| Lauralee sat in the chair of the studio, staring blankly at the wall as she remembered that birthday… “Why didn’t I have this gut feeling? Why didn’t I know?” Alex looked down. “Because you thought it was a phase, as everyone did. No one saw it coming.” Alex took a deep breath. “Keep going Lau.” Lauralee woke up in Laura and Kevin’s guest bedroom. After she had gotten home last night, she called Laura, packed a bag and went over there. She lay back in bed and stared at the ceiling, random thoughts plaguing her. Lauralee heard a soft knock at the door and Laura poked her head in. “Hey.” Lauralee sat up in the bed. “Hi.” Laura came over, sat on the bed and handed her a cup of coffee. “Thought you may want this.” Lauralee accepted the cup of coffee. “Thanks.” “How are you?” “Not too great.” “I just can’t believe he did that. Kevin’s pissed as all hell. I had to calm him down last night after you came over.” Laura took a sip from her cup. “What are you gonna do?” “I don’t know. I called Celia and Howie after I left and they told me they got him home OK. He’s still probably sleeping, or passed out, because he would have called me already. But as far as what happened…” Lauralee shrugged her shoulders. “I’m too angry to go home right now.” “Hey, you know you can stay here. In fact, Kev is downstairs making breakfast, though I’m not in the mood to eat.” “Still sick?” “A little queasy. I think its stress, after all the touring we did. I’m sure it’ll calm down in a few days.” “Laura, that’s what you said 2 weeks ago… don’t you think you should see a doctor?” “I’ll be OK, promise. Let’s eat.” ~*~ Lauralee went back home that night opening the door as Angel barked and streaked through the hallway. She picked her up, dropped her bag down on the floor, and went into the house. She finally saw Alex in the Movie Theater, watching The Wedding Planner. “Hey.” Alex turned around and stood up. “Hey.” He walked over to her. Lauralee sighed. “How are you?” “Miserable.” Alex took her hand and began to cry. “I am so sorry.” He collapsed into her arms, sobbing into her shoulder. Lauralee looked up and let the tears roll down her face. He backed away from her shoulder. “I cannot believe how stupid I was last night. I don’t know what I was thinking by getting that drunk.” “That’s right, you didn’t.” “I will do anything to make it up to you. Hear me? Anything.” Alex grabbed her face with his hands. “You are the most important person in my life, and I never want to hurt you. I love you so much.” “Alex, I love you too, but the drinking lately…” “I know, I’ll cut down, I swear. In fact, I threw away the liquor at the bar.” Lauralee looked at Alex’s face, swollen and red from crying, his eyes bloodshot and dried out, looking more sorry than he ever did in his life. “Alright.” Alex gave her a hug again, letting the breath out that he had be holding. He kissed her forehead. “I never gave you your birthday present.” He reached into his pocket and pulled out a blue box. Lauralee accepted the box and opened it, inside were a pair of diamond earrings. “Alex, they’re beautiful.” Alex smiled. “Not as beautiful as you.” He then took her in his arms. “I am dying to be with you right now.” Lauralee looked at the box and into his eyes, now narrowed into passionate slits. “Let’s go.” Without warning, he kissed her, swept her up and carried her into the bedroom. 1 month later… New York City “OK ladies, are we set for the meeting?” Tommy Mottola asked as they sat down at the conference table. “As you know, we are coming into the last album of your contract. Sony would like to renew your options.” The girls, with their manager Riley Thomas, all smiled at each other. “You ladies have had multiple fan and award success with the self-title and ‘Victory’, and I’m sure it’ll be even better with the third.” “So what exactly are we talking?” Riley asked. “Take a look,” Tommy passed the envelope to Riley. Riley opened it and smiled. “Well, if I may say, this is a lucrative offer. May I talk to the girls privately for a second?” “Of course.” Tommy said as he left the conference room. Riley turned to the girls. “Ladies, I’m gonna say this, I have never seen a deal like this before.” The girls looked at each other as Lauralee turned. “Good or bad Riley?” “How about a 5 album deal worth 90… million… dollars.” The group got up quickly and jammed together to look at the paper. “Ho-ly shit!” exclaimed Bianca. Tommy came in as the girls were looking at the paper. “So, what do you say?” The girls were smiling, when Laura held her hand up. All of them turned to her. “Laura? You OK?” Her eyes rolled into the back of her head and collapsed to the ground. ~*~ They were all at the hospital: the girls, Laura’s parents, Riley and Tommy. Kevin was called as soon as she had been taken by ambulance, and had taken Tommy’s private jet to New York. “Damnit will someone tell me what is going on with my daughter!” Sarah Tramcoli said as she paced the waiting room floor. “It’s been 3 hours already!” “They need to find out what’s going on before they can give us an answer honey,” Salvador Tramcoli said as he hugged his wife. “God, why didn’t I force her to go to the doctor when she was sick!” Lauralee exclaimed. Bianca got up and hugged her. “Lau, it’s not your fault, we all knew something was wrong.” Lauralee looked up to see Kevin running down the hall with Marcus. “What’s going on? Where’s Laura?” Sarah hugged a shaking Kevin. “We don’t know… the doctors are looking at her now.” Just then, a man in medical scrubs walked over to the group. “Are you all here for Laura Richardson?” “Yes doctor, she’s my wife. What’s going on here?” “I’m Doctor Hollings, I was the doctor when Laura was brought in.” he said as he shook Kevin’s hand. “Why don’t we take this to my office?” “No, they are family. You tell me, you tell them.” The doctor nodded. “Of course, we’ll go into the conference room.” They all went into the conference room, minus Tommy, Marcus and Riley as they felt it was not their place, and sat down at the table. “Laura has managed to regain consciousness, although it was difficult for her to come around. We did some blood work, and found out what made her collapse.” Doctor Hollings folded his hands together. “Laura is 9 weeks pregnant.” “Pregnant? I’m gonna be a… father?” Kevin stammered. “Oh my God!” Bianca screamed, as they all began to hug each other. “The first Elegance baby!” Lauralee yelled as she hugged Kevin. She pulled away and smiled. “I told you everything was gonna be OK.” “Wait, wait,” Doctor Hollings. “I think you all need to sit down.” “Why? She’s OK right?” Kevin asked as he and the others sat down. “Mr. Richardson, your wife’s pregnancy has some complications.” The mood changed from happiness to concern as Doctor Hollings explained. “She has a condition known as placenta detraction. This means that the placenta has pulled away from the uterus. We don’t know how this has happened, but it is a critical time for her and your baby. She needs complete bed rest from now until the end of her pregnancy. I’m stressing NO movement. Movement will cause the placenta to tear away and she’ll lose the baby. There is even a chance that she will not carry to full term; most babies in this condition are born prematurely.” “Oh my God,” Sarah gasped. “7 months?” Kevin rubbed his hands down his face. “Doctor, we live in Orlando. Can she fly back?” “Yes, but we need to carry her by ambulance to the plane, she must lie down the whole time.” They all sat there taking this all in, taking in what should be one of the happiest moments in their lives. “Can I see her?” Kevin asked, tears running down his face. “Of course. She’s in her room now. She can be released tomorrow. But we have to arrange her transportation.” Lauralee turned to Kevin. “Go see her, we’ll take care of it and talk to Tommy.” “Thank you,” Kevin said as he hugged Lauralee. He and Laura’s parents were led to Laura’s room while Lauralee and the girls talked to Tommy. They all were in the waiting room as they discussed the situation with Tommy and Riley. They arranged for the ambulance to pick Laura up and take her to Tommy’s jet, which had a bed already inside, then another would pick her up and take her home. Kevin and Laura’s parents came out as Lauralee and the group stood up. “How is she?” “As well as expected,” Salvador said. Sarah sighed. “She’s in good spirits.” “Yeah, better than me,” Kevin said as he ran his fingers through his hair. “She wants to see you Lau.” “Is it OK?” “Yeah,” Kevin said. “Go on.” “Tell her we love her,” Elizabeth said as she hugged Lauralee. “I will,” Lauralee was led by Kevin to her room. She opened it and saw Laura, in her hospital bed with an IV. “Hey.” “Hey,” Laura said as she leaned back in her bed. “How’re you feeling?” “Like I’ve been hit by a train. But I’ll be OK, hey at least I won’t have to exercise for the next 7 months.” Lauralee smiled, then looked into her eyes and knew. “Laura, you don’t have to be strong here.” Laura looked up and the tears came down. “What did I do Lau? Why did I deserve this?” “Oh honey, you didn’t do anything. This happens.” “But maybe it was when I drank when we went to the Brits, or I did a dance step and turned wrong…” “Laura, listen to me,” Lauralee grabbed her hand. “You did not do anything. Yes, it’s horrible, but you can’t blame yourself. It just happened. Even the doctor said that this was something that couldn’t be controlled. If you rest, you are going to be a mother. And it will be extra special, because you can tell it what a miracle it was coming into everyone’s life.” Laura wiped her eyes. “You really think everything’s gonna be OK?” “I know so.” Lauralee softly hugged Laura and let her cry onto her shoulder. ~*~ The ambulance drivers slowly wheeled Laura into the house and to her new bedroom on the first floor. Kevin and Laura followed them as they carried her onto the bed. “So,” Kevin said as he smoothed the blankets over her. “All settled in?” “Pretty much,” Laura responded. “Uh honey? Can you get me something to eat?” “Sure, oh I get it, girl talk.” Kevin closed the door behind him and left the two of them alone. “So, you are OK?” Lauralee asked. “Yeah, except how am I gonna be in bed for the next 7 months? I’ll go nuts!” Lauralee laughed. “Well, you got the television, a laptop with the Internet, DVD’s, magazines, and tons of visitors.” “True.” Lauralee began to hum a tune as Laura looked around the room. “Uh, Lau?” “Yeah?” “What about the album? And the tour? And…” “Don’t worry about that. So, we’ll take an extended vacation. No big deal.” “What about your wedding?” “We didn’t even set a date yet, besides, now I’ll either have a flower girl or ring bearer to add to the party.” “It’s just that I’ve already inconvenienced so many lives already…” “The only life you have to worry about is yours and the one in your stomach. Think about it this way, now we’ll have more time to plan a huge wedding. I’ll have you trapped to decide on china patterns.” Laura smiled as Kevin came in with a snack. Lauralee stood up. “I really have to get going. I’ll call you later.” “OK, thanks Lau.” “Anytime.” Lauralee said with a wink. “Bye.” ~*~ Lauralee came home with her bag in her hands, calling to Alex. “Baby? You home?” She went outside where Alex was on the lounge chair. “Hey handsome.” Alex stood up quickly. “God you scared me.” He went over to her and gave her a hug. “How’s Laura?” “At home, resting. She’s in for a long haul.” “God, I don’t know how they could handle this. I would be terrified.” “We all are, but we have to be there for her. Laura can have no stress or movement until the baby is born.” “Oh man,” Alex sighed. “So I guess the album is on hold?” Lauralee sighed. “Guess so. Damn, and I was hoping to get back into the studio.” “I know… and I guess the wedding is too?” “Well, I can’t get married without a maid of honor can I? But think of what we could do with the planning. It will be even more spectacular.” Alex laughed. “Baby, whatever you want is fine with me. Look, I talked to the guys and we were thinking of taking Kevin out this week, get his mind off things.” “I think that’s a great idea. The girls and I could have a night in with Laura.” ~*~ “So what have you ladies been doing this week while I’m in prison?” It was a few days later, and Kevin reluctantly agreed to let the guys take him out, after making the girls promise they would call every half-hour to check up. The girls had decided to come over to cheer her up, by bringing tons of wedding magazines for the wedding. However, Lauralee brought a different package. “Not much, puttering around, going shopping, usual stuff,” responded Bianca. “Oh but it is! It’s only been a week and I feel like a rat in a cage. Hey, you ladies think you can videotape everything that goes on?” “Oh yeah, where would we put the camera?” quirked Bianca. “Tape it to your ass for all I care, I’m sick of seeing the same thing everyday.” The girls laughed. “I’m serious, what are y’all gonna do for the next few months? We are out, the guys have postponed recording, and you can’t stop life for me.” “I know! Reinvent the wheel!” Bianca yelled. “Seriously, we’ll manage, we’ve done it before.” “Actually there is something,” Lauralee said. “What?” Laura asked. Lauralee went into her bag and pulled out the movie script. She told the girls about how Jada had accosted her at the Brit Awards and sent it to the hotel. “Have you read it?” asked Elizabeth. “Yeah, and it’s really good. But I couldn’t do it because of the album and the wedding.” “And now… you can,” finished Bianca. “That’s not what I’m saying.” Laura extended her hand. “Hand me that script.” Lauralee handed it to her. “Now we’re gonna read this thing, while you call Jada and ask if the movie role is still open.” “Laura…” “Go! Use the phone in the kitchen and we’ll read it over.” Lauralee walked out of the bedroom and dialed up Jada’s number. “Jada Smith’s office.” “Hello, is Jada in? This is Lauralee Deverson calling.” “One moment…” “Well, it’s about time you called me.” Lauralee laughed. “Hey Jada.” “You know, I was thinking you were snubbing me.” “It’s been a long couple of weeks. Jada, I was calling to see if the role was still open, I’m not saying available, but open.” “As open as my blouse on a Saturday night with too much champagne.” “Well, certain circumstances have left me some free time, and, maybe…” Jada squealed. “You saying you’re gonna do this?” “Um, not sure yet, but it is a possibility.” “Lau, you don’t know how that makes me feel; a ‘not sure’ is better than a ‘no.’ And maybe I have something else to change your mind.” “That is?” “I got two actors signed up: Tiana’s lawyer and the other lead.” “Who are they?” “OK, you ready? Ben Affleck and… get this… Mark Vincent!” “Mark Vincent… as in Vin Diesel!?” “Well, he’s doing a name change, something about leaving the action roles behind. But yup, he signed on.” “Whoa. Two amazing actors! I have a little crush on both of them.” Jada laughed. “Who doesn’t? Look I have to go, but you better call me tomorrow.” “I will.” “Peace.” “Bye.” Lauralee hung up the phone and went into the bedroom, where the girls were crowded onto Laura’s bed reading the script. “Well?” “Shh! We’re at the good part!” Laura said without looking up. Lauralee sat on the chair while the girls read. “So?” Elizabeth looked up and smiled. “You were right, this is a good script.” “Is the part open?” Bianca asked. “Jada says it is, plus they got some of the cast set.” “Ooh, who?” “Ben Affleck as Tiana’s manager, and get this, Vin Diesel as the other lead.” “Vin Diesel!” Laura exclaimed. “I swore, if there ever was a man I would cheat on Kevin with it would be him.” “Lau,” Bianca glanced at the script. “We were talking, and you have to take this role. It’s too good to pass up. Plus to be with Ben Affleck… yummy.” “You think so?” “If you don’t take this role, I’ll get out of this bed and take it,” Laura responded. “I don’t know, with you in this condition…” “Lau, come here,” Laura motioned for her to come on the bed. Lauralee sat on the bed facing her. “Like you said, there are things that cannot be controlled. And if you think that you’re gonna hurt me by doing this… Well, you’ll be hurting me more if you don’t do it.” Lauralee looked at the other girls pleading glances. “OK, I’ll do it.” “Yes!” Laura exclaimed as they heard Brian’s car pull up and the doors slam. They heard them come in the front door and Kevin poked his head inside. “Hello ladies.” “Hi babe, have fun?” “Sure did… Lau, can I talk to you for a sec? Think you blocked Howie in.” “Oops, sorry, be right back,” Lauralee got her keys and followed Kevin out the door. They were walking into the foyer, when Kevin stopped her. “Lau, it’s not the car.” “Then what is it?” “It’s Alex.” Chapter 6 Contents Chapter 4 |