Building The Empire Read online

  “Ok, off to wardrobe. You’ll meet us in the studio.”

  A woman with a pixie haircut takes my arm and pulls me away from the rest of the group. She leads me into a large room with several full clothes racks and a long vanity with big bright lights around it and closes the door behind us.

  “Ok, strip down.”

  I just look at her and don’t move. She smiles and holds up a short black lingerie slip with a v-cut around the breasts and the hem is trimmed in black lace.

  “You’re kidding me, right?” She laughs a little and shakes her head. “This is what they want you to wear.”

  “Unbelievable.”

  I roughly unzip my hoodie and toss it on the vanity. She watches me with an amused grin as I shed my clothes down to my sports bra and boy short underwear.

  “The bra has to go. And, here,” she grabs a sealed bag with a black pair of short spandex dance shorts and hands them to me. “Change into those, please.”

  She turns for a moment and I change into the black shorts. I tear my bra off over my head and she turns and quickly steps forward, pulling the slip on over my head. She smooths her hands over the front of me, looking at how it fits my curves.

  “I’m just going to do a few stitches here and here, to bring it in closer to your waist.”

  I just stand still and let her work. I’ve been really lucky till this point that I haven’t had any crazy wardrobe requirements. But after signing the contracts with Russel Stone, I had to suck it up and accept that I may have to do something like this. I have no idea what I’ll be expected to do for him, but this may possibly be the least uncomfortable of what’s to come.

  “You’re going to be rained on, so your makeup will be waterproof. After you’re finished recording, I’ll wash it off for you. I have some good stuff here.”

  She does my makeup with mascara that makes my already long eyelashes raise almost to my eyebrows and gives my eyes an intense smoky eye look. Then she brings out my cheekbones with some highlight and lightly glosses my lips. After she has my makeup done, she looks me over and smiles.

  “Damn, you are gorgeous. Have you ever thought about being a model?” I smile and my cheeks blush. “Thanks. And, no, that freaks me out.” She laughs in a kind way and nods. “Ok, you’re all set.”

  I follow her through the building still slightly in a fog, but as soon as we enter the large dimly lit recording studio, my heart starts racing. My group slowly turns to look at me and their jaws drop. Awenasa, Jaime, and Symone have very approving looks of love and desire on their faces and it makes me blush and feel very self-conscious. Thankfully, none of them say anything.

  “I want to get this right the first time, otherwise we have to dry you and the set off and that takes too long.” The director leads me over to a black-mat in the center of the room and points up. “It’s going to rain on you. Lightly at first, but as the song progresses, it will intensify. We’ll also have fans on you at a couple points to increase the effect of a wild storm. Lights will be behind you. Careful not to look into them. They’re extremely bright and will momentarily blind you. Any questions?”

  “No, let’s do this.”

  He smiles and walks back over to the group. I take a few steps and twists to get a feel for this stupid lingerie and then take my place in the center of the mat. The director calls out various instructions to the crew and people start scrambling around to turn equipment on. I close my eyes and try to get my mind and heart centered on my emotions of missing my girls since that is the drive I need to do this dance.

  The director calls action and the music starts a moment later. As soon as I feel the first drop of rain on my shoulder, I start moving. I put everything into the dance and use the falling water to intensify the power of my expressions. As I twist, I drag my feet in the water to kick it up. I twist my head in ways to allow my long wet-hair to spin and snap back, sending water flying. While I’m doing floor work, I allow the water to pool in my hands and send it out in wild bursts as I arch back up. As the music starts to come to an end, I leap in the air, throwing my arms out to the side, arch my back and legs behind me, and land fluidly on my knees facing the camera. I grab my heart and tilt my head back to allow the heavy rain to fall on my face.

  The director calls cut and the rain and fans immediate stop. I stand up and a crew member rushes over with a large soft towel and wraps it around me.

  “Thank you.”

  The director and my group come over and they’re all wiping tears from their eyes, even the director.

  “That was possibly the most moving dance piece I’ve ever seen. This was supposed to just be a simple video to release the song while we work on a larger production video with the band, but I don’t think we need another video.” I’m shivering really bad and he smiles and motions to the woman that dressed me. “Go get dried off and changed and then we can talk. Thank you for an amazing performance. That was perfect and we won’t need to do another recording.”

  “Thanks.”

  I follow the pixie haircut woman that I never received a name for and she helps me out of the soaked lingerie. I dry off really well and then put my own warm clothes back on. After she has my makeup removed, she looks me over and smiles.

  “Still gorgeous. Ok, you’re free to go. Do you remember the way?”

  “Yes, thank you.”

  I find everyone huddled around a large TV screen.

  “Would you like to see your dance?” I smile and shrug a shoulder as I take Awenasa’s hand. “Sure.”

  The director smiles, pushes a few buttons, and it starts from the beginning. Damn, I can’t believe that’s me. I expected the lingerie and makeup to be glaring weird contrasts to who I am, but it’s not off putting at all. It’s beautiful. I felt like it was powerful, but to see it from the outside is intense. This looks like one of, if not, my best solo dance I’ve ever done.

  “This will be online in a week. I can’t believe how easy this was. I heard your group is good, but this was way beyond my expectation. You have an extraordinary talent. I hope I get to work with you again. Do you mind if I pass your name and your groups information to friends in the business?”

  “Thank you. I’m glad I could help you out. And it would be great if you passed our info along.” He smiles and stands up with his hand extended for me to shake. “Thanks for coming in on such short notice. I know you leave town today, so I won’t keep you any longer.”

  We follow him back through the building and when we reach the front, there’s a woman in a skirt suit standing at the doorway with her hands loaded with black gift bags.

  “Gifts from the band. They’re sorry they couldn’t be here to meet you, but want to thank you for an amazing performance. They were watching live while we recorded and they are completely in love with the dance.”

  We take the bags and thank her and she holds the door open for us. When we get back to our rental van, everyone that can reach me tackles me. They carry on for several minutes gushing over how beautiful I was and how great the dance was. It’s embarrassing and makes my face blush bright red.

  “Ok, you guys are freaking me out. Open your presents now and leave me alone.” They laugh hard and ruffle my hair, tickle my sides, and kiss my cheeks and forehead. “You’re adorable.” I stick my tongue out at Symone and she grins. “Better put that away if you’re not planning on using it.”

  I quickly retreat into Awenasa’s arms and Symone laughs and playfully squeezes my thigh.

  Chapter Two

  After finishing at the studio, we have to rush to pack and get to the airport to make our flights home. We drop off the rental van and get through check in and security and as we’re saying goodbyes to separate to our different terminals, Symone steps up close to me and wraps her arms around the back of my neck with a sad smile.

  “I’m going to miss you.” She scans over my face and looks at my lips as she moves in closer. “You’ll see me in a couple weeks when I come home for Thanksgiving.”

&n
bsp; “I’m sorry.” I look at her confused. “For what?” She smiles, and whispers, “for this,” as her lips press against mine. She gently nips my bottom lip and then pulls back with a smile. “Do you forgive me?” I laugh a little and shake my head. “You’re a brat. You’re not supposed to do that unless its required for a job we have.”

  “I know. I slipped. I hope you have a safe flight. Let me know when you’re home?”

  “Sure. You have a safe flight too.” She kisses my forehead and pulls back with a sad smile. “See you soon. You were really beautiful today. Your girls are going to melt when they see that video.” I smile as my cheeks blush. “Thanks.”

  After a few more goodbyes to everyone, I take Awenasa’s hand, and with Jaime on my other side, we leave the group to find our terminal to catch our plane.

  Our plane is already boarding when we get there and we have to rush to load our carry-ons in the overhead bin and take our seats. As I lean back into the seat, my extreme exhaustion starts to hit me hard.

  “Baby, I think I’m going to fall asleep soon.” Awenasa leans over and kisses my lips. “Ok, I’ll wake you up when we get home.”

  She caresses my cheek and pulls my head to lay on her shoulder. I take her hand in mine and kiss it before closing my eyes. I feel Jaime’s hand brush against my other hand that’s resting on my leg as she reaches for the bag at her feet, and I instinctively reach out and take her hand in mine. She gently squeezes my hand and rests my hand on her thigh for a moment. After she has what she needs from her bag, she takes my hand and entwines her fingers with mine.

  I like the way her hand feels in mine. It’s comforting and feels right. I really care about Jaime and I like having her in my life. I like that I can be affectionate with her without it being awkward or weird like Symone can make it sometimes. I can tell Jaime has feelings for me, but she doesn’t flirt or try to act on them like Symone does. Symone has gotten better, but she slips up sometimes, like today.

  I feel a hand gently caress my cheek and tug my earlobe. I slowly sit up and look around. Awenasa is asleep with her head leaning against the side of her seat. I look to my other side and Jaime is watching me with a smile.

  “We’re landing.” I smile and stretch my back. “Thanks. Did you sleep at all?”

  “No, I can’t sleep sitting up. I’ll crash in my bed when I get home.”

  I lean over and kiss Awenasa on the lips and she smiles against my mouth and slowly opens her eyes.

  “Hi, puppy.”

  “Hey, baby. We’re almost home.” She stretches her neck and back, before she looks over at me with a cute smile and kisses my lips. “You look a little less exhausted.”

  “Yeah, I really needed that nap. I still feel like I can sleep for days though.”

  “Me too.”

  After we land and we’re allowed to exit the plane, I have a sudden burst of energy and take Jaime’s and Awenasa’s hands to quickly wade through the crowds to get to the baggage claim to see my girls. They laugh at me a couple times, but neither of them complain about being dragged through the airport.

  As we’re riding the escalator down, I spot them about twenty yards off the bottom of the escalator, but I have people in front of me and can’t run down the rest of the mechanical steps to get to my girls.

  I look over the edge of the escalator, and without a second thought, I jump the seven or so feet over the edge. As soon as I land, I turn and run after my girls. They’re smiling and laughing with tears in their eyes. I wrap my arms tightly around them and we pepper each other’s faces and lips with kisses.

  “Baby, I love how crazy you are sometimes. I can’t believe you just jumped off the escalator like that.” I smile and firmly kiss Sam on the lips. “God, I missed you all so much.” I bend into their necks and breathe them in. “Oh, man, I really missed how you smell. You smell so good and feel so good.”

  “Do I get to hug our girls too, or are you going to hog them, puppy?”

  Awenasa and Jaime are standing behind me with amused smiles. I only slightly pull back so she can join the huddle. After holding each other and kissing on each other for a couple minutes, we pull apart so we can get our luggage and leave.

  I just can’t stop looking at them and pulling them into my arms as we make our way to the parking garage. I can’t wait to get home and have family snuggle time in the bed with all of them on top of me.

  “Whoa, what’s this?”

  They look at me with big happy smiles as I walk around the brand-new large SUV with temporary tags.

  “We wanted to surprise you. We decided it was time for a second vehicle because we need something larger for the business stuff and to be able to fit Jaime.” Jaime smiles and blushes a little as she toys with the strap of her bookbag. “This is awesome.” We quickly load the luggage into the backend and they give us a tour of the vehicle. “Damn, this is nice. You probably made the sales guy feel like you were stealing this, didn’t you?”

  They laugh and blush a little. Madison kisses my lips and runs her fingers through my hair.

  “Yes, we were able to talk them into a very good price. Do you like it?”

  “I love it. You did great. God, I missed that smile.” I pull her in hard and squeeze her tightly, causing her to release an adorable groaning moan. I laugh and playfully nibble her neck. “I missed you too, baby.”

  We pile into the SUV with Shannon driving, Jaime in the passenger seat next to her, and I have Madison with me in the middle bench, while Sam is clinging to Awenasa on the back bench. We’re not in our seats two seconds before Sam is pulling Awenasa into an intense kiss and leaning into her.

  Madison smiles as she takes the sides of my face, and presses her lips to mine. I inhale deeply and melt into her embrace and tender sweet kiss. My chest swells with heat and my veins feel like I have electricity shooting through them. I lean into her and try to put everything into my kiss to tell her how much I missed her and how much I love her. Madison moans and grips my shoulder hard as she pulls me against her, but then suddenly pushes back, panting for air.

  “Shit, baby. You’re making it really hard not to make things very awkward for Jaime right now.” I laugh and lean my forehead against hers. “I’m sorry. I’ll behave.”

  “We have a special dinner planned for you both. Jaime, if you’re not too tired, you’re welcome to join us.” Jaime turns to look at Madison and smiles. “Are you sure? You don’t have to feel obligated to ask me just because I’m in the car.” Madison laughs and shakes her head. “We were already planning on inviting you.”

  “Ok, thank you. That would be nice. I’m too tired to go grocery shopping so I can cook and I definitely don’t want take-out again.”

  “Good, then you’ll eat with us.”

  Jaime smiles and looks at me for a moment. Her golden eyes are glittering with happiness in a mesmerizing way. Her cheeks blush an adorable pink hue and she turns back around biting her bottom lip.

  I lay my head in Madison’s lap and she runs her fingers through my hair and caresses my cheek and neck. I smile and close my eyes. Just as I’m falling asleep, Madison gently shakes my shoulder.

  “We’re home.”

  As soon as Shannon has the door open, I rush inside, drop my luggage, and spin around, breathing in the wonderful scent of home. The apartment smells like all of my girls. I absolutely love this smell. I stop spinning when I reach the living room and fall backwards onto the living room floor with a big smile. All of my girls and Jaime walk over looking down at me with amused smiles.

  “You could have landed on the soft couch, but you decide to lay on the floor. You’re so weird sometimes, baby.” I laugh at Sam and sit up. “You didn’t think it was so weird when we made some memories on this floor.”

  Sam grins and licks her lips. She takes a step forward, but Madison, grabs her hand.

  “Behave, you two. We have company.”

  Jaime smiles and toys with her hair in a cute way as she looks away from me. Shannon pulls me up
from the floor and kisses my lips.

  “Welcome home, sweetie. Can I get you a drink?”

  “Yes, please. Can I help you cook?” She smiles and kisses my lips again. “No, we’re cooking for you. You need to rest. You can help cook tomorrow.”

  She walks me over to the couch, takes my hoodie off, and gently pushes me down. She takes my shoes off, and before walking away, she gives me another soft kiss on the lips. She takes Awenasa’s hands and guides her to sit next to me and gives her the same loving attention of taking her light jacket off and her shoes off, before giving her a soft kiss on the lips. I smile and laugh a little when she takes Jaime’s hand and walks her over to sit on my other side. Jaime blushes bright red and laughs when Shannon take her shoes off for her.

  “Do you want to watch TV or a movie?”

  “Sure.” Shannon smiles and puts the TV on, before handing me the remote. “Ok, we’ll get you a drink and then we’re going to cook.”

  I flip through the channels looking for something to watch, but I’m too tired to focus on picking something.

  “You see anything?”

  Awenasa shakes her head as she loops her arm in mine and rests her head on my shoulder, while she pulls her legs up on the couch. Jaime’s eyes are barely open and she slowly shakes her head.

  After Shannon and Madison bring us drinks, I take a few sips of the orange juice “cocktail” and then turn the TV off. I tug on Jaime’s arm and have her lay down on my lap so she can sleep. She gives me a small sleepy smile and lays down. I rest my hand on her hip and lean my head back, allowing my exhaustion to take over.

  I slowly open my eyes to the gentle caresses on my cheeks and through my hair. Shannon is hovering above me with a beautiful loving smile. She presses her lips to mine for a moment and then gently coaxes Awenasa and Jaime awake.

  “It’s dinner time. You can go back to sleep after you eat, if you want.”

  Jaime and Awenasa slowly lift their heads off of me and stretch out. Shannon grabs our drinks and we follow her to the dining room. Awenasa and I freeze in our tracks and gasp, before looking at our babies standing together with adorable happy smiles.