Chapter 74
“Charisma, what’s wrong? Do you want to talk to Lucky?” Liz asked, looking up at him as he walked past her with the last of the gifts. He stopped at the mention of his name and watched her.
“No. I know you’re married now, and living together, but I guess technically it’s still your house, so I should probably be asking you...”
“Charisma, what are you trying to ask me?” Liz said, trying to stop her from rambling on any farther.
“Oh, right. Well, when I decided to come here and see Spence, I rented this short-term apartment, since I can’t afford to stay in a hotel for so long. But, the landlord screwed up and promised it to his daughter starting tomorrow morning, and forgot I was still here. Now I have to move out tonight, but I don’t have anywhere to go, and Spence is really the only person in town that I know...”
Liz sighed and sat on the arm of the couch, looking up at Lucky. He held up his hands and shrugged, having no clue what was going on.
“Um, just a second,” she said, quickly covering the mouthpiece of the phone with her hand. She frowned and shook her head. “It’s Charisma...”
“I gathered that much, what does she want?” he interrupted sarcastically.
Liz glared at him for a moment before continuing. “If you would let me finish, I’d get to that! She said something about the apartment she’s in being rented to someone else, and she has to move out, but she can’t afford a hotel. Since you’re the only person she knows, I think she wants to stay with us.”
“Here? But, there are only two bedrooms....”
“And even if there were more, she thinks we’re married. If she stays here, we’ll have to share a bedroom again. Do you have any ideas?” she asked, looking at him expectantly.
Lucky thought for a moment, then motioned for her to hand him the phone. She gladly passed it to him, then sunk down onto the couch, listening to his side of the conversation.
“Charisma, Elizabeth told me what happened. Why don’t you let me get you a room at the Port Charles Hotel?”
“No, Spence, I can’t let you do that. I know you can afford it, but I can’t accept it. I know I’m asking a lot from you, since you’re still newlyweds and all, but you’re my last hope. I promise, I’ll stay out of your way, and as soon as I can find another place, I’ll leave!”
He sighed in resignation, looking up at the ceiling. “Hang on.” Covering the mouthpiece, he looked down at Liz. “We’re her only hope,” he said dryly.
“Great. Why does this whole thing smell like Luke? Oh, wait, I’m sorry, Dad.” She rolled her eyes, trying to think of another solution. “Wait, what about your place over Kelly’s?”
“I thought of that, but they already rented it out. I think Dad wanted to make sure I couldn’t go back when no one was looking.”
“It’s up to you. She’s your friend.”
“I know, but it’s your house,” he argued, not wanting to be the one to decide. Neither of them minded her staying there, it was the fact that her presence would result in them sharing a bedroom again that had them so nervous.
They stared at one another for a minute, silently debating the issue. Finally Liz sighed and shook her head. “I can’t think of anywhere else she can stay.”
“So, tell her to come here?” he asked hesitantly.
“Do we have a choice?”
“Not really. This divorce better go through quick!” He put the phone back to his ear and took a deep breath before speaking again. “Okay, you can stay with us until you find another place.”
“Really? Oh, Spence, thank you! Tell Liz I owe her big for this! Um, I’ll come by later, probably after ten, so you two can be alone for a while.”
“Alone, right. Sure, see you then. Bye.” He hung up and flopped down next to Liz on the couch. “What have we done?”
~*~
Lucky came down the stairs and looked for Liz. Seeing the empty living room, he headed into the kitchen, glancing at the clock on his way.
“It’s almost ten, is everything ready?” she asked, looking up from her book.
“Yeah, all my stuff is in your room, and I’m pretty sure she won’t be able to tell I slept in the other room last night.” He sat down across from her and opened the newspaper from that morning. “Are we nuts?”
“Lucky, I think we passed nuts when we flew to Vegas and got married!”
He chuckled and shook his head. “Yeah, but we have an excuse for that. We’re completely sober this time.”
The doorbell rang, signaling Charisma’s arrival. Lucky groaned and stood up, looking at his watch. “Since when is she so punctual?” He hurried out of the kitchen and opened the front door, motioning for her to come inside.
“Thanks again, Spence, I don’t know what I would have done tonight if it wasn’t for you guys!” She dropped her bags at the foot of the stairs and turned to quickly hug him as Liz came out of the kitchen. She frowned, seeing the two of them in an embrace, wondering why she even cared.
“Hey, Charisma.”
Charisma let go of Lucky and smiled at her. “Liz, thank you so much for this. I promise, I’ll stay out of your way.”
Switching into newlywed mode, Liz walked over to Lucky and wrapped her arm around his waist. “It’s okay, I’ve got a spare room. I mean, we’ve got a spare room,” she quickly corrected, smiling up at him.
“Yeah, it’s at the top of the stairs, on the right,” he added. “Do you want me to help with your bags?”
Charisma quickly shook her head and grabbed them. “No, I’ve got them. You just go back to whatever you were doing, just forget I’m even here.” She hurried up the stairs, afraid she would start laughing if she didn’t get out of the room fast. Watching them playing the happily married couple was just too funny.
As soon as she disappeared into her room, Liz let go of Lucky and stepped away from him, letting her smile fall away. “You heard her, we won’t even know she’s here,” she whispered sarcastically, turning to go back into the kitchen.
Lucky followed her, figuring if Charisma came back downstairs and found them in separate rooms, she’d start to get suspicious. “Just remind yourself it won’t be for very long. Once she finds a new place, she’ll be gone and things can go back to normal.”
“Normal? No, if things went back to normal, you’d be back on your little tour, and I’d have this house to myself again. This,” she said, indicating the two of them with a sweeping arm gesture, “is far from normal!”
Lucky sighed and turned back to the door. “You know what? I just suddenly realized that I’m tired. I’m going to bed.” He started to walk out of the kitchen when Liz grabbed his arm.
“There’s extra blankets in my closet. I’m sure the floor will be perfectly comfortable,” she said smugly.
“Oh no, I’m not sleeping on the floor. Anyway, what if she looks into the room while we’re asleep? How are we supposed to explain why one of us is on the floor?”
She shrugged. “I’ll tell her I pushed you off of the bed in the middle of the night.”
“Sorry, she’s not dumb. Like it or not, I’m sleeping in your bed tonight. It’s not like we haven’t done it before.” He wrenched his arm out of her grasp and pushed the door open, hurrying out of the kitchen before she could say anything else. On his way upstairs, he passed Charisma as she was leaving her room.
“Hey, going to bed already?” she asked.
“Yeah, I’m beat. I’ll see you in the morning.” In order to avoid any more questions, he quickly opened the door to Liz’s room and slipped inside.
Chuckling to herself, Charisma went downstairs and into the kitchen, looking for Liz. “I just passed Spence. Isn’t it kind of early for him to be going to bed?”
Liz shrugged. “He was really tired. It’s been a long day.”
“Are you going to join him soon?” she prodded, taking a seat at the table.
“Um, not right now. I’m not quite tired yet, and I’d just keep him awake, tossing and turning, you know? I thought I’d read a little down here, then go up later.”
“So, what’s it like?” Charisma asked, suddenly changing subjects.
“What’s what like?” Liz put down her book, getting the feeling that this was going to be a long discussion.
“Being married. Being married to Spence. I mean, I’m sure it’s great, he’s a terrific guy. He’s not like other guys, you know. He hasn’t let the whole fame thing get to him at all. In fact, in all the years I’ve worked with him, I’ve hardly ever seen him with a girl. He avoids the groupies and always goes straight back to his hotel after a show by himself. And of course, he’s gorgeous, but I don’t need to tell you that!”
Liz smiled slightly. “No, you don’t. I don’t know, I guess I never really thought of him as a celebrity. He’s just Lucky, the guy I went to high school with, the guy who lusted after my perfect sister and hardly noticed me....” She stopped, realizing that she was about to blow their cover. “Um, at least, not right away.”
“Your sister? He never mentioned her before. I used to ask him about his old flames, but he always just said he never dated anyone seriously.”
“Oh, they didn’t date. She was in love with his brother,” Liz answered, smiling. Talking about how Sarah rejected him always put her in a good mood. Figuring she’d use this time to get some dirt on him, she started to question Charisma. “So, did you two ever...?”
“Me and Spence? Oh, no. We’re just friends. Although, I’ll admit when I first met him, I had a little crush on him. Then again, who wouldn’t? One look in those blue eyes... well, anyway, I could tell he didn’t like me that way, so I got over it. Now I know why nothing happened, because he was meant for you.”
“I don’t know if I’d say that,” Liz said, blushing. She was trying to push down the feelings of jealousy that had surfaced again, hearing her talk about Lucky that way. “Anyway, I’m starting to feel tired, so I think I’m going to go up to bed. Feel free to help yourself to the food here. I’ll see you in the morning.”
“Thanks again, Liz,” Charisma said, smiling at her as she hurried out of the kitchen. So far, so good.
