LATER THAT NIGHT ON A MSN MESSENGER CHAT
BRITTNI: So did ya do it?
K: do what?
BRITTNI: quit your loser job
K: why do you care?
BRITTNI: because if you keep on bitching about it, i'm going to have to get to canada and beat your ass until you stop
K: you're such a violent little girl
BRITTNI: I AM NOT LITTLE!
K: whatever
BRITTNI: listen, i could kick your ass with my hands tied behind my back
K: i didn't know you were into bondage
BRITTNI:...
K: is little britbrit pouting?
BRITTNI: don't call me that biatch.
K: yes
BRITTNI: yes what?
K: what do you think?
K: forget i asked that... you don't think
BRITTNI: FUCK YOU!!!
K: language, young lady, language
BRITTNI: aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah! you are so frustating!
K: i love getting you all hot and bothered.
BRITTNI: well, i still won't sleep with you
K: then why are you hands on my ass?
BRITTNI: because i love jello and your butt feels like jello. all wriggly and stuff.
K: i had something important to tell you but now, forget it
BRITTNI: important? important how?
K: i am soooo not telling
BRITTNI: please please pretty please with big naked rock on top?
K: with raven?
BRITTNI: what am i going to be left with?
K: didn't you say you like the dudleys or something?
BRITTNI: fine
K: let's hear it again from the top
BRITTNI: i hate you
K: no you don't. not let's hear it.
BRITTNI:*grumbling and cursing* please, with naked Rock and Raven on top tell me your big news K: are they making out?
BRITTNI: TELL ME YOUR NEWS BEFORE I LOG OUT AND NEVER IM YOU AGAIN
K: all right, all right, don't get your panties in a bunch
BRITTNI: i can book a flight to canada in minutes
K: don't threaten me. here's the big news. i quit my job today
K: brittni? BRITTNI! where are you? react damn you. i just told you i quit my job!
BRITTNI: i'm sorry. i was so shocked i fainted and bumped my head against the desk
K: any bruises?
BRITTNI: you'd like that, wouldn't you?
K: i'm not but the cute little guy you gave me, raven, he's into that.
BRITTNI: SICKO!
K: but you love me so.
BRITTNI: whatever.
Katia pulled back from the computer and grinned. Talking to her online bud Brittni often left her smiling, if not laughing out loud. There was something about the way her young American friend looked at life that couldn't stop her from smiling. Just then, her cell phone rang.
"Hello?"
"You quit your job?!" Shane yelled.
"Hi honey," said Katia, plopping herself down on the couch to watch TV.
"Don't hi honey me! YOU QUIT YOUR JOB?"
"Yes."
"Why?"
"I wasn't happy anymore."
"Oh."
At Katia's words, all the venom seemed to leak right out of Shane. At that moment, he would have given anything to be with her, next to her, holding her.
"It's okay," she said, "I have some money left over to take care of the bills until I get a new job and anyhow, they can't cut the electricity on me until summer, so I'll be all right."
"Okay, what?"
"I'll pay the immediate bills, like the groceries and my cell phone and I'll let everything else slide until I can pay them."
"I could give you the money."
"The proud side of me wants to say no but the smart side of me has to say thanks and I might take you up on that."
"Cool. So, how does it feel?"
"Pretty damn good," she said with a smile.
"Really?"
"Yeah. I feel free, unfettered. It's as if I'm finally getting a chance to spread my wings and see what else is out there."
"Good for you. Does that mean you'll join me on the road for a while?"
"We'll see."
"Good. You'd have fun on the road. And I'd let you boss the boys around."
"You too?"
"Me first."
That night Katia laid in her bed and let out a deep breath. She looked around her room and felt more at peace than she had in ages. Until now, she hadn't realized how much of a strain her job had been on her. God, quitting felt so damn good!
For the next two weeks, Katia litterally pounded the pavement looking for a job. She was exhausted. Everyday, she got up, she got dressed and went on interviews, trying to impress directors of personnel with her customer service skills and call center experience and she wanted to spit nails.
One night, while she was watching TV, her swollen feet soaking in warm water, her home phone rang.
"Hello?"
"Katia?"
"Yes. who's this?"
"It's Joanie. Shane gave me your number. I hope you don't mind I called."
"Absolutely not. I need a girlfriend tonight."
"What's wrong?"
"I don't want to look for a job anymore. I swear to God, I am very close to taking Shane up on his offer and become one of those women who follows their men around."
"Please. You'd last maybe a week and then you'd start bitching at everybody. And our boys are sheltered. Everybody's nice to them. If you bitched at them, they'd start crying."
"Probably. Although, I'll be honest, I need time off. I need a vacation. I need to get away from Montreal, get away from my life, get some perspective."
"You know what, I have an idea."
"An idea? A good one?"
"Yes. I think so..."
"Well, do tell."
"I'm going to L.A. next week to film Third Rock From the Sun. Come with me."
"That's a very interesting idea."
"You don't have to do anything. If you want to come to the studio with me, come. If you want to hole up in the hotel room and watch TV, that's cool too."
"I'd love that but I have a little problem. I just lost my job. I'm not sure I can afford a plane ticket to LA."
"Would you mind if I paid?"
"I could pretend I'm noble but I won't. I wouldn't mind at all."
"I'll get you a ticket ASAP. And I'll run and tell Shane. He'll flip."
"Good. I've been too staid. I need to rock that boy's life."
"Yeah. I always do my best to shock Paul every once in a while. Can't have him thinking I'm boring or something."
"You know," chuckled Katia.
"And here they come now," said Joanie, "the conquering heroes return."
"Hercules and Iolaus?" asked Kat with a grin.
"I wish. Although when you look at them the right way."
"You end up with Hercules and I have to go home with puny lil' Iolaus... why aren't I smiling?"
"Well, Shane's got dark hair, he can't really be Iolaus. Maybe he can be that guy who always wears leather?"
"Shane in leather? Look at him. I love him, but come on."
Joanie looked up at Shane, saw the confused look in his eyes and started giggling so hard that she dropped the phone.
"Who's this?" asked Paul, picking up the phone while staring at his giggling girlfriend.
"Hey Hercules."
"Hercules? Kat, is that you?"
"Yep."
"Have you been drinking?"
"No. Just chilling with Joanie."
"Whatever. Tell me something. why is my girlfriend rolling around the floor, pointing and laughing at your boyfriend?"
"You don't want to know."
"Why not? Does it have anything to do with that Hercules crap?"
"Hey. I happen to like Hercules."
"Is that Katia?" Shane asked.
"Yeah. You want to talk to her?"
"Sure. Hey darling," he drawled.
"Hi sweetie... oh my God, I called you sweetie... it must be love."
"Of course. Why is Joanie laughing at me?"
"You did something funny?"
"Not really. I suspect you told her something."
"Me? Poor innocent lonely me?"
"No! The real you. So what's up?"
"Joanie just made me a very interesting offer."
"What kind of offer?"
"I'm thinking of joining her in LA when she goes there to film Third Rock."
"Why?" asked Shane sullenly.
"Because it'll be fun and relaxing."
"You'd rather go to LA with Joanie than come on the road with me?"
"Right now, yeah. Honey, I need to get away. What Joanie is offering me is completely stress-free and I need that right now. It's not about you, it's all about me, it's about what I need."
"Oh."
"Listen. Once Joanie goes back on the road, I'll join her. I'll come on the road with you for a week. How's that?"
"Do you promise?"
"Shane..."
"Please, Kat."
"Fine Shane, I promise to join you on the road after I spend a week in LA with Joanie. You happy now?"
"Yes. Will you need anything while you're there?"
"I'll need many things while I'm there. First."
Kat walked into LAX pulling her tee-shirt away from her body. It was hot! Way too hot for her. She was wearing a heavy pair of blue jeans and three-quarter sleeve sweater and she was sweating buckets.
"Kat!" yelled a familiar voice.
The young woman turned to the voice and saw Joanie getting out of a dark blue SUV.
"Joanie!"
"Hey girl, what's up?"
"Well, I'm here. I can't believe it. LA, land of the stars."
"Get in the car. You and I have work to do," said Joanie, helping Katia load her suitcases into her car.
"Work? This is supposed to be my vacation."
"Ha! Wait til we get to the suite. You'll see what I'm talking about."
An hour later, Katia was sitting on the floor in the middle of the suite, staring at the technician setting up the computer and everything else Shane had just bought her. Joanie was sitting next to her, watching TV while she popped grapes into her mouth.
"Is he insane?" Katia asked her friend, "I mean a guy who does this shit can't be well in the head, can he?"
"Oh he's well all right," said Joanie, "as a matter of fact, he's better than fine. He's in loooooooooooove."
"Oh shut up!"
"Your boyfriend ordered all this stuff for you?" asked the technician, turning to Kat.
"Yes."
"Damn, he is in love. This equipment is state of the art. And I got another gig to hook it up somewhere in Canada."
"See," said Joanie, punching Kat in the shoulder, "I told you."
"First off, Joanie, that punch of yours?"
"Yeah?"
"Hurt like crazy. I'm a little weakling."
"Sorry little darling," chuckled Joanie, rubbing Katia's shoulder.
"And second, damn, it must be love. This is a beautiful machine," whispered Katia, running a hand over the monitor.
"So," asked Joanie an hour later when the tech left, "what do you want to do now?"
"I honestly don't know. Exactly that is. I know I don't want to strain myself or anything. How about we have a nice dinner out on the balcony?"
"Oh, that'd be nice. We can order, take a long leisurely bath and then eat outside. That'd be sweet."
"Indeed. Shall we order now?"
"Yeah."
Later that evening, Joanie and Kat sat on the balcony enjoying glasses of wine as they watched the beautiful California sunset.
"Now, this is a vacation," said Kat with a smile to her friend, "thank you for inviting me."
"Not a problem. I needed the company and from what Shane was telling me, you needed to relax."
"I'll thank him specially."
"What do you say that tomorrow, you and I work out together before I head to the studio."
Kat chuckled and put her glass down on the table, "You do, of course, realize that I'm nowhere near the shape you're in, right?"
"Don't worry. I'll go easy on you. Just enough to make sure you sleep the nights?"
"Why do I have the feeling that tomorrow's going to be painful?"
Katia felt sweat dripping off her body from pores she didn't know she had. But she was raring to go. Joanie knew exactly what to say to push her to the limits and God, did it ever feel good.
"Are you about ready to call it quits?" asked her Amazon-like friend.
"Let's just that I would enjoy resting right about now."
"I thought so. But by the time I send you back to Canada, you'll train just because you love it."
"I doubt that. But if you want to live through your fantasies, go for it."
For the rest of that week, Kat and Joanie would get up and work out in the morning. Then Joanie was off to the studio to work while Katia spent her time on the hotel beach, either swimming in the ocean, or writing on the new laptop Shane had given her, protected from the sun by the large parasols.
By the time the girls joined their boyfriends in New York, they were both feeling extremely relaxed and mellow. But on the plane ride to the Big Apple, nothing could have wiped the eager grins from their faces. Walking down the long gangway to the barrier to the outside world, Kat felt her stomach flipping like a fish on land. She stopped walking and Joanie walked straight into her.
"What's wrong?" she asked.
"I feel like I'm. I don't know. I feel really strange. Like I want to throw up and kick up my heels at the same time."
"Yeah. I know that one. You want to see Shane."
"And this is how it feels?"
"Yes."
"Damn!"
Just then, they walked through the doors leading to the outside and saw Paul and Shane standing there, flowers in their arms. While Joanie walked straight into Paul's arms, Katia held back a little, hesitating before going up to Shane.
"Hey," he said, going up to her slowly, "aren't you happy to see me?"
"Extremely," she whispered, avoiding his eyes.
"So?"
Katia put her bags down and walked into Shane's embrace, briefly kissing him before hugging him as tightly as she could.
"This is so strange," she said in his ear.
"What is?"
"Meeting you like this? I knew I'd miss you but when I saw you there, I realized how much I had missed you."
"And."
"It's powerful Shane."
Shane chuckled and kissed Katia again, running light kisses over the line of her jaw.
"Of course it was powerful, we're in love."
"Yes we are," she confirmed, kissing him hungrily, "we are in love."
"Are the two of you done?" asked Paul, looking annoyed. "I'm hungry. And horny."
"I apologize for Paul," said Joanie with a grin, "lack of sex makes him stupid."
The sun came streaming through the window slowly and Shane watched as it slowly crept up Katia's long legs as she slept next to him, curled on her side. How he'd missed her, he thought, pushing a long strand of hair off her ear. They'd been apart for about a month and a half and he'd spent most of that time feeling like a part of him was missing. Shane pulled the thin sheet over her dimpling flesh and swung his feet to the ground, running his fingers through his hair.
"Where are you going?" she asked him, getting up.
"Just to the bathroom," he said, looking at her as she blinked the remains of sleep from her eyes. "Do you need anything?"
"You."
Shane bent over the bed and wrapped his fingers around her neck, bringing her mouth to his for a long kiss. If Kat was surprised by his sudden burst of passion, she didn't act it. Instead, she responded, wrapping her arms around his neck.
"I'll be back," he whispered, pulling away from her. "We need to talk."
"We do?" she asked, looking at his cute bottom as he walked to the bathroom.
"Yep."
When Shane made it back to the bathroom, he found Kat sitting up in the bed, wrapped in his light grey terry cloth robe while she munched on some of the cold cuts they'd ordered earlier.
"What do I wear?" he asked, eyeing his robe.
"I don't know... pants..."
"Why can't I wear my robe?"
"It's not that you can't wear it... but I like it... it smells like you," she explained, rubbing her cheek against the grey material.
"Fine then, keep it."
"Thanks. You said we needed to talk. What about?"
"Andrea."
Kat blinked and smiled, putting down the slice of roast beef she'd rolled up and was about to pop into her mouth.
"You want to talk about Andrea?"
"Yeah. Jess and your cousins referred to her as The Bitch. Why is that?"
"She is a bitch. well, I don't know if she still is a bitch but she was a bitch to me."
"What did she do?"
"She was a good friend. Well, I considered her to be a good friend. We spent a lot of time together, talking, going to school and the gym together. Going out to clubs and parties. There were four of us, me, Jess, Andrew and this other girl, Caro. We referred to each other as the Spice Girls and this guy Richard we used to work with, he was our version of Ginger Spice. We were tight. But there was this guy."
"What guy?"
"His name was Chris. He had a brother named Jason. I met Chris through my old job and I fell for him. I fell for him hard. He was this... really nice guy who had these borderline ideas about society that just made me laugh so damn much. We were good friends. Then he quit. Well, he was fired actually. Little did I know that his brother Jason worked for us too. I met Jason about a year after Chris had quit."
"This job where you met Chris, is it the job you quit a few weeks ago?"
"Yeah."
"Okay, go on."
"Anyhow, when I realize Jason and Chris were brothers, Jason and I started hanging out. As friends, which proved to be difficult since Jason was such a little hottie. He looked like a dark and dangerous version of that little Backstreet Boy, Brian... something or other. Jason and I were pals. And as we talked, I found out about him and Andrea. He actually introduced me to her. The two of them had this naughty little affair going since Andrea and him weren't actually allowed to date since she was his boss. But I took to Andrea, I thought she was cool. It was about the same time that I started being friends with Jess. Anyhow, Chris came back and I fell for him all over again. Then, Jason and Andrea broke up. And Andrea and I got close and I told her how I felt about Chris."
"You were in love with this Chris guy?"
"At the time," said Kat, covering Shane's hand with her own, "I thought I was. Now, now that I have you in my life, I can honestly say that I was physically attracted to him. I love you. It's different. Anyhow, for some reason, Andrea convinced me to tell Chris how I felt about him. So I did. And it was hard Shane, it was so hard," whispered Kat, looking
Shane in the eyes, "and the worst part was that he told me, right then and there that he already had a girlfriend. My heart broke Shane. I cried that night. I cried so much."
"What then?" asked Shane.
It was strange, sitting there in his track pants, listening to Katia talk about the man she'd thought she'd loved and her heartache. But he wanted to know about that as much as he wanted to know about her happy times. He was desperate to know everything about her life.
"Then, I lived. I still spoke to Chris. I was still his friend, you know. I wanted to be brave. And I was. I put up a good face. Until one day, a friend of mine took me aside and told me the truth. That girlfriend Chris had told me about? It was Andrea. They'd been together for months. God, I felt the world cave in on me. I thought I would die. The betrayal almost killed me. I literally wanted to die. And I was more hurt over Andrea's betrayal than I was about Chris. To me, regardless, my friendship with her was more important than Chris."
"What did she say? Did she apologize or something?"
"Never," Kat chuckled with mirth, "she never did. Later, things got fucked up because Jason and I started getting closer and closer. I mean, we both felt a bit betrayed, him by his brother, me by my friend. At some point during that time when Jason and I were attached at the hip, Chris came in on a Saturday to talk to me and to warn me about his brother, telling me Jason was a player. Naturally, I told him to mind his damn business. That's when he told me that Andrea and him had broken up. Because of me. It seems that Chris wanted to tell me about them all along but that my friend had threatened to break up with him. Problem was, Chris was madly in love with Andrea, wanted to have kids with her and everything. So he did whatever she wanted. But when he realized all the lying his girlfriend had done, he gave her an ultimatum. She walked away. His heart was broken."
"So what happened?"
"Chris quit, I never saw him again."
"And Andrea?"
"I barely spoke to her and then she was fired."
"What about Jason?"
"He quit."
"Did anything happened between you two?"
"Nah. We never took each other seriously enough."
"Do you regret that?"
"That's one hell of a question. I think that if Jason and I had gotten together, it would have been for my ego more than anything else. He would have been good for my ego. I mean, the boy looked good and he knew it and he flaunted it. He always made a face when I said he had the look of a Backstreet Boy but he loved it, I know he did."
"You wanted him?"
"I wanted him."
"If you were to meet him and his brother in the street?"
"With or without you?"
"Doesn't matter," Shane lied.
"With you, I'd be civil to both and I'd introduce you. If I were alone, I'd probably be more effusive, I'd hug them and all that shit."
"And Andrea? What would happen if you met her?"
"Why?"
"Curiosity, I guess."
"I've run into her a few times."
"Cat fights?"
"Pervert. no, nothing like that. I ignore her. I look right through her. That's what hurts her the most. Knowing that I can look right through her. And that's exactly what I want to do. I want to hurt her for hurting me."
"I'd hate to cross you."
"I'm a bitch when crossed."
"I see that."
"Shane, why did you want to know about her?"
"Because I wanted to know about you."
"So I guess you'll want to know about Martin, right?"
"Right."
"Simpler story. I met him through Jess. He was a bouncer at a club. We met, we had chemistry. I went out with him the next day and we had sex that very night."
"Wow! You move fast."
"It was the highlight of our relationship. We were together for a monthafter that but it was mostly a phone sex thing. We saw each other maybe twice. And one of those times, he told me I looked fat in pants. A friend made me realize he was bad for me. So I dumped him. I left him a message on the voice mail of his cell phone to let him know."
"For real?"
"Yep."
"Oh my God!"
"It's not that bad. I got asked out on a date two days later and six days after I'd broken up with Martin, I slept with another guy who made me realize that the only reason why I thought Martin was so good in bed was because I'd gone without that kind of male companionship for over two years before."
"Is that why you think I'm so good?"
"No, you're actually talented. Shane, listen, Chris and Martin, they were bumps in the road. I never saw a future with them, not something viable, something real. I see that with you."
"I do too. Katia, I want a future, the kids, everything. Hell, I even want the wedding."
"Wedding? Shane, we're known each other for a few months. We've never even gone out on an actual date, just you and me. And kids... well that's another thing completely."
"Am I rushing you?"
"Uh, yeah!"
"Sorry," said Shane, sitting abak, slightly moving away from Kat.
"Wait," she whispered, covering his hands with hers. "I want that life with you Shane, down the road. But it's the last thing I want now. It's too soon. Let's enjoy this Shane, let's enjoy the now, let's have fun being Shane and Katia, boyfriend and girlfriend. We have plenty of time to be more."
"I turned 30 not too long ago."
"By the time I turn 30 Shane, you'll have a little boy or a little girl and I'll be its mother. I'm hoping for a little girl. She'll have crazy out of control hair, kind of curly, with skin the color of a cappuccino without all the cream. She'll have attitude to sell and she'll have the whole roster at her beck and call."
"You've really thought about this, haven't you?"
"Yeah. Shane," whispered Kat, "hell, we've got at least seven months to go."
"Why seven?"
"Because my mother and father got married six months after they met and they're still together after over thirty years and two daughters. My sister and her husband got married after eight months and it's Splitsville for them and they were just married for a couple of years. I figure if you and I give it a bit more time, it'll increase our chances."
"Your sister. you barely talk about her."
"Well, she's in France, living... or something... and I like her. Over there, with an ocean between us."
"Baby, that's harsh."
"Shane, no offense, but you don't know my sister."
"That's because you refuse to talk about her."
"There's a reason. She's something of a bitch."
"Kat," sighed Shane, "come on, this is your sister you're talking about here. Steph's bad but I don't call her a bitch."
"What do you want Shane," asked Katia, "to hear all of my life story in one sitting?"
"No, just the most important parts."
"And you figure my sister's important?"
"Yeah. She's your sister, she's a part of you and I want to know about her."
"Well, let me break it down for you. She was the rebel and I was the goodie-two-shoes. I won't go into details, I'll jump to the most interesting part. A hot summer night, my father and her went out for her to practice her driving lessons. Later that night, my father comes home, alone."
"He killed her?" asked Shane with a grin.
"I would have. They had an argument while she was driving and she ditched him, after maneuvering the car over a sidewalk, effectively breaking the axle on my mom's two-year old car."
"Damn!"
"My dad was in shock. She'd walked out of the car, leaving him there. I knew where she'd gone right away. She went to stay with this friend of hers. You remember my cousin Frank? My sister Nadine was friends with an ex of his. She stayed there for a while then she bummed around with some of her other friends. Then, she up and decided she wanted to go to Paris to become a model. She was twenty-three at the time."
"Isn't that a bit old to become a model?"
"You'd think so, wouldn't you? But her friends told her she had the right look and that she'd be incredibly successful. Mind you, her friends wanted to ride on her ticket when she got famous but they fed her ego, so what did she care?"
"So she left?"
"Yep, sticking my mother with her fifteen hundred dollar credit card debt. I told my mother that she didn't have to pay for Nadine's debt but she did so anyway. I doubt my sister ever paid her back or thanked her. That's my sister for you. The first time one of my stories was posted on a website, she didn't even read it I think. She just analyzed it to mean that I needed to get away from my parents."
"The two of you have a fucked up relationship," murmured Shane.
"We do, we really do. I love her because she's my sister and all that shit but at the same time, I hate her for all the pain she's caused my parents. The worry, the tears, the frustration. I would have done anything to spare them that pain. Anything, absolutely anything."
"But you don't have to repair her mistakes."
"You don't know how long it took me to realize that. But at the same time, I also have to move out from under her shadow, make my parents realize that I wasn't like her, that I wasn't going to be like her. That was hard. It still is. And when they find out about you. well, that's going to be special."
"Find what out?"
"The whole you're white thing."
"Is that going to be a problem?"
"Not really. Actually, my sister's soon-to-be ex-husband is white and my folks loved him. But I know they'd like to have at least one Black son-in-law."
"Should I start tanning or something?"
"Yes, but not for them. You look a bit sickly. You could use some color."
"Shut up!" he chuckled, gently cuffing her on the side of her head.
"It's true," she laughed as they wrestled around the bed until she was lying under him, flat on her back.
"Take it back!"
"Will not!"
"Take it back, I say."
"Screw you!"
"Your wish is my command," he said with a smile, untying the sash on her robe.
When Shane and Katia finally showed up at the arena that night, they were grinning from ear to ear when they caught up with Vince.
"Katia," he said, pecking her cheek, "good to have you with us for a while."
"Thanks. It's good to be here."
"And this boy's finally smiling. He's been moping like a lovesick puppy ever since you joined Joanie in L.A."
"I was not!"
"Yes, you were. And from the smile on your faces, I can tell the two of you have barely started getting caught up."
"Dad!"
"Please. I'm your father, I'm not dead. But I'm not mad. I understand how it is. Listen, you take Katia to the box, your mother's already there. We'll join them when we can."
"Is that okay with you honey?" asked Shane.
"It's fine. You have stuff to do, I'd get in the way."
"You're the best."
"You'd do well to remember that, Shane-O."
Vince watched Shane and Kat disappear around the corner on their way to the owner's box and smiled. He loved to see his kids happy.
Linda was talking with Gerald Briscoe when Shane and Katia arrived.
"Mom," said Shane, "look who I brought along."
"Katia," said Linda, opening her arms to the young woman, "it's so nice to see you."
"It's nice to see you too Linda. How are you?"
"I'm fine. And you, my dear, look very well. Very relaxed."
"A week's vacation does that to a person."
"Well, it's a good look on you."
"I'll remember that."
"Mom, you don't mind if Katia stays with you up here, do you?"
"Absolutely not. I'll enjoy the company."
"All right sweetie," said Shane, quickly pecking Kat's lips, "I'll be back as soon as I can."
"Take your time. I'm sure your mother and I will be fine."
"You're sure?"
"Yes. Now go on."
Katia sat down next to Linda by the large window with a perfect view to the ring.
"I still can't believe this is my life," she whispered, "that I'm here at RAW, in the owner's box, sitting next to the CEO of the WWF. Wow!"
"It's part of the territory when you date my son."
"I know. But I gotta say, I love this world. I love wrestling and being a part of it, even if it's just as Shane's girlfriend... wow!"
"Well, take it all in Katia. It's pretty heady stuff."
Linda started working on a laptop and Kat saw Shane's laptop sitting there idly.
"Linda, do you think Shane would mind if I used his laptop?"
"No, of course not."
"Is it hooked up for the Internet?"
"Yes."
"Perfect."
For the next half-hour, Kat checked her emails and read some of the new stories that had come through from her lists. She read some of the ongoing conversations, most of them around the McMahon-Helmsley marriage and wished she could tell them where she was. Then, she looked at Linda as she handled calls and checked information on her computer. She seemed so controlled and efficient. As she watched her work, an idea bubbled in Katia's effervescent mind, a great idea she thought. Linda was going to get a major storyline. My Children was born.
Katia joined Shane in his dressing room just as he was coming out of the shower, a towel on his head and wearing nothing but his black pants.
"Damn," she said, snapping her fingers, "I missed the shower. I thought you and I could get busy."
"We will. Later. Right now, we have to hook up with the guys, they're hitting this club downtown. You wanna come?"
"Will it involve some kind of dancing?"
"Yeah."
"Then yeah I wanna go."
"Maybe you want to drop by the hotel and change first?" said Shane, eyeing her ankle length cargo skirt and turtleneck.
"Nah. that's why I love cargo skirts," said Kat, casually unzipping her long skirt, turning it into a short one. "Do you think I can take something from your wardrobe department?"
"Sure. Steph does it all the time."
Katia quickly make her way to the wardrobe department where a smiling attendant helped her pick out a more appropriate top. Kat had just settled on a light sparkling blue tank top, Stephanie walked in.
"Hi Steph," said Katia with a smile.
"Katia. My brother told me you were here."
"Yeah. I'm trying to pick something out for tonight."
"Oh, you're coming too?" said Stephanie, making a face.
"Yeah. Do you mind?"
"Do you care?"
"No."
At Kat's nonchalant shrug, Steph had no choice but to grin. Staying mad at someone who refused to be riled was impossible.
"That blue top's nice."
"It's all right," said Kat, "but I'm not too sure about it. But this one would look nice on you."
Steph eyed the sleveless turtleneck Kat was showing her with a smile. The thin blue lines would work well with her eyes.
"Yeah," said Kat, "wear it with black pants, or brown if you have them. That'd look amazing."
"I can see it already," said Stephanie, nodding. "You have an eye for fashion."
"My sister was obsessed with fashion. Made me watched thousands of fashion shows. I didn't have a choice but to develop an eye for it."
"I imagine you didn't. With brown pants, you said?"
"Actually, stick with black. It's more slimming."
"I'm not exactly skinny am I?" chuckled Steph.
"Neither am I," said Katia, cupping her generous hips.
"Please."
"Let me tell you a secret," said Kat, "I weigh around 170-180 pounds."
"What?! You don't look it."
"It's all in the way you dress. Gotta run. Your brother's waiting for me. See you tonight."
"What did you pick out?" asked Shane when Kat hurried back into his dressing room.
"You'll see."
"I don't think so. You played that trick on me already. I'm not falling for it twice."
"Come on Shane. don't you trust me?"
"Just show me the top already."
"I should be insulted," muttered Katia, pulling the top out from behind her back. "But it's so cute to know you care. There."
Shane took the tiny tank top and held it up in front of his girlfriend.
"It looks respectable," he decreed, "but I'll retain judgement until I actually see it on you."
"And what happens if you decide it's unsuitable?"
"You'll simply have to take it off."
Kat smiled, then grinned. Then she chuckled and giggled, finally bursting into laughter at the serious look on Shane's face.
"You think that in a few months, you'll be able to do what my parents weren't able to do in twenty-four years? Tell me how to dress? You have to be the most adorable thing."
Leaving a somewhat dejected Shane to finish getting dressed, Kat went to the bathroom and changed into the tank top, unable to withold a smile as she realized she would have to go braless. By the time she got back to the dressing room, Shane was pulling on his shoes.
"So?" she asked him, "what do you think?"
"It's okay in the front," he said with a grin, "turn around for me."
"Shall I also strike a pose?"
"Ha, ha, ha, very funny. Wait... you're not wearing a bra with this?"
"I can't. It'd show."
"B-b-b-but..."
"Shane, it's okay... the front's high enough. It's not like I'll pop out of there."
"But everyone will know you're not wearing a bra."
"So?"
Shane found himself speechless as Katia stuffed her turtleneck and the lower half of her skirt into his bag.
"Come on, let's go, we wouldn't want to hold up everybody."
"Babe," Shane asked Katia after they'd been in the club for a few minutes, "anything to drink?"
"Cranberry vodka," she whispered, checking out the action on the dance floor.
The roster was there but no one was on the dance floor. The guys were much too busy checking out the action.
"Does anybody actually dance at these things?" she asked Shane, "or do they just stand around and look at the tits on parade?"
"It depends... why?"
"No reason."
For the next hour or so, Katia found herself sitting at a table close to the dance floor watching other people dance while the roster came by to chat with Shane and meet The Girlfriend. Then Wyclef Jean's Guantanamera began.
"Honey," said Katia to Shane as she got up, "I love you, but if I don't dance to this, I'm going to have kill myself. See ya out there."
Kat hopped to the dance floor and started to move, her eyes drifting closed as the music filled her. The next time she looked up, a tall guy with dark blond hair was dancing in front of her, a smile on his face. She smiled up at him and they started to move together.
"I'm Derek," he told her.
"Kat."
"Nice to meet you."
"Same here."
Katia kept on dancing, suddenly very much aware of Derek and the light in his green eyes but then a reggae beat started and she just started to grind her hips to the music.
"Where did she learn to dance like that?" Adam asked Paul.
Both men were at the bar and watched Katia and Derek like hawks.
"You mean it's not a Canadian thing?" asked the Bostonian.
"Funny. No, it's not a Canadian thing. It's a fucking sexual thing."
"Tell me about it. And that guy's enjoying one hell of a show."
As a matter of fact, Derek was looking down Katia's scoop neckline as if he were a man who'd never seen breasts in his entire life. And the young woman hadn't even noticed. But most of Shane's friends had noticed.
Then, the reggae beat slowed and Derek moved closer to Katia, bending over to whisper something in her ear.
"You're one hell of a dancer," he told her.
"Thanks. You're not bad either."
Derek took her compliment to mean a bit more than intended, Katia realized as he wrapped an arm around her, drawing her body close to his.
"I don't think so," she said, digging her fingers into the back of his hand, "I'm here with my boyfriend."
"So?"
"I danced with you. I didn't invite you to touch me. Now, take your hands off me!"
Kat gently shoved Derek out of her way and stalked off back to Shane's table. Immediately, Paul and the Canadian Mafia crowded around the table.
"Are you all right?" asked Andrew.
"Did that son of a bitch hurt you?"
"I was going to kill him," said Paul, gently stroking the back of her neck.
"What the hell is going on here?" asked Shane, smiling at his overprotective friends.
"Did you see that guy mauling your girlfriend on the dance floor?"
"Guys," said Kat with a smile, "it's so nice of you all to care but I can take care of myself."
"Yeah, well, he didn't look like he wanted to take no for an answer."
"It's not like I was going to let him take anything but no for an answer. But you guys are so cute to care."
"Well, it's natural. You're the boss' girlfriend, we couldn't really let him attack you and do nothing," said Chris Jericho.
"Well, here's what I'll do. I'll let one of you guys make sure no one else come and bothers me again."
"I'll do it," said Andrew with a grin.
"Cool," said Kat, dragging the man known as Test to the dance floor, "let's dance."
Shane, Paul and the rest of the Mafia laughed as Kat taught Andrew how to move to reggae. It seemed that grinding was a Black thing and not a Canadian thing at all.
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