows how many there have been in his life?” Billie’s eyes were compassionate. “His childhood must have been an emotional horror story. His mother was married six times and evidently shuttled him off to private schools whenever she got the opportunity. Her father was Giles Damon, the steel tycoon, and she would never have had a child at all if he hadn’t wanted an heir for the business and exerted a little pressure in the only area the bitch would feel it.” Her lips tightened. “Her monthly allowance.”
“Aren’t you being a bit hard on her?” Kendra asked lightly. Oh Lord, she didn’t want to think about Joel Damon as a vulnerable, sensitive child. A child hurting and alone, who would run away to a Norman fortress to draw strength from its ancient permanence. “Perhaps she actually wanted a child herself.”
Billie shook her head. “She made no bones about the fact she was coerced into having Joel. She thought it was wildly amusing to tell how she’d researched bloodlines to find just the right stud who would fulfill her father’s requirements. She finally chose an Italian prince who was making a very luxurious living as a gigolo on the French Riviera. They went through a marriage ceremony to legitimize the union and Joel was born seven months later. The prince was then paid off handsomely and divorced.” Billie smiled grimly. “Oh yes, she kept the title. She told everyone it was the only thing she’d gotten out of the marriage that was worth anything. With a background like that can you blame Joel for not wanting to get close to anyone?”
The gigolo.
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