It has been a few days since Justin's insecurities about a stupid room in the mansion, but I do not blame him for them. James has a way of making things look differently than they do. I haven't seen James since I ran him our of my room. That is probably a good thing for him since I need time to cool off. I walk around do some checks on our security when I see from one of our monitors that James is in pool area with some red-headed bimbo. I grab some things and decide to head down there and let him know what I think about his stunt. My walk down there just proves that I have not calmed down like I thought I had. I stop a few times on the way to the pool to give instructions to some of the men, check a few things, and whatever else I see that needs to be done. It takes me about 20 minutes to finally get down there, but I know he is still down there.

I walk through the gate and around the pool, pass the built-in cave and waterfall and water slide (put in for the guys who have kids), and there James is macking on the redhead. I roll my eyes and continue to walk a closer. I am not extremely close when the girl notices my presence. She starts to push James away a little and I can hear his protests as he moves to place more kisses on her neck.

The girl giggles obnoxiously. "Stop James."

I shift my weight from my right foot to my left. My arms are crossed and I definitely look impatient. After James protests again, I pull a gun out from behind me that had been in my belt. The second the girl sees the gun, her giggles turn to an even more annoying scream. This causes James to jerk back fast. "What the fuck, girl?" She does not say anything. Her eyes remain open wide in fear and she points to me. James turns around and sees me standing there with an annoyed look with a gun in my hand. "Hey Arianna! I didn't know you wanted to join in the party. No need to get upset about it." He smirks. "Put the gun away and strip down and join in. No reason to be jealous." He laughs.

I look over at the girl and she frantically looks back and forth between James and me. James is standing there in his trunks with a huge smile on his face while I stand there fully clothed in jeans and shirt with boots, an impatient look, and a gun in my hand. "I think I'd rather just shoot you instead." I smirk back at him.

"You wouldn't do that. We have a special bond."

"Is that your crazy girlfriend that you were telling me about?" the redhead asks as she moves to stand up and put some clothes back on over her swimsuit.

I laugh at this and look back at James. "Is that what you tell people? I'm your crazy girlfriend?" I turn back to the girl. "You just made yourself look like a total skank. You were told he has a girlfriend. Crazy or not, you should not want to be with anyone that has a girlfriend. You never know how crazy they just may be." I say as I point my gun at James and shoot. This causes the girl to jump and scream as James grabbed his stomach and fell to the ground. "I mean they may shoot him. They may shoot you." I say as I point the gun at her. "I suggest you put your clothes back on,follow one of the guards that will be coming in about ten seconds off of the premises, and you probably don't want to return. I would also suggest you don't mention this to anyone." I shrug to her.

Just as I had said, within seconds four large men show up. "We heard the gunshot. What's going on? Everything okay?" Hank asks seeing me pointing my gun. They look over and see James on the ground and the girl quickly putting her clothes on.

"I need you to escort this girl of the grounds while I take care of the chump that is lying on the ground."

Two of the men walk over to the girl and help her throw stuff in the bag and then walk on either side of her. As they pass back by on their way out, the third guard joins them and walks behind her. Hank stays behind. "Are you sure everything is okay? Did I need to call a doctor or anything?"

"No thanks. I'll take care of it. I'll call you if I need anything else." I tell him and he nods as he turns and leaves to go back to his post. I turn back to James who is now struggling to stand back up.

"You bitch!" He spits out through his clenched teeth.

"What? Want me to shoot again?" I ask amused, pointing my gun at him again. I walk closer. "That one only hit you in the gut. I can always aim in a different area." I move the barrel of my gun to point lower.

He looks down and see I'm aiming at his groin area. "You wouldn't dare." He glares.

I bite my lip frustrated. I shoot again. I do not hit him in the groin but I do hit him in the thigh knocking his leg right out from under him. He yells out as he falls back down to the ground. "I would but I'll just save that." I go and sit down on the lounge chair that he had previously occupied with the skank. "First of all, I really wish you would not tell people I am your crazy girlfriend. I am not your girlfriend anymore and I haven't been for a long time. I am not even going to point out that you are far more crazy than I am. How does tell girls you have a girlfriend get them to come back here with you? Do girls not have standards anymore?"

"They come back here because I tell them I'm filthy rich and they come back here to see proof. They think that if I bring them back here and they prove they are worthy, I will drop you and give them all my money. Gotta love gold diggers. They are great in bed because they are willing to do just about anything for the money and you can just drop them when you are done."

"Wow" I shake my head and sit back in the lounge chair with my gun still aimed at James. "Clears that up then doesn't it. You are just a dick." He laughs. "Well too bad that half the money is mine and you should tell the next one that. Then there's the fact that you have to go out of your way to piss Justin off. I don't know what your problem is because we are not dating and you don't own me. Leave Justin alone. I am sick and tired of you going and telling him shit and making it sound like we are going to get back together or something. I'm done with you. You are my work partner and that is it. We broke up for a reason. We obviously do not work together. So back the fuck off!"

He just lays on the ground and laughs. "I can't help it if the boy is not secure in you relationship. I'm just playing around with him. How was I supposed to know you two didn't use the room?"

"You know full well. You stay out of it. I don't want you talking to him at all."

"Hey. I heard there was an issue down here." We both turn to see Charles standing there looking at the two of us.

"No issue. I've got it." I tell him.

"I really wish you wouldn't do this, Arianna. It makes the newbies worry that the bosses are killing each other. If they think you are killing him, they think you may kill them for something they do wrong. Please find another way to get your point across then shooting James." Charles shakes his head and walks off.

I can't help but laugh at that. I turn back to James. "We've got to get ready to go after these dudes when the wedding and reception are over with. That means we need a lot of information really soon. I'm going back to come up with some game plans. Remember I leave for Justin's concert in two weeks and then the wedding is right after that." I inform him as I stand up and go to walk away. I hear him groan and turn back. "Oh get up you pussy. They were just rubber bullets. It's not like I haven't shot you before with them." I roll my eyes and leave. That bastard will learn not to mess with my life if its the last thing he does. "I'm contemplating using real bullets next time" I yell back before I go back into the house to put the gun away.

I walk swiftly through the house, and I see how everyone steers clear of me. I chuckle to myself. The fear I can put in others without doing anything to them. It's a sense of power I do secretly enjoy. I decide to just leave and go home. I won't get much done now. Charles already has my car waiting for me when I walk out the front door. He hands me the keys as I walk by. I smile and thank him as I get in the car. The drive home seems so and long considering I decide to drive the speed limit. This gives me time to figure out what I am going to do now that I am not going to be working.

I would go see Justin but he is at rehearsals. I would love to watch but I really want to watch it all for the first time during his concert. I want that first experience and I want to see his passion through the whole thing. He leaves in one week to go to LA to do final rehearsals and preparations on the stage and with his dancers and band. He is excited to get started and I am excited for him. Chase, Tabbetha, and I will be joining him several days later to spend some time with him and watch the concert.

I am not in the mood to go out anywhere and deal with people. My tolerance level is running thin, and I do not want to be tempted to kill anyone. This means I am stuck going home. I am okay with this. It means that I get a little time off to enjoy before I am thrown into overdrive. After taking my time with my drive home, I finally pull into the driveway and see Tabbetha's car. She is supposed to be at work, so I am a little shocked to see her home but I am sure that she decided she 'needs' the time off to get everything ready for her wedding, go to LA for the concert, have the wedding and then there's the honeymoon. I make my way up the walkway and to the front door when I hear Tabbetha yelling loudly at someone. I get inside and see her pacing the living room floor while yelling into the phone.

"No, I am not okay with that. No, I will not have a good day. I hope your days sucks like hell and that all of your clients decide to leave you and go to someone else!" she hangs up on whoever she was talking to and with a growl she throws her phone on the couch.

"Issues, darlin'?" I laugh at her.

She growls again and sits up to look at me. "The stupid cow that was supposed to design my wedding cake just called to say that she's 'sorry but business is too crazy.' She apparently has too many orders and has decided to cut me from her schedule." She starts to yell again. "What am I going to do? There's not enough time for me to research people, take the time to describe exactly what I want, and get it made before the wedding. I am so pissed. Is there any chance you would kill her for me?" Her face lights up with the question and I just bust out laughing.

"You need to calm down. I can call my cook and see if he can or if he knows someone who can make your cake for you. He is brilliant so if he can't do it he will know a great person who can. You will have your perfect cake. I promise." I offer her and she jumps off the couch squealing to run over and hug me tightly.

I push her away gently. "And that is enough of that. I'll go call him now if you promise to calm down. If I need to kill someone for you I'd prefer it be someone better than just some 'stupid cow.'" I pull my phone out to call my cook and I go upstairs for privacy.

***

After my phone call to my cook, I lie down for a short nap. Not long into my nap though, I am interrupted my Tabbetha barging into my room. I sit up and give her a look of disbelief over the fact that she thinks it is okay to do that. I ask her what the hell she was doing and she holds the phone out to me.

"James is on the phone. He says he wants to talk to the 'ridiculously stubborn bitch.'" She raises her eyebrows and smiles with amusement and interest in his comment.

"Tell the nosy ninny that I don't want to talk to him." I shrug as I lie back down."

I hear her start to talk and then him yelling that he had heard what I said and he would call back later. She laughs as she hangs the phone up. She then decides it is okay to sit on the bed as if I were not trying to take a nap.

"Can I help you?" I ask without rolling over to look at her.

"What was that all about? You usually run to the office when he calls. Plus he seems upset today, a little more than usual." She moves to lie down across my feet to where she can see my face. "I can't help but be curious. I thoroughly enjoy seeing, or hearing in this case, James like this. What did you do?"

"Oh he's just pissed because I shot him" I roll my eyes as if his reactions were purely childish.

She jumps up off of the bed and runs over to the side that I am facing to look me in the face. I am sure it is to make sure I am not lying to her. "You what?!"

"Oh I shot him a couple of times earlier to prove a point and he's just pissed."

"You shot him and he's still alive?"

"I used rubber bullets. He's overreacting. It's not like this is the first time I've done it." I shrug as I roll over and away from her.

"I can't believe you shot him, and this isn't the first time." she runs over to the other side. "What did he do?"

"Would you leave me alone." I growl. "I am trying to take a nap so I can be awake when Justin gets home."

"I promise to leave if you tell me why you shot him." She grins over the possible answer.

"I shot him because he is constantly trying to start shit between Justin and me. He purposely tells Justin about our past and even embellishes on shit to make Justin think shit that isn't true. I am tired of him trying to get in between me and my loved ones. He will eventually learn that we are over and there will never be anything between us again. Plus, I always enjoy shooting that smug bastard." I tell her. "Now get the fuck out of my room before I get really pissed. Don't forget to shut the door behind you."

She rushes out grabbing the phone on her way out. I am sure she is on her way to call Chase to tell him what happened. Those two kill me when it comes to James and our business. I just ignore it and try to get back to sleep. I want to be awake while Justin is here so I can enjoy the time he does have left here before he leaves for his tour and I don't get to see him for several months. As I try to fall asleep, I start to get a really bad feeling about something and I cannot shake the feeling that James has a lot to do with it. 

--------

JUSTIN

I am exhausted. This last break, or hiatus, I have been on has caused me to forget just how demanding tours can be. The rehearsals and meetings and practices and so on are extremely time consuming and extremely exhausting. I cannot wait until I get back to Arianna's. Hopefully, she is home from the mansion. I am tired of sharing are last few days with her work. She can afford to take off work and spend time with me, but she chooses not to and I think that is what bothers me most. She chooses to be this way.

I am pleasantly surprised to see her car at the house when I get there. I also see Arianna's but not Chase's. He must still be at work. I climb out of the car and make my way into the house with the hope that this means that she is taking a break to spend time with me, finally realizing that our days are limited until I leave to go to LA and then on tour. I realize that she will be out a week later to see the show and then there's the wedding, and I know she will be able to fly out anytime she wants to see me, but she has made it clear that work is important to her and she will not be able to just leave whenever - her choice again.

I walk into the back door through the kitchen, and see Tabbetha running to meet me in the dining room. She is obviously trying to be quiet but her whispered squeals are making that difficult. I am confused by her excited reactions. I patiently wait for her to calm down so she can tell me what all the excitement is about.

"You will never believe what I found out earlier." Her eyes are wide and her face glowing with excitement.

"You are going on a fantastic honeymoon?" I guess thinking this has to with the wedding or something.

"No. It's nothing like that." She answers me. I have no idea how she is keeping herself from jumping up and down because it is obvious that is what she is wanting to do by her bouncing. "It has something to do with Arianna and James."

I roll my eyes at this. I do not want to hear about anything that has those two put together. I let Tabbetha know this as I walk into the living room, looking for my girlfriend that had been mentioned. "Where's Arianna?"

"She's upstairs taking a nap, but believe me you will want to hear this news."

"Fine. Just tell me and get it over with." I stop walking and turning towards her with my arms crossed. It is clear that I am not anywhere close to as excited as she is about what she is about to tell me. I cannot think of anything about James and Arianna that would have me excited, and come to think of it I cannot think of anything that would make Tabbetha excited. She hates James almost as much as I do and for much longer. My interests starts to rise.

"Arianna shot James today...multiple times!" She squeals excitedly, still trying to keep her voice down. "The best part though is that this isn't even the first time she's done it. Apparently, anytime James starts to meddle into her personal life or does something that infuriates her, she shoots him." She laughs a little.

I cannot stop the smile from growing on my face. "Did she kill him?"

Her smile falters a little but it is still pretty big. "No, unfortunately. She uses rubber bullets, but she did inform me that those things hurt like hell especially at close range which is how she shot him. She said that she was tired of him butting into your relationship and she shot him. I didn't get much detail because she was trying to nap. I am so excited." She finally does jump up and down a little, keeping it to a minimum so not to make much noise once again.

"Well that is great to hear. Too bad I couldn't be there to enjoy that in progress. I live for the day that the ass gets what is coming to him." I start up the stairs when Tabbetha stops me.

"Hey, I know that you enjoy the news as much as I do but I don't think she enjoys it much when we meddle in her business life either. I just wanted to tell you that it may not be wise to be obviously overjoyed by the events." She informs me. "Let her talk to you about them but don't push for details she is not giving and don't push for her to do it again, as much as we would all enjoy that." She adds the last part in a quieter mumble.

I nod my agreement as I finish my ascend up the stairs. I walk up to her door and pause to listen for anything. I hear nothing so I assume that she is still sleeping. I quietly make my way into the room and shut the door. I see her lying on her side facing me. She looks so peaceful and so innocent. It is as if she is a normal woman who has a normal 9 to 5 job. She came home to rest up before cooking dinner and watching some HGTV show or something. Her life is so simple in this moment to me. I would not dream of disturbing this. I wish nothing more than for her to be able to have this. I love her so much and I just want her to be happy and for her to be able to enjoy life with now worries whatsoever. I will do whatever I can to make this possible. If she asked me to, I would stop touring and move here to be with her. I would join in on her business, have her train me to be a killer and go on these missions with her. I would stay home and keep house while she was out to make sure she had a simple life to come home to. I know she would never ask me to do any of this just like I would not ask her to give up her life to join me on tour and be with me in public. She would not ask but I would do it. I truly and deeply lover her.