“Well, ladies, this is it. We all get to start over again,” Colby said with enthusiasm.
Maggie was leaning against the car window and didn’t respond to his attempt to pick up the mood. Colby knew there had been many changes in Maggie and Joey’s lives over the past nine months. Losing Seth, leaving Kensington and everyone they knew, freedom from Rock, and finally, saying good-bye to Juju—at least temporarily—had taken its toll.
“All right, now look. Juju will come and visit, and it’s not like we aren’t ever going back to Kensington to see her. This isn’t an end to things; it’s a new beginning. The three of us are off on an adventure. We’re all roomies now, and we’re going to have lots of fun and make new memories. So cheer up, you two. You’re bringing me down,” Colby lectured.
When neither Maggie nor Joey responded, Colby added, “OK, then. I guess I’ll just be talking to myself from now on. Maybe that won’t be so bad; at least I know I’ll always agree with myself. Wow, Colby. You’re right. We are going to have a lot of fun together. By the way, did I tell you that you’re the most handsome man on the planet? Yeah, and you have a great personality, too. Everyone wants to be around you,” Colby rambled.
Maggie and Joey couldn’t help but laugh at his performance.
“You’re such an odd man,” Maggie said, chuckling.
“Yeah, Colby. You’re weird,” Joey chimed in from the backseat.
“Oh, I see. So you two only say stuff when it’s to mock me. I get it. You’re both just lucky to be with a cool dude like me,” Colby told them.
The two girls laughed harder. “Oh, right. You don’t have a cool bone in your body. I mean, seriously, Colby, you’re cool through Joey and me. You’re only cool by association,” Maggie teased.
Joey was energized by the banter. “Hey, can we get pizza for dinner tonight?”
Maggie looked over at Colby. “I don’t know. What do you think, Colby? Should we get the brat in the back pizza for dinner?”
“I’m not so sure, Maggie. I mean, she has been good today, and if she gives us hugs when we get to our new apartment, then maybe we could think about it,” Colby teased.
“You two are nasty; and Colby, your breath stinks; and Maggie, your hair has knots in the back,” Joey fired back, giggling.
The three continued to chatter and joke until they pulled up in front of their new apartment. Colby had managed to break through the gloom that had filled the car and gave them a reason to be excited.
As they entered their new apartment, Maggie and Joey looked around in surprise. The apartment was completely set up. The two girls stood motionless with their mouths hanging open. After a couple of seconds, they rushed around to look at everything. There was living room furniture and a dining room set. The kitchen had been fully stocked with appliances and all of the other essentials. Even the refrigerator and cabinets were filled with food. As they walked into the bedroom that Maggie and Joey would share, they found a king-sized bed, two large dressers, and night tables on either side of the bed. The entire room had been done in hot pink and white with random splashes of bold colors on the walls.
“Did my mom and dad do all of this?” Maggie finally asked Colby.
He shook his head. “They did buy all of your bedding. Your mom actually picked out the colors to use in your bedroom. They wanted to buy a lot more stuff, but I told them we had it covered.”
“We have it covered? Are you kidding? Where am I going to get the money to pay for all of this fancy stuff?” Maggie asked.
“You’re not. You’re going to concentrate on going to college and getting a part-time job, remember? That’s what we agreed. Then, after you’re making a billion dollars a year, I get to sit back and sponge off of you,” Colby said, toying with her.
Maggie was immature when it came to finances and what things cost. Working for Rock, she wasn’t given enough money for anything but essentials. She had no idea how much money Colby had spent to set up the apartment with all of the new and beautiful things. Just as she didn’t realize that the one hundred dollars a month in rent she was going to pay Colby would only cover the monthly electric bill. It didn’t matter to Colby, though; he would have let them live there rent-free. But Maggie had insisted on pulling her weight. If only she knew that the monthly lease alone was two thousand dollars. With that price tag, however, came one of the best school districts for Joey and a five-minute drive for Maggie to see her parents.
On their first night in the new apartment, and after Joey was sleeping, Maggie and Colby sat on the soft, plush sofa in the airy living room. Colby had brought them each a cold beer, and they were sipping on the fizzy liquid as Maggie rambled on about how much she appreciated everything he’d done for her.
“I’m not an idiot, Colby. Not many men would want to take on an ex-hooker and the kid she found as roommates. You know that Joey and I come with our unique set of problems. But it doesn’t seem to bother you. Why is that?” Maggie asked.
“My parents raised me to be open. They taught me how to find the good in people. Just because someone had a horrible life doesn’t make them bad. Just because you and Joey were sold for sex as kids doesn’t make you unworthy of great things in life. In fact, I think it makes you even more deserving of the things that bring you joy. My mom and dad always wanted me to accept people for who they are, that’s all. I’m not saying they want me hanging out with serial killers or child molesters, but they would never pass judgment on someone who has been through the things you’ve been through,” Colby explained.
Maggie nodded as she began to understand that Colby viewed her as a human being worthy of happiness. She smiled and leaned into him. Colby leaned forward, and in the next moment, their lips brushed. Maggie’s blue eyes were ablaze, and Colby could feel the blood pumping through his veins. The two had waited a long time for intimacy. They’d both always wanted it from each other, but under the circumstances, they had avoided that type of relationship. But now everything was different. Maggie was no longer obligated to sell her body to survive, and suddenly their newfound freedom turned the heat up on the passion they’d suffocated over the past few years.
Colby leaned in again, but this time he wrapped his thick arms around her small waist and pulled her into him. His light-brown, almost hazel eyes bored into hers as he slowly placed his mouth on top of hers. The passion and fire that sparked between them made it impossible for either to stop or pull away. They lay together on the sofa, kissing and running their hands over each other’s bodies. Colby rose from the sofa, pulled Maggie gently to her feet, and guided her into his bedroom.
Inside Colby’s room, Maggie unbuttoned his shirt and ran her soft fingers over his wide chest and rock-hard biceps. Their mouths touched every wonderful place on each other’s bodies as they undressed each other, one piece of clothing at a time. Then they stood naked in the middle of Colby’s bedroom. Colby slowly ran his tongue over Maggie’s collarbone and gradually downward. He stopped to take her breasts into his mouth, lingering for just a moment as his tongue danced around her nipples. His plump lips kissed her belly and hips. Moving toward his destination, he slid his tongue down her navel until he was finally between her legs.
The moans Maggie released surprised her. She’d never felt anything so good in her life. Maggie pulled on Colby’s hand, and he rose, following her over to the bed. She lay on her back and pulled him to her. She grabbed onto his firm ass as he entered her, and her heart soared with an exhilaration and pulse-pounding elation she’d never known. When they were finished, Maggie lay next to Colby. Their legs and arms were intertwined.
“I love you, Maggie. I don’t want to freak you out. We’ve known each other for a long time, and I want you to know that I love you,” Colby admitted.
Maggie smiled, but still didn’t look at him. “Thanks.”
“Thanks? Really?” Colby said in a hurt voice.
“Yeah, thanks,” Maggie said with a giggle.
“Wow,” Colby gasped. “You’re a harder nut to crack than I’d thought you’d be.”
Maggie propped herself up on one elbow. “Well, I never indicated that loving me was going to be easy,” she said and put on a pouty face.
“No, you didn’t. But thanks? That’s all I get?” Colby said with a smile.
“Oh, all right. I love you, too. There. Now are you happy?” Maggie joked.
Colby started tickling her under the arms. “Oh yeah, I’m real happy. I’ve been following you around like a lapdog for a couple of years and after I finally make love to you, you toss me aside like a dirty rag.”
Maggie laughed and rolled on top of Colby’s naked body. “You’re a very tasty dirty rag. So given this information, I may not toss you aside just yet,” Maggie said, and gently sucked his earlobe.
“Enough talking,” Colby said, as he embraced Maggie and began to respond to her sexual advances.
They made love a second time that night. Afterward, they lay in each other’s arms, and for the first time since Maggie could remember, she slept in peace.