Somewhere in My Heart (2 page)

Andy's wife, Louise mentioned, “Chris was the one who recommended that you have adjacent rooms, since you are close friends.” 

Billie observed, “Oh, he did? I’ll have to thank him for that generous thought.”

Kelly emphasized, “I’m surprised he requested the two of you share a room.  He has high expectations.” Billie assumed after hearing that, maybe Bobby didn’t tell her about Chris being her beau, after all.  Then again, Kelly wasn’t blind. 
             
Billie just went to unpack and join Chris.  She had to discuss a few things with him. Billie went to see what he was doing.  Not as many people were there as she thought. She saw a few familiar celebrities, but not Ricky Todd.  Bobby was on his way to meet Kelly, when he spoke to Billie for a moment. 

He conveyed, “I just heard that Brook and Shane will be here for the concert, and it will be taped live on their show. 

Billie boasted, “Only one thing could make this week even better, my favorite country singer making an appearance.  But, I seriously doubt that he will.” 

Bobby challenged, “Who might that be?  Although, I think I can make a good guess.” 

Chris snuck up behind them and said, “Me, who else?”  Chris told them about their adventures for the week, directly from Andy.  They would be skiing, riding around in boats, having a costume party, and of course, the big concert event.  Bobby liked the skiing idea and Billie was excited about the costume party.  Chris asked, “Who are you going to dress up as?” 

Billie answered, “You’ll have to wait and see.”

The next day, everyone was ready to go out on the lake.  A few planned on wading while others water skied.  Andy reenacted one of his popular music videos on the water, while Bobby charmed them with his wipeouts.  There was a digital recorder on board that caught the dramatic scenes.  Billie had her camera as well for those unexpected moments. Chris snapped one of her while she was skiing. As he was taking one last shot, he caught a glimpse of another boat approaching, through the lens.  He nearly dropped the camera when he saw who it was.  They pulled up beside them and said, “Hello.”  It was Lana and Ben.  Billie kept an eye on Chris to see how he was handling it.  He acted like Lana wasn’t bothering him.  She barely spoke to him, just everyone else on the boat.  Maria, who was on board with Billie and Chris, tried to lift his spirits. 

Lana and Ben finally left after receiving such a cold shoulder.  No one said a word to Chris at first. But, Chris being the circus clown that he is, made the comment, “You never know what could crawl out of the swamp these days.  Why didn’t you warn me about those poisonous piranhas?” They laughed, only to lighten the mood.  Bobby had heard about Chris' behavior from Billie. Now, he saw firsthand how he reacted to being around Lana and Ben.  He only knew the half of it.

Later, they had a barbecue.  Chris shouted, “Anyone for chargrilled veggie burgers?”  Billie blushed, as he casually threw lettuce on her. 

Bobby observed, “I didn’t know you were a vegetarian, Billie?” 

Chris estimated, “I guess something or someone made her turn against meat.  Which I say, more for me! One thing is for sure, no one can tell her she is full of bull!” 

Bobby voiced, “That was definitely cheesy.” 

After the cookout, Maria and Billie talked for a while.  Maria and her husband Jason had brought one of their daughters along.  So, Billie took time to play with her.  She told Billie the news.  “I am going to have my fourth child, eight months from now.  I want you to be the Godmother, if you would." Maria asked. 

Billie was stunned to receive such an offer.  But, she did agree to it.  She cried, “I hope you can do the same for me some day.” 

Maria quizzed, “Is there something happening with you and Chris, like a baby?” 

Billie indicated, “As far as that goes, Lana is still a part of his life and until that changes, he won’t be free to love someone, including a child.”

She went to Chris' room to tell him about Maria’s offer and see if he had completely forgotten about seeing Lana.  He was sitting in the corner in the dark, sulking.  She knew the reason behind that.  He spoke before she had the chance to ask what the problem was.  “Why is it that every time I try to have a good time, she always shows up and ruins it?” he asked.

Billie advised, “Because you are letting her get to you. She shouldn’t have control over you, but she still manages to.  You have to accept things for what they are.  It took me a long time to figure that one out for myself.  But, it saves you from a lot of pain and suffering in the long run…like Bobby had to learn things the hard way.” 

He snapped, “Don’t compare my life to his. We are in totally different situations and on different sides.” 

Billie grilled, “What’s wrong now? Since when has he offended you?” 

Chris shouted, “Since I found out about his affair with my wife.”

Billie asked in amazement, “What on earth gave you that idea?” 

He informed, “You’re not the first to hear about it either.  They started talking the night we were on the Brook and Shane Show together.  He wrote her letters and called her.  I found that out with the help of phone records.” 

Billie interrupted, “I saw that episode on one of the country music tv shows and she did seem to be captivated by him, but I just assumed it was because he was an entertainer, with aspiring dreams, like yours.” 

Chris mumbled, “Apparently, that wasn’t all he was dreaming about.” 

Billie then finished her conversation, “I saw them sitting together on the country music award’s one year, but that wasn’t their fault.” 

Chris maintained, “Tell that to our housekeeper who caught them in bed together.  Lana had her fired after that.  I wish I had been there to catch them or to see them with my own eyes.” 

Billie begged, “Have you confronted either of them?” 

He insisted, “I just found out a few weeks after the divorce, about the actual affair and really couldn’t use it in court against her.  But, I’m waiting for the right moment to get them back.” 

Billie argued, “If it is true, Bobby will end up losing his family again.” 

Chris grunted, “Why are you always so concerned about him and always jumping to his defense? He is the least of my worries.  If he were so engrossed with his family in the first place, he would not have messed with mine.” 

Morning arrived and Billie took no time getting ready for the schedule of the day.  She wanted to get the images that Chris put in her head of Bobby and Lana, out of her head. This time they were going to ride motorbikes.  The guys were riding motorcycles.  Bobby stuck with his dirt bike though.  That just happened to be his favorite hobby.  Andy was preferential to the cycles.  Chris was not as excited about the idea.  He tagged along just for the heck of it.  As they were riding along the trails, they found a private road.  Andy notified, “This is the property owned by that movie director, Ben Matthews.  I think he only comes out here every once in a while.”  Chris was just waiting for Lana to come down the road.  She didn’t, but he felt like leaving anyway.  He told everyone he was tired and wanted to head back.  He told Billie to have a good time and not to worry about him.  He was asking too much of her.  Everyone said they would catch up with him later. 

Billie had been riding with Chris, so Andy suggested she ride with him instead.  Louise had stayed behind, along with Maria.  They were getting the food and stuff ready for the cookout. Billie was thrilled to be riding with Andy because she knew he was wild when it came to motorcycles.  They continued to ride around for a few hours and covered at least thirty miles of territory.  That was the perfect opportunity for Billie to ask Andy a rather touchy question.  She asked, “What was the deal a few years ago about cutting down those trees on public property?” 

Andy commented, “How can I forget about that one.  It was all a big misunderstanding.  I actually owned the land, but they thought it wasn’t mine to begin with. We finally did get it straightened out.  In the end, they were apologizing.”  Billie was so glad that he didn’t have to serve time behind bars.  Andy was one of the nicest guys she had ever met.

The sun was setting on the water once they returned.  Chris was lying on a lawn chair, playing his harmonica.  He said to Billie, “How about going for a swim with me late tonight?”

Billie thought, “Why not right now?” 

He pleaded, “Because I want us to have privacy, once everyone is asleep.” 

Billie knew then what he meant, and she said, “I will think about it.” 

He then asked, “Did you have fun with Andy?  Did you ride with Bobby Douglas, too?” 

Billie lectured, "Well, if you had stuck around instead of running from Lana again, we could've been on the bikes together." Chris just went back to playing his harmonica.

After they had dinner, a few of the singers decided to rehearse for the big concert that was to be held in two days.  While Billie was socializing with some of the guests, Chris was trying his best to be at his worst.  Bobby was the target of his aggressions.  He was trying to carry on a conversation, and Chris was trying to avoid one.  Bobby claimed, “I think this was one of Andy’s greatest ideas yet.  I also believe that everyone is having a wonderful time, including Billie.” 

Chris declared, “Well, Billie bumps in to reality and bruises easily.  As for me, I feel as if I am on a Federal Express to Hell.” 

That took Bobby off guard.  He ended the conversation by saying, “I think I will go look for Kelly now.” 

Chris added, “I saw her earlier.  She mentioned something about taking a dip in the pool.  She may not be there now though.” 

Bobby asserted, “I’ll catch up with her once I’ve taken care of a few things.”  That was music to Chris' ears.  Now he could begin his revenge.

Chris went looking for Billie before his plan would fail.  When he found her, she asked, “What is the big rush?”

He lied, “I just have an urge to be fulfilled.  I asked you about it earlier.  I figured if we were going to go for a swim, we should do it soon, before others get the same idea.  As a matter of fact, I heard someone say they wanted to go swimming later on tonight.”  Billie wondered why he was acting stranger than usual.  When they reached the pool, Chris started removing his clothes. 

Billie objected, “I don’t think this is a good idea.” 

He begged, “Don’t you like being spontaneous or taking risks?”  Billie got in and he tried to get her to take off the rest of her clothes.  She was starting to feel uncomfortable.  The way Chris had behaved as of late, was not a turn on.  Little did she know, it was just a set up, and someone was watching them.

The following day, Billie was preparing for the costume party.  She received a visitor, Bobby.  She let him in her room for a moment.  She inquired, “Are you getting ready for the masquerade?” 

He estimated, “I think some people around here have been wearing their masks for some time now.” 

Billie solicited, “What do you mean?”  He waited a few seconds before he continued. 

He then said, “Please tell me that the stunt Chris pulled last night, that you had no idea he was going to do that.  It was really tacky, to say the least.”