-------- Chapter 7
Serena was lying on Mina's bed, her eyes shut. She had just told her about the day that she had spent with Darien. It was Wednesday afternoon, and she was leaving the next morning for the Bahamas. It had been an incredibly busy few days at Shields, Inc. which is why she hadn't had time to divulge the details of her and Darien's outing. Mina was desperately trying to switch her case with one of her co-workers so that she could go as well, and it seemed to be working as she sweet talked somebody on the phone.
Serena was left to her thoughts, going from Malcolm to Darien. The biggest problem was that she had no reason at all to be thinking about Darien; he hadn't expressed any sort of desire to be with her, or made actions that he even thought of her outside of being his intern. Serena wasn't sure why she was holding out on Malcolm because of her married boss; it was in fact the same dilemma she'd been in since she had started working at Shields, Inc. Serena sighed and threw a pillow over her face, screaming into it in frustration. When she stopped screaming, she looked over at Mina giving her a stern look as she continued to hold her conversation over the phone. She shut her eyes and quietly waited for her to finish.
"Thank you Leanne, thank you! I swear I owe you so much! You've honestly made my whole life!" she said nearly jumping up and down as she hung up the phone.
"I'M GOING TO THE BAHAMAS!" she screamed at her best friend, who like her got up and celebrated, jumping up and hugging each other.
"God, I'm so glad you're coming, I can't do this without you!" Serena breathed, knowing how helpless she was in her situation.
"Sere, what are friends for? I just switched my one case for Leanne's next three cases. I know how much you need a friend with you." She said, as she quickly texted Andrew the good news. Mina had been getting sad that she would be going nearly two weeks without her best friend and her boyfriend.
"Thanks, Mina. But please, please do me a favor?" Serena asked her eyes filled with pure desperation.
"What is it?"
"Can you please be my best friend on this trip, and not Andrew's girlfriend?" she asked. She knew that Mina would understand what she meant by this statement, and Mina smiled shaking her head.
"Of course."
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Andrew and Darien were at the office putting together the last touches on the files they were going to be taking with them on their business trip. Darien had given the rest of the staff the day off so that they could prepare for the trip as well. He was a bit down that Serena's bubbly personality wasn't present; she made the office a more comfortable place. After Darien had finished his last assignment, saved it and made two backup copies, he walked out and locked his office door, then went to wait for Andrew. He entered his office and saw that he too, was done.
"Ready to go?"
"Yea, just let me get this packed. Oh, Mina's coming now." Andrew said watching Darien's face for a reaction that he knew would never reveal itself.
"I figured she would, that girl doesn't take no for an answer." Andrew laughed and agreed with him.
"So, it's going to be Mina and I, then you and Serena." He said hinting at the pairing of the two names.
"Drew, she's got Malcolm."
"So what? She thinks she's got no chance with you, which is why she's with him." Andrew said to Darien while locking his office door and heading towards the elevator.
"I know, I know."
"Who knows what will happen over this trip, maybe things will all fall together. You just need to make your move stud."
"Andrew, you're my best friend and I need you to be that, and not Mina's boyfriend on this trip. You're the only one who can talk sense into me. Please, do this for me?" Darien asked, he needed his wing man with him and he trusted Andrew more than any other person he knew. Andrew would be perfect for this job.
"Of course."
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Serena was once again at Malcolm's; she was stopping by for a quick dinner before picking up Mina who was staying the night in her apartment. Malcolm smiled and kissed his girlfriend letting her in. Serena looked into his green eyes and couldn't help but smile at him. She stepped into his apartment and walked into his living room. She turned around and put her arms around his waist, pulling him closer to her. He grinned and put his arms around her as well.
"Are you going to miss me?" she asked looking up into his eyes. Malcolm smiled and kissed her, pulling her body closer to his. He continued to kiss her, gaining access to the inside of her mouth with his tongue, while Serena slipped her arms around his neck and his hands slipped under her shirt. A slight tingle went through her body as he traced circles around her lower back. He pulled away from her slowly and looked her deep in the eyes.
"You have no idea how much."
Serena smiled at him and kissed him again, as they fell onto his couch. Malcolm continued to caress her lips with his own and she responded back. Serena felt as if the more she kissed him the less she would want Darien. She couldn't help but let Malcolm work his magic on her, he was good at it, but he never went all the way. After a few minutes more, he pulled away, smiled down at her and kissed her one more time as he got up from the couch. He offered her a hand.
"Come on, you've only got half an hour before you need to be picking up Mina. Let's eat."
Serena smiled at him and took his hand and walked into his kitchen. Serena sat in Malcolm's lap through dinner his arms wrapped around her, a feeling she didn't want to forget when she was on this trip with Darien. Dinner went much longer than planned, seeing as how they had to kiss each other whenever a crumb didn't perfectly enter their mouths.
It had been an hour since they had left the couch and Serena was again, leaving Malcolm's apartment. He was kissing her in a different way than before and it was driving her crazy. She clung to his body as his hand explored her right breast underneath her shirt. She let out a small moan as he continued to caress her breast. At the sound of her moan, Malcolm pressed himself harder against Serena's body which she attempted to do as well. Malcolm's left hand had left her hair and was travelling up her body to caress her left breast as well. Another, and louder, moan escaped Serena's lips. She hadn't felt this way in such a long time, she couldn't remember the last time she had wanted a man.
However, in the middle of their heated and passionate goodbye, Serena's cell phone rang loudly and annoyingly against her leg. She groaned as she parted from Malcolm to hear the nagging voice of Mina.
"Where the hell are you? I've been waiting outside for almost an hour now!" Mina exclaimed.
"I'll be there soon, sorry." She said, her voice weak, as she hung up. She looked into Malcolm's eyes and frowned up at him.
"I have to go."
"I know," he said pulling her back to him, kissing her gently. "Have a wonderful trip, and call me when you get there. I want to know that you're safe." He said, pushing a strand of her blonde hair out of her face.
"I will." Serena said kissing him again. She pulled away and left him outside his apartment door. She turned around and blew him a kiss as she walked away. He smiled and caught the kiss, winking at her. She would miss him, she knew she would, her heart could feel it.
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Mina was giggling at her best friend as they got in the elevator. They had just arrived at Serena's apartment and were trying to get all of Mina's suitcases into the apartment so that they would be ready in the morning.
"Finally, you two are getting a little juicy! I mean you two have been dating for as long as Andrew and I have!" Mina said, rolling her biggest suitcase onto Serena's floor, following after her.
"Well unlike you two, we take our time."
"Hey, I never told you what the two of us have or haven't done. I merely said that you two had been going out for just as long as we have."
Serena laughed as she lay down on the guest bed where Mina would sleep. "Really, Mina? Do you honestly expect me to believe that?"
"Okay, okay. So what if we've had sex, we're grown adults here." She said smiling. Serena knew she was gushing to tell her the details, its what girls do. She rolled her eyes at her friend.
"And…" it was all Serena had to say as Mina gushed about how much she liked Andrew and how well they got on together.
"Everything is just, so good! The sex is amazing, and the conversations and the simple things are just as awesome! Sere, I don't know when the last time I felt like this." Mina said a little fear in her eyes. She was just as unsure in her feelings as Serena, except she only had one guy associated with them, not two.
"The best thing is to just let this relationship run its course, see what happens over this trip. I am sure Andrew feels the same, I mean look at him when he's around you. He's always so happy."
"I hope so."
Serena put her arms around her twin best friend and Mina hugged her back. They giggled and gossiped together the entire night, constructing a plan for the trip and how Serena would deal with her feelings and how best to act around Darien. At about two in the morning, Serena left Mina's guest room to finish packing her suitcases and went to bed. This trip was going to make it or break it.
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The car to drive the girls to the airport came at exactly 7 a.m. and remarkably, the girls were showered, dressed, fed and organized when it came. They were both extremely tired, but much too excited to really think about sleep. Neither one of the girls had ever been on such a vacation as the one that they were about to go on. Serena knew very little about where they were staying, but she could only expect the best. They arrived at the airport in record timing and were ready before the two men had even arrived. After ten minutes of waiting (Darien had their tickets, so they didn't know which gate to wait at), Andrew and Darien arrived with a considerably less amount of luggage than the two girls.
"Are you bringing your whole closet, ladies?" Andrew joked as they pulled their own pieces of luggage out of the trunk of the car.
"You never know what you might need, it's best to stay prepared." Serena said, smiling. Darien couldn't help but admire the fact that, even so early, she was cheerful and ready to do anything.
"Right." he said, a smirk on his handsome face. Serena's heart started beating faster.
"Hey baby, I'm glad you could come." Andrew said pulling Mina into his arms, kissing her gently. She giggled and kissed him again.
"As well you should." She said grabbing her bags. "So, which gate are we?"
"Just let us handle it, you girls relax." Darien said, leading them into the airport. They walked through various hallways and security detectors, until they came to a shuttle. When they came to a stop, Serena perked up.
"Wait… we're not taking a-"
"Private jet? Yes, we are. What other way is there to fly?" Andrew said laughing at the look on his girlfriend's face.
"No. Freaking. Way." Mina said, awe on her face.
"Come on, if we board quickly we can leave a bit earlier than planned." Darien said as he and Andrew helped the girls off the shuttle. The three stewards helped them get their luggage secure in the back as the four of them got comfortable in their seats. Mina and Serena sat together and quickly got comfortable as Andrew and Darien sat facing them.
"How long is the flight?" Serena asked, curiously.
"Oh, it's only about 4 hours non-stop. We may stop in Florida, simply to refuel, but it all really depends." Darien said expertly.
"Good! It's a short ride!" Mina said happily.
After about twenty minutes, the jet was airborne. The four passengers talked and laughed the entire way to the Bahamas, it was amazing how well they got on. It seemed like they would have an amazing trip. Serena was so thankful that her bubbly Mina was there with her, she couldn't have imagined the flight without her being there to always interject with something witty or funny. The guys were always ready to slip in a sarcastic line whenever the blondes said something fitting of their hair color. All in all, it was a successful trip, and they had gone without stopping. At around noon, the pilot came on over the intercom and asked all of the passengers to remain seated and to buckle their seat belts. Within another fifteen minutes, they were happily pulling their luggage to the shuttle, soaking in the Caribbean sun.
"Where are we staying Darien?" Mina asked, her eyes shining as she looked around the airport, itching to be back outside in the sun. She and Serena had already decided that they needed to come back to the States with perfectly tanned skin, for they had both been spending too much time in the office to get out during the day.
"My place." He said simply.
"You have a place…? In the Bahamas?" Mina's jaw was to the floor.
"Yea, it's my family's, not particularly mine. Real estate is always a good investment."
"Ugh, jealous." She moaned softly. Serena giggled at her as they went through all security procedures and were led out to the Shields' driver. He happily helped them into the limo after Darien had given him a warm welcome. Excitement was now rushing over Mina and Serena, but the other two did not return their enthusiasm, they had gone this route before.
"Are you guys not even a little bit excited?" Mina exclaimed, slightly hurt that her boyfriend was not acting as joyful as she was. He smiled at her and laughed.
"We've been here plenty of times before. Plus, for us we're here for business." Andrew replied, looking sweetly into Mina's eyes.
"But you've never been here with us, and I'm telling you now, being with us makes all the difference, we change things."
"True, but still, it's the same regular old Bahamas, and that's still Darien's regular old house." Andrew said pointing out the window, as the girls squealed and turned to see the mansion that Andrew seemed to have called a "regular old house."
The building was magnificent. It was made of white bricks and could easily house ten or so people. The shutters were a dark blue, and there was a red brick pathway that led up to the front steps, that were ornately decorated. Serena couldn't believe that they would be staying in such a beautiful place.
"It's gorgeous!" she breathed, turning back to look at Darien, who was staring back at her, with an expression she couldn't very well read.
"Thanks." He said. He had just been caught admiring Serena's beauty when she had turned to him. Mina and Serena both had looks of the utmost joy dancing on their faces, almost like the glow children got on Christmas morning. She was glowing with beauty and it just rooted even deeper the feelings he had for her. The car came to a stop and the girls scrambled to get out as quickly as they could so that they could get a better view. They looked up at the house as the guys got out and began taking the stuff out of the trunk.
"You two go on and explore, we'll get the bags." Darien said, throwing the keys to Serena, giving her a wink as she caught them. His gesture surprised them both; Serena blushed as she caught the keys and ran with Mina into the house. Darien didn't know why he had done that, but it just felt like the thing to do. He was going to try and just let things happen for the time that they were together. Hopefully, something good would happen.
Serena and Mina had already gotten into the house as their mouths dropped. It was beautifully furnished, and it felt incredibly homey. They ran upstairs looking through all the bedrooms, laughing as they picked out which one they wanted. Serena walked into a room with dark colors, but somehow the darkness was welcoming to her. She lay on the bed, shut her eyes, and breathed in, and the scent that flowed into her nostrils relaxed her.
"Dibs on this room!" she shouted, sitting back up and pushing herself further back onto the bed.
"This, is my room." Darien said as he leaned against the doorframe, looking as handsome as ever, wearing that smirk that always made him look so, so… sexy. Again, Serena was blushing at his doing.
"Oh, uh, sorry, I had no idea! I guess I'll pick another one." She said as she quickly got off his bed. Darien laughed at her, he enjoyed making her blush, it was one of the sexiest things about her. The fact that she had been laying on his bed had sparked another nerve in his brain and was quickly sending signals further south. He tried to brush off those feelings, but the vision of her naked body in his bed couldn't be erased. Darien focused on the clothed girl in front of him.
"I mean, if you'd like to stay, by all means, you are most welcome."
Serena blushed even harder, "No, no thanks. But thanks for the offer." She said with a surprisingly alluring voice. And with those words she slipped right past him out the door. He laughed at her and turned to help bring her luggage into the room down the hall.
After a good half an hour when everybody seemed to be settled in and unpacked, the girls began to make lunch.
"Mina, I was under the impression that you didn't know how to cook." Andrew said watching his goddess walk across the kitchen.
"I said I didn't like cooking, not that I couldn't." she corrected him, planting a quick kiss on his lips.
"Well, Serena I didn't know you could cook either." He said again.
"I'm not like Mina, I enjoy cooking. What would you men like for lunch?" Serena asked, barely looking Darien in the eye, at which he grinned.
"Anything you ladies have in your hearts to cook. We'll eat anything." Darien said, as he finally gazed into Serena's blue eyes.
"Well how about we stick to something simple for now, how about some sandwiches?"
All four agreed and the two girls set about making sandwiches for them all. They sat at the kitchen table eating and laughing.
After lunch the girls decided that it was time that they began working on their tans. So out of respect, they asked the guys if they wanted to join as well, which they mockingly reclined.
"Guys are so ridiculous, why would they rather stay indoors and work, when they could be outside in the sun?" Mina wondered, shaking her head as she and Serena walked down to the Shields' private beach. That piece of news was also a bit shocking to them. Not to mention that if they had no desire to swim in the beach, that there was a full sized pool and built-in hot tub.
"Well to be fair, we do have a late meeting tonight. I should be in there, too." Serena said, knowing she was missing out on a great opportunity, but she had made her best friend come out here because she needed her, so she couldn't just leave her. Just by looking into Serena's eyes, Mina knew she was dying to be in the midst of their business talk she found so boring.
"Go." She said to her friend.
"What?"
"Please, you know you want to be there, so go! This is your work and I know you've got to do it, plus you'd be learning a lot. I can handle tanning on my own." She laughed.
"Thanks Mina, you're the most amazing best friend a girl could ever have!" she yelled as she ran back up to the house. She heard her friend's laughter as she ran up the steps to the house and shed her flip flops at the door. Serena knocked on Darien's study where he and Andrew were going over the set-up for the night meeting.
"Enter." Darien said, in his business voice. Serena walked in smiling at the two guys who were sitting around a computer screen and a few papers.
"I wanted to help, and learn, too." she said simply, as she pulled another chair up on the other side of Darien.
"Fair enough." He said, and then he began to explain what they had gone over and went into details about other things. Darien was finding it hard to concentrate on the task at hand when Serena was sitting next to him in tight, short shorts and a tank top over her bathing suit top, revealing her perfect round breasts. After an hour more of details and questions, they were done with their preparations.
"It's so weird, working out here." Serena said, looking around. "This just seems like it would be a place to hang out and bring a group of friends, not hold your meetings."
"Well, it's both. It changes with my mood." Darien said laughing to himself.
"True, it does change with your mood. Can we also say that as long as we're not doing anything related to Shields, Inc. we are all just friends? Not bosses and employees." Andrew said eyeing Darien and Serena.
"That sounds like a good idea. I mean it sounds awkward to say that I'm living with my bosses for two weeks." Serena said giggling. "Plus, we all seem to get along so well as friends."
"True," Darien added. "Well, let's agree that as long as we are not at a meeting, we are just friends and not bosses and employees." He repeated for emphasis.
"Agreed! Now, if you two don't mind I left Mina without any adult supervision." Serena said as she got up and quickly ran out the door. Darien couldn't help but smile as he realized that he had a chance to make his move, they were going to be friends, and what a first step it was.
