Breaking New Grounds

by Amy DeMeritt

  Aura tilts her head to look at me then looks at Rod. She shakes her head with a sneeze then walks in the house, brushing her side against my leg like a cat.

  “Let me know if you need anything.”

  “Will do.”

  Rod and two guys walk upstairs with thick canvas sheets, rolls of plastic, and rolls of tape. Jo walks in with a bucket of tools in one hand and a toolbelt on her waist.

  “Good morning.”

  “Hey.” She pulls a CD out of her bucket and holds it out to me. “Here.”

  I take the blank CD and turn it over in confusion. “What is…?”

  “Just listen to it. Don’t make a big deal about it.”

  I smile really big and Jo rolls her eyes, but her cheeks blush a little and her lips curl into a small shy smile.

  “I’ll try not to cause an embarrassing scene for you if I think your music is amazing.”

  “Good.”

  Without another word, she walks past me to go upstairs. I rush to the family room and get my laptop off of the charger on the entertainment center.

  “What are you doing?”

  I smile at Madison as I plug my earbuds into my laptop and put the CD in. “It’s Jo’s music sample.”

  “I want to listen.”

  Madison jumps up and sits on the floor with me. She takes one of the buds and I push play. Madison looks at me with a big grin and mouths, “Amazing”. It really is amazing.

  There are three songs on the CD, and after we listen to all three, Madison pulls her cellphone out.

  “What are you doing?”

  “I want Jerry to listen to this. He said I need musicians because I can’t rely on Giz’s anymore now that I’m going solo.”

  “Giz said they were going to sleep in.”

  “Well, they can wake up now. They’ve abused you plenty over of the years. They can deal with one wake up call.”

  “Do the rest of us get to hear it, puppy?”

  “Oh, yeah, sure.”

  I pull the earbuds out and push play on the music. Symone’s family and my wives make quiet comments about how good it is while they listen.

  After the last song, I tug on Madison’s hand and jog out of the family room. The construction crew is still pulling tools and equipment out of their vehicles, and my dad and family are pulling through the gate.

  Jo jumps out of the back of a truck and starts pulling some long two by fours off of the bed. I skip over to her and roughly smack the back of her shoulder. She looks up with a scowl, but her look instantly softens and she hangs her head, shaking it side to side with a small smile.

  “You are so annoying.”

  I laugh and lean my back against the side of the truck to face her while she works.

  “We listened to your songs. I’m going to need you to step away from the lumber so we can tell you what’s going to happen now.”

  “I have a job to do right now. If you want to talk, you’re going to have to do it while I work. I promise I won’t swing one of these at your head if you tick me off.”

  I laugh a little and Madison steps closer to me to rest her side against my chest, while wrapping my arm around her waist. Jo looks up at her for a moment with a smile, before pulling more wood off of the truck.

  As Jo gets back to work, Madison asks, “Do you have a particular genre of music you really want to play?”

  “I like all genres of music. I’ll play anything.”

  “I’m just starting my solo singing career and I need musicians. But before the record label picks them for me, I’d like to ask if you’d be interested.”

  Jo stops unloading wood and turns to face us with her hands on her hips. She looks between both of us with her jaw set tight and her eyes narrowed.

  “Do you need to wrestle to be able to decide?”

  Jo releases a small laugh at me and shakes her head. “God, you’re so annoying. You can’t just be quiet and let a person think, can you?”

  “What the hell do you need to think about?”

  Jo rolls her eyes at me and looks at Madison. “If we had never met, and you knew nothing about me, would you still be asking me to be your guitarist, just from hearing my samples?”

  “Yes. You’re not the only person I know who plays guitar well. If I wanted to do someone a favor, I wouldn’t have to look very far. Your samples showed a great range and passion for music. Yesterday, you were able to play along with the family playing the Native American instruments, even without any sheet music. You were able to play while we sang around the fire, without overpowering our voices. You have talent and a great musical ear. I think we could work well together.”

  “But look, you can’t go wrestling with my wife when you get mad or need to think. So, we’re going to need to…”

  “Kayla, shut the hell up.”

  I laugh at Jo and she actually flashes a bright smile as she shakes her head. “What happens if I’m interested?”

  “I don’t know exactly. Jerry will be here soon. I want him to listen to your samples, and he’ll probably want to see if you can play one of my new songs we’re going to be working on this week.”

  “I have to work. Will he be around after my shift ends?”

  “You know I could get you out of having to…”

  “Kayla, shut up, seriously.”

  I laugh hard and Madison releases a cute giggle. She pats my cheek and kisses my lips before turning to face Jo again.

  “Yes, we can do it when you’re done for the day. We’ll respect the job you have to do. Ok, we’ll leave you alone now. Thanks.”

  “You, uh, missed a few boards on the truck. Make sure you grab those.” I smack the top ledge of the side of the truck with a cocky grin, and add, “Ok, back to work.”

  Jo laughs and shakes her head. “It’s really screwing you up that we haven’t wrestled yet today, isn’t it?”

  I laugh hard, and Madison pulls me off of the side of the truck with an amused smile and a beautiful glimmer in her bright green eyes.

  “Ok, ok, I’ll leave you alone.”

  Chapter Twenty-Six

  As I sit down in the comfortable white leather seat across from Sara in the luxury Mercedes-Benz limo, she opens the built in mini-fridge next to her with a wide grin.

  “You’re going to suck it up and have a glass of champagne with me, baby sister. Today was a good day. We need to celebrate.” I groan as I watch her open the bottle and pour two glasses. She leans forward to offer me a glass, then clinks the rim of her glass with mine, saying, “Cheers, baby sister.”

  “That’s the best toast you got?” She laughs and shrugs a shoulder as she takes a sip. “I can’t believe you’re making me drink this stuff. But you did help make us a shit ton of money today. You’re getting really good at these negotiations.”

  I take a sip of the champagne and my nose scrunches in distaste. I really don’t like this stuff, but I know Sara likes the custom of sharing a drink after a big victory, and today was a big victory, a couple of victories, actually. We met with representatives from Bio Pure, my favorite hair products company, and Sara and Kathy were able to negotiate an additional million-dollars on top of the originally proposed seven annually for three-years.

  We were only supposed to meet with Bio Pure, but after we finished with them, Kathy sprung two additional meetings on us. I was kind of ticked off because I was hoping to make it home in time to watch my wives record new music, but when I called Madison to tell her, she assured me they still weren’t ready to record final tracks yet. I still wanted to be there though.

  As Sara refills her glass, she says, “Thanks for being flexible today. I think Kathy was just trying to surprise you. I don’t think she was trying to trap you into spending more time away from your wives.”

  “I hope that’s all it was. If she does that again, I don’t know how calm I’ll be about it. Our schedules are already overwhelming without people manipulating me like that.”

  Sara looks in my eyes like she’s studying me
while she takes a few sips of champagne. Then she sits up straighter and clears her throat. “I’ll talk to her about it so this doesn’t happen again. You’re happy though, right?”

  “I’m mixed on how I feel. I really wanted to be there to support my wives and their career. So much of what we do is all for my career. This week was supposed to be all about them. I mean, I know it would be crazy to complain that we signed an additional fifteen-million-dollars annually for two to three-years with three companies. I love being able to provide so well for my family financially. But I need to be present for what’s important to them. Maddi is starting her solo singing career. And she has supported me from day one. She created and ran my merch business. She helped with my online dance channel. She does most of my social media account management to help generate more sales and boost my public image. Anyway, I need to be there for her like she has been here for me.

  “On Monday, when we found out about the surprise family invasion, Shannon had sort of a break down over everything. She’s feeling overwhelmed with not having enough free time to work with Awenasa and Mom on their herbal business. I need more time with my family so I can help with the house and babies more so they have more time for their own careers.”

  She exhales hard as she runs a hand through her hair. “This is my fault.”

  “How is it your fault? You don’t force me to take additional work.”

  “I’m your manager. I manage your schedule. I always try to keep in mind that you need time with your family, but I guess I haven’t been accounting for time your wives need to focus on their own dreams. Mom’s herbal business launch date is so far into the future that I hadn’t even considered the time they’d need right now to get prepared for it, especially since Shannon and Awenasa have a year left in their natural medicine degrees. I’ll review the schedule we have for the next few months and see what I can do about moving things around so you have more time at home so you can support your wives however you need to. We have a few meetings next month in California for possible endorsement deals. Do you want to keep those meetings or pass on the offers?”

  “I don’t know. We need to sit down with my wives and go over everything. They’re always so accommodating to my career. I think I need them to be bit more selfish and tell me no or something.”

  Sara laughs a little and takes a sip of champagne. “I think you all need to learn to say no a bit more than you do. Why did you agree to take these meetings today? Do you really want to endorse these products?”

  “If you asked me that four years ago, I would have wanted to hide in a closet because modeling really freaked me out.” Sara laughs hard and nods in agreement. “But now, I actually enjoy it. Yeah, I’m excited about the deals we made today. And it’s nice that I’ll be closer to home to do the promotional work for these instead of everything being in California. It’s bittersweet because I had to miss out on the music making process today.”

  “I’m sorry, baby sister. We’ll figure this out. And look, if things are overwhelming, you need to tell me. I don’t want to burn you out and I definitely don’t want to cause you problems with your wives. And I sure as hell don’t want to be the reason Mom’s business doesn’t launch as planned. We’ll work something out so Shannon and Awenasa have more time to work on business plans with Mom. I can’t control your filming schedule while we’re in California, but I’ll try to make sure your other meetings and auditions don’t coincide with any of your wives singing gigs or recording studio times.”

  “Thanks. That would be great. I get so caught up in following the schedules that I don’t always realize things are overwhelming. Anyway, I’m sorry I brought your mood down. I really am happy with the results of the meetings today.”

  “You don’t have to apologize. I know I probably don’t need to ask this, but I’m going to anyway. Are you still positive you want me and Keira to accept the offer for the endorsement for Snuggle Duds?”

  “Yeah, I’m sure. I’m happy they liked the counter offer to sign with you instead. You think you’ll start doing more endorsements?”

  She shrugs a shoulder with a grin, saying, “Maybe. We’ll see how this one goes. I promised Tonya we’ll create a new traveling dance show next year to tour with the following year. I need to make sure I follow through so she doesn’t quit the squad and go back to Philly.”

  “That would be nice. I didn’t get to dance enough this year. Has Tonya really hinted at leaving?”

  “No, but she is pumped to give her students an opportunity for something big. She and Jade are having a blast on their private choreography teaching tour I sent them on this summer, but I know she’s getting anxious to start writing a new dance show.”

  “I’m kind of jealous of that tour you sent them on. They have one location left before we go to California, right?”

  “Yeah, they’re going to two of the biggest dance studios in Quebec. They leave next week for three days.”

  “Damn.” My mouth is dry, so I take a large gulp of the champagne, forgetting it is champagne and not water, and my face scrunches in distaste, making Sara laugh. “Do you think they’ll be back before Keira goes into labor?”

  “I hope so. She’s due the week after they get back. Keira’s parents will be flying in that week to be here for it. Her mom wants to be in the delivery room with her. Oh, and Keira wants you and Awenasa in there. She wants Awenasa to bless the baby as soon as he or she is born.”

  “Why does she want me in there? I mean, I would be happy to be there, but she is going to be naked from the waist down in a shallow swimming pool.”

  Sara rolls her eyes as she lightly kicks the side of my leg. “It’s because of what you went through with Janell. Keira wants you to have a good experience with the birthing process again so when Sam goes into labor, you’re excited and not terrified.”

  I nod as my eyes mist up and I look down at my lap. I swallow hard and clear my throat, trying to dislodge the ball of emotion filling my esophagus.

  “Ok, well, I appreciate it. Doesn’t it scare you at all?”

  Sara nods as she swallows the last gulp of her second glass of champagne, and while she refills the glass, she says, “I would be ignorant not to be concerned a little bit. I would also be lying if I said the experience hasn’t resulted in more than a handful of horrible nightmares. Trust me, I understand your fear, baby sister. What happened to Janell was horrifying. Did you know that particular form of heart failure is more common with African American women?” I shake my head, and she takes a gulp of champagne. “Yeah, I looked up the factors that make it more likely. That’s how freaked out the experience left me. So, I get it. I really do. Statistically, my wife is more likely to suffer from something like that than five of yours. But I’m not going to allow it to control me and you shouldn’t either.”

  “Well, it helps to know you weren’t completely unaffected by the experience. Anyway, thanks for inviting me to be in the room. It’s going to be exciting to be one of the first people to see and hold my first niece or nephew.”

  Sara smiles really big, making me laugh a little. “I’m getting anxious. The baby has been moving so much the past few weeks.”

  “Is there anything else you need before she goes into labor?”

  “Not that I can think of. We have backups for our backups. I swear, I think we created a damn baby warehouse in the basement with all of the extra stuff we have.” I laugh and Sara’s happy grin widens. “You’ll be going for Sam’s first ultrasound soon, won’t you?”

  “Yeah, next week, actually. I’m pretty excited. Sam is barely starting to show a little baby bump. She’s been so fucking adorable checking herself in the mirror every morning trying to see if it’s growing. She had to ask every single one of us to confirm if the little dome was real or her imagination.”

  “Keira was kind of like that too. She was worried she was going to start showing too much before she was ready to tell everyone.”

  I laugh a little as I lift the glass of champa
gne, saying, “And what really exposed her was her refraining from drinking a glass of champagne when we were celebrating with Dana and her family.”

  “You know, that’s a good idea. We should go to The Firepit for dinner when we get home. I’m going to text Keira to see if she’s feeling up to going out. Check with your wives to see if they already started dinner.”

  “Are you forgetting that our families are still here? I don’t think we’ll be able to go, but you should still take Keira out.”

  “Yeah, I guess that could cause some drama if we try to ditch all of your in-laws. Ok, we might be ditching you.”

  I nod and watch her for a moment as she starts texting with Keira, then I decide to check in with my wives to see what the plans are for tonight.

  Shannon: Hey, sweetie. Giz and Jerry have been bickering nearly nonstop today about creative differences. We didn’t get any work done in the studio because of it. We’re trying to figure out what to do for dinner now.

  Me: I know you can’t see me right now, but I have to apologize anyway for smiling like a goober. I was kind of depressed that I wasn’t there today and thought I was missing out.

  Shannon: You just made me laugh. Today was stressful. You honestly didn’t miss anything worth seeing.

  Me: I’m still sorry I wasn’t there to support you through that. I could have at least kissed on you to distract you from those two bickering.

  Shannon: You can kiss on me when you get here to make up for it.

  Me: It’s a deal.

  Shannon: Madison buzzed your driver in. See you soon, sweetie.

  A few moments after the limo stops alongside the walkway to the front door, the driver opens the door for us. I start to set my half-finished glass of champagne down in a cup holder, but Sara takes it and gulps it back, then climbs out ahead of me with the rest of the bottle and her leather briefcase.

  After giving the driver a generous tip and thanking her for driving us around all day, I rush to get inside to see my wives. As soon as I open the door, Shannon comes out of the family room into the foyer, making my face cleave in half in a giant smile. She laughs hard as I pick her up and spin her around. As I set her down, I pepper her face and neck with kisses before she grabs the sides of my face and firmly plants her lips on my mine.