Mikayla thanked Cody for his dinner invitation, but tried to decline. "I wouldn't want to be an imposition," she said.

"It's no trouble at all," he said. "We love having guests. My Mom's a singer too. You and she would have plenty to talk about. And my brother...well, he's always happy to have a pretty girl around. One warning, he's probably going hit on you a few times."

Mikayla managed a slight smile at that comment. "But I can't ask your Mom to do extra work...cooking for me on such short notice."

Cody laughed. "Please, I'll be doing the cooking. And you'll be in for quite a treat, I'm making one of my specialties tonight."

Mikayla raised an eyebrow. "You do the cooking for your family?"

"My Mom is a wonderful mother," he said. "But her cooking skills leave something to be desired."

"Cody is a great cook," London chimed in. "He was trained by Chef Paulo."

"That's the head chef here at the hotel," Cody explained. "He says I'm his best student, but you don't have to take my word for it. My cooking speaks for itself."

Mikayla was still unsure, but Cody was insistent. London was also quite encouraging.

"Why don't you let Cody go down and start dinner, and I'll help you fix up your makeup," the heiress told the singer. "Your mascara is running from all those tears."

"Would you like to have dinner with us too?" Cody asked London. "You're always welcome."

"Thanks," the heiress said. "But I have plans. Is it alright if I stop by after dinner?"

"Sure," he answered. "I'll save some dessert for you."

Cody then left and London led Mikayla to the master bathroom so that they could clean up the singer's makeup.

"You've been so nice," Mikayla said thankfully. "And your friend Cody too."

"Think nothing of it," London replied.

"Are you and he...dating?"

"What?" London said, surprised. "Me and Cody? No."

"Oh...I thought you might be."

The heiress was curious as to why Mikayla had made that assumption. "What made you think that?"

"You two seem to get along so well. And he's such a nice guy. The nicest guy I've met in a long time," said the singer.

"We're just good friends," London said. "And you're right. He is a nice guy. A great guy."

"He's cute too," Mikayla added with a smile.

London said nothing.

Both Zack and his mother, Carey, were home when Cody came in and explained that they'd have a special dinner guest that evening. Zack didn't believe his brother at first, but it soon became evident that Cody was serious.

"Mikayla? Having dinner with us?" Zack said in disbelief.

Cody explained the whole situation as he began preparing dinner. Carey was absolutely horrified when she heard how Mikayla's parents had treated her.

"That poor girl," she said. "How could anyone exploit their own child like that?"

"I'm worried about her, Mom," Cody admitted. "She's on her own and she's not earning an income now. What is she going to do?"

"Maybe London could help her out," Zack suggested. "She's loaded, after all."

"I don't think Mikayla wants to take charity," Cody replied. "Though I'm sure London wants to help. She's going to stop by after dinner, so maybe we can think of something.

After repairing the damage to Mikayla's makeup, London told the singer how to get to Cody's suite. At dinner time Mikayla made her way there and knocked on the door, only to be confused when the door opened.

"Hey, beautiful," the teen who answered the door said in greeting. "Welcome to the 'Chateau Martin' - I'll be your host for this evening."

The young man looked unnervingly like Cody, but was slightly shorter and stockier.

"Are you Cody's brother?"

"His more handsome and charming brother," he answered as he took her hand and escorted her through the doorway and into the suite. "Zack's the name."

"Cody told me had a brother," Mikayla said. "But he never said you were twins.

"And he told me you would be having dinner with us," Zack replied. "But he never told me how drop dead gorgeous you were in person."

The singer let out a laugh. "He warned me that you'd hit on me."

"That's my son," Carey said, having emerged from the bathroom in time to catch the last exchange between Zack and their guest. "A teenage Casanova."

"Mom," Zack complained. "You're cramping my style here."

Ignoring his protests, Carey held out her hand to Mikayla. "I'm Carey Martin, Zack and Cody's mother. We're so happy you could join us for dinner."

"Thank you Ma'am," the singer replied politely as they shook hands.

"Please call me Carey," the elder woman insisted. "Cody will be out in a minute. He's just changing out of his apron now that dinner is ready."

It was then that Mikayla noticed the delicious aromas coming from the kitchen. "Cody's responsible for that?" she asked.

"Yeah," Zack answered. "He's a way better cook than Mom."

"Hey," Carey said as she playfully smacked Zack's arm, causing Mikayla to giggle. It was then that Cody entered from the bedroom.

"I see you've met my family already," he said. "Allow me to apologize for whatever Zack's already done to offend you."

"Everyone's a comedian tonight," Zack muttered.

Mikayla continued to giggle at the Martin family's banter, and Cody was very pleased to see her in a happy mood. It was much better than the forlorn sobbing she'd done earlier in London's suite. He instructed Mikayla and his family to be seated and then began to serve dinner.

To be continued...

author's note: Please review. Not only do I crave feedback, but reader comments could possibly influence some important plot elements. Right now I'm having a blast writing this story and I have some specific things planned, but I don't know how everything is going to end up. Romance is going to bloom...but between which characters?