"You're good with kids," Aleks commented.
Remey smiled. "I have lots of little cousins. Used to babysit when I was a teenager for extra cash."
"I've never been to Louisiana. What's it like? Tell me about the town you grew up in." Aleks lifted his brows expectantly, grabbing a second cutting board to chop some tomatoes.
Remey smiled, taking the basket of mushrooms and going to the sink to give them a quick rinse. "We lived about an hour outside Baton Rouge in a little bitty town called Cypress Grove. It was everything you'd imagine a small town in the South to be like. Everybody knew everybody else's business, but in a friendly way. I loved it there."
Aleks gave him a curious look. "Why didn't you go back there? I mean, you could settle in any small town you wanted, so why not go back to the place where you grew up, since you loved it so much?"
Remey concentrated on chopping mushrooms, keeping one eye on Willow as she watched him and sang to herself, a little nonsense song under her breath. He didn't want her to catch him off guard, reach for a nibble and get cut. He hesitated, trying to figure out the best way to word his answer. "I wanted someplace more... progressive. The South is a beautiful place, but it's not... it's not for me, not now."
Aleks gave him a long look, then nodded slowly. "I can understand that. People have certain expectations of you when you grow up in the South. There's a different kind of mindset."
Remey shot Aleks a grateful smile. He wasn't at all surprised Aleks seemed to understand without Remey going into the whole story of how people back home had reacted when he'd come out, publicly, after his first album released. Remey had gone home for a visit right around the time the magazine was published, and people he'd known for most of his life had pointed and whispered as he'd walked down the street, then had avoided him and acted like he had some horrible disease. Remey had gone back to L.A. two days into his visit and hadn't been back since.
"That's it exactly. But, you know, up here people seem more accepting of anyone who's different, so it seemed like a friendlier place all around."
Aleks scooped the chopped tomatoes into the pan, along with some garlic and onions and turned on the heat. "Sort of the best of both worlds." He glanced over at Remey and smiled. "Except for the annual five-feet minimum of snow every year, of course."
Remey laughed, nose wrinkling. "Oh God, really? I mean, I knew it snowed, obviously, but that much?"
Aleks snorted. "Welcome to the Berkshires, honey. It doesn't go away, either. It falls and stays all winter long, piling up with each new storm. We've got a great plow service, though, so no need to worry. You will want to make sure you've got a good stockpile of food and oil and firewood, though. Come January, it can get brutal."
"Mental note. Does power and stuff go out often?"
Aleks shook his head. "Not terribly. Some of the older areas can get iffy when the snow starts weighing the power lines down, but we take care of each other. People end up with houseguests when things get rough."
Remey smiled. "That's nice."
Aleks glanced over at him. "That's Haven. You'll see why I'm so protective of it. Trust me when I say it's not personal."
"I do," Remey assured Aleks, shooting him a quick smile as he started to peel a cucumber. Willow squeaked, waving her little hands to get his attention.
"Remey, Remey, have a piece?"
"As soon as I start cutting it, sweetie," he promised her. He glanced back over at Aleks. "I understand why you're protective, I do. But I want you to know I wish it were different, you know."
Remey tipped his head toward the front of the house, toward the paparazzi he was sure were still parked outside. God, they were going to have a field day with him staying here so long. Remey thought maybe he ought to warn Aleks about it, but he'd wait until Willow wasn't paying such avid attention to everything he did.
Aleks frowned, getting a skillet from another cabinet and setting it on another burner. "You'd think they'd have better things to do than hang around here. It's not L.A. after all."
"You'd think. Unfortunately, there's only a small handful of people in Hollywood who are out, and lately it seems like the paps are intent on tailing anyone who is... Allison, my assistant, says it's like we're elephants in the wild, and the paps are like safari photographers, showing us in our natural habitat or whatever." Remey set down the vegetable peeler and cut some slices of the cucumber for Willow, handing them to her. He didn't want to talk about the stupid paparazzi, though, so he shot Aleks a bright smile. "So what was it like growing up here in Haven? You must've loved it if you decided to come back."
Aleks unwrapped the ground turkey from the butcher paper and slid it into the heated skillet to brown. "I did love it. I still do." He shrugged one shoulder, glancing over at Remey and smiling at Willow. "I don't know... that's not entirely true, I guess. I didn't like it as a teenager. I figure most teenagers from small towns feel the same way. Cramped, boxed in. The same angsty, 'I'm a caged bird' garbage we all feed ourselves when we're sixteen, you know?"
Remey laughed and nodded, reaching for a pair of wooden salad forks to toss the vegetables in the bowl. "Oh, I do." He handed one of the forks to Willow. "Gentle now,
bebette,
or we'll end up with salad on the ceiling." Remey glanced over at Aleks. "I take it you changed your tune after being away?"
Aleks nodded. "Of course. I lived in New York City for over a decade."
Remey paused in helping Willow "toss" the salad, which was more like stirring. "What did you do in New York? Teach?"
Aleks pressed his lips together, then shook his head. "No."
"No? Then what?"
Aleks let out a sigh, cutting Remey a sideways glance. "I managed a nightclub. Let's leave it there."
Remey nodded, taking hold of the salad forks to guide Willow's hands. That was a sore spot, clearly, so he left it alone, even though he was curious. "This place is a world away from New York City. I mean, it's not too far--a couple of hours' drive--but you'd never guess it. I love it already."
Aleks glanced up from the stove, obviously surprised. "You do? Even with people poking into your business and all? I'm sure you haven't been able to go anywhere in town without being stopped a dozen times and asked twenty questions every time."
Remey laughed and shook his head, leaving the salad forks in the bowl and giving Willow another carrot slice. "I don't mind it so much. It's well intentioned, and they're the same kinds of questions people would ask anyone who was new in town. Only when they ask me, they ask for a picture when they're done. It's no big deal, and it makes me feel at home."
Aleks gestured to a canister on the counter, then to the bubbling pot on the stove. "Could you add the pasta? I need to keep an eye on the rest of this stuff."
"Sure." Remey lifted Willow off the counter and set her on her feet, not wanting her to fall. He was way too aware of Aleks close beside him for his own good, the faint smell of soap nearly overpowered by the smells coming from the stove. His whole body reacted, and Remey bit his lip and did his best to keep his hands steady, glancing up at Aleks when he was done. "There. Do you have a timer to set?"
Aleks nodded, reaching over to set the timer on the stove. He turned and gestured to Willow. "Sit at the table, Squish."
Willow climbed up onto one of the dining chairs, eyes wide. "Hot danger?"
"Yep, hot danger. Stay right there, alright?" She nodded, and Remey smiled. She clearly could be a handful, but when it came down to it, she was a great kid.
"She's very sweet."
Aleks smiled, nodding. "Yeah, she is. Sweet with just a dash of sour, actually."
Remey laughed, then gestured to the salad bowl. "All done. Is there anything else I can do to help?"
Aleks glanced over his shoulder at Willow, who was swinging her legs and tearing up a paper napkin. "Could you watch this stuff for a minute while I grab her a book from the living room? Otherwise it's going to look like it snowed in here by the time she's done with the napkin."
"Sure, no problem." Remey reached out to take the spatula from Aleks and swore he felt a sizzle when their fingers brushed.
"Thanks." Aleks met his eyes for a second, and Remey wondered if he wasn't the only one who'd felt the flash of attraction--okay, maybe it was more than a flash--but then Aleks headed for the living room. When he came back a minute later, he had a book to entertain her and exchanged it for the mangled napkin.
"Here, read, sweetheart. Dinner's almost ready." He pressed a kiss to the top of her head and moved to stand behind Remey, peering over his shoulder at the stove. "I can get back in there now."
Remey let out a slow, ragged breath, closing his eyes for a brief second and ordering his wildly roaring hormones to calm down because he wasn't a teenager anymore and the man hadn't even touched him yet. Still, being this close to Aleks was overwhelming him, making him wish they were alone, that Aleks would turn him around, cup his face in those big, long-fingered hands, and kiss him. Biting down hard on his lower lip, Remey passed the spatula to Aleks and scooted out of the way.
"Can I set the table or anything?" he asked, hoping he wasn't all flushed because he certainly felt warm all over and it had nothing to do with standing over a hot stove.
"Ah, sure. Plates are in that cabinet there and silverware is in the drawer below." Aleks gestured, and Remey nodded, taking down two dinner plates and one of the kid-sized plastic plates stacked in the cabinet as well. Willow peered down at her plate, then beamed up at Remey.
"Tha's my fav'rit! Is Dora an' Boots!" She pointed to each in turn as Remey set the plate in front of her.
"Well, I'm glad I picked your favorite." Remey gave her a light, affectionate squeeze as he set the other two plates down and went back for silverware. Aleks laughed as he drained the meat and then stirred it into the heating sauce.
"She'd let you know if you didn't, believe me. I had to go out and get three more of the same plate so there'd always be one clean for her. Glasses are in the cabinet to the right of the plates if you want to grab those, too. This is almost done."
It was very strange how Remey didn't feel at all out of place there in Aleks's kitchen, stretching up to grab the glasses and humming a little under his breath. It felt very natural, actually, which was nice. Very nice.
"What is that song? One of yours?" Aleks asked, straining the pasta.
Remey glanced up. "What song?"
"You were humming." Aleks smiled. "Didn't you know you were?"
Remey blushed, shaking his head as he set the cups on the table. "I guess it's just habit by now. Sorry..."
Willow reached up and tugged on Remey's arm. "Sing a song," she demanded, softening the order with a bright smile.
Remey chuckled, looking down at Willow. "Maybe some other time,
bebette.
It's time to eat dinner now, I think. Right?" he asked, glancing back at Aleks.
Aleks nodded, grabbing the food. "Right."
Remey held out his hands for the serving bowls once Aleks had filled them. Aleks brought the salad over to the table, glancing over his shoulder.
"Willow, time for dinner. Go put the book away and wash your hands."
Willow slid off the chair and raced down the hall, with her book clutched in her little hands, and Remey laughed as Aleks set the sliced bread on the table. "Kids have so much energy. I swear, if I could bottle some, tours would be ten times easier. Is there anything else I can do?"
Aleks shook his head as he pulled a few bottles of salad dressing from the fridge and set them on the table, taking the sippy cup Remey had set out for Willow and filling it with milk. "No, go ahead and grab a seat. Do you want anything to drink?"
"Water would be fine. I'm kind of a lightweight and I still have to drive home." Remey slipped into a chair as Aleks filled his glass and set it in front of him. He almost mentioned Aleks shouldn't be surprised if the paparazzi tried to claim they were having some torrid affair or something, but Willow came skipping in, her hands held out to show off how clean they were. Besides, Remey felt like mentioning the media was a guarantee Aleks would pull back from him again.
Remey watched as Aleks helped Willow clamber up into her chair, buckling her into the booster seat, then sat himself, pulling Willow's plate in front of him and serving her spaghetti and salad and a slice of garlic bread. It was nice. He hadn't been back home to Louisiana in years, and when his parents came to L.A. to visit, he took them out to dinner, which was entirely different than a family dinner at home.
"Remey?"
Remey blinked, cluing in and taking the bowl of pasta from Aleks. "Sorry, I was thinking how it'd been years since I had an actual family dinner. I see my parents a lot, but they usually come out to L.A. to visit me."
Aleks nodded. "That's one of the reasons I wanted to move back here when Willow was still so small. Something about living in a city like L.A. or New York..." He shrugged. "It makes people less connected, I think. Just by virtue of being what it is--big and crowded and busy."
Remey tilted his head. "You don't think people in the city can be connected to each other?"
Aleks met his gaze. "Sure, they can, but they're the exception, not the rule. I didn't want to live my life as the exception and trying to maintain it in what amounts to a hostile environment. I love it here. Here's where I belong, where Willow belongs."
Remey could almost hear the rest of his statement. Aleks was wondering if Remey belonged here. Aleks didn't think so, obviously. Remey disagreed. It was going to take a little effort to get Aleks to warm up, that's all. Tonight, though, was a very good start.
Aleks was avoiding him. It had been two days since they'd had dinner at Aleks's house. Remey had sent him the promo photos he'd asked for, had left Aleks a message to let him know his label had okayed the charity concert for the winter festival, and all he'd gotten in response had been a one-sentence, thank you e-mail. Remey tried not to obsess when people didn't like him, but... Aleks was different. Since Remey planned on staying in Haven, and since music education was important to him, he didn't think it was productive for them to be at odds. Not to mention he was ridiculously attracted to Aleks and felt pretty sure it was mutual.