Crown Jewel (32 page)

Twenty-seven Months Later

Roxy watched her husband out of the corner of her eye. What she was seeing was the happiest man in the world. And that happiness had nothing to do with his nomination for an Academy Award. It had everything to do with his two sons, their wives, and the two toddlers crawling around on the floor. Five dogs circled them protectively as they gurgled and cooed.

Everywhere you looked there was baby gear, dog toys, suitcases. Baby food and baby bottles lined the kitchen counter. Diaper bags hung over the backs of chairs, with cuddly blankets and stuffed toys.

Grandpa's house.

“Six more hours till we tread down that red carpet,” Roxy said, coming up behind him. “Are you nervous, honey?”

“Not one little bit. I told you the minute I heard about the nomination that I didn't care if we won or not. Just the fact that
The Brothers
was considered good enough to win a nomination told me all I needed to know. I don't miss this place at all. I don't mean the house, I mean Hollywood and the film industry.”

“I knew what you meant, Ricky.
The Brothers
is the odds-on favorite. It's almost a given that you're going to win Best Actor. I bet Philip's wings are fluttering at ninety miles an hour.”

Ricky laughed as he visualized a scene with Philip sitting on a cloud, his feathered wings rustling with impatience. “I have something I have to do, Roxy. I won't be long.”

“John Deere is waiting for you. I wiped him off a while ago. Go on. I want to check with Gracie and Donna. They are so excited about going to the Academy Awards. I think Gracie is going to explode. We're doing each other's hair, so take all the time you want.”

Roxy sighed with happiness. In the whole of her life she'd never expected to be this happy, this contented. She stepped over baby toys and dog chews, stopping only long enough to clean up a pee puddle. She laughed. This family business was something else.

In the garage, perched on the John Deere, Ricky leaned back, his thoughts ricocheting all over the place. Through the open garage door he could see a fluffy white cloud moving across the sky. He stared, blinked, then burst out laughing. The formation of the cloud looked just like a human form with wings. Wings that were fluttering wildly. The cloud moved. He blinked again. The formation looked like it was bowing.
Bowing.

Ricky hopped off the John Deere and ran to the house. Before he opened the door, he looked upward, but the cloud had disintegrated. He waved. He didn't feel silly at all.

 

They were a family as they exited the stretch limousine. The minute they stepped on the apple-red carpet, hordes of reporters descended on them. Always gracious, Ricky held up his hand. “I'll talk to all of you, but one at a time. First, though, this is my family.” He introduced each member, one at a time.

“Do I expect to win? I have no idea. What I do know is I'm in some sterling company with the other nominees. No, I don't think I have the edge because the vice president resigned. That was a long time ago. I'm so proud of the movie I'm bursting with pride. You'll have to ask these lovely ladies what they're wearing. Other than to say they look beautiful, I know nothing. Roxy?”

“Escada,” Roxy said.

“Valentino,” Donna and Gracie said in unison.

“We're all wearing Chanel,” Lorraine Farquar, said pointing to her family.

“Look, Max, there's that weasel Dicky Tee,” Gracie whispered. She inched closer to her husband when she saw the venom in the tabloid reporter's face.

“Don't you dare give him the finger, Gracie! There are cameramen everywhere. We both know you could take the little slimeball with one hand, but wait until the awards ceremony is over, and I'll help you.”

Gracie looked up at her husband. “For you, honey, anything.” Max groaned.

And then they were all inside and seated front row center.

Ricky leaned back and shifted mental gears to neutral. He clapped, half listened, laughed when everyone else laughed. He just wanted the whole thing to be over. If they paid him his weight in gold, he wouldn't come back to Hollywood.

He heard his name from some far-off place before he felt the pain in his shoulder. “Ricky, you won! You won for Best Actor!”

He was back in the present, a stunned look on his face. He stood up, looked around at his family, and grinned. He was halfway up to the stage when his sons made Academy Award history by standing on their chairs, their fists raised in the air. “Hey, Hollywood, that's our
DAD!”
The stunned silence was followed by loud applause and laughter.

Ricky stopped on the second step from the top, turned, and retraced his steps to where his sons waited. He gathered them close, and only those seated nearby heard the words, “Hearing you say that is better than winning an Oscar.”

It was a standing ovation when he finally made his way to the stage to accept his Oscar. His speech was probably the shortest in Academy history. “I just want to thank everyone in the world.” He raised the statue high above his head, his vision blurry. But not so blurry that he didn't see the feather that floated down to alight on the head of the statue he was holding in his hands. He looked at the feather, then at a young actress sitting in the third row, directly in his line of vision. She was wearing a feathered boa. A
pink
feathered boa. The feather he plucked from the statue was white. He stuck it in his pocket, his heart lighter than air. And then, for the second time that night, history was made when he returned to his seat to hand the Oscar to Lorraine Farquar. “This really belongs to Philly. Since he isn't here, it goes to his mother. I'm going to keep the feather,” he whispered.

Lorraine Farquar nodded, seeming to understand as she wept openly, along with half the audience, the half that didn't care about smearing their mascara.

An hour later it was over.
The Brothers
took home four Oscars: Best Picture, Best Female in a Supporting Role, Best Actor, and Best Director.

“Let's go home, family. Ellie is probably ready for a nervous breakdown with those two toddlers and the five dogs.”

Ricky reached for Roxy's hand. “You know what, this is Hollywood,” he said, stamping his foot, “and it's just a red carpet!” He laughed. “They're going to roll it up in a few hours. That means it isn't real. What's real are all of you!

“Thank you all for enriching my life and showing me what real love and family are all about!”

“And he's a ham, too!” Max shouted.

“Takes one to know one!” Ricky laughed as he hugged Roxy to his side.