Sorry for my absence… I have no other excuse than a busy family and work life! I'm sorry for the ones who started reading the story at its beginning. It's probably going to be hard for you to catch up after such a long time. For the new ones, well, lucky you, here's the new chapter you were waiting for. And luckily for this fic, I sprained my ankle and I'm stuck on my sofa, so, hopefully, you'll have other chapters pretty soon!
Countdown
"Alright, I give up. I'm going to dig a hole and burry myself in the orchard. Tell everyone I loved them."
Lucas raised an eyebrow and shook his head, smiling. Alexandra pressed her lips together.
"I don't exist to amuse you, you know?"
"Really? Are you sure?" He asked, grinning. "You're doing such a great job."
Alexandra slapped his shoulder, smiling. They were both trying to finish planning the details of the wedding, and Alexandra had the feeling they would never succeed. The famous event was the next day and they were still arguing about where to sit some of the guests. It should have not been a problem as every Terra Novan was invited. But Taylor had suggested they should define where the family and friends should be and, of course, it had brought trouble. Should they have their witnesses next to them or in front of them? And should they have a boy next to a girl and keep that way at every table?
"I'm not kidding! This thing is driving me nuts!"
"Come on! It's almost done. It would be better if…" Lucas took the paper that Damon's name was on and put it far away from them. "Ah, here we go!"
"Ha ha. Yeah, very funny. But Damon is my witness and I want him with me," she stated, putting him back where he was.
"Yeah right. Put your lovely Damon on your knees if you like," Lucas sighed.
"Is that a hint of annoyance I hear?"
"I'm joking," he said, forcing a smile.
Alexandra's mouth stayed opened a moment, her eyes locked onto Lucas' ones.
"You ain't really joking, are you?"
"Come on, I was joking."
"Nuh-uh," she shook her head. "You weren't."
"I'm tired too, that's all," he sighed, his eyes going down.
Alexandra waited for him to look back at her but he didn't.
"Wait, are you still afraid something could happen between Damon and me?"
Alexandra was stunned. Lucas' eyebrows furrowed.
"No," he denied with a frown. "Of course not."
Alexandra's eyes narrowed on him suspiciously.
"Then, what's the matter?"
"Nothing, I know you won't do anything."
"But?"
"But I can't shake off the thought that a woman can't be that close with a man who's not something more than a friend."
"What?"
By the look on Alexandra's confused face, Lucas understood too late that his explanation had made it worse.
"I can't believe you could be that intimate with a guy and have no feelings for him," he tried to explain again. Too bad. It was clearly not what he should have said.
"Lucas!" She exhaled, her eyes wide open.
Lucas rolled his eyes like she was overreacting.
"Come on, I'm sure you know it! It's not about you, babe. Platonic relationship? Really? There must be, at some point, a sexual attraction or something."
Alexandra opened her mouth to retort but Lucas held his hand in the air to stop her. He shook his head, shrugging.
"A man is always tempted by more."
Alexandra stayed speechless, her mouth open in shock.
"So, you don't trust me on this?"
"I trust you. I don't trust him."
"Damn it, Lucas, he's with Trinity! Who do you think he is!?"
"I know what a guy thinks when he's with a woman. Trust me, I'm a guy. I know what I'm talking about."
Alexandra stared at him blankly. First, his cocky attitude seemed totally inappropriate. Second, Lucas was so unfair when it came to Damon. It was painful to hear him say such horrible things about her relationship with her best friend. Damon deserved better. They deserved respect.
"Yeah, you would know that, right?" She snapped coldly, making him lost his confidence.
"No… Wait. I'm talking about other guys, not me. I don't fantasize about other girls."
"Oh, I know that," she said bitterly. "You, you just go and have a try."
"What?"
"It's not because you couldn't stop from cheating on me with your dear sister that I can't control myself. Plus, Damon respects me, and you, too much to do that."
Lucas turned red. Shame and hurt mixed with rising anger.
"I already apologized for that," he reminded her.
"I already told you there was nothing to worry about with Damon," she reminded him too.
Lucas' body was tensed, his back straight on his chair.
"I thought we were over that?"
"I'm not the one who still thinking his partner can have an affair with a friend."
"That's not what I meant," he tried to defend himself. "How can a discussion about our wedding get so off track?"
Alexandra's face softened.
"Because we're tired, that's all. Sorry, I didn't mean it," she sighed.
"You did mean it…" He argued.
"No, I didn't. I'm sorry. I shouldn't have-"
"Don't be sorry," he cut her off. "You have every right to mean it," he said trustfully. "And, you're right. I'm the one who had bad behavior in the past, not you."
"Lucas… It doesn't matter. Honestly. You know it doesn't."
"I didn't mean to hurt you either."
"It's alright. I-"
Three quick and loud knocks at the door stopped her in the middle of her sentence. She glanced at Lucas who held his hands in the air, conveying that he did not know who it was. They both stood up to reach the door.
Mark and Maddy, both beaming with excitement, were standing in the middle of the entrance.
"We're here to kidnap you," Maddy said playfully.
"Kidnap us?" Alexandra chuckled. "Just like that?"
"Yep," Mark confirmed, already stepping to Lucas. "You, you come with me."
"If you want to lose your arm keep coming closer like that," Lucas threatened him gently.
"Lucas, there's no negotiation. You gave me your agreement the day you choose me as your witness."
"Wait," Alexandra said. "Where are we going?"
"Somewhere," Mark responded lightly.
"Can we have a clue?"
"Nope. But I can tell you that we, we are going somewhere without you," Mark said gesturing to Lucas then to her.
"Without me?"
"You ain't sleeping together tonight!" Maddy stated affirmatively.
"Why not?"
"Because," Maddy said, throwing her hands in the air as if it was obvious.
"Because?" Alexandra mimicked her, emphasizing Maddy's gesture.
"Because we've decided so," Mark answered lightly before going to grab Lucas' arm. "Come on man, it's time for you to enjoy your last night as a single man!"
Lucas gave Alexandra a quick questioning look. He was mad at himself for talking about his doubts about Damon on the eve of their wedding. 'Couldn't you have shut your big fucking mouth?' He cursed to himself. Reminding her about his totally irrational jealousy, plus reminding her the bad memory of Skye's kiss, it was definitely a bad move to make on the day before she would promise herself to him 'until the end'. He clearly did not want to leave her after such conversation, but he had to. His stag party was starting now, yet he clearly had no intention to go if it meant leaving Alexandra here, angry with him.
Lucas grabbed her arm gently and pulled her with him, far enough so they would not hear their conversation.
"I'm sorry, ya know?"
"I know."
"Are you mad at me?"
She shook her head, shrugging.
"No."
Lucas lifted her chin up so their eyes would meet.
"Honestly?"
"Honestly," she replied, already feeling the corner of her mouth kicking up. She could not stay angry with him more than a minute. 'Oh damn, you're way too in love!' she told herself.
Lucas' face lightened.
"So," he said, biting the corner of his bottom lip. "You still love my perfect ass?"
The grin she was fighting with won the battle and rose up.
"You really don't deserve it!"
"I've always been the lucky one," he teased, approaching her.
"That would make me the unlucky one?" She teased back.
"Oh no, you are very lucky. Having me in your life is definitely a good thing."
She put her hand on his chest, pushing him.
"Ass hole!"
"You love me like that," he beamed before kissing her hungrily. And she didn't fight.
Maddy cleared her throat.
"Hey, we're here guys!"
Lucas chuckled against Alexandra's lips and glanced at Maddy.
"How could we forget that?"
Alexandra slapped his arm with a scolding face.
"You're gonna miss me when I'm gone," he whispered to her ear.
"Yeah right, try not to do anything stupid while you're away!"
"Stupid like...?"
"Like getting drunk, so drunk that you won't even remember that you flirted with every woman on your way and accidentally slept with plenty of them."
Lucas smiled happily. Alexandra was joking about him getting wasted somewhere with someone other than her, it could only mean that she was over their previous conversation.
"Oh... That kind of mistake! Yeah, don't worry love. If I cheat on you tonight, it'll only be for Mark's pretty face!" Then Lucas bent to her and whispered "He started it!".
"Shut up!" She shoved him.
"You're gonna miss me," he whispered again against her ear.
"I already miss you," she whispered back.
"Shall we, love?" Mark said, holding his hand out to Lucas.
Lucas smiled back to his friend and nodded, before turning back to Alexandra, his face more serious.
"We're fine, right?"
"It's okay," she said. "Go."
He kissed her lightly on the forehead and jogged to his witness.
"I think someone is getting his snurge on tonight!" Mark winked friendly to Alexandra. "Let's go hubby," he joked.
Once they were out, Maddy held a piece of fabric to Alexandra who sent her a questioning glance.
"Cover your eyes," Maddy commanded her.
"What?"
"Please?" Maddy asked with a sad puppy face.
"You're a horrible friend," she groaned, tying the fabric behind her head.
Maddy took both her hands and squeezed them.
"You'll thank me later," she murmured lightly.
Then she guided her friend out.
"Maddy," Alexandra grumbled after few minutes. "There's only one bar in town and I bet the guys are there."
"I know," Maddy giggled.
Alexandra was so sure Maddy was driving her to a party she didn't want, that she had not realized that they had not headed in the bar's direction.
"Are we there yet?" Alexandra asked when Maddy stopped.
"Almost," she said.
Maddy's tone made it obvious she was smiling, making Alexandra uncomfortable. She was struggling beside her: would she be able to lie to her friend if the surprise was awful? Yes, she had to. But what if she couldn't?
'When did you become such a wimp?' she mumbled to herself. In the past, she would have never been afraid like that. Why was she acting like this? Alexandra took a deep breath to get rid of her stress and convinced herself it was going to be fine. 'Having fun, fun and only fun', she swore to herself.
"Follow me," Maddy urged her with impatience. "Mind the steps."
"How many steps?" Alexandra asked, struggling with the first ones.
"Huh… Six," Maddy replied after having counted them.
The sound of a door opening made Alexandra realized they were in a house. Six steps were the old houses. The first ones. The bigger ones.
"I'm going to untie the fabric. Keep your eyes closed until I tell you, okay?"
Alexandra's stomach twisted. But this time, most of the reason was rising excitement.
"Okay," she grinned.
Maddy untied her and stepped away from her, beaming just a bit stressfully. She had put so much pressure on herself over her friend's wedding that she had struggled to organize her hen party. Fortunately, Skye had helped her. Maddy was not known for being a party girl.
"You can open your eyes," Maddy told her with a shaky voice.
"Surpriiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiise!", girls screamed at Alexandra when she opened her eyes. Maddy, Skye, Tasha, Trinity and Beth were there, beaming.
Alexandra smiled widely, happily surprised. Even if the room was very decorated, she noticed they were at Skye's house.
Every girl hugged her before going back to talking, drinking, even dancing. Alexandra had not noticed that there was music. She took a few seconds to look at the room and smiled again.
"Happy?" Maddy asked with a gentle smile.
"Very," she replied honestly.
"Good."
Alexandra squeezed her friend's arm, grateful, making Maddy smile even wider.
"Okay, so we have some bad news and some good news," Maddy said quickly, leading her friend into the back of the room, followed by Skye. "What do you want first?"
"The bad news?" She grimaced. "No, wait, the good news! Or the bad news? Whatever."
"Okay! So… We did some research and found out that you French people used to disguise the couples who were going to get married," Maddy started. At the sight of her friend's face, she accelerated the speed of her speech. "But, we know you better! So, don't worry, no stupid fancy dress to humiliate you! That's the good part of the news. The bad news is we didn't find any man foolish enough to risk his life doing a striptease for Lucas' fiancée. But, there are plenty of girls here ready to give you one hell of a night! We have enough food and alcohol to stay awake until dawn!"
"You're cute," Alexandra said, embracing her friend.
"I love you, that's all," Maddy replied in a shaky voice.
"You ain't cryin' are you?" Alexandra asked, her face still on Maddy's shoulder.
"No…"
"God, you're such a wimp!" Alexandra chuckled, her eyes shining too.
"Okay, okay," Maddy stated, going out of her embrace. "It's only the beginning of the party. There's plenty of time for more cuddling and crying."
"Exactly," Alexandra confirmed.
They both took a deep breath, smiling at their previous girly behavior, and walked over to the others.
"Okay girls," Skye said, driving them to a table where glasses were. "We made some new drinks! They're called trunkyleaves. I'll let you discover why we called it that on your own," she giggled. "The moonshine made too many damages!" Skye joked with a wink.
Alexandra stared at Skye while she was explaining to her what the difference was between the moonshine and the trunkyleaves, her face slowly grimacing.
"Oh! Oh sorry Alex! I didn't think! Oh no! Shit!" Maddy suddenly apologized.
"What? What?" Skye asked eagerly.
"The alcohol," Maddy whispered forcefully. "You know!"
"Oh."
Alexandra smiled at her friend and chuckled lightly.
"It's okay Maddy. I'm over it. I can spend a nice night without drinking. I can even have a drink or two without being totally wasted, you know? And anyway, what would a party be without alcohol pouring everywhere?"
Maddy gave her a thin smile, still not sure if it was fine.
"So, how much did you test this trunkyleaves?" Alexandra turned their attention back to the liquid so Maddy would stop made the 'I'm so sorry' face she was known for.
The girls started to eat and drink while chatting about everything and nothing, mostly spending the time laughing over Tasha's stories. Alexandra couldn't stop thinking the girl was a mix of Bridget Jones and Carrie Bradshaw: always getting in trouble while trying to flirt with men!
At some point, the conversation had turned to sex and love stories, and Beth had left them, pretending to be tired. Beth was already married and had a little boy, she was not very inclined to share her stories with them.
Skye had talked about Josh and how they had learnt from each other, even confessing that they both liked to discover new things about sex, making Maddy uncomfortable.
Trinity had told them about how Damon was an intense lover, twisting Alexandra's stomach lightly. She knew how intense Damon could be. Just kissing him, she had almost melted. If it had not been for Lucas' love, she would have probably allowed him to do more.
Now it was Maddy's turn to tell her love stories. And even if they all knew there was only one story to tell, they were all excited to listen to her. Maddy was always so shy and private when it came to Mark. Even Alexandra realized how little Maddy had told her about them. Of course, she knew how much Maddy loved Mark, but she knew nothing about their intimacy.
"You haven't done it with Mark yet?" Tasha suddenly shouted.
"Tasha!" Maddy scolded her with dark eyes. "There's no need to scream it!"
Alexandra looked at her friend, surprised.
"Hang on, I thought you did it! You said you did it, right?"
"No... I... I said we did things and you understood we did it... So I let you believe we did it because it was easier..." Maddy confessed, ashamed.
"You didn't have to lie to me," Alexandra said truthfully.
"I know..."
"You've got nothing to prove," Skye intervened, sending a scolding glare to Tasha.
"I know!" Maddy repeated, annoyed this time.
"What are you waiting for exactly?" Tasha grimaced, clearly shocked by this revelation.
"We'll do it. Soon... We just... We want to do it the right way, okay? We want to be married first."
"You're such an old lady for such a young body! For God's sake, marry him! Right now!" Tasha exclaimed. "I don't even know how you did it, waiting so long doing nothing. Mark's hot."
Maddy blushed at her comment.
"We do things, okay? It's... really pleasurable and exciting..." Maddy got redder than before.
"And it's hard to stop when it gets too… But we stop. Because we'll do it at the right time," Maddy argued. "When this war is over. When everything is better. There's no rush. We don't wanna marry each other because we want to have sex. Nor because we're afraid to die somehow. It's a really big thing to marry someone."
Her answer made them all silent, and Maddy noticed Skye glancing at Alexandra who was absentmindedly staring down.
"No offense, Alex. I know it's not why you're doing it guys. You're both older than me. I have time."
A smile broke Alexandra's face.
"Right. Like I'm that old!"
"You're still older than me," she pointed out.
"Nice," Alexandra grimaced to her friend.
"Okay, so, let's talk about sex. Real sex," Tasha said, pressing on the word 'real' while she was looking at Maddy. "How is it? With Lucas? I mean, I always wanted to know. He must be rough and hot," Tasha suddenly asked, totally excited.
"Oh come on, we don't wanna know," Skye frowned.
"We ain't all his sister," Tasha reminded her.
"Why don't you tell us how it is with Max, huh?" Skye insisted, clearly not interested in Lucas' skills.
"Because no one cares," Tasha replied as if it were evidence. "So? Alex? We're listening. Don't spare us the details."
"You're drunk," Alexandra chuckled, beaming widely.
"So what? Give us something! You're going to marry him. At least tell us he's worth it!"
"You would be surprised to know how gentle Lucas can be," Alexandra said, pride and love evident in her voice. "When it comes to love, Lucas is just tender and caring. His gestures, his moves… He knows what to do. And he knows how to… He is… skilled," Alexandra smiled cheekily and blushed. Lucas was such a good lover. They were all staring at her, holding their breath, waiting for more information. "Of course, he can be bestial when he wants it rough," she giggled.
"I knew it!" Tasha laughed. "I knew it. Oh damn it, I knew he was that kind of guy. I should have tried to get him."
"Tasha! Do you have eyes on my man? Should I be worried?" Alexandra grinned.
"Come on, we are all well aware that Lucas has eyes for you and no one else," Tasha shrugged. "And that is from the beginning," she added. "So anyway, he would have never looked at me the way he looks at you."
Alexandra glanced at the others to see they were as perplexed as her. Tasha seemed suddenly very sad.
"Max looks at you with love," Skye reminded her.
Tasha's face got somber and the girls tried to catch her eyes.
"You're still with Max, huh?"
"No… I dumped him yesterday."
"Oh, why did you do that?" Skye asked bluntly. "He was so in love with you!"
"That's the point. I don't."
"You gave him no chance," Skye groaned.
"I know it, okay!"
"We had difficulties with Josh, but we faced it."
"Oh, come on. It took you ages to come back to each other and still you're not really satisfied."
"I am!" Skye argued, vexed.
"What about this guy… Huh… You know, the guy that sells fish at the market," Maddy thought aloud, changing the subject.
"Ron…" Tasha said with greed. "He's dating Cassandra…"
"Oh," Maddy sighed disappointedly. "And… Tim? The teacher's assistant. He's cute."
"Oh yeah, he is," Tasha agreed with, once again, greedy eyes.
"Oh God," Alexandra chuckled. "You love every man in this colony!"
"No! I just know how to appreciate a good looking man when I see one!"
They all burst out laughing, enjoying this light conversation about men. Time seemed to pass really fast after that and Alexandra enjoyed every minute of it. Around 2 in the morning, Alexandra, Trinity, Skye, Tasha, and Maddy were lying in the grass, enjoying the warm night staring at the stars. They all had a bottle of trunkyleaves in their hands, sipping it in silence. Alexandra had clearly forgotten her will to keep herself sober tonight, but she did not care anymore. It was her night and she wanted to enjoy every bit of it.
"I wonder what they're doing..." Alexandra thought aloud.
"Drinking, probably," Skye said.
"Telling guy jokes," Trinity guessed.
"They must have more," Tasha said. "I bet they have girls."
"What?" Both Skye and Alexandra choked.
"No way," Trinity eventually said once the surprise was gone. "Damon would have told me."
"There are girls ready to do it," Tasha continued while the girls stared at her, bewildered. "I might be able to do it if I wanted to."
"Yeah, like your dad would allow you to," Alexandra chuckled. "This is definitely the kind of career your father would looove for his daughter!"
They all laughed until Alexandra sat quickly, dizziness catching her, making her feel how drunk she was.
"Maddy, why ain't you worried about strippers at the bar?" She questioned bluntly.
The three other girls sat as fast as they could - yet slowly enough so the world would not spin before their eyes, to look at their too silent friend.
"I bet there is no girl," she smiled, embarrassed.
"Oh God, there are," Tasha stated, giggling. "I knew it!"
"Maddy?" Alexandra asked, her mouth agape.
"Mark told me they had thought about it..."
The four girls exhaled loudly, exaggerating their surprise.
"But!" Maddy held her hands in the air. "He said they had dropped the idea. Too complicated."
"I can't believe Mark told you that whereas Damon said it was secret. Men stuff he said. But we're both witnesses, I should know what he knows," Skye groaned.
"I can understand why he didn't say anything to you! But me? I'm his girlfriend! He's gonna get an earful from me when he's home tomorrow!" Trinity growled, making the others laughed.
"Poor Damon, mama is going to punish him," Tasha giggled.
They all stayed there for an hour before realizing that the air was cooler than they had thought at the beginning. They went in to go to bed, hugging each other one last time. Alexandra thanked them all again before each girl found a place to sleep.
The house slowly got silent and the minute Alexandra was sure they had all fallen asleep, she stood up discreetly and walked out. She wanted to know if some strippers were at the bar. She was so light headed, and clearly drunk, that she was laughing aloud at her own plan to go and spy on the guys.
She shut the door as slowly as possible and turned to the steps only to cry out when her body came in contact with something.
"It's okay! It's just me," she heard Lucas laugh.
"Fuck! You scared me!" She exhaled, her hand over her chest.
"What are you doing outside so late?"
"I escaped from my cell," she chuckled childishly, a big animated smile over her face. "What are you doing outside?"
"Looking for you," he smirked.
"Me too!"
Alexandra started laughing and seemed unable to stop.
"You're drunk?"
"Completely," she laughed louder. "How did you get rid of Mark?"
"I made him drink a lot. What about you? Where's Maddy?"
"Snoring in a bed with Skye! She doesn't handle alcohol very well either," she beamed proudly, restraining another cackle to get out of her mouth. She had completely forgotten her original plan.
"Naughty you," Lucas grinned teasingly, his head bending in her direction.
Alexandra put her arms around his neck, bringing him closer.
"Yes, I am naughty, Doctor Taylor," she started cheekily. "I guess I need to be punished for that."
Lucas looked at her, already enjoying the game.
"Yes, definitely".
A light turned on inside and Alexandra pushed Lucas away from the door, almost making them fall down.
"Shhh!" She said, putting her hand over his mouth. "There's someone up inside!"
Lucas was laughing in silence. He spotted a rhino parked behind the unit and took her hand.
"Come on!"
They both hid in the car. Lucas behind the steering wheel while Alexandra stayed on the passenger seat, staring through the window to see if someone had seen them. Lucas smirked, witnessing her with her knees on the seat, her hands and face on the window and above all, her butt facing him. And without warning, Lucas grabbed her hips and pulled her against him. Alexandra let a shriek escape before starting chortling again.
"You're mad," Lucas chuckled.
"Mad about youuuuuuuu," she sniggered.
Lucas' grin widened and he pulled her even closer, starting to devour her greedily with hot kisses. Their bodies began to move in symbiosis, eliciting moans from both of them. Completely incapable of controlling their frenetic hug, Alexandra's bottom pressed the klaxon and a sudden sharp sound got out.
"Oh oh oh shit," she sneered, lifting her head up to look around to see if this time someone had spotted them.
But it was like Lucas had heard nothing. When her lips had left his, he had continued his burning path of kisses to her throat. A deep sight freed itself from Alexandra's mouth when his mouth reached her breast. His hands were already undoing her bra.
"It's too small," Alexandra stopped him. "We're not that flexible!"
"Try me," he smirked arrogantly, his hands already grabbing her thighs and holding them to each side so he could come against her.
They stared at each other, eyes half shut, their chest going up and down quickly, their mouths slightly open. His amazing intense green eyes stuck on hers, she could feel the warmth of his body radiate to hers, she felt suddenly overexcited. Alexandra smiled stupidly at him, delighted by what Lucas was offering her. In a second, her arms were in the air and her shirt disappeared somewhere in the vehicle.
