Nights Like This

Chapter 18

Alexei pushed his empty plate aside and placed the script on the table. He turned a page. "We meet at the ball and Elizabeth introduces us. I, Rev. Collins, ask you to dance. We join the dancers as Elizabeth and Jane talk. Do you waltz?

"No, I'm the worst dancer."

"Don't you like to dance?"

She nodded. "I'm just bad at it.

"Practice will help. I'm sure there'll be practice during rehearsals."

"I'll try to stay off your feet."

"I'll wear my army boots. No worries."

Metty laughed.

"Then we have the scene where I propose to you, and a scene where Elizabeth comes to visit Charlotte after her marriage. I'm in the garden and Charlotte shows Elizabeth around her house.

"We are together at the end, when Jane marries Bingham and Elizabeth marries Darcy."

"That's it for us. Are you glad to play Charlotte instead of Kitty?"

"Yes, it's a better part, also Charlotte is on stage less. She has more lines as an, an individual, you know. Kitty's sort of a shadow."

"She follows Lydia around."

"Right."

"Can you meet at the theater Monday just before rehearsal? We can practice our lines."

"Sure. What about your other scenes?"

He shrugged. "I'll rehearse with Marco. Or Dolores."

"What part does Dolores have? I don't see her name."

"Dolores is not acting. She'll play violin with the musicians for the ball scenes."

"OK. I've got to go. I'll see you at rehearsal. Bye."

Alexei got more coffee. He read a textbook and didn't realize how much time had passed until Marco sat down.

"How's it going, Marco?"

"I have the curse of an interesting life."

"Too many women."

"Yes."

"That wasn't a question."

"Let's go jogging before dinner. We can talk later."

*

The cousins jogged around the Battery and ended up at Waterfront Park. It was their favorite place to rest before walking home. They sat on benches where they could look over the harbor on one side and the old town on the other. Ships entered the harbor or moved slowly out to the Atlantic. The setting sun began to cast long shadows. Tourists strolled by, sightseeing. The rush hour traffic thinned. New arrivals grabbed the few parking places.

Marco and Alexei sat silently for several minutes, relaxing as the day flowed into night. Alexei drank deeply from his water bottle. "I like it here," he said, stretching.

"What? Here on the waterfront?" Marco looked around.

"Yes. No. I like Charleston. For a year. It reminds me a little of Porto de Almurias. Near our summer home on Isla de las Ubreras. The beach. Fishing boats. Parties. We have such happy times there," said Alexei.

Marco nudge Alexei. "We still will. Swimming, fishing, sailing. Picnics with the family. Dancing and games at the summer festivals. National Day."

"Charleston had hurricanes and floods."

They laughed. Marco stretched. "Here can be quiet. Too quiet. Unless you like nightspots and clubs. There's a lot of businesses growing. I wouldn't be here if it wasn't one of two choices Popi gave me. The other was Sandhurst. That would have delayed his abdication. With his health." Marco shook his head.

"I wouldn't have joined you at Sandhurst. After my service in 2019 and the plane crash, my military days are behind me."

"I'm glad you came. Did you really want to get away for a while? Or did you agree partly because Jessica was here?"

Alexei looked at the stars appearing in the darkening sky.

"When Popi asked me if I would join you here, Jessica was at school in Atlanta. She transferred to College of Charleston after she learned you would come here."

"I would never, never consider her as a hook-up, much less a serious girlfriend, even if you weren't crushing on her." Marco looked directly at his cousin. "She is a mad wolf in sheep's clothing. Fortunately, she's not my type."

Alexei looked at Marco. "But she would do for me?"

Marco sighed. "She would not let herself be happy with you, I fear. She has expectations perhaps only someone with my future can satisfy. I doubt even that will satisfy her."

Alexei was silent.

"You can't forget her, can you?"

Alexei nodded, then shook his head. "One day last week, I woke up and realized I hadn't thought of her in days. June 1, 2017. The day I met Jessica. The day she met you. Many days I wished, oh, how I wished I could get her out of my thoughts forever. For a long time, it seemed hardly a day went by that I didn't think of her. Seeing her. Talking to her. Being with her. Wondering what she was doing and thinking when we were apart. She sees me only as a path to you. But now, here," Alexei looked over the harbor as stars appeared in the sky, "she seems out-of-place. Then I would see her and be enchant—no, enthralled again. Until Charleston."

Marco leaned forward. "Alejito, I hope and pray you find the happiness you deserve. We should both enjoy this year without heartache. We've got the play, classes, soccer, Popi and your parents coming in December. Skiing in Switzerland before we return here. I expect to have an understanding with Drusila." He looked at his watch. "Time to get home for dinner. I'm going out afterwards."

"Where? To do what? We have homework.

Marco looked away and bit his lip. He looked back at Alexei and shook his head. Alexei knew Marco had secret plans.

"If you get up to something Popi won't like, leave me out of it."

"He knows I took Madison to DC during the flood." Marco shrugged. "I knew I could not hide that from him. He knew about the ring. We had a long talk. I convinced him I have no permanent interest in her. That's why the ring has a red star."

"It's not wise to deceive Popi. If you lose Drusila, he will delay his abdication. The whole family will be angry. Not to mention our countrymen."

"I won't lose Drusila. I don't love Madison. I want her. She is the most exciting, intoxicating woman I know. I've known a lot."

Marco looked at Alexei. Alexei held his gaze. Marco blinked.

"Tonight, I'll tell her I'll see other women. For a while."

"Ava asked me if you had given her a star sapphire. I told her a red one, without the family crest engraved on the band. If, and when, Madison learns, and she will learn, that a red star without that crest is given to a mistress by our family, she will want revenge. It will be bloody."

"We'll live it down. Just like the others. She'll be in the past. Until then," Marco breathed deeply, remembering nights with a woman greedy for him, "she can be in the present."

"You can live it down, Marquitito, but our country and family rely on your behavior this year and always."

The cousins were silent. Marco stood up.

"Let's get home. Dinner will be ready soon, and I want to shower," he said. Alexei nodded. They left the park, followed by Marco's bodyguard.