Episode 368
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
“Thanks for lunch Heather. I really appreciate your taking me out like
that,” Becca offered up following Heather into her apartment. “I
don’t really have a lot of friends in town and I am glad that you decided
to take me out.”
“Oh don’t worry about it. I should be the one thanking you for the
way you handled Sarah,” Heather admitted carrying Charles into the living
room with her. He was tired from his long day of lunch and then shopping with
Heather and Becca. Now as he lay on her shoulder she tried to keep quiet so
not to disturb him. “I can honestly tell you that I’ve never seen
Sarah get so quiet so fast. It was really nice.”
“It was even better when she left,” Becca added with a small laugh
looking around Heather’s apartment. “I really can’t believe
the nerve of some people.”
“Tell me about it,” Heather added with a small nod. “It’s
as if half the world thinks that they can point their fingers at you for your
mistakes, but you aren’t supposed to notice theirs.”
“Exactly,” Becca replied wholeheartedly. “The world expects
you to behave a certain way and live by their rules, but then when they do
everything they can to take you down, you’re just supposed to ignore
them and let them belittle you. It isn’t right.”
“No it’s not,” Heather continued to agree with Becca before
she realized that Charles was falling asleep. “I’ll be right back.
I’m going to just put him down to bed. If you want to get a drink or
something the bar is over there.”
“Okay,” Becca nodded waving at Charles, “Sleep well little
man.”
“I guarantee he’ll be out in a few minutes,” Heather added
thinking about how well her son was at getting his sleep. “I’ll
be back.”
“I’ll be here,” Becca promised watching Heather slip down the
hallway to put Charles into bed.
Once she was alone Becca moved around Heather’s living room taking in
all of the decorations that surrounded her. She honed in on a framed photo
of Heather and Kyle--one that seemed to be taken a great many years ago. Curiously
Becca stepped over to pull it off of the shelf it was on. She could see full
well that the photo was clearly weathered by time, but there was no mistaking
the expression on Heather’s face as she stood beside Kyle, with her overalls
on and her hair tied up in a loose ponytail.
“That was before I knew all about fashion,” Heather explained catching
Becca off guard. She spun around to see a smiling Heather standing behind
her. “I was more of a tomboy when I was younger and everyone kind of
teased me about it.”
“You both look very happy here,” Becca moved to set the photo back
down, “I just couldn’t help but notice it when I was waiting.”
“That’s okay,” Heather motioned over to the photo again, “He
was honestly probably the only friend I had back then.”
“And now he’s the love of your life,” Becca replied with a
thoughtful expression, “There is always something to be said about best
friends that fall in love, isn’t there?”
“For a long time I never thought it would happen for us again,”
Heather admitted with a long sigh, “Sarah pulled so many things to try
to keep us apart and then I made a lot of stupid decisions that I wish I hadn’t.”
“Such as?” Becca arched a curious brow seeing something cross over
Heather’s features.
“Let’s just say that I gave up my childhood far too soon,”
Heather shuddered at the memory of what happened after she’d run away
from home. “Fortunately fate had other plans for me and I’m still
here today closer to having the kind of life I always wanted back then.”
“So then it’s safe to say that dreams really do come true if you
wait long enough for them, eh?” Becca smiled in response moving in to
circle around Heather’s living room.
“Kyle’s a dream come true for me and I don’t know where I would
be without him. He’s truly turned my life around and even though I know
Sarah’s going to give us hell, I know we can face it together. As you
can see she’s not ready to let go of what she and Kyle had even though
she wasn’t interested in it when she had it,” Heather noted thinking
about her sister’s unbelievable outburst.
“That’s how most people work though. They don’t want what they
can have when they would much rather try to take what’s yours,”
Becca added in a solemn tone, “It’s unfortunate, but when they do
that it’s the time when you need to show them their role and put them
in their place.”
“I think you sure did that with Sarah tonight. You’re actually very
good at it,” Heather added with a small laugh, “Granted I didn’t
really expect it, but neither did she.”
“People very seldom see a threat until it’s too late,” Becca
informed her point blank, “and that’s how you know you can get the
best of a person. When they let their guard down that’s when you know
you can move in for the kill.”
“Kill or not I have a feeling that Sarah might ease up on Kyle and I
for a bit,” Heather stepped back motioning over to the kitchen area,
“I say a drink is definitely in order.”
“I agree,” Becca decided following Heather over to the bar. She
watched Heather pull out a bottle of champagne and smile.
“I was saving this one for a special occasion, but I think this fits,”
Heather explained popping open the cork before pouring the both of them a
glass. She handed one over to Becca before raising her glass as well. “To
not having to deal with people who make you miserable.”
“To keeping them from destroying you as you destroy them first. May they
never stop you from having what you want ever again,” Becca toasted in
response clinking her glass to Heather’s.
“I’ll second that,” Heather lifted her own glass to her lips
relieved that Sarah would finally have some motivation to back off and leave
her and Kyle alone for a little while.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Stopping in front of his next destination, Kyle stopped his truck in front
of the Ashford mansion, looking out at the area before him taking in a long
breath before thinking back to the original reason he came here. Sure, he
really wanted nothing to do with Brant or Ken, but the fact of the matter
was that Blake and Seth were here and that’s why he was here. After leaving
Jason and Mindy alone he decided that maybe with his free time he could see
some old friends considering he hadn’t seen them in quite a while.
Moving out of the truck he walked up the sidewalk and up to the steps before
ringing the doorbell waiting for someone to answer. Just when he was about
to leave he heard a small gasp after what sounded like the door opening.
“Kyle, what are you doing here?” Blake questioned moving out onto
the step wrapping her arms around his shoulders to hug him as he let out a
small laugh and hugged her back. Seeing Seth step out on the porch he let
her go and shrugged his shoulders before stepping back. “What’s
up?”
“Well, I was out for a while with some free time and I figured I would
drop by to say hello. I know we haven’t seen each other in a while and
I know Sarah isn’t my girlfriend anymore,” Kyle took in a sharp
breath seeing Blake staring up at him with her light blue eyes before she
nodded slowly and he rubbed the back of his neck. “But, I still like
you guys so I don’t see much of a difference with visiting you even if
I’m not with Sarah anymore.”
“Who cares about Sarah,” Seth blurted out seeing Blake look back
at him with her blue eyes before he shrugged, moving forward to motion Kyle
into the mansion seeing the way Kyle laughed. “Well, I’m sorry.
She’s you’re friend Blake, Kyle is more of my friend.”
“Well even so, I like the both of them, but Sarah is still my friend,”
Blake closed the door behind them and motioned Kyle and Seth over toward the
library to sit down as she looked to Kyle seeing him smiling. “I still
love you Kyle because I think you are great and what happened to was totally
stupid. Sarah really was a bitch then, but she is still my friend even if
I don’t like half of her.”
“Hey, I liked the nice half of her too so there is something I can agree
on with you,” Kyle pointed out with a small nod seeing Seth nod slowly
when Blake glanced over at him. A laugh escaped his lips as he shrugged his
shoulders and caught the look in Blake’s eyes. “Even though I know
you hate Heather, she’s still someone I love all of and that’s why
I’m with her and not Sarah.”
“Well, I never saw what you saw in Heather, but then again she’s
not cheating on you,” Blake added sitting down next to Seth feeling him
wrap his arm around her. “Even thought I would watch out for her there,
she will jump some guy the first chance she gets.”
“She doesn’t need to jump any guy when she has me to jump,”
Kyle teased hearing her let out a small squeal before hearing Seth let out
a laugh shaking his head slowly. “In all honesty, Heather has always
loved me and I’m one hundred percent sure I’m the only man she’ll
even be with again. She’s loyal to me and I know that from here on out.”
“Hey, you believe what you want,” Blake held her hands up in the
air shaking her head slowly, her hair bouncing with the movement as Seth looked
down at her. “Let’s just say I hope you aren’t wrong about
that Kyle.”
“She also wants to add that we are happy for you,” Seth broke into
the conversation seeing Kyle lean back into the seat he was on and rest his
elbows against the sides. Seth leaned forward unwrapping his arm around Blake
before arching his eyebrow up. “Heather is a better match for you and
I’m glad you found the one thing in your life that makes you happy.”
“Yeah, I was going to say that,” Blake poked at Seth’s ribs
hearing him let out a noise before hearing Kyle laugh. Looking into his hazel
eyes she nodded again seeing Kyle smile widely. “Don’t let Sarah
get in your way, in fact ignore her. You’re bad for each other because
she is different, not your style.”
“I know that now,” Kyle agreed taking in a long breath leaning forward
on his elbows, pressing them against his knees as he glanced over at Seth.
“So about the whole Valerie situation, how did that work out for you?”
“It hasn’t,” Seth hissed rolling his eyes at the thought seeing
the curiosity behind Kyle’s eyes and he nodded slowly. “I’ve
been trying to get her out of my life for good, but she doesn’t go away.
She’s like a thorn in my side, in a place where I can’t reach and
get it out. It bothers me that she doesn’t get the point and go away.”
“Trust me, I know how that feels, I felt that way with Sarah at first,”
Kyle thought for a moment taking in a long breath seeing Seth agree with him
before Kyle looked to Blake a moment. “To be honest with you, I still
feel like that with Sarah, but I’m not married to her, so I really don’t
know what kind of position you’re in.”
“Well, we all know your thorn got pulled out,” Augustus’s voice
erupted through the room, seeing the eyes of all three of them glance in his
direction. “Sure, if you look here and see that Kyle, you’re no
longer worried about Sarah. Seth though, you’re married to my granddaughter
and she doesn’t deserve someone trying to walk into her life and steal
the man she loves away from her. There is no way I’m going to let that
happen and I’m here to help you with my opinion because I think I have
a very valid point here.”
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Nate looked around the hallway feeling an apprehension creep in over his
shoulders before he took in another breath. He realized that he was taking
a risk, one that would undoubtedly lead him back behind bars if he wasn’t
careful. However, as he thought about what Jewel had hinted at earlier in
their meeting, he realized she was worth the risk. When they’d first
met, he’d found himself immediately drawn to her--taken in by her beauty,
but now knowing that she was Cori’s sister it all started to make sense.
He’d been trying to get Cori to notice him for a while, yet with Jewel
he’d pretty much just had to say hello and then…
“There you are,” Jewel slurred rounding the corner of the hallway
and seeing him standing in front of her. She tipped her head up as she sauntered
over to him, her grin expanding while her finger nails reached out to graze
over his shoulder gently, “You know Nate, I never pegged you for a doctor,
but I happen to find that very sexy.”
“Well, I don’t like to brag,” Nate shrugged his shoulders feeling
her palms pressing out over his arms.
“So strong too,” Jewel mouthed leaning in closer to him. He could
feel her body skim up against his hardened chest before he sucked in a sharp
breath, “and I’ll bet that you’re very talented with your hands.
Oh who am I kidding? I remember full well how talented you were with your
hands when we were together the other day.”
“Again, I don’t like to show off in public,” Nate glanced around
the hallway fearing that someone might see him in his impromptu doctor’s
gear and he’d wind up in some hot water.
“You should,” she slurred leaning up just enough to press her mouth
over his. She dragged her tongue over his bottom lip before offering up a
giggle, “because you’re so very good at what you do. In fact I haven’t
stopped thinking about you since we met. When I remember what it was like
to have your hands all over me…”
“You know Jewel,” Nate cleared his throat uneasily, his green eyes
shifting through the corridor, “maybe we should meet up later at your
place or something…”
“Or we could just pick up where we left off right here and now,”
she suggested her fingers dropping down to the top of his pants. “I don’t
mind the whole idea of instant gratification. It does tend to have a really
nice ring to it…”
“I can respect that you feel that way, but…” he paused feeling
her massage him through his pants. He sucked down a gulp before meeting her
determined eyes again.
“Tell me something,” she questioned nibbling on his neck once again,
“Should we go to your office or somewhere a little more risky?”
“I think my office is out of the question,” Nate blurted out feeling
a low moan rise up in the back of his throat.
“Oh, a thrill seeker,” she teased with a small laugh, “I like
that. In fact, I think I saw the perfect place. There was this supply closet
over there across the hall and…”
Nate’s green eyes widened as he spotted one of his supervisors rounding
the corner of the hallway. In a moment of panic, he reached for Jewel’s
arm and yanked her over to the closet in question before she could say anything
further, “Done.”
“Oh Nate, I love a man who is aggressive and takes charge,” she
mused with a flirty overtone as Nate kept his hand on the door hoping like
hell that no one would discover him and his blonde companion.
“Well, what can I say?” he shrugged his shoulders before pressing
his ear to the door and taking another listen. “I know what I want.”
“And so do I,” she stepped forward sliding her arms around his waist
and causing him to leap up in the air.
“Hey,” he spun around to face her, worry evident behind his green
eyes.
“Nate, I’m right here,” she frowned up at him giving him a
brief once over before meeting his eyes again, “I thought you wanted
to…”
“I do,” Nate paused again ready to listen to see if anyone was out
in the hallway, but before he could follow up on what he was thinking he heard
a sound from where Jewel was standing. He spun around to face her realizing
that she’d untied the thin straps on the top that she was wearing. The
material pooled around her slender waist revealing her naked upper half to
him. His eyes widened and a gulp built up inside of him.
“Good because I don’t believe in wasting time,” she slurred
slinking her arms around his shoulders and pulling him in for a ravenous kiss
as Nate prayed that he wouldn’t wind up in deep trouble for getting caught
up in this little lie with Jewel. He kissed her in response finding himself
pleasantly distracted by the fact that even if he got thrown out of his work,
he would at least have this one night memory to tide him over for a very long
time after today.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
“Nurse, please this is ridiculous,” Chris blurted out after trying
to tell the second nurse how much he needed to be in Angela’s room and
this was the second one to walk away from him. “Doesn’t anyone understand
that I must be in there with Angel? I mean honestly, no one is listening to
me and this is becoming a pain.”
“Sir,” someone tapped on his shoulder seeing him turn around and
they shook their head slowly. Chris eyed him over slowly seeing him in a doctor’s
jacket and the man stepped forward. “You have to be quiet or I will get
security.”
“Okay fine doctor, but first you have to help me,” Chris stated
firmly seeing the way the doctor’s brown eyes stared into his angrily
before looking toward his watch. “You help me get into my friends room
and,” he went to speak more seeing the doctor walk away from him after
being paged and he threw his hands up in the air angrily. “You have to
be kidding me.”
Looking around for some clue to try and help him get into the room he stomped
his foot on the ground thinking back to Cameron. If Cameron would have just
made a move to help him get in, there would have been no trouble.
“No one here gives a damn,” Chris rolled his eyes thinking to himself
before spotting Ria with two people out of the corner of his eye as he saw
a bright opportunity. Moving forward in closer to Ria he placed his hand on
her shoulder, seeing the woman she was with wrinkle her nose in question of
who he was. “Ria, may I speak with you?”
“Trisha, I’ll be right back. Just you and Chase sit down for a moment,
I know him,” Ria explained seeing her younger sister nod after she came
to the hospital to see her and Ria turned towards Chris folding her arms out
in front of her chest. “What could you possibly want from me right now
since you’ve already tried to screw me and Kevin over millions of times.”
“Honey, that was for your better,” Chris tried to explain before
shaking his head slowly and moving forward in closer to Ria seeing her place
her hand in over his chest to keep a distance between them. “You know
how much I’ve heard about you around here? I’ve heard that you are
absolutely the best doctor in this area of town and…”
“Chris, what do you want?” Ria blurted out seeing his eyes widen
as he took in a long breath and rubbed the back of his neck. Stepping back
she threw her hands up in the air before pushing back her dark hair. “I
know you wouldn’t be talking to me unless there was a point and I don’t
need to hear you kissing up to me. What do you want?”
“Ria, would you please--please talk to Kevin about me getting in there
with them to see Angel?” Chris begged seeing her dark eyes widen with
amazement before she let out a small laugh and shook her head slowly. Slamming
his hands against his hips he rolled his blue eyes before glancing back down
at her. “Come on you’re screwing Kevin, you have to have some kind
of charm over him to let me in there.”
“Very nicely said Chris,” Ria clapped her hands sarcastically seeing
him roll his eyes and push at his brown hair, folding his arms in front of
his chest after he was done. “If this was your plan the whole time you
can go get your flowers out of the trash. I threw them out because I don’t
need you kissing up to me.”
“Flowers?” Chris itched his chin at the thought trying to think
of what she was saying before shrugging his shoulders and looking around the
area. “Okay, I’m stumped. What flowers are you talking about exactly?”
“You mean you don’t know?” Ria questioned seeing him itch his
head and open his mouth to say something before shaking his head slowly, letting
out an exaggerated breath. “That means you weren’t the one that
sent me those flowers and someone else did.”
“Hey, whatever you would like though. If you tell me your favorite flower
I will get you a thousand flowers. I just really need to see Angel,”
Chris insisted seeing the way Ria rolled her eyes and looked toward the ground
when she bit down on her bottom lip. “Listen, other than Angela you are
the only other girl to really keep his attention more than an hour so would
you please try talking to him to see what’s up. Better yet, will you
get me in there to see Angela? That’s all I’m asking of and that’s
all I want. I will leave you alone anytime afterwards.”
“Listen Chris, you’re an asshole,” Ria stated her feelings
seeing his jaw drop at her comment and she shrugged her shoulders before looking
back at Chase and Trisha. Letting out a long breath she saw his blue eyes
staring into hers and she shook her head slowly. “Let me put this nicely
for you Chris so you don’t get upset--screw off. We don’t need you
around here. Brant and Kevin want nothing to do with you and you shouldn’t
be around trying to cause them trouble. I suggest you leave before they kick
you out themselves. I’m going back to my sister now.”
“Oh yeah, that’s right. Just like you and Angel, you make the wrong
choice, walking away from me,” Chris kicked at the ground letting out
a small hiss after hurting his toe and he let out a small yelp seeing Ria
glance back at him once. “I’m better than Kevin, that’s one
thing I know. And Brant too, just you see, I’ll do something and none
of you will see it coming, I promise.”
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Michelle sank back into the blankets in the center of her bed feeling Cary’s
arm wrapped around her possessively after they’d taken the time to rediscover
one another again in her hotel room. She curled onto her side and her dark
eyes met his with brewing curiosity.
“I thought that you were dead,” she mused teasing her fingertips
over his now bare chest. “How in the hell did you escape that? I saw
Kevin take you down.”
“Looks can be deceiving sweetheart,” Cary informed her with a proud
grin, “And while I would love to tell you that what he did to me didn’t
hurt like a bitch, that would be a lie. It caused me many years of misery
and agony, but it also gave me perspective.”
“I still can’t believe that you’re here with me--that you’re
in my bed and we’re like this,” Michelle closed her eyes and sank
her head onto his chest once again. “I thought that you were gone forever--that
we wouldn’t be able to see one another again. You have no idea how hard
I took the news that you were gone.”
“Oh I missed you too baby,” he teased his fingers over her spine
in a slow, tentative movement, “You always were the best at what you
did and time has done you well.”
“Likewise,” Michelle picked her head up once again before patting
his abdomen, “Although I do see you let some things go.”
“If you say I’m getting soft I’ll have to hit you,” he
warned sharply before rolling his eyes, “because I’ve already heard
it enough from my little fruit brother.”
“Brother?” Michelle’s eyes widened in astonishment, “How
did you hear it from him unless…does Kellen know that you’re still
alive? Have you made contact with him?”
“Let’s just say the drama queen found me,” he mouthed with
a dry scowl, “and as always he’s right up there ready to annoy the
hell out of me.”
“I don’t understand,” she stammered a bit clearly confused
by what he was saying to her, “If everyone thinks you’re dead, then
why would you and Kellen cross paths? You know that he would go straight to
Kevin and…”
“I’ve seen him too,” he broke into laughter thinking about
his confrontation with Kevin, “and you wouldn’t believe the look
on his face. He looked like he was going to dump in his pants there after
I walked into the room. Granted I had always anticipated seeing him again
only the next time I had planned on doing it in such a way that he would be
facing down the barrel of a gun all over again--only this time there would
be no hesitation. This time he would be the one to go over the edge and lose
everything.”
“I just don’t…” she found herself at a loss remembering
the night that he had gone over the cliff and had been taken out of her life.
“Kevin killed you. He was angry and…”
“And he wasn’t nearly as skilled as Cyrus thought he was,”
he informed her bluntly, sarcasm thick in his tone, “And obviously he
wasn’t nearly in love with that bitch as I thought he was either. I mean
there he was ready to risk life and limb for a woman that isn’t even
with him. Hell, did you know that she’s knocked up again?”
“I’d heard a rumor of sorts,” she nodded in confession thinking
about what she’d been trying to use to tear Kevin and Ria apart.
“There’s an even more exciting twist to this one though,” he
admitted thinking about what he’d seen at the hospital. “This time
she’s not having one, but two children which means that it’s worth
double what it was before.”
“You mean you’re thinking about…” her eyes widened in
surprise remembering Cary’s earlier plans for Angela. “Cary, if
you make contact with her then…”
“I already have,” he couldn’t help but burst into laughter,
“and here’s the kicker. That idiot Cameron brought me back into
her life. He learned about an incident with JT and thought he needed some
help.”
“From you?” she arched a weary brow.
“No, not from me. Well, at least not the me that I was before. You see
he had some situation with JT where some little skank broke his heart and
it just so happens that Cameron was calling on one of her ex-lovers to rip
her heart out,” he broke into a full blown grin. “Naturally when
Cameron beckoned me I had my doubts, but he was so fixated on destroying this
woman that he didn’t make the connection that Kellen the queer or Kevin
made. Of course I have enough credibility in this town with my new identity
that clearly no one will give Kellen or Kevin’s concerns any second thought.
They will be chalked up as two nutcases who can’t let go of the past.”
“You mean they are both onto you, yet you’re not going to run?”
she replied with wide eyes.
“Why would I run when I have not one, but two wives to take care of,”
he answered with a cryptic expression reaching out to tug her into his arms
again, “but right now I don’t want to talk about them. Right now
I want to talk about you and show you all of the things that I’ve been
thinking about doing to you all those years we’ve been apart.”
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
“I just wish she would wake up,” Brant admitted thinking about
all that he and Angela had ahead of him. His dark eyes were fixated on Angela
and he couldn’t help but reach out to massage her abdomen gently thinking
about his children inside of her. “We have so much that we have to talk
about--so many things that we still need to share.”
“She’ll wake up and when she does she’ll be ready to pick up
where you two left off I’m sure,” Kevin patted Brant on the shoulder
gently before glancing over at Angela. “If for no other reason she’ll
open up her eyes and be stubborn because it’s in her nature.”
“I don’t mind her being stubborn,” Brant admitted with a thoughtful
expression, “Hell it’s part of what I love about her. She challenges
me in a lot of ways yet she is the one woman in this world that completely
understands me.”
“She loves you a lot,” Kevin offered up with a small smile circling
around to the other side of Angela’s hospital bed. “I know Cameron
did and said some things to complicate your relationship, but I have to admit
that I never saw Angela get as hung up on someone as she did with you. Even
after that first time you two met one another she wasn’t the same.”
“What do you mean?” Brant questioned glancing over at Kevin curiously.
“All my life I have known her to be passionate and impossible, but there
is one good thing about her. When she falls--really falls for someone she
goes into it wholeheartedly. Sure, she and I had something wonderful and I
wouldn’t trade any of our time for anything in the world, yet,”
Kevin’s brown eyes fixed on Brant again, “I knew from the first
time I saw her after she met you that I was in trouble.”
“Trouble huh?” Brant repeated his gaze lingering back to Angela
as he tried to memorize her face.
Kevin nodded, “She and I were fighting before you met her. She went
away to be stubborn and I, well I had somewhere else I wanted to be. After
I came back though I knew something changed. Sure, she was upset about the
way things ended with the two of you, yet it was clear you’d made an
impact on her life and not just because of the twins. Even though she tried
to pretend that she was moving on, I knew she hadn’t. I knew that she
was still hoping that you would be back in her life again--that you two would
cross paths with one another.”
“And here we are,” Brant laced his fingers with Angela’s, “and
it feels like we’re worlds apart somehow.”
“It only seems that way, but I know that it’s not the case,”
Kevin continued to explain seeing the way in Brant stayed at Angela’s
side, his thoughts and concerns focused upon her and their family. “Even
though she’s not awake and yelling at us, I know that she’s thinking
about you--about the life that you two are going to have together with your
children. She’s no doubt planning all the things that you’ll be
doing together once she’s well enough. You’ll probably be up to
your eyeballs in projects when she’s awake.”
“I wouldn’t mind that at all,” Brant admitted with a thoughtful
expression, “We were thinking about the nursery before Cameron pulled
all of this. It was actually something that we were having a difficult time
with considering that we have to find a way to accommodate pink and blue.”
“Pink and blue,” Kevin repeated giving Brant a strange look when
it suddenly occurred to him what Brant was saying, “A boy and a girl?”
Brant nodded proudly, a smile touching over his lips, “It’s amazing
isn’t it? I mean I’ve always wanted to be a father and I didn’t
care if I had a son or a daughter first, but now well to know that I’m
getting a shot at having both from the start…I mean what more could a
man ask for? It’s like I’m having all of my dreams coming to life
right before my eyes. Well, I was…”
“And you still will,” Kevin offered up to his friend seeing how
lost Brant seemed to be now that the reminder of Angela’s condition hung
over him. “You two will be able to have all those dreams and more Brant.
I mean I had no idea that you were having a boy and a girl, yet…I think
it’s everything Angela ever could’ve asked for. I’m happy for
the both of you. I truly am.”
“Thank you Kevin. That means a lot to both of us,” Brant replied
with a small smile before turning his attention to Angela again in the hopes
that one day things would finally turn out as they had dreamt of for their
happily ever after.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
“While Russ and Avery are gone,” Kipp motioned Kellen to take a
seat as they sat in the chair before them and Kipp rubbed his hands together
uneasily. Seeing Kellen’s blue eyes glance over at him Kipp reached out
to touch his face softly. “With Andy, why were you so scared when you
saw him today?”
“I told you Kipp, it’s because he looks like my brother,” Kellen
explained seeing the way that Kipp watched him and Kellen nodded slowly letting
out a small laugh. He closed his eyes remembering his past with his brother
and it bothered him just to remember what he was like. “My brother was
such, he’s such a bad memory that I don’t know what to say.”
“Hey, you don’t have to tell me if you don’t want to,”
Kipp pressed his hand in over Kellen’s back soothingly seeing the way
that Kellen glanced over at him before looking back toward the floor letting
out a small breath. “You really don’t have to tell me a thing.”
“No, it’s okay. He’s just the reason, I did things when I was
younger, so I could get away from him. I got muscular to try and defend myself
against my brother,” Kellen explained seeing the way Kipp’s brown
eyes stared into his and Kellen shuddered at the thought of seeing Cary in
the back of his mind. “When I was young, he tortured me so badly not
only physically, but mentally. He would beat me up so badly when I was little,
my brother wasn’t a good guy. He would treat all the women he was with
horribly, he treated everyone just plain awful. I tried to stand up to him
one day when I was younger--I think I was nine years old and he was almost
eighteen. Of course I couldn’t hurt him back then, so I tried beating
him back up and I got a broken arm and a few broken ribs because he pushed
me down the stairs. That’s when I decided to be in wrestling and everything
because I didn’t want to get hurt anymore. I lied to my mom when that
happened too because I was afraid if I told her what really happened I would
get hurt worse by him when I got home.”
“He really wasn’t a good guy,” Kipp reached out to rub at Kellen’s
back hearing him let out a long breath obviously upset about the memory of
his brother. “I’m sorry you had to deal with that Kellen, you should
have never had to deal with something so horrible when you were that little.”
“It wasn’t just me though, he ruined everyone’s life. Not only
mine, but Angela and Kevin’s too. I mean when Cary married Angela, I
knew it wasn’t a good idea because she seemed like a great girl and I
knew he would hurt her. He is fake for only so long because the real colors
shine brightly when he is ever around anyone else. When I first met Kevin,
the guy was so adorable and not just looks wise. He was hardcore in love with
Angela and he was adorable, nothing like my brother,” Kellen explained
seeing Kipp’s jaw tighten as he listened to him and Kellen shook his
head slowly running his fingers through his gelled hair. “I remember
being at my brother’s boxing match against Kevin and they were fighting
for the belt. Kevin had it at that time and he was ready to lose the belt
just to let Cary win it because Angela loved Cary. When they really started
to fight Cary pulled off his gloves and wouldn’t stop hitting Kevin because
Kevin wouldn’t hit him back. He broken Kevin’s nose that day and
hurt him pretty bad.”
“Kevin took that?” Kipp muttered seeing the way that Kellen nodded
before shrugging his shoulders and Kipp leaned back in his seat seeing the
way Kellen closed his eyes thinking back to that moment. “I don’t
see Kevin being that kind of guy.”
“Well what do you expect him to do when he thinks that guy is the one
that Angela loved? He was stupid back in the day because if he was smart he
would have killed my brother faster. I knew he killed my brother and if I
was there I would have set my brother on fire. I would have hid the ashes
for Kevin,” Kellen blurted out knowing how Cary fell over the side of
the hill that day with Kevin, but he still couldn’t feel his anger return
at the thought of the man he despised. “He may have been my blood, but
the first person who really acted like my older brother was Kevin. He treated
me like a normal person, he taught me to box, he helped me protect myself
from Cary. Cary still would push me around and once they got in a fight over
me. Angela had gotten mad at Cary because that day Kevin actually knocked
him out on his ass. It’s just when Cary came around anyone’s life
it was ruined, this guy was death to anyone.”
“I don’t see what he would have done to be able to hide himself
from Angela when he had a fake marriage with her considering she was married
to you back then,” Kipp added seeing Kellen’s blue eyes widen before
he rubbed at his chin and shook his head slowly. “He sounds like a horrible
guy.”
“He was a horrible guy and he was planning on killing Angela to get the
money and just because she was pregnant there was an added bonus. Now I know
I would have been the one to get it and his plan would have never worked,
but how could you do that to someone. How could you kill the person you’re
suppose to love and cherish--especially when they are pregnant with your child?”
Kellen questioned angrily still despising his brother to this very moment
hating the thought of even that man looking like him. There was no way that
he would ever be close to liking that guy even if he wasn’t his brother.
“All I know is that I’m damn glad that Kevin killed him, I would
have done the same. If I found out he was still alive now, I’d kill him
myself. I don’t care the consequences, I don’t care what would happen
to me, he doesn’t deserve to breath the air in this world. He’s
a piece of trash that I would be happy to relieve this world from. Hell, I’d
team up with Kevin, cutting him into tiny little pieces and sending a piece
to every part of the world. Someone will open a box and have a finger or something,
I just don’t like the idea of that man ever coming back. I never want
him and I would never ever say that to my mother, but to be honest with you,
I was relieved when Kevin said he killed Cary. Not only did I appreciate Kevin
more and trust him more when he told me, I knew I would no longer be afraid
of that one person. Now I know I could take him down and he could never hurt
me like he did before but I wish I could have taken him out myself. I hated
him so much.”
“Lets be thankful he is gone and never coming back then,” Kipp patted
on Kellen’s shoulder seeing the way that Kellen nodded slowly, biting
down on his bottom lip angrily. “At least we know we’re never going
to be seeing him again.”
“Yeah, hopefully. Only in my nightmares now will that man live. At least
I hope so,” Kellen muttered to himself feeling a hand move in over his
shoulder and he looked up to see Avery before him. “Hey, you’re
back.”
“We figured we could get you some coffee,” Russ stepped in behind
Avery holding two coffees in his hand, handing one of them to Kipp and the
other to Kellen. “I know this will help you get a picker upper.”
“Thanks Russ,” Kellen stood up from the chair he was sitting in
letting out a long breath before taking a small sip of the coffee they got
him. “I really thank you guys for doing all this for me. Thanks for helping
me with everything, trying to make me feel better.”
“Hey, no problem,” Avery reached up to squeeze at Kellen’s
shoulder seeing his eyes look down toward the ground. Kellen nodded slowly
before glancing over at Russ and Avery who stepped in closer to her. “That’s
what friends are for. We’re just here to make sure you’ll be alright.”
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Nate adjusted his shirt before drawing in a breath and thanking his lucky
stars that he didn’t wind up in big trouble after the situation he’d
found himself in with Jewel. He’d been worried that one of his supervisors
would find him in his moment of sin with the blonde vixen, but fortunately
for him he’d been able to sneak in and out of the closet undetected.
He’d even managed to return the ‘props’ that he’d needed
to bring Jewel’s fantasy to life without anyone spotting him
Of course even after the moments of elation he’d received, Nate couldn’t
help but find himself thinking about what he’d witnessed between Cori
and Jewel. Sure, Cori had some issues, but Nate couldn’t help but feel
sorry for her. Prompted by that thought in itself, Nate made his way over
to her room and peered inside spotting her near the corner of her room on
the floor with her knees pulled up to her chest. It was clear she was miserable
and in that moment Nate couldn’t help but want to help. He slipped his
hand into his pocket thinking about how he’d swiped the keys to her room
on the way back from returning the things he’d borrowed earlier. He unlocked
the door and drew in a breath before stepping inside and looking at her worriedly.
“Go away,” Cori groaned inwardly refusing to look up at the new
arrival in her room, “I don’t have anything more I want to talk
about and I think I’ve got enough sedative in my bloodstream to put me
into a coma.”
“I didn’t come here to give you anymore drugs, though some people
in your position might be eager to just be knocked out,” Nate half teased
before catching the glare she threw at him behind her brown eyes. “Seriously
though I didn’t come in here to fight with you.”
“Then why bother to come in here at all? Don’t you know by now that
Crazy Cori could lose it at any time?” she threw her hands in the air,
“You saw me try to kill my sister so shouldn’t you be afraid I might
try to murder you as well?”
“You haven’t done it yet,” Nate pointed out before taking a
seat beside her on the floor, “Besides, I don’t think it would bother
me all that much if you did just go for it. I mean why not?”
“You’re kidding, right?” Cori blurted out before looking over
at him once again, “What do you have a death wish or something?”
“I’m starting to wonder that myself,” he admitted with a half
laugh before bringing his hands through his sandy colored hair. He glanced
over at her once again before drawing in a breath, “Let’s just say
I know how it is to make a mistake and have the rest of the world trying to
rub your nose in it so to speak.”
“Yeah right,” she rolled her eyes at him, “Somehow I highly
doubt that.”
“It’s true,” he paused giving her another brief look, “Tell
me do you honestly believe that I wanted to spend the rest of my life changing
bed pans or getting kicked in the balls simply because I pissed off the wrong
person in a moment of emotional crisis? Trust me it’s a far cry from
being a rock star and having women throw themselves at my feet after a concert
back in my limo. You know the kind that has a Jacuzzi in the back of it. I
always pictured a couple of blondes with me, maybe a brunette or even a fiery
redhead just for kicks and giggles worshipping me and…”
“You’re even more delusional than everyone thinks I am,” Cori
noted with a wrinkled expression, “I’m sorry, but you’re a
far cry from being famous or even desirable for that matter.”
“Depends on who you ask,” Nate shrugged his shoulders once again,
“Some women find me irresistible.”
“And some women are desperate for attention,” Cori pulled her legs
in closer to her chest again. “My sister is one of them. You’d probably
be her type.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?” Nate couldn’t help but
ask while thinking about his union with Jewel.
“Well for starters you’re eager to please and you think you’re
more important than you really are. My sister Jewel feeds into that and generally
tries to make a guy feel important for the five minutes that she notices him
until she moves onto her next bedmate,” Cori spat out with a groan, “The
poor sap doesn’t even see it coming after she screws him over every which
way imaginable.”
Nate frowned at her confession. Clearing his throat uneasily, he tried to
take a new spin in the conversation, “Yeah well at least she doesn’t
try to shoot the guy she’s with because they have a difference of opinion.”
“I didn’t really mean to shoot him,” Cori admitted glancing
over at him and seeing the skepticism in his green eyes. “I don’t
care if you believe it or not, but it’s the truth. I mean, yeah sure,
I bought the gun and I entertained the notion, but by the time I got to the
church I was pretty sure I wasn’t going to do it.”
“Hmm, well your actions speak otherwise,” Nate noted with a frown
of his own, “You could have hurt a lot of people with what you weren’t
planning on doing.”
“I tripped,” Cori blurted out feeling a color rise over her features,
“I was moving too fast and I tripped over the runner down the aisle,
but after that first shot went off I guess I got carried away.”
“I’ll say,” Nate shook his head at her, “You shot a man
in his rear end.”
“If I really wanted to shoot him and kill him I wouldn’t have missed,”
Cori explained matter of fact, “When I was six I was already an expert
marksman. My father took me to the range almost daily and I could shoot a
man between the eyes from miles away. Believe me, I wasn’t trying to
kill Diego. Shooting him was just a fluke.”
“A fluke that wound up causing some damage. Plus with you threatening
everyone…” Nate sighed scratching his chin lightly, “You clearly
were ready to do some damage.”
“And now I’m in here, so what has it taught me?” Cori tossed
out at him pushing her long, blonde hair over her shoulders. “Everyone
thinks that I’m a whack job and I’m stuck here.”
“I don’t think you’re a whack job,” he paused before giving
her a brief once over, “Come to think of it, you’re more lucid right
now than I’ve ever seen you. What are they giving you right now?”
“Nothing,” she admitted with a small shrug of her shoulders, “I
guess I was just feeding into their expectations earlier.”
“What do you mean?” Nate couldn’t help but ask curious by her
mood shift.
“I’m still really pissed about what happened with Diego, but most
of the other stuff with the drawings, the ranting and the manic episodes are
for show. I mean think about it, you said it yourself that you believe that
I tried to kill him. Imagine what a jury would think if I wasn’t acting
like I’ve been out of my mind,” Cori’s dark eyes met his once
again, “Plus this place might be bad, but I’ve seen worse.”
“Spoken from experience?” Nate couldn’t help but ask.
“When I was younger, I was sent to a place that makes this look like
the Ritz Carlton,” she revealed with a tiny shudder before closing her
eyes and reflecting for a moment. “But I don’t look back, only forward.”
“If that was the case, then why did you decide to go through with showing
up at that church with that gun?” he couldn’t help but question.
“I guess I felt like I lost control in my life all over again,”
she sighed fighting to keep her words cool and even despite her raging emotions,
“I thought Diego loved me. I really believed that he thought I was someone
special, but I was wrong.”
“Diego’s an idiot. You are special Cori and just because one loser
didn’t see it, doesn’t mean that you should throw your life away
like this,” Nate paused thinking about the fact that they were having
an almost normal conversation with one another, “Guns are dangerous and
it could have caused you a lot more trouble than all of this.”
“I don’t see how,” she sighed heavily, “Even if a jury
says I’m mentally incapable of trial, I may still be stuck here forever.”
“Guns kill people. I should know,” Nate paused choked up on his
emotions, “A friend of mine was murdered by someone who lost control
while carrying a gun. They shot him and didn’t even think twice about
what they stole from him.”
“Nate,” Cori’s brown eyes widened before she grew increasingly
quiet. Finally she spoke up in a small voice, “I’m sorry to hear
that.”
“It just shows you that you don’t know how the hell life is going
to go,” he dropped his head down looking to the floor and trying to contain
his emotions. He closed his eyes for a moment before feeling her fingers press
in against his in a small, unsure squeeze.
“When I was very young my father took me to a park, then to a movie and
a picnic. I thought it was the greatest day of my life,” Cori divulged
with tears glistening behind her eyes. “It was something special because
we didn’t really take much time together since he was always working.
He was a cop like my brother you see and the job was pretty much his life.
I was the youngest so I took what I could and that day I really felt like
I was something special. I can still remember him telling me how much he loved
me--about how special I was and how someone would come along and give me the
world because I deserved all that and more.”
“You do,” Nate turned to look at her feeling her stiffen beside
him.
“I believed it for about an hour after he said it,” Cori paused
feeling her entire body tighten at the memory, “that is until I watched
him blow his brains out of the back of his head right in front of me.”
“What?” Nate’s eyes widened in astonishment at her declaration.
“He thought I was sleeping, but I had a nightmare,” she recalled
tears pooling in her dark eyes. “I wanted to see him, to have him tell
me it would be okay, but there he was his face devoid of all emotion. I watched
him put the barrel into his mouth, pull the trigger and…”
Nate realized she couldn’t say another word as she buried her face in
her hands, tears overtaking her. She started to tremble as she pulled her
legs in closer to her chest.
“I never should have taken that gun to that church. I never should have
lost control like my father did. I never should have let things get that far,”
Cori sobbed lost in her own personal hell beside him. He could see so many
things beneath the surface and even though he knew full well she could destroy
him, he couldn’t help but reach out to her. Touching her shoulder lightly,
he felt her shiver beneath him.
“It’s okay Cori,” he spoke up in a small, soothing tone.
“No Nate, it’s not okay. It won’t ever be okay again,”
she sobbed leaning into him and burying her face in his chest, “After
what I’ve done nothing is ever going to be right in my life again.”
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
“So there we were minding our own business when this cop shows up at
the back of the truck,” Heather felt her face grow hot with embarrassment
thinking back to the tale she was telling Becca. “He caught us with our
pants down so to speak and I was mortified.”
“What did Kyle do?” Becca couldn’t help but ask curling her
feet underneath her on the couch as she listened to Heather’s story intently.
Sipping on her glass of champagne, Becca leaned in closer to her. “Did
he freak out?”
“Kyle never freaks out,” Heather waved her hand dismissively, “He
just kind of sat there and then when the cop started talking like he knew
us, we realized it was someone that we had gone to high school with. Then
it turned into this big, long conversation that Kyle had with him while we
were there in the back of the truck naked and in no need for an audience.
It was mortifying--or it would’ve been if I wasn’t there with Kyle.”
“Somehow I can see him being casual about it--just living in the moment
while you were trying to cover up, right?” Becca laughed lightly picturing
the story that Heather was telling her about.
“Oh God, don’t you know it,” Heather shook her head at the
memory, “but that’s what I’m telling you about Kyle. He doesn’t
care what anyone else thinks. He’s very proud of who he is and all of
his finer qualities. Why we were at our…”
“Your what,” Becca questioned seeing the color rise over Heather’s
features. She watched Heather clasp her hand over her own mouth before letting
out a small giggle.
“I think I’ve drank more than I should have of this champagne,”
Heather teased with a light laugh setting her glass down. She snickered before
repositioning herself on the chair, “I think I’m getting a little
drunk.”
“Just a little,” Becca pinched her fingers out in front of her watching
Heather let out another giggle.
“I don’t usually get this way over a drink,” Heather noticed
the bottle in front of her was practically empty, “Wow I really wasn’t
paying attention to how much I was drinking as we kept talking.”
“It’s okay. You can only live once right,” Becca noted reaching
for the bottle and pouring more into Heather’s glass. She set the bottle
down before lifting the glass and holding it out to Heather again, “Now
come on. You know you have plenty to celebrate.”
“I sure do. I mean after all I have a hunk like Kyle in my life,”
Heather nodded in response, a proud smile carrying over her. “Though
it’s not just about the way he makes love to me or his good looks, but
rather it’s about his heart. He’s just got so much heart and I love
him so much. I have waited forever to be with him and now, well now I’m
just waiting for the other shoe to drop. I’m half expecting to wake up
tomorrow and have him gone because on some level I feel like I don’t
deserve any of it.”
“I’m sure that’s not true,” Becca added seeing Heather
sip her drink once more, “I mean you were the better sister, right? You
defeated Sarah and beat her at her own game.”
“I was honest for the first time in a long time and that’s all I
needed,” Heather let out a hiccup before bringing her hand up to the
side of her face. “Oh boy now I know I’ve had too much to drink.
I’m going to put some coffee on.”
“I can do it for you,” Becca suggested watching Heather closely.
“You can just sit here and…”
“No I can do it,” Heather attempted to stagger up off of the chair
before letting out another giggle. “Boy am I feeling the effects of this
one.”
“I’ll go make the coffee,” Becca decided springing up to her
feet and helping Heather sit back down. “You wait here.”
“Okay,” Heather finally nodded plopping down into her chair and
closing her eyes, “but I swear I’ll give you a raise for helping
me like this.”
“Oh now you know that’s not necessary,” Becca shook her head
patting Heather on the shoulder before going into the kitchen. She searched
around for the coffee and then put on a pot. Walking back over to the living
room she noticed that Heather was hunched over in the chair.
“Heather,” Becca spoke her name moving in to take a closer look.
“Oh Heather…”
Heather made no response and Becca smiled. Reaching into her pocket she pulled
out the bottle of sedatives that she’d managed to crush up and put into
Heather’s champagne earlier when Heather hadn’t been paying attention.
Now that Heather was out of it, it was time for Becca to take a closer look
at things. Carefully stepping around the living room Becca made her way down
the hallway. She paused outside of the bedroom door before looking back towards
the direction she’d left Heather in. Hearing nothing she focused on the
door in front of her once again.
“I’ll just take a little look and you won’t even know I was
here,” Becca whispered to herself pushing the door open and taking a
look around. She walked directly over to Heather’s closet and opened
the doors. There in front of her she spotted various clothing by top designers
all hers for the taking. Reaching for one navy colored suit, Becca pulled
it out of the closet and held it up to herself. She spun around to take a
long look at her own reflection. Smiling proudly she moved forward and spoke
into the mirror.
“Why are you talking to me? Are you talking to me?” she repeated
curling her lips in a sultry pout before flipping her hair over her shoulders,
“And just what makes you think that you could be able to talk to me?”
She giggled hearing a small noise before she went silent. She listened for
another moment until she spotted something out of the corner of her eye in
the mirror. Turning around she walked over to the closet and reached for the
familiar red dress that she’d seen more than once. She could still recall
the headline that was accompanying the dress as Kipp and Heather were splashed
on the cover of a tabloid arm in arm with one another. Smiling she selected
it from the closet before walking over to the vanity area again.
“What was that Kipp?” she questioned with a flirty laugh, “You
would like to dance with me? Well if you insist…”
Becca moved around the room for a moment imagining being with Kipp, having
him spend the night flaunting her off on his arm. Unable to repress the smile
that swept over every inch of her, Becca imagined what it would be like when
she was able to have Kipp see her like she wanted him to. He would be caught
up in her spell and they would be together from here on out. He would have
no choice but to want her and only her. He would desire her and make love
to her in all the ways that he had in the past with Heather only unlike Heather
she wouldn’t toss him aside.
“We’re going to be so happy together,” Becca spoke out to herself
as she opened up a few of Heather’s drawers finding the right accessories
for the dress she’d selected. Sure, Heather had no idea what it was that
she had in Kipp, but soon the whole world would see just how much he was going
to have with her instead of Heather. Becca was sure of it!
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
“So what are you planning on doing Seth?” Kyle questioned pulling
himself up on the corner of the deck, sitting on the post seeing Augustus
standing in the middle of the deck. Glancing over at Seth and Blake sitting
on the swinging chair as Kyle cleared his throat uneasily. “You know
what me and Augie over here think, so what’s the deal?”
“Well, I don’t know what she is planning to do,” Seth tried
to explain seeing the way that Augie glanced over at him with his dark eyes
and Seth felt a bit out of place. “I know the type of person Valerie
is and she will never sign the divorce papers.”
“She is quite the bitch,” Blake blurted out seeing the way that
Kyle’s eyes widened as he glanced over at Augustus and Blake let out
a small gasp. Placing her hand over her mouth she heard Augustus let out a
small laugh and she shook her head slowly. “I’m sorry grandpa, I
didn’t mean to say that.”
“Hey, we all make mistakes,” Augustus chuckled seeing the way she
nodded as he folded his arms out in front of his chest glancing over at Kyle.
“You know Seth, I am not against having you hire someone to scare her
a little bit.”
“Yeah, he knows what he’s talking about,” Kyle jumped back
down to the deck moving in next to Augustus and placing his hand in over Augustus’s
shoulder. Giving it a small squeeze Kyle patted his shoulder quickly before
looking to Seth with a small nod. “Someone to rough her up a bit before
signing the papers. They will force her to sign the papers.”
“As good as that sounds, she’ll never do that,” Seth pointed out standing up from where he was sitting, reaching out to Blake’s hand to pull her up with him. “You know, I have no idea what I’m going to do about this whole thing, but hopefully I'll come up with something. I don’t want her in my life forever.”
“Which hopefully you wont,” Blake replied before taking in a deep
breath pressing her hand in over Seth’s abdomen glancing over at Kyle
and Augustus standing together. “How about we go inside and we can try
and come up with something to eat. I’ve had quite a long day.”
“Okay sure,” Kyle went to follow Blake and Seth back into the house
before feeling Augustus squeezing onto his shoulder to pull him back onto
the deck. “Yes Augie, something you need some help with?”
“Oh, nothing really son,” Augustus began seeing the way that Kyle
looked back toward the house and Augustus pulled his hand back to his side.
Glancing down at Kyle’s left hand he cleared his throat before shrugging
shoulders. “I was just wondering how long you’ve been married.”
“Well, I’ve been…you know that I’m married?” Kyle
turned facing Augustus seeing the way that he reached for his hand and held
the ring up to Kyle to show that it was in plain sight. “You are the
only person other than the ones I have blurted it out to that has actually
seen that. How did you catch that?”
“When someone as verbal as you throws their hands around, you see the
things that like to shine when it hits light,” Augustus pointed out with
a small nod sliding his hand into his jacket pocket after letting go of Kyle’s
hand. “So, Heather I must assume?”
“Yeah, listen Augie, no one really knows,” Kyle explained seeing
the way that Augustus’s eyes raised up and his eyebrows tightened together.
“Augie, can you do me a favor and actually not tell anyone? That would
really help me out. I mean you don’t have to, but I promised I wouldn’t
go there.”
“Hey kid, she’s all yours. I won’t say a word,” Augustus
held his hands up in the air and shook his head slowly taking in a long breath.
Seeing the ease in his eyes Augustus let out a small laugh seeing the way
that Kyle was worried at first. “You can have her and her very small
breasted body.”
“Hey now, I don’t find a problem with them,” Kyle replied firmly
seeing the way that Augustus smirked when he moved in closer to the door.
“They are quite fun to play with in my opinion.”
“Too much information kiddo,” Augustus’s deep laugh filled
Kyle’s ears as they stepped into the house seeing Seth seem to be looking
upset at a letter. “Oh no, what’s going on Blake, what happened
now?”
“He got a letter from Valerie and he’s not happy,” Blake informed
him seeing the way that Seth rested his hands against the counter as she shook
her head slowly pressing her hand in over Seth’s back. “I don’t
know if this is ever going to work.”
“You know what, I have just the thing to finally get you two away from
her forever,” Kyle promised pulling out his cell phone seeing the way
that Seth looked up at him from the counter and Kyle nodded slowly. “Just
trust me and everything is going to be okay. I promise.”
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
“Thank you for picking me up,” Deana smiled tipping her head up
to see Grady’s mesmerizing green eyes fixed on hers. She leaned up against
the wall leading to her apartment and grinned widely, “You have no idea
how much I enjoy spending this time with you after a day like I had a work.”
“You work way too hard,” his fingers fanned out to touch the side
of her cheek gently, “It was the least I could do to take some of the
load off of you.”
“I really appreciate it,” she leaned into his touch savoring the
warmth that his finger tips had created against her skin. “You are exactly
what a girl needs to wind down her day.”
“I was kind of hoping you wouldn’t completely wind down just yet,”
he wiggled his brow at her suggestively before motioning to her apartment
door. “However I was hoping we could get inside first before we get into
what I have in mind for tonight.”
“Afraid Jackie might catch us making out in the hallway,” she teased
with a playful laugh thinking about her neighbor’s teenage daughter.
“Jackie is the least of my concerns,” he confessed in a low, sensual
tone brushing his lips against hers. Their lips caressed one another for a
long moment before he inched back in a tentative movement, “We could
continue this out here or we could go inside.”
“Well since I’m curious to see what you have in store for me inside,
I suppose we can get into my apartment,” she mouthed breathlessly reaching
for her keys with shaky hands. She managed to get her key in the lock and
open it as Grady stepped in behind her wrapping his arms around her waist.
“I want tonight to be special for us,” he confessed watching her
open up the door to reveal the candles that illuminated the living room in
front of them.
“What in the…” Deana’s brown eyes widened in astonishment
at seeing the romantic setting that was splashed out in her otherwise boring
and unappealing living room. She glanced over her shoulder seeing the smirk
that touched over Grady’s ever-so-kissable lips and she couldn’t
help but smile as well, “How did you do all of this?”
“Let’s just say I had a little help,” he mused with a cryptic
expression guiding her into her apartment. “I thought that maybe you
and I should have something together--something that we could both enjoy tonight.”
“It’s amazing,” she confessed seeing the rose petals on the
floor. Unable to stand still she spun around in his arms and faced him with
a bright smile, “Grady, I love you.”
“I love you too,” he leaned in to steal another kiss from her lips,
“and I intend to show you how much tonight after dinner.”
“I can’t see how you could make me love you anymore than I already
do,” she admitted wishing she hadn’t said it because it was far
more than she’d wanted to reveal about how much he’d gotten to her.
However, judging by the expression on his face she could see that he was touched
by her words.
“That’s how I feel when we’re together,” he revealed cupping
her face in his hands, “From the moment I met you I’ve become a
new man--a man who finds himself lost without you. I know that we might’ve
felt like we rushed into something, but I can’t even begin to imagine
my life without you and Zane in it. I love you.”
“Oh Grady,” she sighed feeling a warmth carry over her from the
top of her head to the tips of her toes when he bent in to kiss her. Wrapping
her arms around his neck, she found herself wanting to get lost in him--to
savor the way it felt to be close to him loving him in ways that she swore
she would never love another man after Zane’s father had been such a
tremendous let down in her life. However, with Grady he found a way to make
her want to believe in more than she had before.
“If you think you love this now, wait until you see what I have planned
for dessert,” he whispered warmly moving in to kiss her once again when
he felt his cell phone buzzing in his pocket.
“Sounds like someone doesn’t want you to tell me about it,”
she sighed placing her hand over the center of his chest.
“It doesn’t matter what anyone else wants,” he promised moving
in to kiss her again when the sound continued. Abruptly he pulled back with
a groan, “Give me a few minutes.”
“Sure,” she nodded moving in to inspect all that Grady had put together
for her. There was a table with the same candlelight that filled the rest
of her room. In the center of it was a silver tray with dinner and a bottle
of champagne. Of course at closer inspection she realized that the champagne
was sparking grape juice, but it was still romantic as ever. Thinking about
how special the night was going to be she turned around to face him again
only to see a brooding expression on his face. “Grady, what’s wrong?”
“That was Kyle,” he revealed with a heavy sigh, “I know I said
nothing would get in the way of tonight, but he needs some help with something
and…”
“You’ve got to go,” she finished for him already reading the
truth about the call in his eyes.
“I don’t want to, but he asked me for a favor and…” Grady
hesitated thinking about his call from Kyle. “I can call him back and
tell him that I can’t make it. I’ll just have to reschedule.”
“No, if it’s important enough for you to think about going, then
I’m sure it’s not worth canceling,” she stepped forward reaching
out to wrap her arms around his shoulders, “Besides you and I can just
have this later. I can put it all away and then when you’re ready to
return I’ll just warm it up for us and then maybe we’ll have something
else.”
“Are you sure?” he searched her eyes for a long moment, “This
wasn’t how I planned it and…”
“It’s okay,” she nodded in response leaning up on her toes
to kiss him tenderly, “I’m kind of tired anyways and I’m sure
I would’ve appreciated this a lot more when I was actually a bit more
cohesive. You go and see what Kyle wants. I’ll be here when you’re
finished.”
“Alright,” he sighed pulling her into his arms once again, “but
I hope you know I’m going to give you a rain check on this.”
“I’m counting on it,” she smiled in response a tired smile
sweeping in over her, “I love you.”
“I love you too,” Grady replied vowing that after he tended to his
friend that he would find a way to make it up to Deana for tonight’s
let down with one another.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Michelle tipped the man at her hotel room door before scooting him out of
the room. Carefully wrapping her robe around herself, she turned to the bathroom
area where Cary had been waiting for her. She stepped forward pushing the
tray of room service along with her before beckoning to him.
“You can come out now. It’s clear,” she explained seeing him
pop his head out of the bathroom, “though I don’t know why you are
hiding in there considering that I’m sure no one will think anything
of you being here.”
“They won’t think anything of Andy Byrne being here, but if Kellen
sees me or Kevin, well then someone might start talking,” he explained
breezing through the hotel room to join her at the small table where she had
the room service now set up. “You see while the world might think they
are crazy, they may find someone to listen to them.”
“Such as?” Michelle arched a curious brow taking a seat at the table.
“Angela’s new love,” he rolled his eyes dropping down into
the seat across from her, “A man by the name of Brant Ashford. Perhaps
you’ve heard of him.”
“In more ways than I care to admit,” she groaned inwardly feeling
a shudder pass over her. “That jackass is just begging for me to pay
him back for what he did to me.”
“An ex-lover of yours?” he arched a curious brow searching her eyes.
“My you and Angela really are into sharing, aren’t you?”
“Are you kidding me,” she wrinkled her nose at him before shaking
her head, “I wouldn’t give that loser the time of day. He’s
pathetic and not worth my time, but his brother Ken made a good mark.”
“Ah yes Ken,” he rolled his eyes in response before reaching for
a roll in front of him, “The do-gooder with a heart of gold. I have crossed
paths with him a few times already. Hell, he’s one of my best friends.”
“Come again,” Michelle blinked back at him before letting out a
dry laugh, “You have to be kidding, right?”
“Unfortunately I’m not,” he reached for some butter to put
on his roll before continuing, “The man happens to be someone that apparently
had the hots for my current wife.”
“Current wife?” she repeated giving him a second glance. “You
had mentioned something about two wives so what gives?”
“Naturally I had to have a cover story and I found mine in Atlantic City,”
Cary let out a long laugh remembering the day his life began again. “You
would not believe that I found myself a dead ringer for, well me. Granted
he wasn’t nearly as good looking as I was, but he worked for what I needed.
I met him in the bar and we started talking one night. He was part of the
plan that I had for us doll when we got our hands on all that Stone fortune
and split the country, but unfortunately Kevin caused me to alter those plans
for us.”
“I don’t understand,” she replied reaching out to take a sip
of her champagne. “Cary, you said that you had a dead ringer, but…”
“Someone had to take the fall that night your ex tried to kill me, right?”
he mused with another proud smirk. “I damn near drowned in the water there
and then well I think Kevin broke my neck, but by an act of fate I survived.
I washed up onto the shore and made a phone call to my new friend--to the
guy who was about to start his life so to speak. He happened to be a doctor
and when I called he was more than willing to help--so much so that he offered
to take my place in that water when the police needed to find a body.”
“Are you saying that you…” her jaw practically dropped at the
weight of the confession he was giving to her.
“Let’s just say that I did what I needed to do and now that I’m
back I fully intend to finish what we started all those years ago. Sure there
are a few more complications than there were back then, but right now honey
we’re going to find a way to overcome them and claim what is rightfully
ours,” he leaned in to take her hand from across the table. “By
the time we’re done no one will know what hit them and revenge will truly
be ours!”
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
“You know I have to admit six months ago I never, ever would’ve
thought that I’d be sitting here with the man who shook up her world
and sharing this kind of moment with him,” Kevin revealed to Brant from
the opposite side of Angela’s bed. “Here I figured if I ever met
you that I would want to kill you, yet here we are actually friends after
everything.”
“I really thought you were going to kill me that first night you realized
that I was in love with Angela,” Brant noted thinking back to the first
time he and Kevin clashed outside of Angela’s hotel room.
“Well that was my original intention, but then after I heard you and
listened to what you had to say for a while, well I realized you aren’t
nearly as bad as I anticipated you being,” Kevin laughed lightly thinking
about that first night he’d encountered Brant. “You’re actually
pretty decent when it gets down to it.”
“You’re pretty decent yourself big guy,” Brant teased in response
thankful that he didn’t have to endure all of this waiting alone now
that Kevin was there with him. “I know you’ve always had her best
interest at heart and that means a lot to me.”
“It means a lot to me that you make her happy,” Kevin added with
a thoughtful expression, “I know that you’ve given her another chance
at something she thought she wasn’t going to have again after our daughter
died and I’m sure that you’ll make her happy.”
“I want to give her and the twins the world,” Brant added thinking
about all the love he’d felt in his heart for Angela. If only she would
open up her eyes and see him again--if she’d come back to him and give
what they had another chance. “I just miss her so much.”
“She’ll be back,” Kevin offered up as there was a change in
the sound the monitors made behind where he sat. He looked up seeing that
something had shifted in Angela and when he turned his attention to Brant
once again, he realized that Angela was squeezing his hand.
“Angela,” Brant whispered her name warmly as her brown eyes fluttered
open. She let out a small breath before she spoke up in a low, hoarse voice.
“Where am I?” she questioned weakly her lips parting to take in
another breath.
“You’re safe now,” Brant whispered reassuringly touching the
side of her face as he said a prayer thanking the heavens above for bringing
Angela back to him. “I’m not going to let anything hurt you ever
again.”
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
...to be continued...