A Deal
“The buyer wants an agreement with you that you will star in ten movies produced by the company in the next five years. All major roles, all paid at or above your going rate at the time filming begins. They want to continue to use the Verona name to their advantage, and for some reason, they seem to think your return to Hollywood is bound to attract a lot of attention. If you say no, they’ll pull the offer.”
Once again, Rome caught Bart’s eyes. His friend’s were slightly wider now, which wasn’t a surprise. Rome felt as if his were about to bulge out of his head. He had come into this meeting assuming he’d be asked to work for his father’s company some. Now, he had the opportunity to do so without his father in the picture. He’d get to do what he loved, and he’d be making a lot of money. The fact that he didn’t know who the buyer was bothered him, but he couldn’t imagine any foreign buyer coming in wanting to get a piece of the American market by making such a large investment would make bad choices in the movies they released. “Okay. I’ll do it.”
“You will?” A smile broke out across his father’s face.
“Yes, under one condition. You stop stalking me. I don’t want you or your men showing up anywhere I’m at anymore. I take it, when you retire, you’ll be headed to Europe?” Monty nodded. “Good. I’ll check in with you once a week so you know how I’m doing, but I don’t want any more suits showing up, got it?”
“What if Sinders comes after you?” his mother asked, that worried expression back on her face.
“I have my own people. I’ll be fine,” Rome assured them.
“Fine, fine. I’ll call them off,” Monty said with a sharp nod. “Now, let me get your portion of the contract so you can sign it.” He bent down and opened the attaché case, pulling out a stapled document about five pages long for Rome to sign.
He wished he had his lawyer there to look it over, but it all looked straightforward to him, nothing different than the contracts he was used to signing. He handed it down to Bart to read through, just to have a second pair of eyes on it. Bart nodded and handed it back, and Rome took the pen from his father, signing the contract and dating it. He prayed he was doing the right thing and this wasn’t just another one of his father’s tricks. The opportunity to get his parents off of his back would make it worth it, assuming this wasn’t some form of deception.
Monty put the contract back into his case. “I’ll get you a copy of that, and of the lawsuit paperwork, for your records.”
“Lawsuit paperwork?” Rome asked, confused again. “Why would I need that?”
Tipping his head to the side, Monty studied his son for a second before he said, “You were named in the lawsuits, too, Rome.”
All the blood seemed to drain out of his face as Rome realized what his father was saying. Again, he wasn’t surprised that Lloyd Sinders would sue him--but Genevieve Bolt had done so? “I was?”
“Yes, of course. They hardly had a case against me, for Tim, anyway, but you--well, clearly, they could argue you had something to do with Tim’s death. All they need is a reasonable doubt in the judge’s mind, and they win.”
Rome’s unsettled feeling was growing. He had spent enough time talking to his parents. While he hadn’t been able to try to convince them to go speak to Lloyd, it seemed evident now that that couldn’t happen, not under the circumstances. He wasn’t even about to try. “I think I should go.”
“Already?” Lacy asked. “It’s been so nice to see you, dear.”
“Yes, I think so. I have some things I need to do.”
“When do you start filming on the Wynnie project?” Monty asked, as if he hadn’t heard him say he needed to leave.
“Uh… couple of weeks.”
“That’ll be big. Soon as it’s over, I’m guessing the new owners will want you for one of their movies.”
“Probably so.”
“Are you seeing anyone, honey?” Lacy asked, drawing Rome’s eyes to her face. He was certain his expression was a mix of disbelief and hatred that someone would dare ask him that under the circumstances. “It’s just… we saw the pictures from Dallas.”
Rome closed his eyes. He shouldn’t have been so quick to grow angry at her. It was an assumption anyone would make. “No. That was just a woman I met at the airport. She was also headed to California, to see her boyfriend, and we decided to ride together.”
“Oh. She was lovely,” Lacy said, slightly disappointed. “I thought perhaps she was someone you’d met on your...adventure.”
That was an interesting way to put it. “No. Haven’t met anyone.” Rome hoped his father would end his snooping before he noted Rome wasn’t living alone, if he didn’t know already.
“Pretty girl,” Monty said, rubbing his chin. “Looked a little, uh, familiar, to me. She… remind you of anyone?”
The look in his eyes as he met Rome’s gaze let him know the suspicions were there. Calling upon all of his skills as an actor, Rome looked right back and said, “No, no she didn’t.”
Monty chuckled slightly, looking away. “I’ll get you a copy of this paperwork. You take care, son. Check in with your mother.”
Rome nodded and pushed back his chair. Lacy was on her feet, her arms open. He walked around and hugged his mother, kissing her cheek, and then shook his father’s offered hand. As soon as he withdrew it, he had the urge to wipe it off, but he didn’t. Instead, he put his hands in his jacket pocket, and turned to signal to Bart that he was ready to go. There was no sense in trying to pay for his portion of the meal. All that would do was hurt his mother’s feelings.
As they headed toward the door, Rome realized there was something small and round in his pocket. It felt almost like a button or a cufflink, but smaller. He didn’t normally put his hands in the pockets of his suit jacket, so he had no idea how the item might’ve gotten there, but he didn’t stop to pull it out. Instead, he followed Bart out the door, ready to be free of this situation once and for all.
Log in with Google Account
Chapters
Favorite
Settings
