Greg was learning, so it was good that the waves were staying small. He had the same gleam in his eyes that I’d likely had when I first got on a surfboard. With the smaller waves, we also didn’t have many other surfers to contend with. The forecast for tomorrow said there would be better waves.
Halle paddled next to me so we could talk.
“Oh, look. We have company,” I said, pointing at the paparazzi lurking on the beach. “You might want to fix your top so your nipple doesn’t show.”
Her head snapped down, and then she gave me an evil glare when she realized I was teasing her.
“I suspect you knew they would be there,” I said.
“Why’s that?” Halle asked.
“Because you’re not wearing your wetsuit. I think you wanted to show off your hot little body to the world,” I said with a big smile. “Are you an exhibitionist, Halle James?”
I found myself pushed off my board. I just laughed as she caught the next wave. Greg paddled up to me.
“Angie’s mad at you.”
“What did I do this time?” I asked.
“You didn’t get her a ticket for the awards show.”
“I had to fight to get an extra one for Halle.”
“Angie knows that,” Greg said with a smile. “She thought you loved her.”
“Yeah, right. She just wanted a trip to LA. Do you know how much damage Mom does to my debit card when she’s alone in LA? Just picture the devastation she and Angie could do. I shudder to imagine how much they would spend on Rodeo Drive. You might have to sell me Kyle just to finance the trip.”
“If you take him, you have to take Mac, too,” Greg said.
“You were the one who wanted a girl. Nature made it so Dawson men only have boys for a reason. We’re not equipped to stand up to daughters. If you think her horse obsession is bad now, wait until she’s sixteen,” I warned him.
He pushed me off my board. He was smart enough to take the next wave so I couldn’t grab him. I decided I was hungry, so I caught the next wave in. Halle joined me, and we did the ‘frolicking in the water’ bit for the press. Halle made me take off my wetsuit jacket for the pictures, confirming the reason for her bikini. I would send Frank a heads-up that there were pictures of us about to hit the media. I also wanted to tell him about my talk with Hollywood Central at the airport. He could spin that to get us a little exposure, I was sure.
As I used the outdoor shower to get the salt off me, I appreciated how calculating my thoughts were. This time last year, I would never have imagined calling my publicist to generate some buzz. If I wanted the paparazzi to go nuts, I might accidentally let them get a picture of my butt again.
◊◊◊
Halle went home, and I had Fritz give Dad and Greg a tour of some of the tourist spots in LA. That left me alone with my mother. We first tried to sit on the back patio off the living room to relax and have coffee and tea, but the paparazzi drove us inside. We instead settled on the roof.
“Greg told me that Angie was upset that I didn’t get her a ticket for tonight,” I began.
“Is it because you don’t think you can trust her?”
“I swear to God, I am never telling my uncle anything ever again.”
“I thought we talked about this. You and your brother will talk about your little darlings. I wouldn’t be surprised if you shared those conversations with your wife. You’ll figure out that if you want to keep them in line, you need to have a united front.”
There was no use getting mad. They were going to tell each other everything, whether I wanted them to or not, and it didn’t matter if I complained. This was one of those instances where I’d lost the battle before it even began, so why fight it. It also meant that if I didn’t want them all to know, I should keep my mouth shut.
“You are aware how irritating it is that you all know anything I tell any of you.”
“It saves us having to dig it out of you,” she responded.
It really wasn’t that big of a deal because we talked about almost everything, anyway. I hadn’t started keeping things from my parents until my mom shut me out about what was going on with my dad about Phil.
I just took a sip of my tea.
“Why didn’t you get Angie a ticket?” Mom pressed.
“It never crossed my mind. If she was upset, she could have told me, and I would have seen if we were able to get another ticket. So don’t put all this on me,” I said, getting defensive.
“Calm down. Someone needed to watch your niece and nephews. Angie’s just complaining because Greg got to go to Canada and now LA.”
“Maybe we could send her somewhere …” I thought but apparently said aloud.
“David,” Mom warned me.
“Fine. There’s nothing I can do about it now, anyway.”
“You were right, to begin with. This really isn’t your problem. Let Greg deal with his wife,” Mom said, and then got a big smile. “Tell me about Kelly.”
My head was going to explode.
“How do you know about her?”
“Fritz showed us the videos.”
“What?”
Mom about fell out her chair laughing.
“You should see your face.”
“That’s not funny. He told me that even I couldn’t see the videos. I can’t believe he would show them to you,” I complained.
“He didn’t. I called your hotel room, looking for you, and she answered. I took a shot that she was there with you. When Fritz called your dad about starting to video in your hotel rooms, we made sure they would never get out. I just was giving you a hard time,” she explained.
“I should have known better,” I said, and then smiled. “Paybacks are hell.”
“You might want to be careful there,” Mom warned me. “So, who is she?”
“You remember M.E., the batgirl?” I asked, and Mom nodded. “Kelly’s her friend.”
“… and?”
“Nothing.”
“So, she’s not the one?” Mom asked.
“I doubt it.”
“Well, then which one are you going to pick?” Mom asked.
“For what?”
“For your girlfriend.”
I blinked at her, and she gave me a disgusted look.
“Listen, Mister, I know you, and I can tell you’re starting to think about it again. I figured you probably need my advice about who it should be.”
In my opinion, my mom enjoyed tormenting me just a little too much. No way in hell would I ever ask her advice about my love life.
“Before you reject my offer of help out of hand, who was it that warned you about Tracy?” Mom asked.
“Who was it who kept saying I would end up with Tami?” I shot back.
“That will happen. I would bet my beach house on it.”
Of course, she didn’t own a beach house, but I just shrugged her prediction off as wishful thinking.
“Just for giggles, who should I date?” I asked.
“Brook Davis,” Mom said confidently.
“I’m sure you’re dying to tell me. Why Brook?”
“The two of you have a lot in common. If you think about it, you’ll agree with me.”
She was right. There was a lot to like about Brook. I just hoped that my mom’s recommendation didn’t ruin her chances. No teenage boy wanted to date the girl his mom picked for him.
I was never so happy to see Greg come up the stairs.
“We’re back,” he announced.
I jumped up and put my hand up for a high five. He looked confused but didn’t leave me hanging.
“I’m tagging out. It’s your turn,” I told him.
You could see him deflate right before my eyes. When Mom got in one of these moods, you had to just grin and bear it. I caught Dad coming up the stairs.
“You don’t want to go up there. Greg is taking one for the team.”
“Oh,” Dad said and followed me downstairs.
Smart man.
◊◊◊
I had Paul take me to Halle’s. I was surprised when she and Bandit were waiting for me at the door.