CALIFORNIA PARADISE
Chapter Six
"Who is it?" the voice through the
intercom asked.
"This is Robert’s daughter, Rose."
It went silent.
"Rose, sweetheart?" It was a different
voice this time.
"Daddy!" Rose clapped her hands
like a little girl.
A servant came out of the house and across
the long stretch of front yard to unlatch the gate for the two visitors.
"The Malongs will see you now," he told them, leading them to the
front porch and through the front door.
A tall man with wavy blond hair reaching just
below his ear and light blue eyes gave Rose a gigantic hug, and said, "I
knew you’d be back in my arms again someday."
Next to him was an exceptionally beautiful
woman with chestnut hair in a gorgeous upsweep, bright brown eyes, and a smile
that could melt your heart. When Robert had finally let go of his daughter, she
hugged Rose with one arm. "You do remember me, don’t you?"
"Of course," Rose answered.
"Oh, good."
"Actually, you’re one of the reasons I
came--"
She was cut off. "And who is this?"
Robert had caught sight of Jack.
"Jack Dawson, pleased to meet you."
He held out his hand.
Robert shook it. "Same here. Now, have
you gone and married my daughter without so much as inviting me to the
wedding?"
"No, sir, but when the day rolls around,
you’ll be the first person on the guest list."
"Right after his wife, of course,"
Mrs. Malong joked. "I’m Leah Malong, Robert’s wife."
"You’re kidding! I thought you were
Rose’s sister for sure." Jack enjoyed being cheesy at times.
Leah laughed. "I’ll have a maid show you
to the guest rooms. You can have any one you want...er, I take it you’ll be sharing
a room?"
Rose’s face blushed to match the color of her
hair. "Uh…yes. We will."
*****
"So, Rose. Tell me about everything
that’s been happening in your life. How did you and Jack meet?" Robert
asked his daughter.
They were all sitting around a tastefully
decorated dining table. It was later the same day. Rose didn’t know how to
respond. Jack sensed her anxiety. "We met on the Titanic."
Robert’s eyes turned cold. "Oh, my God.
I had no idea. Are both of you all right?"
"Actually, we got separated when the
ship went down. Just until recently, we thought the other person had--passed
away."
"How horrible. But at least you’re
together now. And nothing can tear you apart," Leah said.
Jack and Rose exchanged glances and smiled.
*****
"What were you saying in the hall, Rose?
About me being one of the reasons you came here?" Leah later asked.
"Yes. I wanted to talk to you about
that. I have this passion for acting, and--well, I don’t want to seem like too
much of a mooch...but...um...you are a pretty good connection--and I was just
wondering if you could help me out?"
Leah beamed. "Of course! Anything you
need! I’ll refer you to my agent first thing tomorrow morning."
*****
That night, before she fell asleep, the last
thing Jack heard Rose mutter to him was, "I’m gonna be an actress, Jack.
An actress." He smiled and fell asleep soon afterwards.