Unforgettable

Blog update...

2011-03-17T07:09:00.000-07:00

I promised myself I wouldn't do this, but after months of internal conflict and debates, I've reached a decision on Book II.

There will be no further updates.

As much as I'd love to continue writing this and seeing it to the very end, I just can't. Sadly we just haven't been getting feedback and our readership has dwindled over the past few months. It seems pointless to work so hard on something that's only read by two people.

From the bottom of my heart, I’d like to thank every one who has read and commented on Unforgettable. Your support meant a lot to me and Karima. I just wish the story wasn’t ending on such a sad note.

Jill, thank you for your proofing services and your guidance.

-Val

Book II: Chapter Fifteen

2011-02-18T21:28:00.000-08:00

Morning after the fashion show…

Alfonso was thoroughly wearing his soles on the carpet with his pacing when the doorbell rang. He ignored it, hoping whoever was at the door would go away.

He was stressing over Leonor. She hadn’t come home after the party. His sister was everything but irresponsible. She always checked in with him, but not last night, and not this morning either.

He had tried to reach her for a large part of the morning, but her answering service kept picking up. Scary thoughts swam in his head, intensifying his guilt. He knew she was in a bad way, and he should have done something sooner to help her, but he had been so wrapped up with the blasted files he’d completely ignored everything in his life…Everything but Charisse.

The doorbell went off again, giving him temporary relief from his guilt-ridden thoughts. Obviously his visitor was determined to screw up his day even further

It wasn’t until Alfonso was practically at the door that he saw Storm Chace through the glass. At that moment he felt the walls close in on him, and the ground slip from underneath his feet. He thought of running, but he knew the BAU agent would be all over him before he reached the stairs. Determined to face his mess head on, he reluctantly opened the door with what he hoped was a welcoming smile.

“We have a lot to talk about. Can I come in?” Storm quickly cut to the chase, ignoring his half-brother’s smile.

Alfonso hesitated for a fraction of a second, before replying casually, “What’s this about?”

Storm had to give the other man credit; he saw no fear in his casual stance. He had been expecting a chase at the very least, but it looked like this would go smoothly for both of them!

“I think you know,” He murmured, and nodded at the briefcase in his hand, making it very clear to Alfonso he had been caught out.

Silently, Alfonso moved aside to let him in. Storm looked around the room. It was decently sized and tastefully furnished, and he commented on that. Alfonso shrugged carelessly, but Storm heard the pride in his voice as he talked about how his sister had done up the place.

“So she’s a woman of many talents, like you I suppose,” He drawled, staring straight into eyes the same color as his, the only thing the twins had inherited from their father it seemed.

From the files he’d collected at the BAU last night on their way to the gala dinner with Victoria, he knew the twins looked like their mom, in coloring and built.

“I just need to get dressed,” Alfonso threw over his shoulder as he left the room and started towards the long flight of stairs.

“Don’t take too long,” Storm retorted briskly. He wasted no time settling in, as he took out a stack of papers and a clipboard from his briefcase and placed them on the dining table.

While he waited for Alfonso’s return, Storm went through the files again. The report on the twins was lean; they’d had no run-ins with the law, until now. And the little he had picked up from BAU’s databank didn’t tell him much, but he hoped it was enough to get the ball rolling.

He pinched the bridge of his nose, thinking about how he was going to break the news to Dean. It was there in black and white; Alfonso and Leonor were 99.9% without a doubt Steve Chace’s kids. He had picked up that information from Steve’s files. Their father’s bank statements had further added weight to the reports he’d been quietly accumulating on him since the mess with the files started.

“I expected to be in handcuffs and having my mug shot taken by now.” Alfonso walked into the room then, a puzzled look on his face.

“You will be. Soon. But first let’s go through the reports,” Storm replied, handing the clipboard over to him. It wasn’t his place to obstruct justice just because Alfonso was his brother. The law would deal with him accordingly.

Alfonso quickly browsed through the report, his face betraying none of the fear he felt. Everything the BAU had on him was correct. They had the facts about his mother and sister right, and the stuff about his dad being unknown was also true. He was a free-lance IT specialist, lived his whole in Veronaville until recently when they moved to Statham Island. His mother passed on when they were sixteen, leaving them in the care of an aunt who had controlled their inheritance from their late mother’s estate until they’d turned twenty one.

What’s with the mind games? Alfonso thought angrily. If the man was going to arrest him he wished he would go ahead and do it already.

“So, what exactly is this about?” He asked once he’d gone through the three pages. He was mildly irritated now, and knowing his life could be summed up in three pages further emphasized his feelings of worthless, feelings of not being enough.

“Let’s start with the truth first and we’ll move on to the sealed files,” Storm replied icily, the hint of amusement he had had in his voice earlier was gone now. “I know you have the files. It took your girlfriend a long time to squeal, but eventually she did, and here I am. Why is a decent looking young man like you messing around with federal files? Do you have any idea how much trouble you’re in? How many problems you’ve caused for me and my family? The big boys in government want those files, and they’ve threatened to harm my family if I don’t find them. I don’t play games Mr. Paloma, not where my family’s concerned!”

“I-I’m sorry. I had no idea…”Alfonso apologized before explaining himself, starting with his turbulent childhood and quickly moving on to his search for their father.

“And you targeted the BAU why?” Storm asked calmly, but the rage in his eyes shone through.

“The plan was to find my mother’s special friend, and I hoped he would lead us to our dad. We asked mother lots of times if the friend was our dad, and she denied it. Eventually we ended up believing her, but I figured since the friend and my mom were so close, he would know who our father is, and he would help us find him. But the problem was, we never heard from him again after our mom died. I knew he was wealthy, and wealthy men usually have shady pasts and dark secrets they wanted to keep hidden, right, and what better place to hide those secrets than a federal department? The BAU was just first on the list. If I didn’t find anything there, I would have moved on to other departments.”

“And slept your way through, like you did with Amanda?” Storm couldn’t help throwing that in. He shook his head, disbelief all over his face. All this trouble for their father, a man who had been selfish through and through?

“Amanda was a nice girl, and I didn’t like using her, but I needed her Digitag,” Alfonso explained, and Storm waved him off to continue, he had no interest in hearing about his pillow talk with Amanda.

“My friend helped me hack into BAU’s databank. I downloaded the files and saved them on my laptop. When I tried going in into the databank a few days later Amanda’s Digitag was disabled, and I got scared. I copied the files onto a memory stick, deleted them from my hard drive, and removed any evidence which might be traced back to me. And that’s it. I haven’t gone through all the files yet.” Alfonso held up his hands openly in a pleading gesture, conveying to Storm he was telling God’s honest truth.

“Hand over the memory stick,” Storm demanded, unable to hide the excitement in his voice. He couldn’t believe it was all over. He would take the memory stick to Boyd, and Victoria and Starr would be back in his arms where they belonged by sundown.

“I don’t have the stick,” Alfonso replied quietly. Storm’s happy mood quickly changed to rage.

“What the hell do you mean you don’t have it? Where is it? I’ve told I don’t play games, not when my family is threatened!”

“My friend has it. He was safekeeping it for me, until the dust settled. We can get it from him, if you want.” Alfonso offered.

If I want? Of course I want! Storm thought angrily. He wanted to beat the young man senseless, but he knew nothing would be gained by losing his cool. He needed Alfonso, more than the young man needed him. But he wouldn’t tell him that.

“I’ll grab my jacket,” Alfonso growled as he moved towards the stairs.

“That man you’re looking for…” Storm stopped him just as he was about to reach the landing at the top of the stairs.

“Yes?” Alfonso raised an eyebrow questioningly, the same way Storm raised his own when he was slightly intrigued, the same way Dean did his when he was amused. It seemed it was a habit they’d all gotten from their father.

“He’s dead,” Storm replied, and watched the range of emotions on his brother’s face, one that stood out the most was disbelief.

“Why do you say that?” Alfonso asked at last, his voice dripping with denial and anguish. “How do you even know that?”

“He was my father…”

Kendra wasn't having a good morning. She felt like she’d just gone to bed when her alarm went off. The gala dinner last night was a smashing success and the after party afterwards was off the hook too.

Drinking too much, and partying too hard always equaled fun for her, and the only person she had missed was Leonor, her sidekick. The model had mysteriously vanished at some point during the pre-drinks party back at The Venue…

With her eyes still half closed, Kendra rolled onto her stomach and fumbled around on her nightstand, trying to silence the beeping cell phone. After a while of successfully dropping everything on the floor without getting to the irritating sound, she gave up and sunk back on the pillows.

“Morning, gorgeous,” Dean dropped a quick kiss on her lips, before turning off the irritating alarm and picking up the items she’d dropped on the floor. Her eyes open now, she saw he was fully clothed and clean shaven. Evidently he’d just had a shower. He looked dashing, as always. But in her humble opinion he looked even better naked, sprawled on top of her.

“Don’t tell me you have to go in?” She complained softly, covering her eyes with her hand in an attempt to block out the weak sunlight streaming through the small crack in the curtain.

“The empire won’t run itself you know!” Dean replied with a guilty smile. He pulled her up from the bed and wrapped his arms around her. Within moments, his hands had wandered to the curve of her butt. He gently stroked the soft mounds, pressing her tightly to him, eliciting an excited gasp from her as she felt his semi-erection.

“You know I won’t let you go now,” Kendra moaned against his lips, rubbing her hips against his in slow, seductive movements.

Last night, she had promised him desserts, but he had dished them out, that’s for sure. Her cheeks turned a scarlet hue as memories of all the wicked things they had done flashed in her mind.

Her aching body was evidence of his mastery in bed. She ached in all the right places and a few others too she never knew could feel pain. But she liked the pain. It was the pain one only gets after being thoroughly ravished. A good kind of pain. Her kind of pain.

“Be good, I’ll see you later,” Dean drawled as he pulled away from her excited grasp.

“You are such a tease!” Kendra pouted, but she blew him a kiss just in time as he slipped out of their bedroom door.

Alone, she didn’t know what to do with herself. She thought of going back to bed, but then she remembered Victoria and Starr were staying over, and they were the reason she had set the alarm for 8:00 am. She had to play the part of the perfect hostess. Sluggishly she dragged herself to the bathroom to start her day.

While Kendra got ready to start her day, Victoria busied herself downstairs by making breakfast. She was alone in the kitchen, save for her two year old son, Starr, playing quietly with his toys on the floor, but she still found herself trying to hide her naughty smile.

At The Venue, last night, her quickie session with Storm was incredible. The possibility of getting caught had thrilled her beyond belief. She knew she had acted like the wanton women from the erotica novels she had secretly read back in college.

Intoxicated by desire, and Storm’s cologne, coupled with his skillful hands, she had literally begged him to do all sorts of crazy things to her, things she never knew she loved until last night, and Storm, the virile man that he is, had been too happy to oblige.

Bathed in their sweat and moonlight, they had lain in each other’s arms on the floor of the VIP room and talked. After weeks of stressing about her marriage possibly being in trouble, her fears had been laid to rest. Storm had finally opened up; it seemed keeping his family secret from her had become more of a burden than the actual secret.

Steve Chace had indeed fathered a child with his mistress. In fact, if Storm’s suspicions were correct, he had fathered twins. He and Dean had a half-sister and half-brother floating around somewhere. Storm suspected the half brother was behind the tampered files at the BAU.

The idea of having bastard siblings had devastating implications for the Chace heirs, and Dean, more than Storm, had everything to lose since he had poured his blood, sweat and tears into Chace Industries.

Storm’s ward walked in then and mumbled a quick hello, cutting Victoria’s reverie short. Her heart broke a little for Charisse as she watched her play with Starr on the floor. Her boyfriend, if he was the bastard son, was in a world of trouble and Charisse had no idea. Victoria knew this would end badly for a lot of people. She just didn’t know how badly though…

Across town, just after 11 am, Leonor woke up in a strange bed. Obviously in a strange room, and in a strange house. And she panicked…

She had no clue what day it was. No concept of time. No idea of where she was, or how she got there.

She tried to sit up, but the bed soared in dizzying circles, throwing her deeper into waves of nausea. She forced herself to focus on a single object, a solitary point that would still the chaotic thoughts in her mind.

Her eyes found an outline of a lounge chair, and then two. She blinked rapidly, and tried to focus again. But there were still two chairs; in fact she was seeing double of everything.

It seemed her impaired vision was not her only problem; every part of her body was ganging up on her. Her stomach heaved. She gagged, and almost threw up, but she forced down the remains of the alcohol she had drank at some point in her obscure past.

The wave of nausea slammed her again, and she knew any second now she would throw up. She scrambled to her feet, but tripped once or twice before she fell flat on her face. Weirdly enough, the room stopped spinning then, and she resolved to remain on the floor and allow the cool wood to soothe her.

The door opened and she could vaguely make out a pair of legs. Angry footsteps walked further into the room and stopped where she lay.

“Leonor, seriously, you have to get your shit together! You can't keep drinking so much!” An equally angry pair of hands grabbed her from the floor and hauled her into the air, before dumping her head inside the toilet pan.

As she coughed and threw up all the toxins into the pan, she hung on to the toilet bowl for dear life. The retching went on endlessly, and the angry footsteps carried on pacing beside her. When she was sure she had nothing left to throw up, she tried to stand, but the angry hands quickly reached for her again, and slapped a cool, wet facecloth on her face, and lips.

“Thank you,” Leonor managed to mumble before she was dumped on the bed again.

“Get some sleep,” the voice sounded familiar, but she couldn’t place it anywhere.

She didn’t know who her savior was, but knowing she wasn’t in immediate danger allowed her to relax a little. She looked up at the ceiling, and made a silent vow; she would never drink this much again, no matter how bad the loneliness got, or how deep the feeling of incompleteness ran…

Book II: Chapter Fourteen

2011-01-01T11:58:00.000-08:00

The Venue, Pre-Drinks Party

Kendra felt like she was floating on air when she materialized in the room, champagne bottle and glasses in hand.

She smiled at her guests, enjoying the rush of adrenaline spiking through her body. She felt exhilarated. Thrilled. On top of the world!

“Everyone, can I get your attention please?” She chinked her glass, and watched Leonor with pride while everyone gathered around the table. No matter what tomorrow would bring today was the climax of months of preparation and hard work.

“Today is undoubtedly one of the most amazing days of my life, and I have each and every one of you to thank for it. So, thank you for all your fat checks, you’ve made a lot of kids’ dreams come true-” She filled the glasses and presented them to her friends.

“To family! May we always cherish the people around us, and always hold them close to our hearts!” She raised her glass, and a chorus of “to family” boomed in the crowd. She took a careful sip, and cleared her throat.

Oh boy this was going to be the hard one.

She knew by morning, Le Good Life’s fashion show would be covered in the society pages of major newspapers; lifestyle shows on TV will be talking about it for weeks to come, and of course there’d be more fashion shows like this one, more charities would benefit from all the money raised.

No one deserved credit and recognition more than Leonor. She made the show a complete success, but it was her friendship Kendra would be eternally grateful for.

Over the past few weeks Leonor had become the friend she needed when Victoria was too caught up in her drama with Storm; she was there when she needed to cry and vent about not being able to bear children for Dean. Leonor was always awake to answer her call at 3 in the morning when her husband snored peacefully beside her and she felt like the walls were caving in on her…She was her ride home when she was too drunk to get behind the wheel of her Ferrari…

Kendra could go on, but her guests were growing uncomfortable with her awestruck silence; Out of the corner of her eye she saw them shuffling their feet impatiently, and exchange confused stares.

“Better get on with it.” She snapped herself out of her daze, and turned to the leggy model. But words just failed her. She pulled the other girl in a warm embrace, tears glistening in both their eyes.

“You’ve saved my life in more ways that you’ll ever know. Thank you and I wish you all the best in your future endeavors, all the happiness in the world, and more money than your bank manager will ever know what to do with!” She murmured at last when they finally drew apart, and the last comment brought a chuckle from the crowd. Everyone knew Kendra’s obsession with money.

Raising her glass again for what was obviously not the last time that evening, she cried emotionally, “to Leonor, You’re a life saver!”

Her words were echoed in the room.

“Lee, speech, speech!” Someone cheered in the crowd, and Lee caught the mischievous glint in Drake’s eyes.

It was him. I’ll make him pay later. She vowed crossly.

For someone who wasn’t camera shy, she was bad at public speaking. She could make love to the camera, have foreplay with her Dolce and Gabbana outfits, and set the catwalk on fire, but she hated speaking in a crowd. It made her feel inadequate, and unpolished.

The crowd paused, waiting for her to say something. She took a quick sip from her glass, to still her anxiety, before looking at the sea of faces. She smiled when her eyes met her brother’s.

“You can do this.” Alfonso mouthed his encouragement. She blinked twice, their secret sign that she was okay, and she could handle this.

She thanked everyone, especially Kendra for giving her a chance, the agency, and her friends. Even Haru made it in her speech.

“But a special thank you goes to my brother, for believing I could be as good as our mom. Without him, I wouldn’t have dreams. To Alfonso, my best friend, my everything! ” She raised her glass at her brother, and everyone turned to the back of the group to see the man being honored.

There were a few interested stares from the women in the room, but Charisse marked her position firmly at his side, anyone who wanted a piece of Alfonso, would have to go through her first.

Storm, easily bored by all the glitz and glamour, was suddenly interested in the leggy model’s speech when he heard her brother’s name was Alfonso.

He hadn’t wanted to take a chance after Boyd’s veiled threats, so he’d asked his team to do a quick sweep of the venue, and check out the models and everyone involved with the show. He’d looked at the models' files briefly, and he remembered Leonor’s last name was Paloma.

Could it be? If it was, God was fighting on his side. He wouldn’t have to go looking for the man responsible for all this mess. Moses had come to the mountain, it would seem.

Storm was convinced if he heard a “thank you” or “without you I…” one more time he’d scream, but he was feeling jolly suddenly. He wanted to break into song, and celebrate his good find. Instead, he raised his own glass, and toasted to Kendra, hailing her for being such a strong pillar of the community and making a lot of people’s dreams come true.

Everyone assumed he was referring to Leonor’s dreams coming true. But in fact, it was his own dreams he was talking about. Kendra had unknowingly brought him to the man who’d robbed him of his peace and sanity these last few months. For that he’d always be thankful for this pretentious affair.

He looked at the man now carefully. A replica of his sister. They looked good looking enough to belong in the plastic world his sister-in-law loved so much. But something about their eyes disturbed him…

He smiled broadly when the ‘praise fest’ broke apart a few moments later.

“Who are you Alfonso Paloma?” He wondered silently, watching Drake make eyes at the leggy model, never mind that Daniella, his girlfriend of two years, was hanging on to his arm.

Storm’s eyes wandered to a corner of the room where his ward, Charisse, was engrossed in conversation with public enemy number one.

He couldn't believe how close Alfonso had always been, he’d literally been right under his nose. He’d heard from Victoria, Charisse was seeing some IT freelancer. He wished now he’d quizzed his wife more, and did a background check on his ward’s new boyfriend.

He was so tempted to pull Alfonso aside and get down to business, but he knew he had to exercise caution. The last thing he wanted was to send Alfonso running.

He walked around the room with Victoria on his arm, refilling everyone’s glasses, waiting for the perfect opportunity to strike. But it didn’t. Not at the party at least.

Storm wasn’t the only one with secret plans and hidden agendas. Haru had seen something he liked earlier in the evening. If only he had not been a total bitch to Leonor throughout the preparations for the show, things would have been perfect now. It was safe to say he was smitten with Alfonso. He’d spotted him the moment he waltzed through the Venue’s doors and he could not keep his eyes off him since.

But Charisse was on to him. She may have lived a sheltered life, and she may be doe eyed when it comes to matters of the heart, but she knew a predatory eye when she saw one. And Haru’s screamed ‘vulture’ from a mile away.

Could he be more obvious? She thought bitterly, watching Haru give Alfonso a ‘come hither’ look.

“I think you have a fan,” she whispered in Alfonso’s ear. Her cool breath on his skin sent tingles down his spine, and he found himself wondering about the night she spent in his bed; he’d denied himself what he’d so desperately wanted. He wouldn’t make that mistake twice. He wanted her. Pure and simple.

“As long as that fan is you, I don’t mind,” he whispered back, caressing her cheek. He didn’t want anyone else in the world. Since they met, he wanted to spend every waking moment with her, and he planned to do just that as soon as the mess with the files was cleared.

“Leonor’s choreographer,” Charisse chuckled, and he looked up, startled.

“No way,” he mumbled, feeling very uncomfortable suddenly.

“He’s been checking you out since we got here, hanging on to your every word, I’m sure if we gave him a napkin, it would be sopping wet with all his drool,” Charisse murmured, before walking off, leaving him dumbfounded.

Haru saw his opportunity then and followed Alfonso to the buffet table. He was just about to make his move when his sister showed up and gave him a look that sent him scurrying away.

He found himself sitting with Daniella and Rachel, and as they all got talking they discovered they had so many things in common! They agreed to keep in contact, with Haru suggesting the latest gay hot spot in Downtown was a good place to hook-up.

On the dance floor Hugo couldn’t believe he was doing this for the 150^th time.

“Will you marry me?” He asked softly, but loud enough for her to hear him.

“No…we’ve talked about this,” Cassie, not missing a dance step, declined his proposal for the 150^th time.

But he wasn’t deterred. He knew persistence prevails in the end. He didn’t win the Architecture of the Year award three years in a row by luck. It had taken him a lot endurance, patience, and perseverance to get to the top. It wasn’t easy, anything worth keeping was never easy, and that’s why he worked a hundred times harder to keep Cassie.

“One day you’ll say yes,” he murmured before dropping a passionate kiss on her lips. Cassie just smiled, feeling dazed from his kiss. She loved him with all her heart, but marriage was huge and she wasn’t sure if she wanted it for herself. She’d watched Victoria and Kendra these last two years; they seemed content for the most part. But that was just it, she didn’t want contentment. She wanted every day to be like now, electrifying, spontaneous, and exhilarating. And she was so afraid the moment she said yes to Hugo, she’d kiss all this adrenaline rush goodbye.

“You’ve been smiling like a Cheshire cat since your toast to Kendra, mind telling me what’s on your mind?” Victoria dragged him to a secluded spot in the corner of the room. She’d had it with Storm, and his ‘way too pleased’ smile.

“I’m attending the biggest show in Statham Island history,” he mimicked Kendra’s voice, and Victoria slapped his arm playfully. “Isn’t that reason enough for me to be happy?” He added softly, in his own voice now.

She held his eyes, searching, questioning. And then he had to smile at her, and she forgot everything she’d planned on saying.

Not too far from his older brother, Dean was ecstatic with the way the evening was turning out. He was thrilled the fashion show was behind them. Maybe now they could work on their baby. He knew in in his heart the doctor was wrong; they would have a child, and he couldn’t wait to get started.

“You’re amazing, you know that?” He drawled, pulling her close to him.

“I know,” Kendra slurred merrily. Dean wasn’t bothered by her vanity. In fact he loved her all the more for it, it seemed.

“Now that this is over, what do you say we get a second opinion?” He broached the subject tentatively. He knew he was taking a huge gamble, bringing this up now and it could have horrible consequences for him and their guests. He didn’t even know why he’d asked. It just slipped his tongue and he wished he could take it back. He held his breath, his grip tightening around her, preparing himself for her attack. But to his dismay it never came.

“Okay, I’ll call the doctor tomorrow,” Kendra smiled up at him instead, and wrapped her legs around him, slowly rubbing them up and down his back, hinting at things still to come that night.

“Get a room you two,” Charisse scolded her guardians as she took a seat at the bar, not too far from them.

She dumped her plate on the surface, and stared at the cake for a long time. It looked too perfect to destroy. But that was exactly what she was going to do.

“I’m Leonor,” Alfonso’s twin smiled at her just as she was about to take her first bite.

“I know. I’m Charisse, and I loved the show. I thought you were pretty cool,” she replied softly.

Awkward silence washed over them. She didn’t know what to say to her boyfriend’s sister. She could talk about the weather but somehow she doubted it was a topic a glamorous person like Leonor would enjoy. Or maybe, she could talk about the stock market, and give her tips on investing the huge bonus she just got.

“Oh dear,” she thought anxiously; she had to make a good impression here.

“Would you like some cake?” She blurted out instead, when saw the longing look in Leonor’s eyes as she stared at her plate.

Leonor was caught off guard. She was starving, and she knew if she didn’t walk away from her brother’s girlfriend she’d chomp the cake in two minutes flat.

Her only meal was two crackers a day for the past two weeks. She’d artfully messed around with the food on her plate, mixing up the variety of colors to make it look like she’d eaten, whenever they went out with Kendra.

As dog hungry as she was, she was petrified of gaining weight. If and when she overindulged, she took laxatives the next morning to purge herself of all the extra weight.

“I’m fine thanks,” she firmly shook her head and pranced off.

Lee found a quiet corner. She closed her eyes, blocking off memories. Before she had the twins, Rosalie, their mother was a successful, highly sought after, and highly paid size 0 catwalk model. But years after giving birth, she’d struggled to get back into the scene because her weight had ballooned out of control, and no matter how hard she tried to shed off the kilos she just couldn’t. Sadly, that signaled the end of her career as catwalk model.

The twins were too young then to understand, or to even know what was going on, they just knew their mother was fragile, sick, and had to take lots of medication which made her sick most of the time. They didn’t know it was diet pills, and laxatives, and they were oblivious to the fact that she forced herself to throw up by shoving her fingers down her throat.

Rosalie hid her condition well, and if the then twelve year old Leonor hadn’t accidentally walked in on her while she was making herself sick, they would never have known she had a problem. The rich married man their mother was involved with ever since she could remember, made sure anorexia did not make it on their mother’s death certificate. They probably would have believed the doctors when they said it was cancer that had killed their mom.

Cancer…That’s what her death certificate said it was…

But they knew better…She knew better.

Leonor often wondered if the married man was their father. On their thirteenth birthday, she and Alfonso had flat out asked their mom if he was. Rosalie had relentlessly denied it, refusing to divulge their father’s identity; something she’d carried to her grave two years later, leaving Alfonso with a deep identity crisis and her, with a profound feeling of incompleteness.

“Earth to the biggest star in the world!” Alfonso waved his hand in front of his sister’s face, and she smacked it away, an annoyed glint in her eyes.

“What?” She demanded crossly.

“I’ve been talking to myself for the past five minutes, where did you go?” Alfonso asked, taking a huge bite from his burger. At that moment, she resented him just a little. He could eat anything, and he wouldn’t have to worry about putting on weight, he worked out for two hours minimum, every day. But even if he didn’t, he’d still look good because he had a fast metabolism. Whereas, she had inherited the fat gene, Lord knew how when their mom was a size zero before they came along.

“Are you okay?” Alfonso asked, sensing her listlessness. He was afraid of this, her dark moods, her deep sense of listlessness. She always got this way after a major show. She once described it as an emptiness no amount of money would ever fill and he couldn’t help her when she got down on that road. He hoped she would find another project soon, and keep herself busy; otherwise it would be weeks of drinking, and drugs, the wild parties. Weeks of living with a stranger, until one morning, when Leonor herself would wake up and decide she’d had enough. Just like that, she’d snap out of it.

“I’m fine,” Lee replied quietly, and smiled at him, but he wasn’t convinced.

“I’m proud of you. This is your biggest day, something you’ve wanted since you were five and you watched mom put on that long silver gown, do you remember?” He asked wistfully.

“Do you think she’d be proud of me?” Leonor answered his question with her own. She was twenty-three, and still looking for approval, checking for confirmation, craving affection. Shit, how fucked up was that? She shook her head, sobbing loudly.

“What’s wrong?” Alfonso was instantly at her side, worry in his eyes.

“Nothing. I’m just feeling emotional that’s all. It’s been a long day,” she smiled tearfully and got up to make her escape. She was a fucking mess, and she had to get it together before the gala dinner.

“She loved us. You know that right?” Alfonso assured her gently.

“Yeah she did, but not as much as she loved him!” She retorted over her shoulder.

Alfonso knew who she was referring to by ‘him’. It was the married man. Never got his real name, or maybe he did, he just didn’t remember it now. But he always knew him as their mom’s special friend; knew he was married by the ring on his finger. He suspected he was their father, but never had any fucking proof. He always wished he was his father, Lord knew the man acted like he was…playing soccer with him, watching cartoon network, coming to check on him when he was sick…Their mom’s special friend…what was his name again?

He remembered though, the special friend was some big hot shot in Statham Island, a town two hours from Veronaville where they grew up, and that’s how he’d come up with the harebrained scheme of moving to Statham Island.

If the special friend wasn’t their father, maybe he’d know who their dad was, and he’d point him in the right direction. But almost, six months after moving to the island, there was still no luck finding the mystery friend. His only hope now was the sealed files.

He may not have his name or address, but Alfonso knew their father was one rich motherfucker, with connections in the right places; their needs were always taken care of…He made sure of it, whoever he was. Alfonso figured if he was that fucking prominent, he must be dodgy too, and may have earned himself a nice record with law enforcement. That’s why he picked Amanda…She didn’t forget her digitag; he’d swiped it from her after he figured out how to break into the BAU’s databank with the help of the very talented Sergio.

While Alfonso was haunted by ghosts from his past, Dean was trying to squirm his way out of the gala dinner.

“Can’t we just skip dinner, and go straight to dessert?” He suggested, artfully running his hands on her back. He wanted take her someplace private, and strip off the damn dress, it looked incredible on her, and it was nice to touch. But he wanted to run his hands all over her naked body, feel her, caress her, and have his fill of her. He wanted her desperately, and he didn’t feel like sitting through three hours of boring speeches.

“Not a chance, but I promise I’ll give you lots of dessert when we get home,” Kendra purred, reluctantly pulling away from his embrace.

“Oh but you’ve promised me too many times, so I insist on tasting the dessert first,” Dean smiled.

She laughed at his cheesy line, but she loved him all the more for it. She dragged him to the vacant couch, and gave him a mind blowing taste of the desserts still in store for him.

“I miss you,” Victoria whispered. She was a little drunk, but she knew what she was saying.

“Come here,” reading the look in her eyes, Storm murmured huskily, and dragged her up on his lap to cover what would quickly become apparent. He kissed her relentlessly, playing with the zipper on the back of her dress.

“Don’t you think it’s time we gave Starr a little sister?” Victoria’s eyes were bright with desire.

“I thought you’d never ask,” Storm replied, caressing her breasts before moving lower.

“Jesus, not here,” She cried softly, not stopping his advancing hands though. She squirmed a little on his lap, trying to find the right position; she wanted to feel him, inside her and she was practically begging him to make love to her right there.

“We could go to one of the private rooms, no one will know,” He suggested. She nodded, brushing her hair.

“You go first, I’ll meet you there,” she replied, blushing like a school girl.

“We’re married, no one will care,” Storm growled. He wasn’t up for games. He wanted her, and he was going to have her. Without a moment’s hesitation, he pulled her to her feet and dragged her from the room. She tried her damndest to ignore Hugo and Cassie’s knowing looks as they walked past them.

After his puzzling talk with his sister, Alfonso went looking for Charisse. He was tired and restless and he wanted to get out of there. He knew his twin would be pissed at him for not attending the fancy dinner, but at that moment he couldn’t care less. He hated thinking about his past; it always left him in knots and that’s why he worked hard at avoiding it.

“Hey, I was just about to send a search party,” Charisse beamed at him, and his heart squeezed a little. Would she still look at him like that when she found out he wasn’t the man he’d led her to believe he was?

“Had enough of the high end couture, and plastic boobs?” He asked, his voice ringing with a false lightheartedness.

“If I see any more plastic, I’ll turn into Barbie I bet,” she joked back.

“Come on, let’s head home,” he linked their hands and led her out of the Venue. He smiled when she didn’t complain. He was convinced she’d want to attend the silly dinner, and spend hours listening to tired jokes made by potbellied, balding men.

“Does your sister live like this every day?” Charisse asked with a wary look in her eyes. He ignored her question, trying hard not to worry about Leonor, but he could feel it, a bad storm was on the way. Not just for his sister. For him too. This time he’d bitten off more than he could chew, and the walls were slowly caving in on him.

The tears she’d been hanging on to for the past few hours poured forth as soon as she locked herself in one of the private rooms. She cried for a long time, until she felt all hollowed out, until there were no tears left anymore. This was supposed to be the happiest day of her life, yet she was as miserable as a sick dog.

She was tired of trying to make the pieces fit; it was no use, something was missing, and for years she’d thought she’d find it by following in her mother’s footsteps. She’d thought she’d feel better about herself if she got that Gucci dress, that Louis Vuitton handbag, if she strutted herself on stage with thousands of jealous eyes, ogling her, wishing they were her. But, at that moment, in the lonely room, with the glass walls closing in on her, she knew the joke was on her. No one wanted her broken life…

She looked up, and smiled sadly when she saw the private stash of booze. She’d sit here forever, drink herself to death, or until the dark cloud passed, whichever one came first.

Fuck the gala dinner…Fuck Kendra and her fashion show. Fuck Alfonso for still thinking their mother loved them…But fuck the man who never wanted her…Never wanted to acknowledge her as his own…Fuck him for making her, and leaving the broken, mangled mess behind.

Yes, she’d drink herself to a mindless stupor…

Previously on Unforgettable...

2011-01-01T09:18:00.000-08:00

The past year in pictures...

Kendra saw a threat to her marriage when her husband’s ward, Charisse Dermont moved in with them.

The Paloma twins, Alfonso and Leonor, moved to town with hidden agendas.

Sparks flew between Charisse and Alfonso on their first date

Leonor secured her dream job with Le Good Life, Kendra’s events co.

Files were tampered with at the BAU.

Storm grew increasingly tense and secretive.

Amanda was fired from her job for negligence. Alfonso knew he was in trouble.

Victoria became suspicious. Fearing her marriage was in trouble, she did a little snooping of her own, and unfortunately for her, it did not end well. A strain was put on her marriage by her own insecurities.

Kendra and Dean learned some bad news, prompting Kendra’s erratic behavior.

Leonor’s drinking problem was cause for concern, but Alfonso did not have the heart to broach the subject.

Things got ugly between Kendra and Charisse when Kendra caught her husband in a 'compromising position' with his ward.

Kendra’s behavior spiraled out of control.

A strange friendship was formed; Leonor and Kendra became fast friends in just a few days.

Dean feared for his marriage.

Storm was threatened by a high profile politician. Not willing to risk his family’s safety, he took matters into his own hands.

Leonor got her 3 hours of fame in the Mother of all Fashion Shows…

Stay tuned for Chapter 14, coming soon…

~ HAPPY NEW YEAR!~

2011-01-01T04:06:00.000-08:00

Happy New Year, from the Unforgettable team, Karima and Val!

Random post to end of the year

2010-12-31T00:45:00.000-08:00

These were taken for the Desirable Discourses hotness montage, and sadly we didn't get to use some, but I thought I'd go on and show them off anyway. Yeah, I know, I'm such a show off :)

The Halloween Edition

2010-10-31T03:02:00.000-07:00

___________

Book II: Chapter Thirteen

2010-10-19T09:51:00.000-07:00

Note- After a month of struggling with the Statham Island Hood and lots of grame crashes, we are pleased this chapter is finally up. The video is best viewed at full HD, but will slow down considerably for those with slower internet connection. You can also view it in fullscreen, but the quality is lower :-(

Any failures with this chapter are solely on me. This was my first and last attempt at a fashion show, and at creating a video. Apologies in advance for the amateurish work, and suckish pictures; we would have put this up as snapshots, but I kind of like the video format.

________

Le Good Life's Fall Collection

Credits-A huge thank you to Karima for all the models, and the lot used for the red carpet shots. BTW that was supposed to be our venue for the fashion show but out of the blue it started acting up. I'm just sad you guys didn't get to see it. It's phenomenal.

The clothes worn by the models, and the guests are from different creators, but most come from JustSims2, Modish Kitten, and the male clothing (including the ones worn by all the men of Statham Island) is from a bootyfile somewhere on the net, I'll have to get the link for it if you gus want it. And yep, Le Mother of all Dresses and the Show Stopper come from JustSims2. The creators there are stunningly amazing! I can't thank them enough for their creations.

The stage lot for the fashion show is by yours truly. (No wonder it's a little suckish. LOL)

Thanks to everyone at Desirable Discourses whose sim made an appearance on the show. You know who you are. Ideally we wanted to include all our sim selves, but as you all know I've had to clean out my system, and I lost all your sim selves when I reinstalled the game. Anyway, if you're a sim writer or just obsessed with the game, stop by and hang with us at Desirable Discourses. We are a fun bunch...I think. I guess I'm pretty bad at this PR business, but really come through :)

The fashion show song is Pavane by Cafe Del Mar from their Aria 2 album. I love, love this piece. You have to watch the video with the music on.

Again, thank you Karima, always!

Book II: Chapter Twelve

2010-10-10T02:21:00.000-07:00

Storm walked down the long narrow corridor, briefly glancing at the apartment numbers. His heart hammered out of control when he reached her door.

Apartment 205.

He hesitated for a mere second before banging hard on the door. She took her sweet time to answer. Patiently he waited on the side, thinking about his crazy afternoon.

He couldn’t believe he was there. If it was any other person he wouldn’t. But this was Dean, his baby brother. Like Victoria and Starr, he would do anything for him. He’d risk his life and his job for him. Because when it’s all said and done, family is all that matters.

He understood Dean’s anger and frustration and he could handle it. But seeing the disappointment in his eyes had almost killed him and that’s what had sent him flying to this dodgy part of town.

At least this shit-hole was clean. It wasn’t like the rest of rat-infested slum flats in the surrounding areas. For a federal agent he would have thought she’d find herself better accommodation!

“Storm?” A female’s voice startled him.

He glanced at her, and blinked rapidly, trying to think if he knew the woman beside him. Then it him; it was her and he barely recognized her. The clothes, makeup and fancy updo which gave her the professional look were gone now. She looked so different…plain.

“Amanda,” he greeted her coolly, his cold blue eyes carefully sizing her up.

“You have no business being here. I don’t work the BAU, no thanks to you!”

The words were barely out her of her mouth when he violently slammed her against her apartment door.

“You want to try that again, Amanda?” He sneered.

The last time he was so angry was when Jade had held Victoria hostage two years ago. As much as he didn’t like the way that night had ended, he would kill again in a heartbeat if his family was threatened. And Boyd had done just that; not in so many words, but he’d given him food for thought.

“I just meant since I don’t work for you anymore, you shouldn’t be here that’s all!” Amanda cried in a small voice, tears shimmering in her eyes.

“You may not work for me, but the moment you neglected to report the fucking Digitag, you made it my business! Now, open the door and let’s get inside,” he growled icily.

“Please---you’re hurting me!” She sniffled, and that enraged him even more.

“No, this is nothing. It will hurt a whole lot more if you don’t start talking. We can do this right here, right now or inside. Your choice!” His eyes turned to stones and his upper lip curled viciously as he reached around her, yanked open the door and nudged her inside.

“Where’s the Digitag?” He got straight to the point.

God, her insolence was ripping his patience apart!

She saw the world only through her limited point of view. He wished he could make her understand trouble they were all in because of her carelessness. Roughing her up would seem like foreplay when Boyd and his goons got wind of her.

“I lost it---I can’t remember where!” She replied, her voice caught in her throat, and her words tumbled all over the place. He knew she was lying. The fact that she wasn’t even trying hard at her lies was an insult.

“Don’t insult my intelligence, Amanda! My wife and son were threatened because of those fucking files, so you will talk because I have the whole night!” He slammed his hand on the wall and glared at her.

In the heat of the moment, he yanked her off her seat and shook her wildly until her loud screams finally got through to him. He shoved her off, and she sagged against the stove. He saw her wince in pain, and he felt like one of the criminals he worked very hard to send away. He wanted to apologize and help her to her feet, but he was still too livid. Instead, he turned away from her, and tried to separate himself from the situation…temporarily.

“Fine I’ll tell you about the Digitag!” Her words brought him instant relief. At last, she’d come to her senses.

“But I want immunity! I’ve lost my job, and I can’t lose any more than I already have. I don’t know what’s in those files, but I’m guessing it’s pretty huge for Internal Affairs to get involved and for you to rock up here. So, what do you say?” Amanda continued, trying to re-establish her position and take control of a situation which was clearly not in her hands.

“You’re fucking insane!” Storm threw his hands in the air, and dispelled a frustrated sigh. Just when he thought she’s coming around she starts talking about immunity. Did she even know what the word meant?

“Take it or leave it and Storm, I wonder what Internal Affairs will say when they find out you’ve been harassing a key witness in the case!” She dealt her low blow. He had no doubt she’d been saving it for the right moment.

“Are you threatening me? Bitch, you don’t want to get me started. I know people who can make this problem…including you, disappear if you don’t start talking soon!” Of course his insane amount of money could get it done, but he wouldn’t go that far.

He only wanted to scare her, without backing himself in a corner and promising her things he knew he couldn’t give. Like immunity! Did she really think it was that easy to get immunity? For fucks sake it didn’t fall from trees.

Something in his words must have scared her, because when she opened her mouth next she was singing a different tune.

“Alfonso Paloma!” She screamed and buried her face in her hands. “I left it at his place.”

Book II: Chapter Eleven

2010-10-03T22:54:00.000-07:00

Victoria was playing with Starr in the living room when she heard the front door close angrily with a loud bang.

Storm was obviously home.

“Victoria!” He barked somewhere inside the house. From the sound of his rapid footsteps as he ran through the rooms, opening and closing doors, she knew he wasn’t in a good mood and she wondered what could have set him off.

“I’m in here!” She called out to him.

“Pack a few things, we need to go!” Storm growled when he blew into the room.

No hello, I missed you darling and I got the stuff that’s going to make our evening fantastic! She thought bitterly.

She was about launch into a bitch fit when she saw the wild look in his eyes. She’d seen it so many times when Jade had escaped from the federal prison.

“Storm, what’s going on?” She asked in a deceptively calm voice, all the while frantic thoughts whirling through her mind.

“For once can you listen and not question me? I don’t have time to explain. Get a few things and let’s go!” He slammed his hands together for emphasis.

“No! You can’t charge in here like a raging bull and insist we have to go and not tell me what this is about! I’m not leaving until you tell me what’s going on. For weeks I’ve been putting up with your ‘secrecy’ bullshit because you told me it’s your job. But it ends here and now. We are going to talk and you’ll tell me the truth and I mean everything!” She hissed quietly, throwing wary looks at Starr, who seemed oblivious to the commotion. He knew she hated arguing in their son’s presence.

Her seething anger brought him back to his senses, and he was filled with remorse. Seeing the confusion and fear in her eyes almost killed him.

He wished he could explain, and make her understand, but the mess with the files was bigger than anything he'd ever dealt with. It would take him a very long time to break it down for her, and time is a luxury he didn't have. He had her safety and their son’s to think about. She was right though. They did need to talk…

“Hey,” he murmured and pulled her close to him.

“Storm, what is it?” She asked over his shoulder. Her voice was much gentler this time.

“I’m sorry. This thing going on at work is about to get very ugly. I’d feel better if you and Starr were with Kendra and Dean. A lot of it has to do with my father, and I promise I’ll explain when the time is right, but we really have to go now. I’ve reinstated your security detail but I just thought you’d be much happier at Kendra’s!” Storm explained. It wasn’t much, but it was a start; and he really did plan on bringing her up to speed as soon as he knew what he was dealing with.

“How long will this go on for? I’d feel much safer with you,” she sighed tearfully.

“I know,” he kissed her gently without answering her question. It could be over in a day, or maybe weeks, depending on how lucky he was with securing the files.

Ten minutes and a bucket of tears later, from both Starr and Victoria, they were ready to leave.

As he carried his son and followed closely behind his wife he couldn’t stop thinking about Boyd. He’d obviously done thorough research on him, and he was trying to use Victoria and Starr as leverage. Of course he hadn’t agreed to help the governor, but he’d be stupid not to heed his threats.

“Are you sure you’ll be fine on your own? Why don’t you stay with us for a few days?” Victoria asked again.

“I’ll swing by so often I’ll be practically living there,” he smiled as he tucked Starr into his car seat…

The tears shining in her eyes pierced holes in his heart, and for a crazy second he was tempted to call off the whole thing and rush them back inside the house. But then he remembered Boyd's veiled threat, and his red-hot rage came rushing back.

As long as those darned files were still out there, Victoria and Starr's safety was compromised in the worst possible way, and that he would not allow!

___________

“And you never thought to mention all this before. Do you have any idea what this can do to Chace Industries, to us personally, to Victoria and Kendra?”

Dean’s wrath was ten times worse than his wife’s. He’d just told him everything, starting with the files, right to his shady meeting with Boyd that afternoon.

“I didn’t think it would get to this,” Storm replied halfheartedly.

“This is bigger than us, Dean. At first I was just worried about Steve’s affairs coming out and all sorts of crazies coming forward, claiming to be the illegitimate kids. But now, with Boyd’s accusations---It’s big and scary, and I don’t know how we can contain it!” He added as he rested against the table.

He’d quit smoking just before he met Victoria, but now he had a sudden compulsion to start again. He longed for the smell of nicotine on his fingers, missed watching the hazy cloud of smoke blow through his lips.

“Maybe the truth coming out is exactly what we need. For months I’ve been worrying about this. I can’t sleep; Victoria and I are fighting because of those damn files. I’m exhausted, and I just want the whole mess to go away!”

“Don’t tell me you believe that shit about the war in ‘99! Dad was a lot of things; he was a shit father and husband, and a skirt-chaser through and through. But he wouldn’t fund a war!” Dean roared.

“How do you know? I thought about it, and the more I did, it made sense. Cheating and fathering kids all over the place wouldn’t earn him a sealed file! Look around you! Don’t be naïve!” Storm fired back. Now he really needed that cigarette. He could feel himself slowly bounce off the walls.

“So what? You’re just going to sit by and watch everything I’ve worked hard for crumble? Do you hate dad so much? Is that it?” Dean asked after a while of silence.

Dean thought it was sad seeing them this way. They were always close when growing up. Storm had not only been his big brother, but his father too to some extent. He’d taught him everything, from football, right to the art of seduction. They were always in agreement about Steve…until now!

“What do you want me to do? I don’t have the fucking files? And if I did would you expect me to destroy them, knowing what I know?” He asked softly. As the eldest he was really trying to act his age, but he knew if he didn’t walk away, any second now they’d come to blows. It was inevitable.

“What’s the use of being the head of a law enforcement agency if you can’t use it to your advantage?” Dean retorted, moving closer to him threateningly, and slowly pushing him to the edge.

“I’ll pretend you did not just say that!” Storm informed him icily before walking out…

Book II: Chapter Ten

2010-09-27T04:29:00.000-07:00

The car stopped just as he regained consciousness. He opened his eyes, but only darkness greeted him. And it all came rushing back, Victoria sending him to get some stuff, the two SUVs boxing him in…

The passenger door was thrust open, and he stepped out gingerly. He felt weak and dizzy, and he wondered how long it would take for the drug they gave him earlier to leave his system.

As grateful as he was to be alive, the bitch of a headache he had was enough to make him wish he was dead. He stood unsteadily on his feet and took huge gulps of air, all the while trying to make out where he was from the smells and sounds around him.

Slowly one of the kidnappers turned him around to face her. As her hands worked deftly on untangling the blindfold, he caught a whiff of Elizabeth Arden’s Mediterranean. He knew the scent very well; it was Victoria’s favorite. But the long legs and wiry frame rubbing against him felt nothing like his wife’s, and he wanted to shove her off.

As if she’d read his mind, she warned him in a low voice, “Don’t try anything Mr. Chace.”

“There’s a bench across the street. Make your way over there and wait. Don’t try to run. There are snipers, safely hidden from prying eyes, but they will not hesitate to take you down," she continued in a business like voice. "Your car is parked down the road, with the GPS co-ordinates to your house in place. When this is over, you'll drive off and not breathe a word of this to anyone. Are we clear?”

Storm nodded his understanding, and a second later the blindfold slipped off. It took his eyes a minute or two to adjust to the sudden light, and he was hugely disappointed when he looked around and found his assailant gone; he’d wanted to see the bitch’s face…

Slowly he made his way to the bench and waited. This whole business had a sinister feel, like some dodgy deal was about to go down. He looked around him and tried to figure out where the supposed snipers were hiding. But he didn’t doubt for a second what that bitch had said was true; running would be fatal.

He was still trying to decide what to do when an elderly man sat beside him. Storm glanced at the man briefly and did a double take. Governor Boyd.

“Mr Chace. I’m sorry we have to officially meet under these circumstances,” the older man began, his body language denoting a warm, trustworthy nature. “First I must tell you how sorry I was to learn of your father’s passing. He was a powerful force in the boardroom. It was such a terrible blow for the government to lose one of its generous benefactors.”

But Storm, a well experienced profiler, wasn’t fooled. He made a living from analyzing people’s behaviour. From his horn rimmed glasses, right down to his brown Italian suit, everything about the governor screamed ‘deceitful’.

Steve Chace had died well over a decade so for Boyd to be passing his condolences now, was a bit suspicious. Suddenly it dawned on him, the kidnapping, the shady meeting…

He knew his father’s shit would come back, and bite him in the ass. He just didn't know it would be in the form of Boyd.

“What’s this about, governor?” Storm asked bluntly. Like the older man, he wasn’t big on talk, and he saw no point in playing the guessing game. They were both busy people and the sooner he knew what Boyd wanted from him, the sooner he could get home to Victoria and soak in the bubble bath.

Shit! The bubble bath! He swore inwardly as he thought of his abandoned grocery bag. Surely some riff-raff on Third had taken it!

“The files!” Boyd’s icy voice forced his attention back to the situation at hand. “As a federal agent, I’m sure you know the danger those files pose if they end up in the wrong hands!”

“I don’t know anything about the files,” Storm murmured lazily, and casually leant back, draping his arms at the back of his head. He knew all about the files. He barely slept, and his marriage was in trouble because of the sinister secrets in the darned files!

He wanted to get his hands on them as much as Boyd. Steve’s questionable business interests, along with the sordid details of his mistress and the supposed children he’d fathered could destroy the legacy Dean had worked so hard to preserve.

“If I were you, Storm---Do you mind if I call you Storm?” Boyd asked casually.

Ofcourse he minded; they were not on friendly terms.

But without waiting for his reply the governor continued, “I’d find those files fast. Your father’s extramarital affairs are not a secret. But did you ever wonder who funded that war in Strangetown in ‘99?”

He felt like he had been kicked in the gut. He closed his eyes, trying to control his rapid heartbeat and red-hot rage . Steve was a lot of things, but to suggest he’d funded a war, in which millions of innocent women and children lost their lives, was…incredible.

“My father was a lot of things, but not a killer! I won’t sit here and listen to you smear his name. Internal Affairs will be informed of this meeting. Good day, governor!” Storm informed him coolly, despite the fury pounding in his heart.

“Don’t walk away from me young man! Do you think I give a shit about Internal Affairs? Who do you think pays those stupid fuckheads?” Boyd growled and joined him on his feet.

Storm thought the older man would have a heart attack right there on the sidewalk at the rate he was going.

“I’m not on your payroll! You want the files, get them yourself! I don’t care if the shit with my father comes out. If he funded that war, people have a right to know. On second thought I’m glad those files are out there. I just hope whoever took them exposes all the rot poisoning this country.” Brave words, from a petrified man.

He smiled cynically, and gently kneaded the back of his neck. He wasn’t naïve. When the shit hit the fan, Chace Industries would be the first in line to smell it; all the hard work Dean had put into it and their children’s legacy will be gone.

“Don’t be so hasty in making decisions Storm,” Boyd drawled. His voice had lost its earlier conviction though, and Storm was sure this was the end of it. But what the governor said next sent him into blind fury.

“Pass my regards to Victoria and your precious son. Keep them very close, Storm. It would be such a shame…” He didn’t have to finish his sentence. Storm got the picture just fine. The mother fucker was threatening him…

Book II: Chapter Nine

2010-09-20T00:30:00.000-07:00

“Give me everything on Storm Chace!” William Boyd got straight to the point as soon as he walked into his home office and took a seat at the head of the table. He wasn’t one to mince words, and he wasn’t big on talk.

As the Governor of Statham Island’s Reserve Bank he prided himself on producing results. That’s how he had retained his role for two consecutive terms. While the reserve bank governor’s term was seven years, he was in his thirteenth year and he’d be damned if those blasted sealed files would ruin his career.

Yes, he was indespensable; he’d proven his worth when he got Statham Island through the worst recession in the history of the island, but…It wasn’t just his own skin he was worried about, a lot of political careers would be destroyed if and when the information in the files came to light.

On paper Ben and Jason were Business Analysts, but in reality, they were his problem solvers. As his henchman, they took care of the messy stuff, and made it all disappear. So far though, they hadn’t been successful at making the stink with the files go away.

Ben carefully adjusted his tie and cleared his throat before launching into a discussion on Storm’s career success, starting with his stint in SI PD, his move to psychological profiling and finally his fairly new promotion as the head of the BAU.

For a while after Ben’s recital there was tension on the table as Boyd paced the length of his study.

His henchmen spoke in hushed tones as they leafed through the stacks of notes on Storm, trying to see if they’d overlooked something, while Gerri, Boyd’s ‘accountant’, furiously worked the keyboard, pretending to be wrapped up in the financial report she’d finished the day before.

They all knew silence from Boyd wasn’t a good sign. Any minute now he’d come down on them like a ton of bricks. And he did!

“Gentleman, ladies, we have a problem!” He finally spoke as he rested on the table. He didn’t have to raise his voice to show his displeasure, his icy tone did the job just fine.

“Mr. Chace’s shiny accolades are ‘nice’, but they will not get me the blasted files! I want to know more about the man behind Mr. Chace. That man, gentlemen, like all men has a weakness!” He added philosophically.

At that moment, Reagan, stood up from her lone position on the couch and took the stage, while Jason and Ben rearranged themselves on the table.

It was no secret, as a corporate mole she sold her services to the highest bidder. Right now, the highest bidder was Boyd.

She dimmed the lights in the room and waited for the projector screen to come to life. When she was sure she had everyone’s attention, she began her report. She had a glazed, almost deranged look in her eyes as she talked about Storm and substantiated her information with images on the projector screen.

“That’s where we’ll find his weakness,” she pointed at the satellite image of Storm and Victoria’s place as she rounded off the session.

“Thank you, Reagan. I must commend you on this outstanding report. I can certainly understand why your services are highly sought after!” Boyd murmured as he leant back on the chair, and thought about the bottle of Scotch he’d tear into as soon as the meeting was adjourned.

This was exactly what he’d wanted from the start, a little leverage with Mr. Chace. It was obvious the man was insanely in love with his wife, but his two year old son was a gift from the gods. Starr Chace was the icing on the cake and he’d certainly sweeten the deal for him.

For the first time since the mess with the files began he allowed himself to relax.

The end was near. He had his man and his problem solvers would take care of the rest. What more could he ask for?

Yes, this deserved a glass of Scotch…or maybe two. He thought as he tried to pay attention to the plans already being put into place…

____________

Storm whistled jovially as he left the deserted convenience store on Third Street. Business wasn’t booming in this part of town. Most shops had closed down, and the gas station had shut its doors a few years back.

Ordinarily he would have been stuck in traffic on R69 on his way home, but Victoria had called just before he left the office, and asked him to grab a few things from the store.

He couldn’t stop smiling as he peeked at the bubble bath, strawberries, whipped cream, champagne and a few other things inside the bag. Clearly Victoria wanted to make up for their latest fight.

Lately fighting was all they seemed to do. If they weren’t arguing about his crazy hours at work, they were fighting over her trust issues. It was a nice change to see her try to bring the romance back into their relationship instead of constantly picking fights with him.

He quickened his pace as he neared his car. Suddenly he couldn’t wait to get home, kiss her thoroughly and get down to some serious make-up sex. Who knows, maybe tonight they’d start working on getting Starr a sister. But that’s another thing they fought about. A lot!

Victoria didn’t think he could handle two kids. He barely had time for her and Starr, she’d argued. She was right to a point, but as soon as things quieted down at work he would start winning the ‘husband of the month’ awards. But until then, she firmly refused to entertain talks of expanding their brood.

Two dark SUVs pulled up behind him and boxed him in as he was about to open his car door. They looked like government agents, but since there were no plates on both vehicles, he wasn’t so sure. The whole scene was well orchestrated, and it was over in three minutes flat.

One minute he was turning towards his car, the next he was flat on his back on the ground. He tried to fight and squirm his way from his attacker’s firm grip. He was sure he was winning until a blunt blow landed firmly on the side of his head.

A pair of feminine hands began searching him, moving swiftly over his length. It hit him then, the trouble he was in. His service weapon was inside the glove compartment in his car. He was not only unarmed, but outnumbered too.

He tensed when the hands landed where they shouldn’t have. What the hell would he be hiding down there?

“He’s unarmed.” A female voice announced. He guessed it was the same person who’d searched him.

“Be still. This will be over in a second.” Hard calloused fingers shoved a drug in his mouth and he gagged.

He wasn’t ready to die. He had so much to look forward to; Starr’s first day of school, the day his daughter would be born, his 25th anniversary with Victoria…

“No…” He growled weakly, as he spat out the last residues of the drug. But it was too late; his whole body was already numb.

“We’ve secured the target---” A different voice this time. Obviously she was speaking on the phone. Their boss perhaps? The same person who’d sent them to get him?

He wanted to put the voices to their faces, and memorise everything about the scene. The details would be vital for SI PD and the BAU to follow this up. Tentatively, he pried his eyes open and blinked rapidly. But his vision was blurred, no doubt from the earlier blow and the drug…

A second later, he was blind folded and thrown roughly inside one of the SUVs. He winced in pain when he bumped his head on the roof of the car.

The bubble bath and scented candles Victoria had sent him to get were the last things he thought of before he sank into darkness…

Book II: Chapter Eight

2010-09-14T00:20:00.001-07:00

Charisse thought now was a good time to sort things out with Kendra. Talking with Alfonso had helped. He really had a very mature and level head on those broad shoulders.

She blushed when she thought of what they’d almost done last night. She’d never been so ready for anything in her life, but at the last minute he’d changed his mind, and she still didn’t know why.

She mentally shook herself and forced herself to focus on the situation with Kendra. She knocked softly on her door and strolled in when the other woman invited her in.

“I come bearing a latte,” she smiled sweetly at Kendra.

“Thanks, but you didn’t have to,” Kendra mumbled, and took the steaming Styrofoam cup from her. She had a bitch of a headache and her mind was a little fuzzy, but she remembered their horrid fight all too well.

The latte smelled delicious, but the glass of wine on the end table looked much more enticing.

“Dean’s already left for work and I should be leaving too, but I couldn’t go with this thing between us hanging over my head---” Charisse, hesitated for a moment before joining her on the bed.

Kendra began pacing the room like a caged animal. Damn, this was hard! She wanted to apologize to Charisse. But she found it so freaking hard to admit when she was wrong…not just with Charisse.

Finally she rested in front of her and took a long shaky breath.

“There we go again!” Charisse braced herself for another attack, but it never came. Instead Kendra looked away, as if the mere thought of the previous afternoon mortified her.

“Listen Charisse. I’m really sorry about our fight. I had no right to draw you into my business and I most certainly did not have the right to speak to you in that manner. Please forgive me, and I’d really like to get to know you better,” Kendra whispered sheepishly, cocking her head to the side.

Without waiting for her to finish, Charisse got up from the bed and gave her a warm, friendly hug.

“Let’s put it behind us,” she murmured over her shoulder. “I really want us to be friends!”

“Me too,” Kendra agreed. She felt like a scumbag, and she knew she didn’t deserve Charisse’s kindness and forgiveness.

“To make up for my bad behavior I’d like to take you shopping. I hear there’s a certain young man you wish to impress at the fashion show?” She added.

Charisse colored a little, but did not entertain the lighthearted banter. She really had to get to work, or she’d be apologizing to Dean too.

“I’d like that!” She smiled brightly at Kendra before waltzing from the room.

___________

Kendra felt exhilarated as she brought her Ferrari to a halt in front of the venue. She couldn’t be bothered about finding a parking spot since she wasn’t planning on staying long. She was just dropping in for the final rehearsals, and of course to steal Leonor away.

It wasn’t fun drinking alone in the middle of the day.

As she hopped from the car she was delighted to see Leonor's car in the parking bay. So far her day was going great. She was glad she’d sorted things out with Charisse.

My day can only get better from here. She thought. She had no doubt it would with Leonor by her side.

That girl was fun!

With renewed vigor she approached the Stage Right Theater, a five star restaurant in Downtown. Only the best would do for Le Good Life’s fashion extravaganza!

“Mrs. Chace, it’s so lovely to see you again!” Emily Travis, Stage Right’s hostess greeted her warmly as she shook her hand. “Everything is ready. The models and choreographer are hard at work, and of course your favorite bottle of wine is waiting for you!”

“Thank you, it’s good to see you too.” Kendra’s smile widened at the mention of wine. She gently extracted her hand from the older woman’s firm grip and started to walk away. But Mrs. Travis wouldn’t let her go so quickly. She wanted to talk and catch up.

“So, how’s that handsome husband of yours? And when is the new addition arriving?”

She felt like her heart had been ripped out. She wanted to tear off Mrs. Travis’ head, and serve it for dinner. But it wasn’t her fault. She was just making small talk. She had no idea…

“I have to go, Mrs. Travis!” Kendra replied shrilly and walked away. The tears shimmering in her eyes blurred her vision and she blindly clawed her way through the chairs and tables.

On the other side of the room Leonor kept counting the hours. She’d had about as much as she could take from both Mr. Haru and Missy’s crew.

She was doing her best to avoid the choreographer, but that was proving to be an impossible feat. He was hell-bent on making her life at work a nightmare. His nasty attitude would bring anyone down.

He really needed to find himself a man. Fast! Then maybe his attitude would change!

Leonor’s eyes sparkled with happiness when she saw Kendra approach. Mr. Haru and Missy were a thing of the past as she and Kendra exchanged their signature air-kisses.

“What’s going on? You look upset?” Leonor asked in low tones.

“Nothing. I’m great!” Kendra lied quickly. She didn’t want to get into her sob stories. The sooner she got down to business, the sooner they could both leave and get started on those Margaritas.

But was her pain and sadness so obvious or, did Leonor have some sort of radar? It was weird the way she felt so comfortable around the model. It’s like they’d known each other forever.

“Well I’m glad one of us is having a good day. You won’t believe what a bitch you-know-who is!” Leonor replied. “I’m telling you, someone needs to get him a man ASAP. I can’t take it anymore!”

Like she knew it would, her comment brought a smile to Kendra’s lips. They both burst into girlish giggles at once, and attracted a few cattish stares from Missy’s camp.

“Let me get him out of your hair then,” Kendra’s green eyes twinkled merrily.

“See you later! We’re still on for The Hub, right?” Leonor asked.

“Nothing will keep us away!” Kendra retorted before sprinting off to find Haru.

“Haru, let’s get this show on the road!” Kendra announced when she caught up with the choreographer.

Kendra the party animal was gone, and in her place stood a ruthless business woman who knew what she wanted and how to get it.

“Well, it’s just a few things we need to go over,” Haru began in an authoritarian tone, trying to establish himself in a position of power. Kendra didn’t appreciate it since she was paying his salary, and not the other way around. But she let it slide. For now…

_____________

For three hours they went through the final check list, discussing various points along the way. It was a tedious job, and unfortunately as the owner of Le Good Life, it was hers.

She had to ensure everything ran smoothly or the big fat checks wouldn’t roll in, and a lot of charities whose livelihood depended on the fashion benefit would be left on the lurch.

She knew Victoria and Storm’s fat check was already in the bag. There were other contributors she could count on too. But for §1000 a table, she knew Le Good Life had better deliver.

As she took a rather large mouthful of the fruity wine, she realized anew she didn’t like the man sitting beside her, and she knew then and there his time was short in her employ.

He was way too bossy towards her and did not know his place! She had a feeling that the people who had recommended him were most likely off loading a problem employee on her, and therefore were not to be trusted on recommendations again!

An expensive mistake on their part!

“And that’s it!” Haru slammed the clipboard on the table and startled her a little.

“It’s just the models’ final fitting, that’s left. And do you want to see the catwalk routine?” He added as he took a sip from his glass. His enthusiasm at the routine was infectious and she found herself agreeing to watch.

One by one the models strutted on the runway and Kendra grudgingly marveled at the wonderful job the choreographer had done. But she still did not like the man!\

_____________

After running through the checklist and seeing the models do their stuff on stage, Haru promptly moved on to dress fittings. Kendra craftily made sure Leonor was first in line!

“Thanks for bailing me out!” Leonor cried excitedly as she hooked Kendra’s arm in hers and strode towards the exit after her fitting.

“Perks of being the boss,” Kendra shrugged dismissively. She’d already wasted more time putting up with Haru than she’d planned, and the sooner they left the better! But the very tipsy choreographer stopped them in their tracks.

“Where do you think you are going Leonor? No one has been dismissed yet!” Haru belched loudly and swayed forward.

Kendra was worried he’d drop in front of her and spill the wine all over her trendy outfit. She smiled with relief when he regained his balance and fixed his eyes on Leonor.

“I’m done for the day and the stylists said I could leave,” Leonor replied politely. She knew how to play this game very well. She’d let Haru make a fool of himself in front of Kendra without going out of her way to show her own vicious side.

Predictably, Haru flew into a drunken rage and hurled all sort of insults at her until Kendra felt the need to step in and stop his madness.

“Haru…” Kendra began icily, her green eyes flashing angrily. “Maybe it would be in YOUR best interest to treat Leonor with more respect, as a personal favor to me! After all she is the star of the show and our number one model. We are investing a lot of money in her, and we would like to keep her happy. If I hear anything to the contrary, it will be bad for those involved. Any upset to her will be noted and dealt with swiftly! ANYTHING! Do we have that clear!”

“I’m sorry. I don’t know what came over me. Of course Leonor can go,” Haru slurred apologetically. Kendra saw the fleeting look of shock and worry in his eyes and she knew she’d driven her point home.

“I knew you’d see to reason!” By now Kendra was fuming, while Leonor silently celebrated her small victory.

She had no regrets at the way she’d downplayed the situation and pushed Haru to the edge. The snotty choreographer had it coming, and if she played her cards right, he would be a bad memory very soon!

As Missy and her friend looked on, they were not very pleased or impressed with the outcome of Mr. Haru's latest outburst directed at Leonor. They both agreed he could have at least waited till their boss had left, before he started on the lead model. But they could also see how the wine and the situation had made him careless with his tongue!

Leonor looked over her shoulder and caught angry hisses from Missy’s corner. She was very pleased to see that this had not gone unnoticed and things were bound to change for the better from now on!

As they hurried towards the exit, Kendra couldn’t help but fume some more. She had a good mind of turning around and have a showdown with Haru. She’d never encountered such rudeness and insolence in her life. It was bad enough she’d tolerated his bad attitude for three hours, now he had to belittle Leonor in front of everyone.

She glanced at Leonor, and was shocked to see the dark beauty was not rattled by any of it.

“When you said he’s rude I didn’t imagine that! Why didn’t anyone let me know? I would have dealt with him from the start!” She cried, raising one perfect brow.

“It’s over now. Let’s not think about him. He’s just a waste of space,” Leonor replied.

The last thing she wanted was to spoil a promising afternoon by stressing over Haru. She had Kendra’s backing now and Haru was not likely to get hired by anyone once Kendra put the word out there.

When it was all said and done, she’d gotten her revenge on him. She’d always told him to watch out; he was stupid not to heed her warnings!

Yes, Haru’s career was over, and Le Good Life’s fashion show would be his final curtain call.

This deserved four rounds of Margaritas!

“Oh, no!” Kendra cried when they were greeted by the icy rain. Just when she thought her day couldn’t get worse, the weather had to conspire against her too! Of course she blamed all this on Haru. Another reason to get rid of him. If she hadn’t wasted so much time putting up with his nasty attitude she’d be close to passing out by now.

With a heavy heart, she accepted that The Hub, which was their original bar of choice, was out now. They couldn’t exactly party on the rooftop in this rain.

Leonor on the other hand would not let the change of weather spoil her mood. She was still riding on an emotional high, relishing her well-orchestrated victory. No amount of rain would dampen her mood. Not today at least!

“Come on, I know this cozy cocktail bar. It’s not very far from here!” She smiled brightly and linked her hand with Kendra’s.

As they both hurried to the car, ready to begin their evening of fun and drinking, they looked at each other and laughed.

“PURE here we come!” They screamed at once as Kendra shifted the car into gear and sped off, splashing rainwater all over the place. Weaving through the busy streets of downtown gave the speed demon within her the adrenaline rush she’d craved so badly.

Book II: Chapter Seven

2010-09-04T04:52:00.000-07:00

Warning-adult situations

Charisse didn’t remember what excuse she gave to Dean. All she knew was she had to get out of there fast. She’d driven around aimlessly only to end up here.

As she sat in the car trying to collect her thoughts and decide what to do next she couldn’t help but fume some more over her blowout with Kendra. She had never been so embarrassed in her life, and she couldn’t begin to understand how Kendra came to her disturbing conclusions!

Yes she did love Dean, but only as the big brother she never had! She’d thought Kendra was her friend and she had become quite fond of her. But now she wasn’t so sure. She wasn’t even sure staying with the Chaces was such a good idea.

“Please be home,” she prayed a million times as she ran up his front steps. Finding an empty house was the last thing she wanted, and it would most certainly complete her disastrous day.

Her stomach lurched uncontrollably as her mind flew in all directions. Would he think it weird, her showing up unannounced and uninvited? Was she being too forward?

Before she could change her mind, and dash for her car, she quickly jabbed the doorbell, and waited patiently. She heard muffled voices coming from inside and she relaxed a little; at least someone was home.

She was about to ring the bell again when the door was thrust open suddenly. What she saw next took her breath away and left her…speechless!

Whoa! Wasn’t it a crime in Statham Island for someone to look this…tempting? Yes tempting! And she’d never been so tempted before!

She tried to keep her eyes on his. But, like magnets, they were drawn to his half-naked torso again and again. Her fingers were itching to do some exploration of their own, and run a lingering path on his chest, and then lower…She colored a little at her brazen thoughts

“Charisse?” Alfonso’s voice stopped her reverie and she looked into his smiling blue eyes.

She knew she was staring, and she closed her mouth abruptly. No matter how hard she tried she couldn’t get over his well-ripped physique.

“Are you okay?” He asked, concern apparent in his eyes when she finally looked at him.

“Uh—I’m sorry…This was a mistake,” Charisse cried and turned to leave.

“Don’t go!” He quickly caught her arm. “You drove all the way here; I can’t let you leave without giving you a grand tour.”

“That’s kind of you, and I’d love a tour,” she accepted graciously, and allowed herself to be led inside.

“Sorry about the mess,” He waved his hand around the room apologetically. She was the last person he’d expected to find at his front door. He knew she knew where he lived since they’d exchanged personal info over their IM conversations but he’d never imagined she’d show up so unexpectedly. It was a surprise. But a very pleasant one!

His pleasant mood though, was quickly replaced by worry. Charisse lived in a mansion, and the two bedroom place he shared with Leonor was a far cry from the luxury she was used to. This was one of the reasons he had not invited her over before. It wasn’t that he was ashamed of his place, because he wasn’t. In fact he loved what his sister had done with it on a shoe-string budget. It was just that they came from two different backgrounds.

Moments later, he saw there was no reason for him to worry; Charisse barely paid attention to the sparse living room. His best friend, Sergio, did a great job of distracting her as he introduced himself.

“I’m Sergio, and you must be Charisse. I’ve heard so much about you!” His friend crooned as he brought her hand to his lips, and he tensed a little. He could see his friend was laying on the charm already.

For as long as they both could remember, Sergio claimed to be in love with Leonor, but he had a reputation of being a ladies’ man, and it was for this reason he’d never allowed him to date his sister.

“Good things I hope,” Charisse commented, and blushed prettily at his extravagant charm.

“Definitely great things,” Sergio crooned some more. Alfonso knew he’d better put an end to his mild flirtation. If left unchecked, his friend would charm the pants right off Charisse.

“I thought you had to be elsewhere? Your date?” He drawled as he wrapped his arms around Charisse, making it quiet clear she’s off limits.

“Yeah…I’d better run,” Sergio, reading the warning in his cold stare, replied reluctantly. “I’ll see myself out.”

____________

As soon as the door closed firmly behind Sergio, Charisse dissolved into loud sobs and sniffles. He quickly picked up her handbag from where she had dumped it on the floor and put it out of the way.

“Hey, I’m sorry,” he murmured, worry clouding his eyes as he tentatively put his arms around her. He assumed he’d overstepped his mark when he’d acted possessively, and she was upset with him.

“No---it’s---” Charisse tried to explain it wasn’t him, but her tears won, and she just shook her head sadly.

He felt useless, and he didn’t know how to make her feel better. In the past, he’d been completely unfazed when girlfriends pulled the ‘tears’ stunt on him. But now, his heart ached with every tear she shed!

When she was sure she was calm enough, Charisse explained as best as she could, about THE fight with Kendra. She didn’t know what she said, since her words were tripping all over the place, but judging from Alfonso’s enraged snarls she knew she’d given him a clear picture of what had gone down.

“I---drove around aimlessly for hours, until I ended up here. I’m sorry, I know I should have called first, but I just didn’t know where else to go and you were the only friend I could think of,” she wailed.

“Hey, it’s okay. I’m glad you came,” he encircled her in his arms and buried his face in her soft hair. She smelled like strawberries and he liked that. He liked it so much he kept taking long deep breaths, trying to memorize her scent.

Her sobs slowly subsided, and the heavy sadness in her heart turned to soft sighs of wonder and delight as she tentatively touched his hard chest. She caught a whiff of his cologne, and it made her feel giddy and lightheaded. But she liked his own scent better. She reached up and clung to him like a drowning person, hanging on for dear life.

“Are you feeling better now?” Alfonso asked when he noticed her sobs had ceased.

Without thinking twice, she stood on tiptoes and her lips sought his. Her answer was lost in the kiss, as she let her senses take reign. She got lost in the moment, and she forgot about Kendra.

He didn’t know what hit him. If he’d known just how great kissing Charisse would be, he would have allowed their first kiss in the rain to go on for much, much longer. But now, as he thoroughly explored her mouth he was glad he’d waited.

He was the first to come to his senses as his eyes fell on her clothes strewn all over the kitchen floor. He had never lost control so completely before. He looked around the room trying to understand what had just happened. How did she get up there?

As if she sensed his mind was starting to rationalize she turned his face back to hers and kissed him again, leaving him weak.

“No,” he growled against her lips. But she firmly silenced him with her blissful, torturous tongue.

It took every bit of his self-control to jerk his mouth from hers. For a few minutes he couldn’t speak as he fought valiantly to calm down.

“Charisse, it’s late. You should be getting home,” he told her. His voice sounded cold, even to his own ears. But that was his way of putting some distance between them. He saw the crushed look on her face, and he felt like a total cad.

“You can use my bed if you’re too tired to drive home,” he added softly.

“Don’t be silly,” Charisse smiled suggestively. “If it’s not a single bed, then there’s more than enough room for both of us.”

Sweet temptress! Does she know what she’s doing to me? He wondered as she ran her hands gently up and down his back, all the while dropping slow, teasing kisses wherever her lips fell on him.

Her offer was so tempting, but he knew there would be no sleeping if he stayed in the same bed with her.

“Make love to me,” Charisse murmured softly. “Let’s go upstairs…to bed…please!” She had never been so sure about anything in her life. She wanted him. No, she longed for him in a way that was new to her, and she knew it wasn’t a need that would go away until…

“Are you sure?” He whispered. “That’s what you want?” His warm breath fanning her cheek sent an exhilarating shiver through her body.

To show him just how certain she was, she wrapped her long legs around his waist and slowly rubbed them up and down his back, before she kissed him long and hard. And that was all the convincing he needed as his body responded anew.

If he’d known about this ending to his night, he would have gone all out…Did the candles, the rose petals, the wine, the works! He wanted their first time together to be special and he knew women liked that kind of thing…

Effortlessly he lifted her off the counter and carried her upstairs to his room. He laid her gently on the bed. She was never more exquisite than at that moment, and for a long time he could only stare at her in wonder. Her wanton look inflamed his senses and quite a few other parts of his body as well!

She wasn’t acting like experienced women usually do. Their clothes should have been all over the floor and they should have been under the covers already. In fact, it looked like she was…waiting for him to take the lead and show her the way.

Then it hit him…Hard! And he pulled away from her a little.

She was inexperienced.

As enticing and exciting the possibility of being her first was, he was not the type to take advantage of that innocence.

“What’s wrong?” Charisse asked.

Good Lord…it was that innocence he was trying to preserve. She honestly didn’t know how desperately he needed a cold shower!

“Nothing…everything is---” His words disappeared along with the hope of his night ending differently, and he sank on the bed next to her.

“Did I do something wrong?” Charisse prodded hesitantly.

He wanted to erase the confusion he saw in her eyes and make her understand, but he didn’t know where to start. So he did the next best thing; he pulled her close to him and kissed both her eyelids gently.

“It’s been a long day, you should try and get some sleep,” he told her quietly, as he tucked her tighter in his arms.

It did not take long for her to fall into a deep sleep. As he listened to her rhythmic breathing, he wished he could take control of his own body just as easily!

He knew the unbearable ache in his body was not going to subside so easily. Maybe it was time for that cold shower. But for some inexplicable reason, he couldn’t leave her side.

Normally he couldn’t wait for a woman to be in and out of his bed. But this thing with Charisse was different somehow…

Book II: Chapter Six

2010-09-01T08:30:00.000-07:00

Warning-Language

Kendra knew swiping Dean’s car keys was wrong, but it felt so damn good! She laughed manically as she remembered her narrow escape. She’d told him she was going for a walk to clear her head, and she’d had every intention of doing so, but on her way out, her eyes had fallen on his car keys inside the glass bowl in the entrance hall, and as they say, the rest was history.

Now here she was, weaving through the quiet suburban streets at an insane speed and screaming along to Rihanna’s ‘Russian roulette’ blaring on the stereo. She had no specific destination in mind. But, she knew one thing…she wanted to have some fun and cut loose and that always translates to more booze and more pills. She felt exhilarated from the light wind blowing through her long blonde hair.

She was shocked when she suddenly saw she was in North Beach, not too far from Storm and Toria’s house. Not a bad place to end up in, since the area was famous for the strip of classy night spots.

The tires screeched in protest at the amount of pressure she applied on the brakes as she pulled into the first available parking spot. She laughed and wondered how Dean could say she wasn't fit to drive. She thought she did pretty damn good considering the cocktail of drugs she managed to swallow as she drove.

Still pumped up on adrenaline and red wine, she got out of the car and assessed the damage she’d done on Dean’s prized possession, all the while trying to ignore the smell of burning rubber.

She’d really done a number on the tires, but nothing a new set wouldn’t fix!

After setting the alarm on the car, she made her way to the entrance. But her tottering progress was immediately stopped by two, very good looking bouncers.

One looked her up and down, and then jerked his head and thumb in the general direction of the dress code sign directly under the shiny elaborate entrance sign. The other stepped in front of her menacingly.

What the Hell! I’ve had enough of men for one day! She thought crossly. But she wasn’t going to go away that easily. She came to have a drink and nothing would come between her and a bottle of JC Le Roux!

“Is there a problem---?” She asked impatiently, trying to remember his name. She’d seen him so many times since she was a regular at Club Ibiza, and she didn’t understand why he was acting dodgy now.

“I’m sorry Ma’am, but your sneakers have to go, they’re not part of the dress code!” the bouncer replied, a disdainful look in his eyes.

“You’ve got to be joking! These are not sneakers, you moron! They are very expensive pumps, you know, the type women wear to go shopping in the trendy dress shops and boutiques around here. They look nothing like sneakers or thongs for that matter!” Kendra scoffed and tapped her foot impatiently. “My shoes alone could pay your salary for a whole week so I don’t see what the problem is!”

Kendra knew his type. He’s what she called a ‘rich hater’. He hated the crème de la crème of Statham Island, forgetting that without their money the world wouldn’t go around!

“If you say so, Ma’m but I will not get you in. It’s not worth my job,” the bouncer replied firmly. “Rules are there for a reason, and I still cannot let you in, unless you change them!”

“So you’re telling me, I have to drive all the way home again to change the shoes when there is nothing wrong with them in the first place?” Kendra launched into a tirade. “If the blasted shops were open I would buy a new pair, just to please you!”

After a while of unfazed silence from Luke, yes, she’d suddenly remembered his name, and Brent, the other bouncer in the dark knit top, she wondered if perhaps she was doing something wrong. Usually her bitch fits got her what she wanted in a heartbeat, but these two were not budging!

“Do you know who I am, or what family I belong to? I am a Chace and I can get you fired just for keeping me out! Go get your boss, now!” Kendra went the threatening route this time.

“He’s not in ‘till later, Ma’am, do you want me to make an appointment for you?” Luke asked snidely.

“Could you step this side please, you’re causing a scene!” Brent added, flexing his muscles behind Luke.

She’d never encountered so much resistance in her life. Even name dropping wasn’t helping! She felt the effects of alcohol and pills slowly wear off, and it wasn’t a state she wanted to be in. The sooner she got inside the club, the better.

“How much?” She asked finally, her voice softening a little. “How much will it cost me to get in? Name your price! 100 dollars or maybe you need more? I can match your salary right here, right now! So, give me a price and I’ll pay it!”

But Luke firmly shook his head. On an ordinary day she would have admired his strong backbone. But not today!

Today she just wanted have a few drinks in peace, forget her horrid fight with Charisse and Dean and numb the pain in her heart just for a little while. Was it too much to ask?

She was about to head for Dean’s Lamborghini and look for fun elsewhere when she saw a black SLK pull up on the curb, Le Good Life’s lead model behind the wheel.

__________

“Well, well, well! What do we have here?” Leonor Paloma mused as she brought her shiny new SLK to a halt outside the club!

Brent or Luke would park it for her later. One of the many perks of being a regular! She knew everyone loved her and wanted to do her bidding, and it didn’t hurt that she was gorgeous and she tipped well too.

She smiled smugly as she quickly took in the action outside the club. Things were definitely looking up, especially after the shitty day she’d had, dealing with Mister Haru and his hissy fits. Sorting this lot out should be easy!

She got out of the car slowly and caught a few choice words between her boss and Luke, all the while trying decide how to deal with the situation. It was obvious Kendra desperately wanted to get inside the club, and the bouncers were giving her a hard time.

As she made her way to the entrance she saw Brent’s eyes light up as they held hers. She watched him leave his post and approach her.

“Ciao!” She cried effusively at him, but quickly made a bee-line to Kendra.

She knew Brent was seriously into her, and so far she had avoided his advances since he wasn’t her type. But she saw now sometimes you had to take one for the team. If she played this one right, Kendra would be eternally grateful to her and who knows which doors this one favor might open? Besides, Brent wasn’t hard on the eyes; he just had a dead-end job that would get him nowhere!

“Kendra,” Leonor screeched excitedly as she pulled Kendra close in a friendly hug and air-kissed both her cheeks, a signature move for the rich. And Lenor knew how to play the role! “Are you well? I thought something might be wrong since I didn’t see you much this week!”

Kendra was stunned. The only time she’d had a conversation with Leonor was when she came in to sign her contract, and they had chatted very little then. The few times they’d bumped into each other on the social circuit, they’d courteously acknowledged the other, but that was as far as their relationship went since they moved in different circles. But now they were like old friends.

Before she could say a word, Brent turned to Leonor and spoke rapidly in what Kendra thought was Italian. A myriad of emotions, ranging from shock to mild amusement, played on the model’s pretty face as she listened to the bouncer.

“Are you kidding me, who doesn’t know Chace Industries? This is the owner and director of Le Good Life! I’m sure you’ve heard of them!” Kendra was grateful when Leonor switched back to English since she didn’t understand a word of Italian.

“I'll fix this, okay. Hang tight! It won't take a sec!” Leonor added for Kendra’s ears only, and gave her hand a quick squeeze.

Turning to Brent, she launched into a string of Italian, occasionally touching his arm as she spoke!

Though she didn’t understand what the conversation was about, judging from the way the bouncer was melting all over her, she knew Leonor was laying on the charm.

As she looked on she had to admire the younger girl. She didn’t seem like the typical, ‘airhead’ most models were, and she knew, from Leonor’s profile, she was fluent in several languages. With her fantastic fashion sense and her high popularity ratings, she was a star in the making, and she looked like a girl who knew how to have fun.

Maybe she’s just the person to help her cut loose and have a good time! Kendra thought as she tried to keep up with the intense exchange.

It took her a little while to notice they had stopped talking and they were both smiling expectantly at her. She saw the smug look in Leonor’s eyes, and she knew it could only be good news.

“Come on woman, you’re in!” Leonor winked and quickly ushered her inside the club before Brent changed his mind.

“Thank you, you’re a life saver!” Kendra cried excitedly as they both grabbed their first round of drinks and headed out to the deck. “This night is on me!”

She was extremely delighted now that the chances of sobering up were reduced tremendously. She knew there and then she and Leonor would be unstoppable on the social scene. With her insane amounts of money and Leonor’s sleek charm the evening could only get better!

____________

They spotted a mutual friend, Monique Privel, a style journalist lounging on the plush couches, and they wasted no time joining her on the deck. She and her sidekick fashion photographer, Emanuel Travii, ‘discovered’ Leonor and sold her to Le Good Life.

Sipping on JC Le Roux, Kendra had to admit they were right; Leonor was a star in the making!

Leonor saw Kendra was still feeling a little rattled over whatever it was that had led her to the club. She wasn’t one to pry, and the best thing she could do for her new friend was to help her forget in the only way she knew how. After a few rounds of drinks she suggested they hit the dance floor.

At Leonor’s encouragement, Kendra slowly loosened up and started having fun. She firmly resolved to put Dean and Charisse out of her mind for the rest of the evening. It wasn’t fair of her to spoil her friend’s fun, especially when they were trying so hard to make the evening a great one for her.

Leonor in full party mode suggested they all go skinny dipping, but Monique declined, she had to be elsewhere. After a few minutes of heartfelt goodbyes and promises to hook up soon, Kendra and Leonor were left alone.

With a mischievous glint in her eyes, Kendra agreed a dip in the ocean wasn’t such a bad idea, but that’s as far as she would go; she was a married woman, with a reputation to uphold and couldn’t be snapped in the nude by the lurking paparazzi, no matter how thrilling the idea was.

“Hey, I’m glad you you’re feeling much better,”Leonor commented an hour later as they made their way back to shore.

“Yeah, me too,” Kendra murmured softly. “That was great. Thanks!”

_________

While Kendra and Leonor had a touching conversation out at the beach, two more people were trying to get past the bulky bouncers and they were violating the dress code!

Dean had tracked his car through his insurance company when he found out Kendra had taken it. He had tried to get Storm to pick her up, since she wasn’t too far from their home, but he and Victoria were out. By the sound of things his older brother was in more trouble than he was.

After telling Drake part of the story, his cousin had been more than willing to play chauffer, no doubt looking forward to picking up some drunken, half-naked woman at the club. Now here they were, being stopped by a pretty convincing brick wall in the form of a bouncer!

“Listen pal, I just want to get my wife and get the hell out of here. It won’t take more than five minutes!” Dean growled some more. He’d been to hell and back, imagining all sorts of scary possibilities after discovering his car was missing, so Incredible Hulk here was not going to keep him away from Kendra!

Behind him, Drake casually folded his arms and watched the action unfold. It was at such times he was extremely glad he was not the marrying sort.

“If you could just describe your wife, I’ll get her for you!” Brent let up a little. A look of pure horror crossed his face when Dean gave him the description.

“Well, she’s out back. Good luck to you, mate! She came in here already pissed out of her head and spitting fire. If I were you, I’d get her home fast!” The bouncer finally let them in.

Meanwhile, the two women had settled down with another round of drinks while they relaxed on the loungers. They looked like old friends catching up as they talked about everything under the sun.

Kendra learned Leonor had a twin brother, Alfonso, whom she adored. She was older than him by a mere five minutes but her twin acted like the older sibling, always giving her a hard time about her ‘unhealthy’ habits. She also learned their mom was a former model.

“I think you may have met Alfonso since he’s dating Charisse,” Leonor added. At the mention of her brother’s squeeze she saw Kendra’s face fall and she wished she hadn’t brought her up. After a short burst of uncomfortable silence, Leonor decided to be brave and broach the subject.

“Do you want to talk about it?” She asked softly.

Kendra didn’t know why, but before she knew what was happening, she was bawling her eyes out. Maybe it was the younger woman’s kindness, or the booze, but she found herself opening up to her. Of course she left out a few details and scaled down her fierce war with Charisse.

Leonor couldn’t exactly give her advice since she kept her own relationships as mess-free as possible. But, she did lift Kendra’s spirits when she drunkenly informed her Charisse was not a threat to her marriage since her heart seemed to be firmly set on Alfonso.

“Wow, what a small world,” Leonor marvelled when Kendra finally calmed down.

“Yeah, who would have known? If things work out between your bro and Charisse, we could end up being in-laws of some sort! Imagine all the fun we’d have then!” Kendra joked as she sat up and focused all her attention on Leonor. For a while she talked some more about her family, her best friends, Victoria, Cassie and Daniella and their partners.

As if she’d conjured him out of thin air, Drake suddenly appeared in front of her with a big smirk on his face.

“Do you have any idea what kind of trouble you’re in, young lady?” He asked, wagging a finger at her in a teasing fashion. She was about to give him a piece of her mind and tell him to scamper off when Dean dropped on the ground next to her.

Not one to miss an opportunity Leonor jumped to her feet and introduced herself to the foxy newcomer.

Her heart jolted a little when she saw interest in Drake’s smoldering eyes as he slowly appraised her. She couldn’t stop wondering what she’d done to deserve such good fortune in one day as her own eyes deliberately lingered on him.

“Come on, I’ll buy you a drink,” she suggested sultrily, hinting they should make themselves scarce while Kendra and Dean sort things out.

“Okay, but only one…I still have to drive home,” Drake winked in response. Suddenly he was looking forward to Le Good Life’s fashion show…Too bad Daniella would be there…but still!

___________

“Sweetheart, please look at me!” Dean begged her as soon as they were alone.

He knew trouble when he saw it, and Le Good Life’s model was exactly that. But his cousin’s love life wasn’t his immediate concern. Right now he had a lot of groveling to do and Kendra wasn’t making things easy on him. She seemed hell bent on ignoring him.

“Fine then, if you won't look at me will you listen to me? I love you and I’m not going away until we talk!” He begged some more, and tugged her closer to him.

Wordlessly she untangled herself from him and slowly walked towards the beach. She dropped on the sand and stared wistfully at the ocean. She tensed a little when he sat down beside her. A part of her had known he would come after her, and she was glad he did. But seeing him now, she was filled with shame once again for the way she had acted; she couldn’t even bear to look at him.

Dean kept hinting it was late and they should go home, but she was reluctant to leave or say much, and so he just sat with her, hoping with a little more time she would tell him what’s on her mind. But for now he was happy to hold her hand and watch the sunset with her.

After a while, like he knew she would, she opened up. For the first time since his return she let down her guard and was honest with him. He was glad when she didn’t rehash what was said before, and pleasantly surprised when she apologized for her behavior and promised to make amends with Charisse.

Maybe Leonor wasn’t trouble after all since she’d convinced Kendra Charisse wasn’t a threat to their marriage, Dean mused as he pulled his wife to her feet and encircled her in his arms. He made a mental note to have his PA send her a huge bouquet of flowers to thank her.

“It’s getting late, we should be getting home,” Dean whispered breathlessly as he looked into Kendra’s eyes. He felt her fingers lace through his hair, and noticed how her lips were inches from his. He knew this was the defining moment he’d been waiting for; she was reaching out to him in the only way she knew how.

Relief washed over him as her lips met his in a sensuous caress. He felt overwhelmed by the rush of love he felt in his heart. He prayed the rest of his life would be long enough to love this precious gift.

He’d thought he’d lost her forever; and he knew he shouldn’t have let her out of his sight, knowing the emotional state she was in. He would never have forgiven himself if anything had happened to her...

___________

Fun Fact-Kendra's events company's name, Le Good Life is adapted from JC Le Roux's slogan. I'm not sure if you guys have JC Le Roux in your parts of the world, but it's brand of champagne and here at home it's known as the only champagne with a last name, since Le Roux is an Afrikaan's last name. Check out their site for my ramblings to make sense.

Note: Again, like all the previous chapters in Book II, this was a collaboration between Karima and myself. We are still very new at this, but I'm so glad we both think alike and want the same things for Book II. So as much as I'd like to take all the praise, Karima deserves it more. She really doesn't sleep :)

Book II: Chapter Five

2010-08-15T14:04:00.000-07:00

Victoria

She knew what she was about to do was wrong and there would be no justifying it if she got caught. But that was a big IF since Storm was still at work. Besides, what other choice did she have? The more she tried to talk to him the more distant he grew. She was desperate and needed answers. She had to know if her marriage was in trouble.

“Damn it!” She cursed crossly when she turned the knob on the cabinet door and it wouldn’t give way. Her suspicions were confirmed.

Why the hell did he feel the need to have locked doors? What was he hiding? Photos of his mistress? Bree’s maybe? But would he be so stupid and bring them home? Endless questions and too little answers.

When did she change? When did their relationship lose all sense of balance? When did she become so suspicious and distrustful? Sometimes she couldn’t even recognize herself in the mirror and she didn’t like the person she was fast becoming. She yanked at the door again, hoping it would miraculously open and give up its secrets.

“What are you looking for?” Storm’s sexy drawl was a shock to her system.

She knew she was caught and she had to come up with a convincing lie, very fast. There was nothing of hers in here, let alone in his cabinets. This was his home office, his private space and she had violated it in the worst way ever.

“Uhm—ah, I was looking for Starr’s birth certificate; the playschool needs it.” The lie expanded and pushed them further apart. Painful silence stretched between them. She was so ashamed of herself she couldn’t even turn around and look him in the eye.

“It's upstairs, in the chest of drawers with the rest of our documents,” Storm’s voice was barely above a whisper when he finally broke the silence. “You should have looked there before working yourself up!” He added quietly.

She knew that he knew that she didn’t trust him. And she knew he was disappointed in her. She blindly scrambled to her feet, determined to explain and make things right.

“Storm, wait,” she called after him, but the door had already closed behind him. She should have left things the way they were. Now she had a bigger mess in her hands.

“I know how this looks and it’s not what you think.” She cried when she found him in the sunroom.

“You don’t know what I think,” he replied softly. “And if it’s more lies you plan on feeding me, don’t bother.”

“I just wanted to know, and you wouldn’t tell me!” She wailed. She knew how to deal with him when he was angry and screaming. But when he was so calm and polite, like now, he really unnerved her.

“Tell you what Victoria? Admit to an affair I’m not having? What is wrong with you? What the hell should I do to make you see I love you and you’re the only person I want to be with?” Storm asked, his eyes narrowing slightly.

Suddenly she was angry. It wasn’t she who was keeping secrets and working till all hours of the morning. Yes, she was wrong for snooping in his stuff, but if he had been open and honest with her from the start, this mess would not have happened.

“Then what’s in those cabinets that you have to keep locked away? What are you hiding? You don’t want to talk to me or explain what’s going on,” she screamed finally, neatly ridding herself of all the blame.

“They’re locked because that’s where I keep my gun, and we have a two year old son. I was just trying to protect Starr, but trust you to turn it into something twisted,” Storm explained. He shut his eyes tightly and expelled long, shaky breaths.

He didn’t need this. He had enough shit in his life without the added stress of his wife’s foolish insecurities. Headquarters was all over his ass about the blasted sealed files and they had a hacker to catch. Fair enough he had not been spending as much time at home as he wanted. But once things settled down at work he planned on making it up to her and Starr. So, why all the drama?

“Oh?” She whispered softly. That’s it? He wasn’t hiding stuff…Just his gun. It made sense though. She felt embarrassed and a little foolish and she wanted to weep at his feet and beg for forgiveness.

“I’m sorry,” she cried instead.

“So am I. You need to get over your insecurities, Victoria. I promised to be with you forever and I plan to keep that promise, but you’re not making things easy for us. There are things I can’t explain right now and I wish I could, I just need you to trust me.” He pleaded softly before walking away from her for the second time that day...

___________

Kendra

The place reeked of stale booze and cigarettes, and her mind was foggy. For while she couldn’t figure out where she was, until she sank against the scattered cushions and saw the almost full glass of red wine, tranquilizers strewn on the floor, and the ashtray. Everything came rushing back.

She remembered bits and pieces of the past few days; Dr. Goldberg’s office…conversations she had had, meetings she should have attended, Charisse coming to check on her; remembered the endless line of maids streaming in and out, and all she had asked for was more wine, and more cigarettes.

Everything was so wrong. Nothing was as it should be. Her throat felt dry and parched. She knew she had drunk too much, smoked way more than she should have, too. The last time she had smoked this much was in her final year of college. Things were so simple then; she had her whole life ahead of her and the thought of having kids had repulsed her. But now, it was all she wanted. How quickly things change and spin out of control.

The lower she sank, the harder it was to see her way out. She tried to stay away from it all, but the urge was stronger. Sobbing loudly in her hands she reached for the meds again and downed another two with the glass of wine. She couldn’t remember how many she had taken already or how much of the wine she had drunk since she had lost all sense of time. She had no clue if she had been sitting there for an hour or a day. She wasn’t even if sure what day it was, for all she knew Dean could have been gone for only a day or a week...

Her day planner lay idle by her side, untouched and unnoticed. It was amazing how a little book could hold her whole life. Everything was mapped out in there, organized by date and time; endless meetings, endless parties and endless ways to make her more money. Money she saw now, would never buy her the one thing she so desperately wanted. They could have anything they wished for. They could buy Statham Island if they wanted. But she just wanted to have Dean’s baby and she couldn’t. Despite all her career success, she felt like a total failure, like less of woman.

Her cell phone rang. It was Victoria. Again…and she ignored it. She couldn’t deal with her right now. She’d been avoiding her since her doctor’s visit. She just wanted to grieve without being reminded why.

She wanted Dean...No; she needed Dean so desperately. He would know how to make the terrible ache in her heart go away. But he wasn’t there and she didn’t understand how he could leave her alone the day after they had received their terrible news. She felt like he had abandoned her when she needed him the most, when her world was crumbling down and breaking into so many pieces...

__________

A few days later...

The hole in her chest was still there when she finally awoke, drunk still, after hours of dreamless sleep. She didn’t know what the time was, but judging from the weak light streaming through the curtains she thought it was early morning or late afternoon. It didn’t really matter. Time was one of the things she had no control over… like her own body.

She sat on the edge of the bed, contemplating the glass of wine on the end table. The muffled voices downstairs and the sounds of a badly played piano broke through her chaotic thoughts. Dean was obviously home. Gosh, has it been a week already? Did I literally drink and smoke myself to sleep? She wondered, as she tried to stop her body from shaking uncontrollably.

She needed a drink badly. A smoke wouldn’t hurt either. But she knew this was the end of her affair with the wine and cigarettes, for now at least, as she made her way downstairs to greet her man.

She didn’t know how long she could go on with the sharp pain in her heart without her two friends to help her along, but she had something better to ease her pain...Dean…and he would know how to fix it all.

She followed the source of the awkwardly played music, and was slightly shocked at the scene she found. Well so much for banking on him to fix me. She thought bitterly. It wasn’t that they were doing anything wrong. It was just that they looked…cozy and intimate! Their laughter and chatter in between notes roused alien feelings of jealousy somewhere inside her.

She had never seen them together around the house, so it wasn’t surprising then that she found their interaction weird. They seemed to be too comfortable with each other, but then again she had no clue how closely they worked.

She wondered how long it would take for them to realize they were not alone, and that she was watching them!

It was obvious he had been home for some time now since his luggage was nowhere in sight. He’d left her in a state, hadn’t seen her in a week and the first thing he does when he gets back is spend quality time with Charisse. What's up with that?

She felt red hot anger simmer within, as she watched him and Charisse whisper sweet -nothings to each other, their fingers lightly touching on the piano. Her darn piano! She had a sudden urge to walk to them and boot Charisse off the seat and show her the door…for good.

But she stood rooted on the spot, twisting her hands in knots behind her, and shifted her light weight from one foot to the other. She watched them for a long time, hoping one of them would forget about the other and notice she was there now and give her a chance to breathe…

“What’s going on here?” Kendra demanded finally, unable to stomach their light flirtation any longer. Dean whipped around, a guilty half grin plastered on his face.

“Hey, you’re finally awake. Dean was helping me learn the piano. But, I think it will take a lot of practice before I come anywhere close to playing at weddings!” Charisse, in all her golden glory turned around in her seat and smiled innocently at her.

“Really? What else have you been teaching her Dean? You two seem so terribly cozy, and so close you did not even notice I have been standing here watching you both, lost in your lovey-dovey world,” Kendra slurred rudely. Her sharp green eyes cut them both to pieces.

“Hey, come here, I missed you,” Dean murmured as he moved closer to take her in his arms, but she was too quick.

“Stay away from me,” she hissed, jabbing a nail-bitten finger at him. “I knew you wanted her…I knew from the start. I bet she’ll gladly give you ten fucking kids if you asked!”

“Kendra! That's a completely inappropriate thing to say! She IS my Ward and yes she is a friend. We work together. How could we not get to know each other?” Dean let out a frustrated sigh.

“Yes, of course She's perfect AND of child-bearing age! How did I not see this? You're sizing her up, and grooming her for the role!” Kendra hissed waspishly. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Charisse stand up abruptly, started to defend herself, but then she sat down again, a crestfallen look in her eyes.

Good, sit down little girl, Kendra thought. But her attention was back on Dean.

“That is enough. Stop it. You’re embarrassing yourself.” His words felt like a slap in the face. This was all wrong. He was her husband. He should have been on her side. The more he yelled at her, the wider the emptiness inside her grew.

“I don’t believe this,” she stammered incoherently “You’re supposed to love me…be on my side…Not hers!”

“But he does love you,” Charisse piped in.

“Who the hell asked you? Why don’t you mind your goddam business orphan Annie?” Kendra screamed as she yanked her off the seat and shoved her off.

“You need to calm down, and I really don't think you should be discussing this in my presence. Dean and I are only acting like normal friends do! You would see that if you weren’t as drunk as a skunk,” Charisse screamed right back. “Get you shit together and leave me out of it!”

Kendra was stunned. She hadn’t expected mousey Charisse to have a mouth. But she quickly regained her steam and came charging at the younger woman. Stripped of all the polite pretenses of the past few weeks, the gloves were off now.

“Who the hell do you think you are? Coming into my home and taking over my life? Where do you get off telling me what I should and shouldn’t do? I don't need your permission to drink in my own home! GOT it?” She didn’t know who was more shocked, her or Charisse, as she gave her a bitch slap. Deafening silence resonated around the room.

Before Charisse could deal her own blow, Dean finally came to his senses and stepped between them, ending what was quickly escalating into a full scale war. He may have stopped them from physically harming each other, but the war of words continued.

“You’re a drunk and you need a fucking rehab,” Charisse screamed over Dean’s shoulder.

“Enough!” Dean barked. Something in his voice stunned them both into silence. “What the hell is wrong with you, Kendra? Why are you attacking Charisse? What did she ever do to you! I have never known her to say a bad word about anyone, and from what I hear, she is the one who’s been keeping a close eye one you while I was away. You should be grateful she cared enough to look after you!”

“You owe Charisse an apology,” Dean continued harshly. She felt his ice blue eyes on her, trying to force the apology out of her. But she stared stubbornly at the floor and refused to give in. Hell would freeze over first before she apologized to the woman she knew for sure now was a huge threat to her marriage.

“Charisse is a guest in our home and she should be treated with respect. I don’t think I have to tell you this,” Dean tried again. She resented the way he was speaking to her, like she was a child or something and that drove her deeper into her rage. When it was obvious an apology wasn’t forthcoming, Charisse excused herself. Suddenly she had some office crisis to take care of…

___________

It broke his heart to see the nightmare that was once his beautiful wife. He would fix things with Charisse later. Right now, he had to try and find the woman he married somewhere inside of the person in front of him. Why hadn't someone called him to tell him what was happening? He would deal with that later as well. Right now, he had to get Kendra upstairs so she could sleep this off. Then maybe he could take her in his arms and love away all the hurt she'd obviously been going through all week. He reached for her to pull her close.

“Before you start, Dean, I was looking forward to you getting home, I missed you. You should have been here; but no, work is always more important! I still don’t understand why someone else could not have handled it!” She burped loudly. The smell of stale cigarettes and booze filled the air.

She looked a mess, but she was still the most gorgeous woman he had ever seen. There were dark circles around her eyes, and a sad light in them. It shone right through though and cut him to pieces because he knew he was the cause of it.

He shouldn’t have left her alone, but it couldn’t be helped; the future of Chace Industries had depended on it. He tried to explain this to her again, slowly and patiently this time, but he knew it was pointless, she wouldn’t understand anything in the state she was in.

He wanted to take her in his arms and hold her tight and let her cry it all out, but her fight with Charisse stood between them and refused to be ignored.

“Get some sleep. We’ll talk when you’re sober,” he whispered, bunching his hands into tight fists, trying to control his bewilderment and outrage.

“You want Charisse? Take her. I’m out of here,” She yelled over her shoulder as she ran up the stairs.

_____________

A little while later, when he was sure they’d both calmed down, he found her in the bathroom freshening up.

“I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have left. But it couldn’t be helped. If I had any idea of how bad things were, I'd have cut things short and come home. Every time I called, you said you were fine!” He mumbled as slumped back on the door jamb. Kendra slowly turned around to face him, but words failed her.

“I see,” was all she said as she got back into the mundane task of freshening up. Her head felt a little clearer now, but her heart was a lot heavier. She wished she could start this day over...Maybe she would have that glass of wine and take long drags on the cigarette she had denied herself earlier. And maybe everything wouldn’t turn out so bad…

He stuck around for a while, hoping she would open up and talk. But they both knew that time had come and gone. With a loud growl he turned on his heel and left her alone. She smiled sadly, wishing he hadn’t been so quick to give up on them.

“Where are you off to?” He asked when she came back into the bedroom, fully clothed now. She was still a little drunk and emotional to be out and about.

“I need to clear my head,” she replied. The less said between them, the better.

“You can’t go in this state,” Dean informed her. He was thinking about a similar situation in his dark past. His mother’s highly emotional and highly intoxicated state had led her to her untimely death and he didn’t want the same thing for his wife.

“You don’t tell me what to do, Dean. I may not be able to bear children but I’m not an invalid,” She turned on him fiercely.

“Dr. Goldberg was wrong. I told you we’ll go for a second opinion and we’ll keep trying. We’ll have a baby,” Dean replied passionately, matching her glares and growls.

“Don’t…I had a week to accept this…don’t unravel me now. Don’t make promises you know you can’t keep...You’ve made too many of those lately!” She cried, tears shimmering in her eyes. “Don’t wait up for me.”

She wanted him so badly. She wanted him to hold her and promise her the world. But they couldn’t live on dreams and that business with Charisse was still too raw...

Book II: Chapter Four

2010-07-16T10:55:00.000-07:00

Dean and Kendra’s residence… (Thursday)

Kendra watched with envy as her husband dug into his breakfast. Since their visit with Dr. Rosenberg on Tuesday she was an emotional time bomb, ready to go off at any second. She couldn’t eat or sleep. All she wanted was their results. And positive results at that! Thank God she had competent assistants taking care of the fashion show; otherwise her life would be one big hot mess.

“Don’t forget our appointment tomorrow,” she reminded him for what she thought must be the fifty billionth time. She didn’t mean to be such a nag bag but with the Chace Industries audit going on this week, their appointment could easily slip his mind.

“I’ve set reminders everywhere I can think of. There’s no way I’m going to miss it,” Dean kissed the top of her head gently as he got ready to leave. She didn’t know why this ordinary gesture brought tears to her eyes suddenly. But she guessed it had to do with the fact it was from an extraordinary man.

“It will all work out,” he whispered softly on her hair. “We’ll be fine. I promise.”

“How can you be so sure?” She asked quietly, trying to keep the tears from her voice. She felt like a little girl again, unsure of herself and her bearings.

“Because we’ll still have each other, no matter what the results say!” Dean stated simply. She wanted to believe him and she wished she had the same conviction but the pessimist in her kept taunting her, reminding her she couldn’t have too many blessings in her life; she already had a wonderful husband, a burgeoning bank account and a high-flying career.

Out of habit she followed him outside to see him off. As she watched him speed down the quiet suburban street she couldn’t stop thinking about how lucky she was to have him. At that moment, she couldn’t help but be grateful for him. He had enough faith for both of them and that’s what she needed the most in her life.

______________

I know I was in here yesterday. Maybe the encryption key was changed! Alfonso thought as he tried in vain to access BAU's database. The more frustrated he got, the harder he hit the keys, as if it would help him sneak through in some unknown way. He tried over and over, using different combinations and all he kept getting was the bleeping DENIED sounds!

After what felt like the millionth try, he slumped to the floor and stared at the screen intently, wishing he could make it give up its secrets to him. He was sick of seeing the word DENIED! He knew his way around the computer and had become quite proficient at hacking his way into secure systems. He had to learn since they did not have the kind of money to pay someone else to do it for them. So it definitely wasn’t an end-user problem.

Another DENIED and this time he gave in to his anger as he smashed the mouse on the glass table. He stood up abruptly and launched into a string of expletives, swearing whoever it was at BAU blocking his access.

The epiphany hit him like a ton of bricks. The BAU had obviously caught on to him. But it was his own stupid fault. After all, accessing their databank was supposed to be a onetime mission. But when he’d accidentally come across the sealed files, he knew he’d hit the jackpot. Once he’d started with the files, he couldn’t stop.

He figured his ex had obviously reported the Digitag, she’d left at his place, missing or stolen or whatever and the BAU was on to him. Any second now he expected federal agents to storm his house and take him into custody.

He didn’t even want to start thinking about the many federal laws he’d violated. But his treacherous mind delved deeper into dark places. How many years would he get for impersonating a federal agent? For accessing and tampering with sealed files? For hacking into a federal databank? The list of his violations was endless.

He forced himself to calm down. It wasn’t long before he began to rationalize…

His ex wouldn’t rat him out. They had an understanding. But her Digitag had obviously been disabled. The fact that he was still not behind bars was a good sign too.

When it’s all said and done, the situation wasn’t bad. It could have been worse. So what if he couldn’t access BAU’s systems? The sealed files he’d had the brains to copy before his access was denied would keep him going for a long time.

A small smile brightened his strained features as he saw the ‘up’ side to the messy situation and he knew just the person to help him celebrate. Without wasting any more time worrying about the blasted Digitag he reached for his cell phone.

He had not spoken to Charisse in over a week because his other missions had kept him occupied. He had left a few messages for her on IM but she seemed to be just as busy. He had never been in a long term relationship, never been in love. He was the ‘love them and leave them’ guy. So the fact that she was constantly on his mind unsettled him big time. He didn’t like admitting it, but strangely enough he had missed her.

_____________

Charisse came home to an empty house. But nothing new there. She made her way to her room and fell back on her bed. She was tired but felt vaguely fulfilled as she stared up at the ceiling and went over her first few days in Statham Island.

She had accomplished a lot at work and fit in better than she’d expected. But she had a feeling Dean had something to do with that. He’d assumed the role of big brother, always hovering around her and making sure her every whim was taken care of. Plus it helped she had his assistant at her beck and call. But she saw more of him at work than she did at home and if she didn’t know better she’d think he was going out of his way to avoid her at home and for the life of her she couldn’t figure out why.

It didn’t take her long though to put Dean and work out of her mind. Soon she started thinking about Alfonso. Everything about their date had been phenomenal. But her thoughts always returned to that moment when his lips had briefly touched hers, hinting at things to come and promises of so much more.

Now every time she saw a red umbrella, she was transported back to that moment in time when they shared their perfect kiss in the rain. She could still feel the kiss even now and as fleeting as it was it had left her stunned for days.

Alfonso made her feel things she had never felt before. She wanted to explore those feelings and discover for herself what they meant. Still dazed by her blissful memories, she blindly reached for her ringing cell phone.

"Hi! Guess who?" The low sexy drawl, followed by his deep throaty laugh, made her blink rapidly as she tried to understand how her daydream had come to life.

“Hello,” she murmured breathlessly, after a while of shocked silence on both ends.

“You had me worried for a minute there you couldn’t recognize my voice! Am I that forgettable?” Alfonso asked casually. But he was more worried than he would ever let on and his overactive mind didn’t help his case as he imagined the dozens of impressive suits she met every day in her fancy corporate job. For the first time in his life he felt a little unsure of himself with a woman and that didn’t sit well with him.

“Sorry. I was daydreaming about red umbrellas in the rain! That's how forgettable you are!” Charisse gushed without thinking and regretted it moments later when she realized what she’d admitted to. She was glad he was safely on the other side of the phone and couldn’t see her blush furiously.

"Is that good thing or a bad thing? And if it's a bad thing I’d like to know at which point I went wrong…you know, for future reference?" He laughed gleefully when her admission finally sank in. He was immediately filled with an urge to break into a victory dance. At least he was on her mind. She couldn’t really think about red umbrellas without thinking about the rest, right?

“I was wondering if you’re interested in fashion, your sister being a model and all. Kendra gave me two tickets to Le Good Life’s fashion event of the year. Would you like to be my plus 1?” She asked once his pleased chuckles had stopped.

“We must be telepathic. My sister Leonor is in that fashion show and that’s why I rang, to ask YOU out! So, I guess the answer is YES, I’ll be your plus 1,” Alfonso drawled on his end…

______________

Friday...

“What’s taking so damn long?” Dean growled under his breath. They were in Dr. Rosenberg’s office, waiting for her to make an appearance. The longer she took to grace them with her presence, the more frustrated he got. Kendra, on the other hand, was the picture of calm and poise as she sat staring into space.

“Mr. and Mrs. Chace, I’m sorry for the delay,” Dr. Rosenberg shook their hands warmly when she entered the room five minutes later. She’d had a chaotic day and she hoped it didn’t show. Her assistant was off sick and it was obvious the temp filling in for her had no medical or administration background since she’d done a thorough job of mixing up her patients’ files.

She quickly leafed through the file on her lap and breathed a huge sigh of relief when she saw the correct names on the first page. At least the temp didn’t mess up the Chace file.

“Have you ever considered alternate…” Kendra didn’t let the doctor finish what she was going to say. She immediately cut in.

“Something’s wrong isn’t it? I knew it!” She cried hysterically. Dean sat immobile in his hard uncomfortable chair, unable to focus on anything except his wife’s shrill cries.

“Mrs. Chace, your tests did not turn out as well as I hoped. The ultrasound scan picked up some scarring---basically--- Conception is going to---I’m sorry…” Kendra heard bits and pieces of the doctor’s explanation. She was talking about Fallopian tubes and scarring and none of it meant anything to her.

“I can’t have kids? Is that it?” She asked quietly, silencing Dr. Rosenberg and pushing her husband deeper into shock.

“I’m sorry, but the extensive scarring is going to make it difficult to conceive naturally. With technology these days, there are other methods. We could try IVF and if that fails we could explore surrogacy and adoption. I know this is a lot to deal with right now,” Dr. Rosenberg continued softly.

It took her a long time to realize the heart wrenching sounds were from her. She couldn’t remember when Dr. Rosenberg left the room or when Dean took her in his arms. As much as she tried to listen to him and stop crying for his sake, she couldn’t. She didn’t know how to. All she knew was the terrible, terrible loss slowly poisoning her heart.

“Hey, it’s okay. We’ll get a second opinion. We’ll have more tests done. We are going to have a baby. I promise,” Dean whispered feverishly. He knew he was making promises he couldn’t keep but that didn’t mean he wouldn’t try. He’d give Kendra anything she wanted and right now she so desperately wanted his child.

“I’m sorry,” Kendra smiled tearfully. She was too numb to entertain talks of second opinions or even think about Dr. Rosenberg’s prognosis. All she could focus on was taking her next breath, and the next one and the one after that because she honestly didn’t think she could live through the pain in her heart.

“Don’t be. It’s not your fault. We’ll be fine…” her husband answered, echoing his words of the day before. Again she wanted to believe him but she knew they wouldn’t be fine…not for a long time, at least…