Larry's Cougar Ch. 08

"It'll come to you," Dana said.

Niall was driving back from town with Gail and Dana. He barely noticed the car on the side of the road, but he noticed the two girls a few miles later. He pulled over in front of them.

Gail glanced over at him. "What the hell, Niall?"

"There's two girls behind us. I'm gonna give them a ride."

"Don't say it," Dana warned her sister. Gail huffed.

Niall and Dana exited the vehicle and walked back to where the two girls were standing. The older one stood protectively in front of the younger girl. They stopped several feet away.

"Hi. I'm Niall and this is my friend, Dana. Can we give you a ride somewhere?"

The girls looked at each other. "Just to a phone, please."

"I have a cell phone." He pulled it out of his pocket. "No service. Damn. Okay. Hop in. The motel is another ten miles up the road. Do you need anything from the car? That is your car back there, right?"

The older girl nodded. "Thank you. I'm Delaney. This is my little sister, Dannon."

"You talk funny," the little girl said.

"Dannon, hush."

"Oh do I now." He knelt down to her level. "I'm from Ireland so everyone here sounds funny to me." Standing, he motioned to the SUV. "Right this way, ladies."

Delaney gave a small smile. Opening the back door, she froze to find another girl in the vehicle.

"I'm Gail." She waved.

"Delaney. My little sister, Dannon." She lifted the little girl into the back seat.

"Cool."

Niall watched as Delaney paced by the counter as she spoke on the phone. Harry came up next to him. Silently he offered some chips.

"Who's the girl?" Harry asked.

"Found her and her little sister walking down the road. I don't think she's from here."

"Eastern seaboard, Maryland maybe." Tanalei joined them, Darcy and Riley on each hip. She passed Riley off to Harry and Darcy to Niall.

"Where's my girl?" he asked.

"Sleepin'. And she's gonna stay that way. I swear she's spoiled more than these two are. When are Liam and Gemma landin'?"

"Tomorrow morning. They'll be here tomorrow afternoon."

"The bitch of England is stayin' in her hovel, right?" Niall laughed at Tanalei's description of Eleanor.

"Tanalei, that's not nice," Harry fussed.

She snorted. "As if you don't think the same thing. She's made his life hell for the past two years, which means our life has been hell. I've seen him a total of five times in five months."

"He's here now. She doesn't have to come here."

"Her ass better stay in London," she muttered.

"Dow, Da," Riley said, pointing. Harry kissed her cheek before setting her on the floor. They watched as she toddled toward the living room, curls bouncing.

"Thank God she looks like you," Niall said to Tanalei.

"Really? I think she looks like the girls," she said, head tilted to the side.

"She has Jay's chin and Louis' eyes, but everything else is you." Harry kissed the side of her neck.

Darcy patted Niall's cheeks to get his attention. When he looked at her, she pointed. He shook his head. "Gotta talk, angel."

"Dow, Ni," she said softly. He raspberried her neck, making her giggle as he set her down. She followed her sister. They squealed when they found Alan, Eli, Dannon and Monroe.

Delaney made her way to the trio. "Thanks for letting me use your phone."

"No problem. You and your sister are more than welcome to join this mad house." Screams erupted from the other room. Delaney turned to go in there when her arm was grabbed. "They're laughin'. No one's hurt."

She could feel the older woman's gaze. "Come on. I'll show you where you can stay tonight." Looking over the counter, she grabbed a key and led her upstairs.

"How did you get a whole motel?"

"We're makin' a movie. We weren't properly introduced." Stopping before a door, she held out her hand. "Tanalei Granger."

"Delaney Rhodes."

"Pleased to meet you." She pointed at various doors. "Niall is across the hall, along with Alan and Eli." She rolled her eyes. "They think they're too big to sleep with the babies. Next to them are Gail, Dana and Elle. The other side is Kellan, Jackson and Monroe. Harry, Louis and I are farther down. In between our rooms are Madison and the babies. Other side of you is Elizabeth. Voila! Standard ugly motel room from the sixties."

Delaney giggled. Entering the room, she took in the standard look. Bathroom to the right, connecting door to the left then two double beds with a nightstand in between. A small table and chairs sat under the only window. A dresser had a TV sitting on it. Turning back to Tanalei, she asked, "What type of movie?"

"Thriller." She eyed her critically. "How old are you?"

"Twenty-one next month."

"Come with me." Tanalei led her to Elizabeth's room. "Hey, Liz. This is Delaney Rhodes. Her car broke down so she's gonna stay here a while. Delaney, this is Elizabeth Reaser. She's the director." After the introductions, Liz gave her a funny look.

"Delaney, wrap your arms around Lei and smile." With a curious glance, she did as told. "No. As if she's your mom." Their stances shifted slightly. "Yes. Can you read this real quick?" Liz handed her a script. "Just the highlighted words, with a Southern accent please. Just imagine you're telling your mom something important and heartbreaking."

Frowning, she glanced up at Tanalei. "Mama, I gotta tell you somethin'."

"What is it, baby?" Tanalei tucked a piece of hair behind her ear.

"Julie and I snuck out to go to a party and some guys were there and . . ."

Tanalei stilled. "Did they touch you?" Biting her lip, Delaney nodded. "Did they hurt you?" Her eyes welled up as she nodded again. "Oh, baby." She pulled her into her embrace.

"I'm pregnant, Mama."

"Shh, baby. Just tell Mama who they were."

Silence descended in the room. "Holy shit," Elizabeth muttered. "Delaney, have you ever thought about being an actor."

She shrugged. "Who hasn't?"

"How was it, Liz?"

"I'm crying, Lei. I've got to show this to Jackson and Kellan."

"What's going on?" Delaney asked.

"The actress that is supposed to play my daughter didn't want to do a few things and quit this mornin'."

"What didn't she want to do?"

"The rape scene and wear a baby bump."

"I'll do it," Delaney said as she shrugged. "I have nowhere to go anyway."

*&*&*

September 2016

"Tanalei! Over here!" A reporter waved at them. "You look absolutely gorgeous! Who are you wearing?"

"Vera Wang." She smoothed down the black form fitting fabric.

"Where is your significant other?"

"He's around here somewhere," she said, standing on her tiptoes and looking around.

"Is this your daughter?"

Delaney blushed. "This is Delaney Rhodes. She was one of my co-stars in my new movie."

"When is it coming out?"

"October 29th. Just in time for Halloween."

"Have you heard what Taylor Swift said in a recent interview?"

Tanalei frowned. "Why would I care what she said?"

"It was about you."

"She said something about me?" she asked shocked. The reporter nodded.

"Lei, let's go," Delaney whispered in her ear.

"What did she say?"

"That you can't find anyone your own age, so you have to dip into the left-over pool and trick a younger man to stay with you. Any comments?"

"Oh hell," Delaney moaned, placing a hand to her forehead. Her best friend was about to explode. Harry and Niall chose that moment to arrive.

"Hey, love," Harry said, kissing Tanalei's cheek. Niall kissed Delaney.

"Any comment, Tanalei?" the reporter urged.

"Yeah. I found with age comes wisdom, especially on when to speak and how to keep a good man." She smiled a toothy smile. Harry frowned. He's only seen this smile a few times. "I learned eight years ago that the secret is to make him howl and be too tired to do anything else."

"Does Tanalei make you howl, Harry?"

He glanced down at his fiancée, who was looking back at him. Her eyes were so dark, nearly the color of Zayn's, and the smile was still in place. He smirked up at the reporter before turning his attention back to Tanalei. "Every single night." He kissed her lips lightly.

They moved on down the red carpet. "What was that about?" he asked in her ear.

"Taylor Swift. It's been three years. Can't they drop it?"

"You do realized you just outted you and Lautner."

She shrugged. "She made the damn left-over comment. I ain't the only one to dip in that barrel. Hell, she should thank me if Taylor did some of the things I showed him."

"She's a prude. I doubt she let him."

Fan blog: "Bitch got served! Anyone catch Tanalei Granger's comment on the red carpet in reference to a Taylor Swift comment on her? It's no secret that three years ago, she and Chaske Spencer had a brief relationship while filming Torn Apart, but what happened eight years ago? Her divorce. She was in California for a few weeks. Which one of Taylor Swift's exes was in California eight years ago and single, and played a werewolf? If you said Taylor Lautner, then you are correct! He was asked recently if her had an affair with Tanalei and he confirmed! When asked why they kept it secret, he responded that he never kept anything a secret; nobody asked him about past relationships. When asked about Tanalei and Harry Styles' relationship, he said, 'I'm delighted for them. Harry's a great guy. I've never seen her this happy before.' Taylor Swift had no other comments about Tanalei. That's right, bitch! Crawl back into your hole and write bad break-up music, you poser!"

*&*&*