“Lorenzo? Kenzie?” Xara was taken aback when she noticed them on her doorstep. She hadn't seen them in years. She let Lorenzo go to start his own life after moving back in with her husband, though it was a difficult decision for her to make. It was past time for him to start his own family.
“Hey, Xara,” Lorenzo said, hugging her.
“Pardon my manners; come in,” she said as she ushered people in. She was the only one at home at the time. Giada and Jax had gone to see a movie with their friends, and Kai had gone out for drinks with his friends.
“How have you been?” She invited them to take a seat and placed a bottle of wine on the table in front of them while she waited for an answer.
“We've been good, just trying to figure out how to be good parents.” Kenzie sipped from her glass.
“Ah, teenagers and their problems. Don't be too hard on yourself; you'll get the hang of it. And how's the family business going, or have you both retired?" He was referring to the Mafia. After parting ways with Xara, Lorenzo joined Kenzie in the Mafia. His loyalty earned him the position of mafia boss's right-hand man.
“Not really, but we're not as involved as we once were.” Kids arrived, and now old age is setting in, but we do check on them regularly.” As the doorbell rang again, Kenzie responded.
Xara walked towards the door to see who was there because she wasn't expecting anyone right now.
“Hello, hun,” Penny kissed her on the cheek and walked into the kitchen, dropping the basket she was carrying. Alianna and Xara entered the living room, which was occupied by Lorenzo and his wife.
“Xara, I gotta go. I need to take care of business. It was nice seeing you again.” Lorenzo bid her farewell, leaving his wife behind.
“Hey Kenzie, it's been a while,” Penny greeted joining them. She had become a part of their friend circle.
“I'm good; it's been a long time since we last got together like this, and I miss it. I'm hoping it will be more often since the kids have grown up,” she responded.
“Amen to that,” Alianna added excitedly.
“You know, we complain about how much of our time they take when they are younger, but as soon as they grow up, we start complaining that they have no time for us,” Xara stated, filling up Alia, Penny and her glass with wine. She was glad she finally got to see her friends together like this again. She'd missed their company and their goofy nature.
“The basket in the kitchen is a picnic basket; let's head out to the garden for a picnic. A little fun won't hurt,” Penny giggled like a hyper 3-year-old child.
The four women headed out to the garden with the basket filled with food, drinks, and water. They sat down, catching up on old times, laughing, teasing, eating, and having random fun.
How I miss this?
---
The movie had ended, and they stood beside their cars, wondering what and where to go next.
“Any suggestions?” Brynn spoke out.
“How about the beach?” Giada suggested.
“I know what you're all going to say, but we could head to the mall to grab swimsuits and then drive to the beach,” she redeemed herself.
“I second her; it's not as if we have any other place in mind.” Sean, one of Jax's friends, seconded
The beach wasn't as crowded as it had been during the past few days. Giada and Brynn grabbed themselves beach umbrellas and blankets from the car and then looked for space to set them up as the guys lazed about.
"Yo, Jax, when are you going to grow balls and ask Brynn out?” One of his buds teased
“Who's up for volleyball?” He changed the topic. When they were leaving home, they forgot to grab swimsuits and other stuff for the beach; they had to get most things from the mall before heading to the beach.
Brynn sat on the blanket, admiring Jax from afar. She was drooling over his six-packs and messy hair. He looked so hot and sexy.
“You could equally tell him how you feel. There's no harm in telling him you want him,” Giada smirked at her friend.
“Hey there, I thought you were asleep." Brynn rubbed her neck nervously.
“I wasn't; well, let's say I just caught you-----
“Hey, you're Brynn and Giada. I saw your pictures all over the internet. You girls looked great!” a random girl complimented her.
"Thanks; we really appreciate it.” Brynn smiled.
“Can I get a picture, pretty please?” she politely asked. Brynn gave Giada the ‘stop-overthinking-look’ and dragged her to take the picture with the girl. The sunlight kissed them, making the picture more gorgeous than they thought it would turn out to be. They copied the picture from the girl's phone to theirs.
“See you around,” she happily waved at them while walking away.
“Who's up for truth or dare?” Sean asked, approaching them with the guys behind him.
“We all are, but before that, could we grab something to eat? I'm starving.” Giada announced. The guys walked towards the food stall to grab them something to eat while the girls waited behind.
This may be my chance to ask Brynn out. Jax thought to himself, grabbing the food. Sean and Kevin helped him with the other bags since their order was large.
“What took you so long? I almost died,” Brynn added as they approached them.
“Stop being overdramatic, babe,” Jax winked at her.
“Please don't make me gag,” Giada said. They dug into their meals almost immediately. It was set on the towels; they talked about random stuff, laughing and teasing each other.
“So, Jax, truth or dare?” Sean asked after burping out loud.
“Dare,” he answered, scrunching his face in disgust following Sean's action.
“Well, I dare you to ask the prettiest babe the question you've been dying to ask her.” He made things easier for him.
“Brynn Bryant, I know you think I've been too dense not to notice your attraction towards me; I haven't. I just haven't gathered the courage to tell you how I've felt since freshman year. Babe, would you go out on a date with me? I'm dying to get to know you better and go
He was cut off by a kiss. Giada and the guys whistled and clapped at her reaction.
“I would love to Jax,”
“Hey, it's been a while since I last heard from you,” Ida answered. “I've been busy with work; how are you, by the way?” he inquired. “I've been better; just a few meetings here and there. So tell me, Mr-secret-admirer, what have you been up to besides admiring me?” She asked as there was a knock on her door. Her secretary entered the office and dropped off a bouquet of money—yeah, you read right—a bouquet of money instead of the normal flowers. That wasn't all; there was red velvet cake, a box of M&M's, and the latest iPhone 13 Pro Max. There was a small note pinned to the package, which read: “Hope you enjoy your surprise." From: Your Secret Admirer. He waited at the end of the line as she asked him to do while she unboxed her present. She was lost for words. No one had ever surprised her that way, and it wasn't even her birthday or an occasion worth celebrating. “Cat got your tongue?” Mr. A asked, sipping from his coffee mug. “I'm just overwhelmed; thank you so much for thi
Giada and Brynn had begun their modeling career with one of the biggest fashion houses in Brooklyn. King was their costume designer and had an assistant to fill in for him each time he was caught up with school. Aly was their manager and styled them as well, since that was the same fashion house she was employed at. Balancing both jobs was hectic, but she had the hang of it and was doing a great job. Both girls were getting the hype both on social media and at school as well. “That's a wrap,” their photographer added after the photoshoot. Giada was done with her session and was waiting for Brynn in their trailer. “ That's it for today; we will see you on Friday,” Helen told them as Brynn and Alyona walked towards their trailer. It had been a stressful day for all of them. All they wanted was to get some food and rest. “ Is that all for today?" Giada asked her sister as she walked into the trailer with her friend. “ Yes, it is,” Brynn answered, gulping down a bottle of water. Alyona
“ So how's your love life going? Have you found whom you're looking for?” Elon asked Ida over lunch. “ I'm still searching, though I've been talking to someone,” she blushed while sipping her juice. “ Tell me more. Who's the lucky guy?" He winked at her. He loved the way her eyes lit up while she spoke about her secret admirer. At a point in time, he just wanted to blurt out that he was her secret admirer, but, hey, where was the fun in that? “ Seems like a great guy. He's lucky to have a wonderful woman like you. It's good he found what he wanted and went for it, unlike me, who didn't cherish love and lost it," he confessed. “ I-um, so what about you? Anyone yet?” She asked, trying to change the topic at hand. “ The woman I want wants another man, as usual, but I'd be fine and hope to find another.” “ You will; you're a nice person with a great sense of humor. Not forgetting a wonderful personality. Your partner is out there somewhere. Don't stop searching.” she advised. “ I w
“ So why are you still with her?” Raelyn turned on her side to face Zac. He had been cheating on Alyona with Raelyn for the past month, with the excuse that she rarely had time for him. “ I just need some time to finally break things off with her; just a little more time, babe,” he said to her. “ Whatever you say,” she shrugged. So far as she was getting the money and some d*ck, she was fine for now. Zac stopped trying to get in contact with Alyona. He claimed she had changed and become too arrogant because she was now managing models. Instead of managing her dad's company, she decided to manage models?! How pathetic! He thought to himself. “ Babe, I need some money,” she said, running her hands over his chest. “ Rae, what happened to the $2000 I gave you last week?” he asked, getting irritated by her constant demand for money. With the way she's going, I'm going to be bankrupt in a few months. I need to abort this mission and find someone who can get me some more money, perh
You don't look good; what's going on?” Jaxon asked casually, walking to his big sister's room. She had spent almost two weeks at her parent's house with the excuse that she missed them, and they all knew it was a lie because she always came home when something was bothering her. “ I'm fine, Jax," she said, trying to dry her eyes. "Aly, I know you more than anyone else in this family. What did Zac do this time around? Does he need some ass-whooping?” Jaxon clenched his fists. “ We broke things off; I left him.” She swallowed hard, recalling how messy the conversation between herself and Zac went and the harsh words he used on her. How did I end up with someone like that? “ That's good news, Aly; he didn't deserve you; he doesn't deserve you, and he will never deserve you. It was best that you ended things before the verbal abuse turned physical.” He consoled her. “ Jax I loved him, and I think I still do," she trailed off. “ I know you do, but Aly, you've got to move on. I'll be
"You're still crying over spilled milk?" Zeke asked, barging into her room, putting a bag of junk food in front of her. Aly had moved back to her apartment a few days ago. She still had lots of work to do and couldn't let that go because she was heartbroken. Man's got to eat. " Hello to you too; I see Ida filled you on everything," she asked, opening the bag to see the goodies he had brought for her. " She did, and believe it or not, we are happy you finally dumped his ass. He never did care about you; all he wanted was your family's wealth and nothing more, and when he found out you wanted something else, he couldn't cope and had to find other ways to rid you," he told the gospel truth. " He might not have cared, but I did. I loved him despite everything. In the end, I got heartbroken. RIP my mental health, yaay." She tried holding in a sob. " Enough of him; I brought your favorites, and don't dare say you're not hungry; otherwise, it's war." He fake threatened. " On the contrary
“ So what time and when do we meet?” Ida asked Mr. A on the phone. They had been talking for a while now, and she suggested they meet in person. Certainly, Elon couldn't go as himself, so he hired someone else to go in his stead. Had he thought about the consequences? Of course, he had. But he was willing to go through what he had started until the end. What if she fell for the guy who posed as her secret admirer? What if the guy falls for her and starts pursuing her? What if? Just what if? Amidst all these questions and doubts, he had made up his mind and was going to stick by it. " I was thinking tomorrow night." He asked. Initially, she had made plans with Elon to meet tomorrow night with Aly and Zeke, and there was no way she was bailing on them because of him. " Sorry, but tomorrow night doesn't cut it; how about Saturday night?" She also suggested "Do you have other plans tomorrow?" " Yeah, and sorry, but I can't bail on them. So Saturday?" she asked as he went mute on
“ You're still here? I thought you had a date tonight." Elon asked Ida, descending the staircase. “ I do, but I just couldn't leave you all by yourself throughout the night. What if you needed something?" she quizzed. “ Well, thank goodness I didn't need anything; you've got to go prepare for the date. It's almost 4 p.m.," he cautioned. “ Hey, take a chill pill. Aly would---- talk of the devil, and she appears. What took you long enough?” Ida asked Aly, who lazily walked towards her. “Hello to you too. I'm sorry I woke up late, and that's why I am late. I'm here now, so you can go get ready for your date. Don't forget to gist me on that later.” “ I won't." " I gotta go and take care of this big baby. I'd be back tomorrow to check up on you. Please do not burn the house." she said before leaving the house. Her Uber driver was already waiting outside for her. " I'm sorry for the delay; we can go now." The ride home was a short and quiet one. She paid off the driver and hurried