Brave Face

Part Two

Tom couldn't say for sure how long he sat on the bed, hands cradling his head, his breathing coming in soft, swallow pants; it felt like hours and like no time at all. The abrupt rap of knuckles on the door slowly brought him back around to himself. Mechanically, he pulled himself to his feet and shuffled towards the door. He unlocked and pulled it open, eyes blinking at the bright light flooding in from the hall. He found Luke standing there, exasperation painting his features.

"I've been calling for the last..." His voice trailed off as he looked past Tom and into the room, his eyes widening. "Tom...What the fuck happened?"

"She's really gone." The words fell from Tom's lips in a broken whisper. "She isn't coming back."

Luke blinked at him in confusion for several moments before a pitied understanding spread across his face and shook his head. "No, Tom. I really don't think that she is." He brought a comforting hand down onto Tom's shoulder. They stood silently for several moments before Luke spoke once more. "You have a meeting in half an hour..." Luke trailed off as he caught the look of bleary confusion on Tom's worn face. He sighed and elaborated, "With the producers regarding your latest auction...would you like to postpone it? I can make a few phone calls..."

Tom's head shot up and he vehemently shook his head. "No. No, I can't. Absolutely not...This is important. If I put it off now I've as good as lost the role...No..." He took a deep breath, gathering himself. "No. Give me five minutes and we can go." He didn't wait for Luke's response before turning back into the room and letting the door swing shut behind him.

Five minutes later, cleanly shaven and as respectable as he could make himself, Tom followed Luke down into the hotel's lobby and into a waiting cab. He was a bundle of nerves, his leg bouncing involuntarily as the cab meandered its way through the early afternoon traffic.

It had taken nearly the entire journey for Tom to gain hold of himself. To calm his frayed nerves and slip back into the confident and controlled professional he needed to be. But by the time he had entered the conference room, Luke and his US agent, David, at his side, and shook each of the producers' hands, it was as though nothing whatsoever had happened. He was charming and engaging, a consummate professional by all standards. They chatted amicably and while nothing had been set in stone, the producers seemed keen to have him on board and for that he was exceedingly grateful. With a bright smile and a firm handshake, Tom thanked them for their time and the opportunity to discuss the roll before following Luke and David from of the room.

The ride back to the hotel was spent in silence; Tom staring out of the window at passing traffic, Luke sorting through emails while never quite taking his eyes off of his friend's tense form. As soon as they'd pulled in front of the lobby, Tom had excused himself and headed straight for the hotel bar. He didn't care that it was only just late afternoon and by all means far too early. He was in desperate need of a drink.

Three whiskeys later, Tom was feeling little pain. The smiles that he'd been forcing all day had slowly started to come easier and he'd found he'd been able to simply shut the quiet, defeated voice that plagued his mind throughout the day off. It was wonderful. He chatted openly with the people surrounding him; laughing and joking, sharing stories. Forgetting.

At one point he found himself distracted by a flirty, feminine laugh tickled his ear, pulling at his attention as she pulled lightly at his arm. He turned to find a petite blonde watching him through lidded eyes. She was absolutely gorgeous; thin frame wrapped in a well-fitting navy dress, hair flowing over her tanned shoulder, eyes bright and attentive. He wasted no time in returning her smile and refilling her drink. She whispered her name into his ear and he'd managed to forget it as soon as she'd spoken the last syllable. It didn't matter anyway, he didn't need to know her name to know just what it was she was offering or to allow himself to take it.