“I loved that car, too. So did mom. It lasted until I left for California. You know Paddy sent that check back, don't you?”
“I was hoping he would, that's why I gave it to him. I didn't want any money from you, Mariah; it was a gift. You were so great to me and I wanted to do something for you, to show you how much I loved you. I still do.” She hugged me then laughed. “Are you still stubborn?”
“HA,” Monica expressed.
“Understatement of the decade,” Marcus murmured.
“Shut up,” I muttered. “We haven't set a wedding date yet. You think you can come out for it?”
“Fingers crossed, Carey. When are the babies due?”
“May tenth.”
“I'll give you a couple months to get settled then I'll come out and give them a King inspection, but you call me as soon as they come.” She gave me her card, then held my hand. “I have to go back to New York and finish out my notice, but I'll be back in Chicago around your due date to stay. I've had enough of New York and seeing that fucking Brent never helps with that.”
“What is with this Brent fellow,” Monica queried.
“They don't know,” Madison enquired, softly.
I shook my head and stared at our entwined fingers.
May as well tell them.
“Brent Faust was my first. He... shit!”
I couldn’t believe that still hurt so deeply. I tightened my hand around Madison's. She inhaled as Marcus sat on the other side of me and rubbed my shoulder.
“Brent is a low-life cad who had us all fooled into believing he loved Mariah. Turns out that fucking slime made a bet with his white, bigoted friends that he'd get Mariah to have sex, because they wanted to know what a 'black' girl's sex felt like. He loudly announced in the hallway, at lunch, their liaison and the 'results' of his research. Collected five hundred bucks right in front of her.”
Monica inhaled sharply. “Cookie! Oh, I am so sorry!”
I shook my head and a tear fell. A bad first time and then to have it broadcasted between classes in the crowded hall after he said he never wanted me in the first place.
“He looked at me while I was trying to comfort Mariah after he dumped her and had the gall to say, 'it was her or you but you’re a little too dark for me,'” Madison snarled.
I smiled as I remembered the next part. “Madison walked right up to Brent, grabbed his money then palmed his nose. 'That's for that comment, asshole', she shouted. Then she brought her knee up and smashed his balls. 'That’s for Mariah. How did this black girl's knee feel, bitch,' she yelled as she was carted off by security.”
“I’ve just fallen in love with you, Madison,” Marcus laughed. “Nice work.”
“Some of my finest, along with stuffing that money in Mariah's hands. And it got me the car I'd been begging for as well as a week's suspension and another for refusing to apologize. Brent's father came to my house and threatened to sue. I told him what really happened. After my father told him Brent had to learn that way of thinking from somewhere, he paled and begged for your address. I didn't give it to him.”
“It wouldn't have mattered, anyway. I had back-to-back migraines, remember? Mom would never have let him near me. And that money helped her with two months of my dance lessons.”
“And after that, Mariah and I became the B.M.O.C. and our senior year rocked. Brent was ostracized, kicked off all sports teams. No one ever brought it up again.”
“Yeah, not one migraine the entire senior year.” I smiled, remembering.
“George ... Brent Faust, New York ... I'm guessing somewhere between twenty-six and twenty-eight… Originally from Evanston, Illinois ... Evanston Township ... Already? ... Good ... Fuck up his credit, freeze his accounts ... Hang on. Cookie, how long did your migraines last, total, after that asshole hurt you?”
I answered Matthew, frowning. “Two days for the first one, three for the second.”
Matthew nodded. “Yeah, George? Five months. But call me before you restore him. He'd better pray I'm in a better mood,” Matthew snapped as he walked to the door. “I need some fucking air,” he said over his shoulder as he yanked the door open.
“Ooh, what's wrong with him,” Lisa asked as she and the others entered the room. She smiled and extended her hand to Madison. “Hi, I'm Lisa Harvey, Mariah's sister. Are you the lady that had my brother-in-law speechless?”
Madison held her hand and smiled, too. “It was my pleasure. I'm Madison King.”
“Oh, good God... what is in the water here,” Mandy gasped as she took Madison's hand next. “You have to be a model, right?”
“No,” Madison chuckled. “I'm a journalist.”
“Not print, right? This face belongs on television.”
Madison turned to me and grinned. “She is so good for my ego, Carey!”
“I said the same thing to her when we met,” I laughed.
“Only speaking the truth,” Mandy giggled. “I'm Mandy and this is my husband, Joshua.”
Madison nodded. “You must be the other brother. I see the resemblance.”
Joshua smiled at Madison and shook her hand. “I am. It's unfortunate I got all the good looks, huh? Whatever they said about me, I promise it’s not true; it's all jealousy.”
The room laughed then one by one they shook her hand and introduce themselves. After, she turned to me and beamed again.
“Carey, I hate to run off but I have to go; I don't want to be late. I'll see you around five.”
I kissed Madison's cheek and hugged her tightly. “I'm looking forward to it. Maybe we can get pampered before or after dinner. How about it, ladies?”
They all agreed. I smiled big.
“It was really great to meet you, Marcus,” Madison declared. “I'm looking forward to knowing you better. You're quite ugly, you know. I’ve no idea what Mariah sees in you.”
“Me either. It's a complete mystery,” Joshua sighed. “Really, Cookie, you can do so much better.”
“Shut it, Twerp,” Marcus laughed and stood to hug Madison. “Pleasure was all mine, Madison. I look forward to getting to know you, as well.”
“Goodbye, everyone. I'll see you all later,” Madison called as she swept out of the room.
“I like her, baby. She's great.”
“She is. Always has been.” I sighed, putting my head on his shoulder. “You don't mind if I spend some time with the girls tonight, do you?”
“Of course not. We'll find something to do while you're in the salon.”
“There's a few strip clubs in the area,” Nathan chuckled. Lisa scowled and hit his chest. Ethan chuckled and sent up a silent cheer.
I glared at him. “Do it, Nathan, and I'll hurt you worse than your fiancée just did. That goes for all of you. Especially you, Cannon.”
“I wouldn't, baby. You're all I need to see naked,” he whispered in my ear.
I punched his arm and blushed. “I better be.”
Chapter Twenty-Eight
Matthew, I think you’ve met your female match…
Madison arrived in our hotel room and, with the other ladies, we planned how to spend the next two days while we waited for the bus rep to arrive.
“How did the interview go, Madison?”
“Pretty good, Monica. The producer was kind of a dick, but then they all are, for the most part,” Madison sighed.
“What's his name?” Matthew asked, pulling out his cell. “How old do you think he is?”
“Matthew Cannon. I'm guessing thirty-two, thirty-three,” Madison answered, rolling her eyes. We chuckled.
“I'm being a dick,” Matthew squeaked.
“Yep!” Madison smirked as she sat in a chair in front of him and looked straight into his eyes. “Keep it up, and you won't be giving me any of yours.”
Matthew's jaw dropped. “Um, I need some air,” he mumbled.
The room was silent as we watched him leave as though he was escaping fire.
“Oh my God!” Joshua laughed out suddenly. “I love you
, Madison!”
Everyone laughed, including Mandy, who laughed harder than all of us.
“Are you sure you can't go on the ride with us,” Monica asked through gasping breaths.
“Sorry, I'd love to, but I'm going east. You guys have me until you leave Saturday.” Madison looked at me. “Vonnie found out I was in town, and she's insisting I come see the new house in Hoffman Estates. So I'm in the area until Monday morning.”
“How did she find out?”
“My other best friend has a big mouth and she's sort of dating Tony. I guess it was during pillow talk she spilled the beans. You remember how Tony is, Carey, don't you? Especially with Vonnie.”
I nodded. “He was always so sweet to me.”
“He was crushing big time.”
I scoffed. “No way.”
“Yep. You broke his heart when you started dating Brent. He, Eric and Jerry beat the hell out of him and his friends when Mommy told them what they did to you.”
“That was them? Wow. I never thought of him that way. Huh. Wait... Eric was fighting?”
“He may be gay, but he will step up when he needs to and, believe it or not, he’s the roughest fighter out of the three of them.”
I looked around the room and then explained. “Tony and Eric are Madison's brothers and Jerry is her cousin, but he's lived with them since he was eight when his parents died, so he's really like a brother to her.” I looked back at Madison and smiled. “Tell us about your friend.”
She looked at her watch. “I'll show you.” She grabbed the remote from the table, turned on the TV and flicks to a channel. A beautiful, hazel-eyed, strawberry blonde woman was anchoring the news.
“Kristen Kelly. She's the one that told me about the opening at her station.”
I smiled and nodded politely as Matthew re-entered the room. Madison cuts the corner of her eyes at him and looked at me with a 'should I be bad?' look. I nodded.
“Please do it again,” Marcus whispered.
“Kristen Kelly, huh? She's very pretty,” I murmured, giving her an opening.
“She was my roommate in college,” Madison sighed. “Really good person, very big heart. And an absolute demon in the sack. Couldn't get enough of me. We've had some excellent three-ways, but the one-on-one's... wow!”
“Shit,” Matthew yelled and ran from the room.
I noticed Marcus' body stiffened next to me then he pulled a pillow to his lap. His eyes closed and I just knew he’s picturing Madison with Kristen. I looked around and all the men were silent, appearing to be doing the same thing. I cut my eyes to Marcus and grinned at Madison. She walked in front of me and squatted, a mischievous grin on her face.
“You remember how much I love pussy, don't you, Mariah?” She stroked my thigh. “Especially yours. You were so... aggressive with me. God! I loved the way you played with my clit while I sucked your nipples.”
“What,” Marcus croaked, fisting his mouth.
“She didn't tell you? Mariah!” Madison wiggled between us. “That threesome with me, you and Bex was at least noteworthy.” She rubbed my thigh again. “What say when I visit after the twins come, we have a go for old time’s sake. You won't mind will you, Marcus? One last fling before she marries you,” Madison cooed then kissed me thoroughly on the mouth.
“Holy fuck,” Nathan yelled, running from the room, followed closely by all the other men, including Marcus. Madison and I embraced and laughed hard when the door slammed behind Marcus.
“That was fun,” I gasped.
“That was a joke, right,” Lisa asked through her struggled breathing.
“Yeah, Twink,” I laughed. “We pranked like that all through high school. Glad to see it still has the same effect.”
The others laughed loudly. The door creaked.
“Uh, Mandy... can you help me with something?”
“Men are such pigs,” Mandy said between quests for air. “What do you need, Joshua?”
“You, damn it!”
“Call room service,” Mandy giggled.
“Fuck,” he shouted running in the room. He grabbed Mandy's arm and pulled her out of the room.
We laughed harder, then a knock sounded on the door. Lisa answered it.
“I'm Jordan Fuller. Is this the Cannon suite?”
A handsome man in a suit followed Lisa in the room. His eyes twinkled when he notices all the beautiful, giggling women and adjusted his tie.
“Hi, Jordan. Thanks for coming.”
“Good evening, Madi. I missed the joke. Care to share?”
“It's the one Darby and I played on you last Memorial Day.”
Jordan immediately stiffened. “That was not funny, Madison.”
“You shouldn't have been drooling at the TV, Jordan. Such a pig. Anyway... this is Mariah Hollander and she's the precious cargo I was telling Darby about. She's having twins and needs safe transport to California.”
Jordan nodded. He opened a leather case and pulled out some forms. “Where in California?”
“Calabasas,” I answered.
“The notes say there will be ten traveling with you, Ms. Hollander. I’ll need their names.”
I gave him all of their names and noticed he's sweating, even though the room was air conditioned for my comfort. I looked at Madison, who was about to lose her poise.
“Got it,” Jordan said quietly, shifting in his seat. “Which one did you kiss?”
“Mariah, tongue and all,” Madison sighed, shaking her head. “Come back when you've calmed, Jordan.”
Jordan softly groaned then jumped up and ran to the door. We laughed so hard, we teared up and reddened.
“What is it about girl-on-girl action that makes men act like that,” Alissa gasped.
“No clue,” Lisa shrieked, tears running down her red face. “But it's fun to see them make an ass out of themselves!”
Finally, the men returned as did Jordan. Joshua and Mandy arrived ten minutes later. None of the men even glanced at Madison and me. Even Marcus kept his distance.
We told Jordan what was needed and before he left, he shook the hands of the men but none of the women. He informed us he will b with the first driver when the bus arrived to pick us up, to make sure the bus is what we needed, stocked with what we requested and would see us Saturday morning.
The ladies and I decided to go to the salon and get manis and pedis before dinner. Madison and I caught up on what's been happening in each other’s lives since we lost touch. She spent a lot of time with us during the two days and continually embarrassed Matthew, to all our delight.
She checked out when we did, and joined us on the bus and chatted while we waited for the last of the drivers to arrive, who we'd been told was caught in traffic. When she arrived, she hugged Madison and apologized for the delay. She smiled and told me we’d met years ago at a picnic for King Media. I remembered.
Madison gave all of us hugs and pecked our cheeks. When she got to Matthew, she paused then turned to Marcus and whispered to him.
“Absolutely,” he grinned.
“I'm really looking forward to seeing all of you after the twins come. Especially you, Matthew. I can't tell you how disappointed I am that you didn't let me ride you like a retiring cowgirl on her last day at the rodeo.” She sighed. “Oh, well. Your loss.”
She executed a perfect handspring in the center of the bus. The girls and I giggled as Madison waved and pranced off the bus. Matthew looked like he was ready to pass out. Marcus and some of the other men slapped their legs and all fell out laughing at Matthew's regret-filled expression.
Laurie, the first driver laughed. “Sorry, folks. My cousin is a little boisterous and outgoing but she's a sweet girl. She really isn't loose, but she talks as if she is. I'm afraid it's a family trait.” She looked at Matthew. “Did she kiss you?”
Matthew shook his head.
“Then she was interested. She never kisses anyone she interested in, first. That’s why her girl-on-girl kisses are so hilarious; plus, she�
��s not into chicks, at all. You should have taken advantage; she used to do gymnastics.”
“She did,” I piped in. “She was as good at that as I am at singing. Though she does that well, also.”
Matthew's eyes widened and he looked out the bus' window. Madison was with Jordan, filling something out, while chatting with him.
Matthew jumped up and demanded, “Open the door!”
We saw him run up to Madison and said something that made her and Jordan laugh. Jordan moved to their left. She threw her arms around his neck and kissed him while he dipped her low. When he finally let her back up, they talked a while. Madison gave him a nod and pressing her body tight to him, she kissed him once more, slow and deep.
“Well, well,” Ethan chuckled. “Go Matthew.”
Madison released Matthew, then he jogged back to the bus.
“Okay. We can go now,” he murmured, as he grinned ear to ear.
Chapter Twenty-Nine
Goin’ back to Cali…
When I saw my mother for the first time after six months, I wobbled to her, crying like a petulant toddler. I held her for what felt like hours. She didn’t want to let me go, either. When she did, the first thing she did was lean and kiss my belly then say to my sons that she could not wait to meet them. The others said they would give us time to bond and would come back the next day to celebrate.
Mom and Pops settled Marcus and I in our room. After, I slipped away with my much-missed mother to a guest room. We laid across the bed and talked, almost the entire night. We laughed, cried, she yelled, I listened. I apologized over and over and promised her, as I promised Marcus, no more secrets. I fell asleep, holding my mother. She was already awake when I opened my eyes, the next morning.
“Come on, honey,” Mom gushed. “Let’s get you up and ready for breakfast. My grandsons tell me they want some waffles and bacon this morning.”
“Are you sure they didn’t ask for pancakes, instead?”
Mom grinned. “You know, I believe they did, honey.”
“And an omelet… with cheddar cheese, bacon and… uh… spinach?”
Mariah: The M Series: Book Two Page 36
