"Damn, Karina, you scared the shit out of me!" Mikayla yelled, sitting bolt upright.
"Mikayla, you're neglecting me," she said, quietly.
"I'm what?"
"You're neglecting me. You never spend time with me anymore," Karina said, still no emotion evident on her face.
"What are you talking about? We do stuff all the time," Mikayla said, confused.
"No, you do stuff with AJ all the time. You spend too much time with him. You're neglecting everybody and everything around you. Including Lyric. It's like all you care about is AJ... AJ this and AJ that... I mean, the guy fucked around on you. Doesn't that tell you that he doesn't care about you like you care about him? You need to drop him. He's a loser," she said, harshly. Mikayla could hear hatred in her voice.
"Karina, has it escaped your attention that YOU were one of the people that AJ fucked around on me with? Should I not forgive you either? And don't even try to tell me that I'm neglecting my child. You know it's not true. I spend most of my time with her. I take her everywhere with me. And if I am spending a lot of time with AJ, well... tough shit. I love him. He's Lyric's father, and we might even end up getting married one of these days." Mikayla was livid at Karina's accusations.
"Oh come on now, Kayla," Karina said, rolling her eyes, "AJ? Lyric's father? How stupid do you think we all are? That baby looks no more like AJ than I do. It doesn't take a rocket scientist to know that she's Kevin's."
Mikayla was silent for the longest time. She couldn't look at Karina. She was shocked and confused by this little outburst. She hadn't seen Karina this jealous since...
"Karina, what has come over you? Don't you want me to be happy?" Mikayla asked quietly.
"Of course I do, sweetie," Karina said softly, moving onto the bed and resting her cheek on Mikayla's shoulder, "I just think that this guy is bad news. I mean, remember the last time you were so head over heals for a guy? Look where it got both of us. I mean, yeah, Dominick was hot and all, but..."
"Shut up, Karina. Don't ever mention his name around me again," Mikayla said, bristling at the mention of her dead husband's name. "I don't ever want to think about him again, OK? That was a long time ago. Let's just leave it there."
"Alright. But I think you should know that I see a lot of his personality in AJ, and I don't like it a bit," Karina said, her voice sickenly sweet. "I'd hate for you to lose..."
"STOP IT," Mikayla said, shrugging away from her grasp and climbing off the bed. She turned to face Karina, rage in her eyes. "Karina, you stay away from AJ or so help me GOD you will regret it. He is nothing like Dominick. He loves me, and he'd never do any of the shit that Dominick did. And, just to ease your fears, I will NOT lose another man I love. So you just don't have to worry yourself about that."
She turned and stomped out of the room, leaving Karina sitting in the middle of the bed. A slow smiled came over Karina's face. The seeds of doubt had been planted. Now it was just going to take some time...
******************************************
Mikayla returned to her room a few minutes later, and Karina was gone. She put on her bathing suit and went out onto the beach for an early morning swim. She had to purge herself of the terrible things Karina had said, and the dredged up memories of Dominick... She sat down in a chair and stared at the water for a few minutes. A shadow fell across her body and she looked up to see who it was. Nick...
"Hey Nicky," she said softly, shading her eyes from the bright sunlight.
"Hey Mikayla. So, are you still in a forgiving mood? I'm sorry I let you down," he said, sitting in the chair beside her.
"It's OK, Nick. I realize now that it was just a mistake sending him here. I should come with him, but I just had so much stuff to take care of at home. Don't worry about it. It's over. If I forgave him, I can certainly forgive you."
"Good," he said, smiling. "I can't stand it when you're pissed at me."
Mikayla smiled and reached over, brushing Nick's hair out of his face.
"You need a haircut," she said, laughing.
"Nah," he said, holding her hand and kissing it. "You know, I heard a little rumor about something that happened the other night with Kevin and a certain young lady. Care to share the whole story?"
"No, I wouldn't care to share the whole story. That's none of your business, and whoever told you is in big trouble," she said, giving him a sly smile.
"OK, OK. Could I possibly have an encore performance sometime, though?" he said, laughing.
"Possibly. But only if you're a good boy and it's your birthday," she said, turning to him. "Let's swim."
She got up from her chair, pulling Nick into the warm sea with her.
*****************************************
AJ knocked on the door to Mikayla's house, expecting the housekeeper to answer. He was surprised when Kevin opened the door. They hadn't spoken since the other night, when they had gotten into the fight. AJ was still fuming over the way Kevin had moved in on Mikayla so quickly, and Kevin was still nursing a sore jaw and wasn't very happy about it. Kevin stood there silently, looking at AJ. AJ rolled his eyes and pushed past him into the house.
"Don't you even wait to be invited?" Kevin asked irritably.
"I don't need an invitation from YOU," AJ said. "Where's Mikayla?"
"I have no idea. She's not here."
"Well, I guess I'll just go visit Lyric," AJ said, turning to walk down the hall to the baby's room.
"AJ, you're such a dick," Kevin muttered under his breath, shaking his head. AJ turned around and looked at him harshly.
"Excuse me? Did you say something to me?" AJ asked loudly. "Is there something bothering you, Kevin? I mean, we can settle it right now if there is."
"I said YOU'RE SUCH A DICK," Kevin yelled. AJ started back down the hall, ready to get into it with Kevin again. The difference in their size didn't matter a bit to AJ. He knew he could take Kevin. Just then, Brian stuck his head out of his bedroom door.
"Hey, what's going on guys?" he asked, sleepily.
"Oh, I'm just about to shut this fucker's big, fat mouth. That's all," AJ said, menacingly.
"Hey, now," Brian said, trying to laugh. "We're all friends here, right?"
"Hell no," Kevin said, walking toward AJ. They stood face to face, both of them with fury in their eyes. Brian stepped between them and pushed Kevin back a little.
"Kev, come on, now. This is ridiculous. You go that way. AJ, you go the other way. Cool off," Brian said, trying to take control of the situation.
Kevin and AJ stared angrily at each for a moment, then Kevin turned and walked away.
"This has got to stop, man," Brian said, turning to AJ. AJ rolled his eyes and quickly walked out the front door.
Brian sat down on the couch and rested his head in his hands, sighing deeply. Mikayla and Nick walked in the back door, laughing. Mikayla glanced over and saw Brian on the couch, looking worried.
"What's up, Brian?" she asked, walking into the living room.
"Kay, you're gonna have to do something about Kev and AJ. They're at each other's throats. You just missed a near brawl in your living room a minute ago. You know, we've got to go into the studio in another few weeks, and this kind of vibe's not good for creativity," Brian said, a sad look on his face.
Mikayla sat down beside him and looked up at the ceiling. She knew this was going to be a problem, but she was hoping they would be able to work it out themselves. She began to hatch a plan to get those two back on the same page.
**************************************
Later that night, Mikayla sent the nanny and Lyric to another suite at the resort for the evening. She had plans, and it wouldn't be right to have the baby there when everything came together. She sat at her dressing table, artfully applying her makeup. AJ walked into her room, unannounced. He sat down on her bed and watched her silently, an amused smile on his. She eyed him in the mirror and gave him a seductive smile.
"Who are you getting all dressed up for?" he asked. "Got plans for tonight?"
"Ohh, you could say that," she said, tilting her head slightly. AJ's face dropped a little, and he looked disappointed.
"Oh, well, I guess I'll leave then," he said, starting to get up. Mikayla turned to face him.
"You don't have to go, baby," she said, standing up and crossing the room. She put her arms around his neck. "You're invited, too."
AJ gave her a quizzical look as he wrapped his arms around her waist.
"I'm invited, too? Who else is going to be here?" he asked.
"Kevin," she said, placing a soft kiss on his lips. He pulled away and glared at her...