Blind Love (22 page)

To keep the peace, Catherine told Fawn what she wanted to hear. “You’re probably right. You and Rachel and Jenny will undoubtedly be the finalists.”

The answer seemed to satisfy Fawn, but Catherine didn’t trust her. She wanted a man in the worst way, and she didn’t care what she had to do to get him.

The costume ball was coming up tonight, and Catherine had serious doubts about the suitability of her costume. If Mitzi hadn’t screwed up, the costume wouldn’t be a problem, because someone else would be in this position.

Did she want someone else to be in this position? Did she want Tony to have more choices? Catherine sighed deeply, knowing the answer. Tony was the only man she’d ever loved, and she didn’t like sharing him with all these other girls. Especially Fawn.

What if he picked Fawn at the end?

He wouldn’t do that, would he?

<>

Tony ate dinner alone in his suite and then dressed for the costume ball. Mr. Pettibone came to escort him to the ballroom, where a small orchestra played soft music on the far side. Angelo was with them, all spiffed up in his tux.

Tony waved. “Hey, bro. Are you singing tonight?”

“Yeah. I hope I don’t put anyone to sleep.”

Fat chance of that happening. Angelo was Ma’s pride and joy. He sang tenor like their father, only better. Funny that he’d be here tonight, in the presence of all these women. Angelo hadn’t dated much, but he fell for Teresa the first time he set eyes on her. His younger brother had a gentle spirit, and Teresa treated him like a king. The guy was obviously happy.

One of these days, Tony wanted that kind of happiness for himself. At the family dinner a few weeks ago, watching Catherine interact with his family, he thought he might have found the right woman. But marriage? The thought of being with the same woman for the rest of his life brought a flutter of panic. He wouldn’t make that kind of commitment to any woman if he wasn’t absolutely sure about their love for each other. Although Nick had been divorced, and for good reason, once people in his family married, they stayed married.

The director said, “Ready, Tony?”

“Yeah, I’m ready.”

As the orchestra played and two camera guys went to work, the first woman walked in. She was tall, with black hair and dark brown eyes, and she was dressed in fringed buckskins. Her hair was in braids and her dress was split up to the top of her thigh, revealing one long, slender leg.

“Wow! You look awesome.”

“So do you, Tony.” Her eyes scanned his chest and came back to his face. “I’m Rachel.”

“Rachel.” He kissed her hand. “It’s good to see you at last.”

Tony looked up to see the next girl walking toward him. This one was blonde, about medium height, and she wore a belly dancing costume. “Whoa, look at you. Can you dance?”

She whirled around and did a few moves to tell him she could indeed dance. “I’m DeeNae.”

He kissed her hand. “You sure are.”

He’d barely let go of her hand when another woman walked in. This one was a tall blonde dressed as a Grecian goddess in a white dress with lots of gold. She was absolutely stunning in that outfit, and she looked like a natural blonde. She gave him a warm smile. “It’s so nice to see you without the blindfold, Tony. I’m Jenny, the one with the little girl.”

“Jenny,” he said, kissing her hand. “I’m blown away by that costume. It suits you.”

Jenny stepped aside as another woman walked into the room. She tossed a big hat on the floor and began to dance around it. She wore a peasant blouse and full skirt, which she tossed around her legs as she danced. She had short, dark hair and a big smile. He lifted her hand and she whirled around under it. “Tony, I’m JoJo.”

“JoJo,” he said, kissing her hand. “It’s a pleasure to meet you.” She wasn’t as beautiful as the first three women, but she had a playful gleam in her eyes. She’d impressed him in her interviews, and she wasn’t even blonde.

A blonde in a fancy blue satin dress came in next. Her breasts were pushed up high and the dress was so tight she looked like she could barely breathe. She curtsied stiffly in front of him. Her breasts rounded out over the top of the dress and he thought they were going to pop free. They’d turn off the cameras and edit that out, wouldn’t they?

“Tony, my name is Fawn. It’s a pleasure to meet you at last.”

“Fawn.” He kissed her hand, as he had the others. “You look lovely. Your dress matches your eyes.”

She glowed under his praise. Fawn was a beauty, but he didn’t like her costume. It was too stiff and formal for him.

The next woman came out with a frosty stein of beer on a tray. She was dressed in two colorful skirts, the top one pulled up and tucked in her belt on one side. Her white blouse had a vest over top, laced up and tied tightly to push up her breasts. Still, she could move and breathe, unlike Fawn.

“I’m Andrea,” she said, handing him the stein.

He took a long drink of the cold beer and wiped his face with his sleeve, and the guy standing beside the cameraman stuck his thumb in the air. Tony set the stein on her tray and kissed her hand. She was attractive, but not beautiful by any means.

There were six women in the room. Like the opening scene on the balcony, one woman was missing.
Catherine.
He glanced at the door, wondering what kind of costume she was wearing.

Seconds later, Catherine appeared at the door in a little girl’s dress and big sunbonnet. She carried a shepherd’s crook with three little pink bows on it. The full skirt came almost to her ankles, but it was short enough to see the ruffles and lace beneath it and the little girl shoes with the buckles and white stockings. It looked like she had long white ruffled panties on under the dress. Her legs were completely hidden. Her pale pink dress had little puffed sleeves and a scooped neck which showed enough cleavage to know that this was not a little girl. A white pinafore was pulled tight around her tiny waist and tied in a big bow in back. The others wore sexy costumes, but this was the one he’d remember. Catherine looked adorable.

One of the other women made a quiet comment about Catherine’s stupid costume. Catherine glanced at them before walking toward Tony.

He took her hand. “Who are you?”

“I’m Catherine, but most people call me Little Bo Peep,” she said in a little girl’s voice. “Have you seen any sheep?”

Her big green eyes looked enormous with the false eyelashes, and the look of innocence made him laugh. “No, I haven’t seen any sheep.”

“Daddy’s gonna be sooo mad, ‘cause I lost the sheep.”

She leaned in close and spoke in a loud whisper, her eyes wide and serious. “Did you hear what happened to Humpty Dumpty?”

Tony burst out laughing.

She smacked his arm. “It’s not funny. He climbed up on the wall and...” She motioned with her hand, showing Tony how Humpty Dumpty fell off the wall.

The women were all laughing, all except the one in the fancy blue dress. Her face had darkened with anger. What was with her anyway?

Catherine peered in the corners and under the furniture and behind the platform with the musicians as if looking for her missing sheep. The others had gone for sexy, and Catherine had done just the opposite. Her innocent little girl costume was anything but innocent, and her humor had thrown him off balance again. He never knew quite what to expect from her.

Angelo began singing and Tony bowed to Fawn. “May I have this dance?” It was a waltz, and he doubted she could do anything else in that getup. Once they were dancing, her smile returned. He had a feeling there was something going on between her and Catherine, but he wasn’t about to ask. He had other things to think about, like which one of these ladies he’d have to send home after the party.

When that dance ended, DeeNae approached him, and he danced with her. He was wired with a microphone, which should pick up their chatter. And she did chatter.

Jenny was the picture of a virgin, with a delicate beauty which was heightened by the white dress, but he knew she had a child, a little girl. As they danced, he asked, “Who’s taking care of your daughter while you’re here?”

“My sitter cancelled at the last minute, so I had to bring her along. A member of the production staff is watching her most of the time.”

“Does she like dogs?”

“She loves them. If we didn’t live in an apartment, I’d get her one, but the landlord doesn’t allow animals.” She sighed. “He barely tolerates kids.”

He made a mental note to meet Jenny’s little girl and see how she got along with Riley.

The dance ended and he moved on to another woman, Rachel this time. She wore moccasins, and even in flat shoes, she was nearly six feet tall. “I want to kiss you,” she whispered.

“Okay with me,” he whispered back before he tasted her lips. “Mmm, nice.”

Ma would like this one, and Angelo was giving him another thumbs up. Angelo had always preferred brunettes, which explained why he’d married Teresa, a dark-haired beauty.

He danced with Andrea several times, but he felt nothing for her. She complimented him on his costume. He told her she was an attractive woman, and she was, but if he’d met her in the drug store or in a bar, he wouldn’t have given her a second look. The others had personality, a sense of humor, or something to keep him interested. He couldn’t picture himself dating this woman, let alone marrying her.

JoJo was cute and bubbly, and he laughed through his dances with her, but not as much as he laughed with Catherine. The little minx looked as much like a little girl as Riley, but he had to hand it to her. The outfit and her Little Bo Peep banter really caught his attention.

The bonnet kept getting in his way, so he pushed it off her hair, which immediately sprang into short curls. “You look more like Little Orphan Annie.”

“I thought about that, but Little Orphan Annie had a dog, and I don’t.”

“You can borrow mine. Riley wouldn’t mind.”

“I’ll keep that in mind the next time I get talked into doing a show like this.”

He laughed softly and kissed her. “Mmm, nice. I hope we can do that again.”

“So do I, Tony.” The way she said it, he knew she meant it.

He kissed all the girls at least once that night, including Andrea, who he intended to eliminate at the end of the party.

Angelo sang several times, and he danced with all the girls at least once, including Catherine. But Tony was the one the camera stayed on, the one who was responsible for choosing which of these women he’d end up with at the end of the show.

He looked at the women sitting at the end of the room, munching on the snacks that someone had prepared for their party or sipping drinks. Scanning their faces, Jenny’s shy smile caught his eye. Catherine swung her legs under her chair like a little girl, and Fawn sat straight and proper. She probably couldn’t bend in that tight dress. Rachel, with her dark beauty, reminded him a little of Gina, except Gina was several inches shorter and had a full figure. Rachel was thin.
Too
thin.

DeeNae was pretty and had a charming accent, and JoJo had enough energy to light up the room. But Catherine was the one who made him laugh, the one he dreamed of every night.

The music stopped and Morgan came into the room. The women stopped talking and stood to face him. “Ladies, please proceed to the fountain steps.”

As soon as the women left the room, Morgan asked, “Tony, have you made your decision?”

“Yes, I have.”

The cameramen left and Tony took a deep breath. Angelo walked over. “Which one goes tonight?”

“Andrea. I think.”

“I figured you’d want to keep them all.”

“I do.”

“Aren’t you going to ask me what I think?”

“Hell, no. You’re married. You’re no longer allowed to
have
an opinion about women.”

“There’s only two worth keeping, but since you don’t value my opinion, I won’t tell you which ones they are.”

Tony didn’t ask. He didn’t want his little brother choosing women for him. He walked out the door and downstairs to wait for his cue.

Angelo wasn’t the one who had to tell one of these women she had to go. That was Tony’s responsibility. That was the worst part of this, telling a woman he’d rejected her.

The breeze kicked up a little, blowing his shirt open even more. He ignored it and strode out to the terrace. The boots made him taller, but they were butter soft and comfortable.

He smiled at the girls. “You all look awesome in your costumes, and I enjoyed your company tonight. Whoever selected you to be on the show has my heartfelt gratitude.”

He paused and looked from face to face. Jenny shared a smile with him, and Catherine winked. She had her bonnet on again. Rachel seemed confident, and so did Fawn. The other three looked scared to death, and he could see why. On other shows, all the women were stunning. Andrea, JoJo and DeeNae were pretty, but they weren’t as beautiful as the others. That was why Catherine wanted him to get to know them before he saw them.