Georgia
Chapter One
"Livvy, I think we're finally ready." Margo stopped Livvy coming into the foyer from the kitchen.
"I think so too. Let's find Jackie and have a quick wrap-up meeting before "the time"."
Margo nodded and dashed off to find her other friend. Livvy went down the list in the notebook in her hand as she made her way to the formal parlor and sat down in a lush maroon chair.
"Guest bedrooms, cleaned, guest bathrooms cleaned. Check and check. Cookies in oven, check. Street teamers here, check." She looked up when she heard footsteps. Watching her friends enter the room, she smiled excitedly. "So I think everything is ready."
"It better be. We've gone over everything fifty times. And we look amazing!" Jackie exclaimed.
"This place looks amazing." Margo said.
"It better. I didn't hire an extra cleaning service for nothing."
"Right. I smell the cookies." Margo sniffed the air. Livvy nodded.
"I can't believe thisw is finally happening!" Jackie said.
"I can't believe they actually agreed to it!" Margo returned.
"I know. I'm glad we were able to pull it off." Livvy said.
When the door chimed, the three girls froze and exchanged glances. Livvy looked at her watch. Twenty minutes early.
"I didn't expect them to be at least another hour. They're always late." Margo pointed out. Livvy nodded, then made her way to the mirror in the foyer. Running a hand through her long chestnut curls, she checked her make up. Wiped under her eyes, added more lip gloss from her snug jeans pocket and turned for the door. Her two friends flanked her, right and left. Livvy waited another beat with her hands on the handles of the French doors, then opened. Pushing them wide, she smiled warmly at the four people with plenty of luggage on her front step.
"Welcome to the Plantation DeLuca. I'm Olivia and I'll be your hostess for the next three days. These are my friends and co-coordinators, Jackie, and Margo." She said in a slow southern drawl. She watched her guests eyes survey the house. When she saw what she thought was approval, and had their attention again, she continued. "As I'm sure you're tired from your journey from California, I'll show you to your rooms. Follow me." She turned and headed past the curving staircase to the second floor on her left. As they continued on past the vast dining room on the left and the plush parlor on the right, she could hear the guys whispering. Curious toknow what they were saying, she bit her lip and continued on slowly, with the rythmic rolling of their suitcases across her wide-planked gleaming oak hardwood floors as background music to her steady clicking heeled shoes. They passed through the main library, and finally through an indoor green house to the other side where she came to a dead end. A door in front, and a door to both the left and right. She stopped and turned, facing the small crowd. "This room here," she gestured to the deep mahogany door behind her, "is the master guest site. There are two bedrooms and a sitting area. The other two, they are both one bedroom. They all have their own full bathrooms and walk in closets. My friends and I will leave you to settle in. Dinner will be served promptly at six, if you choose to eat, in the formal dining room. Until then, if you have any questions, concerns, or would like to explore, feel free. Margo, Jackie and I will be in the parlor." She gave a sweet warm smile to each of the guys. "Ladies?" The guys parted for her and her friends. She could feel them watching her. She added a little extra sway to her walk until she turned the corner into the parlor.
"I can't believe they're in your house Livvy!" Margo whispered loudly.
"I know. I just wonder what they're going to do next. I mean, the show isn't until tomorrow night." And tonight, I'll have them all to myself, she thought wickedly. She pictured a little sneaky person, shoulders hunched, evil gin on the face, wringing and rubbing their hands together.
"Livvy? What's so funny?" Jackie asked.
"Huh? Oh. Not funny, just excited." She lied. "We should go check on the cookies."
"But you told the guys-"
"They took too long. Besides. They could be in there for the rest of the night. I'm not passing up cookies to sit in the parlor." She told Margo. She looked at her watch. Almost four pm. She knew Margo and Jackie had other places they needed to be soon. Livvy stood up and smoothed her jeans and began to turn when she heard voiced in the hall. She grabbed eachg of the girls and pulled them down.
"I thought-" Margo began before Livvy shhed her quiet. She pointed to the door, then looked away blankly out the window.
"Ah-" Taylor started.
"I smelled cookies." Zac said bluntly. Livvy turned and smiled at Zac. God he was gorgeous. In just a graphic tee, worn jeans and sneakers, and shaggy hair a little longer than Taylors. She looked at her friends, gaping unattractively. Snickering silently, she stood up and breezed past her stunned friends and took one arm of Zac's and one of Taylor's.
"This way. And I hope you like chocolate chunk..." She faded out.
"I am way out of my league here." Margo admitted to Jackie.
"I know what you mean. To have the guts to take them like that? She's never flinched, not once. While we sit here, stomach in knots. It's not fair." She looked at her watch. "I need to go anyway. I'm going to go say goodbye. I wouldn't be surprised if she had them naked and begging for the cookies when I get in there." She laughed and shook her head.
"Give her time and i"m sure she would." They got up and went to the kitchen and peeked around the door frame, just in case. The scene was innocent enough. She had her back to them, bending over, probably on purpose, digging for something in the fridge while the guys sat around the table facing her, drool practically running from their mouths. She stood and turned, smiling, holding a large carafe of milk. She grabbed the large tray of chocolate chunk cookies from the counter with her other and sauntered over to the table. When she sat down in front of them, Jackie took that as her cue.
"Hey guys. We have to be on our way now..." She stopped at the table. "Just wanted to say goodbye and see you tomorrow, probably around ten."
"Cool."
"Thanks guys."
"Yeah. See you tomorrow." They all said, slightly dismissive. Margo's shoulders slumped as they turned to show themselves out.
"Already under her spell." As they came up to the door going to the dining area, they were surprised when the doors exploded open and Livvy appeared in front of them.
"Hey. So, tomorrow at ten, be here and be sharp. And I'm not talking just on time either. So while you guys are gone, I'm going to talk you guys up to the other guys. We'll open the gates at six, so make sure you guys come in the front in the morning. Cool?"
"Cool." They both said. They walked to the front door.
"Tomorrow afternoon. You have the code for the gate, right?" Livvy asked. They nodded. "Good. 'Night guys."
"Night." Livvy closed the door behind them, and the image of the grinning guy jumped back into her head. She grinned at the closed door, thinking of the three hottest guys in the world sitting at her kitchen table. When she turned, she jumped inwardly. The guys had been behind her. For how long? Not that that really mattered much any way. She replayed her conversation in her head. The only questionalbe part she knew they didn't hear because the girls would have given them away. "Hey guys. What's up?" She smiled innocently.
"Those two girls, they're like, your minions, huh." Zac asked. Livvy looked at each of them. Taylor had a small smirk on his lips.
"Zac," Isaac sighed, rolling his eyes. She widened her smile. Everyone is, she though, and you will be too, soon.
"I guess I just have some excellent leadership and organizational skills." She said, generalizing. Zac snorted.
"That's the nicest way I've ever heard it put. Nice choice of words." Taylor said.
She lifted her chin. "So what's up?" She repeated.
Zac nodded. "What's to do 'round here?" He asked.
"What do you want to do?" She countered. He put a finger to his lips in thought. The first thing that popped into his head as he studied her, he dismissed. Wasn't time for what guys thought of most. So he wanted to see what she could do. He thought of something outrageous.
"I want to skateboard off of the roof and into a huge pool of marshmallows." He grinned, and waited for her response. When she smiled cooly, she saw the confusion cross his eyes.
"We can have that arranged for first thing after dinner, if you'd like. Until then, I can give you a tour of the plantation."
"You- you could do that?" He stammered. Good. She'd cought him off guard. She could, really, but it'd take some seriously strong strings pulled. She pulled her cell out of her back pocket and flipped it open, pretending to dial.
"Sure. Let me-"
"No. No, you don't have to." Zac inturrupted, reaching out across the wide space between them. She smiled, keeping it cool, and giving herself a smug smile mentally.
"Or, I have a room set up with some instruments if you'd like, or a pool if you don't feel like working, miles of walking paths fit for bare feet if you'd prefer exercise," she smiled at Taylor's wide-eyed expression. "I said on the phone with your manager while arranging all this that you'd have everything you would at a regular public venue, just with better beds and bigger showers." She smiled. "Or, if you'd like, we could discuss details of tomorrow, although I'm sure you got a lot of them from your manager or you wouldn't have to agreed to this." She spread her hands. They nodded.
"Of course." Isaac said, trying to speak for his silent brothers. "And so far everything looks perfect. Thank you for your hospitality."
"You're very welcome. I'm grateful you've chosen this charity. It means a lot to myself, my family and city." She paused, fearing the conversation was leading to an awkwardly silenced dead end. She tried breaking the ice. Sniffing the air obviously, she looked at the guys who semed content to just watch her. "I think dinner is about to be ready." She glanced at her watch. Ten minutes. She could stall. "Shall we move to the dining room?" They nodded. Not talking much. She knew what buttons of theirs to push to get them talking for days. As she led them to the dining room, she mentally went through her storage of conversation topics. Charity was too serious right now. She wanted to save that for later tomorrow. Maybe she should get them drunk. She smiled as she opened the door and held it for her guests. Isaac was fist, and Zac gave her a smile as he passed, but she waited last for Taylor. She saw him watching her, holding her gaze, blue eyes to blue eyes. Her stomach jumped. Now was her move. While she held his gaze, she shifted her weight so when Taylor passed, their bodies brushed. She watched for his reaction. Nothing. Hmm. While he sat she rounded the table and sat at the head. Seated, she hit the call button under the table. A couple seconds later, Bea came in with a tray of fresh lemonaids. She watched the guys eyes widen in surprise again at the plump old white lady in a traditional black and white maid's uniform. "Thank you Bea." She gave her a warm smile when her lemonaid was set. Bea disappeared just as silently as she'd arrived.
"You have a maid!?" Zac exclaimed.
"Oh. Bea? She's been here since years before me. This house came with an entire staff. Maids, servants, cooks. There are call buttons by the doors in your rooms if you ever need something." She smiled and took a sip of lemonaid, watching the guys exchange looks over her glass. "Groundskeepers for the pools, basketball court, tennis court and gardens." She didn't mean to brag, but she had to gt them talking. If that meant listing amenities, then so be it.
"Pools? As in plural?" Zac asked.
"Yes. One infinity edge pool overlooking one of the gardens, a jaccuzzi pool, and of of those pools that you can use as both a hot tub and a stationary swimming pool."
"I've always wanted to try one of those." Taylor said.
"It's available twenty four hours a day. We also have a set of indoor pools. A regular pool and both the jaccuzi and stationary lap pool, along with a sauna and full gym. We also have a private theater, bowling alley and dance club with a full bar, all available for you to use any time you wish."
"I don't mean to be rude or insulting," Taylor started, then paused to rethink his question, but curiosity got the best of him. "You seem to be in charge here. Of this place. How did you manage that?" Livvy laughed quietly.
"No offense taken. My parents are in real estate. We own a number of large properties. I happened to grow up here, and wanted to stay while my parents persued other ventures in Europe. I have a bachelors degree in event planning, with a minor in philanthropy."
"So between the two, you're set for life in your chosen field." Taylor finished.
"You could say that, yes. I have a lot of great connections, and we all use eachother in return." With that, Bea came through the double doors with a silver cart holding dinner. Five plates heaping full of chicken, mashed ptates, gravy, mixed vegetables, baskets of buttered biscuits and another pitcher of lemonaid. Ashley came sauntering in at precisely six and st down in an empty chair.
"Wow. This looks amazing." Ashley said gratefully to Livvy.
"You're welcome."
"Yeah, I figured you'd found her and came here. You guys are always hungry." He motioned towards them with a chicken drumstick.
"With an appetizer of freshly baked chocolate chunk cookies." Zac said, digging into his mashed potatoes. They talked about their drive across the country, about their plans when they went home.
"Olivia, my stomach and I thank you. I'm going to crash for the night, I'll see you tomorrow." Ashley excused himself from the table, and gave a final goodnight as he left the room. Livvy watched the guys as they said goodnight to their friend, then turned to face her expectantly. She stole a glance at her watch. Seven thirty. Should she play games, string them along and suggest a swim? Or...
"So I usually walk after dinner dinner around the gardens, a total of three miles. You're free to join me if you wish. It usually takes at least forty five minutes or more, depending on how fast you walk. Or, you could use any of the ammenities I've mentioned earlier. Anything sound appealing to you?" She slid her eyes to each of them. Isaac spoke first.
"Olivia, I'm going to be a party crasher. I'm exhausted too. Dinner was amazing, and your house is beautiful. Thank you for your charity idea, and your hospitality." He looked at his brothers. "Practice at eleven?" They nodded. "Kay. Night all."
"Night," they replied as he left the dining room. Zac and Taylor exchanged glances and shrugged shoulders.
"We'll walk with you," Taylor said.
Livvy smiled. "Great. Lets go." She stood up, and walked around the long dark cherry wood table to the doors. Taylor and Zac stood up and followed her through the door and fell into step one on each side. She led them back through the parlor and to the frosted glass French doors leading to a side patio where chairs and a table were set out surrounded by overflowing potted flowers of every color and species. The air smelled of magnolia flowers in the dusky humid evening. Livvy inhaled deeply.
"This is part of the reason why I love this place." She saw the guys looking around, so she started walking. They cought up quickly. "I bet it's kind of weird knowing you're going to walk a mile and not be barefoot."
"It's kind of nice, actually." They walked for a ways, making small talk, getting the feel of eachother. By the time they were half-way through, they came to Livvy's favorite spot. A little gazebo in the middle of a small clearing, covered in climbing and draping flowers, white Italian lights, and a small blue pond to the right. She took a seat on a bench overlooking the pond. Taylor sat next to her. Zac informed them that he was going to go investigate the cattails, since he'd heard they made some sort of cool instrument once when they were in Africa. Livvy watched Zac saunter away, his hair playing with the light breeze. She felt Taylor looking at her, so she continued to watch Zac. She saw Taylor look down at twist his Hanson ring, then look back up at her, then out at Zac.
"Do you always think so much?" Livvy asked. He smiled. "Just say it."
"It's not time."
"So? If you feel it, it's best to be honest to everyone involved." She turned and looked into his eyes. He was so beautiful. That two toned wavy hair, clear blue eyes, milky skin with the adorable pink cheeks and full red lips. But she refused her eyes to sweep over his face. Then he'd know. And she wasn't at that part in her game yet. She made herself blush and look away, pretending to be shy. She heard Taylor laugh quietly. She looked up ad saw Zac walking back to them, carrying three cattails. "Ready?" She asked Zac. He nodded. They got up and continued walking. Taylor was silent while Zac demonstraited.
Back at the house, they said goodnight before parting ways. "Just so you know, my room is upstairs and at the end of the right hand hall. Anytime you need anything, you can ring the servants bell. They'll come or you can come get me. Good?"
"Good."
"Kay. Night guys."
"Night Olivia." She turned to go up the stairs. She heard their quiet talking fading. At the top of the stairs, she looked over her shoulder to find no one there. That was one thing she disliked about the place. It was so big and empty. She went to begin her nightly routine of a quick, vigerous half hour exercise, shower, and winding down with a current book to some quiet music. Usually Hanson. As the music drifted through her bathroom's sound system, she rubbed, poked and prodded her face before tying her hair up, then changing into her work out clothes. Going over to her stereo, she changed the playlist to her workout songs, then turned on the t.v. in her sitting area on mute, and began working out.
Chapter Two