It was Miranda Jacobs's birthday.
And she had invited all of us at the party she was hosting at her place.
I was assured of one thing, though, that the party would be the kind that teenagers had, loud music, lots of drinks, horny people grinding against each other, and all the other things you would find at a highschool or college party. It was definitely not going to be someplace where I could take my babies with me, like I did at Xavier's fourth birthday's celebration.
I still remembered Xavier's birthday party, the amazing cake fight we had that day. Victor and Lucy were smart enough to get enough cake for the little monsters- Xavier's schoolmates- and for us adults to have a food fight. It was all worth it because at the end, I got to lick all the cake off Terrence.
But I was sure this wasn't going to happen at Miranda's party, and my babies were definitely staying at home.
Which meant only one thing:
"I'm not going anywhere!"
"Come on, Lizzie!" Allie pouted, and gave me her heart melting, pleading eyes.
Allie and Terrence were constantly hounding me to join them, but I was adamant on refusing.
"I do want to go!" I groaned out in frustration, "What makes you think I want Terrence to go there alone to fall prey to Miranda's antics?"
"Then why don't you come with me?" Terrence pleaded, "I'm going to get so bored without you. I'll miss you so much."
I frowned for a moment, "You'll have Aaron, Victor and Jonah. It'll be fine."
Allie was about to open her mouth when Victor entered the room, glancing at his wristwatch, "We're getting late guys, let's go. Miranda will throw a bitch fit if Terrence doesn't arrive on time."
"You guys go." Lucy, who was silent throughout the begging and pleading session, said. "Allie and I will be leaving in a while."
The guys frowned at her but nodded, leaving the bedroom. Terrence came towards me instead, and grabbed my face, throwing another pleading look at me before his mouth covered mine softly.
He kissed me, his lips moving fiercely against mine, begging me, coercing me to do what he wanted. My toes curled as his hands slid to the nape of me neck, his fingers caressing my jaw as he delved deeper and deeper in my mouth. My palms cupped his jaw, bringing his face closer to me.
My heart was still fluttering when he pulled away and kissed my forehead. I kissed his jaw then, and he murmured, "I'll be home, soon."
He then turned and walked away, giving me one last look.
I sighed.
"Hey, Alyssa?" Lucy said to me, an evil glint in her eyes.
"What is it?"
"Let's surprise your boyfriend." She winked, and she exchanged a smirk with Allie.
"How?"
Before the word could properly escape my mouth, both of them lunged at me.
*******************
"Lucy! Al! Please! I whined, probably for the fiftieth time, and even then they didn't bother replying to me once.
"But I don't understand one thing," Allie ignored me completely, "Why did you let us all grovel and beg her if you were already planning to do this?"
"I am a mother, Al. I know she wouldn't be able to leave the twins so easily." She started in a grave tone.
If she knew, then why was she subjecting me to this!?
She then squealed like Xavier did and I rolled my eyes, "And don't you understand! It would be priceless, watching Terrence's mouth drop open once he sees her!" She paused for a moment, and I felt her poke something in my poor ribs,"I know you're rolling your eyes in that blindfold. Remember, you are at our mercy. Do you want us to make you look like a slutty bimbo?"
Her tone was enough for me to know that her threat was a serious one.
"No." I grumbled.
"Then keep your mouth shut, I have a duct tape for that too. If you feel that being tied to up to a chair isn't enough for you, then I have other methods to persuade you too." Lucy warned.
"But this is not persuading!" I shrieked, and I felt Allie pull at my hair. "You are forcing me!"
"You were being a stubborn bitch, I had to persuade you. Your twins are taken care of, they are with Xavier right now, and Jenny and John are more than happy looking after them."
"When the fuck did you do that!?" I tried standing up and nearly toppled since my hands and my feet were still pretty much tied to the chair.
"When Allie was forcing you inside that sexy number. God, Lisa! You've got some hot outfits lined up in your closet. Just relax and enjoy, you won't be able to do this again so soon." Lucy said.
I sighed and relaxed back into the chair, all my struggles dying down. I was no match for Lucy's and Allie's tenacity, and I knew they were not going to leave me alone at all.
Not before I did as they said.
When the finally let me see myself in the mirror of my dresser, I couldn't help the grin that took over my face. Allie definitely knew very well how I liked my hair and my make-up, and she made me look just like how I wanted to. Demure, alluring, mature, elegant, yet sexy in my own way. The little dress was black, figure hugging, accentuating the curve of my breasts and my hips.
I squealed and hugged my best friend.
"Let's go?" Allie grinned when I pulled back.
"Let's go."
*******************
"So, Allie and I are going to enter first and go to the guys so that Terrence isn't suspicious, and then you can work your magic. Got it?" Lucy commanded.
"Aye, aye, Captain!" I saluted her and grinned.
Allie winked at me and both the women clambered out of the car, looking like sexual divas ready to enter the hunt. Lucy sure as hell didn't look like a mother to a three, now four, year old and I felt proud of myself, being the one to be there with her during her morning walks and runs.
Once they were out of sight, I grew restless, feeling excited about being in such a setting with my boyfriend for a first time. No matter how wrong the party could go, I knew I was not going to regret being with Terrence, here, today.
I entered Miranda's mansion and was awed by the amount of people taking up the nearly invisible floor. The drinks and the bar was set up on one side and I could see Lucy and Allie, chatting up along with the guys.
Terrence wasn't there with them.
I frowned and searched, only to find him leaning against the counter in one corner, casually sipping his drink while another girl chatted to him. I could feel the green monster climbing up my shoulders, and I was about to run and drag Terrence back home but I stopped when I noticed that he was politely shaking his head and the girl pouted and walked away.
I grinned and from the corner of my eye, I could see Allie giving me a wink.
So I took off, walking steadily towards my prey who looked like he was sulking off as he slouched against the bar counter, bored out of his wits. I ignored everyone who came in my way, my eyes dead set on none other than Terrence Powers.
I watched him politely decline yet another girl, and I cheered myself internally.
I finally reached him and stopped right behind him. He stiffened, as if feeling a presence behind him and I could almost hear him groaning in annoyance.
I thought I heard him uttering my name too.
I stepped closer to him, close enough that he could feel me with my front barely touching his back. I placed a hand on his shoulder, and slowly traced a finger, seductively, down his bicep, trailing it to his back, lower and lower, ready to feel up his ass.
He seemed to be stoically ignoring me till that point, but when he realised that his ass was going to be mauled, he got up and walked away, ignoring poor-little-me's advances.
I bit my lip to stop my laughter and followed him.
He once again gave off his intimidating and brooding aura, his body language practically screaming 'Fuck off! I want to be alone!' I still followed him, and with the slight stiffening of his body form every time I accidentally brushed myself against him, I knew that he knew it too.
Finally, the temper jar had filled.
He turned around abruptly, and I was thankful to the dark atmosphere, the alternating lights, my new look that he couldn't recognise me. Not that he was even paying attention, you know? He actually looked more interested in his watch and the entryway.
"What do you want?" He snapped.
I leaned forward, pressing my body against his, and he stiffened, "Just wondering why someone as handsome as you would be brooding all alone in a corner. Why don't you join me for a dance?" I purred in his ear, making my voice hoarse so that he couldn't recognise it.
"Sorry, I'll politely decline. I'm not in a mood." He gritted out, as if his patience was running thin.
"Don't worry." I breathed out, "I'll make the mood." And I took his hands stealthily and placed them right on my behind.
For a moment or two he went completely stiff, and then all of a sudden, he relaxed. "Go ahead. You want a dance, you'll get it."
I gasped. That ass! All I had to do was make him grope my ass and he melted.
He was definitely going to dance on his ass at home.
I still, begrudgingly, led him to the middle of the dancefloor, completely aware of how his hands had started to wander, now roaming down to my bare thigh.
After a few moments of me dancing stiffly, I felt him leaning down to press his mouth close to my ear, "You know what?" I could almost hear the smirk in his voice.
"What?" I snapped back.
"I have a specific ass-type that I love." He said, matter-of-factly.
"Is that so?"
"Yeah, the Alyssa-Reynolds's-Ass type. You seem to have the same one." He said and grabbed my ass again, this time squeezing it roughly.
Fuck! I was already busted.
"Is that so?" Was all I said.
"Yeah, and you know what, sweetheart? That's where you went wrong. All I needed to do was touch your ass and have your body pressed up against mine to know that it's you." He whispered in my ear and I melted right then.
Damn, this guy.
And before I could say any word, his mouth descended on mine, with such a force that I almost toppled behind. He kissed me without bars, and we both forgot the crowd around us, his hand kneading my flesh, and his other hand hitching my leg up to wrap around his waist. His hand was the verge of slipping under my dress, when he groaned, and I was on the verge of ripping apart his T-shirt.
He lifted me off the ground all of a sudden, our tongues still fighting, and in the next moment I found myself pressed against a wall, my surroundings brightly lit.
He carried me all the way to the bathroom and I didn't even realise it.
I moaned as his fingers circled my inner thighs sensuously, the movement in sync with our tongues and our mouths. He ground his body hard against mine, his growls vibrating through my entire body.
The sparks and fireworks inside me were almost too much for me to handle, and I felt my brain getting clouded with the insane amount of desire that coursed through me when he whispered, "I don't think I can wait for the weekend anymore, Alyssa." He panted against my mouth, "I want to peel you out of this dress right now." He growled again, and I moaned, wanting him to do the same.
Oh God! What was he waiting for?
"Let's sneak back home. The babies are at Lucy's." Was all I whispered before I was grabbed by my elbow and led through the crowd. I giggled at how eagerly Terrence was steering me, but then, I had clearly felt his eagerness pressed up against my abdomen when we were making out.
We could buy protection on the way too! Yay!
"Where do you think you are going? Sneaking out of a party? Don't think we didn't see you two slipping inside the restroom minutes before." The warning tone from Aaron made us both stop in our tracks, and I was pretty sure that if it hadn't been for Terrence's grip on my elbow, you would have found me bawling and beating my chest on the floors.
Fucking cockblocker!
The entire world is a big fat cockblocker!
"Now don't make those faces," Allie cooed as she wrapped her arms around me, pulling me away from my boyfriend who was glaring at his best friend. "I brought you here to give poor Terrence some company, not drag him back home with you."
I pouted, but she shook her head.
Lucy jutted in, looking as excited as she did when she had left me, "I knew Terrence would be happy to see you here-"
But she was cut off by her husband, "But he got way too happy for our liking, love. They both are definitely going to spoil the plan before the weekend." Victor said, shaking his head while Terrence kept glaring at him and Aaron.
Terrence pulled me back from Allie's arms into his and gritted, "You really don't have to keep poking your noses in between. You just wait, Fischer, I'll make sure you don't get to touch her once you get her. At least for a month."
Uh-Oh. This was going to be a long night.
Le sigh.
********************
I didn't have best friends, not anymore.
They lost the title the moment they dragged me away from the love of my life, ignoring the pleading looks I was sending them.
Cruel people, merciless people, not-wanting-their-bestfriend-to-have-sex people, cockblocking peo-
"Come on, Liz! Now don't be a child and start pouting like tha-Wait! That's the fourth drink you just..."
I peeked up for a moment to look at Lucy, who was glaring at me as if she was my mother and had caught me sneaking into the room late at night after having a party.
"Should I call Terrence?" She said, thinking that Terrence's name might get me to stop from drinking, but she had it all wrong. And also, she should've have known that her bestie wasn't irresponsible enough to drink when she was breastfeeding; what I was drinking was just apple juice.
"Yes, please!" I turned around immediately and giggled like how drunk little me would have done.
"Of course." She rolled her eyes, "I should have known that you are just provoking me to call him so that he can take you home and give you a good hiding." My eyes widened, "But no, now you're going to come join us for a dance. High school grinding was so much fun, and I want to do it again!" She said, excitedly, bouncing from foot to foot as she scanned the dance floor.
"High school grinding, eh?" I heard Victor's voice coming from right behind Lucy. She giggled and turned around, and it didn't even take a few moments for her to drag him to the middle of the dance floor.
I rolled my eyes.
I scanned the entire place for Terrence, but it seemed like he had disappeared into thin air. It seemed like Aaron was giving him some company, you know, sulking together, because the way Allie and Darren were all over each other was making me gag too.
It was the second time I had seen them together, and honestly, I was happy Allie had some company while I was busy with the twins. It was true that we couldn't have much of our girls' time now, and she understood it. She wasn't a loner, but then, you just can't have all the shoulders to lean your head on.
Allie and Darren genuinely seemed like they were into each other. I was finally, finally, convinced that Allie genuinely liked Darren and it wasn't some stupid ploy to make Aaron jealous.
Poor guy.
I got up and headed towards one corner, wanting to search for Terrence and just go back home. I was getting skittery, this was the longest I had stayed away from Raine and Ryan and was definitely getting worried now. I trusted Jenny and John to take care of my munchkins, no doubt about that, but I knew how smart, yet picky, my babies were.
"Aahrg!"
That was my muffled screamed as I felt a harsh grip on my elbow and was tugged inside a room. I hadn't realised that while I was deep in my thoughts, I had entered one of the empty hallways in Miranda's mansion.
Exactly where was the birthday girl?
I brought back my focus on the presence above me, and for one flickering moment, I thought it was Terrence who managed to finally find me and corner me, but when I smelt the man's breath reeking of alcohol, and his grip too harsh to be any good, I knew this was not him.
Panic blurred my senses for a passing second as I felt blank, not knowing what to do. The hallways were empty, and I didn't pay attention to which way I had taken. All I could do was struggle against his hold, and scream for help, holding on to the hopes that maybe someone would hear me.
And that's what I did:
"Get off me, you slimy slug!" I yelled as loudly as I could, but before I could say anything else, I was pinned against the wall with my arms painfully twisted and trapped between me and the walls, my body trapped between him and the wall.
Fuck, no!
He didn't feel like Terrence, not at all, and at that moment I understood what Terrence meant when he said that he knew it was me the instant his hands were on my ass.
But this was not the moment to be thinking about it. He muffled my screams by covering my mouth with his palm harshly, cutting of my air supply along with it. Even though he was drunk, he smartly used his weight to overpower me.
"Hush!" He whispered in the creepy way the ghosts did, and I couldn't control the shudders that ran through my body.
I felt a prick on my shoulder, but I ignored it, and found that I could step on his feet. I did the same, slamming my heel down on his shoes, but it led to him shouting in my ears and leaning more onto me.
"You bitch!"
The slur made me still and all I could think was:
Shit! Fuck! Shit!
And Hunter's voice was all that ran in my mind then:
"You...you break up with me 'coz you don't want me to fuck you! And then you have those two bas-bastards with that fucker!"
That was when I felt a prick on my arm. I desperately wanted to scream, but I soon felt my limbs lose their strength.
"Was it the money, huh? Was that why you were ready to fuck him? I never pegged you as a gold digging whore, Lisa." His slurred voice and slimy wandering hands disgusted me to no end, but I couldn't find it in myself to fight him off.
All I could manage was a muffled scream.
"Oh no, no, you are not going to run away, bitch. Once I fuck you hard and through, you will forget all the money and those two bastards you call your babies."
And that was the last thing I heard before the door was sent crashing open.
And then darkness overcame me.
*******************
I felt dizzy, and felt as if my brain had stopped all of it's thinking processes. I felt something caress my forehead, and I subconsciously leaned into the touch.
"Alyssa." The whisper was familiar and so were the lips that were now on my cheek.
I forced my eyes open, and found Terrence looking down at me worriedly.
"How do you feel?" He asked me, and as if on cue, all the memories rushed back to me, of Hunter cornering me, his drunk slurs and harsh words, his hand on my skin, touching me wherever he could, my helplessness, how it had felt like my limbs had frozen in the place.
I mustered all that I had left in me and got up, only to run inside the bathroom, and puke my guts out. Nothing much had come out, I didn't eat at all last night.
I didn't realise that Terrence had followed and had held my hair back when I was throwing up. He made me stand up when I was done, and helped me wash my mouth and my face, the concerned look still on his face. I flushed the toilet and he led me out of the bathroom, sitting me down on the bed and disappearing into the closet.
Embarrassment washed over me the moment I could see him, and it wasn't because I had vomited in front of Terrence. It was because I couldn't fight Hunter off me. I had never felt so helpless, and dad's moves had always saved me. I just couldn't move this time and I felt so ashamed.
"He had drugged you, Alyssa, it wasn't your fault."
His legs came in my field of vision, and I felt his finger grip my chin, making me gaze directly into his piercing, blue orbs.
"Does anything hurt?" He asked and I shook my head. It was only slightly stinging where he had held me too tightly, but that didn't count as being hurt.
Terrence nodded and his hands went down to hold the hem of the shirt I was wearing. I raised my arms up, to help him take it off. The entire time he took to put on another shirt of his on me, he held my gaze. Not once did his eyes flicker downwards, and I was consciously aware that I had no bra on.
This was why I was in love with this guy so much.
He crawled on the bed while I kept looking at him, and arranged the pillows so that he could sit, leaning on the headboard. I knew what he was doing and crawled towards him soon, clambering onto his lap and then curling myself on his chest. His arms came around me and he held me close.
**********************************
I was over the Hunter incident, there was no doubt about it and I had insisted that no legal action should be taken against him, Terrence's blows to his face were enough.
No, I wasn't a coward. I knew that Hunter would never do that to me in his right mind. He was drunk, and I knew, for sure, that he was regretting everything he said to me that day. Hunter might be craving for something...intimate and physical, after all, drunk words are sober thoughts, but he would never actually think of forcing himself on someone else.
Maybe I was just running away from the situation, but you could say that I trusted my choices. There was a time when Hunter was my choice, and no matter how much attracted I was, to his handsome features, an entire year was enough for me to know what kind of a person Hunter was.
And he wasn't the kind of person I encountered at the party yesterday.
Raine and Ryan had been asleep the entire time, completely unaware that Mommy had left them with Jenny and John for a few hours. I had still been curled up against Terrence when they had woken up, all smiles and laughter and sparkling blue eyes.
Trust me, that was enough to lighten my mood and make me forget everything.
After we played with them for sometime, and they were well fed, Terrence had received a call informing him that there had been some mishap in the office building. He had skipped going to work today, because of me, and now he was trapped between going and looking after work, and staying and looking after me.
Apparently, I was more important than the mishap and I had to keep my insides from melting when he told, whoever the other person was, to handle the situation since he had important stuff at home to attend to.
But I knew it was still bothering him. Mishaps were rare, very rare, with Powers Enterprises and this was actually something that needed to be looked at by the CEO and owner. Also, Terrence was someone who preferred a hands-on approach in everything. He didn't like it when someone else had to do the work he was supposed to do.
It took me a lot of time to persuade him to go, to convince him that I was fine and his staff needed him more than I did.
He did get mad at me for a moment, but there was nothing that a cuddly hug and a passionate make out session couldn't calm down, well, except an erection?
So that was how he begrudgingly agreed to go, and finally left the house.
And since then, I had been spending quality time with my angels, because I knew there was no better distraction for me. Now that they were asleep, and I had nothing to do, I just switched on the television in my bedroom and sprawled on the bed lazily.
My phone rang.
"Hey, Allie!" I chirped the moment I picked it up, but I was met only by a long and lingering silence.
"Allie?"
"Yeah.." I heard a croak, "Yeah, I'm here. I'm sorry."
Was she crying? Dear me...
"What for?" I asked her, sitting up attentively.
"I...I shouldn't have left you alone that day. I feel so bad, Alyssa! I should have been there with you! It...it was just that Dar-"
"It's alright, Allie." I sighed, stopping her before she could start a full blown rant, "It wasn't your fault. I was the one who was mindlessly exploring the mansion."
"But at least one of us should have been with you. We even took you away from Terrence! I mean...someone should have kept you company, right?" Allie shrieked.
"I'm not a baby that I need someone to look after me all the time, Allie. I don't think Hunter would've really done any-Oh, fuck wait!"
"What's wrong?"
The thought that had just crossed my mind never came before, and it confused me...
"What was Hunter doing at Miranda's party? As far as I knew, only filtered people were allowed inside." I voiced it out.
"Maybe he knows her?" Allie suggested.
"How?"
"Well, I don't know. But let me tell you one thing, if that bitch has got anything to do with what happened to you yesterday, she'll find herself hanging upside down along with the fucking chandelier she has."
"Oh, I don't know, Allie. Maybe I'll do something worse." A squeak on the baby monitor startled me and I slowly got off the bed. "Hey, Allie? I guess someone's up, talk to ya later?"
Silence.
"Allie?"
I heard her exhaling a shaky breath and ignored the sudden feeling of dread in the pit of my stomach.
"Alexandria, is something wrong? Is there something you should be telling me?"
"AaronandIwereabouttokissbutTerrenceinterruptedus."
Oh, no!
"Slowly, babe, slowly. I couldn't catch a single word."
"Lisa...Aaron...we were about to kis-"
"Are you fucking mad?!" I yelled over the phone, and then opened the nursery to find Raine awake. I balanced the phone between my ear and my shoulder and then continued to whisper-yell, "Who was the one to initiate it?"
"I...I don't know." She fumbled with her words and I suddenly regretted yelling on her. "We both were drunk out of our minds and Darren wasn't the-"
"You, Alexandria Evans, are going to come straight to me after work and are going to talk it out, detail by detail, do you understand?" I said, calmly.
"Yes, Lisa."
"I'll talk to you later." And I hung up.
Raine had managed to flip in her crib, so it was definitely difficult to get her on her back without making her cry. I distracted her with a toy Terrence had brought for her, and checked that her diaper was soiled.
I was changing her diaper just when the intercom in the room rang up.
I rushed out when it was ringing incessantly, and picked it up.
"Yes?"
"Ma'am." Beckett, my undercover bodyguard said, "Miss Miranda Jacobs is here to see you."
What did she want now?
"Let her in, Beckett."
I went out of the nursery, picking Raine up and taking the baby monitor and my phone with me. Once I was sure that Ryan was in a deep sleep and his diaper was clean, I went out straight to the living room.