A Humble Heart

  “You keep it up, buddy.”

  “Oh, I can do that and more,” Scott said menacingly.

  She rolled her eyes and sighed heavily. “Just ignore him, I do.”

  “You wish. We both know you’ll be staring at my ass the entire race,” he said smugly.

  “Jeez Scott, tone it down,” Dana said, turning her attention back to Edward. “Wish me luck.”

  Edward looked at Scott’s smug face for a minute then back at Dana. “Good luck.” He leaned in and kissed her, wrapping his arms around her waist. Dana wrapped her arms around his neck and returned the kiss. He deepened it, pulling a small moan from her lips. His tongue explored her hot mouth. She was more responsive than any woman he’d ever met. She met him stroke for stroke. It took everything he had not to press her against his car and grind against her.

  Scott broke their kiss with gagging sounds.

  “Real mature, Henderson.”

  “I would have made a different bet if I knew you were open for business,” Scott said teasingly.

  “Keep it up and I’ll tell Mary what your idea of trash talk is,” Dana said.

  Scott’s jaw dropped. “You wouldn’t.”

  She raised one eyebrow. “Wouldn’t I?”

  “Damn,” Scott mouthed.

  Dana kissed Edward’s cheek quickly. “Bye!” She giggled.

  “Let’s go!” Scott said, jumping onto his bike and taking off.

  Dana followed suit. “Sorry, I really gotta go he’s such a big cheater!” She raced down her long driveway onto the road, leaving Edward to watch her.

  Chapter 6

  Edward licked his lips, tasting her again before he got into his car and drove off. He forgot to call Amy and was reminded of that at least a hundred times when he opened his front door. His parents and Amy were sitting at his table waiting for him.

  “Where have you been?” his father demanded.

  “Dad, I’m a grown man. I can stay out without permission,” he said dryly.

  “Cut the crap, Edward. You know damn well you’re not a normal guy. Your mother and I have been worried. It’s not like you not to answer your phone,” he snapped.

  Edward closed his eyes and took a calming breath. “I was at Dana’s house. We worked all night and I fell asleep.”

  “I called Deana this morning,” Amy said.

  “She doesn’t live there,” Edward snapped.

  “Do we need to hire a bodyguard to go everywhere with you just so we have peace of mind?” his father asked.

  “No, Dad,” he answered tightly, not in the mood for this conversation or the reminder that he wasn’t a normal guy.

  Amy watched her brother and felt bad. He hated not having a personal life, living a normal life. The life he had left was important to him and she knew he would hate this intervention. She tried to change the subject.

  “So, how did everything go with Dana’s ex?” she asked.

  He shot her a murderous look. “He’s lucky I didn’t kill the son of a bitch last night.”

  ********

  “Oh my god, those poor kids,” his mother said, wiping a tear off her cheek. His father wrapped a protective arm around her shoulders.

  “Damn, how is Dana taking it?” Amy asked.

  “How does she take everything?” Edward asked.

  She nodded. “She’s really tough, those kids are lucky to have her.”

  “Tell Dana I’m coming to the set on Monday to talk to her,” his mother said firmly.

  “Mom, she doesn’t need a new lawyer,” Amy said.

  “Yes, she does. I want to help her make sure those kids are safe,” she said. “He sounds like the type of guy who would fight to gain custody if something happened to her so he could get his hands on her money.”

  Edward didn’t like talking about Dana dying, but he didn’t like the idea of that asshole using those kids either.

  “Fine.”

  “Good,” his mother said, sounding satisfied.

  Amy suddenly smiled. “I almost forgot. You know my friend Jonathan, right?”

  “Yes.” Jonathan was her single investment banker friend. The guy was good looking and really nice. He wished there was more between his sister and Jonathan.

  He would take care of her.

  “Well, he stopped by the set last week and he’s been bugging me ever since to set him up with Dana. So, he’s coming down Monday as well to see her,” she said giddily.

  “Cancel it,” Edward said coldly.

  “Why? What’s wrong with Jonathan?” Amy asked, confused. She knew Edward liked her, but he clearly was making any moves and she wanted to see Dana happy.

  “Because I don’t want you setting my girlfriend up, that’s why,” Edward said before he could stop himself. He didn’t mean to blurt it out, especially since he hadn’t talked to Dana to see where they stood, but that didn’t mean he was going to stand by and watch other men approach her. It was hard enough stomaching Scott’s flirting until he found out that Scott was just messing with Dana to psych her out.

  “Since when?” Amy asked, sounding more suspicious than happy.

  “Just leave it alone,” Edward said. He tried to ignore his mother and father’s smiles. “I’m going to change before you two break out in a happy dance.”

  *******

  “I’m stuffed, man. Your mom really knows how to put out a spread,” Seth said, flopping down on the couch next to Edward.

  “Shh, we’re watching the game,” Edward’s father said.

  “Too bad,” Amy said, walking into the room. She grabbed the remote from him and changed the channel.

  “What the hell are you doing, woman?” Seth demanded.

  “I just got a call from Rick. ET is dedicating a segment of the show to Dana tonight.”

  “What? She didn’t say anything to me,” Edward said, trying not to sound like a sullen child. She hadn’t called him all day. Then again he hadn’t called her either.

  Amy situated herself next to Edward and slapped him upside his head. “That’s because she doesn’t know about it. Rick just found out. He doesn’t have a good feeling about this.”

  “What do you mean?” Edward asked.

  “I don’t know, he wouldn’t say,” Amy said.

  “Shh, it’s on,” his father said.

  “Welcome to Entertainment Tonight. Tonight we are taking a rare look at one of the world’s most popular author’s, Dana Mathews. In the next half hour we will look at this amazing woman’s life from childhood to now. Stay tuned for the shocking truth.”

  Amy and Edward shared a look. “I don’t think she’s going to be happy about this.”

  “Shit,” Edward muttered.

  “Shh, it’s back on,” his mother said as she sat down on their father’s lap.

  “Dana Mathews is the author of six immensely popular books. The most famous book of course is the story of Christian and Bailey, which has fans of all ages screaming her praises, is now being turned into a movie. But what do we really know about this dynamic author?”

  “We found out this young woman came from a life of hardship. Her mother abandoned her immediately after she was born to be raised by her father, David O’Shea. Her father worked as a security guard. Dana went from being an adorable baby to a shy bookworm.” Several pictures of Dana as a little girl popped up on the screen.

  “Wow, she was a little cutie pie,” his father said, making Edward smile.

  “We found that she kept mostly to herself and her close group of friends during high school. Apparently she was a little heart breaker early on. We recently met up with one of her old high school boyfriends.” The show switched to a video clip.

  “What do you remember mostly about Dana?” a woman asked a ruggedly handsome man.

  “She was great, always fun, always sweet.” He chuckled. “Taught me how to kiss.” He winked at the camera. “We were young and she was too serious to settle down.” All humor disappeared from his face. “Broke my heart the day she left for co
llege. Hell of a girl.”

  The show switched back to Emily, the show’s host. “We discovered that she was a brilliant student with potential.

  We weren’t able to discover why she left college. What we did find out will surprise everyone, so please stay tuned.”

  “Damn.”

  “No kidding. Looks like Romeo is still pining away for her,” Seth said.

  Edward elbowed him in the ribs. “Shut up.”

  Seth put his hands up to show he was kidding. “Sorry, man.”

  “Does Dana know about this?” Edward asked.

  “Rick said he called her. She didn’t answer. So I guess no she doesn’t,” Amy answered.

  “Damn it,” Edward said. She wasn’t going to like the spotlight pointed at her. This was going to drag her and the kids into the limelight and destroy all of her privacy.

  “We’re back. We were fortunate to obtain exclusive footage of Dana from an incident that is already world famous. During college she paid her way by working as an Emergency Medical Technician in the southeastern Massachusetts area. She made quite a name for herself as an advocate for patient’s rights.”

  “This footage is of an incident that attracted worldwide attention. The name of the young EMT who was involved was kept well hidden, until now. For those who don’t remember the incident, it occurred on the Bourne Bridge. A husband and father of three decided to take his family hostage to avoid an impending arrest. What started as a simple traffic stop turned quickly into a blood bath where the man killed his wife and attacked his children in front of police. This footage is very graphic and we implore you to get the children out of the room.”

  “Oh no,” his father gasped.

  “What?” Edward asked anxiously.

  “If this is what I think it is then we’re about to get the hell scared out of us. I didn’t know that was her.”

  “What?” Edward anxiously.

  “Shh.”

  The show switched to a grainy video. A man stood behind a car, shooting at police. He held a small boy in his arms as a shield. “Put the kid down!” a man ordered.

  Another child, a five year old boy, suddenly ran away from the car, crossing the barrier between police and the madman. The boy was shot by his father and dropped to the ground. “Oh Christ,” Edward mumbled.

  “Dana, get back here!” a man screamed.

  Edward gasped as he saw a young woman rush to the little boy. She threw herself between the boy and the madman. “Get out of there!”

  “I’ll kill you ‘beep’!” the madman yelled. He took several shots at Dana, hitting the ground around her.

  “No!” she screamed. Edward eased to the edge of his seat and watched as she tore her shirt off, revealing a tight white tee shirt. She balled up her blue shirt and pressed it against the little boy’s stomach. He could hear the little boy’s cries and pleas.

  “It’s okay, buddy, I’ve got you,” she said. Dana leaned over, covering the little boy with her body.

  “Bring him back here, ‘beep’!” the madman yelled.

  She didn’t answer him. She grabbed the little boy in her arms and ran towards the police. The man fired hitting her in the leg. Blood splattered on the cement. Edward dropped his head into his hands. feeling dizzy. “Christ.” He looked up in time to see Dana drag herself back to her feet and run the rest of the way with the little boy in her arms. He watched as she refused help, focusing everything she had on the little boy.

  The video switched back to Emily. “We’ve recently found the little boy that she saved and we were surprised to find out she still has a close relationship with him.” The show switched to a video of a young man.

  “Sebastian, what do you remember about that day?”

  The young man looked very uncomfortable. “I remember my mom crying when my father shot her and my brother’s begging for their lives. Then I remember running and the pain when I hit the ground. I was so scared until Dana ran to me.” The boy smiled. “She saved me.”

  “What would you like to say to her today if you could talk to her?”

  He laughed. “I talk to her several times a week and fly out to spend school vacations with her. She’s part of my family. I love her and her two kids. She’s great.” The show switched to a commercial.

  “Oh my god,” Amy said. “I had no idea.”

  “Damn, that girl is bad ass,” Seth said.

  “Edward, you’re shaking. Are you okay?” his mother asked.

  “I’m fine, just everyone leave me alone, okay?” He’d watched her get shot. Even though logic told him she was alright, it still scared the hell out of him.

  “We’re back. Dana soon moved on to work with children. Her relationship with ex-husband Jeff Mathews was in full bloom.” Several pictures of Dana and a much thinner and handsomer Jeff came on screen. They looked happy. In every picture he was kissing or touching her. He couldn’t blame him, but that didn’t mean he was happy seeing it.

  “The relationship turned sour after the wedding. Unable to contact her ex-husband we’ve been unable to find the reason for this. We will continue our investigation and get back to you.”

  “An interest in her books has brought attention to this young woman, but nothing could have prepared us for this new development. A cameraman from Life Magazine was sent to several beaches to catch unsuspecting stars in their natural state, without makeup to see if the perfection we see on screen was real or an illusion brought on by a talented makeup artist. During this hunt he accidentally came upon Dana Mathews and snapped this photo.” A large photo of Dana in a small black bikini popped on the screen.

  “Holy-,” Edward started.

  “Shit.” Seth finished.

  “Wow,” Amy gasped.

  In the photo Dana knelt with slicked wet hair draped in a sexy as hell way around her head and shoulders. Her back was slightly arched, showing off a perfect figure. The tops of her large round breasts glistened under the sun and she had the sexiest playful smile he’d ever seen. It was the sexiest picture he’d ever seen and to his intense surprise he was instantly aroused. He saw Seth from the corner of his eye pulling a throw pillow self-consciously over his lap.

  He decided it was a good idea and quickly followed suit.

  “This picture showed up on stands yesterday and is already causing a bit of a debate. The magazine is claiming this picture has not been altered in any way. They allowed our people to look at it and we have found out,” she paused for theatrical purposes, “it has not been altered.

  People are claiming Dana has the most perfect body in the world. Some are claiming she is easily the sexiest woman on earth.”

  “I’d agree to that, shit,” Seth said, sighing dreamily. Amy reached around Edward and slapped Seth upside his head. “Ow!”

  “We’ve found out that Maxim Magazine, Playboy and others are lining up to ask her to pose for them. Will she?

  We’ll keep you updated.” Emily said, winking at the camera.

  “Oh no,” Edward mumbled.

  “What? Damn, she’s hot!” Seth said. “I’ll buy every issue if she does it!”

  Edward turned to look at his friend. “Exactly, everyone is going to be after her now. Do you know how many perverts are going to harass her now?”

  All signs of humor left Seth’s face. “Shit.”

  Edward stood up, dropping his pillow to the floor. There was nothing to worry about since all the stress killed his erection. He picked up his phone and dialed Dana’s number only to find it was