Santa Baby~Chapter 11



Respectively, she waited until she saw Shawn disappear out of the club, before she scrambled backstage in order to get the latest news on this very intriguing relationship between he and Belle.

She'd watched the entire "kissing scene" unfold, and it was true wonder that she hadn't fainted right then and there. It was as if she'd been watching a movie. The brooding hero comes into the tavern to escape the cold, and after one glance at the beautiful waitress he falls in love. With the magnetism of passion pulling them closer and closer together, the hero takes a chance and steals a kiss from the lady. Instantly, they are connected. Heart, body, and soul.

Meredith had sighed, then allowed her jaw to drop when the couple took things a step further and disappeared together behind the stage curtains. She'd watched those curtains like a hawk, groaning when Al had gone back there, and then groaning again when he came out a few minutes later. It was just like an idiot male to interrupt something so beautiful.

With a dramatic sigh, she set her tray aside and ducked behind the curtain. She found Belle dreamily staring into oblivion. Hell, who could blame the girl? Meredith had the feeling that she'd been properly swept off her feet for the first time in her life, by a man who actually might deserve her. "I'm so jealous of you." She replied, amused when Belle started.

"Oh, Meredith. Sorry, I was just about to get back to work." Once she caught her breath and steadied her wildly beating heart, that is.

"Don't you dare." Meredith hissed, holding up a hand as if to stop Belle from going anywhere. "You must tell me what happened back here. I don't care if you think that I'm prying or being nosy, I just have to know."

Belle grinned wickedly. "I'm not really one to kiss and tell, Meredith." At her friend's totally pitiful expression, she barreled on. "At least not now, not when we both have work to do. You know if Al comes back here and catches us gossiping we'll both be out on our ear."

Grumbling a little Meredith crossed her arms. "All right, but just so you know I want Maddy to spend the night at my house sometime during the next few days. I'm not going to let you use her as an excuse for not getting into that man's pants."

"Meredith!"

"I'm not." Meredith repeated more firmly. "He's sexy, he's sweet, and I'm going to do everything in my power to make sure you don't screw this one up. Now, come on, get your ass out there and get to work."

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Shawn was right, it'd been a very restless night. He'd awoken several times, sweaty, needy, and extremely unsatisfied. In fact, he was awake now. Wide awake. Giving up the battle of sleep, he dragged himself out of bed, pulled on his boxers, and padded, barefoot, out of the room.

His home--or his apartment, rather--captured the essence of his fast-paced, lawyer lifestyle. Bold colors and artwork lined the high walls. Large, eye-catching rugs were scattered on the floor in every room, concealing the nearly perfect wood-stained floors. Masculine lines and high ceilings made the space of the apartment seem boundless. It was a one-bedroom loft that rented for eleven hundred dollars a month and were located in one of the most prominent buildings in Atlanta. He could still remember applying for it, just after his first major case. He could still feel the excitement that came with owning your first home.

Yawning, he stumbled into the living room and grabbed up a pair of boxing gloves that were laying on his couch. He strapped them on, then went to work on plummeting and properly beating-to-death the punching bag that hung on one side of the room. An advocate of good health and exercise, this routine was fairly normal for him. When he didn't release his pent up fury with his fists, he lifted weights or jogged. A result of this tireless routine was his lean, well-toned body. Using quick, successive punches and a couple of good, hard kicks, he succeeded in releasing any aggression or sexual tension that had been present when he woke up. And just as he was getting into his fight, the phone rang, shattering any thoughts of a nice, quiet, uninterrupted workout.

Cursing, he threw one of his gloves to the floor and used his bare hand to grab the cordless phone that was lying nearby. "Do you have any idea what time it is?" He snapped into the phone, skipping any kind of warm, sunny greeting.

"'Morning to you, too, Shawn." Blake Morrow was used to his best friend's biting morning attitude and met it with a cheerfulness that he knew would drive Shawn crazy. "Hadn't heard from you in a couple of days. You doing okay?"

"Fuck the small talk, Morrow, why the hell are you calling at--" He glanced over at the wall clock, scowled. "--six thirty in the morning?"

Blake sighed and decided that it was best to go ahead and spill the news. "Listen, Brady, we kinda have a bit of a problem. Jules and I, I mean. With the wedding."

At the mention of the lovely redhead's name, all of Shawn's annoyance flitted away. Stripping away the other glove, he strode into the kitchen and grabbed a bottle of water from the refrigerator. "What kind of a problem? And how the hell did it come about this early in the morning?"

Blake, who was leaning against the doorjamb that led into his fiancee's kitchen, took a quick look around the room and behind him, to make sure Jules was out of earshot. He wasn't about to take a chance on her overhearing his conversation with Shawn. "Christ, Shawn, she wakes up almost every night with something crazy on her mind. The night before last it was something about the caterer, then the flowers. And this morning, she just suddenly shot up in bed and began babbling about the reception and how she'd forgotten to rent a place for it to be held."

With something caught between a groan and a sigh, Shawn plopped down into one of the chairs that were carelessly scattered around his tiny kitchen table. "I don't believe you. Hell, Blake, the reception is one of the most important parts of the entire event. There's no way that she forgot to book a location. Call me back when you want to tell the truth."

"Dammit, it is the truth, Shawn. The girl's had way too much on her mind lately, she's scattered from here to L.A., and I have to do everything I can to help."

"And what does this have to do with me?"

Blake ran a hand over his hair, ruffling it even worse than it'd already been. "I'm so glad you're such an advocate of the duties of the best man. Come on, be a pal, and think about it. Who in our little circle of friends has the huge house situated so conveniently in Kennesaw? A house that's Civil War era and looks like it walked right off the set of Gone With The Wind?"

"Shit." And it was true. The Brady home place was one of the most spectacular and widely praised homes around Atlanta. With its wide circular columns lining the front, the whitewashed walls, and the oak-lined drive, Asthor, meaning "treasure" in Gaelic tongue, did conjure up images of the fiery Scarlett O'Hara and the slick, charming Rhett Butler. But Asthor had been empty for almost five years, and Shawn wasn't planning on changing that fact anytime soon. "Blake--"

"It's been five years, Shawn, when are you going to stop blaming yourself for what happened to your parents and start living again?"

At the mention of his parents, Shawn felt the familiar wave of nausea sweep over him. Of course, his friend was right. It'd been nearly five years since his parents' death, and he was still living a lie. Though, he told himself that he'd learned to accept their deaths, in reality, he hadn't even begun to scratch the surface of acceptance, or forgiveness.

"Jules is really counting on it, buddy. Come on, your parents would want Asthor filled with laughter and happiness again. Please Shawn--for me and for Jules. Do this."

He had a severe weakness when it came to turning down friends, and despite the burning in his chest, he forced the response that Blake wanted to hear so badly. "Sure. Whatever you guys want." And so the demons of Shawn Brady's past descended.



Santa Baby~Chapter 12

6 days until Christmas: Belle Black's Apartment



Cradling the telephone between her ear and her shoulder, Belle tried her best to go about her business despite the obnoxious fussing on the other end of the phone. She was trying to be patient with Alex, but he was beginning to cross the line with his scolding and accusations. She'd expected him to be jealous when he caught her and Shawn backstage wrapped around each other, but she'd never expected him to take that jealousy quite so far.

"You don't even know the guy, Belle. I mean, what does he do for a living? Where's he from? Hell, do you know a single thing about his personal life? The bastard could be a serial rapist for all we know!" The logic was simple to Alex. The guy was a complete stranger--they'd known each other for a week--and fraternizing with him so quickly was dangerous. After all, wasn't it Elvis--the King--who said that that "fools rush in"? Who in their right mind would question the King? With a sigh, he awaited Belle's response. Already knowing what it would be.

"Listen, Alex, I'm not going to tell you to butt out of my life, 'cause, frankly, that phrase is overrated, but I will tell you this. You have no business accusing a man you don't even know of being a rapist--and you have no business telling me who I can and cannot date." Licking an extra bit of sugar cookie dough off her fingers, she stepped back to admire her work. Twenty-four globs of creamy dough were spread out on the cookie sheet in front of her. Because she couldn't afford gifts at the moment, she was trying to make the best of her situation and give Maddy the best possible Christmas she could.

"That's my fuckin' point, Belle. You don't know this jackass! Can't you see how dangerous this is?"

Yes, she could. To a certain extent at least. Hell, in her business she was constantly aware of sex-crazed criminals and men who were out for a good lay; but Shawn just didn't fit the description of one of these characters. And somehow, she knew that she could trust him. "I'm really sorry that this has gotten you worried; but look at it this way. I haven't been anywhere alone with the guy, I haven't slept with him." Yet. "And I'm not going to take any unnecessary risks. I can take care of myself, Alex. You know that."

He ran a weary hand through his golden hair and knew that he'd been backed into a corner and defeated. "Yeah, I know. I just worry about you, baby. You're one of my favorite people, you know that. I don't want to see you get hurt. In any sense."

"I love you, Al. And this big brother routine is really very cute, but I'm not going to get hurt. Not again." She slipped the cookie tray in her tired, worn out oven and smiled when her daughter came into the room. "Okay, I've gotta go, sweetie. Thanks for calling."

"Yeah. Okay. Bye, Belle."

"Wait. Al? Thanks for caring, too. It's really nice to know that you do. Bye." She hung up the phone just in time to miss Alex's final and very suggestive comment. Despite his deep concern for Belle, he was still the same Al and still looking for something more than friendship from his "good friend" Belle.

Scowling, he hung up the phone and whirled away from the bar to run smack into Meredith Danner. "Jesus Christ!" His hands shot out to grip her shoulders and steady them both before they could fall. "Meredith, what the hell? You took a good five years off my life with that little stunt."

"Sorry." Meredith fluttered her eyelashes innocently then studied Alex's worried face. "Somethin' buggin' you, Turner?"

Suddenly uncomfortable, Alex released his grip and turned his back on her. "No." He snapped out, then heard her sigh and corrected himself. "Yes, something is wrong, actually."

"Hmm. Would have never guessed. Wanna talk about it?"

"Not really, but you're not going to give up until I do, so--" He spun back around to face her. "It's about Belle. And that--that--"

She raised an eyebrow and offered, "guy?"

"Yeah, that guy." He bit out the words bitterly. "You know anything about him? Where he's from? What he does for a living? Anything? Anything at all!?"

"Not really. I know he's cute and sexy and one helluva kisser according to Belle. Why? Are you jealous of him or something, Alex?"

His eyes narrowed as he gripped her shoulders once again. "No! I'm not fuckin' jealous of the bastard. I'm worried about Belle. Do you really believe that all I think about is sex?"

"Yes."

"Well, you're wrong. Jesus, Meredith, when the hell are we going to be able to put the past behind us and concentrate on the future? I screwed up, okay? I screwed a good thing up, and I admit it. But Christ, I loved you. I still love you. Hell, you're the only woman I've ever said those words to. The only woman I ever will say those words to."

The rattling of the front door of the club had them both pulling apart and staring blankly across the room. Alex ran a shaky hand through his hair and reluctantly went to answer it. "Shit." Was the only thing he could think to say when he saw Shawn Brady standing on the other side.

"Nice to see you, too, Turner. Belle around?"

Before Alex could snarl, Meredith was pushing him out of the way. "Shawn! How nice to see you again." She offered her hand and fluttered her lashes. "Looking for Belle?"

"Hi. Yeah. She around?"

"Nope, Alex gave her the day off from cleaning duties. She's at home. Want the address?"

"That would be great." He watched as she scrambled off to scribble the address onto a piece of paper, then his eyes switched to Alex who was at a momentary lost for words. "Don't worry, Turner, I'm not a serial killer or a rapist. Just a lawyer."

"Even worse." Alex bit out, glaring at him. Before any blood could be shed, Meredith returned and triumphantly offered the paper, but when he tried to grab it she snatched it out of his reach. "You can have it. On one condition."

Shawn raised a skeptical eyebrow. "Oh yeah, what's that?"

"Don't hurt her. If you hurt her, I will personally make sure that you can never hurt her again." When her eyes wandered suggestively to the front of his pants, he got the idea.

"Sure. No, wouldn't dream of hurting her. Don't worry." He took the address and stuffed it into his pocket, relieved that he could leave them fully in tact. "Thanks, guys. Have a nice day."

They watched him get into the BMW and spin away, then Alex turned his gaze down to Meredith. "You're a goddess." He growled, snatching her by the waist and dragging her inside to finish what they'd started before Shawn arrived.