Boomerang

She walked into the luxurious shower, and he leaned against the counter.

"I don't know, Fairleigh. I've already been outed because of your concert shenanigans."

"Hey! If you won't join me in here, you don't get a free show, Buster."

He shrugged and said, "You were the one who dropped her towel the moment I walked into the room."

"Fair enough. If you want to go out, we can go out. Do me a favor and see if you can find Kelly. I think she was going to..."

"She was at Starbucks when I got here."

"Yep. Tell her what we're doing. She'll set up all the details."

*****

"Well, that was interesting," Braden said when they were seated at their table.

She smiled and said, "You'll get used to it."

He couldn't believe how many times they had their picture taken as they walked to their secluded table in the back of the restaurant. Everyone noticed them, and everyone whipped out their cell phone.

"Will they come to the table?" he asked.

"Sometimes. Most times they'll wait outside and ask for an autograph or selfie."

"Sounds like fun. Will you allow me to take you out for a banana split when we're done?"

She grinned widely and answered, "Of course."

He set the menu down and asked, "So, I got married, what about you? Did you ever find someone?"

She shook her head.

"How could I love someone else when I still loved you."

"Why didn't you move on? Surely, there were opportunities for you?"

She laughed, "Oh, I get laid. I haven't been living like a nun or anything. I just haven't settled down with anyone long term. I do live a busy life, you know."

"Yeah, I know," he said solemnly.

She reached across the table and took his hand, "Braden, it will be over soon. We can finally be together as we were meant to be."

"You can't say things like that, Fairleigh. I have a daughter that I love more than anything, and I wouldn't have her if we stayed together."

"Of course, Baby, but we have the best of both worlds now. You've got your daughter and we can be together for the rest of our lives."

Braden pulled his hand away slowly and stood.

"Look, Fairleigh. Don't ever tell me I have the best of anything. I lost my wife. That might make you happy because you think I'm free for you to swoop in and try to pick up where we left off, but I assure you--I do not have the best of both worlds."

He tossed his napkin onto his chair and walked away.

"Braden, wait!" she begged.

"Hey, everyone! Look, it's Fairleigh!" he shouted.

Suddenly, people began to rise and move towards her. There were enough to block the small aisles between the tables in the crowded restaurant. Braden made it out the door before he could catch him.

Fairleigh threw her head back in disgust. She knew she messed up but had no idea how to fix it.

*****

Braden sat in the bar at the airport sipping a single malt scotch. The burn of the whisky stung his throat as he watched the airplanes on tarmac.

"I figured I'd find you here," the voice said as she sat beside him.

"I'm not hiding, Kelly."

"Well, you aren't very good at it if you were." She looked up. "Let me get a Cabernet please," she said to the bartender.

"She sent you to get me? I'm not going back; this was all a mistake."

"She can't exactly show up wherever she wants, Braden, but she didn't send me. She's bawling her eyes out in her room at the moment."

"So, what do you want then?"

She sipped her wine, then said, "Do you know when I met Fairleigh?"

He shook his head and shook his glass at the bartender to get another drink. The annoyed bartender wanted to throw the bottle at him, but smiled and refreshed his drink.

"I'll never forget it. It was the day she signed her recording contract. Do you know, she almost didn't sign it? She started crying, and everyone in the room thought they were tears of joy. They weren't. She whispered, 'I love you so much, Braden,' then got up and ran to the bathroom."

She sipped her wine and saw a tear slide down his cheek.

Kelly continued, "When she didn't come out after a few minutes, they sent me in to check on her. They were all suddenly very nervous. She was standing at the sink sobbing; her hands were on the basin holding her up."

Braden looked out the window wondering why she was telling him that story.

"Braden, she told me she couldn't do it. She wouldn't do it if you weren't with her."

"And yet she did, didn't she?" he snorted.

"Yeah. Yeah, she did," she frowned. "The ink wasn't even dry on her contract with that bastard manager they stuck her with, and he forced her to do it. Well, forced might be too strong. That asshole was slick, and he talked her into it. He said if you really loved her, you could never have dumped her."

"And she bought it?" he whispered.

"No, not really, but it helped her justify signing it. When she was in her right mind later, she cried some more."

"What's your point, Kelly?"

"I'm not done with what I want to say yet."

"Get to your point. I've got a plane to catch."

"She never stopped loving you, and now she has her second chance. She didn't mean to upset you by implying your wife wasn't important to you or doesn't matter. That's why she didn't rush to your side the moment she heard your wife died. Believe me--she thought about it."

"Great. She loves me, I get it. I can't begin dating her if she thinks my wife was a placeholder for her, Kelly. It's a non-starter for me."

"I know, Braden. She's just so damned excited that you're giving her another chance. You need to be open and communicate with her. She hasn't been in a relationship since you, and honestly, she's had people coddling her for years. She's not used to having to worry about what she says in private."

He drank the remains of his drink in one swallow and groaned.

"Not a big drinker, huh?" she teased.

"No. Not really."

"Come back to the hotel with me, Braden, and give her some breathing room to make mistakes. She's an emotionally stunted, powerful, wealthy woman. She's going to need help with the pitfalls of being in a relationship. She has to phase out of her sheltered life."

"I can't believe she never dated anyone."

"She never wanted anything long term. Until she ran into you again, that is."

"It was so weird. She just walked up to me and kissed me."

Kelly laughed.

"She's been wanting to kiss you for years."

*****

Braden walked off the elevator and heard "Thank You For Your Love" playing in a room at the opposite end of the suite. He would never admit it in the past, but he secretly loved the song. He knew it was about him and wondered if he asked, would she give him a share of the royalties?

He found her sitting on the couch with tears running down her cheeks and eating straight from a gallon of chocolate ice cream.

"Keep eating that and you won't fit in those skimpy outfits anymore," he teased.

"I'm sorry I upset you."

"Kelly says you're so spoiled you don't have a filter."

She licked the spoon and shrugged her shoulders.

"She would know. She's been my right-hand woman since day one. You could even say she's the one who spoils me."

"I'm sure. Look, maybe, I was a bit rash running off like that. I guess I'm overly sensitive."

"Is that an apology?" she teased.

"I don't think I need to apologize. Okay, yes, I'm sorry."

They laughed and he took the spoon from her hand.

He ate some ice cream and said, "I never did get dinner."

She smiled and straddled his lap, "Do you mind if we have dessert while we wait?"

They kissed and she circled her hips to rev him up.

He said, "You do that a lot better than you ever did before."

"Hours upon hours of dance lessons, baby. You'll find I'm a lot more limber than I was before."

"Even at your old age?" he teased.

She slapped his shoulder and asked, "So, do you still have that magic tongue?"

"Wanna find out, Miss Celebrity?"

"Does that turn you on, baby? One of the hottest stars in the world grinding on your...cock?"

"No. You're just Fairleigh to me. You're status doesn't matter."

"God! That makes me so hot," she moaned.

She slid down to the floor between his knees and ran her hands up his thighs. They stared into each other's eyes as she unzipped and unbuckled his pants, then pulled his hardening cock out and stroked it.

"I've never forgotten how beautiful your cock is. You know, I haven't given anyone oral since you."

He started laughing, until she licked up the length of his shaft.

"Fuck, that's so good," he moaned.

"I'm serious. No man's been in my mouth."

She took him into her mouth until she felt a gag rise. She hummed and he loved the sensation.

Braden almost came as she started to bob up and down his slick hardness, he stopped her with his hands.

"Hold on, Honey. It's been ages for me. I'm close."

"Mm, we can't have that now, can we? How about a drink while you settle down?"

"Sure, whatever you have."

She strutted over to the bar and poured them glasses of wine. She turned and smiled before taking off her t-shirt.

Her braless breasts were still as he remembered with little to no sag.

"Like what you see, Baby? They're still real. I told those assholes I wouldn't have any surgery, years ago."

"You're perfect."

She was glad he thought so. Even with the millions of people around the world adoring her, she was still self-conscious about her body.

She slid her leggings off and revealed her bald pussy to his hungry eyes.

She purred, "Ooh, someone likes what they see?"

"You were never shaved before, and I love it. Come here."

She left the wine and walked over to the love of her life.

"Are you hungry for dessert, lover?"

"Oh, yeah."

She stood before him, turned around and bent over placing her hands on the table before her. She dipped her finger in the melting ice cream and rubbed it on her clit.

"God, damn," he said before he pulled her hips towards him as he leaned forward to taste her.

"Do you remember," she giggled before moaning. "Oh, hell, you remember."

He knew her pussy like the back of his hand. The look, the taste, the smell hit his senses and sent his mind into overdrive remembering the woman he loved.

His wife never liked oral and wouldn't let him go down on her. He, however, enjoyed giving oral pleasure and dove into Fairleigh's hot box as if it were the last pussy he'd ever eat.

Her legs shook as she writhed from the feelings coursing through her body.

"Yeah, Braden. Right there--keep that up, and I'm gonna cum for you, Baby."

She screamed and pushed backwards, falling on top of Braden's face as he fell onto the couch. She smothered him, and he loved every second of her pussy grinding on his lips, tongue, and nose.

"Oh, shit!" she shouted before spinning around and impaling herself on his iron hard cock. "I have to have you inside me again."

She slowly dropped until his body met hers.

"God, Fairleigh. You're so tight."

"Told you I don't get much action."

She rode him as he sucked her nipple into his mouth.

"Nibble it, Braden. Like you used to. Jesus, I missed you so much."

The sound of their slapping flesh echoed throughout the room. Braden released her nipple and kissed her neck.

"No marks, Hotness," she said with a smile.

"Oh, Fairleigh. I can't hold back."

"Don't stop. Give it to me. Fuck me, harder!"

He lifted her and guided her to her hands and knees, then started slamming into her in the way she used to love.

"Uh, uh, uh, yeah," she moaned.

"Oh, Fairleigh," he groaned as he released his eruption into her.

She reached back and grabbed his ass to hold him inside of her. He threw his head back, and she smiled as she dropped hers to the cushion.

She slid out from under him and snuggled into him as he sat in the middle of the couch.

"I love you so much, Braden. Thank you for giving me another chance."

He rubbed her back, and said, "You're welcome, but I'm really hungry now."

She slapped his chest and said, "Let's get you a steak, lover."

*****

"Thank you! I love you all!"

She cried as she took her final bow at her final show. She hugged each of her band members, background singers, and dancers.

She wiped her eyes and ran off the stage into the arms of smiling Braden.

She sobbed into his chest, "Take me home, Braden. Please take me home."

Kelly walked up and said, "I took the liberty of booking you two on a red eye. I figured she'd want to get home as soon as possible."

"Thank you," Braden said before kissing Fairleigh on the top of her head.

Fairleigh turned and pulled Kelly into a hug.

"I'll miss you, Kelly. Thank you for everything."

"I'll miss you too, Fairleigh. Thank you for setting me up with Jimmy."

Fairleigh didn't think she needed a personal assistant after her retirement and knew her fellow pop singer Jimmy Mace needed one after falling in love with his assistant Kim. Kim knew Kelly and thought she would be a perfect fit in his life.

"We'll see you at the wedding next week. Take care of yourself."

She took Braden's hand, and he led her through the maze of tunnels to their waiting car.

"I can't believe it's over," she sighed as she nestled into his arms in the back seat.

"Second thoughts?" he asked, worried.

"No. It's time. I've accomplished everything I set out to do, and I'm getting older. Soon, my voice won't be able to hit the high notes, and I don't want to be one of those who hang on past their expiration date."

She rubbed his chest and kissed his cheek.

"The best part is I'm going to have all of my time to spend with you and Cassidy."

"She's excited to meet Jimmy Mace," he said.

"Yeah, it was nice of him to let us bring her," he answered.

"Are you excited? It's going to be a star-studded wedding. The biggest names in the world will be there."

"I don't know, I mean, it's your thing. I've never been much of a celebrity follower."

"Even me?" she teased.

"It's kind of hard to not follow you when my wife and daughter made you regular conversation at the dinner table. Before she met you, Cassidy talked about you or your songs or videos several times a week. And good Lord if there was an awards show and they took your picture, they would dissect your look and find out about your dress and make-up. And oh, God! The talk about your shoes was maddening."

She noticed his obvious annoyance.

"I'm sorry, Honey. Didn't you tell your wife about us?"

"Yeah. She was the one who picked me up from the floor after, um, we ended our relationship."

"And she didn't realize that talking about me with your daughter would hurt you?"

"I wasn't hurt. It just irritated me. But it was all about Cassidy, you know? She loved you and your music, and I didn't care to upset my little girl by telling her she couldn't listen to you."

"I'm so sorry, Braden. Even after breaking up with me, my career kept getting thrown in your face. No wonder you were so cold to me at the ice cream shop and never reached out to me."

He laughed, "Yeah, but you warmed me up pretty quickly."

She hugged him and said, "I knew you would always love me. We're soulmates."

*****

"Daddy, look! There's Jimmy Mace," Cassidy whispered as they walked into the backyard of Jimmy's home. They were there for lunch a few days before his wedding.

Fairleigh walked ahead of them and said, "Hey, Jimmy! We're here."

"Hey, guys! Come on in, the water's fine.

Kim walked over and introduced herself to Braden and Cassidy and hugged Fairleigh.

"Thanks for coming," Kim said. "You must be Cassidy?"

The little girl's eyes were bugged out of her head as she watched Jimmy swim his laps.

"Cassidy?" Braden chastised. "Kim, asked you a question."

"Sorry."

"No problem, Sweetie. It took me a long time not to stare too."

They all laughed.

Kim continued, "Jimmy's cousins are in town for the wedding and a couple of them are your age. They'll be here in a little bit."

"Oh, thank God! I was worried I'd be bored out of my mind. Can I meet him?"

Braden rolled his eyes, and Fairleigh said, "Of course. Come on, he's excited to meet you."

They walked towards the pool, and Kim turned to Braden, "I expected her to be more starstruck."

"Yeah," Braden agreed. "I think spending so much time with Fairleigh has gotten some of that out of her system. She's been telling tons of stories and Cassidy eats 'em up."

"You must be the god called Braden," Jimmy said as he walked up with an outstretched hand.

"God?" he asked and returned the handshake.

"Bro, Fairleigh talked about you all the time. Man, she never shut up about you. Braden did this. Braden loved that. You really did a number on her because she thinks you walk on water."

It made him uncomfortable to hear that she talked about him like that.

"I don't know about all that, but a long time ago, we were good together."

Jimmy smiled and patted him on the shoulder.

"Come on, Braden. I just got a new grill. Let's light some coals."

"We'll get the salads ready," Kim said and let Fairleigh and Cassidy into the house.

Jimmy handed Braden a bottle of water and said, "You're surprised I don't have a chef out here manning the grill, aren't you?"

"Yeah, I did wonder about that."

Jimmy shrugged and lit the chimney starters to heat the coals.

"I like to barbecue. I've got a really sweet smoker out by the garage, and I use it all the time when I'm home."

"Your view is incredible," Braden said as he looked out at the ocean.

"It's like therapy for me," Jimmy said. "When I'm down, or stressed, I just sit and stare out at that water. It works every time. How are things going with Fairleigh?"

"Good," Braden answered. "Now that the tour is over, she's working on the songs for her goodbye record, and I went back to work."

"Yeah, I asked her if I could produce it for her. I produced my last record, and I really enjoyed it."

"My daughter plays it and sings along with every song."

"Aw, that's awesome."

Braden asked, "Are you excited about the wedding? I was nervous as hell before mine."

"Oh, yeah. But I'm madly in love with Kim. She worked for me for years and we know everything about each other. We're going to start a family right away, and I can't wait to be a dad."

"It changes you," Braden said. "Once that little angel is in your hands and those first daddy tears fall from your eyes, you'll never be the same."

Jimmy smiled, "You know, I talked to Fairleigh last week, and she told me that she loves your daughter."

Braden nodded.

"Cassidy loves her too. She asked me if we get married would she be able to call her mom."

"Dude, if Fairleigh knew that she'd be a blubbering mess. Will you allow her to call her mom?"

"Whoa! We're not there yet. We've only been dating a few months."

"Yeah, but you have history together."

"That was a long time ago. We're different people now."

Jimmy laughed and said, "I don't think you are. Well, at least I don't think she is. She helped me when I had a problem with drugs and alcohol. She took me under her wing and taught me how to wade through the bullshit of the music business. I'll never forget that. I'm sure she's the same girl you dated; she's just covered in diamonds now."

"She always felt bad for people who were at their lowest. I always thought she should be a social worker or something. I was always more straight ahead on, while she was the free spirit."

"You're a good pair, Braden. If it matters to you, I'm rooting for you to make it. I truly hope your daughter gets to call her mom someday."

*****

The morning after the wedding, Braden and Fairleigh sipped coffee as they waited for Cassidy to awaken. Cassidy spent the entire wedding dancing with celebrities and the friends and families of Jimmy and Kim. Everyone loved her and she had the time of her life.

When they returned to their suite, she fell asleep as soon as her head hit the pillow, regardless of the amount of kiddie cocktails she drank.