If you can't do this, Alan said quietly, then you don't belong here.

Maybe I don't, she said sadly, handing him back his handkerchief. She had only dabbed at her eyes, and there was the faintest trace of mascara on it.

America says you do belong here. Are you saying they're liars? he asked her pointedly, as a whole flock of people suddenly appeared who knew him.

He introduced them to everyone. Allegra knew most of them, and Bill and Gayle had moved a few feet away, knowing that the danger had diminished. Alan and Carmen were with their own kind now, other stars, and producers and directors. And a few minutes later, Allegra's parents joined them. Blaire kissed Alan and told him how happy she was to see him again, and how much she had liked his last movie, and Simon shook his head, silently wishing, as he always did, that Allegra would fall in love with him.

Alan was the kind of son-in-law every man dreamed of. He was handsome and intelligent, easygoing, and athletic. Simon and Alan had played golf and tennis several times, and while he and Allegra were in high school, Alan had literally lived in their kitchen. But he had been pretty busy in recent years, and Simon wasn't sure now if Alan was escorting Allegra or Carmen Connors to the Golden Globes. He seemed to be equally attentive to both of them, and Michael had finally arrived but found a clique of his friends, and he was standing a few feet away talking animatedly to them.

We haven't seen you in a long time, Simon complained to Alan in good-natured fashion. Don't be such a stranger.

I was in Australia for six months last year, making a picture in Kenya for eight months before that. And I just got back from Thailand. They keep me on the road most of the time in this insane business. Next month I'm off to Switzerland. It's kind of fun sometimes, you know what it's like. He looked knowingly at Simon. He had never worked for him, but like everyone else in Hollywood, he had always been extremely fond of Simon Steinberg. He was smart, he was fair, he was always a gentleman, and both in his dealings and his word, unfailingly honest. In many ways, he was a lot like Allegra, and those were the same qualities Alan loved about her. That, and the fact that she had great legs, and a figure that still made him want to think of her as something other than a sister. But he was extremely confused as he looked at her. At the beginning of the evening, he had started having romantic notions about her again, but the moment Carmen had appeared, he felt as though someone had thrown all his insides out the window. He didn't know if he was right side up or upside down, or what he was feeling for her. But all he knew was that he wanted to pick Carmen up in his arms, and run straight through the crowd with her until he reached a place where they could be alone for a long, long time, and he could get to know her. Despite all the feelings he'd had for Allegra for over fifteen years, he had never felt that way about her. Since she'd first stepped into the limousine, he couldn't take his eyes off Carmen Connors.

Allegra had noticed it too, and it made her smile at him. She knew that he'd been hit hard, and fast, and she wasn't even sure she minded.

I told you you'd like her, she said in a wheedling tone as they made their way to their table, and a dozen photographers snapped their picture. Carmen and Michael were just behind them, with Bill and Gayle bringing up the rear. Carmen was well sandwiched between them all, but the press was also being kept busy by other major stars, though none as devastatingly beautiful as she was.

Why is it that you remind me of Sam when you talk to me like that? he asked, sounding faintly annoyed, and not wanting to admit to her how taken he was with Carmen.

Are you calling me a brat, or just telling me I sound like I'm seventeen? she teased as another photographer, this one from Paris Match, took their picture.

I'm telling you that you're a pain in the ass, but I love you anyway, he grinned with the look that a million women would have died for.

You really are cute, you know, she said, wanting to give him a shove, but not daring to get out of hand there. I think Carmen thinks so too, to tell you the truth, she said, sounding like an omniscient older sister.

Maybe you should just stay out of this, he warned her, suddenly wanting to kiss her neck again, and feeling completely schizophrenic. It was ridiculous, he had known her and loved her, mostly as a brother, for fifteen years, and now suddenly he was having sexual feelings about her again, and at the same time he was wildly attracted to her incredibly beautiful blond-bombshell client. None of this was supposed to be happening, and he turned and ordered a Scotch on the rocks from a passing waiter. He needed a drink to clear his head, or maybe just to numb it. I don't want you saying anything to her, he warned Allegra as they found their table. It was a table for ten. She and Alan were sitting there, as were Carmen and Michael; a producer friend of her father's she had known for years, and his wife, who had been a very famous actress in the forties; a couple Allegra had never heard of before, which was rare; and Warren Beatty and Annette Bening. I mean that, Allegra, Alan said again. I don't want you mixing in, and trying to start something here.

Who said I was going to mix in? she said with the innocence of an angel as Carmen joined them. She was looking a little more at ease, and she looked up at Alan with huge blue eyes and a big grin as he sat down beside her. They talked for a few minutes, and then Allegra slipped away to see some friends. Several of the senior partners from the law firm were there, and almost all of their most important clients. Her parents had a table filled with their closest friends, most of them directors and producers, and the star of her father's latest picture. It was old home week for all of them, and Allegra was totally at ease as she floated through the crowd saying hello to people she knew well, and laughing here and there with an old friend, most of them either movie stars, writers, producers, or directors. There were also studio and network people heavily in evidence. It was an incredibly important evening.

You're looking great, Jack Nicholson commented as she skipped past, and she thanked him. He was one of her father's oldest friends, and she and Streisand exchanged a nod. She wasn't sure if Streisand knew who she was, but she certainly knew Allegra's mother, Blaire Scott. And Allegra was particularly pleased to stop and chat with Sherry Lansing. It was also somewhat reassuring to note that a lot of men were looking at her with open admiration. In some ways, Brandon was so restrained that it was rare to get this kind of reinforcement from him. Even among the stars, Allegra could hold her own. And in a way, that always surprised her.

What are you doing? Alan asked her when she got back. Cruising? Not when you're my date. That guy you go out with is really giving you bad habits. He pretended to be mad at her, but she knew he wasn't.

Oh, shut up and behave yourself, she said with a grin as she sat down, and a few minutes later they were served dinner. As soon as coffee was served, the lights went down, and they were on the air with the music, the show, the televised Golden Globe awards in all its glory. As it began, their hearts all began to beat a little faster. They skipped back and forth for a while between movies and TV, and began with some of the lesser awards, but even at the beginning of the evening a number of people she knew were honored.

People were quick to powder their noses and put on lipstick during the commercial breaks, and with each award the cameras would zoom in on the nominees, and make everyone even more nervous. Then, finally, it was her mother's turn. She had won the award for best comedy series for so many years that Allegra never doubted for a minute that she would win it this year. She and Alan exchanged a look of certainty, and she was sorry she wasn't closer to her parents' table so she could squeeze her mother's hand in anticipation. It seemed hard to believe that her mother would be really worried after all these years, but she said she always was, and as Allegra saw her mother's face on the monitor, she realized that she was as terrified as all the other nominees. She looked panicked, and then they called out the names, one by one. The music, and then the endless silence, as everyone waited. And then her name ‘ except that this year, for the first time after seven successive years of victory, it was not her mother's name they called out, but someone else's. Allegra was stunned, as she was sure her mother was. She just couldn't believe it. She looked at Alan and her eyes filled with tears, thinking of her, and the pain and disappointment she knew she must feel at that moment. They showed her mother's image on the monitor again, right after the winner's, and as the new winner made her way to the podium, Blaire was gracious and smiling, but Allegra could see that she was devastated. It was a reflection of what the audience had told them with their ratings.

I can't believe it, she whispered to Alan, feeling crushed, and wishing she could offer her mother some comfort. But they couldn't move around the room with the cameras rolling.

I can't believe it either, he whispered back. It's still one of the best shows on TV. I watch it whenever I'm home, and she knew he meant it.

But seven years of awards out of nine was a long time. It was time for someone else now. And that was exactly what Blaire Scott was afraid of. As she sat in her seat, she felt a stone sink from her heart to her stomach, and as she looked at Simon, he nodded and patted her hand, but she wasn't sure he really understood what she was feeling. He had won so many times, but his victories were always individual events. He didn't have a recurring show like hers, which had to maintain its standard of excellence time after time, week after week, season after season. In some ways, what she did was much harder. Then she reminded herself that Simon was also nominated, and she tried to remind herself not to be so selfish. But it was difficult anyway. She felt as though she was losing in a number of ways, even if no one else understood that.