| "So there's this ball Brian promised that we'd all go to." Kevin announced, looking across the table at Tara Anna. She twirled some more spaghetti around her fork, and raised her eyebrows at him, waiting for him to continue. "I was remembering what you told me, about always dreaming about going to a ball." Tara Anna blushed, but nodded. "But, the truth is, I really want to take Christy." Tara Anna looked down at her plate. "Well, that's a nice way to get someone's hopes up and then let them down, all in one breath." She said in a teasing voice, grinning at him. But Kevin could tell that she was more hurt than she let on. "Hey, I wasn't finished yet!" He protested. "I'm not that cruel." Tara Anna giggled. "Anyway, AJ called today, and asked if he could take you. So, I was thinking, you could go with him. Not in any romantic way or anything, just so that you can get there. I promise, he won't spend the whole night trying to start a relationship with you or anything. But he doesn't have a date, and he has an extra ticket, so it just seemed natural. . ." Tara Anna didn't speak for a moment. She seemed to be thinking everything over. "Not in a romantic way?" She asked hesitanly. "Not at all." "And he doesn't want anything to happen between us?" "He just wants someone cute that he can show off to photographers. That's all." Tara Anna blushed at the compliment to her looks. "I guess there's no harm in it. As long as. . . you know." She looked slightly worried, though, and a shadow crossed her face as she spoke the last words. Obviously she was remembering. Kevin extended his hand across the table, reaching for her hand. Tara Anna squeezed his, and her face became bright again. "Kevin? Thanks. For everything. I mean, letting me live with you and everything. And . . . everything else." He looked at his little cousin, and winked. "Just don't forget- you owe me one huge favor someday. And beleive me, I'll make sure you remember." AJ didn't have any real feelings for Tara Anna. He cared about her, but in a way that was very little more than platonic. That wasn't saying that he wasn't attracted to her, because he was. But he wasn't falling for her or anything. She was easy on the eyes, to say the least. Once you got past the first impression, she didn't look so much like a third grader. You began to see things that other people didn't notice- like her eyes. They were so big, and almond shaped, and they his this intense pain behind them. Like she was hiding some huge past hurt that she didn't want anyone to find out about. But the fact that she'd most likely been hurt wasn't why he was bringing her to the charity ball. The real reason was that he was tired of bringing girls to these events that made him look bad. Reporters were always speculating about the kind of girls he dated, and why he was dating them. With Tara Anna by his side, he was safe from all the stupid comments the press would make. Tara Anna seemed to have a tatoo on her head that just screamed 'innocent!' and 'virgin!'. It was good for his publicity. And, if Kevin had done what he'd told him to, Tara Anna was perfectly aware that AJ didn't want her as a girlfriend or anything, so basically she was coming along simply to hang on to his arm and smile pretty for the cameras. AJ didn't have anything against Tara Anna. Infact, he really enjoyed her company. But that didn't mean he'd want to kiss her. Well. . . scratch that. He wouldn't mind a kiss. He would, however, mind the responsibility that came after the kiss. |