Page 14 of Secrets on Sapphire

“Oh yeah! I forgot you knew the family that lived here before.” Parker smiled at Brielle.

Brielle simply smiled back and stood up, smoothing any wrinkles in her skirt. She made her way back toward the guest bathroom. Once she was inside she locked the door. She took care of her business and washed her hands. As the hot liquid was running over her snow white fingers, she noticed the small interior closet door was ajar. She dried her hands on the hand towel and opened the closet. Inside were extra hand towels and washcloths. However, sitting on the floor was an unpacked box.

Brielle listened at the door and heard all of the women laughing and talking in the living room. She bent down and opened the box to see what was inside. Once the box was opened, she found framed pictures. Brielle continued to pull them out until she found one that peaked her interest. It was a photo of a much younger Parker in a hospital gown. In her hands was a baby. Brielle could assume the baby was a little girl from the little pink cap on her tiny head. Parker was a mother? Brielle put the photo down and continued to look through the box of pictures.

The next photo Brielle came across that was interesting was again a photo of Parker and a young girl. The girl had to be about ten or eleven in this picture. The girl was in a softball uniform and was grinning widely with two missing front teeth. She was holding some sort of trophy and squatting behind her was a proud mommy. Parker.

Brielle continued to look through dozens of photos of this little girl growing up into a very familiar young woman. Brielle couldn’t quite place her until she picked up a picture of the young woman with something sprawled across the back: “I miss you Mom. –Cara” Cara? Wasn’t that the name of Tim and Calista’s babysitter? Brielle finally made it to the bottom of the box and found two remaining photos. One was a family portrait and in the picture was Parker, Cara, an older couple, Ben, and Sarah . . . and the second picture was an old prom photo of Parker and the boy that was dressed in the lumber jack costume at the Halloween party from many, many years ago. It was the boy that had died in the fire.

***

“Are you going to finish your ice cream?” Parker asked Brielle once she returned to the living room.

Parker’s words were muffled. “Huh?” Brielle asked.

“Your ice cream, do you want it? Before we leave?” Parker held up Brielle’s bowl.

“No thank you.” She grabbed the wine glass off of the table. “However, I will finish this.” She lifted the glass to her lips and finished it in one large gulp. She handed the glass to Parker’s outreached hand. Parker took both dishes into the kitchen and put them in the sink. She filled them with water to soak. She grabbed her clutch and joined the women outside.

The women all squealed and got into the limo. The car ride was filled with laughter and lots of bubbly. Brielle was trying her best to join in and act like she hadn’t seen what she saw in the bathroom. Who was Parker and what was she doing? While Brielle was trying to keep her cool, she never noticed Edie staring at her from across the large limo seat.

When they arrived the women laughed and screamed with excitement. It was the Naughty or Nice show. “If I didn’t know you had never met Calista, I would swear y’all were twins!” Taylor exclaimed.

“Seriously. This is the same exact thing she did for her Fifty Shades party!” Harley let out drunken laughter.

What was she doing?

The women all got out of the limo. The driver said he would be parked in the lot waiting for their return and they all walked inside of the building. Parker, like Calista, had gotten them front row seats in the VIP section. The women found their seats and Edie watched their belongings while the rest of the group got drinks. Sammy brought back a rum and Coke for Edie and they chit-chatted while they waited for the show to start.

Three drinks in and the room finally went pitch black. The screen and a silky smooth voice over the loud speaker counted down. The women joined in, remembering the fun from the last time they were here. Then, there he was. Naughty Nick. He was as gorgeous as ever. He was shirtless and was wearing bright red pants that showed his sculpted muscles. He had on a polka-dotted bowtie and dress shoes. He introduced the group and stepped off the stage. As he was walking off, he noticed a busty red-head giving him a wink. He shot back a sparkly white smile and disappeared behind the curtain.

Drinks continued to be poured while the women hollered. Personal lap dances were had and again, the stripper sweat rained in their faces. They loved it. There was the inevitable Mr. Grey dance number that tied into their meeting and then the show was over. The women flooded the stage to get pictures and Parker found herself standing next to Naughty Nick. He gave her a hug and grabbed her backside.

“Your friends look familiar.” He practically yelled into her ear.

“They’ve been to your show before.” Parker licked his neck.

“Oh yeah?” He still had to yell to be heard.

“Yeah. They came with a blonde. Calista.”

Naughty Nick’s teeth set in a wide smile. His face was still on the side of Parker’s, causing her to miss his recognition. “Sounds familiar.” He brought his lips close to her ear, allowing him to bring his voice down to a whisper. “Where is she? Maybe I’d recognize her if I saw her.” He began looking into the crowd for the green-eyed beauty.

“She’s passed. Or at least that’s what everyone thinks. She’s technically still missing because there’s no body.” Parker cut herself off. She was talking too much. She was trying to get in this man’s red hot pants for goodness sake.

“Oh. I’m sorry to hear that.” Nick didn’t know what else to say. He was just about to walk away when Parker handed him a small piece of paper containing her phone number and her address. His smile returned and he winked at Parker before placing the paper in his pocket, grabbing her cheek again, and walking away. Brielle curled her lip in disgust before she was swept off her feet and lifted in the air by one of the male dancers.

After the pictures and fun on stage, the group gathered their things and stumbled outside to their limo. The driver stepped out and opened the door, ensuring all of the women got into the car before getting back into the driver seat and whisking them back to Sapphire Court. The car ride started off oddly silent as the women reminisced on the night and tried to control the swaying of their bodies.

“That was fun!” Sammy finally spoke up while stroking Taylor’s long curly locks.

“Yeah it was! I don’t think that show will ever get old.” Harley stated with closed eyes and a grin on her face.

“Was it any different than when y’all went with Calista?” Edie asked. She had to bring up Calista somehow. She knew her brother hadn’t killed his wife and she had to find her. She asked the question so nonchalantly; the only two women shocked by the mention of Calista’s name were Brielle and Parker. Brielle glared at Edie with curiosity and Parker just barely lifted her lashes, but began listening intently.

“I’mpretty sure it’s the same show. Different dancers, but same show.” Sammy yawned.

“Except Naughty Nick. He hosted the last show and he’s still driving all of the women crazy. He was all over Calista last time.” Harley laughed. “I’m pretty sure he gave her a personal show, if ya know what I mean?” Harley’s laughter grew louder.

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