The next morning, Phil woke up to the sound of his alarm buzzing angrily in his hear. He hit the top of it hard, thinking that it could possibly be more annoying than his brother's voice. Groaning, he turned over to see that Lalie was still sound asleep. He nudged her.
"Lalie, get up," he said. "It's time to get ready for work."
She didn't move, so he gave her a little push.
"Lalie! It's time for work!"
Instead of getting up, she swatted his hand away. "Tell them I'm sick."
"Well, are you?"
"No, I just didn't sleep much last night," she mumbled back before grabbing a hold of his night shirt and pulling herself to his chest so she could cuddle in.
"How come?" he asked as he put his arms around her. "I don't even remember hearing you crawl back into bed. How late was it?"
"I was reading your book," she said, suddenly lighting up and pulling away from him with a grin. "You didn't hear me come to bed because it was almost five in the morning and you were sound asleep."
Phil froze for a moment, but when he looked back at her smiling face, he didn't quite feel so nervous anymore. "You... you stayed up all night reading my book?"
She nodded. "I did, and Phil, it was absolutely fantastic! I had no idea you could write like that! I mean, other than your handwriting, it was so great! You write those characters as if they were real people, and then, your descriptions... Phil, you should try and get it published."
"Whoa, whoa... slow down, Lalie. Did you just say that you liked my book?"
"It was incredible, Phil," she grinned. "And I really think you should let Justin read it."
"You didn't give it to him, did you?"
She laughed at him. "In the middle of the night? Of course I didn't! Calm down, sweetie, I wouldn't give it to him unless you said I could."
"And you can't," he said sternly. "Justin can't know."
"I don't know why you're so adamant about not letting your brother see your work. It really is a fantastic book," Lalie told him as he put his arms back around her and held her tight. "I couldn't even put it down."
At eight AM, Kyle was dragging his things up from the basement when Justin arrived and smiled down at him. "Ready go, Mr. College?" he asked, only to have a baseball glove hit him in the chest. "Gee, thanks for the welcome!" he called, catching it before it fell back down.
"You're welcome," Kyle told him as he plopped the rest of his things down on the kitchen floor. "Hey, Justin, can I move in with you?"
"Why?" Justin smiled. "Did Nicki tell you that if you didn't go to school she'd kick you out?"
"I hate you!" Kyle said as he picked up his things and dragged them through the kitchen door and into the living room. He threw everything down by the door and folded his arms over his chest. "You know," he said, when both Nicki and Justin were standing there looking at him. "It's so great to know that you have family on your side. I just want to thank the two of you for making me feel so loved!"
Justin held in a snicker and Nicki grinned, running up to her little brother and throwing her arms around him. "Oh, Kyle... you're so welcome!"
He shrugged her off and then refolded his arms across his chest. "I was being sarcastic," he grumbled.
Justin finally let out his laugh. "We know, but we can't help but tease you. It's just so easy!"
"Maybe I will move back in with Mom," Kyle mumbled, looking from his brother to his sister for any sort of reaction. "I said that I think I'll move in with Mom!" he said even louder.
"Fine," Justin finally spoke up. "Move in with Mom. I know you'll have a blast."
Kyle thought of the endless nagging... worse than Nicki's nagging, and he shuddered. "You are so mean," he said to Justin. "Just wait till you want something from me... you just wait."
To Kyle's dismay, Justin gave another chuckle. "Ooo!" he said, "I'm scared now!"
"Hey, Justin," Phil said into the phone that evening. "Get your ass over here and help me assemble this TV unit. Lalie's having a fit because apparently I'm not putting it together quick enough."
Lalie gave him a look from the other end of the living room. "Try not putting it together at all," she said.
"Okay, okay," Phil said, rolling his eyes. "So maybe I'm having a little trouble, and I need your expertise. Will you come?" He could almost hear his brother grinning.
"Of course I'll come and help you," Justin replied, his voice dripping with fake pity. "Poor Philly Willie can't put the TV stand together!"
Phil was not amused. "Shut up and get your ass in the car," he said, hanging up the phone.
"If I hung up the phone on my sister like that, I think she'd disown me."
"Well, your sister has issues."
"So does your brother."
"Justin doesn't have issues," Phil decided. "He's just... emotionally challenged."
Lalie chuckled. "Adelyn begs to differ. You should have heard the story of how he proposed. So romantic!"
"Save me the details of how my brother romances his girlfriend," Phil begged.
"Maybe you should ask him for some pointers," Lalie grinned at him.
"Oh, please, he can't be that good. We're talking about the same guy who tried to shove my head into a toilet."
"He shoved your head in a toilet!?" she laughed
"Yeah, for some reason, he thought it was funny, too," Phil mumbled as he sat down on the floor and started looking for pieces to fit together. "You should hear about the other things he did. Justin was everyone's little brother from hell."
Lalie laughed a little more while she flipped through the instruction booklet. "I think I'll leave you boys alone with this thing and go pick up some dinner. What does Justin like?"
"Who cares?" Phil wanted to know. "I like pizza," he grinned.
"What kind of toppings does he like?"
Phil looked up at her. "Um... he likes pepperoni."
She got up just to hit him over the head with the instruction booklet. "You like pepperoni, Phil. Tell me what Justin likes!"
"He likes pepperoni, too!" Phil insisted.
Just then, there was a knock on the door. Lalie opened it and Justin waltzed in.
"What did you do?" Phil asked. "Fly here?"
Justin shrugged. "I was ready to go."
Phil tried to shove a bolt into a hole in a piece of wood. It didn't fit. "You're always ready to go," he mumbled. "Get that booklet from Lalie and come over here. Sad to say, but I can't figure this thing out for the life of me. I don't know what language that booklet's in, but it sure as hell isn't English."
"Justin," Lalie said as he sat down next to his brother. "What do you like on your pizza?"
"Sausage, why?"
She glared at Phil, who smiled guiltily. "I'm going to get pizza for you guys. I'll be back in a little bit... and hopefully, that thing'll be standing next time I see it."
Phil smiled. "See you soon, sweetie- I mean... Lalie."
Justin was trying to hold in a snicker as the door closed. When it shut, he burst out laughing. "Sweetie? You're a riot, Phil."
"Shut up and read the booklet."
"I am, I am... just be patient."
Phil sat still for a moment as he watched his brother page through the instructions. "I wish I could have helped Kyle move in, but I had to work. How did it go? Does he like his dorm?"
Justin looked up at him. "The only problem was Kyle. He complained the whole time. His dorm is small, but it's not bad. It's just that he has this really weird roommate. I feel bad for him."
"Weird?"
"Actually," Justin smiled. "He's kinda like you."
"Very funny," Phil frowned.
Justin looked back down at the booklet. "He's just... odd. Like, the whole time we were there, he never looked away from his computer screen and barely said two words to Kyle. Kyle needs someone to be his friend... and I don't think he'll be getting that from this guy."
"Maybe he's just shy at first."
"I hope so."
Phil started separating the different pieces and putting them into piles as Justin read. He gulped as he glanced over at his brother. "How's your book coming?" he wanted to know.
"It's done," Justin mumbled.
"Aren't you trying to get it published?"
Justin turned the page in the booklet and went to read it.
"Well, aren't you?"
He looked up with a blank expression on his face. "Huh?"
"I asked if you were trying to get your book published."
Justin looked back down. "Yeah," he said.
Phil picked up a couple of nuts and bolts and rolled them around in the palm of his hand. "Oh, yeah? How's it going?"
"It's going."
"You don't sound too excited about it."
"Maybe because I'm trying to read this thing, and you keep interrupting me?"
"Sorry. I'll shut up," he said, leaning back against the couch. There was a part of him... a small part, that wanted to tell Justin about his book. If Lalie liked it couldn't have been as bad as he thought it was. Plus, if he told Justin about it, would Justin even want to read it? Probably not, but he couldn't take that chance. If he was going to tell his brother about his book, now wasn't the right time.
Just then, the phone rang, and Phil got up to answer it. He snatched the cordless from the couch and turned it on. "Hello?"
"Hello, is this Mr. Phillip Timberlake?" a male voice wanted to know.
"Yes... it is. Can I help you?"
"My name is Brian, and I'm from Carter Publishing. I'm just calling to set up an appointment with you to review your contract. We love your book and can't wait to have you on board."
Phil almost fell over. "What? That can't be. I never sent even sent it in! Is this some sort of joke?"
"This is no joke, Mr. Timberlake," Brian chuckled. "Upon the recommendation of Georgia Caldwell, we've looked at your book even though you don't have an agent."
"But I never sent it in," Phil continued to insist. "How could you get it if I didn't send it in? And how does Georgia know about it?"
"Georgia called this morning, and then we had a blond woman by the name of Miss. Mills come in and drop off the manuscript this afternoon. Let me tell you, we usually don't even look at any sort of work unless it's typed, but you came highly recommended... and those recommendations were right. I suggest you get yourself an agent and then stop by our office to set up your contract. I can guarantee you'll be pleased."
Phil's jaw dropped. How could they go behind his back and turn his book in to some publishing company? And how did they do it so quickly? He knew Georgia had the power to throw her weight around different places, but to get his book a publishing deal in one day? He was seriously impressed.
"Mr. Timberlake, are you there?"
"Call me Phil, and yes, I'm here. I'm just having a hard time taking this in. My girlfriend and her friend are two of the sneakiest people I know."
"Georgia Caldwell has been a friend of ours for years. We've worked together with her company many times, and when she told us about you, we could not say no. And we're glad we didn't. Welcome aboard, Phil."
"Um, thanks. Can I get your number so I can call you back when I'm ready. I haven't even thought about looking for an agent."
At that word, Justin's ears perked up. "An agent?" he echoed.
Phil turned around and went to the kitchen to get a pen and paper. "Six-one-two..." he mumbled as he jotted the number down. "Yes, I have it. Thank you, Brian, and I'll be sure to get back to you soon."
He hung up the phone and just stared at the kitchen wall. All of it had happened so quickly that he could barely believe it actually happened.
"Who was that?"
Phil jumped at the sound of Justin's voice. He turned around, breathing deeply. "Don't do that! You scared the shit out of me!"
"Who was on the phone?" Justin demanded.
Phil suddenly couldn't breathe. Justin wasn't going to give up until he knew. "No one important, Justin. Just someone Lalie wanted me to talk to. It's not a big deal."
"Then why did you say something about getting an agent? What do you need an agent for, Phil?"
"It's really not that big of a deal," Phil insisted, turning around and stuffing the number into his pocket just in case Justin decided he wanted to call it back and find out for himself. "Trust me, it's not."
Justin didn't look like he trusted him. "Tell me who that was on the phone, Phil."
Phil turned and looked at him. Now, he wasn't only worried about Justin teasing him, he was worried that he'd hurt his brother's feelings. After all, Justin had been writing books all his life, and now, Phil had barely tried and succeeded. "No one important," he reassured him.
Chapter 3
Keeping the Peace
Family: Timberlake
Non-Nsync Fiction
I'll Never Stop {Fiction}
Email Me (irishgirl982@yahoo.com)