Marley (Carnage #3)

by Lesley Jones

  Yup, Yup, Yup, we did.

  We didn’t talk much. I wasn’t the sharpest tool in the box back in those days, but I’d already worked out that Ashley didn’t like to talk about her family, or the fact that she worked for mine, so for the most part, I stayed quiet, just answering any questions she asked me.

  Sometime during the evening, my hand had found its way under the T-shirt and hoodie of mine that she wore, and my fingers stroked over her waist and the curve of her hip continuously. I desperately wanted to move my hand higher and cup hold of her tits, or slide my hand below the waistband of the joggers she wore and feel the heat between her legs.

  I’d done a lot of things with a lot of different women in my life, but that, lying on my sofa with her little body pushed against mine and the sensation of her silky skin beneath my fingers was by far one of the most pleasurable moments of my life.

  I kissed her neck, which was fast becoming a favourite thing of mine to do to her, loving the way her skin erupted in goose bumps when I did it. I whispered into her ear.

  “Please stay here with me tonight?”

  She was quiet for a few seconds. I’d felt her breathing halt and then noticed the long breath that she let out.

  “No, Marley. I have work in the morning. I need to go home.”

  So just after midnight, I packed her off in a taxi. She’d refused point blank to let me drive her home and was too mortified about throwing up in his car last night to let me call Dave, so in the end, I called her a cab.

  I gave the driver eighty quid and told him to make sure that he dropped her at her door.

  Ash had refused to even give me a phone number to contact her on and told me to just call the shop if I wanted to see her again.

  Did I want to see her again?

  Yes ... No ...I had no fucking clue.

  My bed smelt of her and me and I loved it. I held onto the pillow that she’d laid on, but that didn’t help me sleep. Eventually, I watched a porno that I’d picked up in Amsterdam and had a wank into a condom.

  I was all about the rock star life for me!

  My hand job of the night before did nothing to reduce the size of the hard on I woke up with the following morning. After giving myself another little tug in the shower, I got dressed and drove myself to my brother’s office.

  Although Len was still our manager, he no longer worked for the record label. He’d successfully branched out as a manager and agent for other bands, singers, actors, and models. He was a shrewd businessman, and had also invested his, mine, and Maca’s money into executively producing a couple of films, and even the albums of a few up-and-coming bands. It basically meant that we financed the projects and shared in the profits of their success. So far, Len hadn’t let us down and we had made money on all of our investments.

  Jimmie worked alongside Len and they had recently moved into new offices in Canary Wharf, not too far from where Maca and myself now lived.

  Jim had called yesterday to check that I’d gotten Ashley home safe; to say that she was shocked that Ash was still at my place at seven Sunday night was an understatement, and I actually had to put her on the phone to Jim to prove it.

  I tapped my fingers against my legs as I rode up in the lift to speak to my future sister-in-law and tried to think of a way of getting the info that I needed, without Jimmie jumping to conclusions.

  The lift opened on the eighth floor and two secretarial looking types stepped in. I pulled the cap I was wearing down a little lower and pushed my sunglasses up my nose.

  “Going up?” The redhead in the skin-tight skirt asked.

  “Yep.” I replied.

  “Would go down for him?” The brunette whispered, way too loudly to her friend as she pushed the button for the twelfth floor.

  I couldn’t help but give a little smile, but my dick didn’t even open his slitty little eye.

  A redhead and a brunette. Apparently, my dick was favouring blondes at that moment.

  The girls stepped out at their floor, both of them looking over their shoulders at me as they did. The redhead even gave me a wink. I waved as the door closed, but that was just to maintain the image.

  I opened the doors and stepped into my brother’s suite of offices. He’d done well, my big brother, and would probably end up richer than all of us. I couldn’t have been happier for him.

  “Mr. Layton, I don’t think we were expecting you today.” Gina, the receptionist greeted me.

  “Morning, Gina, it’s actually Jimmie I’m here to see, not Len. If she’s got a minute, that is.” I took my glasses off and gave her my very best smile.

  “I’ll just check that Ms. Emmanuel is free.”

  She put a call through to Jim’s office and her door flew open a few seconds later. Jim stepped out looking every inch the highflying executive assistant that she now was.

  Jim had been a part of our management team for a lot of years, and always looked good in her business wear.

  “Looking sharp Ms. Emmanuel, looking very sharp for a Monday morning.” I told her while leaning in to kiss her cheek.

  She frowned as she looked me over.

  “Mr. Layton, this is a pleasant surprise. I didn’t realise that you rock stars knew that this time of day even existed.”

  “Oh, you’d be surprised at what us rock stars know.”

  “Hmm, doubt that.” She said with a smile. “What are you after?”

  “A quick word, if that’s all right?”

  “Of course, come in. Len’s got someone with him, but he’ll be done in a bit.” She stated.

  “Tell Len to come into my office when his eleven o’clock leaves, please, Gina. He’s got no one else due till after lunch.”

  “Sure thing.” Gina replied.

  I followed Jimmie into her office and I couldn’t wipe the smile off my face as she sat behind her desk and I sat opposite her.

  “What you grinning at?” She asked, her brown eyes sparkling.

  “You. Us. All of this.” I gestured around the room. “We’ve come a long fucking way since our summerhouse and the transit van.”

  She sits back in her chair and lets out a little laugh. “From smelly back rooms in pubs with half a cider, to Wembley Stadium and a chilled bottle of bolly. It was all down to the hard work put in by you boys. I’m just the assistant.”

  “Fuck off, Jim. You’re as much a part of our success as me, Maca, Bill, Tommy, or Len. Even George is responsible for part of it. We’re a family, connected by the band, not just blood or marriage, and I hope it always stays that way.” I told her, hoping she truly believed the sincerity I tried to express in my voice.

  “Me too, Marls. Me too.” She swiped under her eye. “You’re gonna make me cry and ruin my make-up, you fucker. Is that all you came here for?”

  Now, this was the part where I needed to be stealth like and ask my questions in such a way that Jim, who let’s face it, could probably have gotten a job with MI5 if she didn’t work for us, won’t work out what I was up to.

  “You heard from George or Maca since Saturday night?” I asked.

  “Yep, spoke to them this morning. They’re going house hunting. Can you believe it?”

  “Seriously?”

  “Yeah. Maca told Len, then I called and spoke to George, and she said that Sean wants them to move in together. Enough time’s been wasted so he doesn’t want to hang around.” She taps her pen on the desk as she watches my reaction. “Sorry, Marls. You should be hearing this from Maca, not from me.”

  “Na, na. Its fine, Jim, honest. I thought they might just fuck off somewhere on the quiet and get married, so it’s not like it’s come as a shock that they wanna move in together. I just hope it all works out for them.”

  “Yeah, me too.” She said with a smile. “Me too.”

  We’re silent for just a few seconds before Jimmie jumps in.

  “So, you and Ash. How’d that go?” I knew she wouldn’t last long. Jimmie was the one person I could rely on to know everything about eve
rything. If you wanted gossip, go to Jim. Nothing got past her. This also meant that I was playing with a double-edged sword. I wanted info on Ash, but I don’t want Jim clocking onto the fact that I like her, a lot.

  “She’s a nice girl. We had a laugh together.” I tried to sound casual as I lifted my right ankle to rest on my left knee.

  “Must have been hilarious if you kept her hanging around until Sunday evening.”

  I shrugged my shoulders, whilst trying not to shrink back into the chair and hide from Jimmie’s scrutiny.

  “We watched a few films, lost track of time.”

  “What time did she leave?”

  Shit!

  “What time did she leave your place?”

  I scratch my eyebrow. “Ah, not sure. It wasn’t that late.”

  She nodded her head and looked me right in the eye. “Marls, I’ve never interfered in the way you live your life. None of us are angels, we never have been. Now I’m not the judgy type, but I just wanna put this out there. Ash hasn’t had the greatest of upbringings. She comes from a rough family. Her dad and her brother have both been in prison and her mum has been on the...” She trailed off and tapped her pen harder on her desk. “Ashley’s story isn’t mine to tell. I don’t think George even knows the whole truth. She was going through the whole Maca break up and dealing with the press during our exams when I found Ash crying in the girls’ toilets one day at school. She told me some shit about her home life and I had her come stay with me for a while.” She kept her eyes on me as she chewed on the inside of her bottom lip, as though contemplating what to say next.

  My heart was hitting my ribs. It was pounding so hard I could feel my pulse in my ears. I’m scared of what she would tell me. Just the thought of Ashley crying in the school toilets made me want to break something, or someone. I’d really like to know who, or what, made her cry that day, but at the same time, I was worried what my reaction might be. I’m not a violent person by nature. Bailey and George are the fiery pair of our family, but just the idea of someone hurting or upsetting Ash had me feeling a little bit out of control.

  “Luckily, her brother had just come out of prison so she was able to go and live with him.” Jim continued.

  “You sent her to live with her brother? What was he banged up for?” My voice sounded too high, giving away my panic.

  “Her brother’s Ryan Morrison. You remember him from school, don’t you Marls?”

  Fuck!

  “The dealer? Her brother’s Ryan Morrison, who we used to get our gear from?”

  Jimmie nodded.

  “I thought you knew that. I can’t believe you don’t remember Ash from school.”

  I can’t fucking believe it either.

  “So, what about now? She still live with her brother?” My voice was once again rising with panic.

  “Na. She lives on her own somewhere now. I’m not sure where, though. Can’t be too far from the shop, as I think she walks to work.”

  A thousand and one thoughts rushed through my brain. I needed to find out where she lived. I needed to make sure it was safe. I needed to find out what went on with her family, and I needed to keep her brother the fuck away from her.

  “All I’m trying to say here, Marls, is that that girl has been through a lot of shit so please, please don’t mess her around. Did you shag her?”

  Fuck this cloak and dagger shit. I was just gonna put it out there. “No, I didn’t, Jim, and ya know what? It was one of the best times I’ve had with a girl in like, forever. I really like her, Jim. I wanna see her again, but she wouldn’t give me a number. She told me to call the shop if I was serious about seeing her again.”

  Jimmie had stopped tapping her pen and was just staring at me with her mouth slightly open.

  “Say something, Jim.” My cheeks burn.

  I don’t blush, ever. At least, not since yesterday.

  “I don’t ... Marley, I can’t.”

  The door adjoining Len’s office opened and he walked in.

  “Little brother Marley, how’s it hanging?” Len asked. He moved to kiss Jimmie on the cheek but stopped, looked at her, then at me.

  “What’d ya do?” He asked.

  Jimmie and I remained silent.

  “Marls? What the fuck have you done?”

  “Nothing. He’s done nothing,” Jimmie reassured him.

  He leaned on her desk beside her, facing me, wearing a frown and a look of concern.

  “What’s going on then?” He asked.

  “We were just discussing Georgia and Maca, and I was asking how things went with Ashley.” Jim stated, giving me a wink that my brother missed.

  “Ah, yeah. How did that all work out in the end? Heard she was still at your place last night, didn’t leave till after midnight.”

  Jimmie’s mouth dropped open at Len’s revelation. My mouth dropped open, in fact.

  “How the fuck d’ya know that?” I asked.

  “I just spoke to Maca. The doorman at your building told him this morning. Maca was checking you were alone before he took G up. Ya know, didn’t wanna catch you in the act.”

  Unbelievable. Every fucker now knows my business. “I, uh, yeah, it went good. I-I really like her.” I admitted, sorta.

  “D’ya bang her?”

  “Lennon.” Jimmie admonished him. I gave Jim a frown and a ‘what the fuck’ face. Didn’t she just ask me the exact same question? In return, I get an affronted glare, meaning, ‘Yeah, but I’m Jimmie. I’m allowed to ask those kinds of questions.’

  Len looked between the two of us and started to laugh. “Seriously? You didn’t bang her?” he asked again.

  “I never said that. I never said anything, dickwad.” I folded my arms across my chest and shot my brother a death stare.

  “Oh my god, you like her. You actually like her.” The fucker threw his head back and laughed. “You actually care about this girl.” He continued.

  I stood up to leave.

  “Ya know what, Len? If you ever actually took the time to get to know me, you’d realise that I care about all the birds I take home. I’m always respectful and I always make it clear that it’ll mean nothing more than a shag to me, so that their feelings don’t get hurt when I don’t remember their name, or that we’ve even met the next time I might bump into them.”

  My face was burning and my neck, back, and palms felt sweaty. I don’t know why his comments pissed me off, but they did, big time.

  “Marls, he didn’t mean...” Jimmie started to speak, but I shut her down.

  “Nah, it’s all right, Jim. I’m aware of what you all think. Len’s the brains, Bailey’s the brawn, and then there’s good ol’ Marley, merrily shagging his way through life without a care in the world. Not too sharp, but the girls, they just can’t get enough.” I licked my lips and nodded my head as I looked between the pair of them. “Well, just so we’re clear, I care. I care a lot more than any of you give me credit for.”

  I turned and left. They didn’t call out, they didn’t attempt to follow me, and I was glad. I’d no idea why I was struggling to keep my emotions under control today, but right at that moment, I actually felt like I could cry.

  CHAPTER NINETEEN

  1989

  I didn’t want to park right outside my sister’s shop and draw attention to myself. Maca was holed up in the flat above with Georgia, so I parked in a car park up the road and pulled my hat down low as I walked along Brentwood high street. I was planning on going around the back and through the tradesman’s entrance, but as soon as I turned into the alleyway at the rear of the shops, I could see a couple of photographers lurking.

  The press had no hard evidence at that point that Maca and G were back together, but the rumour mill was undoubtedly in full flow.

  I ducked between some vans and then through a narrow walkway that lead me back to the front of the shops and headed straight through the door of ‘Posh Frocks,’ my mum and sisters little empire.

  Everything about the place screamed h
igh-end, and I felt a surge of pride at what Georgia and my mum had managed to achieve in our little corner of Essex. Their shop would have looked good on 5th Avenue, Knightsbridge, or Rodeo Drive.

  The place was all creams and golds. A couple of French looking sofa things sat facing each other with a marble coffee table in between. On that sat a huge vase of cream coloured roses and some other flower—lily’s I think, the type George liked. Above that hung a large crystal chandelier, and against the wall, a huge gold framed mirror rested. It wasn’t hanging, just leaning back against the wall. ‘Cool’ I’d thought and nodded to myself. Again, feeling impressed with what my mum and sister had done with the place.

  “Can I help you, sir?” I jumped as a woman of about thirty asked me.

  As I looked up to meet her gaze, I spotted Ash over her shoulder. She was standing with another woman in front of a full-length mirror and was helping her try on hats.

  Looking at her made both my heart, and my belly, feel weird, but not in a good way. In a way, that made me feel panicky. I didn’t like it.

  The girls who worked here were obviously expected to dress in a certain way. Everything about their outfits screamed money and class. Ashley was wearing a pair of navy, wide legged trousers, a silky cream top type of thing, and a pair heels. Her hair was pulled back off her face and as she turned to adjust the hat on the woman’s head, I could see that it was sort of folded in on itself at the back of her head. Her makeup was a bit too heavy for my liking. She looked stunning when she woke up at my place Sunday morning and she wasn’t wearing any then.

  I’d been staring at Ash for just a few seconds, but was acutely aware of the fact that I’d taken in everything about her.

  I was either about to grow a vagina, or I was getting twisted up in knots by the girl. Neither option really appealed to me. I’d never considered myself a control freak, that was Len’s job, but I was hating how out of control of my feelings were around Ashley.