<Within These Pages>

WITHIN THESE PAGES.... Episode 1

The house on Sandalwood Court was small, but comfortable. A modest three bedroom ranch with just enough space for Alma and Donald Thomas after they reached retirement age, and all of their children had moved into their own homes. Alma was preparing dinner in the kitchen when her youngest daughter burst into the kitchen like a miniature tornado. A dark and stormy little cloud, the five foot two inch dynamo was often affectionately referred to as the little mouth that roared by her family members. Twenty-three years old with all the energy and passion of youth and none of the wisdom of timeworn experiences, Donna Thomas had a volatile, shoot from the hip personality. With a warm mocha complexion, soft unblemished skin with deep dimples and doe brown eyes, she was cute in a pixie sort of way. She had an trim athletic body from daily aerobic classes at the local gym where she was a full time instructor. Getting her to dress more feminine was the only complaint her mother ever voiced. This day she was a bundle of kinetic uncontrolled energy. Her mouth was running before she entered the house and didn't stop there.

"Man, I wish I'd been close enough to slap the crap outta her," she said as she stormed around the kitchen, punching an imaginary opponent, while her mother stood watching her with a perplexed expression on her face.

"Well, good afternoon to you to," Alma said, as she watched Donna pace back and forth across the kitchen floor still mumbling under her breath.

"Hi Ma," Donna said and paused long enough to greet her mother warmly with a hug and a kiss before returning to her pacing and mumbling.

"Who in the world has gotten you this upset, young lady?" her mother asked.

"Argh," she groaned aloud in frustration before answering, "That red-headed little heifer. I saw her just a few minutes ago at the grocery store. She was in the checkout line. You know she bolted like a scared rabbit the minute she caught sight of me. I couldn't get around folks fast enough to catch up with her."

"Oh," Alma replied as she began to understand her daughter's agitation. "You know, Donna. That's really not any of our business. Brad is handling the situation the best way he knows how and we need to stay out of it," she cautioned.

"She needs to get her ass whupped. I'm sorry for saying it, Ma, but it's the truth. I can't believe she would throw everything away like that. And for what? Brad is the best. Do you know how many women he could have if he was a stone cold playa, but he is a good man," Donna continued angrily.

"I know you love your brother and we know this turn of events hurt him very deeply. You getting yourself in trouble will not make it any better. Now, sit down and relax. Everybody makes mistakes in life. I believe she knows she made a huge mistake, but it's not our place to judge her. She has to live with what she did and suffer the consequences."

Donna pulled out a chair from the kitchen table and sat down hard. She idolized her oldest brother and this whole situation was more than she could bear. She grown to really like Mandy over the last couple of years and she was more hurt by the events than she wanted everyone to know. Mandy had betrayed her trust and ruined their friendship, as well as broken her brother's heart. "Bitch!" she spat out under her breath in anger and then turned to catch her mother's stern gaze. Chastened, she quieted down and stared out the kitchen window in silence.

*******

Bradford Thomas was seated in his black leather office chair with his feet elevated and resting atop the credenza behind his desk. The deep maple credenza lined the wall, extending along the big bay window from one corner of the room to the other. His feet were crossed at the ankles. Peeking out from the bottom of his dark blue jeans were black crocodile cowboy boots that he'd purchased on a trip to Cozumel years ago. They were still in like-new condition. Leaning back in his chair, he stared out the window, overlooking the Intercoastal. Observing him one might think he was pondering the vagaries of the universe, but instead he was merely reflecting on the last few years of his life and more importantly the last few months.

Bradford met and fell in love with Mandy Johnson three years ago today. A stunning redhead with the greenest eyes he'd ever seen, and a deep olive complexion, which belied her mixed heritage. He smiled as he remembered it was raining that morning. Big fat droplets of rain pelted the ground making loud splattering noises as they met the concrete. He dashed into a coffee shop to get out of the rain on his way to a business meeting.

The shop was unusually crowded with other businessmen and women doing exactly what he had done. They were taking a quick coffee break to wait out the passing storm. He didn't really want a cup of coffee, but was early for his meeting. He hoped the rain shower would pass over quickly or he was going to be quite wet on his arrival at Crane and Martin Architectural Firm. He stepped into line behind a small figure encased in a hooded black raincoat and waited to place his order. He gazed around the coffee house hoping to find the daily newspaper to read while he had his cup of java.

"Next in line," called the attendant. Brad turned quickly back around and bumped into and nearly upended the small person in front of him as she turned away from the counter with her coffee in hand. He reached out quickly and grabbed her arm to stop her downward progress, and then steadied her on her feet.

"I'm sorry, I didn't see you there," he said releasing her arm. Her face was tilted downward as she brushed droplets splashed of coffee off her raincoat. At the sound of his voice she looked up at him with those green eyes and a stray strand of wet red hair falling across her forehead, and smiled.

"It's okay, I think this rain has given us all a bad start today," she replied easily, and pushed the hood back off her head revealing shocking deep red hair and a perfect olive complexion dotted with tiny brown freckles.

Brad felt his heart go thump. He'd thought it was a teenager in front of him. This was a grown woman and a very beautiful one at that. Clumsily he stuck out his hand.

"My name is Brad, Brad Thomas," he said as he stepped out of line. He never wanted the coffee and now it was the last thing on his mind.

"You're going to lose your place in line," she cautioned him as she clasped his hand in return. "I'm Mandy Johnson." Her tiny hand disappeared in his. Her hand was soft and surprisingly warm. He was reluctant to let it go. Afraid she would disappear and he would never see her again.

"I know this is kind of quick, but," he said as he reached into his shirt pocket and pulled out a business card. "I'd like to see you again," he said, and handed her the card.

She looked up at him, "That would be nice," she replied. "I've got to run right now though. I'll call you," she said as she pulled her hood back over her hair. She waved briefly and darted out the door into the rain. He stared after her for a moment longer, and then smiled. His day wasn't having such a bad start after all.

Returning to the present, he lifted his feet off the credenza. The cowboy boots made a loud thud as they met the hardwood floor. He swiveled the chair back into position at the desk. A deep scowl crossed his forehead as a picture flashed across his mind of the last time he saw Mandy. They exchanged keys to one another's apartments early in their relationship. After two and a half years of a whirlwind affair they were settling down and making a real commitment to each other. Their wedding day was three weeks away and he'd noticed Mandy seemed a little distant of late. He just assumed it was premarital jitters.

She'd told him she was working from home that day and he was supposed to be attending a meeting out of town, but it was canceled early in the morning. With his meeting canceled and nothing pressing on his agenda, he decided to surprise her with lunch. He had gone to their favorite deli and collected a picnic lunch. Determined to drag her away from her computer for an impromptu picnic in the park, he pulled up into the driveway of her complex. As he made the turn towards her building, he saw a familiar car parked outside her door. It was his cousin, Evan's car. Evan and Brad had never really gotten along, and there was no conceivable reason for him to be at Mandy's.

He experienced an eerily cold feeling as he climbed out of his SUV and walked up to the front door. Hesitatingly he reached for the doorbell. Halfway there his hand fell shaking to his side. He desperately wanted to ring the bell. So, the churning in his stomach would stop. So, she would stop whatever she was doing and things would be fine when he walked in. He couldn't. He had to know what was going on, had to see for himself. Taking a deep breath he quietly slipped his key into the lock. The lock clicked as the cylinders lined up and released their hold on his future. The click reverberated in his head, although he knew it was audible only to him. He turned the handle and opened the door. Stepping into the foyer he listened for a moment, but heard nothing. Maybe she wasn't home he reasoned. As he was about to emit a sigh of relief, he heard a shrill shriek followed by a deep male growl. The sigh turned to stone in his throat. Suddenly, Mandy was laughing. Frozen in the moment, Brad stood rooted to his spot inside the doorway. He watched in silence as his naked cousin carried his equally naked fiancée from the kitchen. Her legs were wrapped tightly around his waist and her arms clung tightly to his neck. Mandy's tongue was eagerly darting in and out of Evan's mouth. They moved slowly down the hallway, headed for the bedroom, which brought them in Brad's direction. Brad felt a rage he had never known before descending over him. He unconsciously he reached out and picked up a heavy metal sculpture of an entwined man and woman from the table inside the doorway. His hand tightened around the cold metal, as he accepted the weight of it.

Oblivious to the figure in the foyer, Evan continued towards him. As he turned to enter the bedroom, he raised his head and caught sight of his cousin. His eyes met Brad's over Mandy's bent head. An evil, satisfied glare crossed his face as he stared back at Brad. His hands tightened deliberately on Mandy's bare buttocks as he adjusted her position. Brad unable to physically move, watched with a sickening feeling in the pit of his stomach as Evan latched onto her mouth in a deep passionate kiss, and then turned purposefully in the doorway so Mandy could see Brad and announced, "We have company."

This time Mandy's shriek wasn't one of pleasure. A look of sheer horror crossed her face and she started flailing at Evan to put her down. "Brad!" she cried out as he turned away from them and grabbed the handle to the front door. She swung her tiny fist at Evan as she fought to scramble away from his tight grasp on her wrist. "Brad, please!" she screamed to his back as released his grip on the statuette, and it fell to the floor with a thud. He opened the front door to leave.

"Let him go," Evan said, as he released her wrist. Freed, she bolted to the open door, unaware or concerned for her nakedness. She called him again, desperate to say someting, to erase the pain she'd seen in his eyes. She never wanted to hurt him.

"Brad, please. Give me a chance to explain," she pleaded.

With his hand on the door to his SUV, he turned back to look at her one more time and the pure hatred in his eyes, dropped her to her knees. A few feet behind her, Evan stood in the shadowy recesses of the doorway. Brad wanted to kill them both, right then, at that moment. He wasn't sure what had stopped him, or why he had dropped the statue instead of using it on both of them. He could have beaten Evan to a pulp with his bare hands. It would not have been the first time. One squeeze of his hands around her neck and he could have popped her tiny head off. But would he have felt better? Yes, probably so, still something made him walk away.

In retrospect, he knew Evan pursued her, but she was equally guilty for falling for it. He hadn't seen nor spoken to her since. He did not return her calls, and when a courier delivered her engagement ring to him, a week later, it closed the book on their three-year romance. He'd never felt so betrayed, hurt and angry all at once. It was not a moment he wanted to revisit. In his mind there was no justification or acceptable apology for her infidelity. Nothing she could possibly say would change what happened or erase the images from his head.

Suffused with anger once again, he glanced at the calendar on his desk. A red circle around a date reminded him the following Saturday was to have been their wedding day. He planned and paid for a seven-day cruise to the Caribbean for their honeymoon. He had yet to decide what to do about that. Without valid, medical reason he was unable to get all of his money back. As he pondered the situation, it occurred to him he needed to get away. Maybe he would go on the cruise alone...

Currently publishing episode 6......

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***Within These Pages is an ongoing FICTIONAL storyline with FICTIONAL characters. Any resemblance to real people or places is purely coincidental. ***