Enjoy!


Chapter 4

Mercedes groaned as her publicist Santana Lopez tossed another contract down onto the table.

"Come on, I know paperwork isn't fun for everyone, but if you want to get paid, you need to do it."

Mercedes tossed her phone down. "It's not that. You know Jordan Marks, Center for the Lakers? He somehow got my number."

"Mmmm, that man is fine as hell. I didn't know you two were…"

"We are not!" Mercedes said, looking at her. "He is trying to make me baby momma number three, and I am turning him down. No, thank you, I don't need that drama."

Santana frowned. "Is being tied to him a bad thing? He's handsome, and you're fine as hell; why not ride the wave? Steal some of his spotlight for your new song…"

"No. I know riding that wave is good for some people. But I wanna rise on my own merits. I have the talent, and I have an amazing manager and publicist, so do I really need a man to make me shine?"

Santana looked at her and sighed. "Merce, you have been here for almost a year, your album is about to drop, you have interviews coming up. You keep telling everyone you aren't single, but I have yet to see you with a man, a woman, or something. But I do get it, wanting to be a woman who takes control of her life. That being said, you're gorgeous; if men don't see you with a ring, they are gonna keep flocking around you."

Mercedes understood what she was saying but didn't want to go the route of an opportunistic girlfriend. She knew her music was good and would sell; she just needed them to see it and believe it.

"I have a boyfriend… I will reveal him soon… after my album drops." She said, shifting slightly.

"After? Girl, if you have a man, the best thing for your album, for your image, is to have him beside you, showing support and love. Hell, bring him here; it's great press; I can see the headlines now." She said, standing. "Mercedes Jones shows off boyfriend; then the article will talk about how a stable and loving relationship helped you cultivate and create beautiful music. The thing sells itself."

Mercedes shook her head. "No. It will take away from all my hard work. You need to trust me on this… besides he's a private guy in a huge organization, so I can't just unveil him like that. It has to be subtle like us grabbing coffee… or something."

Santana nodded. "Okay, well, then, we will stage an outing for you two. Only one or two, no more than three cameras there to capture you and your boo grabbing coffee. I can make sure they only get your face and won't publish his name."

"No, I don't want to do it that way either… I just…" She sighed, nibbling on her bottom lip. "What if I post a picture of us the day after? Just waking up or something. That way, I can control the narrative?"

"You won't let us get candid shots of you and him having coffee, but you will post a morning after post? As your publicist, let me tell you how wrong that would be. You, a woman who seems single, haven't posted about a man in ever. Will you post a morning-after photo of you two waking up? That will look like something you don't want it to look like." Santana laughed.

Mercedes smirked. "No, actually, it will look like a woman who has said since the beginning that she's not single is, in fact, not single. Besides, it'll play into one of my songs on my album… I'll post the lyrics as the caption and turn my phone off for one day. You get the buzz you wanted, and I get the boost I need; it's a win-win."

Santana looked at her for a moment. "Then what? Is he going to that Fundraiser for your label? Will you post more than one photo, or is this a one-and-done? Because one-and-done raises questions."

"You have such little faith in me. He will not be at the Fundraiser, but he will donate a lot, and then after my album drops, I will go on a trip with him. Somewhere tropical, and of course, my phone won't work, but as soon as I come back, I'll have plenty of romantic vacation pictures to last them a lifetime."

"Mercedes, I am gonna ask this question with love. Are you making this dude up? I ask this because it does not make sense. If this is just you not wanting to come out as a lesbian, I can cover for you. I can make it work," She said, sitting down.

Mercedes rolled her eyes. "San, for the thousandth time, I am not a lesbian. I actually love dick a lot. And he's very real… it's just that he's… he's not a football player or some flashy singer, he's a boring numbers guy, and… he's white."

"I do not see the problem. It's probably a good thing for your image he's not a baller."

"My debut album is pure RnB and Soul… my fans are not going just to let it go that I'm with him, so I have to play this right. I will get backlash, but then I will get a lot of new support, plus he's hot… like really, really hot."

"Wow. You aren't making sense, your fan base will judge you, but you get support? That's not gonna change if you introduce him before it drops. In fact, if they care, and that a big if, they will get over it once the radio plays something like A Moment or Creepin'."

Mercedes was over this conversation and figured it was time to put her foot down. "Look, either we do it my way or not at all. It's still my decision in the end, and me parading him around on the red carpet isn't the way to introduce him. A single picture is good enough for now, and I'll even unarchive the ones I already have of us so they'll get a good look at our relationship. That's the last of this topic for now; let's talk music."

Santana shook her head. "You hired me to get you to the top. This won't. But you are right; it's your choice." She opened her bag and handed her an envelope. "This is from your label. It's the invite for the Fundraising Gala, and they have you down as Mercedes and plus one."

Taking the envelope, Mercedes let out a breath. "Thanks; if he wants to come, he will. If not, then I'll bring a friend." She said, shoving it into her purse. "Now, can we get back to work? Please?"


Buzz

Buzz

Buzz

Mercedes groaned, going to hit the alarm on the bedside but sitting up in frustration as the buzzing continued. She had arrived back in New York four hours ago on a flight that was supposed to get in a lot sooner, so she was tired, and whoever was blowing up her phone was gonna get cussed out for waking her up.

Santana's ringtone sounded as she picked up to see who was texting her. Answering the video call, Mercedes yawned, laying back down and burying half her face in her pillow.

"What, I'm sleeping!"

"Then wake the hell up! Girl, you are trending." Santana said, staring back at her.

"Trending?" Mercedes asked, yawning again. "And?"

"Don't you wanna know why you are trending?"

"Because my album drops next week, girl. I don't know; I am trying to sleep!" Mercedes groaned.

"Check your messages, Mercedes."

Huffing, Mercedes sat up and hit the pillows in a mini fit as she went to her messages and froze seeing a photo of her and Sam. "What the actual hell? What is…who…why?"

"Apparently, you have been holding out on me. You said he was hot, but damn Cedes."

Mercedes shook her head. "No, no, no! This is not good! Who posted this?"

Santana heard the panic in her voice. "What's the issue? You wanted to drop some pictures of the two of you, and this is the perfect way to do it! Plus, these are all candid, so it doesn't seem staged."

"That's because this is from a year ago! Fuck, fuck, fuck! I have to call you back, don't answer ANY questions about him, and don't acknowledge the post." She barked before hanging up and scrambling out of the bed.

"Moma!" She shouted, running down the stairs. "I need to borrow Daddy's truck."

Her mother, Kerry, looked at her confused before putting her cup down. "Good morning to you, too; why do you need his truck so early?"

Mercedes groaned; it was just like her mother to treat her like a child. "Because it's an emergency, and I need to get to upstate New York fast."

Kerry looked at her daughter with an amused smile. "Why?" She asked, taking a slow sip of her coffee. "We were supposed to have brunch with your cousins today."

"Moma, I barely even like them, and it's for work, so please let me go! I promise I'll be back in time for late brunch."

"You expect me to believe you're going to make it to upstate and back in" She paused, looking at her watch. "Two hours? On a Monday?"

"Kerry, let the girl go. She clearly is in a rush." Jonah, her husband, said, smiling at their daughter. "Just be careful and don't; PLEASE don't hit another tree."

Mercedes quickly gave her father a hug. "Thanks, Daddy, and it wasn't a tree. It was a bush." She corrected before darting back upstairs.

She tripped over her suitcase, cursing under her breath before digging through it and grabbing a pair of faded ripped jeans and her black cropped sweater. If she thought she had more time, she would've put more effort into her looks, but she didn't. She wasn't even sure he would remember her, let alone speak with her, but she had to hurry before someone else figured out who he was, and he told the world that they weren't dating.

"Ugh! Why did this have to happen now!" She muttered, pulling on her jeans and jumping to get them to fit before throwing her sweater over her head.

It didn't take her long to get on the road, she made good time getting upstate, but her nerves were shot. She couldn't figure out what she wanted to say or how she was going to say it. But she needed to attack this head-on and needed Sam to agree to help her.

She hadn't really thought about him after she left the engagement party. Quinn tried to explain, but Mercedes didn't care; his family was bat shit crazy, and she may have missed the sex, but she could find good sex by herself.


By the time she arrived at the building, she had somewhat of a script ready. She wanted to make sure that she was clear, that she left nothing to chance, and that she fixed this thing. Walking into the building, she froze for a moment, trying to gather her thoughts.

Walking over to security, she offered them a smile. "Hi, I have an appointment with Sam Evans from Abrams and Evan Consulting."

The security guard nodded, pulling out a form. "Sign in please."

Signing in, she was directed to the elevators on the 25th floor.

"You can do this; you are just going to see a man who screwed you over for his family and tell him he has to be your boyfriend for a little bit. Easy peasy." She said to herself as she pushed the button and rode the elevator up. As she reached the 25th floor, she walked to the front desk.

"Welcome to Abrams and Evans Consulting; how can I help you?"

"Hi, I am looking for Sam Evans." She said, shifting.

Looking down at her computer, she nodded. "Name?"

"Mercedes, I don't have an appointment, but I need to speak with him."

"I am sorry, ma'am, but you can't go back without an appointment. He has something next Tuesday. At noon?"

Mercedes frowned; she needed to get back there and sighed, shifting again. "Oh, next Tuesday, I am not sure I will be in town…"

The receptionist nodded. "I am sorry, that's the soonest he will be available."

Mercedes hesitated for a moment before offering the woman a smile. "Thank you, I will check my schedule and see if that works; before I do that, could you point me to the lady's room?"

The woman looked at her and then tilted her head to the right. "It's to the right, third door on the left."

"Thank you so much," Mercedes said, moving quickly and looking behind her subtly as she walked to the bathroom. Once the woman looked away, Mercedes dipped to the left, looking around as she tried to find Sam's office.

It took one or rather four tries and one trip to the storage closet before she found his office. Standing before the wooden door with Sam Evans written on it, she thought about knocking but hesitated, unsure what she was going to say.

As she reached forward to knock, the door flew open inward, and she fell forward. Sam was surprised when her body fell towards his, catching her in mid-fall before they both fell to the ground, her on top of him.

"Mercedes?"

"Hi, Sam." She said, staring down at him.

Instinctively or maybe it was from muscle memory, his hands gripped her hips, keeping her straddled to him.

Brown eyes met green as both of them remembered their last time together; this position did not make her nerves any better, not now she had a new set of nerves and wants. God, did she want this man?

His hands traced their way down to her thighs and slowly back up her hips, towards her sides.

She bent down towards him as if she was being pulled to him; the way he looked at her told her that even now, she wasn't the only one feeling things in this sexually charged moment.

As his left hand gripped her side, his right moved to cup her cheek; it would be so easy just to lean down and kiss him. Just one more time, as he lifted his head up, closing his eyes to press a soft kiss to her lips, she came back to reality, back to her senses, and pushed him away as she scrambled up, ruffling her hair.

Sam stared at her as she stood, still in a bit of a daze, before he stood up, brushing himself off.

"Uh, hey, Mercedes." He said, running his hands through his hair nervously. "What are you doing here?"

Tucking a few strands behind her ear and shifting. "Right, so I'm not sure if you know this or not, but since our… arrangement, I've gained a little attention for my singing." She said, taking a nervous breath. "Well, there's a picture of us circling around on the internet, and now everyone thinks you're my boyfriend."

Sam looked at her dumbfounded. "Wait, what? I haven't seen you in over a year. There's no way… unless."

She nodded. "It was from your brother's rehearsal dinner, and the photographer posted a flashback Friday. Look, I know your family probably hates me, but I need you to pretend to be my boyfriend for a few days."

"Ha! Hell no, absolutely not. I can't be tied to you, not right now. I have a huge deal going down, and this… fuck. I need to get Artie on the phone to release a statement." He said, walking over to his desk and grabbing his phone.

Mercedes quickly walked over to where he was and snatched the phone from his hands. "No! You can not do that, plus you owe me!"

"I owe? I do not owe you a damn thing! I told you not to be overly affectionate, and you did, so they expected you to keep doing it, and then it all blew up then YOU ran!" He snapped, and she let out a harsh laugh.

"Oh please! You wouldn't stand up to your mommy, and I refused to be treated like some slut, so I left! You let that woman talk about me like I was lower than dirt after I agreed to do YOU a favor!" She spat back.

"You have selective memory, I clearly remember telling you to let it go, but you wouldn't! So you are the reason the arrangement ended the way it did, and I don't owe you shit! Give me my phone back!" He said, reaching for his phone, but she moved back out of his reach.

She quickly moved around his office, putting the phone in her shirt. "I just need a week, and then we will break up! I can't… I need you to do this for me! I did it for you."

"Mr. Evans, there was a woman- you're not supposed to be in here!"

Sam held up his hand. "It's fine, Becca. She's already here… I need you to cancel my next appointment; this one might take a while."

The woman shot a glance at Mercedes before walking out of his office. Sam let out a long breath before slowly walking towards her with his hands raised. She started to move, but he caught her, pushing her against his desk.

"I am going to reach into your shirt and get my phone. I have to do some type of damage control before constituents see the post, I will agree to talk about this over lunch tomorrow, but today, I have to get ahead of this before it gets worse." He said, and she narrowed her eyes on him.

"Make it dinner, and you have to promise not to make any statements before we at least talk… please."

He nodded, slowly reaching into her shirt and grabbing his phone. "I promise, now you have to leave before Becca sets security on you."

Mercedes nodded. "Where should I meet you?"

Sam sighed. "My place."

"Your place? Why would I do that?"

"Because if we are going to figure this out, then we need the privacy to do so."

"If it's privacy we need, which I agree…I know the place. Here." She took a pen from his desk and wrote an address down. "I know the owner, so that I can get us one of their private rooms."

"Private rooms? What place is this?" Sam asked, taking the paper.

"It's a nice little place called Jazzy's. I will see you tonight, 7 pm?"

Sam nodded, and she turned to leave. She couldn't say anything else, so she just left. She had to get back home and ready to endure brunch with her cousins.


Sam checked his social media, seeing all the comments and articles about the picture of him and Mercedes. A rush hit him as he started to read all of the comments, a majority of which were asking who he was and another portion gushing over how handsome he was. He frowned when he saw a few negative comments about how there was no way he'd actually be into her.

Little did they know, he was more than into her and figured he could use this to his advantage, even if it were for a few days. He hadn't remotely looked at another woman since the few days he'd spent with her. A smirk crossed his face when he thought about the many ways he took her and started to feel a rise, but as quickly as it came, it fell when his mother started to call.

Sam hesitated for a moment, not sure he wanted to deal with her, but he knew she would keep calling.

"Hello, Mother."

"Samuel, tell me that this is a joke!" She shrieked.

Sam sighed. "What are you referring to?"

"Oh, don't you get fresh with me! You know very well what I am talking about!"

Sam sighed; he could have told her the truth, that she had successfully scared Mercedes off, and there was nothing to the rumors. However, a part of him, a very angry part of him, wanted her to feel like she hadn't won.

"I don't; why don't you spell it out for me?" He egged her on.

"Are you and that woman back together?" Mary replied, and he could tell she was about to start shouting.

"What woman?" He asked, thoroughly enjoying this moment. "Every time I bring a woman around, you scare them off, so I need a little more before I can confirm or deny."

"That skank you brought to your brother's wedding! The one that embarrassed us all, and you just LET HER!" His mother spat.

He'd been hearing about that ordeal for a year, and it never ceased to amaze him that she recalled that one part out of everything else that happened.

"If memory serves me, she only let the unknown be known, and you start with her, but we've already had this conversation, so why dredge it up again?"

Mary huffed. "I will not allow you to see that woman; she is not a good fit for you! You've worked too hard to let some big-hipped wench ruin it now! Why not date Britney or Penny?"

"Because they don't have big hips." He quipped. "But to answer your question, yes. I've been secretly seeing her for the past year." He lied.

"Samuel now is not the time for games. You can't have been dating her; there's no way!"

He smirked, leaning back in his chair. "Oh, but I have. All those business trips I took, and you just assumed it was all work and no play?" He asked. "She and I decided to keep things between the two of us, but I guess the cat is out of the bag now."

"No! No, I will not allow this! I forbid it! You end this now!"

He chuckled. "End the best relationship I've had… ever? I'm a grown-ass man, that's ain't happening, but she will be coming to the beach out, so you have your heads up now. Oh, and if you disrespect her, I will let Stevie and Stccey know what really happened to their trust funds." He replied.

"Sam-"

"See, I can blackmail people too. Be on your best behavior, and we won't have any issues. Goodbye, Mother."

Sam sat back for a moment; he hadn't meant for this to happen, but why couldn't he have his fun too?

Pulling out his phone, he smiled as he moved to text her.

SE: Wear something sexy to dinner

MJ: And why the hell would I do that?

SE: Give me encouragement to help your case.

MJ: You want me to dress sexy to help my case? Why? Do you miss my body?

SE: Hey, I'm just trying to help you out. We are still on, right? Or have you decided to give up this ridiculous plan of yours?

MJ: We are still on; I'll see you later.

MJ: And I will be wearing what I want. Because everything I wear is sexy on me.

SE: Don't I know it?

MJ: I'm at brunch; leave me alone. *smirk face*

Sam put his phone down and sighed. What was he about to get himself into?


The fun is just beginning!