Ready to Face the Music

Four days after they arrived back in LA, Rome stood in front of the full-length mirror in the bedroom, tying his tie. In the mirror behind him, he could see his wife, anxiously chewing her bottom lip, her bare feet sliding along the wooden floor, back and forth, her fingers digging into the floral blue bedspread.
“It’ll be fine,” he assured her, catching her eyes in the mirror. “I’ll be back before you know it.”
Ella didn’t say anything, and he couldn’t blame her. She’d already tried to talk him out of going to meet his parents a dozen times, and every time, he’d shot her down. Why bother to try again now when he was clearly set on going? He finished with the tie, smoothing the black fabric down along his white shirt and checking his cufflinks. He wanted to remind his parents that he was an adult, twenty-five years old, fully capable of taking care of himself.
He turned to look at her. Ella was a vision of beauty in a long peach gown that reached past midcalf, her skin still as tan as it had been when they’d been under a tropical sun every day.
She’d wanted to stay. That had become abundantly clear over the last couple of days as she tried to talk him out of going to the meeting. Despite the fact that she’d told him time and again she wanted him to do whatever he needed to do to make himself happy, she hadn’t wanted to come back to LA. He’d had a suspicion that was the case all along, but it wasn’t until he caught the undertone of her arguments he realized just how much of a sacrifice this was for her. Why had they been so careful on their way back, sneaking around, hiding, changing his appearance, if he was just going to drive over and meet with them?
Ella wasn’t wrong, but he needed to do this. He needed answers from his parents, an explanation, and a promise that they would leave him the hell alone.
He might actually need their help, too, which he wasn’t happy to admit. Marge had let him know that he was squared away to play Robert now; they’d start shooting next week. After the incident with Mark and Tim, the rest of the cast had insisted on taking some time off from the project, but when Wynnie heard Rome was back in town and was willing to work on the project, new life had been breathed into the movie.
After that, though, he’d have to find another movie, and then another. It had been a struggle when he’d been here before because he’d been fighting his father. Perhaps, as part of their new understanding, he could agree to work on projects his father’s company was involved in. If he could pull it off as part of a compromise, he wouldn’t have to admit life would simply be easier that way.
Was it possible he’d left part of his fight on that beach halfway around the world?
“Charles is right outside,” Rome reminded her. They’d hired several security workers as well as a housekeeper/chef the last few days. Bart’s connections at the police department had done thorough background checks on all of them. In fact, Bart had started interview applicants before they’d even headed back to LA. None of them knew Ella’s true identity, though the housekeeper/chef, Lenore, an older woman with gray hair and a bright smile, was obviously suspicious. He would tell them the truth in a few days if it seemed to make sense to do so.
“I’m not worried about myself,” Ella reminded him, not moving off of the edge of the bed as Rome crossed to a chair and plucked his black suit jacket off of the back. He slid his arms into it, trying to think of a response.
“I should be back in a couple of hours. I’ll keep you updated. You really don’t need to worry, El.”
She nodded. He knew what she was thinking, though. She thought he was being too forgiving, that by giving his parents what they wanted, the requested meeting, he was accommodating them. Answers would certainly be given, though. They would be made to explain their actions--why they felt it was necessary to drug and kidnap him, twice--and a number of other atrocities. He also wanted a promise from his father that he would reach out to Lloyd Sinders and begin to patch things over. Otherwise, Rome would have nothing more to do with his parents. He was also still contemplating legal action for the kidnapping.
Seeing the look on her face made his heart heavy. He wished there was something he could do to make her happy, but he’d been concentrating all of his energy on getting back to LA, something he thought she wanted, too. Now, he would have to find a way to fix everything for Ella. The frown on her face tugged on his heart, making it hard to breathe.
Taking a few steps across the room, Rome grabbed his wallet off of his nightstand and stuck that in the pocket of his jacket, double checking he had his phone as well. Bart would be driving him and staying with him. His parents wouldn’t want to cause a scene in a public place, so he and Bart should be fine. He’d also be followed by two of the other security workers--Kevin and John.
Moving to stand in front of her, Rome found a small smile and offered her his hands, hoping she’d take them. “Don’t be mad, Ella. It’s for the best. Trust me.”
She let out a sigh that shook him to his soul and then slipped her tiny hands into his, pulling up to standing. “I’ll never trust them.”
“I know. That’s for the best. I don’t trust them either, but I’d rather hear what they have to say and make sure I don’t have to be looking over my shoulder every five seconds now. Since the district attorney has said there will be no charges brought against me, there’s no reason for my dad to try to hide me now. I can’t imagine there being any reason now for them to want to control me. I’m hopeful we can put this aspect of our problems behind us soon. That doesn’t solve everything, but it should make it better.”
Slowly, Ella’s head rocked back and forth, but he knew she was only letting him know that she understood, not that she agreed. “Be careful. Don’t trust anything they say. Don’t go anywhere with them. Don’t even go to the bathroom while you’re there.”
Rome nodded with each of her bullet points. They’d already talked about all of those things, but if it made her feel better to say them again, he’d listen. He wrapped his arms around her and pulled her close to his chest, breathing in that floral scent that had always made his pulse race. He kissed the top of her head, figuring that he wouldn’t get more from her under the circumstances, but when he stepped back, Ella leaned up, stretching for his lips, and he accommodated her, pressing his mouth against hers.
His phone vibrated, and he checked it to see it was Bart. A text let him know his friend was there. “I’ve got to go,” Rome said to Ella.
Again, a sigh came out and nothing more. He took her hand and led her out of the bedroom, toward the front door.
Bart’s voice echoed through the foyer as Lenore let him in. They hadn’t seen him since he’d departed for the airport. “Hey, hey! If it isn’t the international man of mystery!” Bart joked as Rome let go of Ella’s hand to hug his longtime friend. “Man, are you tan!”
“Living on a beach will do that to you,” he said, smiling at the man who’d done so much to save him and Ella.
“Ella, you look gorgeous as ever. Love the haircut.” Bart hugged her, too, and Rome was thankful his friend thought to be so complimentary about an aspect of her new life Ella wasn’t so excited about.
“It’s great to see you, Bart,” she said, releasing him. Her demeanor hadn’t changed though. She was still leery of this entire situation.
“You, too, Mrs. Verona. Don’t worry. I will keep Rome safe tonight. And we won’t be long. I think it’s fair to say neither of us wants to have this conversation, but I do think it’s important. Got to get those rules down from the beginning so they know what happens if they cross the line again.”
Ella nodded, but she didn’t voice an agreement. Rome had already told Bart over the phone that Ella wasn’t happy about any of this.
“Guess we better hit the road if we’re going to be on time,” Rome said, gesturing toward the door. He was certainly ready to get this over with as well. Before he followed Bart out, he turned and hugged Ella one more time, praying this wasn’t a mistake and he wouldn’t end up regretting this moment, as he had the last time he’d purposely separated from her, to get on that boat. “I’ll be back soon.”
“You’d better be,” she said, not joking.
Rome took one more glance around his new living room, smiled at his wife, and then followed Bart out into the evening, taking a deep breath of the sea air, and climbing into the car. With any luck, he’d be back here in a couple of hours having solved some problems without having created any more.