Come Home Again (The Donovans) by Nana Malone

conversation with one of the local politicians. Nate smiled and chatted amiably. He looked like he belonged. “Fine. He certainly looks the part, and Elizabeth knows what to do.”
    “I have to say, you do know how to clean them up, Dee. He looks like a completely different guy.”
    “Well, I’ve had a lot of practice with rehabbing celebrities. Nate was easy. A haircut, a shave, and some new clothes, and he looks like he belongs on the cover of a magazine. A challenge is what I call a meth-addicted starlet.”
    Jake rolled his eyes. “I still don’t know how you were able to do that with Liberty Ross.”
    Liberty had been a child star who really lost her way with drugs and alcohol. It had taken years, but Delilah and her team had gotten her clean and looking the part of the actress again. She’d eventually been one of the bachelorettes on Love Reality . And now, she had a hosting gig for an entertainment show. Her makeover had been far more difficult than Nate’s, including a dentist and the best dermatologist money could find. “Oh, you know, just a little elbow grease.”
    Jake laughed. “Yeah, I’ll bet.” He glanced around. “Listen, even though this is Nate’s debut, I want you to keep an eye on Michael Ross. I know you dealt with him already this afternoon, but he’s been drinking again, and I don’t want him doing anything we’ll have to clean up tomorrow.”
    She bit back a groan. “I’ll have the bartender and servers start slowly cutting him off.”
    Jake eyed her. “Look, I know you don’t like the guy, but we don’t get to choose our clients.”
    She plastered a smile on her face and desperately tried not to make it look like a grimace. “I know that. I’ll take care of it. But I still think Nate needs some support.”
    Jake smiled lecherously at a passing redhead. “I’ll be here to support him if he needs anything. Remember, I am the primary on this case.”
    But she bit her tongue. Yep, there it was. The little slap to let her know who was the Head Man In Charge. It didn’t matter that Nate had made it clear he wanted her running point. Jake wanted to be seen handling Nate by the big wigs and donors in the room. Fine, she could do as she was told. Didn’t matter how much it bugged her. At the end of this, she would be junior partner. She could suck it up for that.
    She was in the middle of speaking to the head of catering when a voice from behind startled her. “D-List Delilah! How is my favorite Fixer?”
    Delilah shuddered. She knew that voice. Michael Ross . She wasn’t in the mood to deal with his particular brand of bullshit right now. She had real work to do. She turned to him with a tight smile. Maybe she could keep it quick. “Michael, I’m hoping you’ve sobered since I saw you this afternoon.”
    He winked at her. “Have I told you how sexy you are when you’re acting all uptight?”
    She ground her teeth. “Not uptight. Doing my job.” Honestly, what was the point of trying to straighten him out? Guys like him would never get it. “At any rate. Have a good evening. And do try to stay out of trouble tonight.”
    His smile turned leering. “And what if I said I’d rather get into trouble with you?”
    “I’d tell you what I’ve told you every other time you’ve hit on me. You’re a client. I don’t date my clients. Secondly, you’re an actor, and I don’t date actors. So unfortunately, it would seem that I’m out of luck.” She shrugged and attempted to side step him.
    He swiped a glass of champagne off of a passing tray. “You sure have a lot of rules you live by. Why don’t you forgo all those rules and take a ride on me? We both know you’re curious.” He leaned into her personal space, and the stench of stale alcohol hit her hard, making her nauseous.
    Delilah straightened her back and met his gaze levelly. “As tempting as that offer is, I’ll have to decline.” She turned from him, and he reached out to grip her arm hard.
    Pain radiated