Reese Witherspoon caught the mix of embarrassment, disappointment, helplessness, and irritation flickering across Dunn's face. She quickly planted a kiss on his cheek, coaxing him with a playful tone. "Don't be mad, okay? She went through all these hoops, pulling strings to get to me just to reach you. That's gotta mean she's really into movies."
Dunn shot her a sidelong glance. "Cut it out with that act. Learned it from Isla, didn't you?"
Reese giggled. "Oh, speaking of Isla—her book draft? I read it, and it's amazing! Of course, your story's the real genius behind it." She kept laying on the flattery, hoping to nudge him into agreeing.
"Alright, fine," Dunn said, hoisting her up onto his desk with a gentle lift. "What's this sister of your alum actually need help with?"
Reese peeked down with a sly smile, a little smug about her charm. "I think she wants to make movies or something."
"Make movies?" Dunn paused, surprised. "A director? Female directors have it rough in Hollywood—young ones even more so."
Someone tied to Reese through Stanford couldn't be that old, and her sister would be younger still.
Reese tilted her head, thinking. "Not a director, I don't think. I heard she got into Columbia at 16—started with computer science, switched to business management, then did a master's in media and journalism. It's pretty wild. Not sure if it's all true."
Stuff that easy to verify wouldn't be fake, right?
Dunn blinked, thrown off. "An outsider? Does she want to act?"
"Nah, if it were that simple, she wouldn't have gone through all this to get to me," Reese said, shaking her head. "I don't know the details. How about I set up a meeting? You two can chat."
Dunn gave her a long look. "You're going this far just to hook someone up with a chance?"
"Yup."
"Why?"
Reese stared at him, puzzled. "Why what?"
"There's gotta be a reason, right?"
She hesitated, sighed softly, opened her mouth, then stopped.
Dunn raised an eyebrow. "Not something you can share?"
Reese shook her head. "It's not that. It's just… a proof thing."
"Proof?"
He squinted, then it clicked.
Of course—proof! When Reese dropped out of Stanford to act in Hollywood, she must've faced a ton of pushback—family for sure, but probably the school and alumni too. A Stanford star turning into some ditzy actress? Embarrassing. It was like Natalie at Harvard, crying from insecurity. The entertainment biz was what it was; stepping into places like Harvard or Stanford naturally bred a bit of self-doubt.
Now, Reese had clawed her way to the lead in Legally Blonde. Helping out Stanford alums? That was her flex—showing them she was an actress, and she wasn't any less than them. No payback, just pride.
The next day, the woman who'd jumped through hoops to reach Dunn finally showed up. And wow, she turned heads.
Tosca Musk was a stunner in every sense. Curly blonde hair, styled and chic; long legs wrapped in black stockings, sharp and sleek. Her waist and hips curved just right, her figure like something off a runway. Even next to a knockout like Reese Witherspoon, she held her own.
"Hey, welcome!" Dunn stepped up warmly, offering his hand. "Dunn Walker—great to meet you."
"Tosca Musk." She shook his hand lightly, pulling back quick—none of that Hollywood linger. Usually, actresses here wouldn't dare let go first with a big shot like him.
Dunn ushered her to the couch and poured her a coffee himself. It wasn't about her looks—sure, Tosca was gorgeous, but Hollywood was crawling with pretty faces. He wasn't bending over backwards for a stranger. This was for Reese's sake, giving her the respect she'd earned.
Sure enough, Reese beamed, her face lighting up like a flower, eyes practically sparkling.
"Mr. Walker, you're too kind!" Tosca said.
"No big deal. Reese's friends are my friends," Dunn replied with a smile, settling across from her. "Miss Musk—"
"Tosca! Just call me Tosca, Mr. Walker."
"Alright, Tosca it is. And drop the 'mister'—just Dunn. So, I hear from Reese you're interested in breaking into Hollywood?"
Tosca smiled. "Yeah, I've loved movies since I was a kid. My two brothers are huge film buffs too—they're all for it. So I quit my job to give Hollywood a shot."
Dunn blinked. "Mind if I ask what you did before?"
"My brothers are startup guys in Silicon Valley. I've been helping them out the past couple years."
Her brother was Reese's Stanford alum—makes sense he'd hit Silicon Valley after graduating.
Dunn nodded, piecing it together. "Dot-com crash? Company cutting staff?"
"No, no!" Tosca's face stiffened, dead serious. "Dunn, you've got it wrong. I'm here for Hollywood because I love it—nothing to do with the company's health!" Being "cut" implied she wasn't good enough, and she wasn't having that.
Reese swatted Dunn's arm, scolding him. "Don't talk nonsense! My senior's company is doing fine. The crash hit them, sure, but not enough to lay people off."
Dunn smirked—his little jab had worked, steering them to the point. "Tosca, I'd love to see you join Hollywood. We never turn away talent. Just… sorry if this is blunt, but what's your angle? Acting?"
With her looks, she'd ace a vase role no problem.
"Nope, I can't act," Tosca said, shaking her head. "I want to be a producer—or, really, I want to start my own production company here."
"Start a company?" Dunn's eyes widened, staring at her in shock.
Hollywood wasn't Silicon Valley!