Once a Thief

Twelve

The aroma of biscuits, ham, and eggs tantalized Blake’s senses as he walked down the stairs and into the dining room. He planted a kiss on his mother’s cheek and walked to the sideboard. Suddenly his stomach churned, and the food that had smelled so good a moment before didn’t appear very appetizing. He poured a cup of coffee, speared a slice of toast onto a plate, and sat down.

“Blake,” his mother scolded, “you need to eat more than that.”

Pop laid the morning paper beside his plate and grinned. “Don’t pester the boy, Katie. He’s too excited to eat.”

“I’m afraid Pop’s right, Mother. But I promise to eat a hearty lunch.”

“What’s so exciting about today?” She lifted her deep blue eyes and smiled.

“Our new backer will be at the theater. Bosley is so nervous he’s decided to do a dress rehearsal this afternoon so the man can get into the theme of the play.” He shook his head. “I heard one of the members of the cast muttering about it being bad luck to have a dress rehearsal before the eve of opening night, but that, of course, is nonsense.”

“I’m glad you’re sensible enough to know that, son. You just trust in the Lord to keep things right.”

“I will, Mother.” He smiled across at her then turned to his grandfather.

“You’ll be there, won’t you, Pop?”

“Wouldn’t miss it for anything. The afternoon rehearsal?”

“That’s right. We’ll take a short lunch break. Then the cast will get into their costumes and be ready to begin when the backer arrives.”

“Who is he, by the way?”

“Some wealthy businessman. An acquaintance of one of the other patrons.” He shoved his chair back and stood.

“I’ll be praying,” his mother said, lifting her cheek for his goodbye kiss. “And tell Danielle I’ll be praying for her, too.”

“I will. Thank you.”

“Oh, and Blake, why don’t you invite Danielle to Thanksgiving dinner?”

He grinned. “Good idea. Thanks, Mother. She may have plans with the Kramers, but I’ll ask.”

A stable boy had brought the buggy around and stood holding the reins when Blake walked out of the house.

“Thanks, Tommy. Cookie’s looking mighty spruce today. Did you do the grooming?”

“Yes, sir.” The boy stood straighter and handed him the reins.

“Here. I think you deserve a bonus.”

Tommy caught the coin Blake tossed him and then waved and grinned again as Blake drove away.

Danielle was waiting on the porch as he pulled up in front of the Kramers’. She huddled against her side of the buggy, silent and pale, as they drove to the theater.

Blake reached over and took her trembling hands. Even through the gloves he could feel the cold. “Your hands are like ice. You shouldn’t have waited for me outside.”

Her teeth chattered as she spoke. “I was too nervous to wait inside.”

“There’s nothing to be afraid of. Just do what you’ve been doing. It’ll be fine.”

“What if it isn’t? What if you made a big mistake and I’m not right for this part at all? What if this backer hates me?” Her hands trembled beneath his.

“He won’t hate you. He’ll love you, just like everyone else does.” Especially me. He wondered what she’d do if he voiced those words. For a moment he was tempted. Then he shook himself free from the thought.

“Look, you won’t even have to see the man while you are performing. This will be as much like an opening night as possible. The theater will be dark except for the stage lights.”

“But he’ll see me.”

Blake laughed. “Well, of course he’ll see you. That’s the point of having him there.”

They arrived at the theater, and he gave her hand a squeeze. “You’ll do fine. Try not to worry.”

She gave a tremulous smile and headed for the dressing rooms.

He sighed with relief as Rhonda walked into the lobby. “Rhonda, Danielle has a bad case of stage fright today. Will you see what you can do?”

She flashed him a bright smile and patted him on the shoulder. “Go sit down and stop worrying. I’ll take care of her.”

Knowing he’d done all he could to help her for now, he headed for his seat in the first row and waited for the curtain to rise on the first rehearsal of the day.

Danielle stumbled over some of the words in the last scene, but otherwise the practice went perfectly.

Blake couldn’t help but notice the worried little pout on Danielle’s face as he escorted her down the sidewalk to the café on the corner. When they were seated, he picked up his menu, determined not to mention her slip-up and to get her mind off it as well. “I think John Turner got a little too amorous in the romantic scene.” He looked over the top of the menu to see her reaction.

“Don’t be silly. He played it exactly the way you wrote it.”

He smirked behind the menu. So far so good. “I’m not so sure. He hugged you pretty tightly.”

She inhaled deeply. “Blake, John didn’t hug me. Alan hugged Peg. Whatever is the matter with you?”

He continued the tactic with a loud huff. “I’m not so sure of that. And was that a real kiss he planted on you? He’s not supposed to do that.”

She flung her menu on the table, raised her eyes, and frowned. “Blake Nelson, I can’t believe you’re behaving this way. You know very well it was only acting.”

He raised his menu to cover the grin he couldn’t prevent, but not fast enough.

“Oh, you.” She burst out laughing. “I see what you’re up to. And it worked. I almost forgot how awful I was. Blake, I was terrible.”

“Nah. Everyone gets the jitters when they know a lot is at stake. You’ll do fine this afternoon.”

She sighed. “I hope so.” She picked up her menu again, but this time she seemed to really see it.

❧

“You’ll knock ’em dead, kid. I promise.” Rhonda patted Danielle on the arm then scurried to get into her costume.

“But what if you’re wrong? What if I freeze and forget my lines or something?” Danielle fumbled with her hair and attempted to work the strands together into one thick braid. The smooth locks kept slipping from her fingers, and she was about to burst out in tears.

“Here, let me do that.” Another actress, fully costumed, shoved Danielle’s hand away from the strands and began to weave them into a smooth braid.

“Thanks, Mary. I don’t know what I’d do without all of you.”

Rhonda stepped away from the mirror, giving a last-minute pat to her hair. “Sweetie, we’ve all had our moments of panic. Still do sometimes. But when you step out on that stage, you’ll be fine. You won’t even think about the new guy.”

Oh, how I pray she’s right.

She bit her lip and followed the others to the wings. The starting characters took their places. The music began and the curtain went up.

When she heard the opening bar of Peg’s theme, her cue, she took a deep breath and stepped out onto the stage. She became Peg. Lost in the part, she spoke her lines and moved from one scene to another as though she was born on a dairy farm, among the rolling hills of Missouri. She was loving, teasing, and filled with laughter as she played the part of little sister, friend, and beloved daughter. Then, she became shy when the leading man appeared.

When the curtain came down on the last scene, she heard clapping and a murmur of voices from the small unseen group of watchers.

She stumbled, almost numb, into the dressing room and flopped onto a settee, trying to still the wild pounding of her heart. All around her, laughter and satisfied comments about the show filled the room.

Rhonda leaned over and gave her a hug. “See? I told you you’d knock ’em dead.”

Danielle smiled. “If anyone knocked them dead it was you and Hannah. In fact, everyone was wonderful. I forgot about everything except the life of Peg in Dreamland.”

“Honey, you did very well,” Hannah said with a smile. “I’ve no doubt the new man will be willing to put up the rest of the money for the show. In fact, I’m so sure I think it calls for a celebration. How about we all go out for a milk shake?”

The door flew open. Martha, a prop girl, pushed her way in among the flurry of actresses changing into their street clothes. Her eyes found Danielle. “Mr. Bosley and Mr. Nelson want you in the office at your convenience. But I think what they really mean is get there lickety-split.”

Danielle stared at Martha, her pulse jumping in her throat. “Thanks. I’ll be there as soon as I’ve changed.” With a heavy heart, Danielle slipped out of her costume then went to work on removing the makeup. What did they want with her? Did the new backer hate her performance? Did he refuse to back the show? Blake would try to let her down easy, if they had to let her go. She only hoped the show could be salvaged with or without her. Blake was a wonderful writer and composer, and he didn’t deserve to fail because of her.

Fifteen minutes later, Danielle stood in front of the office door, gathering her nerves. When she tapped, the door flew open and she was surrounded by Blake, Bosley, and two of the early backers.

“Young lady, you did it.” Arlin Greene, beaming from ear to ear, bowed over her hand.

“Great job, Miss Gray.” Bosley patted her shoulder and smiled.

She glanced from one to the other, her eyes resting on Blake. “Does this mean. . . ?”

“Yes, it means. . .” Blake laughed, his eyes sparkling. “You did it, Danielle. He’s not only willing but very enthusiastic about investing in the show. In fact, he’s so enthusiastic he’s gone to the bank now. But he specifically asked us to have you here when he returns. He wants very much to meet you.”

Bosley laughed. “I don’t think I’ve ever seen anyone so enthralled. He couldn’t keep his eyes off you from the moment you stepped onto the stage.”

Danielle blushed. “But the others did well, too.”

“Of course they did,” the manager agreed. “But you are the star, Miss Gray. Without you, this great ship would have been left standing in the harbor.”

She looked at Blake, who met her glance with an encouraging smile. “He’s right, Danielle. You are the star.”

“But. . .it was your wonderful show that impressed him. I’m sure of it.”

Bosley cast an amused smile at Blake then turned his attention back to Danielle. “Of course the show is wonderful and to Blake goes the credit for that. But it takes more than words and music on paper to make a great show. Someone has to bring them to life. And you’ve done just that, my dear.”

Someone knocked and Mr. Greene headed for the door. “That must be James now.”

He opened the door and a giant shadow fell across the room and rested on Danielle’s face and heart.

Mr. Greene bowed. “Miss Gray, allow me to introduce you to our new backer and business partner, Mr. James Sutton. I’m sure you’ll be getting to know each other over the next few weeks.”

Sutton’s tall form stepped forward and took the hand that hung limp by her side. “Delighted, Miss Gray. Imagine my surprise when I arrived today to find such a lovely, talented young woman before my eyes. I’m sure as the days go by we’ll get to know each other very well.”

The tall form was all too well known to her already, from the amused smile on his rugged face to the eyes that could sear a small child with one sharp look.

She stood frozen, unable to move or even hardly to breathe. This had to be a dream. Or some cruel joke.

God, please. . .let me wake up from this nightmare.