|
|
“Whoa, check this out!”
Catrina, who hadn’t left Nick’s side all through dinner, smiled
up at
him. “You like our movie room?”
“Room? This is more like a real theatre!” Nick crowed.
“Take a
look at this, guys!”
“We’re looking, we’re looking ...” A.J. said, looking around in awe.
The group -- the Boys, the twins, and their brother Derek -- were
standing in the middle of the basement of the main house. It
didn’t feel like
a basement, though ... with small-sized movie screen, several couches
and
cushioned chairs, and a real projector at the back of the room, it
felt like the
most comfortable movie theatre they’d ever seen. Once again,
Kevin felt
slightly intimidated by the Montenegro fortune.
Derek grinned at the expressions on the newcomers’ faces and made
his way to the back of the room. “So, who’s going to stick around
for
movie night?”
“Watch a movie in here? I wouldn’t miss it!” Brian
exclaimed.
“What have you got?”
“You name it ... Dad manages to keep our library pretty well
stocked,” Lorraine said proudly.
“How about ‘Titanic’?” asked an amused voice from the doorway.
Kevin turned to see Rowena leaning on the door frame, a bag
around her shoulder. “Noooooo!!” Derek yelled. “No,
no, no, no, no. If I
see that damned movie one more time, I’m going to hurl.”
“Relax, Derek, I’m kidding. I’m over the ‘Titanic’ thing,
anyway. I
really just came down here to say good bye ...”
“You’re leaving?” Lorraine cried. “But you were going
to stay the
night! You didn’t even come down for dinner!”
Rowena sighed. “I had to go over the concert security details
with
your dad -- it took longer than I thought. Anyway, I think I’m
just going to
head back to Raleigh tonight.”
“Wait, you can’t go!” A.J. said unexpectedly, from his perch
on one
of the chairs. “We haven’t even met you yet!”
The outburst earned a genuine smile from Rowena, and Kevin felt
a
twinge of jealousy as she walked over to A.J. “I’m Rowena ...
it’s nice to
meet you.”
A.J, Howie, and Nick made their introductions, each one casting
a
covert glance at Kevin after checking her out up close.
“So,” Rowena said, once everyone else had taken their seats.
“Can I
leave now?”
“No,” Lorraine insisted. “Come on, what movie would entice
you to
stay?”
Catrina muttered something unintelligible, and Nick gave her a
strange look. It didn’t escape Rowena’s notice, though, and she
gave a
small sigh as she turned back around. “I’m just gonna drive back,
okay,
guys? Have a good time ...”
Lorraine kicked her sister, who shifted in her seat. “Oh,
Ro, I was
kidding. Come on, you wanna see ‘The Wedding Singer’?”
Catrina asked.
“I think you should ask your guests what they want to see,” Rowena
chided.
“Adam Sandler is always a good choice,” Nick decided.
“Have a seat, stay a while,” Kevin urged her, gesturing to the
empty
space next to him on the couch.
Everyone else in the room added their voices, and Rowena finally
shrugged and dropped her bag. “Oh, okay. You gonna get
the movie,
Derek, or should I?”
“I’ll do it,” Derek said, jumping out of his chair.
Rowena jumped over the back of the couch and settled in on the
opposite end of the couch from Kevin, smiling at him. He grinned
back.
“Besides, that’s a hell of a drive to make in the dark.”
“Oh, I do it all the time ... but I guess it’s better to drive
during the
day.” She tucked her legs up under her and laid her head on the
back of the
couch. “It was a long day, anyway.”
It was on the tip of Kevin’s tongue to offer a shoulder rub, but
he
repressed it at the last second, remembering Carlos Montenegro.
If she
*was* his lover, well, that could be trouble. But, he was going
to have a
hard time concentrating on the movie with her sitting right there.
