Chapter 5
~One Month Later~
A low groan escaped his lips as Mark rolled over in bed, sticking his head underneath his pillow, and tried to block out the pounding on the front door. Not even knowing who it could be at nine o'clock in the fucking morning! He was naturally a night person and had difficulty getting up and going first thing in the morning. "WHAT THE FUCK?" He growled when the knocking only got louder, tossing back the covers.
Chalice sighed heavily as she was outside, planting roses in the garden, all smiles, and couldn't believe what a gorgeous day it was. Her eyes matched the color of the sky that day as she slowly wiped the dirt from her hands, more at peace. It'd been a month since the incident with Mark and they were more in love than ever. It sickened her brother, but she didn't care. She slowly stepped inside the house and into the kitchen, seeing Mark stomping down the stairs, and washed her hands, knowing he'd get the door.
"MARKY!" Serena cried as soon as Mark opened the door, tossing her arms around him. Her obviously dyed platinum blonde hair bouncing with her every movement. "Gawd baby, I've missed you SOOOO much!"
Mark recoiled, trying to pry her off of him, instantly waking up fully. "What the HELL are you doing here?" He demanded, finally shoving her away, not believing the audacity of this bitch.
"I've missed you." She pouted, jutting out her lower lip. "I want you back, baby."
"Mark?" Chalice's sweet voice echoed from the kitchen as she finished washing her hands, wearing a pair of jeans with an Austin t-shirt, and walked out into the living room, stopping dead in her tracks. Before her stood possibly the most fake bottled blonde bimbo she'd ever laid her eyes on and actually had to raise an eyebrow. "Who is that?" She softly asked, crossing her arms in front of her chest.
Serena stared at Chalice, her own blue eyes, which were contacts because she hated the dull brown she'd been born with, narrowed. "Who is THAT? Please Marky, tell me you DID NOT pick up with some two bit piece of trailer trash!"
Groaning, Mark was tempted to strangle this bitch's neck and finally managed to pry her arms off of him. "This, Chalice, is the ring rat whore Steve and I told you about." He answered, glaring down at his ex-fiancée, and couldn't believe he'd actually wanted to marry her.
"You mean the bitch that broke MY brother's heart?" She spat hatefully, her blue eyes that mirror Steve's inflaming, and narrowed them to dangerous, deadly slits. She took a step towards the front door, clenching and unclenching her fists at her sides, wanting to rip this whore a new asshole for what she did and caused. "You have TWO seconds to get the fuck off of OUR property before I open up a can of whoop ass on your scrawny, bleach blonde, silicone filled ASS!"
"Broke your brother's heart?" Serena echoed, arching a blonde eyebrow, looking quite amused. "No, sweet pea, it wasn't your brother's heart I broke, it was Mark's." She corrected her, no remorse whatsoever dripping in her voice, and trailed a bright pink talon down his chest, smirking at him wickedly. "You mean you didn't tell her, hmmm? Now that wasn't nice."
"Serena…" Mark growled threateningly, knowing exactly what she was about to say.
"Mark and I were engaged, sweet pea." She announced smugly, spotting the ring glistening on Chalice's finger. "Looks like you're getting MY sloppy seconds."
"What?" She whispered out, her big blue eyes widening in shock, and swallowed past the lump that had formed in her throat. "You were…engaged to her while she was…Oh my god…" Her voice trailed off as she suddenly felt her entire body tense, her fists clenched at her sides, and couldn't believe what she'd just heard. She didn't say a single word to Mark as she slipped the ring from her finger and threw it at Serena. "You can have him back. I'm not his sloppy seconds. Not anymore." She stated hatefully and stormed out of the house, got in her car that'd just been repaired, and peeled out of the driveway. Tears were already pouring down her cheeks as her heart shattered in her chest.
"Well, now THAT was fun!" Serena giggled cruelly as she licked her upper lip. "Mark, she isn't right for you, baby. You know no woman, but me is ever going to REALLY understand you."
Wrapping a hand around her throat out of nowhere, Mark lifted her off the ground so she was eye level with him, and growled out menacingly, green eyes spitting venom, "You got two seconds to get the fuck out of here, Serena before I change my policy and become a woman beater!!" He then tossed her back, hard enough to knock the wind from her body, and slammed the front door shut behind him so hard, the windows rattled and shook.
Chalice couldn't believe how stupid she'd been to actually trust a man like Mark. After two years of being with him, loving him, trusting him, giving him her whole heart and soul, he had to betray her like this. He had to keep something THIS important from her!! Chalice finally pulled into her brother's driveway, screeching her tires, and got out of the car, slamming the door shut behind her. She walked up to his front door and didn't even have to knock. When he answered, her fist plowed forward, right into his nose as she screamed, "ARE YOU HAPPY NOW, STEVE?! ARE YOU FUCKING HAPPY NOW THAT YOU OFFICIALLY BROKE MY HEART?!"
Stumbling back, Steve's hands flew to his blood gushing nose and shouted back at her, "WHAT THE HELL WAS THAT FER? WHAT THE HELL ARE YA TALKIN' BOUT, CHALICE WILLIAMS?!" He reached out to drag her inside, slamming the door behind him, pissed off beyond belief now. "You had best explain right quick before I punch YOU!"
"Don't fuckin' even try it or I'll knock you flat on your fuckin' ass, Williams!" She snarled back at him, her eyes filled with both pain and hurt, and couldn't take it anymore as she started pacing back and forth in front of him. "How long did you know about them, Steve huh? How long did that bastard fuck her? How long were they ENGAGED before you found out?" She was so livid right now, all she saw was red, and didn't even feel the pain flowing through her hand from socking her brother in his nose as a greeting.
Steve's eyes widened, instantly knowing who she meant. He groaned, holding up a finger for her to give him a minute, before going to get a wet washcloth, pressing it against his nose. "I didn't know bout'em until I found her foolin' around with Mark. Just like he didn't know bout her and I till then. Serena was playin' with us both, darlin'. They were engaged for…a month I think. Mark kept it under wraps mostly, at her insistence." He explained, hoping the blood stopped gushing out of his nose soon, and couldn't believe his sister actually punched him. She had a nice right hook, he had to admit that much.
"Under wraps?" She laughed incredulously back at her brother and shook her head, still not believing this was happening. She walked over and sunk down on the couch, throwing her head in her hands, and gripped her hair tightly. "We're done. She's at his house right now and I told her I'm not going to be his sloppy seconds anymore. I'm fucking finished with him. I can't believe I was stupid enough to actually believe that man could have a heart and a damned conscience." The tears were already pouring down her face freely as she kept her head lowered, shaking it back and forth sadly.
"Challie, what are ya talkin' bout, darlin'? Mark LOVES ya and if ya don't believe that then yer a damn fool!" Steve said sternly, staring down at her, not liking to see her cry, but not wanting her to throw away her shot with a man who truly loved her either. "Mark and I might act like we don't like each other, but when it comes right down to it, we're best friends. Are ya angry with him for not tellin' ya?"
"YOU DAMN RIGHT I AM!" She snapped, standing up from the couch, and glared back at her brother spitefully. "You told me he was evil and that he didn't have a heart. YOU DID! I didn't listen to you, but now that the bitch is back in the picture, everything can get back to normal. I will NEVER forgive him for keeping something THIS important away from me! You're lucky you're my brother and I love you unconditionally or else I'd hate you too for not telling me about it sooner!" Chalice was beside herself as she leaned against the wall and slowly slid down it, burying her face in her knees, and started sobbing violently. "How could I have been so stupid?" She whispered out heartbrokenly, feeling her heart shatter repeatedly.
Steve ran a hand over his head, sighing heavily. He pulled the cloth away, grateful when he found his nose had stopped bleeding, and tossed the rag aside before staring at her. "Did ya even give him the chance to explain, Chalice or did ya just walk out on him?" He asked, ignoring everything else she'd said.
"She told me I was his sloppy seconds after informing me that they'd been engaged prior. He was fucking engaged to that whore while she was fucking you." Chalice felt sick to her stomach, but didn't make a move yet. She just sat there, continuously crying, and knew her and Mark were over. "Fate was never good to us." She whispered, looking up into her brother's eyes, and shook her head at the disappointment that shined back in his. "Fuck it, I'm leaving." She announced and stood up, dusting her jeans and shirt off. "I'm going back to North Carolina, far away from both of you." She then started for the front door, wanting to get out of the same state both her brother and Mark were in at the moment.
Steve shot forward, wrapping an arm around her waist, and blocked the punch she aimed for his face, not about to be decked again. "Serena was fuckin' us both and neither of us knew it!" He said harshly, knowing Chalice wasn't going to listen to him, but determined to make the effort. "Every time somethin' has been thrown at you and Mark, you've overcome it. Now yer goin' to walk away because a TRAMP comes walkin' in? What are ya afraid of, Chalice?" He knew there was more to the story, more to what she was feeling, and wanted her to open up to him. If she did that, maybe Steve could help her through it instead of allowing her to run out on the best thing that ever happened to her.
"He loved her once and he'll love her again, Steve!! I'm not about to get my heart broken again and watch him walk away from me!!" She cried out, fighting him the entire way, and finally sunk down on the floor on her knees, his arm still wrapped around her waist. "I can't take it. I love him so much and now she's back. She said she wanted him back, Steve." She took a few deep breaths, coughing out, and bent over further, trying to breathe.
"And just what the Hell makes ya think fer one goddamned second Mark is goin' to get back with that bitch? You say ya love him, Challie, but I find that hard to believe. Ya should know him better than this. That man would walk through Hell fer ya! If ya loved him, you'd of given him a chance to explain before walkin' away from him!" Steve shouted back at her, not caring if he was hurting her or not. This was his best friend she was running out on all because of a fling he had in the past with a tramp that he did. It wasn't anyone's fault, but Serena's and Steve wanted to beat the shit out of her for even coming back and causing trouble.
"And if you loved me as much as you say you do, you wouldn't be taking his side and you would've told me from the get go that they were engaged." She shot back in a cold voice, ripping her body from his arm, and shakily stood up to her feet, raking a hand through her hair. "Was it worth it, Steve? Tell me, was it REALLY worth keeping that factor from me?" She questioned and didn't give him the time to answer before walking out of his front door, slamming it behind her harshly as the windows rattled. She got in her car and revved it up before peeling down the road, headed for the airport.
Steve shook his head, watching her pull out of the drive like the hounds of Hell were after her. He sighed, dropping down on the couch, and buried his head in his hands, knowing deep down, his sister was right. They should've told her from the beginning that Mark was engaged to Serena, but Mark pleaded with Steve that day in his hotel room not to say anything. He should've known better, especially when it came to his sister, and how she'd react to this piece of news. For Christ sakes, the woman was getting married to his best friend in a few short months and NOW she finds out, after two years, that Mark was engaged prior to the same woman who was sleeping with both him and Mark! Sighing heavily, Steve reached over to pick up the phone, wearily punching in a number, and waited for the recipient to answer.
Chalice could feel the tears streaming down her cheeks, but she didn't care anymore. Her heart was shattered and there was no mending it, not after this. That bitch Serena had come into the picture and made all of her doubts about Mark come back full force. She couldn't believe the man she loved, who claimed loved her in return, would keep something like this from her. It didn't make any sense to her. Why would her brother and Mark deliberately keep her in the dark about Mark being engaged to the bitch if it was just their past? Maybe Chalice was being unreasonable. Maybe she was being selfish, but at this point, she was looking out for herself for once in her life.
Mark hung up after a twenty minute conversation and an hour bitch fest with Steve, having to sit through a rant about Serena. Hearing about what a dick he was for not telling Chalice sooner. Mark had pointed out that Steve hadn't mentioned it either and the conversation sort of died. Steve had mentioned something about North Carolina and that was all Mark needed to know. He immediately called a friend of his who was a private investigator and had him track down the airport, airline and what city Chalice was headed to. He sighed when the guy came up short and decided he had to go visit Steve to get the directions. Mark had one goal and one goal only and that was to find Chalice and win her back, no matter the costs.