THE MUSIC NEVER ENDS
©Mirandagk@aol.com
CHAPTER 19
Rachel tried to come up with something fast. "Yeah. I remember her calling."
"Why didn't you give me the messages? Laticia even posted them on the fridge for me. I would have remembered getting a message from her."
"Well, with everything that was going on, I didn't want you strung out even more. She was just rude when she called here. I didn't want her to cause any more problems between us. Why? Did she call again?"
"No. When we were in Chicago, I went to see her the afternoon you went to that movie premiere and after-party."
"Why didn't you tell me?" Rachel asked loudly.
"I didn't want to ruin the trip."
"So what happened?"
"We argued. She kicked me out."
"Was there anything different about her?"
JC was very curious as to why she asked that particular question. "Why do you ask?"
"Just curious to find out if she has changed at all. Or is she just the same old Laura we both know?"
"She's pregnant."
"You've got to be kidding me! By who?"
"Me."
Rachel pretended to act upset. "So you've been seeing her behind my back? You wanted to make us even or something? How could you do something like that?!"
"Okay, stop the dramatics, Rachel. She is 6 months pregnant. This happened a long time ago, before you and I got back together."
"I've been living with you for longer than 6 months, JC!"
"So? We weren't dating, and we definitely weren't sleeping together. Let's not go back and forth on this. The point is, she is pregnant. And I don't doubt that the baby is mine."
"But you doubted me."
"I didn't say that."
"Yeah...You didn't have to." Rachel got up and walked out of the room towards the kitchen. JC got up and followed after her.
"She says she sent me a letter after all her calls went unanswered. You remember a letter coming here from her?"
Rachel didn't know whether to lie or tell the truth. "Hmmm...I don't know. I have seen a few letters that come in here from unknown addresses. I assume that they are fans who somehow got our home address. I just write 'RTS' and throw it back in the mail. You don't want a billion letters coming here from God knows who do you? I may have accidentally sent hers back without looking."
JC had a feeling she was lying, but her story did make sense. "Why did you give me any of her messages? Why did the fridge notes that I get from Laticia suddenly disappear anytime her name was on them?"
Rachel sat down at the table and looked down into her glass before making eye contact with him. "To be honest, I didn't want her disrupting our lives. The project was over. Your divorce was final. What more did the two of you have to discuss? She would not say over the phone, and I wasn't about to let her turn our lives upside down again."
"I see."
"That's the honest to God truth, JC."
And it was. When Laura was calling, Rachel had no idea what she wanted until she heard about the pregnancy rumor on television. By then, the calls had stopped.
Still only half-way believing her story, JC sat down and explained most of what happened the night he went to see her.
"So what do you plan on doing?" Rachel asked nervously.
"I don't know. I wanted us to make this decision together...As a couple. This will affect both of us. Not just me."
"Well, whatever decision you make, I will stick by you. If you want full custody then we'll fight for it. If you want visitations rights then we'll go for it. It's up to you."
JC leaned over and kissed Rachel and headed down into his studio. Rachel wanted the kiss to progress into a long night of endless love making, but knew JC had a lot on his mind. And when that happened, he needed to go and vanish into his music for awhile. Rachel retreated to the bedroom and let the water out of the tub. She was too stressed out to relax. She had to come up with a new plan of action to secure her future.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Sitting in Johnny's office with Lance, Joey, Justin and Chris, JC was finishing up some loose ends. They were preparing to do a show at the Raymond James Stadium in Tampa for an upcoming tv broadcast. Johnny had everyone come in to go over set lists and costumes for the event. Johnny's daughter, Marissa had come and tapped on the door, poking her head into the room. "Josh, Rachel is on the phone. She wants to talk to you."
He took the phone from her hand and brought it to his ear. "Hey, JC…I hope I'm not disturbing you."
He had been having such a long week with meetings and choreographers that she was a pleasant change to the pace...Especially since it was going to start all over again in a matter of two days. "No. You know you could never disturb me." He smiled before getting up to go out into the hallway for privacy. The guys just rolled their eyes at him. Chris simulated a strangulation on himself to mock how sick JC and Rachel's relationship made him. JC gave him the middle finger before lightly shutting the door.
"Well I was thinking that we could spend a quiet night home alone. Just relaxing and taking it easy. Your mom already took Nikki for the night."
"That sounds like a wonderful idea."
"And maybe I'll give you one of my special massages." she teases.
Rachel heard him take a short breath before answering, "Mmmm that sounds like a wonderful idea. I really am very tense." he said with a hint of sexual playfulness in his voice.
"I'm going to leave here in a the next 20 minutes."
She spoke seductively into the phone, "I'll have a nice warm bath waiting for you."
"Good. I'll be fresh and clean for my massage."
After hanging up, JC found it difficult to concentrate on his work thinking about Rachel stroking his body later on that evening.
Rachel stood in the kitchen smiling to herself. She came out of her gaze and scurried to make the preparations. Finding some candles and incense, she arrange them around the room. The sweet smell of incense fills the room as she lay a sheet over the bed. She put soft romantic music on the CD player. She place the massage oil on the nightstand. Looking around the room, she could see that everything was ready. Now all she needed to do was wait for JC to come home.
Rick called and they talked about how each was doing. They got into a brief argument about why he never told her Laura was pregnant earlier. Rick scolded his sister on her cheap tactics to seduce JC and keep his mind on her as opposed to Laura, who would be in town in 48 hours. He laughed and told her that she must know that her relationship isn't as stable as she claimed or she wouldn't be resorting to such maneuvers.
After hanging up with her brother she prepared some margaritas and brought the pitcher and glasses back into the bedroom. She listened to the music, sipping a margarita and smelling the sweet fragrances of the incense, while watching the light from the candles dance on the walls and ceiling.
She heard the door open and the sounds of JC's footsteps as he put his things away. "Anybody home?" he called out.
"I'm in here, baby!" She could hear his footsteps approaching the bedroom. "Well you've certainly been a busy girl, haven't you?" he asked as he looked around at the decorated room.
"I wanted to have everything ready for you since I know you've had such a tough week." she said smiling, then standing to walk over to him.
Rachel gave him a soft kiss on the lips with her tongue tracing the outlines of his lips...Her arms pulling him against her. His arms encircled her body, pulling her body hard against his. Their bodies molded together. Their kiss deepened. His hands slid up and down her sides before resting on her hips. She let her hands slid through his hair and then her tongue slipped gently into her mouth. His tongue responded, pushing outward and softly touching her tongue. His tongue swirled around hers, touching the tip and underneath...then pushing more urgently further into her mouth.
Pulling her lips away, his tongue gently licked at hers before their lips met again. She loved the feeling of his sweet butterfly kisses against her lips. He slid his hands to her ass and pulled her body taut against his. Feeling her hips move slightly in a slow rotating motion, her breasts touching, pushing against his chest, made his cock twitch with desire. Their kiss ended, leaving them both slightly gasping for air. They continue to kiss each other's cheeks, neck, their bodies pushing against each other.
"It's time for your bath. I want you nice and clean" Rachel whisper.
"What about you? Are her going to share this bath with me?" her ask.
"I'll be there in a minute. You go ahead and soak for a few minutes. Take a margarita into the bath with you. It will help you unwind." she responded.
"Don't be too long," he said.
"Oh, I won't be." she smiled before leaving the room. Rachel checked to make sure everything was in place. Satisfied, she stripped off her clothes and walked into the bathroom. Rachel watched JC lying there in the tub, surrounded by thousands of tiny bubbles. His head resting on the edge, eyes closed, letting the hot water soak into his pores with the half-full margarita glass resting on the edge of the tub. His open with the sounds of her entering the room. Looking her up and down, smiling, "Rachel bring that beautiful body in here so I can help you get all sparkling clean too."
Slipping into the water facing him, Rachel felt a shiver run up her spine as the warm water covered her body. They both sat sipping margaritas, letting the feel of the warm water refresh them. JC moved her closer to him, pulling her legs over his thighs, wrapping her legs around his back. "It's time to get you clean all over." JC said as his hands reached out and began roaming over her sud covered breasts.
The soap bubbles slid through his fingers as JC rub gently in small circles over and under each breast. "Mmmm that feels good" she mutter.
JC applied a little more pressure as he squeezed them softly. Taking the nipples between his fingers, JC lightly pinch them bringing another moan from her lips. His cock twitched and hardened from the thought of playing with her nipples and breasts. Her hips move slightly, letting his cock rest against her mound. The feeling of her hips slowly undulating on his cock sends more shivers up and down his body.
"And what do we have here?" she asked putting her hand below the water and grasping his hard member.
"Ohhh" JC moaned, closing his eyes and feeling the sensations from her fingers. "That is my hard cock and he is all yours to do with as you wish" JC whisper.
Smiling into his eyes with a devilish grin, she slowly stroked his cock, getting it harder and said, "I know a place where he will be safe and warm".
Her words brought another groan from his lips as her hand moved up and down his cock, driving him crazy.
"I think I know where that place is" JC responded dipping his hand below the surface and touching her pussy. JC slid his fingers up and down her opening made slick by the water and soap. When he slipped a finger inside, her moans of passion filled the room. JC pushed it in deeper and felt her muscles squeeze around his finger. Her hand squeezed his cock tighter, the deeper JC ventured into her. Their heavy moans mixed together as they pleasured each other.
"I want to fuck you, Rachel." JC whisper hoarsely as his finger moved in and out of her cunt. His thumb rested on her clit as his fingers moved slowly in and out. He applied a gentle amount of pressure to her hard nub and felt her body push harder against his hand. His other hand slowly twisted and pulled on her erect nipple. As JC pulled out, he slid his finger to her clit, replacing his thumb and slowly rubbed small circles around it. "Mmmm ohhh...that feels so good."
His hand moved from her clit as he grabbed the side of the tub. Her hand pulled his cock against her pussy and JC could feel her rubbing the head up and down the length of it. He sighed as he let the hot sensations course through his body. Rachel devilishly grinned at him as she put the head of his cock again her opening and pushed downward to draw it inside. He wiggled his hips pushing it against her opening until he felt it slide inside.
Their loud groans of pleasure filled the room as his hips pushed down driving his cock deeper and deeper into her pussy. The warm sensation of his cock buried deep inside her filled his brain. Grabbing her by the ass JC pulled Rachel's body closer to his as they settled into a nice rhythm. JC put his head between her breasts and kissed her wet slippery skin. She threw her head backwards feeling his cock buried to the hilt inside her. Her thighs tightened around his waste, holding on as she slowly and deliberately rose and fell on his cock. The water in the tub rises and falls with each thrust. JC kissed his way up her neck and chin until his lips kissed hers. Their tongues sparing with each other, licking, tasting, wanting. JC captured her tongue with his lips and sucked on it.
Grabbing onto the back of his neck, she rode his cock, lifting up until it was just inside her pussy and then accelerating downward until it was deep within her, and finally wiggling her ass in a circular motion to make the feeling even more intense for the both of them. Her breasts crush against his chest, her hard nipples scrapping against his skin, her pussy moving up and down and then rotating on his shaft. JC felt his cock begin to throb when her muscles contracted, trying to suck his juices out. "Ohhh fuck baby, ride me harder" JC called out.
Her body responded and her thrusts quickened, making some of the water in the tub spill over onto the floor. JC felt her hold tighten around his neck with each thrust of her hips, pulling him tighter against her breasts as she rubbed her body against his. His moans increased. Wiith each thrust on his cock, it began to throb uncontrollably. "Ohhh baby I'm cumming" JC shouted thrusting harder.
"Cum baby cum. Cum inside me." she yelled pushing down harder and then speeding up her motions.
The sensations became unbearable as they continue fucking each other with abandon. JC yelled out as he began to cum inside her, feeling her muscles tightening around him, milking it from him. "Ahhh fuck baby I'm cumming ... fuck..." he yelled as her orgasm hit with full force.
Her hips drove up and down harder and faster, racing to the finish of his climax. Their breathing quickened as their desire is finally released. Their bodies continued to grind against each other as their orgasms began to subside. Slowly they came back to reality and lay back in the warm water looking at each other with contentment. They slip what is remaining of their margaritas and then after a few minutes of soaking, JC informs her that it's time for his massage. "Mmmm I hope I can do it as much justice as what just happened here." she joked.
"Why don't we go and find out." JC respond as he put out his hand to help her out of the tub.
As they reached the bed, JC agreed to give her a massage first and then she could work her magic on him. As he started to warm up the oils in his hands the phone began to ring. They both rolled their eyes and decided to ignore it. But after 7 rings, enough was enough.
"Hello?" JC answered with frustration in his tone. "….Oh. Hi. Are you okay? Hold on." JC covered the mouth piece of the phone and whispered to Rachel, "Cassandra is on the phone. She sounds upset."
Rachel let out a long sigh before taking the phone from him. "Cassandra? What's up?"
Rachel could hear her crying as she started to speak.
"My boss came in with a million questions for me today. Your case in particular seemed to come up a great deal. Someone close to you is snooping around for information. You better nip it in the bud before I do." Cassandra swiftly said before hanging up.
CHAPTER 20
JC arrived bright and early at the studio Monday morning. When he walked in, he could hear laughter coming from down the hallway.
"Ha, Ha! That's when he told her to kiss his crusty ass, Jimmy!"
JC turned the corner and was surprised too see an unusually happy, Laura Charles, sitting on a swivel chair in front of the mixing board. "Hello everyone." he said looking straight at her.
"Hey, JC." Laura grinned uncontrollably.
JC turned around and looked back and out the door to make sure she wasn't grinning at someone else. "Am I in the wrong place?" he questioned.
"My sediments exactly," a voice called out from behind the left side of the room. JC looked over and noticed Hallie sitting on the couch eating a pretzel.
"Hi, Hallie."
"MmmHmmm." she nodded.
"How are you?" he asked, focusing on her stomach.
"We're fine...Anxious to get to work so we can go back home and relax." she smiled rubbing her stomach.
"We're going to get started as soon as Jerry gets here to drop off a few things. Let me go and double check on something so that there aren't any hold ups when we're ready."
After Jim left, JC looked toward Laura again and said, "Not that I'm not ecstatic to you in good spirits, but why the sudden change of attitude towards me?"
"Hormones." Hallie interjected. "One minute she's an angel, then the next...Lucifer."
"Oh hush, Hal." Laura laughed.
JC sat down next to her and started adjusting audio levels.
"Ahhh! Shit!" Laura winced in pain. JC and Hallie rushed towards her. "What's wrong?" they both called out in unison.
Laura put both her hands up to shield herself, "Damn, you guys. The baby is only kicking. See." Laura took JC's hand and placed it on her stomach. He couldn't feel anything at first, but moved his hand back quickly when he felt something poke at his palm. He watched the two women laugh at his jolt backwards and made his way back over to feel the baby kicking again. "God, this is amazing." he smiled.
Laura watched how happy he looked as he felt his child pushing his or her feet up against her abdomen. The pain didn't seem so strong once she saw the joy on her ex's face. He looked up at her and she could see his eyes were glistening more than they usually did. 'Is he about to cry?' she thought to herself. As she opened her mouth to speak, Jerry walked in, "Okay ladies and gents. Let's get to wor....kkkk..." Jerry stopped dead in his tracks when he saw Laura's stomach. He was speechless. He looked down at JC who's hand was still in place over her gut. "Whoa!"
"Hey Jerry. How the hell are ya?" Laura gleamed.
"The better question would be how the hell are you, Laura?" he smiled, leaning down to give her a hug.
"I'm doing good."
"JC didn't tell me that you were...With child. I would have postponed this whole thing for a later date..."
"Well it wasn't really his place to tell you anything." she said as she used JC's shoulder as a brace to get up from the chair. JC wanted to protest but felt Laura arm dig into his shoulder even more.
Jerry looked over at JC and said, "Well, I just assumed that-"
"Well you assumed wrong." Laura interrupted.
Jim could feel the tension beginning to build in the room and decided to step in, "Okay people, let's get to work. I'm only blessed with Laura's presence for a short time today and I need to get as much as possible from her before she jets out of here. Jerry handed Jim some documents as well as a box. His cell phone rang and he answered it. As he was talking to his secretary he leaned down and hugged Laura lightly, "Congratulations, Sweetie. You're going to be an incredible mother."
Laura smiled and kissed his cheek and said thank you.
"The camera crew are here and right down the hall, so they should be in here momentarily. I've given them strict instructions, so there's nothing to worry about. I get all the tapes when they are finished and I will be overseeing all the editing."
JC and Laura nodded to him and yelled goodbye as he headed out the door. He lingered in the hall and watched the two of them before grabbing his phone and making some important calls.
"Okay, today is mostly a brainstorming session of sorts. Hopefully we will be able to lay down the first track, but I don't want to push things. Especially since the song isn't complete. I wanted to give the two of you time to bounce ideas off each other as far as the lyrics go. I need to sit over here and play around with these melodies to perfect what we already have so far.
It was just like old times. JC and Laura dove straight into work. Hallie sat back and watched the two of them. When they were working together, it seemed as though nothing could come between them. It was all about the music for them. If only they could feel that way about each other again.
"…Hmmm...Where did I leave off at?" Laura asked herself out loud.
She then started humming the melody and softly sang to herself, "...And tell me how year after year, your sure your heart will fall apart...Each time you hearrrr his name..."
JC eased in, singing the chorus that he had written for the song. Laura smiled to herself as she read along. "I knowwww, the way I feel for you...It's now or never. The more I love the more that I'm afraid. That in your eyes, I may not see forever..."
JC looked towards her as they both sang "Forever."
Laura nodded with a smile of recognition. She hadn't worked on the song in so long it had almost seemed foreign to her when they were initially going over everything, but the memories were all coming back to her like an overflowing sink.
JC leaned over and pointed out where he had started to complete the song. "If we can be the best of lovers. Yet be the best of friends. If we can try with everyday to make it better...as it grows. With any luck then I suppose...The Music...Never ends." he sang softly.
Laura found herself in that all too familiar state of euphoria she felt anytime she was with him. She'd find herself having to shake out of a daze when he would look over to ask her something...Even after everything that had happened, the man still had a hold on her heart so strong that if he were to ask her right then and there to come back, she wouldn't think twice. Before the week was through, she would find the offer more appealing with each day.
She was very self conscious when the crew came in to tape. She didn't want them to catch anything that would reveal her thoughts and feelings towards JC, but with her hormones taking her on an emotional roller coaster every other day, she couldn't help herself.
At the end of the day when they were walking through the parking lot to leave, JC pulled Laura to the side to talk to her. Knowing that leaving them alone together would only stir up more trouble, Hallie did everything she could to be a thorn in his side. But she saw that look in Laura's eyes and knew it was no use. She stormed off and went to get the car instead.
With her arm draped under his, she walked with him over to his car. He unhooked their arms and leaned back against his car before taking both her hands in his and saying, "I don't want to bring this whole creative mode that we have going here, to an end with bad vibes, or arguments. I just want to get an idea of when we'll be able to talk more about the baby and what's going to happen when he or she is born."
Laura could see the deep concern in his eyes and placed her hand on his cheek lightly, while moving his other hand to her stomach. "If you want to be apart of the baby's life when its born, then great. I just don't want her to grow up with broken promises of you coming to visit, or feeling left out because she might not be as close to you as Nikki...since he lives with you. For right now, I just want to focus on getting this recording stuff out of the way. Once that is done, then we'll sit down and talk about future plans as far as this baby is concerned."
"Her? She?"
Laura noticed the gleam in his eyes and had to clarify. "No." She smiled. "Just wishful thinking on my part."
JC brushed Laura's hair out of her face and let his hand fall slightly behind her ear as he moved her hair away from her earrings. Instead of protesting or moving away, Laura closed her eyes and lingered in his touch. "You have this glow this about you.' he smiled.
"Yeah?" she asked, opening her eyes slightly as she looked towards him.
"Yeah." he said as he stood up straight, bringing his lips inches away from hers. "You seem really happy."
"I am." she smiled looking up into his eyes. "I've come to realize that even if I can't have you." she looked down and adjusted his necklace so that it was straight. "I'll always have a part of you with me."
Hallie pulled up behind JC's car and beeped the horn just as JC was leaning his head down towards Laura's face. They both looked up, startled. Hallie motioned for Laura to come on.
"You gotta get rid of your guard dog" JC smiled.
"No way…She keeps me outta trouble." Laura chuckled.
As she moved to walk to the car, JC grabbed her hand and pulled her back over towards him. "I'm serious about what I said earlier…" He placed his hands on both sides of her belly once more and said, "Please don't push me out of our baby's life."
She looked up at him and said, "I'm just trying to look out for the baby's best interest here, JC. I'm not trying to be spiteful, hateful or conniving. No matter what you may think, I don't have that capability." She slowly removed his hand away from her stomach and patted it gently before turning around to walk away. "...Although, at times, I wish I did."
Midway, Laura turned around to finish her thought, but was startled again by the car horn. Hallie put both her hands up to her friend. Laura glared at Hallie and made her way around to the passenger side of the car.
"Why?" he called after her.
Laura opened up the passenger side door and looked over the top of the door and said. "Because if I did...I wouldn't have such a hard time not loving you."
JC stood there momentarily stunned by her words. He watched as she got into the car and dashed over to the car and asked, "Where are you staying?"
Laura didn't want the week to be ruined by surprise visits, so she decided to give an answer that wouldn't be too revealing. "I'm staying with friends."
Hallie wasn't going to let them hold up the rest of her afternoon. She threw the car into gear and darted down the street. It was then and only then that JC noticed the car they were in looked very similar to one that Justin owned.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"I was about to hurl from watching how she was acting towards him, Justin. For the past three days that we've been here, they've been acting as though nothing had happened...All buddy, buddy again and shit. It was sickening!" Hallie vented.
Justin just laid silently on the couch listening to her. He and Laura were both opposite one another on the long beige leather sofa. Justin was rubbing her ankles and feet while she read US Weekly. Her ankles had been swelling up pretty badly and the only thing that seemed to help were foot and ankle rubs.
"...And JC is sitting there grinning from ear to ear, like the dumbass he is."
"Hey!" Justin scolded.
"I know he's your boy and all, but he's got some serious issues. You know it. You just don't want to admit it." Hallie teased as she flipped through the channels.
Justin was about to speak when Laura started to talk, "I'm just trying to make good out of a bad situation. We have to work together till this song is fully recorded and edited to its fullest potential. It's a beautiful song and I don't want to go into the studio and have it turn to shit because I can't get along with...with..."
"Just your baby daddy?" Hallie sang.
Justin couldn't help but snicker.
"Well yeah...That too. Just because I am not reacting in the way that you want me to doesn't mean that I don't feel a certain way about this entire situation. And since he is the father of my unborn child, I have to find some way to get along with him."
"I don't think that Hallie wants you to go around starting arguments or proclaiming that you will never speak to him again. I think she-"
"No. That's exactly what I want." Hallie interrupted. "Why should she be all friendly with him? Pretending like he didn't break her heart, by dropping her for Rachel's slutty ass? He needs to know how it feels."
"I'm not trying to stick up for JC for what he did, nor am I trying to bash him either. I personally think that's this has been a lot for any one person to handle. He's confused. He's got this woman who he has dated for..." Justin tried to count in his head. "…Four Years...She cheats on him with his mortal enemy, begs him to forgive her while she is still slapping the skins with Jerry, then she runs off and marries the asshole and has a baby. That fucked him up royally. Then there was you." Justin looked toward Laura who wasn't really listening to either of them. She had heard the story before. "This angel who had come to save him from all that. Counseling him through his depression, pushing him to get on with his life...Then out of nowhere you guys are together? To compare years of love-"
Hallie was about to protest but Justin put his hand up to her, "Yes I do believe they both truly loved each other up till the last 6 months of the relationship...To compare years of a lasting relationship to Laura's...It wasn't even a year was it?" Justin looked to her for an answer but Laura didn't respond. "Especially when you take into consideration that the two of them were so secretive about it...Like it was only about the sex. Someone to warm the sheets at night. You mix Nikolas into it and I could see why he chose the path he did. Was it the right path? I don't think it was, but I am not in his shoes."
Laura nodded in agreement. Hallie rolled her eyes. Justin could see he wasn't winning any points. "Yo, seriously. I hate that bitch. That I agree with you on 100 percent. I think Rachel is low, manipulative, and deceitful. But I don't got to live with her. If Nikky wasn't in the equation, I don't think we'd be having this discussion. JC is a family man. Always has been. Always will be."
Hallie threw her hands up in the air and said, "Well what about Laura and her baby? They aren't family to him?"
"He made a choice before she was even pregnant. What's done is done. All we can do is live with it." Justin spat back.
Laura could see the two of them getting frustrated with one another and decided to jump in. "I'm very lucky to have a friend who would fight for me the way you do, Hal. But you just have to understand that it's not about how I feel anymore. I have to look out for this baby. And fighting with JC or deciding to never see or speak to him again would only harm our child. I don't want my child growing up, thinking that mommy hates daddy or vice versa."
Their debate was shortly interrupted by a call from Joey to Justin. He took the phone into the other room, while Hallie and Laura started up a movie. Minutes later, Justin walked back into the room with a worried look on his face.
"Something wrong?" Laura asked.
"Depends...JC is on his way over here. Joey is with him. He was calling to make sure I was home before they wasted the gas."
"It's cool." Laura smiled before attempting to get off the couch. Justin grabbed her hands and lightly pulled her to her feel. "We're going to bed so we won't be in your way."
"You don't have to go."
"No. No. It's your house. I don't want to disrupt your weekly routines. I was grateful enough that you offered for us to stay here instead of some unfamiliar hotel."
"Are you sure? You really don't have to go. You won't be intruding on anything. All we do is sit around and watch sports."
"I'm sure."
Hallie grabbed the movies they had rented and headed towards the back bedrooms with Laura. JC and Joey arrived 15 minutes later.
Justin noticed JC was curiously looking around the house. "Hey Joe. Did you bring the Corona's?" Justin asked, still watching JC through the corner of his eye. Joey lifted up two six packs and nodded. "Cool. Let's just try and keep it down a bit though. Laura and Hallie are in the back and I don't want to disturb them too much."
"Hallie and Laura are here?!" Joey asked excitedly.
"yeah. In back." Justin pointed behind himself. Joey shoved the beers into Justin's arms and bolted off to see them. JC followed Justin into the kitchen to grab some chips. Justin went through the cabinets, starting up idle conversation with his best friend. "You want the sour cream and onion dip or the salsa?" Justin asked.
"I knew it! Why the fuck didn't you tell me she was staying with you?" JC asked starring Justin square in the eyes.
Justin shook his head and started to pour the chips into a large bowl. "Was I suppose to?" he asked.
"Hell yeah. I would have expected you to at least drop me a line to let me know." JC whispered loudly.
"Why? Jealous? It's none of your business where she stays or who she stays with."
"I didn't say it was any of my business. And I'm not jealous." JC defended.
"Well, you're sure as hell acting like it. I offered her the guest room...I actually insisted on it. She asked me not to tell you or anyone else that she was staying with me."
"I thought we were brothers?"
"We are. I would lie down in traffic for you, bro. But that doesn't make me any less her friend. She asked me to do her a favor and I did it." Justin pointed out.
JC thought about for a minute and apologized. "I'm sorry. I don't know where my head is at lately. I'd never ask you to betray her trust for mine."
Justin started to laugh mockingly.
"What?" JC asked.
"It's just funny that you would say that."
"Why?" JC asked, watching Justin grab up a couple bowls and round the corner towards the living room. "Because that is exactly what you expected Laura to do when she kept Rachel's secret."
JC was so stunned by what he said that he couldn't respond. He just stood there with his hands on the counter, looking down at the shiny marble counter top, thinking to himself.
CHAPTER 21
An echo of music filled the large football stadium. Justin, Joey and Lance were on the far left side of the stage harmonizing parts of "I Thought She Knew." JC and Chris were on the other side of the stage going over choreography while the band practiced. A few moments later a crew member came up with a tall stack of pizza boxes. Everyone immediately stopped what they were doing to grab a bite to eat. JC sat on the edge of the stage and sipped his water.
"You ain't hungry?" Chris asked.
"Nah. I'm too worked up to eat." JC fiddled around with a string on his pants.
Chris placed the extra plate of pizza down next to JC just in case he decided to change his mind. He watched his friend's eyes gaze down onto the field where Laura and Hallie were sitting on a large blanket talking and laughing with one another.
"How's she doin?" Chris nodded towards the two women.
"Pretty good." JC responded, turning his gaze back town at his pants. "She's staying with Justin till the end of the week. Then, it's back to Chicago." he sighed.
"What have you two discussed about the baby?"
"We haven't really discussed anything. I'm not trying to spark any tension between us right now. Especially in the midst of recording this song."
"I thought you were done recording the song. Justin told me that the only thing left was editing."
"Yeah, but we have to do interviews and some extra footage for Jerry's little enhanced CD or DVD he's putting together. Chris nodded in agreement while he stuffed his face with a slice of pizza. He watched JC looked over to the right side of the stadium where Rachel and Cassandra were sitting in the stands reading magazines. Nikky was laid out in his stroller taking a nap.
There was an awkward silence between the two men. Both went to speak and stopped short of interrupting one another. Chris looked out at Laura and then back over at his friend, "I know that I'm a clown half the time, but can I ask you a serious question?"
JC looked over at Chris, "Am I setting myself up for another one of your great Chris moments?"
"No. I'm serious."
"Ok. I'll humor you. Ask away."
"What are still doing with Rachel?"
JC looked at his friend in shock, "What?"
"I mean in the beginning, it was mostly about your son and trying to keep a stable environment for your only child, but now that you have another on the way...There's no reason for you to stay with that...That woman."
"It could never be because I love her, huh?" JC grabbed a slice of pizza and took a small bite.
"No. Because you don't. And as far as I am concerned...Once a liar. Always a liar."
JC placed the slice back down on the place and wiped his hands across his pants, "What makes you say that I don't love her?"
"Just looking at you. The way you look at Laura when she's around. The way the two of you interact with each other."
"Well you must be seeing something that no one else see's...Including me. And just because your a cynic doesn't mean people can't change."
"Yes, people can change. But parasites don't. And that's what Rachel is. It just doesn't make any sense to us."
"Us?"
"Did I stutter? It's an old pattern starting all over again and we just don't want to see you hurt again. You seemed so happy with Laura. You both looked like you were so deep in love. And now that Laura is about to give birth to your baby, I would have thought you'd reconsider this 'marriage' you have planned."
JC looked straight ahead towards the empty stadium seats. He never looked Chris in the eye. "Well I made this decision before I even knew about all that. Certain things may have changed, but that won't change the outcome. I made a promise and I'm going to keep it."
"But at what price, JC?"
JC never answered him. He grabbed his bottle of water, stood up, and walked over to sit with Justin and Joey.
While they were eating, Laura walked up to the stage and called out to their music director. "Hey, Kevin? Can I bang away on the guitar for a minute? I want to try some of my dad's old stuff out."
"Bring it on. Let me see what you got." Kevin teased. Laura attempted to climb to steep steps to get on stage. JC grabbed her hand right as she began to loose her balance and fall backwards. "I got you" he said as he pulled her close to his body to keep her from falling.
"Yeah...Thanks" she said, still lingering in his embrace.
Kevin brought over a chair for Laura to sit on. He helped her attach the guitar around herself and they both laughed at how awkward it looked against her protruding belly. Laura still managed to play though.
~~~~~~~~
"That doesn't piss you off?"
"What are you talking about now, Cassandra?"
"The fact that your fiance is all over your ex-best friend." Cassandra pointed out. Rachel looked up from her magazine and saw JC helping Laura up the steps. She watched for a moment longer and looked to her companion and said, "He's just helping her up the steps. Look at her. Add another couple pounds to her and she'll tip over."
"Yeah, but why is she even here?"
"Justin invited her. JC and I, have already discussed it. He said I could either come along like originally planned, or stay home."
Casandra laughed. "You mean argued about it...I guess you made the right decision then. This way you can keep an eye on the two of them."
"I trust JC."
"Right. Sure you do." she mumbled.
Rachel rolled her eyes at Cassandra and went back to reading her magazine, but kept it down below eye level so that she could check on them without anyone noticing.
~~~~~~~
JC and Justin were in their own world concentrating on harmonies for the upcoming show. "I want to do a bluesy version of 'I Want You Back'. Change it up a little...you know?"
"Yeah...Yeah, I see what you sayin'." Justin replied before starting to sing the first verse.
He abruptly stopped and called out to his little brother, "Hey Jonathan! Don't ride the scooter near the stage, ok? The crew is setting up and I don't want you in their way. It's too dangerous to ride over here."
~~~~~~~
"La, la, la...La, la, la, la....Mmm,hmmm,mmm,hmm-" Rachel hummed to herself.
"You know that song?" Cassandra asked.
"What song?" Rachel questioned as she looked up from her magazine.
As if to say 'duh' to Rachel, Cassandra said, "Your humming along with the beat the girl's playing."
Rachel hadn't noticed what she was doing. She looked up and could see Laura playing the guitar. She watched Laura squint to see what was written on the sheets and asked Kevin to help her. Rachel leaned over the railing slightly to hear them.
"I know this can't be your handwriting, Laura."
"No. It's my dad's."
Kevin got quiet. "Oh."
"He wrote this a long time ago when I was little. My mom finally decided to go through his things and she gave me all his music. This was in there. I remember when he was working on it. I used to hum the melody all the time."
Rachel smiled remembering back.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"Come on, girls! I need your help with something...There's an ice cream cone in it for the both of you."
"Okay daddy! We're coming!" Laura yelled back to her father. "Just bring the Barbie's on the porch so we can play later, Rachel."
The two young girls dashed into the house and down the stairs into the basement. Laura grabbed her two tiny chairs and placed them in front of her father. He was sitting down on a fold up chair tuning his guitar. Rachel sat next to her and looked toward Mr. Charles with a smile on her face.
"Alright, girls. I need the two of you to sing a small part of this song for me, ok?"
The two girls looked at each and giggled before looking at Mr. Charles and nodding.
"It goes like this...La, la, la. La, la, la, laaaa....La, la, la. La, la, la, laaaaa...I know its not much, but I don't have a sweet angelic voice like the two of you." Mr. Charles' pitch in his voice went up about 2 times the norm and he sounded like a chipmunk. He then let the bass in his voice shine through more as he stuck out his chest and tapped it with his fist like Tarzan and said, "I've got this big deep manly voice."
The three of them started to laugh hysterically. Mr. Charles sang along with the girls and began to play his guitar. He never really sang any lyrics to the song. He looked as though he were trying to let them come to him naturally. After about three minutes of the girls singing the same thing over and over again, they silenced themselves when they heard him sing softly , "Tell the kids about me, when they're old enough to...understand...Tell them that their daddy was...A good man..A good man."
He immediately stopped playing and rushed over to his desk to grab a pencil and paper to write down what he had just sung. The girls watched in amazement at how quickly he was writing.
"Wow. Your daddy is so cool. I wish my daddy was like him." Rachel said to her friend.
"Your daddy is great, Rachel. He gets to fly those big airplanes!" she exclaimed.
"Yeah, but your daddy gets to meet all those famous people and he takes you along with him. My daddy doesn't take me anywhere with him." Rachel said sadly.
Mr. Charles overheard the girls speaking and stopped writing. He watched Laura pat her friend's back before looking at her and saying, "Maybe you have to be a big girl to go with your daddy on the planes?"
Rachel hung her head and looked down at her rainbow bright sneakers. "No...Samantha down the street goes with her daddy when he flies out with my daddy."
Laura bent down to look into her friends eyes, "Don't be sad. Maybe when your daddy is away, you can share my daddy with me."
Rachel's eyes lit up. "Really?"
"Yeah!" Laura exclaimed.
The two girls thought for a minute and yelled out in unison, "That means we can be sisters!"
Laura's father smiled to himself. He then scooped up the two tiny girls in his arms and ran up the stairs towards the front door. Mrs. Charles was walking in with a bag a groceries and noticed to two girls dangling in his arms at his sides.
"Where are the three of you off to?" she asked.
"I promised my girls some ice cream for helping me downstairs. We're off the Dairy Queen. We should be back in an hour."
The two girls put their arms out as if they were flying through the air. Mrs. Charles smiled at how happy they were and hated to spoil their fun, "Honey, they haven't even eaten dinner yet. I don't think Rachel's mom would appreciate her eating dessert before a healthy meal."
The girls immediately stopped what they were doing and both adults noticed the looks on their faces. Laura's father winked at the two girls and looked up at his wife and asked, "How about if they promise to eat all their vegetables as soon as we get back?"
The two of them nodded their heads vigorously in agreement. "Oh, please mommy?"
"Please Mrs. Charles?" Rachel begged.
"Yeah, please mommy?" Mr. Charles pouted at his wife.
Laura's mother hesitated before giving in to their pitiful faces, "Well, okay. But make sure you're back in an hour."
"Yay!" They all yelled. Laura's father gave his wife a peck on the cheek and dashed down the porch steps with the two girls still in his arms. "Now let's see if the two of you can fly all the way to the car...Oh no! There's turbulence! Are my two girls going to make it?"
~~~~~~~~~~~~
"What the hell are you grinning about?"
Rachel came out of her daydream. "Huh?" She looked over at Cassandra whose face was bunched up in disgust. "Umm...Nothing. Just thinking to myself."
"Must have been a good thought by the way you were smiling like a little girl."
Rachel ignored Cassandra and went back to listening to Laura go over the lyrics.
~~~~~~~~~~~~
"Who's the song for?" Kevin asked as he looked down at the sheet music.
"Well, I haven't really decided yet. A few artists are interested in recording it, but I don't know if I want to give it up. It's personal to me...It's about a woman remembering back to times with her husband and an agreement they had made."
"Why don't you record it yourself?" he asked.
"I don't know. I just...I may. I haven't decided if I really want to take those few steps from behind the boards to in front of a mic, you know?"
"Yeah, I know. Well, how bout you just sit in front of me so I can hear what it's suppose to sound like...Just in case you change your mind about releasing it, and its sits collecting dust for another few years." he joked lightly.
Laura was hesitant, but noticed that no one seemed to be paying much attention to what they were doing anyway. Lance and Chris were off to the side, still eating pizza. Joey was off talking to his brother and a few crew members, while Justin and JC were on the field talking to the pyrotechnics guy.
"Alright." she agreed.
Kevin smiled before counting it off, "...Three, four."
Rachel let her eyes close slightly as she sang, "La, la, la. La, la, la, laaa....La, la, la. La, la, la, laaa."
I remember the first day
I met you
we were so young
you were a blessing
and there was no guessing
you were the one
Love was so crazy
We had a baby
JC's attention was suddenly all hers when he heard her say 'we had a baby'.
and said our vows
That's when you told me
should anything happen
I can hear you now
You told me
Laura started to snap her fingers. JC tuned out the two men and watched Laura as she sang.
if the sun comes up
and I'm not home
be strong
If I'm not beside you
Do your best to
carry on
Tell the kids about me
when they're old enough to understand
tell them that their daddy was
a good man
Yeaaaahhhhh
Rachel mouthed the words as she watched Laura. "La, la, la. La, la, la, laaa..."
First anniversary
remember we
chose a star
And as I stand under it
I can't help but wonder if
You see it where you are
For whatever reason
We don't see the seasons
Change again
Go there with peace of mind
We'll meet on the other side
Cause true Love don't end
JC smiled as he listened to her sing. Kevin added his voice with hers and it seemed to sound perfect.
and baby
if the sun comes up
and you're not home
I'll be strong
If you're not beside me
I'll do my best to
carry on
I'll tell the kids about you
when they're old enough to understand
I'll tell them that their daddy was
a good maaan nnnn
La, la, la. La, la, la, ooooohhhh
La, la, la. La, la, la, ooooohhhh
Two eyes
looking
up at me
Pointing to the picture like where is he
Mamma are you OK
What did the paper say
To make you cry that way
It said your Daddy lived for you
and your daddy died for you
and I'll do the same
Now baby
if the sun comes up
and I'm not home
be strong
If I'm not beside you
Do your best to
carry on
Rachel lowly sang to herself as she listened to Laura finish the song.
Tell your kids about me
when they're old enough to understand
tell them that your daddy was
a good man, a good man
La, la, la. La, la, la, la, laaa…
"How do you know that song?" Cassandra asked.
"I was in the basement with her when her father first started writing it. It was so funny, cause he had us sitting there just singing and humming 'la, la, la, la's'. Then he scooped us up and took us for ice cream. He used to always do that. That was the day Laura and I decided that we were going to be sisters-" Rachel paused and starred down at the ground as memories of their friendship came flooding back to her.
"And all this strife over a guy? Tis' a shame. I guess if JC weren't in the picture the two of you would still be inseparable." Cassandra shook her head nonchalantly before returning to balance her checkbook.
Rachel looked down at her engagement ring and over at Nikky and then towards her ex-best friend. "No. I think we will have still ended up here."
"Why?"
"We just...I guess we just grew apart." Rachel lied. She looked at her son who was fast asleep in his stroller. "Nikky adores her though."
"Speaking of which...I found out more about your fiance asking questions around the clinic."
"I already told you, he said he was never there."
"Well, somebody was there. The girl I work with told me that the guy had dark brown hair and he was tall and slender. Sounds like JC."
"Yeah, but he's not a good liar. And I think your friend would have recognized him, if it were JC."
"Well, all I am saying is that someone is asking questions. But I can take care of it for you if you like."
Cassandra got up and stood in the isle and pointed towards JC and said, "I'll just go over there and tell him everything. This way everything will really be out on the table...No more questions will have to be asked." she smiled dryly before walking away.
Rachel called after her, but Cassandra kept going. She sat there for a minute and told herself that the girl wasn't going to do it. But when Cassandra disappeared around the corner, Rachel bolted from her seat and raced after her with Nikky in his stroller.
Jonathan was strolling around the inside of the stadium on his scooter. He passed Rachel and waved to her as she was bolting down the hall. When he turned around to go the other way and head back to the field he could hear two people yelling. He stopped and noticed Rachel and Cassandra talking on the corner.
"Look. I'm already under enough stress as it is, getting ready for my wedding. I don't need this added stress of you going back and telling him weighing on my mind right now, Cas. Just tell me how much and I will give it to you to handle this. I don't need JC coming to me asking a whole lot of questions-"
Rachel could see Jonathan through the corner of her eye and looked towards him and smiled. "Hey Jonathan. You shouldn't be riding your scooter in here. Why don't you go back out to the field where your brother can see you sweetie. We wouldn't want to worry him."
Jonathan nodded and slowly headed back towards the field. But not before he heard the rest of Rachel's conversation.
"Look Cas, I just don't need him asking that Nikky have another paternity test."
Jonathan strolled his way onto the field where he saw his brother on the stage waving to him. He put down the scooter and made his way onto the stage, over to his brother. "Where have you been?"
"I was inside riding. I can't go fast in the grass, Justin." he whined.
Justin kneeled down to be at eye level with his brother. "Please just stay where I can see you, Jonathan."
A look of worry dawned on Jonathan's face. "Are you going to make me take a pattern test?"
"A what?"
"Aunt Rachel was talking to that lady about giving Nikky a pattern test. Do I have to take one too?"
Justin didn't understand what his little brother was saying. "No. Why don't you go over and ask Joey to let you play the drums for a bit."
Justin watched his brother skip over to Joey and thought to himself. "A pattern test? A pattern test..." he kept saying it over and over again until it clicked. "A paternity test." he snapped his fingers.
He wondered if he should go and tell JC, but decided not to. He didn't hear what was said and he didn't want to jump to conclusions. But something deep inside him, told him that he should look into things. But he knew he would need help. He looked around at everyone working. He then noticed Rachel walking with Nikki in her arms towards JC, who was still on the field talking to a group of men. He could also see that Hallie was glaring at her. A grin appeared on his face as he walked over to Hallie and leaned towards her ear and whispered, "I think I have some new info on our happy couple over there."
Hallie looked at him questioningly. Justin didn't want to speak on it until they were alone. He noticed Cassandra walking un towards the stage and asked, "Doesn't she look familiar to you?"
Justin could see that Hallie didn't recognize her. "Try picturing her with a nurses uniform on."
Hallie's mouth dropped open slightly. Justin smiled and patted her back gently and said "We'll talk at home," before walking away to finish rehearsing.