I woke the next morning to Michael coming quietly into my room and plopping onto the bed beside me. "Hey," he said, resting his chin on one hand as he looked down at me. He flicked a lock of my hair over my shoulder. I drew the sheet further up over myself. "Hey yourself," I said, my voice raw from sleep. It was then that I noticed a goofy grin on his face and he laid back and sighed in contentment.
"Oh my god, Michael!" I squealed softly.
"What?" he asked, unable to keep the grin off his face.
"You got laid," I said.
"What? No I didn't!" he said, but he blushed and bit his lip trying to hide that stupid, goofy smile. I poked him in the chest. "Yes, you did!" Oh god, I was so glad our twin connection hadn't pushed that into my brain. If it was one thing I didn't need to see, it was my twin brother having sex with Star. But I was curious. "So, how was it?" I asked, trying to be casual.
"Madison Marie!" he scolded, pretending to be scandalized. But there was humor in his eyes and that goofy grin was back after a second. "It was great," he answered honestly. "I seriously think she's the one, Maddie. I love her," he said.
I leaned over and kissed his forehead. "I'm glad, Michael. She seems like a sweet girl. I hope it all works out for you," I said honestly. I laughed when I saw that he had fallen asleep, goofy grin still in place. I quietly pulled the blanket over him and gathered a pair of jeans and a tee shirt from my bureau and tiptoed into the bathroom. I turned on the shower and climbed in as the water heated, sighing as it hit my somewhat sore muscles. I stretched under the heated spray and washed my hair. I climbed out and wiped myself down with a towel before yanking on the clean clothes I'd gathered. I noticed that the floor was a bit cold, so I took a pair of clean socks out of my drawer and pulled them on as well.
I brushed through my hair and pulled it back into a tail down my back, shivering when it swished coldly against my spine. I entered the kitchen, surprised to find it was only around 9 a.m. Sam was sitting at the table eating some cereal and I saw Lucy sitting on the porch drinking a cup of coffee. "Morning, Mom; morning, Sammy," I called out.
Lucy smiled at me and Sam just gave me a long-suffering grimace. "She's making me go with her to Max's to apologize again," he whispered to me. Oh, I remembered this part, I thought. This was where Thorn attacked Lucy and Sam got his idea about the Hounds of Hell from that stupid comic. Guess I'd have to come along and smooth things over again. I looked over to Sam. "No worries, I'll come with you," I said.
"Really?" he said, surprised. "You're a life-saver!" He finished his cereal and hugged me, dropping his bowl in the sink before running upstairs to change. I laughed and got a bowl of cereal for myself, carrying it out to the porch to sit next to Mom.
"So did you have a fabulous time with Max last night?" I asked. She looked so thoughtful, I was a bit worried.
"Hmm? Oh yes, it was wonderful," she said. "Thank you so much, Maddie, for putting so much work into it for me. It really made it a magical evening, even after that disaster with Sam and those Frog boys," she said rolling her eyes.
"Then what's wrong, Mom?" I asked.
"Oh. Oh, honey. I don't want to worry you. I'm just concerned about..." she hesitated.
"About Michael," I said. She jerked up, looking at me in surprise. "It's ok Mom, I know you're worried. But I honestly think he's going to be fine. He's just rebelling. After everything with Dad, he's just maybe feeling a little trapped."
"And what about you, lovey? Are you feeling trapped as well? I know we've only been here a few days, but I feel like you've had to pick up so much slack, looking after your Grandpa, Michael and Sam and then having to put everything together for me last night," she began.
I raised my hand to stop her. "Mom, you know I've always liked taking care of people. You've done so much for me all my life, not to mention Michael and Sam. After everything with Dad, you need to remember you're not just "Mom" anymore, you're also still "Lucy". Helping you out last night was an honor, I only wish I could have done more. As far as Grandpa, Michael and Sam, who else is going to take care of them?" I joked. "I'm just kidding. I take care of them because I love them too."
"You've always been the most considerate person I've ever met. Even as a child, you were the first one to make sure that everyone around you had what they needed or wanted before you even asked for anything. I remember when Sammy was born, you'd fix Michael a bowl of cereal so that I could feed Sam. And the first thing you did every morning was to make sure that "your" baby was alright. You'd open the door, and climb up the crib to peek in on him and make sure he was still breathing," Mom said, reminiscing.
I smiled, remembering that. I'd done the same thing for my younger sister my first time around. Apparently some things never change. Lucy continued, "I just don't want you to miss out on things because you're taking care of us. You should be out on dates and having experiences I can get angry and shout at you about. Try your first cigarette and your first taste of alcohol so you'll decide you never want to start drinking or smoking. Try a joint so I can yell at you and then tell you about all the times I got high as a teenager," she said, laughing.
"I've made some friends already, Mom, and they make me happy. Plus, I've never really been much of a partier. I like being around a few friends who are close, I don't like being around a ton of people, especially when they're drinking. I think we all had enough of that with Dad's business parties," I said, shuddering at the memories of those uncomfortable get-togethers. I decided to change the subject. "Sam says you're going over to Max's this morning?"
"Yes. I thought I'd take him a bottle of wine to apologize for Sam and those boys' behavior last night," she said.
"Well, I'm sure he doesn't feel you need to, but since you're going, do you care if I come? Then I can take Sam to the board walk, drop you off at work and pick up groceries. Oh, and do you mind if I go to the boardwalk tonight?" I asked.
She laughed. "You just want to see Thorn again, don't you?"
I blushed. "Guilty. He's such a sweetheart, and he's such a pretty dog. I wish I'd seen him as a puppy, I bet he was adorable. So is that a yes?" I asked.
She nodded. "Go put your shoes on and yell for Sam. You can help me choose a bottle of wine, too."
"You got it, Mom!" I said, kissing her on the head as I took my bowl to the sink, washed it and Sammy's quickly and headed upstairs. I quietly pulled my shoes on in my room so as not to wake up Michael. I pulled my light-lock-out curtains closed and took off his shades and shoes, pulling him up on the bed farther and covering him with the blanket. I pushed his hair back off his brow and smiled, he looked so sweet and innocent laying there. "Rest well, brother-mine," I whispered to him.
I knocked on Sam's door. "Sam, come on, Mom's ready to go. I'm going to drop you off at the Frog's, after we leave Max's," I said. He jerked the door open, that sweet smile on his face. We hurried downstairs and while Lucy and Sam headed out to the truck, I checked on Grandpa quick-like. I knocked on the door to his lab and heard his softly called "Yeah?"
I opened the door. "Hi Grandpa. Mom, Sam and I are going to town. I'm going to the store, do you need anything? Stock up on your root beers and double-thick oreos?" I said with a grin.
He grinned back at me. "Well, I could do with some root beers, come to think of it. And some rolling papers," he said with a grin.
I rolled my eyes. "What would you like for dinner tonight, Grandpa?" I asked.
"I don't suppose you could make baked chicken, mashed potatoes and green beans? I haven't had that since your Grandma passed away, bless her soul," he said.
I smiled. Baked chicken was one of my specialties. "Your wish is my command, Sahib," I teased, playfully bowing. I wrote his root beer, rolling papers, and supper request down on my list and hurried out to the truck. I climbed in beside Sam, trapping him between me and Lucy. As we drove, I started singing along with the radio softly, smiling when both Sam and Lucy joined me.
We stopped at the wine store and I went inside with Mom. "We'll be right back, Sam," I told him, making him stay in the truck. Mom and I wandered around for a little bit and I kept getting drawn back to the section of home made local wines. "How about this one, Mom? It's a local cordial made from raspberries," I said, pointing it out.
"That sounds lovely, Madison," she said and picked up the bottle. The owner wrapped the bottle up in a cute little cloth bag and Lucy and I walked back out to the truck. We climbed back in and drove out to Max's house. "Wow, nice place," I said appreciatively. It was a nice house, a white adobe style surrounded by white picket fence.
I got out of the truck with Mom and saw Thorn immediately. He growled lightly when he saw Mom, but stopped when he heard my voice. He whined and hurried down the sidewalk and small bridge to me, nuzzling into my hand and I sat down on the bridge as he butted his head into my shoulder. "Go ahead and put the wine on the porch, Mom. If you leave it here, someone might take it," I said.
"Ok, great idea, Madison," she said. She wandered up to Max's house, not hearing the light growl from Thorn.
I popped him on the nose with my fingertip. "That's enough of that, she's not hurting anything. And she quite likes your master. You behave yourself, pup," I said. He whined and looked at me pitifully, so I began to vigorously pet and scratch him, laughing when he plopped himself over onto his back on top of my legs like the world's biggest lapdog. I waited until Lucy was back outside of the gate before I told Thorn "up!" and he stood off my legs. "Good boy," I said, petting him. "Now you've got to stay here and watch out for Max, got it?" I asked. I would have sworn that he nodded at me. "I'll see you again soon, Thorn," I told him and walked back to the truck and climbed in next to Sam.
"Happy now that you got your Thorn fix?" Mom asked me and I laughed.
"Yep, I'm good, thanks Mom," I said.
"I still don't know what you see in him, he looks like a monster!" Sam said, shivering. I laughed as Thorn poked his nose between the bars of the gate as if he wanted to come with us. "Let's get out of here," Sam said, and Lucy drove away.
When we reached Max's Video, I switched places with Mom and climbed behind the steering wheel. "So, if I let you hang out with Edgar and Alan, you're not going to come up with anymore silly ideas about scaring off Max, are you?" I asked, forgetting about the fact that Michael had gone flying around the room the night before last and scared him half to death.
"No, we'll probably just hang around the comic store," Sammy said.
"Ok, good. I'm going to the store, then home to start supper. Be home by five-thirty, got it?" I asked, seeing that it was about noon now. He nodded and jumped out of the truck as I pulled up beside the comic store/Frog boys' house. "See you later, Sammy!" I called and waved at him and the Frogs. They waved back and I pulled away from the curb, driving to the nearest large grocery store I could find.
I hummed to myself as I shopped, making sure to grab Grandpa's items, as well as snacks for the rest of us and sandwich meat for Sam's constant sandwiches. I picked out a nice three pound chicken, red-skinned potatoes for mashed potatoes and fresh green beans. A few other items and I was ready for checkout. The checkout boy kept making eyes at me and I smiled at him, trying not to laugh. In my previous life, no one had ever been attracted to me because of my obesity, I was always the girl with "the pretty face", but a body nobody wanted. Here, because of all I had done to be healthier this time around, I was wanted for both body and pretty face.
The bag-boy put everything into large paper bags without me having to ask him to double bag, he did it automatically, which I was thankful for. I put the bags in the seat next to me and climbed into the truck and drove back home. Grandpa came out to help me carry groceries in, and I put everything away except for the chicken. I cleaned it, patted it dry and seasoned it well with salt and pepper and rubbed the skin with softened butter. I stuffed the cavity with onion and celery and put it in a roasting pan, covering it with the top and placed it in the oven to bake on a low setting.
While the chicken baked, I headed upstairs to my room. Sometime while we were gone, Michael had woken and moved to his own room, so I climbed into bed and took a short nap while I could, since I knew I'd be up all night with David, Dwayne, Paul and Marko. I set my alarm for four-thirty. That would give me plenty of time to nap, and then finish supper.
I closed my eyes and drifted off in the slightly over-warm room. It felt like only minutes had gone by when the alarm began to blare; but I sat up and turned it off, stretching my back as I stood. I went into the bathroom and wiped my face and arms down from sweating while sleeping, then headed back downstairs too the kitchen.
I opened the oven and smiled as the whole house was suddenly flooded with the scent of baking chicken. I pulled open the roaster pan and flipped the chicken breast-side up so that it would brown and put it back into the oven without the lid on this time. I closed the oven door and turned the oven up a little to brown the chicken skin a little better. I took the small red-skinned potatoes and cut the into chunks, putting them in a cold pot of water on the stove before turning the heat on to cook them. The green beans I cut in half, taking off the tips and put them in a sheet pan, sliding them in the oven with the chicken to roast.
Before long, Sam was walking through the door, Lucy behind him, Maria having dropped her off since I had the truck. Grandpa peeked out of his lab just as Michael came walking downstairs. "Hey, everybody, perfect time, dinner's almost ready," I said.
While they all washed up and got comfortable, I mashed the potatoes with butter, milk, salt and pepper. I took the chicken out of the roasting pan and cut it up, holding some back with mashed potatoes in two small containers for Laddie. The green beans got the same treatment with butter, salt, and pepper, some held back for the little man. I put his containers in my cross-body bag for later. I put everything else in bowls to be served and the chicken on a platter. Michael and Sam set the table just as Mom and Grandpa came into the dining room.
"Madison, this looks absolutely delicious," Lucy said, sitting down.
"Maddie-my-girl, you outdid yourself. It looks like it might be better than your Grandma's, god rest her!" Grandpa said, rubbing his hands together and making me smile. I dished up chicken for everyone, and the bowls of mashed potatoes and green beans were passed around. Lucy led us in a small prayer quickly and we began to eat. There were only small noises of delight for a few minutes as everyone began to eat. It was good, even I had to admit it. By the time dinner was eaten and we'd all told about our days, the sun was sinking below the horizon.
"Boys, since Madison cooked, it's only fair that you clean up," Lucy said, and though there were playful groans, they nodded, not really upset. Besides, I had kept up with the dishes while cooking, the supper plates and silver ware were all they had to wash.
"Mom, I'm going to the boardwalk, okay?" I asked. She nodded and I grabbed the keys to the truck from the hall hook along with my denim jacket and bag. I checked to make sure the containers of food were there still for Laddie and climbed into the truck. The drive seemed to take forever because I was in such a hurry to see my boys.
I pulled into the parking lot and locked the truck up, heading up to the wooden-planked boardwalk. I wandered for a while, listening for the sound of the boys' motorcycles. I yelped when a pair of arms wrapped around me from behind, pulling me back against a strong chest. I heard laughter and a warm voice in my ear had me relaxing immediately. "Good evening, Princess. We missed you."
"Dwayne!" I crowed happily and turned, wrapping my arms around him. He grinned down at me and kissed the tip of my nose before wrapping his arms around my shoulders. "I didn't hear your bikes, so I didn't know if you were here already or not," I told them.
"We were here, Princess, just had a bite to eat before coming up to find you," David said, his arms coming from Dwayne's other side to wrap around my waist and he kissed me on the temple. I knew exactly the kind of "bite to eat" he was referring to. I wondered who was going to be added to the missing persons board tomorrow. But that was not the way to think, I told myself. They were vampires, they had to feed as well.
"So, our lovely Lady, what do you want to do this fine evening? Your wish is ever our command," Marko said, winking at me and walking backwards in front of us, playing with Paul who kept trying to trip him.
"Anything?" I asked. All four of them nodded. "Truthfully, I want to go back to the cave and just spend time with you. I missed you all and just want to be away from everyone else and spend time with you all," I said. Their smiles grew wider and I squeaked as Dwayne picked me up in his arms bridal style and twirled me around in a circle.
"To the batcave!" Paul shouted, making me laugh. We walked, well, they walked, Dwayne carried me, back to their bikes. I climbed on behind Dwayne and they gunned the bikes, and then we were flying along the sandy beach towards the cave. When we arrived, I laughed when Paul picked me up from the back of Dwayne's bike and threw me over his shoulder, running with me down the stairs, the boys right behind us.
"Put me down, you lunatic!" I yelled, my voice making up-and-down octaves as we hit the stairs and my wind got cut off. They all laughed and he finally did put me down once we reached the cave. I lightly smacked him on the head as he ran behind me and tickled me. I laughed and he caught me again, sitting down and pulling me into his lap, sighing happily and nuzzling into the back of my neck. As I relaxed back against him, there was a loud scuffling sound and a small body slammed into me.
"Whoa, chill out, Little man," Paul said, as Laddie climbed into my lap on top of him. "Laddie!" I cried, smiling at him. "I have something for you, sweetheart," I said. He looked surprised. I reached into my bag and handed the containers to him. "I brought you some supper."
"What, nothing for us, love?" asked Dwayne.
I shrugged. "I figured you all would have eaten already, but I knew he'd just be waking up around now and would be hungry," I answered. He nodded, and I had to try not to laugh again, knowing the type of meal they'd have already gotten. "But if you're still hungry, and want to do a groceries run, I can show you the things I can do over an open fire," I said.
David's face went thoughtful. "Marko!" he called. Marko looked up from where he had been playing with one of his pigeons.
"Yeah?" he asked.
"Princess is going to cook for us, take a list from her of what she needs and hurry back," he said.
"What's my budget?" I asked.
He quirked a brow at me and smirked. "Trust me, sweetheart, we can accommodate whatever you want to fix us. We're just honored you're willing to do so," he said, his voice softening.
I smiled and gave Marko a short list. He looked at me in surprise, before nodding and hurrying out of the cave. "Well now, what shall we do while we wait?" I said, teasingly.
Paul pulled my hair away from the side of my neck and nuzzled into it. "I can think of a few things," he said suggestively. I blushes and leaned back against him, surprising him. "I'm sure you can, darling," I said. I could feel him smile against the skin of my throat and I gasped when he nipped it lightly, earning a sharp "Paul!" from David and Dwayne.
Laddie, meanwhile, was sitting beside us, devouring the chicken leg I'd packed in the container for him while looking like what Paul was doing was no different than any other night. I honestly hoped Paul wasn't constantly bringing chicks back here and exposing Laddie to this type of behavior. "Is it good, Little man?" asked Dwayne. Laddie nodded, "Best I ever haved," he said.
"Had," I automatically corrected. Laddie looked up at me and I corrected his sentence. "The best I have ever had, is the proper way to say it, sweetheart," I said.
"The best I've ever had," he said and smiled proudly. "Good job, sweetheart," I replied. I watched him toss his bone into one of the barrels and I pulled a spoon from my bag for him to eat the mashed potatoes and green beans.
I started humming to myself, closing my eyes and leaning back against Paul, whose arms tightened around me, his face buried in my hair and felt him breathe deeply, and I would have sworn I heard a soft almost purring sound come from his chest. Dwayne had pulled a book from one of the shelves and David just watched Paul and I, a slight smile on his face. I watched as he got up and stalked towards us, Laddie moving to the other couch automatically out of David's way, as a wolf pup would the alpha wolf. David leaned over, running his gloved hand along my chin and pulling me forward and kissing me.
I leaned up into the kiss, feeling Paul's arms slide down to my hips and gripping them. I blushed as I felt him start to grind against me a bit as he kneaded my hips and as David deepened the kiss. I felt and heard, more than saw, Dwayne stand and come towards us as well. As David kissed me, Dwayne nuzzled into the crook where my throat met my shoulder, making me whimper softly and all three boys groaned. David pulled back, kissing along my jaw to my ear softly, making me shudder.
David ran his thumb over my kiss-swollen lips and smiled. "Beautiful," he whispered and I blushed. Then we heard footsteps coming our way, and Marko appeared in the doorway, a couple of grocery bags in his hands. He saw how we were all arranged and groaned. "Why do I always miss all the fun?" he asked. I blushed, but stood up and took the bags from him. I set them on the fountain edge that was cleared of candles and wrapped my arms around his neck and leaned in and kissed him. He growled into the kiss, yanking me against him, probably a little harder than he meant to. He wrapped one arm around my waist, his other hand sneaking up into my hair and holding me tighter against him. I blushed and tried to pull back from him, but he wasn't letting go. David called his name sharply and Marko growled, pulling back, his eyes flashing gold. I heard a quick hiss from David and Dwayne, but pretended not to have noticed anything. I ran my fingertips over Marko's cheek. He sighed and let me go. "Were you able to find everything?" I asked.
"Yes, my Princess," he said, once again his cheerful, playful self. I smiled and wandered over to the bags. The boys watched in surprise as I found an old refrigerator grate and put it over one of the burn barrels, adding a few logs to give the burn barrel a bit more heat in order to cook instead of just providing mostly light. Within a few minutes, I had four steaks grilling over the flames, with a side of asparagus and large portabello mushrooms roasting on the side. I flipped the steaks after giving them just long enough to get grill marks. I took the melamine plates that Marko had found and placed the very rare steaks onto them, along with the asparagus and mushrooms. I passed the plates around and sat back and watched.
David looked at me oddly. "How did you know we like our steaks rare?" he asked. I shrugged. "Most people do. I'm a bit odd, I like mine medium rare, just a touch of pink in mine. Everyone else I know likes theirs rare. Except my Dad, he likes his practically burnt, but he's an idiot. Completely ruins a good steak."
I listened as the boys ate, grinning as they unknowingly were grunting and growling over the still-bloody steaks, asparagus, and mushrooms. I sipped on the lemonade that Marko had picked up for me. While the boys ate, Laddie came and plopped himself in my lap, and from my bag, I pulled out one of the books I had enjoyed as a young child and began to read to him.
"What are you reading?" Dwayne asked between bites.
"The Lord of the Rings," I replied as I was switching pages. I noticed that Laddie was starting to get tired and was surprised when I looked at my watch and saw that it was five-thirty already. It seemed like the night had flown by. I yawned and put him to bed, tucking him in and singing him to sleep.
"It's too late to take you home, Princess. You're staying here today, we'll take you home tomorrow," David said and I nodded. "So where will I be sleeping?' I asked. David took my hand, pulling me along behind him. "We've renovated some of the old rooms for our use," he said, as the other three followed us. He pulled me into a room that was dark as a tomb other than a few lit candles. An enormous bed was fitted with wine red sheets and lots of comfortable pillows and quilts. I smiled and took off my jacket, but felt a little hesitant to take anything else off.
"Only what you're comfortable with, Princess, we'd never ask more of you," Dwayne said in my ear softly, making me shiver. I blushed and bit my lip, trying to be brave as I removed my jeans, knowing I wouldn't sleep well with them on. I felt Dwayne's breath in my ear lash out in a soft whoosh and climbed into the bed before I lost my nerve. I felt Dwayne climb in behind me, his arms wrapping around my waist. I felt his body, big and warm back against mine. He'd removed his jacket and his bare chest was warm ot against my back. David slid in on my other side, his ice chip eyes on me. He used his teeth to pull his gloves off and put them on the bedside table, running his fingertips against my cheek gently. I suddenly noticed that Marko was at the end of the bed, and was playing with my toes, and I giggled. Paul was suddenly in the bed behind David.
I was surrounded by my vampire-boys and couldn't feel happier or safer. I lay back in Dwayne's arms, my eyelids fluttering closed as sleep began to wash over me. "That's right, Princess, sleep. Sleep and dream of us, as we will dream of you," David whispered. Dwayne's lips came to rest just behind my ear and I sighed in pleasure as he kissed and licked just behind it. I whimpered when he stopped, sleep finally drawing me in.