"George. Close your mouth, you'll catch flies." Nora said throwing a cushion at her husband. "Casey warned us that it would be over the top."
"That's your daughter!" George protested pointing at the screen.
Nora laughed. "Oh for goodness sake! Anyone would think she'd taken her clothes off and paraded across primetime TV."
George mumbled something unintelligible.
"What happened to staying low profile?" Lizzie asked from the other side of the room. Edwin had long since fled.
"Derek challenged Casey to surprise him. So she did. You know she could never resist a Venturi challenge."
George had recovered his decorum…slightly. "What happened to feminist principles? That was hardly a "girl power" song."
"Oh Georgie. No one says "girl power" anymore! Casey told me that she thought the song was ironic and designed to deliberately poke fun at material girls. She said even if it wasn't, so long as it knocked Derek off his perch it made her happy."
"I thought they were supposed to be in love with each other?" George objected.
Lizzie laughed. "George. This is Derek and Casey we're talking about. Tonight the whole of Canada was subjected to a touch of Derek and Casey foreplay."
George's face was a whole new shade of green.
"Same again?" The guy behind the bar asked Truman French. "You look like you could do with it."
"Yeah. I just had a shock."
The barman laughed. "I think half of Canada just had a shock."
"It's a bit more than that. I know her."
The barman leaned forward. "Really? You wanna get me her number?" he asked laughing. Then ignoring Truman, he moved onto serve the next customer.
"She isn't frigid." A voice said next to Truman. There was a smack as a magazine slapped down onto the bar beside him. He looked up into dark brown eyes, one of which had an arched eyebrow.
"Emily…" Truman began. "Long time no…"
"Can it asshole! I can't believe you talked to a trash-mag about Casey! Actually, yes I can. Derek was right; trashcan by name, trashcan by nature."
"Emily, I can explain…"
"Explain what? How, because Casey's subconscious saw through your bullshit even when her heart couldn't, thereby preventing her from giving her V-card to you, that warrants you telling the gossip-whores that she's frigid? God! Does anyone even know what that means anymore?
Or perhaps you could explain the necessity of you sharing with said-whores how you once persuaded her to let you sneak into her bedroom in an attempt to stay the night? Funny how you don't tell the rest of that little anecdote…i.e. that the reason why she didn't have sex with you that night was because Derek locked your half-naked ass out on the porch and you were forced to spend the night under my mom's rosebush?"
"That's a lie!"
Emily snorted. "Yeah right. Truman. I know it's true because my eyes are still recovering from the sight of you in your little playboy bunny briefs! I tell you now… it took five Brad Pitt movies, the entire Pirates of the Caribbean franchise and a George Clooney to hold the nausea at bay."
"Emily, come on. If someone you dated made it big wouldn't you want to shout it to the world?"
Casey's best female friend smiled sweetly.
"Truman. I dated Derek Venturi. Much as I love Casey, she is still in his shadow when it comes to being a house-hold name, although that might change after tonight.
I was the girl Derek took to Senior prom. But I never once considered selling my story. Not even when I had my landlord threatening me with eviction."
Truman smirked. "Then you're a fool."
"No. I'm a friend." Emily shifted her weight on her feet so that she seemed taller. "And as Derek and Casey's friend I'm telling you now. One more sensational interview with Casey's "first true love" and I start talking to the gossip mags too.
And of course, that period you were dating Casey - was when I joined the photography club for the school yearbook. It's amazing what wildlife you can capture in a rose bush with a telephoto lens."
"Wow!" Sam said, closing his mouth abruptly and turning from the television screen to look at Ralph. "That was something else."
"Yeah! Amazing." Ralph agreed.
"I mean, we knew she could dance, but that wasn't dancing. It was…"
"…hot." Ralph finished.
"Definitely, hot." Sam nodded.
There was a pause.
"What I wouldn't give for that chick's number!" Ralph said. "Who is she?"
Luan watched the final moments of Casey's dance and then took out her phone and texted her auntie.
You might want to get Uncle Paul's heart pills out if he watches Stars with hearts tonight.
"How was it?" Casey asked breathlessly as she came off stage. Luan grinned.
"I didn't watch you." Luan admitted. "I watched Derek in the audience. Or rather my video-camera did." She held up a tiny handheld camcorder. "Wanna take a look?"
"Okay. That's a look of surprise." Casey announced a few minutes later. "I won!"
Luan chuckled. "You two are unbelievable!"
"It's called healthy competition." Casey grinned. She lowered her voice. "Are you still okay for tomorrow morning?"
Her friend nodded. "I've parked in the same place as last week. Tell him to be ready for five am and I'll run him home." She winked. "I'd say make sure you set your alarm, but somehow I don't think you'll get any sleep."
Chloe swallowed the bitter disappointment that surfaced when she saw Derek approaching the backstage area after the recording had stopped. She wasn't exactly aiming her performances at him anymore, sensing that not only was he not getting closer to her but he was pulling away. But she had still harboured a hope that he might want to spend time with her, or that he would at least want to talk to her. Instead, he talked his way through the security to the part of the hotel that was cordoned off from the audience and walked past Chloe with a determined look on his face like a man on a mission.
Chloe pulled a face. It didn't take a genius to work out what that mission was. Chloe had watched Casey's performance – and Derek's reaction to it. Finally, Chloe admitted to herself, Derek Venturi was a lost cause.
The question was, what did she do next?
Luan intercepted Derek shortly after he passed Chloe.
"Back stairs." She hissed. "Heat magazine are staking out the main stairs and elevators."
"Where are the back stairs?"
"Off the kitchens. I'll show you."
They slipped quietly away and Luan moved quickly through increasingly smaller corridors until they reached a side entrance to the kitchens. They managed to avoid the main rooms where the staff were preparing the evening food, and passed through a set of non-descript double doors.
In front of them was a flight of hard concrete stairs. Off to one side was a fire door leading to the outside, and Derek knew where they were. It was the set of stairs they had fled down the previous week in the early hours.
"Just be careful when you get to Casey's floor. Check the corridor before you leave the stairwell."
"Will do. Thanks."
"No problem. Just don't forget 5am…and keep the noise down."
Derek smirked, blew her a kiss and then started up the stairs two at a time.
When he reached Casey's room, he once again let himself in with her spare room key and then he sat down to wait…but not for long.
The click of Casey's own key card in the door disturbed his contemplation of the television where he was watching the broadcast of Casey's dance – with its time-delay. And then she was there, still dressed in the tight hot pants and the red shiny jacket that he was sure was going to play its part in some late night fantasies of his for a very long time to come.
Casey let the door close behind her and then she leant back against it. Derek watched her from his vantage point on the bed.
"Hi." Casey said lamely. Derek smirked. Her eyes narrowed. "I guess we're going to the island for a month." She smirked back.
"Because?"
"Because I surprised you…I have video evidence." She said smugly, folding her arms. It was a dangerous manoeuvre because her breasts were already being squeezed and manipulated by the bra that Trevor had forced her into, and the hockey jacket had been cut to emphasis her charms. Folding her arms across her middle, shoved everything northwards in a rather alarming way.
Derek swallowed and climbed off the bed.
"Casey. Do yourself a favour…don't breathe in or you'll get two black eyes."
Casey frowned. "I'll what?" And then her mind caught up with his sense of humour. "Der-ek!"
He laughed, advancing towards her. "You haven't said that very much lately. I've missed it." He said, finishing up within inches of her. They stared at each other.
"I'll take you to the island for a month." He said softly, his fingers reaching out to stroke her neck. "But I won't be held responsible if we never make it home."
Casey smiled. "That depends on your definition of "home"." She said, affectionately and Derek counted himself amongst the luckiest men on the planet.
"Casey, I…"
There was a knock at the door. Casey glanced at Derek in panic.
"Bathroom." She mouthed and he obeyed, pushing the door closed behind him. Casey straightened her clothes, which was ridiculous because they were so form-hugging, and opened the door.
"Room service!" A small teenaged kid in a badly fitting tux announced. Casey frowned because she hadn't ordered anything. Her phone bleeped.
Sent some food up for you both. Don't forget to keep the noise down. – Luan.
"You had better come in." Casey said, leading the way. The kid pushed the trolley into the room and proceeded to whip the bulbous lid from the dish.
"We have…steak and fries with our award-winning caesar salad, side order of onion rings. Extra large New York cheesecake and a bottle of our finest Australian Chardonnay." There was one portion of everything, but someone had gone overboard on the portion-sizing. "I hope you're hungry."
Casey smiled. "I'm absolutely starving." She confirmed. With a glance down at her cleavage, the little boy grinned back. Casey rolled her eyes and waved him towards the door.
"Bona Appeteet!" He commented, murdering a couple of languages in the process as she shepherded him out and closed the door. Derek emerged from the bathroom and leaned against the wooden frame of the doorway.
"I think I'm in love with Luan." He stated.
"I'll give her a call, we'll swap places." Casey said picking up a fry and popping it in her mouth. Derek pushed away from the door and walked up behind her, his hands placing themselves on her shoulders.
"Nah. If I dated her I'd have to deal with her "Uncle Paul". Every argument and she'd be on the phone to him for psycho-analysis."
Casey closed her eyes as his fingers slipped around her to the zipper on the front of her jacket and started to work it down. The jacket really had been restraining her…assets and she felt a slight sense of release as the jacket swung loose.
"Better?" Derek asked in her ear and a finger brushed against her cleavage.
"Yes." She murmured. He kissed the back of her neck and slipped the jacket from her body, revealing the tight bra that Trevor had forced her to wear.
"You know for the first time I might finally have found something that diverts my attention from food." He said, kissing a trail along her now bare shoulders. Casey sighed and Derek chuckled. "Am I distracting you yet?"
"Yes. But not enough that I believe you."
"I love you, Casey. You know that."
"I meant about the food, moron." She sighed as his hands drifted across her now naked stomach.
"Hmm." Derek murmured into her shoulder.
Then Casey gasped in surprise as he suddenly released her, the air around her suddenly colder without the warmth of his breath.
"You're right!" He exclaimed. "Not even you can keep me from a decent steak and fries."
"Der-ek!" Casey complained as he picked up the plate and moved to the little table and chairs in the corner. He left it there and came back for the wine, leaning into Casey's neck as he passed her.
"Besides." He whispered, kissing behind her ear. "You've been very energetic on stage tonight. If you don't get some calories in you soon you'll fall asleep before we get to the good bit."