Laws of Motion – Book 3
Written by: Ms. Maggs/Edited by: KJT
Chapter 45
Wednesday – November 23, 2005
City Gym
5:07 am
"Hoj," Tony was excited to reveal his surprise, "this is my way of saying thanks to you for all you've done to make Becks and me feel at home. You're now a member of the most popular cop gym in town." With a smile, he presented a membership card. "Becca's doing something special for Tawny, and we're doing something nice for your father too."
"Thanks, man, this is great, but you really didn't have to do anything special, we were happy to help you guys out." Other than an all expenses paid trip to hang out with his mother, Greg couldn't imagine receiving a more uncomfortable gift than membership at a gym full of people who had been scaring the crap out of him for years. "This is so cool, really…I'm psyched." Since Tony worked out at the place five days a week, it wasn't like he couldn't use it either. "I guess I'll see you here all the time, huh?."
"Definitely." Turning Greg to face the huge room full of jocks and equipment, Tony lectured, "This is a chance to improve your stamina and strength, and I want you to take it seriously. The geek thing is cute for Tawny, and I'm not saying there's anything wrong with you personally, but now that you're out of the lab, you need to toughen up to protect yourself. That's not a judgment, it's a fact. This town is getting scarier by the day, my friend, and you need to be faster and stronger. Training with Irving is a great start, but one session a week isn't enough. You need to take the routines he's giving you and do them here at least three or four times a week."
"I hear what you're saying, man. I do." Greg nodded as he unzipped his jacket. "I'm married with kids on the way. I owe it to my family to finally get serious about this, and I'm gonna do it this time."
"Good. That's really good." Smiling, Tony dropped a hand on his buddy's shoulder. "That's a great attitude. And you know, this is also a fantastic opportunity to develop a rapport with the cops you have to work with in the field. Now, I'll be honest, between your ridiculous hair, stupid shoes and whacked out clothes, most of these guys think you're a joke, but I've been laying some groundwork, and once they get to know you on a personal level, there's a good chance they'll start to like you." Then he saw the candy-ass tee Greg was wearing underneath the sweatshirt he had just unzipped. "Jesus Christ, is that a dancing strawberry Pop Tart?"
That's when Greg realized he grabbed the wrong shirt. "Doh! Oh man, I'm really sorry. I got dressed in the dark so I wouldn't wake up Tawny." He covered his chest like a chaste girl protecting her exposed breasts. "I promise to burn it when we get home."
"Jake!" Tony pointed to the wall of City Gym attire. "Can you add a shirt to my tab, thanks. Not a tank."
"What's wrong with the one you've got on?"
"It's not for me, it's for…"
"Holy shit. Is that a dancing strawberry Pop Tart?" The body builder stifled his laughter for his friend's sake and tossed his oddest gym member a t-shirt. "Here you go."
Greg changed as quickly as possible, to minimize the exposure of his imperfect body.
The Willows/Brown Home
7:04 am
Standing in front of her full length mirror, Lindsay checked her profile. "This stupid uniform does nothing for me. You can't see my waist, my chest looks flat, my butt sticks out, I hate it."
"Yo, Linds!" Warrick knocked on the door. "Your Mom just called. She's swamped at work, so I'm gonna have to take her place chaperoning your Student Government school field trip today. Tell me where we're goin', so I know what to wear."
"The ballet," Lindsay laughed, knowing it would be his worst nightmare.
"Your mother's gonna pay for makin' me do this one."
After letting him squirm and complain for a minute, she told the truth. "We're going to The County Courthouse to see a courtroom and we get to meet a judge and the District Attorney."
ADA Caroline Blake's Office
8:36 am
"Wow, this looks great now that everything's set up." Nick stepped inside, thoroughly impressed by the windowed office. "You really are movin' up in the world, Sweetheart."
Beaming, Carrie threw her arms around his neck. "Thank you for supporting this endeavor…and me."
Hugging her tight, Nick chuckled, "Thank you for bein' okay with marryin' down."
"Stop." She playfully pushed him away. "What time are you due in court?"
"Nine on the bench outside, probably nine-thirty on the stand. Who knows how long I'll be up there, I'm guessin' a good part of the day."
"Let's go." She grabbed her wallet. "You'll need coffee."
LVPD Crime Lab
9:46 am
"I need some more java." Greg peeled off his gloves and asked Sara, "What about you little mama? Caffeine free tea or…uh oh, here comes Judy."
After a quick wave, Judy announced, "A 419 with suspicious circs at Golden Acres just came in and your boss isn't answering. Nick's secretary said he's testifying in court today."
"I think that was an excuse to steal a little time with ADA Blake," Greg teased.
"Judy, it's crossover day and we're backup shift." The last thing Sara needed was a new case to deal with when the backlog was already sucking the life out of her.
"I know, but Catherine and her team are tapped with a murder-suicide in Henderson and an assault with a frozen turkey in a grocery store in Boulder City." Judy heaved a sigh, "Holidays bring out the crazy in people. If you don't believe me, stop by my house tomorrow and spend time with my mom. Sorry, guys…until Sofia gets back from Pahrump, you're the only ones left to handle this call."
"Dammit! No one was supposed to die today!" Sara ripped off her gloves. "Gil leaves town and all hell breaks loose here. We're supposed to be off at noon, ugh, I'm never going to get my grocery shopping done."
"You haven't shopped yet?" Judy said with detectable horror. "You mean for the extras, right? You have turkey already, don't you?"
"No, because ever since Gil left town, people are dropping like flies." Sara tossed her gloves in the trash.
"How are you going to defrost your bird?" Greg asked while washing his hands. "Mine's been in the fridge thawing for days."
"Duh…they sell them unfrozen, genius." Sara fished her keys from her jacket. "I'm driving. Golden Acres is a retirement home. Hopefully the suspicious circs are just a misunderstanding and the vic really died of natural causes. That way we'll be done quickly and I can get to the store by two at the latest."
Handing over the 419 information, Judy didn't have the heart to tell Sara the guy had gone threw a plate glass window, or that unfrozen turkeys would be long gone by that afternoon. "If I don't see you before I leave for the day, have a Happy Thanksgiving."
Drew's House Where Marta Was Preparing to Host Her First Thanksgiving Dinner, That She Was Certain Would Go Off Without a Hitch and Make Her Parents See That Drew Was a Wonderful, Loving Man, not a Vile Pig Only Using Her as His Sex Slave When She Wasn't Busy Tending to His Three Innocent Children
9:57 am
"Can I help you give the turkey a bath, Nanny Marta?" Cassie asked while pushing her step stool over to the sink.
"You sure can." Marta handed over the water sprayer. "Not too hard, we don't want the water flying everywhere."
"He sure is big."
"He has a twin brother in the fridge too, because there will be twenty of us."
"Good thing we have two big ovens to cook 'em up."
"Yep." Just like she had done every day, Marta reminded the little girl of their plan. "Now remember, when my Mommy and Daddy get here later, you're not going to tell them that I'm kissing and dancing with your Daddy. I want them to get to see us all together and have a little bit of time to get to know your Daddy before I tell them tomorrow morning."
"Girl Scout Honor." The new Daisy Scout made the traditional integrity pledge symbol with her fingers. "I promise to lie real good."
"Thank you, Honey." Marta gently patted her back. "Lying is bad, but this is just a teeny tiny fib for a good reason."
County Courthouse Cafeteria
11:28 am
"Excuse me, Mrs. Plesson," Lindsay whispered in her teacher's ear. "I saw a restroom down the hall, may I be excused for a moment?" Because Colin keeps smiling at me and Callie said that maybe he'll follow me out of the room if I leave. My Dad was assigned to grab the lunch cooler on the school bus, so he wont' catch me! "I wouldn't ask, but it's that time of the month and…um…this is so embarrassing, uh…"
"I understand, Dear. Don't worry, we're scheduled to be here eating lunch until noon, so there's plenty of time."
"Thank you." With a gleam in her eye, Lindsay hurried out of the room, wondering if Colin would follow her.
"Psst!" Colin briskly walked down the hall to catch up to the girl he couldn't keep his eyes off all morning. "Wait up!"
"This is the most boring field trip ever!" Lindsay announced when her crush showed up at her side. "I can't believe my parents have to come here all the time."
"I know! Brian had to elbow me twice when we were in the courtroom listening to that ancient judge, because I kept snoozing." Spotting a row of vending machines, he asked, "Want some candy? I've got change."
"Yeah, maybe some chocolate will help us stay awake."
Hitching a ride on Cloud 9, Lindsay floated to the snack machine with the eighth grader rocking her world with his smile.
"What's your favorite?" Colin asked, hoping it was in there.
"Snickers."
"Hey, me too."
"Wanna split that King Size bar with me?"
"Sounds good." With shaky hands, Colin dropped the coins in the slot. "Oh…"
"I'll get it." Lindsay darted off after the rolling quarter. "It went around the corner here, hold on. Ooh, it's like a secret hiding spot back here."
"Really?" Colin left the vending machine to join Lindsay in the alcove. "Cool."
Glancing up into the boy's sparkling blue eyes, she dreamily replied, "Yeah."
"I um…" His proximity seemed to slow down her brain. "I think…um, there used to be other machines here and they um…probably moved them."
Gulping down his nerves, Colin said, "You know how the 7th grade had a dance last weekend? Well…um…8th grade has a dance next month, in two weeks actually…a Christmas one, actually and…I um..."
"You…." She crossed her fingers and toes hoping for an invitation.
"You're a really good dancer, so I was thinking it would be fun if we could dance together again, and now there's this dance and…" Losing himself in her doe eyes, he finally popped the question. "Wanna go to the dance with me?"
"Yes!" Lindsay was too thrilled to possibly play it cool. "Definitely. Yes. Absolutely."
America West Flight 181
1:10 pm
"No way. No. Not gonna happen." Tony's laughter filled the near-empty first class cabin, "I love you, Becks, but no freakin' way. I'd rather be covered with honey and tied to an anthill. No."
Becca had been anxiously waiting to share the exciting plan on the one hour flight to Phoenix. "Come on! It's a great idea!"
"It is," he wholeheartedly agreed. "And I wish you and Drew the best of luck raising a ton of money for BPAC. I'm more than willing to do anything behind the scenes to help and I promise to be a very enthusiastic audience member, but there's no way in hell I'm modeling at some charity fashion show."
"But how can we have a charity fashion show with LVPD's finest, without their finest detective?" Pouting her lip, she begged, "Pleeeeease. The Sheriff's office loved the idea when Drew pitched it. They think it's great PR."
"Wonderful." He downed his first drink. "I'm sure Hoj will be more than happy to strut like a peacock for you, but it's not my cup of tea."
Seeing the Flight Attendant, Becca pointed to her man and asked the woman, "We're going to have a charity fashion show with members of the service community in their work clothes, including the Vegas Police Department. My husband here is a detective and I want him to do it. Don't you think he would look great walking the runway with the models? He's dressed casual right now, but trust me, he rocks a suit."
"Forgive my wife," Tony commented while dying of embarrassment. "When she latches onto an idea, she has a hard time not sharing it with everyone."
"I think she's right," Melinda winked. "I bet you do rock a suit, and you should do it if it's for a good cause."
"I think you should do it too," Derek Swain, a thirty nine year old personal shopper and the only other first class passenger on the one hour hop to Phoenix, weighed in. "It's a fabulous idea. I know I'd buy a ticket to see men in blue tearing up a catwalk. Will there be firemen?"
Becca cringed, knowing that a flamboyant gay man's vote wasn't going to help convince her homophobic husband that he should strut his stuff for all to see.
"And that would be why the answer is an emphatic no," Tony mumbled.
"Definitely firemen," Becca replied over her husband's churning stomach acid. "Picture this…smoke coming up from the runway and five of Vegas's hottest firemen come out in full gear sans face masks so we can see their strong jaws and smoldering eyes."
"Oooh, I love it already!"
Hearing the gay guy salivate, Tony buried his head in a magazine while Becca leaned over him, sharing her idea.
"The men take their positions, then five female models stomp out in sexy fire engine red gowns. They circle the guys as the smoke intensifies, whoooooshing their dresses and their bodies! They become the flames! And then suddenly, the smoke is sucked away and the models drop to the feet of the firemen…posing…extinguished, while the men stand there…posing…strong. How hot is that?!"
For different reasons, Tony and Derek both took a moment to savor the fantasy and then simultaneously flagged the flight attendant to request a drink.
Golden Acres Retirement Village – Dickenson Residence
1:17 pm
"Would you like another glass of lemonade, Mr. Sanders?" Winnie Gladstone, the neighbor of the deceased, walked up to the crime tape with an olive green plastic pitcher in hand. "I made a fresh batch."
"Thanks, Mrs. G," Greg answered with a smile. "But if I drink anymore of your lemonade, I'll burst."
"I'll go get some more cookies then." Happy to have company, she smiled at the young man, "Did I tell you how much you remind me of my grandson?"
"Yes, ma'am." About a hundred times over the last three hours. "Johnny, he's twenty two."
"I wish Johnny was coming home for Thanksgiving," Winnie lamented as her eyes welled. "He's in Iraq serving his country. Did I tell you that?"
"Wow, no, you didn't tell me that." Greg decided to pretend she hadn't even though she'd shared every detail of the boy's military career twice. "Is he in the Army or the Marines?"
"Marines, this is his second tour of duty." The proud grandma headed for her house. "I'll get the cookies and tell you all about it."
"I'll be here looking forward to both, Mrs. G."
While tediously picking up shards of glass, suddenly Sara's pursed lips slid into a smile. "Aww, Greg, you really are a very sweet boy."
County Courthouse
1:29 pm
"He's sooooooo sweet." Lindsay waxed on about Colin as she and Callie trudged down the hallway. Although she was happy the field trip from hell was over, it also meant that her time with Colin was coming to a close. "And there's no school Thursday or Friday! Stupid Thanksgiving holiday." Her eyes rolled. "After what the pilgrims did to the poor defenseless Indians, we shouldn't be celebrating!"
"Ooh, Colin's coming right at you."
"Hey, Lindsay," the anxious teen whispered, "your father is heading to the bus with the lunch cooler. Want another Snickers? The vending machines are right down that hall, remember?"
"Sure!" Without hesitation, she skipped off with him and when they reached the vending machine, she couldn't believe he took her hand.
"Over here…in the secret place."
"Okay." Her pulse racing, she wrapped her fingers around his warm hand.
"I won't get to see you until Monday, so I just wanted to say…Happy Thanksgiving, and…I'll miss seeing you."
She was sure the butterflies in her stomach were strong enough to carry her away. "I'll miss seeing you too."
After a nervous glance over his shoulder, Colin dove in for a kiss.
Drew's House
1:33 pm
"I'm home!" Drew tossed his briefcase on one of the foyer chairs. "Who's got a hug or a kiss for me?!"
"Daddy!" Cassie raced for the front door. "Me!" She jumped into his open arms and whispered, "Marta can't kiss you, remember? Her Mommy and Daddy are here."
"Already?!" His eyes raced to his watch. "I didn't expect to see them already."
"No, we're just practicing the secret."
County Courthouse
1:33 pm
"A secret makeout spot? At the courthouse?" Carrie burst out laughing as Nick guided her down the vending machine hallway. The plan was to share a Take 5 bar before parting ways. "There is not."
"Trust me, Darlin', I've used it on several occasions."
"That part I find easy to believe," she groaned in a whisper. "Ni…" Before she knew what happened, his hand was over her mouth and he had her flattened against the wall with him.
In Carrie's ear, Nick shared, "Lindsay Willows is kissing a boy in the spot." They had seen her and Warrick earlier when they were walking out of a courtroom.
"No, it can't be. She likes Sean."
"Peek."
Carrie inched her head around the wall until she clearly saw Lindsay and a boy engaged in a frenetic kiss. "Oh no. Poor Sean," she whispered to Nick while her heart broke for her geeky nephew. "From the looks of it, he's a big, cute jock."
"Listen." Nick put a finger up to his lips.
I'll go shopping for a new dress on Friday
Why can't you wear the one you wore to the 7th grade dance? It was hot…like that kiss we just shared.
You mean like this?
After dragging Nick down the hall, Carrie said, "I can't believe she went to the dance with another boy when poor Sean was at the ER."
"I can't believe little Lindsay Willows is givin' hot kisses in the same spot her mother has shoved her tongue down guys' throats over the years. That's just…"
"It's so wrong! He was hurt and suffering, that's why he didn't take her. He didn't have a choice!" Carrie huffed and slammed the elevator button. "Ugh, did you hear them?"
The teens reminded Nick of him and Barbie Watson stealing kisses behind her Daddy's tool shed on hot summer afternoons. "Yeah," he nostalgically sighed.
Carrie shivered with disgust, "They sounded like animals."
Albertson's Grocery Store
2:44 pm
"This place is a zoo." Sara's eyes took in the chaos…long checkout lines, dueling shopping carts, people jockeying for position in the produce section. "Turkey first." Now that she had been craving and eating poultry for a couple of months, she was actually looking forward to making her first traditional Thanksgiving dinner. "Excuse me." She flagged down a worker. "Where are the non frozen turkeys?"
"Are you kidding?" Mary, the forty-six year old meat manager, laughed from her belly. "It's the afternoon before Thanksgiving. They're gone, lady. By noon today, they were sold out countywide."
"Oh." Her gaze returned to the frozen birds. "I guess I'll have to thaw one then."
"You're pregnant."
"So?"
"You need to be real careful about food poisoning, Honey. The smallest bird we have left is eighteen pounds. It takes four days to defrost an eighteen pound turkey in the fridge. Your only chance now is to submerge it in ice cold water, which takes a half hour per pound, or nine hours, and you have to change the water every half hour to ensure it stays at a safe fifty degrees."
"Okay, so I'll be done by midnight."
"There's a catch. When you rapid defrost, you have to cook it immediately, and unless you're serving Thanksgiving breakfast, you can't start defrosting it using the ice water method until fourteen hours before you want to serve it, give or take. What time are you eating?"
"Five, so I have to start defrosting it after midnight, great."
"Next year shop earlier."
"If more people had stayed alive in the past four days, I would have."
"Huh?"
Sara shook it off. "Nevermind, thanks for your help."
The Vartanns – Sun Lakes, AZ
3:16 pm
"Help yourself to anything you'd like to eat or drink, Dear." Standing in the kitchen, Marge took Becca into her arms. "You're part of the family now and I want you to feel completely at home."
"Congratulations." Grabbing a beer, Tony said, "You've attained moocher status, Honey. When Matt and I used to come home for Sunday dinner during college, we'd fill our backpacks with anything that wasn't nailed down."
"It's true." Marge returned to the kitchen counter, where her bread dough was rising. "I'd fill the fridge on Sunday morning after church and it would be empty that night. One of them even snatched the fridge light bulb once."
"That would be me," Tony snickered as the beer cap hit the trash.
"Son, are you drunk?"
"No, but I'm diligently workin' on it, Ma." He tilted the amber bottle and guzzled. "It's my warm up for getting tanked watching football with Dad, Matt and Reg tomorrow. I'm out of practice."
"Don't worry," Becca assured the twitchy mother, who had been checking up on her boy every day since Amy's death. "He's fine. He's just cutting loose out of town…and to ease the pain of losing at cards to me on the flight over."
Kneading bread dough, Marge replied, "If the bet had anything to do with becoming an active member of the mile high club, I don't want to know."
"Ha! No, that's what he would have got if he had won." Taking a seat at the table, Becca loved watching Tony squirm. "Since he lost, he has to model in a charity fashion show for me."
"While gay guys stare at my ass, Ma."
"Oh Lord, your father and brothers will want tickets to that. I can hear them shouting 'Shake it, Mary' from the audience."
"Seriously, what's with the homophobia in this family?" Becca queried.
Changing the subject, Tony grabbed the book sitting on the table. "Let's see what my mommy is reading for her prim and proper Senior Ladies Book Club this month. The Mermaid Chair by Sue Monk Kidd." He showed Becca the cover adorned with pretty seashells and a bird. "Double or nothing. I say there's brazen nudity and taboo sex in here, what about you? If I'm right, no fashion show, if you win I'll…I can't tell you with my mother here."
"Anthony…" Marge knew he was tricking the girl.
"No help, Ma." He dangled the book in front of his wife. "Come on, do you really think my mother's Catholic church group friends would read anything dirty?"
"Absolutely!" Becca snatched the novel. "I bet there's a bunch of smut in there."
"Good for you, Dear," Marge snickered. "Yes, it's not your ordinary old fart book club."
Becca's ears perked.
The sixty six year old took great pleasure in sharing, "Seven of us get together and discuss one naughty book a month while we drink lots of wine. It's very Ya-Ya."
"What's this one about?"
"The main character has returned to her childhood home, and is going through a period of self-discovery. I'm up to the part where she's about to cheat on her husband with a monk."
"A monk?! Ooh, it doesn't get much more taboo than that." Becca flipped to find the good parts. "He leaned over and kissed me. His mouth tasted like the wine, left over from mass."
"The chick's getting off on the monk's Mass breath? But Catholics believe that the wine transforms into the blood of Christ during Mass…ugh, that's nasty. I can't believe people really pay money for that crap."
"Who knew you were paying attention when you were an altar boy." Marge patted his cheek. "You always looked a little detached, Honey."
Tony shook a finger at his mother. "You're very twisted for liking that book, Marge."
"Oh, please, what do you expect from the wife of a career Homicide Detective?" the mother quipped. "Of course I'm twisted."
"Now I know why we get along so well," Becca snickered.
"We just found out it's being made into a TV movie," Marge excitedly told her daughter-in-law. "Whenever it premieres, I'm going to kick Dennis out for the evening and the girls are coming over to watch it here on the plasma. I doubt there'll be real naughtiness in it though, since it's being done for Lifetime, not HBO." She sighed, "Bummer."
"Marge!" Becca continued skimming. "I had no idea you were such a scamp."
"Just what the world needs," Tony droned while tossing his empty beer bottle in the trash, "another stupid chick flick giving women permission to cheat on their husbands if it feels right in the heat of the moment. Amy loved those men bashing movies disguised as women empowerment films." He grabbed the book, flipping to the back. "Let's see if it ends with the monk loving whoreoffing herself in her loyal husband's bedroom because he selfishly didn't support her decision to screw a man of the cloth while on her journey of self discovery?"
"Let's not, shall we?" Marge reclaimed her book and began worrying about her son again.
"Look whose mood's swinging now?" Tony smiled at his wife before heading for a fresh beer. "Sorry, I swear I don't know where that snark came from."
"I do." Waving the Coors bottle she just snatched from her son's hand, Marge answered, "It came from Golden, Colorado and you're not having another beer until dinner, because I don't want a repeat of Easter."
"Now that it's Thanksgiving, I think we've reached the statute of limitations on Easter."
"What happened at Easter?" Sensing her husband wouldn't fess up, Becca looked to her mother-in-law.
"Mrs. Sweeney, our next door neighbor, found him splayed out on her lawn between two garden gnomes, one of which he had pissed on at some point. To drown his divorce sorrows, he had gone out drinking with some ASU alum, and when he came home at four in a taxi, he couldn't find the house and passed out there."
"Oh, come on! All the houses look alike in this cookie cutter neighborhood," Tony laughed, "and that gnome needed a rinse, it was plastered with dirt." Upon seeing his mother's non-amusement, Tony sobered, "I swear, I won't end up on Mrs. Sweeney's lawn. There won't be any drama of any kind, I promise. I'm just cutting loose like Becks said. I couldn't be happier with my life. How could I be unhappy? I have a loving wife, a baby on the way, a beautiful house as of next week, and things are great at work."
"I'm very happy to hear it, because I'm still recovering from the nightmare from two weeks ago."
"Tell her the good news," Becca prodded, proud of her husband's latest accomplishment.
"I was waiting to tell you and Dad together, but I got a bump in rank. You're looking at Detective Lieutenant Anthony Vartann."
"Good for you, Honey." Marge kissed his cheek, "You deserve it. I'm sure you'd be a Captain by now if you hadn't transferred from Phoenix PD to get out from under your brother's thumb. I'll pretend I don't know about the bump when you tell your father."
"Thanks, Ma."
"Hey, how about giving me a tour of the neighborhood?" Becca suggested, sensing her husband could use some air. "I've never been to an Adult Active Retirement Community."
Golden Acres Retirement Village
5:07 pm
"Hey, young fella!" Marv Friedman flagged down the investigator at the urging of his golf buddy, Carl Strom. "Over here."
"How can I help you, Sir?" Greg asked, leaving Sofia's side as they were double checking their inventory.
"How'd Dickerson bite it? I got ten bucks riding on his wife stabbing him in the chest, but my pal thinks the old bitch was packing heat and shot him."
"I'm afraid I can't discuss the details of a pending investigation, Sir. Did you know the deceased?" Greg took out his notebook. "There's a detective going door to door, have you spoken with him yet?"
"Nah, we just finished eighteen holes."
"And eighteen beers," Carl drunkenly added. "Getting shit faced is the only way I can deal with my wife getting crazy with Thanksgiving preparations. She goes nuts every time guests come to dinner."
The Grissoms
5:25 pm
"This is a nightmare." Sara stared at her kitchen island covered in groceries. "I loathe domesticity, so why the hell did I feel obligated to put on this June Cleaver ruse and make Thanksgiving dinner? Ron and Lina offered to host, but nooooo, I had to go and volunteer." She walked over to the turkey and reluctantly started cutting open the packaging. "This sucks."
When the doorbell rang two minutes later, she hoped it was someone bearing a thawed turkey.
"No way." She threw open the door, grateful for the locked and screened security door. "The Widower Mike Rodgers, what brings you here? A threat? Another bullshit story? No, no, wait…you want me to pick up the newspapers from your driveway while you're off looking for a new victim, err…wife."
"None of the above," he replied with a smile. "I'm here to tell you that your Basset Hound got out of your yard and is trotting down the street. I thought about grabbing him myself, but knowing my luck, the dog would have a coronary and you'd charge me with murder."
"Sure, I open the door to look and the next thing I know, you're in here raping me."
"I should have called a neighbor to tell you," he laughed, "I knew you wouldn't believe me. How about this…I walk back across the street to my front yard and then you leave the house? I'll even run, so the dog doesn't get too far."
Before Mike got halfway across her front lawn, Sara heard a car crash.
"Oh shit." Mike took off running. "I think someone hit Flash."
Grabbing the front door key, Sara frantically worked open the lock, but kept dropping the key out of her sweaty hands. "Flash!" With his leash in hand, she took off running.
"He's okay!" Mike scooped the dog in his arms as people swarmed the two cars involved in the wreck and called 911.
"That god damn dog came out of no where!" a bleach-blonde shrilled as she stepped out of her crumbled Jag. "Son of a bitch! Look at my car!"
"Are you sure he's okay?" Sara panted from running.
"Is that your mutt?!" the blonde snarled. "There's a leash law in this city and you're in violation. I'll have that beast put to sleep by sundown." She grabbed her cellphone to phone her lawyer.
Staring down Mike, Sara couldn't refrain from accusation, "You let him out of the gate, didn't you?" She snapped the leash on Flash, so she could take him.
"I knew you'd turn this around on me," he laughed. "Yes, Sara, you're right. I somehow opened your locked gate, got Flash to run, had cars positioned to have an accident and I did it all just so your house would burn down while you're outside arguing with me."
Whirling around, Sara saw smoke billowing from her home. "No!"
"I'm good." Mike strolled away singing 'I've Got the Power' until he reached the curb. "Hey, if you need a place to stay, I have a lovely guestroom. Unless of course you want to sleep with me, Sweetheart. You still owe me one from Tahoe."
"No!" Flames shooting fifty feet in the air all around her, her feet wouldn't move. "Help!"
"Nah, I already reached quota saving Stokes and your dog."
"But I killed Marlene for you!"
"Oh sure, now you admit it." Mike approached with a twisted grin. "It felt good, didn't it?"
"What?" The scenery around them melted from the heat of the fire.
"Getting away with murder," Mike whispered in Sara's ear. "It's such a rush."
Feeling his forked tongue slither over her ear lobe, she asked, "Where are we?"
"It's a glimpse of our future, Sara. We're in hell. Look! Your spouse-killing mother's right over there."
"Where?!"
"Made you look!" Mike swooped in again, his tongue flicking out of the corner of his mouth uncontrollably.
"Stop! Stop it!" The next thing she knew, Sara was sitting upright on her couch while Flash licked his lips beside her. "You were licking me." Noticing the sun had faded, she checked the clock. "Dammit!" She had unloaded the groceries and dropped to the cushions for a few minutes rest that apparently turned into two hours. "I hope nothing spoiled."
Drew's House
6:46 pm
Relieved that Cassie had been able to keep quiet and not spoil the plan, Marta whisked her parents outside, toward the guest house. "Aren't the kids incredibly sweet?"
"Yes, Honey," Betsy Muller squeezed her daughter's shoulders as they walked. "All thanks to you instilling wholesome family values in them since they were born."
"And what about Drew, Daddy?" Marta was certain he had made a great impression. "Isn't he a gentleman and a wonderful father to the children?"
"As good a father as a man can be who ruins his children's lives," Ed casually replied. "But he treats you nice and pays you well, that's all that matters to me."
"He's certainly going all out to make us feel welcome," Betsy stated, still buzzing from flying first class and taking limousines to and from the airports.
"Here's the guest house." Marta opened the door with a key and breezed into the suite she had decorated with fresh flower arrangements and assorted goodies. "There's a fully stocked fridge and pantry in the mini kitchen. In the bedroom there's a TV and DVD player and I put some movies you two might like on the dresser. The bathroom has extra toiletries in case you forgot anything. If you go out the French Doors, there's a little Jacuzzi just for this suite, but feel free to use the main pool too, it's heated. There are pool towels in the cabana. Beyond that, just buzz number three on the intercom and it will page me."
"This is just like on my soap operas." Betsy flitted around checking things out. "All the rich families have guest cottages like this."
"Yeah, and they all have screwed up lives and divorce papers too." Ed took a seat in an arm chair. "If they had to work hard for a living, they'd be too tired to mess around and ruin their marriages and kids. Much like your boss, Marta."
"You're wrong there, Daddy." The anxious daughter went to the fridge to grab him a beer. "Mr. Stokes works long hours, always has. Remember, his father is on the Supreme Court of Texas and his Mom devoted her entire law career to helping those who couldn't afford representation. They didn't raise slackers. Drew's worked very hard for everything you see and he's had some really good luck with investing."
"I guess." Ed accepted the beer. "Enough about him, tell me about you, Sweetie." The gruff farmer pulled his little girl onto his lap. "You sure look happy." He even thought she might have lost a few pounds since he'd seen her.
"I am." She basked in the affection her unemotional father rarely initiated. "Very happy."
"Your Daddy's missed you," Betsy's eyes watered. "We both have."
"I'm so happy you flew out here, because…" Feeling the moment was right, she decided to accelerate her plans for breaking the news. "There's…" Unfortunately, before she could get out the words, the intercom buzzed. "Sorry, one of the children needs me. Between getting up before dawn to work the farm, traveling, and the time difference, I know you two are exhausted. We'll talk in the morning, okay?"
"Okay, Sweetie." Betsty hugged her daughter tight. "You know we'll be up at the crack, so whenever you're awake, just come on down."
The Sanders Home
7:01 pm
"I'm upstairs!" Tawny answered when Greg yelled saying he was home. "You have perfect timing, I'm naked!"
After a crazy day, he was already thrilled to be home, but the fact that his wife was beckoning him made his spirits soar. "Be right there!" He kicked off his shoes and then doubled back to put them neatly by the door. "Why are you naked?" he asked while trotting up the stairs. "Not that I'm complaining."
"I was checking my belly after changing out of my work clothes." When she saw her husband's haggard appearance, she unfurled her warmest smile. "Welcome home."
With only Tawny's mane of golden hair against her skin, Greg soaked in her beauty. "You look like you just stepped out of a Botticelli painting, The Birth of Venus to be exact…naked with only your hair for covering, perfectly plump in all the right places…angelic."
"I think you just said I was fat in a really fancy way."
"Not fat…voluptuous." He dropped to his knees, worshipping every inch of her. "Beautiful. I missed you." He rested his ear to her belly, hoping to feel the girls. "All three of you."
"Bad day at the office, Sweetie?" Running her fingers through his hair she softly asked, "What was the case? A kid? Suicide?"
"A seventy three year old woman got into a fight with her husband because she bought a chicken for Thanksgiving instead of turkey. Their kids and grandkids weren't coming, so she didn't see the point in buying a big bird, especially since he never helped her in the kitchen and she was feeling too run down to do a big meal herself. After fighting for twenty minutes, she launched the frozen chicken at his head."
When a laugh tumbled out of Tawny's lips, she felt guilty.
"The guy got disoriented from being whacked with the bird and he grabbed onto a floor lamp. The lamp fell over, hitting the plate glass window and he landed on the jagged glass left in the window frame, slicing open his throat. He bled out in minutes."
"Oh my gosh."
"The wife was hysterical. I mean they got into a fight, but she didn't expect he'd die. They were married fifty one years. It was really sad," he sighed, feeling soothed by the warmth of her womb. "If it's this nice on the outside, it must be really nice inside…floating in the warmth, lulled by the white noise from the fluids whooshing around and your steady heart beat."
That's when she realized how down Greg really was.
"It wasn't just the case that was sad, it was the stories I heard from all the old neighbors. I thought junior high was a lonely time in life, but some of these people have nothing but cats and they're in what's supposed to be their golden years. Their memories are going…their eyes, their health. There were the ones who were excited because they would see their kids and grandkids tomorrow, and then there were the ones who had no one and for them the holiday was just a reminder that they were alone in this world. Life flies by, Tawny. One day the babies are inside you and before we know it, we'll be sitting by the phone hoping they'll call and say they'll be home for Thanksgiving. They're not even born yet, and I miss them."
With every word, she heard him falling deeper into the hole. "Come on." She took his hand. "Let's snuggle."
"I should shower first."
"I have a better idea. How about we go skinny dipping in the pool?"
"My Dad said he'd be here about eight-thirty." He glanced at the clock. "Okay." His smile returned. "Let's do it."
The Vartanns – Sun Lakes, AZ
8:31 pm
"We're at the part where they do it the first time," Becca snickered. "Well…assuming they do it more than once." While Tony was in the Living Room watching ESPN with his father waiting for Gina and Reggie to arrive with the baby, she was keeping Marge company in the kitchen.
"Terrific, you keep reading, while I keep making pies."
"I closed my eyes and put my mouth at the opening of his shirt, let my lips open and close on his skin, tasting the flesh at the hollow of his throat, the taste of heat. I unfastened each small white button and kissed the skin beneath it."
"You have a poet's voice, my Dear, very calming."
"That's funny, I begged Tony to read me Keats the other day because when he's speaking softly, his voice is incredibly sexy and soothing."
"Did he read it?" Marge couldn't imagine her boy reading Keats in silence, no less aloud.
"Only because he was desperate to keep me content, since I was off kilter from stopping and starting my meds. I told him it was good practice for reading to the baby. Of course he thought he sounded totally queer."
"I never would have believed him to be such a Renaissance man. You're so much better for him than Amy was, Sweetheart. Marriage works best when the husband and wife help each other to grow, but within their limitations, if that makes any sense."
"You mean pushing Tony to read poetry doesn't change the essence of who he is, whereas Amy asking him to rape her would have."
"Yes, exactly." Marge continued slicing apples with a smile, happy to know her son was in good hands. "The medication seems to be working now, Sweetheart, you seem very relaxed."
"Not a hundred percent yet, I'm having a little trouble sleeping, but as long as there's no drama, I'll be fine."
"Now that he's retired, Dennis sleeps like a rock until seven, but I wake up like a shot every morning at four-thirty. If you're restless, feel free to leave your guest room and keep me company in the kitchen."
Basking in a mother's love, Becca serenely replied, "Thanks, I definitely will."
"Okay, read on, Honey."
"The wooden cross dangled over his breastbone, and I had to move it to one side in order to kiss the bone's small arch. Wait, he said, and pulled the leather cord over his head, letting the cross drop to the ground."
"Oh my." Marge blushed at the thought.
"I like the symbolism there," Becca remarked. "They try to push religion to the side and work around it, but the monk realizes what they're about to do can't co-exist with his beliefs, so it had to be removed. Or he was worried it would poke her in the eye while he was grinding on top of her."
"Ooh, write that down for me to use at Book Club!" Marge chuckled, "Including the eye poke joke."
"You bet." Becca resumed reading with more dramatic flair. "I unhooked my bra and let it fall down next to his cross. I watched him stoop and unlace his boots. The skin on his shoulders was glazed with sunburn. He stood up, bare-chested, his jeans low on his hips. Come here, he said and I went and leaned into the smoothness of his chest. I've wanted you from the beginning, he told me." Glancing up she giggled like a school girl, "I must say, between knowing his tragic past and this scene, I'm starting to crush the monk a little, what about you Marge?"
"Yes, he had me at 'shoulders glazed with sunburn."
As Marge and Becca laughed at themselves, they didn't notice Gina walk into the kitchen and glare at the book's cover.
"He lowered me to the ground on top of his denim shirt and kissed the soft places on my throat, my breasts, my thighs." Commenting again, Becca shared, "He's very thoughtful for placing his shirt on the sand. Sex on the beach is romantic, but if sand gets in the wrong places it's torture."
"Especially considering he's been at the monastery for five years, you would think the first time, he wouldn't be able to stop and think about such details."
"Speaking of details…there's no mention of a condom. We know where he's been for the last five years, but who knows what she's been up to. Tsk tsk."
"It's not like they'd have a supply at the monastery and Jesse's forty-two, so the odds of her getting pregnant are slim," Marge speculated. "It would seem that their desire was too much to be rational in the heat of the moment."
"We made love with the tide sweeping in around the island and…"
"I can't believe your brought that disgusting book here!" Gina saw red. "Becca, while you may not take religion seriously, to believers, Catholics especially, that book is an abomination. Infidelity and sacrilege aren't entertainment. Father Miller at my church made a specific mention of that book in his sermon about a few months ago and had a leaflet with addresses to write in complaint of…"
"It's my book," Marge snipped. "I have a Book Club deadline to meet and Becca was doing me a favor reading it to me while I prepped pies. Happy Thanksgiving by the way. It's good to see that you arrived safely. Becca and Tony have the floral guestroom, you and Reggie have the nautical one."
"Yes, thank you, uh…Sierra is asleep in the carrier in the living room. Reggie of course grabbed a beer from the cooler and plopped on the couch to kick off the traditional Vartann Thanksgiving drink-a-thon and sports fest." Eyeing her mother-in-law with contempt, Gina curtly said, "I'm sorry, I'm just very surprised to know that you'd enjoy that sort of book."
"If you'll excuse us for a moment. Becca, we were going to look at that magazine, remember?" Marge removed herself from the room to count to ten and not flog one daughter-in-law and upset another.
"Be right there," Becca replied, knowing it was a ruse. "Jeez, Gina, you didn't have to get your panties in a twist. We were just being silly," Becca commented, trying to ease the tension. "Didn't you ever sit around with a girlfriend and read all the smutty parts of romance novels?"
"No, I've never read one of those nasty things in my life, especially not one with a monk and married woman having filthy sex."
"Ooh, don't spoil it," Becca joked, loving every moment of Gina's outrage. "We didn't get to the filthy part yet."
"Oh, great, so my choices are stay in here with you and listen to the sacrilegious smut or sit out there with them cursing at the screen over sports scores."
"No." Putting the book aside, Becca said, "I'll be respectful of your discomfort and your religious beliefs and not read it out loud in front of you." Standing up, she said, "Actually, I think I'll head out to the Jacuzzi and…"
"You can't go in the Jacuzzi while you're pregnant," Gina huffed before mumbling, "but I guess I shouldn't be surprised that you'd endanger your unborn child just to make yourself feel good."
"I'm just dangling my damn feet in the water, you judgmental bitch! Unbelievable, you haven't been here five minutes and you're already giving me shit! I was having a great time with Marge and…"
"Is there a problem in here?" Tony barked when he flew through the swinging door. "I thought there weren't going to be any problems, Gina? Didn't we talk and agree there weren't going to be any problems?" Having slammed a few beers with his father, he spoke freely. "I called you and told you to back off my wife. So, what are you doing, giving her shit?"
"I wasn't! I was making sure she knew that pregnancy and Jacuzzis don't mix."
"Passive aggressively," Becca muttered. "Her exact words were 'I guess I shouldn't be surprised that you'd endanger your unborn child just to make yourself feel good'."
Tony gaped at the sister-in-law whose shoulder he had cried on after finding Amy in bed with another man. "What the hell happened to you, Gina? I've trusted you with my most personal thoughts and now I can't even trust you to be alone with my wife for five minutes without you bitching at her? You're a different person than you were six months ago."
"You are too."
"You say that like it's a bad thing. Six months ago I hated life."
"I need to check on Sierra." Gina flew by her brother-in-law, bumping into his arm and knocking his beer mug.
"You could have said excuse me!" Becca rolled her eyes, "And so the fun begins."
The Grissoms
12:04 am
"This is so not fun, Flash." Sara was grateful for the dog's company as she reluctantly removed the raw frozen turkey from its wrapping. "If your father's plane wasn't delayed, he'd be home by now. He'd be the defroster, not me. Even though I'm craving and eating poultry while I'm pregnant, I'm still a vegetarian at heart. This nasty pimpled flesh covering bones should still be walking the Earth. I feel one degree of separation from a lioness on a savannah tearing an impala limb from limb." When she saw her basset hound smack his lips, she droned, "Yeah, you big carnivore, you'd love to sink your teeth into this bird, wouldn't you?"
Flash reared and boldly placed his paws on the edge of the counter.
"Think you're gonna get lucky, huh?" She snickered, "Not gonna happen."
"I know just how disappointed he feels," Gil shouted from the living room, over the loud music his wife had playing. "Honey, I'm home!"
Her hands full of giblets, Sara declared, "I've never been happier to see you."
"Is that frozen?" Gil didn't suppress his glee. "Did you wait to go to the grocery store until today?"
Tossing her rubber kitchen gloves, Sara crossed the room to turn the music off. "I think there are five people left alive in the city. I've worked doubles on top of doubles since you left. So, yeah, I didn't get to the grocery store until today and yes, by then there were no unfrozen turkeys left, and now I have to give that bad boy a bath every half hour, while making sure the water never rises over fifty degrees at risk of killing our baby and your elderly father from food poisoning."
"Sara…"
"What?"
Gil's smirk exploded. "If I offered you a perfectly defrosted turkey or a diamond bracelet right now, which would you appreciate more?"
"The turkey, because I could use it to whap the smirk off your smug face." Breaking into a quasi-maniacal laugh, she said, "Just kidding…sort of. I know I suck at this stuff, okay?!"
"I'll be right back."
Sara glanced over at Flash. "Was I too snarky?" She swore the dog nodded before trotting off after his master. "Yeah, yeah, man's best friend, I know where your loyalties are!"
Minutes later, Gil rounded the corner wearing an uncontainable grin and carrying a covered roasting pan. "Who loves ya, Baby?" Revealing a perfectly defrosted turkey he explained, "I bought it before I left and it's been thawing in my Bug Room fridge since I left town."
"You hedged a bet that I would fail miserably?"
"Yep."
"I love you! Thank you for not having faith in me." She grabbed the roaster and placed it on the counter, so she could strangle her husband with a hug. "Welcome back."
"I missed you." His eyes closed as the embrace deepened.
"That's pathetic, it was only four days." In his ear, she sighed, "God, I missed you too."
"Check this out." Gil reached into his pants pocket.
"You didn't."
"Yeah." He dangled the diamond bracelet. "You don't have to choose. You get the turkey and the bling. Happy Thanksgiving, Sara." He fastened the platinum band around her wrist. "Thank you for being my wife, for loving me, for volunteering to have a baby with me, for everything you do to make life bearable. I love you."
Tears slipping from her eyes, she stared at the man she had been unintentionally aggravating for the past month. "You had me at the defrosted turkey."
The Sanders Home
12:22 am
"Everything looks good to go, Son." Scott returned the roasting pan to the fridge. "Turkey's perfect, everything's chopped and prepped. You did this all yourself?"
"It was my final exam. Psycho Chef Vartann sat on a stool and watched me work, providing guidance when necessary, but didn't touch a thing."
"I wish I got here earlier to see that."
"So uh…" Greg wiggled his brows, happy to finally have his father alone. "How does it feel to be back in the saddle?"
"Lily is wonderful company." A deep blush, sprung up on Scott's face. "And that's all I'm gonna say about that."
"Ooh, Daddy like."
"Go to bed, Son. You have a big day tomorrow."
"Looks like someone can't wait to get lucky."
"Good night!" Scott laughed his way down the stairs. "Sleep well!"
The Vartanns – Sun Lakes, AZ
3:17 am
"Couldn't sleep, huh?" Just as he expected, Tony found Becca wide awake on the couch.
"I got four solid hours."
"You'll even out soon."
"Yeah, I'm not worried." Becca tossed The Mermaid Chair on the coffee table. "Would you turn on the fireplace?" She found the electric faux fire hilarious, yet soothing.
"Sure."
"I couldn't find the remote and didn't want to get out from under the quilt."
"Hopefully Reggie won't wake up and come out here." With one hand behind his back, Tony approached the couch, "Because if he catches me in these moose pajamas he'll have a field day."
"You really don't have to wear them for me if you don't like them."
"Are you kidding? I love them," he quietly chuckled. "They're without a doubt the most comfortable thing I've ever owned. I want you to go back to Abercrombie and Fitch and buy me them in every color they come in. I just can't let my brother see, because we stopped wearing jammies when we were six, thinking they weren't cool."
"If I'm not supposed to care what Gina thinks about me, then why are you allowed to be bothered by what Reggie thinks about you? Sounds like a blatant double standard, Detective. How do you plead?"
"Very guilty." Grinning, Tony slipped under the quilt. "For my sentence, I suggest you make me read more poetry." He revealed Becca's copy of Immortal Poems of the English Language. "My brother can't find out I read poetry either."
"You packed it?"
"It relaxes you and I figured you'd need some relaxing with my family around. In my private session yesterday, I asked Dr. Myers to help me get over feeling stupid about reading this stuff to you. She had a field day with desensitization therapy. She read to me, then I had to read to her. Ridiculous stuff at first, like 'Humpty Dumpty', and then more serious stuff, like Shakespeare. At your next session, you need to ask her to read Humpty Dumpty with feeling, it was hilarious. She does a great British accent."
"Did it work?"
"I won't be signing up for any public readings any time soon, but yeah, I think I'll feel much better reading privately. Dr. M likes my reading so much, she thinks I should do voice over work when I retire from the force." He cracked open the book. "She told me to read this one to you."
"'She Walks in Beauty'." Becca burrowed into his chest. "Très romantique."
"Ooh, I think I'd like to hear you read to me in French one night…naked."
In the breathy voice of a French Maid, she replied, "Absolument, mon amour."
"Mmm, you're warming me much faster than that tacky electric fireplace." After a dramatic clearing of the throat he began, "She walks in beauty, like the night, of cloudless climes and starry skies. And all that's best of dark and bright meet in her aspect and her eyes…."
She watched the fire's faux flames flicker in time with Tony's melodic voice, falling deeper in love. He was as perfect as the words tumbling from the lips she ached to feel searing across her flesh. Sensitive and strong, loving and protective…the ideal husband, the man she dreamed of being with for the rest of her life. Then Becca showed up out of the blue and ruined everything, all the groundwork she had been laying for months. Watching from the guest room doorway, hot tears pooled in Gina's green eyes.
His fingers mindlessly stroking Becca's dark locks, Tony relaxed into the next verse, "One shade the more, one ray the less, had half impaired the nameless grace…which waves in every raven tress, or softly lightens over her face."
Wiping the dampness from her cheeks, Gina watched Tony tenderly weave his fingers through the witch's raven hair and longed to know that gentle touch. He reads poetry out loud by the fire. Reggie reads Sports Illustrated while he's taking a dump. Envy consumed her.
"A mind at peace with all below, a heart whose love is innocent." The poem over, he closed the book, knowing exactly why Dr. Myers selected it.
"That was beautiful." Becca raised her mouth, capturing Tony's bottom lip in a sensuous kiss. "Thank you for reading it."
"You're very welcome." The tranquility in her eyes was worth every ounce of discomfort.
Pressing her lips to his chest, she whispered, "I love you."
Their next kiss left them breathless and horizontal under the quilt.
"You did something nice for me…" Swirling her hand south, Becca murmured, "Now, I'm going to do something nice for you."
"Honey, this wasn't a booty call, I didn't read to you to get something in return." Worried about her motivation, he whispered, "I'm not your Ex, I'm not going to start looking elsewhere because you weren't in the mood to make love this morning."
"I know that." Grinning, she pushed him against the cushions. "I wasn't in the mood to make love this morning and you took it like a trooper. I'm still not in the mood, but I'm game for this, so relax and stop worrying."
"Here?" With a boyish grin he reminded her, "My Mom could walk out here and catch us."
"I said stop worrying, not worry more." Her lips twisted in a wicked smile, Becca dove for his neck while tugging down his comfy jammies. "Don't sweat it. She told me that she wakes every day at four thirty, and we both know with my Camp Dunmore skills and your lack of control in this particular situation, it'll be over in minutes."
Watching his wife disappear under the quilt, Tony knew she was right. "Only because you insist," he chuckled. "I…" The moment her lips met flesh, his mind clicked off.
Gina watched in horror as the filthy tramp serviced Tony like a professional. Just as I suspected, she beguiles him with taboo sex. After what he'd been through with Amy, she could see how even a good man like Tony could commit deadly sins when pressed by a skilled temptress. Becca was a shiny red apple, and like Adam, he couldn't resist the succulent goods thrust in his face, no matter what the spiritual price. Wake up, Tony! See her for what she really is! It's not too late to repent! When the sounds of his ecstasy were too much to bear, she quietly shut the door and told herself it meant nothing. The flesh is weak. That's his body talking, not his heart or mind. Sliding down the wall, she let the tears flow.
Only a month after the wedding, Gina suspected she had married the wrong man. She kept hoping he'd change, kept pushing him to change…but he was hopeless. Fire was his first and only love, everything else came second. He was an insensitive jock who would rather be fighting a four alarm blaze than having dinner by candlelight. She thought getting pregnant would force him to rethink his priorities, but nothing changed. He still stayed out drinking with the crew, putting her second. Drunk and horny he'd come home begging her to do exactly what that slut was doing to Tony. The idea repulsed her. He repulsed her. With asking for a divorce out of the question, her lot in life seemed hopeless.
Then her devastated brother-in-law showed up at her door after discovering Amy's infidelity. When he fell into her arms, forbidden love bloomed in her heart, and with every tear he dripped on her skin, the love grew stronger.
No matter how heartbroken he was, Gina knew he wouldn't want to be with his brother's pregnant wife, so she devised a plan. While stealthily fueling Reggie's love of firefighting, she'd push him away mentally and emotionally, until finally, he'd ask for a divorce. Then she'd turn the tables and run to Tony, crying in his arms as the rejected wife. The baby would be a welcome addition, because Tony couldn't father a child of his own. Just like he had done with Amy, the hero would take her and Sierra into his home. While there, the love between them would grow. He'd have the baby and loyal wife he'd always dreamed of, and she'd have a loving, sensitive husband who liked to be home with his family. In a year's time, everyone would get over the awkwardness and agree it was all for the best, even Dennis and Marge. If they could get the Church to grant an annulment, then they'd marry, if not, they'd accept their fate as sinners.
For months Gina had been diligently setting the stage, being a great friend to Tony and a terrible wife to her boorish husband. Whenever her brother-in-law was around she dressed her best and did her hair, but at home with Reggie, she worked overtime to look unappealing, going as far as not showering or brushing her teeth. During phone calls, she planted seeds in Tony's mind, harsh comments about Reg that she knew he'd remember when the moment of crisis arrived. It was working perfectly, brilliantly, and then Becca barged into their lives.
"It's okay," she whispered to herself, believing Becca would have a mental breakdown soon, or lose the baby because her body was too damaged from having an abortion and using illicit and prescription drugs over the years. Then the siren's spell would be broken, and Tony would finally see the truth and divorce her.
Staring at the sleeping husband she was desperate to replace, Gina couldn't wait for it all to go down.
Author's Notes:
Thanks, I hope you enjoyed it.
Next chapter posting: Monday, 1/15
Maggs