Author's Notes: I want to give a great *BIG* thank you to everyone that left me feedback on the forum...Theophania, mememe, Tine, Stephanie, Kathy, TennisGirl0487, Kai, tiff600, SteCMC, Lilshorty2140, Rana, AmandaFae, Amy, SavannahRae, Taz, Gem, Short Stuff, RaeRae, Phreakyy, Slutterfly, oOShadyGurlOo (Tiera), Neesa and Thaly-Ann...
Dedication: *Chapter 1* is dedicated to *my*genius*bitch*Short*Stuff* for helping me unjumble chapter 1 and convincing me to keep going when I wasn't sure where I was going with this fic and *Chapter 4* is dedicated to *Taz* for reading through it for me and giving me the confidence to keep going with I'd written even though I'd changed the original path that I was on...thank you both so much!!!~Chapter 1~
A constant shrieking sound was charging in and intruding Jolene’s dreams. She burrowed down further into the blankets surrounding her and tried with all her might to block out the annoying sound but it wouldn’t cease.
“FUCK” she hissed, sitting up in bed.
She groggily looked around the dark confines of her room, trying to get her bearings. The shrieking sound was still ringing in her ears, she shook her head a couple times to make it stop but it wasn’t going anywhere, ‘What the fuck...’ then it hit her, ‘Duh, the phone’
She fumbled around in the dark for it, her hand finally landing on the blasted thing, “Hello..”
“JO” a harried but familiar voice filtered through the line, “get your ass over here, we need you!!”
“It’s...” she leaned over to look at the clock on the night stand, “4 o’clock in the fucking morning Paul..”
“I know, I’m sorry” Paul said dropping his tone to one of sympathy, “but HE needs you Jo..”
“Can’t you call Shaun?” she complained, “he can handle this shit tonight..”
“Shaun’s already here” Paul said, “but he needs you”
“Aiight” she sighed, “I’ll be right there..”
“Thanks”
“Yeah sure..”
Jolene hung up the phone and flung her legs over the side of the bed. She was tired as hell but Marshall needed her and as much as she’d love to skip out on it tonight, if he needed her then she’d be there, she’d always be there, she was after all, his best friend...
Marshall and Jolene had met each other at the tender age of fifteen and almost immediately an intense bond had formed, she was like the ‘sister he’d never had’ or at least that’s the way that he treated her. They’d been through thick and thin together, fought wars for each other and no matter what the circumstances were they had each other’s backs without question. That was the only reason she was stumbling down the hallway of some luxurious hotel at 4:15 in the fucking morning.
~*~
Jolene cleared the room so that there was no one left but her and Marshall. After she shut the door, she walked over to the edge of the bed where he was sitting, the tension radiating off of him was palpable, she could feel it whirling around her.
She quietly sat down next to him and waited for him to speak.
He was in one of those quiet yet deadly moods tonight so she turned to study him. He was a mess and it quite simply, ate at her heart. She hated to see him all torn up inside over anything and for the life of her she couldn’t understand why, as strong as he was, he let ignorant, petty things get to him.
She had no idea what had happened to upset him tonight?? It could have been something simple or it could have been something complex. Who knew?? But it always amazed her that the whole world failed to see what she saw so clearly, that he was merely a man. He ate, slept and bled like the rest of them, so it stood to reason that he hurt like the rest of them too and whoever had hurt him tonight deserved a swift kick in the ass.
He obviously wasn’t going to speak first so she decided that it was time to break the silence, “What’s wrong baby?”
He looked over at her and the look in his eyes stole her breath. He wasn’t crying, he rarely did but he was hurting and that was enough to tear her apart. You could hear the hurt in the pattern of his breathing, feel it in the tension bouncing off of his body, see it shimmering in the depths of his eyes.
“Marshall??”
“She was lying” it was no more than a whisper but the power behind it was enough to shatter your eardrums.
“Chloe?”
“Yes” he turned toward her and that strong facade slipped further and further away.
“Oh God, I’m sorry Marsh” she grabbed him and pulled him into her arms, squeezing tight, “I’m so sorry.”
That little conniving, backstabbing bitch had hurt him and she was going to pay for that. The anger coursing through her veins was enough to light the room on fire but she couldn’t give in to it now, she had to be strong for him.
Chloe was Marshall’s “girlfriend” , he’d met her during a video shoot and she’d seemed harmless enough. Jolene had actually liked her, the traitorous bitch.
Chloe and him had flirted relentlessly during the shoot until Marshall finally worked up the nerve to ask her out. It was always hard for him to bring someone new into his life, the fame had come crashing in so fast and it’d hit him like a ton of bricks. It’d thrown his whole world off balance, changing the man that he was, forever. His life had been completely uprooted. He’d lost his wife, his daughter and every aspect of freedom he’d ever known, he’d also lost his sense of trust. He’d never been one to give trust easily and now he rarely gave it all but he’d given it to her and she’d gone and hurt him, Jolene was going to fucking kill the bitch for that.
“Why?” he whispered against her hair, “why’d she do it?”
“I dunno baby? I dunno..”
She felt the tremors run through him and she bit back the urge to scream. She wanted to rant and rave, she wanted to scream and yell. She wanted to fucking hunt that bitch down and hurt her for hurting him.
She felt him shift and he pulled her down on the bed with him, scooting back so that their heads rested on the pillows. He leaned into her, resting his head in the crook of her neck.
“There’s no baby Jo Jo” he said weakly, “no baby..”
“I know” she crooned, “I know..”
God this was killing her. He had everything to offer a woman, the right woman but he always aimed for the losers, the money hungry bitches who were only interested in him for his cash and his status. The ignorant bitches who would fuck their way through his security just to brag that they got to ‘Screw’ EMINEM but Chloe had seemed different, she’d seemed real.
When their relationship had gone from casual to serious, Jolene hadn’t batted an eyelash because she sincerely thought that Chloe loved him. When he’d told her that Chloe and him were having a baby, she’d been happy for him because he was happy but she’d lied, there was no baby. Why?? Why the fuck would she do that to him??
Aside from Chloe who Jolene had seriously misjudged, as twisted as it sounded the only woman that she’d seen him with, that was even close to good enough for him was Kim.
Kim wasn’t a bad person, not at all and unlike the rest of them, Kim had actually loved him. Love had never been their problem, fame was. Kim was and still is a simple woman, she’d wanted a simple life and his career and the fame that came with it had torn apart that simple life she’d strived to achieve, it had systematically shredded the fragile tie that had bound them together.
When their love had finally met it’s permanent demise, he’d hurt so bad, it was like a part of him had died, it’d just closed off from the rest of the world, it’d been like nothing she’d ever seen before and she’d hated it because the sad, simple truth was that when he hurt, she hurt.
She looked down at him and her heart twisted again. He was clinging to her, pulling strength from her in an effort to chase away the hurt.
She tightened her arms around him, pulled him closer and closed her eyes, waiting for his breathing to even out, his muscles to loosen up and the pain to leave his beautifully expressive eyes..
A little over an hour later, Jolene laid still as a stone, listening to Marshall’s deep, even breathing. He’d finally managed to fall asleep. She looked over at him and smiled, he looked so peaceful lying there, soft and warm, his face flushed from sleep. Looking at him now, you’d think that he didn’t have a care in the world but that couldn’t be farther from the truth. She reached up to run a finger along the line of his jaw before squirming as softly as she could out of his embrace.
She stood on the side of the bed and looked down at him, “I love you” she whispered softly bending down to brush her lips lightly over his forehead.
She stood there looking at him for another minute before turning around and slipping out of his room.
~*~
Proof watched Jolene slip out of Marshall’s room and creep, as quiet as a mouse, back to hers. He had every intention of following her but he hung back for a minute, giving himself time to think..
In all honesty, Jolene amazed him, she left him in awe. For the most part, women were a huge mystery to him, he swore to anything holy that he’d never fully figure them out and she was certainly no exception. She was actually more confusing and definitely more complex then the rest.
How a woman could be so fucking strong was beyond him but without a doubt she was one of the strongest women he’d ever met, stronger then he wished she had to be because as much as her pride tried to hide it and as much as she hid behind that stubborn wall of false bravado she’d erected around her, it was obvious to anyone that looked hard enough that she was helplessly in love with Marshall.
The thing that literally floored him was that Marshall was too fucking blind to see what was practically smacking him in the face. He chased after all these crazy, fucked up women when he had the most noble, honest, caring, beautiful woman right at his fingertips, all he had to do was reach out and grab her.
Jolene was, in his opinion, every man’s fantasy. She was sweet yet sour, funny yet serious, soft yet hard. She was loyal to a fault, when she loved, she loved deep all the way til the end and she would go up against the devil himself if that’s what it took to keep you safe and to top it off, she was fucking gorgeous!!!
She was remarkably short, she stood at 5'1 and was one of the only women he’d ever seen stand next to Marshall and actually make him look tall. She had raven hair that fell just past her shoulders and the tips were a deep, crimson color, like they’d been dipped in blood, it was very unique and extremely sexy. Her eyes were the killer though, they got you every time, they were the most exotic shade of aqua he’d ever seen, they reminded him of the sea. She wasn’t much of a crier but when she actually let her defenses down and cried, her eyes could melt your heart, they drifted into the most intense green, it was actually quite astounding. Her complexion was flawless, his only complaint was that she was too pale, she had that fragile, china doll complexion that made a man afraid to touch her too roughly for fear that she’d break.
And her body, that was yet another surprising treasure trove in the uniqueness that was Jolene. You’d think that with her tiny stature she’d be skinny as a rail but you’d be wrong. She was caught somewhere in that region between pleasantly plump and extremely curvaceous. Voluptuous was the word that sprang to mind. She had enough cushion to keep a man warm and snuggly but she was no where near fat.
For the life of him, with all that she had to offer, he just couldn’t understand why Marshall didn’t find her attractive. It baffled him. He’d tried to poke around a few times and get Marshall’s take on her but he always shied away from any talk concerning Jolene as a woman. He’d talk about their friendship until the sun went down but when it came to her in the physical sense Marshall seemed oblivious.
Sometimes he wondered if Marshall was merely afraid to look at her in any other light then the one he’d chosen to see? Because you’d honestly have to be blind not to notice the beauty that emanated from her, inside and out.
He got up and started moving toward her door. She probably wasn’t going to be very happy to see him but he knew that whether she admitted it or not, she needed a friend right now. She was always so strong for Marshall that more times than not, she forsook her own feelings.
This whole Chloe mess was fucking Marshall up bad but it had to be harder than hell on Jolene!! He wondered how the hell she was able to comfort a man that she was in love with who was grieving over another woman?? It couldn’t be easy.
He lightly tapped on her door and stood back, waiting for her to answer...
~*~
Jolene was having trouble settling all the emotions that were swirling through her and she was about ready to burst when she heard the light tapping on the door.
She took a deep breath and prayed to the heavens above that it wasn’t Marshall, she didn’t think that she could face him again tonight.
With dread lodged in the pit of her stomach she walked over to the door and opened it slowly, peeking through the crack.
“Shaun” she smiled opening the door fully, “what’re you doing here?? Shouldn’t you be in bed already??”
“I came to check on you” he said simply.
“That was sweet” she smiled genuinely, “but you didn’t have to, ya know?”
“I know” he said honestly, “but I wanted to..”
“Thanks” she said moving to the side, “wanna come in?”
“Yeah”
DeShaun, to her he was simply known as Shaun and to the world he was known as Proof passed through the door, walked across her hotel suite and slumped down in the chair near the window that overlooked the sandy beach down below.
Jolene and Shaun had a weird kind of relationship. They were friends, not near as close as her and Marshall but there was a bond between them that was very special. He was the one who comforted her when comforting Marshall broke her heart. Sometimes she felt that without him, she’d be lost.
“Sooooo” she drawled out, “you want something to drink?? Eat??”
“Nah” he smiled, “you ok, Jo?”
“I’m just peachy keen, u?”
“Stop playing coy” he shook his head at her, “I know you’re hurting!!”
“Yeah well, that’s the breaks kid” she teased, trying to shrug off the hurt she knew he could see.
“You don’t have to pretend with me Jo” he said seriously, “you know that..”
“Yeah, I know” she sighed, “I’d just rather not think about it!!”
“Why don’t you just stop all the bullshit and tell him how you feel?” he asked, watching her.
“Oh yeah, that’d go over real well” she said sarcastically. “Marshall, I know I’m the one that you run to for comfort when some bitch stabs you in the back, I know that you trust me implicitly and that you think of me as your little sister but I just think you should know that I’m in love with you baby..” she finished looking over at him, “Nah, I don’t think that he’d be too thrilled with that..”
“Who fucking cares what he thinks Jo??” he said seriously, “you can’t keep pretending like you don’t feel anything for him other than ‘brotherly love’ , it’s killing you..”
“Yes, it is” she said simply, “and that’s why I’ve decided that I gotta go home..”
“Huh?”
“I’m going back home Shaun” she said plopping down on the edge of the bed, “I’ll think of some reason why I need to cut out on the tour but I gotta get outta here!!”
“You’d rather leave then tell him how you feel?”
“Yes” she said, hoping that he’d understand, “he doesn’t love me like that Shaun and I won’t, no, I CAN’T ruin our friendship with this shit and it would Shaun, you know it!! He’d never be able to be the same with me again and I couldn’t take that, it’d hurt worse than loving him does.”
“Jo...”
“No, I’ve made up my mind” she said with finality, “I’m going home..”
~Chapter 2~
SIDE NOTE: This is my fic, so I make the rules, LOL and in this fic, though Kim has had some trouble with the law in the past she is NOT in any trouble with the law in the present and I don't intend for her to have any trouble with the law in the future..
~*~
It hadn’t been easy convincing Marshall that she needed to cut out on the tour but Jolene could be very persuasive when she needed to be so after an intense debate and a few breakables being thrown he’d finally relented and grudgingly said that he understood why she needed to go home.
In part she’d told him the truth but it hadn’t been the whole truth and she’d had to deal with Shaun’s look of disapproval during her whole heated speech but dammit, he, better than anyone should understand why she couldn’t just come out and admit that she loved Marshall. It would fucking ruin everything that they had together and to her, half of Marshall was better than no Marshall at all.
So there she was, back in the D, sitting in her tiny little apartment, trying unsuccessfully to stay put and leave all this shit the fuck alone.
“Nope, can’t do it” she said, getting quickly to her feet, “the bitch has to pay..”
Jolene grabbed her coat on the way out the door. Winter was a bitch in Detroit and if she had any sense at all she’d keep her ass put, warm and comfy in her apartment but she had business to take care of, no one and she meant NO ONE hurt Marshall and got away with it...
~*~
Chloe hadn’t been hard to find, not hard at all. Ever since her ‘relationship’ with Marshall had started she had taken to hanging out in all his favorite place, so Jolene had just stuck her nose to the wind and sniffed out her stuck up, pretentious, lying ass.
“Hey Jo” the bouncer outside Marsh’s favorite club said with a wide grin, “whatchu doin out here all by yourself girl??”
“Handling shit” she said, the corners of her mouth quirked up into a vicious, evil grin, “Chloe around?”
“Yeah” he sniffed in distaste, “inside..”
“You never liked her, did you?”
“Nope” he shrugged, “she smelled phony to me..”
“Good observation” she said sighing, “whish I’d had the same one..”
“You goin in??”
“Yep”
“You gonna behave??”
“I can’t promise that” she grinned, “but I’ll try..”
“Aiight” he said, his big, beefy chops spreading wide as he grinned.
He moved aside to let her pass and she entered the dark club, hightailing it to VIP. She knew, without a doubt, that the bitch was still using Marshall’s clout to gain her way into places she shouldn’t fucking be and that shit was gonna stop right now.
She spotted her almost instantly and had to steel herself not to run across the room and yank that bitch off some dudes lap by her over dyed head of hair.
How dare she?? How fucking dare she use Marshall’s status to get in here and then sit around rubbing her phony tits in some other guys face??
Jolene was seeing red, not a nice pretty red but a deep, dark murderous red, “Chloe..” she said, it was light yet deadly. It floated out across the sparsely populated VIP section and smacked Chloe across the back of the head.
Chloe’s head snapped around and the look of fear that crossed her face made Jolene smile.
“Jo” Chloe whispered.
“Only my friends call me Jo and we ain’t friends”
“Look, I don’t know what he told you but I can expl....”
Chloe never got the chance to finish that statement because Jolene’s fist smashed into her lying, cheating, dirty mouth..
“Hey” the dude Chloe had been rubbing up on complained, “what the fuck’s witchu??”
“Look asshole” she said, dragging Chloe off of him by her hair, “you might wanna stay the fuck outta my way” she tossed at him, “I might look small but I have no problem fucking you up too!” He put his hands up in the air as a sign of surrender and she nodded, “smart move..now you” she said looking down at Chloe.
“Jo, please..” Chloe begged, her mouth was on fire and she could taste the coppery flavor of her own blood on her tongue.
“I thought I told you not to call me that BITCH” she said, her hand landing squarely across Chloe’s cheek, “you shoulda known better than to fuck with him, nobody fuck’s with him and gets away with it” she said, bending down so that her nose pressed against Chloe’s, “especially not some dirty skank like you..”
Chloe reached up to try and push her off but that only got Jolene blood boiling. She delivered another blow to the mouth, followed by another and then another. She was so caught up in her rage that she barely felt it when someone grasped her underneath the arms and started pulling her off of Chloe...
“Get your fuckin hands off me” she screamed when she realized that someone had a hold of her. She flailed her head back to try and get a peek at who was pulling her up.
“Calm the fuck down Jo” a familiar voice said from behind her, “the cops are already on their way up here and they’re gonna toss you in jail” she sighed, “now I’m gonna have to spend the rest of my night down at the police station trying to bail your ass out and you know how much I love police stations..”
“Shit, I’m sorry Kim” she said, all the fight going out of her.
“That’s aiight” she smiled, looking down at a bloody and battered Chloe who still laid moaning on the floor, “watching you pound the shit outta that bitch was worth every second I’ll have to spend getting your ass outta the slammer..”
“Yeah, it was kinda fun, wasn’t it??”
“Fuck, yeah” she laughed, “best shit I’ve seen in ages.”
Kim helped Jolene to her feet and before either of them could blink an eye the cops were up in VIP, surrounding them. A couple of them wandered over to help Chloe up off the floor and she started ranting and raving, pointing fingers at Jolene.
They dragged Jolene out of the club without incident. Once they got her outside, they cuffed her and read her, her rights while Kim stood off to the side talking to someone on her cell phone.
As they were shoving her into the back of the patrol car, Kim called out to her, “I’m right behind you Jo..”
“Thanks Kimmie” she smiled brightly before the officer slammed the door and the car pulled out into traffic.
~*~
Marshall was tired as hell, both mentally and physically. The show had been hype tonight but his heart hadn’t been in it, like it should’ve been. This shit with Chloe was dragging him down and now Jo Jo was back in the D and he needed her here, with him. He was coming off stage when Marc, his tour manager, snagged him..
“Marshall, me and Paul need to talk to you about something..”
“What’s goin on?”
“Just come on back to your dressing room” Marc said walking away, “Paul’s already in there..”
He slowly followed after Marc, pulling the little towel that a stage hand had handed him when he’d come off stage from around his neck and scrubbing it over his face. He wondered what the fuck was going on?? He hoped that whatever happened was a good thing because he didn’t think he could take anymore bad news right now.
“Aiight, just spit it out” he said once he’d crossed over into his dressing room.
Marc shut the door behind him before Paul spoke up.
“Jo’s in jail” Paul said quickly, “but..”
“What the fuck did you say?” he asked, his body filling up with more tension.
“Jo got in a bit if trouble tonight and landed her ass in jail but it’s ok” Paul assured him, “Kim’s trying to bail her out..”
“What the fuck?” he asked, throwing himself into the first available chair, “what the hell did she do?”
“Assault” Paul sighed.
“And battery” Marc added for good measure.
“Who the hell..” but he didn’t need to finish, he already knew, “Chloe..”
Paul and Marc both nodded.
“Dammit, I knew I shouldn’t have let her go back home” he yelled, “FUCK”
“Like you could’ve stopped her” Paul said honestly, “when Jo wants to do something she fucking does it, plain and simple.”
“I know but..” he trailed off, trying to reign in his thoughts, “what’s it lookin’ like? Is Kim gonna be able to get her out?”
“Maybe not tonight” Paul said seriously, “but she’ll be out by tomorrow. She fucked Chloe up good but Kim’s down there raising all kinds of hell..”
“Shit, Shit, Shit” he got up and began pacing, “I don’t want her spending the night in jail at all but FUCK this is all because of me...”
The door opened and Proof came strutting in, “The show was bangin’ tonight, Marsh” he said before he realized that Paul and Marc were in there, “oh shit, sorry..”
“It’s aight” he sighed before looking over at Paul, “see what you can do to help Kim get her out..”
“I’m already on it” he said getting up.
Proof waited until Paul and Marc left, closing the door behind them before he turned to Marshall, “What the fuck’s goin on?”
“Jo fucking attacked Chloe tonight and got her ass thrown in jail..”
“No shit??” Proof said grinning, “that’s my girl..”
“DeShaun” he said sighing, “this shit ain’t funny!! If Kim can’t get her out tonight, then she’s gonna have to spend the night in jail..”
“Don’t worry Marsh” Proof assured him, “if anyone can get her out, it’s Kim..”
“I hope so” he murmured, “I couldn’t fucking take it if she had to spend the night in that place.”
Marshall plopped back down in the chair he’d been sitting in before. He brought his hands up and rubbed them roughly over his face. She had to get out of there tonight, she fucking HAD too...
~Chapter 3~
They dragged Jolene down to the police station and proceeded to book her; fingerprints, mug shots, the whole nine yards.
After they’d finished administering their super spectacular manicure and wrapped up their unflattering photo shoot, they’d unceremoniously tossed her ass in a holding cell. She ritualistically commenced with the pacing, traveling back and forth over the concrete floor, eyeing the dirty little cot with disdain while she waited, ‘Come on Kimmie, work your magic baby..’
~*~
Kim wasn’t getting very far on her end but not from lack of trying. The problem was that, that rank bitch Chloe was causing a scene, stirring up shit and demanding justice.
‘I’ll give her some fucking justice..’ Kim mumbled under her breath.
“I’m sorry ma’am” the officer across the room asked, “did you say something?”
“What? Me? No” she said trying to look contrite, ‘Oops, I must’ve said that louder than I thought!’ she fought back the grin that wanted to spread, and as an afterthought she got up and walked over to stand in front of him, “excuse me, where’s Detective Bradley??”
“He’s taking a statement” the officer said, “he’ll be out in a few minutes, if you want to take a seat, he’ll...”
“No, I don’t wanna take a seat” she said cutting him off, “I wanna see Detective Bradley, NOW”
“I’m sorry ma’am but...”
“Miss Mathers” she heard her name being called from across the room and turned to face Detective Bradley, “please quit harassing my officers!”
“Detective Bradley” she smiled sweetly, “we have some matters to discuss”
“No we don’t, Jolene Ranier is not being released at the moment, you know that” he said pointedly, “so hanging around here harassing my officers isn’t doing either of us any good..”
“Pity” she shrugged, “cause I’m not going anywhere without Jolene..”
“I could always throw your ass in there with her” he remarked, looking her up and down.
“You could” she said returning his stare, “but then that’d be false imprisonment and I’ll just bet that my lawyer’s bigger than your’s..” her eyes traveled down, landing squarely between his legs.
She winked at him and he about blew a gasket, “Just keep it quiet” he said in an agitated tone before walking off.
She smiled after him. He wanted her to keep quiet? What a fucking joke.
~*~
Approximately two hours later they were processing Jolene’s release paper’s.
“You and Mr. Rosenberg can pull all the favors you want but she isn’t out of the woods yet Miss Mathers” Detective Bradley said pulling out Jolene’s personal effects and placing them on the counter, “so wipe that satisfied smile of your face..”
“Awww what’s a matter??” She teased, “sore loser?”
“I haven’t lost anything” he grumbled walking away.
They’d cleared Chloe out about an hour ago, after they’d taken her statement and Kim had, had a blast antagonizing the bitch as she’d walked by.
Kim was a fighter, she’d always been, she’d had to be. Life had dealt her some pretty rough blows and it’d made her skin tough as leather but in all honesty she envied Jo because she had such a free spirit, she had guts and if she loved you, she wasn’t afraid to take the punches for you. She’d go down for you in a heartbeat.
Kim looked up and saw them leading Jo out from the area of the police station that housed the holding cells. A wide grin was spread across her face.
“It’s about time” she said through her grin, “I was about to wrack up some more charges back there..”
Kim couldn’t stop the laugh that bubbled up, “knowing you, I believe it..”
They uncuffed Jo’s wrists and she rubbed over the spots where the cuffs had cut into her skin, “All my shit better be accounted for..” she said to the officer that handed her, her personal belongings before turning back to Kim, “let’s get the FUCK outta this hell hole..”
They ambled out to Kim’s car and hopped in, “Drop me off at the club, I gotta pick up my car..”
“Jay dropped it off” Kim said handing Jo her keys.
“Thanks Kimmie” she said seriously, “for everything..”
“Anytime Jo, you know that..”
“Yeah and that goes for you too” she smiled, “anytime you need me to whoop some ass, you know where to find me”
Kim laughed as she pulled her car out into traffic and headed towards Jolene’s apartment building.
Ten minutes later she stopped the car in front of Jolene’s building and turned to her, “Jo” Kim asked softly, “we’re friends right?”
“Of course we are Kimmie” she wondered where the hell Kim was going with this.
“Aiight, then as your friend I’m gonna say some shit that might piss you off but just hear me out, ok?”
Jo nodded and turned to look at Kim, “Ok..”
“You gotta stop this shit Jo Jo”
Jolene couldn’t help but smile at Kim’s use of the name ‘Jo Jo’, Marshall was pretty much the only person who ever called her that, “What shit?”
“You know what I’m talking about, dammit” Kim sighed, “you can’t keep fighting his battles for him and you know it!!”
“I’m not fighting his batt..”
“The fuck you’re not” Kim cut her off, “look, I understand why you do it, you love him but..”
“Of course I love him, he my best friend..”
“It’s more than that” Kim countered, “I’m not fucking stupid Jo..”
She sighed and leaned her head against Kim’s dashboard, “If you tell me to tell him, I’m gonna fuckin’ scream Kimmie, I swear I will..”
“What the hell are you so afraid of?”
“Losing him” she said honestly, “I couldn’t take it..”
“You won’t lose him Jo” Kim said reaching over to run her fingers through Jolene’s hair, “he’s just as in love with you, as you are with him, the only difference is that he’s too fucking blind to see it!! He needs you to give him a push, he needs you to open his eyes..”
“I can’t” she sighed, “I just can’t risk it..”
“You better do something soon” Kim said shaking her head, “because one day you two are gonna regret all this time you’ve wasted..”
“Kim, he doesn’t love me like that...we’re just friends..”
“God, you two are the most hardheaded individuals I’ve ever met” Kim sighed deeply, “I just hope that you two get your asses in gear before it’s too fuckin’ late!!”
~*~
Jolene’s apartment was pitch black when she let herself in and tossed her coat on the edge of the couch on the way to her bedroom.
“I don’t need you to fight my battles for me Jo Jo” he said from somewhere in the dark, “I’m capable of doing that on my own..”
“Marshall..” she said flipping the switch on the wall outside of her bedroom, illuminating the room, “what the hell are you doing here?”
“Tossing my responsibilities aside to come back here and rescue you” he bit out.
“I don’t need you to rescue me..”
“The hell you don’t” he said getting up and moving toward her.
The closer he got to her, the more clearly she could see the anger that lived inside of him, he was fucking pissed, “Marshall..”
“What the fuck did you think you were doing?” he asked, stopping in front of her.
“I was just..” she trailed off for a few second trying to get a handle on her emotions, “she hurt you..”
“Yes, she did” he said staring down at her “but that didn’t give you the right to go knocking her around!!”
“You’re defending her?” she asked incredulously, “you’re fucking defending her??”
She turned on her heel and stormed into her room, wrenching open her drawer and pulling out a pair of clean boxers and a white t-shirt. She turned to head into the bathroom and smacked right into the solid wall of his chest.
He reached down, grabbed her chin in his hand and forced her face up, “I am not defending her Jo Jo” he whispered, “I’m just trying to protect you..”
“I don’t need your protection Marsh” she whispered, their eyes locked onto one another’s, “I’m a big girl..”
“God, I was so worried about you baby” he said, leaning his head down to rest his forehead against hers.
Her breathing went ragged and her heart flipped into overdrive. His soft, supple, perfect lips were right there, mere inches from hers and God she just wanted to lean up a bit, settle her lips over his and forget about everything else but the feel of kiss. She longed to taste him, really taste him, it felt like a fire burning out of control in her blood stream.
He pulled his forehead away, stared down at her and her eyes darkened.
“You ok, Jo?” he asked softly.
His words knocked her out of her sexual haze and she shook her head to clear away any left over fuzz, “Yeah” she murmured, “yeah, I’m fine..”
“We ok?”
“Always Marsh” she smiled up at him, “no matter what..”
“Promise?”
“Yes, I promise..”
“Thanks” he bent down and brushed his lips against hers in a friendly kiss, “for what you did, for being there for me, just for fucking everything..”
“Don’t thank me” she said simply, “I love you...”
“I love you too” he smiled.
She searched his voice for something, anything other than friendship but if there was something there, she didn’t hear it.
“I gotta get a bath” she said, reaching her hand up to tap him on the nose, “wash the stench of jail off me..you gonna be here when I get out?”
“Yeah” he smiled, “Paul’s picking me up in the morning..”
“You stayin’ here?”
“Yep” he smiled.
“Paul pissed at me for fucking up the tour?” she asked sheepishly.
“Nah” he smiled, “he was more impressed with your right hook..”
“My right hook?” she asked puzzled.
“Yeah” he laughed, “he ran into Chloe before you were released earlier..”
“You were at the police station?”
“No, he was”
“But Kim didn’t say anything...” and then it hit her, Kim’s big speech in the car. ‘She’d known he was up here all along’ she thought silently, ‘what was she trying to accomplish? She forced me to face my feelings for him in hopes of what?? That I’d come up here and spill the beans??’ She tried to work up the energy to be pissed off at Kim but she couldn’t, when it came right down to it, she was smart enough to realize that Kim had only been trying to help her.
“I dunno” he shrugged, “maybe Paul asked her not to say anything..”
“Yeah, that must be it..”
~*~
Jolene sunk down in the thick bubbles filling the tub and sighed. It felt good to get off that icky feeling the jail had left on her skin. She leaned her head back against the lip of the tub and closed her eyes...
Marshall was here, in her living room and usually that wouldn’t be a problem but her emotions were so raw tonight. She’d been so close to leaning in and kissing him, ultimately fucking up everything they had together. He was going to stay here tonight, he’d be sleeping next to her, in her bed. He always did that when he stayed here but could she handle that tonight? Could she lay next to him, feel the warmth radiate off of him and not want to touch him?
She had to...
She was usually so strong. She could take anything thrown at her and rise above it, anything except him, he made her weak and she hated that but she was powerless to stop it...
~*~
Marshall leaned back against the couch, with his feet propped up on the coffee table and closed his eyes.
His mind had crossed over into unchartered waters and he didn’t like it. The thoughts running through his mind were fucked up and crazy. Jolene was his best friend, that’s it, that’s all there was. The pang of lust that had coursed through him earlier when they’d been in her room had been nothing. He’d been upset, he’d been worried about her and somehow that had wreaked havoc with his emotions.
‘That’s it’ he thought with certainty, ‘just a trick of my emotions...’
~Chapter 4~
Jolene's bath had been miraculous in washing away the stench that jail had seeped into her skin but it'd done nothing to squelch her desire for a man she'd known and loved half her life, a man who was currently sitting in her living room. On the contrary, the scalding water and foamy bubbles floating around her had only intensified her need.
‘Why is this happening, NOW?' her mind ranted. She'd been in love with him forever, so why was this crazy shit happening to her now??
Jolene had been a lonely fifteen year old kid when she'd met Marshall. She smiled remembering the way that he'd intimidated her from the start, just by being himself but as intimidated as she was, she'd refused to let that stop her. She'd needed someone, she'd needed a friend and as crazy as it sounded, when you're lonely and starving for attention, you recognize those same signs in someone else and he'd had them all, he'd needed a friend too.
Marshall had been eighteen years old and much to her dismay, madly in love with Kim when he'd met Jolene but his relationship with Kim wasn't exactly ideal. They'd hurt each other a lot, ripped each other apart more times than not and it was eating him up inside. He'd needed someone to calm him, someone to love him without expectations, someone to care about him, someone to care about his dreams and Jolene had done that for him.
She'd fallen hopelessly in love with him almost instantly but she'd kept those feelings to herself, put them away in the vast chambers of her heart and locked them up. She'd known that he was in love with Kim and even though her and Kim were the same age, Kim had just been so beautiful and womanly. Jolene had been more like an ugly duckling who hadn't come into herself yet.
She shook her head to clear the memories from the past that had invaded her mind and stood up reaching for a towel. The water had gone cold and she felt her skin pucker up from the cold air hitting her. She quickly dried off and wrapped the towel around her before walking out into her bedroom to grab the boxers and t-shirt that made up her jammies.
He was there, lying on her bed. He'd stripped down to nothing but his boxers, which was what he slept in and the new set of goose bumps marring her flesh had nothing to do with the cold.
"Hey" he said looking over at her, "I didn't think you were ever gonna come out.."
"Sorry" she mumbled, trying desperately not to meet his eyes as she snatched up her clothes and marched back into the bathroom.
She quickly shut the door and turned around, pressing her back against the hard wood, ‘FUCK, SHIT, DAMN, MOTHERFUCKING, FUCK, FUCK, FUCK' she mumbled as she waged war with herself in an effort to get her body to calm the fuck down. She smacked the back of her head against the door a couple times for good measure and moved then away from the door to slip on her clothes.
She'd just dropped her towel and was reaching for her boxers when he crashed through the door. They both froze, the moment stood suspended in time.
She came to her senses first and reached for the towel, covering herself up, "I'm sorry.."
"No, I'm sorry..I just..Shit" he said, releasing the breath he'd been holding, "I thought you hurt yourself.."
"Hurt myself?" she questioned, looking anywhere but his eyes.
She was too shaken up to look at him, there was no way in hell she'd make it if she looked at him. Her towel, his boxers and a few feet was the only thing separating them from what she'd dreamed about her whole fucking life and she was a little too aware of that for her own good.
"Yeah" he muttered, his eyes were frozen to the spot where her hands held the towel together. The towel was slit open a bit, exposing part of her creamy thigh and he stifled the groan that wanted to slip past his lips, "I heard banging and I..I thought you fell.."
"Oh.." she whispered softly.
He took a step toward her and froze, afraid to pass the invisible line that had formed between them, "Jolene?"
She couldn't speak, she couldn't even breathe. The air had rushed from her lungs and backed so far up in her chest, she thought she was going to die of asphyxiation.
He took another stepped toward her and a storm broke out in her eyes. He looked down into the piercing aqua colored eyes staring back at him and couldn't fight the storm raging in them, it pulled him closer, like some kind of magnetic force.
But the raindrops that leaked from them, slowly drifting down her cheeks stopped him in his tracks..
He brought his hand up to cup her cheek, brushing the tears away with his thumb, "Why are you crying?"
"I don't want to lose you" she whispered, dropping her eyes from his.
He forced them back up, "No matter what happens between us..now, tonight, tomorrow, whenever, you won't lose me Jo Jo..I can't live without you in my life.."
He bent his head down to brush his lips against hers and she shuttered. It was a light kiss, no different in texture than a million other ‘friendly' brushes of lips they'd shared but there was a want behind it this time, that had never been there before.
"Marshall?" she moaned questioningly against his lips.
"I want you Jo" he whispered, "I know I shouldn't but I do.."
He pulled her toward him and the towel, hiding her from him, slipped to the floor. Her breasts were pressed up against his chest, no barriers, only skin on skin and it was intoxicating. She was soft and warm.
He bent back down and slanted his mouth over hers, coaxing her lips open with his own. His tongue slipped into her mouth, sliding against hers and bright, beautiful colors exploded before her eyes. Her eyes drooped closed and she let her tongue tangle with his, discovering the pleasure his mouth could bring her.
He started moving backwards out of the bathroom and into the bedroom, pulling her with him, never loosening the hold his lips had on hers. He felt the bed behind him and turned them around, sliding off his boxers before lifting her up. She wrapped her legs around him while he climbed on the bed and crawled across it, laying her down on the soft pillows.
He broke the kiss, backed away and looked down at her. She was so beautiful and he wondered why he'd never noticed that before or had he? She had pale creamy skin, that made her look delicate when he knew without a doubt that she wasn't, it was such an arousing contrast. Her eyes that had gone the color of a stormy sea were slightly open, the aqua slipping through the cracks. Her dark raven hair was pulled back in a ponytail and the fiery red tips flirted with the line of her jaw.
His eyes traveled lower, dropping to her full breasts, their rosy tips alive and aching to be touched. He brought his hands up, palming them, brushing his thumbs lightly across her nipples and her body jolted like she'd been shocked.
"Relax baby" he whispered, bending down to tug her nipple into his mouth.
While he sucked and laved at her nipples, switching back and forth between the two of them, he let his hands roam, wandering through valleys he'd never been, flying over plateaus he'd never touched, skimming through terrain he'd never thought of exploring and finally landing in paradise.
His hand slipped between her legs and her thighs clenched tight, her knees digging into his waist, "It's ok Jo" he whispered.
She steeled herself to relax, begging her body to play along, to do what he wanted, to give him what he needed.
His fingers slid down between her wet lips and he rubbed her cleft, dragging his fingers up and down.
"Oh God Jo" he said heavy lidded, "you're so wet baby, I wanna be inside you.."
She couldn't form the words to say what she wanted to say so she merely opened her eyes to look up at him and nodded her head.
He felt the tension in her muscles and tried to soothe her, "I won't hurt you Jo, I'd never hurt you.."
"I know" she whispered but she knew better. He was about to hurt her physically and when he was done with that part, he was bound to hurt her emotionally but it was too late to think of the consequences now, whatever happened after this, happened, as long as she didn't lose his friendship, she'd survive.
He was already positioned between her thighs so he moved in closer, placing the tip of his erection at her entrance and leaned down to kiss her while he pushed all the way into her in one deep, punishing thrust.
She cried out, the sound echoing through his mouth and her whole body tensed.
He froze, his muscles locking up, ‘OH FUCK ME' his mind screamed, ‘YOU STUPID, ARROGANT, INSENSITIVE PRICK' . He dropped his forehead down to lean against hers and tried to remain as still as possible, "Oh Jesus Jo Jo, I'm sorry baby" he said raggedly, "why didn't you tell me?"
What no one else knew, except for Shaun, was that Jolene was still a virgin. She'd been in love with Marshall for so long that she could never imagine giving herself to anyone else. It wasn't that she'd been waiting for him or maybe in some weird way she had but the simple truth was that she hadn't been able to find anyone else that she loved enough to hand them over something so precious.
"I'm sorry, I should've" she trailed off.
"Oh God, don't apologize to me baby" he whispered brokenly, a tear he hadn't realized he'd shed slid down his face, landing on hers, "I was too rough with you, I'm sorry Jo Jo...I didn't mean to hurt you, I promised I'd never hurt you.."
"Shhhhh" she whispered, pulling his mouth to hers, "you didn't know.."
"You were saving yourself Jo Jo and I just took that away from you, I'm sorrry baby, I'm so sorry.."
He started to pull away from her and she grabbed him, tightening the grip her legs had on his hips, "Please...don't back away from me..." she begged, "I want you, I can't imagine anyone that I'd want to give myself too more than you..I want you to make love to me Marshall, please?"
He dropped his head back down to lean against hers, "I don't wanna hurt you anymore than I already have.."
"You won't" she said arching her hips up, her pelvic bone rubbing against his.
The intense pain had already diminished and all that was left was a slight burning but it wasn't unbearable. She pushed up against him again to get him to move and he got her message.
He began to thrust, a whisper soft motion, pulling his body away from hers and gently sinking back in. He nudged his knees up closer to her ass so that he could put his weight on them and brought his body up, freeing his hands.
He'd hurt her and that fact would forever live in his mind. He hadn't known that she was a virgin and his mind still hadn't fully wrapped around the implications of what he'd just taken from his friend, his best friend, someone he loved so much his heart ached at the mere image of her not being in his life and he did love her but loving her like that and loving her like this were two completely different entities. He didn't know if he could love her the way that what they were doing now, implied.
He'd charged into the bathroom to save her, like she was always saving him and something had snapped in his mind. He'd been forced to see her in a different light, to see her as a woman. A ripe, lush, beautiful woman and he'd wanted what he'd seen. Somewhere in the back of his brain he'd known it was wrong to taint their friendship with this but he'd been powerless to stop the want he'd felt for her. Ironically, that want had taken a twisted turn and he didn't know what the fuck he was going to do about it.
He looked down at her and her eyes were loosely closed. Her lips were slightly parted and air whooshed through them as she panted, she was so fucking beautiful. His already hard dick became stiffer, until it was almost painful, he needed to cum but he'd hurt her and he wanted her to know pleasure, he needed her to know pleasure. He didn't want her relating something that could be so beautiful to nothing but pain.
He reached down and cupped her breasts in his hands, running lazy circles around her nipples and she arched up into him.
"I'm gonna make you cum Jo" he moaned, the feeling of her impossibly tight heat imprisoning him was pushing him to the edge fast, "I wanna feel you cum.."
He slid his hand down between them, landing at the place where their bodies were joined and brushed his thumb across her clit lightly, teasingly. His other hand stayed to tug at her nipples, rolling them between his fingers.
She felt a strange pressure begin to build. It centered between her legs and radiated outward, making it's way through her body.
He went from lightly teasing her clit to applying a bit of pressure. Pressing his thumb into it rhythmically, while his other fingers slid through her velvety folds.
"Marshall" she whimpered, the pleasure was unbearable now, she felt like if something didn't happen soon she was going to burst into a million pieces, "it..it feels...good....the pressure...fuck there's so much pressure...what's happeni..." he grabbed her throbbing bud between his fingers and started rolling it, "oh fuck..."
She arched into him, bringing her hands up and digging her nails into his forearms.
"It's ok Jo" he panted, removing his fingers from her glistening center, pushing her back down and moving over her so that their bodies touched, "you're just cumming baby, does it feel good.."
"Yes" she hissed when his pelvis dropped down and rubbed against her aching bud, "oh fuck, it's..OH GOD..again.." she whimpered.
He fused his lips to hers and finally began to thrust at a rapid pace. Her pussy was squeezing him so tight and it felt so fucking good, too good, he thought he was going to die from the exquisite pleasure. He pumped again, burying himself completely inside of her and that was it, he burst, his cum rushing out to mingle with hers.
He collapsed, dropping to the side of her and pulled her into his arms. Neither of them spoke because in all honesty neither of them really knew what to say. They'd been best friends for thirteen years and that friendship had just taken a twisted and irreversible turn...~*~
NOTES: A BIG THANK YOU TOO Lady, Brittany, SteCMC, mememe, Taz, Short Stuff, Slutterfly, rach, Lilshorty2140, Amy, DisjointedHeart, Kathy, crackedporcelain, Tine, neesa, RaeRae, zznightdreamerzz, Gem, Mandy, SavannahRae, AmandaFae, Tasha, D12chic911, BeBe1353, Kai and DaHomieSteph for their feedback!!! I LOVE YOU ALL!!!!
**EXTRA NOTE: CHAPTER 8 GOES OUT TO SAVANNAHRAE BECAUSE I DON'T FANCY A FOOT TO THE ASS ;)THANK YOU...YOUR MESSAGE MADE ME SMILE, LAUGH, BLUSH AND TONS OF OTHER GOOD STUFF!!!~ Chapter 5 ~
**Inside my skin
There is this space
It twists and turns
It bleeds and aches
Inside my heart
There's an empty room
It's waiting for lightning
It's waiting for you**
His velvety hands glided slowly across her, tracing patterns over her satiny skin. He circled her nipples, tormenting her with his tender touch, stoking the fire that burned deep with in.
His soft, supple lips brushed against the creaminess of her neck, his tongue darted out to lave at the smooth flesh.
**I am wanting and
I am needing you
To be here
Inside the absence
Of fear**
She could hear her own breaths. The deep, ragged air that pushed out through her slightly parted lips and cycled back, filtering through her ears, clashing with the galloping beat of her heart.
Fear; pure and primal, coursed through her veins. She didn’t know what she was afraid of? It couldn’t be him, she loved him but something terrified her.
**Muscle and sinew
Velvet and stone
This vessel is haunted
It creaks and moans
My bones call to you
In a separate skin
I'll make myself translucent
To let you in**
The fear ebbed slightly when she felt his hands slide down over her stomach, his tongue flickering furiously in a race to catch up, leaving his hot saliva behind to scorch her skin.
She arched up and a primitive moan pushed past her lips when his soft, fleshy tongue swiped up the inside of her upper thigh, moving toward her slippery, hot center.
**I am wanting and
I am needing you
To be here
Inside the absence
Of fear**
His breath rushed out between her thighs and he flicked his tongue out to tease the swollen bud directly below his mouth. She clutched the bed sheets in her hands, her knuckles turning a ghostly shade of white as she fought to hold on. His tongue pressed hard against her clit and dragged down through her silky smooth folds before plunging into her.
She jerked her hips up, pressed herself deeper into his mouth and he continued to make love to her with his tongue, sending waves of heat rocketing through her, quickly melting away any left over fear that hadn’t fully ebbed.
**There is the splendor of this
Secret inside of me
And it knows that you're no stranger
You're my gravity
My hands will adore you through all darkness
And they will lay you out in moonlight
And reinvent your name**
His tongue plundered her, rubbing against her inner walls while his thumb drifted up to play with her clit. He stroked and pressed, he licked and sucked, he pinched and nipped until she was writing underneath him, her head flailing from side to side helplessly.
She was on the precipice, of what, she didn’t know but whatever it was she would willingly cross over and walk into it blindly, she didn’t care. She felt like she was soaring somewhere above the clouds. The pleasure was so deep, it was like a shimmering light invading her mind. She could see stars floating behind her eyes, little white pricks of glittering light.
**I am wanting and
I am needing you
To be here
I need you near
Inside the absence
Of fear**
“Oh God, M-A-R-S-H-A-L-L...”
Jolene bolted upright in bed and looked around her room groggily. Her body was a riot of emotions. She glistened with sweat, her breathing was short and choppy and her heartbeat pounded in her ears.
‘A dream’ her mind reeled. It’d seemed so real, the soft stroking of his tongue and the firm pressure of his fingers, ‘FUCK Jo, get a grip’
She fought to bring her breathing back under control and her heart rate back to normal but the confusing mix of pain and pleasure throbbing between her thighs was making it difficult.
She glanced over at him and the throbbing increased. She longed to reach out and touch him, wake him up and hope that he wanted to make love to her again but instead of doing that she dropped her hand back down to lay at her side and slumped back down against her pillow.
Her eyes drifted shut but the dream still hovered there, just out of her reach...
~*~
“Jo Jo”
She felt his breath on her cheek and her eyes fluttered open, “Marshall..”
“Hey” he whispered. He was sitting on the edge of the bed, “morning sunshine..”
“Morning?” she questioned. Her mind felt like someone had packed it full of fuzz, she couldn’t think straight.
“Yeah” he said softly, “I gotta go in a bit..”
“Go?” she quickly sat up and winced when the sheets rubbed against the soreness between her legs, she tried to quickly mask the pain so he wouldn’t see it.
“Yeah, Paul’s gonna be here in a bit”
“Oh”
She’d tried to mask her pain but he’d seen it cloud her eyes, “Jo Jo” he said, reaching out to trace her lips with his fingers, “are you ok?”
“Of course, why wouldn’t I be?”
“Because I...we...shit..” he trailed off. He removed his hands from her face and brought them up to scrub over his own.
She’d known without a doubt, that there would be pain beyond the physical. He didn’t love her the way that she loved him, he never had and he probably never would, they were best friends, no more, no less...
He exhaled deeply and looked at her, “What happened last night was...God, I can’t explain it, it was just..FUCK, we need to talk about what happened Jo Jo but I got a show tonight and Paul’s gonna be here soon..”
She looked up at him and her heart ached. Did he regret what they’d done? Was he kicking himself for making love to her?
He’d always said that she’d never lose him for any reason and though technically she hadn’t, she was smart enough to know that no matter how strong their friendship was or how deep their bond went, that no matter how much they loved each other, cared about each other, trusted each other and depended on each other, if he regretted making love to her then nothing would ever be the same between them again.
She averted her eyes and let the loss of what they’d meant to each other rush through her body. It washed away any warmth she’d felt and left her cold, ice cold.
“Jo?”
His voice snapped her back to reality and as much as she willed it away the pain was still there, it was like a beacon; burning bright.
“We’ll talk Marshall” she said, tamping down the hurt, “don’t worry about it, ok?”
The hurt laced through her voice against her will and it pierced his heart, “Jo” he said grabbing her face in his hands and forcing her eyes to his, “I don’t think you understand...DAMMIT, I’m fucking this all up because I don’t have much time and that’s what I need here; I need time BUT baby” he peered into her eyes, “I don’t regret last night, ok?”
“But I thought....”
He dipped his head down and whatever she was going to say got lost in his mouth. The kiss quickly took on a life of it’s own, it grew hot and hungry.
Liquid heat began to pool between her legs and her head was spinning, making her dizzy. She moved her hand between his legs and shyly cupped him in her palm. His body tensed and he moaned into her mouth.
She’d never done anything like this before but his moan gave her a bit of boldness so she took his hand, moved it down and pressed it against the slickness he’d caused between her thighs.
He broke the kiss, panting, “Fuck Jo, I gotta go but I want...”
“I’m sorry..” she pulled her hand away from him and he grabbed it, placing it back against his hardness.
“Don’t apologize for wanting to touch me baby..” he whispered, “I wanna touch you too..”
His hand that she’d placed between her legs, began to move, softly rubbing over the slippery flesh and she didn’t know whether to whimper in pain or moan in pleasure.
“Marshall...”
“I know you’re sore Jo, I’m sorry..” he said removing his hand.
“Don’t be sorry Marshall” she whispered softly, “I wanted you to touch me..”
“God, I don’t wanna go but I gotta baby, if we miss this flight Paul will fucking kill me” his voice was infused with regret, “I don’t know exactly what I felt last night Jo but I felt something and it wasn’t a ‘friendly’ feeling..”
She nodded her head at him, she wanted to say something to him but she was afraid to speak because she’d probably make an ass of herself.
“I’ll be back Jo and then we’ll figure this out..” he leaned in to kiss her softly.
She removed the hand that had been cupping him and brought both of her hands up to frame his face, “I’ll be here Marshall, I’ll be right here...”
~ Chapter 6 ~
Jolene didn’t get up after she’d heard the door close behind Marshall. Instead, she’d just laid there in bed while her apartment slowly settled back into an eery state of quiet. Her mind gradually, section by section, opened up and she began to silently reflect over everything that they’d shared together, everything that they’d been through and everything that they’d meant to each other from the moment they’d met. In all honesty, the relationship that she had with Marshall was the most solid, stable thing that she’d ever known in her life.
Jolene’s parents hadn’t beaten her or anything as tragic as that. Sometimes she’d foolishly wished that they would’ve because at least then she would’ve known that they actually felt something for her. But the truth of the matter was that they’d been to wrapped up in themselves to bother wasting the time it would’ve taken to knock her around because for all intents and purposes, to them, she didn’t exist.
She’d been one of those ‘oops’ babies that parents immediately resent because it fucked up their lives. In her Mother’s eyes the only things that Jolene represented for her, was the downfall of her perfect figure and the demise of her freedom. Her father had tried to love her in the beginning, she had to give him credit for that but it hadn’t lasted long and in the end, Jolene had been nothing more to him than the constant reminder of ‘why he’d had to marry a woman that he didn’t love’.
She’d been a lonely child, extremely shy and detached but underneath that vulnerable exterior that lived on the outside, a strong woman had been slowly building on the inside. By the time she’d hit fifteen nothing could really hurt her anymore, she wouldn’t let it. She’d hardened her heart until it’d become nothing but a piece of cold stone buried inside her chest.
She’d never really known love in her life so she hadn’t known how to give it back to someone, that is, until she’d met Marshall, he’d changed so much for her. He’d been just as fucked up as she’d been, so in some warped way, they’d been drawn to each other, pulled together by their shared pain. She smiled thinking of all the things that he’d done for her by simply giving her his friendship. In all the years that she’d known him he’d taught her so many things but to this day, the most important thing that he’d ever taught her was how to love.
Though the thought scared her, Jolene had always wondered what the fuck she’d be if it weren’t for him? And now, as much as she didn’t want to even contemplate it she wondered what the fuck she’d be if she lost him?
She sat up and scrubbed her hands over her face. She didn’t have the answers to the questions that haunted her mind and if she was truthful with herself she’d admit that she didn’t really want to know the answers.
She flung her legs over the side of the bed, gingerly getting up and ambled her way over to the bathroom. She reached into the shower stall to turn on the spray and stood back for a minute while the water heated before stepping in. The heat felt good against her flesh so she just stood there under the scalding spray and let the water rain down over her body.
As the hot water began to loosen up her kinked muscles the realization of what had happened the night before started to fully set in and it made her head spin. That six letter word that had always embarrassed the fuck out of her no longer applied, she wasn’t a virgin anymore. She’d finally had sex and it’d been with Marshall, the one and only man that she’d ever dreamed of being intimate with.
She didn’t know what to do with herself? She felt a strange sense of giddiness yet a profound sense of fear coursed through her at the same time, those two emotions were currently tangled in a knock down, drag out fight and fear was one up on giddiness at the moment.
The conversation that they’d had before he’d left earlier replayed through her mind and one sentence stood out to torment her... “I don’t know exactly what I felt last night Jo but I felt something and it wasn’t a ‘friendly’ feeling..”
“What the hell does that mean?” she mumbled.
The way that he’d kissed her and touched her this morning implied that he felt feelings beyond the friendship that they shared but she was deathly afraid to believe that.
She reached for the soap and idly ran it over her body until she got to the tender spot between her legs. She was still a little raw down there so she ran the soap over that area softy. She hadn’t really been expecting any soreness afterward, she’d known that it’d hurt during sex but she figured that she’d be fine today. So the tenderness was a little disconcerting but she’d deal with it. She rinsed the soapy bubbles from her body and flipped the water off before stepping out and reaching for the towel hanging on the rack. She quickly dried off and walked back out into her bedroom.
She rifled through her drawers trying to find something halfway decent to wear. As much as the thought pained her, she needed a job. She wasn’t off prancing around on tour with Marshall anymore and she had bills to pay!! Her landlord liked her well enough but he liked his monthly check more.
After some inner debates she finally found a decent, halfway respectable outfit and quickly threw it on. She took a few minutes to put on a light layer of make up and left her hair to do whatever it wanted to do naturally, it usually worked out ok that way. She grabbed her jacket and ran out the door. She hated job hunting, in her opinion it fucking sucked but she lived in the real world and whether she liked it or not, it had to be done..
~*~
~>FLASHBACK<~
It was a frigidly cold day in Detroit, most days were but today was somehow colder, more punishing. The wind angrily whipped around, blistering the sensitive skin of anyone that dared to get in it’s way.
That should have been his first clue that something wasn’t quite right but technically he’d been oblivious. Kim hadn’t known that he was coming tonight, he hadn’t felt the need to tell her. In hindsight he figured that subliminally he must’ve known what he’d find.
They’d been together for so long, practically their whole lives, that he should’ve known what to expect but as he entered the dark, smoke infused club he hadn’t been fully prepared for what he saw.
His heart sped up and he felt the rage that he tried with every fiber of his being to keep tamped down start to bubble up, threatening to spew out and burn him alive.
He loved her so much and he knew that she loved him but that love never seemed to be enough to sustain her. She’d hurt him so many times and yet he always took her back, always insisted on giving her a trust that she didn’t deserve. That old saying flashed through his mind, ‘They say love is blind..’ , and he realized for the thousandth time in his life, it sure as fuck was.
He hadn’t made it big yet, not by a longshot. Infinite had just hit the streets and it was failing miserably but it’d gained him some attention and she hated it. He never quite understood why she couldn’t be happy for him? Why she couldn’t help him carry out his dreams instead of breaking him down every time he got one step closer to fulfilling them?
He looked over at her again and it killed him. He wanted to hate her for what she was doing to him, he wanted to hurt her for breaking down his pride, he wanted to punish her for every time she’d broken his heart but he didn’t do any of that. As much as he wanted to rush across the room, pull her off of the random guy she’d found to hurt him with and pound the shit out of both of them, he didn’t. What would be the point? She’d just find some way to make what she was doing his fault.
What he needed to do was get the fuck out of there and quick. He could already feel the anger dragging him down into that dark place inside of himself that always scared the hell out of him, that bottomless pit of rage that ate away at his insides. He turned around, walking out of there and away from Kim as fast as he could.
He hopped in the car and pulled out, heading towards his salvation without really thinking about it, like he was stuck on autopilot and it automatically pointed in her direction. ‘Jolene’ , her named entered his mind and worked it’s way through his blood stream; bringing a sense of calm.
Right now he needed someone to soothe him, someone to patch up the wounds that had been reopened over his heart but most importantly he just needed someone to love him, to truly love him without expecting anything in return and for him, that was her.
Jo Jo was the only one that he trusted with his whole heart because he knew that no matter how used up he was or no matter how broken down he’d become, it didn’t matter to her, in her hands, his heart would be safe.
He pulled up in front of the run down shit hole that she lived in and put his car in park before getting out and practically running up the walkway to the front door. He banged loudly, too loud, unconsciously releasing some of his anger on the inanimate object that separated them.
He heard her moving around inside and the sound of her movement calmed him a bit more. It was all right now, everything was going to be fine. She’d make it all go away, she always did.
She opened the door and stared at him, “Marshall?”
He didn’t say anything, he didn’t have to, she blindly opened her arms for him and he fell into them, melting into her, while the pain slowly leaked from his body...
~>PRESENT<~
“MARSHALL”
He jerked his head up, pulling his mind out of the past and into the present too quickly.
“What?” he snapped, idly rubbing at his temples.
“Where the fuck were you at just now?” DeShaun asked studying him.
“What? You mind speaking English..”
“You were a fucking million miles away” DeShaun said, “everything aiight?”
“Yeah, everything’s fine” he shrugged, “just tired..”
“Come on Marsh” DeShaun said sighing, “we’ve known each other too long for you to pull that tired bullshit on me!!”
“What the hell do want me to say?” he bit out, “I’m fucking tired, end of story..”
“Marsh..”
“Look, drop it!! THERE’S NOTHING TO FUCKING SAY” he practically jumped up and stomped for the door.
DeShaun watched Marshall storm through the door and turn the corner before he reached into his pocket and pulled out his cell. He scrolled through the names until he found Jolene’s and pushed send.
“Shaun, now is really not a good fucking time” she said in an agitated tone.
“How’d you know it was me??” he asked scrunching up his brow.
“Welcome to the 21st century” she said sarcastically, “there is this handy little thing called Caller ID”
“Awwww Jo, I’ve missed that smart fucking mouth of yours”
“Yeah, I bet..”
There was some kind of music blaring and he could hear other people in the background, so he knew that she definitely wasn’t alone.
“What the fuck are you doing??” he asked suspiciously.
“Working..”
“Working? You?” he asked in amazement.
“Yes, smart ass” she tossed back at him, “and you are currently preventing me from doing my job.”
“You’re not shittin’ me? You’re seriously working?”
“Oh for fuck’s sake” she sighed, “it’s not like I’ve never worked before dammit, I just don’t like to fucking work, that’s all..”
“So then why the fuck you workin’?”
“Oh, I dunno” she laughed, “maybe because those pesky little things called bills gotta be paid...”
“Yeah but Marshall..”
“IS NOT GONNA KEEP PAYING MY WAY” she cut him off.
“But..”
“BUT NOTHING!!! When he dragged me on tour with him I let him take over because I didn’t have any other choice but there’s no reason for him to keep paying my way now...I’m not a fucking invalid you know, I can work..”
“Yeah but you don’t like to work..”
“Whoop-de-fucking-doo” she laughed, “I don’t like to do a lot of things but I still gotta do ‘em..”
“Well, whatever floats your boat” he shrugged.
“Ha ha” she smirked, “Soooo I’m fairly sure that you didn’t call for idle chatter, what’s up?”
“I need a favor..”
“A favor?”
“Yeah” he sighed.
“And that favor would be??” she prodded.
“It’s...shit, I dunno..” he sighed, “Marshall’s just been so moody the last couple weeks and I thought that maybe you could fly out for a couple days and cheer him up...”
“Shaun” she sighed, “I just told you I was working”
“I know but Jo” he pleaded, “you know how hard Marsh is to deal with when he’s grumpy!!! PLUS we’ll be in South Florida, it’d be fun as fuck, you could hit the beach and maybe put some color on that white ass of yours..”
“Oh yeah that’s just what I need” she snorted, “to fucking fry myself, great idea..”
“Jo...”
“I can’t Shaun!!”
He hated to do this to her but when all else failed, it worked every time, “But Jo, he needs you..”
“FUCK SHAUN” she said shaking her head, “aiight whatever, I’ll come, just call me with the details”
“Look Jo, I’m sorry..”
But she didn’t hear him, she’d already disconnected.
~ Chapter 7 ~
DeShaun felt like an asshole for manipulating Jo into coming here but as he glanced over at Marshall again, he knew without a doubt that he’d done the right thing. Marshall was so detached lately, he didn’t know what it was but something was seriously bothering him. He’d escaped into that silent, brooding state that he always slipped into when something preyed on his mind.
Jolene’s plane was landing at Miami International Airport at 8 PM. Paul had arranged for a limo to pick her up at the airport and bring her to the hotel they’d be staying at so she could drop her stuff off in the room he’d booked for her before the limo picked her back up and headed north, dropping her off at the Office Depot Center in Ft. Lauderdale where Marshall was doing a show tonight. After tonight’s show, they’d be heading back to their hotel to rest up for tomorrow night’s show. They were staying in South Beach at the Delano Hotel because tomorrow night they were doing a show at the American Airlines Arena in Miami.
After both shows were complete, Paul had booked an extra two days at the hotel for what he called a little ‘rest and relaxation’. Marshall had pitched a major bitch over that. He’d insisted that if they actually had some free time for ‘rest and relaxation’ then he wanted to go home to do it, not stay here but Paul had dug his heels in. Their next show was in Orlando and there was no reason to go all the way back to Detroit just to turn around and hop a plane back to Florida. Marshall wasn’t the least bit happy about it but in the end he’d relented.
~*~
Marshall missed Jolene and it was seriously fucking with his mind. Memories of her kept swooping in no matter where he was or what he was doing, it felt like she was fucking haunting him. Less than three weeks ago they’d been nothing more than best friends with a whole shitload of history between them and now it was just different. He didn’t know how to explain it, even to himself. All he knew for sure was that things between them had changed and he didn’t know if he could go back to the way things used to be.
In all honesty, he’d never thought of her in the sexual sense before, he didn’t know why? It’d just never crossed his mind. Maybe it was because they’d been friends for so long that he’d never taken the time to really see her as a woman but now that was all he could see.
He now knew with a sense of anxious discomfort that she was definitely a woman; a beautiful, sexy, sensual woman and he wanted that part of her in a way that he shouldn’t. It literally scared the shit out of him because he loved her so fucking much as a friend. He depended on her in ways he’d never depended on anyone and if he took their relationship to the level that he wanted her on now and it didn’t work, he could lose her forever and he honestly didn’t think he’d survive without her.
He brought his hands up and rubbed them roughly over his face, he had to put this shit away, he had a show tonight and he couldn’t let his fucked up emotions get in the way.
~*~
Jolene had spent the rest of the night and on into the morning after she’d hung up with Shaun trying to be angry with him but in the end she’d realized that she had no right to be angry. He’d just been worried about Marshall and called her for help, that had always been the way it went down.
She’d been using that false shield of anger to cover up what was really going on inside of her...FEAR; Pure, primal, unadulterated fear. It zipped through her body like intense jolts of electricity, effectively numbing her; mind, body and soul. She couldn’t fight it, she couldn’t stop it and it was wreaking all kinds of havoc.
It’d been almost three weeks since they’d made love and three weeks was a long time, certainly enough time for regret to set in. That was what scared her the most, that she’d walk in there tonight and regret and pity would be written all over his face. She was a strong woman but she seriously didn’t think that she could handle that.
The plane touched the ground, drifting down the runway and she tensed up. ‘Oh fuck’ her stomach was a riotous mess of a zillion emotions and she felt like she was in serious danger of tossing her cookies, ‘You can do this Jo, YOU CAN DO IT!! No problem, it’s just Marshall, your friend, your best fucking friend!!’ She took a deep, calming, extremely cleansing breath and got to her feet, grabbing her carry on bag before filing off the plane with the rest of the passengers.
~*~
The crowd had been hype and for a little while Marshall had forgotten about everything except giving his fans the performance that they demanded but that didn’t last. It was like a drug, the show had hyped him up and made him forget but when it was over and the effects wore off all the thoughts crept back in.
He walked into his dressing room and frowned. Proof, Kon, Kuniva, Swifty and Bizzy all sat back with their feet kicked up, “What the fuck’s goin’ on in here?” he asked tossing his sweat towel across the room, “don’t y’all have anything better to do than raid my dressing room?”
“Nope” Bizzy said munching on something, “ ‘sides the food’s better in here..”
“You’ve been such a moody, insensitive prick lately, we thought we’d force you to have some fuckin fun tonight..” Swifty added looking over at him.
“Yep” Proof smiled, “what he said..”
“Look I appreciate it but..”
“Nope, No buts” Kon said standing up, “you’re gonna have some fucking fun tonight even if we have to tie your ass up..”
“How the fuck would tying me up ensure that I had any fun?” he asked laughing.
“Well that’s a start” Kuniva smiled, “we haven’t heard your ass laugh in weeks..”
Proof passed him a beer, he cracked it open and sat down. They were just trying to cheer him up so he might as well sit back and try to enjoy himself.
~*~
It’d taken Jolene forever to maneuver through the fucking airport and by the time she had her bags loaded in the limo and they were on their way to the hotel it was 9:30 PM. The limo driver had rushed her as fast as legally possible to the hotel and she’d tried to be quick when dropping off her shit but she’d had to stop and pick up a fucking key plus they were on the top fucking floor of the blasted place, as usual. She made it to her room and tossed her bags on the bed before making a mad dash back down to the waiting limo.
On the way they ran into some kind of accident on the fucking Sawgrass that backed up traffic for MILES. She was so frustrated that she wanted to scream. The nerves that had plagued her earlier had been successfully replaced with sheer annoyance. So it was coming up on a 1 AM when they actually pulled into the VIP parking lot at the ODC. She quickly thanked the driver and hightailed it to the back entrance. There she encountered more delays but finally, after a great deal of patience on her part she was inside and in hot pursuit of Marshall’s dressing room. She managed to find it but it hadn’t been easy getting some direction out of any of the dumb fuck’s backstage.
She came up to the door of his dressing room and stopped to listen. It sounded like they were having a fucking party in there...
‘Yeah, he really needed me Shaun..’ she mumbled before grabbing the doorknob.
~*~
Marshall was just a bit drunk. He’d decided to set aside all the pent up emotions that had been plaguing him and just enjoy himself but in the process of doing that he’d downed a little too much alcohol and he was starting to feel the effects.
“You drunk?” Proof asked laughing.
“Who me?” he slightly slurred trying to get to his feet.
“Sit the fuck down ‘fore you hurt your stupid ass” Bizzy said laughing.
Proof looked down at his watch and frowned, ‘Where the fuck is she?’ Jo was definitely running late. He’d expected her here at least an hour ago. They hadn’t meant to get Marshall drunk before she got here but she was running late and he’d just kept drinking, so it wasn’t his fucking fault that she was going to have to deal with an inebriated Marshall. He was getting up to step in the hallway and call her when he heard the door push open.
“Y’all’s havin’ a party without me?” she pouted and walked toward the center of the room to take them all in.
He heard her voice and his head snapped up. The alcohol had almost made him forget how beautiful she was but it all came back now.
“Hey pretty lady” Kuniva came up and pulled her in for a hug, “you decide to ditch the D and come after me??”
“In your dreams” she said, swatting him when his hand moved down to cup her ass.
“Take your fuckin hands off her..” Marshall slurred just a bit more than he wanted to. He got up and put one foot in front of the other in an effort to make it to her without stumbling.
“My, my my” she tsk, tsk’ed at Marshall, “been having a little too much fun, I see..”
By the grace of God he managed to make it over to her without falling flat on his face. He pulled her into him, pressing her lower body against his and placing his hands on her hips. He flexed his fingers, digging into her flesh lightly while he leaned his forehead against hers.
Proof’s eyebrow arched up a bit, ‘What the fuck’s that all about?’ He’d known them both forever and there were two things he noticed about the current embrace they were in..#1. It wasn’t the friendly embrace that they usually shared, he’d seem them hug a million times and this wasn’t what it was like, this was different and #2. It was entirely too intimate, it was more like a lovers embrace not a friendly hug.
Jolene noticed the difference too and she didn’t quite know how to process it. Their hugs were usually upper body hugs where he buried his face in her hair and squeezed her tight. They were never like this, the touch of his lower body against hers and the flexing of his fingers on her hips had more of a sexual tone to it. She liked it, it excited her but at the same time it made her nervous because he was drunk and she didn’t want to misread the gesture and make an ass out of herself.
She started to pull away from him but he pulled her back, “I missed you” he whispered.
His hot breath fluttered out across her face and she could smell the traces of alcohol but it didn’t bother her. Nothing was going to bother her right now because when he’d whispered that he missed her, he’d pressed his pelvis up against hers and she may be a bit naive but there was no mistaking the hardness that had rubbed against her.
“I missed you too” she whispered back, fighting desperately hard to control her voice. She wanted to moan so bad it fucking hurt.
‘Ok, something is seriously off here’ Proof pondered as he watched them. It was getting more sexually infused every second and it baffled him, ‘did I fuckin’ miss something?’
“Let’s go, we gotta head back to the hotel” Paul said sticking his head in and tearing Proof from his thoughts.
But he hadn’t torn Marshall and Jo apart. They were still in the middle of the room locked in that strangely, baffling embrace.
~*~
They all split up for the ride back to the hotel. Marshall had dragged Jo into a limo with him. Proof watched them climb in and vowed that he was going to pin her down as soon as he got the chance and find out what the fuck was going on...
As soon as the limo pulled out into traffic, Marshall hit the button for the privacy screen and it soundlessly slid up, giving him and Jo some privacy.
He pulled her across the expanse of the limo and onto his lap. In the position that she’d landed she had no choice but to straddle him, it felt kind of weird. She’d never been in this position with anyone before but she liked it, it felt nice, kind of powerful.
Marshall’s buzz was wearing off and all he felt at the moment was the intense need to feel her lips against his. She’d been haunting his thoughts, his dreams, his life for weeks and as much as he’d tried to fight it, fight these crazy feelings, fight his want for her, he couldn’t. He did want her and there was no denying it. He had to have her and if it messed with their friendship then he would do whatever it took to put it back together. He didn’t want to lose her, he couldn’t lose her but he couldn’t deny her either. She was in his blood now and he’d just have to deal with it.
He ran his hands up her back and buried them in her hair as he pulled her mouth down to his and settled his lips hungrily over hers...
~ Chapter 8 ~
WARNING: (FOR GEM) YEP...SEX IS JUST A FEW MOUSE STROKES AWAY LADIES...ENJOY
Ok, ok I'll shut up...on with the story...
~*~
Marshall’s lips gently rubbed against Jolene’s, coaxing them open and holding them captive as his tongue slid in to tangle with hers.
The soft flesh of their tongues gliding together sent electrical shocks dancing up her spine, “Marshall..” she moaned brokenly, the sound fluttering out and filling his mouth.
His fingers were buried in her hair and he methodically massaged her scalp, holding her mouth flush against his, “Jo, I want...” he trailed off.
Oh God, he wanted her. Here. Now.
His hand slid from her hair and skimmed down over the silky skin of her neck. He couldn’t stop his lips from following suit, he needed to taste her. His tongue darted out and dragged across the sensitive skin.
She shuttered helplessly as his tongue teased her neck, laving at the sensitive spot just below her ear. He was doing things to her body that she didn’t understand, making her feel things that she didn’t know she could feel.
His hands fluttered down over her shoulders to settle on her breasts, his fingers flexing against the soft cotton of her shirt as he kneaded them in his palms. They were so soft and full, their shape molded into his palms like they were made for him. Her pert nipples strained through the thin material of her shirt and bra, aching for his touch. He folded his hands inward to trap them between his fingers and lightly tugged at the swollen buds.
“Oh God please..” she moaned.
Going on pure instinct she began to move her hips, undulating against the hardness that throbbed between his legs.
His hands moved from her breasts to grasp her waist and his hips arched up to collide with her twirling pelvis.
“Oh fuck Jo, that feels good..too good..”
The friction of their clothes rubbing against her sensitive clit sent jolts of pleasure crashing through her. She felt like she was standing on the edge of a steep cliff and the slightest movement would push her over.
“Baby, I feel like I’m gonna..” she thrust her hips downward again, grazing his hardness and her body exploded, “Oh fuck MARSHALL..”
She clutched his arms and dropped her head to lay heavily against his shoulder while the orgasm spiraling through her body crested to unbearable heights and sent her sailing over that imaginary cliff.
He ran his hand down between her legs and cupped her while the orgasm coursed through her. He could feel the moisture seeping through the thin material of her pants and he had to take a deep breath in effort to stop himself from following her over that cliff.
He let out a ragged groan and cupped her tighter. He wanted to be inside her so fucking bad it hurt.
“I’m sorry..” he heard her whisper softly.
“Sorry?” he asked, looking down at her, “you don’t have anything to be sorry for baby..”
“But I...and you..you didn’t..” she stumbled around embarrassed.
“Jo, look at me, don’t apologize for cumming..” he whispered when she brought her eyes up to meet his, “it was beautiful baby..so fucking beautiful..”
“But I didn’t make you...”
He put his fingers up to silence her and leaned in to rub his mouth against hers, “Doesn’t matter...” he said softly.
His tongue snaked out to lightly trace her lips and she whimpered, “Marshall...”
“You’re so beautiful..” he whispered, “I want you..” he grabbed her hand and placed it over his erection.
She moaned and curved her hand over his hardness. She wanted to say something but her tongue felt like it weighed a thousand pounds. He placed his hand over hers, pressing her more firmly against him, “Oh God..”she closed her eyes enjoying the feel of him, hot and hard in her hand.
The limo pulled up in front of the hotel and came to halt, “I want to make love to you, Jo” he whispered, soft as feather, “will you come back to my room with me?”
She rubbed her hand against him, “Yes..”
The limo driver tapped softly on the window, giving him the signal that all was clear. Marshall grabbed Jolene's hand and slid his fingers between hers before tapping back to let the driver know that they were ready.
Marshall stepped out of the limo first with Jolene right at his heels and they literally smacked into Proof, who was flanked by the rest of D12.
"Where you goin'?" Proof asked inquisitively, looking back and forth between the two of them, "we're all headin' up to one of the rooms to hang, you two wanna come?"
"Nope" he said, moving around him, "we'll catch y'all later.."
Proof stood back and watched them practically sprint toward the hotel entrance, ‘What the fuck??' He didn't get it?? It just didn't make any sense but there were two things he’d clearly noticed..#1.Jolene's lips were red and puffy and he was fairly certain that she hadn't had an allergic reaction to something between the ODC and here and #2. Marshall was packin' a hard on that could kill a man..
"What's up with those two??" Bizzy asked watching them disappear from sight.
"I have no fucking clue.." Proof shrugged but he intended to find out.
"Well, whatever's up with them, there was definitely more goin' down in that limo than just a casual ride.." Kuniva smiled.
"Unless you wanna count casually riding each other.." Kon added to Kuniva's statement.
Kon tapped Proof's shoulder and they all started moving towards the hotel entrance.
~*~
They entered his hotel suite and he stopped to hang the ‘Do Not Disturb' sign while she ambled over to the large picture window overlooking the beach. He pulled the door shut behind him and even though he'd hung the ‘Do Not Disturb' sign he double secured the door with the metal hooks located at the top.
He walked across the suite to stand behind her and pressed his body against hers. His hands slid around her waist from behind and rested on her stomach.
"It's so beautiful out there.." she whispered, breaking the silence.
"Jo, are you ok?" he asked softly, "I mean if you don't want to do this.."
She turned in his arms and pulled his mouth down to hers, stopping his words, "I do want this.."
"Are you sure?"
"Yes.."
His lips moved over hers softly, his tongue slipping into her mouth to stoke with hers and she felt like some unforeseeable force had cast a spell on her. It was beautiful, like moonbeams and starlight, she was powerless to stop it.
He slid his hands up underneath the back of her shirt dragging it up, "I wanna see you.."
She nodded her head and pulled her arms away from him, lifting them up so he could pull her shirt up and over her head.
A lacy black bra hugged her breasts, pushing them up and he traced his finger along the soft swell, touching skin and lace before dropping down to the tiny clasp located in the valley between. He released the clasp and her breasts spilled out.
He dropped to his knees and tugged one of her swollen, pouty nipples into his mouth, suckling gently while his fingers drifted down to work on the tiny button of her pants. Once he'd gotten the button undone he released her nipple and laved his way over to the other one, giving it equal treatment while he slid her pants over her hips and down her smooth, creamy legs.
Her hands had moved to his head and she fisted his hair tightly in her palms. Hot, syrupy liquid pooled between her thighs, deepening her ache. She ached to be touched, she ached to be tasted, she ached to be filled. She'd never felt anything like it in her life. The first time he'd made lover to her she'd been so nervous that the pleasure had been slightly jaded and though she was still nervous her body refused to let her mind deny the pleasure that he was giving her.
She stepped out of her pants and kicked her shoes off leaving her in nothing but a tiny scrap of black lace.
He lightly nipped at the rosy nipple occupying his mouth before releasing it, dragging his tongue down her stomach and across the black scrap of lace, landing squarely over the sensitive bundle of nerves between her thighs that rhythmically pulsed to an imaginary beat. He opened his mouth and pulled the soft, fleshy bud into his mouth, feeling the scratchy texture of lace mixed with the erotic taste of her on his tongue.
“Oh fuck” she groaned her whole body tensing as he sucked at her through the barrier of her panties.
He wanted to taste her, really taste her so he backed away and hooked his thumbs in her panties yanking them down until there was nothing but air separating them. He leaned forward, his breath hot and heavy beating against her and nudged his tongue between her glistening pink folds, swiping it upwards, grazing her clit before swiping back down.
She mewled unrecognizable things and jerked her hips forward pushing herself harder against his unrelenting tongue. He trailed back up and sucked her clit into his mouth, pulling it deeper with every suckling motion.
She was on fire; red, hot, burning flames danced through her. She could feel that intense tightening, that powerful pressure that built up before her body exploded into tiny particles of glittering dust.
He wanted to be inside of her so bad his whole body ached from the pressure of holding back but he needed her to be ready to receive him. He wanted her loose, limber, soft, slippery and sated so he walked his fingers up her inner thigh and brushed them over her moist heat before gently pushing his index finger inside. He moved it slowly at first, gently stretching her until he felt she was ready for another. He released the suction his mouth had on her clit and backed up a bit to lightly flick his tongue over it while he worked her with his fingers.
He felt her orgasm build up, step by agonizing step and knew the exact moment it finally pulled her under. She cried out. His name passed through her lips and her walls locked down around his fingers, dragging them deeper into her core.
He pulled his fingers out of her and slid up her body, fusing his lips to hers, “God Jo, I need to be inside you baby..are you ready for me?”
“Yes...yes...God, please..”
He scooped her up in his arms and she felt lightheaded, disjointed, like her mind had pulled away from her body and was somehow floating above them. It was all so ethereal.
He laid her down in the middle of the bed and backed away to remove the layer of clothing that separated him from heaven.
She watched him through lids, heavy with passion as he stripped himself. She’d been so nervous the first time that she hadn’t really gotten the chance to look at him. Her breath hitched when he turned to face her and climbed on the bed, crawling towards her. He was so beautiful, his body glistening with a fine sheen of sweat, the muscles in his chest flexing as he drew deep, ragged breaths.
“Spread your legs for me Jo” he whispered softly.
She opened up for him and he climbed between her trembling thighs, settling himself. He placed his tip between her folds and slid gently back and forth coating himself in her essence before slipping back down and positioning himself at her entrance.
He hesitated, “Jo please tell me if it hurts and I’ll stop..” he asked softly.
“Please, I just wanna feel you..” she moaned, “come inside me Marshall..”
He pushed forward sheathing just his tip inside her and she groaned. He couldn’t tell if it was in pleasure or pain so he pulled back but her feet dug into the back of his thighs and pulled him forward, dragging him into her body.
He froze, “Jo..I don’t wanna hurt you but fuck you’re so soft and warm and tight, you feel so good baby, so right...”
“You’re not hurting me Marshall” she moaned pushing her hips up so that he slid in a little deeper, “it feels good..”
She’d felt a small pang of discomfort when he’d slid in deeper but it’d passed and all she felt now was the amazing enigma of being completely filled, stretched to the point of ecstacy.
She dropped her hips back down and used her feet to pull him further into her while pushing her hips up again. She liked the way it felt so she tried it again and a raw moan escaped from his throat.
He dropped from his hands to his elbows, putting more of his weight against her and laid his forehead on her shoulder as began to thrust with her.
She stopped using her feet but continued to arch upward every time he thrust downward. Their lower bodies collided causing a rubbing sensation that sent tingly pin pricking sensations coursing through her body.
He could feel the pressure building inside him. It clawed at him, begging for release so he quickened his strokes, rubbing more firmly against her clit.
“Fuck baby I’m gonna cum” he panted, “I can’t hold it any longer..”
She moaned loudly, the sound echoing through the room she was on the brink of fulfillment, just one step shy of bliss.
He pulled back, almost completely out of her and thrust back in, burying himself completely inside of her and she stepped into that bliss that had been just out of her reach.
He felt her inner walls lock tightly around him and that was all he needed to join her in that state of bliss. He ground out her name as he spilled his seed and coated her insides with his essence..
~ Chapter 9 ~
**NOTE: THE SONG IN THE CHAPTER IS 'DON'T' BY KELLY CLARKSON...**
**And SavannahRae...a little shameless begging will get you EVERYWHERE**
~*~
Marshall dropped his forehead to gently rest against Jolene's and closed his eyes. He was enjoying the feeling of having her, soft and warm, underneath him. Their bodies were still interconnected and in his mind he knew that he should pull out of her, he could feel their cum intermingled together, slowly trickling from her body but in his heart he wasn't quite ready to leave her yet. He didn't know if he'd ever be ready.
It felt right, being with her this way; her body intimately joined with his, her soft skin melding into his but there was one question that kept tormenting him; WAS IT RIGHT? Could they really go from being friends to being lovers?
He withdrew from her soft, silky heat and rolled over onto his back, pulling her with him. She settled herself comfortably on top of him and rested her head against his chest.
He idly rubbed his fingers across her back as his mind dove back into the emotional roller coaster that zipped through him. ‘God, she’d been a virgin...you stupid asshole’ his mind screamed at him and he’d taken that from her. He’d taken the most precious gift that a woman had to give a man, the one thing that he could never give back.
“Jo?”
“Mmm Hmm”
“Can I ask you something?”
“Uh huh..”
“Why were you still a virgin?”
“Huh?” she lifted her head up, propped her elbows on his chest and leaned her head against her hands so she could look down at him.
“You were saving yourself for somebody, right?”
“Yeah, I suppose in some twisted way, I was...” she smiled.
“And I took that from you..”
“No, you didn’t take it from me, I gave it to you, I wanted you Marshall..”
“But you were saving it for someone..”
“And I gave it to him” she said softly, “I gave it to you..”
“Me?” he asked confused, “you were saving yourself for me?”
He was so confused but that confusion slammed into the most intense sense of happiness he’d ever felt, the two emotions overlapped, leaving him happily confused.
“Yes”
“Jo, I don’t understand, for me? Why?” he asked. His heart was beating a mile a minute. He had no idea what she was going to say but he had the strangest feeling that his whole life depended on her answer.
“The answer is quite simple really...” she smiled, “but I don’t know if you really wanna hear it and I’m afraid that...”
“Afraid? Of me? Oh God Jo, I don’t ever want you to be afraid of me!”
“No, I’m not afraid of you Marshall, I’d never be afraid of you” she said sincerely, “what I am afraid of, is losing you because of this..”
“You’ll never lose me Jo Jo! You know I can’t live without you baby, you’re what keeps me sane, what keeps me strong, what keeps me..”
“I love you..” she whispered cutting him off.
“I love you too”
“NO, I don’t think you understand what I’m trying to say Marshall..I LOVE you...”
“I know you love me Jo, I love you too but..”
“FUCK, you’re not listening” she sat up and became suddenly aware that there was nothing separating them. She felt her skin start to burn and her eyes darkened.
“Jo?” he sat up and inadvertently settled her more firmly in his lap.
“Oh God...” she moaned and dropped her head against his chest.
“What’s wrong?” he asked, his voice laced with confused concern.
“This” she twirled her hips and rubbed herself against him, “the way I feel, the things I want..”
He had to bite his lip to hold back the groan that threatened to tear free, “What do you want Jo?”
“You” she whispered against his chest, “all I’ve ever wanted was you..”
He understood what she’d been trying to tell him now, she was in love with him, he grasped the sides of her face in his hands and pulled her back so he could see her, “Baby, why didn’t you tell me?”
“I was afraid..” she tried to turn her head but he wouldn’t let her.
“Stop! Look at me Jo, why were you afraid?”
“Because you didn’t feel it too” she said in an extremely soft tone, it was no more than a push of air, “and I knew that it would push you away..”
“Jo, I..”
“No, it’s ok, you don’t have to explain” she said with a note of defeat, “I accepted that you didn’t want me that way a long time ago” she laughed and as hard as she'd tried it still came out bitter, “it wasn’t hard to do, in that respect I never existed to you anyway..” she finally managed to turn her head away from him and looked down at the space between them.
It was always funny to her, the hurt that a human heart could endure and at that moment as she sat there, skin to skin, in his lap, she was currently enduring thirteen years of bottled up hurt...
**You look at me,
Like you always do.
You don’t have a clue.
You smile at me,
You hug me,
But you don’t know I want you.
You play with me,
You flirt with me,
You tell me all your secrets.
I’m always the one you run to,
but to you I’m just your friend.**
All the times she’d held him while he'd cried over someone else who’d broken him down, all the times she’d ached for him to once, just once, notice her as something more than just faithful ole ‘Jo Jo’ always there when you need her came crashing back to batter her heart all over again...
**Don’t say I love you,
Don’t say you need me,
Don’t say I trust you,
My heart cant take it.
Don’t say you want me,
Don’t say you miss me,
Don’t hurt me.
Don’t say you love me.**
She’d been so fucking strong, sometimes it amazed her that she’d made it through all the aches and pains he’d put on her heart without breaking but then again growing up without any love offered to her had definitely hardened her heart...
**I try my best to rid these thoughts,
Of you and it’s so hard.
When you come to me,
I fall back on my knees.
I learned to hate love.
You kiss me on the cheek,
You say you’d never make it without me.
It’s getting harder everyday.
Please don’t say to me,
Don’t say I love you,
Don’t say you need me,
Don’t say I trust you,
My heart can’t take it.
Don’t say you want me,
Don’t say you miss me,
Don’t hurt me.
Don’t say you love me.**
Every whispered profession of ‘friendly’ love and every valued token of trust he’d ever given her had been like a stab to the heart. As much as she’d known that she couldn’t live without him sometimes she’d wished that he’d just go away and leave her heart in one piece...
**Don’t say you love me.
Don’t say you love me.
Don’t say you love me.
Don’t say you love me.
My heart cant take it.
I love you so much.
But you don’t see me.
I hate love.**
She’d always been grateful to him for teaching her how to love someone but in the same breath she’d been saddened that along with that love he’d taught her to feel, he’d also taught her how to hate it with equal passion...
She looked back up at him and saw everything that she’d ever wanted but never been able to touch studying her.
“Marshall?”
He closed his eyes and leaned his forehead against hers, “I’m sorry..”
“Don’t be sorry” she sighed, “you can’t make yourself feel something that you don’t..”
“But I do feel it...now” he said. He crooked his head and brushed her mouth with his, catching her top lip with his bottom, “I’m just sorry that I didn’t feel it then and it hurt you..”
She opened her mouth to say something but he stopped her...
“Shhhhh...I actually knew this after we’d made love the first time but I wasn’t completely sure until now” he smiled against her lips, “I love you..”
She didn’t like to cry, it was a sign of weakness and she wasn’t weak so she wasn't going to cry now but the fist squeezing her heart was sure making it hard as helll to breathe.
“Could you please say that again?” she asked with a little hitch in her voice that annoyed her, “because I didn’t think I’d ever hear that cross your lips in that context..”
“I love you...” he whispered again.
“Mmmmm that’s nice..” she sighed softly.
Her heart expanded bigger then she thought a heart could expand and it hurt but fuck if it wasn’t a nice hurt. She was slowly, step by torturous step, digesting the changes that ultimately came with what he’d said to her. They’d just gone from being best friends to....what? She wasn’t sure but who the fuck cared, he’d just said that he loved her and that was the only thing that mattered. She wrapped her arms around his neck and scooted in closer to him.
“Fuck Jo..” he groaned.
“What’s wrong?” she asked backing up a bit.
“Uh uh...come back here” he said.
He pulled her back against him and she felt it then, pressed against her stomach, he was hard.
“Oh, I’m sorry..”
“Don’t be sorry” he said and nipped at her bottom lip with his teeth, “I want you..”
“Yeah?”
“Yeah..”
“Mmmmm, well that handy cause I want you too..”
He smiled, “I wanna do it a different way this time, ok?”
“Ok” she said with nervous anticipation.
“Baby, I want you to lean back and lift up a bit for me, ok?”
She nodded and put her hands back on the bed so she could lift up for him. He placed the tip of his cock at her entrance, grasped her hips and pulled her back toward him.
He slowly slid inside of her and she moaned, “Fuck, Marshall...”
When he was sheathed to the hilt he pulled her all the way up so that their chests pressed together and she looked at him questioningly. He grasped her hips tighter and started moving lightly so that he slid easily in and out of her. She clutched his arms and her eyes shuttered closed.
“Does that feel good Jo?”
“Mmmmm Hmmmm”
He let go of her hips and her eyes popped open, “I want you to do whatever makes you feel good..”
She nodded and moved her arms up to wrap around his neck, lifting her hips up experimentally before pushing back down. It felt heavenly so she did it again. She set a slow rhythm that grew harder, faster, deeper as the pressure in her body built.
She dropped her head to his shoulder and her hips continued to rock, her strokes growing more urgent, “Oh God it feels so good Marshall..” she whimpered.
“Mmmmm, I’m close Jo..” he moaned, “make us cum..”
And she did. She lifted her hips up, backing him completely out of her body and slammed back down, twisting her hips as she took him into her again. Her whole body trembled and shockwaves of burning pleasure shot through her system, landing at the place where they were joined and pulling him with her into that mindless abyss she'd crossed into...
~ Chapter 10 ~
Proof was currently embittered in a silent showdown with Jolene’s hotel room door. A deep frown creased his face as he brought his fist up to tap against the solid wood for the millionth time this morning. The tap was a little louder this time but still he heard nothing....
“Where the fuck is she??” he finally muttered and kicked the door with the tip of his shoe.
He’d been standing out in the fucking hallway pounding on her door for the last fifteen minutes and he hadn’t heard as much as a peep come from inside. No rustling around, no muffled curses, nothing. He’d known Jolene forever and he knew that if there was one thing that she certainly wasn’t, it’d be an early riser nor did she sleep like the fucking dead. So he was faced with the rather obvious conclusion, ‘She isn’t in there...’
So where the hell was she?? He scratched his head and turned around to lean up against her door. It was only 8 AM and he’d bet money that she didn’t have her crotchety ass out of bed yet so that raised an interesting question, ‘If she isn’t in her bed, then who’s fucking bed is she in??’
He pushed up off the door and turned to storm down the hallway...
~*~
They’d forgotten to pull the curtains back over the large picture window overlooking the beach and the sun adamantly pushed it’s way through, illuminating the room and seriously invading Jolene’s sleep but there was something else that was currently teaming up with the damn sun to seriously fuck with her peaceful slumber.
“It better be at least noon” she grumbled and swung her arm up over her face to cover her eyes.
“Nope” he said cheerfully, “I believe it’s just about 8 o’clock..”
“In the morning??” she practically screeched, “are you out of your fucking mind??”
“Yep, in the morning” he smiled, “and Nope, not the last time I checked..”
“You gotta be if you think it’s a good idea to wake me up before noon..”
“Jo....” he just about purred.
She cracked open a bleary eye and caught site of the dreamiest pair of baby blue eyes she’d ever seen looming over her.
“Marshall..” she smiled, “it’s only 8 AM...”
“Uh huh..” he said and bent down to nuzzle her neck.
She turned her head to give him better access and sighed contentedly, “Mmmmm, you keep doing that baby and I’m gonna catch some more zzzzzz’s..”
But he was a persistent little fucker and he had more than sleep on his mind. His hand fluttered across her stomach and casually slipped between her legs.
She locked her knees together and arched into his hand, “Now that’s not playing fair..” she said trying to disguise the moan that danced on the tip of her tongue.
“Making up for lost time” he whispered, slipping a long delicious finger inside of her, “too much lost time...”
Her hand slid up the arm that was holding him above her and wandered onto his back to trace lazy patterns over his skin.
He slowly pushed another magical finger into her liquid heat, “You awake now?” he whispered, increasing the speed of those delicious fingers plundering her body
She felt his fingers grazing her inner walls and the pleasure proceeded to quite literally wipe her mind, “Huh?”
“ARE-YOU-AWAKE-NOW?” he repeated enunciating the words.
“Who the fuck could stay asleep while you’re doing that..” she moaned.
“You’d be surprised..” he mumbled, pulling his long fingers out of her.
He held them up and her juices made them glisten in the sunlight that splashed color throughout the room. He popped them, one at a time, into his waiting mouth and lapped up any traces of her that coated them.
“Marshall..” she reached for him.
It was weird and it was twisted but watching him lick her off of his fingers had shot jolts of raw heat spiraling throughout her bloodstream.
She tugged his mouth down to settle over hers and when his tongue snaked inside and wrapped around hers she could taste the unique flavor that was solely hers.
She opened her legs for him, silently urging him to come into her body. She wanted to feel him moving inside her.
Less than a month ago she’d been a virgin with no experience in matters of sex, what-so-ever and though she still had a lot to learn she knew with absolute certainty that she wanted to feel his hardness delve into the aching wetness between her legs.
He could feel her want, her need and it steadily rivaled his own. He wanted to plunder her, brand her, lose himself in her velvety heat until neither of them ever wanted to be anyplace but lost in each other.
He climbed between her legs rubbing his erection insistently at her soft, creamy entrance before sliding his tip in gently. She was still so tight, it felt like a hot, closed fist had grabbed him and was trying to drag him the rest of the way in.
Her knees dug into his hips and pulled his pelvis closer until he was buried fully inside of her.
“Jo..” he moaned as her body stretched, adjusting to his invasion.
She lifted her hips up and their pelvises began to lightly rock together. He closed his eyes and just let himself feel the endless waves of pleasure that crested through him.
“MARSHALL...”
The knock at the door startled him and he groaned.
“GO AWAY..” he yelled back.
“Come on dawg” Proof said banging on the door, “you know you got sound checks this afternoon besides I can’t find Jo.”
“I’m fairly positive that she’s not lost Shaun” he bit out, “NOW GO THE FUCK AWAY..”
“Marshall, it’s 8:30 in the fucking morning!! You know that Jo doesn’t get up that early” Proof continued, “and she’s not in her fucking room, I’m worried..”
“She’s fine Shaun, I’m in her right now..”
Jolene giggled underneath him, “Nice” she smirked, “very subtle..”
“Oops” he grinned and leaned in to bite her lip at the same time he thrust downward and pushed deeper inside her.
“What’d you say?” Proof asked from the other side of the door.
Jolene giggled again.
“I said she’s fine Shaun, she’s in here right now..”
“That’s not what you fuckin’ said” Proof tossed back.
“FUCK, you’re not gonna go away, are you?” he asked sighing.
“Fuck NO” Proof answered back.
Marshall dropped his forehead to lean against Jolene’s and started mumbling, 'Cock blockin mother fucker just won’t take the fuckin hint, will he? Stupid fucking asshole..’
“Hey, be nice” she swatted at him, “he’s just worried about me..”
“And I’m buried in you” he growled, “I’d like it to stay that way!!”
Her eyes hazed over and she pulled his mouth down to hers, “Hurry..” she said arching her hips up.
He pulled out and pushed forward, increasing the speed of his thrusts in a race to finish them both off before Proof got antsy and busted the fucking door down.
“Are you gonna open the fucking door?” Proof yelled sounding agitated.
“Give me a fucking minute” he grunted.
“What the fuck are you doin in there?” Proof asked banging on the door again.
“Fucking...” he yelled, “give me a Goddamn minute!!!” he tagged on to the end.
He pushed in and out of her a few more times before reaching down between them and pressing into her clit with his thumb.
Her body bucked upward and glimmering flashes of light exploded in front of her eyes. She had to press her lips shut to keep from screaming out when she felt him jerking inside of her, his cum pumping out in violently steady streams.
He pulled out, rolled off of her and stood up, looking around on the floor for his boxers. She got up on the other side of the bed, scooped up her clothes from the night before and made a mad dash for the bathroom.
Once the door was shut behind her and he’d managed to get his boxers in place he stormed over to the door and unhooked the fucker before yanking it open.
“Did you not read that fucking sign?” he growled, “it says ‘DO NOT DISTURB’ !!!”
“What the fuck took you so long?” Proof asked stepping into the room.
“We were playin’ fuckin’ chess, what’s it to ya?” he asked sar