A Holiday Fling by Mary Jo Putney Page B

parts turned up for a brilliant and beautiful English actress, we should think of you. A couple of days later Marcus told me his lead for the Mame movie had just gone to rehab, and did I have any suggestions? So I tossed him your name."
    Jenny was silent for a long moment. "More was going on than I realized."
    "There is no substitute for word of mouth. Since he knew your work, Marcus loved the idea of using you." Raine’s voice softened. "Greg wanted to give you a very special Christmas present, and he succeeded."
    Jenny blinked. "This was Greg’s idea of a Christmas present?"
    "What better than giving someone her heart’s desire? The sign of a man in love. Some men give flowers or chocolate. Movie people give movies."
    Jenny swallowed hard. "Greg isn’t in love with me. He’s just a really nice man."
    "I’m sorry, maybe I misread the signals," the other woman said apologetically. "I thought the two of you were involved. He seemed rather gaga over you."
    "Involved, yes, but only in passing." To her horror, Jenny heard a break in her voice. "It was just a... a holiday fling."
    The phone wires hummed with silence until Raine said hesitantly, "Forgive me, this is none of my business, Jenny, but it sounds as if you need someone to talk to. Has something gone wrong between you?"
    "Not really, we’re just geographically challenged. Besides, he’s wildly successful and always traveling and he certainly isn’t going to settle down with an over-the-hill actress from another country." Jenny’s voice came out brittle rather than casual.
    After a long pause, Raine asked, "Are you sure that’s how he feels about it? Maybe from his point of view, you’re a gorgeous, successful actress and he’s just a shy techie that you could never take seriously."
    "Greg isn’t just a techie! He’s an incredibly gifted artist who can make us see the world in special new ways. He leaves his mark on every movie he does."
    "It sounds as if he’s left his mark on you, too. Perhaps you should rethink the question of whether or not you have a future together. Maybe it ended because you assumed it would end."
    "A self-fulfilling prophecy?" Jenny frowned. "I... I need to think about that. Even if that’s part of what happened, the geographical problems are real. My roots are firmly sunk into English soil, while Greg is wonderfully and deeply American."
    "Marriage is never easy," Raine said seriously. "Our business has more than its share of conflicts and stresses that can fracture a marriage—my English husband and I almost divorced over such things. But we survived, after making a conscious decision to put the marriage first, always.
    "And while there are downsides, the movie business has the advantage of flexibility. Why can’t you have homes in two countries? It’s a compromise, but one that makes your life richer, if a little more frantic. What matters is having enough love and commitment to find ways to build a life that will work for you both."
    "You make a good agony aunt," Jenny said wryly. "Just what I needed tonight."
    "Agony aunt? Oh, an advice columnist. Sorry, I’ve been speaking out of turn." A door closed in the background. "Kenzie just came in. Would you like to talk to him?"
    "Please."
    A minute passed before Kenzie’s deep voice said, "Hello, Jenny. I hear that the gods have smiled and you’re now getting the Hollywood star treatment."
    She laughed, relaxing at the familiar warmth of his greeting. They’d been so young when they first met at RADA. Incredibly handsome and wrapped in aristocratic reserve, Kenzie had been promptly labeled a snob by some students. Jenny, as confident as a golden retriever, had made the effort to get acquainted and found that he was shy and surprisingly unsure of himself.
    Though they had sometimes been lovers, far more important had been this enduring friendship. "This is much nicer than my first visit to Hollywood. I’m half terrified and half over the moon."
    "That sounds about right, but