This Is The Right Time
The Palace
Day 3
7am
Stacey & Kitty
Stacey came into the lounge singing one of her beloved Star songs at Kitty, Mason sat shaking his head at their actions sharing too much information, Kitty walked across the room singing, waving Mason off as he tried to signal them to stop so explicit with their shit
When they started playfully petting each other he waved his hands at them in distaste "I'll leave you guys to it" he laughed closing the door
They couldn't hold it anymore watching Mason's face they burst out laughing "Happy Christmas" they giggled hugging each other
"You left me alone, in bed, on Christmas day" Stacey moaned
"You were tired, rightfully so" Kitty kissed her on the lips
"Where did that come from?" Stacey lips left Kitty's as she focused on the fully decorated tree and fireplace on the far corner of the room, that had appeared over night
"Apparently, Mason couldn't sleep, he called down last night and had it all delivered, he said it seemed unfair to just have one by the front door"
"Mason" Stacey gasped "Cheek"
"No, he said Mercy told him, if there was anything he needed he should just call down, so he did" she smile chuffed with it "Looks good don't it?" she looked at the tree
"Yeah, thank you Roz, Happy Christmas" Stacey smiled at her walking into the room with a tray of hot drinks
"Happy Christmas to you both" Roz smiled, handing them their drinks, she went over to some controls, setting the room in a different mood
The room already looked picturesque, with it's new open fireplace presenting a fake fire with flashing lights as flames, the frame had stockings hanging all over it, the snow frosted tree gave the feel of winter, set against the white wood and leather décor of the room, throws in earthy colours blending with the red and white ones, a massive fur rug under and around the tree. The white and red decorations on the tree falling in with the room, now lit dimly to show off the flickering white lights on the tree, the scene could have been mistaken for a winter evening, in a cosy cottage somewhere.
"This is beautiful" Stacey looked around as the room changed into romantic
"Absolutely" Kitty smiled at her
"It actually feels like Christmas" she curled into Kitty
"Presents too" Kitty got up and went over to go look at them
"Princess asked me to buy you all a little something" Roz told them
"I thought we agreed no presents?" Stacey asked, investigating the small parcels "Who's that?" she asked at Kitty's phone buzzing
"Sam said studio in five" she told her
The Parents
"That was a dangerous game you played last night" Dwight told King as they sat in the dining room waiting for everyone else to join them for breakfast
"I was always going to test them, they've never known anyone else"
"He went against everything I asked" Clara told Dwight and Mary looking at King "Needless to say we had words" she cut her eye at him
"I expected Sam to be the one jumping up not Mason" Mary laughed
"I must admit he seems honourable enough" King told everyone
"He is" Dwight told him "Very"
"Unlike that idiot Drew, you had planned" Clara told her husband
"Yeah that was a bad call" King laughed "We should have known that wasn't going to work, it's not like we're actually natives"
"Neither was he" Clara laughed
"So what happened?" Mary asked, Dwight had already told her some makeshift story but she needed detail and men weren't really good at that stuff
"Well" Clara sat down and tapped the window seat for Mary to take a seat
Clara's Account
"Drew was from a very well to do family, they live in Kpong, which is about four and a half hours away on a good day" Clara told them "He was a good looking young man, of course the pairing had been arranged from birth really, we both wanted the best for our children, we met in hospital" she sat back remembering as she told her story
"Everything went well?" Moses, Drew's Father asked King when he came in to see his daughter for the second time that day
"Yes we have a daughter, a princess" King told him
"A son, a prince among princes" Moses replied smiling proudly
"Who's that" Clara asked, watching King and the man converse
"We were in the waiting room together, our children were born the same time" King replied
"Oh" Clara smiled across at the woman holding her baby "Congratulations"
"Congratulations" the woman smiled, I remember she had a lovely sincere smile
"Mr Jones is a music producer" Moses told his wife, everyone watching her smile at that fact "I told him you fancied your chances as a singer"
"You'll have to come over to Cape Coast one day, do a demo" King told her "Just ask for King, everyone down there knows me"
"Will do" she grinned "My names Tania by the way, and his is Moses" she looked at Clara then Moses as she spoke
"Clara" Clara smiled back at her
That was the start of a friendship, that turned into a professional relationship, she was a good singer, and just a year later Tania had her first hit, and by the middle of the second year she was touring Africa singing her way to the top. At the height of her singing career she'd got three hits in the top ten and an album that stayed at number two for nearly ten weeks. Four years later she fell pregnant again and had twins closely followed by baby number four, who sadly left her just a few hours after his birth, she never recovered from that, a depression set in, that was sad to watch and the friends quickly drifted apart.
King and Clara didn't really have anything to do with the family after that until Drew was 10 years old, King was approached by Moses saying they needed financial support for a project he was trying to set up to get young boys off the streets. The focus of it was music, which held King's interest straight away, and to be honest he knew Clara had missed her friend and wanted to see Tania again, they'd become close while she was singing. Clara used to have Drew sometimes, while Clara was off on tour and Moses was building his empire, it was Tania and her that thought up this arranged marriage thing, Drew was so cute and she already knew his background, she just wanted someone who she knew would respect her daughter to take care of her for life, and with his family breeding, he was it.
So then once they went about getting King and Moses into thinking the same as them, once that was achieved, there was no expense spared on education, housing and opportunities, for the boy. There were promises made by all of them in the way we wanted the children to grow up, hence Mercedes being guarded for most her life...
End of Clara's Account
"Happy Christmas" Kate walked into the dining room stopping the conversation "Are we having breakfast this morning?" she smiled at them
"Sure" Clara jumped up "Happy Christmas" she hugged Kate and Steve "Twenty minutes, as soon as the young people turn up"
"They're on their way" Dwight looked at his phone message telling them
"How are you guys after last nights revelations?" Mary asked looking from one to the other
"It was definitely a blast from our past" Kate told her
"I went there several times during our conversation with them, they really don't know what they're in for" Ssteve told them
"Neither did we" Kate turned to tell him
"I don't think anyone's ever ready for it, you can plan all you want, but when a child arrives its all learning" Clara told them "By the time Mercy came along we were financially set, the house was nearly done and we had all the staff set up and we still struggled" she laughed remembering "Nothing prepares you for sleepless nights, depression, forced separation while this little person takes over as the centre of your relationship, and if things are not strong we all know it can do bad things"
"I worry for them" Steve frowned "I know Bree's usually strong headed, but if it's a choice between finishing Uni or being with the father of her child, I worry she'll cave in before he does"
"Well don't" Mary told him "Worry for yourself" she laughed "Remember Mom and Dad?" she asked Mary "Every weekend without fail, you've got that to come" she hugged everyone "Happy Christmas" she told them when she finally came to a stop
"Pray for us, if they take the piss half as much as we did, god help us" Steve laughed
"Let's eat all this baby talk is making me broody for grandchildren" Mary told everyone
"I'm not ready for that" Dwight shook his head in disagreement "Breakfast ready?" he looked at Clara
"In a bit" she fanned him off "Sorry for being so.. inquisitive" she looked at Steve "But what did they decide, the new parents?"
"I really don't know" he told her "I think I was my usual dictator self you know, she'll do this, I want that, but I really don't know"
"Well what do you guys want to happen?" Dwight asked them
"I really hope it's not up to us" Kate told them "I hope Mason grows a pair and tells Steve what the hell for" she laughed "I don't think I can respect him if that's not his next move"
"I want to have a say in my only child's life" Steve told his wife disgruntled
"You've had a say for nearly 20 years" she laughed "That's like at least 2 years more than parents usually get"
"I guess" he laughed, walking towards the waiting table
"Aren't you forgetting something?" Mary asked Dwight
"Like?" he looked at her baffled
"Christmas song, we always have one"
"But we're in someone else's house" Dwight looked around at everyone looking at him
"Do you guys still do that?" Steve asked laughing
"We do" Mary told him looking back at her husband "Christmas don't officially start without it"
"Talk about on the spot" Dwight laughed "Okay" he looked at Steve and King
"Your favourite voice, from your favourite men" Steve sat pretending to find the song on his phone, both smiling as the music started and the next thing everyone knew the man himself was coming through the door singing 'Remember You Young' by Thomas Rhett they danced with their partners, Mary and Kate was in heaven, Dwight and Steve knew they loved this man's music, they'd grown up with the family and had followed him from his creation and never dwindles, they were good friends and avid fans
The couples stood singing to each other, Clara hugged King watching them dancing, standing with them speaking to the man when he finished singing "That was so sweet, we should do something like that, have a tradition"
"Oh" King's eyebrows went up "Funny you should say something like that" he smiled "Remember when we made the decision to come here?"
"Like it was yesterday" she smiled
"Any regrets?"
"Not one, what kind of question is that?" she turned to look at him "What's up?"
"Well when the guys told me their Christmas tradition, of course I stepped on the bandwagon" he laughed, they both looked at the stage at the music starting again
"You" she tapped his chest at the familiar song, listening to him sing 'Neva Get Enuf Of U' by Brian McKnight as she swayed, he held his hands out for her to grab "If you want to put your life in my hands again" he gave her the choice
"Always" she grinned, Grabbing his hand as he swung her around pulling her in and letting her out slowly as he sang to her
Love it when you're looking the way that you're looking at me, ooh, never thought somebody could give what you're giving to me
Ooh, sometimes I must, but I never wanna leave you at home, uh, and even if I wanted to try, I couldn't leave you alone
So take my house, both my cars, all my money, ooh, all I need is the taste of your honey, umm, never get enough of you baby (No)
"We still got it" he laughed, pulling her to him to sway, the song a memory of them driving out of their old home towards the airport into the unknown, only them knowing there was a new life inside her that they were doing all of this for
"You're such a romantic" she laughed as he lightly kissed her lips "Best present ever" she tiptoed up and kissed him back when the song came to an end
"I'd say dessert was ready, wouldn't you?" King asked Dwight and Steve laughing
"Have a damn seat" she laughed, cutting her eye at him, showing everyone to the table
"Clara" Mary smiled "We agreed" she picked the neatly wrapped present up off the table
Bree & Mason
It was Christmas morning, Mason had been sat on the couch wondering if he'd really travelled all this way not to be talking to Bree right now, he already knew there was no way Steve was going to allow her to leave the business he'd worked so hard to build. As an only child he had his daughter over a freaking barrel on that one, so what was this really about, Stacey was right, he was settling. He'd agreed to everything on her terms at the beginning of all this, so he'd spent the night searching his soul to find out why he wanted it all to change right now, and all he could come up with right now was control, which was no way good enough
He needed to make some decisions fast, if he was ever going to be the man of his house he needed to learn to take some control of things, he was sat ticking stuff off his pie in the sky to do list, when Kitty turned up apologising for Stacey's behaviour, it seemed like all they ever did was apologise or bend for the girls in this damn crew. They'd agreed straight after school that they'd split, having found that too hard they tried again, it really wasn't working they were just apart with the added confusion of being together, and now a baby in the mix, telling them they were meant to be.
Stacey's singing rocking him out of his thoughts, he couldn't leave it like this, not on Christmas day anyway, he got up to go have yet another difficult conversation, leaving Kitty and Stacey to whatever it was they were creating in the lounge "Bree I don't want to argue, it's not good for you or the baby" he walked into their bedroom telling her
"I'm too tired to argue" she lifted herself off the bed telling him "You didn't come to bed last night"
"I didn't want to start arguing again" he sat on the bed "Sorry"
"I think what I've learned over the past 24 hour is that, if we're going to make it, it's going to have to be on your terms, we can't have two men dictating how we live, I have to choose to listen to one person and for me" she leaned over and touched his hand "That's going to be you, so whatever you decide, I trust you"
"All I want is for us to make decisions for us, not based on what your Dad will say, do or think" he grabbed her hand resting on his
"I want that for us too" she rolled into his arms "Happy Christmas" she smiled up at him "Traditions?" she leaned her head to one side
So you want a song" he smiled "Get dressed then"
"I won't get to say thank you if you do a joint on?" she walked over to the dresser giggling
"Oh you definitely will, later" he giggled walking over to the dresser and kissing her head
"Promise?"
"Come on, I'm starving" he watched her checking herself, before pulling her off the stool "I imagine everyone's up now anyway"
"I know I am" he guided her hand to feel him "We need to stop off at the studio"
"We do?" she followed him anyway
Sam & Mercy
"Morning" Sam smiled down at Mercy laying awake in his arms when his eyes opened "I could do this every damn day" he kissed her nose
"I actually intend on doing this every damn day" she looked up at him "We're doing this today right?"
"Yep" he laughed
"I woke up last night and you weren't here"
"I couldn't sleep, I want to the studio, scratched out a song" he smiled "Inspired by our conversation last night"
"Intrigued, we actually had an inspiring conversation last night?"
"We did, everything you say is inspiring" he laughed "Traditionally we sing a lot today, but this year I only want to sing to you" he bent his head and lightly kissed her lips "Come to the studio, I set something up"
"It's nothing like as big as yours is it?" she laughed getting up to take him there
"Acoustics are great, that's all that matters" he quickly kissed her lips and walked past her
"I might return the present" she licked her lips smiling
"Your such a damn tease" he laughed, she'd just brought to mind that session they'd had in her bedroom when she went down on him, and came up licking her lips, her giggle told him she knew what she was doing
"I hope so"
"Come on, lets get this Christmas sing fest thing going" he giggled, grabbing his guitar and her hand to get the studio "I mean every word" he pushed the door open
"Happy Christmas" came at them, Mercy held her chest with the shock
"Happy Christmas" Sam told his family "Song fest" he held his guitar up
Mason stood pressing buttons on the mixer smiling at Sam before they went to sit in the booth ready to deliver their song "We were up all night getting this right" Mason told them watching Sam playing his guitar to the tune before they started their rendition of 'Beautiful & Brutal' By Plested
Mason: I don't know what, I don't know what, I don't know what's happening, I swallow the pain, drink in your poison darling, it hurts so sweet. I try to run try to run, but I come back again I look in your eyes, don't have a choice, yeah, you'll be the death of me, but there's nowhere I'd rather be
Chorus Both: It'll cut you deep, it'll watch you bleed, nothing hits as hard as when we touch, how beautiful and brutal is your love, scream your heart right out, it'll throw you down and lift you up, how beautiful and brutal is your love
Sam: Oh couldn't they, couldn't they give me some warning, hit me like a wave, head underwater, whenever you look that way, the higher we're going the harder we're falling, wrapped in your chains, heavenly torture, and you know I wanna stay, caused I'd have it no other way
Chorus: Yeah, yeah, (said no no no x4)
No I don't want, no any other, don't care how hard I gotta suffer, I'm waking up in your covers, I don't want up, I don't want no, I don't want any other, don't care how hard I gotta suffer, I'm waking up in your covers, beautiful and brutal, Sam: cut you deep, it'll watch you bleed, nothing hits as hard as when we touch, how beautiful and brutal is your love
"I love it" Mercy mouthed blowing him a kissed playfully "And I love you, Merry Christmas" their eyes locked as she mouthed the words
"Merry first Christmas to you too" he mouthed blew her a kiss
"Morning" he smiled at Stacey and Kitty "Merry Christmas" he hugged them before going over to Bree to do the same, Mercy and he hit shoulders as they followed everyone through "You ready for this?" he whispered, she smiled nodding a yes
"We're gonna going to be fine" Mason told Bree
"If only life were really that easy" Bree looked at Mason
"From now on, it will be, I promise" he pulled her to him and kissed her "Come on Roz said breakfast was usually around 8, we've got twenty minutes to get dressed"
The Dining Room
8am
"Happy Christmas" the rowdy crew walked in seeing their parents sat waiting
"I thought we weren't doing presents" Stacey looked at her Mom asking
"Nothing to do with Christmas apparently, it's a welcome gift" Mary told her daughter taking the morning kiss from her daughter, followed quickly by Sam's, they all went around kissing the parents or shaking hands and knocking shoulders, eventually sitting down to a served breakfast
"We have a great day planned" Clara told everyone as they settled back after a hearty breakfast "We've got a get what you fancy lunch, then get ready for a heavy Christmas dinner"
"Plans?" Bree asked, right now all she wanted to do was go back to bed
"Not for you guys, for us" Clara looked at Mary and Kate smiling "I thought we'd go see a bit of Ghana"
"Wild stuff?" Kate clapped her hands smiling "It's a good job Linda isn't here, we'd be stuck indoors"
"The real history of the country is steeped in slavery and all that trading, to be honest, but there are some beautiful sights to be seen, I'm sure we can fit a bit of both in with a lunch stop on the way" Clara looked at King to find out if that was possible "Girls morning it is" she laughed
"We've got either a twenty minute drive to safari, or we could take a forty minute flight to Accra see some real jungle with crocs and stuff other than that there's only churchs and schools to see around here" King told the men
"Flight to Accra I think, crocs attract" Steve laughed
"We're going around the grounds" Mercy told her Dad
"Finally going to have another go at those horses you made me spend so much on?" he rolled his eyes
"Finally" she giggled
"So you invested in the Icelandic's then?" Mary asked
"Yeah we got three, plus the others that were here already" Mercy told her "I've been on Cali twice actually, considering he's only been here three months, that's progress for me" she laughed
"So riding then?" Clara asked her daughter
"Not necessarily, we might go to the hideout, have some fun"
"The hideout?" Sam asked her intrigued
"Mercy's extravagant Christmas present" Clara told them
"And you all..."
"Daddy" Mercy snapped "It's a surprise" she told him "Think competition" she told Sam closing the conversation
"We're out of here" King got up telling them "Meet you guys back here in 30?" he looked at Dwight and Steve nodding agreement
"Same for us?" Mary stood up asking Clara and Kate
"Same" she got up leaving the young people to themselves
"You two are ready just give me five" Kate told them running off to her room
"Come on let's go see what we fancy" Mercy suggested, everyone got up eager to find out what this competition was
"You were telling me the story about Drew" Mary sat on the love chair in the hall, watching Clara join her"
"Where did I get to?"
"Moses and King were on the same page" Mary told her
Clara's Account
"Yes once everyone was on board, we went about making sure they both had the best opportunities in life, Moses' business was successful, not as much as King's, he'd gone international by then, we'd come to Ghana for a new life, he was a bit of a gangster back then, into all that territorial stuff, it was hard. He promised me that the first Million he made, we'd be out of there, he kept his word, it was just coincidence that Mercedes was on the way
"Dwight said something about King being someone different as a young man"
"Very different" Clara laughed "We both were, we could never have worked in America, too many ghosts"
"I guess Dwight, Dan and Stevie have their fair share of ghosts, it's true the business breeds it"
"Anyway they came back into our lives and we got the men on board with it, for the next 6 years things went well, Drew didn't come over anymore, we didn't want them getting carried away before their time, and then when he was about 17 Tania let it slip that he'd got a girlfriend" she huffed "We weren't happy but Moses thought it wasn't a threat because the boy should be allowed to sow his wild oats, can you believe that?" she laughed
"I can actually, they think like that down in Big Sur" Mary laughed
"I think that sort of set off alarm bells for me, but we carried on" she smiled
"Then what?"
"Well then things really got messed up when Tania came flying up here, shouting her mouth off about Moses beating her, I was mortified" she touched her chest and breathed hard "Apparently they'd got into a fight because Drew had hit his girlfriend, Tania had ripped into him about it and Moses had ripped into her defending his son's actions. She fled without a single item of clothing, she said she thought the two of them were going to kill her in the house, it was all very frightening, King was in America at the time, I called him and told him everything was off, he came home the next day" she laughed
"What did he do to Moses and Drew?"
"Nothing he just sent some guys up to take over the business, he'd helped Moses set up, it was mainly his, and that was the end of that, I've never heard anything from him or his son since that day" she smiled "We've never told Mercedes any different she still thinks there's some boy out there for her to marry when we're ready, King wanted it that way"
End Of Clara's Account
The men went off to do what they wanted to do, which was drink some beers, get close and personal with some crocs, relax and take in this new version of Christmas they could very easily become accustomed to. They didn't mean to, but the women ended up shopping for things they really didn't need, when Kate finally demanded stop they found a quaint little coffee shop, and had a very cosy coffee and cakes break, before driving up to the main square to throw coins in the enormous fountain that dominated it's centre while eating ice cream, and trying to make sense of the ridiculous boob jobs passing by.
Mercy had taken everyone out to stables, they'd had a long ride before exchanging the fun for 'The Hideout' which turned out to be a paintball field stuck in the middle of nowhere, they had a couples team blast out, all cheating to gain the victory, that no one had in the end before, Dirty burgers and a ride on a replica for the fair ground ride they'd experienced at the fair in Long Island back, making Sam smile. The afternoon was finished off with more competition around the race track to Sam and Mason's triumph.
It was soon 4pm and time for them to make their way back to get ready for their Christmas dinner "This is one of the most relaxing Christmas days I've ever had" Bree walked beside Mercy telling her, she hadn't taken part in much of the activities so had been responsible for catching the moments on camera
"I can't remember a holiday I've felt so relaxed" Mason told her as the made their way back to the car
Mercy stood watching everyone get in and buckle up before she sat in the front passenger seat and watched Sam get in beside her "We should have sat at the back, recreated some memories" she whispered to him as he started the car to move off
"Stop teasing" he whispered back laughing "I'm telling them tonight, at dinner"
"Great" she grinned bouncing on the chair
"Hey turn this up" Sam pointed at the music playing "They're playing Jake's song" he turned to tell the others before he started singing along to Jake's bit of 'Obsession' by Christ Brown, Usher & Bryson Tiller "Girl I'm obsessed with your existence, al that you are is everything I m missing how can I find my way inside your heart...…" he sang the words to Mercy, excited for his friend, their heads turning as everyone joined in
"Cause I'm okay with just obsessing over you, over you, over you, over you, wishing I could let you know I'm wanting you, but I wont say a thing unless you want me to yes, I'm okay with just obsessing over you..." Mercy didn't know the song she sat back enjoying the show
"I'm totally obsessed with you babe" Sam looked at her while the others carried on signing
"Me too" she giggled holding his hand
Twenty minutes later they were making their way down the long corridor to get to dressed for dinner "I feel like I could grab some sleep" Bree told them as she rode Mason's back to their room
"I feel the opposite" Stacey told her "I'm just getting started"
"An hour" Mercy told everyone disappearing into her bedroom
Stacey & Kitty
"It's been such a prefect day" Stacey leaned on their bedroom door smiling as she watched Kitty sit on the bed and pull something towards her "Are those Christmas jumpers?" she looked at what Kitty had picked up
"Yeah" she laughed "I think dinner is themed" Kitty rolled her eyes at the Jones' idea of the holidays all coming from story books and pictures
"I love it, we used to do this with Nana and Grandpa Evans" she ran over to her grabbing one of the jumpers "This is perfect" she hugged the jumper more for the memory than what it actually was
"Well we both know what's going to make it even more perfect"
"Yeah but, it's been such a relaxing day, I..."
"You're not getting out of it, we promised this was going to happen, my phone's ready, we're ready"
"Yeah but.."
"No but's Stacey, we agreed, you promised"
"It's alright for you they won't see your damn face"
"They will, I promised"
"Shit" Stacey sat on the bed beside her "I've just got a bad feeling about this"
"You always have a bad feeling"
"No I mean, I really have"
"It's happening" Kitty got off the bed and threw the jumper on it, taking no notice of the sleeve hitting Stacey across the face
"Kitty" she hissed getting up to follow her to the bathroom, that was not the end of this conversation "I think enough has happened this holiday what with Bree being pregnant and everything"
"We're not backing out of it and that's the end of it" she turned the shower on and stripped to get in "I mean it Stacey, it happens tonight or never"
"That's not fair"
"Everything is fair in love.. and war" she smiled stepping into the shower, Stacey stood liking at her wondering if she was being serious right now, how was she forcing her to do something she really didn't want to do. It only took seconds for Stacey to realise, why Kitty was being like this, she was trying to put them back in the same situation they'd been in less than 6 months ago, if Kitty was ever going to take her serious she'd have to play this the adult way and let out their secret
Bree & Mason
"Are you serious" Bree turned to look at Mason, his hands wondering all over her body before the door was even shut
"Come on, we haven't made love for four days now, a man has needs"
"A woman is feeling frumpy, tired and emotional because a man impregnated her, give me a break" she brushed his hands off her
"Are you joking?" he looked at her
"No"
"You never say no, what's up?" he stood concerned
"Are we in the same room, did I not just say..."
"You're not frumpy, it will make you sleep better, you always need to relax to sleep soundly, and now I'm emotional too, yeah I was listening, but I don't buy it"
"I'm feeling pregnant" Bree told him, he could tell she didn't want to have the conversation
"And I want to feel the pregnant you" he grabbed her arm "Please say yes"
"No" she jerked her arm out of his grip "The pregnant me wants to feel you" she smiled walking towards him
"You didn't fool me for a second" he laughed raising an eyebrow
"I did, don't lie" she grabbed his t-shirt and pulled him to her
"Okay, you did" he giggled as their lips met "But no rough sex, this is going to be new baby Mama sex"
"Baby Papa Sex" she pulled him onto the bed
"Hey" his hands went out to stop himself from falling on top of her "The baby"
"He won't feel a thing" she grabbed his lips
"And I said, you can forget your kinky rough stuff until he or she is out of there"
"You're such a killjoy" she giggled taking what he was giving
Sam & Mercy
"Stop teasing" he laughed watching her pull her top over her head as she walked towards the bathroom "You know you won't be able to get away with any of this after dinner right?" he sat on the bed still watching her
"I hope not, just reminding you what we're doing this for" she giggled kicking the bathroom door shut behind her
"Mercy" he stood at the closed door "Can I talk to you for a minute?"
"I'm just getting in the bath"
"It's fine you can just listen through the door" he sat behind it to have his conversation
"Okay"
"I know we said we'd get married, and we will, one day, but I know you know there are things we both want before that happens, but right now, before we tell our parents our intentions, I want to share mine with you" he looked up at the closed door "Firstly I want you to know I'll always love you, even when it seems like I don't, my soul will never leave yours" he told her "Sometimes, when I think about you I cry, not in a bad way, but because, to me, your the best part of me, of this relationship, I want to always know that you'll be coming home to me, I'd love that to be one of our longest moments, us in our home, making our home I mean" he laughed at that not sounding right "My ambition for us, is to be able to give you everything you need for a comfortable life, for us to be able to just hold each other when we need to, for the rest of our lives, but don't get me wrong, I know with conviction that I need to support you achieve your dreams, I want to support you in becoming the best version of yourself, and I will always be grateful that you chose me to share your life with, I know in my soul you were made especially for me"
"Sam" she opened the door and stood in a towel with tears rolling down her face, he jumped up to face her "That was the most beautiful moment" she stood looking at him "I hope you know once you take this on, there are no refunds" she waved her hands up and down her frame
"I don't want a refund" he laughed "I love you Mercy Jones"
"And boy do I love you right back Sam Evans" she leaned in and kissed him lightly "Dinner" she turned sharply and closed the bathroom door after her "I think you're right" she opened the bathroom door announcing "I should come to America, I can do Management from anywhere" she stood messing with her hair and securing the towel wrapped firmly around her
"I thought that was a written" he told her unsure why they were having the conversation
"It was a decision that needed to be made Sam Evans" she rolled her eyes at him "Don't start that protective shit with me"
"I'm going to protect you Mercy"
"But not from us Sam" she huffed as her hands dropped to her side "I don't want to be ruled, I want to be loved" she walked towards him "What happened to supporting me to achieve my dreams?"
"Okay" he grabbed his towel and went off to the bathroom, she knew he wasn't happy about what she'd said, but ground rules were ground rules, and needed to be set as soon as possible, her Mom had told her that "Okay" he came out ten minutes later "I'm sorry, I should live by my word, I won't try to change you, anything you do should be because that's the way you want it"
"Wrong" she walked up to him grabbing his cheeks with both hands "Anything we want to do, should be because we want to do it, communication?"
"Yeah, communication" he smiled
Dinner
6pm
"Good day?" Clara asked as they walked into the dining room
"Great day" Bree laughed "It doesn't even feel like Christmas, this should be a tradition or something" she sat on the chair next to her Father with Mason in her other side
"Without the annual pregnancy please" Stacey commented, sitting next to her Mom with Kitty beside her
"Are those claws?" Bree asked, making everyone laugh
"Why would they be claws?" Stacey asked, not getting it
"Girls" Dwight looked from one to the other "You may be thousands of miles away from home but grounding still applies"
"Grounding" Clara laughed "I haven't heard that word for years"
"You've never been grounded?" Bree looked across the table at Mercy asking
"They call it staying safe in this house" Mercy told her letting go of Sam's hand under the table when attention was drawn to them
"I like the table Mr Jones, very sociable" Sam smiled looked around the rather large round table seating all twelve of them, different to the usual long one
"Thank you" he nodded at Sam smiling "Just tuck into starters" he pointed to the revolving centre piece "There should be something to please everyone" he looked at Mary, the women had worked hard on the menu to include everyone's taste
There were the usual questions, answers, laughs and gripes as everyone ate a hearty five course Christmas meal, it was truly fit for a king "That was amazing" Mason sat back and rubbed his chest
"Don't you dare" Bree laughed recognising the burp position he was getting into, holding her shaking head when her Dad, sitting next to her, let out the loudest one to date "Excuse him" she held her hand up and looked at her Dad in disgust
"That's rude" Sam told Kitty when she put her mobile on the table in front of them
"It's my Mom and Dad" she told him and looked at Stacey
"We have something to say" Sam looked up the table
"Let me just.." Kitty looked down at her phone, Sam thinking they only wanted family to hear this decided to sit back and let her have her five minutes with her parents "We have an announcement" she looked into the phone telling her parents
"Yeah" Stacey echoed looking up from the phone to her parents
"You didn't say it was an announcement" Sam looked at Mercy frustrated, she squeezed his hand, non-verbally asking him to allow them to do what they were doing "Hurry up"
"Mom, Dad" Stacey looked across the table "And Sam" she smiled at her brother "There's never going to be a good time for this so I'll just..."
"Please tell me you're not pregnant too" Sam rolled his eyes at his sister "Or did you break a nail?"
"Stop it" Stacey hissed at him "Kitty and I got married three months ago" she looked at everyone around the table, waiting for the fall out
"You what?" Mary gasped
"Roz find them a room" Clara looked up at the trustworthy maid
"It's ready Mam" she smiled stepping forward to move them out the room
"What do you mean you got married?" Sam banged the table as he shouted at her
"I got married" she told him, as if she'd just gone out and brought an ice cream
"I should step over there and slap your fucking face" he hissed at her "How selfish..." he got up to do just that
"Sam" Dwight's mind finally came back into the room to see his son stepping off to hit his sister "Sam" he shouted again when he didn't listen "Go calm down" he told him walking fast over to him and pushing him out the door
"I'll go after him" Mercy got up, determined to be there for him
"It's fine, leave him to calm down" Dwight told her, she couldn't pretend she hadn't heard him, he was shouting loud enough
"Is this damn dinner table cursed or something?" King asked Clara looking at it
"More like excited, it's never seen so much drama" Clara replied with a grin on her face "I feel like I'm back in America taking part in real housewives or something"
"Stacey, Kitty, with me now" Dwight demanded watching the two girls jump up without questioning "Is that your parents?" he pointed at the phone, Kitty nodded, she daren't speak, watching him pick it up and take it with them, Mary following, any other situation and she'd have been on his back telling him to calm down or leave it alone, but this was the last straw the girl needed to get, whatever it was that was coming.
"I'll go find Sam" Mercy got up telling the adults in the room, he'd only been to her quarters so of course she went directly to her room "Sam" she called as she walked through and into the bathroom to find everywhere empty. "Sam" she called coming out into the corridor checking his room, the studio and even the pool room, swinging by the library on her way through "He's not here" she told Bree and Mason coming through the door as she entered the living room
"He couldn't have gone out he doesn't know anywhere" Mason told them the obvious
"Roz" Mercy gasped pressing the buzzer for attention
"What would she know?" Bree asked
"We need to search the house, it would take a week" Mercy told her watching Roz come through the door breathless "Sam's missing get everyone to search the house" she ordered
"He's been upset before" Bree told her "He finds a corner, sulks and then he's back to normal, he'll turn up"
"I've seen him upset before, and it was no way near quiet" Mercy told her remembering their chat at the beach, and on the plane
"Should we be worried?" Mason asked
"If he's gone out and not bothered to keep the house in view, yes" she told them
Sam
Sam was mad, yet again Stacey had taken over the damn show with her bullshit, his life had always been like that, whatever was happening for him Stacey always took centre stage like her shit was more important. He'd made a promise, this was going to be their night and that girl had taken it away from them, it was bad enough with Mason and Bree, after their news they knew they weren't ready to announce anything, but this time they were and now this. He'd walked straight out the front door and smiled at the blackness, it was how he was feeling, he felt at one with it, his walk quickly turned into a run, he needed to get this anger out. Although it looked like it, it was nothing to do with Stacey and Kitty, basically he really didn't give a shit what that girl wanted to do with her life, unless she was going to come to serious harm, she was a grown ass woman.
It was a while before he realised he was in total darkness, not able to see his hand in front of his face and not a thing in sight. He looked around at the tall grass which seemed to be everywhere, trying to find something familiar, but he found nothing, he turned around to start walking back but there was no trail, he'd ran until he was lost "Hello" he shouted walking in what he thought was the right direction "Hello" he took his phone out, smiling at the single bar he found, he could track Mercy's phone and get back
He stood still looking at the signal, trying to get his bearings so he could get back to the house, but for whatever reason he couldn't focus on the thing "Sit down" he told himself doing just that as he remembered his Mom's instructions to him as a child, should he ever get lost, just sit down. He looked around trying to get his eyes to focus in the changed light "For how long?" he asked himself laughing "This isn't a fucking mall"
His phone pinged "Mercy" he smiled looking at it showing him the weather "Shit" he turned it off, it was dying
"How many days do you reckon you could survive Evans?" he asked himself "Everything will look familiar tomorrow" "I wonder if this is how it felt for Grandma and Gramps?" he looked around the dark fields, the grass blowing enough to let him know the difference between the ground and the sky "No" he smiled "There were lights for them, lots of lights, angels, singing, dancing, and if Gramps had anything to do with it, cigars" he laughed "Mercy" he looked up in the air "She'll be worried" he got up
"Take me back to Mercy" he shouted into the air and put one foot in front of the other, walking, until after a while he saw a light, then another, then a shout
"Sam" the voice called clearly
"Over here" he shouted back smiling as all the lights came towards him
"That was the stupidest fucking thing to do" Mercy sprung at him "God I didn't know what to think"
"I was fine" he hugged her smiling "I asked them to bring me back to you, and they did"
"Who?" she looked at Roz and some of the other help that had been out with her looking "We're fine now, thank you all"
"Grandma and Gramps" he looked down at her under his arm "I'm fine honestly" he laughed
"That was the scariest hour in my life, thank god for the tracker" she looked up at him "You turned it off"
"I had to, batteries are flat, just in case I needed help later"
"You need to learn to talk" she told him
"I can, I wanted to smash her head in for taking our spot, this should have been our night"
"We'll own it tomorrow" she giggled "Breakfast, break the mould" she pulled him to her "Come let's get you inside"
Dining Room
8.30pm
"You decided to come back then?" Steve asked Sam as they walked back into the room
"Why what's up?" he looked around the room "Where's Stacey?"
"She wasn't happy with the conversation we had, she's around somewhere licking her wounds" Dwight told his son "That sister of yours will be the damn death of me"
"She'll be back" Mary told him "Anyway, what was it you wanted to say before your sister took centre stage?" she looked at Sam asking
"It's fine, it can wait" he told her
"We have a treat in store for tonight" Clara told them
"Another one?" Bree asked weary
"It's maybe a surprise" Clara tone couldn't make out if that was a question, protest or suggestion
"What you mean other than your cousin's pregnancy and your sister's married to a woman?" Steve asked laughing
"We're going to be the judges tonight" King laughed changing the subject "Come on" he told them, leading everyone out of the dining room across the hall and towards the west wing, they hadn't been down there yet "The wonderers return" he laughed bumping into Stacey and Kitty coming up from the east wing
"Sam" Stacey walked towards him
"Stacey don't" he pulled away from her and cut his eye
"We're scouting for a new sound" King butted in cutting the awkward silence
"Sam this should be right up your street" Dwight grabbed his son's shoulder telling him, Sam rolled his eyes remembering the lie he'd told on the plane
They all piled into an auditorium with couches, microphones and coffee machine where they listened to artist after artist trying to break into the industry via King. It wasn't really their genre but when they heard 'Shekere' by Yemi Alade & Angelique Kidjo they all jumped up to dance to the catchy tune. A lot of the artists done covers while some brought a reggae mix, everyone got excited when the duet came onto the stage singing 'Gum Body' by Burna Boy ft. Jorja Smith to the end, while some didn't even get to finish before King showed them the door.
Then to their surprise Simone, Alex and three other girls Mercy recognised from University were standing on stage, everyone looked at each other unable to get over the nerve of these bitches
Alex: I got me a new man I only see at night yeah, and two bitches that I keep on the side yeah, I keep my options open, I can't keep losing focus, think they falling, they keep calling uhh
"So inappropriate" Stacey commented watching the girls flashing their assess all over the place
"I thought this was about the singing?" Bree asked pointing at the girls
"Shhh" King told them
Simone: Never been good at falling in love right back oh, don't want no trouble know that uh, don't go loco, go loco like that, why you tripping, then you switching, then come kissing on my lips, yeah
"Seriously?" Mercy asked her Dad after listening to a bit more "They're selling sex" she told him
"Sex sells sweetheart" he told her turning back to watch the show
All: Say you're trying to wife me, (I ain't with it sorry) feeling for me nightly (I ain't with it sorry) damn, I'm on my own time, (I ain't with it sorry, sorry) I ain't with it
"Okay" Clara finally closed them down "Thank you girls" she waved her hand and looked at King unhappy with their pornographic take on 'I Ain't With It' by June's Diary
After midnight, people crept off to bed, King was left alone, looking for that new sound he'd been talking about all night.