Karina

Kendra walked down the beach, alone. She stopped when she saw Kevin playing with the baby, and she watched for several minutes, smiling the whole time. She walked over and sat down beside him.

"She's a gorgeous baby," she said. "You're a lucky daddy."

Kevin looked over at her, his dark hair falling over his face, and he smiled.

"Oh, she's not... " he started, but stopped. "Thanks."

"What's her name?" Kendra asked, reaching over and holding the baby's hand.

"Lyric."

"Ohhhhh... wait. Lyric... So this is, um... AJ's baby?" she said, starting to feel some pangs of guilt. "AJ and, uh... Mikayla, right?"

"Yeah," Kevin said, confused. "How do you know AJ and Mikayla?"

"Well, I don't know Mikayla, but I.. Uh.. I met AJ yesterday," she said, blushing.

"Oh, OK," Kevin said, realizing who she was. "So you're the karaoke queen, huh?"

"I guess so. I'm Kendra," she said, laughing.

"I'm Kevin," he said, taking her hand in his like a gentleman.

"I know who you are," she said, smiling.

At that moment, Mikayla walked up and sat down on the other side of Kevin. Kendra looked over at her and got very nervous. She didn't know if Mikayla was going to yell at her or what. She started to get up and leave, but Mikayla stopped her.

"No, you don't have to go," she said, looking up at Kendra. Kendra noticed how beautiful her eyes were, but there was such sadness in them. She sat back down, and the three of them watched the beginning of a fiery sunset.

"Mikayla," Kendra said. "I am so sorry. I just can't tell you how sorry I am about everything that happened."

"Don't be, OK. This was AJ's fault, not yours. You didn't know anything about us. He was just being a... guy."

"Hey thanks," Kevin said, gently hitting her arm. "You know, not all guys are like that."

"All the ones I know are," Mikayla said, raising her eyebrow at him. Kevin sighed, and didn't argue with her. They all sat silently for several minutes. Then Kendra spoke up.

"Hey, why don't we all get cleaned up and grab some dinner?" she said, hopping up off the sand, and holding her hand out to help Mikayla up.

"Sounds good to me," Mikayla said, taking her hand and pulling herself up. They agreed to meet at the restaurant, and Mikayla and Kevin went back to Mikayla's house to get dressed.

Once inside, the baby nurse took Lyric to get her bath, and Mikayla went into her own bathroom to get a shower. She took off her clothes and looked at herself in the mirror. She turned sideways and checked herself out. Pretty good, she thought. You'd never have known she had a baby. She stepped into the huge shower, which had two shower heads, one on each side. The hot water ran over her tired body as she stood motionless, her eyes closed. She didn't hear Kevin slip into the shower with her, and she was unaware of his presence until he pressed his warm chest against her back and placed a soft kiss on her shoulder. She sighed and turned to face him. As she looked into those beautiful green eyes, she smiled. He placed his hands on her face, then kissed her lips tenderly. It had been a year and a half since she had been this close to him, and her body ached for his touch. But there was something inside that was holding her back, and she just felt... wrong. She pulled away from his kiss and looked away.

"Kevin, I can't do this," she said. "It's just too soon..."

He smiled, then nodded. "I understand," he said. "I'll go."

"No, don't have to leave. I just can't... you know."

"Ok, if you insist. I'll stay," he said, laughing softly.

Mikayla turned around and began to wash her hair. After a few seconds, she felt Kevin's hands on her back. She closed her eyes and concentrated on his fingers on her flesh. He moved her hair out of the way, and his lips found the soft spot where her neck and shoulder met. She felt a shiver travel from her head to her toes as his hands ran down her sides, then reached around her waist. She could feel his erection pressed against her body, and she shook her head.

"Kevin..." she said, laughing. "This is not helping anything."

"I know. Just... be bad, Mikayla. What happened to you? You're just... not Mikayla anymore," he said, turning her to face him.

"I don't know what happened to me. I guess... I don't know. Just give me a little time, ok?" she said, smiling a shy smile. She opened the shower door and got out, leaving Kevin alone. She heard him sigh loudly as she wrapped the towel around her body and left the bathroom.

**********************************************

Karina knocked softly on AJ's door.

"Go away," he yelled, his voice muffled by the pillow over his head.

"AJ, are you ok?" she called, really wanting to see him. She knew it was wrong, but her desire to be with him was overtaking her, and it was clouding her judgement.

"Karina, GO AWAY, alright? I don't want to talk right now," he said, taking the pillow off of his face.

Karina shook her head and walked back down the hall towards the front door. She heard music coming from Nick's room, and she stopped by his door. She knocked, and he immediately opened the door. She looked up into his beautiful face and he smiled. He was all cleaned up and looked like he was ready to go somewhere.

"You smell nice," she said, laughing. "Got a hot date?"

"Hmmmmm I don't know," he answered, slipping his arms around her waist. "You busy?"

"No," she said. He had obviously gotten over his bitch fit from earlier.

"Well then, I guess you'll do," he said, grabbing her hand and pulling her toward the door.

"Where are we going?" she asked.

"Who knows?" he said, giving her one of the most gorgeous Nick-smiles she had ever seen. He led her outside into the gardens. The sun was just dipping below the horizon, splashing the sky with brilliant shades of orange, red, and yellow.

"This looks familiar," he said. "Didn't we just see a sky like this this morning?"

"I think you're right," she said, lacing her fingers between his, and holding his hand tight. He pulled her in close and kissed her playfully. His lips were soft and inviting, and when he started to break their kiss, she grabbed the back of his head and wouldn't let him go. He laughed through their kiss, which made her laugh, too. He pulled her hand back down, then kissed the end of her nose.

"Come on," he said, leading her toward the beach. There was a bonfire going, and several people had already stopped to enjoy the warmth, as the Jamaican evening was turning a bit cool. Nick sat down in the sand and Karina sat down between his legs, resting her head on his chest. He wrapped his strong arms around her, keeping her warm and comfortable. She thought about Nick... he was so much fun. He was definitely gorgeous. The sex was incredible. But... he wasn't AJ. She knew she was a better match with Nick. Nick would probably treat her better. He was definitely more forgiving. But there was just something about AJ's intensity that was drawing her in. She knew it was useless to fight it, too.

Karina saw Mikayla and Kevin walking towards the bonfire, hand in hand. They stopped on the other side of the fire, Kevin's arms around her and holding her. He placed a soft kiss on her bare shoulder. Karina elbowed Nick, and he noticed them, too.

"Well.... what do we have here? Damn, Kev's not wasting any time, is he?" he muttered softly. "Ohhhh if AJ sees this, it is not gonna be a pretty sight, Karina."

"Let's just hope he stays in his room," she said, crossing her fingers.

But it was too late... Karina glanced over to the edge of the gardens and saw AJ standing there, alone. He was watching Kevin and Mikayla intently, his fists clenched tight. He slowly began walking toward them, and Karina could see rage in his eyes.

"Umm Nick..." she said, starting to get up. But by the time she was able to stand, AJ had reached Kevin. He spun him around by the shoulder and threw a punch that landed directly on Kevin's beautifully chiseled jaw.

"Oh shit," Nick exclaimed, scrambling to get up and stop them. By the time he reached them, AJ had managed another punch. Kevin was stunned, but quickly regained his composure and realized what was happening. Just as he started to take a swing at AJ, Nick stepped in the way, and Kevin's fist landed right in his face. Nick fell to the ground.

"Stop it!" screamed Mikayla. "Both of you, just stop it!" She stepped between them and started to push AJ back. Without thinking, he backhanded her across her cheek. The anger and shock in her eyes was so clear, as she raised her hand and slapped him back. He stood there, completely stunned. He couldn't believe what he had done. He had struck her. That was the one thing he swore he would never do, and now he had done it.

"Oh God, Mikayla, I'm so sorry. Oh shit..." he said, looking up at the sky. He was so ashamed of himself.

Mikayla just shook her head at him.

"I should have expected this much from you, AJ. You've broken every other promise you ever made to me. You broke my heart. Why should this be any different?"

She grabbed Kevin's hand and dragged him back to her house, leaving AJ standing there, hanging his head in shame.