James stopped at the outdoor mall to pick up a cup of hot coffee from the café when he spotted Frankie sitting at a table, also with a cup of coffee.
He walked over and tapped on her shoulder, and she looked up at him.
"James," Frankie muttered, sounding surprised. "What are you doing here?"
"I was just stopping by and saw you sitting here," James replied.
"And you want to be seen with me?" Frankie wanted to know. "I know you must know by now what I did. I mean, about calling Georgia's office pretending to be someone else."
"I know that Trey forced you to do that, and you'll never do anything like that again nor will you have contact with him, right?" James wanted to know, as he watched Frankie sip her coffee. "I defended you to Georgia last night."
"You did?" Frankie asked in shock, allowing a smile to pass through. "Why would you do something like that?"
"I've known you for so long, I couldn't turn my back on you now, no matter what happened in the past," James informed her.
"But I told Kevin that he-" Frankie began.
"That's over with," James cut her off. "Just because no one else seems to have faith in you, I do. You know I've always had a soft spot for you, Frankie."
Frankie blushed, as she listened to these compliments. She had no idea where they were coming from, but this might be the perfect time to find out about that wedding date while he's in such a good mood.
"You know that I've had a soft spot for you, too," Frankie told him as she smiled. "If only I could see you get married."
"It's coming fast," James replied. "Next Saturday."
"Really?" Frankie wanted to know, as she took another sip of her coffee, and thought about how he's Savannah's long lost brother. "I know that you'll be so happy."
"I can't wait," James replied, as Frankie noticed that he was looking down at his watch. "I should be getting to work."
"If you must," Frankie replied, as she watched James get up. "When should I be expecting my formal invitation?"
"Soon, I'm sure," James replied. "Nothing will rain on this wedding," he finished, sounding confident.
Frankie watched James walk away, as she stirred her coffee with her straw. "If I were Georgia, I'd carry my umbrella because it will rain… in fact, I'll see to it that it POURS!"
Georgia stared at Trey, unsure of what to think of his announcement saying that Frankie Stone was his girlfriend.
"Did I leave you speechless?" Trey wanted to know.
"I guess anyone who could allow themselves to be wrapped around a controlling finger, such as yours, would be compelled to pursue a relationship with a control-freak, such as… you," Georgia argued.
"Do I sense negativity?" Trey wanted to know.
"You can sense whatever you want, but whatever is going on between you and Frankie won't last more than a week!" Georgia exclaimed, as the phone rang.
Trey watched as Georgia walked into the kitchen and picked up the phone. He couldn't hear what was being said, but by the _expression on her face, the call must not have brought good news about.
"Georgia, you look as if you lost your best friend," Trey observed, as he watched Georgia hang up the phone and walk back into the living room.
"Well, I might as well have lost my best friend," Georgia replied. "That was Ms. Jenkins from Darryl Lake's office."
"Who's Darryl Lake?" Trey wanted to know.
"He's only the man that could make Caldwell Banking a household name," Georgia explained. "It seems like he's only available for a meeting at three: the same time I have a meeting with this long-term client, who I cannot cancel. What a fine time for Kevin to quit: just when I need my president."
Trey watched as Georgia turned around, seeming to be thinking about a way out of this bind, as he prepared his approach in a gentler manner. "You can always ask me to step in as president, Georgia."
Georgia turned around upon hearing that, and looked him dead in the eye. "No," she told him. "No way, Trey."
"You need me, and I'm there!" Trey exclaimed. "Are you going to throw away your chance of becoming nationally well-known?"
Georgia bent her knees as she bit her lip, trying not to give in. "Fine. Just until I find a permanent president," she told him, the words leaving her mouth without her even realizing it. Before she could speak again, she felt Trey embrace her. "Trey, what did I do?" she asked with a nervous laugh.
"You have faith in me," Trey let her know.
"I don't know if I'd call it 'faith'," Georgia replied, glumly. "Let me go get some papers for you to sign… just so YOU understand that it's only a temporary position."
Trey watched Georgia walk off into the other room, as he looked around the penthouse.
'It's almost all mine,' Trey confidently told himself. 'The first thing I'll have to do when I move into this penthouse is change the wall color. I like blue, but this is such a horrid shade of blue!'
Georgia walked out of her bedroom, carrying the papers that she needed Trey to sign and noticed that Trey was staring at her walls.
"What are you looking at, Trey?" she questioned.
"I was just saying to myself what a lovely shade of blue this is," Trey replied, as Georgia saw him give that smile that always makes her disbelieve him.
"Oh, were you?" Georgia wanted to know. "So, now you're a color expert? You're all over the place, aren't you?"
"Nobody said that I couldn't be multi-task talented," Trey informed her. "Don't you remember how multi-task talented I was past the midnight hour, Georgia?"
"I always let you believe what you wanted," Georgia replied, as laughed to herself as she noticed Trey seemed taken aback by that. "Here, I just took these out of my bedroom for you to sign," she said, handing him the papers.
"Your bedroom is some spot for your filing cabinet, Georgia," Trey noted. "What, Jim isn't interesting enough for you at night, so you have to keep your filing cabinet on hand in case you get bored?"
Georgia dropped her jaw, as she rested her hand against her chin. "Jim is far from being boring under those covers. Now, are you going to sign those papers or not?" she wanted to know, as she stood over him while he filled them out.
Vivian stood outside Lalie's home, and she was just about to ring the doorbell when her cell phone rang.
"Hello?" she asked, after she flipped it open and put it up against her ear.
"Mom?" she heard James' voice come through.
'If you changed your mind, I will-' Vivian angrily muttered to herself. "Honey, what can I do for you?"
"Georgia and I set a date," James informed her. "The backyard is still open, isn't it?"
"Yes, of course!" Vivian exclaimed. "When is it?"
"Next Saturday," James replied.
"Sounds good to me!" Vivian agreed. "I'm so glad that you agreed to have it in the backyard. Everything will look so pretty, and breathtaking."
"Well, my break is almost over," James told her.
Vivian took the hint. "Okay, I'll talk to you and Georgia about further arrangements later. I love you, my sweetie."
Vivian clicked the phone shut, and put it back in her purse. Just as she was about to press her finger into the doorbell, the door opened and a man with brown hair, carrying a white plastic bag stood in the doorway.
"Who are you?" the man wanted to know.
"I'm V-" Vivian started, but with hesitation. "Never mind. Who are you?"
"Well, who are you?" the man wanted to know again.
"This could go on all day if neither one of us will give in," Vivian mentioned.
"You're right," the man agreed. "So, why don't you start by telling me who you are."
"No," Vivian affirmed. "Tell me who you are."
"No," the man once again said, and Vivian watched with a smile, as he walked by her still holding the plastic bag.
'Look at that,' Vivian mumbled, as she noticed that the door was still open and she entered the Mills' family home and stood in the center of the living room.
"Did you take the bag to the barrel, Honey?" she heard Lalie's voice call out from the kitchen.
"Sorry, I had more pressing engagements!" Vivian shouted, as she continued to stand in the middle of the living room with her arms folded.
There was a pause, and then Lalie appeared.
"Vivian," Lalie cautiously muttered.
"Long time, no see, dear," Vivian told her. "Did you think that I had disappeared off the face of the earth?"
"There was always that little glimmer of hope there," Lalie hissed with a smirk.
"How nice to see you, too, darling!" Vivian exclaimed, walking up to her and putting her hand on her arm.
"What the hell did you do with Phil?" Lalie wanted to know, in an accusing tone, as she pulled back.
"You mean the young man with the brown hair who was walking out of here carrying a garbage bag?" Vivian wanted to know.
Lalie raised her eyebrow. "That would be him, yes."
"See, I wasn't sure if that was your new squeeze or a sanitation department worker," Vivian told Lalie as she shrugged her shoulders. "I would never tell my lover to take the trash out."
"That's because your lovers still need help tying their shoes," Lalie reminded her.
"Ted? Believe me, he didn't need help tying his shoes," Vivian informed her, fanning herself. "Besides, he wasn't that young," she concluded, throwing her hair back.
"Oh, please, Vivian," Lalie hissed. "The ink was still moist on his high school diploma!"
"Come to think of it, I did get something black on my dress when he dipped me on his desk," Vivian recalled.
"Oh, Vivian," Lalie replied in a disgusted tone, as Vivian noticed her roll her eyes. "Too much imagery there!"
"Sorry, was just telling it as it was," Vivian let her know, as she turned to the window and saw Phil beginning his trek back up the front walkway. "You seem to have him well-trained. He takes out your trash, pleases you in more ways than one, I assume."
"No one is being trained, Vivian. Mind control is your department," Lalie told her in a serious tone, as she turned to the window, as well. "He is the sweetest man ever."
"He did leave the door open for me to enter, which I thought was entirely sweet," Vivian smiled.
"You'll have to forgive him for that," Lalie began. "He's unaware that there are people like you roaming the streets who shouldn't be given the time of day, let alone be allowed to enter someone's house."
"I didn't give you permission to come in," Vivian heard Phil's voice enter the room.
Vivian saw Phil standing in the doorway. "Permission is overrated," she declared. "I took it upon myself," she explained. "I mean, you left the door open like that."
"Phil, this is Vivian Baker, Kevin's mom," Lalie introduced Phil.
"How do you do?" Vivian shook hands with Phil.
"Just for future reference," Lalie began. "The next time you see this woman standing around outside this house, please tell her to go in the other direction!"
"Do you want her to leave, Lalie?" Phil wanted to know. "I can make her leave."
"There'll be no need for that," Vivian let him know with a smile, as she placed her hand on his chest and patted it. "I just came to let Lalie know that since I am not allowed on the premises at your house, that you're not allowed ANYWHERE near my house. I can return the gesture just as easily, if not more."
"And you came all the way over here to tell me that, because?" Lalie wanted to know in an impatient tone. "It's not like your house is on the top of my list of places that I'm raring to visit, Vivian!"
"Well, James and Georgia's wedding will be held in my backyard," Vivian informed Lalie with a grin. "Looks like you lost out."
"James would NEVER agree to have his wedding in the backyard of the house from hell!" Lalie shouted.
"The inside might not hold pleasant memories, but the backyard is simply exquisite for a wedding," Vivian told her in delight. "And, now, I can order two less chairs, since you and… Phil will be no where in sight," she told them with glee, surveying both of them with her eyes.
"James WILL invite us," Lalie sternly told her.
"I couldn't care less whether you get invited or not," Vivian shrugged. "You will decline."
"Why are you showing so much animosity toward her?" Phil demanded to know. "I can see this kind of behavior back home, if I wanted to."
"I'm used to it," Lalie cut in with a sigh.
"You don't know the half of it," Vivian told Phil in a serious tone. "Lalie, be sure to fill him in, will you?"
"Get the hell out," Lalie ordered.
"With pleasure," Vivian replied, as she turned to Phil and felt his muscle. "Don't let Lalie give you too many bags to carry out to the barrel… you just might regret it, if she leaves you with a broken heart like someone else we all know," she added, slyly glancing back over to Lalie.
"Look, I know you're upset about what happened between Kevin and I, but you can't come in here and-" Lalie began.
"Upset?" Vivian cut her off abruptly with a laugh. "No, I'm not upset. In fact, I'm quite pleased. I never wanted you two together in the first place so hearing about the break up was music to my ears."
"Now you will leave," Lalie ordered, getting angrier, as Vivian felt Lalie's hands push her toward the door.
"Have a good day," Vivian wished, as the front door met her face. She buttoned her coat, as she took in the fresh air. "That went well," she congratulated herself, as she bent down and picked a flower off the stem and looked at it. "She hates me, she hates me not," she started, as she pulled off the petals. "She hates me," she laughed, as she pulled off the last petal and threw the stem in the air. "And I wouldn't have it any other way."
Lalie slammed her fist down on the counter, as she felt Phil walk over to her and put his arms around her.
"Vivian thinks that she's so intimidating," Lalie angrily concluded. "Well, it's time that I prove her wrong."
"And how are you going to do that?" Phil wanted to know.
"I'm going to be at that wedding, Phil," Lalie told him in a serious tone, glancing up at him. "And you are going to be right there on my arm, the whole way through."
Chapter 22
Non-Nsync Fiction
I'll Never Stop {Fiction}
Email Tracia