Chapter 18: The Studio

Julianna led the way to the barn. It appeared to be separated into two sections. “This first part is where the horses are; I had it soundproofed, so my work doesn’t bother them. This –” she pulled open one of the sliding glass doors leading to the dance studio, “— is my haven. Shoes off, please. Don’t want you to scuff up my floor.”

The three padded into the vast space. It was just about the same size as a full-sized theater stage. Twin walls of facing mirrors ran down the length of the studio, along with a barre. The floor in the near corner was lined with thick mats, and several man-shaped heavy bags were clustered together. There was also a Nautilus machine, and two racks of free weights. The far wall held a bank of monitors and a control board. Jon immediately went to check out the gadgets. “Do you mind if I play with your board?”

“No,” Julianna laughed. “Help yourself.”

While Jon busied himself with the buttons, knobs, and levers, Richie pulled Julianna into a hug. “I’m so sorry for the shit you’ve gone through. I think I understand better where you’re coming from now. Thank you for sharing that with me – us.”

Julianna gave him a steamy kiss. “Thank you for understanding.” She blew out a breath. “Go check on Jon over there, make sure he’s not screwing up my setups.”

“Hey,” Jon complained. “I can hear you, you know. I know what I’m doing, darlin’.” He wagged his eyebrows at her, making her laugh.

“I must be drunk, you’re starting to look cute. Why don’t you guys take a look up in the loft? Let me know what you think, in your professional opinion. That’s where my brothers and I record music for the rehearsals, or just for fun. That’s where my brothers played their latest prank, the rat bastards.” She heard the two men laughing. “We’re working on something for the family for the holidays, so they’re over here quite a bit. We’re having a hell of a good time. I can understand why you guys have been doing what you do for so long. I’ll be right up.”

While they scampered up the stairs, Julianna went to survey her board. It all looked like she left it. Smiling to herself, she stepped to the barre, and began a brief warm up, running through a series of ballet positions and stretches. It was her habit to do this every time she entered the studio, and it had become a comfortable habit. While she stretched, she could hear Richie talking quietly to Jon. The acoustics were such that Julianna could hear every word.

“Jesus, look at this place,” Richie exclaimed. “This is just about as much equipment as what we travel with when we’re on tour! I wonder what's in that back room over there?” Richie tried the door, but it was locked.

Jon laughed, still looking around at the space. “This is pretty great. We should come out here some times to work.”

“Yeah, right. You just want to play chaperone.”

Jon laughed. “OK, so you know me well enough to read what I’m thinking. Rich, I gotta tell you, I think she’s really great. I’m happy for you.”

“Thanks, man.”

Julianna heard the unmistakable back-slapping of a man-hug, and had to swallow hard against a lump in her throat. Seeing their friendship first hand was a beautiful thing.

Richie picked up a battered but well-loved acoustic guitar from an equally battered stand. “Hey, man, you suppose she would mind if I played around up here?”

Did she warn them about the acoustics? She couldn’t remember. “Boys, I can hear everything you’re saying. Go ahead, play with what you like.” She heard them both snicker. “OK, Beavis and Butthead. You know what I meant.”

Male laughter filtered down from upstairs, followed by the strumming of guitar strings. The pair were just fooling around, but it sounded great. There was an up-tempo to the tune, and it was catchy. Could it be some of the music from the finale? She closed her eyes to catch the groove. She quickly went to the control board and turned on the recorders and cameras upstairs. The monitors filled with views of Jon and Richie eyes closed, deep into their music.

Julianna climbed the stairs, and quietly crossed the room to settle into one of the couches scattered around the space. Jon took one look at the look on Richie’s face as he watched Julianna, and started strumming an old Supertramp song. Richie chuckled, and joined his voice to his friend’s.

Give a little bit, give a little bit of your love to me
Give a little bit, I'll give a little bit of my love to you
There's so much that we need to share

Jon got off his stool, and came to stand in front of Julianna.

So send a smile and show you care

Julianna smiled at the gentle meddling. She stood to sing with Jon, her voice blending nicely with his. She looked into Richie’s eyes as she sang the words.

I'll give a little bit, I'll give a little bit of my life for you
So give a little bit, give a little bit of your time to me

Jon elbowed Julianna, and nodded his head toward his friend.

See the man with the lonely eyes
Oh, take his hand, you'll be surprised

Julianna gulped, and Jon just smiled. Richie got off his stool, and came over to hip check his friend. Julianna laughed. She sang the last with Richie, Jon’s own voice going quiet at beauty of their harmony, and the emotion he saw in their faces.

Give a little bit, give a little bit of your love to me
I'll give a little bit, I'll give a little bit of my life for you
Now's the time that we need to share
So find yourself, we're on our way back home

Going home
Don't you need to feel at home
Oh yeah, we gotta sing

“Wow,” was all Jon could say when they were done. “You guys sound great together. Julianna, have you always sang?”

Julianna laughed. “My mother was an opera diva. I think I sang en utero. I love to sing. I sing all the time.” She gestured around the room. “I play too. Most of these I’ve had formal training on, but some are just for messing around. Kinda a learn-as-I-go program.”

Richie grinned. “I do the learn-as-you-go thing to. It’s a bit more challenging, but the sense of accomplishment outweighs the pain in the ass.”

Jon cocked his head at Julianna. “Hey, would you play something for us? Your pick. It’s not often that we get to be entertained with private serenades.” He was smiling.

Julianna blushed. “Sure, I guess. My pick, right? Let me think.” The pair settled onto one of the couches, and waited patiently. Julianna stretched her fingers and ran a few scales on the piano. She started a Tchaikovsky piece, and grinned at their shocked expressions. “I was classically trained, you know. I’m just kidding though. Give me a sec.” She thought for a moment about what to play. A song had popped into her head, but... What the hell, she thought. I can always chalk it up to the booze talking. She started in on one of her favorite Billy Joel songs. Jon and Richie smiled in recognition.

In every heart there is a room, a sanctuary safe and strong
To heal the wounds from lovers past until a new one comes along

I spoke to you in cautious tones, you answered me with no pretense
And still I feel I said too much; my silence is my self defense

And every time I've held a rose, it seems I only felt the thorns
And so it goes, and so it goes, and so will you soon I suppose

But if my silence makes you leave, then that would be my worst mistake
So I will share this room with you, and you can have this heart to break

And this is why my eyes are closed; it's just as well for all I've seen
And so it goes, and so it goes, and you're the only one who knows

So I would choose to be with you -- that's if the choice were mine to make
But you can make decisions too, and you can have this heart to break

And so it goes, and so it goes, and you're the only one who knows

When she finished, she had tears in her eyes. Jon and Richie were just looking at her. “What?” she demanded, blotting her eyes. “I wasn’t off key, was I? I thought it sounded OK.”

Jon went to her and gathered her in a hug. “It as more than OK; it was beautiful.” He glanced back at Richie. “I’m gonna take off now. I need some sleep before I get on the plane tomorrow. I swear, one cranky remark in the morning will make the afternoon papers for sure.”

His quip had the desired result; Julianna laughed. “OK. Thanks for coming; I had a good time. Have a safe trip.” She kissed his cheek. Jon pinned his friend with a meaningful look, and disappeared down the stairs.

Jon did a double-take when he saw the monitors showing what was going on upstairs. He smiled, and stopped for a minute, to see how this was gonna play out. Could be he was on his own tomorrow.

Julianna looked at Richie. He still hadn’t said anything. Oh, God, what have I done? She couldn’t read his face. She started to speak, to apologize. “Richie, I –” He stalked over to her and grabbed her upper arms, shocking her into silence. He searched her eyes with his, searched for a long minute. Julianna held her breath. Then slowly, so slowly, he lowered his mouth to hers, kissing her tenderly, gently.

Downstairs, Jon smiled and turned off the recorders. Whatever was going to happen next, either way this could play out, he was pretty sure that neither wanted it captured for posterity. He quietly slipped from the studio, grabbing his boots on the way.

Chapter 17: Dinner at Seven

Julianna was chastising herself. She said the dinner was going to be nothing fancy, yet she had laid out a beautiful table on the back deck. The air was still, so she had lit candles. She had put on a CD of her favorite summer tunes, and it was playing softly in the background. She had agonized about what to wear, too. She had finally decided on a long, flowing skirt and a peasant blouse. She left her hair loose and her feet bare. Silver hoop earrings and bangles were her only jewelry. Checking the clock for the hundredth time -- cut it out, Jules -- she slapped the thick steaks on the grill and went back into the house.

The duo arrived for dinner promptly at seven. They could smell the steaks as they approached the gate, and the aroma got their mouths watering. Passing through the gate first, Jon called out, “Hello the house!”

Julianna came out, carrying a tray with wine glasses and a small cooler. She put the tray on the table, and descended the three steps to the yard. Richie’s eyes went wide as he watched this magnificent creature float towards them.

I’ll see you in my dreams
Gypsy woman

Julianna met the pair halfway. She gave Jon a friendly hug, and twin pecks on the cheeks. “Nice to see you again.” She eyed the two bottles he carried. “Thanks for the wine.” She saw Richie was staring at her, and she blushed. He was carrying a third bottle of wine, and a bouquet of flowers – all but forgotten as he took in the sight before him. Gently taking the flowers from his hand, Julianna gave Richie a far more personal kiss. Jon looked away, with a grin on his face.

“Thank you for the flowers, they’re beautiful,” she said softly.

“Oh – er – you’re welcome. Darlin’, you look absolutely stunning,” he answered, still feeling tongue-tied.

Julianna dropped a sassy curtsy. “Thank you.” She took Richie’s arm, and started for the deck. “Three bottles of wine with dinner – should I be concerned that you guys are going to get me drunk and have your way with me?”

The two men exchanged a glance, hesitating just enough to make Julianna blush. “Honestly, you two. Let me get a vase for these flowers. Richie, flip the steaks, would you? I’ll be right back.” Jon and Richie laughed as Julianna turned her back on them. Julianna shook her head and flipped them the bird as she went into the house.

Long after the steaks were eaten, the three bottles of wine were gone and the candles burned low in their holders. Julianna’s cheeks ached from all the laughing. The two men, friends for half a lifetime, regaled her with stories from their younger days. They shared some of the pranks they’d played on each other through the years.

Julianna took mental notes. “I’ll have to remember some of these – I still owe my brothers for the last prank they pulled on me.” She told Richie and Jon about how she and her brothers often recorded CDs of the songs for the shows Julianna was working on. It helped her when she was revising or reviewing the choreography, and sometimes she used the CDs in rehearsals, if the principals weren’t dancing the scenes. For one rehearsal, where they used the CD, halfway through her brothers had substituted the real versions of the songs for ones with dirty lyrics. Julianna, being the way she is when she’s working, was concentrating on the dancers, not the lyrics. When her dancers stopped their routine and looked her, she tuned back into the lyrics, mortified. Everyone had a good laugh about it afterwards, but she hadn’t thought of a good enough payback for them yet.

Richie and Jon burst out laughing as Julianna described the lyrics her brothers had sung. Richie elbowed Jon, saying, “You should do that next time we have a sound check. See if anyone is really listening.”

Jon laughed. “Yeah, maybe.” He turned to Julianna. “So, tell us about this property – how’d you come by it? It’s really nice.”

Julianna smiled. “It’s been in my family for many years. Some great-great-grand-uncle or something built the original cottage here long before my mother’s parents’ parents thought about coming to America. The house you guys are staying in is where my brothers and I were raised. Mama and Papa built it after they were married.”

“Why’d they move?” Richie asked, propping his chin on his hand. I could watch her all night.

“Well, when they first opened the restaurant, after us kids graduated college, they spent so much time there, they decided to move closer, to cut down on travel time. My parents gifted the house and land to me when Mark and I got married.” She shuddered a little. “Thankfully, they put everything in my name, so I avoided that particiular little nightmare when I divorced his ass. I can’t even begin to imagine what that would have been like.”

Jon and Richie exchanged glances. Both were curious, but neither wanted to ask. Julianna saw their faces, and laughed ironically. “Go ahead, ask. If I can assume most of what I’ve read about your – uh – situations is true, then I know your stories already; it’s only fair that you know mine.” She had tears in her eyes.

Jon cleared his throat. “That’s OK, babe, you don’t have to say anything. We were just curious, that’s all.”

“Yeah,” Richie joined in, covering her hand with his. “We can see that it’s still painful for you to talk about.”

Julianna snorted. “Like it wasn’t for you? Anyway, the tears,” she said, wiping them away, “are self-directed anger, not sadness. It’s fine.” Julianna took a deep, steadying breath, and launched into her story. “Mark Valentino and I met my last year in grad school. He had transferred from another school halfway across the country, and was very shy.” She looked at Richie. “You’ve met my family; we are the opposite of shy. In fact, we can’t stand to see anyone hanging in the sidelines. I made friends with him. He and I were in the same PhD program, and had many of the same classes. Once he came out of his shell, he was irresistible.” She pulled a face. “That should have been my first clue, but, I was just as taken as everyone else. He got invited to countless parties and he always brought me with him. We had unofficially become a couple, and one day woke up just assuming we’d always be together. The summer after graduation, he proposed. We had lots of good times, but he never stopped being the party guy.”

Julianna stopped to upend one of the wine bottles, looking for another drink. She sighed, and put the empty bottle back down, frowning. “Soon after we moved in up there, I started working to found Bring It On. I bought an apartment in Manhattan, and split my time between here and there. The company was my life’s dream and my passion. Mark and I still went out to parties, but I could tell his attentiveness to me was forced. I chalked it up to the long hours I was working. Fast forward eight years.” She smiled sadly at their expressions. “Yes, eight. Now you know what the pity-party was for. Anyway, we were sharing space, but not really living together, if you know what I mean. He was producing a show for TV and traveling to the west coast pretty frequently. I actually suggested he take an apartment out there, so he’d be more comfortable. I know, I know. Naïve. Stupid. Idiotic. You’re not thinking anything I haven’t called myself in recent months.”

Julianna stood. “I’m sorry, to tell the rest of the story, I need something more to drink. You guys want?”

“Sure,” Richie said. “Want some help?”

“Nah, I know where everything is,” she said with a wink.

After Julianna disappeared into the house, Jon turned to Richie, shaking his head. “Man, I can see what’s coming. We have more in common with her than we thought. Too bad it’s all shit stuff.”

“No kidding," Richie said. "Jesus, no wonder she doesn’t want to get into anything serious now. I gotta wonder, though, how much of that is the dual-coast thing, and how much is the rest of it.”

Julianna came out of the house with a pitcher of margaritas and three frosty glasses. “I’ve had enough wine. Have you had enough of the story? Or would like to hear the end of it.”

Richie chuckled. “We have a pretty good idea of how it turns out, but we’d like to hear the rest of it, if you still want to tell it.”

Julianna poured the drinks and took a healthy gulp of hers. “OK. You asked for it. Anyway, we have the long-distance marriage thing going on, but it appeared to be working for us. I’d fly out there, or he’d come back here, and things were like they were in the beginning. That old ‘absence makes the heart grow fonder’ bullshit I guess. Eventually, the show Mark was working was cancelled, and the next show was being shot in New York. He sold the apartment in California, and moved back here. I was ecstatic. We were ecstatic. For about a year. During the final run of one of BIO’s most popular shows, I was working 20 hour days -- not at all unusual for me. Things were starting to get strained again, but I thought we were working through it. One night, I left the theater early, planning a surprise romantic evening with Mark.”

Richie reached for Julianna’s hand. She grinned at him, grateful for the support. With a squeeze, she finished her tale. “I was the one who got the surprise, though. The house looked still, but there were sounds coming from my bedroom. I went back to investigate, and got quite an eyeful. Mark was in bed, in MY bed, with another woman. There were six other bedrooms in that house, yet he chose our bed. I think that hurt more than anything. It took them a few moments to realize they weren’t alone. When the bastard finally looked up and saw me, I calmly told him to pack his shit and get his ass out of my house, and to take his slut with him. That was the last time I set foot in there.”

She exhaled slowly, and took another long drink, emptying her glass. “That’s pretty much the whole sordid story. The divorce was final 18 months ago, but I still can’t stand to go into that house. It’s totally redecorated, I know lots of good set designers who owed me favors. Anyway, when I delivered the pictures yesterday, I nearly had a panic attack in the driveway. You did get them, right?”

“Yeah,” Richie said. “I got them, thanks. I do have to say, again, that I had a hell of a time with your family. They’re really great. Everyone was so nice. Have you always been close?”

“Nice subject change, Sambora,” Jon said, laughing.

Julianna laughed, and started to relax. That may have been the margaritas, but she thought it was more the company. “My family is pretty great. I wouldn’t have gotten through the last couple of years without them.” She stood abruptly. “I have had far too much to drink tonight. Don’t mind me while I walk around the yard for a minute – I need to get my blood moving.”

Richie also stood. “Why don’t you give us a tour of your studio? We're impressed with what was done up at the house – I’d like to see how your private studio compares.”

Julianna smiled. “I’m glad the one at the house is working out for you. I’ll say I drove the engineers cra-a-azy because I wouldn’t go over and check out the work myself. They had to wait for Nicky, one of my brothers. He handled the technical stuff in my studio, too. The acoustics are amazing. C’mon, you gotta hear this.”

Chapter 16: Checking Up

The next morning, Jon was waiting in Richie’s sitting room when he got out of the shower. Jon looked hard at his friend’s face. “You really are OK, aren’t you?”

“Yeah man, I am.” Richie smiled and leaned on the door jamb. “Last night was pretty amazing. We really seemed to connect. We talked for hours last night. I’ve told her things that only you know, and she opened up to me, too.”

Jon looked a little concerned. “Rich, I know you don’t want to hear it, but as much as you clicked last night, and as good a first impression she made on us – we all liked her by the way – she’s still virtually a stranger, man.”

Richie nodded. “I know. But, in the wee hours this morning, when I was leaving, I felt a little sad that the night had to end. You know me, Jon. Sure, I flirt with the ladies, and enjoy their company, but I don’t really connect or get close to any of them. Especially not recently. I felt like I was home, man.”

Jon stood, holding his hands out in front of him. “I can only give you mostly objective advice, man, the decisions are all up to you.”

“I know man, I know. I’m just glad she’s on the same page as I am. We’re getting to know each other, and will see where it leads us.”

Jon started for the door, to allow his friend to get dressed in private. “Bring her around. Have her hang out with us. We can be your buffer while you get to know her. Anyway,” he grinned, “we like having beautiful women around. Beautiful women tend to have beautiful friends.”

Richie laughed. “Amen to that, brother.” He gave Jon a mock punch to the shoulder. “Thanks, man. I really do appreciate you helping me work through my shit. Love ya man.”

“I know,” Jon replied. “Love ya too. Now get dressed; it’s nearly lunchtime. We’re hungry, and you’re cookin’.”

“Sure. Hey, let’s blow out of here for a couple days – we’ve gotten lots of work done. Let’s head out to N’Awlins or Atlanta or something and just chill. Somewhere we can just escape and bum around the bars.”

Jon laughed. He knew his friend too well – Rich was trying to distance himself; take a step back. Good for him. “You know that if we take a couple of days off, Teek and Dave will go home to their women. It’ll just be you and me.”

Richie smiled. “S’alright.”

The pair made plans to fly out to Louisiana the next day. As Jon had predicted, the others made arrangements to head home for a few days. The group agreed to be back Monday night, ready to work on Tuesday.

* * * * *

Julianna answered the doorbell to find her mother on the porch, with lunch in her hands. “Mama!” she said, surprised. “What are you doing here?” She took the plates from her mother, and kissed her cheek. “Come on in!” She stepped aside to let her mother enter.

Teresa smiled and crossed to one of the over-stuffed chairs in the living room and sank into it. “I came to check on you,” she said.

Julianna looked askance at her mother. “What do you mean?”

“You know very well what I mean, Julianna,” Teresa answered. “You think I don’t know when my own daughter is crazy about some man she brought to meet the family?”

“Mama! I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Julianna protested, blushing,

Teresa just smiled. “Darling girl, don’t you know yet that you can’t hide anything from your Mama? I saw you and your Riccardo Wednesday night. We all did.”

Julianna protested. “He’s not my anything.”

“The sparks between you nearly set the restaurant on fire. For heaven’s sake, child, even your father noticed. He said that your Riccardo looked at you the same way he looked at me all those years ago.”

Julianna gave up the pretense. “OK, Mama, but you have to keep this to yourself. Richie and I are getting to know one another. We talked for hours and hours last night. We talked about everything! Our families, our work, our failed marriages, all the big stuff. We made each other laugh with our stories, and, well, just clicked. We’ve both been hurt by people we loved, Mama. We’re kindred spirits that way. We agreed that there are sparks there, but we’re going to take it slowly. We spent last night talking, discovering things about each other.” She sighed. “Mama, I don’t know. I’ve been halfway in love with Richie Sambora the musician, since I was sixteen years old. I want to know the man behind the myth.”

Teresa smiled. “You’re being cautious, which is a good thing. But, please don’t let the nastiness with Mark,” Julianna cringed at the sound of her ex-husband’s name, “get in the way of potential happiness now.” She scrutinized her daughter’s face. “You usually know your heart pretty well. What is it telling you?”

Julianna sighed happily. “Oh, Mama, it’s telling me to trust in this; to follow him anywhere he wants this to go. I think I’ve lost part of my heart to him already.” She paced, frustrated with herself. “How can that be? We’re really strangers. How do I know him well enough to have him ensconced in my heart?”

Teresa rose to embrace her daughter. “My love, that’s exactly how I felt when your father begged me to have coffee with him. Don’t over think it. If it feels right, it’s right.”

Julianna hugged her mother back fiercely. “Thank you, Mama. Things will work out. We both feel the spark, and we both want to be cautious. We’re on the same page, and we’ve found that we have a lot in common. I’m happy with the way things are going.”

Teresa searched her baby girl’s eyes. “You truly are, I can see that.” She sighed and headed for the kitchen, grabbing the plates Julianna had set on the coffee table. “Come, let’s have lunch.”

While Julianna was setting the table in the kitchen and warming up the food that her mother brought, the phone rang. “Mama,” she called out, “can you get that?”

“Si, cara.” She picked up the phone. “Hello?”

A man’s voice answered. “Julianna, is that you?”

“No, it’s her mother. Julianna is busy at the moment, can I help you?”

“Signora, it’s Richie, Julianna’s friend from last night. Is everything OK?”

Teresa smiled at the genuine concern in his voice. “All is well Richie.” She emphasized this last, to get her daughter’s attention. It worked. She reached to take the phone from her mother, but Teresa shook her head. She said to Richie, “ I just stopped over to bring lunch and to make sure she was OK.”

“Mama!” Julianna hissed. Teresa waved her off.

“I can appreciate that, Signora. I hope I can assure you that I have great respect for Julianna and her family – your family. You let me into your private time openly and without hesitation, I won’t break that trust by hurting your daughter. For now, we’re just friends.”

Teresa nodded. “Si, this is what Julianna tells me. I am happy for you both. You are always welcome at our tables, Riccardo. Friends of my children are treated like family in my house.”

“Grazie, Signora. I appreciate it.” Richie paused. “Um, can I speak with Julianna?”

“Of course,” Teresa said. “Here she is.”

Julianna all but tore the phone away from her mother, shooting her a dirty look. Richie told her that he and Jon were heading out to New Orleans for a few days break from work and to unwind. Julianna told him his timing was impeccable. Sam and Lila were both coming out to the cottage at the week’s end to work on the new choreography. They’d be staying with her for several days. “When are you leaving?” she asked.

“Tomorrow morning. Tico and Dave already left for home. We’re all meeting back here on Monday.”

“Why don’t you and Jon come to dinner tonight?" Teresa nodded her approval, which Julianna studiously ignored. "My mother brought a fresh loaf of garlic bread, and I can throw some steaks on the grill. Nothing fancy – just come over to hang out before your trip.”

“I think that sounds great. We’ll bring the wine. Say, around 7?”

“Sounds good, Richie. See you then.”

“See ya, babe.” Richie was smiling as he hung up the phone.

Jon noticed the stupid grin on his friend’s face. “That Julianna?”

“Yeah, and her mom. Apparently, La Signora was worried about my intentions.” He shook his head. “Julianna’s mom is an Italian version of mine. She’s looking out for her baby chick. She did say I was welcome at their tables anytime, so I guess she’s not going to put the Evil Eye on me quite yet.” He laughed. “Anyway, Julianna invited us to dinner tonight – some steaks on the grill – and to hang out before our trip. I told her we’d bring the wine.”

Jon grinned. “Sounds good. I’ll go find something to bring. If I leave it to you, we’ll have wine-in-a-box.”

Richie laughed. “Too true. A connoisseur I am not. I go more for the simple pleasures. Have at it. I’m going up to the studio to mess around.”

Chapter 15: Unfinished Business

“Have a seat,” she gestured to the bench. Before she could fold herself onto it, Richie grabbed her hands and pulled her to him.

“Not so fast, sweetheart. We have some unfinished business to take care of, remember?”

“We do?” she teased. “What business?”

“This.” His eyes darkened, his arms tightened, and he dipped his head, capturing her mouth in a kiss. Julianna wrapped her arms around his waist, bringing him in close. She could feel the hard length of him along her thigh as she pressed in. The heat pouring from his body excited her, fueled her passion. Her lips parted even before his tongue touched them. When Richie’s tongue dove into her mouth, Julianna groaned, and ground against him. Richie made a guttural noise in the back of his throat, reveling in the sheer pleasure of losing himself in a woman. He let his hands wander; one to settle on her tight ass, the other to cup one small, perfect breast. As he kissed he kneaded, making Julianna’s pulse race and her legs go weak.

After a minute, Julianna broke the embrace, and stepped back, exhaling sharply. “Jesus, Sambora, you sure know how to make a girl go stupid,” she said with a wry grin. “Look, I mean you’ve gotta know that I’m more than a little attracted to you – hell I’ve been half in love with you, or the idea of you, for the better part of twenty years.” She took a step back and sat down hard on a bench. “But, shit, I can’t believe I’m actually saying this. I -- ” she stopped when she saw the look on his face. He had a mixture of sadness and relief showing in his eyes.

Richie completed her thoughts. “You were going to say you don’t want to rush into something, right?” He saw the answer in her face before she had the chance to speak. “Darlin’, I’ve been agonizing over the same thing since I dropped you off here last night.” He sat down across from Julianna, and leaned forward, lacing his fingers together and resting his forearms on his thighs. “I don’t know how much of what happened between me and Heather you read about – I guess it was all over the tabloids.”

“I have read some,” Julianna admitted guiltily.

Richie nodded. “Well, I’ll let you in on a little secret. This time, they weren’t exaggerating. Just about everything you read was true.” He sighed. “It’s been a rough bunch of months.”

Julianna’s eyes went wide. “Oh my God! I’m so sorry. That’s awful. How’s your daughter coping?”

“Thanks for asking, she’s doing OK. We tried to shield her from most of it. She’s learned not to take what she hears in the media about her mother or I seriously without talking to us first. We’ve been really careful to make this as easy a time for Ava as we could.” He sighed deeply. “You can see now why I was a bit relieved, frankly, when you started to say you wanted to take things more slowly." He looked Julianna square in the eyes. “For the record, in case you didn’t notice, the attraction is there for me too.” He grinned slowly, shifting uncomfortably on the cold, hard bench. “Big time.”

Julianna blushed and smiled, and cut back into the dialog, “So I’m clear, you’re saying you also want to try to get to know each other better first, and see what happens? Not just jump into something physical?”

“Yeah,” Richie said. Just talk to me baby, ‘til we ain’t strangers anymore. “That’s what I want.”

Julianna’s face lit up. “Thank God! I thought for sure that you’d be upset with me, at my hesitation, and this – whatever it is – wouldn’t have a chance.”

“Julianna,” Richie replied. “We don’t really know each other. We can make all sorts of assumptions and guesses about each other and get them wrong, or,” he said, standing and holding out his hand, “or we can learn about each other like regular people, and see if there’s any substance behind the sexual attraction.”

Julianna took Richie’s hand and stood. “I would love to get to really know the man behind the persona. I promise, I’ll do my best to not have any pre-conceived notions or make any assumptions. You be honest with me, and I’ll be honest with you.”

“Agreed.” Richie smiled, feeling completely relaxed, and unbelievably lucky. Julianna appeared to be operating on the same wavelength as he was. “So what now?”

“Well, either you can go back up to the house, or, if you want to, or we can have our first official date here. I figure that any celebrity would have issues ‘dating’ out in public like regular people – especially someone with a child who just went through a very public divorce. And,” she looked down at her attire, “I’m not really dressed to go out.”

Richie laughed. “For the record, I think you look fine, and yes, you’re right, regular dating is tough, but it’s doable. I’d love to hang out here for a while, and talk, maybe over a couple of beers?”

“Alrighty then, follow me.”

* * * * *

She led Richie up to the porch, and pushed him gently into one of the rockers. “Stay,” she said, then disappeared into the house. Richie took advantage of the time to send Jon a short text message. “We talked, on the same page. Deets tomorrow.”

Julianna came back a few minutes later dressed in well-worn jeans and a tank top, her feet bare, and her hair pulled back in a high ponytail. She handed him one of the bottles of beer she snagged on the way back outside. She clinked her bottle to his and said, “Here’s to getting to know you.” She settled into the chair next to him. “So, tell me something about yourself.”

And they were off. They lounged around outside until the night became too chilly, then they moved inside to the library. Richie looked around and whistled. The room was floor-to-ceiling bookshelves, and they looked full. Circling the room, he read some of the titles. There was a wide mix of genres – Stephen King along side Stephen Hawking; coffee table books about different operas shared shelf space with steamy romance novels. One shelf was devoted to the Bermuda Triangle and the Lost City of Atlantis. “Wow, have you read all of these?” he asked.

“Yep, and most of the ones up at the main house, too. I love to read, and as you can see, I’ll read anything. What about you? What do you like to read for fun?”

“Honestly,” he answered, “I don’t get much time to sit and enjoy a good book.” He laughed. “Or a bad one for that matter. I’d have to say, though, if pressed, I’d prefer to read some sort of Sci-Fi fantasy story. There’s enough reality in my life, thank you very much. I could stand to get lost in a fantasy for a while.”

Julianna smiled, and crossed the room. She pulled a volume from a low shelf, and dropped it in Richie’s hands. “Don’t know if you’ve ever read this one,” she said, “but it’s one of my favorites. Take it. Read it when you can, and tell me what you think.”

Richie looked at the book in his hands. It was a first edition Heinlein, “Tunnel in the Sky”. He arched an eyebrow at Julianna. “Really?”

“Really. It’s like a sci-fi ‘Survivor’ season. Try it. You may like it. There are other things up at the house you may enjoy if this one doesn’t float your boat.” Her stomach chose that moment to grumble loudly. She giggled self-consciously, and glanced at the clock. It was nearly eleven. “I don’t know about you, but apparently, I’m hungry. Interested in a late-night snack?”

“Absolutely. I can always eat,” Richie answered.

“C’mon into the kitchen. I can whip us up an omelet. Do you do eggs?”

“Yeah,” he said, sitting at the table, watching her bustle about in the kitchen. He watched her crack the better part of a dozen eggs into a big bowl, and add onions, peppers, mushrooms, milk, cheese, and dash of Tabasco, before whisking it all together. The motion made her ass shake enticingly, setting his pulse racing. He gave himself a mental shake, down boy, and asked what he could do to help.

Julianna checked the stove. “Eggs’ll be up soon. There’s juice in the fridge if you want to pour us some, and some bread in the box to toast.”

They passed the next several hours eating, laughing, talking – feeling like they’d known each other for years instead of days. They talked about their families, touched briefly on their failed marriages, their childhood dreams, their work – nearly every aspect of their lives. They traded secrets, swapped anecdotes, and were stunned when the sun started to peek in through the windows.

“Where’d the night go?” Julianna asked, suddenly exhausted. She yawned and stretched. “I don’t know about you, but if I don’t get at least a couple of hours’ sleep, I’ll be useless for the rest of the day.”

Richie stood, the yawn contagious. “Me too. I should go.”

“Alright,” Julianna said. She led him back to the library to retrieve his book, and gathered him in for a long, close hug. “Hey,” she said, pulling back slightly, “even if we weren’t taking things slow, I don’t put out on the first date.”

Richie laughed hard at this non sequitur. “What are you talking about? I don’t . . .”

Julianna arched an eyebrow, interrupting his denial. “Really, then there must be a banana in your pocket.” She looked down, reassessing. “Or maybe a zucchini.”

“Jesus, Julianna!” He blushed furiously and kissed her soundly. Her sense of humor was another facet of her personality that he found intriguing. “I’ll talk to you soon, OK?”

Julianna smiled. “Of course. Here,” she fumbled in her desk for one of J. Frances’ business cards. She wrote her home and cell numbers on the back. “I’m always at one of these numbers. Although, if I’m working in the studio, I probably won’t answer the phone.” She slipped the card into the back pocket of Richie’s jeans.

Richie chuckled, and grabbed the pen from Julianna’s hand, and a pad of paper from the desk. He wrote his cell number on it, saying, “I usually have this on me, and ditto on the I-ignore-it-when-I’m-working thing.” He folded the piece of paper and slipped it into Julianna’s back pocket. He kissed her gently, savoring the moment. “Until next time,” he said.

“Good night, Richie, and thank you; I had a wonderful time tonight.”

“Me too, babe. Talk to you soon.” He dropped another kiss on her lips and was out the door. Julianna watched him cross the yard to the gate and slip through. With one backward glance and a jaunty salute, he was gone.

Chapter 14: Julianna Meets the Boys

After dinner, and a couple of rounds of margaritas, Dave stood. “Well, let’s go meet Julianna.” He headed for the door. Jon and Tico followed. Richie sighed, and brought up the rear. He had given Jon his 24 hours, and Julianna wouldn’t stop plaguing his thoughts. Maybe she wouldn’t get along with his friends. That would make this a no-brainer for him. Somehow, though, he didn’t think that would be the case.

Richie warned, “Be nice to her; Julianna is a nice lady.”

Dave rolled his eyes. “Yeah, yeah, you big baby. Let’s go.”

The full moon illuminated the night, making it easy for Richie to lead the way to the back of the property, and to the gap in the wall – Julianna had left the gate unlatched. His heart thudded in his chest, and his pulse quickened.

Jon started in on Richie as soon as he saw the gate push open easily. “You’re scaling walls with perfectly good doors in them?”

Richie laughed. “I didn’t know there was a gate at the time. Julianna told me about it yesterday when I came by to beg her not to turn me over to the police. She showed it to me later that afternoon, when I couldn’t find it on my own.”

“Man, sometimes it’s a challenge for you to find your ass with both hands,” Tico laughed at him. “She leave this open for you, stud?”

Richie shot him a triumphant look. “Of course she did. What do you think?”

Dave piped up, “I think I’ve gotta meet this woman.”

The foursome passed through the gate and came to an abrupt stop. They found themselves in some sort of fairyland. The gardens on either side of the house were strung with thousands of tiny white lights, and delicate wind chimes tinkled on the breeze. Wind catchers of all sizes and shapes hung from invisible threads at the borders of the gardens. In the center of the yard stood a tall statue of a fairy, gently illuminated, and adorned with a crown of fresh flowers. The fairy stood guard over a pair of intricately carved benches. On one of the benches sat a creature straight out of a fairy tale – a raven-haired princess, curls cascading to the seat of the bench. She was wearing some gossamer-thin gown and robe, and had her feet curled up on the bench next to her. She was swaying back and forth gently, listening to some sort of music.

Julianna hummed softly to herself as she closed her eyes and concentrated on the music. She was listening to the songs for the shows, and dancing the numbers in her head. She sensed, rather than heard, movement at the gate, and smiled. She called out softly, “Hey, stranger, I see you found the gate this time.” She turned off the music and turned toward the gate. What she saw there shocked her. Richie brought company. He gave a shy wave that melted her heart. She leaped from her seat, closing her robe around herself, and wrapping her arms around her waist. She was not prepared for the onslaught of emotions running through her. She briefly glanced at the other men, finding it hard to believe that Bon Jovi was in her backyard, but all she could really see was Richie.

“Hi, Julianna,” Richie said softly, as he crossed to her.

“Hi, Julia-a-anna,” the others drawled, making fun of Richie.

Julianna laughed, relaxing a little. “Hi boys. What brings you all to my gate on this glorious evening?”

Dave stepped forward and took Julianna’s hand. “We wanted to meet the woman that has Richie wanting to skip work and make nice with her family. After only knowing her for a day.” He looked her up and down slowly, making her blush. “Gotta say, I don’t blame him one bit.” He smiled.

Julianna blushed. “Thank you, Dave, that was sweet.”

Richie growled. “Yeah, sweet. You’ve met her, now, beat it. All of you.” He’d changed his mind. He didn’t need his friends’ blessing. He didn’t care what they thought. All he cared about was being with her.

Richie’s friends flopped down onto the empty bench across from Julianna. Julianna and Richie sat, too. “Nope,” Jon said with a smirk, settling in, “we’re staying.” He addressed Julianna. “So tell me, Julianna,how come Richie here practically gets arrested for spying on you and comes out of it as your new best friend, while I, who merely share a near-naked experience with you gets a ‘wake up and don’t burn your ass’?” The sparkle in his eyes let her know he was teasing her. OK, she thought. Two can play that game.

She leaned forward, showing just a hint of cleavage, and looked Jon square in the eye. “Darlin’, I will admit to checking out your,” she said, giving him a slow, thorough once-over, “very fine form while you were snoozing – or should I say snoring?” The others laughed. “But,” she said, casting a sidelong look at Richie, “as fine as you look, dirty blond and bronze doesn’t push my buttons -- I’m not a sunshine gal. Look around you. I’m more of a midnight mama. I find the night to be more sexy and seductive. Sorry.”

Jon rolled his eyes. “To each her own, but you don’t know what you’re missing, mama,” he drawled.

“Oh, I have some idea,” Julianna answered, with a wink and a grin. “Very nice, but just not for me.”

Tico piped up. “OK, if you’re so into dark and mysterious, what about me? I’m darker than Sambora here, and I’ve got that whole mysterious Cubano thing going on.”

Julianna’s eyes flashed with something dangerous. “Very true, but you also have a gorgeous wife. I don’t poach,” she said fiercely, “not ever.” Her voice softened, as she looked straight into his eyes. “Not even for someone built like you with a voice made for sin.” Tico gulped. Shit, he thought. Sambora really is in big trouble here.

Dave chuckled. “Even if my fair god-like looks don’t do it for her, she still thinks I’m sweet. Julianna, I like you. You’re fun.” He came to sit next to her, and again took her hand. Dave was apparently a touchy-feely type. “How’d you learn about this place?”

Julianna paused, then exhaled sharply. What the hell, she thought. “Actually, I own this place. The place you’re staying in too.” Seeing Dave’s shocked look, she squeezed his hand and stood. Taking a deep, steadying breath, she turned to Richie and stuck out her hand. “Nice to meet you, I’m Julianna Frances Cavanaugh.”

Jon’s eyes widened. “You’re J. Frances Cavanaugh?” He laughed.

Tico asked, “So, when ‘J. Frances’ office’ called to tell us about the peeper, that was you?” He laughed long and hard. “Girl, that was priceless.”

Julianna looked sheepish. “I don’t usually indulge in pranks outside my family, or show my darker side like that,” she looked apologetically at Richie. “But, when I saw who it was that was looking in my windows, it was the only thing I could think of that would guarantee I’d get to meet you. When you showed up at my door last night, I nearly had a heart attack. You’ll note, that at dinner I was very careful not to introduce too many people by full names.”

Richie grinned at his friends, who were still laughing. “I’ll bet nobody ever threatened to have you assholes arrested, just so they could meet you.” He turned to Julianna. “You scared the crap out of me. Now I don’t feel guilty anymore about peeking in your windows.”

Jon, wiping tears from his eyes, stood up and said, “OK, guys, I think she’s alright for our friend here. Let’s give them some privacy.” He leaned in to whisper to Richie, “Good luck, man.”

Julianna, blushing, said, “Good night, boys.”

“Good night, Julia-a-anna,” they sing-songed together, making their way through the gate and latching it behind them.

Chapter 13: The Day After

The next day was extremely productive for Richie and Jon. They were up with the sun working. Richie was able to compartmentalize his feelings enough to concentrate on working. Last night’s duet with Julianna had put into perspective the tone that Bring It On was trying to set. Richie had some ideas about the new song, and explained his thoughts to Jon. Jon agreed that his ideas were great, and in sync with what the show needed. They reworked the song to Richie’s specs, and were pleased with the results.

* * * * * * *

Julianna was working furiously, too. She had been up with the birds, and had been in her studio all day, having skipped lunch. She completely re-staged Never Say Goodbye, making it more emotional and poignant. Watching her tapes now, she thought this may be her best work. Across the room, her computer beeped, signaling the arrival of new e-mail. She smiled when she saw it was from Maddie. The girl had sent the photos she had taken last night.

Maddie had captured Julianna and her brothers playing onstage with Richie. She laughed out loud at the goofy grin on his face. She scrolled through the pictures of Richie and her nieces and cousins, marveling at how good he was with them. There were a few candid shots from dinner, and that was it. Conspicuously missing were the photos of her and Richie together, the ones they posed for.

Another beep, and another e-mail popped into her window. Maddie had added a note on this one. “These are the ones of just you and Richie. Thank you so much for bringing him. All my friends are jealous. See you next month! Love, Maddie.” Julianna opened the first one. It was from their duet. They were standing toe to toe, staring into each others’ eyes. There was raw longing and desire in both their faces. Holy Hell! The next one was the posed shot Maddie had begged for. It had come out great. The final photo was strangely erotic. This was the photo Maddie had snapped of the two of them before they were posed properly. Julianna’s eyes were locked on Richie’s, her lips slightly parted. She looked like a woman about to be ravaged. Richie looked like he could have take her right there, in front of God, Nonna, and the rest of the family.

She printed off a set of all the pictures, and before she lost her nerve, put them into an envelope, scrawling Richie’s name across the front of it. She added a note to the front of the envelope.

R –
Here are some of the photos from last night
Enjoy!
-- J

Julianna paced. Should she give them to Richie? Would he laugh them off, or see what she saw in them? Would he be as captivated by them as she was? “Enough!” she scolded herself. Julianna went out to her car, and drove around to the main house. Sitting in the driveway, she hesitated. This was her first trip back to the house since the night she found her husband in the arms of another woman. In her bed. She hadn’t set foot on the property again until the afternoon with Richie, and hasn’t been back into the house since that fateful night. Her friends and family had packed up her belongings for her.

Giving herself a mental slap, Julianna opened the car door. She sprinted to the front door of the house, slid the envelope through the slot in the door, rang, the bell, and ran back to the car. A rooster-tail of gravel underlined her anxiety. Whether her anxiety was caused by simply being back at this house, or at the packet she just left for Richie, Julianna couldn't say.

* * * * * * *

Up in the studio, the band was wrapping up for the evening. They had re-recorded the music for the finale, and wanted to leave it. If they messed with it anymore, they would ruin it. They’d work on fixing the lyrics later. Tico’s stomach grumbled loudly. He looked at the clock. “Damn, guys, we worked through lunch, and now it’s almost dinner time. I’m starved. Let’s get outta here for a while, go grab something in some greasy dive somewhere.”

The rest of them agreed. They poured down the stairs, laughing and joking, things feeling like old times. Tico was the first to the door, and the first to notice the envelope laying on the floor in front of it. Reading the note, he laughed. “Rich, man, you got your own photographer now?” He waived the envelope in the air. “Let’s see what our boy was up to last night.” He pulled the stack of prints from the envelope, and began thumbing through them. Flipping around one of the ones Richie posed for with Julianna’s young relatives, Tico laughed. “A little young for you, aren’t they, Sambora?”

“Shut up, T. Give me those.” He reached for them, but Tico was too quick, spinning out of the way.

“No way, man. Finders Keepers. Wait your turn.” He continued flipping through the photos, passing them to Jon after he looked at them. When he got to the one of Richie with his arm around Julianna’s waist, their eyes locked onto each other, he whistled. “Damn, man, you weren’t kidding last night. Guys,” he said, flipping the photo around. “take a look at this."

Richie’s heart stopped. Julianna’s cousin had captured the raw emotion and desire in their faces. He swallowed hard, and reached for the print with a shaky hand. “Guys, I think we should stay in tonight.” He sighed, unable to tear his eyes away from the photo. “It’s time you met Julianna.”

Jon clapped a hand on Richie’s shoulder. “You cookin’, man, or should we order in?”

Richie smiled weakly at Jon’s attempt to lighten the mood. “Dial the phone.”

Chapter 12: Troubled

Richie drove in a fog back to the main house. Although he’d known Julianna for only a day, he could feel her wiggling her way into his heart. He wasn’t sure if it was all her, or a combination of the events of the past several months. He needed to talk to Jon. Jon always was a good sounding board for Richie’s personal shit – and he was always brutally honest. Jon would help him sort through it.

Richie’s friends were scattered around the great room when he entered. Dave was at the piano again. Tico was reading, and Jon was watching some movie on the plasma. Richie dropped onto the couch, next to Jon. After gazing sightlessly at the movie for a few minutes, he said, “Man, I need to talk to you.”

Jon looked over at him. “Shit, Rich, you don’t look like a man who just took a gorgeous woman out to dinner. What happened?”

Richie sighed. “When I got there, she was coming out of her house, all dressed up, with some other guy.” He raised his hand when it looked like Jon was going to interrupt. “Turned out, the guy was her brother, but damn, for a minute there, I was pissed off and actually jealous.” He shook his head and scrubbed his face with his hands. “I’ve known her for what, half a day?” He turned to face his friend. “I need help here, brother. I met her family, her fucking family, and I had a great time.” He told Jon about meeting Julianna’s grandmother and parents, about being accepted into their gathering without question or hesitation, and about feeling as if he belonged with these people.

Tico and Dave, seeing the other two men deep in conversation, ambled over. “Hey man,” Tico said, “What’s so serious over here?”

Jon broke it down for them. “Richie thinks he is falling for Julianna. He met her family tonight and thoroughly enjoyed himself. They liked him, too, and he doesn’t know what to do.”

Dave started to make some smart-ass remark, but stopped when he saw the stricken look on his friend’s face. “Oh man,” he said softly. “You really are screwed.”

“Tell me about it,” Richie said. ”What do I do here?”

Dave offered his advice. “This is too close on the heels of the Heather thing. Take a step back. OK, you like her and her family. OK, she and her family appear to like you. That’s good. I don’t know anyone who can’t use more friends, right? What you don’t need right now, is more salt in your wounds, man. It's too soon. You need to heal.”

Tico agreed. “Stay away from her tomorrow. Throw yourself into work. Hell, throw yourself into the lake for all I care, but stay away, and see how you feel."

Jon said, "If you still think there’s something there, we’ll go down and meet her, make sure she checks out. If it’s right, it’ll still be right tomorrow. If it’s just a passing thing, well, then you can deal with that, too.”

Richie reluctantly nodded his head. “You’re right, Jon, but then again, you usually are. Thanks. All of you; thanks.”

Jon grinned. “No problem. Now, tell us all about her family.”

Richie told them about Julianna’s brothers, her parents, and her Nonna. He smiled when he told them about posing for pictures with Julianna’s young nieces and cousins. They laughed at the story about taking Francesca home after dinner. Richie’s smile was wistful when recalling the fun he had playing with Julianna and her brothers, and his eyes darkened with passion when he told them of singing a duet with her. Jon’s sharp gaze missed none of these emotions in his friend’s face.

“Rich, my man, I hate to say it, but I think Davey-boy here is right. You’re screwed. You’ve already let this woman into your heart. Shit.” He slapped his thighs and stood up. “Our advice still stands, though. Leave it for tomorrow. Give it 24 hours. If you still feel,” he rolled his hands, “whatever, here, well, we’ll go meet her. If she doesn’t run in fear,” he grinned wickedly, “ then do what feels right. You shouldn’t deny your heart.”

Chapter 11: Nonna's Date

After dessert, everyone helped clean up. Platters and plates were brought back into the kitchen. Teresa and Riley supervised the storing of leftovers – each person would get some to take home. With so many helping hands, the dishes were done in no time. Everyone made their goodbyes, making it a point to give Richie a hug or to shake his hand.

Francesca approached. “It was a great pleasure meeting you, nipotino,” she said. “You are welcome every month, whether you come with Julianna or not.” She kissed his cheeks. “Now, you will give an old woman a ride home in your fancy truck. I want to give the neighbors something to gossip about.”

Richie laughed. “Of course!” He wove her arm through his, and escorted her outside, Julianna and Gianni following. Richie helped Francesca get settled in the front seat. Julianna and Gianni were all but invisible in the back, partly due to the size of the vehicle, partly due to the tinted windows. The foursome chatted amiably as they drove through the quiet streets. Approaching the gated community where Francesca lived, Richie smiled at her. “How good an actress are you?”

“I’ll have you know I was quite the actress in my day,” Francesca replied. Remind me to show you my playbills some day.”

“I will. OK, Signora, here we go.” They slowed for the guard, and Richie rolled down his window. “Good evening,” he paused to read the young man’s name badge, and to make sure he was recognized, “James. I’m returning Mrs. Grimaldi to her home. We’ve had a long evening, and I’m exhausted.”

Francesca leaned forward. “Giacomo,” she said, “open this gate immediately.”

James’ eyebrows rose. “O-of course,” he stammered. “Go right through, Mr. Sambora.”

“Thank you, my friend,” Richie said, and rolled up the window.

Julianna and Gianni couldn’t contain their laughter anymore. “Did you see the look on his face?” Gianni said, tears streaming down his face. “Nonna, you will be the talk of the neighborhood for a month at least!”

By the time they navigated to Francesca’s house, a small crowd had assembled on the porch of the house next door. Julianna laughed. “You’re in for it now, Sambora. There’s a committee gathered to check out Nonna’s date. James is the grandson of Nonna’s next-door neighbor. He must have called ahead. The grapevine in this place is amazing.”

“Well then,” Richie grinned, “let’s do this properly.” He pulled up into the driveway, turned off the truck, and exited to walk around the front of it to the passenger side. He opened Francesca’s door, and lifted her down to the pavement, making her giggle like a schoolgirl. Richie wrapped an arm around her shoulders, and led her up the walkway to her front door. Taking from the keys from her, Richie unlocked and opened the front door. Pulling her into a hug, Richie glanced surreptitiously at the gathering next door. He chuckled. “We have a rapt audience, Signora. Are you ready for your good-night kiss?”

Francesca raised a brow. “Of course. I would expect nothing less, Riccardo,” she said, with a twinkle in her eyes.

Richie pressed a gentle kiss on the corner of Francesca’s mouth. She smiled in return, and patted Richie’s face. She turned to go into her house, with Richie following behind. Francesca put a delicate hand to his chest, shaking her head. Richie made a show of dropping his head and nodding. He took Francesca’s hand and kissed it reverently, then went back to the truck. He waved to the neighbors. “Have a good evening, folks.”

Inside the truck, Julianna and Gianni were doubled over, fists in their mouths to keep from laughing. “Get out of here, dammit,” Julianna hissed, “before we spoil it.”

“Your every wish is my command,” Richie said. He peeled out of the driveway, making some of the ladies on the porch next door jump, then shake their heads. Waving as he approached the gates, James let them out. Pulling over a couple of blocks away, Richie turned to look at the pair in the back seat. They had identical, wide grins on their faces, and tears staining their cheeks.

Julianna gathered her dress between her legs, and climbed into the front seat. She grabbed him in a quick hug. “That was perfect! Those old biddies probably have half the complex on the phones, talking about Nonna’s new suitor.” She wiped the last of the tears from her eyes. “Oh, Lord! Wait until Nicky and Sal hear about this!”

Gianni pulled his cell phone from his pocket. “I’m calling Nicky right now!” In low tones punctuated by laughter, Julianna could hear her brother retelling the story.

“You know,” Julianna said to Richie, “by the time this story makes it around to everyone in the family, you’ll have been turned into a gigolo or something. Your reputation will be shot.” She giggled.

“Francesca will protect me,” Richie said, sliding a glance her way. “Don’t worry about my reputation.”

All too soon, they arrived back at Julianna’s cottage. She leaned over to give Richie a chaste kiss. “Thank you for coming tonight, and for singing with me – with us. I had a great time.”

Richie itched to pull Julianna into his arms, but her brother made no move to get out of the truck. Sighing to himself, he smiled at Julianna, locking eyes with her. “I had a wonderful evening. Your family is fantastic. Thank you for including me.” He turned to the back seat. “Gianni, nice to have met you, man.”

“You too, Richie.” The two men shook hands. “You’ll have to come by again next time you’re out this way.”

“Will do, man, that food was the best.” He winked. “And the company wasn’t bad, either.”

Gianni got out of the truck, and opened his sister’s door. “Coming, sis?” He was grinning wickedly.

“Yeah, just a sec,” she answered. She turned to Richie. “You know, we do still have some unfinished business, you and me.” She winked and licked her lips. “See you tomorrow?”

“Most definitely,” Richie responded.

Julianna let Gianni lead her from the truck and watched as Richie left. Gianni turned to Julianna. “What’s going on here, little sister?”

“What do you mean?”

“Don’t play dumb with me. I watched the two of you together tonight. He couldn’t keep his eyes off of you. I also heard you singing together – the passion and emotion was right there for everyone to hear. What’s the deal?”

Julianna smile, and laid a hand on her brother’s cheek. “Richie is a business partner. We’re working closely together, and he’s been an idol of mine forever. What you saw was probably just hero worship. I can’t speak for him or what he was thinking.”

Gianni scrutinized his sister’s face. “If you say so, Jules. But remember, he’s got me and Nicky and Sal to contend with if he does anything to hurt you.”

Julianna smiled. “Don’t worry about me,” she said. “I can take care of myself.”

Chapter 10: After-Dinner Entertainment

Julianna explained to Richie how the song was being done in the show. He approved. It’s the way he would have done it, had the decision been his. They ran through the first couple of verses quietly, both playing guitars softly. The music brought Maddie to the door. “Are you guys ready for us?”

Julianna laughed. “As ready as we’re gonna be. Come on in.”

The family piled into the room, after-dinner drinks in their hands. Someone had brought Julianna and Richie fresh glasses of wine, which they set on the piano top. Once everyone was settled, Julianna addressed her family. “We’re going to give you a preview of one of the songs we’re doing for the show. Now, imagine that I’m Gina, a twenty-something from Queens, who’s dying at the thought of her love, Tommy here,” Richie made a small bow, “out on the road. Tommy has called Gina from his latest gig, and this is their phone conversation to each other.”

Richie started the opening strains of the song on the Strat, and Julianna joined in; playing along on an old-lovingly beat up Gibson. Richie took the first few lines, his voice clear and beautiful.

As I sit in this smoky room, the night about to end
I pass my time with strangers, but this bottle's my only friend
Remember when we used to park on Butler Street out in the dark
Remember when we lost the keys, and you lost more than that in my backseat, baby
Remember when we used to talk about busting out - we'd break their hearts

At the chorus, their two voices blended perfectly, like they were made to sing together. Raw emotion filled the room, as they channeled Tommy and Gina.

Together – forever
Never say goodbye, never say goodbye
You and me and my old friends, hoping it would never end
Never say goodbye, never say goodbye
Holdin' on - we got to try, holdin' on to never say goodbye

Julianna took the next verse, her voice morphing into that of a twenty-something from Queens.

Remember days of skipping school, racing cars and being cool
With a six pack and the radio we didn't need no place to go
Remember at the prom that night, you and me we had a fight
But the band they played our favorite song, and you held me in your arms so strong
We danced so close, we danced so slow, and I swore I'd never let you go

At the chorus this time, Richie and Julianna turned to each other and stared deeply into each others’ eyes.

Together - forever
Never say goodbye, never say goodbye
You and me and my old friends, hoping it would never end
Never say goodbye, never say goodbye
Holdin' on - we got to try
Holdin' on to never say goodbye

Richie played a heartfelt solo, much as he does on stage. Julianna watched his face, saw the emotion in his playing. She closed her eyes, swaying to the music. The two joined their voices together for the final lines of the song. When they were through, the room was silent. Looking out at her family, they saw stunned expressions. Richie quipped, “What? Did we do it wrong?” All at once, her family was swarming around them, praising their performance.

Teresa cleared her throat. “Let’s have dessert now.”

Chapter 9: Soup's On

The heavenly aroma of fresh sauce and Italian cheeses wafted from the dining room. Everyone followed their noses to the spread laid out in the other room. A long buffet table was set up along one side of the room, and it was piled high with food. Richie looked at Julianna, shocked. “You eat like this all the time? How are you all not huge!?”

Julianna laughed. “We only do this once a month. Besides, we work hard, and we play harder,” she said with a wink. “That’s our secret. C’mon, let’s get something to eat before my brothers take it all.”

The path to the food led them past Julianna’s grandmother. Richie bent down to ask her if he could make her a plate. Julianna’s heart squeezed at the considerate gesture. Francesca reached up to pat the side of Richie’s face. She was nodding and talking to him. Richie said something in rapid Italian that Julianna didn’t catch, but it had her grandmother laughing out loud; something their family hadn’t heard from her in quite some time. Brushing away a stray tear, Julianna preceded Richie to the buffet. He began filling two plates, one for himself, and one for her grandmother.

“Richie, Nonna will never eat that much!” she admonished.

Richie laughed. “I told her I would make her a plate, and whatever she didn’t want to eat, she could sneak to me. I told her I wanted to make sure I’d be able to have seconds; everything smells so good, I didn’t think there’d be anything left later.”

“Smooth, Sambora,” she said with a smile. “Very smooth.”

They sat at Francesca’s table, with Richie in the place of honor at her right. Tucking into a fantastic meal, he regaled them with some of the tamer stories from the band’s tours. The talk at the table eventually turned to Julianna’s show, and the progress they were making. Julianna smiled enthusiastically. “It’s going really well. Sam and Lila are just perfect, and we’re nearly ready to start working on the finale.” She slid a look at Richie. “Richie has seen some of the choreography, and likes it so far.” Richie laughed.

“Now that you mention it, Julianna,” Richie said, “we did have some business to discuss.” He turned to Francesca. “May we be excused?”

She laughed. “Go – go talk your business. Then you both will sing for me.”

“Nonna –” Julianna started to object, but Richie stopped her.

“We’d be delighted. Right, Julianna?” he prompted.

She sighed, resigned. “Right. Let’s go get our business out of the way, and we can sing before dessert.” She led them into the function room. When she was certain they weren’t being followed, she turned to Richie. “I don’t expect you to entertain my family, you know.”

“I know that. I like your family, and it’s the least I can do for them making me feel so welcome. Now, as we don’t really have any business to discuss, we should decide on what we’re going to sing.”

“What’s your preference? I can sing just about anything.”

“I’d like to sing one of the songs you’ve chosen for the show – Never Say Goodbye. I always thought that one would make a good duet. Would you sing it with me?” Richie pleaded.

“Of course I will,” Julianna answered.

Chapter 8: La Famiglia

Sal called out, “Mama’s going to sing, everyone!” A smattering of applause met this announcement, and the family poured into the function hall. Richie found himself sitting with Julianna’s father and brothers at the table closest to the stage.

A hush fell over the family as Julianna sat at the piano. She looked at her mother. “Puccini?” she asked.

“Yes, but of course,” her mother answered, channeling her inner diva.

Julianna smiled, and played the opening bars of Vissi d’arte, the aria from Tosca that brought her parents together all those long years ago.

When Teresa started to sing, Richie’s heart skipped a beat. I can see how Riley was put under her spell, he thought. He listened to the words of the aria. He closed his eyes briefly; Teresa’s voice and Julianna’s music washing over him, putting him at peace. He opened his eyes to see Julianna watching him. She smiled, then turned her concentration back to the piano.

At the conclusion of the song, the whole family, including Richie, gave a standing ovation. Teresa bowed dramatically, smiling. “Grazie, mi famiglia. Now, Julianna and her brothers will play something for you, then we shall feast! Riley, come help me in the kitchen.” She swept from the stage, with a love-struck Riley trailing in her wake.

Julianna’s brothers grumbled about having to sing for their supper, but knew better than to back-talk their mama. Julianna rolled her eyes at Richie, and looked to her family. “What should we sing?” There were all kinds of requests, from church hymns to Broadway show tunes, to opera. “Ok, ok,” Julianna said, laughing. “Should have known better than to ask you. I’ll pick.”

She started playing a tinkling tune on the piano. Her brothers joined in; Sal on drums, Gianni with his trumpet, and Nicky joined Julianna on the piano bench. Richie noticed that nobody picked up either of the guitars that were looking so forlorn on the stage. He smiled and said, “I know this one, can I join in?”

Sal cheered. “Of course you can. I’ll bet that’s why Nicky didn’t pick up his Strat over there.”

Once Richie was settled, and had joined them in their intro, Julianna started to sing.

Would you like to swing on a star
Carry moonbeams home in a jar
And be better off than you are
Or would you rather be a mule?

Nicky sang the next verse; then the two were switching between harmonizing, and singing the verses solo. They made funny faces and silly gestures, drawing the younger cousins into the song. The harmony was pure and amazing. Richie found himself smiling and laughing at their antics. By the time they got to the end of the song, most everyone was singing along, Richie included.

And all the monkeys aren't in the zoo
Every day you meet quite a few
So you see it's all up to you
You can be better than you are
You could be swingin' on a star

Julianna laughed, “Big finish, everyone!” They belted out the final line, Broadway style.

You could be swingin' on a star!

Julianna traded hugs and pecks with her brothers and Richie. “That was fun,” she said. “Richie, thanks for playing along. Don’t know if you realized it, but you just made my cousins and nieces over there,” she gestured to a group of high-school aged girls, who were whispering and pointing, “the most popular kids in their schools. You do know they won’t keep this to themselves, right?”

“That’s alright. No worries.” His eyes twinkled with laughter, recalling how one of the girls was sneaking pictures of them playing. He raised his voice slightly. “Hey, anyone have a camera?”

The girl who was taking pictures blushed, and answered, “I do.”

Richie looked at Julianna and winked. “I’d love it if you’d let me take a picture with you guys -- I can show my daughter, who’s about your age, that her old man is still cool.”

The girls all looked at each other, then at Julianna. She smiled. “Maddie, give me your camera; I’ll take the pictures.”

Richie spent several minutes posing with the girls, making them all smile. His banter put them at ease, and soon they were all mugging for the camera, and laughing together. Taking the camera back from her cousin, Maddie said to Richie, “Now one of you with Julianna, please.”

Richie looked at Julianna, who just shrugged. “OK, Maddie,” he said, “but only if you promise to send copies to Julianna so I can have one.”

He moved to Julianna and put his arm around her waist, pulling her roughly to him. She turned, smiling to make some smart remark about not damaging the merchandise, but got lost in the look on his face. The flash of Maddie’s camera startled them, and had them laughing. “We weren’t ready, brat,” Julianna said. They posed and smiled for the girl, who took several more pictures.

Chapter 7: Francesca's

The trio arrived at Francesca’s a half hour later, and were the last ones to arrive. A hush fell over the family gathered as they realized who had come in with Julianna and Gianni. An old woman broke from the crowd and approached.

“Nonna!” Julianna exclaimed, bending to kiss the old woman’s cheek and wrap her in a hug. “This is my friend and business associate, Richie,” she said. “Richie, this is my grandmother, and inspiration for this restaurant, Francesca Grimaldi.”

Francesca took Richie’s proffered hand and pulled him down so she could kiss each cheek. “Buona suera, Riccardo. Benvenuta a Francesca’s.”

Richie answered in perfectly accented Italian. “Good evening, Grandmother. Thank you for allowing me to invade your family dinner.”

Julianna stared at him, shocked. He just winked and smiled at her. Holy hell, she thought. Richie Sambora speaking in Italian is definitely the sexiest thing I’ve ever heard.

Nonna Francesca beamed at Richie, and said, in English, “Julianna, this one, he shows the respect, he speaks the language, and,” she paused, giving Richie a once-over, “and he is very easy on the eyes. This one, I like. You keep him.”

Julianna blushed. “Nonna, Richie is a business partner, not my boyfriend. Stop the matchmaking. Where’s Mama and Papa?”

“Feh, you know them; they’re still in the kitchen. They’ll come when they are ready.”

Julianna bent to kiss her grandmother again, then brought Richie in to meet most of the rest of her loud, boisterous family. Her parents had yet to emerge from the kitchen, and she knew better than to interrupt them. After the initial shock of seeing a superstar in their midst wore off, everyone was back to laughing and joking, making Richie feel right at home.

Richie accepted a glass of good red wine, and smiled to himself. He had missed big family gatherings. He was an only child, and his aunts, uncles, and cousins were now scattered all over the country. They didn’t get together anymore as often as he would have liked. He had meant what he said to Francesca – he was glad to be allowed to join them, and surprised to be automatically accepted so easily. He said as much to Julianna when she joined him.

“My family is pretty great,” Julianna agreed. “Although, growing up, I hated being part of such a big family. There were always aunts, uncles, or older cousins willing to rat me out to my parents,” she said ruefully. “Now, of course, I’m so grateful to have so much love so close.”

Richie clinked his glass against hers. “I’ll drink to that,” he said. “By the way, thanks for your discretion earlier with your brother. I appreciate it.”

Julianna smiled. “It was my pleasure. It was a much for my sanity as for your privacy. If he knew you were staying there, you’d learn the meaning of the word ‘stalker’.”

Richie, chuckling, gently elbowed Julianna, who laughed. “Nice,” he said.

“Hey,” Julianna’s oldest brother, Nicky, said, coming over in time to hear that last. “Only we get to bat her around like that. But, I guess since you do have the coolest wheels around, we will forgive you this time.” Gianni and Sal, Julianna’s other brothers, had followed Nicky. Julianna made the introductions.

“So,” Sal said, “what kind of business are you doing with Julianna? You don’t look like much of a dancer.”

“Salvatore, back off,” Julianna ordered, a smile taking the sting from her tone. “You know full well that BIO is doing my Jovi show. Richie is part of the oversight committee, tasked to make sure we don’t defame Tommy and Gina.”

Richie laughed. “Actually, to set the record straight, my mama made sure her son could dance.” He winked at Julianna. “Didn’t know when it would come in handy, and the ladies like it when their men can dance. She also taught me to cook, and I can iron a crease in your khakis that would cut you in half.” The men laughed.

Julianna giggled. “My brothers and I learned all that, too. I’m the only one capitalizing on the dancing lessons, though.”

“Don’t let her fool you,” Gianni said. “You are in the presence of a bona-fide grad-you-ate of the Julliard School for piano-playing, guitar-strumming, horn-tooting, twinkle-toes, sweet-singing, pain-in-the-ass sisters.”

Julianna blushed. Richie turned to her, intrigued. “Really? Julliard? Dave studied there, too. What do you sing?”

Gianni answered by shouting across the room to his parents, who had just emerged from the kitchen. “Hey, Mama, Julianna’s friend here wants to know what she sings!”

Julianna’s parents crossed the room to greet them. After introductions were made, Julianna’s mother, Teresa smiled. “My Julianna sings to make the angels weep. She can sing anything.”

“Mama, stop. Richie, really, I don’t sing much. I fill in at BIO once in a while, but…”

“Bah,” Julianna’s father, Riley, piped up. “Your voice is wasted on that Broadway nonsense. Opera. That’s where you should have sung.” He patted his wife’s arm. “Like your mama here.” He turned to Richie. “That’s what brought us together you know.”

Julianna’s brothers groaned. “Not the story again,” Sal complained.

Teresa knocked him on the back of the head. “Show your father some respect!” Her face softened as she looked with adoration at her husband. “Continue, husband, dear.”

“So, it’s 1960, and a poor Irish immigrant has won a ticket to the opera in a poker game. Tosca! Who ever heard of such a thing? What does a poor Mick like me know from opera? But, I was brought up to not waste anything. So, clad in my father’s best suit, there I was, standing outside the Met. I was sure they would sense I was a fraud, and not let me in. But I had a ticket so they let me in. In the second act, when the diva sang her aria, my heart stopped.”

Riley looked lovingly at his wife. “She was so beautiful, and her voice, her voice still makes me grateful to have my hearing. Certainly this is the voice that God Himself dreams about at night. Well, I loitered about in the alley until the performers were leaving. I knelt on the ground at her feet, and pledged my undying love and devotion if she would only have coffee with me. The rest, as they say, is history.”

Richie turned to Teresa. “I would love to hear you sing, Signora. Do you still perform?”

Teresa blushed prettily. “Only for family. But, since you are so kind, and also so cute,” she pinched Richie’s cheek, “I will sing for you.” She took Richie’s arm, and looked at her daughter. “Julianna, come. You will play piano.” Leaving no room for argument, Teresa grabbed Julianna’s hand, and the three left the main dining room for the function hall at the back of the restaurant.

Chapter 6: The Other Man

The guys were giving him a hard time about his evening plans. He wanted to take Julianna to dinner, and see where the evening took them – see if there was any substance behind the initial attraction. He drove around to the cottage. Despite the ribbing he was getting, the impulse to take her out was too strong to ignore. Pulling into the driveway, he noted a car he hadn’t seen there earlier today. Damn, she has company, he thought. Parking his toy next to the smaller SUV, Richie stared at Julianna’s front door.

As if his thoughts conjured her, the door opened, and there she was, looking fantastic in an ankle-length, red strapless sundress. Her hair was loose, flowing down her back in a soft tangle of curls. High-heeled sandals graced her feet. She turned back to the house, and extended a hand. Richie’s gut tightened as he watched a tall, good-looking man take her hand, and be led from the house. The man said something to Julianna that made her laugh, throwing her head back.

Stunned, Richie just stared. As the pair made their way down the steps, Julianna looked up and saw Richie sitting there, watching them. Saying something to her companion, and grinning widely, she all but floated to the truck.

“Hi,” she said, climbing onto the running board and poking her head through the window. “What brings you by?”

Richie looked at her, incredulous at the nonchalance. After what he thought was a meaningful kiss earlier, and Julianna’s parting remarks, he was stunned that she was going out with someone else tonight. “Stupidity, I guess,” he said bitterly.

Julianna’s smile dropped at his tone. “Huh? What are you talking about?”

“I was coming by to see if I could take you to dinner,” Richie said with a scowl, “but I see you have other plans.”

Ah-ha, Julianna thought. She looked behind her at the man on her porch. “You mean Gianni over there? Yeah, we have a standing date the first Wednesday of each month. We meet the rest of our brothers,” she paused meaningfully, “assorted aunts, uncles, and cousins at our parents’ restaurant.” She felt an odd mix of annoyance and pleasure – annoyed that he thought she’d be kissing him if she was with someone else, and pleasure that he cared.

“Br-brother?” Richie chuckled. “Now I do feel stupid. Forgive me for being an idiot? I’ve got no excuse for thinking what I was thinking. But seeing you all dressed up, and seeing him come out of your house, well…” he trailed off. “I’m sorry, I should go. I’ll see you later, OK?”

Gianni, tired of waiting on the porch, came over to the truck. “Hey, man, nice wheel—holy shit! You’re – ”

Julianna cut him off. “Yes, Gianni, he is fully aware of the fact that he's Richie Sambora. We’re working on a project together for Bring It On, and I totally forgot it was Wednesday, and invited him over to review some of the rehearsal footage.”

Richie, catching on, and appreciating the discretion, stepped out of the truck to shake the other man’s hand. “Good to meet you, Gianni. Julianna was just telling me that you have a standing dinner date tonight.” He turned back to Julianna. “I’ll come back tomorrow, OK? No big deal. Have a good night.” He opened the door to climb back in, when Gianni put his hand on the door.

He whispered loudly to his sister, “Invite him to dinner, Jules. There’ll be plenty of time to talk business after dinner, and I’ll bet Mama will let you use her office.”

Julianna laughed. “Well, would you like to come to dinner with us?” Taking in Richie’s wary expression, she continued. “The restaurant is closed on Wednesdays, except for family. There are a few dozen of us at least,” Richie’s eyes went wide, “but we’re all fairly harmless,” she concluded.

“Best food this side of Italy,” Gianni prompted.

Richie laughed. “OK, you win. I’ll be glad to join you for a fine Italian meal.”

Gianni smiled. “Great. You wanna follow us, or…” he trailed off, looking longingly at the Humvee.

“Or you guys want a lift?” Richie asked, winking at Julianna. “C’mon, hop in.”

Chapter 5: First Kiss

When Richie got back to the house, he joined David in the kitchen for a sandwich and a beer. “How’d it go, brother? You gonna need a lawyer?” David cracked wise, grinning like a fool.

“No, we came to an understanding.” Richie hopped up onto the counter, munching as he talked. “She won’t call the cops on me, and I won’t vault her wall anymore. She advised I use the gate next time.” He shook his head. “What the hell was I thinking? She’s not even really my type, but dammit, I don’t know, man, there’s something about her – there’s some connection there, I think.” He shook his head again and jumped down, wiping the crumbs from his hands. “I know Jon wants to work on that new song this afternoon, but I need to work off some of this – whatever it is. I’m going for a run. I’ll be back in a couple of hours.”

To help keep his mind off the crap year he had last year, Richie put all his extra energy into working out. He wasn’t getting any younger, and he’d be damned if he’d let Jon be in better shape than he was. He didn’t advertise the fact, just kind of quietly kept at it. After six months, and thirty pounds, he looked and felt better than he had in years. Exercise had become his new refuge -- it was better for hm than the drinking he had tried -- when he needed to get his head around things. He went to his room to change to running gear, and headed out toward the lake. He needed to sweat.

* * * * * * *

Julianna was settling onto the back deck with her lunch, thinking about the encounters she had with the two men today. Both men had hidden their interest, but not quickly enough. She didn’t get to be where she was without learning to read the artistic types she worked with professionally day after day, not to mention those in her own family. She’d dealt with the diva, the prima-donna, the super star, the wannabe – all of them. She could tell from a hundred feet what kind of trouble an artistic person will cause her.

Reflecting on the exchange with Richie, she groaned. He was going to be the worst kind of trouble; he was going to drive her to distraction. As for Jon? Well, she imagined he wouldn’t cause any trouble for her. While they were both intriguing and just plain heaven to look at, only one of them really turned her head. While Jon was glorious, especially in the near-naked state she saw him in this morning, it was Richie’s dark and dangerous air that had her juices flowing.

From the other side of the wall, she heard someone mumbling, “Where the hell is the gate?” and she burst out laughing. A deep chuckle drifted over the wall. “Busted again, huh? I swear, I wasn’t going to climb over; I’m really just looking for the gate.”

About twenty feet from where Richie was standing, Julianna stepped through the wall to the other side, and came over to him. “How long have you been looking?” she asked.

“The better part of the last half hour,” he said. “I was this close,” he put his thumb and forefinger about an inch apart, “to going over the wall again, cops be damned.” He smiled and winked at her.

Julianna’s breath caught in her chest. He was flirting with her! And, looking pretty damn good all sweaty good Lord! in jogging shorts and a snug t-shirt. “C’mon, I’ll show you the trick.” She started back for the gate, talking as she went. “You know, when this wall and gate were built, the –” she turned back to see if Richie was listening. He was following her closely, and she smacked right into him. He put his arms around her to keep them both from falling over. For once, she was glad for her tall, lean frame. Her long legs brought their hips into perfect alignment. Wow, his body is very tight. She apologized to him. “Sorry about that. Not too graceful for a dancer, yeah?”

She started to step back, but Richie didn’t let her go. He cocked his head to one side and studied her. “I don’t know, darlin’ – don’t forget I’ve seen you move, I know how graceful you are.” He stared into her eyes.

Julianna stared back.

A tune played from Richie’s waist, and a voice followed. “Hey, asshole, where are you? I want to get to work.” It was Jon. Richie made no move to answer the phone.

“Aren’t you going to --” Julianna started.

“No,” he cut her off. “Not yet.” He cradled the back of her head to tenderly she almost couldn’t stand it. The other arm tightened around her, pulling her as close to him as their clothing would allow. Her arms slid around his waist and tightened. Passion darkened his eyes. He angled his head slightly and sipped from her lips. Richie looked into Julianna’s eyes with a question in his. To answer, she reached up, grabbed the back of his neck and pulled him in for another kiss. If the first one was a sip, this one was a keg-stand. Her lips parted to accept his tongue, which twined with hers in an intimate dance. Richie backed Julianna against the wall, and continued the assault on her mouth. Between a rock and a hard place, she thought irreverently, as she felt the evidence of his desire.

Richie’s phone squawked again. It was David this time. “Hey, man, you peeping again? Dammit, if you get arrested, we may just let you rot.” He laughed. Julianna giggled, which broke the spell.

“Shit, darlin’, I’m sorry. I need to talk to them. Don’t go anywhere, please.” All Julianna could do was nod as Richie stalked away to give his friends hell.

“What?” he snarled into the phone. “What the hell do you want?”

“Hey man,” David answered, “whatcha doin’? J wants to get some work done.”

“So do some. I’m busy. Really busy. Piss off.”

“Are you spying on the neighbor again?”

“No,” he sighed. He knew they wouldn’t relent, and would probably come after him like the pests they were. “Gimme fifteen minutes.” He slammed his phone shut and contemplated hurling it against the wall. He turned back to Julianna. She had heeded his plea, and hadn’t moved. Seeing her pressed against the wall, flushed and smiling, had him groaning.

“Darlin’, you don’t know how much this pains me,” he said with a grimace, “but I need to be getting back.” He held up his phone. “The boss wants to work, and he’ll be a real son of a bitch the rest of the night if I don’t get my ass back to the house.”

Julianna nodded. “I should get back to work, too.” She reached up to lay a hand on his stubbled cheek. “But, don’t think for a minute that I’m not disappointed.” She kissed him lightly, and danced out of his grasp. “I’ll leave the gate unlatched for you; come on through any time.” With a wink, she slipped through the gate, shooting one last longing look over her shoulder, and was gone.

* * * * * * *

Richie sauntered into the studio, freshly showered. “So, I’m indispensable, huh? Let’s get to work.” Jon cocked an eyebrow at him. Richie winked back and grinned.

Jon shook his head, chuckling. “You went back to watch that woman again, didn’t you? One track mind. You’re going to get yourself in trouble.”

Richie laughed. “’That woman’ has a name, you know.” He smiled to himself. And a mouth I can’t wait to taste again, he thought. “It’s Julianna.”

“Huh,” Jon said. He had lain next to her on that rock, both of them nearly naked, and except for “don’t burn yourself” she didn’t speak to him. It was always a blow when a beautiful woman wasn’t interested, but he was man enough to accept it, and an ass enough to razz his friend about his interest. “Boys, I think we should go check out Julia-a-anna,” he said, drawing out her name in a sing-song voice.

“Oh no, you don’t,” Richie said. “You dragged my ass back here to work, let’s work. You can met her another day.”

They all laughed, and settled down to work.