Chapter 6 #2
“Like turtles eating straws?” his mom inquired.
“More like predators disrupting equilibrium in habitats,” he said dryly, forcing Rachel to bite her lower lip not to giggle.
“I have to ask,” Rachel said, unable to look away. “Are you a pair of lips professionally, Mrs. Luview?”
“Deanna,” she said quickly. “Call me Deanna.”
“Um, okay, Deanna. Is that a thing there? Do people play parts and wear costumes? Sounds like a great way to make a living!”
“Oh, no! We just do this for fun. It’s how the town just… is. Maybe someday you’ll come see for yourself.”
Kell’s eyes widened in surprise and cut to Rachel for a moment.
“Anyhow,” his mom went on, “Rachel gave me an idea! I’ll talk to the festival committee about seeing if we can find a way to pay some young actors trying to get their start, maybe get them to come to town for festivals and dress up as lips, hearts, cupids…”
“Oh, I know all about the cupid costumes,” Kell said darkly. “And I’m never doing that again.”
“You?” Rachel couldn’t help but laugh. “Doesn’t Cupid wear a, um…” She gestured.
“Diaper? Yeah. Basically.”
“You were so cute!” his mom gushed. Did she wink, too? “I’ll show you the pictures, Rachel.”
“Mom. Rachel’s not… we’re not… we work together. We’re just friends.”
If they were just friends, why did this feel so weird?
So right?
“Oh. Okay, Friend Rachel. I still think we’ll meet one day.”
This time, she definitely winked.
“You know, my mother is an actress,” Rachel blurted out, stunned as her own words came out. Being Portia Starman’s daughter sucked, so she rarely talked about it.
“Really? A real one?”
“Mom,” Kell said. “Why would you say it that way?”
“I don’t mean anything negative! I meant, a working actress?”
“Yes,” Rachel replied, laughing. “A real one. Her name is Portia Starman.”
The eyeballs opened wider.
“PORTIA STARMAN IS YOUR MOTHER?”
“She just said so, Mom.”
“Oh, my gosh!! That’s amazing, Rachel!”
Rachel shrugged.
“I had nothing to do with being her daughter. Just how I was born,” she said with a chuckle. “But if you ever wanted to do something with actors, I could connect you.”
Deanna’s mouth fell open.
“Talk to PORTIA STARMAN? I worshipped her in high school–I had that detective show poster on my wall. It was still kind of unusual to see a female detective on television back then.”
“We don’t remember, Mom, because we weren’t alive in the prehistoric era,” Kell cracked. “How did you watch tv? Carve them out of stone?”
“Ha ha, Kellan Luview, you little smart-mouth.” Deanna’s eyes jumped to Rachel. “I’ll take you up on that introduction if you’re serious.”
“Totally serious.”
“It makes so much sense to have real actors at our festivals, Kell! Why didn’t we think of that before?”
“Because no one in Luview had any connections.” A troubled look came over his face as he leaned in and whispered in Rachel’s ear. “You sure about this? I don’t want my mom taking advantage of you just because of who you’re related to.”
“I offered, Kell. She didn’t ask.” The heat of his breath on her ear made it hard not to shiver.
“Okay,” he said softly.
“Deanna, let me text you her number,” Rachel said, taking Kell’s phone and typing it in. She thought her mom might actually be interested in a gig where she would be surrounded by crowds of adoring fans, especially in a beautiful Maine town in the summer.
She handed the phone back to Kell, pulled her own from her pocket, and texted her mother to give her fair warning.
“You and Rachel have a lot in common,” Kell said suddenly to his mom. “She likes to dress up in a costume, too.”
One whack on his arm wasn’t enough. Rachel hit him twice.
“Don’t you dare talk about that!”
“Oh! You’re that woman from the office–the lemur costume!” Deanna said, laughing.
“You told your mom?”
“Of course I did! It was hilarious.”
“For you, maybe, not for me! And besides, we’re trying to keep it secret. My face isn’t in the videos, no one knows it’s me. Don’t ruin my career!”
Deanna pressed a finger to her, um… lips.
“Shhh,” she said. “I promise not to talk.”
The conversation was surprisingly comfortable, even if Rachel was embarrassed. Something about Deanna Luview was casual, calm, and centered. She could see where Kell got his steadiness. His authenticity.
His joy for life.
Suddenly, Rachel really, really wanted to go to Love You, Maine, and see what it was like in the world’s most love-soaked place. How it felt to be surrounded by all that happiness, even if it was a little cheesy.
“Did you call for a reason other than to give me a big smooch with those giant lips?” Kell joked, another comment Rachel would never in a million years be able to say to her own parents.
Conversations with her mother were all about the latest skin treatments, exercise regimens, ways to lose weight, or dog rescue efforts.
Portia was all about the doggies, so at least Rachel could steer the topic toward that.
“I would if I could! No, just called to check in on you. Uncle Ted said you might be struggling a bit.”
Kell’s eyelids closed slowly, and Rachel knew he was fighting inside himself. “I’m fine, Mom.”
“I’m sure you are, my dear. You and Dennis are my kids who moved away, and I have to accept that, but I’ll always check in. Make sure you know we’re here when you need us.”
“I know that.”
“Good.”
In the background, the first notes of Whitney Houston’s “I Will Always Love You” began.
“Shoot. Gotta go. The Kiss Festival’s starting!”
“Love you, Mom.”
“Always!”
And the call ended.
“Kiss Festival?”
“Yep. It’s a one-day thing, always on a Friday. They have a contest to see who can sing “I Will Always Love You” best. Did you know Dolly Parton wrote it? Anyway, there are usually twenty singers or so competing.”
“That’s normal for your town?” She was smiling.
“Sure. We have about sixty different festivals or events every year, and that doesn’t count the thousand or more weddings that take place.”
“Thousand? Every year?”
He laughed. “Most of them are elopements. Like Elvis drive-thru weddings in Vegas. But there are about four destination weddings every week. Love You Chocolate sells heart-shaped candy for weddings, and Love You Bakery makes all kinds of wedding cakes, and there are florists and photographers–it’s an industry. February and June are insane.”
“Valentine’s Day must be crazy.”
“Yeah. It’s like Salem, Massachusetts, on Halloween. If you like crowds, go for it. If not, stay away.”
He sighed, then stretched, his arms forward. Her attention was drawn to his hands, then his face. His expression.
To him. That glimpse of Kell’s home life made her like him even more.
“Hey. I have a lot to sort out about Alissa, but we need to get together and watch noir.”
“Yes!”
“Tomorrow?
“Yes!”
“My place? Deepak is still gone.”
“Sure. I promise to come fully dressed.”
Her comment was meant to be a joke about the lemur costume, but suddenly the air was charged with a heated electricity she wasn’t expecting.
“Right,” he finally said, giving her a lopsided grin she liked very much. “Come over at seven.” He opened his arms and pulled her into a hug, stepping forward so quickly, her arms stayed at her side, pinned by his. He smelled so good, with that woodsy cologne he wore.
“Thank you,” he whispered. The hug was over before she could register it, but something about his quick retreat felt more like he was being careful than abrupt.
Like maybe he felt the spark between them, too.
“For what?”
“Being a good friend.”
“Of course.” Flustered, she pointed to the door. “I’m behind on emails.”
“Me, too.” He held up his phone. “But I’m going to stay in here for a minute. Some personal business.”
“Okay.”
She practically ran out of the conference room, her skin warm from his hug. Reaching her cubicle, she sat down, bent over, and pressed her forehead into the palms of her hands.
Tomorrow. Seven p.m. Watch Nordic noir.
That was all.
Because as Kell’s mom had just said, she was Friend Rachel.
And nothing more.