Chapter 12...

Jeff opened the door to his room and was stunned when before he saw anything, he felt a hard slap across his face.

"What the fuck?" he stared down at Raquel. She was glaring at him angrily, arms now crossed.

"Exactly how many people did you tell?" she asked.

"What?" he rubbed his cheek, confused.

"I just had drinks with Andrew," she explained. "And when he brought me back to my room, he tried to shove his tongue down my throat. And when I pushed him away, he said that he didn't understand why I wouldn't be as 'nice' to him as I was to you…Care to explain?"

"I didn't tell him anything," Jeff insisted.

"Then how does he know Jeff?" she asked angrily.

"How the hell should I know?"

"Well gee, let's think about this," she tapped her chin. "I wasn't here to tell him…who was?"

"I didn't tell him," Jeff said, growing frustrated.

"Bullshit," she glared. "You were bragging about fucking a model to anyone who would listen."

He shook his head, "You know for a tiny girl you have the biggest ego I have ever seen…For the last time, I did not tell anyone about what happened."

"I'm supposed to believe that?" she arched a brow.

Jeff was torn. Part of him wanted to close the door in her face but part of him wanted to kiss her. He could already see that he didn't like her very much but it didn't help that she was so beautiful. He felt a sting in his cheek again and his decision was made, at least momentarily.

"I don't care what you believe Raquel," he said. "I'm going to bed."

"You don't just walk out in the middle of an argument," she fumed.

"I'm not going anywhere," he smirked, stepping back a little. "You are."

With that, he closed the door.

---------------------

Raquel stared. Never in her life had someone closed a door in her face. She couldn't believe it. She didn't know what to do.

"Goodnight Raquel," Jeff said through the door, then the light coming out from the crack under the door went out. He was lucky it was late and she didn't want to make a scene. She turned, resolving to make him pay for that later. No one disrespected Raquel Davenport.

---------------------

Brianna looked over at Nick as he slept and then at the clock. The entire house was dark and quiet but she couldn't get to sleep. She looked down at the floor, laughing a little when she saw Z pacing. When she didn't sleep, he didn't sleep.

She slowly slipped out of bed, making sure not to wake her fiance. He had to be up early and he didn't usually respond well to being woken up in the middle of the night. She picked up the dog and walked out of the room, closing the door slowly until she heard a soft click.

"You really are mommy's baby, you know that?" she whispered, kissing the top of Z's head. She walked down the stairs and around the corner into the laundry room and set the dog down on top of the washing machine as she picked a pair of sweatpants and a tank top out of the basket on top of the dryer and slipped them on.

"Let's go for a walk," she picked Z up and walked toward the door, being careful not to bump into anything in the dark. "Maybe it'll tire us out."

Z seemed pleased with the idea, struggling to get out of her arms and racing toward the door. She followed, stepping into a pair of shoes and pulling one of his leashes off of the hook she kept them on. Then, she saw her phone resting on the mail table. The display was lit, signaling that she'd missed a call. She picked up the phone and her keys, slipping them into her pocket.

"Okay," she clipped it to his collar. "Let's go."

Once downstairs, she waved to the doorman on her way out then pulled the phone out of her pocket, flipping it open and viewing the missed calls. She smiled when she saw the name at the top of the list

John

---------------------

John was on his way back to his room after spending the last hour in the gym. He swiped the keycard silently hoping that Paula was already sleeping. He knew it wasn't the best way to think about his girlfriend but..frankly, he wasn't really in the mood for her. She'd been in his face practically every second for the past few weeks and it was starting to drive him crazy. He crept in, gently placing his gym bag on the floor but he quickly saw that there was no point. Paula was sitting on the bed, the TV providing the only light in the room.

"Hi baby," she smiled. "I was just about to call you."

"Why?" he asked. "I was just downstairs."

"I know," she said. "But I wanted to know when you were coming back. You've been out like all day."

"Sorry," he said, not bothering to sound sincere. In fact, he was trying to figure out some excuse to leave again. In another hour she'd probably be asleep. As if on cue, his phone rang in his pocket. He pulled it out quickly, looking to see who it was.

Brianna

John smiled, "I have to take this."

"John," Paula whined. "What's so important?"

"It's uh..It's my dad," he said. "I'm gonna take it outside. You try to get some sleep."

She rolled her eyes, "Fine."

"Night," he said, walking out and closing the door behind him. He quickly answered before the call went to voice mail, "Hello?"

"John?"

"Hey," he smiled at the sound of her voice.

"Sorry for calling so late," she apologized. "I didn't have my phone with me for a while so I didn't know you called."

"It's alright," he said, stepping onto the elevator. "Actually, your timing couldn't be better."

"Why's that?" she laughed.

"Just 'cause," he shrugged. "So you must be pretty busy lately."

"Actually I'm enjoying a little time off," she said. "At least for the next few days."

"Really?" he asked, surprised. "I called you a few times, I just kind of figured you were busy."

John hoped he didn't sound like a lovesick grade school kid.

"You called?" she sounded surprised. "Z, baby, don't sniff that."

John laughed, "Yeah, I left you a few messages."

"You did? I left you messages."

John stopped walking, "You did? When?"

"I don't know, probably three or four times," she said. "I was starting to think you didn't want to talk to me."

"Why wouldn't I wanna talk to you?"

"I don't know really," she laughed a little. "It's just what I thought."

"I thought you didn't wanna talk to me," he said, scratching the top of his head, a little embarrassed.

"I did," she said quickly.

"Did you?" he smirked.

"I mean, you know, I wouldn't be opposed to it," she covered quickly.

John laughed, "That's good to know."

---------------------

2 Hours Later…

Brianna locked the door, hanging Z's leash back on it's hook. She'd just spent the last couple hours catching up with John. She'd walked for part of the conversation but for most of it, she and Z sat on a lounge chair by the pool. The only reason they ended the call was that her battery was dying and, though he wouldn't admit it, he was starting to sound pretty tired. She was tired as well and she needed to get up early to catch Nick before he left for work. They needed to have a little talk. She didn't want to think about it now though. She couldn't wipe the stupid smile off of her face. Maybe it was just because she was sleepy. Or maybe it was because of John. It could have been a combination of both, she wasn't sure. What she did know, was that she felt more relaxed than she had in a while. Sleep was sure to come easy.

---------------------

John smiled, looking down at his phone as he walked back to his room. His ear was a little sore because he hadn't been on the phone for that long in a while but he didn't care. It was nice talking to Brianna, hearing what she'd been doing, how happy she was with her career. He noticed that she barely ever mentioned Nick but tried not to read into it too much. What went on between the two of them was none of his business. What was his business, however, was who was trying to make sure that he didn't have the chance to talk to her. He swiped his key card and opened the door, sliding the phone into his pocket. He was too tired to deal with it now. He would handle it in the morning.

---------------------

The Next Morning…

Nick walked down the stairs, yawning and scratching his stomach. He smiled at the scent of bacon wafting from the kitchen. That was one of the best things about having such an open penthouse. You could always smell the food cooking. Brianna was in the kitchen looking better than any woman should look at 6 o'clock in the morning. She wore a tiny pair of black shorts and a t-shirt, her dark waves pulled up into a messy ponytail. She was sprinkling cheese over the top of an omelette that made his mouth water about as much as she did.

"Hey baby," he smiled. "You didn't have to make me breakfast."

"I didn't," she smiled. "This is for Gia and the other one is for Troy, he should be here in a few minutes. And Maya and I don't like eggs."

"Where's mine?" he asked.

"Oh there's a lot of eggs left," she smiled. "I'm sure it wouldn't take you too long to whip up somethin'."

Nick stared at her, confused, "Bri, what's going on?"

"Nothing babe," she said, getting a water bottle out of the refrigerator and walking out of the kitchen and into the living room. "Why?"

"You're acting funny," he followed her.

"Am I?"

"Yeah," he nodded.

"You know what I think it could be?" she walked over to the coffee table, picking up her cell phone and flipping it open. She pressed a few buttons and then held it up, "This."

Nick stepped closer to see what she was talking about. It was her list of most recent calls and John's name was right at the top. Nick winced.

"Is there any particular reason you're so quiet honey?" she asked.

"Talked to John last night, huh?" Nick couldn't think of anything better to say.

"Mmhmm," she nodded. "And he told me something interesting. Wanna know what it is?"

He waited, knowing she didn't really want him to answer that.

"He told me that he's been calling me..and that he's left me at least three messages. And I started wondering how that could be possible because I haven't gotten a single one."

Nick nodded.

"So I was thinking about it while I was making breakfast…someone had to delete them," she said, drinking some of her water. "Gia doesn't touch my phone..Maya doesn't make a habit of listening to my voicemail and last I checked Z hadn't developed opposable thumbs so who could it be Nick?"

Nick was about to apologize but she held up a hand

"Don't even bother," she shook her head. "There really isn't any reason for discussion. Besides, you have to be at work pretty soon. And if we get into this, it may take a while." She put the phone down, "But it's obvious to me that some ground rules need to be set so allow me to do that now…My cell phone and whoever calls it is my business. I decide who I do and do not talk to, not you. So in the future, if you see that John is calling and your jealousy starts to take over, I suggest you step back and take a deep breath, do whatever it is you have to do to keep yourself from pulling this crap again because if you do…I highly doubt that I will be so understanding."

"Brianna you don't understand," he said.

"No I do understand," she argued. "I get that you don't like the idea of an ex boyfriend coming back into my life. If I were in your position, I might not like it either. But there are some things in life that we just have to deal with. I have learned to live with a lot for you, the least you can do is put up with a couple phone calls."

Nick gritted his teeth, "Fine."

"Good," she smiled. "I'm glad we understand each other. Have a good day at work babe."

---------------------

Paula frowned, staring down at John's phone. Something was wrong with it.

"Lookin' for something?"

She jumped, dropping the phone, looking over her shoulder. She hadn't heard the shower stop running. John was standing in the bathroom doorway in his boxers, "The passcode isn't stored anymore if that's what has you looking confused."

"Why would that matter to me baby?" she asked. "I was just looking to see what games you have."

"Really?" John asked. "'Cause I thought you were checking to see if any other women called me..and then making sure I never find out if they did."

She laughed, nervous, "Why would I do that?"

"I don't know why you did it Paula," he shrugged.

"I wouldn't do that," she argued.

"Come on now," John laughed. "Look, I know Jeff and Randy love me but neither of them are the sneaky type. When they get jealous, they bring their issues straight to me and we talk things out."

Paula laughed, "You're crazy."

"No I'm not," he shook his head. "Paula I wanna explain something to you."

"What?"

"Brianna isn't some ring rat calling because she wants to hook up with me. She's not someone that you need to see as a threat," John said. "She is someone that I want to talk to and will talk to, whenever I want."

Paula knew there was no way out of this so she just nodded, not saying a word.

"Now, I don't need you to admit anything because we both know what happened," he said. "Like I said earlier, the passcode isn't stored in my phone anymore so like it or not, if she leaves me a message, I'll get it. I don't wanna fight about this, I just want you to know what's going on."

"And what if I don't like it?" she asked. "What if I'm not okay with you talking to her?"

John shrugged, "Then I don't know what to tell you."

---------------------

The next chapter of the story will take place afteroneor two months (haven't decided which) have passed…and I promise, for those wondering when it's coming, starting in chapter 13 there will be a lot more John and Brianna interaction.