How about some good old-fashioned romance to get the cheating wives story taste out of our mouths. There is a lot of story to tell for Ken and Lainey so this will be multi-chaptered. Parts two and three are written and ready for publication. i envision this as open ended right now, so the sky is the limit for our two heroes.
Enjoy, and thank you for reading! - BH
***Ken
I stood in front of my reflection and dragged the glistening metal across my jawline.
“It’s never gonna work, Ken,” Jen said as she watched me shave off the last of my trademark beard.
“Why is that, Sis?”
“Your eyes. Your beautiful blue eyes sparkle like an ocean of sapphires wet from summer rain.”
That was a line from a review of my first movie. The critic had a crush on me and tried to get me into bed with her. I declined, but she wrote a good review of the film anyway. My sister, on the other hand, uses the line to make fun of me—and she does it often.
“Ugh! Keep that crap up and I’m telling Mom.”
She laughed and hit me with her hairbrush. “What? Are we six again?”
We were typical siblings, with a little rivalry and a lot of love. We were fraternal twins and Jennifer liked to remind me that she’s older by five minutes as often as possible.
“You know a million girls are going to cry over your new look.”
I laughed and said, “Maybe, but I need a fresh start. Besides, Mom always preferred me clean-shaven, and I figure it’s the least I can do for her on the day we bury Dad. Heck, if it gives me just a little bit of anonymity this week, I’ll take it.”
She kissed my clean-shaven cheek and walked out of our childhood bathroom. Nothing had changed, it still had the same toothbrush holder and soap dispenser we had when I was a kid and it was oddly comforting.
Looking at my new, boyish face, I knew I could never be anonymous. I knew I could never have any privacy. That was the price I had been paying since my first acting role. My portrayal of a bearded action hero.
I played Jace Stryker seven more times since that first movie and each was more successful than the previous films. I was also severely typecast and couldn’t get any decent roles outside of the superhero universe films I’d been making for a dozen years.
Don’t get me wrong, I had offers and for good money as well, it’s just that I was already playing an action hero. Why would I want to play more than one? Looking back, if I had taken one of those roles I may have become a huge leading man and not a mere second-name star. Hindsight and all...
“Hurry up, Kinsey, the car is here,” Mom said.
“Stop calling me Kinsey, Mom. You know I hate it,” I said walking into the kitchen. I’d been telling her that since I was a kid. I knew eventually she’d listen.
“I chose that name for you and I’ll use it all I want. Now scoot.”
She chose the name from a soap opera she was watching at the time I was born. My dad nicknamed me Ken and most everyone I knew personally, used the nickname thank God.
Jenny laughed causing Mom to laugh. I smiled, glad my mom and sister could laugh on that hard day.
Our father died of cancer and my mother had her good moments and bad ones since he became ill. She was always one to internalize and bottle up her emotions, and that time was no exception.
I think she had the wrong idea that she had to be strong and put on a brave face for us. In reality, Jen and I just wanted her to have a good cry for the only man she ever loved.
***
“Mom, are you sure you want me to give the eulogy? I don’t want to take any attention away from Dad,” I asked.
I was always worried about how my celebrity status would impact my parents in their sleepy little rural piece of Americana. I rarely talked about my home life with the press and blocked any biographies that included where I came from.
I wanted mom and dad to have their anonymity. I went so far as to say I was from Chicago in my bio rather than the farm town where I grew up, which was closer to Rockford than the Windy City.
“I’m sure it will be fine, Kinsey. Besides, no one will recognize you without the beard. You look five years younger and much more handsome.”
Jen laughed as I stuck my tongue out at her and said, “No getting out of it, little brother. You’re better at public speaking than I am, as we’ve all seen on television.”
I shook my head at her obvious reference to my winning a couple of Golden Globes and some fan’s choice awards. I was more nervous giving those acceptance speeches than I’d ever been in my life.
“There won’t be that many people, we kept it a private interment,” Mom said.
I nodded and went back to reading my notes.
“Mom, do you still want to go to the premiere?” Jen asked.
“Of course, I never miss one. When is it again?”
“Next Wednesday.”
“I’ll be there with bells on.”
“Mom, you’ll be my date then.” I knew Jen would have a fit about Mom being on my arm.
“No way, little brother. The studio wants you to have a hottie on your arm for the red carpet. Mom is going to be my escort.”
“Won’t Cindy be your date, Jennifer?” Mom asked.
“She’s going. You’ll be on both of our arms.”
“When are you going to marry that girl, Jennifer? She’s madly in love with you,” Mom asked. We all knew Jen loved her as much as Cindy loved Jen. I think marriage just scared her.
“Hey, Bro,” Jen called out, deftly changing the subject. “They are serious, you need a date. Do I need to make some calls for you? Kate Ferrell is probably free.”
I wanted to scream, but I took a deep breath and said, “Don’t you dare. She still calls me at least once a week. I’ll never be free of her if you do that.”
“What happened with her, Kinsey? She was such a nice girl,” Mom asked about my last girlfriend. They bonded when I brought her home for Christmas.
“She kept accusing me of cheating on her when I was on the road. She’s talented and beautiful, but bat-shit crazy and jealous.”
Hell, she was more than that, I loved her. I just couldn’t be constantly berated and screamed at for things I didn’t do.
I was planning on proposing to her after wrapping up filming my most recent movie. I hadn’t even set my bags on the floor of my condo when she lit into me. I missed the days when she would welcome me home with a blowjob, but the BJ’s morphed into tirades instead.
That last time, without a word, I turned and walked out of my condo as she embarrassed herself by screaming at me all the way back to my car. The video that my neighbor posted on YouTube got over a million hits the first weekend.
It’s strange living in a world where a man passing you on the stairs can instantly start a video recording. It was what it was, and Kate was roasted on the late-night talk shows over it. She tried to apologize, but I’d had enough.
My mom snapped me out of my reverie.
“You didn’t cheat on her, did you? I raised you better than that.”
“No, Mom. I never cheated on her.”
“Good.”
