Текст книги "Directing Disaster"
Автор книги: Kate Kane
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Текущая страница: 5 (всего у книги 11 страниц)
Chapter 14
the eyes have it
“Okay, wise guy, we have a family dinner to attend.”
Great, now he was going to meet the rest of the Parkers. He’d told Ben last night that they were even, but before this gig was over, the old man was going to owe him big time.
“Now, get me down.”
He lifted her from the island and took a step back as he stood her in front of him. He leaned in, putting his hands on the island on either side of her, pinning her against the island and kissed her again. We have to make it look good for the cameras, don’t we? He told himself again.
She smiled at him. “Let me go,” she whispered.
He kissed her again and stepped back. She walked around and poured her drink down the sink, put the glass in the dishwasher and nodded her head toward the garage. “Let’s go.”
In the privacy of the garage, where she was sure no prying paparazzi could see her, she punched his arm. “Laying it on a little thick, aren’t you, wise guy?”
“Hey, just playing my role, Toots-er-Jess. Just playing the role of the love sick boyfriend.”
He opened her door and helped her in. She was wearing jeans and a pair of those five inch heels she was famous for, but it was still an Escalade, and she was still just a little bit of a thing.
“Do we want them to follow us or not,” he asked.
“Good question,” she thought. The paparazzi already knew where her mother lived. But she knew what this family dinner was about and the family didn’t need any tabloid company.
“Hell if I know. They already know where Mom lives.” She narrowed her eyes as she looked at him. “No stunt driving in my mother’s SUV.”
He backed out of the drive, and carefully drove the few blocks to the Parker residence. Ben’s Navigator was in the driveway. As instructed earlier in the day, Jess sat and waited for Joey to come around and open her door. He helped her out and held her hand as they walked into house.
Lane looked up. “Paul, it’s good to see you.”
Together, Ben and Jess said, “Not Pauli, Joey.”
“Lane, may I present my brother Giuseppe Gabrielli Bellini? Joey, my fiancée, Lane Parker. Her sons, Jackson and Jamison.”
The Parker brothers each stepped forward and shook Joey’s hand.
“Jake.”
“Jamie.”
“Nice meeting you,” Joey said, as he stepped forward to shake Lane’s hand. He looked back at Jess, as if to say now what?
She looked at her mother. Pauli had a huge crush on her mother. It was the way she’d gotten her first pair of shoes out of him. Pauli had bought her silence and she’d promised not to tell Ben that he was crushing on Lane. But Joey had barely looked at her mother.
Someone had brought Jack Stack. “Y’all go into the family room,” Jess said. “The boys and I can get things ready. Are we eating in the kitchen?”
Lane walked into the family room, followed by Ben, who protectively and proprietarily had his hand in the small of her back, and Joey brought up the rear.
“Joey, you went to L.A. and got Jess and brought her home last night. Thank-you.”
“No worries,” he said, as he looked anxiously toward the kitchen.
“Dinner’s on,” Jess said.
Joey stood back as the family took their assigned seats. Lane at one end, Ben at the other, the Parker brothers on one side and Jess on the other leaving an open spot next to Jess. The family joined hands. Lane looked at Jess. Wednesday night, Jess’s night to say grace.
“Father, we thank you for the food you have placed before us and ask that you bless all of the hands who brought it to us. We thank you for our family and ask that you bless and protect us. In Jesus’ name. Amen”
“Thanks, Jess. Before we start eating, your mother and I have an announcement to make.” Ben looked at each of the Parker kids.
“Father Palmert is meeting us at the Church at 8:00. Your mother and I are getting married tonight.”
Lane smiled. “Our plans were put on hold last month when Jess had to rush back to L.A., and now we’re in a little hurry.” She looked at Ben as she said, “We’re expecting a baby.”
The Parker boys looked at Ben, and they didn’t look thrilled. For a minute Joey thought there might be bloodshed and no one said anything for a couple of beats. Then Jess spoke up.
“Congratulations, Mom.” She pointedly looked across the table at each of her brothers. “That’s great news, isn’t it boys?”
“It’s all good,” Jake said, but he was thinking that someone ought to have a talk with Ben.
Jamie looked across the table at his sister. She didn’t know the rules that Ben had taught him. Rule three: always wear protection. Besides, he’d told Ben he wasn’t allowed to spend the night and he was sure that Ben knew what he meant when he’d said it. Guess the rules didn’t apply to everyone. Jamie’s eyes flashed.
Jess looked from Jamie to Joey to Ben. That’s where she’d seen those eyes, they belonged to the Bellini men… and to her baby brother. How was that even possible?
“So, Mom, tell us the story of when you met Ben,” she said.
Lane laughed. “You kids know how Ben and I met. He came to pick up the things for the church’s garage sale.”
Joey was sitting next to Lane. He looked at her. She was glowing as she looked across the table at his brother. The brother he thought was a confirmed bachelor was glowing as he looked back at Lane. WOW. Married with a baby on the way.
“I’m not sure whether I should extend you best wishes on your upcoming marriage or congratulate you on the blessed event,” Joey said looking at Lane.
“I think both are in order, Joey. Thank-you.” Lane smiled as she patted his hand.
Ben looked at Joey. “You bring a suit?
“I’m a Bellini, of course I brought a suit.”
The food had finally started making its way, in a clockwise rotation, around the table. Jamie handed the bowl of mashed potatoes to Ben. “Dad, you want some potatoes?” He’d said as he handed the bowl to Ben, but what he wanted to do was dump them over Ben’s head.
Dad, when had Jamie started calling Ben “Dad”? Oh, that’s right last month he’d said he was going to call Ben “Dad” after the wedding. Phillip had gotten mom pregnant the night he walked out on them. At least, that was what they’d always believed, but if Jess’s eyes weren’t deceiving her, Ben and her mother had met long before the Parker family moved to Kansas and the now infamous church garage sale.
How had she not seen this before, and how was she going to get DNA from Jamie and Ben without them knowing it?
They finished dinner, and Jake and Jamie had clean-up duty. Ben said he was taking Joey home with him so they could change. He looked at Jamie and at Jake. “Jamie, you have your suit? Jake do you need to go home and change?” Then looked at Jess. “You’re in charge of getting everyone to the church.” Then he kissed Lane. “I’ll see you soon, I love you.”
In the SUV, Joey looked at Ben. “Do Mama and Papa know?”
“About the wedding tonight, yes. They’ll meet us at the church, as will Tony and the Lucianos. We’ll send out announcements and have a big reception at Papa’s later.”
He looked at Joey. “About the baby, I thought I’d wait and tell Mama in a week or two. I know she’ll do the math eventually, but I really don’t want to hear it tonight.” Ben looked at his brother. “I love Lane. By not realizing it sooner, I’ve wasted the last three years. I had talked her into a quick wedding a few weeks ago, and then Jess was called back for the audition.”
Joey looked skeptically at Ben. “Your new sons didn’t look too happy.”
Ben laughed. “Each of them had made it clear that I was to keep it in my pants until after the wedding. They’re pissed that I didn’t listen. They’re good kids. They know I love their Mother. They’ll adjust.”
“How’d you get Fr. Palmert to go along with this?”
Ben grinned. “A big donation, a promise to coach little league until hell freezes over, and we already had all of the paperwork done from before.”
Joey laughed.
“Okay, now about your daughter. You know the paparazzi being here means that the crazed fan is going to know where she is. How are we going to keep her safe? Although I’ll tell you, I’m not convinced she needs to be protected. I have a bruise the size of a grapefruit where she shot me yesterday.”
Ben pulled into his garage. And turned to look at Joey. “Watch yourself. That one is five feet four inches of intense, like a triple shot of nitrous oxide. She called me after I started dating her mother and told me if I did anything to hurt her mother, she’d castrate me. Not hurt me. Not make me pay. Castrate me.” Ben shook his head and laughed. “I have no doubt that she could do it too. I had Lane enroll her in self-defense classes a few years ago. And I’ve been taking the three of them to the range and we’ve been playing paint ball and laser tag. She can handle herself. It’s not that.” Ben shook his head. “She sniffled when I talked to her yesterday. You have to understand, there are certain things that Jess Parker doesn’t do unless they’re written in a script. Crying is one of them. It ripped my heart out.”
They walked into the house, each into his bedroom and came out in their Brioni suits and Berluti shoes.
“A couple of months ago, I kept Lane here with me to keep her safe.” Ben looked at his brother. “Jess may not be a Bellini by birth, but she’s my daughter just the same. Sometimes I think she’s more Italian than we are. She understands the concept of protecting the family by whatever means necessary. She called in a favor from Uncle Vinnie last month to protect Jake’s girlfriend.”
“She called in a favor from Uncle Vinnie? What did she do that Uncle Vinnie owed her?”
“No one has told me, but I gather Uncle Sal still owes her.”
Joey shook his head and laughed. “And I’m here to protect her?”
Chapter 15
the bells are ringing
The Bellinis and Lucianos were in the church. All except Pauli, who was still in St. Louis; and Ben’s sister Marie Terese, who was in Italy managing the family’s vineyard. Lane’s only family were her children. Ben and Joey stood at the front of the church with Fr. Palmert, as Jess walked down the aisle carrying a small bouquet of ivory rosebuds. Joey couldn’t take his eyes off her. She wore a long sleeved, floor length, cream colored, jersey dress. She could have been the bride herself. She stood at the front of the church. When the Wedding March began to play, she looked toward the back of the church, as both of her bothers escorted their mother down the aisle.
Ben couldn’t take his eyes off of Lane. He’d never seen anything or anyone so beautiful. She wore a long sleeved, blush colored, floor length dress. It had a sweetheart neckline, emphasizing her beautiful figure. She too, carried a bouquet of ivory rosebuds. He needed to send a healthy tip to his florist. Once again, she’d come through on short notice.
Fr. Palmert asked, “Who gives this woman?”
The three Parker kids in unison said, “We do.”
The wedding ceremony, from procession to “you may kiss the bride”, lasted only about 20 minutes.
Papa Bellini kissed his new daughter on each cheek. “Bella, benvenuti in famiglia. Welcome to the family.”
Mama Bellini kissed Lane on both cheeks. “Bella sposa, non ho mai visto Benito così felice. I’ve never seen my Benito so happy.”
Ben, Lane, Jess and Joey signed the marriage license, and Joey put it in his pocket. Joey’s dilemma had been whether to sign his own name or Pauli’s. The press thought he was Pauli, but Mama knew he was Joey. The document was public record and if the press got hold of it, they’d be all over that he wasn’t Pauli. In the end, he’d signed his own name, knowing that it was a legal document and he didn’t want anything to invalidate his brother’s marriage. He also knew they had a few days before it needed to be filed.
Joey took Uncle Sal aside. He’d really like to know what Jess had done that the uncles owed her a favor. “Zio Sal, la bambina è in difficoltà.”
They stepped away from the rest of the family. “Lei è sotto la mia protezione. UN pazzo si sta insinuando la sua.” Joey told his uncle.
He explained about the notes that had been left in her condo. He told Sal that Ben had someone in L.A. looking into it. He explained that his biggest concern was the paparazzi following them right now; because the crazed fan would most likely be in Kansas soon, if he wasn’t there already. They might need to stay at Uncle Sal’s acreage near Parkville, Missouri.
Uncle Sal nodded, “Si, Io mi occuperò di esso.”
Joey looked at his uncle, “È questo per me, non per lei.” He wanted to make it clear that Jess wasn’t calling in her favor. He would owe Uncle Sal for this. Italians were all about keeping score, at least his family was, and they took their obligations very seriously.
The Parkers had just eaten, but when Papa Bellini announced that there was wedding cake in the Board Room, everyone went to their cars and drove to Bellini’s.
As they walked out of the church, the paparazzi began taking pictures of everyone. Immediately, Joey put his hand protectively at Jess’s back and guided her into Lane’s Escalade, which he commandeered again. He opened the driver’s door, got in and looked at Jess. She was trying hard to hide it, but this was taking a toll. When was this going to be over?
“Mom was a pretty bride, don’t you think?”
“I’ll take your word for it. I don’t make a habit of ogling other men’s girlfriends and wives.” Hell, as far as he was concerned, there was only one woman in the church; and according to her, she wasn’t anyone’s girlfriend.
In the Board Room, toasts were made to the happy couple. Some of them were even in English. Lane pretended to take a small sip of champagne after each toast. Ben carefully traded glasses with her occasionally, so it looked like she was drinking.
When Uncle Sal toasted them in English, wishing the newlyweds many sons, Jess once again began wondering how she was going to pull off the DNA testing. The one thing she knew was that the Bellinis and Lucianos wouldn’t know anything about it until the results were in. Last month, she’d listened as Uncle Vinnie had told Pauli to fix the DNA results for Meg’s two year old daughter; to show that Jake, who had only known Meg for a month, was Abbey’s father. No, this DNA test was going to be done by a reputable lab out of state.
Ben had to be in court at nine o’clock in the morning, and he knew Lane was tired. He talked to Jess and Joey, telling them that he and Lane were going to spend the night at a downtown hotel. He suggested that Joey spend the night at the Parker house. The room formerly occupied by Jake was open. He spoke with Jake and Jamie, explaining that he’d asked Joey to stay at the house, before he made excuses to the rest of the family and left with Lane.
The party didn’t continue long after the guests of honor had gone. The Luciano Uncles had congratulated Jess on her new movie as they walked with her toward the door. The paparazzi was waiting in the parking lot as Jess walked out. She stopped, smiled, and let them get some shots. Everyone was calling “This way, Jessica.” “One more, Jessica” then she heard someone yell, “Show us the ring, Jessica.” What ring? Then it hit her, the paparazzi had waited outside the church, she was the one wearing “white” oh God, they thought she’d married Joey only they thought it was Pauli.
Joey must have come to the realization at the same time. “She was just the maid of honor, guys.” He flashed that million watt Bellini smile and maneuvered her toward the SUV. Hell, now they’d be camped out outside the Parker house all night waiting for him to come out. He imagined the headlines. He couldn’t stay the night there. Oh, hell.
“Call Jake and tell him to wait for us at the house,” he said as he started the SUV.
She made the call then looked at him. “What are you thinking?”
“I don’t know. No matter what we just told them, the paparazzi think you and I just got married. I promised the old man I’d stay at the house tonight, but if I do, it’ll add fuel to the fire.”
She looked at him. “Go to Ben’s.”
She called Jamie. “Change in plans, meet us at Ben’s.”
She ended her call and looked at Joey. “We’ll park in the garage. We’ll all go in. We’ll close the blinds and curtains. The Parkers will leave, Jake in his truck, Jamie and me in the SUV. The paparazzi will see me and Jamie, and we’ll go home.”
Joey shook his head. “That doesn’t work for me. How am I keeping my promise to the old man if you go home without me?”
She smiled conspiratorially at him. “Subterfuge. The bedroom light will be on a timer. They’ll think you’ve gone to bed, but you’ll be in the cargo area. They’ll probably follow me and Jamie, but we’ll park in the garage and no one will know you were with us.”
He winked and flashed that million watt Bellini smile at her. “I like the way you think.”
They stopped in Ben’s driveway. Jamie hopped out of Jake’s truck and entered the code for the garage door. Joey pulled the Escalade into the garage. They all went into the house and closed the blinds and curtains. They went through the house turning lights on and off as they went. Joey grabbed his bag and threw it in the back of the SUV. Jake set the timer on the bedside lamp in the guest room. It would come on it 10 minutes and go out 20 minutes after that. Jamie set the timer on a lamp in the family room. It was on now and would go out in 10 minutes.
Joey watched the Parkers as they worked. He wondered if they’d done this before.
Chapter 16
tabloid lies
Joey climbed out of the Escalade’s cargo area. He pulled a gun from a shoulder holster and motioned for Jess and Jamie to stand back while he went into the house. Jamie looked at Jess and she rolled her eyes as she motioned for Joey to go ahead.
Jamie leaned toward his sister. “The guy’s a little intense, don’t you think?” The whole family thought Jess was intense. Jamie thought these two had a lot in common.
Jess nodded her head. “Yeah, I think. Let’s go.” She went into the house and followed Joey as he walked from room to room. She opened the basement door. “Don’t forget to check downstairs.” Joey went through the door and she seriously thought about closing and locking it, except there was no lock and it wouldn’t have mattered if there were. She knew locks didn’t stop him.
Joey came back up the stairs. “We’re good, the house is cleared. Show me where I’m sleeping.” He picked up his bag and followed Jamie. Joey would be staying in Jake’s old room which shared a Hollywood bathroom with Jamie’s room.
Joey stood in the hall watching Jess, as she stood in the open doorway for her bedroom. “All right, I’ll see you in the morning. Yell if you need anything.” He told her.
She looked at him like he was nuts. “Yeah, like that’s going to happen,” she mumbled as she closed her door. She had a Louisville Slugger under her bed and a pistol in the night stand. She had everything she needed.
It was the downside to living in a ranch style house, everything was on the ground floor, making the windows easily accessible for intruders. But that’s why every window at the Parker’s house had a big thorn bush planted under it. No one was getting into the house that way.
She stripped out of her dress, threw on a camisole and pajama pants, turned off the light and tried to sleep. Whoever this nut job was, he had successfully turned her life upside down. She just wanted to sleep.
*****
Pauli had finished his shift in the ER, and was walking through the waiting room, when an image on the TV screen caught his eye.
There he stood with Jess on the Plaza posing for the cameras. He found the remote and adjusted the sound, but the program had moved to the next story. He went home, logged onto the internet and did a search for Jess. Suddenly, the reason Joey had called and told him to stay in St. Louis was clear. His brother had been impersonating him, posing for the paparazzi and giving impromptu interviews, saying Pauli and Jess were definitely a couple.
Pauli looked at his phone. Midnight. He was off for the next few days. He threw some things into a bag, got into his BMW and headed toward Interstate 70. It would be four o’clock in the morning by the time he got there, but who cared? Apparently he and Jess Parker were as good as engaged. He didn’t know why Joey was impersonating him and he didn’t care, as long as it meant Jess Parker was his girlfriend.
*****
Ben lay in bed holding Lane, who slept, naked, in his arms. He had been too worried about the baby to make love to her on their wedding night. She had tried to convince him that the baby would not be harmed by their love making, but until he heard it from the doctor there would be no convincing him. He understood this was a high risk pregnancy, and he was taking no chances. The sex between them had been great, and while he prayed the doctor would give them the go-a-head, he was willing to wait if he had to. He just wished she wouldn’t moan in her sleep. Her moaning had always done him in.
*****
Jess’s cell phone was buzzing in the middle of the night again. She needed a new agent, or maybe she needed to hire a publicist. That was it, as soon as she got back to L.A. she was hiring a publicist. “Jer. It’s the middle of the night. The paparazzi are already here, now what?”
“Where did you find that hunky doctor?”
She rolled her eyes. Surely her agent wasn’t calling her at three in the morning to talk about how she met Pauli or was it Joey. “I told you yesterday, he’s a friend of the family.”
“Well, if you say so. Did you marry him? You know you really should let me know before you do those kinds of things.”
“Jer, I promise. If and when I get married, I’ll let you know. My Mother got married. I was just the maid of honor. And Pauli Bellini is not my boyfriend, he’s just delusional.” And the guy in the tabloid pictures wasn’t even Pauli Bellini but that was a whole other story. One she didn’t want to tell Jer, or anyone else, at three in the morning, or maybe ever.
Jess ended the call. Was she ever going to get a decent night’s sleep again? Last night she’d tossed and turned replaying the scenes of finding the envelope addressed to Kit on her bed, calling Jamie, talking to Ben, then shooting Joey and being whisked back to Kansas. When she’d gotten that movie out of her head, she’d started thinking about her mother being pregnant and her role in the near break-up with Ben. When she’d finally gotten that out of her head and fallen asleep, it was a short night because Jer had called at the crack of dawn.
But tonight, with Mom and Ben finally married, and with the lunatic fan in L.A., she could relax. She had the paparazzi, the Parkers, the Bellinis and the Lucianos tracking her every move. It was safe to sleep here in her old bed.
Jess always locked her bedroom door when she slept. She wasn’t sure when the habit had started, but with the current events, it was a good habit to have. She heard the door knob rattle. She reached into her night stand and pulled out the pistol. “I’ve got a gun and I know how to use it.” She said as the door opened.
“It’s me, don’t shoot,” Joey said. He leaned cautiously into the room. “I heard the phone. Is everything all right?”
“He heard the phone? What the hell, did he have hearing like a bat?” She thought, knowing she’d put the phone on vibrate before the wedding and had forgotten to turn the ringer back on.
“Everything’s great. My agent thinks I married you. I mean my agent thinks I married Pauli. Oh hell, I don’t know who my agent thinks I married. And if I don’t get some sleep soon, I may never be able to figure it out.” She laid back down and pulled the pillow over her head.
Joey sat on the bed. “I was the only one here, obviously you married me.”
She lifted the pillow and peered out at him. “We didn’t get married.” She pulled the pillow back over her face. She lifted a corner of the pillow again. He was sitting at the foot of her bed, the muscles of his chest rippling. Was he smiling? God, maybe she should just shoot him again but he had a welt the size of an egg on his chest where she’d shot him before. She pulled the pillow back over her face. She was so tired. Why didn’t he take his muscles and go sleep in Jake’s room? She pushed at him with her feet.
“Go away.”
Why was he in her room with his bare chest? She sat up.
“How the hell did you get in here? I know the door was locked. I always lock the door.” The strap of her camisole fell off her shoulder.
He was smiling, that million watt Bellini smile. He got up and walked toward the door. “It might be our second date, but I’m still not giving away any of my secrets.”
Luckily for him he’d pulled the door closed before she pulled the trigger. Neon pink paint splattered and then dribbled down the door. Thank God it was water soluble. Felix, Jess’s pet name for her Mother, would kill her if it left a stain.
She rolled over and, much to her surprise, went right to sleep.
Joey stood in the hall shaking his head. Damn, he was glad the girl didn’t have a real gun. He’d thought she may be pretty good at shooting a target that was standing still right in front of her, but obviously she had very little trouble with moving targets. He wouldn’t underestimate her again.
*****
Joey was making himself at home in the kitchen when Jamie got up. Bacon was frying and pancakes were on the griddle.
“Wow, man. No one’s usually up at this time.” Jamie, who had always been an early riser, usually worked out before he went to school. “Let alone cooking breakfast.”
Joey nodded toward the breakfast bar. “You know what they say, breakfast is the most important meal of the day.” He started putting pancakes on a plate. “How many you want?”
Jamie grinned, “How many you got?”
