Chapter 1

Chapter 1

            What am I doing? I am not the right person for her to send; why did I even mention I was interested? Caryss let the thoughts of self-doubt and apprehension run rapid through her mind as she finished packing her suitcases. By the time she was ready to call for the driver to come pick her up and take her to the airport, the thoughts had turned to a full-on one woman conversation out loud with herself.

            “I can’t do this,” she whispered quietly as she sat in the atrium of her high-rise apartment complex in Chicago waiting for her car. Tears welled up in her eyes and her cheeks burned, the urge to call her boss and cancel flickering underneath the tears she was holding in her eyes. She quickly snatched her cell phone out of her tan suede clutch that matched the boots on her feet perfectly and dialed a familiar number.

            “Hey sweets, I thought you’d be on the plane by now,” a friendly voice said on the other end without even so much as a hello beforehand.

            “I don’t think I can do this,” Caryss admitted, the tears erupting from her eyes like lava from a volcano as soon as she heard that proverbial voice. “I mean, am I really the right person to take over the new account? Why would my boss send me all the way to Los Angeles? Why not Krystal? She’s already out there; why couldn’t she just handle it? Laney, I’m freaking out here!”

            “Sis, calm down,” Laney instructed firmly, knowing all too well where this conversation was going. Laney was Caryss’s younger sister, by one year, ten months, and fourteen days, and she had become quite familiar with conversations like this. When they were younger, Laney used to tell Caryss whatever she wanted to hear in hopes of keeping her older sister on her good side. But as she matured, and the issues with her sister became bigger and more important, she started telling her sister what she needed to hear instead. This was one of those times.

            “Car, listen to me. There is a reason your boss picked you for this; because she knows you can do it. You have put in four years at that firm and you have earned every responsibility that’s been thrown your way with this project. Everyone there believes in you, and so do I; why don’t you believe in yourself?”

            As her sister was lecturing her, the car had arrived. Caryss rolled up the privacy shade between her and the driver, still wanting to keep this conversation as private as she could. Although she could admit it to herself and her sister, she didn’t want the whole world to know how insecure she was.

            “Laney, I hear what you’re saying and I know you are right. I don’t know why I always have to hear it from someone else first before I can believe it for myself. I don’t know what causes me to be so….anal and insecure!”

            “I think it stems back to that day in seventh grade when Bobby Turner told her he was breaking up with you and dating Lana Montgomery instead because her boobs were bigger,” Laney tossed back with a smile so big that it could have almost been seen right through the phone.

            “Yeah, well you may be right,” Caryss admitted with a laugh as she glanced down at her now ample, and all natural, bosoms. “But who got the last laugh on that one? That’s right, moi!”

            Both girls starting giggling in unison as they remember back to a few weeks ago when they ran into Lana while doing some Christmas shopping in the city. Lana, who had dated Bobby turner throughout the rest of grade school and high school and had married him the day after she turned eighteen, was now twenty-five, the same age as Caryss, but unlike Caryss, was now divorced and boob-less. She was rail thin and would have had a hard time creating cleavage for a low cut shirt even if she squished both her breasts together and had someone take a needle and thread sew them that way permanently. Bobby apparently didn’t like the fact that she lost all of her “shelf” as he had called it, and left her for his personal trainer with implants.

            As the giggling died down, Caryss lowered her tone, and in the most sincere and somber voice she could muster, she thanked her sister for once again putting things into perspective for her, since she was so completely unable to do it for herself.

            “You’re not unable sis, you just don’t allow yourself to feel pride or accomplishment. You have a hard time spreading your truly gifted and able wings and flying; but we’ll work on that. Have a great time in LA! You know you are going to have a lot of down time, so let yourself go and have fun! Maybe even meet…oh my God…a man!”

            “Ha ha, very funny, laugh it up,” said Caryss, sarcasm dripping from every syllable.

            “Seriously though, have a good time. I mean, come on, we’re talking about Los Angeles in the middle of winter! When it’s snow-covered and freezing here, it’s going to be like 70 and beautiful there. I love you.”

            “I love you too sis. And thanks again.”

            “Anytime, that’s what I’m here for.”

            Caryss flipped her phone shut and held it in her hand for a minute as if by not putting it down, her sister was still there with her, even though the call had ended. When she felt satisfied, she tossed it back into her clutch and looked out the tinted window of the car. Signs for the airport and what lane to be in for each different terminal could now be seen, and Caryss knew her time limit to chicken out was fast approaching.

            I can still tell the driver to turn around and take me back to my apartment, she consoled herself as her palms started to sweat and her heart began to race. “No, Laney is right,” she affirmed out loud, hoping the privacy glass really meant private. “I am the right person for this and besides, I’ve been waiting for a chance to work with this organization for such a long time. I, Caryss Laon Martin, am designing the new ad campaign for Heal the Bay; I am the ‘it’ girl, and I can do this,” she vowed, with the same conviction and melodrama as a candidate for the class president’s election speech.

            As soon as her driver had loaded her luggage onto a cart and she had tipped him, she took off through the sliding glass doors of O’Hare International Airport pushing her cart and made her way up to the check-in counter to print her boarding passes and confirm her first-class seat on the non-stop flight from O’Hare to LAX. When she proceeded to the security check point with only her carry-on bag, she walked a little taller as she let her newly found confidence flow freely from her pores.

Chapter 2

Chapter 2

            “We are now approaching Los Angeles International Airport and will be on the ground in just under fifteen minutes. The temperature on the ground is a balmy 75 degrees, with light wind and sunny skies. I’d like to thank you for flying with United Airlines, and wish you an enjoyable visit to Los Angeles. If LA is your final destination, welcome home,” the pilot announced over the intercom as the plane began it’s descent to the runway below.

            Exactly fourteen minutes later the wheels hit the tarmac at LAX and the plane slowly rolled into the hub for gate 14. Taking advantage of one of the perks of flying first class, Caryss grabbed her carry-on bag and her purse as soon as the seatbelt light turned off and exited the plane before any of the economy class passengers were allowed to.

            As she entered the airport she saw a man dressed in a black suit and a driving hat holding a professionally laminated sign with her name on it. She walked towards him with a smile, and was relieved when he returned the gesture.

            “Ms. Martin, pleasure to meet you. I’m Derek and I will be your driver for the duration of your stay in Los Angeles. Allow me,” he said to her as he gently grabbed the carry-on from her hands, relieving her of its weight. “If you’re ready, we will proceed to the baggage claim,” he said, making a sweeping motion past Caryss. She nodded, and they walked side by side through the large airport until they reached their destination.

            She pointed to her two matching suitcases as they came around on the conveyor belt and Derek scooped them off in one fluent motion. Once her luggage was tucked securely into the trunk of the car and she was situated in the backseat, she grabbed her cell phone out of her purse and sent a short text message to her sister, letting her know she landed safely.

            Once that task was completed, she checked the voicemail on her phone. “I should have known she would call,” Caryss muttered under her breath as she listened to the message her boss left.

            “Caryss, its Maggie. I know you’re still in the air, but when you get this message give me a call. There’s something important I need to talk to you about before you get to the meeting this afternoon.”

            Caryss looked at her watch and panicked. It was 3:30 and she had to be at the meeting by 4:00. “Derek,” she stammered as an overwhelming feeling of inadequacy came upon her, “I’ll have to check into the hotel later. I have a meeting I have to be at by 4 so you better just take me straight there.”

            “Ms. Martin, I believe you forgot to set your watch back. It’s only 1:30.” Derek couldn’t help but chuckle at how upset and vulnerable Caryss had sounded as she spoke to him.

            “Oh my gosh, you’re right,” Caryss responded, turning a bright shade of crimson and shaking her head in disgust and embarrassment. “I feel so stupid.” She turned her watch back two hours to compensate for the time difference between Chicago and Los Angeles.

            “That’s what I’m here for; don’t worry about it,” Derek reassured her as he pulled up in front of Caryss’s hotel. He got out and scurried around the car to open Caryss’s door before she could and held out his hand for her to get out of the car. The bellhop removed her luggage from the trunk and informed Caryss that her luggage would be brought up to her room in a few minutes.

            “Ms. Martin, I’ll be downstairs at 3:30 to take you to your meeting,” Derek said with a smile as he tipped his hat to her.

            “Thank you Derek,” said Caryss, returning the smile. She turned and walked into the hotel to check in.

            After checking into her room and taking the fifteen floor elevator ride, she walked down the hall to her room and slid the credit card-style key into the lock, opening the door and walking into her enormous suite.

            “Why they got me such a huge room, I’ll never know,” she said to herself as she set her room key on the vanity and took a look around. When she heard the knock on the door she assumed it was the bellboy with her luggage and abruptly walked to the door and flung it open without hesitation.

            “You’re not the bellboy,” she said flatly as a woman holding a silver tray with a note on it stood before her.

            “No, Ms. Martin, I’m not. When you checked in I forgot to give you this note that was left for you. My apologies for interrupting you. Your luggage is on its way though,” the woman said as she handed Caryss the note and then excused herself and walked back down the hallway toward the elevator.

            “Dear Ms. Martin,” Caryss began to read the note aloud, but stopped after the introduction. “Why does everyone keep calling me that? I have an f-ing name!” She chuckled to herself then continued reading the note out loud. “Dear Ms. Martin: I hope you don’t mind but I took the liberty of upgrading you from the standard room your firm had booked for you. I am confident that the room will be to your liking, and if there is anything you require, the hotel staff has been instructed to cater to your every need. I’m sure you weren’t expecting this, but anyone who is going to be working for and with me deserves only the best. I am looking forward to meeting with you later today. –NC.”

            She put the note down next to her room key and collapsed onto the fluffy king sized bed that would be hers to sleep in for the next two weeks, at the least. She lay there for a minute, random thoughts and questions running through her head. Who is NC? Why would he or she go through so much trouble? I should wear my green pantsuit to the meeting. Should I be early? I need to paint my toenails. Well, the meeting is casual, so maybe I should wear something other than my green pantsuit. Where is my luggage? Shit, I need to call Maggie! Caryss shot up off the bed and fished around in her purse for her cell phone. She dialed Maggie’s office number and waited for her to pick up.

            “Maggie, hi. It’s Caryss. I just got your message.” Lie! “What’s up?”

            “Caryss, I’m so glad you called, I was getting worried. I wanted to give you a heads up that one of the main supporters you’re going to be working with directly is of a high profile nature so don’t appear too shocked or thrown off by it, okay? You usually work so well under pressure and I would hate for you to blow this because you got star-struck or something.”

            Man, she can be a cold, heinous bitch when she wants to be. “Of course Maggie, I wouldn’t want to blow it either. Thanks for the heads up.” Caryss paused for a minute, wondering whether she should tell Maggie that the “high profile supporter” she was going to be working with had upgraded her to suite and had ordered the hotel staff to be at her beck and call. Nah, she doesn’t need to know that. “Well, I’m going to get unpacked and freshen up before the meeting. I’ll talk to you soon.” Caryss flipped her phone shut before Maggie had a chance to interject anything else and threw it back in her clutch.

 

            Just then there was another knock on the door, and exercising a little more caution than last time, she peered through the peep hole to see who it was. She opened the door to find the bellboy standing there with a luggage cart, and she motioned for him to set her luggage by the bed. When he was finished she tipped him and closed the door behind him. She glanced at her watch and saw it was now quarter after two.

            “That leaves me a little over an hour to unpack and get myself ready for this meeting,” she said, still talking to herself out loud as she tended to do when no one was around to hear her. She threw her suitcases on the bed and began putting her clothing in the drawers and on hangers, setting her heath and beauty aids neatly in the bathroom, and then going back through and organizing everything in her room until it was to her liking. When she was satisfied with the job she had done and she was convinced it would work for the time she was here, she moved on to deciding the appropriate outfit to wear to the casual “get acquainted” meeting for the committee she would be heading up.

            After much deliberation she decided on a pair of pale yellow Capri pants that hugged her hips and butt perfectly and a matching sleeveless blouse with a deep V-neck to accentuate her full chest. I might as well look hot if I’m going to be meeting a celebrity, she candidly thought to herself as she dressed.
           
            After applying some additional makeup and making sure her hair was the way she wanted it she took one final glance in the mirror. Her fresh complexion and natural glow made the need for foundation or bronzer non-existent. She emphasized her exotically green eyes with purple eyeliner and brownish hues of eye shadow. She pumped up her long eye lashes by applying mascara and topped her look off with a light, glossy shade of lipstick.

            Her full, curly locks fell just below her shoulders, but if her hair had been straightened it would have ended at the small of her back. Her curls were like springs; she could pull one down and as soon as she let it go it would bounce right back up to where it started. Her natural hair color was deep chestnut, but she had tried to keep some fun and funkiness to her hair by periodically applying blond and red streaks in it.

            As she moved her focus in the mirror from her face and hair down to her body, she smiled. Up until the summer before her senior year of High School she had always been on the chunky side. Then that summer, it was as if God decided she had received enough ridicule and had built enough character and just like that, the chunkiness went away and what remained were shapely hips, a heart-shaped bum, and firm, round breasts that created cleavage most girls would kill for, or pay insane amounts of money for.

            She was now a solid size eleven, which to some people would not be something to brag about, but on Caryss, it was. She filled out a pair of jeans like nobody’s business and she brought new meaning to the word curvaceous. Most importantly, she found comfort in her own skin, something that most women struggle to find until they day they die.

            “Look of hotness—mission accomplished,” she said into the mirror with a smile. She again glanced at her watch—it was almost 3:30. She quickly transferred her belongings from the clutch she was using earlier to one that matched her outfit and then was out the door.

            Well NC, soon your identity will be revealed, she thought to herself with excitement as she watched the traffic whizzing by her on the way to the restaurant where the meeting was taking place. And I’ll get to see my girls again, she told herself, feeling very happy that she would be working with the friends she had made at her firm’s sister company based out of Los Angeles. She had worked with these girls twice before and had kept in constant communication with them personally. She also knew they were infamous for planning outrageous, themed outings, especially since the last two times she had been to LA to work with them they had done so.

            The first time was a cowgirl themed party where Caryss had to dress in country/western clothing and all of the girls went bar hopping and trying to get free drinks. The second time they had rented Caryss an apple costume and they all went out dressed like the Fruit of the Loom characters. She had never had so much fun in her life as she had those two nights, but this time, she had a feeling in the pit of her stomach that more would come of it than just a girls’ night out on the town, but what she didn’t know was why.

Chapter 3

Chapter 3

            Caryss smoothed her top and the front of her pants as she walked up to the doors of the restaurant. She grabbed her compact mirror out of her purse and quickly checked her hair and makeup one last time before allowing the gentleman at the door to open it for her and escort her into the restaurant. She was not sure why she had butterflies in her stomach, considering she didn’t really know anything about the infamous “NC”, including whether “NC” was a male or female, but the hunch of things to come kept poking her in the gut regardless.

            Caryss was involuntarily snapped out of the thought she was in as she entered the restaurant and was greeted by shrieks and squeals from one of her previously long-distance friends.

            “Oh my God, Car, you look so fabulous; that outfit should be outlawed!” Stacie screamed in her notable valley accent as she ran full speed into Caryss and wrapped her in a tight hug.

            “Stacie, it’s so great to see you,” Caryss squealed back as her friend released her from the hug and they did a double air kiss.

            “And I know it’s so great to see me,” another high-pitched voice rang from behind Caryss.

            “Lizzie-kins!” Caryss chimed as she twirled around and the two embraced. “It is so great to see you!” After another round of double air kisses Caryss linked arms in the middle of each girl and they walked back to the private room they were having the meeting in. Since Liz and Stacie lived in Los Angeles they were in charge of handling the locations for all things encompassing the project, including spots to hold the meetings and events that would be taking place. The Vineyard was Liz’s favorite restaurant, so there would, of course, be no other place to have this first get-together.

            “I hope you’re rested from your trip,” Stacie announced with a smirk as the ladies took their seats at the large, round table covered with a lush, vibrant raspberry colored cloth.

            “Oh? Why’s that?” Caryss asked playfully, knowing all too well exactly what Stacie meant.

            “Toga; that’s all I’m going to say,” Stacie responded and Liz tried unsuccessfully to stifle her laughter.

            “You can’t be serious! I am NOT--” Caryss started, but stopped mid-protest as two people she didn’t recognize entered the room. Caryss, Liz, and Stacie stood up as the two people approached the table and introductions were done.

            “Good Afternoon,” Caryss began, extending her hand. “I’m Caryss Martin and I’m heading up this campaign. Let me introduce Elizabeth Jones, Public Relations, and Stacie Smith, Artistic Design.”

            “Pleasure to meet you Ms. Martin, I’m Trevor Barrett, one of the main organizers for Heal The Bay, and this is Laurie Darnell, my assistant.”

            “Please, it’s Caryss,” she said blushing, as the tall, dark and handsome Trevor Barrett took her hand in his and raised it to his lips, kissing it gently.

            Neither one has the initials NC…what is going on? Caryss thought to herself as all five took their seats around the table. Maybe I should ask if we are expecting another person to arrive. Before she could open her mouth to ask that question, Laurie spoke up as if she had been reading Caryss’s mind.

            “There was supposed to be another gentleman joining us but he was held up with some other business. He is our biggest supporter for the organization and is very excited about working with the three of you. He sends his apologies for missing this meeting, but we will fill him in on everything that happens.” Trevor gave his assistant an approving nod and Caryss got the feeling that there was more to their relationship than just business.

            Before Caryss had a chance to ask if this mystery person’s initials were NC, Trevor jumped right in and got down to business. Well, at least I know NC is a “he” now, she thought as she pulled out her binder that contained all of her ideas and rough drafts for the new slogan and design for the ad.

            Once Caryss had gotten done presenting her ideas and the group had done some brainstorming and finalizing of what would be done, Trevor cleared his throat and stood up.

            “Well ladies, now that we have the hard part out of the way, I have an announcement to make,” he began, smiling at curious twinkle in Caryss’s eye. “I didn’t want to say anything before because I didn’t want the pressure to overwhelm your ideas and such, but we have a big development in the launching of the new ads. Heal the Bay has been doing remarkably well with donations from a lot of people, but with the new slogan and look to our ads, we decided that it would be a great idea to host a fundraising gala next month to showcase the new stuff and try and create a bigger donation base.”

            “Wow,” Liz mumbled under her breath, trying to keep her excitement at bay. “A gala is a great idea.”

            “I agree,” said Laurie, giving Trevor a sexy wink.

            “It’s basically just a great advertising tool to bring together the wealthy celebrities and ocean lovers in the area. Having a fresh look that will appeal to new supporters is just an added benefit. And since you ladies are going to be working so hard on getting this ‘fresh look’ ready for us, you absolutely have to be there to bask in the glory and success it will surely bring this great cause.” Trevor smiled once more and took his seat once more.
           
            “He must have practiced that in the mirror like twenty times before he got here,” Stacie whispered in Caryss’s ear quiet enough for Trevor not to here. Caryss started to giggle, and Stacie kicked her under the table to get her to stop.

            “Ow,” Caryss cried softly as she bent over slightly to rub her sore leg. She didn’t notice Trevor looking intently down her shirt or his tongue darting in and out of his mouth as he repeatedly licked his lips.

            “What a perv,” Stacie whispered into Liz’s ear. “Remind me later to warn Caryss that Trevor will probably try more than once to score with her.”

            “Yeah, I think you’re right,” agreed Liz as she too watched in disgust as Trevor ogled Caryss’s goodies. “Alright everyone, this was a very productive meeting,” Liz started loudly, trying to break the stare that Trevor had locked on Caryss. “The plan is to meet at our firm in the boardroom at 10:00 tomorrow morning. We’ll see all of you there.”

            Laurie nudged Trevor in the ribs as she noticed him staring at Caryss and he looked away from her ample bosom to his “assistant” sitting next to him. “Are you ready to go?” he asked Laurie in a voice that reeked of fake affection. Laurie simply nodded her head, feeling that her fifteen minutes of fame in the eyes of her boss were quickly coming to an end as he set his sights on his newest fling.

            After Laurie and Trevor were gone, Liz and Stacie turned to Caryss with a look of concern on their faces. “Trevor was totally checking you out, and I’m not talking like he was just giving you a once over. He was, like, planning what kind of fruit to eat out of your cleavage,” Stacie said in all seriousness.

            “What? No he wasn’t. I didn’t see him looking at me at all. He seems like a perfect gentleman. I don’t know what you two are so worried about,” Caryss said with a sigh. “I’m going to the ladies room. I’ll be right back. And then, I want to know exactly what you mean when you say ‘Togas’, got it?”

            Liz and Stacie began to giggle as Caryss pushed back her chair and stood up.

            “He is so her type, she’s going to fall right into his trap,” said Liz as Caryss walked out the door towards the restroom. “She has the worst judgment in men. She goes for the tall, dark, handsome one and gets burned every time.”

            “Maybe she’s smartened up since that thing with Jeremy last year,” responded Stacie, trying to give her absent friend the benefit of the doubt. “I really don’t think she would fall for that ‘I love you so much, go to bed with me and I’ll make all your dreams come true, you were a great lay, see ya later’ crap again. And that’s all she’d get from Trevor, plus maybe an STD.”

            “I hope you’re right. I don’t want her to get hurt again,” said Liz as she stood up and grabbed her purse off the table. “Let’s meet her by the bathroom; that way we can fill her in on tonight’s plans while we are on our way to your place.”

            “If Liz and Stacie are right and Trevor does think he’s getting a piece of Caryss cake, he better think again,” she said into the mirror as she washed her hands in the bathroom. “One, screwing a co-worker is always a bad idea; and two, he’s the type of guy I’ve always gone for in the past and gotten hurt. There is no way that is going down.” She dried her hands, scrunched her hair a little and walked out of the restroom.

            “Ready?” asked Liz sweetly as Caryss emerged through the door of the bathroom.

            “Not until you tell me what is going on tonight!”

            “We’ll tell you on the way. We have to go to Stacie’s apartment and get ready.” Caryss gave them a disapproving look, causing both girls to start laughing.

            “Don’t even front! You had so much fun last time and you’ll have just as much fun this time. Plus, we’ll be wearing something a lot sexier than fruit this time!” laughed Stacie as she grabbed Caryss by the arm and pulled her towards the doors that led outside into the bright, warm sunshine.

Chapter 4

Chapter 4

            “Okay, sit down in the living room and I’ll be right out,” Stacie told Caryss as she pushed open the front door to her apartment and the girls walked in. “Liz, come on.”

            The two women disappeared down the hall towards Stacie’s bedroom and Caryss made herself comfortable on the over-stuffed caramel colored suede couch that was placed very tastefully underneath the large bay window in the living room that overlooked the patio.

            Five minutes later Caryss heard giggling coming from the hall and Liz and Stacie emerged wearing similar styled but different colored togas. Liz was holding another toga of the same style but different color across her arm and as she walked over to the couch she held it out for Caryss to take.

            “Just go put it on. You are going to feel like a Grecian princess, trust me,” Liz coaxed as Caryss stuck her tongue out at her and rolled her eyes. With a huff and sneer, Caryss hoisted herself off the couch, grabbed the toga from Liz and walked down the hall into Stacie’s room to put it on.

            “Wow,” Caryss whispered as she looked at herself in the full length mirror once she had put the costume on. “This is definitely sexier than fruit.” She opened the door and walked out of Stacie’s room back into the living room.

            “We are going to stop traffic and attract quite a few guys tonight fo sho,” Caryss admitted playfully as she came into Liz and Stacie’s view. “You guys were right, this is quite amazing. I almost feel like I’m wearing a designer gown instead of a toga!”

            All three togas had a silk body and empire waistline. Golden jewels and trim accented the waistline around the toga and sheer material the same color as the silk went over the toga from the waistline down to the bottom of the costume. The necklines were asymmetrical and cut up from the right arm pit, went directly across the chest above the girls’ bust lines then connected on the top of the left shoulder, leaving the entire right shoulder bare. Liz’s was a vibrant shade of tangerine, Stacie’s was a bright periwinkle and Caryss’s was a brilliant shade of green, similar to the color of a perfectly manicured lawn.
           
            “All right ladies, now for the finishing touches,” announced Liz as all the headed into the bathroom. They fixed their hair, applied dramatic makeup, each girl accentuating her own best features, and a few dabs of body glitter to complete the look. “I think we are ready!” Liz said with a smirk as she gave a sideways glance at Stacie.

            “I saw that!” Caryss stammered as she turned to the two women and stared them square in the eyes. “Where are we going?”

            “I’m going to see if the limo is here yet, you explain it to her,” said Liz with a laugh as she ducked out of the bathroom, relieved to be out of the firing zone for the time being.

            “Limo? Liz—dammit, SOMEONE tell me what is going on!” Caryss continued to squeak, sounding very similar to a tea pot whistling on the stove.

            Stacie could hardly stop laughing enough to talk, and decided to stop trying and instead grabbed Caryss by the arm once more and dragged her out of the bathroom. “Just get your purse and come on,” she gasped between fits of laughter.

            “Limo’s outside waiting,” piped in Liz as each girl put costume-appropriate sandals on and shoved as many belongings as they could into their individual matching bags. A minute later they were out the door and Liz and Stacie were pulling Caryss down the stairs and into the limo parked by the curb.

            Once the girls were settled in the limo and each had a glass of bubbly in hand, Caryss spoke up. “Okay girls, I have to admit that I am already having a great time. These costumes are uber-sexy. But I don’t want anymore surprises; just tell me what the plan is for tonight so that way I can deal with it and enjoy myself.” She gave Liz and Stacie pleading looks, hoping they would remember how much she hated surprises and being kept in the dark.

            After exchanging glances and some non-verbal communication, Liz and Stacie sighed. “Alright fine, here’s the deal,” Stacie started. “We are going to dinner at Bellini’s and then we are going to Chubby’s. We are going to be stupid, and carefree, get very drunk since we have this limo to drive us around all night, maybe get lucky if it’s in the cards, and just have an all-around fun-ass time, okay?”

            Caryss started laughing at the expression on Stacie’s face and the tone of her voice and nodded her head in agreement.

            During dinner, they went through three rounds of appletinis and one bottle of Lambrusco. They each ate their favorite Italian dish; Caryss had manicotti, Liz had fettuccine with an Alfredo sauce, and Stacie had sun-dried tomato pesto with angel hair pasta. After they finished eating, and more importantly drinking, they headed back out to the limo for the journey to their next destination.

            Twenty-two minutes later they pulled up outside Chubby’s, the party hotspot for the not so rich and famous. Chubby’s was a “something for everybody” twenty-one and up place, with two bars, three dance floors with all different music types, an area with pool tables, dart boards and various video game and gambling-type machines, and Liz’s favorite, a karaoke bar.

            “Should we tell her about the karaoke contest that starts at 11:00 or just enter her and let her sweat it out once she gets up there?” Stacie asked quietly in Liz’s ear as they exited the limo.

            “No, just get some more drinks in her and she’ll go up there and sing a few times on her own and get comfortable. Then when the contest starts, we’ll enter her.” Stacie just winked at Liz in confirmation and the three ladies walked into Chubby’s arm in arm.

 

Chapter 5

Chapter 5

          As Caryss, Liz, and Stacie walked through the doors to Chubby’s, Caryss heard “Thank you NC, everyone give it up for NC,” booming over speakers from somewhere inside.

          “Did they just say ‘NC’,” Caryss asked hysterically, her words slurring slightly from the numerous drinks she had already ingested.

          “Huh? C’mon, let’s hit the bar,” said Liz, ignoring what Caryss had asked and dragging her friend up to the bar. Within seconds Caryss had another drink in her hand and her mind had floated away from trying to figure out if “NC” was in the building.

          “I think I want to sing,” Caryss shouted energetically as she downed her drink.

          “Phase one complete,” giggled Stacie, speaking in her best Dr. Evil voice.

          “Which one of you biotches is going to come up there with me and sing?” Caryss asked, leaning into Liz and Stacie.

          “How about you do the first one by yourself, and when we finish our drinks, we’ll do one together?” Liz suggested with a devilish grin.

          “Deal!” Caryss shouted, and then she strutted over the table where the karaoke books were and flipped through one until she found the song she wanted. She grabbed a sign-up sheet and filled in the blanks—

          Name: Caryss
            Song Title: I Wanna Dance With Somebody
            Song #: KB-1404
            Reason For Picking This Song (if any): I’m tired of
            dancing with losers; I wanna dance with somebody
            who loves me!

          She walked up to the karaoke DJ and handed him the slip of paper then sauntered back over to the table where Liz and Stacie were sitting, watching her with amusement.

          “So what song did you pick sweetie?” Stacie asked as Caryss tried and failed to hoist her tipsy self up onto the bar stool.

          “You’ll find out,” she threw back as she finally managed to make it up onto the bar stool. “I think I need a glass of water.”

          “I’ll get it babe,” said Stacie with a smile. When Stacie came back to the table with the glass of water, Caryss chugged it down and slammed it on the table as if it had been a shot of tequila.

          “Done!” she squealed. “You know, if you guys don’t keep me under control, I’m going to get crazy-drunk, and that wouldn’t be good.”

          “That’s the whole point honey! We are all going to get crunked up and have ourselves a real fine time!” Liz joked as she slammed down the rest of her rum and coke.

          As they sat there and joked around, a tall, skinny blond with a flat chest, bad nose and stringy hair entered the bar with an entourage following her like little minions. She walked up to the bar and leaned over on it, causing the bottom of her butt cheeks to peek out from under the insanely short shirt she had the nerve to call a dress. She whispered something into the bartender’s ear, giggled a little, and then took on seat in one of the corner booths along with her followers.

          Everyone in the bar was staring at her, something she obviously thrived on. She looked familiar to Caryss but she couldn’t pinpoint why.

          “Dude, that’s Paris Hilton,” Liz hissed to Caryss and Stacie. “What in the hell is she doing in a place like this?”

          “Is that what she really looks like in person? I never thought an airbrush could actually improve the way someone looks in a magazine that much,” said Stacie with a snort. Caryss and Liz let out obnoxious laughs, and quickly turned their focus away from Paris as she looked their way.

          “Jesus, don’t they have a VIP room in this place that she could go hide in or something?” Caryss asked rather loudly.

          “Well, we do, but it’s full right now,” said a deep, sexy voice from behind Caryss. She flipped around on the bar stool so fast she slipped off the side of it and if the man standing behind her hadn’t caught her, she would have fallen flat on her behind.

          “Thank you,” she stammered as she regained her balance and turned around to face the mystery man that came to her assistance.

          “No problem. Can I get you ladies another round of drinks?” he asked seductively as he helped Caryss back up onto the bar stool.

          “Sure,” replied Stacie, almost too quickly. “I’m Stacie, by the way, and you are?” she jumped in, holding out her hand to him.

          “I’m Jim, my brother owns this place. So what are you ladies drinking?”

          “Why don’t I walk you up to the bar and tell you on the way?” Stacie asked, giving Jim a sexy smile. He nodded and she wrapped her arm around his and walked with him up to the bar.

          “Looks like the cards are right for Stacie tonight,” said Liz with a smile as she watched Stacie wiggle and giggle at the bar with the owner’s brother.

          Ten minutes later they came back to the table with the drinks, and Jim pulled up a stool next to Stacie. “Are you ladies going to sing tonight? I noticed you are staying pretty well put here in the karaoke bar.”

          “Caryss is going to be singing in a little while, and I imagine we will all probably be up at least once, especially if the drinks keep coming!” Stacie laughed as she nudged Jim in the chest with her shoulder softly.

          “Okay everyone, up next we have P. Come on up P,” the karaoke DJ announced into the microphone.

As everyone looked around trying to figure out who “P” was, Paris jumped out of the booth, pushing past her “cling-ons” without a second thought and strutted up to the microphone. The music to “Don’t Forget About Us” made famous by Mariah Carey started booming from the speakers and Paris grabbed the microphone dramatically and raised it to her mouth.
         

          “I know you’re here tonight and this song goes out to you,” she breathed into the microphone, trying to sound meaningful but only succeeded in sounding desperate and silly. She sang the entire song erroneously, hitting wrong notes and singing the wrong lyrics even though the words popped up right in front of her on the large television screen. It’s possible that she was trying to improvise and create her own version of the hit song, but if that was her intention, she failed miserably and in a rather embarrassing manner.

          When the song came to an end she struck an awkward pose, and it appeared that she was waiting for wild applause to break out and the person she dedicated the song to to come running up to her and whisk her off into the warm, balmy night. Instead, she was met with a few random claps and some stifled laughter, but most of the people in the room looked down at the drinks in front of them or began talking to someone else, as if trying to pretend they hadn’t been paying attention to the hideous performance they had just been involuntarily purvey to.

          As soon as Paris realized she was not getting the reception she wanted, she looked over at her group of followers sitting in the booth and shot them a glare that read “If you want to ride home in my limo tonight bitches you better start clapping and cheering right now” and the entire corner of the room erupted wildly with applause and screams.

          “Thank you so much,” she said sweetly into the microphone, then replaced it into its stand and walked back to “her corner” of the bar.

          “Too bad the VIP room is full tonight,” said Stacie with another snort. “Cause maybe we wouldn’t have had to witness that shit if she had been up there with her posse!” Jim started laughing and he bent down and kissed her on the cheek. “Hey, by the way, I didn’t even know this place had a VIP section. Who comes here that needs a private section? This is not a Hollywood hangout; that’s why I like coming here!”

          “Well, we usually don’t get the Paris Hilton type here, but we do get some famous people. This is the best karaoke bar around you know!” Jim replied with a smile. He looked over at the karaoke DJ who was pointing at Caryss as he walked up to the microphone. “I think you’re up kiddo.”

          “Now, we have Caryss singing for us. Come on up Caryss,” the DJ said as Caryss gulped and slowly slid off the bar stool.

          “Why do I have to be the follow-up act to the diva?” she grumbled as she planted her feet on the ground and walked up to the microphone. Liz, Stacie and Jim covered their mouths with their hands so Caryss wouldn’t see them laughing at the comment she made.

          “That’s too funny,” said Liz and she took another sip of her drink. “She’s going to blow this place out of the water though, you just watch.”

          “Caryss is tired of dancing with the losers, she wants to dance with somebody who loves her!” the DJ announced as Caryss approached the “stage”. Liz and Stacie let out loud bursts of encouragement, a few other people in the bar followed suit.

          “I didn’t think you were actually going to tell everyone my reason for picking this song,” she mumbled to the DJ as she grabbed the microphone from his hand. The music started and she positioned herself directly in front of the screen that fed her the lyrics. She clasped the microphone with both hands and swallowed hard as the intro the song came to and end and her part to sing quickly approached her.

          Dammit Caryss, you’ve sang karaoke a million times, snap out of it! Yes, you’re following Paris effing Hilton, but she sucked, and you don’t, so you can do this! She hoped her little internal pep talk worked as she opened her mouth and let the first line of the song flow out.

          “The clock strikes upon the hour and the sun begins to fade,” she sang perfectly on pitch. Yes! Keep going…and liven up a little you old buzzard, she told herself quickly before heading into the second line. “Still enough time to figure out how to chase my blues away.” She started swaying to the music now, her eyes lighting up from the energy and excitement she felt being in front of people and singing again. “I’ve done alright up to now; it’s the light of day that shows me how and when the night falls, loneliness calls.”

          When she went into the chorus she let go of every inhibition she had and from that moment until the last note rang from her lips, she was a star. Halfway into the second verse the crowd was on its feet, dancing and cheering, responding to her every gyration and adding fuel to her diva energy. She was so deep in her own world she didn’t notice all the additional onlookers pouring in from different areas of the club, including from the VIP section.

          As she hit the last note of the song and music faded out, the entire room erupted in screams and cheers, bringing Caryss abruptly out of the musical trance she had been in. Her cheeks turned crimson as she replaced the microphone back on its stand and stepped off the stage. Liz and Stacie rushed up to her, throwing their arms around her.

          “Oh my God girl, that was amazing!” Liz screeched as she dragged Caryss back to the table.

          “Where did all these people come from?” Caryss asked quietly as she hopped up on the bar stool and looked around at everyone staring at her.

          “They gravitated in here as you were singing. It was so fab!” Stacie squealed as she took her seat back next to Jim.

          “Really, that was fantastic Caryss,” said Jim with a smile. “I hope you’re planning on entering the karaoke contest that starts at 11:00. First prize is $500.”

          “Are you serious?” Caryss asked, bewildered. Maybe I will, she thought to herself as a group of people approached the table.

          “We just wanted to say you were awesome. That was really really good,” one of the girls said, motioning with her hands that she was speaking for the entire group.

          “Thanks,” said Caryss shyly, not realizing just how well she had sung. During the next ten minutes, other people approached the table and offered praises and wishes of good luck for the contest, which she had not even entered yet. As the latest “fans” were leaving their table, Liz gasped and poked Caryss in the ribs.

          “Hold on to your shit honey, you’re never going to believe who’s coming over.”

 

Chapter 6

Chapter 6

          “Can I help you with something, P is it?” Caryss curtly asked the blond standing next to her table with her hands on her hips and an annoyed look on her face.

          “You can help me by leaving,” Paris responded in a demanding tone. “I did not come here to be up-staged by some show-boating wannabe in a stupid-a*s costume!”

          Caryss exchanged glances with Liz, Stacie and Jim, and then turned back to the insecure blond standing before her. “Excuse me?” she simply asked, trying to keep her cool.

          “You heard me. LEAVE. Take your gaudy friends with you too!” Jim started to get off the bar stool and intervene in what appeared to be a brewing cat fight, but Stacie put a hand on his arm in protest.

          “Just wait a minute. Give Caryss the chance to defend herself,” Stacie whispered into Jim’s ear as Paris moved a few inches closer to the table.

          “You know something P, jealousy and insecurity is not a good look for you. Why don’t you go back to your minions over there, deal with whatever inferiority complex you need to in order to get over the fact that I sing better than you, and move on with your obviously unfulfilled and pathetic life,” Caryss shot back with a smirk, as Liz gasped, Stacie chuckled, Jim covered his mouth to hide his smile, and Paris reeled back from the table as if she had been socked in the stomach.

          “How dare you talk to me like that! You have no idea who I am or what I can do to you,” Paris snarled as she dropped her clutch onto the ground and rubbed her hands together like she was priming them for a fist fight.

Meanwhile

          He sat on the plush couch in the VIP section only partially listening to the conversation that was happening around him. I wish I could have made it to that meeting this afternoon. I can’t wait to meet her, he thought to himself as he took another drink of his beer.

          “Oh, but wasn’t that sweet of Par-Par to dedicate that song to you, and then sing it like a dying cow,” Stephanie said as she laid her head on his shoulder and batted her eyelashes at him.

          “Ha ha, very funny,” he responded flatly, getting rather irritated at Paris’s constant grabs for attention, especially the public ones. “When is she going to realize that it’s never going to happen, we are never going to be together again, and what we had wasn’t even real?”

          “I don’t know man, but hopefully sooner than later, because this is getting ridiculous and embarrassing for all of us,” his friend Chris responded dryly.

          “Come on up Caryss,” he heard the DJ announced, causing him to almost choke on his brewski.

          “Dude, did they just say the name Caryss?” he asked out loud for anyone to hear and answer.

          “Yeah, I think so, why?” one of the random people in the VIP room responded. His head was reeling with so many thoughts he didn’t even bother answering the question. He jumped off the couch and made his way down the stairs that led from the VIP section to the main floor of the karaoke bar just as the intro was finishing and Caryss began to sing the first verse of the song.

          He watched her intently. He soaked up her every wiggle, her every shake, her every note, her every move. His lips turned up into a smile as she hit every note perfectly and successfully added her own flair to the song. He noted the way her curls bounced as she did, the way her eyes twinkled in the lighting, and how absolutely adorable she looked in that toga. He looked over in the direction that Caryss’s gaze kept falling on and saw two other girls sitting at a table wearing similar outfits.

          “That is so cute, girls’ night out with costumes,” he said out loud to himself as he walked closer to the stage. He cautiously stepped away from the entrance to the VIP section, weary that he would be recognized, but as more and more people started filling the bar to watch her sing, his blended into the crowd easily.

          When the song finished he stood there and continued to watch her. He smiled as he noticed her cheeks turn bright red as people shouted and cheered for her, and he watched her smile and joke with her friends once she sat back down at the table.

          Do I just walk up to her and tell her who I am? I really don’t want Paris to see me. Why am I so nervous? You’ve done this a million time Carter, picked up chicks at a bar, what is your problem? Several times he started walking to the table, but stopped and ducked back into a corner as groups of people would reach the table before him and talk to her.

          “Here I go,” he mumbled as the group of people walked away from the table and he decided it was time to make his move and unmask himself to her. What if she doesn’t even remember there is an “NC”? What if she doesn’t care? Does she even know who the Backstreet Boys are? The thoughts continued as he approached the table, but just as he was stepping up to her, he saw Paris approach from the other direction and he abruptly turned from the table and stood with his back to them, hoping Paris wouldn’t recognize him and he would be able to hear what she was going to say to Caryss.

          He stood there listening to everything that was said, and almost shouted out loud when he heard Caryss tell Paris to go back to her minions, but once Paris started pulling rank and starting in with who she knows and what she can do, he knew it was time to intervene.

          “What’s going on Paris?” he asked her as he walked up behind her. “Upset that someone outshined you again?”

          She whirled around and came face to face with the man she had dedicated her song to. The fiery, mean expression on her face softened as she leaned up and tried to plant a kiss on his lips that he elusively ducked away from. “Aw Nicky, I knew you’d come find me. This girl is saying mean things to me,” she pouted, sticking out her lower lip and talking in a baby voice.

          Nick rolled his eyes and pushed past her, walking directly up to Caryss and grabbing her hand before she had time to react. “You were amazing,” he told her softly as he kissed her hand. “Caryss, is it?” Caryss nodded her head, a look of shock still sprawled over her face.

          Paris stood behind him, her arms crossed in front of her chest and a scowl written across her face. “Nicky, what are you doing?” she asked briskly.

          “Excuse me one moment Ms. Caryss,” he said with a sexy smirk, and then turned around to face the thorn in his paw. “Whatever I’m doing is none of your business. It hasn’t been your business since we broke up two years ago, and it won’t be your business ever again. Stop singing sappy love songs to me, stop following me every where I go, stop sending me emails and leaving me voice mails, stop all contact with me or I’ll get a restraining order, got me?”

          Paris stood there for a moment, humiliation and twinge of sadness bore deep in her eyes. She nodded to him, giving the illusion at least that she understood once and for all that things were never going to go anywhere between them again, and she bent over and picked her clutch up off the floor. “This isn’t over bitch,” she hissed in Caryss’s ear as she quickly walked back to her booth, where she dramatically and noticeably relived every detail to her minions.

          “I’m sorry about that,” Nick said sincerely as he turned back to Caryss and her friends. “Some people learn things the hard way.” He smiled, causing Caryss’s stomach to flip-flop and her heart to beat slightly faster. God, he’s so dreamy. I can’t believe I’m inches away from Nick Carter. Laney is going to die when I tell her! Caryss thought to herself as she tried to figure out what to say this beautiful creature standing before her. Suddenly, it clicked. Nick Carter, NC, Nick Carter, NC…mother of God! No way, no freakin’ way!

          “I’m sorry, I didn’t catch your name,” she said to the blue eyed babe in front of her coyly.

          “Nick,” he said, and then he bent over and placed his hand on her back, leaning into her so that his lips barely brushed against her ear as he whispered into them, “but my friends call me NC.”

          Caryss shivered slightly as those two letters rolled off his tongue and crept so sweetly into her ear drums. “NC huh?” she began, shaking her head slightly in hopes of breaking the fog that was settling over her senses. “Well, then it would seem that you already know quite a bit about me.” She winked mysteriously at him, which caused him to smile broadly.

          “I take it you found her suite to your liking?” he threw back at her, the flirtatious between them getting harder and harder to control. “I personally walked through it and made sure that everything was set up perfectly.”

          Oh my God, he was in my hotel room…Nick Carter, a Backstreet Boy, was in my hotel room! I am going to die! “I did in fact like my suite very much. Thank you, by the way.”

          He smiled at her, trying to figure out what she was thinking underneath her cool as a cucumber exterior, but he could not read her eyes, something he was usually so good at. She’s going to be a tough nut to crack, I think. Maybe I’ve met my match, he thought to himself as she turned toward her friends he had not yet been introduced to and began to giggle with them about something. There is definitely something about her, I am so drawn to this woman, before I even met her I gravitated towards her, I don’t know what or why, but I cannot wait to find out.

 

Chapter 7

Chapter 7

          Throughout the next hour, Nick sat at the table with Caryss, Stacie, Jim, Liz and David, the guy that Liz started flirting with shortly after the whole episode with Paris, and became well acquainted with them all, especially the three women he would be working with for the Heal the Bay campaign. They all talked and laughed, partially watched and listened to the people singing karaoke, and Jim continued getting rounds from the bar on the house.

          At 10:45 the DJ grabbed the microphone and announced that entry into the karaoke contest was about to begin and would end at 11:00 on the dot. Liz elbowed Caryss when the DJ was done talking and gave her the “get your butt up there and enter” look.

          “Alright, alright, hold your horses,” Caryss giggled as she took another drink of her Corona with a lime. “I have no idea what to sing though!”

          Nick leaned over, whispered something in her ear, then got up from the table and walked over to the area where the karaoke books were sitting. Caryss looked around into the questioning eyes of everyone still seated at the table and simply shrugged her shoulders and smiled demurely.

          “We’re going to do a duet, so I better get over there and help him find a song before we end up singing Nirvana or something!” she said casually as she winked at Liz and then at Stacie. She slid off the bar stool and joined Nick, who was flipping through the binders frantically.

          Liz leaned into Stacie and flashed her a cheeky smile. “Looks the cards are right for all of us tonight,” she said quietly. Stacie giggled slightly, and then turned her focus back to Nick and Caryss. He had one hand on the small of her back and the other was flipping the laminated pages in the binder, and they both were hunched over the books, appearing to be very concentrated on the task at hand.

          Five minutes passed, then ten, and finally Liz jumped off her bar stool and scurried over to them. She stopped inches behind them, placed her hands on her hips and started tapping her foot on the ground.

          “A-hem,” she said, making a sound like she was clearing her throat. “You two only have five minutes left; what is taking so long?”

          “I think I found it,” said Caryss with a smile as she turned around to face Liz.

          “Well?” responded Liz, trying to keep the annoyed tone in her voice.

          “Yes, well?” mimicked Nick, as he put his hands on his hips and tapped his foot like Liz was doing. Caryss starting laughing, which caused Liz to start laughing, and both girls hung onto each other for dear life as they laughed and laughed, almost falling over as they did so.

          “Atlantic Star, ‘Always’, sign us up,” she squeaked between fits of laughter. Nick filled out the sign up sheet and walked it up to the DJ. The DJ took it from his hand and then looked at his watch.

          “You should sign up too Lizzie, you know you can sing,” said Caryss as she walked arm in arm with her friend back to the table. “And I think Stacie and Jim should do a duet together!” she said when they were close enough to the table for Stacie and Jim to hear.

          “I’m game if you are,” said Jim with a smile. Stacie shot him a surprised look, and didn’t know what to say.

          “Are you a closet karaoke singer?” she asked him playfully, trying to stall.

          “Are you a chicken?” he shot back mischievously.

          “Hurry folks, open entry ends in three minutes,” the DJ announced from the stage as he continued to program his equipment. When the three minutes were up, Liz, Stacie and Jim were the only other people signed up.

          “Wow, this is going to be some contest,” said Stacie with a mouth full of sarcasm. “A Backstreet Boy and a diva singing together, another diva singing by herself, and me and Jim,” she continued, but smiling the entire time. “Anyone want to place bets on who the winner will be?”

          “Just get your butts up there and sing,” said Caryss with a smirk. First up was Stacie and Jim performing a truly unique rendition of “Pretty Fly for a White Guy” made famous by Offspring, then Liz was up with a karaoke classic “I Touch Myself” made famous by The Divinyls, and finally Caryss and Nick hopped onto the stage with their song “Always” made famous by Atlantic Star. As they began to sing, Paris and her entourage loudly exited Chubby’s in protest, but no one really seemed to care.

          When all the was said and done, there was, naturally, a three way tie for a winner, but much to everyone’s surprise, instead of having to split the $500 three ways, each “act” got $500, something that Stacie was sure Jim had a hand in since his brother did own the bar!

          “How many lap dances can I get for $500,” Nick whispered seductively in Caryss’s ear as he walked up behind her and placed his hands firmly on her hips. She twirled around to face him, her eyes twinkling with flirtatiousness and alcohol.

          “You, mister, are going to get me in trouble I just know it,” she responded, leaning in him. He wrapped his arms around her and pulled her into a tight, intimate hug. He held her for a minute, taking in the sweet scent of her perfume and body lotion mixed together, completely in awe of how even in bar the scent still lingered. Little did he know, she was doing and thinking the exact same thing. When they released each other, Caryss blushed a little, afraid that Nick could see right through her, and turned to look at her friends, who were too busy with their guys to have noticed the tender moment she had Nick had just shared anyway.

          “I feel like dancing; do you feel like dancing?” Nick asked as he took a swig of his drink. Cause I sure would love to see the way you move.

          “Yeah, I do actually,” she admitted, the alcohol numbing the apprehension and nervousness she would have normally felt if Nick Carter wanted to dance with her. “Do you want to go find a dance floor?”

          “Actually, I was thinking of going someplace else. There’s this really hot club downtown and it usually gets poppin’ about now,” he said, flashing her that sexy smile she was finding very hard to resist. “Find out from Liz and Stacie if they want to go too, that way I can call ahead and make sure we have enough spots reserved in VIP.”

          Caryss frantically pulled Stacie and Liz away from their boy toys and dragged them into the ladies’ room.

          “Nick wants to go downtown to a dance club, you guys in?”

          “Hello? Duh!” responded Stacie, trying to keep a straight face and keep up the façade that she was being serious.

          “Oh my God girls, what am I doing? Am I supposed to have sex with Nick Carter tonight? And then just go on working with him for this campaign like nothing ever happened? I don’t know if I can do that! I’ve been the one night stand before, and I didn’t like it!” Tears started to well up in Caryss’s eyes, another product of the alcohol.

          “Sweetie, to tell you the truth, I don’t think that’s how he sees you,” started Liz as she pulled her friend into a hug. “I mean, the guy hooked you up in a suite, left you mysterious notes, and now he’s been hanging with us all night. Think about it.”

          “She’s right babe. Normally when guys are shooting for a one night stand, they pull the girl away from her friends as a way to keep it as un-personal as possible. They separate, alienate, placate, desecrate, and then vacate. You know it, I know it, Liz knows it, and every guy sure as hell knows it. I agree with Liz, I don’t think that’s where this is headed.”

          I hope that isn’t where this is headed, because I don’t think my heart can take another crack in it. She took a few deeps breaths, nodded her head in agreement, and the three girls walked out of the bathroom to find the guys and head to the club downtown.

 

Chapter 8

Chapter 8

          As the three couples piled into the limo and made the trip downtown to the dance club, Nick’s cell phone rang.

          “Hey, what’s up?” he said into it after he flipped it open. “Okay, yeah, yeah, we’re on our way there right now, uh-huh, uh-huh, yep, okay bye.” He flipped the phone shut and then looked around the limo at the five people staring at him with blank stares on their faces.

          “Life of a pop star,” he said quietly with a smile, shrugging his shoulders as he did so, and then quickly tried to get all five of them into a group conversation about basketball. Ten minutes later they pulled up outside the night club, Emerald, and started exiting the limo one by one.

          “Are you sure we’re going to get in?” Caryss asked cautiously as she exited the limo. She glanced at the long line of people waiting to get in, her eyes landing on two girls staring in her direction. They were wearing dresses similar to the length of Paris’s, their boobs barely being controlled by the flimsy material of the dress, and hooker heels four inches high strapped to their feet.

          “Nick, hey Carter, over here baby. Take us into the club with you and we will guarantee that your night will be enjoyable,” one of the girls said as she caressed her friend’s back and then initiated a girl on girl lip-lock that would have made any man’s pants tingle with excitement. “Come on baby, you know you want to be with us instead of them,” the other girl said as she pointed at Caryss and her friends.

          Caryss knew those girls were right, and she knew they were exactly what Nick Carter would want. She started to turn around to get back into the limo. How could I be so stupid? I’m not what he wants, those girls are. Why did I ever believe he could be interested in me? Those girls can guarantee him a night full of kinky, no strings attached sex, and that’s something that I don’t think I want to be able to guarantee.

          She felt humiliated and a single tear formed in the corner of her eye. She refused to let it fall in front of anyone, so she took a step towards the limo. Before she placed her foot back on the ground she felt a strong arm grab her around the waist and hot breath on the nape of her neck, sending goose bumps down her spine.

          “Where are you going?” Nick whispered into her ear softly. “I know what you’re thinking, and maybe a year ago you would have been right. But not anymore and definitely not tonight.” He turned her around so she was facing him and saw the single tear still sitting in her eye. He took his thumb and wiped it away, and then leaned down and kissed her gently on the lips.

          “You’re lips are so soft,” she murmured as he pulled away and smiled at her. She looked back over at the plastic twins and felt very satisfied that they were staring at her and Nick with their mouths gaping open. Nick grabbed Caryss’s hand and led her towards the club, Liz, Stacie, Jim and David following right behind them.

          “Stupid toga bitches,” one the plastic twins said as the girls walked by them.

          “I guess some people get really jealous when they spend so much money trying to make themselves prettier and they see normal girls with dates when they have none themselves,” said Stacie loud enough for the two girls to hear. Liz and Caryss stifled their laughter as they approached the large bouncer with a clipboard in his hand.

          Nick leaned towards the man and announced that NC and guests were here as the man looked over his clipboard.

          “Right this way Mr. Carter. Samantha is waiting inside to escort you to your table.”

          Everyone thanked the bouncer as they filed into the club. As soon as the door closed behind them a sexy, curvy dark haired woman walked up to Nick and introduced herself.

          “Hello Mr. Carter, my name is Samantha and I will be your host for the evening. If anyone needs to check any belongings, please do so now.” She looked around at everyone, noticing that no one appeared to need anything checked. “Okay, well if we are all set it would be my pleasure to take you to your table.” She smiled at the girls. “Cute togas,” she said kindly as she led them all the way through the club and up the stairs to the VIP section.

          As they were walking, Samantha turned back to Nick. “Your other two guests arrived a little while ago. I escorted them to the table, I hope you don’t mind.” Nick just shook his head and smiled at Samantha. Every time he came here she was his host, and she was always very professional and friendly.

          Caryss looked at him questioningly, wondering why he invited other people to join them but didn’t tell her. Whatever, I’m not his mom, she thought to herself, trying to loosen up.

          “I’m in heaven,” announced Stacie as she looked around at the dance floors. “Please tell me you dance,” she said to Jim with a smile.

          “It’s your lucky night,” he said as he swatted her on the butt playfully. “In more ways than one!”

          “You are a naughty boy aren’t you?” she threw back playfully as they reached the top of the stairs and were shown to their table. It was positioned in the front corner of the room, right next to the railing so they could see the main dance floor while they sat at the table. Everyone took their seats around the table and Nick peered over the railing until he spotted his friends on the dance floor.

          “That’s my friend Chris and his girl Steph, I was with them at Chubby’s until I came to find you,” he announced to everyone, winking at Caryss as he said the last part.

          Of course, that’s why he wanted to come here with us. He didn’t have a ride so he used me to get down here and now that he’s with his friends again, he’s going to ditch me! she thought bitterly to herself. The irrational and illogical thoughts started running through Caryss’s mind once more as she thought she could read Nick’s intentions like a book. He looked over at her and noticed her entire demeanor had changed.

          “So let me get this straight,” she said with a sneer on her face. “You ditch your friends at Chubby’s then use me to get down here to meet them again and now you are going to ditch me, am I right?” If looks could kill, at that moment, Nick Carter would have been a dead man.

          “I don’t think that’s--” Liz started, trying to reassure her friend and keep her from blowing the potentially good thing she had going with the man she had been in love with since she was fourteen, but Nick held up his hand to cut her off.

          “You, me, dance floor, now,” he simply said, pointing a finger at Caryss. He stood up and held out his hand for her. She looked up at him, trying to figure him out, and then sighed and reluctantly placed her hand into his. She stood up and walked with him down the stairs and onto the dance floor.

          Liz and Stacie looked over the railing as Nick and Caryss danced. They watched Nick grab Caryss’s hips and sway them back and forth to the rhythm of the music. They watched him grind into her seductively and they watched her return the gesture.

“I like him already,” Stacie started, taking a sip of her drink before she continued. “He knew that telling her she was wrong wouldn’t have worked, so he’s showing her she’s wrong instead. He’s a smart man. I hope she realizes he is the perfect guy for her.”

          “With the way he’s dancing, he might be the perfect guy for me too,” responded Liz with a smile.

          “I don’t think so missy, you are all mine tonight,” said David as he grabbed Liz’s hand and pulled her away from the table.

          “Come with,” Liz yelled as David pulled her down the steps to the dance floor. Stacie jumped up from the table and her and Jim joined the other two couples on the dance floor. They continued to dance and drink until around 2 am, then it was time for each couple to part ways.

          “I think I’m going to call Trevor and tell him we are pushing the meeting back to noon and we’ll make it a luncheon meeting, is that cool with everyone?” asked Liz in a drunken-happy voice as they made their way back to the table to collect their purses before parting ways to get it on with their newfound men. Stacie, Caryss and Nick all nodded their heads in agreement as the girls picked their bags up from the table.

          The three couples walked out to the limo and piled in, giving the driver the necessary directions for every stop. First stop was Stacie’s apartment and she and Jim climbed out, thanking everyone for a great evening. Since Liz was currently crashing at Stacie’s pad while her condo was being refurbished she decided to head to David’s house instead of both couples being at Stacie’s, so that was the next stop. Within seconds, Nick and Caryss were alone in the limo heading to Caryss’s hotel.
         
          “Nick, I’m really sorry for the way I acted at the club,” she started, but he stopped her before she could continue. He leaned over and pushed her back on the seat so that she was laying down and he was hovering over her. He started kissing her passionately, his hands freely roaming her toga-clad body. The silk felt sensational under his fingers as he groped and touched every inch of her.

          “Let’s continue this inside,” Caryss gasped as she tried to catch her breath. The car rolled to a stop underneath the over-hang at the front entrance to the hotel and the two lovebirds quickly jumped out and ran through the lobby to the elevators.

Chapter 9

Chapter 9

          Nick and Caryss ran down the hallway toward Caryss’s suite after exiting the elevator on the 15th floor. They would stop every few feet and thrust their tongues into each other mouths ferociously, causing the heat and desire to build up even more. They were loud and uncontrolled with each burst of hot, wet tongue on tongue action, and soon they had people beating on the walls and peeking their heads out their hotel room doors telling them to be quiet and get a room.

          “We’ve got one, we’re just finding it hard to make it there before we tear each other’s clothes off,” yelled Nick back down the hallway as they approached Caryss’s room and he pushed her against the door to ravish her mouth again.
         
          “You are such a bad boy! You are going to be big trouble, aren’t you Mr. Carter?” she asked playfully as she fished around in her purse for her room key. “Shit! I bet I left it in my purse at Stacie’s place.” She looked up at Nick with an embarrassed look on her face, but he just smiled.

          “No worries baby,” he said as he pulled out his wallet and produced a hotel key. “I have your extra room key right here.”

          Caryss paused and stared at him for a minute, trying to decide if he was borderline stalker or just incredibly determined and resourceful. He spoke before she could, as if reading her thoughts through her intense green eyes.

          “The front desk gave me the other key when I did my walk through this morning before you arrived. I didn’t realize I still had it in my hand until I got back into my car, and then I just shoved it in my wallet, thinking I could give it to you at the meeting. I didn’t remember about it until now when we came into this little predicament.” As he was talking to her, he had started moving in closer and closer to her, and by the time he uttered his last word, his lips were grazing hers and his arms held her tightly to him.

          Caryss just nodded her head and then ran her tongue across his full, soft lips suggestively. He opened his lips apart and she took the hint and darted her tongue in and out of his mouth, flicking it across his lips rapidly as she did so. He moaned and his hands once again began roaming her silk covered body aggressively.

          “You move your tongue like you’ve had a lot of experience using it,” he whispered in her ear as he caressed her breasts over her toga.

          “Wouldn’t you like to know,” she panted, her heat rising from the way he was ravishing her body with his hands. Knowing that she wouldn’t last too much longer in the hallway fully clothed, she ordered him to open the door and take her into the suite.

          Nick slid the credit card style key into the door and when the green light showed, he shoved the door open and after picking Caryss up and playfully slinging her over his shoulder like a caveman on his honeymoon, he walked into the room quickly, slamming the door shut behind him.

          “Nick, ssshhh, we’re already going to get in trouble for being so loud in the hallway.”

          “I just wanted to let everyone down the hall know we made it into our room!” He walked over to the bed and threw her down on it like he was spiking a football, which made her start giggling loudly as she bounced up and down on the plush, cushy bed.

          “Wow, you are Mr. Romance aren’t you?” she asked him once she stopped giggling.

          “I can be,” he responded as he put an arm on each side of her and held his body over hers. He bent his head down and ran his tongue up and down her throat, then moved to the side of her neck and gently placed soft kisses strategically on it. “But I have so much fun with you and my playful side comes out quite strong when I’m around you I guess.” He pulled back from kissing her and stared into her eyes. “Do you not like it?”

          “No, I actually do. I’ve never really had ‘playful’ sex. It’s always been get in, get off, and get out.” She looked away from him, humiliated that she had just admitted to him that the guys in her past basically just used her for sex and then left, and pissed that she just ruined the one night of sex that may not have ended the same as the others.

          “Car, look at me,” he said softly, grabbing her chin with his hand and turning her face back to his. “I’m not going to hurt you like other people have. If you don’t want to do this, it’s fine. We can just talk some more, or I can leave, or whatever you want.” He smiled at her, trying to make her smile back.

          “I want to Nick, I want to so badly. I’m just not sure if my reasons are right. And I’m not sure what’s going to happen after tonight or what I want to happen. I mean, I know what I want to happen, but I--”

          Nick crashed his lips onto hers mid-sentence and kissed with as much passion and promise he could muster. He rolled over so that he was flat on the bed and pulled her on top of him, their lips never disconnecting. When they came up for air, Caryss sat up straight, her legs straddling him, and she unhooked the clasp on her left shoulder, the top of the costume falling down instantly revealing her round, perky breasts. She felt a rise in Nick’s pants and smiled, liking the fact that she excited him.

          He leaned up from the bed, his mouth meeting her supple flesh and she moaned with pleasure as he licked and sucked, then twirled her back around so she was flat on the bed again. He shimmied her dress down her hips, then her thighs, and then her legs, and once it cleared her feet he threw it into the air behind him, forgetting about it completely before it even landed on the ground. His focus was on the beautiful creature before him, and the rest of the night until dawn his focus never changed. The pleased each other over and over until pure exhaustion overcame them and they could physically continue no longer.

          Nick got up from the bed and walked to the refrigerator, grabbing two bottles of cold water out of it. Caryss giggled as she watched his bare ass when he walked. He came back to the bed and handed one of the bottles to her. They gulped the water down quickly, and then climbed under the covers together. Nick picked up the phone and called the front desk to set a wakeup call, and once that was done, he held her in his arms the rest of the night while they slept until the wakeup call sounded five hours later.

 

Chapter 10

Chapter 10

          Caryss moaned loudly as the phone rang and Nick picked it up then slammed it back down in the cradle.

          “Time to get up babe,” he said groggily as he rubbed the sleep out of his clear blue eyes.

          Caryss groaned again and pulled a pillow out from under her head and slapped it over her face, trying to block out the world and squeeze in some extra Z’s. Nick laughed at her morning disposition and snatched the pillow off her face in one quick swoop.

          “You’re too cute for words,” he said sweetly as he bent down and planted a soft kiss on her pouty lips. “But it’s 10:00 in the morning and there is no time for being grumpy. Let’s hit the shower,” he ordered as he rolled over on top of her and started tickling her lightly. She opened her eyes, the sunlight filtering into her irises slowly, and the intense shade of green came to life as a brighter, more vivid jade. Nick stopped tickling her and stared into her beautiful gaze, his heart skipping a beat as she looked back at him.

          “You are so beautiful,” he whispered into her ear as he rolled off of her and planted his feet firmly on the carpet next to the bed. She smiled at his kind words and allowed him to grab her hands and pull her to a sitting position on the bed.

          She sat there for a minute, gathering her thoughts and stretching. When she felt ready to face the world for another day, she lifted herself off the bed and stumbled into the bathroom to join Nick in the shower.

          Fifteen minutes and one quick “shower shag” later, the two were toweling off and there was a knock at the door.

          “Room service,” the person on the other side of the door announced, as Nick wrapped a towel around his waist and went to open the door. Caryss slipped into the hotel issued white terry cloth robe that was hanging on a hook in the bathroom and walked over to the table and sat down.

          “Hungry?” Nick asked as he piled his plate full of food. “There’s plenty; I didn’t know what you liked so I ordered a little of everything.” Caryss smiled at him as she grabbed a pancake, two strips of bacon, scooped some scrambled eggs onto her plate and poured herself a cup of coffee. They had great conversation as they ate breakfast, mostly discussing the meeting they would be at in a little while.

          This isn’t what I want to be talking about, Caryss thought to herself as Nick continued telling her all about Heal the Bay. Is he purposely not talking about last night and this morning? I knew this would happen, it always does. My heart is attached to him now and he probably can’t wait to leave. Why do I keep doing this to myself? Maybe I should just make a sign and hang it around my neck that says “Hi, my name is Caryss and I’m easy.” That seems to be all I’m good for in the eyes of every man I’ve ever met!

          Nick had stopped talking during her internal monologue and when Caryss didn’t even look up at him or respond to the question he asked her, he knew her mind was somewhere else.

          “What are you thinking about?” he asked her softly, slowly bringing her out of the bitter reverie she was in. She didn’t know what to say and simply shook her head, trying to dismiss it and went back to eating.

          “You’re not getting away that easily,” he said as he reached across the table and grabbed her hand, holding it loosely in his. “What’s wrong?”

          She inhaled sharply, not wanting to have this conversation. Last night and this morning had been wonderful to her, and even if it wasn’t going to last, she didn’t want the last memories she had of Nick Carter to be him walking out the door after she told him she didn’t want it to end like this. Maybe he won’t though. Maybe he will stay. He was so caring and intuitive last night at the club. Maybe….

          “Talk to me instead of yourself,” he told her, shaking her hand lightly.

          “Nick, last night was great and I don’t want to ruin it by talking about ‘feelings’ and stuff,” she said quietly, knowing from past experiences that ‘feelings’ ruin everything.

          “Why don’t you trust me?” he asked bluntly as he picked up his napkin and wiped his mouth. She looked him directly in the eyes, her mouth opening to fight back, but nothing coming out of it. “I thought I made it clear last night at the club that my intentions with you are not what you seem to think they are.”

          “What are your intentions Nickolas?” she asked, getting very heated by his tone of voice. She felt like he was challenging her, and Caryss always rose to a challenge. “What do you see happening? Are you going to ask me out again tonight? Are we just going to hump like monkey’s every night I’m in LA and then when I hop on my plane back to Chicago we forget this ever happened? Are you--”

          Before she could finish her sentence Nick had jumped out of his chair and pounced towards her like a cheetah stalking a gazelle. He crashed into her with so much force she fell backwards in her chair, both of them slamming onto the floor, Caryss on the bottom of the pile.

          When she realized what had happened, all she felt was Nick’s lips pressed against hers, his hands in her hair, his sweet breath penetrating her senses. She kissed him back, hard and deep, forgetting at that moment about how badly she wanted to stay like this forever and all she could think about what how much she loved him.

          When Nick pulled away, he looked down at her, his eyes filled with mystery and contemplation.

          “I understand that you’ve been treated badly by men before me, and I’m sorry that you have. I also understand that because of your past experiences, trusting me may not come as easily as I had hoped it would. I can’t tell you where we go from here or what is going to happen. All I can tell you is spending last night and this morning with you has been the best time I’ve had in quite a while and I’m in no hurry for that to end. Yes, I would like to see you again tonight. Yes, I do hope we can have mind-blowing sex again tonight, and every night, and every day for that matter while you’re here. And I would like to not think about you going back to Chicago, because when I do, my heart aches.”

          “Thank you,” Caryss said softly as she lifted her head off the floor and kissed him. She wrapped her arms around his neck he helped pull her off the ground. They stood there for a minute, wrapped in each other’s arms, hugging tightly, neither one wanting to be the first to release the other.

          “We should get dressed, we have to leave a little while,” Caryss said as she looked at the clock by the bed.

          “Okay, but when we leave, we’re leaving together,” responded Nick with a smirk.

          “Yeah, together.” Caryss felt a lot lighter as she walked over to the closet and scanned through her clothes. At least I have you for a little while longer. At least I don’t have to say goodbye just yet.

          “I’m going to run downstairs, there’s a clothing store across the street. I need to get something to wear,” Nick said as he slipped on the pants and shirt he had been wearing last night. “I’ll be back in a little while.” He walked over to Caryss and kissed her on the neck.

          “I’ll be here, trying to decide what to wear,” she said with dread in her voice. Nick laughed at the look she had on her face as she stared at her clothes hanging in the closet. He grabbed the room key off the counter and shut the door quietly behind him.

          As he stood waiting for the elevator, he reflected on last night and this morning. “She’s so perfect for me, but so afraid of me leaving her,” he thought out loud as he watched the numbers on the elevator climb to fifteen. “What is going happen when it comes time for her to go home?” When the elevator dinged and the doors started to open, he took a step towards them to enter the elevator.

          “Oh my God!” Stacie screamed as she ran into Nick as she was running out of the elevator. She stopped when she saw who she had run into, and her mouth gaped open.

          “Hey Stacie, here to see Caryss?” Nick asked playfully, not trying to hide the amused look on his face at all. When Stacie didn’t respond, Nick started laughing and motioned behind him. “She’s in the room trying to find something to wear; I’m sure she could use your input. I’m going across the street to get some clothes. See you in a little while.” He stepped around Stacie and boarded the elevator.

When the doors closed and he was out of sight, Stacie exhaled loudly and muttered to herself as she walked down the hallway to Caryss’s suite. “Way to go Stace, way to look like an idiot!” She knocked on Caryss’s door and when it opened, she quickly ran into the room and knocked Caryss down onto the bed, rehashing the horrendous episode at the elevator.

          “I’m so embarrassed,” she concluded as she sat up on the bed and looked at her friend meekly.

          “You are too funny girl. Don’t even worry about. Now help me pick out something to wear!” By the time Nick arrived back with a new pair of chinos, a spring green colored short-sleeved button down shirt with a white t-shirt to wear underneath it and a pair of flip flops, Caryss was dressed, made-up and ready to go.

          “You look great,” he told her as he made note of every curve on her body underneath the summery dress she had on. The dress was a sleeveless wrap around style, with the tie forming at her waistline, accentuating her hips and butt perfectly. It was cotton/rayon blend that swayed when she walked and hit mid-thigh. The off-white with pale pink flowered material exuded the essence of spring and while it looked out of place when she was packing it back in snow-covered freezing Chicago, here in warm, sunny Los Angeles it couldn’t have fit better.

          She completed the outfit with a pair of open-toed mules the same off-white color as the dress and piled her curls on top of her head with a few pins holding it into place. Her makeup was neutral shades of brown and pink, and her lips were glossed with just a hint of pink shining through.

          “Are we all ready?” she asked candidly, trying to get Nick to stop staring at her like she was a steak and he was a hungry lion.

          “Huh? Oh yeah, all ready,” he stammered as he blinked a few times and cleared his throat. He opened the door, allowing Stacie and then Caryss to exit before him, and as Caryss walked in front of him, he swatted her playfully on the butt. “You really look beautiful.”

          “You don’t look so bad yourself; that green is great color on you,” she responded with a smile, feeling the same sexual urge as Nick. Keep it in your pants girl, you’ve got to act professional until the meeting is over, she told herself sternly as they rode down the elevator to the lobby. What she didn’t know what that Nick was giving himself the same speech.

          When they entered the lobby, Derek was waiting to drive them to the meeting. Stacie, Nick and Caryss climbed into the car and reminisced about the happening of the previous night as they rode downtown to Liz and Stacie’s office.

          Up until the moment Caryss saw Trevor again when they got to Stacie’s office, she had completely forgotten about his “obsession” with her. But as she exited the car and once again was ogled by him, she was against her wishes reminded, something that would surely cause some problems during her time in LA.

 

“Good morning Caryss. You’re looking well today,” Trevor said as he held out his hand to help Caryss out of the car. The comment would have been appreciated, had he not been looking down her dress when he said it. As she exited the car and stood up straight, a light breeze swept down the sidewalk and blew the bottom of her skirt slightly up, giving Trevor an extended view of her upper thigh.

          “Good morning girls,” said Laurie cheerfully as she walked up to the car and purposely bumped into Trevor. She saw the way he was gawking at Caryss and it was possible she hated it more than Caryss did. Stacie and Nick climbed out of the car and stood on the sidewalk with Laurie, Trevor and Caryss, different thoughts running through each of their minds.

          I wonder where Liz is, thought Stacie as she looked around. “I’m going to call Liz and find out what’s keeping her, I’ll be right back,” she said aloud as she pulled out her cell phone and walked a few feet away from the group to place her call.

          Why does he do that? Laurie thought to herself as she watched Trevor move closer and closer to Caryss, trying to make a conversation happen that clearly wasn’t going to. I should have known that he would eventually do the same thing to me that he did to his assistant before me. Bastard. He’s not going to get away with it this time though.

          How do I professionally tell Trevor to stay away from me? I don’t want him to kick me off this project, but I cannot go on for another two weeks or a month or however long I am going to be here with him checking me out and licking his lips every time he sees me. Caryss was growing more and more irritated by his looks and his remarks with every passing minute. We’ve been standing here for five freaking minutes and he’s looked down my dress at least a half a dozen times. Note to self, tomorrow, I’m wearing a turtleneck.

          If that prick does not stop staring at her like that, I’m going to punch him, Nick thought angrily to himself as he watched Trevor flirt with and touch Caryss in an unprofessional way. I can’t believe she would even stand for him to be doing that to her. Why doesn’t she say anything to him? His face got redder and redder, and his kept clenching and unclenching his fists.

          “Liz is on her way, she just got caught in traffic,” announced Stacie as she made her way back to the group. “She should be here in five minutes. Why don’t we all go up to the meeting room and get settled.” Stacie ushered everyone into the building and into the elevator. Caryss squeezed next to Nick in the elevator and placed her hand over his, trying to calm him down.

          “I know you’re upset, I am too. I just need to find the right time and place to tell Trevor he is acting inappropriately and he needs to stop,” she whispered in his ear as the elevator climbed to the 22nd floor. “I want to keep things as professional as possible.” Nick nodded his head in understanding gave her a quick peck on the cheek.

          Whatever is going on there I will have to put a kibosh to, Trevor said to himself as he watched Caryss and Nick whisper and touch. No way is a Backstreet Boy going to interfere in my conquest. He snickered to himself as the elevator dinged and everyone cleared out of it.

          Ten minutes later, when everyone was talking and getting reacquainted, Liz came bounding through the conference rooms doors out of breath and appearing a little disheveled.

          “Sorry I’m late, traffic,” she muttered as she threw her purse down and took a seat across from Caryss. Caryss flicked her eyebrows a couple times at Liz, moving her eyes from Liz’s to the dark purple hickey on Liz’s neck. Liz quickly looked down and noticed it was showing, and then grabbed the silk scarf that was adding color to her handbag off and flipped it around her neck stylishly.

          Caryss nodded her head at Liz, signaling that the mark was securely covered and no one but herself had seen it and the meeting started immediately. Caryss and Stacie worked on creating the new look of the logo while Liz and Trevor worked the public relations end of things and started making contacts for the gala. Nick was busy updating the books and making sure the accounting end of the project was right on with some help from Laurie.

          An hour later lunch was brought in and everyone took a well deserved break. They updated each other on what they had accomplished and shared some more ideas on how to improve the project.

          “We are almost done with the new logo, and it only took an hour,” Caryss said with a smile. “I don’t think it’s going to take a whole month to get this campaign finished, thank God.”

          “I agree, it’s going a lot smoother and faster than I thought it would,” agreed Liz as she took a sip of her diet soda. “But that just means more fun time for us.” She smiled wickedly at Stacie and Caryss, and both girls starting laughing in stereo.

          “So I take it you ladies had a good time last night?” Trevor interjected. “Too bad I wasn’t there to keep you girls in line,” he continued, winking at Caryss. “Who knows what kind of guys you picked up and if I would have been there, you wouldn’t have had to worry about who was going to take you home.”

          “Oh Trevor, we did just fine without you,” Liz shot back, rolling her eyes at the thought of “going home” with Trevor. “Nick was there to protect us.” Nick’s face lit up when he saw Trevor’s cloud over and he knew Liz had just verbally kicked him in the junk.

          “Well, how fortunate for you all then,” Trevor concluded as he glared at Nick. “I suggest we finish eating and get back to work.” With that, everyone finished eating in mostly silence and then once the dishes were cleared way everyone returned to the busy state they were in before lunch.

          “Nick, do you think the guys would join you at the gala and maybe sing a couple songs? That would be a good way to attract additional guests,” suggested Laurie as she continued to type away on her laptop.

          “I’ll ask ‘em about it. I’m sure they would,” he responded, never looking up from the work in front of him. “We don’t have anything scheduled for the next four months anyway so it’s not like we have other pressing engagements to be at.”

          Caryss looked up at him questioningly, and he smiled at her. “We are on ‘vacation’,” he said, putting his fingers up as parentheses as he said vacation.

          “Oh, I see,” said Caryss with a smile before returning back to her work. At six o’clock Trevor cleared his throat, stirring everyone out of their work state and back into reality.

          “Okay team, let’s update each other on what we’ve accomplished today and then we’ll call it a day, how does that sound?” he asked as everyone gathered what they were working on and prepared to give their updates. When that was done, everyone packed up their work and started filing out of the conference room. As they all congregated in the elevator, Caryss decided this would be a good time to plan the next meeting.

          “Okay people, we got quite a bit accomplished today and we are way ahead of schedule, so I think it would be fair to say that we don’t need to meet again for about a week. That will give everyone enough time to finish what they’re doing and then we can regroup and go from there.”

          “That’s a good idea because it will take about a week to get the signs and stuff back from printing and then we can see what everything is going to look like for real,” added Stacie with a smile.

          After making sure that everyone had everyone else’s cell phone numbers to contact one another if there were any questions, everyone filed out of the elevator. Trevor walked up behind Caryss quickly to talk to her, but Nick beat him to the punch.

          “Coming with me?” Caryss asked with a cute smile on her face as she turned around to face Nick. He grabbed her hand and pulled her into the car quickly, slamming the door shut before Trevor could open his mouth.

          “Where else would I be, love?” he said sweetly as he kissed her neck. He told Derek where to take them and as the car pulled away form the curb, he couldn’t help but look back at Trevor still standing there with a look of war on his face. This is going to get interesting, Nick noted to himself as he turned back around in his seat and brought his focus back to Caryss.

          “So where are we going?” Caryss asked as they approached the freeway.

          “I want to show you my place.” Caryss nodded, and the thirty minute car ride to Nick’s house was spent getting to know each other better and better. By the time they arrived, they could each have written a short biography on the other person.

Chapter 12

Chapter 12

          “I can’t believe you cooked this, it’s incredible,” praised Caryss before taking another bite of the chicken primavera that Nick had prepared for the two of them.

          “Thanks, I think,” responded Nick with a chuckle. “I’m glad you like it. You really didn’t think I could cook did you?” He watched her take a couple more big bites and thought to himself how cute she looked as she ate.

          “No, honestly I really didn’t. I assumed that being famous you had your own cook or you ate out every night or something like that.” She smiled at him as she took a sip of her wine, and then wiped her mouth off with her napkin.

          “Full?” Nick asked with an amused look on his face. Caryss simply nodded her head and sat back in her chair. They sat there staring at each other, studying one another’s face, trying to read each other’s thoughts beneath their eyes, enjoying the time together.

          “So what now?” she asked, her eyes changing from contentment to seductiveness. He raised an eyebrow at her, thinking to himself how unbelievable sexy she was.

          “Let’s go for a walk,” he said as he stood up from the table and walked over to her. He held out his hand and she took it as she stood up and went with him. He led her outside and onto the beach. They walked in the sand, making light conversation and watching the moon rise high into the sky.

          “Wow,” Caryss said softly as she looked towards the ocean and noticed the moonlight’s reflection rolling over each crashing wave. “I love everything about this. I love the sound of the waves, I love the cool breeze against my skin, I love the magnificence of it all.”

          Nick looked down at her, the moonlight working its magic on her just as it did on the ocean. He watched the wind sweep over her curls and under her dress the same way it had done on the sidewalk earlier that day, but now it was for his eyes only.

          “I love the company I’m keeping,” he whispered into her ear. She shivered, partly from the cool breeze but mostly from Nick being so intoxicatingly close to her. He wrapped his arms around hers to warm her and she melted right into him. She turned her head to look up at him, and when she did he leaned down and kissed her. She opened her lips and allowed his tongue full access to hers which he took complete advantage of.

          As the kiss deepened, she turned her body to his and pressed it into his enticingly. He fell backward onto the sand, pulling her down with him as they continued to kiss. She landed on top of him but he never pulled his tongue away from hers.

          They rolled on the sand so that he was above her, allowing him full access to roam her body as he wished, something she was becoming quite fond of. The kissing quickly turned into more intimate acts and when all was said and done, Caryss had another “first” under her belt.

          “That was amazing,” she purred as she laid her head on Nick’s chest and stared up into the star-filled sky. “I’ve never had sex on the beach before, at least not in any form other than a drink.” Nick laughed at her comment then propped himself up on his elbows, causing Caryss to sit up and look at him. “What’s wrong?” she asked, feeling that something wasn’t right with him.

          “Nothing’s wrong really,” he started, then he paused and swallowed hard. His hesitation made her even more apprehensive and her stomach started to feel sick.

          Here it comes, she told herself, bracing for the crush. He’s had his fun and now it’s time to tell me to get the hell off his property and unless it’s about Heal the Bay, no talking to him again. She was wrong though...way wrong.

          “It’s just that, well, I don’t really know how to say this, um…”

          “Just say it! I’m a big girl, I can take it!”

          “I don’t want you to leave, or I don’t want to leave, I don’t want to be apart,” he stammered, trying to find the right words to express what he wanted to say.

          “Huh?” Caryss asked, her jaw dropped and her eyes bugging out of her head. That was so not the direction I thought he was going in.

          “What I’m trying to say is that I was wondering if you would mind if I stayed at the hotel with you; I thought it would be easier there since it’s closer to everyone else than here. I mean, are you feeling at all what I am? Do you think this could be more than just a month long fling?” He looked at her with wide eyes, excitement filling them like a child anticipating Christmas morning.

          “Nick, I,” Caryss started to respond, then stopped and looked down at her hands, the wheels turning in her head at warp speed trying to process everything she’d just heard and everything she was currently thinking.

          Why did I say that? I’m going to scare her away! I can’t believe I told her that I want to stay with her; we just met! The doubts were running through Nick’s head rapidly as he looked at his new love. He was worried she didn’t feel the same, or that it was too early for her to even feel anything.

          “Just be honest with yourself and with me,” he coaxed, gently touching her face with his thumb. “I just want the truth.”

          Caryss didn’t know what to say. She didn’t know how to form the words to express how much she wanted to be with Nick and for things to not end when the month was over. She knew that no matter what she said it wouldn’t sound right or really convey how she felt, so she did the only thing she thought would prove it. She leaned into Nick and kissed him.

          When she pulled away a minute later, her eyes fluttered open and she looked up at him, trying to see if it worked.

          “Is that a yes?” he asked with a smile as he opened his eyes and returned her stare. She nodded her head vehemently and they tumbled down into the sand again, laughing and taking in the beautiful night.

          A few minutes later Nick looked at his watch and sighed. He noticed Caryss was starting to shiver and it was getting late.

          “Well, I guess we better get dressed and head back into the house,” he said as he stood up and brushed the sand off his body. Caryss did the same, but became frustrated as the sand stuck to her thighs and butt cheeks.

          “This crap won’t come off!” she screeched and her body started to itch.

          “I’ll fix it,” laughed Nick as he picked her up and carried her into the water.

          “No, Nick, don’t!” she continued to scream as the water got higher and higher up on them.

          “I’m sorry, I can’t hear you. What did you say?”

          “Don’t you dare! If you drop me in the water I’ll--”

          Before she could finish her sentence she was immersed in the cold ocean water, all the sand washing away from her skin. She jumped up out of the water catching her breath as Nick stood next to her laughing uncontrollably.

          “Oh, you think that’s funny?” she asked as she splashed him with water.

          “That doesn’t bother me, I like the water,” he sneered back as Caryss continued to try her best at getting him wet or making him mad. “You’re so cute when you’re trying to get even.” She stopped splashing water at him and put her hands on her hips. He grabbed her and pulled her into him, planting yet another hot kiss on her lips.

          “This is going to be a great month, I can tell already,” he whispered as their lips separated and they regained control of their breathing. Caryss slipped her hand into Nick’s and they walked back onto the beach, gathering their clothes before heading back up to the house, completely naked. Neither of them thought anything of it since it was a private beach, but neither of them knew their private moment had been anything but.

Chapter 13

Chapter 13

          “Mr. Barrett, I have what you requested; where and when would you like to meet?”

          “You got it already? How?”

          “After you called me I went to his house. They were inside having dinner so I hid by the beach. They walked right into my lap and it was easy after that. When do you want to meet?”

          “It’s late; let’s meet tomorrow morning at the coffee shop on Sunset at nine o’clock.”

          “Okay, I’ll see you there.”

          “And by the way, clear your schedule for a little while; I’m going to need more than just one night if my plan is going to work.”

          “Consider it done Mr. Barrett. See you in the morning.”

          Trevor placed the handset back in the cradle, then leaned back in his chair as a smile crept onto his lips. He folded his hands together and rested his head against the back of his chair, feeling very content with himself.

          “You’ll see Caryss….soon enough you will see that things are better when I’m calling the shots. That Backstreet Boy is not going to have you all to himself for long, and I know you’ll like things Trevor-style—every woman does.” He let out a maniacal laugh when he finished his commentary, talking to no one but himself.

          He sat in the office of his Beverly Hills home for a few more minutes, completely basking in glory his actions were sure to bring him. When he felt satisfied that things would take a turn for the better in his direction, he stood up and made his way to the door, flicking the light switch off as he exited the room.

          “What took you so long baby? You said you would join me over a half an hour ago,” a quiet voice asked him as he walked into his bedroom and stripped down to his birthday suit.

          “I had some business to take care of, that’s all,” he responded as he slipped into bed with his flavor of the night, which definitely wasn’t Laurie. And that business is none of your business, you little tart, he said to himself as he started the seduction act on his bedmate. Your business is pleasing me in any way I want you to, then getting the hell out. He continued the foreplay until he was ready then had his way with her. When they were finished, he got out of bed and walked into the bathroom. He started the shower and then leaned his head out of the door to address the woman in his bed.

          “I know it’s late, but I have a very early meeting in the morning and I think it would be best if you left now, instead of me having to wake you up so early. Thanks for the great fuck; I’ll call you again sometime.” And with that, he closed the door to the bathroom and stepped into the shower. He knew when he walked back into his bedroom she would be gone.

          Maybe I’ll let Caryss stay the night, he thought to himself as the hot water streamed down his toned body. That way I can hit that again in the morning before she leaves. He let out another crazy laugh, and the wheels kept turning in his head as he continued planning his time with his conquest. Or better yet, maybe I’ll actually start a relationship with her; Laurie’s getting old anyway. I think she’s starting to catch on that I’m with another woman every night that she’s not here and I don’t want to deal with the ugly mess of explaining myself to her. She and Nick can rebound with one another while Caryss and I have our fun. Of course, Caryss doesn’t seem to have the same urge to have me as I have for her, but that’ll change, I’m not sure whether it will be willingly or not so willingly, but it will change and she’ll be saying “Nick who” before she’s done cumming from round one.

          Trevor turned the water off and stepped out of the shower, grabbing a towel off the rack and wrapping it around his body before exiting the bathroom. He smiled when he saw his bed was empty and fell down onto it quickly, throwing the towel onto the floor next to the bed and pulling the covers over his naked body. He fell asleep almost immediately, his dreams flooded with images of all the things he would do to Caryss once he had her in his bed.

          “That whole thing on the beach, that was really fun,” Caryss said with a smile as Nick pushed the DVD player shut and sat down on the couch with her.

          “Yeah, it was,” he responded as he picked up the remote with one hand and pulled Caryss to him with the other. She leaned against him as the movie started, then realized she was leaving a wet mark on his shirt from her hair.

          “Oh Nick, my hair is still wet from the shower and I’m getting you all wet,” she cried with dismay, hoping he wouldn’t get mad. He started laughing as he looked down at his shirt and pulled her back to him.

          “That’s my job,” he said softly as he brushed his lips against hers. “I’m supposed to get you all wet, not the other way around.” Caryss’s cheeks turned a deep crimson and all she could do was giggle at his provocative words. “You’re so cute when you blush when I’m talking dirty to you.” He kissed her again and then they turned their attention back to the starting movie. By the time it was over two hours later, they were both sound asleep, cuddled together on the couch and they stayed that way until the sun’s light filtered through the windows early the next morning.

          When she woke up, Caryss had this feeling that something wasn’t right. She looked over at the clock, it read 7:42. She looked over at Nick and smiled. He head was tilted all the way back, his mouth was hanging open, and light snores were escaping from his mouth.

          He’s so cute, she thought as she tried to smother the bad thoughts with the good ones. What is the deal? Why do I feel like something bad is going to happen? She quietly slid off the couch and walked into the kitchen. She found all the necessary makings for coffee and started the pot brewing. She peeked into Nick’s fridge and was pleasantly surprised to see it stocked with all sorts of normal, delicious items.

          “I was expecting some cans of beer and some left over pizza,” she said out loud, not realizing Nick was standing right behind her.

          “Man can’t survive on pizza and beer alone,” he said in his best caveman voice, causing Caryss to jump. The both laughed together as Caryss grabbed some eggs and bacon out of the refrigerator. Nick began anticipating her needs and had a bowl out and ready for her to crack the eggs into. He then handed her a whisk to scramble the eggs with and while she was doing that, he pulled out two frying pans, a spatula and some tongs. He placed the strips of bacon in one frying pan was she poured the eggs into the other, and they stood at the stove together cooking breakfast for each other.

          This is nice. I’ve never actually done anything domesticated with another man before. I could get used to this, she happily thought to herself as she looked over at Nick. What she didn’t know was that he was thinking the exact same thing about her.

          When the eggs and bacon were done, Nick poured them each a glass of orange juice while Caryss poured them each a cup of coffee.

          “How do you take it?” she asked him as she opened the fridge to find cream.

          “Cream and sugar please,” he answered as he placed a scoop of eggs and two strips of bacon on a plate for her. She put the cream and sugar in his coffee and stirred it first before she did hers.

          “Thanks for getting my plate ready, it looks delicious,” she told him, unfolding her napkin and placing it on her lap as she spoke.

          “Thanks for mixing my coffee,” he said back. It’s amazing how little things like that mean so much, he thought as he took a bite of his eggs. They took their time with breakfast, refilling their coffee cups three times to keep up with the conversations that did not seem to run out.

          “I can honestly say that I’ve never talked this much to someone from the opposite sex in a personal setting before in my life,” Nick announced as he cleared the dishes away from the table. He stopped and looked at Caryss, who was nodding her head in agreement. “But I really like it—and I really like you.” Caryss looked down at the table, hoping that Nick did not see the happiness she felt from hearing him say those words lighting up her eyes; she did not want to scare him away. He walked over to her and lifted her chin with his hand. “Don’t hide those eyes from me. They take my breath away every time I look at them.” And then he saw it, and there was nothing she could do to hide it any longer.

 

          “I’m going to take a shower,” she said as she cleared her throat and stood up from the table. She began to walk away, but stopped when she didn’t hear him behind her. “Aren’t you coming?” she asked as she glanced behind her at him. She let her persistent smile form across her lips again, then she turned away from him and starting walking towards the bathroom.

          As she approached the doorway to the bathroom, she felt him behind her. He pushed her face first into the wall firmly, lifting her hair off her neck and trailing kisses from the nape all the way down to the edge of the T-shirt he had lent her. He ran his hands down her back, around her bottom and to her front, sliding them up under the T-shirt. He ravaged her body with his hands while he continued kissing her neck until she moaned that she couldn’t take it anymore.

          He turned her around so she was facing him, and when he lifted her up she straddled him with her legs around his waist. He used the wall to brace her, and right there in the hallway outside the bathroom they experienced each other intimately for the third time in three days.

          When they were finished, they showered together, taking turns washing each other sensually. Nick lathered the shampoo through Caryss’s hair, massaging her scalp as he did so. She poured body wash on the shower sponge and ran it over his body with her right hand while her left hand trailed after it rubbing him, keeping constant contact between their two bodies. They rinsed each other in the warm water, taking advantage of the double removable shower heads in the stall.

          As the water poured down on them, rinsing all the soap and shampoo away, they kissed. They took turns allowing the other’s tongue to dominate, the smell of their clean bodies invigorating one another, the sensation of hot water falling all over them as they stood there wrapped in each other’s arms over-powering them, the level of affection they felt for each other fueling their kisses like gasoline on open flames.

          “Come on lover boy, you better get packing if you are going to stay with me at the hotel,” she giggled as she broke away from the kiss. He nodded and reached around her to shut the water off. They grabbed towels and dried off, then headed into Nick’s room to get packed and ready to head to the hotel. As Nick was throwing clothes into his suitcase, she looked out the window and onto the beach; and the bad feeling she had earlier rose up in her throat once more.

 

Chapter 14

Chapter 14

          She sat down at a table in the corner of the coffee shop after ordering a mocha latte with chocolate shavings. She pulled the folder marked “confidential” in big red letters out of her briefcase and set in on her lap. She sipped her drink carefully as she waited for her client to arrive, watching every man that walked through the door, trying to figure out if he was the infamous Trevor.

          At nine o’clock on the dot, a very attractive man walked through the doors, and she instantly knew that was him. He had that “I’m God’s gift to women” look about him, but she had to admit to herself that he was very good looking and appeared quite charming. That’s where the trouble is though she told herself as she watched him walk up to the counter and place his order. He gives off the air that women can trust him, when all he is is a snake is designer clothes.

          “Mr. Barrett?” she asked as he walked past her table, obviously searching for the person he was meeting.

          “Can I help you?” he asked as he stopped in front of the table. His voice started off cold and unpleasant, but as soon as he saw the beautiful face attached to the angelic voice, his entire demeanor changed. “How did you know my name beautiful?” He flashed a toothy grin at this mystery woman and sat down at the table uninvited.

          “Well, Mr. Barrett, I’m flattered, but let’s keep this as professional as possible. We have a nine o’clock meeting if I’m not mistaken, so let’s get down to business.” He looked at her suspiciously, trying to figure out how this woman knew he was meeting someone here.
         
          “Who are you?” He hissed as he leaned in closer to her in a form of intimidation. “How do you know my business?”

          She sighed, and then set her cup of coffee down the table. She leaned forward to meet him, and their foreheads were almost touching. This prick thinks he can scare me…her thoughts trailed off as she focused on the task at hand. “I understand that you expected a man to show up here today, but I am more than capable of doing the job you hired me for. If you would like to see the photographs I have with me, let me know, otherwise I think it’s time for me to leave.”

          Trevor leaned back in his chair, shocked that this beautiful woman before him was the sleuth he hired to get dirt on Nick and Caryss, and that she had just talked to him in that forceful manner. When he didn’t respond to her comments, she shook her head and started to place the folder back in her briefcase.

          “Wait,” he stammered, placing his hand on her arm tightly. “Why didn’t you sound like yourself on the phone last night?”

          “I block my number and use a voice scrambler until I am comfortable with my clients knowing my real identity. I do it to protect myself and my clients. So, do you want me to help you or do you want to find someone else?”

          If I didn’t know she was the best at this type of work and I didn’t need her, I would show her who calls the shot right here and now. Feisty little bitch thinks she can control me…I do the controlling, not the other way around. Maybe I’ll have to show her how once my plan is in action. He smiled at the woman sitting across from him then took a drink of his coffee.

          “Okay, I’ll play along. Show me what you got,” Trevor said with a clenched jaw. She placed the folder on the table and opened it, exposing several photographs of Nick and Caryss in all their glory on the beach. “I knew there was a reason I am going through all this trouble for her, she looks even better without clothes on.”

          She raised her eyebrows at him, trying to hide the disgust and filth she felt towards this man. She didn’t know what his plan was completely, but she knew it was something she should probably not have any part of. Too bad he’s paying me triple my normal rate for this, otherwise I might be tempted to just walk away. She swallowed hard, and then began explaining what her ideas were for obtaining more footage and material.

          “I’m not sure what I’m going to do with this stuff yet, but just keep getting me whatever you can. It will all come in handy I’m sure,” he said as she took the last gulp of his now cool coffee. He stood up and walked to the garbage can to throw it away, and when he returned to the table, she was gone. Her coffee cup was still on the table, and as he picked it up to throw it away, he saw she had written something on the side of it.

          “I will call you when I have more…T,” he read to himself. He huffed as he thought about her sneaky escape and then tossed the cup in the garbage. “She’s the best, that’s what everyone says, so just deal with it,” he told himself again as he walked out of the coffee shop and down the block to where his Aston Martin was parked. He slid into the driver’s seat and started the engine. “Well, T, you better be able to get me what I need, or you will be sorry you ever talked to me the way you did.”

          “Yeah, how sorry will I be you jackass?” she yelled as he peeled away from the curb and she came out of her hiding spot from behind a dumpster. “Stupid prick didn’t even I was spying on him, so how good does that make me?” She turned around and walked down the street the other way to where her car was parked, mumbling irate comments about him as she walked. Once she was in her car, she let out an exasperated scream and pounded the steering wheel with her hand.

          “Dammit Tammy, why do you keep doing this? You don’t need the money that badly so why do these dirty jobs? Someone always ends up getting hurt!” She continued yelling at herself for a few more minutes, then started rationalizing and telling herself things to feel better about what she was doing. “It’s just a job. The people that work for the IRS screw people everyday and they don’t let it get to them, so neither will I.” That was the last thing she told herself before putting her car in drive and pulling away from the curb. Her next stop, The Four Seasons, the hotel Caryss had a suite at.

 

Chapter 15

Chapter 15

 

            “Alright kids, it’s that time.  It’s been eleven days since we met at Liz and Stacie’s office and now we have to get together again to finish everything.  I expect that everyone will bring every single piece of work they have done for this campaign with them and I mean everything; every rough draft, every napkin you’ve written notes on, every single scrap of anything you even had near you when you thinking about this campaign, got it?  I’ll see everyone in the conference room of my hotel at 2:00.”        

 

            Caryss let out a sigh as she flipped her phone shut and threw it on the bed.  She looked at watch and noted that she had three hours until everyone would be downstairs in the conference room, ready to finalize the Heal the Bay campaign.  She sat down the edge of the bed and reflected on the past week and a half. 

 

            Being with Nick practically 24-7—fabulous, working my butt off for this campaign every God-forsaken moment for the past three days straight—shitty; but if everyone is done like they say they are, I will have nothing but vacation time until this tremendous gala Trevor is raging about.  And it will probably take me the whole two weeks to find something to wear for the effing thing anyway! 

 

            She allowed her body to fall backwards onto the bed and she lay there for a few minutes almost in a meditation-like state, trying to calm and focus herself for the task at hand that was three hours away.  She was so deep in her own thoughts and concentration that she didn’t hear the door open or Nick walk into the room. 

 

            “Are you sleeping?” he asked as he came into the bedroom and saw her prostrate on the bed. 

 

            “No, just thinking,” she said flatly as she popped her eye lids open and propped herself up on her elbows.  “Are you ready for the meeting at 2:00?”

 

            “Yes m’am,” he responded with a smirk.  “I love it that you’re my ‘boss’ and my girlfriend.”  His comment caught her off guard, seeing as how that was the first time the “status” of their relationship had come up.  She cocked her head to the side as he sat down on the bed in front of her and lay across her outstretched legs. 

 

            “Girlfriend?”

 

            “Well, yeah, uh, I guess, um….”  He stumbled over his words trying to figure out what to say.  Should I not have said that?  Should I take it back?  I can’t take it back, she already heard me say it.  Do I want a girlfriend?  I want her, I know that.  This could work, couldn’t it?  I mean, I can balance a girlfriend and a career, and the fact that she lives 1500 miles away right?  Yes Carter, you can do it!  Does she want to be my girlfriend?  Ask her Carter, ask her!  “Is it okay that I said that?”

 

            She sat there for a moment, trying to decide if it was okay.  I liked the way it sounded, but am I ready to have a boyfriend again?  And how is it going to work when I have to leave?  I know this past week and a half has been the most wonderful experience I’ve ever had, but how much longer will it last?  God Caryss, stop being so cynical!  Take a chance! 

 

            “Yeah, I think its okay,” she said quietly before looking into his beautiful blue irises.  She knew she had to make up her mind and answer him before she did so, because those eyes would make her say anything to keep him around.  Those eyes were both her weakness and her power but she felt that as long as she had them to look into she would be okay.  “So aren’t you supposed to give me a pin to wear, or like a class ring, or a letter jacket or something?”  She grinned at him as he started laughing and then he tackled her upper body, pushing her back down onto the bed. 

 

            “You crack me up you know that?” he told her as he stroked her hair and looked into her emerald eyes.  “You and I are a lot alike, even our sense of humor is similar.  I really think we may have found something special, you and me.” 

 

            “I think you may be right,” she whispered and then lifted her head off the bed until her lips met his.  The kiss turned into another, then another, and by the time their minds had caught up with their hormones they were tangled in the fresh hotel linens that covered the king sized bed, completely unclothed, and covered in thin layer of musky, sex-induced sweat. 

 

            “Well, if it’s at all possible, I would say that was better as boyfriend/girlfriend than it was when we were just friends with benefits,” Caryss breathed as she pulled the top of the sheet up to cover her breasts. 

 

            “Don’t cover those puppies up; I like to look at them!” 

 

            “Nick!” she screeched as she swatted him playfully.  He pulled the sheet down so that her breasts were once again exposed and he brought his lips to them gently.  Caryss moaned lightly, and then inhaled sharply before pulling the covers over them again.  “You better stop, or I’ll have to attack you again and then we’ll end up being late for the meeting,” she warned, trying to keep a stern tone in her voice as she spoke. 

 

            “Okay fine,” was Nick’s reply with a pout on his face.  Caryss giggled at his expression as she propped herself up against the bed’s plush headboard. 

 

            “What do you want to do for lunch?” she asked Nick as he got out of bed and searched for his boxers that got strewn in some random direction during their heated love-making session.  She sat there watching him, amusement and infatuation filling her mind and her heart. 

 

            “I don’t know, what sounds good to you?”

 

            “Well, I’m tired of room service; I kind of want to go to The Olive Garden or Red Lobster or someplace out, you know?”  She looked down at her hands and played with her fingernails.  “Can we?”

 

            He stopped searching for his undergarments and jumped back onto the bed next to her so he was laying flat on his stomach.  “Of course we can, why do you ask like that?”

 

            “Well, I just didn’t know if you were ready for people to see us together, or if you were worried about fans recognizing you or whatever.” 

 

            “This isn’t the first time we are going out in public together you know.”

 

            “Yeah, I know, but it’s the first time since we became a couple.”  Nick chuckled a little at the way she said “couple” and then crawled up on the bed so that he was kneeling in front of her. 

 

            “What?”

 

            “What do you mean ‘what’?  Nothing.”  Damn he always knows when I’m thinking something but not saying it.  He’s good.

 

            “Don’t give me that ‘nothing’ crap; I know you’re thinking something, so spill it.”

 

            “I’m just….happy, that’s all.  I want to be able to tell everyone I see that I’m with my boyfriend and I love him and we are going to live happily ever after, and I’m not sure that taking me out in public is the best thing to do if you want this kept under wraps.  I am not going to be able to control my PDA’s, and I expect you to hold my hand and all that mushy crap, and so maybe I should be locked away in a dark room someplace so that the secret doesn’t get out!”

 

            Nick tried to keep a straight face throughout her declaration, but as she finished her last sentence he could not hold in the laughter any longer.  “PDA’s?” he asked in between his amused fits. 

 

            “Public displays of affection, hello!”  she retorted, trying to act surly because he was laughing at her.  “Jesus, it wasn’t that funny; calm down,” she continued, almost giggling herself at the sound of his laughter. 

 

            “I love you too,” was all he said as he planted a quick kiss on her lips before rolling off the bed to continue his search for his boxers.  She sat there in shock, first trying to figure out if he really just told her he loved her, and second, why he said “too”. 

 

            Did I tell him that I loved him?  Good God, what is wrong with me?  I swore off love all together after the last relationship fiasco and now I have acquired a boyfriend and we’ve expressed our love for each other all in the matter of an hour and a half…how insane is that? 

 

            She shrugged her shoulders and got out of bed to search for her missing undergarments, knowing she wouldn’t be able to rationally answer the questions she just asked herself right now anyway; mostly because love usually is something you cannot rationalize in the first place. 

 

            “Found ‘em!” they both declared at the same time, as they stood up with their own pair of underwear hanging from their fingertips. 

 

            “Should we shower?” Caryss asked, breaking the awkward underwear-induced moment they had just shared. 

 

            “I’m not in any hurry to wash away our mid-day delight,” he said with a sexy smirk as he brought his index and middle fingers up to his nose.  “Mmm, smells delicious.” 

 

            “You are so bad,” she shrieked as her face turned crimson and she grabbed a pillow off the bed and threw it at him.  He caught it and smiled at her, liking the fact that every time he said something dirty to her she blushed.  He walked over to her and grabbed her around the waist, pulling her body into his.

 

            “Is it a bad thing that I find you so deliciously yummy?”  He ran his hand down her back and clenched her butt cheek tightly.  “Hmm?”

 

            Caryss pursed her lips together to keep from smiling as she reached her hand around and clenched his butt cheek too.  “No, it’s not a bad thing at all.  It’s actually, quite enjoyable all the way around.”  She released his flesh from her grip and gave him flirty smile.  “Come on, let’s get dressed and get something to eat.  I’m starving, and we only have an hour until the meeting.”

 

            Nick freed her apple bottom from his grasp and nodded his head in agreement.  I need to eat too, that way I have the energy and strength to punch Trevor in the face when he starts to gawk at my girlfriend again. 

 

            Too bad Nick’s personal thoughts would ring true soon enough. 

 

           

           

 

           

Chapter 16

Chapter 16

 

            Just be cool, don’t look at her body, even though you want to, don’t flirt with her or touch her, just keep things professional.  You don’t want to blow it now.  T has gotten so much ammo for you to use to your advantage, so just lay low. 

 

            Once Trevor felt satisfied with the pep talk he had just given himself, he smoothed his shirt and opened the door to the meeting room. 

 

            “Hey Trevor, just in time,” said Caryss with a smile as he walked into the meeting room.  “Where’s Laurie?” she asked, looking past him expecting to see the bubbly brunette behind him. 

 

            “Oh, Laurie has decided to forgo this campaign with us.  She realized she wasn’t really bringing anything to the table so she backed out.  She sends her best to everyone though,” Trevor answered with a smile, although he was lying through his teeth.  You have to lie though.  It’s not like you can tell them that you dumped her and then fired her, so the lie is required.  He sat down at the table and started removing all his work from his briefcase. 

 

            “Oh, that’s kind of strange actually,” Caryss responded, noticing that Trevor was acting rather different.  “She was on board three hours ago when we were all on that conference call together; so you’re telling me that she had this epiphany within the past three hours?”

 

            Trevor looked up at her with a blank expression on his face and coldness in his eyes.  “Since she’s not here right now, I would say that’s a safe assumption to make, wouldn’t you?”  He sneered at her then turned back to pulling out and organizing the information he had brought with him for the meeting. 

 

            Caryss didn’t know how to react to what Trevor had said and the way he was behaving.  She cast a questioning glance towards Liz and Stacie, both of them shrugging their shoulders, showing neither one of them had any clue what was going on either.  Feeling a little uneasy and quite exasperated, Caryss let out a quick sigh and returned her focus back to getting her material ready to be presented just like everyone else was. 

 

            Five hours and several pitchers of water, coffee and soft drinks later, the advertising campaign was finalized and ready to be sent to the printer.  They had brochures, banners, signs, flyers, and numerous items with the new Heal the Bay logo printed on them just to name a few of the ways they were hoping to attract new donators and spread the word about what Heal the Bay is and does. 

 

            “This is so great, all of it.  And we never would have been able to do it without you three ladies,” praised Nick as he took another satisfied look at all the advertising.  “This is really going to get people motivated to start helping.”

 

            “You know what else is going to motivate, a big expensive gala,” Trevor said with fake enthusiasm and a hint of sarcasm.  “And now that we have the advertising crap out of the way, we better get working on finalizing the plans for the gala.”

 

            Caryss looked around the table from Liz, to Stacie, and then to Nick.  She shook her head and decided she had had enough of Trevor and his bad attitude today.  “Trevor, can I talk to you outside for a minute?” she asked, standing up from her chair and smoothing her skirt and shirt. 

 

            Trevor looked up at her and only nodded his head, all the while trying to figure out what she wanted to talk to him about.  He stood up and walked with her out into the hallway, pulling the door to the meeting room shut behind him.  As soon as the door latched, Liz, Stacie and Nick were out of their seats with their ears pressed hard against the wood door hoping to hear the conversation that was taking place on the other side. 

 

            “First of all Trevor, this gala was your deal, not ours.  The four of us are not going to sit here all night for something that we didn’t have any part in deciding about.  If you need some help that’s something else, but maybe you should learn how to ask instead of going about things the way you did in there,” Caryss said, motioning back towards the meeting room.  “Second of all, what is your problem today?  And don’t lie to me either.  Laurie disappears on us, you’re acting like someone pissed in your cheerios, and you expect all of us to just sit there and take the crap your dishing out; but I’ve had enough.”  She crossed her arms in front of her and stared at him, obviously waiting for an explanation. 

 

            “Laurie and I broke up,” he started, inhaling deeply and putting a sad, innocent look on his face.  “She told me things weren’t working out and she thought it would be best if we saw other people.  I tried to get her to change her mind, but she wouldn’t.  She said it would be too awkward to keep working with me, so she quit.  Now I have double the work to do for this gala and I have to try and find a new assistant that I trust all in the matter of two weeks.”  He stopped and brought his eyes up to meet Caryss’s, satisfaction and cockiness welling within him as he saw the empathetic look on her face. 

 

            “Oh Trevor, I’m sorry,” Caryss said softly as she placed her hand on his arm in a friendly and reassuring manner.  “Breakups are hard.  If you need to talk or anything, I’m here, we are all here, okay?  I understand now why you are in such a bad mood.  Do you need help with the gala?”

 

            Things just keep falling right into place.  Here I was worried about how to explain Laurie’s absence and as soon as I open my mouth, these believable lies just flow from them and bring me closer and closer to my goal.  “I do need help, and I’m sorry I didn’t ask in a better way, I just--”  He allowed his words to trail off, giving an extra boost to his distraught appearance. 

           

            “It’s okay Trevor, I understand.  I appreciate your apology, but I think it would be a good idea if you said that you everyone else too.  Maybe they will be more receptive to helping you if you smooth things over.”

 

            “You’re right.  Thanks for everything.”  He wrapped her up in a close, unprofessional hug.  He pressed her hard against his body, his arms wrapped tightly around her waist.  He felt her breasts pressing his torso and he inhaled deeply so her scent could fill his nostrils.  It won’t be long… I will have you any way and every way I want.  It won’t be long.  He released her to keep up the façade of being depressed and just looking for a friend to cry to, and she gave him a little smile. 

 

            What the hell was that?  I can’t believe he hugged me?  I feel like I should take a shower now.  Something isn’t right with him, and I don’t believe a word he said, but I’m not going to rock the boat and stir up drama when I only have two more weeks of him and then it’s back to Chicago.  Whatever game he’s playing, let him play it. 

 

            Caryss smoothed out her shirt and skirt once again and opened the door to the conference room.  She saw Nick, Liz and Stacie scurry to their chairs and she couldn’t help but laugh out loud at how obvious they were being.  She shook her head slightly and took her seat at the table, placing her hand over her mouth to hide the smile that wasn’t going away too quickly. 

 

            Trevor walked into the room behind her and shut the door.  He stood by his chair and cleared his throat, putting the sad expression back on his face.  “I’m sorry for the way I’ve been acting today.  I’m just dealing with something personal,” he started, casting a forlorn look at Caryss as he said “personal” and then continued, “Laurie quit and now I’m way behind schedule on the gala planning, and I was wondering if any of you would be able to take over some of her duties and help me?”

 

            Everyone looked around at each other, feeling like they were being put on the spot.  No one really liked Trevor, and the thought of having to stay in the same room with him even later to help him was something no one really wanted to do.  Sensing their uneasiness in committing to him, he decided to sweeten the pot. 

 

            “It will only take a few hours to finish everything, and we can order dinner from anywhere you’d like and I’ll pay for it.  It would really help me a lot.”

 

            “Fine, I’ll help,” said Stacie in an unenthused tone of voice. 

 

            “Me too,” said Liz, equally as unhappy. 

 

            “Nick and I will stay too.  We will all work together and get everything done that you and Laurie were supposed to and then we won’t have anything to do but lounge around until the day of the gala,” Caryss concluded with a smile.  “I’m going to use the restroom.  Ladies, care to join me?”

 

            Liz and Stacie bolted out of their chairs like someone lit a fire underneath them and quickly followed Caryss into the hall.  They walked to the bathroom and once inside, Liz and Stacie turned to Caryss with questioning expressions. 

 

            She told them everything that Trevor had said in the hallway and they all concluded that he was definitely up to something. 

 

            “We need to talk to Laurie and find out what really happened between them,” said Liz, excitement building within her at the thought of doing some investigating. 

 

            “Well, let’s see what time we get done here tonight.  Maybe if it’s not too late, we’ll call her,” suggested Caryss.

 

            “No, I’ve got a better idea.  I had to go to her condo to drop off some stuff a few days ago and I say we go to her house and talk to her in person.  I remember exactly how to get there,” Stacie said with a smile. 

 

            “Okay, that’s what we’ll do.  But only if we get out of here by 10:00, which I doubt will happen.  We’ll probably be here until 3 in the morning if Trevor has his way.  I bet he’s only doing this so he can be in the same room as you for longer,” said Liz and she looked at Caryss. 

 

            “Whatever he is doing, we will find out.  He’s not going to get away with it,” announced Caryss with a smirk.  “Now let’s get back so we can get this gala planning over with.”

 

            The three ladies exited the bathroom and walked back into the meeting room, only to find Nick sitting there by himself. 

 

            “Trevor got a phone call and went out in the hallway.  He came back in and said he had an urgent matter to deal with and he had to leave.  He said he’ll handle the planning by himself and he’ll be in touch, whatever that means,” said Nick with disdain in his voice.  Ever since the day he saw Trevor checking out Caryss he has made it abundantly clear how he feels about him, never once trying to hide his ill feelings towards the man. 

 

            “Well good, because I didn’t really want to sit here with him the rest of the night anyway,” said Liz. 

 

            Taking Liz’s cue, Caryss turned to Nick.  “Nick, would you mind of I went to dinner with the girls tonight?”

 

            “No, go ahead.  I’ve been keeping you from them for the past week and a half anyway,” he said, kissing Caryss quickly on the lips.  “Jay called and asked if I wanted to do something tonight anyway, so I think I’ll go meet up with him.”

 

            “Jay?” Liz asked curiously, wondering if he meant AJ, the love of her life. 

 

            “Yeah, AJ,” he said smiling, knowing exactly what she was thinking.  He chuckled a little as he watched Liz’s eyes get huge.  “How about I call you later and let you ladies know where we are, and you can join us if you’d like.”

 

            “Okay,” replied Liz a little too quickly.  Everyone started laughing and Liz turned a bright shade of red.  After one more kiss between Nick and Caryss, the girls and Nick parted ways, Nick going up to the hotel room to change his clothes, and the girls heading to Laurie’s place. 

Chapter 17

Chapter 17

 

            Liz, Stacie and Caryss walked without hesitation into the atrium of Laurie’s complex and onto the elevator, but as they stepped off and walked down the tastefully decorated hallway towards her door, uncertainty and reservation became quite prevalent with each additional step. 

 

            “This is it,” said Stacie meekly as they approached condo 3515.  She pressed the doorbell and the chiming sound could be heard into the hallway where they stood. 

 

            “Wow, that’s really loud,” joked Liz trying to lighten the mood.  The tension in the air was so thick if someone had a knife they could have cut it.  All three had a bad feeling, but they didn’t know why.

 

            They stood outside Laurie’s door another thirty seconds waiting for her answer, but no one came.  Stacie pressed the doorbell again, more so on principal than actual logic.  If Laurie were actually home or going to come to the door, she certainly would have heard the doorbell the first time it chimed and a repeat of that sound wouldn’t make the slightest bit of difference. 

 

            “Try the door,” whispered Caryss, unsure of why she was whispering.  Stacie turned the knob and the door popped open.  “That’s odd…” she continued, letting her words trail off as they stepped into the condo without an invite.

           

             They each spread out in different areas, looking for any sign of Laurie or any trace of where she might be.  Caryss began flipping through pieces of mail on Laurie’s counter and noticed an envelope still sealed with her name and the address of her hotel on it. 

 

            “Guys, I found something,” cried Caryss as she held the letter up for her friends to see.  “She was sending it to me, should I open it?”

 

            Liz and Stacie exchanged worried looks, then turned back to Caryss and nodded their heads up and down in unison.  Caryss tore open the top of the envelope and anxiously pulled out the folded piece of paper. 

 

            “Caryss,” she began reading out loud.  “I don’t know what lies Trevor has told you already about me, but there are some things you need to know.  I’m not sure I’ll even get a chance to mail this before I have to leave; I need to be gone before he gets here.  I cannot go into more detail right now because I don’t know if this will ever make it into your hands and there are certain people that cannot know what I need to tell you.  I will be disappearing for a while, but I will be in touch with you soon.  I really hope you get to read this letter so you know to be careful and watch your back.  Laurie.”

 

            All three ladies stood in Laurie’s kitchen in shock.  It was a good three minutes before anyone said a word.  When the silence was finally broken, it was to all three girls talking at once. 

 

            “Oh my God.”

 

            “What do we do?””

 

            “What is going on?”

 

            The confused ramblings and panic-filled mutterings continued until a sound in the hallway outside the condo interrupted them. 

 

            “Holy shit, someone’s coming.  Hide!” Liz hissed as quietly as she could and the three ladies scrambled out of the kitchen and crammed themselves into the closet in the hallway just off the living room.  They heard a loud thud and knew the door had just been kicked in. 

 

            “She said the door would be open, why was it locked?” they heard a male voice say.  Caryss looked back at Liz wondering the same thing when the door was open when they tried it. 

 

            “I locked it after we came in; I didn’t someone to just walk in on us snooping around a condo that isn’t ours,” Liz whispered in explanation.  She shrugged her shoulders in defense and continued listening for sounds indicating where the man was in the condo now. 

 

            “I don’t see a letter addressed to the Four Seasons anywhere on this counter.  Someone must have gotten to it before us.  We better call her and tell her,” another male voice said, but not the same one as before.  Caryss looked down at her hand and realized she was still holding the letter Laurie was going to send to her. 

 

            Is that what they are looking for?  Why?  What is going on?  Caryss’s mind was racing, she knew she had to talk to Laurie and find out what was going on.  Is she going to know that I came in here and found the letter, or is she going to think that someone else found it?  What does she mean that she’s “disappearing” for a while?  How is she going to contact me?  Her thoughts were interrupted by the sound of a cell phone ringing.  She knew it wasn’t hers, and quickly looked at Liz and Stacie, both of them shaking their heads that is wasn’t them either. 

 

            The ringing stopped and they heard one of the men talking on the phone.  “Are you sure she got it?  Mmhmm, mmhmm, okay, yes, yes, okay, bye.”  Ten seconds later the condo was silent and both men were gone.  Caryss, Liz, and Stacie slowly peaked out of the closet, making sure the coast was clear before emerging fully. 

 

            “What was that all about?  Why were those men looking for the letter?” Stacie asked even though she knew that neither one of her friends would be able to answer that question. 

 

            “They knew exactly where to look and they kept saying ‘she’, so I think that Laurie sent them here to get the letter so they could send it to Caryss,” replied Liz.  “What do you guys think?”

 

            “That makes sense.  But how are we going to let Laurie know that it wasn’t Trevor or someone else that got to the letter first, that it was actually me?” Caryss wondered out loud.  Before anyone could answer, Caryss’s cell phone started ringing.  She didn’t recognize the number on the screen, but answered it anyway. 

 

            “I know you found the letter.  Go to the public library on South Figueroa tomorrow afternoon.  Go into the section where the index books are and look in the R volume of the encyclopedia, the 2005 edition.  On page 247 you will find something important.  Go alone.”  The line clicked and Caryss knew the mystery called had hung up.  The problem was that she had no idea who it was. 

 

            “Who was that?” Stacie asked, worried by the look on Caryss’s face. 

 

            “I don’t know,” replied Caryss quietly.  “It sounded like they were using a machine or something to change their voice.  They said to go the library on Figueroa tomorrow alone and look in one of the encyclopedias because I would find something important.” 

 

            She looked back and forth between Liz and Stacie, not sure what to do or what was happening to her happy, normal life.  All she knew was Laurie had “disappeared”, strange men were looking for a letter addressed to her, and someone going through a lot of trouble to hide who they are had just called her and told her to go somewhere alone for something “important”.  She was a little freaked out and a little hysterical. 

 

            Her cell phone rang again, this time she recognized the number.  After she finished talking, she turned back to Liz and Stacie.  “That was Nick; they are going to Mood in Hollywood and they will be there in about an hour.  He says we are on the list at the door so if we want to go we can.”  She said this with no expression in her voice or on her face. 

 

            “Okay, here’s the deal.  You are not going anyplace by yourself tomorrow.  There is some weird shit going down and we are going to find out what, but not alone.  There is nothing more we can do tonight since we have no idea where Laurie is so I think we should get really drunk, have some fun and forget all this crap until tomorrow,” declared Stacie with a smile.  “We will meet up tomorrow for lunch and figure out how we are going to deal this whole library thing, okay?”  She wrapped her arms around Caryss’s neck, hugging her tightly and then kissing her on the cheek.  “Don’t worry Car-bear, everything will okay.  If anything else, we’ll just ask Nick for help.  He’s got so many connections that we won’t have to worry about anything.”

           

            “You’re right, I just can’t help but feel like everything is going to come crashing down on me.  I mean obviously I’m a huge part it whatever is going on, and I don’t think it’s going to turn out well at all,” said Caryss before she let out a frustrated sigh. 

 

            “Come one, let’s go get ready, go to the club, dance our asses off, get really drunk, have great kinky sex with whomever and forget about all of this for now,” coaxed Liz, trying to get Caryss out of her funk.  “I know this doesn’t look good, but Stacie’s right, everything will be okay.”

 

            Caryss nodded her head in agreement and the girls walked arm and arm out of Laurie’s condo and back out to the waiting car.  They were going to stop at Stacie’s apartment so she and Liz could get some sexy club clothes and then head to Caryss’s hotel to get ready.  They were so busy talking about what they were going to wear and how much fun they were going to have that they didn’t notice the familiar face watching their every move from inside a car parked a row behind them. 

Chapter 18

Chapter 18

 

            “Listen, I don’t want to tell Nick about this whole thing just yet okay?  Let’s just have fun tonight and not mention any of this until we meet for lunch tomorrow, agreed?” Caryss begged Liz and Stacie as they were walking to the front of the line outside Mood. 

 

            “Agreed,” responded Liz and Stacie in unison.  Caryss gave her name to the bouncer and the three ladies were ushered into the ultra-hip night club without a word being spoken to them. 

 

            “Wow, friendly bunch that works here, eh?” commented Stacie once all night club employees were out of earshot.  Caryss and Liz giggled a little and all three ladies walked further into the club, searching for Nick and whomever else he was with. 

 

            “I don’t see him, do you?” Caryss asked over the music that grew louder and louder the further they walked into the club. 

 

            “He’s probably up there?” yelled Liz as she pointed to the VIP section.  The three ladies walked timidly towards the entrance leading to the VIP room and just as they figured they would be, they were stopped by a bouncer.  He looked all three girls up and down one at a time, as if trying to determine whether or not they were hot enough to get into VIP without a name on the list. 

 

            Since this was not the first time Stacie had been to a club like this, she knew his game and squashed it before it really got started.  “Although the three of us would love to do sexual favors for you so we can get into VIP, we are on the list so that won’t be necessary.”  She rattled off their names as Liz and Caryss tried to stifle their laughter and the bouncer stared at her with an un-amused look on his face. 

 

            “Well?  We’re waiting?” chided Stacie, placing her hands on her hips and cocking her head to one side. 

 

            “Your names may be on this list, but if I don’t let you in, you don’t get in; and right now, I’m not thinking there’s anything in it for me to let you in.”

 

            “I’m sure your manager would think otherwise,” retorted Caryss, getting very irritated by the bouncer’s attitude.  By this time a small line had formed behind them of other people waiting to enter the VIP area. 

 

            “Oh, you think?  Why don’t you go find him and ask him you stupid bitch and let the people that belong in VIP get past you.”

 

            “Excuse me, is there a problem?” an attractive sounding male voice said from behind the three girls.  They looked up at the bouncer and saw a sheepish look come across his face.  The man behind them continued.  “Cause if there wasn’t one before, there is now.  How dare you talk to a lady like that.” 

           

            “I’m very sorry Mr. McLean,” the bouncer stammered and Caryss, Liz and Stacie slowly turned around and found themselves face to face with the Sex God himself. 

 

            “Ladies, what’s the problem?” he asked, eyeing each girl without being too obvious about it. 

 

            “We are on the list and he won’t let us in,” piped up Liz.  She was surprised she could even talk considering her legs felt like jello and her brain seemed fuzzy and confused when she looked into his mocha eyes.  “We are actually here to meet up with Nick….and you,” she said awkwardly, breaking the eye contact she had going with him. 

 

            “You’re Liz, aren’t you?” he asked, those beautifully full lips curving into a sexy smile.  “Nick told me about you.”  He grabbed her hand and raised it to his lips, kissing it softly and letting his lips linger against her sweet smelling skin.  Liz turned crimson and Stacie glared back at the bouncer who was standing there dumbfounded. 

 

            “Don’t you feel like an ass right now,” she muttered to him quietly.  He looked down at her and at first she thought he was going to pummel her, but his expression was apologetic and her fears were eased. 

 

            “I’m very sorry ladies.  I should never have treated you the way I did.  Please accept my apology and tonight everything is on the house.”  He gave the ladies and AJ a weak smile and stepped aside to let them into the VIP area. 

 

            Once inside the VIP area, the girls turned back to AJ and thanked him for his assistance.  “I honestly don’t think we would have gotten past him if you hadn’t shown up when you did,” gushed Stacie, feeling a little star-struck for the first time.  She was a closet AJ fan and it was getting the best of her at that moment. 

 

            “You must be Stacie,” he said as he took her hand and kissed it as he had done to Liz’s.  “By the way, some guy named Jim is at our table with Nick, Howie, and Howie’s date.  He’s been looking for you since he got here.”

 

            “Jim’s here?  Oh my God!” squealed Stacie with excitement.  “Thanks again for getting us in,” she shrieked before taking off towards the table and Jim.

 

            “Anything for Nick’s girl,” he responded, even though Stacie was already out of earshot, as he made eye contact with Caryss for the first time.  “Caryss, I presume?” he asked in a funny British accent as he stepped closer to her and grabbed her hand.  He brought it to his lips as he had done with Liz and Stacie and kissed it gently.  “It is a pleasure.”

 

            “Likewise,” she responded with a smile.  She looked over at Liz and then back at AJ.  “Well, I’m going to find the sexy blond guy that invited me here.  I’ll leave you two alone to get better acquainted.”  She gave Liz a coy smile and walked away.    

 

            “Do you dance?” he asked her as they watched Caryss walk away.  She looked at him, her knees turning to jello and her brain getting fuzzy again, and simply nodded her head.  “Let’s see your moves then,” he said seductively and grabbed her hand and pulled her towards the dance floor.  A few minutes later they were joined on the dance floor by Nick, Caryss, Stacie, Jim, Howie and Suzzie, Howie’s date. 

 

            They danced for the next two hours, never stopping to rest once.  AJ was very impressed with how well Liz kept up with him and she was impressed by how much he turned her on.  Halfway into the first song she was ready to tear his clothes off and get busy, but she kept her cool and focused her energy on her dance moves instead. 

 

            The other couples were on and off the dance floor, taking breaks to sit at their table and have some drinks.  Liz and AJ came to the table a few times to chug some water, but usually headed right back onto the dance floor.  The girls were having so much fun, not one of them ever once thought about the events earlier that night at Laurie’s condo.  Even after all four couples left the club and went to a 24 hour diner down the street for some post-club munchies and audible conversation none of the girls thought about it.  It wasn’t until Caryss and Nick got back to the hotel early the next morning and Caryss was plugging her cell phone into the charger that that reality came tumbling back into her lap. 

 

            “New text message,” she said quietly as she looked at the screen on her phone.  Even without any indication of who it was from she instantly knew it wasn’t from anyone she expected.  She opened her inbox and a few seconds later, she gasped and her phone fell from her hand onto the floor. 

 

Sometimes bad things happen to good people…this is going to be one of those times.  Go back to Chicago before it’s too late.

 

           

Chapter 19

Chapter 19       

 

        “Why did I do that?  This is my job and I’m going to ruin it!” Tammy yelled at herself in the mirror over the sink in the bathroom of her West Hollywood apartment.  She took a few deep breaths, then looked back into the mirror at the face of the woman she was not proud to have become.  “I’m like the bullet fired from a gun, and Trevor is pulling the trigger.  I’m not going to be the one who actually hurts her, but she’s going to get hurt because of me.” 

 

        She splashed some water on her face and patted it dry with a towel.  “But if I didn’t do it he would have gotten someone else and that person might not have cared who was getting hurt.  At least I warned her, vaguely, but she was warned nonetheless.”  Tammy turned off the light in the bathroom and walked into her bedroom.  It was four in the morning and she couldn’t sleep.  She thought sending the text message to Caryss would relieve some of the guilt that plagued her, but it didn’t. 

 

        “It’s too late; I’ve already given Trevor all the ammo he needs.  He’s paid me, the dirty work is done, and I don’t know how to stop him.”  She sat down on her bed and fell backwards onto the soft mattress.  She laid there for the next three hours, staring at the ceiling, no sleep giving sanctuary to her troubled mind. 

 

 

        “Where are your plans today?” Nick asked as he watched Caryss run around the suite frantically trying to get ready. 

 

        “Oh, Liz, Stacie and I are going to lunch and then we are doing phase one of dress shopping for the gala,” she responded with a forced smile, partially lying him and trying to shadow the apprehension and fear that plagued her mind and her dreams all night. 

 

        “Phase one?”

 

        “Yeah, you know, phase one; looking in different stores at dress styles, not ready to buy anything just yet, more for getting ideas.  Then a couple days later you move into phase two, where you try on some dresses and decide what colors and cuts work best.”  She was almost sincerely smiling now as she explained the different phases of dress shopping she had used since her first dance in junior high.  Her dad had never understood the “phases” either, and Nick reminded her of him at that very moment. 

        “And then I suppose phase three is the actual purchase of the dress,” he responded as he stood up and walked over to her, wrapping his arms around her and pulling her into a hug.

 

        “That is correct,” she said, laughing.  God he makes me so happy, I wish I could tell him what’s going on.  I know he would help me.  After this library thing today I’ll have more to go on and then maybe it will be the right time to tell him what I know.  She pulled out of the hug and leaned up to kiss him.  “I love you,” she whispered as the kiss ended, not really realizing that she had just spoken her most intimate thought about him out loud. 

 

        He bent his head down and brushed his lips against her ear.  She felt his hot breath on her but nothing felt better to her than the words that flowed from his mouth into her ear.  “I love you too.” 

 

        She smiled at him and backed away, trying to find her shoes.  She slipped them on her feet and grabbed her purse.  “I better get going or I’m going to be late.  Don’t get into any trouble today.”  She kissed him quickly on the lips and turned to leave. 

 

        “Call me when you’re done with phase one; maybe we can all have dinner together or something,” he called out to her as she was walking out the door. 

 

        She turned back to him and winked.  “Sounds like a plan.”  With that she was gone, pulling the door shut behind her.

 

        As she rode in the car on the way to the restaurant, she thought about the exchange of words she and Nick had in the suite.  She felt relieved.  With all the crazy things happening around her the past few days she wasn’t sure what would happen with them in the future and she was glad that he would at least know she really did love him if nothing else and she in turn would always know what it felt like to be truly loved by a man.  Knowing this comforted her, although it was unclear why she felt the need to be comforted.  What is happening with my life?  The only thing that’s certain to me right now is that there is no way I’m going back to Chicago…I plan on finding out what is going on. 

 

 

        “So here’s what I’m thinking,” Stacie began after the waitress took their menus and headed towards the kitchen to put their order in.  “Liz and I will go the library early, I’ll hang out inside the reference room and Liz will browse in the room next to it.  You will not be alone in the library that way and both of us will be close enough to you if anything goes down.  You can go look in the encyclopedia and find whatever you need to and then we will all leave at separate times and meet up at the boutique down the street or something, what do you think?”

 

        Liz and Caryss had both been taking a sip of their water and they stopped mid drink, glasses in hand, mouths on the brim in preparation of the drink and stared at Stacie with wide eyes.  Liz was the first to speak, gingerly setting her glass down on the table and folding her hands together in front of her. 

 

        “Well, aside from it sounding like a scene from Charlie’s Angels, it could be a good plan with a few adjustments.” 

 

        “I agree,” piped in Caryss, trying to be supportive of her friend’s efforts.  “Great plan, we’ll just have to tweak it a little to keep us from being too obvious.” 

 

        While they were waiting for their food to come, they planned the rendezvous at the library.  When their meals were placed in front of them, they felt very confident that everything would go smoothly and there would be no altercations. 

 

        Now I have to tell them about the text message I got last night, Caryss thought solemnly as she mixed the dressing into her salad. 

 

        “Eww peppers.  Did I not specifically ask for no peppers on this?” Liz exclaimed as she flipped the green and red bell pepper pieces off her food with her fork.  Stacie grabbed her own fork and started helping Liz de-pepper her food.  Caryss took a deep breath and decided now was as good a time as any to tell them. 

 

        “Girls, there’s something else I need to tell you,” she began, watching Liz and Stacie with amusement. 

 

        “We’re listening,” said Liz, her focus still on the food in front of her. 

 

        “I got a text message last night.  I don’t know who sent it, but it said that sometimes good things happen to bad people and this was going to be one of those times and I should go back to Chicago before it’s too late.”  She had said all of that in one breath and when she finished she inhaled very loudly.  Liz and Stacie dropped their forks onto the table, clanking them loudly in the process as they stared at their scared friend. 

 

        “Give me your phone, I want to see the message,” said Stacie.  Caryss grabbed her phone out of her purse and handed it to Stacie.

       

        “I have friend of a friend who works for the LAPD.  He’s a computer guy and he can trace things from all over the place.  He would be able to tell us who sent it,” offered Liz and she put her hand on Caryss’s. 

 

        “What do you think it means?  Do you guys think it has anything to do with Laurie and Trevor?” Caryss asked, trying to keep her eyes from filling up with tears.  This was the first she had spoken to anyone about it, and keeping it bottled up inside her was not helping matters any. 

 

        “I don’t know sweetie, but we’ll find out.  After you get what you need to from the library, I’m sure more things will make sense,” comforted Liz.  Stacie, up until this point, had been quiet, but now she was ready to talk.

 

        “It’s a warning,” she started, obviously thinking hard as she spoke.  “I don’t think it’s meant to threaten you.  It’s defiantly not from the person who’s planning on hurting you, as the message implies will happen.  “It’s almost like someone knows exactly what’s going down and they feel bad about it and they want to make themselves feel better by giving you a chance to leave before it happens.” 

 

        For the second time since the girls sat down at the restaurant, Liz and Caryss stared at Stacie in disbelief. 

 

        “I don’t know how you do it, but you are good, I’ll give you that,” said Caryss with a smile.  “That is such a perceptive analysis, I didn’t even think of that.”

 

        Stacie smiled, feeling very proud that she could shed such light on the situation.  “Don’t worry Car-bear, we’ll figure this whole thing out.  Nothing bad will happen.”

 

        I wish she would be right about that one, thought Caryss as she took a bite of her salad.  I love you to death Stacie, but I’m not so sure you’re going to be able to stop whatever is going to happen.  She looked at her watch and quickly finished her salad.  It was almost time, and she was ready. 

 

 

 

 

 

     

Chapter 20

Chapter 20

 

        Thirty minutes later, all three ladies were in position at the Library.  As they had discussed, Liz and Stacie changed clothes, one put on a wig and the other put on a baseball cap, each donned a pair of fake eye glasses and Liz had grabbed some guy off the street to be her “date” at the library. 

 

        When Caryss walked into the reference room of the library, she barely recognized Stacie sitting at a table appearing to be a student doing some research for a paper.  She didn’t even bother looking around for Liz and her “date” because she doubted she would recognize her either.  Instead she focused on the task at hand and walked directly over the section of encyclopedia’s pulling the “R” volume off the shelf and opening it. 

 

        She flipped to page 247 as she had been instructed to do and she found a folded piece of paper with her name on it.  She unfolded it and read it silently. 

 

Go into the women’s bathroom.

 

        She slipped the piece of paper into her purse and returned the encyclopedia to its spot on the shelf.  Without looking around she walked towards the bathroom and opened the door.  She looked inside quickly before entering, hesitating a bit, but then swallowed hard and walked in. 

 

        She stopped dead in her tracks as the door shut behind her, the person standing before her being the last person she thought would be responsible for this escapade. 

 

        “Laurie?” she asked, the shock in her voice evident.  “How did you know I got the letter?”

 

        “I was sitting in a rental car outside my condo.  I knew you guys were too smart to believe whatever Trevor told you and I knew you would come to my place looking for answers.  I waited, and sure enough, you guys came.”

 

        “There were these two men looking for the letter--”

       

        “I know, I sent them.  I didn’t want to take the chance that you wouldn’t come to my place to talk to me and not find the letter.  Were you guys in the condo when they came?”

 

        “Yeah, we hid in the closet.  So what’s going on?  What was that letter all about?”

 

        “What did Trevor tell you happened between us?”

 

        “He said that you told him it wasn’t working out and that you should see other people.  He said you quit because working with him would be too awkward.”

 

        Laurie scoffed and shook her head in disbelief.  “He thinks he can lie to everyone and they will believe him.  What really happened was I walked in on him and another woman getting it on in his office.  I asked him how long this has been going on and he said with this woman for about an hour, but there have been many others before her.  He said that he had someone else lined up and that he had no more use for me.  He told me to clean out my desk and be gone by the time he got back.  He left and I started collecting my things from the office.”

 

        “Oh my God Laurie, that’s horrible.”  Caryss could not believe what she was hearing.  She knew Trevor wasn’t telling the truth but she had no idea how ugly the truth was. 

 

        “That’s not the horrible part.  Caryss, I think that you are the “someone” he’s got lined up.”

 

        “What makes you think that?  He knows I’m seeing Nick and I have never given him the impression that I’m interest in him!”

 

        “But Trevor doesn’t look at things like that.  He sees something he wants and he stops at nothing to get it.  I overheard him on a phone call the day before he fired me.  I don’t know who he was talking to but he said something about “not paying for your opinion only for the stuff on Caryss” or something like that.  And he has your name written on his desk calendar on the day of the gala.  I don’t know what he’s doing, but it’s not going to be good for you.”

 

        Caryss blankly stared at Laurie, trying to process what she had just been told.  “I don’t understand what he’s trying to do?”

 

        “I guess you’ll find out at the gala.”  Laurie looked around the bathroom nervously.  “I can’t stay here any longer.  Trevor told me that if I try to contact you or anyone else on the project that I would regret it and if he has someone following me they might have already told him where I am.  I will do my best to find out anything else I can, I have some pretty important people on my list of friends and they are helping me.  I will be in touch.”  She quickly flipped the hood on her sweatshirt up over her hair and slipped a pair of sunglasses on her face. 

 

        “Here,” she said, pulling a large manila envelope out from under her sweatshirt.  “I grabbed this out of Trevor’s file cabinet.  It has you’re your name on it.”  Before Caryss could say anything else to her she was out the door. 

 

        Caryss stood in the bathroom for a few minutes, thinking about what she was going to do with the information Laurie had told her.  I can’t tell Nick, because all he’s going to do is beat the hell out of Trevor and think the problem is solved.  So Trevor did hire someone to investigate me…and that must have been who sent me the text.  I have to find out who it is and talk to them.  And I really have to find a dress for the gala, because there is no way I’m missing it now.  I can’t wait to find out what Trevor has in store.

 

        Caryss exited the bathroom and was just walking down the front steps outside the library when her cell phone rang.  “Shit, it’s Trevor,” she hissed as she flipped open her phone.  “Hello,” she said into it, trying to keep her voice calm and steady. 

 

        “Caryss, hey, it’s Trevor.  Listen, have you talked to Laurie at all?  I’ve been looking for her.  I think when she cleaned her stuff out of the office she took something of mine that’s very important to me.”  Caryss looked down at the large manila envelope in her hands and immediately knew this was what Trevor was referring to. 

 

        What is in here that’s so important to him? she thought as she tried to decide what to say to him.  “No Trevor, I haven’t talked to Laurie, why would I have?  I highly doubt that she will contact any of us seeing as how she abandoned all of us on the project.”

 

        “Yeah, well I suppose you’re right.”  I can see you Caryss, and I saw Laurie come out of the same library five minutes ago, and I can see that you are holding that very important file in your pretty little hands.  I can also see you’re going to learn the hard way that you shouldn’t lie to me.  “What are you doing right now?  I thought maybe we could get together and you could help me finish planning the gala?  Maybe do dinner?”

       

        Shit, what do I say?  Do I want to keep him close or avoid him completely?  I don’t know what to do!  “Well, actually, I have plans for dinner tonight.  I thought you were all done with the planning?”

 

        “Well, I almost am, there are just a couple of things that could use a woman’s touch.”  The sexual innuendo almost made Caryss throw up in her mouth. 

 

        “Sorry Trevor, but since I’m done working, I don’t really feel like doing extra work for something that’s not even my responsibility.  Maybe you could ask your next date or something.” 

 

        “Yeah, I guess I could do that,” he said with a fake chuckle.  Keep it up Caryss and my time with you will quickly turn from something positive to something you’re gonna wish you never experienced.

 

        “Trevor, I’m actually really busy right now, so I’m going to let you go.  I’ll see you at the gala.”

 

        “Yes you will.  And I hope you enjoyed your visit to the library.” 

 

        “Where in the hell did you go?  We have been looking all over the library for you!” yelled Liz as her and Stacie stomped down the stairs.  “What’s wrong?” she asked, noticing the paleness and expression on Caryss’s face.

       

        “He’s watching us right now, we have to go,” she hissed, not explaining herself.  She took off running down the rest of the stairs and stopped at the bottom, trying to decide which way to go. 

 

        “This way,” yelled Stacie, still not understanding what was going on but knowing that they needed to get to a secluded area quickly.  They ran down the sidewalk and ducked into the candle shop that one of her college roommates owned.  “The owner is a friend from college, she’ll let us talk in here,” Stacie explained as she walked through the store looking for Ashley. 

 

 

        “It’s Trevor.  The three ladies ran south on Figueroa and into a candle shop.  Get me that envelope back!”  Trevor threw his cell phone down on the passenger seat and slammed his fists against the steering wheel.  “This is not turning out how I planned it!” he screamed, infuriated that getting Caryss now was going to be more revenge than pleasure.  “Stupid bitch screwed everything up by not minding her own business!”  He threw his car into drive and peeled out of his parking spot across from the library and squealed down the street a few blocks until he was in front of the candle shop.  He saw Liz and Stacie running out of the alley and then he saw something he didn’t like.  What is that other Backstreet idiot doing here?  Anyone and I mean anyone standing in the way of me and Caryss is going to pay dearly and at the rate things are going, that stupid band is going to be short a few members pretty quickly. 

 

 

      “Stacie, is that you?” said a surprised voice asked from behind the counter. 

 

        “Ashley, how are you?” Stacie asked, trying to be sociable even though they were in a hurry. 

 

        “I’m good.  What can I do for you?”

 

        “Ash, listen, we need to hide out in your back room for a little while.  We are being followed, long story, but we have some important stuff to talk about and we need to stay out of sight.”

 

        Ashley stood there for minute, looking from Stacie, to Caryss, to Liz and back again.  She desperately wanted to know what was going on, but from the look on her friend’s face, she knew now was not the time to ask questions.  “Sure, right through here.”

 

        The ladies walked into the back room of the candle store and Caryss threw the envelope down on the table.  “I don’t know what’s in it, but Laurie stole it from Trevor’s file cabinet and he knows she did it and he just called me asking if I’ve seen her and I told him no and now he knows I have it since he saw me on the steps of the library holding it!”

 

        “You saw Laurie?” Liz asked with shock in her voice.  “Where?”

 

        “In the bathroom at the library.  There was a note in the encyclopedia to go into the bathroom and there she was.  She told me what happened between her and Trevor and she told me that he’s planning something for me.”  She continued to fill the ladies in on what Laurie had told her and Liz and Stacie’s eyes got bigger and bigger with each sentence. 

       

        “This is insane!” cried Stacie.  “He needs to be hospitalized.  Well, we have nothing else to lose; let’s look in the envelope and see what it is.”  As she reached for the envelope they heard commotion coming from out in the store. 

 

        “You can’t go back there,” Ashley yelled and the ladies knew they had to get out of there fast. 

 

        “There’s an exit over here, it leads into the alley and out to the main street again,” stammered Stacie.  Caryss grabbed the envelope off the table and they bolted out the exit and into the alley.  Liz and Stacie were ahead of Caryss and were able to run much easier since they were in tennis shoes and Caryss was in flip flops.  She felt herself stumble and she fell onto the hard, sharp pavement in the alley. 

 

        She heard footsteps coming up fast behind her and she tried to get up and keep running.  She stumbled again as pain radiated from her knee.  She looked down and saw blood flowing out of the open cut on her knee cap.  She tried to push the pain out of her mind and keep running, but someone grabbed her from behind and pulled her back down onto the hard alley. 

 

        She kicked and squirmed, struggling to get away from the person holding her down.  She got one leg up and kicked the man right in the face, sending him reeling backwards.  She scrambled to her feet but the man grabbed her ankle and tripped her.  As she was falling he twisted her foot and she heard her knee pop.  She let out one agonizing scream before hitting the ground and everything went black. 

 

 

        “Where is Caryss?” AJ asked breathless as Liz and Stacie came running out of the alley and practically into him. 

 

        “She was right behind us, I don’t know!” cried Liz, shocked and relieved to him at the same time.  They took off back down the alley when they heard a scream.  They turned the corner and saw Caryss laying on the ground and a man struggling to his feet next to her.  He grabbed the manila envelope that was clutched tightly in Caryss’s hand and ran down the alley the other way. 

 

        “Call 911,” yelled Alex as he threw his cell phone at Liz and took off after the guy down the alley.  Liz dialed as fast as she could with shaking hands while Stacie crouched down next to Caryss and started talking to her. 

 

        “It’s okay sweetie.  If you can hear me help is coming.  Hang on.”  Minutes later the sound of sirens could be heard in the distance. 

 

        “He got away,” AJ said from behind them.  “But I grabbed this from him before he did.”  Liz and Stacie looked at the tattered manila envelope with Caryss’s name on it in AJ’s hand.  Now they were finally going to find out what was in it. 

 

 

        Trevor heard the sirens in the distant and started to panic.  He wondered what had happened in the candle shop and he wondered if his man had gotten the envelope and gotten away.  He ran back to his car and grabbed his cell phone.  He pressed redial and waited for someone to pick up. 

 

        “What the hell is going on?  Did you get it?”

 

        “I had it,” the man on the other end began.  “But some freak with tattoos chased me and snatched it from me as I was climbing over a fence.”

 

        “What are the sirens for?”

 

        “When I was trying to get the envelope from that girl, she put up a fight.  I fucked her up.”

 

        “You idiot!  You weren’t supposed to hurt her!”

       

        “You didn’t say that, you just told me to get the envelope back.  The bitch kicked me in the face and almost got away, what was I supposed to do?”

 

        “And you lost the envelope anyway so a lot of good it did you!”  Trevor snapped his phone shut and sat in his car, watching the ambulance turn down the narrow alley.  “Everything is fucked up now!  EVERYTHING!”  He started his car and headed toward the one place he swore he would never go again…his old drug dealers place. 

       

 

 

       

       

       

Chapter 21

Chapter 21

 

            “AJ, what are you doing here?” asked Liz as she rode in AJ’s car with him to the hospital.  AJ looked over at her from the driver’s seat for a moment, and then turned his attention back onto the road. 

 

            “I was following you guys,” he said quietly, not sure he wanted to bare everything he knew about to her at that moment. 

 

            “Why?”  She was not going to let him get away that easily, she wanted answers, and she knew Stacie and Caryss would want answers too.  “Seems like a lot of people are following us these days.”  She was very bitter about what happened today, and even though she didn’t intend to take it out on him, she wasn’t bothered by the fact that she was. 

 

            “Liz, listen, I know you’re scared and upset, this situation is very confusing and I don’t blame you for being suspicious of my actions, but you need to understand that I am on your side and I’m trying to help Caryss, and you, not the other way around.”

 

            Liz sat there silent for a moment, watching the palm trees and cars as AJ drove past them.  She thought about how she was going to explain to Nick what happened and how she let Caryss get hurt.  Guilt plagued her as much as fear did, and she wasn’t sure what to do with these emotions.  “So explain,” was all she said. 

 

            “Laurie is my cousin,” he began, after taking in a deep breath.  Liz snapped her head around and stared at him, wondering how she didn’t know that.  “I’ve been helping her hide from Trevor and I have been helping her investigate what he’s planning.  When I saw Trevor outside the library I knew there would be trouble, and if I didn’t help you guys, there might not have been anyone else that would have.  I knew that my ‘cover’ would be blown and I’d have to come clean, but I didn’t care.”  He stopped and took another deep breath, waiting for Liz to say something. 

 

            “Does Nick know?”  She couldn’t think of anything else to ask at that moment, she was still trying to process all the information he had just given her.  Backstreet Boy by day, spy/private investigator/detective by night?  This is all so surreal! 

 

            “No, he doesn’t know.  I was waiting to tell him how involved Caryss is in this whole thing until I had more to go on.”

 

            “Funny, we were doing the same thing.”

 

            “She’s gonna be okay Liz.  Everything is gonna be okay.”  He turned the car into the emergency room parking lot of the hospital and pulled into a parking space. 

 

            “Yeah, right,” she yelled, emotion ruling her voice like an iron fist.  “How is it going to be okay when she’s being wheeled into the emergency room right now and we don’t know what’s wrong with her, Trevor is still out there and planning God knows what, and Nick has no idea what’s going on and he’s going to kill me and Stacie when he finds out we were lying to him and helping Caryss lie to him!”  She inhaled sharply and tears filled her eyes.  Alex cut off the engine and turned towards her, looking into her moist gray-green eyes.   

 

            “The police are going to be called you know,” she continued, still holding the tears back in her eyes.  “Caryss being ‘attacked by an assailant in an alley’; you know the hospital is going to call and a report will have to be filed.” 

 

            “Yes, I know,” he said quietly, watching her intently and never breaking eye contact with her. 

 

            “What are we going to tell them?  Maybe we should tell them about Trevor and all of this and they can help us!”

 

            “No, Liz, I don’t think that’s a good idea,” he said shaking his head.  Liz cocked her head to the side, questions burning in her eyes.  “If we turn it over to the cops now, the most he’ll get slapped with is stalking.  Unless he told that guy specifically to hurt Caryss, they can’t even get him on assault charges.  We need to continue this on our own.  Trevor is not going to back down, he wants Caryss and he will keep coming until he wins.”

 

            “What are you saying?  We dangle Caryss in the water and wait for the shark to come eat her?  That is never going to happen!  I am not going to put her in jeopardy like that!”  She was disgusted by what AJ was implying but outraged that he actually might be right.

 

            “Yeah?  And what if it’s the only way to stop him?  Do you want him to keep coming after Caryss, and probably now you and Stacie for revenge, or do you want him put away in jail for a long time where he can’t hurt any of you?  What we are planning is going to keep Caryss safe, she will be monitored the whole time and when it goes down, we will be right there.”

 

            “We?  Planning? What are you talking about?”

 

            AJ sighed deeply.  He really wasn’t ready to explain everything to her, but the situation had escalated so quickly he didn’t have much of a choice. 

 

            “I have friend, his name is Rick, and he works for the FBI.  He’s been working with me and Laurie on this.  Since Heal the Bay is a nation-wide organization, it technically falls in federal jurisdiction.  Since the gala is being put on by Heal the Bay that falls into federal jurisdiction.  And apparently, Trevor falls into federal jurisdiction as well.”

 

            “He’s got an FBI file?”

 

            “Yeah.  Look, I can’t go into any more detail right now so you’ll just have to trust me.  Let’s get inside and hopefully they will give us some information on Caryss.”  Liz nodded and opened the car door.  She stepped out of the vehicle and walked into the hospital without waiting for AJ.  He ran to catch up to her and when he did, he grabbed her arm and twisted her around so she was facing him. 

 

            “What do you want AJ?” she snapped at him, not meaning to but with all the emotions running through her she was finding impulse control a hard commodity to come by.  She knew it, and luckily so did he.  He pulled her close, wrapping his arms around her and hugging her tightly.  She felt weak in his arms, no longer strong enough to keep her tears inside. 

 

            They started as quiet shudders, but soon her shoulders were shaking, her body trembling as violent sobs overtook her.  AJ just held her, stroking her hair and silently comforting her as best he could.  She leaned into him and cried, remaining that way for a long time, until she heard a familiar voice talking to her. 

 

            “Liz, she’s gonna be okay.”  Liz looked up and saw Stacie standing there holding a box of tissues.  She handed one to Liz and smiled.  “The ambulance ride was fun,” she joked, trying to lighten the mood.  Liz gave her a weak smile, as did AJ. 

 

            “When can we see her?  There is so much stuff we have to tell her, and you,” sniffed Liz as she dried her face with the tissue.  Stacie gave her a questioning look, and then shot one at AJ. 

 

            “Not here,” he whispered to her.  “We need to talk someplace private.”

 

            “Let’s go to Caryss’s room, we can ask the nurses to leave for a minute and talk there, that way she can hear what you have to say too,” suggested Stacie, curiosity pushing all other thoughts out of her mind.  Liz and AJ nodded and the trio walked down the hall to Caryss’s room, where AJ told Stacie and Caryss everything he had told Liz on the way to the hospital. 

 

 

            “Where’s room 315?  Which way do I go?” asked Nick impatiently as he approached a nurses’ station.  The nurse didn’t even look up; she just pointed her finger towards one of the halls.  Normally, he would have had something to say about it, but this time he took off running down the indicated hallway without saying a word.  He skidded to a stop as he came to room 315 and pushed the partially opened door open all the way.  He did not expect to see his band mate sitting in one of chairs next to Caryss’s bed. 

 

            “Nick, hi,” stammered Liz as she stood up from Caryss’s bed. 

 

            “What happened?” he asked as he walked to one side of the bed and looked down at his girlfriend. 

           

            “She’s sleeping right now; they just gave her more pain medication,” explained Stacie as she stood next to Nick.  “Why don’t you have a seat.”  She motioned to the chair behind him and he nodded and sat down.  He looked across the bed at AJ, random thoughts running through his confused and frightened mind. 

 

            “What happened?” he asked again, this time a little louder and with a little more force. 

 

            “I’m going to tell you, Nick, but it’s not going to make any sense at first so you just need to listen to everything I say before you say anything, okay?” started Liz, now wondering why she volunteered to tell Nick what was going on.  He looked at Caryss again, and nodded his head in agreement. 

 

            “Okay,” she continued, taking a deep breath before talking again.  “Before we met you guys at Mood the other night, we went to Laurie’s condo to talk to her about what happened with Trevor.  Trevor had told Caryss that she broke up with him and stuff and we didn’t believe him so we wanted her side of the story.  When we got there, she wasn’t home, but her door was unlocked so we went in.  Caryss found a note on the counter addressed to her, so she opened it.  It was from Laurie and she told her to be careful and there were some things she needed to know.”

 

            Liz stopped to catch her breath, which she found harder to do than normal. 

 

            “It’s okay Liz, keep going,” coaxed Nick in a very calm, mature tone.  She took another deep breath and continued.

 

            “Then she got a phone call telling her to go to the library on Figueroa the next day and look in one of the encyclopedias for something important.  We all went together and she ended up meeting Laurie in the bathroom who told her all this stuff about Trevor and this plan to get Caryss away from you and then she gave Caryss this envelope and left.”

 

            “He’s planning what?” Nick fumed, his face getting red and his voice getter louder. 

 

            “Nick, please just wait until she’s done,” said AJ softly.  Nick looked at him, still wanting to know why he was here in the first place.  He looked back at Liz, waiting for her to continue. 

 

            “So then she’s outside with this envelope in her hands and Trevor calls her asking if she’s talked to Laurie because Laurie took something from his office that is important and she lies and says that she hasn’t seen Laurie.  Trevor was sitting in his car watching her, knowing she’s got the envelope he’s looking for and knowing she had just gotten done talking to Laurie.  He says something about her having a nice time at the library and she knows he’s watching her, so we take off running into a candle shop and go into the back room to look in the envelope.  While Caryss is telling us what is going on, we hear someone trying to get into the back room, so we grab the envelope run out the back door into an alley.”

 

            Liz stopped talking and looked down at her hands, knowing this part was going to be the hardest to tell; this part was her fault.  Her eyes filled with tears and she looked at her friend lying in the bed.  “I’m sorry Car-bear,” she whispered, as the tears slid out of her eyes and down her cheeks. 

 

            “Liz and I were running ahead of Caryss,” Stacie said, jumping in to pick up where Liz had left off.  She knew Liz would have a hard time talking, mostly because she felt so much guilt for what happened in the alley.  “Caryss was wearing flip flops and couldn’t keep up with us very well.  We came out of the alley and ran into AJ, and it was then that we realized Caryss wasn’t behind us anymore.  We ran back down the alley and when we turned the corner we saw her laying on the ground and this guy getting up.  He grabbed the envelope out of her hands and took off; AJ chased him and got the envelope back but couldn’t stop the guy.”

 

            “Is that it?” asked Nick, looking from Liz to Stacie and finally to AJ. 

 

            “In a nutshell,” said Stacie.  “Caryss told us what happened in the alley.  She said that she tripped and cut her knee open.  She tried to get up and keep running but the guy came up behind her and shoved her back down.  She kicked him in the face but when she tried to get away, he grabbed her foot and twisted her knee until it popped and then she fell on the ground.  She doesn’t remember anything after that though.”  Stacie saw the horrified look on Nick’s face. 

 

            “So what did the doctor say?” he asked quietly, looking at Caryss’s covered legs trying to figure out which one was injured. 

 

            “Her knee was dislocated, she has possible ligament damage and she’ll need an MRI in a couple days.  She has to be on crutches or in a wheelchair because she’s not allowed to put any pressure on it.  Other than that, she’s fine.” 

 

            “Good,” replied Nick, the relieved tone in his voice obvious.  “What were you doing there?” he asked suddenly, looking at AJ with fire in his eyes. 

 

            “I was following them,” he said, pointing to the girls.  “I knew Trevor was watching them and I wanted to make sure they were safe.”  Nick looked very confused, so AJ expounded.  He explained his connection to the whole situation, and before Nick could ask, he explained his plan and how his friend Rick from the FBI was going to be helping.  Nick was silent for a few minutes, Stacie, Liz and AJ just stared at him, waiting for a response.  Finally he spoke.

 

            “I don’t like the idea of putting Caryss in harm’s way again, but I agree that it’s the only way to stop Trevor for good.  Does she know about all this?” he asked, pointing to Caryss. 

 

            “Yes, she does.  She has already agreed to be ‘the bait’ as long as she knows we and the police or FBI are close by,” responded Liz, speaking for the first time since her breakdown. 

 

            “So what now?  What happens next?” Nick asked, his heart starting to beat a little faster at the thought of what was going to go down. 

 

            “Trevor knows Caryss is hurt, he was still at the scene when the ambulance came and I know he saw Liz and Stacie with me.  I’m also sure he’s talked to his thug and he knows we still have the envelope.  He’s going to keep trying to get it back; he doesn’t want us to know what’s in it,” said AJ, standing up from the chair and pulling his cell phone out of his pocket.  “I’m going to call Rick and find out what we should do next.”

           

            He was on the phone with Rick for a good twenty minutes, then said good bye and turned back to Nick, Liz and Stacie.  “The first thing we are going to do is see what’s in that envelope.”  They nodded in agreement as Stacie pulled it out of her oversized purse and began to open it.  They had no idea that what they would find in the envelope would tear everyone in the room apart. 

 

 

           

Chapter 22

Chapter 22

 

            “Just pull the stuff out!” screeched Liz as Stacie was trying to open the envelope.  As she was opening the top of it and sticking her hand inside, Nick’s cell phone rang, causing her to drop the envelope.  Everyone but Stacie looked at Nick, not paying attention to the fallen item.  As she bent down to pick it up, she noticed some of the contents had spilled out of it.  She gasped at the half of a picture that was peeking out of the envelope, and quickly stuffed it back inside and scooped the envelope up from the floor before anyone noticed.  Oh my God, this is bad, really, really bad! 

 

            “Hello?” Nick said into the phone.  He talked for a few minutes with a puzzled look on his face, and then flipped his phone shut and sat down in the chair.  “That was Antoinette,” he explained before anyone asked, knowing they were expecting him to share.  “She said that she just got a fax from Trevor and it was all the gala information.  He told her to take over the planning because he couldn’t deal with it right now.”

 

            Stacie and Liz exchanged troubled glances, each one wondering what he was up to now. 

 

            “Who’s Antoinette?” a raspy voice asked, causing everyone to jump a little and look back at Caryss. 

 

            “Hey baby,” said Nick affectionately as he walked over to her bedside and kissed her gently on the forehead.  “How are you feeling?”

 

            “Like I got hit by a Mack truck actually, but I’ll be okay,” she said with a weak smile.  I have to brave and strong so I can help them stop Trevor.  Without me, they won’t be able to catch him.  “So who’s Antoinette?”

 

            “She’s the director of the organization.  She is the person that usually handles the planning of events, but Trevor was so hell bent on doing it himself this time so she backed down.  She’s really great; you’ll like her a lot,” explained Nick and he stroked Caryss’s hair. 

 

            “I’m so glad you’re awake sweetie, we were just about to look in the envelope and it wouldn’t have been right to do it without you,” said Liz as she bent down and kissed Caryss on the cheek.  “And I’m glad you’re okay.  I’m so sorry about what happened.”

 

            “Lizzie, it’s not your fault,” responded Caryss with a smile.  She looked past Liz to Stacie and raised her eyebrows at her.  “Let’s see what’s in the envelope.”

 

            Stacie looked like a deer caught in headlights.  She had seen only a piece of what was in the envelope, but she knew that she could not show it to her friend just yet, it would break her heart and she wasn’t ready to do that.  “Nick, I need to talk to you in the hallway for a second,” she said with a stern voice.  “We’ll look in the envelope when we get back.”  She stood up and motioned for Nick to follow her.  She didn’t know what else was in that envelope, but she knew there was enough to do some serious damage.  Trevor really outdid himself this time.  If he was planning on Caryss running to him for comfort, his plan probably would have worked. 

                       

            As they walked out of the room and into the quiet hallway, Nick turned to Stacie and asked her what was going on. 

           

            “When the envelope fell on the floor, part of a picture slipped out.”  She peered into the envelope and pulled out the photograph.  She handed it to him and then looked through the rest of the photos, pulling out several more with the same motif.  She handed those to Nick as he gasped and disgust built up inside her.  “Can you explain these?” she asked coldly, not believing that he would hurt her best friend this way. 

 

            “I, I, we, um,” Nick stammered, trying to find his words but only succeeding in losing his footing.  He staggered and fell against the wall behind him, all the color draining from his face and his hands trembling like a child’s after being caught with a hand in the cookie jar.  For a moment she felt bad for him, knowing this was hurting him as much as it would hurt Caryss, but as he opened to mouth to speak again, her sympathy turned to incomprehension and she waited for the explanation he was surly trying to create in his head. 

 

            “I don’t know who that is,” he said solemnly, avoiding eye contact with Stacie. 

 

            “That’s great Nick, when was this?”  He didn’t answer her right away, and she took that as a sign that it wasn’t before he had met Caryss.  “Within the past three weeks?” she asked, disdain rolling off every word.  He shook his head back and forth in disbelief. 

 

            “I have no idea, I swear to God.  That looks like the night when Caryss and I were on the beach at my house, but that’s not Caryss in the picture!”

 

            “You really don’t know who this is or when it was taken?” Stacie asked, completely disorientated. 

 

            “No, I have no clue who that woman is, and I can say for damn sure that this wasn’t taken since I’ve been with Caryss.  Even if they were pictures of a one-night stand or something I don’t see how that would hurt Caryss, she’s going to know it wasn’t recently.  But I don’t ever remember being on the beach with anyone else like that but Caryss.”  He stood there, his shoulders hunched over, shaking his head in confusion. 

 

            “Then I guess we don’t have anything to worry about,” she said callously as she grabbed the photos from his hand.  He better be telling the truth, because if he had the nerve to cheat on Caryss when they’ve only been together for three weeks, I’m going to chop his jewels off!  As she was putting the pictures back into the envelope, she noticed there were several pictures she didn’t see before still in there.  She pulled them out and let out a horrified shriek. 

           

            “What?” asked Nick frantically as he looked at Stacie with bewilderment.  She handed him the pictures, staring straight ahead in a trance-like state.  “Oh my God,” he whispered as he flipped through the photographs.  “This is you and me, and Liz and me, and Laurie and me, but none of this ever happened!  All these pictures are of me and Caryss, but someone photo shopped her out and you guys in; this is unbelievable!” 

 

            “Did Trevor honestly think Caryss would be stupid enough to fall for this?” Stacie asked, the shock and dismay in her voice evident.  “I mean seriously, she knows me better than that; I would never kiss her boyfriend!”

 

            “Not even if he was as hot as me?” Nick asked playfully, inching closer to her. 

 

            “That’s so not funny right now,” she said with a smirk.

 

            “But it would be funny, at a different time, right?” They both started laughing and walked back into the hospital room to show everyone the outrageous photos.  They passed the ridiculous photos around, everyone getting a good chuckle out of them; that is until Caryss got a hold of the pictures of Nick and “the girl” on the beach.  At first she didn’t notice it, but after looking at them for a few minutes, she realized something wasn’t right. 

 

            “Those aren’t the clothes you were wearing the night we were on the beach together,” she said quietly, trying very hard to stay calm and not jump to conclusions.  The other pictures were obviously tampered with, so in all probability, these ones were too, but it didn’t make any sense. 

 

            “What do you mean?” asked Stacie, her suspicions about Nick rising yet again. 

 

            “In all the other pictures, he is wearing the same clothes and it’s obvious that it was photo shopped, but in these pictures, his clothes are different.”  She stopped for a minute, taking a few deep breaths before looking Nick square in the eyes.  Her eyes pleaded with his, begging for the truth.  “Did this really happen Nick?” she finally asked, tears filling her eyes and her voice cracking a little at the end.  Everyone in the room stared at him, their eyes burning into him like detectives interrogating a suspect.  He swallowed hard, trying to find the right words to explain himself. 

Chapter 23

Chapter 23

 

            Trevor walked up the front steps of the house he had sworn off six months ago.  He had cleaned up his act and with Laurie’s help, he had kicked his old habits and moved on to better things.  He had made a vow to himself that he would never use again, but he had also vowed to himself that he would have Caryss, and that was all shot to hell now so why shouldn’t his vow of abstinence from drugs be too? 

 

            He knocked on the door, and then shoved his hands into his pockets as he waited for someone to answer the door.  He heard the click of the deadbolt and the door opened quickly, bringing him face to face with the man who could ruin his life and make it better all at the same time.  The man did not say anything, just looked at Trevor waiting for him to speak. 

 

            “I need some stuff,” Trevor said casually, waiting for the man to let him in.  “Dae, man, let me in, I need some stuff.”  Dae peeked his head out of the door, looking around suspiciously, trying to find the reason Trevor had come back to him. 

 

            “You better not be fucking with me,” Dae warned.  He stepped aside and let Trevor pass, closing the door and locking it as soon as Trevor was inside.  Trevor plopped down on the same couch he always used to sit on, memories flooding back to him like it was yesterday. 

 

            “Hit me,” he said calmly, never taking his eyes off the coffee table in front of him or the pile of blow in the middle of it.  Dae held out his hand and Trevor reached into his pocket and pulled out a wad of bills.  He flipped through them and pulled out the required amount for a line and handed it to Dae, still never taking his eyes away from the coffee table.  Dae counted the money, nodded his head with satisfaction and proceeded to get a line ready for Trevor. 

 

            Five minutes and a line in each nostril later, Trevor slouched back onto the couch and let out a heavy sigh.  He let the drug envelope him, take him to a different world, a better world, where he felt good again.  He sat motionless on the couch for about an hour then erratically jumped up at started looking around the living room nervously. 

 

            “Do you have a fax machine here Dae?” he asked, his hands jittering and his mouth pursing and un-pursing involuntarily. 

 

            “Yeah, in the office,” responded Dae in amusement.  He always enjoyed watching people tweak out on coke, it was highly entertaining to him.  Trevor grabbed his briefcase and pulled out all the stuff he had for the gala and quickly made a nice, neat stack of it.  He ran into the office and punched the desired number into the fax machine, then fed the paper into it one page at a time. 

 

            “What was that about?” Dae asked with a smile on his face as Trevor came back into the living room and sank down onto the couch again. 

 

            “Just some work I had to get rid of; I can’t deal with it right now.”  He leaned his head back against the couch and took deep calming breaths, trying to slow his rapidly pounding heart.  After a few minutes, he looked over at Dae, and nodded his head toward the pile of cocaine on the coffee table.  “I’ll take some to go.”

 

            Once he left Dae’s house, he headed to his office.  He needed to find out what hospital Caryss was at, what her condition was and when she would be going back to her hotel and he knew just the person to get him that information.

 

            “I’m not helping you Trevor.  I’ve done what you hired me for and I’m done,” said Tammy forcefully.  “If you need to find out more information, find someone else to help you.”

 

            “Nice try, but it’s not going to work.  You will help me, unless you want everyone to know who you are.  I’m sure that your family and your fiancé would love to know what you really do for a living, wouldn’t they?”  He was toying with her, blackmailing her, but he had her and she knew it.  She didn’t have to say anything; he could tell by her silence that she would do what he wanted.  He gave her the necessary instructions and then paused to allow her to confirm.  The line was silent for almost a minute, and Trevor was growing impatient.  “Well?” he asked, sarcasm filling his voice. 

 

            “I’ll call you when I know something,” Tammy said quietly, then slammed her phone back into its cradle, self-loathing rising like flood waters in her body. 

 

            “Of course you will,” he said out loud as he flipped his phone shut and set it down on his desk.  He leaned back in his chair and before he knew it, he was sound asleep.  He remained that way until the ringing of his cell phone awakened him forty minutes later. 

 

 

            “Thank you Tammy, you always make my day,” sneered Trevor as he ran out of his office and into his car.  He drove well over the speed limit as he made his way to The Four Seasons where the first phase of his new plan would be put into action. 

 

            This isn’t how I wanted things to be, but too much has happened and she knows too much for me to just leave her alone.  They all know too much now, but I’ll deal with them later, he thought as he pulled into a parking spot at the hotel and got out of his car.  He walked into the hotel confidently, giving the impression that he was supposed to be there.  He walked up to the front desk and smiled at the young woman behind the counter. 

 

“May I help you?” the lady asked in a cheerful voice.  Trevor glanced at her nametag, then brought his eyes back up to hers and smiled even wider. 

 

“Yes, there is actually.  Victoria, is it?”  She nodded her head, and he leaned onto the counter to increase the flirtatiousness he was attempting to fool her with.  “Wow, that’s a beautiful name.”  She blushed and tucked a few strands of hair behind her ear nervously. 

 

            “Thank you sir, but what can I do for you?” she asked, trying to keep her tone as professional as possible. 

 

            “Actually Victoria, I seem to have lost my room key and am hoping you will be able to give me another one; it’s room 1535,” he said as he winked his eye at her and reached his hand across the counter and ran it down her face.  She blushed again, and turned her face away, not sure how to react to this man who was so obviously flirting with her.  She was so flustered she couldn’t think straight, all she knew was that if her manager came out of his office and saw what she was doing with this guest, she would be fired for sure.  She quickly swiped a new room key for 1535 and handed it to Trevor. 

 

            “There you are sir, and if there’s anything else you need, please let me know.”  He nodded his head at her and hastily walked away from the desk.  As he rode the elevator up to the 15th floor, he ran his plan over in head again, fine tuning any parts of it that he was unhappy with.  By the time he was in the hallway outside Caryss’s room, he had convinced himself his plan was foolproof. 

 

            Now, I just wait, he thought as he shut the door behind him and walked around the suite.  He found his hiding space and made himself as comfortable as possible.  He knew he wouldn’t be there for long because Caryss was already on her way back to the hotel from the hospital and it was only a matter of time before she would be alone in this room.  I know she’s seen the pictures, and I know she is too smart to let the real picture get past her.  She’ll be here alone, that much I’m certain of.  A smug smile spread across his lips as he heard the click of the door as someone entered the suite.

 

           

Chapter 24

Chapter 24

 

            He just stood there, unsure of what to say, avoiding eye contact at all costs.  His actions were inexcusable and what he was going to tell her would break her heart. 

 

            “Nick?” she asked again, her voice rising with emotion.  “Did this really happen?” 

 

            “Yes, it did,” he said flatly, never looking her in the eyes.  She sat in the bed, staring at him, trying to bring herself to believe what he had just admitted to her so callously.  As his confession sank into her mind, humiliation and anger overwhelmed her.  She needed to know when, and why this happened, not that it would really matter in her decision to leave him. 

 

            “When did this happen?” she inquired forcefully.  She continued to stare at him, getting more and more pissed off that he would not look at her. 

 

            “After the meeting at the hotel before I went to Mood,” he told her, still avoiding eye contact with everyone in the room. 

 

            “How could you do this?” shouted Caryss, the tears that had previously been absent now pooling in her beautiful eyes.  She took her blanket and pulled it up over her face as heartbroken sobs poured out of her emotionally fragile body.  “I hate you,” she spat at him from under the blanket.  “Get out!”

 

            For the first time since the confrontation, he looked at her, only to see her hiding under the blanket.  “Please, Caryss let me explain,” he begged, walking to the side of her bed in a panic. 

 

            “GET OUT NOW!” she screamed as loud as she could, throwing the blanket down so he could see the fire and rage in her eyes.  He tried to reach for her but she started flailing her arms at him, slapping him every chance she got.  Liz ran over to the other side of her bed and held her, calming her arms and her shaking body.  AJ grabbed Nick from behind and pulled him away from Caryss’s bed and into the hallway. 

 

            “Don’t,” scoffed Nick as AJ opened his mouth to talk once they were out in the hallway and AJ had released him.  He wiped the side of his face with the back of hand, a small amount of blood smearing onto his hand.  Caryss had gotten a few good swipes at him, one of them with her nail to his cheek.

 

            “Man, I would be a hypocrite if I tried to say anything to you about cheating on her, so I’m not going to.  I’ve fucked up to, so I understand.  But I think you need to leave.  She’s not ready to listen to your reasons or justifications and honestly she may never be.  But if you love her like you claim to and you still want a future with her, wait for her.  She’s going to want answers, and she’ll come looking for them when she’s ready.”  AJ patted his friend on the back and Nick nodded his head in understanding.

 

            “How am I supposed to keep her safe now though?” he asked, tears filling his bright blue eyes. 

 

            “I’ll keep you posted.  For now, just go to the hotel and get your stuff out.  I’ll call you when she’s discharged.”

 

            “Thanks man,” sniffed Nick.  He hugged AJ quickly then turned around and walked away.  He walked out of the hospital to his car and climbed in.  He started the engine and slowly pulled out of the parking lot. 

 

            I can’t believe I fell for it, and now I’ve ruined the best thing I’ve ever had, he thought to himself as he rolled to a stop at a red light a few blocks from the hotel.  I should have never believed that she just wanted to talk, and I should have been stronger and resisted her.  “I am such an idiot!” he screamed out loud as a few stray tears rolled down his cheeks.  The light turned green and he stepped on the accelerator, squealing his tires and he sped down the street towards the hotel. 

 

            He zipped into a parking space and turned the engine off.  He laid his head down on the steering wheel, frantically thinking of a way to get Caryss back.  He stayed that way for almost thirty minutes without realizing it, and without realizing that Trevor had walked into the hotel twenty minutes earlier and was now hiding in Caryss’s suite, waiting for her to get there. 

 

 

            “Car-bear, I’m so sorry,” whispered Stacie and she wrapped her arms around her forlorn friend.  “Nick loves you so much though, it’s so obvious, there has to be an explanation.”

 

            “You think there’s an explanation for him cheating on me?” Caryss shrieked, pulling away from her friend’s embrace.  “You think there’s a reason that’s going to make him fucking some whore on the beach okay?”  AJ entered the room at that moment, and Caryss turned her fury from Stacie to him.  “Come on AJ, you know Nick better than anyone; does he have a reason?  Are Backstreet Boys allowed to screw anything with tits and then justify it later?”  She was screaming at this point, hatred and degradation in control of and at fault for her erratic outburst. 

 

            She grabbed the nurse call button hanging from her bed and pushed it repeatedly.  A few seconds later a nurse came bounding into the room, her face flushed a little from the run down the hall.  Caryss still had the call button in her hand and had not stopped pushing it yet.

           

            “What’s wrong sweetie?” the nurse asked as she walked over to Caryss’s bedside and gently pulled the call button out of her grasp.  Caryss stared straight ahead, her eyes blank and cold, her face expressionless. 

           

            “I’m ready to leave.  Please get my discharge paperwork ready,” she stated matter-of-factly without blinking or moving her gaze.  The nurse stared at her for a minute, and then looked back at the three other shocked and upset faces in the room, trying to figure out what was going on. 

 

            “I’ll have to check with the doctor and see if he is ready to discharge you,” the nurse stated quietly as she grabbed her Caryss’s wrist to check her pulse.  Caryss pulled her hand away from the nurse and shifted her stare from in front of her to the nurse’s eyes. 

 

            “Get my discharge paperwork ready, or I am leaving without it,” she snarled as she flipped the blankets off her legs.  She swung her legs over the side of the bed, grimacing in pain as she moved her injured leg too quickly.  The nurse, Stacie, Liz and AJ all jumped quickly towards her.  “I’m fine!” she snapped, looking at all of their worried faces.  “Everyone get out so I can get dressed.  And you,” she said, looking at the nurse once more, “go get my discharge paperwork.” 

 

            Everyone backed out of the room slowly, different thoughts going through their minds.  The nurse was wondering what she should do, AJ was trying to figure out how to comfort Caryss and make sure she doesn’t hurt herself more, and Liz and Stacie were wondering who that person in the room was, because it certainly wasn’t the Caryss they knew. 

 

            When everyone was out of the room, Caryss untied her hospital gown and slipped it off; throwing it on the floor once it cleared her body.  She reached onto the windowsill and grabbed her shorts and tank tops.  She pulled the first tank top over her head, then the other.  Caryss always liked to layer and create a cute look, but at the moment, she couldn’t have cared less. 

 

            Now comes the hard part, she said to herself as she contemplated how to get her shorts on.  She carefully slid her injured leg into the appropriate leg hole of her shorts and gently pulled them over her brace.  She then bent her other leg and shoved it into the other leg hole, pulling them up until she couldn’t anymore while sitting.  She struggled to stand up, trying to balance on one leg while medicated and steady herself with her hands all while trying to keep her shorts from falling down.  She lost her balance and was about to fall, but a pair of strong arms caught her from behind. 

 

            “I’ll hold you up while you button your shorts,” AJ said softly as he held her steady.  She quickly button and zipped her jeans shorts without saying a word. 

 

            “Done, thank you,” she mumbled.  Still supporting her like a crutch, he moved around her body until he was face to face with the beautiful, broken creature.  His eyes saw through her, the soulful chocolate irises breaking down the recently built fortress around her heart.  All the stress and emotion that had built up inside her released at that moment, and she collapsed into his strong arms and cried, heaving and sobbing so forcefully that his body shook right along with hers. 

 

            “I know you can’t believe it right now,” he said into her ear, soothing her as best he could, “but you are going to be okay.”

 

            Liz and Stacie stood in the doorway, watching Caryss and AJ.  “Do you think she’s going to be okay?” Liz asked quietly, her voice cracking slightly as she said it. 

 

            “All the other options suck, so that’s what I’m hoping for,” replied Stacie frankly.  The nurse walked up behind them with some paperwork in her hand. 

 

            “Here are her post-ER instructions,” she said, handing the papers to Liz.  She looked at Caryss and AJ in the room and swallowed hard.  “You ladies will be around to look after her right?”  Liz and Stacie nodded their heads in confirmation and the nurse gave them a week smile before turning away and walking back to her station. 

 

            Liz and Stacie paced into the room, but before they could tell Caryss she was discharged and able to leave, AJ’s cell phone rang.  What they heard next made their legs go weak and their stomachs turn. 

 

            “Rick, slow down, I can’t understand you!” AJ screamed into the phone.  “Oh my God!  Is Nick hurt?  I’ll be there as soon as I can!”  He flipped his phone shut and thrust it in his pocket while at the same time shoving Caryss’s crutches at her and throwing Liz Caryss’s purse.  “We have to go, now!” he yelled.  “There was a shooting in Caryss’s suite.”

 

           

           

Chapter 25

Chapter 25

 

            AJ screeched to a stop under the overhang of The Four Seasons.  “Help Caryss get out of car and meet me up in her suite,” he yelled to Liz and Stacie as he was running into the hotel.  Caryss looked out the car window and saw an ambulance and four police cars with their lights flashing and guests that had meandered out of the hotel to stand outside and watch the excitement. 

 

            Liz, Stacie and Caryss exited the car as fast as they could and made their way up to the 15th floor to Caryss’s suite.  As they came off the elevator they heard commotion and when they walked into the hallway they saw police officers, people with FBI coats on and two men in suites walking in and out of the suite.  As they approached her suite, some uniformed man stopped the ladies.

 

            “You can’t come in here, it’s a crime scene,” one of the officer’s said matter-of-factly as he held his arms out to the side as a means to block the ladies from entering. 

 

            “This is my suite!” Caryss yelled in the officer’s face.  “I know that there has been a shooting, and my boyfriend is in there!”  One of the FBI agents turned around at the words being shouted and when he saw who they were coming from, he placed his hand on the officer’s shoulder and shook his head. 

 

            “She has clearance,” Rick said as he motioned for Caryss to enter the room.  “You two need to stay in the hall though,” he gently told Liz and Stacie.  They nodded their heads in acceptance and watched Caryss hesitantly enter the room, the crutches slowing her down even more.  Rick walked in behind her, ready to explain things to her and help her if she needed. 

 

            What in the hell happened?  This has to be a dream, she said to herself as she entered her suite.  She saw the broken lamp lying on the floor, the over turned chairs and table, and she saw a person in a black coat with “Medical Examiner” and another person in a black coat with “Coroner” written on the back talking to one another.  She stopped for a moment, her good leg feeling weak and her body becoming panic stricken. 

 

            “This way Caryss,” coaxed Rick as he placed his hand on the small of her back and she hobbled forward into the bedroom.  She walked through the doorway and in front of her on the floor was a body covered up with a sheet.  She stumbled forward and her stomach turned, vomit rising up in her throat.  The carpet was blood-soaked and the wall next to the bed was splattered with the red liquid as well. 

 

            “Oh my God, Nick,” she whispered as she stared at the motionless body on the floor. 

 

            “Caryss, that’s not Nick,” said Rick gently as he held onto her tightly so she wouldn’t fall over.  She looked back at him, her face pale and confusion mixed with sorrow filling her eyes.  “It’s Trevor,” he explained.  “He was hiding in the closet waiting for you to get back.  We don’t know he was intending to do, but he had a gun with him.  He came out of the closet and tried to shoot Nick.  They wrestled and the gun went off.”  Caryss inhaled sharply and Rick placed his hand on hers softly.  “He can’t hurt you anymore now,” he whispered to her as tears welled in her eyes. 

 

            “Caryss?” a voice said quietly from behind her.  She hopped around on her crutches and came face to face with the man who broke her heart. 

 

            “Nick, oh my God, are you okay?” she cried, wanting so badly to be wrapped in his arms.  He gingerly walked up to her, unsure of whether or not to embrace her.  He wanted to, so much, but figured she didn’t want him to touch her. 

 

            “I’m okay,” he said softly, looking down at his feet.  I’m so sorry Caryss; I never meant to hurt you.  Please just let me hold you and you can hold me and we’ll get through this together.  He wanted to shout that to her, but he couldn’t bring himself to do it. 

 

            “Good,” she said quietly.  I don’t know what Trevor would have done to me if you hadn’t stopped him first.  I love you so much and I should be in your arms right now, we should be comforting each other but instead you hurt me and now we are apart!  She wanted to scream her thoughts at him, but instead she said, “Thank you Nick,” and hopped as fast as she could away from him. 

 

            “Caryss wait!” he yelled after her.  She didn’t stop until she was in the hallway.  Liz and Stacie ran up to her and she fell forward into Stacie’s arms and cried hysterically. 

 

            “Honey, what happened?” asked Stacie softly as Liz looked on with worried eyes. 

 

            “I love him so much and he saved my life and I can’t even be with him because my heart hurts too much,” she stammered in between sobs.  “Why did he do it?  Why would he hurt me like that?”  She sobbed harder, unable to control her breathing or her emotions.  Stacie and Liz looked at each other, still unaware of what went down in the suite with Nick or with Trevor. 

 

            “Stacie, take my car and take Caryss to my place,” said AJ, walking up behind them after hearing their short conversation.  “She doesn’t need anymore of this right now.”  He handed his keys to Stacie and started to walk into the suite, but Liz stopped him. 

 

            “What is going on?  No one has told us anything and Caryss isn’t making any sense.”

 

            “Trevor is dead.  He was hiding in the suite waiting for Caryss and when Nick walked in instead of her, they fought and the gun went off.  Nick tried to help him but it was too late.” 

 

            “Did he come here to shoot Caryss?” Liz asked, horrified by what she had just been told. 

 

            “We don’t know what he was planning to do,” sighed AJ, and then he turned and walked away. 

 

            “I’m coming with you two,” called Liz down the hall towards Stacie and Caryss.  The three ladies exited the hotel and drove to AJ’s house.  Caryss flopped down on the couch once they were inside.  Wanting to forget about everything that happened today, she poured two pain pills out of the bottle and swallowed them without water.  She closed ear eyes and went to sleep, no dreams coming over her and no nightmares disturbing her. 

 

            “What do we do now?” asked Stacie as Liz covered Caryss up with a blanket and plopped down in the chair next to the couch. 

 

            “I guess we wait,” answered Liz with a sigh.  Stacie sat down in the chair on the other side of the couch and grabbed the remote for the television off the table.  “How did all this happen?” Liz asked before Stacie could turn the TV on.  Stacie sighed, set the remote back on the table and turned her body so she was facing Liz. 

 

            “I don’t know Lizzie.  None of us ever expected this to happen and I don’t know what it’s going to do to us now that it has.”

 

            “I don’t know either,” mumbled Liz as she rested her head against the back of the chair and curled her legs up close against her body.  Within minutes she was asleep, physically exhausted and emotionally drained from the day’s events.  Stacie turned on the television and a few minutes later she too had fallen asleep.  She was awoken an hour later when her cell phone rang. 

 

            “Stacie, its Laurie, where are you?”

 

            “We are at AJ’s house,” she said groggily, wiping the sleep from her eyes. 

 

            “How is Caryss?  AJ called me and told me everything that happened after I left the library.”  Stacie and Laurie talked for twenty minutes, rehashing all the sordid details. 

 

            “I have to go, I need to go to the police station and give a statement.  They are still trying to catch the guy that was chasing you for the envelope,” said Laurie with a sigh.  “I’m glad that Trevor can’t hurt anyone anymore.”

 

            “Me too,” admitted Stacie.  They said their goodbyes and Stacie tucked her phone back in her purse just as AJ walked through the door.  Liz woke up at the sound of the door being closed but Caryss did not stir.  It was eight o’clock at night and Liz and Stacie’s stomachs were growling. 

 

            “You read my mind,” exclaimed Liz as she stood up and stretched.  AJ walked into the living room with several McDonald’s bags in hand. 

           

            “I figured you ladies would be hungry and I know I’m starving.  I didn’t know what you liked so I got a variety,” he said with a smile as he sent the bags down on the coffee table.  He looked at the couch and saw Caryss lying there, apparently still asleep. 

 

            “Don’t wake her,” said Liz as she anticipated AJ’s next move.  “She took some pain pills and I think it would just be better for her to rest.”  AJ nodded his head in agreement and the three of them sat down and ate. 

 

            “Where’s Nick?” asked Stacie as she took a bite of her French fry. 

 

            “He said he was going back to his house.  I asked him to come over, but he said something about wanting to be alone and think,” answered AJ with a mouth full of food.  Liz giggled a little, wanting so badly to just have fun and joke around, but with everything that happened today, she didn’t think it would appropriate. 

 

            “How long will it take for everything to feel normal again?” she asked meekly, her vulnerability showing through. 

 

            “I don’t know,” said AJ as he wiped his hands on his pants and scooted closer to Liz.  She leaned into him, and he wrapped his arms around her.  Stacie scooted closer on the other side of Liz and wrapped her arms around her too.  They all knew it would take a while for things to feel okay again.  They were still in shock over what had happened and weren’t anywhere near being over it. 

 

            Caryss watched them through slotted eyes, trying her hardest to keep up the act that she was asleep.  She had brought all the problems to them, unintentionally of course, but it was still because of her that all this started in the first place.  She knew the only way for things to start getting better for herself and for them was to go back to Chicago.  She needed to get away from the pain, from the sadness, from everything that brought her emotion here. 

 

            Tonight, she said to herself.  I am leaving tonight.  She laid there; creating her plan of escape, making sure every detail had been covered so she would not be stopped.  She didn’t know the layout of AJ’s house, so finding a way to sneak out was the only thing posing a problem for her.  She decided the best thing to do was go the bathroom and scout out her options. 

 

            She slowly opened her eyes and sat up on the couch, which caused everyone to look at her. 

 

            “Hey, you’re awake,” said AJ with a smile.  “Are you hungry?”

 

            “Not really, but I do need to use the restroom.” 

 

            “Past the kitchen on the left side,” he told her, something in his gut not feeling right.  She nodded and used her crutches to help her up from the couch as she flipped her purse over her shoulder, a motion that no one besides AJ noticed.  She hobbled into the kitchen and was very pleased when saw her passage out of the house.  There was door just past the kitchen that was completely out of sight from the living room. 

 

            Feeling like it was now or never, she silently unlocked the door and slipped out of it as discreet as she could be using crutches.  She had seen a bus stop a few blocks down when they were driving here, and she knew if she could make it that far, she would be okay. 

 

            “She’s been in there for almost five minutes, maybe I should go check on her,” said Stacie as she looked at her watch.  All three exchanged anxious glances and quickly stood up from the floor. 

 

            “I knew it!” yelled AJ as they walked into the kitchen and saw the partially open door.  “I had a feeling she was going to do something stupid and I was fucking right!”  He fished his car keys out of his pocket and ran out the door to his car. 

 

            He drove down the street, his eyes glued to the sidewalks, looking for any sign of her.  He rolled to a stop at the stop light just before the bus stop and almost pulled out into the intersection when he saw Caryss getting onto the bus.  He jumped out of his car and called out to her.  She stopped and looked out the front window of the bus at him.  She raised her hand slightly as if doing a partial wave good bye, then the bus pulled away and she was gone from his life as quickly as she had come into it. 

 

 

Chapter 26

Chapter 26

 

Four and a half months later....

 

            “Caryss Martin,” the technician called into the waiting area for the imaging department of the hospital.  Caryss turned to her sister with uncertainty and Laney gave her a reassuring smile. 

 

            “Go ahead; I’ll be in there with you as soon as they come get me,” Laney told her sister gently.  Caryss nodded her head and stood up from her chair, following the technician into the ultrasound room.  She had never once faltered about going through pregnancy, delivery, and raising a child on her own, but at that very moment, more than anything, she wished he was there with her. 

 

            When she realized she was pregnant, there was never an issue of what to tell him; she wasn’t going to tell him anything.  Even though she knew how difficult going through this by herself would be, she knew it would be a lot easier than bringing him back into her life and dealing with that drama.  She was so in love with him still that her heart literally ached at the thought of him, and she knew she would never love another that way.  She swore off love with men completely and turned her affections towards the baby inside her and the family that loved and supported her. 

           

            I need you now, but I cannot let you back into my life and my heart; you’re too careless with them, she sadly thought to herself, the baby’s slight movements in her belly an ever-present reminder of the man on her mind. 

 

            “Right in here,” the technician said, motioning for Caryss to walk into the room.  “My name is Angie Lynn and I’ll be doing your ultrasound today.”  She smiled at Caryss, and Caryss smiled back.  She felt comfortable with her already, and that was something she knew was very important, considering the circumstances surrounding the visit. 

 

            “Okay Caryss lie down on here,” Angie Lynn said, patting the bed, “and slide your pants down just past your hips and pull your shirt up to just under your chest.”  Angie Lynn grabbed a couple towels as Caryss did what she was told, and then Angie Lynn tucked one towel below her belly into her pants and one above it under her shirt to protect her clothes from the gel. 

 

            “This is going to be cold,” she warned as she squirted a glob of gel onto Caryss’s stomach, causing her to jump a little regardless of the warning.  There was a knock on the door and the door opened before anyone responded to the knock.  “Right on time Dr. Olsen,” said Angie Lynn as she set the bottle of gel back onto the ultrasound cart. 

           

            “Good morning Caryss, how are you feeling today?” Dr. Olsen asked sincerely as she walked around the bed and stood next to the monitor where the images of the baby would show up. 

 

            “Nervous,” responded Caryss honestly as she wiped a tear out of the corner of her eye. 

 

            Angie Lynn placed the ultrasound instrument on Caryss’s belly and Caryss craned her neck to see the monitor.  A few more tears fell from her eyes as she stared at the screen. 

 

            “Here’s the heart, nice strong beats,” said Angie Lynn, pointing to a spot on the monitor.  Caryss let out a deep breath, happy to receive one good piece of news so far.  Angie Lynn moved the instrument over Caryss’s stomach, gaining access to different angles.  Twenty-five minutes later, Dr. Olsen cleared her throat and Angie Lynn pulled the instrument off of Caryss’s belly. 

 

            “We are all done with what we needed to check, do you want us to bring your sister in here with you now?” Dr. Olsen asked.  Caryss nodded her head yes and Angie Lynn went to get her.  When Laney was positioned next to Caryss’s bed, Angie Lynn put the instrument back on Caryss’s belly and the image of the baby came right back onto the screen.  She moved it around, explaining to Caryss and Laney where each body part was and what they were looking at on the monitor. 

 

            “Is the baby okay?” asked Caryss suddenly.  She had wanted to ask that question since the first image came onto the screen but she knew that they wouldn’t be able to tell her anything until they were done looking at the baby. 

 

            “Angie will wipe the gel off, you can go to the bathroom, and then we’ll go to my office and talk,” said Dr. Olsen.  Caryss sat up after Angie cleaned off her belly and quickly went to the bathroom.  All she wanted to know was if there was something wrong with the baby and emptying her bladder was the last thing on her mind. 

 

            “I know this is scary sweetie, but no matter what she tells you, we’ll deal with it,” Laney told her sister as they walked down the hallway to Dr. Olsen’s office.  “I’ll be right here for you, you know that.” 

 

            “I know,” said Caryss softly, wiping another tear away.  When did my baby sister become older than me? she thought to herself.  Laney had her own family, yet here she was, taking care of her older sister, reassuring her that everything would be okay.  The two girls sat in the chairs placed in front of Dr. Olsen’s desk and waited for the news. 

 

            “Caryss,” Dr. Olsen began, “I’m going to ask you to do something that I know you’re not going to like, but it’s important for us and for the health of the baby.”  Dr. Olsen paused, waiting for a response from her patient.

 

            “Of course, I will do anything,” stammered Caryss, worry growing fierce from her words.

 

            “I need you get the family medical history for the father.  The ultrasound didn’t give us a clear enough picture of the baby and I think we are going to need to do an amniocentesis in order to diagnose the baby with Down syndrome but we can only do the amnio before twenty weeks.  You’re already nineteen weeks pregnant so we need to hurry.”

 

            “Why do you need the father’s medical history to do an amnio?” Caryss asked heatedly.  When she said she would do anything she didn’t think it would involve him. 

 

            “The amnio has some risks and I don’t want to do it unless it’s absolutely necessary.  If I have both parents’ family medical histories, it will make my decision a lot easier.  Is it a problem to get it?” 

 

            “No, it’s not a problem at all,” said Laney, butting in and answering for her sister without permission.  “We’ll get it to you by the end of the week.”  She grabbed Caryss’s hand and pulled her out into the hallway.  “What is wrong with you?  Just call Ryan and tell him you’re pregnant with his baby and you need to know if anyone in his family has ever had Down syndrome!”

 

            “I can’t do that!” yelled Caryss, tears rolling down her face. 

 

            “Why?  Because he’s in California?  Because you’re not in a relationship with him and you don’t want him to know?  There could be something wrong with the baby!”  Caryss did not say anything; she just stood there, crying, not able to look her sister in the eyes.  I can’t tell her the truth.  She will never forgive me if she knows I’ve been lying to her this whole time!

 

            “Caryss, listen to me,” said Laney, her voice and expression softening, “I know it’s a bad situation; Ryan was a creep, you didn’t know he was married when you slept with him and I know he broke your heart, but you have to do this.”

 

            “Laney, I--” Caryss started, wanting to tell her sister so badly.  She had been lying to everyone since she came back from California.  She had lied to her boss about why she came back so soon and why she wouldn’t be attending the gala, she hadn’t admitted to anyone what happened with Trevor or that she was even a part of it, even when her parents heard about it on the news and asked her if she knew what happened because she was staying at the same hotel.  When she found out she was pregnant, she made up this outrageous story that she met a guy named Ryan while working in California, they started dating, and then she found out he was married, they broke up and that’s why she can’t tell him she’s pregnant.  Lie after lie had been spewing from her mouth, and she felt badly for lying to everyone but that seemed to be the only way to numb the pain she felt in her heart. 

 

            “What is it Car?  You’re keeping something from me, I can tell.”

 

            “Ryan is not the father, there is no Ryan at all,” Caryss squeaked out, still not able to look her sister in the eye. 

           

            “What?  What are you talking about?  Why would you lie to me?  What’s going on?”

 

            “I’m sorry Lane, I didn’t want to but I didn’t know what else to do.  It hurts so much talking about him and thinking about him and I know this doesn’t make any sense but creating an alternate story and making up a person and a relationship and lying to everyone about it was easier than dealing with the truth!”  She buried her face in her hands and cried. 

 

            “Listen Caryss, I don’t know what happened in California or what is going on, and I know you’ll tell me when you’re ready so I’m okay with that, but there is something to need to do right now and you know it.”  Laney grabbed Caryss’s purse and fished her cell phone out of, then thrust it at her.  Caryss gingerly grabbed it out of her hand, swallowing hard.  Her hands were so moist with sweat from her nerves that she almost dropped it.

 

            “Just calm down and call him Caryss,” instructed Laney in an even tone.  She had no idea who Caryss needed to call, but now was not the time for petty inquiries.  Caryss nodded her head at her sister and took a deep breath.  She had never brought herself to take his number out of her phone, so she pressed the voice recognition button and said “Nick” into the phone.  Laney shot her a curious look but did not say anything to interrupt her phone call.                

 

            A few seconds after Caryss put the phone to her ear, Laney heard a male voice say “Hello” on the other end and she saw a flash of emotion in her sister’s eyes.  It’s so obvious she loves him, what happened between them to break them up and make her so hesitant to tell him she is pregnant with his baby?  Laney pondered the possibilities as she waited for her sister to say something, anything, into the phone. 

 

            “Say something,” Laney hissed at her sister after she heard the voice on the other end say “Hello” for a third time. 

 

            “Caryss, are you there?  What’s wrong?  Talk to me!” Nick yelled into the phone, waiting, pleading for Caryss to talk to him.  He had called her so many times in the past four months, but she never answered her phone or returned his calls.  He had been praying for her to call him, but he was never expected it to be for the reason she was about to lay on him. 

 

            “Yeah, Nick, I’m here,” she said hoarsely into the phone.  Before he could say anything else, she quickly jumped into to why she was calling.  “I need to know if anyone in your family has ever been born with Down syndrome.” 

 

            There was silence on the other end of the phone.  Nick did not know what to say and he didn’t understand why she would be calling him and asking him that of all things out of the blue.  He knew he needed to buy some time and he definitely needed to find a way for her to have to talk to him again after this call.

 

            “I honestly don’t know off the top of my head; I’ll have to check into it and get back to you,” he said, deciding that was the best way to ensure they talk again.  “I’ll call you when I find out.” 

 

            “Thank you,” she said flatly into the phone, fighting back the desire to talk to him about what happened that day four and half months ago.  She so desperately wanted answers, explanations, anything he could tell her to justify his actions.  Four and half months ago she swore to herself that she never wanted to hear it, but she missed him so much and she could not stand being without him.  All she wanted was for him to explain that incident on the beach away and make things better. 

 

            She snapped her phone shut suddenly, knowing that if she didn’t she wouldn’t be able to hang up at all.  Laney jumped a little at her sudden movement, her curiosity rising even more.  She had never seen her sister act this way, but then again there were a lot of things she didn’t know about her sister these days. 

 

            “He’s going to find out and get back to me,” Caryss told her sister with absolutely no emotion in her voice.  She shoved her cell phone back in her purse without looking at her sister.  “I’m sorry I’ve been lying to you; I just couldn’t face the truth.”  Laney wrapped her arms around her sister and kissed her on the cheek. 

 

            “When you’re ready, I’m here to listen,” she simply said.  “I’ll take you home.”

 

            “Can I go to your house?” Caryss asked vulnerably. 

 

            “Of course.” 

 

            Caryss walked out of the hospital, allowing her baby sister to guide her and comfort her.  They stepped outside into the hot, humid air that typically flowed through Chicago in July.

           

            “We better stop by your apartment and get your swimsuit,” said Laney as they pulled away from the hospital.  “You know Brice and Abby are not going to let you stay at the house without swimming.”

 

            Caryss chuckled at the thought of her niece and nephew.  Brice was four and Abby was two and a half, and those two would never let her sit around unless she was doing it with them.  “Yeah, let’s stop at my place; I can just pack an overnight bag and spend the night at your place again,” she said smiling.  Caryss had been spending an awful lot of nights at her sister’s house lately, but it sure beat being alone. 

Chapter 27

Chapter 27

 

            Nick lowered his cell phone from his ear slowly, trying to comprehend and cope with the phone call he just received.  He stood in one spot, his mouth hanging open, shaking his head back and forth in confusion and disbelief. 

 

            “What’s wrong man?” AJ asked as he looked up from his magazine and saw the look on Nick’s face.  “What was that phone call about?”

 

            “It was Caryss,” he said so quietly AJ almost didn’t hear him. 

 

            “Caryss?  Are you shitting me?  What did she say?”

 

            Nick took a couple steps forward towards the couch and threw himself down on it dramatically.  AJ, his curiosity peaked beyond control now, leaned forward in his chair and rested his elbows on his knees, looking intently at his friend. 

 

            “I still don’t know what she said Jay.  It didn’t make any sense.  I don’t know if she couldn’t come up with anything better to say when she called me or what is going on.”  Nick lay on the couch, baffled by his phone call.  He couldn’t understand why she would call and not have anything better to say, especially after he opened the door for her with all his calls and messages to her for the past four and a half months. 

 

            “No offense dawg, but you’ve never been that great at understanding women,” AJ said laughing.  “Just tell me what she said to you and maybe I can help you figure it out.” 

 

            “Yeah, because you’re such a girl and you only know what they mean because you think like a woman,” retorted Nick with a smirk.  AJ grabbed a throw pillow off the couch and chucked it at him. 

 

            “Seriously Nicky, do you want my help or not?”  Nick stopped laughing and nodded his head. 

 

            “She said that she needed to know if anyone in my family has ever been born with Down syndrome.  I told her I would have to get back to her on that and then she hung up on me,” he explained, shrugging his shoulders a few times.  AJ sat there quiet for a minute, trying to sort out the various assumptions and ideas flowing through his mind. 

 

            I suppose there could be any number of reasons why she would want to know that information, but after not talking to him for four and a half months and calling him out of the blue to ask him that, there is only one good reason I can think of….

 

            AJ did not share his epiphany with Nick; he wanted to find out if he was right first.  Nick and the rest of the guys did not the kind of bad publicity a situation like this would bring if it got out that she was pregnant but turned out to really not be.  AJ didn’t realize he had been quiet for almost two minutes until Nick jostled him.

            “What do you think man?  Why would she call me and ask me that of all things?” 

 

            “Maybe she’s doing a research paper on the likelihood of celebrities’ babies being born with birth defects or something?”  Nick shot him a look that said “I don’t buy that line of bullshit” and AJ just started laughing.  “Dude, I don’t know.  But you do have to call her back and tell her if anyone in your family has, so you will get to talk to her again.  Maybe she won’t hang up on you this time and you can ask her why yourself?”

 

            “Gee, man, thanks for all your help,” retorted Nick sarcastically, shaking his head from side to side and rolling his eyes.  AJ snickered quietly as he stood up and filled his pockets back up with all the items he had taken out of them before sitting down.  Once his wallet, cell phone, car keys, cigarettes, Zippo, and ipod were tucked safely into his pockets, he started to walk to the door. 

 

            “Where are you going?  The guys are going to be here any minute!”

 

            “Well Mom, I have something to do.  I will be back later tonight and if anyone needs to get a hold of me, tell them to leave a message on my cell phone and I’ll call them back when I have a chance, okay?”  AJ turned and walked out the door of the studio, feeling bad about ditching the song writing session, but knowing that what he had to do was way more important. 

 

            “I better call the little lady and tell her what’s going on,” AJ said out loud as he walked to his car.  He grabbed his cell phone out of his pocket and pressed number one.  The phone rang several times but no one picked up.  “Come on Lizzie, answer the phone.”  Her voicemail picked up and told him that she was in a meeting until eleven thirty but to leave a message she would get back to him as soon as she could. 

 

            “Lizzie, it’s me.  Caryss called Nick today and asked him something very odd, and I don’t want to get into it on your voicemail, so just give me a call when you get this.  If you get my voicemail, leave a message, my phone will be turned off for a little while.  Don’t worry and I love you.” 

 

            Five hours later AJ returned his seat to the upright position as the pilot came over the loud speaker, informing the passengers that he was beginning the decent and would be landing at O’Hare International Airport shortly. 

 

            “The temperature on the ground in Chicago is a balmy eighty-seven degrees and the sun is shining brightly,” the captain finished with. 

 

            Thank God it’s not the middle of winter, thought AJ to himself as he shoved a couple pieces of gum in his mouth to keep his ears from popping as the plane lost altitude.  He laid his head against the back of seat and closed his eyes until he felt the bump of the wheels landing on the runway. 

 

            As he exited the plane he turned his cell phone back on to check his messages.  One from Kevin asking him where he took off to and if he realized he has a commitment to the band, so typical, AJ thought as hit the delete button.  One from the designer that was making a suit for him for a party asking him if he decided what color and type of material he wanted, that’s why you’re the designer, not me, he thought as he deleted that message too.  And one from his mom, just checking in and seeing how he was doing.  I’ll call her back later, I’m probably going to need her help with this situation anyway.

 

            “I wonder why Liz hasn’t called yet,” he thought out loud as he tucked his cell phone in his pocket and began his trek to Avis. 

 

            He walked through the enormous airport towards the car rental agency.  As he stepped up to the counter, a very flamboyant man in his early twenties almost went into anaphylactic shock when he realized who was standing before him needing to rent a car.

 

            “Oh my God, AJ McLean, I can’t believe it,” he gushed in a higher pitched voice than most males have.  “I am such a huge fan, you have no idea!” 

 

            “It’s very nice to meet you and thank you for being such a great fan,” AJ said sincerely.  “I am in a very big hurry though and I really need to rent a car.”  AJ held out his credit card for the man to take. 

 

            The man behind the desk nodded his head ferociously and began typing like a madman on the computer.  Exactly eighteen seconds later, the man looked back up at AJ with a smile and thrust a set of car keys into his hand. 

 

            “You’re all set Mr. McLean, I upgraded you to a deluxe model, no charge of course, and if you’ll just follow Michelle over there,” he said, pointing at a pleasant looking young woman standing by the door, “she’ll take you to your car.”  He handed AJ his credit card back and gave him the most alluring smile he could.  “If you ever switch teams, give me call.”

 

            “I’ll keep that in mind,” laughed AJ as he walked away from the counter.  He followed Michelle out to the parking lot and was very pleased when she led him to a black Cadillac Escalade. 

 

            “Here we are Mr. McLean.  I hope this suites your needs.”

 

            “It’s great, thank you.”  He hopped into the SUV and pulled out of the parking lot quickly.  Once he was on the highway, he pulled his cell phone out again and called information.  They gave him the address of Caryss’s apartment and he drove there as quickly as he could. 

Chapter 28

Chapter 28

 

            “Can I help you?” the man at the desk asked AJ as he scurried into the apartment building where Caryss lived. 

 

            “I’m here to see Caryss Martin,” he said forcefully, not really in the mood to get pushed around by some nerd wearing a bow tie and a matador jacket.  The man looked AJ from head to waist, seeing as how that was as far down as he could see from behind the desk.  He grew weary at the tattoos and black nail polish and shook his head in disgust.

 

            “I’m sorry, sir, but Ms. Martin is not in at the moment.  Would you like to leave her a message?” 

 

            “No, thank you,” said AJ as politely as he could through gritted teeth.  He didn’t know if Caryss really wasn’t here or if the man was just being rude and denying him access because of the way he looked.  He stepped away from the desk respectfully and was ready to walk out of the apartment complex but was stopped by the doorman on the way out.    

 

            “I’m sorry sir but I couldn’t help overhearing your conversation.  I know where you can find Ms. Caryss,” the doorman said to AJ with a kind smile on his face.  AJ nodded his head and the doorman gave AJ the address to her sister’s house.  “She’s a wonderful lady.  It’ll be very exciting to have a baby around here too,” the man said cheerfully. 

           

            AJ struggled to control the shocking blow that hit him as the doorman confirmed his suspicions.  “Well, thank you so much for your help,” he managed to get out before bidding the man a good day and heading back to his vehicle. 

 

            “Holy Shit!” he yelled as he shut the door to the Escalade and started it up.  “I can’t believe this!  She has to tell Nick.”  He pulled away from the apartment complex and began to steer towards Laney’s house with the help of navigation system in the SUV.  Twenty minutes later he pulled in the driveway of the house with the address he had been given. 

 

            “Nice,” he commented out loud as he turned off the engine and got out of the vehicle.  He walked up the path leading to the front door and rang the doorbell.  He heard footsteps approaching the door and was taken aback when a woman who looked almost identical to Caryss answered. 

 

            She’s got lighter hair and hazel eyes instead of green, but there’s no hiding the relation, he reflected to himself as the woman smiled at him warmly. 

 

 

            “I used to dream of this happening when I was a teenager, and of course it never did.  Now that I’m married you show up on my doorstep, just my luck,” she said charismatically.  AJ could not help but smile at her charm and cuteness. 

 

            “Are you Laney?” he asked awkwardly, having no clue what to say or how he was going to explain himself. 

 

            “Yes I am; and I’m sure you’re here because of Caryss.”  AJ nodded and then looked down at his feet.  “She’s out back playing with the kids, come on in.”  Laney opened the door all the way and stepped aside, allowing AJ to come into the house.  He looked up at her and smiled, thinking that Caryss must have told her everything. 

 

            She led him through the living room and into the kitchen where the windows looked out into the backyard.  He looked out the window and saw two small children running through a sprinkler and laughing and he saw a woman in a bikini watching them with her back to the house. 

 

            She doesn’t look pregnant to me, he thought as he moved his eyes from her feet up to her head and back down.  I guess I was wrong.  AJ shrugged his shoulders and Laney noticed it.

 

            “Just wait until she turns around,” she told him quietly, waiting for a reaction from him.  He looked over at her defiantly, not liking the insinuation in her voice even though she was right.  “Don’t look at me like that,” she scolded.  “You know that’s why you’re here.  I just hope that Nick didn’t send you to do his dirty work for him.”  She put her hands on her hips and waited for an answer. 

 

            “Nick doesn’t have a clue,” AJ answered softly, looking down at his feet.  “He told me what Caryss said when she called; I needed to come here and find out if it was true before saying anything to Nick.”

 

            “Why?  Why couldn’t you just tell him what you were thinking and let him be a man and deal with it on his own?  Were you there holding his hand when he knocked my sister up too or do you only do that when he’s gotten himself into a mess?”  Her eyes were burning with disgust and her voice was almost at shouting level.  AJ didn’t know what to say; he understood how upset Laney was and he knew she had a valid point.

 

            Caryss could hear the raised voices coming from inside the house and she turned around to see what was going on.  She saw her sister in the window, looking very upset, but she could not see who her sister was talking to. 

 

            “Auntie Caryss needs a drink of water.  You guys behave and I’ll be right back out,” she told her niece and nephew as she walked towards the house.  She slid open the patio door and walked into the house quickly; the temperature change from the hot outside to the air conditioned inside shocking her a little.   She crossed her arms over her chest and hurried into the kitchen. 

 

            “Laney, what’s wr--” she started to call out, but stopped immediately as she entered the kitchen and saw AJ standing there.  “Oh my God,” she squealed, running to him.  He wrapped her up in a hug but was caught a little off guard by her reaction.  Caryss herself was a little surprised by her reaction, forgetting for that moment that she had basically run away from his house and hadn’t spoken to him in four and a half months. 

 

            “Hey sweetie, how are you?” he asked as she slowly backed away from him.  His eyes immediately fell to stomach.  He looked at her moderately swollen belly and a slight smile spread across his lips.  She saw what he was looking at and scrambled to find something to cover up with. 

 

            “No, you don’t have to, it’s beautiful,” he said quietly, gently grabbing her arm to stop her from leaving. 

 

            “I haven’t found a maternity swimsuit yet so I’m stilling wearing my bikini…” she trailed off, trying to hide her blushing face from him and offer an excuse for her belly to be showing.  Some people find pregnant bellies offensive and she didn’t want to make anyone uncomfortable. 

 

            “Baby, you look fabulous,” said Laney as she walked over to her sister and hugged her.  She bent down and rubbed Caryss’s belly and began talking in a cartoon voice to the baby.  “At least you haven’t made mommy lose her figure yet.”  They all laughed, and then Laney stood up.  “I’m going to go out and check on the kids.”  She quickly walked out of the room and Caryss and AJ stood there staring at each other as they heard the patio door slam shut from the other room. 

 

            “Why didn’t you tell him?” AJ asked, breaking the silence in the room.  Caryss leaned against the counter and AJ sat down on one of the stools on the other side of the counter.  Caryss looked down at her hands and sighed softly. 

 

            “I knew he would want to work things out if I told him I was pregnant, and I don’t know if I can trust him after what he did,” she began, trying her hardest not to cry.  “I knew it would be easier to do this by myself,” she said, pointing to her stomach, “than to let him back into my life and risk being hurt again.” 

 

            “You never even gave him a chance to explain himself Caryss.” 

 

            Her eyes darted to AJ’s and she could feel the anger rising in her body.  She remembered back to that day in the hospital and what she had said to him then, and she wanted to shout those same words at him again.  Instead, she took a deep breath, striving to remain calm.  Her elevated blood pressure during the pregnancy was already an issue with her doctors and unless she controlled herself, it would shoot through the roof during this conversation.

 

            “Am I supposed to believe that there is a reason in the world that would make him cheating on me okay?” she asked, her voice calm and even. 

 

            “No,” AJ admitted.  “But there are different reasons people cheat.  He didn’t do it because he doesn’t love you or because he wanted to hurt you.”

 

            “So he cheated honorably?” she threw back at him, sarcasm ringing in his ears like a gong.  She felt herself get a little dizzy, something that happened frequently when her blood pressure rose. 

 

            “Obviously you’re still too upset to talk about it.  I thought after four months you would have cooled down a little bit and would want some answers.”  He shook his head from side to side and cracked the knuckles on each finger one by one. 

 

            “Not four months AJ, four months, two weeks and three days and no, I have not cooled down about it!” she yelled at him, tears burning in her eyes.  “I came home from California heartbroken and hanging onto my sanity by a thread.  When I had finally convinced myself that moving on and forgetting Nickolas Gene Carter was an attainable goal, I found out I was pregnant!  I have had complication after complication with this pregnancy, now I find out the baby might have Down syndrome, and on top of everything else, I’m standing here dealing with you while you try and explain to me why the love of my life cheated on me!”  She inhaled sharply to catch her breath, and a sharp pain shot across her stomach. 

 

            “Caryss!” AJ yelled at he leaped across the counter towards her. 

 

            “I’m okay, I’m fine,” she told him softly as she rubbed her hand across her stomach.  “My blood pressure’s been really high and when I get worked up it only makes it worse,” she explained, walking to the table and sitting down in one of the chairs.  He sat down in the chair next to her and scooted it so he was sitting in front of her. 

 

            “Does the baby really have Down syndrome?” he asked quietly, but wishing immediately that he had rephrased it or not asked it all. 

 

            “The doctors aren’t sure yet; more tests need to be done.”

 

            “Caryss, I--” AJ began but was interrupted by the chime of the doorbell. 

 

            “Excuse me, I’ll be right back,” said Caryss as she went to answer the door. 

 

            “Care-bear,” AJ heard a female voice squeal as he sat in the kitchen.  That sounds an awful lot like Liz, he thought to himself, straining his ears to hear some more. 

 

            “What are you doing here?”

 

            “I think that Alex is on his way here.  I don’t know how, but I think he suspects you’re pregnant.”  That is Liz!  What is going on?  He stood up and ran into the living room where he saw Liz standing in the doorway talking to Caryss. 

 

            “You knew she was pregnant?” he asked his girlfriend, his tone vague.  He was unsure of what emotion to feel. 

 

            “She’s my best friends, of course I knew,” answered Liz quietly, shocked to see him already here and trying to get a reading on him.  “I promised her I wouldn’t tell anyone, and unfortunately, that meant you too.  It wasn’t my place to say anything, that is her job.  I’m sorry Alex.”

 

            He stood there for a minute, thinking about what Liz and just told him.  He understood the bonds of friendship and what a bad situation this whole thing has been all the way around.  “You don’t have to be sorry.  I wouldn’t expect anything else from you.” 

 

            Liz smiled at him and gave him a quick kiss on the lips.  “What tipped you off?” she asked, motioning to Caryss’s belly. 

 

            “I was with Nick when she called him today and when he told me what she called for, I suspected.”  Liz looked over at Caryss with questioning eyes.  She didn’t know that Caryss had called Nick today. 

 

            “You talked to Nick?”

 

            “I had to find out if anyone in his family had ever been born with Down syndrome,” Caryss explained softly, avoiding eye contact with Liz.  She had not told Liz about the pregnancy complications or about the baby possibly having birth defects.  That would have just given Liz more secrets to keep and less probability of her keeping them. 

 

            Liz shook her head from side to side slightly, her confusion obvious.  “Why don’t we go into the kitchen and I’ll tell you everything,” said Caryss with a sigh.  The three went into the kitchen and Caryss filled Liz in on everything. 

 

            When she had finished talking, Liz wiped a tear away from the corner of her eye and cleared her throat.  “When are you going to tell Nick?” she finally asked, grabbing Caryss’s hands and holding them in her own. 

 

            “I don’t know,” admitted Caryss.  “I don’t know what to say.”

 

            “Tonight, you’re going to tell him tonight,” said AJ as he stood up from the table.  He pulled out his cell phone and held it out to Caryss.  “Call your doctor and get clearance to fly.”  Caryss and Liz looked at him in puzzlement.  “You are flying back with us to California and you are going to tell him, in person, tonight.”

           

Chapter 29

Chapter 29

 

            “What am I doing?  I can’t do this!” screeched Caryss as she fastened the seat belt across her lap. 

 

            “Yes you can honey, you’ll be fine,” reassured Liz as she held Caryss’s hand.  Caryss laid her head back against the cushy seat in first class and closed her eyes.  She started to feel nauseated as the plane sped up and as the wheels lifted off the ground, she grabbed the paper bag in front of her just in time. 

 

            “Oh my God sweetie, are you okay?” Liz asked immediately as Caryss retched into the bag.  It was obvious she was not okay, but Liz didn’t know what else to say.  She rubbed Caryss’s back and exchanged a worried glance with AJ who was sitting on the other side of her. 

 

            Caryss leaned back in her seat, taking a few deep breaths to calm herself down.  Liz grabbed the paper bag and handed it over to AJ.  He reeled back, tucking his hands under his legs so he wouldn’t have to touch it.  Liz slanted her eyes at him and pursed her lips together, a sign he knew very well.  He gingerly pinched the top of the bag with his thumb and index finger and carried it that way to the bathroom. 

 

            “So gross,” he muttered as he tossed it in the garbage can and washed his hands frantically with soap and water.  When he got back to his seat, Liz was reading a book and Caryss appeared to be sleeping. 

 

            “Are you sure this was a good idea?” Liz asked as AJ sat down next to her and pulled his mp3 player out of his pocket. 

 

            “I am sure that she needs to tell Nick, and not over the phone, but I am worried about her flying and dealing with all of this while she’s pregnant.”

 

            “I’m worried too.  I mean, what if something happens?  This is just such a bad situation.”  Liz glanced over at Caryss and then back at AJ. 

 

            “We both talked to her doctor, we know what we are dealing with and we have the instructions on what to do if something does happen, and that’s all we can do baby,” he said softly as he placed his hand over Liz’s.  She just nodded her head and went back to reading her book.  AJ slipped the buds into his ears and turned his mp3 player on.  He wasn’t a big fan of flying and listening to music while he tried to sleep usually seemed to be enough of a distraction. 

 

            Liz jostled him what seemed like minutes but was actually hours later.  “We’re landing babe,” she said as he pulled the buds out of his ears and turned his music off.  He looked over at Caryss and found her awake, tensely holding another airline issued paper bag in her hand.  Luckily, this time, she did not make any use of it. 

 

            When the wheels hit the runway Caryss let out the breath she had been holding and slowly the color started to flood back into her face. 

 

            “I’m taking the bus back to Chicago,” she muttered under breath as she stood up from her seat and collected her things.  The threesome trekked out of the plane and into the airport, AJ undetected the whole way.  Apparently, traveling with two women, one of whom being pregnant, is a pretty good disguise for a Backstreet Boy. 

 

            None of them had luggage to claim, seeing as how AJ and Liz both came with just the clothes on their backs and Caryss only packed a carry-on.  They quickly exited the airport and took the tram to the short-term parking garage where AJ had left his car.  Ten minutes later, they were on their way to AJ’s pad.

 

            “Where are we going?” asked Caryss, very confused by the path AJ was taking to Nick’s house.  “We passed the exit for Nick’s house.”

 

            “Nick doesn’t have a house right now,” said AJ tentatively.  He wasn’t about to offer up anymore information than was asked for. 

 

            “What do you mean he doesn’t have a house right now?” Caryss questioned, feeling a little irritated by AJ’s vagueness.

 

            “He sold it and he’s been staying with me until he finds a new place.”  Liz shot AJ an annoyed look and turned around in the front seat so she could see Caryss. 

 

            “What Mr. Ambiguous is trying not to tell you is that Nick sold the house after you left, not wanting to live on the property where he had betrayed you.”  Caryss scoffed and looked out the window. 

 

            “How romantic,” she responded sarcastically. 

 

            “Caryss, don’t.  He loves you so much and he sold his dream house to try and escape the pain he caused you.  Doesn’t that mean anything to you?”  Liz knew she was treading in dangerous water but she could not stand Nick and Caryss being apart any longer.  They were each other’s match, and the sooner Caryss realized it the better. 

 

            “Him not cheating on me in the first place would mean a whole lot more,” she offered up, the sarcasm fading from her voice and sincerity replacing it. 

 

            I can’t believe he sold his house because he hurt me.  He loved that house, hell, I loved that house and I was only there once!  I guess it was right though, because I could have never stepped foot on that beach again knowing what he did on it with another woman while we were seeing each other.  Lord knows how many chicks he’s banged in that house, but none of them were while we were together so it didn’t bother me as much. 

 

            Her internal monologue was cut short as AJ steered his car into his driveway. 

 

            “Maybe this time you’ll actually stay put and not run off my property like an escaping convict, huh?” AJ joked as he turned off his car and opened the door. 

 

            “Mr. Funny Pants has jokes, ha-ha,” replied Caryss, trying to hide her smirk and keep her tone sounding annoyed instead of amused by his comment.  Caryss and Liz emerged from the car and as the threesome walked up to AJ’s door, Caryss’s stomach started flipping and turning.  She was so nervous to see Nick again, not to mention that she was nineteen weeks pregnant with his baby and she was not going to be able to keep it from him any longer. 

 

            Liz sensed her hesitation and gently placed her hand on Caryss’s back.  “Come on sweetie-pie, just get it over with.”  Caryss turned her head and looked into Liz’s eyes.  Liz could see the doubt and fear plastered in them, empathy for her friend overtaking the practicality and rationalization that she was previously trying to adorn.  

 

            “Lizzie, I’m scared,” Caryss whispered as tears fell freely from her eyes.  “What if he doesn’t want to be with me?  What if he doesn’t think the baby is his?  What if--”

 

            Liz put her finger over Caryss’s lips, causing her to stop talking.  “You are my best friend and I love you.  I have not let you down yet, and I’m not going to start now.  You need to trust me when I tell you that everything will be okay.”  She wrapped Caryss into a hug as AJ stood behind them watching.  He loved the relationship Caryss and Liz had and this was just another fabulous illustration of their friendship at its best. 

 

            Caryss backed out of the hug and wiped the tears off her cheeks.  She took a deep breath as AJ opened the door to his house and they all walked slowly inside. 

 

            “Yo Nicky, I’m home,” AJ called out as he closed the door behind the two ladies.  Liz stood next to AJ and Caryss stood behind them.  Due to her short stature, she was hidden fairly well behind them, but it felt safe to her and she did not mind it.  She heard footsteps approaching and gulped hard. 

 

            “Hey Liz, nice to see you,” said Nick as he walked into the foyer.  “What do you guys want to do for dinner?  We could order…”  His words trailed off as Liz and AJ parted and Caryss came into full view. 

 

            Emotions flooded her body as she saw him standing there in long, khaki colored shorts, a sky blue colored polo shirt and flip flops.  His hair was messed and a little shorter than she remembered it.  His sapphire eyes were illuminated and as she stared at his full, pink lips, memories of kissing them inundated her mind. 

 

            “Caryss,” he breathed, in shock that she was standing right in front of him.  God she looks beautiful he thought to himself as he stared at her.  Surprisingly, Caryss made the first move and pressed herself against his body, wrapping her arms around his waist and laying her head gently against his chest. 

 

            He ran his hands down her hair and onto her back, pulling her into him tighter as he bent his head down and breathed her in.  She could have stayed in his arms like that for eternity if she had the chance, but that was not going to happen.

 

            “Nick, where do you keep the--” a female voice called out but stopped as they entered the foyer.  Caryss jerked away from Nick when she heard this and almost fell over when she saw who the voice belonged to. 

 

            “Stacie?  What are you doing here?” Caryss asked as she backed away from Nick slowly.  She looked at Stacie, clad in only a towel, her hair dripping wet like she had just come out of the shower.  She could feel the tears burning and threatening in her eyes as she tried to make sense of the situation.  She looked back and forth between Stacie and Nick, as did Liz and AJ. 

 

            “Caryss, this isn’t what it looks like,” stammered Nick, knowing that if he didn’t explain this situation right now his chances of ever being with her again would be lost forever. 

 

            “Oh is that right?  Cause what it looks like to me is that you and my friend have something going on that I wasn’t supposed to know about,” Caryss yelled as she continued walking backwards. 

 

            “Stacie, I found them…” a male voice said as he walked into the foyer.  He saw the looks on everyone’s faces and wondered what he had just walked into to. 

 

            “Jim?” Caryss asked, seriously confused at this point.  He too was wet and was wearing only a towel, but Caryss didn’t know what was going on.  “Somebody tell me what is going on!”

 

            “Jim and I came over to go swimming and hang out,” said Stacie quietly.  “We just got out of the pool and we were about to rinse off in the pool house, but we couldn’t find extra towels.”  Stacie looked down at her feet, hurt that her best friend would think that she would actually have sex with Nick. 

 

            Liz and AJ let out the breaths they had been holding, both of them worried that Nick had messed up again, and with Caryss’s friend of all people.  Everyone looked at Caryss, waiting for a response and wondering if she was okay.  Up until this point, Nick had been focused on her face, but as his eyes fell down her body, he noticed for the first time that her stomach seemed a little bigger than he remembered. 

 

            “Stacie, I’m so sorry.  I really didn’t think that you would do that to me, but when you came in wearing a towel and…” Caryss’s words trailed off as she shook her head in embarrassment.  Stacie walked over to Caryss and hugged her, being extra careful to make sure her towel didn’t fall down. 

 

            “It’s okay Care-bear; I know what it must have looked like.”  She turned around to make a joke to Nick about it, but saw the way he was looking at Caryss’s stomach and knew the secret was about to come out.  “I think I’m going to go get dressed and then we can catch up.”  Stacie turned to leave, grabbing Jim by the arm and pulling him with. 

 

            Nick could not take his eyes off her mid-section, trying to figure out if his eyes were playing tricks on him, if he should ask her if she’s put on a little weight since he saw her last, or what was going on.  Caryss finally noticed him staring at her belly, and the realization of what she had to tell him hit her like a ton of bricks. 

 

            “Why don’t we all go into the living room and sit down,” suggested AJ as he started to walk out of the foyer. 

 

            “Are you pregnant?” Nick asked suddenly, unable to peel his eyes away from Caryss’s stomach.  “Is that why you called me and asked me about Down syndrome?  Did I get you pregnant?”

Chapter 30

Chapter 30

 

            “Yeah, Nick, I guess you did,” responded Caryss awkwardly.  This wasn’t how she had envisioned telling him, and his reaction was not ideal, especially in front of other people.  She had backed herself against the wall and was finding it hard to break away from it, fearing that it was the only thing keeping her standing. 

 

            “Car, are you okay?” Liz asked, watching her friend cling to the wall and not move. 

           

            “I can’t believe you didn’t tell me!” Nick yelled, not giving Caryss a chance to answer Liz.  “You’re already showing!  How far along are you?”  He started pacing back and forth, running his hand frantically through his hair. 

 

            “Almost five months,” Caryss whispered.  God, it’s hard to breath.  Is the room spinning?  It’s like a million degrees in here.  I can’t breathe.  AJ and Liz noticed the color draining from her face and how her legs were trembling as she leaned into the wall. 

 

            “What?” hissed Nick, his face turning red and his eyes glowing with anger.  “Five months?  You’ve known for five months and didn’t tell me!  What were you planning to do?  Wait until you gave birth and then splash it all over the tabloids to get back at me?” 

 

            “No, Nick, that’s not it, I--”

 

            “How could you do this?  You told me you were on birth control?  Was this your plan all along?  To get pregnant and get my money?  Were you trying to get attention?”  Nick was so furious that random accusations and attacks were flying out of his mouth without thinking about it.  He didn’t care how they were hurting Caryss, and he didn’t stop to think how badly he would regret it later.  All he thought about at that moment was delivering the final blow to her. 

 

            “You are nothing but a lying, deceitful slut.  I should have never gotten involved with you and now I’m stuck with you!  Well, that is until we get a paternity test done and I found out I’m not really the father!”  He grabbed his car keys off of the table and bolted out the door, slamming it viciously behind him. 

 

            Liz and AJ stood in the foyer, mouths gaping open in disbelief of what Nick had just said.  Stacie and Jim had walked back into the room just in time to witness the horrible display as well. 

 

            “I knew it,” Caryss whispered as she slid down the wall into a crumpled heap on the ground.  She lay on the cold, hardwood floor, crying so hard it that she barely made a sound at all.  Her body shook with pain and sadness as once again the man she loved had hurt and betrayed her.

 

  

            “I let her down Alex.  I promised her that everything was going to be okay and it’s not.”  Liz looked down at her hands as tears filled her eyes. 

 

            “Lizzie you can’t blame yourself for any of this,” said Stacie gently as she took a seat next to Liz.  “You reassured her, just like I would have done, just like any friend would have done and there is nothing wrong with that.  You couldn’t have known how Nick would react or what would happen.” 

 

            AJ put his arm around Liz and pulled her closer on the double seated chair in the waiting room.  “Stacie’s right honey; you told her what she needed to hear to do what she needed to do.  It didn’t work out the way we had all hoped, but it’s not your fault.” 

 

            Liz sat quietly for a minute, allowing the tears to fall from her eyes, the events of the evening stewing in her mind.  “Who’s fault is it then?” she screamed as she stood up from the chair and paced around the waiting room.  “Someone needs to be accountable for this!  When she finds out she lost the baby, she’s going to want answers!  Who are we going to tell her is responsible, how are we going to explain to her why she lost the baby?”  Liz sank down onto one of the couches and tucked her legs up to chest and cried. 

 

            “Baby, we don’t know if she lost the baby,” soothed AJ as he walked over to her and rocked her gently.  “We don’t know anything yet.  And it’s true, she’s going to want to blame somebody if anything is wrong, but whose fault is it really?”

 

            “It’s mine,” a deep voice announced from the doorway.  Everyone looked up and saw Nick, disheveled and upset, his eyes red from the tears he so obviously had been crying and his face flushed with guilt. 

 

            “Nick, man, where have you been?  We’ve been trying to get a hold of you for the past two hours!”  AJ was so relieved to see that Nick was okay, but pissed off that he was okay at the same time.  The only reason he would have accepted for Nick not answering his phone and returning his calls during an emergency was for him to be dead, and that he unmistakably was not. 

 

            “I went to my house, err, what used to be my house.  I wanted to be near the ocean.  You know when I’m upset it calms me,” he said matter-of-factly to AJ.  “When I got there, all the memories of Caryss and I together on the beach came flooding back to me, and then I realized the horrible things I said to her.  And now, she’s--”  He couldn’t continue, he started sobbing again as he had done so many times over the past two hours. 

 

            AJ wrapped Nick in a supportive hug, knowing how much agony his friend was in.  “What took you so long to come here?”  AJ asked as he released Nick from the hug. 

 

            “I don’t know,” he whimpered as he sat down in a chair and covered his face with his hands.  “I’ve screwed up so bad with everything and I just can’t, I’m not, I don’t…” he trailed off, finding words hard to come by. 

 

            “Excuse me, has the father arrived yet?” a nurse asked as she walked into the waiting area. 

 

            “Yeah, he’s right here,” said AJ as he patted Nick on the back. 

 

            “Good, the patient has been asking for him.  Right this way,” the nurse said as she held out her arm for Nick to follow her.

 

            “She’s been asking for me?” he repeated, bewildered.  “Why would she be asking for me after what I said to her?”  The nurse gave him a puzzled look, unaware of the situation. 

           

            “Why don’t you go to her and find out?” Stacie coaxed, hoping that things would turn around for the better from here on out.  Nick nodded his head and followed the nurse to Caryss.  The nurse gently pushed open the door and walked into the room, Nick following right behind her. 

 

            “Caryss,” he whispered as he saw her lying in the bed of emergency room exam cubicle three.  The doctor turned around at the barely audible sound and a surprised look came across his face. 

 

            “Nick Carter isn’t it?  I think you’re on my daughter’s wall at home,” he said with a smile as he extended his hand to Nick.  “I’m Dr. Reed, and I’m assuming you’re the father?”  Nick nodded his head as he looked at Caryss.  She had not opened her eyes since he came into the room and he wondered how she could have been asking for him. 

 

            “She’s resting right now.  She was really upset when she was brought in and we gave her some pregnancy safe medication to calm her a little,” explained Dr. Reed as he turned back to Caryss.  “Would you like to see your baby?” he asked, and for the first time, Nick realized that he was in the middle of doing an ultrasound. 

 

            Nick walked over to the side of the bed and looked at the screen with black and white splotches all over it.  “Is it okay?” he asked cautiously. 

 

            “Yes, the baby seems to be doing fine, but Caryss is not.  Her blood pressure is out of control and that will cause some serious problems for the remainder of her pregnancy if it’s not monitored very closely.”    

 

            “Does the baby have Down syndrome?”

 

            “We are waiting for the results of the amniocentesis we did earlier to come back.  When Caryss told us what was going on with her pregnancy, we decided to do one, and it went very well.  Caryss’s blood pressure has also stabilized for the time being, another good thing.” 

 

            Nick nodded his head at what the doctor had said, but inside he had no idea what the doctor was talking about.  Note to self: Buy books about pregnancy and read all of them….twice.   

 

            “I have some rounds to do, but I’ll be back in when I get the results back,” said Dr. Reed as he gathered his things and exited the room.  When he was gone, Nick sat down on the side of the bed and stared at Caryss. 

 

            “I’m so sorry Car,” he said quietly as he raised his hand to caress her face.  “I have done nothing but hurt you since I met you.”  He leaned down and planted a soft kiss on Caryss’s forehead. 

 

            “That’s not true.”  Nick looked down at Caryss and smiled.  She fluttered her eyes open and looked at him.  “You did make me happier than I’d ever been too.  It wasn’t all bad.” 

 

            “I didn’t mean those things I said to you earlier.  To someone else, I might have, but not to you.  I know you, and I know you would never do that to me.  I’m sorry.” 

           

            “Why did you cheat on me Nick?”  That was a question he was not expecting her to ask at that moment. 

 

            “My ex-girlfriend Hayley called me that evening and said she needed to talk to me.  I don’t know why, but I agreed, and we met at my house since I didn’t want to be seen in public with her.  I was stupid and I didn’t keep my guard up and then we were kissing and…”  He paused for a minute, debating whether or not to tell her what he wanted to say.  She’s not going to believe me anyway, so why bother, he told himself.

 

            “Just tell me Nick-I can see in your eyes that you’re keeping something from me.  It’s done and over with, it’s not going to make a difference now.” 

 

            “I didn’t have sex with her.”  He spat it out, and then waited for a response from Caryss.  She doesn’t believe me, I know she doesn’t.  I should have just pretended I did and tried to move on with her thinking I am guilty cause now she’s going to think I can not own up to my own actions.   

 

            “What?”  Oh God, please let it be true!  Please tell me he wasn’t unfaithful to me.  I need him so much; I want to be with him more than anything! 

 

            “I didn’t have sex with her Caryss; I stopped her before it got that far.  I was so stupid; I should have known that she would try something, but I--”

 

            He could not continue his sentence because Caryss’s lips were suddenly pressed against his, offering up the sweet kiss he had been without for the past four and half months.  He kissed her back, not about to let this moment pass him by. 

 

            “I love you Caryss, and I promise that I will never do anything to put our relationship or our love in jeopardy again.”  He paused, and looked down.  “That is, if you’ll have me back.” 

 

            Before she could answer him, the door opened and Dr. Reed came in with a solemn look on his face.  “I have the results from the amniocentesis.”

           

Chapter 31

Chapter 31

 

            “Caryss, are you still there?”

 

            “Yeah Laney, I’m just thinking.”  Thinking about what I did wrong that God would punish a poor innocent baby.  Thinking about how pregnancy is supposed to be one of the happiest times in a woman’s life and I can’t feel that way because there is something wrong with my baby.  Thinking about what this is going to do to Nick when the press and the public get wind that his baby has Down syndrome.

           

            “Listen, I’ll be there as soon as I can and I know it’s easier said than done, but just relax and take it easy.  You have to keep your blood pressure down and you don’t want them to put you on bed rest, trust me.”

 

            “There are a lot of things I don’t want Laney, bed rest is the least of my worries.”

 

            “You are a strong person, Car, and you’ll get through this.”  Again, there was nothing but silence on the other end of the phone.  I need to get to her, she needs me.  I wonder if she will get through this.  “Sis?”

 

            “It wasn’t supposed to be like this,” Caryss said quietly as she began to cry.  She wanted Laney there with her now, to be able to hold her and comfort her; she needed her.  “I always knew I wanted to fall in love, to get married, to have kids, not necessarily in that order, but I knew it would happen one day, I always pictured it when I was younger.”

 

            Caryss paused for a minute and Laney could hear her blowing her nose softly on the other end of the phone. 

 

            “In all those times I envisioned how my life would go, never once did any of the scenarios include a baby with Down syndrome.”  Caryss started crying harder, and tears were falling steadily from Laney’s eyes as well.  It almost didn’t seem fair to her that she was happily married with two beautiful, healthy, seemingly normal children, while her older sister had not found any of that yet. 

 

            “Honey, listen to me,” began Laney after a few sniffles.  “The minute you hold that baby in your arms, nothing is going to matter.  You are going to love that child so much and Down syndrome is never going to change that.  That baby will be perfect, because he or she is yours.  Your ability to love unconditionally is going to carry over to that baby, and I believe with all my heart that that is the reason God is blessing you with a special child.” 

 

            “Oh Laney,” Caryss cried as she pulled the phone away from her mouth in an attempt to muffle her sobs.  “I have to go now Laney, I’ll see you when you get here.”  Caryss hung up the phone quickly and sobbed quietly as she sat on the back patio at AJ’s house; the doctor’s words resonating in her mind for what was probably the hundredth time in three days. 

 

            “Caryss, Nick, I have the amnio results, but it’s not what you were hoping for.  There is a 95% chance that the baby will be born with Down syndrome.  Here’s some information I’ve collected for you to read about it, and if you have any questions, any at all, please don’t hesitate to call me or speak with another doctor about it.”

            He held out the stack of information towards Nick, but set it down on the bed when Nick did not reach back for it. 

            “Guys, I’m sorry.  I know this isn’t what you wanted to hear, but we are hopeful that everything will still go smoothly.”

            Nick and Caryss barely nodded their heads in acknowledgment of what the doctor had just told them. 

            “Caryss, you are free to leave whenever you’re ready.  I’ll see you next week for your check-up.” 

 

            Caryss had been so deep in thought she did not notice that Nick had come onto the patio until she felt his strong, warm hands on her shoulders. 

 

            “Hey baby,” he said softly as he bent down and kissed the top of Caryss’s head.  “What time does your sister’s plane land?” 

 

            “7:43,” she responded flatly.  She gazed at the vast lawn that was AJ’s back yard; the lush, green grass, the tastefully planted shrubs and trees, the eloquently placed flowers and lawn ornaments.  She pictured the yard scattered with toys and a large swing set, a sandbox and a kiddy pool, she could almost see children running around the yard, their cheeks flushed and their breath slightly heavier than normal from the vigorous activities they were partaking in; the normal, childhood playing that kids take for granted. 

 

            Her heart ached as she imagined her child in that yard, not being able to keep up with the other children, activities that other kids could do with ease that her child would struggle with daily, and the worst of all, other children not wanting to play with her child because he or she looks different than everyone else. 

 

            “How are we going to explain to our child why he or she is different?  How are we going to protect that innocent child from the torment and hurt he or she will surely experience?  My poor baby,” Caryss sobbed as she rocked back and forth in her chair. 

 

            Nick pulled her to her feet and held her tightly in his arms as she cried, several tears falling from his eyes as well.  “We’ll find a way baby, we will find a way.  We will do everything we can to protect our child; I will do whatever it takes.  We will do it together; as long as we are together everything will be okay.” 

 

            He wasn’t lying when he said he would do whatever it took; he owed everything he had in his arms right now to that precious baby.  That baby, the one that everyone will tease and stare at, the one that will have a harder time than most throughout it’s life, is the reason he was able to hold Caryss in his arms at that very moment; that baby brought them back together and that was something he would never forget. 

Chapter 32

Chapter 32

 

            Why did I agree to go to this thing?  I look like a cow, my back has been hurting all day, and I don’t even know half the people at this stupid party.  I’ll just stay home and baby-sit my niece and nephew and make Laney go as Nick’s date instead!  Caryss huffed as she slid her swollen feet into the most comfortable pair of dressy sandals she could find and picked up her clutch that matched her dress off the table in the foyer. 

 

            “Oh, Car, you look beautiful,” squealed Laney as she walked into the foyer after he sister.  She saw the flustered look on her sister’s face and smiled.  “Enjoy this night because once that baby comes, it’ll be a long time before you get another night out.”

 

            “Three more weeks,” said Caryss softly as she rubbed her enormous belly.  “And mommy and daddy don’t even have a house yet!”  They had continued to stay at AJ’s house for several reasons, but the biggest being that Caryss’s blood pressure didn’t need to wrestle with the stress of house hunting and moving while she was still pregnant.  AJ told them they could stay with him as long as they needed and they were very thankful for that. 

 

            “Aunt Caryss, you look like a princess,” exclaimed Abby, who had just turned three a few months ago, as she walked into the foyer to find her mom. 

 

            “Thank you sweetie,” responded Caryss.  I don’t feel like a princess, more like the dragon that’s keeping the princess prisoner!  Caryss looked down at her watch and huffed again.  “Where is Nick?  He’s the one that wanted to go to this thing in the first place and now we are going to be late!”

 

            Laney snickered at her sisters exasperated comments.   “You aren’t even married to him yet but you already sound like you have been for decades!”  Caryss gave her sister a sideways glance, signifying that she wasn’t amused, but then looked away quickly as she heard footsteps approaching the foyer. 

 

            “Finally,” murmured Caryss as Nick walked through the doorway.  He cocked his head to the side, trying to figure out what she meant, but his mind turned to other things as he gazed at his girlfriend. 

 

            “You look breathtaking,” he said as he walked towards her.  He wrapped his arms around her and pulled her into him until her stomach was pressed against his and he couldn’t get any closer to her.  He chuckled a little as he looked down her pregnant belly, and before she could ask what he was laughing at he pressed his lips to hers and kissed her passionately.  

 

            They pulled away from each other a few minutes later, breathless and wrinkled and they smiled deviously at one another.

 

            I love that he still finds me so irresistible when I’m about to pop thought Caryss as she smoothed her dress. 

 

            She is the most beautiful woman I’ve ever seen, and being pregnant with our child makes it even better, he reflected as he held open the door for her. 

 

            The drive to the house where the party was taking place lasted about thirty minutes due to heavy traffic, and they pulled into the driveway a little after eight o’clock.  Even though it was November, the air was still muggy and warm, and clouds had blown in and blanketed the night sky. 

 

            “Looks like it might storm,” they heard a man saying as they walked up the path to the front entrance of the house.  Once inside, Nick led Caryss around, introducing her to record company execs, old friends of the group, and anyone else that they bumped into while meandering and mingling. 

 

            An hour after arriving at the party, Caryss’s back began aching more than it had earlier in the day and felt slightly queasy.  She placed her hand on the back of a chair to steady herself as she walked around it and sat down slowly.  She felt her abdomen tighten as she sat down and cramp-like sensations radiated across it. 

 

            “Hey guys, you both look great,” said Howie as he walked up to Caryss and Nick.  “You remember Suzzie don’t you?” he asked, motioning towards the same brunette on his arm that was with him at Mood. 

 

            “Of course, nice to see you again Suzzie,” said Caryss softly as another wave of pain spread across her stomach.  She grimaced a little and Suzzie stepped towards her. 

 

            “Are you okay?” she whispered as she bent down next to Caryss’s chair. 

 

            “Oh, yeah, I’m fine,” responded Caryss nonchalantly as she waved her hand towards Suzzie in disregard.  “It’s just Braxton-Hicks contractions, I get them every once in a while.  No big deal.”  She smiled at the sweet brunette and glanced at her watch as she felt another contraction coming on. 

 

            Braxton-Hicks usually aren’t so regular and close together though, she thought to herself.  “I’m going to step outside and get some air, would you excuse me?” she announced as she struggled to get up from the chair. 

 

            “Do you want me to come with you?” asked Nick as he pulled Caryss to her feet. 

 

            “No, that’s okay.  I’ll be right back; it’s just a little stuffy in here.  Enjoy your party sweetheart.”  She smiled at Nick and lifted her body onto her tip-toes and placed a gentle peck on lips. 

 

            “I love you,” he said as she turned to walk outside. 

 

            “I love you more,” she called out before walking as quickly as she could outside before another contraction hit.  She made it to the railing on the back porch just in time and she clenched it to steady herself as yet another contraction rippled through her torso.  She looked at her watch again, four minutes apart, I think I’m in labor.  She began to panic on the back porch, all the thoughts of labor, giving birth, and raising a possibly un-normal child rushing over her as ferociously as her contractions. 

 

            “I can’t do this!  What am I doing?  I’m not ready to be a mom!  I’m not ready to have kids!  Make it stop!  Make it stop!”  She walked down the steps off the porch and onto the sandy beach that made up the backyard of the truly extravagant house the party was at. 

 

            “God please, give me a sign!  I am so scared and I don’t think I can do this!”  She heard a crack of thunder rip through the sky above her and in an instant, heavy rain was falling from the clouds and drenching her quickly.  “Oh God,” she cringed as a stronger contraction hit her and this time she found nothing to grab onto.  She started to sink down onto the sand as the pain became too strong for her to hold herself up.

 

            “I got you,” she heard from behind her as a pair of strong arms grabbed her under her armpits and supported her weight until the contraction had passed.  She turned around when it was over and came face to face with the man she loved more than anything, and at that moment, she knew that God had sent her a sign; she knew she could do this, and she wouldn’t be doing it by herself.  He would be there to do it with her for the rest of her life and as he helped her walk back towards the house, she silently thanked God for that. 

 

 

Chapter 33

Chapter 33

 

            “Breathe Car, breath!” Nick yelled as another contraction rocked his girlfriend’s body.  She grabbed hold of his hand and squeezed it harder he thought possible, causing him to cry out in pain. 

 

            “Shut up you big baby!” she screamed at him as a drop of sweat rolled down her forehead.  “I’m the one having this baby and you can’t even deal with a little discomfort in your hand!” 

 

            “I’m sorry baby, you’re right,” he stammered as he pulled his hand away and turned around so he could rub it without her noticing.  Who knew she was so strong? 

 

            “You’re doing great Caryss.  I know the contractions are very intense but you are completely dilated and almost 100% effaced; you’ll be able to start pushing in a few minutes,” the nurse explained as she discarded her latex gloves and threw them in the trash can.  “I’m going to go call Dr. Reed and tell him we are almost ready.”  The nurse left the room, pulling the door shut behind her as another contraction started.  They were right on top of each other now, a good thing for the birthing process, but a terrible thing for the woman experiencing them. 

 

            “Ice, I need more ice,” Caryss breathed as the contraction faded slowly.  Nick grabbed the cup off the table and plopped an ice cube into Caryss’s mouth.  Three more contractions came and went before Dr. Reed walked through the door of the birthing suite. 

 

            “I hear that someone is ready to have a baby,” he said cheerfully as the nurse helped him get “suited up” for the big event.  He checked Caryss once more, nodding his head in approval to the nurse.  She walked out into the hall and was back a minute later followed by two other doctors and three more nurses.  Caryss recognized the doctors from her visits with them about the baby and his or her possible birth defect. 

 

            “Okay Caryss, when the next contraction comes, I want you to push,” Dr. Reed told her.  He started to explain to her how to push so she got the best results and before he could finish his sentence another contraction came. 

 

            “Push Caryss, push!” he told her.  She wrapped her hands under her legs and pulled them towards her, pushing as hard as she could.  Before she could put her legs down and rest another contraction started to build and she pushed several more times until the contraction passed.  It went like that for almost half an hour but the baby’s head was not moving any further down the birth canal. 

 

            As another contraction came, Dr. Reed’s expression showed a bit of concern.  “Prep for OR,” he told the nurse, who scurried out of the room after the command was given. 

 

            “What’s wrong?” asked Caryss, blocking out the pain of the contraction with worry. 

 

            “Your blood pressure is climbing dangerously high and the last thing we need is for you to have an aneurism while you give birth.  I think we need to play it safe and deliver the baby via cesarean.”  He watched Caryss’s eyes drop and the sadness and look of failure come across her face.  “I’m sorry Caryss, I know this isn’t what you wanted, but I don’t feel that it’s safe enough for you to continue with a vaginal delivery.  I’ll give you two a moment alone while we get everything prepped.  The nurses will be back in shortly to get you ready.”  He patted her leg gently and walked out of the room, leaving Nick and Caryss to deal with the change of plans. 

 

            “Baby, it’s for the best,” began Nick as Caryss started to cry.  “I can’t raise this baby alone and we are not taking the chance that something could happen to you.” 

 

            “I know, but I feel like a failure.  Every woman wants to have a natural birth, and now I can’t have that,” she sobbed as Nick hugged her tightly.  Another contraction climbed over her body and her demeanor changed instantaneously.  “I don’t care what they have to do, get this baby out of me!”  Her screams were almost deafening and it continued that way for another thirteen contractions, until she was settled on the operating table and feeling very little discomfort thanks to the local anesthetic she was given in her spine for surgery. 

 

            She lay on the table, Nick by her head, and waited for ten minutes to hear her baby’s first cry.  She wasn’t even listening to anything the doctors were saying, all she could concentrate on was the anticipation of hearing that sound. 

 

            “Why isn’t it crying?” she asked in a panic-stricken tone as the doctor’s continued to work on her.  “What’s wrong?  Why isn’t it crying?”

 

            “Because they haven’t delivered it yet,” said Nick calmly as he stroked Caryss’s cheek.  A minute and a half later, screams of a newborn echoed throughout the operating room as Dr. Reed made the long-awaited announcements. 

 

            “It’s a boy!” he exclaimed as he passed the baby over to the pediatric nurse. 

 

            “A boy?  We have a boy?” asked Caryss as uncontrollable tears flooded out of her eyes and down her face onto the operating table. 

 

            “Yes we do, and he’s beautiful,” cried Nick as he bent down and kissed Caryss.  The nurse walked over to Nick and placed the baby boy in his arms, swaddled in blankets.  He positioned the baby so Caryss could see him and she cried even harder. 

 

            “He is beautiful,” she whispered, finding it hard to form the words to express the love she felt for that child at once.  Laney was right.  He is perfect, because he’s mine.  “He’s so perfect,” she said aloud as she gazed at her newborn.  She studied his eyes that slanted upward and his nose that was slightly flatter than most and her heart ached with unconditional love that only a mother knows.  “Hey there beautiful baby,” she cooed as Nick brought the baby closer to her.  “You’re so beautiful, so perfect.” 

 

            “We need to get his measurements and such,” the pediatric doctor said as she walked over to the family.  “Dad, would you like to carry him and come with?”  Nick’s eyes lit up and he nodded his head with excitement.  Nick carried the baby in his arms and followed the doctor out of the operating room to the nursery.  Dr. Reed walked to Caryss’s side as they left and smiled at her. 

 

            “Everything went beautifully.  The nurses are going to get you cleaned up and back in your room and I’ll be by to check on you, well, in a few hours,” he said as he looked at the clock on the wall and noticed that it read 3:57am.  “Try and get some rest, and congratulations; you have a beautiful baby boy.” 

 

            “Thank you,” replied Caryss as a few more tears escaped her eyes.  Dr. Reed left the operating room, almost running into the Nick who was trying to come back into the operating room.  He approached Caryss slowly, a look of devastation on his face.  He did not feel devastated for himself though, he felt devastated for the news he was about to deliver to his wife.  He saw the way she looked at her son, how perfect she thought he was, and he knew how much it would hurt when that perfection was tainted.  

 

            “What’s wrong?” Caryss asked when she saw him.  “The baby’s okay right?”  She felt panicked now, afraid that something had happened. 

 

            “He’s fine,” Nick began slowly, dreading what he had to tell her. 

 

            “Then what is it?  We just had our baby, you should be happy.” 

 

            “I am happy Car, so happy.”  There is no easy way to say this, so I’m just going to spit it out!  “He’s got DS,” he told her somberly, using the initials they had come to know so well over the past few months while learning about Down syndrome.  He stared at his girlfriend, waiting for the reaction he was certain of, a reaction that would never come however. 

 

            “I know he does,” she said softly as she looked into Nick’s eyes.  He could read the love and affection she had for him in those eyes, but he did not see any pain or sadness in them like he expected to see.  “I could tell by his eyes and his nose when you brought him to me.” 

 

            “You knew?  Why didn’t you say anything?”

 

            “Because he’s still perfect, and nothing needed to be said at that moment.  Laney was right, it doesn’t matter.  It doesn’t matter,” she repeated as she reached her arm out to Nick.  “He is perfect Nick, our perfect son, right?”

 

            Nick grabbed Caryss’s hand and brought it up to his lips and kissed it.  “Yes, my love, our perfect son.” 

 

            An hour later, Caryss was back in her birthing suite and the feeling was finally starting to return to her lower extremities.  She held her son, Nickolas Gene Carter, Jr., in her arms and was singing to him softly.  She kissed him softly every few minutes, rubbing his tiny hands with hers and rocking him gently.

 

            “I know this isn’t going to be easy for either one of us Nickolas, but I love you so much and I will always be here for you,” she told the infant softly and she nuzzled him a little.  “And no matter what anyone ever says, you will always be my beautiful, perfect son.”  She rested her head back and began to doze off to sleep.  Nick silently got up from the chair and removed the infant from her arms. 

 

            “Ditto,” he said quietly as he rocked the infant to sleep. 

Chapter 34

Chapter 34

 

            “Okay, you know I love you girls, but I can’t take these secrets anymore!  Just tell me where we are going!”  Liz and Stacie kept their mouths shut, and Caryss huffed loudly before turning her head to look out the car window.  The sun was shining brightly and as it filtered through the car window, the large diamond on her ring finger caught the light.  She glanced down at her left hand and smiled. 

 

            Crazy how things happen, she thought to herself as she tilted her hand from side to side so the diamond sparkled in the sunshine.  Stacie looked over from the driver’s seat and noticed Caryss staring at her engagement ring. 

 

            “You never get tired of looking at thing do you?” she asked in a joking manner, causing Caryss to stir from her thoughts and look up at her. 

 

            “Would you?” she retorted as she looked down at her ring again.  “I’m starting to wonder when it’s going to be paired with a wedding band though.  It doesn’t seem like it’s ever going to happen.”

 

            Stacie looked at Liz in the rearview mirror, both women trying to mask their smiles and keep the surprise they have been withholding from Caryss for two months from busting out of them. 

 

            “Well, love, you’ve been busy with Nicky and getting back to work, and Nick’s been in the studio a lot with the guys,” noted Liz, trying to be as nonchalant as she could. 

 

            “Yeah, but Nicky’s already one!  I would like for his mommy and daddy to be married before he graduates from High School!” whined Caryss.  Liz and Stacie started laughing, relieved that the secret wouldn’t need to be kept from her for too much longer.  Stacie pulled the car off the main road and drove slowly down a gravel path. 

 

            Caryss looked out the windows of the car in all directions silently, in hopes of figuring out where they were, but as she looked out the back window and no longer saw the main road, she couldn’t keep quiet anymore. 

 

            “That’s it!  Tell me where we are and what we are doing here right now!”  Stacie slowed the car to a crawl as they approached an enormous mansion that looked like a castle.  There were no other cars and no signs of human life anywhere. 

 

            “All will be revealed in due time,” chided Liz as she hopped out of the car and opened Caryss’s door for her.  Caryss hesitantly got out of the car and walked behind Liz and Stacie up to the house. 

 

            If they are planning to kill me and hide the body, I think they picked an excellent place to do it, she thought jokingly, admiring the beauty of the castle-like structure as they walked up to the front door. 

 

            “This place is beautiful,” whispered Caryss as Liz stuck a key into the door and opened it.  Liz and Stacie exchanged glances again, both women grinning from ear to ear.  They knew this would be the perfect place for the day’s events the minute they heard about it, and they wanted nothing but perfection for their best friend.

 

            My questions don’t get answered anyway, so I’m just going to roll with it, Caryss told herself, wanting so badly to ask Liz why she had a key to this place and why her and Stacie kept looking at each other like that, but knowing it wouldn’t do her any good. 

 

            Caryss gasped as the three ladies walked through the foyer and into the main room.  “What is this?” she breathed as tears welled up in her eyes.  She looked to her right and saw a staircase almost identical to the one in Beauty and the Beast.  There was a flight of stairs leading down from each side of the second floor, and then they joined in the middle as one staircase leading down to the ground floor.  The railings were covered with flowers and ribbons, tulle and silk with white Christmas lights illuminating from underneath the fabric. 

 

            A white carpet had been rolled down the staircase, positioned directly in the middle of each step.  Caryss followed the carpet with her eyes, starting at the bottom of the stairs, continuing through an aisle that was created between the rows of chairs and ended at the other end of the room. 

 

            “Oh my God,” Caryss whispered as her sights fixated on what appeared to be a man-made altar, covered with the same decoration as the staircase.  The entire room was magnificently decorated using the color scheme of burgundy, navy, and lilac, everything matching and meshing together perfectly.

 

            “I can’t believe you guys did this,” Caryss said quietly, tears falling rapidly from her eyes.  “It’s so amazing.”

 

            “You’re getting married today, stop crying!” ordered Liz as she wrapped Caryss into a hug.  “We have so much to do, we better get started!”

 

            Liz and Stacie ran through the plans with Caryss, explaining how the day was going to go.  They did a quick rehearsal of Caryss’s walk down the aisle, how the ceremony would be conducted and what was planned for the reception. 

 

            “Any questions?” Stacie asked with a smile once she and Liz had finished talking. 

 

            “My vows!  I don’t have my vows!”

 

            “You mean these vows?” asked Liz coyly as she pulled Caryss’s journal out of her purse. 

 

            “How did you know?” asked Caryss as she grabbed the journal from Liz’s hands. 

 

            “Honey, we have covered all the bases with this thing, trust me!” responded Liz with a chuckle.  “Now it’s time to get you ready.  Your groom will be arriving shortly and we cannot have you seeing him before you walk down the aisle.” 

 

            Stacie grabbed Caryss by the hand and pulled her quickly up the stairs to the left hand side of the second floor.  “The Bride’s chambers,” she announced as they stopped at the second door on the right hand side of the hall.  The three girls walked into the room and Caryss shrieked as she entered.

 

            “Laney!  Mom!  What are you guys doing here?” 

 

            “Duh?  You’re getting married?  Why do you think we’re here!” responded Laney as she ran up to her sister and hugged her ferociously. 

 

            “I have been waiting for this day for 26 years and there was no way I was going to miss it,” said her mom, Julie, as she hugged her eldest daughter.  “We only have an hour to get you ready, so let’s get to it.” 

 

            There was a knock at the door and Stacie opened it, stepping aside for the hairdressers and make-up artists to enter the room.  Forty minutes later, all five ladies were ready, the only thing left to do was put their dresses on. 

 

            “Caryss, wait here.  I’ll be right back,” said Liz as she opened the door and walked out.  Caryss could hear the murmur of voices floating up the staircase and she knew the guests were arriving. 

 

            I don’t know how they did all this without me finding out, and I don’t know how I am going to thank them, she thought sincerely.  I could not have imagined my wedding being more beautiful, it’s absolutely perfect, the exact way I wanted to get married.  I can’t believe this is happening!

 

            The door opened and Liz re-appeared, her arms covered with dress bags, stirring Caryss from her reverie.  She handed Laney, Julie and Stacie their dresses, and then set hers aside as well.  She took the remaining garment bag left on her arm and hung it over the full length mirror in the corner of the room. 

 

            “I know that every woman wants to pick out her own wedding dress, but we would not have been able to keep this a surprise if we had asked for your input.  I really hope you like what we picked for you,” she told Caryss as she pulled the plastic covering away from the dress. 

 

            Caryss stared at the dress, taking it the yards of fabric, the detailing on the material, the style and design of the ensemble.  She did not say anything for close to a minute, trying to find the exact words to express her opinion. 

 

            “Well?” asked Laney, who had a big part in picking the dress.

 

            “I love it; it’s absolutely perfect.  It’s exactly what I would have picked myself.”  Caryss walked up to the dress and ran over hands over the fabric.  “It’s wonderful.”

 

            “Then let’s get it on you!” exclaimed Stacie as she tapped her watch.  There was another knock on the door and Stacie went to answer it. 

 

            “Ten minutes ladies,” the voice on the other side of the door called out before Stacie opened it. 

 

            “Thank you Larisa!” Stacie yelled through the door, knowing exactly who it was. 

 

            “Who’s Larisa?” Caryss asked as she began to disrobe. 

 

            “The wedding planner.  We could not have done this without her,” answered Liz.  “Will someone zip me up?”  Once Liz, Stacie, Laney, and Julie were zipped up and ready to go, they turned the focus to the bride. 

           

            Five minutes later they were fastening the veil on Caryss’s head and there was another knock on the door. 

 

            “Five minutes, we know, we know!” called out Stacie, assuming it was Larisa again. 

 

            “Actually, it’s me,” said a male voice as the door opened a crack. 

 

            “Daddy?” asked Caryss, turning around quickly to see if her guess was correct. 

 

            “Can I have a moment with my daughter?” he asked as he walked all the way into the room.  Liz took one final look at Caryss, making sure everything was in place, and the ladies exited the room, leaving Caryss and her father alone. 

 

            “Caryss, honey, I know we are about to start, but there’s something I wanted to tell you before I walk you down the aisle,” her father, Robert, began, taking her hands in his.  Caryss nodded her head, waiting for him to continue. 

 

            “Up until today, every time I would think of you, the day you were born came to mind.  I would picture you, a tiny newborn baby, and I would be holding you and rocking you and taking care of you.  My little girl.”  His voice started to crack a little and Caryss’s eyes filled with tears. 

           

            “You will always be my little girl, and I will always be here to protect and help you in any way I can, but from this point on, I want you to know, that when I think of you, it’s going to be this day and this moment that I will remember.  You have never looked more beautiful than you do right now, and you today will stick in my mind forever.  I love you kiddo.”  Caryss wrapped her arms around her father’s abdomen and hugged, the same way she’d been hugging him for the past 26 years. 

 

            “I love you too Daddy,” she whispered as the tears in her eyes fell.  There was a knock on the door and Stacie poked her head into the room.

 

            “I’m sorry guys, but it’s time to start,” she said quietly, not wanting to break up the tender moment.  Caryss and Robert nodded and Larisa came into the room and escorted Robert back to his side of the staircase. 

 

            A minute later, “Lasia Ch'io Pianga” by G.F. Handel floated up the staircase, and Julie was the first member of the wedding party to descend the magnificent staircase.  As she went down the left side, her escort, Kevin, was descending on the ride side, and she slid her arm through his as they met in the middle and continued down the main staircase together. 

 

            Next were the bridesmaids and groomsmen.  Stacie went first, with Brain meeting her in the middle, then went Liz, with Howie meeting her.  Once they were walking down the aisle to the altar, it was Laney and AJ’s turn, the maid of honor and the best man. 

 

            “Okay Caryss, it’s all you,” coaxed Larisa with a smile.  Caryss perched herself at the top of the staircase and looked straight across at her father standing on the other side.  She could see him smiling broadly at her, encouraging her.  As if being guided by a higher power, her legs started moving.  Step by step she walked down the staircase, never faltering or hesitating. 

           

            As she slid her arm into her father’s on the landing before the final descent, she looked out into the sea of people, all watching her, and she took a deep breath before her eyes landed on the man she loved more than life itself.  He was smiling at her and she knew by the look on his face how beautiful he thought she was. 

 

            She descended the last staircase arm in arm with her father, making her way up the aisle towards the man that would shortly be her husband.  She thought back to the day when Nick proposed to her and the words he had said, or rather sang to her: 

           

To be happyYou are all I needTo make me happy'Cause every time you're nearAll the tears inside are raindropsAll the sadness in my lifetimeGoes awayJust believe in meAll I need is someoneWho believes in meYou're the good luck charmYou're the reason for the rainbowsGod knows I'd hate to see youGo awayBaby don't leave me this way If you stayIf you stay I'll give you what you wantI'll show youI'll show you I'm the only one for youIf you stayIf you stay with me I'll show youHow much I need you To be with youI just wanna constantly be with youIt's only when you're aroundAll the problems solve my problemsAll the clouds inside my garden roll awayBaby they'd roll If you stayIf you stay I'll give you what you wantI'll show youI'll show you I'm the only one for youIf you stayIf you stay with me I'll show youHow much I need you Oh and foreverYou have all my gratitude foreverBeing who you areBrings me victory as a promiseMy frustrations and my losses fly high awayThey'd fly high                His slower, a cappella rendition had brought tears to her eyes and weakness to her legs, and she couldn’t help but smile at this memory as her father kissed her cheek and she joined arms with Nick at the altar, ready to say their “I do’s” and ready to share a lifetime as husband and wife.   

 

Chapter 35

Chapter 35

 

        “So Care-bear, is this how you pictured your wedding to be?” Stacie asked as she walked up behind Caryss and wrapped her arms around her waist.  The ceremony had ended three hours ago and the reception was in full swing.  All the guests were gathered in the spacious yard of the castle-house and seemed to be having a wonderful time. 

 

        A dance floor had been built in the middle of the yard and tables and chairs were placed around it.  An open ceiling had been constructed using strings of lights, flowers, and ribbons, and now, as the sun was beginning to set, the full beauty of the illumination above the guests’ head was finally starting to come through. 

 

        Caryss looked around her, taking in all the friends and family, the people having fun on the dance floor, the beautifully decorated yard, and anything else she could possibly commit to memory at that moment before replying to her friend’s question.  She knew this was exactly what she wanted, and she knew she would not have planned it any differently. 

 

        “Stacie, I think you may have actually done a better job than I would have,” she replied with complete sincerity as she turned around to face her friend.  “This entire thing was, is, extraordinary and unforgettable and I don’t think I will ever be able to thank you and Liz enough.  I love you Stacie.”  She hugged her friend tightly as the tears that had been glistening in her eyes a moment ago trickled down her cheeks.   

 

        The two ladies released each other and Caryss looked around in search of her groom. 

 

        “I haven’t seen Nick in a while, have you?” Caryss asked as Stacie joined her in trying to spot him. 

 

        “He was standing on the other side of the dance floor talking to someone when I came to talk to you, but he’s not there now.  If I see him, I’ll let him know you’re looking for him.”  Caryss nodded her head at Stacie and the two women parted ways, Stacie heading for the dance floor and Caryss heading into the house to continue her search inside. 

 

 

        “Maybe we should do this?” suggested Liz as she and AJ danced slowly to the song that was floating through the speakers. 

 

        “Do what?” he responded, looking around in hopes of figuring out what Liz was referring to. 

 

        “This…” she said again, motioning around her to the wedding reception happening around them.  “Have a wedding.”

 

        AJ was silent for a minute or so, causing Liz to really wonder what his intentions with her were.  She didn’t know if he was planning on them getting married one day or if she was just his latest fling. 

 

        Flings don’t usually last for almost two years though, she reassured herself as she waited for his response.  She could feel his heart racing through his shirt as they swayed in unison to the music and just when she thought it was absolutely going to burst out of his chest, he took in a deep breath and opened his mouth to talk. 

 

        “Come on Lizzie, let’s go inside and talk,” he instructed softly as he pulled her hand a little.  They started to walk towards the house but were stopped halfway there by Stacie. 

 

        “Have you guys seen Nick?  He seems to have disappeared.”

 

        “I saw him talking to some girl a little while ago, I assumed it was his cousin or something, but I didn’t see where he went after that,” responded Liz with a shrug of her shoulders.  “We’re actually heading into the house for a minute so if I see him in there, I’ll let him know you’re looking for him.”

 

        “Caryss actually went inside to look for him, so if you see him, let him know that his wife is looking for him, not me.”

 

        “Will do,” said AJ hastily as he pulled Liz towards the house quickly.  When the two lovebirds were secluded in the house, AJ began fumbling in his pants pocket. 

 

        “What are you doing?” asked Liz, highly amused by his actions. 

 

        “Looking for this,” he said victoriously as he pulled something out of his pocket and held it tightly in his hand so Liz could not see it.  He took another deep breath before continuing. 

 

        “The past year and nine months have been the most wonderful months of my life.  You make me happier than anyone has ever made me, and I want to make you happier than anyone has ever made you.”

 

        “You do Alex, you make me so happy,” she interjected quickly, trying not to assume she knew where he was going with this but hoping to he ll that he was. 

 

        “I have been carrying a little something around with me for the past month, waiting for a sign that would tell me this was the right thing to do, and out there on the dance floor I got my sign.”  He bent down, resting his weight on his left knee as he opened his hand to reveal a ring. 

 

        “Oh my God,” Liz breathed as she waited for the question. 

 

        “Elizabeth, my love, my best friend, my Lizzie, will you be my wife?”  He picked the ring up out of his palm and held it up to her, the diamond solitaire sparkling in the light. 

 

        “There is nothing or no one I would rather be,” she whispered.  He slid the ring on her left finger and then jumped to his feet, and wrapped his arms around his fiancé, lifting her off the ground as he spun her around in excitement. 

 

        “You have no idea how happy you’ve made--” he started to say but stopped abruptly when he heard raised voices coming from another room.  Neither he nor Liz could make out what was being said, and before they could get any closer to the voices, they stopped just as quickly as they had started. 

       

        They both shrugged their shoulders and began laughing, deciding it was better to go back to celebrating and being happy than to try and investigate the spat between two unknown people. 

 

        “Should we go tell everyone or would that take away from Nick and Caryss’s day?” asked Liz, gazing at her beautiful diamond ring.  Now I understand why Caryss keeps doing it!

 

        “I don’t think I can possibly keep it a secret so we might as well let it out!” said AJ with a smile.  Liz grinned back and the two took off running through the house towards the backyard.  As they made their way past the parlor, however, their happiness became shadowed by the sadness and heartbreak of two people very close to them. 

 

        “I don’t think I can do this Nick,” she said softly, unaware that anyone was outside the door listening.  “I love you, I do, but this was a mistake.”  She turned to run out of the room, and Nick followed right behind her. 

 

        “Caryss, please, let me explain,” he begged as he exited the room after her.  She stopped suddenly, seeing Liz and AJ standing there and Nick almost ran into her.  The two couples stood there, staring at each other, wondering what the other was going to say. 

 

        They remained unmoving for the longest time, trying to read each other and find the words to say.   Nick and Caryss looked so miserable, Liz and AJ looked so happy, but neither couple knew the reasons behind the expressions. 

 

        A few hundred yards away, hundreds of people were outside laughing, dancing and celebrating the marriage of two people they loved dearly, completely ignorant to the drama that had unfolded inside.  Caryss’s heart wretched a little bit more with every giggle or happy sound that floated inside to her ears, knowing that they everyone out there would expect an explanation, one she was not ready to give. 

 

        Both couples sought a happy ending, but only time would tell which one would receive it.