“I think it would be best, don’t you?”
I couldn’t hear anything for the roaring that began in my head, getting louder with each breath. “I think you need to leave. Right this minute, Royce.” I did my best to keep the roaring under some control.
Royce seemed to have managed whatever hesitation he’d had. “No, Olivia, I am not—”
I rose and slammed my hand on the table in front of me in one swift motion. “Yes, Royce. You. Are. Leaving.”
He opened his mouth, and then closed it. Whatever he saw in my face convinced him that he needed to stop arguing. Without another word, he turned, and I heard him mount the stairs, and then a lot of steps above my head, and he thudded down the stairs again.
“I’m leaving, but…”
I slowly turned to look at him. I still stood where he’d left me when he went up to pack some of his shit.
He shut his mouth and disappeared from the doorway of the kitchen. A moment later, I heard the click of the door as it shut behind him. Only then did I sit down, head in hands, and let the tears come.
* * *
I don’t know how long I sat there, hunched over the table, tears falling on my hands and the Goddamned papers. The tears slowed and then stopped. Finally, I sat up. The cup of coffee I’d gotten right before Royce handed me his good news still held some warmth. I wrapped my hands around it for a moment, needing warmth from something.
None of this would help me. Only one thing would, now.
I pulled out my cell and called my momma.
She answered on the second ring. “Sugar! How are you?”
“Like shit, Momma.”
Her voice changed. “What’s wrong?” I could hear the steel in it.
“Royce…” Damn it. I couldn’t get the words out because tears choked me.
“That bastard.” She grasped the situation immediately. “I’ll be there in a flash, sugar. You kick his ass out and lock the door.” She hung up.
How had she known instantly? The thought made me cry harder.
I hadn’t moved from the kitchen table when I heard her let herself in. The cup of coffee had gone completely cold although I still had my hands wrapped around it. I watched Momma pocket her keys. Royce had hated that my mother had a key. One of the arguments that never got solved.
“Where is he?”
“I told him to leave.”
“Good.”
“He wanted me to leave, Momma.”
“He was never anything more than trash.”
“Momma! Not helping.”
She came and put her arms around me, and I had the sense of being enveloped. She always had that superpower—making me feel supported no matter what.
“We’re gonna get through this, honey. Now, what has he done?”
I reached a handout and pushed the papers at her. She took one arm from around me and inspected them.
Momma, in addition to being kick-ass awesome, is also an attorney. Together, she and I ran a talent agency. I work with our clients, and she makes sure they don’t do anything stupid legally. I felt her inhale deeply as she read.
“That sonuvabitch.”
“That bad?”
“He wants alimony.”
“What?” I sat up, leaning back to look at her. “How can he ask for that?”
“Apparently, sugar, you are the breadwinner in the family.”
“With a business that he complained about constantly.” The irony felt like a hot knife cutting me to the bone.
“Well, he’s not complaining now.” Her lips tightened.
“He’s got someone else.”
She looked over the paperwork at me. “He told you that?”
“All but.”
“That man always did have one foot in the gutter. I’m sorry, Olivia, but he did. At least now you can shake the shit from your shoes.”
Momma doesn’t mince words. It’s why I work directly with our clients.
“I thought we were going to work on things, Momma.”
She set down the papers and hugged me again. “You are a good girl, Livvie, of course, you wanted to make things better. Can’t get blood from a turnip, honey. It takes two, and you’ve been one for a long time.”
“How is it you haven’t said anything about this?”
“I don’t hold with interfering where I’m not invited. Now you invited me.” She patted my shoulder. “We’ll take care of this. I’ll get Lloyd on it.”
Lloyd was her “work colleague.” He was also my de-facto stepfather. He and my mother had been dating for a number of years, but she wouldn’t admit it, and she wouldn’t marry him. She had loved my father dearly, and when he’d died in a car crash, she stated she was done with marriage. Lloyd made her rethink a relationship, but she wasn’t budging on the marriage thing.
Like Momma, Lloyd was an attorney, although he practiced family law.
“How could he do this, Momma?”
“Because he’s a dumb ass, sugar. Can’t see what he had. Dry those tears now.” She moved away to the counter and brought back a box of tissue.
“It would be nice to have some sympathy,” I glared, but it’s hard to be imposing blowing your nose.
“That’s all well and good, but he’s got a head start on you. You don’t have the time for tea and sympathy. He’s after your business, the house, everything.”
“Why would he do this?” I knew we had problems. They didn’t seem worthy of a divorce and the taking everything from me, though. I reached across and looked, really looked at the filing papers.
Momma kept silent as I read. She wasn’t exaggerating. He really did want it all.
“She must be poor as dirt.” I looked up to see her with crossed arms, fingers tapping out an impatient tattoo as she waited for me to finish. “He needs to feather his new tacky nest.” Funny how her accent got stronger when she got mad.
“Why do you think that?” I couldn’t keep up with her at the moment.
“Because what real man would make these kinds of demands? He’s no gentleman.”
“I don’t know, Momma.”
“Who’s pluckin’ this chicken, sugar? You or me? I’m the lawyer. Let me handle this.” She stepped away, pulling out her cell.
“Lloyd, honey, what are you doing? I need you over at Olivia’s.” She stopped. “This is an emergency. I need some papers filed today.” Another pause. “Yes, indeed. Maybe put in a call to Judge Martine, while you’re at it. Let him know you’re filing a response today.” She turned to look at me.
Then she smiled at whatever he said. “You, too.” She ended the call.
“Momma, it’s okay to tell him you love him in front of me. It’s not a secret.”
“That is my business, missy. Now, what are we gonna do with you?”
“What do you mean, Momma?” I felt very tired. Her energy sapped whatever I had left.
“You are going to leave this to me—well, to Lloyd and me. We’ll have Royce trussed and bagged before he knows what happened. But you, you need to get out of town.”
“I’m not going anywhere, Momma.” I started to put my head back on the table.
She yanked me up before I was able to. “Oh, yes you are. I shall stay right here, and make sure that Royce doesn’t try anything, and you will go somewhere and get yourself together. What’s on the schedule at work?”
“I don’t know, Momma! I can’t even think straight right now!” Her pushiness stirred me to anger. Couldn’t she be a normal mother and be nice and get me a Cosmo, or something? Let me cry in peace? It had been all of five minutes since I found out that I’d be a divorced woman soon.
“I know, sugar, that’s why you called me. Let’s see,” Momma walked away to open my laptop, one finger tapping her lip. “Where can I send you? It’s important that Royce have to deal with only Lloyd right now.”
“Whatever,” I finally got a chance to put my head down.
“I have it! You’re going to see Liz!!”
Oh, God. My m
other, a southern woman, was obsessed with The Red Door spa in New York. Why she couldn’t have an obsession with something here, in Nashville, I didn’t know. But I also knew I wouldn’t win an argument once she dragged Elizabeth into it. That would be Elizabeth Arden, by the way. Whom my mother calls ‘Liz’. Like she knew the woman or something.
“Whatever, Momma.” I had no energy to argue.
I ignored her as she muttered to herself, making reservations.
The doorbell rang.
Momma looked up happiness all over her. “That’ll be Lloyd. You go and shower, and pack. We’ll take you to the airport.”
I didn’t speak as I made my way upstairs. What in the world was there to say? My marriage was over before I’d even had a chance to fight for it, and now I would need to essentially put on a suit of armor to get through this. I supposed it made sense to go to a spa first since I knew the dismantling of my life wasn’t going to be easy.
Maybe going to Elizabeth, as Momma would say, and letting her sort it out would be the best thing. Since I felt like I swam in thick water that didn’t allow me to move, and couldn’t seem to think straight. Since she hated Royce and would be happy to scalp him for me. I hoped I wasn’t making a mistake, but as it took everything I had to put one foot in front of the other, maybe I’d best let Momma handle this. I hoped I wouldn’t regret it later.
2
Xavier
I leaned back on the couch, glaring at the spot where my phone landed. My ears felt like they were ringing. I’d cut off Preston, my manager, in the middle of the ranty bullshit he delivered to me. Still not happy about the night out at a gay club. Rather, not happy about me being out without a thousand bodyguards who broke cell phone cameras for fun.
Yeah, he was a little behind the times. You can’t do that shit. People sue, and I end up paying. Press is good; lawsuits are not. Christ. Wasn’t it his job to tell me that kind of thing?
I wondered how Tibby and Seth were. I flew home last night, and honestly, didn’t expect to hear anything from them. I told Bryant to call if he needed anything, but that came out lame even to my ears. I dragged my feet coming home, and I couldn’t figure out why. I loved New York, loved that I got lost in it, and loved my place.
So what the fuck?
I ignored the phone ringing. I knew Preston wouldn’t let it go, and felt the need to call back and bitch some more. To hell with him.
I dialed Bryant.
“What’s up?” He answered on the second ring.
“I hate my manager. He’s a prick. I need new management.”
“You know we do shipping, right?”
“Yeah, but Tib always looks over everything for me. She vets it, makes sure I don’t overpay, whatever. She found me the web people.”
He sighed. “Okay. But only because you’re family, even if you are a giant pain in the ass. Why now?”
“Preston can’t get over himself. For whatever reason, he thinks it’s his job to yell.”
“You sound about twelve, X. I almost feel sorry for the guy.”
“Don’t. I pay him enough to learn to work with me. It’s not that hard. I’m not a complete asshole.”
“I shouldn’t help you at all. I think I’m still hungover.”
“Lightweight. Ask around, okay? You can dump it on Tib when she comes home. She’ll be thrilled.”
“I’m sure. All right. Don’t get fired yet, okay?”
“Got it.”
We hung up. One thing sorted. I’d find someone else, and get rid of the nag.
Something fell on my head, and I reached up to brush it off automatically. What the hell now?
I looked at my hand, and it had glitter all over it. Looking up, I saw…I don’t know what the fuck I saw. A cloud of glitter. It looked like a crazy craft fairy had exploded above me.
What the hell was all this doing in my apartment? If I called maintenance, maybe they’d still be around. Even though I owned the building, I kept a maintenance crew. I wasn’t up for dealing with all the things that went wrong in older buildings in New York. Was there a leak or something? This was the day for dealing with the bullshit, apparently. I reached for the phone when the glittering cloud landed in front of me.
“Are you quite over moping around and feeling sorry for yourself?”
I rubbed my eyes. Since when did glitter talk? I glanced at the glass of tea I’d been drinking. I hadn’t added anything to it.
“This is not a hallucination, and no, you are not drugged.”
All right. What. The. Fuck?
The glitter cloud shifted around, and I found that a guy sat on the couch with me. And what a guy! He had no shirt on, which…oh hell. Did someone get ideas from our clubbing the other night?
“Hey, pal, whatever it is, I’m not into it. Just leave now, and I won’t call the cops.”
The guy sighed. “You don’t need to call anyone. I’m here to help you.”
“Right, pal. That’s what all the nut jobs say.” I edged away, wondering where the fuck I kept something that could be used as a weapon. I hadn’t had a stalker since…since that weird chick – what was her name? Tommie? She thought she had a career in music, and I was just the guy to help her get there. I’d had to take out a restraining order on her. But she hadn’t been a problem in a couple of years. It’s why I lived in a building with security. No need for weapons.
I wished I had one now.
The guy leaned back, and I hoped like hell his paint job wouldn’t rub off on my couch.
“I am here to help you, although you’re rather an ingrate,” He said.
“How the hell am I supposed to be grateful for the glitter fairy breaking into my place and messing it up?” I shot back.
“I am not a fairy. I’m a djinn, and I’m here to give you something you want if you could get out of your own way, boy,” he said.
Right. A djinn. What the hell is that? “You’re a what? What’s your name, glitter boy?”
He rose from my couch, and when I say rose, I mean floating. Full on ghost liftoff. I didn’t often find myself speechless, but I couldn’t say a thing. My mouth tried, but the words wouldn’t come out.
For the first time, I felt fear. What the hell was going on? This went way beyond normal stalking crap.
“Close your mouth, and open your ears and more importantly, your mind, Xavier,” the man said. “My name is Dhameer, and I am here, as I’ve said, to offer you help in attaining something you want. Not give, you’ll note. But help.” He crossed his arms and glared at me.
I gauged the difference from where I sat to where he…floated…above my couch. Took a deep breath, and pushed off. Maybe I could…
I fell onto the couch with such force that I bounced off and landed at the other end. I looked up and saw Dhameer had risen higher up, and still glared at me.
“I know you’re not stupid,” he said. “But you’re intent on trying to show me otherwise.”
I rubbed my head. That fucking hurt.
“You’re not going to be able to hurt me, Xavier. But we can play this game until you wear yourself out and are ready to listen to reason. Or I could just leave.”
I opened my mouth to tell him to get the fuck out when something Tibby said yesterday came back to me.
We’d been standing together waiting for the limo.
“If anything weird happens, while I’m gone…just go with it, okay?”
“What the hell does that mean?” I asked.
The Tibby I knew came back instantly. “It means that if something out of the ordinary happens, just go with it. Stop being an ass and take some well-meant advice for once in your life!”
I’m not a big believer in a lot of hocus pocus shit. It has no place in the real world, for me. But there was glitter boy hovering around my place, basically laughing at me while offering…something. I didn’t know what. And after Tib suggested going with anything weird that happened.
How could she have known?
I rubbed my head, negati
ng my concerns on that front. She didn’t. It was a coincidence, and the universe conspired to pass on a message I would listen to. I generally only listened to my manager and Tibby.
Okay. So maybe this guy is real. “What the hell is a djinn? And do you have to spread the glitter shit all over my place?”
He hovered closer to me. “There. Wasn’t so hard, was it?”
“Don’t push it. Can the glitter please stop?”
Now he looked offended. “No. It’s part of me. As for me, I am a djinn. That’s also another name for a genie.”
“Where’s the bottle?” The Aguilera song immediately went through my head.
The guy rolled his eyes. “No bottle. I’m going to have to make this simple, aren’t I?”
The sense that I was fucking something up hit me. It didn’t happen often, but when it did, I’d learned to pay attention. I held out my hands. “Okay, okay, wait! I’ll listen. You’re a genie, so what? What are you doing here?”
That must have been the right thing to say because the pissed expression left almost right away.
“I am here to offer you the chance to find what it is you want, Xavier.”
“What the hell—I mean, what does that mean? I have everything I want.”
He didn’t say anything, only raised a single brow at me.
“Okay, sure, I don’t have everything, but no one does. What’s your name again?”
“Dhameer. And why can’t people get what they want?”
“Because the world doesn’t work that way,” I shot back. Shit, even I could hear the bitterness in my reply.
Dhameer shook his head slowly. “But you could. You just need to get out of your own way. What have you wished for—” he held up a hand, “I mean, really wished for, something that is at the core of you and what you want?”
That stopped me. How could he know that I’d wished for something like Tibby and Seth’s relationship only twenty-four hours ago?
Dhameer nodded. “It’s coming back to you, isn’t it? I heard your wish at the wedding yesterday.”
“You were there?” I did sound stupid.
He smiled. “I like to see people happy, so I happened by. I could hear your wishes.”
Forgotten Wishes: Djinn Everlasting Book Two Page 2