The Wedding (7 page)

But none of that came up at the dinner table. They talked about other things. Simon and Scott talked about basketball, and Stanford, and a possible trip to China. And then they all talked about the Golden Globes, and Scott teased Sam about the last boy he'd seen her go out with. He said the kid was a real nerd, and Samantha defended him hotly, although she insisted she really didn't like him. And Blaire announced that their ratings had just gone up again, after a brief dip the month before, and she was planning to redo the garden and the kitchen next summer.

Is that supposed to be news? Simon teased, as a warm look passed between them. When haven't you been ripping something out and putting something else in? And anyway, I like the garden the way it is. Why change it?

I found a fabulous English gardener, and he says he can change everything in two months. The kitchen is another story, she grinned. I hope you all like Jack in the Box, we'll be eating all our meals there from May till September. There was a communal groan, and Simon looked at his only son with a meaningful expression.

I think that's just about the right length of time for our trip to China.

You're not going anywhere. She looked at him pointedly. We're shooting all summer this year, and I'm not going to be left alone again. Every year the two men took a trip together, usually to someplace where Blaire couldn't reach them if she tried, like Samoa, or Botswana. You can go to Acapulco for the weekend. Scott laughed at them, and the teasing and the arguments and the exchanges went on until after nine o'clock, when Allegra finally stood up and said she had to get home. She still had some work to do that evening.

You work too hard, her mother chided her, and Allegra smiled in answer.

And you don't? Her mother worked harder than anyone she knew. And Allegra respected her a great deal for it. I'll see you tomorrow night, at the awards, she said, as they all left the table.

Do you want to come with us? her mother asked, and she shook her head.

Alan's always late, and he's got ten million friends wherever we go. He'll probably want to go somewhere afterward. We'd better meet you there, or we'll drive you crazy.

You're going with Alan and not Brandon? Samantha asked her with a look of amazement, and her older sister nodded.

How come?

He had to go to San Francisco to see his kids, Allegra said matter-of-factly. She felt as though she had already explained it four thousand times, and she was getting tired of it.

Are you sure he's not sleeping with his ex-wife? Sam asked her bluntly, and for a minute she knocked the wind out of Allegra. Allegra was quick to respond once she caught her breath again, and she was furious at her younger sister for the question.

That's a really bitchy thing to say, and totally unnecessary. You ought to watch your mouth, Sam, Allegra said hotly.

Well, don't wet your pants over it, Sam said, looking all cat as the two sisters hissed at each other. Maybe I'm right, maybe that's why you got so pissed off when I said it.

Knock it off, Scott said to Sam, seeing how upset Allegra was. His sex life is none of our business.

Thanks, Allegra whispered to him later, as she kissed him good night, but she wondered herself why Sam's comment had upset her so much. Was that really what she thought? Was that what she was afraid of? Of course not. Joanie was dependent and whiny and overweight, and Brandon even said to her all the time how unattractive his ex-wife had gotten. That wasn't the point. It was just that it hurt so much to have to defend him. It was obvious that her whole family thought he should be there, and so did she. And secretly, she was furious that he wasn't.

She thought about it again all the way home that night, and by the time she got home she was angry at him all over again. She sat and stewed about it for a while, pretending to pore over her work, and then finally she decided to call him. She knew the number of the hotel where he stayed by heart, and she dialed it with trembling fingers. Maybe she could convince him to come back after all, but then she'd have to explain to Alan that he couldn't take her, and that could have been awkward, even though they were good enough friends that she could say anything to him, and if he was mad about it, he'd tell her.

They rang Brandon's room for her, and she waited interminably. It was after ten o'clock, but he didn't answer. She asked them to try again, just in case they'd gotten the wrong room, but he was clearly not in. He was probably still at the house, talking to Joanie about the divorce. After the girls went to bed, Brandon said, they argued for hours sometimes. But as she thought of it, Sam's words about his sleeping with Joanie popped into her head. And Allegra was furious all over again, at him for being there, and at her sister for having said it. She didn't need to spend her life worrying about him or feeling insecure because of something a teenager said. She had enough going on in her life without this bullshit. And almost as soon as she hung up, the telephone rang, and she smiled to herself. She was hysterical about nothing. It was probably Brandon, and he'd just gotten back to the hotel. But it wasn't. It was Carmen, and she was crying.

What's up?

I just got a death threat. She was sobbing, and she said she wanted to move back to Oregon. But hers wasn't a career that would easily disappear. She had movie contracts now, and the entire world wanted a piece of Carmen Connors.

Allegra frowned as she listened. How did you get it? Try to calm down and tell me.

It came in the mail. I forgot to open my mail today, and I just got home from dinner, so I opened it, and there it was. It says she dissolved in floods of tears again it says that I'm a bitch and I don't deserve to live another hour. This guy says he knows I'm cheating on him and I'm a whore, and he's going to get me.

Oh, God, Allegra thought to herself. Those were the ones you had to worry about. The ones who imagined they had a relationship, or a right, and had somehow been wronged. They were the real ones, but she didn't want to frighten Carmen any further. This doesn't sound like anyone you know, does it? Anyone you went out with, and who might be angry you don't want to go out with him again? It was at least worth the question, although she knew how circumspect Carmen was. Despite the tabloid stories, Carmen lived like the Virgin Mary.

I haven't had a date in eight months, she said unhappily, and the last two guys I went out with have both gotten married.

That's what I figured. Okay, let's calm down. Turn on the alarm, she said calmly, as though talking to a child.

I did.

Good. Call the security guard at the gate and tell him about the letter. I'll call the police and the FBI, and we'll meet with them tomorrow. There's not much point doing anything tonight, but I'll let them know. LAPD can put passing calls past your house every half hour. Why don't you take one of the dogs into the house with you tonight, just so you feel better?

I can't' . I'm scared of them, Carmen said nervously, and Allegra laughed, which relieved the tension.

That's my point. They'd scare anyone. At least keep them loose on the property. You know, I think it's all probably bullshit anyway, but it doesn't do any harm to be careful.

Why do they do things like this? Carmen wailed. She had had threats before, and they terrified her, but no one had ever actually tried to harm her. It was just talk, and every celebrity Allegra knew of had had threats at some point or other. It just went with the territory, but it was never pleasant. Her own parents had had them too, and there had been a kidnapping threat against Sam when she was eleven. Her mother had hired a bodyguard for her for six months, and he drove everyone nuts, watching TV night and day, and spilling coffee all over the carpets. But if she had to, Allegra would hire one for Carmen. In fact, she wanted to hire one for her for the Golden Globes. There were two she particularly liked, and used fairly often, and one of them was a woman.

They're just stupid, Carmen. They want attention, and they think that if they try to get close enough to you, they'll get a little piece of the limelight. It's a sick way to do it, but try not to let it upset you too much. I'm going to try to get you a couple of people for tomorrow night, a woman and a man, it'll just look like you're with another couple, Allegra said reassuringly. She had handled a lot of these situations for other clients, and she was very soothing.

Maybe I just won't go, Carmen said nervously. What if somebody shoots me at the awards? She started to cry again and whimper about going back to Portland.

No one is going to shoot you at the awards ceremony. Come on, you can come with us. Who's your date?

Some guy named Michael Guiness. The studio paired me off with him. I've never even met him. She sounded disgusted, but Allegra was quick to encourage her.

I have. He's okay. He was gay, and very presentable, and one of their up-and-coming young actors, and they probably thought that being with Carmen Connors would be good for his image. The fact that he was gay was a fairly well kept secret. I'll take care of everything. You just relax and try to get some sleep. She knew that Carmen sat up all night sometimes, watching old movies on TV, because she was scared, or lonely.

Who are you going with? Carmen asked casually, assuming it was Brandon. She had met him once or twice, and she thought he was respectable, but boring. She was surprised at Allegra's answer.

I'm going with an old buddy from school, Alan Carr, Allegra said offhandedly. She was making notes to herself about calling the police and the FBI in the morning.

Oh, my God! Carmen said, sounding dumbstruck. The Alan Carr? Are you kidding? You went to school with him}

The one and only, Allegra said, amused at her reaction. It happened often.

I've seen all his movies.

So have I, and believe me, some of them are rotten. Some of them were great though, and she knew it. I keep telling him he needs a new agent, but Alan is very stubborn.

Oh, my God, he's gorgeous.

Better than that, he's a nice guy. You'll like him. She wondered if Alan would like Carmen. Maybe they'd hit it off at the awards, which would be kind of fun for all of them. We'll go out for a drink or something afterward, and we'll drive you and Michael to the awards if you like.

I'd love that. She was sounding a whole lot happier by the time they hung up, and Allegra sat and stared out the window for a while, thinking about how odd life was. The biggest sex symbol in America hadn't had a date in eight months, and was getting death threats from lunatics who thought they owned her. There was something very wrong with that, to say the least. And here Carmen was impressed that Allegra knew Alan Carr. It really was all a little topsy-turvy.

When she finished talking to Carmen, she looked at her watch. They had talked for more than an hour. It was close to midnight, and Allegra was almost afraid to call Brandon again by then, but she decided to anyway. He had probably returned her call when she was on the phone with Carmen. But when she dialed the hotel again, he was still out, and she left him another message, this time asking him to call her.

She went to bed at one o'clock, and she still hadn't heard from Brandon, but she didn't want to try again. She was beginning to feel foolish, and she did everything she could to put Sam's words out of her mind. She didn't know what Brandon was doing, though she was certain he was not sleeping with Joanie. But she couldn't imagine what he was doing at that hour in San Francisco. It was a sleepy little town, and from what she'd seen of it, they rolled up the sidewalks at nine or ten o'clock. He certainly wasn't in a nightclub. He was probably just arguing with her about the house or the condo near Tahoe. Sam had had no right to say things like that about him. She was still furious when she thought about it. Why was everyone always so disagreeable about him? And why did she always have to stick up for him and answer people's questions about his behavior?

The phone never rang and she finally drifted off to sleep about two o'clock in the morning. But it did ring at four, and she leapt to her feet with her heart pounding, thinking it was him. But it was Carmen. She had heard a noise, and she was terrified. She was whispering into the phone, and she was so scared she hardly made sense. It took nearly an hour to calm her down again, and Allegra wondered if she should just go over there. But Carmen insisted she was okay by then. It was five A.M., and she was embarrassed to have called, but Allegra reassured her that it wasn't a problem.

Get some sleep or you'll look like hell tonight at the awards, and you're probably going to win, so you'd better look good. Now go back to bed, Allegra said, sounding like a big sister.

Okay. Carmen laughed, feeling like a little kid. And five minutes after she turned off the light, Allegra was asleep. She was exhausted. She didn't stir until eight o'clock in the morning, when Brandon called and woke her.

Were you up? Brandon asked, as she tried to sound as though she'd been awake, and then groaned when she saw the clock. She'd had less than five hours sleep all night, and she felt it.

Several times, actually, she said, regaining her composure. Carmen had a little problem.

Oh, for chrissake, I don't know why you put up with that nonsense. You ought to get an answering service, or just turn your phone off. It wasn't the way she was made, or the nature of her business, but he had never understood that.

It's all right. I'm used to it. She had a death threat, and as she glanced at the clock again at eight oh five, she remembered that she had to call the police and the FBI to report it. She was going to have a busy morning. Where were you last night? Allegra tried to keep a tone of accusation out of her voice, and not to remember Sam's words of warning as she asked him.