Free Damage Control (The Hollywood Series Book 2) by Jae Page B

different it felt from the trained Hollywood smiles she’d given the paparazzi. “Thanks for the heartfelt concern.”
    Lauren doffed a nonexistent hat.
    Compared to all the actresses and celebrities around, she should have looked average at best, but to Grace, she stood out in a pleasant way. Lauren was wearing tailored trousers, sensible leather shoes, and a short-sleeved blouse that revealed toned arms. Her sunglasses were shoved up on top of her head, keeping her wind-tousled hair from being blown into her face.
    Grace envied her a bit for being able to dress comfortably instead of wearing what was expected of her.
    The crowd started cheering, making Grace look away from Lauren and toward Russ.
    He knelt on a red velvet cushion and pressed his hands into the wet cement. Flashes went off when he stood and stepped onto the cement, leaving his footprints as well. Finally, he signed his name and the date in the corner of the concrete block.
    Someone—Grace wasn’t sure whether it was one of the organizers of the event or a studio lackey—ushered her over to Russ and Nick so more photos could be taken of them posing in front of the cement block.
    Russ leaned close, pretending to grab her ass with his cement-smeared hands.
    Grace smiled even though she wanted to slap his hands away. She just hoped that they had more chemistry on-screen than off-screen and tried not to think about how their romantic movie, Ava’s Heart , would do at the box office come August. Her gaze swept the crowd in search of Lauren, and when she found her, she sent her a secret get-me-out-of-here gaze.
    Lauren just shrugged and grinned.
    After what felt like hours, the cement was covered to cure, and the stars and their guests relocated to the theater’s lobby for a party. By now, Grace’s feet were killing her, but she circulated through the room with an ever-present smile, exchanging chitchat with the movers and shakers of the entertainment industry. It was part of her job—not a part that she liked, but a necessary one. Being nice to the top producers and directors might pay off when it was time for them to pick the actors for their next blockbuster.
    From time to time, she saw Lauren doing the rounds too. Her publicist clearly knew how to work a crowd. She shook hands and talked to all the important power players in the room.
    Eventually, they both ended up in the same corner of the room. When Grace walked past Lauren to greet the director of Ava’s Heart at the other end of the room, she overheard a bit of Lauren’s conversation.
    “What did you have to pay them to let Russ leave his prints?” Lauren asked a woman who was old enough to be her mother.
    Grace blinked and stopped midstep. She didn’t disagree—there were many actors who would have deserved to have their prints on Hollywood Boulevard before Russ—but she couldn’t believe that Lauren would talk so openly to someone who clearly stood above her in the Hollywood food chain.
    Then the woman shifted a little, allowing Grace to see her face more clearly.
    Isn’t that Olivia Pearce? She’d met the successful producer once at a charity fundraiser, back when Mrs. Pearce had been the president of production at Universal Pictures, one of few women to head a film studio in Hollywood. Wait a moment! Pearce? The woman wasn’t just old enough to be Lauren’s mother; she probably was her mother.
    They didn’t look anything alike—Lauren had a more solid frame compared to her almost fragile-looking mother—but they both had that intense gaze.
    Grace realized that Mrs. Pearce had caught her looking and turned toward her. “Good evening. It’s nice to see you again, Mrs. Pearce.”
    “Olivia, please.” The producer pointed to the man next to her. “Have you met my husband, Leonard?”
    Grace hadn’t yet met Leonard, but she’d heard of him, of course. He’d given up acting for the most part and had drifted into directing, but he was still very handsome. His tan looked as if he