Blue-Eyed Devil (Travis Family #2)(49)

The Harrisburg actually consisted of two stages, the upstairs one about four stories high, a large traditional proscenium theater for spectacle productions. But the lower theater was the one I found more interesting. It was a modular stage with a segmented floor, each section mounted on its own independent pneumatic pistons. That way the floor could be reconfigured into any shape a production required. The walls were segmented too, allowing for a multitude of design possibilities.

Although I was immune to Todd in any romantic sense, I enjoyed the sight of him in a tux. Judging from the looks he got, most other people did too. He was sleek and feline, the tux hanging with elegant looseness on his lean body.

Todd had taken me shopping and picked out my dress, a simple long black sheath with a cowl neckline and black velvet straps. The front was relatively demure, but the back plunged so deeply that I couldn't wear anything underneath.

"That's the good thing about not having big br**sts," Todd had told me. "You don't need a bra to look perky."

"I'm not worried about the front," I'd said. "Or looking perky. What worries me is that I'm feeling breezes in places where the sun doesn't usually shine."

But Todd had inspected my rear view and assured me that I wasn't revealing any posterior cle**age. Nothing would show, he said, as long as no one stood above me and looked straight down my back.

As I had expected, most of my family was there, including Dad, Liberty, and all three of my brothers. Liberty looked ravishing in a red silk gown, the shimmering fabric draped and twisted all around her voluptuous body.

"I can't stop looking at your wife," Todd told Gage. "It's like staring into a fire."

Gage grinned, sliding his arm around Liberty. The band began to play "Embraceable You," and Liberty looked up at him. "You want to dance," Gage said, interpreting her expectant glance, and she nodded. He took her hand and murmured, "Come on, then," in a low tone that made her blush. Their fingers tangled tightly as he led her away.

"She's got you well trained, boy," Todd called after them, and sat beside Jack and me. On the other side of the table, a never-ending parade of people came to pay homage to Dad.

"She's good for him," Jack commented, watching Liberty dance with his brother. "He's loosened up a lot since they got married. And I never thought I'd see Gage so crazy about anyone."

I grinned at Jack. "It'll be that way for you too. Someday you'll meet someone, and you'll feel like you've been hit on the head with a two-by-four."

"I feel like that every Saturday night," Jack informed me.

"Your date's a hottie," Todd said as Jack's girlfriend-du-jour made her way to our table, back from the ladies' room. "What's her name? Is that Heidi?"

Jack paled. "No. God, please don't call her that. That's Lola. She and Heidi had a public catfight last week."

"Over what?" I asked, and rolled my eyes as I saw the guilty look on my brother's face. "Never mind. I don't want to know."

"There's something else you probably don't want to know," Todd told me.

In response to my puzzled look, he nodded toward the other side of the table, where Dad was still holding court. My heart clutched as I saw Hardy Cates standing there shaking hands with him. Hardy didn't wear a tux with the languid ease of an aristocrat, but instead with the vague impatience of someone who'd rather be having a cold one with the boys. Leashed and restrained in civilized clothing, he seemed more a force of nature than ever.

My father was staring at him with narrow-eyed interest. As usual, he was as subtle as a pickax. And as usual, everyone held their breath when he spoke. "You plannin' to mess with the Travises?" Dad asked in a tone of amiable interest. "You tryin' to put something over on us?

Hardy met his gaze squarely, a young scoundrel sizing up an old scoundrel, not without respect. "No, sir."

"Then why have you taken up livin' in my building?"

A slight smile touched Hardy's lips. "Travises aren't the only ones who want a view from the top floor."

I didn't have to look at my father's face to know he loved that. Loved it. On the other hand, he wasn't one to forget old scores. "All right," he said to Hardy. "You paid your respect to the big dog, you can go along now."

"Thank you. But you're not the Travis I came to see."

And Hardy looked at me.

I was being pursued, right in front of my family. I threw Todd a quick, desperate glance, pleading silently for help. But he was enjoying the show way too much.

While the collective gaze of the Travis clan focused on me, I looked back at Hardy. And in as normal a tone as I could manage, I said, "Hello, Mr. Cates. Are you having a good evening?"

"Hoping to."

A world of trouble lurked in those two words. "Hey, Cates," Jack said, standing and clapping Hardy on the shoulder. "What do you say we go get a beer at the bar?"

Hardy didn't budge. "No, thanks."

"It's on me. I insist."

As if things weren't bad enough, Gage and Liberty returned to the table. And Gage, who was more than a little territorial where his wife was concerned, fixed Hardy with a stare that promised death.

Liberty seized Gage's hand and gripped it tightly. "Hardy," she said with a relaxed smile, "it's been a long time. How are you?"