Falling in Love Again by emily_michele
Summary:



Annie Morgan yearned for a lot of things: happiness, security, family, a career in Christian music. When she met Brian Littrell, he promised her all of those things, but when it comes to giving her everything, it turns out that Brian's not the right Backstreet Boy for the job.


Categories: Fanfiction > Backstreet Boys Characters: Brian, Group, Nick
Genres: Angst, Dramedy, Romance
Warnings: Death, Sexual Content
Challenges:
Series: Nick and Annie
Chapters: 56 Completed: Yes Word count: 91108 Read: 106327 Published: 03/15/12 Updated: 04/21/13
Story Notes:

I'm having a little bit of writer's block with Forever (I know where it's going, just having a little time with transitioning to get there). In the meantime, this story has been running around in my mind for months, so I figured why not write it all down. While the general story line has been done before, I think this one is different enough to make it interesting.

Wow!  A felix award?! Really?!  Well, no, not really, it's a runner-up award, but I couldn't imagine being any more excited if I'd actually won!  There's so much talent on this site, and just to be included is awesome!  Thanks so much!

Ya'll need to know that I am so overwhelmed by the response this story has gotten! A huge thank you to everyone who voted for it in the Double Rainbow Awards!

1. Chapter 1 by emily_michele

2. Chapter 2 by emily_michele

3. Chapter 3 by emily_michele

4. Chapter 4 by emily_michele

5. Chapter 5 by emily_michele

6. Chapter 6 by emily_michele

7. Chapter 7 by emily_michele

8. Chapter 8 by emily_michele

9. Chapter 9 by emily_michele

10. Chapter 10 by emily_michele

11. Chapter 11 by emily_michele

12. Chapter 12 by emily_michele

13. Chapter 13 by emily_michele

14. Chapter 14 by emily_michele

15. Chapter 15 by emily_michele

16. Chapter 16 by emily_michele

17. Chapter 17 by emily_michele

18. Chapter 18 by emily_michele

19. Chapter 19 by emily_michele

20. Chapter 20 by emily_michele

21. Chapter 21 by emily_michele

22. Chapter 22 by emily_michele

23. Chapter 23 by emily_michele

24. Chapter 24 by emily_michele

25. Chapter 25 by emily_michele

26. Chapter 26 by emily_michele

27. Chapter 27 by emily_michele

28. Chapter 28 by emily_michele

29. Chapter 29 by emily_michele

30. Chapter 30 by emily_michele

31. Chapter 31 by emily_michele

32. Chapter 32 by emily_michele

33. Chapter 33 by emily_michele

34. Chapter 34 by emily_michele

35. Chapter 35 by emily_michele

36. Chapter 36 by emily_michele

37. Chapter 37 by emily_michele

38. Chapter 38 by emily_michele

39. Chapter 39 by emily_michele

40. Chapter 40 by emily_michele

41. Chapter 41 by emily_michele

42. Chapter 42 by emily_michele

43. Chapter 43 by emily_michele

44. Chapter 44 by emily_michele

45. Chapter 45 by emily_michele

46. Chapter 46 by emily_michele

47. Chapter 47 by emily_michele

48. Chapter 48 by emily_michele

49. Chapter 49 by emily_michele

50. Chapter 50 by emily_michele

51. Chapter 51 by emily_michele

52. Chapter 52 by emily_michele

53. Chapter 53 by emily_michele

54. Chapter 54 by emily_michele

55. Chapter 55 by emily_michele

56. Epilogue by emily_michele

Chapter 1 by emily_michele
Annie Morgan gazed across the noisy fellowship hall, darting her head back and forth as people milled around and her line of sight was continually interrupted. Goldilocks over there was making her a little nervous, but in the fifteen months since becoming a mother, she’d learned to pick her battles. A little boy with curly blonde hair, who looked to be about eight or so was leading her toddler, Drew, around by the hand, but clearly wasn’t really paying much attention, as he kept bouncing off the legs and hips of various adults and saying, “Excuse me, pardon me, sorry!” over and over again. She took a sip of her water and glanced down at her watch, and as soon a she took her eyes away, though only for a second, she heard her child’s characteristic screams. She slammed her drink onto the nearest table and ran.

“I’m sorry!” The little boy was stooping down and picking up Drew, who had a large red spot on his forehead that looked suspiciously like carpet burn. Both boys had tears streaming down their red faces. Though, Goldilocks’ face was most likely red from embarrassment while Drew’s was from the screaming fit he was having, which was quickly into a breath-holding spell. He only did that when he was truly hurt, whether physically or emotionally, and this time, she suspected it was a little of both.

“Breathe, baby.” Annie coaxed gently as she scooped her son out of the little boy’s arms.

“Baylee Thomas Wylee Littrell! You can’t just go around man-handling other people’s children!” A blonde man, who was very obviously Goldilocks’ (who was apparently more appropriately named Bayee) father, came rushing up while waving his finger at the younger manifestation of himself. “I’m really sorry about this.” Annie took in a sharp gasp of air as the man turned to her apologetically with his hands on his hips.

“D-Don’t worry about it. It’s- it’s fine,” she stammered.

“No, it’s not. I’m a dad. I remember what it was like when he as little and all the kids at church wanted to handle him all the time. The germs, the little accidents like this one. It really puts you on edge, doesn’t it?” He was practically screaming over Drew’s wails.

“Yes! That’s exactly what it was! An accident!” Baylee chirped up at his dad. “I didn’t mean it! Our feet just got tangled up in each other and he tripped and fell! I’m sorry!”

“We’ll talk about it later.” He acknowledged his son and turned his attention back to Annie and the crying baby. “Are you sure he’s okay?”

Annie looked down at her little siren. He was now magenta. “He’s fine. Just a little bump on the head. I think we’ll go get some fresh air.” She sighed as she shuffled away from him, lamenting the brevity of her chance meeting with Mr. Teenage Dream. Such was motherhood. Little Man always came first. “Drew, sweetie, look at the butterfly!” She pointed at the orange and black monarch as it fluttered by just as she stepped outside. Drew’s cries were replaced with a squeal of delight as he reached his chubby hands out into the air. Annie smiled, thanking God for the beautiful little distraction he’d placed out in the September sun.

“Good to see he’s doing better.” Annie jumped at the voice behind her. “Sorry. I din’t mean to startle you. I just wanted to check on the little guy.” He pinched Drew’s cheek lightly and made a funny face, making the toddler in her arms cackle. “I’m Brian Littrell, by the way.” He held out his hand to her.

“I know.” She shook his hand nervously. “I mean, um, I’m Annie. Annie Morgan.”

Brian’s eyes danced in amusement. “You looked about the right age to know who I was.”

Annie blushed. “Are you sure it wasn’t the solo I sang during the service that gave me away?” She’d sung “Over My Head” on stage just before they’d taken up the offering in the little country church in Berea, Kentucky.

Brian chuckled. “You have me there. Although, there are some Brian Littrell fans who aren’t Backstreet Boys fans, believe it or not. You know, I think you do that one better than I do.”

“Oh, no way. You’re an international pop star. Your voice is amazing. This is for church,” she said, pointing to her throat.

“Well, so is this.” He gestured to his own throat. “I was just incredibly lucky and blessed.” Annie nodded in appreciation. “I’m sure you already know this, but you’re really talented. Have you ever thought about doing it professionally? Singing, I mean.”

“Well, yeah, of course. I dreamed of it. When I was fifteen, I imagined I’d open for the Backstreet Boys and fall madly in love with one of you.” They shared a laugh.

“Was it me?” He wiggled his eyebrows suggestively.

Annie bit her bottom lip. “Nope. Sorry. Besides, you’re married.”

The door opened behind them. “Here’s your dad, kiddo.” They turned to find the pastor, Tim Richardson, standing behind them with his hands on his hips. “You’re going to steal her away from me, aren’t you, cuz?” he said with a twinkle in his eye.

“I’m going to try,” Brian said with a smirk.

Annie’s eyes widened in sudden realization as she put Drew down and let him run around in the side yard with Baylee. She’d spent the past 15 years of her life being a die-hard Backstreet Boys fan, and here they were right under her nose. “Brother Tim! You are Kevin Richardson’s brother, and you never told me?!” She put her hands on her hips in indignation. She’d lived in this town and gone to this church for two and a half years. Her pastor had told her before that he had some family in the music business who would be impressed with her vocal ability, but she’d never put two and two together. There were a lot of Tim Richardsons in the world. Though, now that she thought about it, he did slightly resemble his brother.

Tim chuckled. “He was here on Easter, but you weren’t.”

“I had to work! Stupid work..... What about back in July when I went to the NKOTBSB concert in Louisville? All you did was give me a hard time because it was on a Wednesday night, and I was going to miss church! Then you made fun of my t-shirt! You could have told me!” While an innocent bystander might think she was disrespecting a man of God, Annie and Tim were good friends. As the pastor and music director, they spent a lot of time together, both in and out of church.

“You weren’t just missing church,” Tim replied quickly. “It was Vacation Bible School week and I needed my music minister.”

Brian looked at her with a grin. “You missed VBS for one of our concerts? I guess that makes you a pretty hard-core fan, huh?”

Annie shrugged. “I guess. I mean, I don’t have a Wylee bag or anything, but...”

Brian burst out laughing. “Oh, wow, I don’t think I’m supposed to think that’s so funny,” he said as he double over and gasped for breath.

“No, no Drew! Oh, yuck!” Annie rushed over to her toddler, who was holding a “wooly worm” just centimeters from his mouth while Baylee cackled. “We don’t eat caterpillars, baby.”

“Mmm, wom!” Drew exclaimed.

Brian was still doubled over laughing and clutching his stomach. “Tim, why have I never been to your church in Berea before? This is entertainment!” Annie rolled her eyes at him as she reached into her diaper bag to retrieve a wipe for Drew’s hands.

“Baylee, don’t do that!” Brian suddenly screamed, but it was too late. The little boy went sailing over the stair railing going up the side of the church that he had been swinging on and landed on the pavement with a thud.
Chapter 2 by emily_michele
It was like everything happened in slow motion. Annie watched in horror as Baylee leaned too far over the iron railing and started falling the eight or so feet to the ground. She sent up a silent prayer that he would somehow manage to turn his body so that he didn’t land on his head as it looked like he was going to, and breathed a sigh of relief as he started flailing his arms out in front of him. Instead of falling onto his head, he fell onto an outstretched arm, which twisted sickeningly under his weight. She winced and jumped up from her stooped position in front of Drew, getting to Baylee just after Brian did.

“Ow! Ow! OOOWWWWWW!” Baylee shrieked as he clutched his injured arm and brought it close to thrashing body. Brian’s eyes were as big as saucers and all the color had drained from his face.

“Baylee, sweetie, I need you to lay still so we can check you out. Does anything hurt besides your arm?” Annie asked him calmly.

Brian gently placed his hands on his son’s shoulders. “It’s okay, buddy,” he soothed.

“What hurts, Baylee?” Annie prodded.

“My arm!” Hot tears rolled down his cheeks as she studied his arm. It was already starting to swell and bruise, and his wrist jutted out at an awkward angle.

“What else?”

“My knee!” Brian and Annie both shot their eyes down to Baylee’s legs. A large gash cut across his right knee cap and blood oozed out of it and dripped on to the pavement.

“OhmyLord,” Brian gasped. Annie didn’t think he could have turned any paler, but she was wrong. A thin sheen of sweat broke out across his forehead.

“You okay, Brian?” She glanced over at him.

“I, uh...” He gulped and licked his lips.

“He doesn’t do well with blood,” Tim answered for him.

“Well maybe you should go get him some water or something. He looks like he’s about to throw up, and I don’t need two patients on my hands right now.”

Tim nodded and scooped Drew up with one arm. “Let’s go get Brian some water, okay buddy?”

“Dad, please don’t throw up on me!” Baylee yelled up at his father.

Brian smiled. “I’m okay, Bay.”

“Good, because it hurts!!!”


“I think we should probably get you to the hospital, kiddo.” Annie said matter-of-factly.

“Hospital?!” Both Littrell boys shrieked at the same time.

“Do I need stitches?” Baylee asked shakily. “B-b-because I don’t like needles,” he sobbed.

“Maybe, but I’m more worried about that arm. I’ve seen enough broken ones to know...”

“Broken?!” Both Littrells shrieked in nearly identical voices again.

“How do you know all of this? Are you a nurse or something?” Brian asked as Tim handed him a bottle of water and winked at her.

“Something like that. I work in the St. Joseph- Berea ER, so I’m going to take you there, okay?”

Baylee sniffled and nodded weakly as Brian gently gathered him up into his arms and stood up. “Which car’s yours? I’ll follow you.”

“It’s that gray Tahoe over there,” she said as she pointed across the parking lot. “And you’ll do no such thing. I won’t have you driving while you’re upset and there’s a screaming kid in the backseat. Now, go,” she ordered as she grabbed her keys and hit the remote to unlock the doors. “Tim?”

“We’ve got him,” Tim assured her, as he shifted Drew around in his arms.
Brian glanced over at her, confused. “Tracy is Drew’s baby-sitter,” she explained, referring to Tim’s wife. “They’re used to this.”


“Oh.” he mouthed silently as Annie opened the back passenger side door for him.

“Let’s just move the carseat to the back.” She got them situated in the backseat, then climbed into the driver’s seat and dialed the ER on her cell phone. “Hey,Casey, it’s Annie. I’m bringing in a little boy with a broken arm and a deep laceration on his knee.......No, Drew’s fine, but he is kind of high profile, so do you think you can get one of the minor trauma rooms ready? Thanks so much. I”ll be there in five minutes.” Baylee yelped in pain as she went over a bump in the road. “Sorry, sweetie. Not much longer, and we’ll get you something to help with the pain, okay?”

Baylee buried his face into Brian’s shirt and cried. “I want Mommy,” he whimpered.

“I’m going to call her after we get to the hospital, okay bud?” Brian wrapped his arms around Baylee’s neck and kissed the top of his head.

“I want you to call her now!”

“And freak her out before I even have a definite diagnosis and treatment plan to tell her?”

“She’s going to yell at you, isn’t she, Dad?”

Brian chuckled. “Yeah, probably. But that’s okay.”

Annie glanced in the rear view mirror. “Where is Leighanne?”

“Girls weekend in Atlanta, so we decided to have a man trip up to Kentucky for some fishing,” Brian answered. “And Littrell men are tough, right Baylee?” Baylee let out a little whine.

“We’re here, sweetie.” Annie pulled her SUV up into the ambulance bay and shut off the engine. Brian picked Baylee up and followed her into the emergency room.

A petite, blonde nurse in red scrubs came up to her with a clipboard in her hand. “Hey, Dr. Morgan. We have Trauma 4 all ready for you.”

“Thank you, Casey.” Annie turned a corner and walked past the nurse’s station.

Brian raised an eyebrow. “Doctor Morgan? You must think I’m a male chauvinist jerk.”

Annie laughed. “Male chauvinist, yes. Jerk, no. I think it’s a southern male thing. Every female who works in the medical field must be a nurse. It used to be a big deal to me, but I’ve learned to look past it.”

“Still, I’m sorry for stereotyping you.”

“Hello!” Baylee was waving his good arm in front of Brian’s face. “Kid with a broken arm here! And it HURTS!” His face was still red from crying.

Annie immediately went into doctor mode. “Is he allergic to any medication that you’re aware of?”

“Penicillin,” Brian answered immediately.

“Anything else?”

“Kiwi.”

“Huh. Drew’s allergic to kiwi, too. Casey,” she turned to the blonde nurse, who was standing beside her wide eyed.

“Are you---?” She pointed to Brian.

“Focus Casey,” Annie snapped.

“Sorry, Dr. Morgan,” she said sheepishly.

“Get him 300 milligrams of liquid ibuprofen and get an IV started so we can give him some morphine.”

“Yes, ma’am. Have dad fill these out, please.” She shoved the clipboard in Annie’s hand and scurried away.

Brian settled Baylee into the hospital bed and took the clipboard from Annie. She dug in her purse and pulled out a pen. “Morphine?” he asked. “Is that really necessary?”

“Have you ever broken your arm, Brian?”

“Yeah, but it was like...30 years ago.”

“Trust me. It’s necessary.”

A tall, thin, balding man about Brian’s age appeared in the doorway. “I thought this was your day off, Ann.”

“It is, but, as you can see here, we have an injured child here, Brad.” Annie gestured towards Brian and Baylee.

“My arm hurts,” Baylee whimpered.

Casey came in with a small plastic cup filled with orange liquid. “Drink up, buddy, and I’ m going to get your IV started.” She grabbed his good hand and started examining his veins.

“Do you have to use a needle for that?” Baylee asked with a frown.

“Afraid so, buddy,” Brad spoke up as he slipped on a pair of latex gloves. “I’m Doctor Francis, but you can call me Doctor Brad, okay?”

“I can handle it, Brad,” Annie interjected.

“It’s your day off and your Tahoe is blocking the entrance to my ER. Now, shoo!” Brad flicked his wrist and literally shooed her away. “We’ll numb your hand before we put the needle in, okay Baylee?” Casey pulled out a needle and Brian started to sway.

“I’ll be right back.” Annie placed her hand on Brian’s shoulder. “You might want to get out the smelling salts for this one.”
Chapter 3 by emily_michele

 

“What the hell, Annie?”

 

“Don’t say hell, Brad.” After Annie had parked her car in the physician’s parking lot, she headed back into the emergency department to find that Brian had gone with Baylee to x-ray. She joined Brad at the nurse’s station to wait for the films to upload to his computer.

 

“Excuse me. What the heck, Annie? When Casey said you’d called and told her you were bringing a little boy who was kind of high profile, I thought it was going to be the mayor’s grandson or something, not the son of a freakin’ Backstreet Boy! You should at least give a guy a little heads up. I’ve been here since seven o’clock last night. You could have at least given me a chance to freshen up before you brought Brian Littrell himself into my ER!”

 

Your ER?” Annie crossed her arms and raised an eyebrow at her colleague.

 

“Oh, it stopped being our ER when you had Drew and cut back your hours.”

 

“Okay, fine. But anyway, he’s married....and straight.”

 

“Five Backstreet Boys, and not a single one of them is gay. It’s such a waste of beautiful male specimens.”

 

Annie giggled. “Well, at least you’ve got Lance.”

 

“Eh-- the Backstreet Boys were always so much better, and besides, how would I ever run into Lance here in Podunk, Kentucky? At least two of the Boys are from here. Which brings me back to how in the world did you manage to find a Backstreet Boy and break his kid’s arm?”

 

She rolled her eyes. “I did not break Baylee’s arm. He did that one all on his own. So, you know Brian and Kevin are cousins, right?” Brad nodded his head. “You know the pastor of my church, Tim Richardson?”

 

“Yeah...”

 

“Kevin’s brother.”

 

“No way! Are you shittin’ me?” He twirled around in his desk chair and looked up at her.

 

“Brad...” she scolded.

 

“Sorry. I mean, are you kidding me?”

 

“Crazy, right?”

 

“Now, that is a fine male specimen,” Brad declared.

 

“Who? Tim?”

 

“Well, he’s good looking man, but I was talking about his Backstreet brother.”

 

“He quit the Backstreet Boys five years ago,” Annie reminded him.

 

“Yeah, I know, and it knocked down their sexy factor quite a bit when he left....”

 

“I don’t disagree, but anyway, Brian and Baylee are in town for a visit, and Baylee took up with Drew at the dinner we had after church.”

 

“You Baptists and your after church dinners,” Brad laughed.

 

“Hey! That Baptist after church dinner helped me meet a Backstreet Boy. Of course, it also helped his kid break him arm....”

 

“True.”

 

“Oh, get this! I sang a song from his Christian album during the service this morning. I was mortified!”

 

Brad shook his head and laughed. “Annie, you have the strangest luck. Well, what did he think?”

 

She shrugged. “He seemed impressed, but I’m sure he was just being nice.”

“Honey, I’ve heard you sing, and believe me, he wasn’t just being nice.” An image of an x-ray appeared on Brad’s computer screen and the two of them leaned forward to study it. “Oh wow, that’s a nasty break.”
_________________________________________________________________________

 

“Leighanne, honey, he’s fine. Every little boy is going to break his arm at some point. He’s lucky it took him almost nine years to do it.” Brian was standing in the corner of Baylee’s room in the ER talking as quietly as he could. “I was watching him. It just happened so fast that there wasn’t anything we could do. A lady at Tim’s church happens to be a doctor and she brought us to the ER and got him taken care of immediately........ Sweetie, I don’t think you need to do that.....No, he can’t talk to you right now. The pain medication they gave him knocked him out pretty good.” He sighed. “He was in a lot of pain, Leigh. Believe me, he needed it. I’ll call you if I find out anything else. Just stay put for right now, okay?....I love you.” He hung up and turned to find Annie standing in the doorway.

 

“Mom’s pretty upset, I take it?”

 

Brian nodded. “Yeah.”

 

“Well, I can’t say I blame her.” Annie walked in and picked up Baylee’s chart, glancing over it quickly. “It’s really hard to know your child’s hurting and there’s nothing you can do about it. One time a few months ago, Drew was sick with this nasty stomach bug that I had no doubt brought home from work with me, and Tim and Tracy ended up bringing him here for IV fluids while I was working. I was the only doctor on call, so I had to let the nurses and Tracy take care of him while I took care of all my other patients. It was just the worst feeling ever to not be able to comfort him while he was sick.”

 

“She’s ready to hop on an airplane and fly up here, but I told her she might as well stay put. They’ll put a cast on him, give him a prescription for pain meds and send him on this way. We should be able to get back home by tomorrow and she can dote on him all she wants, right?” He looked to Annie for confirmation.

 

“Well...” She looked back down at Baylee’s chart again.

 

“Well, what? I don’t like that ‘well’!” Brian started to panic.

 

“You may be right Brian, but Dr. Francis and I have both looked at the x-rays, and we agree that we’d like the orthopedic surgeon to come and take a look at him.”

 

“What?! A surgeon? You’re telling me my baby boy might have to have surgery?!” The color had drained from Brian’s face again. “I think I need to sit down.”

 

“Calm down, Brian.” Annie eased him into a chair and patted him on the shoulder. “It’s just a precaution. Fractures in children are tricky because depending on their location they can interfere with future bone growth. It looks like Baylee missed the growth plate by a few millimeters, but....”

 

“What?! Are you telling me that my kid’s arm may never grow any longer than it is now and he’s going to walk around with lop-sided arms???” He was staring to hyperventilate.

 

“Brian, chill out! Do you need a Xanax?”

 

“That would be great.” He bent forward and put his head in between his knees.

 

“I was kidding.”

 

“Oh.” Brian straightened up and blushed.

 

“Oh, good. You’re getting your color back,” Annie teased.

 

Just as Baylee started to stir, Brad and another doctor appeared at the door. “Hey, Baylee. This is doctor Tony, and he’s going to take a look at your arm, okay?” Baylee nodded and his eyes fluttered shut again.

 

The orthopedist introduced himself to Brian with a firm handshake and lifted the ice pack off of Baylee’s arm, which was propped up on a couple of pillows. It was still incredibly swollen and turning a lovely shade of purple. Brian blanched again, and Annie gave him a strong pat on the back. “The dads are always the worst.” She and Brad shared a quick laugh.

 

“Really? You haven’t met my wife, then.”

 

Baylee hissed as Dr. Tony lifted his arm and examined it and Brian gripped the bed rail until his knuckles were white and looked away. “Oh, the moms do their fair share of freaking out, but always manage to stay calm when in the presence of their children. When Baylee throws up, who cleans it up? Who cleans the skinned knees and kisses the boo-boos?” Annie asked.

 

“Leighanne,” he replied quietly. “Well, I’m a good boo-boo kisser, but when it comes to the other stuff...yeah, I tend to tuck tail and leave until the mess is cleaned up.” He gave her a weak smile.

 

“I rest my case.” She smirked.

 

“Let’s see those x-rays.” Dr. Tony said, holding his hand out. Brad handed the films to him and he put them up on the light board on the opposite side of the room, motioning for Brian to come stand by him. “This is Baylee’s distal radius, and this is his ulna,” he said, pointing to a film. “As you can see, they are both broken.” Brian nodded silently. “Luckily, the break does appear to have missed his growth plate, so I don’t think he’ll have any problems with bone growth.”

 

Brian breathed a sigh of relief and placed a hand over his heart. “That’s good news.”

 

“Now here’s the tricky part.” Brian paled, and Annie couldn’t help but stifle a laugh. She was starting to wonder what his natural skin tone actually was. Dr. Tony went on. “You see how the parts of the bones closest to his wrist are shifted a little to the right?”

 

“Yeah...” Brian whispered.

 

“That’s what we call a displaced fracture, and ordinarily the standard of care is to do surgery and put some screws in to hold the bones in place until they heal, but...”

 

Annie placed her hand on Brian’s shoulder and gave it a squeeze. “I don’t really like the sound of that,” he admitted, glancing back to Baylee, who was obliviously sleeping in his bed.

 

“But,” the surgeon went on. “I think there’s a good chance that we might be able to avoid surgery if we put him in traction for a few days and give the bones to set before we put a cast on.”

 

Brian crossed his arms and nodded. “Is that something you need to do here, or..?”

 

“Mr. Littrell, I understand that you are from out of town, and this is a very small hospital, but I feel like traveling with Baylee and jostling the bones around right after injury will almost guarantee that he’ll need surgery.”

 

“Okay then. Let’s put him in traction.” Brian nodded affirmatively.

“I’ll go get his admission set up,” Brad said as he and Dr. Tony walked out of the room. Annie started to follow them out, but Brian reached out and grabbed her hand.

She twirled around and stared at him quizzically. “Thank you,” he said firmly. “I don’t know what I would have done without you today.”

Chapter 4 by emily_michele
“Oh, Brian, it’s not a big deal. It’s my job.”

Brian stepped closer so that he was facing her and put his hands on her shoulders. “No. It is a big deal. It was your day off, and while you could have just sent Baylee and me here and gone on with the rest of your day, you gave up the day you had to spend with your baby and spent it taking care of me and my baby instead. I don’t know how I could ever repay you for that.”

Annie’s mouth twitched and she looked at him expectantly. “Well....” she said “There is maybe one thing you could do....”

“Anything. Just name it.”

She reached into her pocket and pulled out her Blackberry. “Take a picture with me?”

Brian chuckled. “You know, for a minute there, I almost forgot you were a fan. Do you want my autograph, too?”

“Nah. I’ve already got it on the fifty pieces of paper you signed giving us permission to treat your son. Don’t worry though, I’ll crop out all the personal information before I frame it and sell it on Ebay.” She gave him a wink.

“While I’m pretty sure you’re joking, there was a nurse who ended up getting fired from the hospital after Leighanne gave birth because of something similar...”

Annie shook her head in disbelief. “I just don’t understand people sometimes. So, I need you to stand really close to me, lean your head up against mine, and look like you’re madly in love with me.”

Brian laughed. “How about I just say ‘cheese’?”

She pouted. “I guess that works, too.” He took the phone from her and put an arm around her waist, then held his other arm out in front of them and aimed the camera. “Cheese!” They both whispered, trying not to wake Baylee.


He handed the Blackberry back to her. “What do you think?”

“Well, that’s no good.” She took one look at it, clicked the rollerball, and deleted it.

“What did you do that for?” Brian asked shrilly. “I thought that was a good picture of us!”

“It was, but it looked too much like we were in a hospital.”

“We are in a hospital.”

“I know, but I can’t go tweeting a picture of you in a hospital, can I?”

“You have a Twitter?”

“Yep. You’re looking at one of your one hundred thousand followers.”

“It’s a hundred and seventy-five thousand, actually. I mean, uh...”
Annie pretended to ignore him. “Let’s go stand by that wall over there.” Brian followed her and they posed again. “Perfect. That beige wall could be anywhere.” She smiled as she examined the screen. “You don’t mind if I tweet this do you?”

“No, not at all. Actually, tag me so I can track you down later.”

Annie let out a little squeal. “My friend Beth’s gonna flip! Of course, she’d like it more if it was AJ....”

Brian stuck out his tongue at her and they laughed. “Tell you what, I’ll hook her up sometime. Although, I’m not sure when we’ll be touring the US again...”

“I’ll hold you to it.”

He cleared his throat and straightened his posture, then took a step closer to her. “So, um....Back at the church, before Drew tried to eat a wooly worm and Baylee went sailing over the stair railing and broke his arm, I was hoping to talk to you about something.”

“Okay. What?” Annie tucked her cell phone back into her pocket and gave him her undivided attention.

“So, you know how I asked you if you’d ever considered singing professionally?”

“Yeah...”

“Well, I have a studio in my basement, and now that we’re on a break from touring, I’ve been working on a second Christian album.”

“I wondered if you were ever going to do that. Welcome Home was just amazing,” she raved.

“I’m glad you liked it. A second one’s way overdue. But anyway, I’m also doing a little producing for Altar Records, and I think I would be doing them a disservice if I didn’t at least try to recruit you.”

Annie gasped and backed away from him a little with wide eyes. “Brian, while I’m flattered, you’re about ten or fifteen years too late. I have a job. I have responsibilities. I have Drew to think about.”

“I know that, but one of the great things about Christian music is that you don’t have to tour and make music videos all the time to be successful. Get played on K-Love and sell the rights to your songs to Daywind so they can make performance tracks like the one you sang ‘Over my Head’ with today, and you’re pretty much set. Maybe you make a lot of money, maybe you don’t, but God gave you a gift, Annie, and your voice could reach so many more people outside of your little church in this little town. I’m not saying you have to quit your job or give up your time with Drew. I’m just saying you’ve got an opportunity here, and I think you should take it.”

“Brian....” Annie paced back and forth, fidgeting with her hands. “You may think I’m good enough for something like that, but who’s to say anyone else does?”

“Trust me, Annie. Anyone who thinks you’re not good enough for a record deal, even one with a secular record company, is going to be in the minority.”

Annie stopped pacing and sighed. This was the stuff dreams were made of. It was exactly the kind of scenario she’d imagined and daydreamed about as a teenager singing solos with the church choir. But things were just so different now. She’d been through so much in her 29 years, and she’d finally found normalcy. She wasn’t about to mess up the life she’d made for herself. “I’m sorry, Brian, but I’m going to have to turn you down on this one.”

His shoulders dropped. “Really?”

“Yeah, really.”

“Hmmm....” He stood there for a minute in deep thought before the proverbial lightbulb above his head turned on. “I think I have the perfect solution for you!”

“Oh, really?” She crossed her arms over her chest.

“Just hear me out for a minute.”

“Fine.”

“There’s a track I’m doing for my own album that would sound great as a duet with a female voice. It would only take a day or two, tops. Come down to Atlanta and just give it a try. I’m sure Baylee would love to see Drew again, and you could at least see what it’s like. Maybe you’ll change your mind, and if you don’t, well, I’m only out the cost of a plane ticket and end up with an awesome voice joining me on my song. Of course, you’ll get half the royalties from the song. Heck, maybe I’ll even give you all of them.”


“Brian, I don’t think...”

He placed a hand on one of her crossed arms. “I’m not letting you say no, yet. At least consider it. I’ll be here for a few days, so you can let me know what your decision is before we leave town. Go home and talk it over with your husband.”

“My husband.” Annie glanced down at her left hand and the thin platinum band on her ring finger glinted in the harsh fluorescent light. “You know Brian, I think I’ll do that.”
Chapter 5 by emily_michele
>

“You need to call mommy,” Baylee whimpered to Brian after being rudely awakened by the orthopedist setting his arm and placing it in traction, which to both Brian and Annie looked more like a Chinese torture device.

Brian sighed. “She’s gonna freak out,” he muttered to Annie under his breath. He dialed her number and handed the phone to Baylee. “You want to talk to her?”

“Yes!” Baylee grabbed the phone with his free hand and almost immediately started talking, as Leighanne must have answered before the first ring even completed. “Mom! You need to come quick! They put my arm in a tractor!” he squealed.

 

“Traction,” Brian corrected him.

 

“Contraction,” Baylee said. “Doesn’t that have something to do with babies?” He paused for a moment and listened to Leighanne. “Well, anyway, they have my arm in a contraption and they say I have to stay here for 34 days!”

 

Three or four days, Baylee,” Brian admonished. “Stop being so dramatic.”

 

They could hear Leighanne speaking loudly but calmly on the other line. Baylee grinned and handed the phone back to Brian. “She wants to talk to you.”

 

“Hey.” He paused. “I knew you wouldn’t listen to me,” he laughed. “No, we already have one rental car. Maybe Tim or I can come pick you up...See you soon.” He hung up and turned to Annie.

 

“That was kinda low, Littrell,” she said with a laugh. “Making your injured son do the dirty work.”

 

“No, it was smart. If I had talked to her first, she wouldn’t have been nearly as calm.” He had a point there. “She’s already at the airport and her flight is supposed to land in Lexington in three hours. I think I’ll see if cousin Tim can pick her up so I can stay with you, okay Bay?” Brian called Tim, and after a quick conversation, turned to Annie and said.,“He’s going to bring Baylee and me some clothes and stuff and drop Drew off here before he heads to the airport to pick up Leighanne.”

 

“Sounds good. I’ll just make sure you and Baylee get settled in, okay?” She started towards the nurses station, but Brian placed a hand on her shoulder.

“Go home, Annie. You’ve been a great help to us today, but I’m sure the nurses and other doctors can handle it from here. I know you’ll be checking back up on us when you come to work, so just go spend the rest of the day with your little boy, okay?”

“Okay, but let me give you my number.” She rushed out of the room to the nearby nurse’s station, grabbed a pen and the nearest piece of paper, jotted her number down, and brought it back to him. “Please don’t hesitate to call me if you need anything at all, okay?”

“Thanks.” Brian took the slip of paper, folded it, pulled out his wallet, and placed the paper safely inside. “And again, thank you so much for everything today. I’m really glad I met you.”

Annie cocked her head to the side and smiled. “I’m glad I met you, too.”
____________________________________________________________________________


“I think you should do it.” Annie jumped at the deep voice vibrating against her ear.

“Do what, Brad?”

“The singing thing he was talking about.”

“You little sneak!” She twirled around and smacked him playfully on the arm. “Didn’t you have anything better to do than to eavesdrop on our conversation? Something like, oh, I don’t know....take care of your patients? Something you should be doing at this very moment, actually?” She had gone outside to wait for Tim and Drew on the sidewalk near the emergency room entrance, and apparently, Brad had decided to join her. Annie took a long look at her mentor and friend. He had been the youngest attending in the hospital when she’d done her clinical rotations there as a fourth year medical student, and when he realized he grew up with her husband, he’d immediately taken her under his wing.

“It’s dead in there. Only about half the number of patients we’re used to having at a time and they’re all either waiting for test results to come back or getting discharged or moved to an inpatient bed. I absolutely have nothing better to do at the moment than to be out here talking to you.” Annie didn’t say anything, and instead looked down at her watch. She anticipated Tim’s arrival any minute. “You should do it,” Brad coaxed. “And not just the duet. The whole shebang. Leave this place and go do what makes you happy.”

“Brad, that’s the thing. I am happy right now.”

“Bullshit.” Annie averted her eyes down to the ground and kicked at a pebble on the sidewalk. She watched it bounce along the concrete and roll off into the parking lot. “Tell me again how much you love your job?”

“Brad, I...” She was interrupted by the sound of his pager blaring from his hip, which she was thankful for, because she really didn’t have a good response for him anyway.

He looked down, fiddled with some buttons, and sighed. “I have to take this.” He started back towards the sliding glass doors of the ER entrance and turned back to her for a moment. “This conversation isn’t over yet, Annie Morgan!” He declared, pointing a finger at her before turning and jogging back inside.

Shortly thereafter, Tim pulled up with a suitcase and Drew in tow. “Mama!” Drew squealed with outstretched arms as he tried to squirm out of Tim’s grasp.

“Drew!” Annie answered with equal enthusiasm. She scooped him into her arms and smothered his face with kisses, eliciting the most beautiful giggles she had ever heard. “Mommy missed you! Were you a good boy for Tim and Tracy today?” Drew have her a big, drooly grin that lit up his brilliant green eyes.

Tim cleared his throat. “There might have been a little incident with the toilet. The water was at least clean when he started splashing in it, though.” Tim held up a plastic grocery bag. “Tracy washed his clothes anyway.”

“I should have warned you that he discovered the toilet water. I was brushing my teeth the other day and heard this splashing sound behind me. I turned around and he was drenched. Ran out and bought a couple of those toilet locks the next day.”  She took the bag from him.  “She didn’t have to do that, by the way.”

 

Tim shrugged.  “No big deal.  She was washing Brian and Baylee’s clothes anyway.  They were supposed to leave after church today, and they were fishing all day yesterday.  It was bad.”

 

She laughed, took the bag from Tim and thanked him, then took Drew home. She fed him dinner, then spent a couple hours playing with blocks and watching Sesame Street before she bathed him, read him a story, and put him to bed. Once he had drifted off, she spent a few minutes just standing by his crib and staring at him. He had rolled over onto his stomach and pulled his knees up to his chest, his little behind sticking straight up in the air. She watched the even rise and fall of his back as his breath fell over his plump little lips in soft sighs, then leaned over and stroked his fine blonde hair with her fingers. Her breath caught in her throat and she choked back a sob as his eyelashes fluttered lightly against his round, rosy cheeks and he clenched his chubby little fists tightly around his blue blanket. This was what life was about. What love was about. Drew had her eyes, but once they closed, everything else was 100% his father. “Sweet dreams, baby,” she whispered as she tip-toed out of the nursery.

 

After loading the dishwasher and starting a load of laundry, she settled onto the couch with her laptop and a small glass of wine. She grabbed the cashmere throw off the back of the couch and hugged it around her shoulders before opening up her laptop. First, the checked her e-mail, then she gave her work schedule for that week a quick glance before opening up her Twitter account and giggling. “Chirpin’ at ya! Thanks for everything!” Was the first new tweet she received from @brian_littrell, followed by several more that just said “Chirp!,” CHIRP!,” “cHirp!,” “chIrp!,” chiRp!”, and “chirP!” Apparently, Baylee was asleep and Brian was bored.

 

“You have too much time on your hands,” she “chirped” back at him.

 

Almost immediately, she got a response. “CHIRP!!!” She rolled her eyes and laughed. “What a goofball.”

 

Chapter 6 by emily_michele
“Push another 0.25 mg of epi and resume chest compressions.” Annie wiped the sweat from her forehead and sighed. “Do we know what he was doing before he went down? Has anyone checked his blood glucose level?” A nurse stepped toward the bed with a glucometer and pricked the little boy’s finger.

“99,” said solemnly.

“Okay, so he’s not hypoglycemic. Hold CPR.” She stared at the heart monitor screen and watched the artificial rhythm created by the chest compressions fall back into a flat line. “Damn it! Resume compressions and give 20 units of vasopressin.” She heard a sob behind her and turned to see the boy’s mother collapse into her husband’s arms and scream. “Get them out of here!” Annie barked, pointing a finger hastily towards the door. A nurse gently led them out and she turned her attention back to the patient lying lifelessly in front of her. “Give another round of epinephrine and check for a rhythm.” Her own heart fluttered in her chest as the line on the monitor jumped and jiggled harshly. “V Fib! That’s a shockable rhythm!” She reached for the paddles and held them to his tiny chest. “Charge to 200. Clear!” The little boy’s body jerked unnaturally off the bed and she looked back to the heart monitor, praying for a stable rhythm. A slow, unsteady rhythm pulsed across the screen and she placed the pads of two fingers against his neck to feel for his carotid artery. Nothing. “Let’s see if we can get a pressure.”

A nurse brought a blood pressure cuff over to the little boy’s arm and slipped in on gently. “I can’t really get anything, Dr. Morgan,” she lamented.

Annie could feel the familiar beginnings of tears pricking at her eyes and blinked rapidly in an attempt to keep them at bay. “Let’s um....start a dopamine drip and resume compressions.” She watched helplessly as the pharmacist mixed the fluid and a nurse hung the bag. “Give another round of epi,” she rasped.

Brad slipped into the room silently and pulled the door shut behind him. “How long has he been down, Ann?”

She looked up at the clock on the wall. The seconds ticked by unnaturally slowly. She felt like she’d been there all day. “About 25 minutes. Now check for a rhythm,” she instructed her team. The young man doing compressions halted and all eyes turned to the monitor. A flat line ran across the screen, and the only sound that could be heard was the whoosh of air breathing for the little boy through the ventilator. “Is it time for another epi?”

“It’s only been a minute and a half, Dr. Morgan,” a nurse answered her softly.

“Okay.” Annie nodded slowly and gulped. It felt like daggers were shooting down her dry throat. “Let’s try 1 gram of magnesium, followed by bicarb. Turn the fluids wide open and resume compressions.” She looked down at the little boy and stroked his curly blonde hair with her gloved hands. “It’s up to you and God now, sweetie,” she whispered softly. It felt like the temperature of the room raised by twenty degrees and her heart slammed in her chest. Harsh pounding echoed in her ears and her stomach flopped wildly. She fought the wave of dizziness that swept over her and turned her attention back to the heart monitor. “Give another round of epi and check for a pulse, then somebody needs to go check on his family and tell them we’re doing everything we can.”

“Ann......” Brad pushed his way over to her and laid a hand on her arm. “It’s been half an hour,” he said gently. “We need to think about letting him go.”

“What if he was mine?!” she snapped. “Would you be stopping if this was Drew on the table? Now, push another epi!” Brad closed his eyes and nodded at the nurse, who stood poised with a syringe in her hand. They went on for another twenty minutes, and when two entire code boxes of meds had been exhausted, five people had taken their turn giving chest compressions, and Annie had sent up countless desperate, pleading prayers, it was Brad who called it.

“Time of death 16:54.”


Annie removed her gloves and put a bare hand to the three year old little boy’s cold cheek. “Fly to Jesus, sweet baby,” she soothed. Then, she let the tears fall.

“Annie, I can go tell his parents if you want.”

She looked up at Brad, sniffled, and wiped at the streams cascading down her cheeks with the backs of her hands. “No. He was my patient first. I’ll do it.... but can you come with me?”

He nodded. “Get the room cleaned up and make him look presentable,” he instructed the staff. “They’ll probably want to see him. Annie.” He held out to her and she took it. “Put your white coat on. There’s blood on your scrubs from when you started the central line, and I know you won’t take the time to change.”

Annie looked down at the red spatters on her baby blue scrub top and grabbed her white coat from a nearby hook. After they’d spoken to the little boy’s grief-stricken parents, she left the waiting room and ran down the hall towards the double doors leading outside and into the rain, where she immediately pulled her dark auburn locks back from her face and vomited violently onto the wet grass. “You okay, Annie?” She turned to find Brad standing under the awning.

“Yeah,” she lied, straightening up and smoothing her scrub top down haphazardly. “Just needed some fresh air.”

“You look like a drowned rat.”

“Oh, thanks.” Annie started back inside, but Brad grabbed her arm and turned her towards him.

“Tell me again how much you like your job,” he demanded.

“You know I hate it.”

“Thank you. I love working with you, Annie. You’re an amazing doctor, but you’re miserable. You think you can save every patient, and when you can’t you fall apart agonize over it for days. You can’t do that in this profession. I’m not saying you’re not supposed to care, because you are, but you can’t keep going on like this. Now are you going to think more about Brian’s proposal from yesterday?”

Annie bit her lip nervously. “I think I’ll talk to Andrew about it tomorrow,” she said softly.

“You’re going to talk to Andew. Really?”

“Yeah, Brad, really.” She knew he thought she was a lunatic, but she didn’t care.

“Well, uh...okay then. Go change and get out of here. Your shift ends in half an hour anyway.”
End Notes:
Please review! Pretty please?
Chapter 7 by emily_michele
Author's Notes:

Something really strange happened with this chapter and the link somehow got broken. I had to delete and re-upload the chapter. If you've read chapter 8 but got a blank page on chapter 7, read this. It will fill in some blanks. Unfortunately, it also deleted the reviews for this chapter :(


Annie changed into a clean pair of lavender scrubs and pulled her damp hair into a ponytail before taking the stairs up to the third floor. She tapped lightly on the open hospital room door and peeked her head inside. “Hey! Where’s Baylee?”

“Oh, hi Annie!” Brian smiled and jumped up from his seated position on the windowsill to greet her. “He’s gone down to x-ray. Dr. Tony just wanted to check and make sure the bones are still aligned okay.”
“How’s be been doing?”

“Fine. Not as much pain as yesterday. Better now that Leighanne’s here. She walked with them when they wheeled him downstairs.”

She noticed an older couple sitting in the chairs by the window and realized that the man looked just like a rounder, balder version of Brian. “You must be Baylee’s grandparents.”

“Are you Baylee’s nurse?” Brian’s dad asked her. “He was saying something about popsicles....”

“I’ll see what I can do.” Annie gave Brian a wink. He opened his mouth to protest, but she’d already gone to the freezer at the nurse’s station to see what kind of popsicles they had. She felt a presence behind her when she opened the freezer.

“Sorry about my dad.” Brian’s voice tickled the back of her neck.

“What are you doing behind the nurse’s station?”

“The nurses love me.” He smirked. She glanced over to find two nurses, both probably in their early twenties, whispering to each other and giggling, and rolled her eyes. “You know you’re probably old enough to be their dad, right?”

“You know I am not that old!”

“What? About 36? Technically.....”

“Oh, hush! That’s weird.”

Annie dug around through a box of popsicles, bringing several up to eye level one at a time so that she could look through the white wrappers and see the colors. “Do you think Baylee would like orange or grape?”

“Grape. Definitely.” Annie handed him two grape popsicles. “So, like I was saying before...sorry about my dad. I let him know you were actually a doctor.”

Annie unwrapped an orange popsicle and licked it slowly. “Like I said to you yesterday, it’s a southern gentleman thing. It’s fine.” She took the popsicle back into her mouth and sucked greedily so that the coldness could soothe her throat, sore from crying earlier.

Brian’s eyes nearly bugged out of his head and he cleared his throat uncomfortably. “So, uh....Bad day?”

Annie narrowed her eyes at him and took the popsicle out of her mouth. “What makes you think that?”

“You just look really tired.” He tucked a stray curl that had fallen out of her ponytail behind her ear and she sighed.

“Yeah. It was definitely a Monday....a bad Monday.”

“I’m sure working in emergency medicine is pretty tough. Does this have anything to do with the code blue in the ER I heard them call over the intercom earlier?” Annie squeezed her eyes shut and the saw the little boy with curly blonde hair laying on a stretcher, blue and lifeless.

“I hate my job,” she blurted out.

“Oh. Uh....” Brian stammered.

“Sorry. That wasn’t really supposed to come out.” Annie sighed and caught some drips from her melting popsicle with her lips, then bit into it.

“Can I ask you a question?” Brian’s eyes searched hers imploringly. “If you hate your job, why were you so quick to tell me no yesterday?”

Annie chewed on her popsicle thoughtfully. “It’s complicated Brian, and I don’t think I know you well enough to tell you about it. But....”

“But?”

“I think I’m going to talk to my husband about it tonight. Maybe tomorrow.”
______________________________________________________________________________


Early the next morning after dropping Drew off at Tim and Tracy’s house, Annie parked her car, turned off the engine, and took a deep breath. It had finally stopped raining the night before, and the sun was now streaming down on the morning dew, creating a fine fog that hovered just over the grass. She stepped out of the car onto the little road and the gravel crunched underneath her tennis shoes as she walked gingerly along the path to where he was. She stepped onto the soft grass and sauntered over to it, then bent down and ran her hand along the smooth marble before placing a single red rose on the grass in front and dropping down to her knees. The wetness from that morning’s dew and the rain the day before soaked through her jeans to her knees, sending a slight chill through her body. Her finger traced lightly over the engraved lettering that spelled out “Andrew David Morgan,” and a single tear trickled down her cheek and landed on a blade of grass, blending in with the dew.


“It’s hard to believe it’s been so long, Andrew. Some days it feels like just yesterday when you went away. Other times, it feels like I’ve already had to spend an eternity without you.” She paused for a moment and looked down at her left ring finger. The delicate metal glimmered in the sunlight. “I took my engagement ring off a couple months ago and tucked it into a dresser drawer. Every once in a while, when I really get to missing you, I take it back out and put it on for a few minutes. It’s such a beautiful ring, but even now I can’t believe you spent so much money on the dang thing. I still can’t bring myself to take off my wedding band, though. I know you’d tell me that’s silly, but it’s baby steps, I say. Maybe someday. It’s so much a part of me that I can’t even imagine what my finger feels like without it. I didn’t even take those rings off when I was pregnant and my fingers started swelling. One particularly warm day, my finger started to turn a little purple and Brad threatened to cut them off. I told him to do it and die.” She laughed through her tears. “He told me to suit myself when the gangrene set it and they had to cut off my finger. The swelling went down that day though, enough that my finger got its normal color back, and we didn’t even have to cut it off...or the rings. I would have let him do it if it was really that bad, you know. I’m crazy, but I’m not stupid.”

She stopped talking and breathed in the breeze that rustled the leaves on the trees, which were just starting to turn into brilliant reds, oranges, and yellows. “Sorry, I’m rambling. Anyway, guess what? I met a Backstreet Boy two days ago. Can you believe it? It wasn’t at all like I imagined it so many years ago. I mean, we bonded over our kids, and we’re both wearing wedding bands. He’s a really nice man. Kind of reminds me of my brother. I think you’d like him. I met him at church. You remember when one of the Backstreet Boys quit the band a few years ago and I got so upset over it? And of course, you made fun of me for it and said maybe you could become the new fifth Backstreet Boy, so I could finally be married to one. Sorry, babe, but I say it still wouldn’t have worked out. I love you, but you can’t carry a tune in a bucket.” She smiled wistfully. “Anyway, Kevin, the Backstreet Boy who quit a few years ago, is actually the brother of Tim, my pastor. How crazy is that? I never once even suspected it until his cousin Brian showed up at the church service. Now here’s where it gets really crazy. I sang one of his songs....and he liked it! He liked it so much that he wants me to go down to Atlanta and record a contemporary Christian album with him! It’s a dream come true, really, but..... I just don’t know if I can do it.” The wind blowing around her picked up and blew her hair harshly across her face.

“It’s not that I don’t want to. I do. I really do, but..... it’s Drew. I chose to do an ER residency and work in emergency medicine because it pays really well and I could work fewer hours and still make a good living. Plus, I didn’t want to go into a field that would require me to take call from home and go into the hospital at all hours of the night when I was off the clock. I know you loved delivering babies, and you were great at it, but I just didn’t want that kind of lifestyle. When an ER doc leaves the ER, another doctor comes in and takes his or her place. We see our patients and either send them home or transfer their care to another doctor, so we don’t have to take it home with us. That’s why I chose it. I know you’ve heard this a million times before, but I promise there’s a point here.” Her voice got so quiet that it literally disappeared in the wind. Not that it mattered. She was sure Andrew heard anyway. “I lost a patient yesterday. A little boy. He looked like a mix between Drew and Brian’s little boy, Baylee. It was kind of creepy, actually. He was only three, and he just.....died. If he was sick, nobody knew it. I worked on him for an hour, Andrew, but he was just....gone. If felt like someone tore out my heart and stomped all over it. Even though I don’t have to, I still take it home with me. Every. Single. Day. I’m just so tired, sweetheart,” she whimpered. “I don’t think I can do it anymore. I’ve never told you this, but....I didn’t even really want to be a doctor in the first place. I became a doctor because....well, because that was what was expected of me.....and because of you. You were so good at what you did, and to see you come home after a delivery beaming and so amazed at God’s creation after helping bring a new life into the world... it was so beautiful Andrew. I think I would have loved being an obstetrician if it weren’t for the hours. I just can’t do that to Drew. He only has one parent as it is. Don’t get me wrong. It’s very rewarding at times, and I do feel like it was a good career choice for me, but if I’m being honest with myself, all I ever really wanted to do was sing. Of course, dad always reminded me that there were thousands of starving singers in Nashville, New York, and Los Angeles. When we got engaged, just after you graduated medical school and while I was still in college, he sat me down and told me that he didn’t care if I ever worked a day in my life-- that he thought the best thing my mom ever did for my brother and me was to stay home with us while he worked. But, he also said that he wanted me to finish school and get a degree that wouldn’t have me waiting tables to make ends meet just in case.....” She let out a loud sob and clamped a hand over her mouth as the tears flowed freely from her eyes, rolling down her cheeks and across her fingers.

“In case something happened to you. Well, here we are, and something did happen to you, and I’m.....well, I’m not waiting tables. My parents are so proud of me, Andrew, for picking up and going on with my life, but to be honest, the only time I ever feel like I’m living is when I’m with Drew. He is everything. I just don’t know if I want him to have the lifestyle of a musician’s child. How am I supposed to tell Brian that? He is the parent of a musician’s child. Then of course, there’s you. You’re here, you grew up here, your family’s here. I know you’re not really here, but it’s moments like this that I feel closest to you. I just feel like I need to stay here. What do you think I should do, Andrew? Of all the people in my life, other than Drew, and he can’t really talk yet, your opinion, even now, matters more to me than anyone else’s.” The wind that howled around her suddenly stopped, and the leaves that had been whirling around in the air slowly fluttered to the ground. One of them, a yellow maple leaf, drifted and danced in the air in front of her face, then settled on the grass right beside the rose she’d placed in front of Andrew’s tombstone. She looked down at it and gasped. The solid bright yellow was broken by a single patch of red, in the perfect shape of a heart. She knew she had her answer.

Chapter 8 by emily_michele
Author's Notes:
I apologize profusely to those of you were waiting for a new chapter. Somehow, the link to chapter 7 got broken, and it was showing just a blank page. I had to delete and re-upload it, so if you got a blank page for chapter 7, please go back and read it. It fills in some blanks. It was a big chapter for the development of the story.

 

“You’re late,” Brad remarked as Annie came strolling into the ER later that morning.

 

She glanced down at her watch. “By like ten minutes”

 

“But you’re never late! And you even have a kid!”

 

“Well it caught up to me.”

 

As Annie pushed the door to the physician’s lounge open, Brad noticed the damp grass stains on her knees and followed her inside. “What have you been doing? Yard work?”

 

“No, Brad. I haven’t been doing yard work,” she said with an eye roll as she opened her locker, pulled her purse inside, and pulled out a set of scrubs.

 

“Well what have you been doing on your knees in the grass?”

“I went so see Andrew this morning.”

“Oh.” Brad blushed a little. “Well, what did he have to say?” he asked half-mockingly.

“He said plenty.” Annie pulled her mint green scrub top over her head and shimmied out of her jeans.

“So, are you leaving me?”

“I....I don’t know yet.”
_________________________________________________________________________


After her shift that evening, Annie walked upstairs to Baylee’s room. Tim and Tracy had called earlier and said they were coming for a visit, so they would just bring Drew with them.

 

“Annie!” Baylee exclaimed as she walked into the room. “Drew’s here!”

“I see that. How are you feeling Baylee?” she asked as she stooped down and held out her arms while Drew toddled towards her.

“I’m BO-ORED!” Baylee declared exasperatedly.

“I take it that means you’re feeling better, then,” she answered him with a laugh.

“Guess what?” he said excitedly.

 

“What?”

 

“I get to go home tomorrow!”

 

“That’s awesome Baylee!”

 

“You’re a doctor, right?” Baylee asked seriously.

 

“Yes....”

 

“What’s a mobilizer sling?”

 

“You mean an immobilizer sling?” she asked. Baylee shrugged while Brian and Leighanne nodded. “It’s a sling that keeps you from being able to move your arm. That way, the bones stay in place while they grow back together,” she explained.

 

“You mean I still can’t move my stupid arm?”

 

“Sorry, but probably not for a few more weeks.” Baylee huffed and pouted.

 

Leighanne stood up from where she had been perched on the bed beside him and held out her hand. “It’s good to see you again, Annie. I’m sorry we didn’t really get the chance to be formally introduced yesterday.” Baylee had been in a great deal of pain after the movement of going down to x-ray and back, and being exhausted herself, Annie had slipped out and gone home without much talk.

 

“Oh, it’s fine. The little guys always come first,” she said, dropping a kiss onto the top of Drew’s head. “It’s good to see him acting like himself tonight.”

Leighanne smiled. “It definitely is. I want to thank you for all you did for him on Sunday. Brian says you were the level head while everything was going on. Sometimes, these situations just need a woman’s touch, and I’m glad you were there.”

 

Annie shot a look over at Brian and Baylee, who were arm wrestling on top of an empty food tray with Baylee’s good arm. Of course, Baylee was winning and Brian was making a big show out of it. “I’m glad I was, too,” she said with a smile.

 

Leighanne ushered her over to an empty chair and sat on the edge of Baylee’s bed facing her. She smiled at Drew and tickled his belly, then turned her attention back to Annie.

 

“So, Brian and Tim tell me you’re quite the singer.”

 

“That’s what they tell me.” Annie shrugged and allowed Drew to climb out of her lap after glancing at the door to make sure it was closed so he wouldn’t try to escape.

 

“She’s even a gooder singer than you, Mommy!’ Baylee chimed in.

 

Leighanne laughed and patted him on the leg. “Thanks for your support, Baylee. And it’s better, not gooder.”

 

“Well, she’s the bestest girl singer I know, and daddy is the bestest boy singer I know!” he exclaimed.

“It’s best,” Tim corrected. “And I have to agree with you.” Annie blushed and looked across the room at Drew, who was standing on his tip-toes and fiddling with the doorknob. She knew he’d try to make a run for it. Fortunately, she was pretty sure that he didn’t yet have the dexterity to actually get the door open.

“So, do I need to get the guest room ready? Will you be coming down to Atlanta to do some recording with Brian?”

Annie’s eyes widened in surprise and she looked over at Brian, who was smiling widely. “I tell her everything, Annie. Of course she wants you to come.”

Then, she looked over her shoulder at Tim. “Well?” he prompted.

She cleared her throat. “I, uh....yeah. I’m not promising to make any life-altering decisions, but if you’d like me to attempt a duet with you for your album, I’m willing to give it a try.”

“Yeah!” Brian pumped his fist into the air.

“Yay!” Drew giggled and clapped, not wanting to be left out, and the entire room burst into laughter.

“So, I take it your husband is okay with it?” Leighanne asked.

“Your husband?” Tim knit his eyebrows together in confusion. Annie shot him a look, silently pleading with him to keep his mouth shut.

“Yeah. I think he is,” she answered with a nervous smile.

“Great! Will he be coming with you?”

Annie’s heart clenched in her chest. She really wanted to just say “yes,” because technically, he would definitely be with her, but she knew that would just open up a big can of worms. “Actually, no.” She glanced back at Tim, who nodded silently, urging her on. “You see, my Andrew, he’s....” She paused. Just say it, Annie, she thought to herself. He’s dead! “I’m a widow.” In the time since he’d been gone, she had never once said the words “He’s dead” out loud, and this time was no different.

Chapter 9 by emily_michele


Brian and Leighanne gasped while Tim and Tracy nodded knowingly. “Annie....I-I’m sorry,” Brian stammered. “I just assumed.....”

Annie held up her hand to stop him. “It’s okay, Brian. I still wear my wedding band, so it happens a lot, and before you ask me, yes, I did actually talk to him about it, even if you think I’m crazy for doing so.”

“I don’t think you’re crazy at all,” Brian replied earnestly.

“Kevin talks to dad all the time,” Tim said quietly as they fell into an uncomfortable silence.

“So, you’re a Backstreet Boys fan?” Leighanne broke the silence, sounding just a little bit too chipper.

“Yes! For years. I couldn’t believe my eyes when I came face to face with your husband at church.”

“And you never realized Tim was Kevin’s brother?”

“No! I even skipped a Wednesday night service to go to an NKOTBSB concert back in July and he never said a word!” She crossed her arms over her chest and pretended to shoot a dirty look in Tim’s direction.

“It was kinda low, Tim,” Tracy reprimanded him.

He held his hands up in defense. “I don’t talk about my famous brother. It’s just not my style. I did, however, mention to Annie that I had family in the music business who would be impressed with her. Hence....” He motioned towards Brian.

“I still don’t understand, though,” Leighanne interjected. “You’re Drew’s babysitter. Are there not pictures around your house of Kevin and Brian?”

“Well, we just moved into a new house....” Tim explained.

“And Tracy’s only been keeping Drew for a couple months,” Annie jumped in. “Things didn’t work out with the last babysitter. Still, though, I really don’t know how I didn’t see it, either. Now, if we were in Irvine, I think i would have picked up on it right away.” She turned to Brian. “You know, I used to drive through Irvine on the way to visit my brother at EKU back when I was in high school and imagine somehow running into Kevin, who would happen to be in his hometown for a visit. Same for you in Lexington.”

“Really now?” Brian’s eyes danced in amusement.

Annie blushed. “Now you think I’m a crazy fan girl, don’t you?”

“Nah, not really. But, why would you drive through Irvine to get to Richmond from here? Wouldn’t you go right up I-75? Hmm. Now that I think about it, if you were driving through Irvine to get to Richmond in hopes of running into Kevin....I’d say that definitely makes you a crazy fan girl. Maybe I should take back my offer....”

“Oh, hush! That was like twelve years ago, and even so, I’m still not that desperate. I didn’t grow up in Berea. I’m from Jackson. So, yes, Irvine was along the way.”

Brian placed his hand over his heart dramatically. “Well, that’s a relief. How did you end up in Berea?”

“Um....” Annie bit her bottom lip nervously. “My husband,” she replied quickly. She was met with another uncomfortable silence.

Leighanne broke the silence again. “So, is Tim in the doghouse for never introducing you to his Backstreet Boy family members?”

“Well, of course! He only ever referred to Kevin as his brother, ‘Mr. California.’ I imagined a Bohemian street performer to be honest, I’ve met his mom, Ann, and his other brother, Jerald......” Annie trailed off and clapped a hand over her mouth. “Oh my gosh! Of course you’re Kevin Richardson’s brother! What kind of a fan am I?!” Everyone, Annie included, started laughing.

“One who’s human and not too creepy?” Brian answered with a guffaw. “So, now that we’ve established that you’re not a creepy fan girl, do you want to make some preliminary travel arrangements? I will need a few days to get things in order, but after that, you can come any time. Do you need to talk to your boss about getting some time off, or.....?”

“Well, I only work three days a week, so if it would only take a few days, I might not even need to ask for any time off.”

“Annie, you should give yourself a break. Maybe it would be good for you to take some time off...” Tim coaxed.

“Drew! No!” Annie jumped up as the toddler wandered into the bathroom and grabbed his wrist just before his hand hit the toilet water. Drew’s face crumpled and his lower lip quivered, then the meltdown started.

“WAAAHHH!” he wailed as tears streamed down his red cheeks.

“I’m sorry, sweetie,” Annie said patiently. “We can’t play in the yucky toilet.” He continued to scream, and tried to wiggle out of her grasp when she scooped him up onto her hip. “He’s probably tired....and hungry. I think this is my cue to leave,” she said to the room apologetically. “Tracy, we’ll see you in the morning?”

Tracy nodded with a smile. “Night-night, Drew.”

He continued to cry, and Annie turned to the Littrells. “I’ll get up with you sometime tomorrow. Did they tell you what time to expect to be discharged?”

“Dr. Tony wanted him to spend another day in traction, so he said tomorrow afternoon around 3 or 4. We have a flight out of Lexington at 7:00,” Leighanne said loudly over Drew’s screams.

“See you tomorrow.” Annie looked down at Drew and sighed, then left the room.
_________________________________________________________________________


“Be sure you give him his pain medicine before you get on the plane. The plane ride is going to be uncomfortable for him as it is. You want to try to prevent the pain, not treat it after the fact. Oh, and you’ll probably want to give him some Dramamine, too, even if he doesn’t tend to get airsick. The codeine might make him a little queasy. Just make sure that it’s the non-drowsy kind, or it will be kind of like mixing pain meds and alcohol, which is bad news. How much does he weigh again? Do you need me to write down the dose?”

“Annie, I wrote it down ten minutes ago,” Brian said with a laugh. “You are such a mother hen, you know that?”

She grinned sheepishly. “Sorry, but we’re talking about my second favorite boy here. The doctor and the mommy in me can’t help it.”

“Thank you again for everything, Annie. I’ll call you in a few days, and we’ll get you down to Atlanta to do some singin’.” Brian enveloped her into a hug.

“Yes, Annie. Thank you, and we’ll see you soon,” Leighanne also have her a friendly hug.

“Thanks for making sure my dad didn’t throw up when I broke my arm,” Baylee told her with a grin. “And I’m excited you and Drew are coming to visit.”

“Take care, Baylee, and do what the doctor says so that arm gets better quick, okay?” Annie tousled his hair and gave him a careful hug, making sure not to disturb his arm. “You guys be safe.” She started down the hallway and turned back to give them a quick wave before heading back down to the ER.

“Where have you been?” Brad asked her as he closed a patient chart and looked up at her.

“The Littrells are getting ready to go back home. I just wanted to see them off.”

“You seem to have gotten pretty chummy with the Littrell family,” he observed.

“They’re good people.”

“So, are you leaving me for them?”

“I, uh.....I’m going to need a few days off.”

Brad smiled. “Good for you.”

Chapter 10 by emily_michele
Three weeks later, Annie found herself in first class on a plane headed to Atlanta from Bluegrass Airport. Brian and Leighanne had insisted on paying for her ticket, and even bought Drew his own seat, insisting that they’d done plenty of traveling with a small child and that having Drew in his carseat was definitely the way to go. She looked over at the sleeping baby and thanked her lucky stars that they were able to book a flight during his nap time. Her heart skipped a beat when the pilot’s voice blared over the intercom declaring that they were cleared for takeoff, and as the plane taxied down the runway, her fingers gripped the arms of her chair until her knuckles were white. When the plane picked up speed, she could feel the contents of her stomach starting to rise in her throat and her head started to spin. Hot tears pricked at the corners of her eyes and she gulped in an attempt to keep her stomach under control. In the icy grip of fear, she thought of Andrew, and once the plane had stopped its climb and leveled out safely in the air, she opened her eyes and breathed a sigh of relief. Then, Drew started screaming.

A flight attendant immediately jumped into action, bringing him cookies, juice, and crayons, but to no avail. “I guess you share my fear of flying, don’t you, sweetie?” Annie glanced up to make sure the seatbelt light was off, then unstrapped him from his car seat and dug around in the diaper bag one-handed for toys and a pacifier, but he continued to wail for the next hour and a half. He finally quieted down and fell back asleep just as the plane started its descent into Atlanta. Annie was so exhausted that it didn’t even occur to her to be frightened, and when the plane finally rolled to a stop at the terminal, she stayed seated and mumbled about a hundred apologies to the other exasperated passengers who stepped off the plane.

The flight attendant helped her ease Drew into a stroller and collect her carry-ons, and when she finally arrived at baggage claim, Brian who was already waiting with her luggage, stepped into action and took the carseat and diaper bag off her hands. “How was your flight?”

Annie’s eyes shot daggers at him. “I hope you like having house guests, because I’m pretty sure no one is going to be able to convince me to get back on a plane alone with that child before he’s twenty.”

Brian pursed his lips to keep from laughing. “That good, huh?” She literally growled at him. “It gets better. I promise,” he assured her.

“How did you know those were mine?” Annie asked, motioning to the dark purple suitcases at Brian’s feet.

“Well, they were pretty like you, so I took a guess.” She raised an eyebrow. “And...most everyone else had already gotten their luggage, and your name’s on them. At least, I think that’s your name. Annie is short for Andrea?”

Annie laughed. “Unconventional, I know. When I was born, my older brother, who was three at the time, couldn’t pronounce Andrea, so he shortened it to Annie and it stuck.”

“So you and your husband were Andrea and Andrew?”

“That’s why I call this one Drew,” she said, giving the stroller a little shove.

“I see.” Brian ushered her to his car, somehow managing to carry a carseat and diaper bag, and roll three suitcases along, while still opening and holding doors. He installed Drew’s car seat in the back like an expert and made sure Drew was gently secured inside without waking him before he held open the front passenger side door and motioned for Annie to climb in. This was all new territory for Annie. She was used to doing everything by herself, but she had to admit that it was pretty nice. “I hope you’re hungry,” Brian said once they’d gotten on the road. “Because Leighanne is preparing a dinner of epic proportions. You should come visit more often.”

Annie giggled. “For all you know, I could be a terrible house guest.”

“I doubt it.”

Baylee came tearing across the yard when they pulled into the large, circular driveway. “Annie! Drew!”

“Baylee!” Brian scolded as he stepped out of the car. “No running! You have a broken arm! And no yelling. Drew’s asleep.”

“Sorry!” Baylee whispered. “Hi, Annie.”

“Hey, kiddo. How’s the arm?”

“Good. I finally get to move it. See?” He swayed his arm back and forth awkwardly. He had traded the immobilizer sling, which wrapped around his body and kept his arm propped up against a cushion, for a traditional sling. “The bone doctor here says I can get my cast off in twenty-nine days!”

“He’s counting,” Brian, who was pulling suitcases out of the trunk, chimed in.

“I’d be counting, too,” Annie told Baylee. “This place is amazing,” she remarked, looking up at the sprawling mansion in front of her as Baylee ducked inside.

“This is all Leighanne. Speaking of...”

Leighanne pushed open the front door and stuck her head out. “Hello, Annie, how was the-?”

“Don’t ask her about the flight,” Brian interrupted, placing a suitcase on the front steps.

“Okay.... Drew didn’t handle it very well, I take it?”

“No. Not at all,” Annie sighed. She climbed into the backseat and pulled Drew out of his car seat. He rubbed his eyes and looked up at her with a smile. “We’re here, baby boy,” she cooed.

“Oh my gosh! What happened to his hand?!” Leighanne exclaimed.

Annie gently turned his right palm towards her and studied it. The cut was healing nicely. “He was ‘helping’ me unload the dishwasher faster than I could put the dishes up, and threw a glass in the floor. He grabbed a piece before I could react. I felt terrible.”

“You hear that, Leighanne? This one unloads the dishwasher. Maybe we should get a newer model,” Brian jabbed.

“Brian, that’s terrible!” both women scolded in unison.

“I didn’t say we should trade him in. I just said maybe we should get a new one.” He cast a glance in Leighanne’s direction and wiggled his eyebrows.

“Oh, no. This kitchen’s closed, mister,” Leighanne insisted, pointing to her abdomen.

“That kitchen, however...” She gestured inside the house. “Has a pot roast I need you to lift out of the oven.”

“I’m pretty sure that by now, she’s just keeping me around for the free labor.” Brian gave Annie a wink and strolled inside.

Leighanne showed Annie the guest room, where they had set up Baylee’s old portable crib and encouraged her to rest for a few minutes while Brian kept an eye on Drew and she finished dinner. Annie complimented her on her decorating and hospitality, and Leighanne beamed proudly. Just after they’d sat down for dinner about half an hour later, the doorbell rang. “We aren’t expecting anyone, are we, Bri?” Leighanne asked.

“No.” Brian took the napkin out of his lap and placed it on the table. “I’ll go see who it is.” He jogged to the front door and looked out the peep hole. “What the?” He threw open the door and looked at the man in surprise as a taxi cab drove away. “Nick?! What are you doing here?”
Chapter 11 by emily_michele
Nick Carter leaned his head against the door frame and held his arms out towards Brian. “I came so see my Frick, man! Gimme some love,” he slurred.

Brian studied Nick’s glassy eyes and widened his own eyes in realization. He was drunk as a skunk. “Well, at least you came in a cab. Uh....come in.” He held the door open as Nick stumbled over the threshold and wrapped his arms around his neck.

“How’s the family, bro? Is Baylee’s arm still brokeded?”

“Broken. Yes. It’s still broken.” Brian placed his hands on Nick’s waist to steady him. “Listen, Nick. We have company. You’re welcome to stay, but I need you to go upstairs and either sober up or sleep it off, okay?”

Nick gave him a glazed look. “Are you ashamed of me?” he pouted.

“Yes!” Brian hissed. “Now, go!” He gave Nick a swat on the behind as he trudged up the stairs. “You can sleep in the blue room, okay?”

“Uh-huh.”

“Hey, Nick?”

Nick twirled around at the top of the stairs, then brought his hands to the sides of his head in an attempt to make the room stop spinning. “Why are you yelling at me?” he whined.

Brian lunged forward as if he were going to catch him if he happened to topple down the stairs. “I’m not yelling,” he answered through clenched teeth. “I just wanted to say it’s good to see you, man.” Nick gave him a goofy grin and trotted down the hall.

Back in the dining room, Leighanne’s mouth dropped open in horror. “Did he just say Nick?”

Annie nodded. “Carter?” she asked, her eyes wide in disbelief. Leighanne nodded back.

“Uncle Nick!” Baylee scrambled out of his chair and Leighanne immediately motioned for him to sit back down.

“You need to finish your dinner, Baylee,” she admonished.

“But mo-om! Nick’s here!” Baylee whined. Brian marched back into the dining room and sat down. He placed his napkin back in his lap and began eating silently. Three sets of curious eyes stared at him. Drew tossed a dinner roll at him from Baylee’s old high chair to break up the monotony. “Is uncle Nick really here?” Baylee asked him excitedly.

“Yes,” Brian answered simply, before taking another bite of mashed potatoes.

“Well, where is he?”

“He wasn’t feeling very well, so he went upstairs to rest for a little bit.”

Leighanne cocked her head to the side and studied his expression. “Not feeling well?”

He cupped his hand in front of his mouth so that Baylee couldn’t see and mouthed “Drunk.”

“Hmmm.... do you think he’s okay?”

Brian shrugged. “I guess we’ll find out.”

Annie watched their exchange and couldn’t help but join in their conversation. “So, you guys really are so close that you just show up on each other’s doorsteps unannounced and inebriated?”

Brian chuckled. “No, not really. Not since about 1998, anyway.”

“What’s inebriated?” Baylee asked curiously.

“Just a big word for sick,” Annie answered quickly.

“So, why is he here?” Leighanne asked her husband.

“I have no idea.”

“Maybe you should go check on him.”

“He’s a big boy, Leigh. He can take care of himself.” Brian pushed himself away from the table and stood up. “Actually, I was thinking about taking Annie downstairs and showing her around the studio.”

Annie cleared her throat. “Actually, I think that sounds great. That is, if you don’t mind watching Drew for a little while? I’m sure Brian doesn’t want him down there getting into everything.” She looked across the table at Leighanne expectantly.

“Of course I don’t mind. For the next week, you can consider me Drew’s nanny. You focus on your music, and give yourself a little bit of a break. Baylee and I are going to have a blast with the little guy.” She stood up and took her and Annie’s plates into the kitchen, then came back with a wet washcloth and began wiping Drew’s face and hands. “You two take as long as you want. I know where to find you if I need you.”

The first thing Annie noticed when they descended the stairs to the basement was a baby grand piano-- in Kentucky blue. “Oh wow, Brian, that’s--”

“A little ridiculous, I know. I’ll call this one of my rockstar guilty pleasure purchases. I don’t even play the piano. Not well, anyway. Baylee’s learning, though. Well, he was before he broke his arm.” He ran his fingers along the polished lid. “Leighanne wouldn’t let me put it on the main floor, so there’s a black one just like it in the formal living room.”

“Actually, I was going to say that it’s awesome. Remember, I’m a Kentucky girl. It’s not autographed by John Calipari or anything, is it?”

Brian chuckled. “No, but that would make it even more awesome.”

“May I?” She gestured to the piano bench.

“Be my guest.”

Annie sat down on the bench and raised the keyboard cover carefully. She poised her fingers over the keys and her right foot over one of the pedals and played a few chords , then launched into a beautiful version of Amazing Grace. Her fingers danced over the keys with effortless accuracy, and she threw in a few intricate runs to make it more interesting. Brian leaned forward and rested his elbows on the piano, supporting his chin with one hand, and watched her with admiration. “That was amazing,” he breathed when she struck the final chord and it echoed throughout the room. “I didn’t see you as a piano player.”

“Why is that?”

“Well, I just figured that if you played the piano, you would have played when you sang in church.”

Annie smiled. “It’s easy to get caught up in the technicalities when you’re playing the piano and singing at the same time and lose the passion of the song. Sometimes, I like to put on a backing track and just sing.”

“I get that,” Brian agreed.

“I do sing and play most of the time, though.”

“You know....” The wheels in Brian’s head were turning. “There’s a market out there for a Christian Sara Barielles-type singer. That could totally be you.”

Annie looked down at the piano and plinked out a simple, made-up tune. “I’m not sure if I want that to be me, Brian,” she muttered. “I’m here to try a duet for your album. One song. Then after that, we’ll see.”

“Fair enough. You wanna play around a little bit with our voices so we kind of know how we sound together before we get to work in the morning?”

“Sure.” Annie started playing the opening riff to “I Want it That Way.”

Brian laughed. “You are...my fire....”

Upstairs, Leighanne and Baylee had their ears pinned up against the basement door. “Mama!” Drew squealed.

“Your mama’s a wonderful singer, Drew,” Leighanne told him. “Wow.”

After they’d sung for a while and Brian showed Annie the rest of the studio, Drew began to fuss just as Brian was showing her the sheet music for the duet he had planned. Annie glanced up at the stairs, then at the clock on the wall. “Oh, wow. We’ve been down here almost two hours. It’s getting close to Drew’s bedtime. I better go.” Brian followed her upstairs, and she scooped Drew up into her arms and started kissing his tears away. “Let’s get you to bed, little man.” He nuzzled his head against her shoulder and sighed as she started up the stairs. “I’m going to go get him settled in for the night.” She turned back to them for a moment.. “Actually, I think I’ll probably turn in for the night, too. I’m beat.”

“Goodnight, Annie. Goodnight, Drew,” Leighanne replied cheerfully.

Annie hummed quietly to Drew and rubbed his back as flipped the bedroom light on and shifted him over to her hip so that she could grab a suitcase with her free hand. She set it on the bed and started to open it, then screamed.
Chapter 12 by emily_michele

 

 

When she’d dreamed of Nick Carter in her bed, this wasn’t at all how she’d imagined it going. Her scream startled Drew so much that he started to cry, and the large, blonde lump under the down comforter shot upwards and started screaming back at her.

 

“AAAHHH! Who are you? What are you doing in my bedroom?!”

 

“Excuse me? Your bedroom? Last I heard, this was supposed to be my room this week. Did you not notice the crib in the corner and the purple luggage up against the wall?”

 

“What?! Where the hell am I?”

 

Annie immediately brought a hand up to one of Drew’s ears and pressed his other ear against her chest. “Watch your language, please. Tiny, impressionable ears here!”

 

Nick looked at the whimpering baby in her arms. “AAAHH! Where did that come from?!” This prompted Drew to start wailing at the top of his lungs.

 

Brian appeared at the doorway looking pissed. “Nickolas Gene Carter! What the hell do you think you’re doing?”

 

“Ssshhh, B-Rok!” Nick brought a finger up to his lips. “Tiny, impressionable ears!” He pointed to the screaming toddler, who was pawing at Annie’s shirt and burying his red face in her chest.

 

“I told you to go sleep in the blue room. Why are you in Annie’s room?” Brian brought his voice down a notch and crossed the room to Annie and Drew, placing a reassuring hand on Drew’s back.

 

“I thought you said go sleep in your room! My room!” Nick exclaimed.

 

“This is not your room,” Brian hissed. “And why are you still in Annie’s bed?”

 

“Who the he---” Nick shot a glance at Drew. “Who is Annie?!” Annie slapped her hand against her forehead and shook her head in disbelief. “And if you must know......I’m not wearing any pants.”

 

Brian looked at Annie and sighed. “I’m sorry. He’s not usually like this.” He paused. “Actually, he is usually like this, he’s just not generally intoxicated these days.” He glared at Nick, who bit his bottom lip nervously and shrugged.

 

“My uh....my pants are over there,” he stammered, pointing towards the en-suite bathroom. “If someone could, uh...get them for me, I’d be happy to leave.” Brian marched across the room, grabbed the pair of dark-washed jeans that were pooled on the floor, rolled them into a ball, and chucked them at Nick’s face. “Woah, easy man!”

 

“You and I need to talk,” Brian growled. Nick gulped and nodded silently.

 

Annie’s eyes darted back and forth between the two men. She’d never seen Brian angry, and at this very moment he was absolutely livid. Not that she’d known Brian for very long, but before knowing him personally, she’d seen countless concert and television appearances, and never once had angry been an emotion he’d conveyed. Truth be told, it was kind of sexy. Then, there was Nick. Guilty, clueless Nick. Guilty, clueless, pantsless Nick with bedhead -- in her bed. It was kind of....well, it was kind of ridiculous. In a way, this entire scene was exactly what her teenage dreams were made of. Yet, it was much, much weirder. She shook her head back and forth rapidly to clear her thoughts and looked down at Drew. He had stopped crying and was resting his head lazily on her shoulder, his eyelids drooping heavily. “You know, I think I’ll just grab a suitcase and head across the hall for the night. You two can talk in here.” She stooped down, grabbed the long suitcase handle, and began rolling it towards the door. “Brian, do you care to roll the crib in there for me?”

 

“Oh, no, Annie. You don’t have to do that....You are Annie, aren’t you?” Nick threw the covers off of his legs and started to get up.

 

Annie dropped the suit case and held her hand up towards him, turning her head away. “Please. Don’t get up. Yes, I’m Annie. I’d say nice to meet you, but, well....”

 

Nick quickly pulled the sheet and comforter back over him, the color rising in his face. “Sorry. Really, though. I’m an as--- a butt. I have no business here in your bed. I just didn’t know what I was doing. As a matter of fact, I’m still pretty fuzzy. Now, who are you again?”

 

Annie blew a stray curl out of her eyes. “That’s right you have no business in my bed,” she muttered to herself. “You’re already in my bed. With no pants on, I might add, so please, just stay where you are for the night. I will take back possession of my room in the morning. Why don’t we just wait until in the morning for introductions as well?”

 

Nick grinned. “I’ll look forward to it.” Annie rolled her eyes, turned on her heel, and left. Brian shook his head at Nick and followed her out, rolling the crib along with him.

 

He reappeared in the doorway moments later with his arms crossed across his chest.

 

“Spill it, Nick.”

“Spill what? At the moment, the only thing I feel like spilling is my lunch, and that was hours ago. I’m not sure there would be much left.” He placed a hand gingerly on his stomach for emphasis.

 

Brian sighed and grabbed a nearby chair. He pulled it up beside the bed and plopped down into it, then leaned forward with his forearms on his elbows and looked up at Nick. “Why in the world did you show up unannounced on my doorstep this evening? And drunk, no less.”

 

Nick chewed on his thumb nail. “Who’s Annie?” he asked in a muffled voice.

 

“You first.”

 

“Actually, Brian, I think you have some ‘splainin to do,” he said with his best Ricky Ricardo impression (which was terrible). “Why is there a beautiful woman with a baby living in your guest room? Mistress and love child?”

 

“Nick....” Brian wasn’t amused. “I met her in Kentucky. She was there when Baylee broke his arm.”

 

“So, you brought her down to Atlanta for a visit?”

 

“Well, we became good friends. She sings. She sings really well actually, and she’s going to do some work with me on my new album.”

 

“Hmmm....interesting.” Nick rubbed his chin thoughtfully. “Are you sure the kid’s not yours? What’s a pretty girl like that doing here without a baby daddy?”

 

“Nick, I’m not talking about this any more with you right now. You can meet her tomorrow, and she will answer any questions she feels like answering, okay?”

 

“Are you her baby daddy?”

 

“NO!”

 

Nick held his hands up in defense. “Gee, Brian. Don’t get so defensive.”

 

“Why are you here, Nick?” Brian asked seriously.

 

Nick shrugged. “Like I said before, I just wanted to see my Frick. I missed you.” He pouted dramatically.

 

“The tour only ended only a month ago, Nick. We’ve gone a year or two at a time without seeing each other.”

 

“And I think that’s a shame. Don’t you?”

 

“Fine,” Brian huffed. “Why were you drunk?”

 

“Oh, you know how it goes. Pretty twenty-something stewardess in first class recognizes you and asks what she can get you to drink. Pretty soon, it’s one tequila, two tequila...” He brought up one finger at a time, counting. “Three tequila, floor.”

 

“But WHY???” Nick shrugged and Brian groaned in frustration. He straightened up in his chair and crossed his arms indignantly. “I’ve got all night.”

 

“Okay.” Nick matched Brian’s stance and leaned back against the headboard, then the staring contest ensued.

 

Ten minutes later, Leighanne strolled into the room with a glass of water and a bottle of aspirin. She placed them both on the nightstand and brought her hands to her hips. “Good to see you, Nick. How’s Lauren?”

 

Chapter 13 by emily_michele



 

“Lauren?” Nick looked up at Leighanne and faked a smile. “Lauren’s great!”

 

“Good to hear. What’s she up to while you’re here in Atlanta?”

 

Nick bit his lip. “She’s um....I think she’s in LA working on her website.”

 

Brian raised an eyebrow. “You think?”

 

Nick flapped his mouth open and closed like a fish. “I mean, I....”

 

Leighanne picked up the aspirin bottle, opened it, told Nick to hold out his hand, and shook two pills out into his palm. She placed it back on the nightstand and handed him the glass of water. “Take these. You’ll thank me in the morning.” Nick obeyed, tossing the pills into his mouth and washing them down with a big gulp of water. She sat down on the edge of the bed and patted his knee. “Now, tell us what brings you for a visit.”

 

Nick looked back and forth between Leighanne and Brian and sighed. “I just-” He paused and looked down at his lap. “I just didn’t want to be alone. Sure, the other guys are in LA, but I just needed to get away from there.”

 

“Why would you be alone, Nick?” Brian prodded. A million terrible scenarios crossed his mind. “Did something happen?” Nick looked up at him and bit his bottom lip.. He nodded silently with tears glistening in his eyes.

 

“What happened, Nick?” Leighanne cuddled up to him, wrapped one arm around his neck, and laid her head on his shoulder. Brian smiled slightly at his wife and watched Nick’s mouth twitch nervously. He wanted to say something, but the words just weren’t coming out.

 

“You know, you two have been such good role models for me. I really haven’t told you that enough.” He leaned his head against Leighanne’s.

 

“Thanks, Nick,” she replied. “That really means a lot coming from you.”

 

“Coming from Nick Carter the fuck-up?”

 

“You’re not a fuck-up Nick,” Brian chastised. Leighanne winced at the language.

 

Nick crossed his arms indignantly. “I used to be.”

 

“I’m not going to argue with that, but it’s still pretty harsh. Now, what’s going on?”

 

“You two really are sickeningly happy together, aren’t you?”

Leighanne pulled her head up from his shoulder and smiled as she reached across to Brian, grabbed his hand, and gave it a squeeze. “Yeah. We are.”

“But-” Brian cut in. “It’s not all sunshine and roses. It takes a lot of work. Relationships, even stable ones, are a lot of give and take. Now, what happened with Lauren?”

“You know, when I met Lauren, I thought we were perfect for each other, and I even thought that up until yesterday.” He stared blankly ahead with a faraway look in his eyes.

“So, what happened yesterday?” Leighanne asked him. Nick looked at her, then looked down and started playing with a loose thread on the comforter. Brian and Leighanne both stared at him intently, waiting for an answer.

 

“There was a ring,” he finally announced quietly.

 

“A ring?”

 

“Yes. A 6-carat, brilliant cut, five-hundred thousand dollar solitaire in a display case at the Tiffany’s on Rodeo Drive.” He paused and stared into both sets of questioning eyes. “And I bought it. I bought it even before....” He trailed off and looked away from them, clearing his throat.

 

“Before what, Nick?”

 

“Nothing. It’s-- it’s not important. But anyway, yeah. I bought a ring. I bought a ring, and I proposed to the woman I thought I’d spend the rest of my life with. Me, the guy who said he didn’t believe in marriage. Too bad she still doesn’t. I’ll spare you the gory details that resulted in me hopping on an airplane and getting sloppy drunk, then showing up on your front porch and falling into the wrong bed.”

 

“Oh, Nick, sweetie. I’m so sorry.” Leighanne pulled him into a hug. “I really like Lauren, I do. I believe that if it’s meant to be, it’ll work itself out, and if it’s not meant to be, well, things will still work out. You’re welcome to stay as long as you want. If there’s anything we can do for you, don’t hesitate to ask, okay?” She stood up and gave him a kiss on the cheek, then held out her hand to Brian. He grasped it and stood up. with her. “Get some rest, Nick. We have church in the morning.”

 

“We?” Nick raised an eyebrow at Brian.

 

“She’s the boss, man. Breakfast is at 9. Sunday school starts at 10.” He followed Leighanne out into the hallway and pressed a kiss to her lips. “You’re pretty good, you know that?”

 

She smirked and trailed a finger down his toned chest and stomach. “You know...I’m pretty good at a lot of things.” Brian gave her a throaty laugh and pulled her down the hallway to the master bedroom.

 

Chapter 14 by emily_michele
“How ya feelin’, champ?” Brian asked as Nick sauntered into the kitchen at exactly 9 o’clock the next morning.

“Better than I imagined I would, actually. I haven’t been that dr-- “ He glanced over at Baylee, who was sitting at the kitchen table happily reading the back of a cereal box. “Uh, sick in a long time.” He walked over to Leighanne, who was flipping pancakes at the stove wearing a crisp, light blue button-up shirt, a straight, knee length black skirt, three inch black patent heels, and a floral apron. He placed a hand on the small of her back and bent down to plant a quick kiss on her cheek. “Thanks for taking care of me last night, Leigh.”

“No problem, sweetie. Do you want blueberries in your pancakes?” She motioned toward a bowl of blueberries on the counter with her spatula.

“Well, duh. Blueberries have a lot of antioxidants, you know.”

Brian rolled his eyes. “You know, sometimes I miss the Nick who wanted blueberries just because they were yummy. Of course, I don’t miss that same Nick who kicked my house guest out of her bed last night.”

“Don’t forget the antioxidants in my pancakes, mom!” Baylee chirped. “Will you sign my cast, Nick?”

“Sure thing, kiddo.”

A frazzled looking Annie traipsed into the kitchen with Drew on her hip, no makeup, and hot rollers in her hair. She paused when she saw Nick sitting at the kitchen table doodling on Baylee’s cast and opened her mouth in surprise. He was clean shaven, his hair gelled neatly, and wearing a pair of dark khakis with boat shoes and a kelly green polo shirt, the collar popped up slightly. She looked down at Drew, who wore an almost exact replica of Nick’s ensemble, except she was pretty sure Nick’s hadn’t come from Baby Gap. Nick looked up at them and smiled. “Apparently, little man has good taste.”

“Maybe I should go change him.....”

Nick’s mouth fell open in mock indignation. “You wouldn’t really do that, would you? I think he looks cute!”

Annie rolled her eyes. “I’m just kidding.” She turned to Brian. “You don’t have child-proof locks on your bathroom cabinets, and I can’t keep him out of the cleaning supplies long enough to get ready. Do you mind?” She held Drew out to him. Drew blew a raspberry in his direction and giggled.

“Sorry,” Brian said with a guilty grin as he took Drew from her. “Around the time Baylee turned six and we decided we weren’t going to have any more, we did a lot of un-baby-proofing to give our guests a little reprieve.”

“And your guests appreciate it,” Nick chimed in. “Do you know how embarrassing it is when you’re caught with your pants around your ankles and have to yell at Brian to help you open the cabinet to get more toilet paper?”

Annie couldn’t help but stifle a laugh. Before Drew was born, she’d definitely been there before. Brian groaned. “I thought we agreed to never talk about that again?”

“Sorry,” Nick said as he looked back down at Baylee’s cast and stuck his tongue between his teeth in concentration.

Annie ducked out of the room and emerged ten minutes later looking perfectly polished. Nick looked up from where he was still drawing anime characters with a Sharpie on Baylee’s lime-green cast and stared at her. Her auburn hair fell in perfect ringlets around her face and landed on her shoulders. Her literally emerald green eyes sparkled under her long lashes and shimmery eyeliner, and her perfect red lips parted lightly as she sat down across from him at the table and placed a napkin in her lap, smoothing out the skirt of her dress. She looked up at Leighanne as she placed a plate of pancakes on the table. “Thank you so much for breakfast, Leighanne. It looks delicious.” While Annie spoke to his wife, Brian kicked Nick under the table.

Nick whipped his head around to look at him. “What?” he mouthed. “Stop staring,” Brian mouthed back to him. Nick straightened up in his chair and reached his hand across the table towards Annie. “I’m Nick Carter. Nice to meet you, Annie-”

Annie pursed her lips, put her hand in his, and shook it. “Annie Morgan. Hi. I guess you’ve already met my little one, Drew.”

Nick laughed. “Yes. Baylee introduced us while you were getting ready.” He took his away from hers slowly and ran it through his hair. “Listen, Annie. I’m sorry about last night. I promise I don’t usually act like that. I was just.....I mean, you see....” He fought to find the words and finally just said it. “I just went through a really bad break-up, and I’m not myself.”

“You and Lauren broke up?” She didn’t really mean to say it out loud.

Nick’s eyes widened in realization. “Holy shit. She’s a fan,” he thought to himself. Then, he decided to have a little fun and completely changed the subject. “So, who’s your favorite Backstreet Boy?” he asked her.

Annie nearly choked on her orange juice. “Um....Kevin. Why?” Brian, Leighanne, and Baylee all started laughing. Drew clapped happily in his high chair.

“What? That’s no fair! He’s not even in the group anymore!” Nick exclaimed.

Annie shrugged. “Well, he’s still my favorite. Your cousin, Tim, still has some explaining to do,” she said to Brian.

Nick cocked his head to the side with curiosity. “Kevin’s brother, Tim?” he asked.


“Yes,” Brian answered, then went into the explanation of how he and Annie had met.

After Brian was finished telling his story, Nick turned back to Annie with a smirk. “So, who’s you’re favorite current Backstreet Boy?”

“Howie,” she answered without even batting an eye.

Brian placed his hand over his heart dramatically. “Annie Morgan, I’m shocked! After all we’ve been through together!”

Annie giggled. “Sorry Brian, but I don’t really consider you a Backstreet Boy at this point. I mean, I know you’re a Backstreet Boy, but you’re my friend. I’d even consider you a close friend.”

Brian smiled at her. “Sorry, Nick.”

Half an hour later, they were all in the driveway getting ready to leave for church. “Sorry we don’t have a bigger vehicle that we can all ride in together,” Brian told everyone. He tossed a set of keys at Nick, who caught them with one hand. “You can drive mine, and I’ll drive Leigh’s beemer.” Annie started towards Leighanne’s car, then she realized that Drew’s carseat was in the back of Brian’s car. Neither of them said much during the short drive to Marietta Baptist Church, but Drew’s babbling filled the silence.

After Leighanne had dropped Baylee off in his Sunday school classroom, she joined the rest of them in the hallway. “Nick and Annie, you can come to our class with us. Technically, it’s for married couples, but Brian’s teaching today and the lesson isn’t on marriage, so I’m sure it will be fine.” She turned to Annie. “Do you want to drop Drew off in the nursery? If you’re more comfortable keeping him with you, it’s fine. LIke I said, it’s a married couples class, so there’s always a kid or two in there for one reason or another.” Annie ended up leaving him in the nursery and sitting in between Brian and Nick in the row of folding chairs that lined the wall of the small classroom. She tried to pay attention. She really did, but it hit her that she was sitting in between, literally almost touching, two Backstreet Boys, and she got a little giddy.


Meanwhile, as Annie seemed to study her bible, Nick studied Annie. He watched as she tucked a strand of hair behind her ear and licked her red lips. He noticed that the slightest hint of cleavage peeked out just above the neckline of her purple wrap dress. Then, his eyes trailed the long line from the tie of her dress, past the ruffled hem that hit just below her knee , down the creamy curve of her calf, and to the brown peep-toe heels she was wearing. He saw a hint of deep pink polish on her toes and shifted around in his seat uncomfortably. Surely, it was a sin to have a hard-on in church, right? Plus, she was apparently married. Wasn’t there something in the bible about lusting after another man’s wife? Surely, he was going to hell.

An hour later, they were in the church service, and Nick found himself actually listening to the sermon. “For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. Jeremiah 29:11.” The pastor placed his bible on the pulpit and started pacing. “God tells us that he knows the plans he has for us. He doesn’t plan to harm us , but does plan for us to prosper, and to have hope and a future. That’s powerful stuff. So, why is it that when bad things happen, we question God? He has a plan, and His plan is perfect. Just because something bad may be happening to you now, it doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t have hope for the future.” Nick thought about what happened with Lauren, and if only for just a moment, had a feeling that he would be okay.

After the service was over, the Littrells mingled for a few minutes on the church lawn before heading back to the car. Annie, with Drew on her hip, stuck close to Nick. She figured neither of them knew anyone, so they might as well stick together. A little old lady with purple hair walked up to them with a smile. “I just love it when little boys dress like their daddies,” she cooed, pinching Drew’s cheeks. “He’s so cute!”

“Actually, ma’am, he’s not.....” Annie started.

“Let it go,” Brian coughed quietly into her ear from behind her.

“Um...thank you,” Annie finished. As the lady walked away, she also pinched one of Nick’s cheeks, except it wasn’t one on his face. Nick yelped and turned to Brian with wide eyes.

Brian and Leighanne burst out laughing. “I’m so glad you got to meet Mrs. Robinson,” Brian told him.

“Mrs. Robinson? Seriously?”

“Yep. She’s a senile old bird who thinks she’s still twenty-five and flirts with all the younger men. I’m just glad my own, ahem, cheeks got a little break today.”
Chapter 15 by emily_michele

 

 

Later that afternoon after lunch, Annie, Brian, and Nick went down to the studio. “I hope you don’t mind that I invited Nick,” Brian told Annie. “He’s actually a genius with a soundboard, and I thought he could help us out a little.”

 

Annie shrugged. “Fine by me.” She sat down at the blue lacquer piano bench and separated the pages of sheet music Brian had placed there the night before, while Brian stood beside her and Nick plopped down into a nearby chair. She studied the first page and began to hum the melody. Then she placed her hands over the piano keys and played the first few bars. “This is beautiful, Brian. Did you write this?”

 

Brian beamed. “Yeah. Most of it. I had a little help from Todd Smith.”

 

“Todd Smith? From Selah?”

 

“Mmm hmm.”

 

“Wow. I love them.” She fingered the pages of sheet music in front of her. “You know, I’ve never really done any writing. I’ve tried, and it’s not that I’m not musically inclined enough to do it, I just....I don’t know. I guess I’ve never really had the inspiration.” Brian cocked his head to the side and looked at her, confused.

 

“It’s tough,” Nick remarked. “It really is. I mean, look how long it took us to start writing our own stuff, and even now, it’s only a few songs per album that we had a hand in.”

 

“Actually, Annie, I’d say you have a lot of inspiration,” Brian told her seriously. “I mean, I hope I’m not getting too personal, but think about what happened to your husband--- whatever it was. Obviously, you had to have had pretty big faith to not turn away from God after something like that.” Nick’s ears seemed to literally perk up at the mention of her husband. Was he dead? He couldn’t help but lean forward a little in his chair and study her. When he noticed the pain in her eyes, be felt this overwhelming sense of guilt. All he could think about was how horrible he must be to have had such dirty thoughts about an obviously grieving woman.

 

Annie tensed. “Brian, I....” She hesitated. “Let’s just say that after Andrew....it took a long time. A really long time.”

 

“It couldn’t have taken that long. I mean, Drew’s what? Fifteen, sixteen months? So, it couldn’t have been any more than a year or two ago, right? And god, please don’t tell me it’s been almost two years. The thought of you being left pregnant and alone.... It- it just seems unusually cruel.”

 

Annie struggled with what to say to him. “No. No, Brian, I wasn’t pregnant.”

 

“So.....”

 

“Brian-” Nick wanted to stop him. Annie was becoming more visibly upset by the second. But it was too late.

 

“So, it was pretty recent then, right?”

 

“No.”

 

“”Annie, I’m sorry, but I’m afraid I don’t understand.”

 

Annie seemed to suddenly snap. “You say I must have this huge faith because I picked myself up and kept my faith in God after I lost my husband, right?” Her eyes flashed towards Nick. “You lost Lauren, though figuratively rather than literally, and you were drunk for a few hours, I was drunk for a month! And as far as my faith in God, I completely turned my back on him for two years! Do you think I’m inspirational now!?”

 

Nick watched on in horror as Brian tried to put the pieces of the jumbled puzzle together in his head. Annie hastily wiped away a few angry tears from her red cheeks and Brian placed a tentative hand on her shoulder. She immediately shrugged it away. “Annie, I’m sorry, but I’m confused. I never meant for it to get this personal, Annie. I didn’t want to upset you. You don’t have to keep talking about it. I’m happy to just stay confused.”

 

Annie squeezed her eyes shut and turned her back to the two concerned men staring at her. She slumped her shoulders and ran her fingers through her hair, then looked down at her lap. “It was five years ago,” she whispered.

 

“What?” Brian mouthed to Nick. Nick shrugged helplessly. “I’m sorry, Annie. What was that?” he asked her gently.

 

She turned to face him with tears glistening in her eyes. “It was five years ago, Brian. It was five years ago, and I’m still wearing my damn wedding band.”

 

Nick watched her look down at her left hand and start twirling the silver-colored band around her ring finger with the thumb and forefinger of her right hand. He wanted to stay quiet, but he couldn’t help it. She looked like she needed to let it out. “What happened, Annie?” he asked quietly.

 

Chapter 16 by emily_michele
Author's Notes:
Two chapters in one day! I was hoping to build the suspense, but I already had this one written, and couldn't resist going ahead an posting it. Please let me know what you think.

 

Annie sighed and looked at Nick, then at Brian, then down at her feet and back up at Brian. “He was on flight 5191.”

 

Both men gasped and Brian brought a hand up over his mouth. “Oh my God. Wow. Annie.....I’m so sorry.” Overcome with emotion, he began pacing, then sat down in a nearby chair. “I took that flight from Lexington to Atlanta so many times, Annie.”

 

“I know,” she whispered.

 

“I sang at the memorial service.”

 

“I know,” Annie sighed. “I was there. We met. Briefly. I didn’t care. Actually, I was pretty angry that you there. I never imagined that the day I met one of my teen idols would have been one of the worst days or my life.” Brian and Nick were silent, neither of them able to look her in the eye. “We met in the William T. Young library. I was an eighteen year old freshman in college and he was in his second year of medical school. We literally ran into each other in the Biology books. He asked me to marry him two years later. ”

 

Nick looked up at her and leaned forward with his elbows on his knees. “Well, go on.”

 

She smiled a little. “He started his OB/GYN residency two years later, and the next summer, we got married, just before I started medical school myself. We had three amazing years together. Three years. That’s it. I started my fourth year of medical school and he became chief resident of his department in July of 2006. On August 27th, he was supposed to fly from Lexington to Atlanta for a week-long conference. I was scheduled for my clinical rotation in the surgical ICU and I was working night shift. He called to tell me he was getting ready to board the plane, and twenty minutes later, at about 6:10 AM, they called a code green. A code green at the University of Kentucky Medical Center means there has been a mass casualty event. Since UK is a level one trauma center, all survivors were to be brought there. They mobilized almost everyone to the emergency department. Even though my shift was supposed to end in less than an hour, my precepting physician took me with him, saying it would be a good learning experience for me. It wasn’t until twenty minutes later that I learned that....” She clamped a hand over her mouth and let out a loud sob as tears started trickling down her cheeks. “That it was a plane crash at Bluegrass Airport. The first thing I did was pull my cell phone out of my pocket and try to call Andrew. Of course, he didn’t answer.”

 

Brian got up from where he was seated and knelt down in front of her. He brushed a tear away from her cheek with the pad of his thumb and placed both hands on her knees. “I remember screaming out to whoever would listen, ‘What was the flight number? Where was it headed? When are they bringing the survivors?!!.’ There was this nurse-- a motherly figure. Jane. Her name was Jane. She took me into a waiting room and managed to calm me down enough to get out of me that my husband was supposed to be flying to Atlanta that morning. She left me for a few minutes to go find out the information I needed and came back with tears in her eyes. ‘Flight 5191,’ she sighed. ‘To Atlanta. I’m so sorry, sweetie’.” Annie took in a shaky breath and continued. “I didn’t break down. Not yet. I just nodded and went back out into the ER to wait for survivors. I waited for my Andrew. I wanted to be the first face he saw when they wheeled him in. It didn’t even occur to me that....” She buried her face in her hands and cried. Across the room, Nick wiped away a tear of his own.

 

“Annie...” Brian brushed a strand of hair away from her face and she looked down at him, her lip quivering. “You don’t have to keep going. We can just go upstairs. Take a nap...whatever.”

 

“No,” she said firmly. “This is the first time I’ve ever...... I’ve played it over and over and over again in my head, but this is the first time I’ve ever said it out loud. I want....I NEED to keep going.”

 

“Then, by all means, please go on. I want to hear it.”

 

“We all waited. I ended up just standing there and watching the flurry of activity while they prepared for an influx of patients. They cleared out all the trauma rooms and got crash carts ready. It was all hands on deck, everyone working together. Then, they brought in the first survivor. A pilot. It was bad. They got to work on him immediately and ended up rushing to surgery. Then, we waited some more. As the minutes ticked by, an eerie silence fell over the entire place. You could have heard a pin drop. Never before, and never again, will you ever hear that ER so quiet. Then, the call came in from an emergency worker at the airport. The director of the emergency department told everyone to go back from where they came from, or in my case, to go home if their shifts were over. There were no more survivors. I remember falling to my knees on the cold linoleum and screaming out his name, then everything went black.” Brian looked up at her with tears streaming down his face. She stared straight past him, trance-like. “I think it was my brother who ended up picking me up and taking me back to his place. I remember begging him not to take me home. I didn’t want any reminders of Andrew. Then, I remember him pouring me a shot of tequila. Like I said before, I was drunk for a month. I forced myself to sober up for his funeral and a couple memorial services, but they’re still all a blur. I remember screaming at God that first night-- asking him why he would do that to me. How selfish is that? The loved ones of 49 other people were grieving, and all I could think of was myself.”

 

“I don’t think that’s selfish,” Nick muttered quietly.

 

“Then, I pretended He didn’t exist for the next two and a half years. One day, I realized that I was just going through the motions. I didn’t really see that life was worth living anymore, so in desperation, I picked up my Bible. The pages fell open to Psalm 46:10. ‘Be still, and know that I am God’.”

 

“That’s a powerful verse,” Brian breathed.

 

“Yeah. So, I went to church the next Sunday, and Tim’s wife heard me singing during the benediction and asked if I’d like to join the choir. The rest is history, I guess.”

 

Brian smiled at her weakly. “Sounds like an amazing song to me.” Annie blushed and Nick nodded vigorously. “I’m not asking you to write it. I know it’s personal. Deeply personal. I just figured I should let you know that you’ve definitely got inspiration for songwriting. That’s where this all started, after all.” He paused and gulped. “Is it okay if I ask you just one thing? If it’s too much, you don’t have to tell me, but...”

 

“What, Brian?”

 

“You named your son after a man who wasn’t his father?”

 

End Notes:
Please know that this story is in no way, shape, or form intended to make light of the flight 5191 tragedy. I was actually living in Lexington at the time of the crash, and someone very close to me was working in the UK Chandler Medical Center ER the morning of the crash. A lot of the description of what happened in the hospital that day is straight from him.
Chapter 17 by emily_michele


Annie sniffled and started to laugh. “You must think I’m crazy.”

“No, Annie. You know I don’t think you’re crazy. I just....” He paused and stood up from his kneeling position on the floor, groaning as his knees popped. Nick fought not to laugh and call him an old man. Of course, he couldn’t say much. His knees popped, too. It was a consequence of dancing almost every day for years on end. “I just couldn’t help but wonder about Drew’s dad is all,” Brian continued.

“Andrew is his father,” she said point-blank.

He placed his hands on his hips and looked down at her questioningly. “But....how?”

“Before Andrew and I got married, we had a little scare. You see, ovarian cancer runs in my family. I’d just lost my aunt to it, and I decided to get checked out. They found something suspicious on one of my ovaries and decided to do exploratory surgery, with the possibility that depending on what they found, I could end up having a total hysterectomy. I was only twenty years old, and knew I wanted children someday, but I also didn’t want to risk dying from cancer before I got the opportunity to do so. My doctors said they could harvest some eggs for me, and if they were able to spare my uterus, I could potentially still have children someday, or maybe even use a surrogate if needed. They said I had a better chance of a successful pregnancy if the eggs were fertilized, though. Andrew and I were engaged, so naturally, he was the sperm donor.” She paused and gave a slight giggle. “We made babies before we even, well...you know.” Nick and Brian both nodded uncomfortably.

“So, uh, I’m sorry that I keep getting so personal, but what did they find?” Brian asked quietly.

“In my surgery?” He nodded. “They only had to take one ovary and the biopsy came back clean. I was very blessed, and I can still have children in the case that one of these days....” She trailed off and looked down at her wedding band for a few moments. “So anyway, after I finished my residency and started working at my current job, I decided I wanted a baby. I needed something worth living for, you know? Maybe it was selfish to intentionally bring a child into the world without a father, but after the embryos were thawed, only one was viable. My chances of actually maintaining a pregnancy with only one implanted embryo weren’t great, but well, that little embryo-- turned out to be Andrew David Morgan, Jr. My little Drew. My little miracle. Now, I’ll always have a piece of Andrew with me.”

“I think that’s beautiful,” Nick said quietly with a smile.

Annie nodded and stood up. “You know, Brian, I think I’ll take you up on that offer for a nap. It is Sunday after all. We shouldn’t really be working anyway, right?”

Brian smiled. “Right, and you’re still planning on staying until Friday, aren’t you?”

“Yes.”

“Then we’ll have plenty of time to get the recording done.” He walked over to where she was standing at the bottom of the stairs and pulled her into a hug. “Thank you, Annie, for sharing that with us. It helps to know more about you, and I hope it helped for you to talk about it.”

Annie hugged him back and returned the smile. “You know, I think it did.” She trudged up the stairs and passed Leighanne, Baylee, and Drew wordlessly as she went on up to the second floor to the bedroom she’d taken back from Nick that afternoon. She collapsed onto the bed and fell into the most restful sleep she’d had in quite some time. Brian and Nick followed her out of the basement soon after, and were met by a puzzled Leighanne.

“What was that all about?” she asked Brian quizzically.

He looked at Nick. “You think I should tell her?”

Nick shrugged. “I dunno, man. You know her better than I do. Well, both ‘hers’-, actually-- Annie and your wife.”

Leighanne looked across the living room at Baylee and Drew. Baylee was stacking blocks into tall towers so that Drew could knock them over, causing both boys to laugh hysterically. She put her hands on her hips. “What is going on?”

Brian cleared his throat and stepped closer to her so he could speak more quietly. “I said some things that triggered Annie to end up telling us a lot about her husband. She was exhausted, both physically and emotionally, I think, so she went upstairs to take a nap.

“Well, what did she tell you? Is she okay?”

Nick shifted back and forth on his feet uncomfortably and wondered whether Brian was going to give her an answer. Brian turned to him with anguish in his eyes. “I tell her everything, Nick.”

Nick shrugged. “So tell her, I guess.”

Brian took in a deep breath and ushered Leighanne over to a couch. “He died in a plane crash,” he told her gently.

“A plane crash?”

“Flight 5191.”

Leighanne clamped her hand over her mouth in shock. “Oh my God. Flight 5191? Really? We took that same flight from Lexington to Atlanta all the time, Brian.”

“I know.”

“You sang at the memorial service.”

“I know. Apparently, Annie and I met there....just briefly. She, of course, wasn’t in any shape to think anything of it.” Leighanne stared at the wall behind Brian’s head as tears welled up in her eyes. Brian knew exactly what she was thinking about-- the flight she was supposed to have been on, on September 11th, just over ten years ago. It was a connection that she really struggled with after 9/11 and again after the crash of flight 5191. “Baby...”

“That’s so terrible....” Leighanne whimpered. “So, what about Drew’s father?” Brian and Nick quickly explained how Annie’s husband, Andrew, was in fact Drew’s father. “So, do you think she’s been alone all this time? For five years?” Leighanne finally asked. “I mean, I understand it, I do.” She turned to Brian and placed a hand on his arm. “If something happened to you, I don’t know how I would ever be able to move on, but she’s just so young. To be widowed at what, 24? So tragic.” Leighanne wiped a stray tear from her face and composed herself, then got up and started heading towards the kitchen. “Watch the boys while I get started on dinner?”

“Absolutely,” Brian answered.

Two hours later, Annie awoke to the sound to the sound of laughter outside her bedroom window. She stretched and yawned, then padded across the lush carpet to sneak a peek through the curtain. What she saw in the yard below her was priceless. Baylee wore a plastic grocery bag tied around his cast and wielded a large water gun in his other hand, which he was squirting merciless in his father’s face. Brian wore a red bandana tied around his forehead and war paint underneath both his eyes. Nick jumped out from behind a tree and started pelting both Brian and Baylee with water balloons, which he was carrying around in what she could only describe as a super-sized fanny pack. It was what he carried on his back that melted her heart, though. Drew, strapped into a baby carrier backpack, bounced up and down as Nick ran, and cackled happily.

Chapter 18 by emily_michele
“Get her!” Nick yelled as Annie stepped out onto the back deck. He reached into his bag and pulled out a water balloon, then reached over his shoulder to hand it to Drew. Drew grabbed it with both hands and gave it a launch. It landed just in front of Nick and splattered all over his shoes.

Annie stifled a giggle. “Good aim, Drew!”

Nick, his shoes sloshing loudly, trudged up the wooden stairs of the deck carefully and stepped in front of Annie to face her. “We just need to get closer. Here ya go, buddy.” He handed Drew another water balloon and grinned wickedly. “Now, get mommy!” Drew giggled and squeezed the balloon, causing it to burst on top of Nick’s head. When she saw the shocked expression on Nick’s face, Annie couldn’t help but to double over with laughter.

From his place on Nick’s back, Drew grinned and clapped happily. “Yay, Niii!”

Annie straightened up and cocked her head to the side. “Did he just say your name?”

With water dripping his nose, Nick gave her a big grin. “Yeah. We’ve been practicing. Brian’s jealous, though, because he won’t say his name.”

“Very jealous,” Brian said, as he came up from behind Nick with his water gun loaded and ready.

Nick turned around and held his hands up in defense. “Don’t you think I’m already wet enough? Besides, I have a baby,” he reasoned, pointing up at Drew.

“But he’s on your back!” Baylee squealed, as he unloaded his water gun on Nick’s waist. Sure enough, the baby stayed high and dry. Brian and Annie shared a look , and Annie nodded, pulling a chair up behind Nick as Brian aimed his water gun.

When he heard the chair legs squeak along the wood, Nick turned to Annie. “What are you doing?”

Annie stepped up on the chair and eased Drew out of Nick’s backpack. “I missed my little man today,” she replied matter-of-factly. She smacked her lips on Drew’s cheek for emphasis and darted away as Brian aimed his gun at Nick and soaked his chest.

“Traitor!” he yelled at her.

“You can’t call me a traitor if I was never on your side!” she yelled back at him.

“Balloons! I still have balloons!” Nick shrieked as he reached into his bag and started throwing them at his assailants.

“Boys, boys!” Leighanne threw open the french doors and stepped out onto the deck with her hands on her hips. “The sun’s down and it’s starting to get cold. Time to put away the water and get dried off. Dinner’s ready.”

“But mo-om!” all three of them whined simultaneously.

She rolled her eyes and pointed towards the pool house. “Go get some towels, Brian.” He obliged and came back with his arms full of beach towels. “What happened to you?” she asked Nick with a laugh.

He pouted dramatically. “They ganged up on me. All four of them. Even the little man!”

Annie tossed him a towel and he ran it over his face and hair. “You big baby! I’d be ashamed. Accusing my baby of malice!”

Nick stuck his tongue out at her. “Maybe he got it from his mama!”
______________________________________________________________


Annie sat bolt upright in bed as she heard her bedroom door swing open. In the hallway light that streamed into the room, Nick smiled and held his finger up to his lips before crossing the floor and easing down onto the edge of her bed. "What are you doing?" she whispered sharply.

"This." He leaned forward and crashed his lips onto hers. She placed her hands on his chest and tried to push away, but his hands caught the back of her head as she pulled her lips away. "Don't fight it, Annie," he urged, bringing his lips back close to hers until they were almost touching.

“But, Drew....”

“Is asleep,” Nick replied simply, before bringing his lips back onto hers. He ran his fingers through the messy curls at the back of her head, eliciting a soft sigh from the back of her throat as his tongue dueled with hers. “You’re so beautiful, Annie,” he breathed.

“You’re not so bad yourself, Carter,” she teased, as her fingers trailed down the front of this t-shirt, feeling the toned chest and washboard abs underneath.

Nick sucked in a breath as her hands touched the waistband of his pajama pants, and he could feel himself getting painfully hard. “Annie...” he panted, running his hands down her back and around to the front of her body.

“Hmm?”

“Is this....okay?” He ran a hand up her side and stopped it just short of her breast. She didn’t answer, but instead, threw her covers off, exposing bare legs beneath her lacy pink nightie, and gripped the front of his shirt, bringing him closer to her. He gave a throaty laugh and squeezed her breast while his other hand roamed up and down her silky thigh.

“Mmm...Nick....” she groaned against his lips as her hands gripped the bottom of his shirt and yanked it over his head. She gasped as she took him in and he gave her a sexy smirk before finding her lips again. His hand crept up underneath her nightie and hooked into the side of her panties, pulling them off carefully. She smiled and tugged at his pajama pants. He stood up and quickly removed both his pants and boxers before rejoining her on the bed.

“Well, that was easy,” he thought to himself as he eased her back against the pillows and climbed on top of her.
Chapter 19 by emily_michele



Nick awoke with a start and broke out into a cold sweat, his heart beating wildly. He turned to the left when he felt a presence shifting around in his bed. However, instead of a naked auburn beauty, he found a small, giggling lump under the covers. A frantic Annie appeared in the doorway wearing a blue UK shirt and green plaid flannel pajama pants. It was a far cry from the lacy pink nightie in his dream, but still did nothing to help his throbbing morning friend. “Have you seen Drew?” she panted. He smirked and pointed to the lump in the covers beside him. “Oh, thank goodness,” she breathed as she crossed the room to the other side of Nick’s bed. “Apparently, he’s gotten tall enough to open doors now, and I didn’t even realize it. I was in the bathroom, and he was out in the bedroom playing. I came back out, and he was nowhere. Sorry.”

 

“No problem.” Nick shifted around uncomfortably and bunched up the blanket across his lap, so as not to embarrass himself, then watched as Annie went into full-on “mommy-mode.”

 

“Drew! Where’s Drew?” she called out in a sing-songy voice. “Nick, have you seen Drew?”

 

“Nope. Haven’t seen him,” he played along.

 

“Oh, Drew! Where are you?” she called out again as Drew shifted around and giggled. “Well, huh. I think I’ll just take a seat here and try to figure out where he could be!” She plopped down on the bed, her weight causing the little giggling lump to roll towards her and press up against her hip. “Oh my goodness, what is this?” she asked in mock surprise as she placed her hand on him. “I wonder if it can help me find Drew!” Drew stayed still and got quiet, which to Nick, was quite impressive for a sixteen month old. She stood up and called out for Drew again, this time with a little more fervor. Finally, two pudgy little hands appeared, clutching the edge of the blanket. Nick watched in anticipation, and Drew threw the blanket off his face, laughing wildly. He couldn’t help but join him in his laughter. “There you are!” Annie exclaimed. She brought her hands down to his stomach and started tickling him, which only caused him to laugh louder. “Alright, sweetie. Let’s leave Nick alone now and go get some breakfast, okay?” She bent down and picked him up out of the bed, then set him down on the floor and grabbed his hand to start leading him out of Nick’s room.

 

“He’s no trouble at all,” Nick said to the back of her head.

 

She turned and smiled. “Thanks. See you in the studio later?”

 

“Yeah.” Nick nodded and returned the smile. “I’m excited to hear you. Brian says you’re amazing.”

 

She blushed. “Well, like I told Brian, this is for church.”

 

Once Annie and Drew were out of the room, Nick picked up his IPhone and unlocked the screen. He still had a picture of Lauren set as the background. He immediately deleted the picture and threw the phone down on the bed angrily before getting out of the bed and heading for the shower. A few minutes later, he met Brian in the hallway on the way downstairs. “Good night?” Brian asked him casually.

He couldn’t help but think about the dream he had right before waking up that morning. He only wished he’d been able to finish it. “Uh-huh,” he answered quietly.

 

After a leisurely breakfast, they finally made it down to the studio about an hour later. Annie immediately went to the blue piano, where the sheet music was still spread out from the day before. “We’ll probably just end up getting familiar with the song today, then actually get into the studio and start recording tomorrow, if that’s okay,” Brian said. “Let’s start with some warm-ups.” He started towards the piano but Annie stopped him.

 

“If you don’t mind, I kind of have my own thing that I always do. Then, we can do something together. Is that okay?”

 

“Sure. Go ahead.”

 

Annie poised her fingers over the piano keys and played a single chord, then began singing as she played. It was a simple praise hymn that Brian was familiar with from church. He and Nick watched in awe as she sang.

I love you Lord,

And I lift my voice,

To worship you.

Oh, my soul

Rejoice.

Take joy my King,

In what you hear.

May it be a sweet, sweet sound,

In your ear.”

 

When she started repeating the verse, Brian joined her in harmony, and after the both of them had sung through it, Nick applauded reverently. “You guys sound awesome together.”

 

Brian grinned while Annie blushed. “I thought we would,” he said. They warmed up for a few more minutes, with Nick even joining in occasionally to add to add to the harmony, then started working on their song, titled “I Turn to You.” “So,” Brian sat down on the piano bench beside her and started looking at the sheet music while Nick sat in a nearby armchair and watched. “I was thinking I’d sing the first two verses, then you join in for the chorus and take the third verse, then you can help me ad lib through the bridge and end. Does that sound okay? If you have any suggestions, please let me know.”

 

“I think that sounds perfect. Let’s run through it once and see how it goes.” She played the intro and Brian started to sing.

“When I'm far away from Home
And the cold wind starts to blow
When I'm empty and alone
I turn to you

When there's hardness in my heart
And I can't see the truth
And I'm wandering in the dark
I turn to you”

 

Annie joined him for the chorus.

And here in your Holy Presence
It's all that I can do
I turn to you Jesus
I turn to you Lord
What else can I do Jesus?
I turn to you”

 

Then, she sang the third verse.

For the faith to move ahead
And to let go of the past
And to see me as you do
I turn to you”

 

When she finished the second line, she felt a chill run over her, and a single tear trickled down her cheek as they launched back into the chorus. Once they’d finished and Annie had played the final ending notes, again, Nick clapped reverently. “If you guys sound that good singing it the first time, I think you’ll be ready for the studio before tomorrow.”

 

They practiced for the next few hours, with Nick throwing his two cents in occasionally, until Annie excused herself to go put Drew down for his nap. Brian sat down on the couch opposite Nick and turned towards him. “So? What do you think?”

 

“I think she’s awesome. The song’s really nice. Of course, it’s not really my style, but I like it. I really do. Did you notice how she cried the first time she sang it? Those lyrics about moving ahead and letting go of the past.....”

 

“I kind of made her sing that part on purpose,” Brian admitted.

 

Nick nodded in understanding. “Do you think she will?”

 

“Do I think she will, what?”

 

“Move on. Let go of her past.....”

 

“Oh.” Brian sighed. “You know, I hope so. A woman like that doesn’t deserve to spend the rest of her life alone. That’s for sure. But.... I’m not sure she’s really ready yet.”

 

“Hmm....” Nick tapped his fingers on the arm of the chair nervously.

 

“Hmm.....what?”

 

“Annie’s really......nice. She’s also really cute. Though, I’m not sure cute really gives her enough credit. She’s a knockout,” Nick declared.

 

“Nick....”

 

“What? She is! You can’t blame a guy for noticing. Do you think that maybe she’d....”

 

“No.” Brian interrupted him.

 

“You don’t even know what I was going to say!” Nick whined.

 

“Yes I do. I know you, Nick, and my answer is no.”

 

“B-but--” NIck stammered.

 

“No. Were you not here with us in this room yesterday? She’s a grieving widow. She’s been hurt so badly, Nick. I can’t just sit back and let you...”

 

“Let me what, Brian?”

 

“Nick, you are a serial dater. You don’t know how to be alone. And your track record....well, it’s not great.”

 

“Don’t remind me.”

 

“Aside from Paris, I have never tried to interfere in your relationships and romantic pursuits, but--”

 

“I thought we agreed to never talk about her again.”

 

“Sorry. But like I was saying, I’m going to have to interfere this time. This is Annie we’re talking about.” Brian paused and sighed. “Besides, you’re not exactly...”

 

“Not what, Brian? Her type?” Nick huffed. “I’m well aware. You remember that song that was out a few years ago? I guess it was called ‘She’s So High’?” Brian nodded cautiously. “That’s the song I hear in my head every time she walks into the room. I mean, she’s a frickin doctor. She’s beautiful.....and smart.....an amazing mother....and then there’s her faith. So what if she turned away from God for two years? I guess somewhere along the line, I turned away from Him for a lifetime.”

 

“Nick....” Brian placed a hand on Nick’s arm.

 

“I mean, I remember my salvation. I was baptized when I was only eight.”

 

“I know,” Brian said quietly.

 

 

“But, I guess God’s been out of the picture for the past...I dunno...20 years?” Nick paused and looked up at the ceiling. “Do you think that’s what I’ve been doing wrong all these years?” Brian bit his lip. “Don’t answer that,” Nick recanted. “I know what you think, but I mean, after I cleaned up my life, do you think that’s why God would...”

 

“Why God would do what, Nick?” Brian asked gently.

 

“Nothing.” Nick tore his eyes away from the ceiling and turned his attention back to Brian. “Weren’t we talking about Annie?”

 

“Uh.” Brian cleared his throat. “Yeah. We were talking about Annie.”

 

“Yeah, Annie. I know I don’t really have a chance of an actual relationship with her, B-Rok. She’s just so much better than me.”

 

“She’s not better than you, Nick. It’s just that...”

 

Nick held up his hand. “No. She is. You all but told me that. I know you care about her, and that you’re concerned about her well-being, so that’s why I’m running this by you first. You’re right. She’s not ready to jump into something, and you know what? Neither am I. I just ended a three year relationship. I don’t need to jump into another one.” He trailed off and looked at Brian expectantly.

 

“Well, go on.”

 

“So, what I’m telling you is that I’m going to ask her out on a date. I think it’d be fun. Do you think she’s even been on a date since her husband died? I mean, she still wears her wedding band.”

 

“Probably not,” Brian said softly.

 

“So, she’ll probably turn me down anyway, but I’m going to at least give it a shot.” Nick shrugged casually.

 

“Um.....okay then. Ask her out on a date. You have my blessing. Just don’t do anything stupid, okay?”



Song Credits:
“I Love You Lord” is a traditional hymn. I couldn’t find the writer without a hymn book.
“I Turn to You” is actually a song by a comtemporary Christian group called Selah. Great song if you want to look it up on YouTube or something.
“She’s So High” is by Tal Bachman, and was one of my fave songs in high school.

P.S.- Of course it was a dream!  It was supposed to have been Annie’s dream, actually, but I had the idea of Nick waking up with Drew in his bed and had to go with it!

Chapter 20 by emily_michele

The next morning, Nick waltzed into the kitchen to find Annie sitting at a kitchen chair sipping a cup of coffee and reading a newspaper while Drew played with a toy car on the hardwood floor. “Morning,” he said casually.

Annie glanced over the top of the newspaper. “Morning,” she answered.

“Where is everyone?”

“Baylee had a doctor’s appointment this morning,” she replied. “They just left, so it looks like it’s just us for the next couple of hours. Then, Brian and I are going to get into the studio this afternoon.” Nick nodded and headed for the coffee pot. After he’d poured a cup and started walking back towards the kitchen table, Annie set her newspaper down, and he burst out laughing. She was wearing an NKOTBSB concert tour t-shirt.

“Nice shirt.” He smirked as he sat down.

She looked down and grinned. “I packed it thinking Brian would get a kick out of it. I didn’t realize I was going to get to model it for two Backstreet Boys, though.”

“It’s nice.” He took a gulp of coffee and started studying the shirt. The group picture of all nine of them standing in a line with a rope that had been used for all the promo posters was emblazoned across her chest. He nearly spit out his coffee when he noticed himself centered on her left breast. It didn’t help that he had this cheesy grin on his face and was holding up the “rock and roll” symbol with his hand, almost as if her were saying “Score!”

“What?” Annie asked, noticing his sudden change of expression.

He coughed. “Um...nothing.”

“Oh, come on,” she prodded.

“No, seriously. You don’t wanna know.”

“Well, now you have to tell me.”

Nick sighed. “You promise you won’t get mad?”

“Well, now that depends on what it is, doesn’t it?”

“It’s stupid and immature, but I was just, uh....looking at your shirt, and I noticed myself.” He gestured to her chest.

She looked down and moved her head from right to left, then her mouth fell open in shock and she blushed. “Maybe I should go change. Do I really want you to be thinking about how you’re on my left boob all day?”

He was surprised by her bluntness. “Well, I’m sure it’s a nice place to be, but really, don’t worry about it. How old are we, twelve?” Annie blushed harder and laughed. “Seriously though, can I ask you a question?”

Annie furrowed her brows at his serious expression. “What’s that?”

“Now that Brian’s out of the house, I just need to know.....Is Howie really your favorite Backstreet Boy?”

“Yes,” she answered honestly.

“Well, drats.” He snapped his finger and swung his arm through the air dramatically as she giggled. “Well, would you consider going out with me tomorrow night, even though I’m not your favorite?”

Annie’s eyes widened in surprise, and it was her turn to nearly choke on her coffee. “What?”

“You heard me,” he said quietly, biting his lip nervously.

“Nick, I..... I’m not so sure that’s a good idea.”

Drew toddled over to her and tugged on the leg of her pants. “Mama, I poo!” he exclaimed happily.

“Did he just say...?” Nick trailed off and crinkled his nose in disgust. “Yep, that’s what he said.”

Annie looked down at Drew and sighed. “Let’s go get you changed.” She scooped him into her arms and stood up to leave.

As she passed him, Nick reached out and touched her side gently. She paused and looked down at him. “Can we finish this conversation later?” he asked.

“I um...okay. Later.” She rushed away, almost thankful for Drew’s interruption, no matter how unpleasant.
_____________________________________________________

When they got back into the studio that afternoon, Nick was all business. He fiddled with the sound board until he got the desired effects, gave constructive criticism where needed, and even took notes. When they got to working on the bridge, Brian declared that something “just didn’t sound right,” and Nick immediately stepped in. “Annie, how about you try singing a third above Brian for the first few bars, then switch to a fifth above. Then, I want you to switch to the melody for the second phrase, and Brian, mirror what Annie did previously, okay?”

“Huh.” Brian looked down at his sheet music, impressed with Nick’s interpretation. “Okay. Let’s try that.”

As Annie sang, she studied Nick’s face through the glass. First, he messed a little with the sound board, his brows furrowed in deep thought, then he looked up and watched them with this serious expression on his face. Then, the sides of his mouth started to twitch into a smile. “So, how was it?” she asked after they’d finished.

“It was perfect.”

“Told you he was a genius with a soundboard,” Brian declared with a smile. “So Nick, are you ready to be listed in the credits of a contemporary Christian album? How about being nominated for a Dove award?” Nick just gave him a little chuckle. “I think that’s a good place to stop.” Brian took off his headphones and set them down on his music stand. “I’m going to go see if Leigh needs any help with dinner.” He gave Nick a little nod and left.

“What you did with that bridge was really great, Nick. I mean, I’m totally an amateur here, but why don’t you do more producing?” Annie asked him as she sauntered into the control room where he was still sitting.

He shrugged. “Well, it’s kind of hard to get a lot of ‘street cred’ when you’re a Backstreet Boy.”

“You need ‘street cred’ to produce?”

He laughed. “In a way, yeah.” Then he looked down at the sound board and made sure all the controls were set to off, then pushed his chair backwards and looked up at her. “Is it okay if- if we finish our conversation from earlier?”

Annie groaned and crossed her arms over her chest nervously. It was a defense mechanism she’d always used when she felt like someone was getting too close, without her ever really realizing it. “I’m sorry, Nick, but I don’t think there’s really anything to finish. I told you earlier that I didn’t think it was a good idea, and I still feel that way.” She glanced down at her left hand and sighed. “I haven’t.....since Andrew...I-I haven’t...” she stammered.

Nick nodded knowingly. “I figured as much.” He stood up and took the two strides that separated the distance between them. “Listen, Annie. I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t attracted to you. I am, but I also realize that neither of us is ready for a relationship right now, and that even if we were, it probably wouldn’t work out between the two of us, anyway.” She carefully uncrossed her arms and shoved her hands in her back pockets. “I just thought maybe the both of us could use a night away. That’s all.”

“But--” Her defenses were slowly letting down. “I’ve never been away from Drew at night. I don’t want to miss his bedtime.”

“So, we’ll make it a daytime thing. We don’t have much work left to do on your song, and you still have a couple days after tomorrow before you’re supposed to go back home, so we have time, and I promise I’ll get you back before bedtime.” He gave her a little smirk.

Annie pursed her lips and nodded thoughtfully. “I’ll think about it, okay?”

Nick smiled. “I’ll take ‘I’ll think about it’.”

_________________________________________________________________________
Later that night, after she and Brian had put Baylee to bed, Leighanne found Annie sitting on the back deck by herself on a lounge chair. She was sipping a cup of something hot, with her knees curled up against her body and a cashmere throw that Leighanne didn’t recognize tucked around her shoulder. “Mind if I join you?” she asked quietly.

Annie turned to her and forced a smile. “Sure.”

“This is nice. Did you bring it from home?” Leighanne ran her fingers along the fringe of the throw Annie was clutching.

“Yeah. My mom bought it for me before Drew and I got married. After he.....” She trailed off and Leighanne looked at her expectantly. “We used to cover up with it while we watched TV at night. It still smelled like him,” she admitted. “Now, I think it’s just habit. Kind like my own version of a blankie.” She let out a little giggle.

Leighanne smiled back at her. “There’s this ratty old Tates Creek High School t-shirt of Brian’s that I sleep with when he’s away,” she told her. “I get it.” Annie looked down at her tea cup, and they fell into a comfortable silence for a while, just enjoying the night silence. “Can I ask you a question?” Leighanne finally spoke up.

“What’s that?”

“When was the last time you went on a date?”

Annie raised an eyebrow in her direction. “Did Nick send you?”

Leighanne laughed. “No, and Brian didn’t either, but Nick’s upstairs in his room moping, and I figure it’s because you turned him down. I hope you don’t mind that Brian pretty much tells me everything.”

“No, not at all. You’re his wife. I just didn’t figure Nick would tell Brian he asked me out.” She shivered in the cool autumn air and set her cup down, pulling the blanket tighter around her.

“I think he was looking for his approval.”

“And did he get it?”

“Not at first. That was until Nick assured him that he didn’t have any ulterior motives. Nick’s a great guy. He is. There was a time in his life that I didn’t think that, but he’s really changed in the past couple of years and become more like that big-hearted kid I met at the ‘As Long as You Love Me’ video shoot. More mature, of course.” She paused. “Well, sometimes.”

Annie smiled. “He’s a nice guy. Not at all like I imagined him, actually.”

“How did you imagine him?”

“Truthfully?” Annie turned and leaned towards Leighanne, like she was an old girlfriend dishing out gossip. “Cocky.”

Leighanne giggled. “Well, he still is sometimes, but in a cute, sarcastic way. Like I said, he’s changed, especially since Lauren....”

Annie cocked her head to the side and furrowed her brows. “Do you know what happened there? It seems odd that he’s hop on a plane to Atlanta and show up on your doorstep unannounced....and drunk.”

“I know,” Leighanne sighed. “He did fill us in, but....I don’t know. I think there’s something he’s not telling us. Brian thinks so, too. That’s the thing about Nick. He definitely closes up when something’s bothering him and pretends it’s not happening.” She trailed off and bit her lip. “For the record, I think you should go out with him. Both of you could use a little fun, and Drew would definitely be in good hands, if I do say so myself.”

“Leighanne, I----”

“You never answered my question earlier.”

Annie looked down and studied her lap. “Honestly? Five and a half years ago. June 2006. Our anniversary.”

“And you think it would be like betraying your husband if you went on a date, right?”

“I.....yeah,” Annie admitted, studying her wedding band as it glinted in the moonlight.

“I know I’m getting personal, but that’s the thing about both me and my husband. We’re nosy. Meddlers, if you will. I know you were very young, but did you and Andrew ever have that conversation about what you’d do if anything ever happened to one of you? I know Brian and I have.”

Annie squeezed her eyes shut in an attempt to stop the tears that pricked at her eyes threateningly. “Yes,” she whispered quietly.

“And?”

“Of course we agreed that we wanted each other to be happy, and if that meant finding someone else, then......”

“Listen, Annie. I’m not saying Nick should be that someone else, but who knows? He is a lot of fun, and you’ve got to start somewhere, right? Besides, how many women do you know who can say a Backstreet Boy took her out for her birthday?”

Annie’s mouth dropped open in surprise. “How did you know?”

“We needed it to buy your plane tickets, remember?”

“Oh yeah. Did you happen to notice which birthday it was?” she asked.

Leighanne pursed her lips and nodded. “Mmmhmm. Think about it. A date with a Backstreet Boy---what a way to turn thirty.” Annie sighed and pulled her tea cup back into her hands, took a sip of the now lukewarm tea, and stared out into the backyard. A few minutes later, she was knocking on Nick’s bedroom door.

“What the-?” Nick opened the door and looked down at her. “Oh, um...hi Annie. What’s up?”

Annie shifted her bare feet back and forth on the carpet nervously and placed a hand on the door frame. “I was just wondering what I should wear tomorrow. Should it be something casual, or a little dressy, or....?”

“Tomorrow?” Nick looked confused for a moment, then his face broke into a huge smile. “Casual would be great. I’ll pick you up at eleven?”

Annie raised her eyebrows. “You’ll pick me up?”

“Yeah. I’ll pick you up.” He gestured down the hall to her room.

She smiled. “Sounds good.”
Chapter 21 by emily_michele

 

Annie studied her reflection in the bathroom mirror. She turned to the side and sucked in her stomach, smoothing her yellow camisole down underneath her gray cardigan, then pulled up on the waistband of her jeans to make sure she didn’t have any sign of “muffin top.” She pulled up on her bra straps pulled her breasts up to where they were “pre-Drew,” then sighed as they sagged back down. No bra in the world could completely reverse the damage that being pregnant and breastfeeding did to a woman. She leaned forward and studied her eyes in the mirror, first wiping away a little mascara smudge under her left eye, then placing her fingertips at her temples and pulling the skin back taught, temporarily erasing the few fine lines that had appeared around her eyes in the past five years. Annie wasn’t oblivious to the fact that she was an attractive woman, but she had her insecurities anyway, and the fact that she was getting ready to go out on a date with Nick Carter himself was enough to make her a little crazy about trying to look perfect. Her eyes trailed down the length of her body and stopped at her left hand. It hit her that there was a good chance she and Nick may get spotted by a fan, and she really didn’t want to be the reason that rumors got started about Nick having an affair with a married woman.

“Annie, you’re going on a date,” she told her reflection in the mirror. “Maybe it’s time....” Then, with her hands literally shaking so hard she could barely bring them together, she gently slipped off the thin platinum band with the thumb and forefinger of her right hand. She searched in her jewelry pouch for her long silver necklace and threaded the ring onto it carefully, then slipped it around her neck and tucked the ring underneath her camisole. She put on a beaded necklace that matched her ensemble to make it look a little less conspicuous. “I really hope you’re okay with this, Andrew,” she breathed softly. “Of course, if you wouldn’t be okay with it, I don’t guess you’ll ever know. There’s no sorrow in heaven, right?” She jumped at the sound of tapping on her bedroom door, then took one more look at herself in the mirror, tucked a curl behind her ear, and went to answer it.
Nick’s mouth fell open a little when the door in front of him swung open and Annie stepped into the doorway, slinging her purse over her shoulder. She wore a ¾ sleeve gray cardigan over a ruffled yellow tank top with dark washed jeans and yellow flats. Her hair was curled neatly with one side pinned behind her ear. She was wearing more eye makeup than he was used to seeing her in, and it served to turn her eyes a more brilliant green. “Hey..... you look really....nice,” he stammered.

“You, too, Nick.” She stood there for a minute taking him in. He wore distressed jeans and a navy blue zip-up hoodie over an olive green v-neck t-shirt. His blonde locks, which he was apparently starting to grow out, were messy, but in a deliberate sort of way. How in the world could a sweatshirt jacket look that good?

 

He stuffed his hands into his pockets and rocked back and forth on his heels. “You ready to go?”

 

 

“Yep.”

 

They were on their way down the stairs when Nick noticed she wasn’t wearing her ring. He grabbed her hand and stopped her on the landing. “You didn’t have to take that off because of me,” he said casually, gesturing to her ring finger.

 

“Nick, do you really want to start rumors that you’re having an affair with a married woman?” she asked bluntly.

 

“They’ve already torn me apart in every way possible,” he said, referring to the media. “I know how much that ring means to you. If you want, you can go put it back on before we go.”

 

Annie looked down at her finger. It had what seemed like a permanent indentation where her ring used to be. She wondered what was worse-- Nick looking like he was on a date with a married woman, or Nick looking like he was on a date with a married woman who was trying to look like she wasn’t married. Either way, she figured he wouldn’t want to go out with her again after the potential backlash. Wait a minute. Did she just think something about going out with Nick again? She hadn’t even been on one date with him yet, and now she was thinking about the possibility of another one? Sure, she was attracted to him, but this was just for fun, right? “It’s okay.” Annie pulled the silver chain holding the ring out from under her shirt and showed it to Nick, then tucked it back in.

 

“Well, okay, then.” Nick nodded and lead her down the rest of the stairs.

 

“You kids have fun, and have her back before bedtime, alright son?” Brian gave them a cheeky grin and slapped Nick playfully on the back as they were on their way out the door. Nick just rolled his eyes while Annie giggled. “Remember to be a gentleman.” He made sure to sound like he was joking, but he shared a “look” with Nick that told him he wasn’t. Nick gulped and nodded.

 

“So, where are we going?” Annie asked once they were inside the car.

 

Nick grinned and started the engine. “You’ll see.”

 

When they pulled into the Atlanta Family Fun Center fifteen minutes later, Annie looked at him like he was crazy. “What are we doing? Going to the arcade?” Leave it to Nick Carter to bring her to an arcade.

 

“Nope.” Nick cut off the engine and jumped out of the car, walking around it quickly to open Annie’s door.

 

“Miniature golf?”

 

“Nope.” He held out his hand to help Annie out of the low-riding sports car he’d convinced Brian to let him drive.

 

“Please don’t tell me we’re playing laser tag.” She eyed the building warily. “I hate laser tag.”

 

Nick’s face dropped. “Why do you hate laser tag?”

 

“Well, it’s kind of a long story....”

 

He shrugged and placed his hand lightly on the small of her back as they walked through the almost empty parking lot. “We’ve got all day.”

 

“I was ten, and we were on a family vacation in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee. My brother and male cousins all wanted to play laser tag, so not wanting to feel left out, I decided to play with them. I remember being strapped into this big, heavy plastic vest that I could barely run in and shoved into this dark maze full of people with gun and little to no idea what I was doing. I tried to play along, I really did, but my vest essentially vibrated the entire time because I kept getting shot, and I finally crawled into a corner crying and hid until the game was over.”

 

“That’s horrible!” Nick chuckled as he held the heavy glass door open for her. “But I say you just haven’t played laser tag with the right person,yet.” Five minutes later, Nick was strapping her into a heavy, bright orange, plastic vest.

 

End Notes:
I wanted to take the opportunity to thank all of you for reading and for your amazing reviews. I'm really having fun writing this one, so if you haven't reviewed yet, drop me a line and let me know what you think!
Chapter 22 by emily_michele
“I can’t believe I let you talk me into this,” Annie muttered.

“Oh, it’ll be fun,” Nick cajoled. He slipped on his own bright green vest and handed her a laser gun. “Besides, it’s a school day and this place is pretty much empty, so it’s just the two of us. I promise I won’t make you hide in a corner, and if I did, you wouldn’t be alone, and you definitely wouldn’t be crying.” He wiggled his eyebrows suggestively.

Annie rolled her eyes and studied her gun. “So, tell me how to use this thing again?”

“I can’t believe you grew up in Kentucky and don’t know how to use a gun. A toy gun, no less.”

She raised her eyebrow at him. “Is that some kind of jab at my home state?”

“No...but doesn’t your dad hunt?”

Annie started to laugh. “Nick, my dad is a surgeon. He doesn’t hunt. He golfs, and when he takes his boat out on the lake, he takes a good book, not a fishing pole.

Nick’s ears perked up at the word “boat.” “Your dad has a boat?”

“Two. One in Fort Lauderdale and one on Cave Run Lake up in Morehead, Kentucky.”

It was Nick’s turn to raise his eyebrows. “Morehead? Really?”

“Yes, really.”

“As in more....head?”

“I know. Totally embarrassing, right? I never thought anything of it as a kid. Then one day, when I was about thirteen, it hit me, and I was mortified. When I was a senior in high school, I did a college visit at the state university there and went to a football game. Imagine my horror when the cheerleaders were yelling Head! More head! With the pause in between the words and everything. It was actually one of the reasons I decided not to go there. I know that’s shallow, but...”

Nick laughed. “I don’t think that’s shallow at all, though I do have to wonder if that’s one of the same reasons teenage boys do decide to go there.”

Annie blushed. “Probably so.”

“So, are you ready?” He picked up his laser gun and aimed it at her playfully.

“No.”

Nick snickered and pushed her towards a door. “You go in this way, and I’ll go in on the other side. That way, we have to actually scout each other out.” He was gone before she had any time to protest.

Annie sighed and pushed the door open. She stood still for a minute to let her eyes adjust to the darkness, then walked inside. When she came upon the first corner, she clutched her gun to the chest and pressed her back up against the wall. She couldn’t help but to hum the “Mission Impossible” theme song to herself as she poked her head around the corner and aimed her gun into the dark corridor. Around the next corner, she saw a flash of green and grinned as she took aim. However, just as her finger started to pull the trigger, she noticed the tell-tale luminescence of a cell phone screen. Was he texting someone? Not wanting seem rude, she waited until he had stuffed the phone back into his jeans pocket before firing at the target on his back. He jumped in surprise and whirled around, shooting in her direction. She pressed herself back up against the wall as a red laser beam passed in front of her nose. “Oh, it’s on now!” he yelled, when he realized he hadn’t hit her. Annie giggled and crouched down into the nearest corner. She watched as he walked by slowly and dramatically, then shot at him again, this time hitting the target on his chest. He yelped as his vest started vibrating for the second time in only a few seconds. Then he saw her. He grinned wickedly as he sauntered over to her and aimed his gun. “I thought we said you weren’t going to be hiding in a corner this time.”

Annie giggled and covered her face with her hands. “Please be gentle,” she squeaked.

“Heh. Not a chance.” He paused for another second to add to the drama, and as he pulled the trigger, she shot up to her feet and darted past him. “You tease!” he yelled after her.
Twenty minutes later, they collapsed onto a bench outside the laser tag arena laughing.

“Okay. That was fun,” Annie admitted breathlessly.

“You’re just saying that because you kicked my ass,” Nick remarked.

“Well, that helped.”

Nick’s phone dinged, signaling that he had received a text message. He ignored it, and instead stood up, running his hands along the front of his jeans before holding one out to Annie. “You hungry?”

She took his hand and stood up. “Thirsty, anyway. I’m too old for this.”

“You’re younger than me, aren’t you?”

“Not by much.” She wondered if Leighanne and Brian had filled him on the fact that it was her birthday, since he hadn’t mentioned it.

As they sat at the snack bar sharing an order of nachos a few minutes later, Nick’s phone beeped again, and then again. Finally, he sighed, pulled it out of his pocket, and silenced it without looking at the screen. “I don’t mind if you text them back, you know,” Annie told him.

“No, it’s fine, she’s just...” Nick paused and looked down at the countertop in front of him. “Sorry.”

“So, it’s Lauren.”

“Yeah,” he admitted quietly. “It’s nothing, really. She’s just checking up on me. Making sure I’m okay.”

Annie cocked her head to the side and studied him. “Well, are you?” Nick didn’t say anything. “Listen, Nick.” She placed a reassuring hand on his shoulder. “I’m wearing a wedding ring on a chain around my neck. She was a big part of your life, and it’s only been what? Four days? There’s no judgement here.”

He smiled slightly and shot a fleeting glance in her direction, then looked back down at their half-eaten nachos. “Then, if I’m being honest with myself, no. I’m not okay. Not really.” She gave his shoulder a little squeeze and rested her head on his upper arm, enveloping him in a half-hug. They both sighed. “It just ended really badly is all,” Nick said into her hair.

She removed herself from him and straightened up so that she could look into his eyes. “You want to talk about it?”

He twitched his lips from side to side while he thought about it. “No. Not really, but let’s just say we ended up disagreeing on some pretty big stuff. Like kids and marriage.”

Annie nodded slowly. “So, she was pressuring you?”

Nick widened his eyes then furrowed his brows in confusion. “What? No. Actually, I guess it was the opposite.”

“But..... I thought you didn’t believe in marriage?”

Nick was reminded for a moment that she was a fan. “I said that in a lot of interviews after my parents finally got divorced. God knows they weren’t the best example of what a marriage should be, but I don’t know. I guess I changed my mind. Lauren changed my mind. I just couldn’t change hers.” He ran his fingers through his hair in frustration. “There’s more to it than that, but that’s really all I’m comfortable telling you right now, okay?”

“Fair enough.” Annie slurped the last bit of her diet soda through her straw and jumped off her bar stool. “Let’s go play some putt-putt.”

Nick laughed. “Why do you people call if putt-putt? Isn’t it miniature golf?”

“You people?” She put her hands on her hips in mock indignation. “Is this another jab at Kentucky, Carter?”

“No. I’m referring to all southerners when I say ‘you people’,” he deadpanned.

“If you must know, I personally call it putt-putt because that’s what you do. You putt, then you putt again. You don’t see people making drives on a putt-putt course. At least not appropriately.”

“Okay. Let’s play some putt-putt, then.” He emphasized the words “putt-putt” facetiously. “I need to redeem myself from that game of laser tag earlier, anyway.” Annie rolled her eyes and sauntered across the brightly colored carpet towards the glass doors that led out to the little hut housing putters and balls.



“You know, you’re really bad for my ego,” Nick said, shaking his head as he wrote his score for the ninth hole down and tucked the score card and tiny pencil into his pocket.

“Did I not mention that I went to UK on a golf scholarship?” Annie traipsed down the set of steps leading to the next hole.

“No, Annie, you never mentioned that. That would have been good to know before I got all ‘Me man. Me golf. You woman. Woman no golf as good as man’.” Annie giggled and dropped her ball on the green, then got into her putting stance. “You know, it should have raised a red flag when I noticed that you linked the pinky of your bottom hand with the index finger of top hand. Only true golfers do that.” She found it a little unnerving that he was watching her hands that closely, but brushed it off and concentrated on the hole. “I’d like to see you try to get another hole in one on this one,” Nick said smugly.

Annie pursed her lips and studied the course. “This one does look pretty tough,
actually,” she said with a shrug. Still, she eyed the hole carefully and conjured up some old college physics, then gave her purple ball a solid stroke.

Nick bent down with his hands on his knees and watched as the ball bounced off a bumper, rolled down an incline, and dropped into the cup. “You’ve got to be kidding me!” he shrieked incredulously.

Meanwhile, Annie, even surprised herself, laughed and started jumping up and down happily, less for herself and more to get a rise out of Nick. She felt her necklace come apart at the nape of her neck and stopped, her mouth opening in horror, as she heard the clink of metal hitting concrete. She dove for the ring, but it was too late. Tears stung her eyes as she sat on her knees and watched it roll down an incline and into the stream of blue water rushing through the course.
Chapter 23 by emily_michele
Nick immediately sprang into action and ran towards the rushing water, running downstream along the side a bit before he jumped in. He saw the ring sparkling in the sunlight and scooped his hand down into the water, just as it started to rush by him. His fingers barely grazed by the ring as it kept going downstream, so he turned around and lunged forward, slapping his hand over the ring as he fell onto his hands and knees. He could feel the hard metal pressing into the palm of his hand as the water flowed around it, and he stayed frozen in place, looking down at his hand in awe that he had actually caught it.

“Nick?” Annie stood up carefully, brushed her jeans off with her hands, and jogged over to him. “Did you get it?” She stooped down and he turned his head to meet her gaze.

“I, uh...yeah. I’m kind of afraid to move my hand, though. This current’s pretty strong for a mini--I mean putt-putt golf course.”

“Stay right there.” Annie sat on the ground and took off her shoes. Then she rolled up her pants legs and stepped into the water. “Which hand?”

“Left.” He gestured towards his hand with his head.

Annie crouched down and cupped her hands on either side of and slightly in front of Nick’s hand. For a moment, she thought about what a sight they must be to any onlookers. She didn’t care, though. This was her wedding ring. The one her Andrew had placed on her finger five and a half years ago. The one that, until today, she’d never taken off. Then, this happens. She blew a piece of hair out of her face and looked down at their hands. “Now, bring your hand into a fist around it. If it gets away from you, hopefully, I’ll catch it.”

Nick looked up at her and pursed his lips, then nodded silently. The both looked back down and he nervously pulled his fingers in, scraping them along the concrete beneath them. He sucked in a breath as his hand closed around the tiny platinum band and lifted it out of the water. “Got it,” he told her with a smile. With the ring still clenched in the palm of his hand, he stepped carefully out of the water onto the concrete. With his free hand, he reached out for Annie and helped her out of the stream. Then he led them several feet away, just to be safe, before he grabbed her hand, turned her palm upward, and placed the ring in it.

Annie was overcome with emotion. Her breath hitched in her throat and she brought her empty hand up to her mouth as she squeezed her eyes shut in an attempt to quell the tears that were suddenly coming hard and fast. Nick watched her uncomfortably for a couple minutes, not quite sure what to do. “Annie?” he asked softly. “Are you okay?”

With her eyes still squeezed shut and tears still flowing, she nodded slowly and threw herself against him, burying her face in his chest. “Thank you,” she whispered.

He instinctively wrapped his arms around her, pulling her closer. “No problem.”

She clutched his jacket with one hand, still clutching her ring in the other. “I don’t know many men who would have done that for me,” she sobbed.

“I know at least five,” he commented quietly. He brought one hand under chin and turned her face up towards his. “You sure you’re okay?” He brushed a tear away from her cheek with his thumb.

She sniffled and hastily wiped the other side of her face with the back of her hand. “I feel a little ridiculous, actually.”

“Well, don’t. You might feel a little less so if you put your shoes back on, though.” He pointed to where they rested haphazardly near the man-made stream. She gave him a little laugh and marched over to her shoes. He watched her closely, still a little freaked out by her sudden catharsis. “Oh, ouch! We should probably get that cleaned up,” he said, gesturing to her leg

“What?” She looked down and noticed that the jeans over one of her knees was ripped and blood-stained. “Oh. I didn’t even notice it,” she said with a shrug.

“Do you want me to go ask if they have a first aid kit?” Nick nodded his head back towards the building.

“Actually, I have one in my purse in the car. I guess we’re done here, anyway.”

“Of course you do.” Nick gathered their balls and clubs, then pulled a set of keys out of his pocket and handed them to her. “I’ll just take these back and meet you there.”

After returning their balls and putters, he found her sitting sideways on the passenger seat with the car door open, digging through her purse. “A-ha!” She pulled out a little red plastic box and smiled weakly. Nick took the box from her and stooped down on one knee in front of her. He gently rolled up her jeans and tore open an alcohol pad. She hissed in pain as he dabbed at the cut on her knee.

“Sorry. That’s all I saw to clean it with.”

“It’s fine. That’s what I would have used, too.”

“Good to hear you approve, Dr. Morgan.” He chuckled and flashed a smile in her direction, then he went on with applying antibiotic ointment and securing a band-aid over the cut. “All done.”

“Thanks, Nick.” She watched him as he stood up and gasped. “Oh, look at you!”

He placed his hands on his hips and looked down at himself, then shrugged. “So I’m wet....and smurfy. Who knew they actually put dye in that water to make it blue? At least it’s pretty much just on the front, so Brian can’t kill me for ruining his seats.”

“What about the floorboards?” Annie looked down and saw clear plastic floorboard covers. “Oh. Nevermind.” Of course, Leighanne would have insisted on those.

“I’m probably going to need to change before we go to dinner, though,” Nick remarked as he got into the driver’s seat. “That is, if you still want to go.” He noticed she had slipped the ring back on her finger. “I was thinking Olive Garden.”

“Mmm.... I love Olive Garden.”

Nick laughed. “I don’t know a woman who doesn’t, so I figured it was a pretty safe bet. So, we’re still going?”

“Sure. You’re my hero this afternoon, Nick. It’s the least I can do.”

When they got back to Brian’s, Annie could see Leighanne, Baylee, and Drew playing in the backyard, so she went there first. Leighanne looked up at her from where she was rolling a ball back and forth in the grass, startled. “Well, that was quick.”

“We’re going back out, but we needed to come back and change.”

“What happened to your knee?”

“It’s a long story, but essentially, there was this incident that ended with Nick falling in the water at a putt-putt golf course.”

Leighanne winced. “Was it the blue water?” Annie nodded. “I’ll grab his clothes and see what I can do with them while you guys are gone, and I’ll try to get that blood stain out, too.”

“Peroxide works great,” Annie told her as tse gave Drew a hug and a kiss before going back inside to change pants.

“I guess you would know, wouldn’t you?”

Meanwhile, Brian found Nick taking his shoes and socks off at the back door. “What happened to you?”

“It’s a long story. And before you ask, your car’s fine.”

Brian breathed a sigh of relief. “Good to hear. You still taking her to dinner?”

“Yeah. That is if she doesn’t change her mind between now and then.” She slipped past them and his eyes followed her up the stairs.

Up in her room, Annie changed pants quickly, then took a long look at her left hand. She slipped the ring back off and tucked it into the top dresser drawer. After what Nick had done for her today, she felt like she at least owed him that much. He noticed that she’d taken the ring back off when she met him downstairs, but decided not to say anything about it.
_________________________________________________________________

“I didn’t imagine you drank,” Nick remarked as the waiter set Annie’s second sangria of the night on the table.

Annie took a sip then took a bite out of her breadstick and munched on it casually. “”Why do you say that?”

“I don’t know. I mean, Brian drinks. Not often, almost never excessively, and of course I don’t do much of that anymore, but I just figured...” Nick stammered.

She smiled knowingly. “If you’re asking if I think it’s a sin to drink, the answer’s no. I mean Jesus turned water into wine, right?”

“True....”

“But what the bible does is say is not to be a drunkard.”

“Been there,” he muttered.

“So, I will have a drink or two with dinner and let myself loosen up a little. I even have a glass of wine before bed about three nights a week, but I try not to make a habit out of actually getting drunk. It’s not pretty. I lose all my good judgement and inhibitions.”

“Remind me to get you drunk sometime,” Nick joked. “So, are you telling me you feel the need to loosen up a little tonight?” He leaned across the table and smirked at her.

“Truthfully? After what happened at the golf place? Yes,” she said seriously.

“That’s fair.” Nick took a sip of his water and smiled. “So, are you getting dessert?”

Annie groaned and placed her hand on her stomach. “No way. I think I’ve already gone up two pants sizes tonight.” He laughed and asked for the check.

“Thank you for today, Nick. Despite what happened with the ring, I really did have a good time,” Annie told him as they pulled into the Littrells’ driveway a few minutes later.

“I did too, Annie. Thanks for going. I know it wasn’t easy for you.” He turned off the engine and turned to face her.

“Oh my gosh, Nick! Listen!” She leaned forward and turned up the radio volume, happy that the radio in the car they were in was one of those that stayed on until the door was opened. Otherwise, they would have missed it.

Nick curved his lips up into a grin, his face beaming. “Don’t turn away, don’t close the door....” he sang.

Annie watched in awe as he kept singing “Just One Kiss,” even adding in hand motions directed at her and dancing a little in his seat. She stifled a giggle. “Are you seriously jamming out to your own song?”

“Hey, you’ll do it, too, one of these days.” He smiled and finished out the song before stepping out of the car and opening her door for her. She had to admit that he sounded even better in person. He clasped his hand around one of hers as she stepped out of the car and closed the door behind her. He stood facing her and pulled her other hand into his, so that he was holding both of them, and gave her a grin. “So what do you say?”

“About what, Nick?”

“Just one, just one...” he sang with a smirk.

“Oh.” She giggled. “Okay.” She stretched up on her tiptoes, aiming for his cheek, but he turned his head at the last second and captured her lips with his.

“Happy birthday, Annie.”
Chapter 24 by emily_michele

The kiss was quick. Chaste, even. Just a short, closed lipped kiss, but more than a peck on the lips. It was soft, and lingered for just a second or two. Annie couldn’t believe what had just happened. “Thank you,” she said softly. “For the ‘happy birthday,’ I mean. I kind of figured you didn’t know since you didn’t say anything about it today, and because you didn’t insist on having the waiters and waitresses sing to me and embarrass me to death at the restaurant,” she rambled on.

Nick laughed. “I thought about it. I really wanted to, actually, but I promised Brian I’d behave myself. Of course, it’s only...” He glanced down at his watch. “8:30. It’s still your birthday for a few more hours. So, when’s Drew’s bedtime?”

“Nine....give or take a few minutes. I should probably go in and check on him.” She looked down and realized that they were still holding hands. As a matter of fact, Nick was holding her hands quite tightly. She looked back up at him and raised her eyebrows.
“Oh. Sorry,” he quickly let her hands go, the heat rising in his cheeks, then followed her inside.

“Happy birthday!” Brian, Leighanne, and Baylee all yelled happily as they walked into the kitchen.

“Ap day, mama!” Drew squealed, clapping his hands. He wore a paper birthday hat atop his head and had a helium balloon tied to his wrist.

“We worked on that all day,” Brian told her. “That’s as far as he got.”

“I think that’s perfect.” Annie immediately stooped down and pulled her toddler into her arms, then planted a kiss on his cheek, leaving a lipstick mark. Out of the corner of his eye, Brian caught Nick wiping at his lips subconsciously and stifled a laugh. “Thank you, Drew-baby,” she cooed. She looked around the room, noting a two-tiered birthday cake on the table and a bowl of punch on the countertop. Streamers hung from the chandelier above the table, and balloons were tied to the chairs. Above the window seat behind the table was a handmade banner that read “Happy Birthday” in a child’s writing. “Did you make that, Baylee?” He nodded proudly. “It looks awesome!” she praised him.

“Drew helped!” Baylee exclaimed. “See?” He pointed to a crayon squiggle on the right-hand side.

Annie laughed and gave Drew another kiss. “Good job, Drew!”

“And there’s presents!” Baylee blurted out, pointing to the window seat. Sure enough, there was a small box wrapped in pink paper with white ribbon, a floral gift bag, and a yellow envelope resting on the wide windowsill. “Open them!” he yelled, unable to contain his excitement.

“Don’t you think she might like to get a piece of cake and sit down first, Baylee?” Leighanne admonished.

“I like to do the presents first, too, Baylee.” Annie gave him a wink and reached for the envelope.

Baylee held his hand out in front of hers. “You’re supposed to open that one last,” he said seriously. “Here.” He handed her the pink box. “This one’s from mommy and me.” She removed the ribbon and made a big show of letting Drew tear the paper off the box, then pulled out a necklace with an antique-looking opal pendant (her birthstone).

“Oh, wow. This is beautiful. You shouldn’t have,” she said to Leighanne.

Leighanne smiled. “I wanted to. Besides, Baylee and I agreed that it looked like you.”

“Well, thank you.”

Baylee beamed and handed her the large gift bag. “This is from Drew.” Annie mouthed a “thank you” to Leighanne. She let Drew pluck out all the tissue paper, and pulled out a large handbag. “Is this a Wylee bag?”

“That was Brian’s idea,” Leighanne said with an eye roll.

“Now you’re a real fan!” he laughed.

“It’s big enough to use as a diaper bag, though,” Leighanne explained. “And it has a lot of pockets to stash all your stuff.”

“It really is nice,” Annie remarked as she examined it. “I’ll definitely use it.”

She turned back to Baylee, who proudly presented her with the envelope. “This is from Nick and daddy.”

The men both leaned forward with big grins on their faces as she opened the envelope and pulled out two tickets. She eyed them carefully and gasped in realization when she read the words “S.S. Backstreet.” “Are these---?”

“Two VIP tickets for the Backstreet Boys cruise in December,” Brian said proudly. “I figured you might want to bring a friend, maybe that Beth you were talking about who has a thing for AJ?”

“Wow. This is...Thank you!” she stammered.

“It was Nick’s idea.”

She looked at Nick, who gave her his million dollar smile. “You deserve it. Plus, I thought it would be a good way to make you feel young again on your, ahem...thirtieth birthday. We are having and 80’s night, you know.”

She rolled her eyes and shook her head. “This is just too much, you guys. I could always help you watch Baylee, and...”

“You’ll do no such thing,” Brian interrupted her. “We want you to go to all the fan events and really enjoy yourself. Besides, we’ve all decided that this cruise is going to be a kid-free zone.”

“I’m going to grandma and grandpa’s in Kentucky!” Baylee announced.

“Oh.” Annie’s face dropped. “Then, I’m not sure I can go.”

“Why not?”

She looked down at Drew sadly. “It’s just that I don’t know if I can...”

“You’ve never been away from Drew before, have you?” Leighanne asked her gently.

“No. No I haven’t,” she answered quietly. “Never for more than the length of my shift, plus an hour or two.”

“Then, I think it’s time,” Leighanne coaxed. “I know how hard it is, but I honestly believe that getting a little time away from your child every once in a while makes you able to be a better mother. Everyone needs a little break now and then.” Brian nodded in agreement.

“I’ll definitely think about it,” Annie assured them.

After everyone had cake and ice cream (Drew even got a few bites), Annie excused herself to go put Drew to bed. After she’d changed him into his pajamas and put him in the crib, she walked over to the drawer she’d stashed her ring in earlier and opened it. She sighed as the thought about the kiss she and Nick had shared earlier. It had taken her by surprise for sure, but if she was being honest with herself, she kind of enjoyed it. She didn’t really see herself starting a relationship with Nick, but it did make her realize that maybe there was the chance that she could be attracted to another man again. She pulled the platinum band out of the drawer and grasped it in the palm of her hand. “I’m not letting go, Andrew,” she whispered. “But I know you, and I’m pretty sure you would have told me it was time to take the ring off a long time ago.” She tucked the ring securely in a zippered pocket in her new purse and started to head back downstairs.

Nick met her in the hallway just outside the door. “Hey.”

“Hey,” she answered, stopping just a few inches in front of him.

“Are you really considering not going on the cruise?”

“I....I don’t know, Nick. I mean, I’ll probably end up going. It’s an opportunity I can’t really justify turning down, but it depends on whether or not I can get off work, and if I can find someone to watch Drew. Maybe my parents will want to show him off to their neighbors in Boca Raton. But like I said, I don’t know yet.”

He nodded in understanding. “Is it okay that I..... kissed you out by the car? I mean, you really didn’t say anything about it, so....” He trailed off and stuffed his hands in his pockets, looking down at her expectantly.

“Well.....it really took me by surprise, but it wasn’t bad....”

“Not bad? You get kissed by Nick Carter, and all you can say is ‘not bad’?”

“Don’t be like that, Nick,” Annie sighed.

“Oh, come on. You’ve got to give me something better than ‘not bad’.” Before she had a chance to reply, he had closed the distance between them and placed his hands on the back of her head. Then he brought her face close to his and crashed his lips onto hers. This time, the kiss was anything but short. For a moment, she started to pull away, but Nick tightened his grip on the back of her head and held her in place. Against her better judgement, Annie found herself responding to the kiss. She let out a little sigh as he slipped his tongue into her mouth and raked his fingers through her hair. In response, he moaned and pressed his body into hers, pushing her back against the wall. She was thankful for the new support, because her knees literally buckled underneath her. Nick pulled away, breathless, and smiled. “Goodnight, Annie.”
End Notes:
I am working for the next 6 days straight (which may very well kill me, since I usually only work part-time), so this may the last update I get up for a week or more. I hope you enjoy, and let me know what you think!
Chapter 25 by emily_michele
Annie barely slept at all that night, mainly out of guilt. She couldn’t stop thinking about how on the exact day she decided to take off her wedding band, she ended up making out with a pop star. Neither of them acknowledged the kiss the next day as they finished up work on Annie and Brian’s track. Nick did, however, notice that she hadn’t put her ring back on, though he thought it might be wise not to say anything about it. He booked a flight to Tampa for Friday that coincidentally was leaving Atlanta around the same time that Annie was scheduled to fly back to Kentucky. Brian dropped the three of them off at the airport and they walked in together. “So, you’re not going back to Los Angeles?” she asked him.

“No. Not for a while. My place there was half Lauren’s, anyway, and I don’t see myself living there by myself right now, so she’s sending most of my stuff to the house in Tampa. If I decide to go back to California, I’ll just get another place, or maybe crash with AJ or at Brian and Leigh’s west coast place for a while.” He shrugged nonchalantly.

“You mean you’re just giving it to her?” Annie suddenly got a little defensive. She didn’t want Lauren taking advantage of her new friend, and she suspected that this was the type of thing women had done to Nick before.

“Oh, no. Not at all. I’m selling it to her. We’ve talked a couple times this week after everyone’s gone to bed, and we really want to make this as quick and painless and possible and just move on,” he explained. “Even though it didn’t work out between the two of us, and I’m still pretty mad at her, Lauren’s different.”

“Well, that’s good to hear.” They got through check-in, and he helped Annie and Drew to their gate.

“So....”

“So....” They both laughed. “It was really nice to meet you, Nick.” Annie held out her hand for a formal handshake.

Nick playfully stuck out his tongue at her and wrapped his arms around her neck. “I think I at least deserve a hug, don’t you?”

Annie curled her arms around his waist and hugged him back warmly. “Yeah. Yeah, Nick. You do.”

“I really did enjoy spending time with you the other day.” He leaned forward to whisper in her ear. “All of it.”

Annie gulped and looked up at him. “I enjoyed spending time with you, too, Nick.”
Drew squealed from his stroller just to make sure they knew he was still there, and Nick shot a funny face in his direction, causing him to crack up.

“So, um....” Nick looked down and kicked at the tile beneath his tennis shoe, then looked back up at her. “Do you think I could get your number?”

Annie’s breath hitched in her throat. Part of her wanted to give it to him, but the other part of her-- the part that wasn’t so sure about the implications, the part that said she wasn’t ready for this, the part that said getting involved with Nick Carter might be a little nuts, told her no. “Nick.....” She took in a deep breath let it out. “I’m not so sure that’s a good idea.” He pursed his lips and nodded quietly silently. “But... tweet me, okay? And hopefully, I’ll see you on the cruise.”

He smiled weakly. “You promise?”

“I’ll try.”

He placed his hand on the small of her back and bent down to give her a quick peck on the cheek. “Good luck on the flight, Annie.” With that, he walked away.

He “tweeted” her that night to make sure she got back home okay, and only once or twice a week after that, not wanting to scare her away. Even then, it was usually just a “Hey, how you doing?” Two weeks later, she got a call from Brian just as she got to work. She was working a rare night shift, which she was dreading, not to mention that she felt incredibly guilty for having to leave Drew at Tim and Tracy’s overnight. “Annie, they love you!” Brian said excitedly.

“What? Who loves me?”

“The record execs. I just left a meeting about putting the finishing touches on my album, and they completely fell in love with ‘I Turn to You.’ They want it to be my first single, and they’re ready to give you a five hundred thousand dollar contract. That’s a lot for a Christian artist, and one who’s unknown, no less. Annie, this is huge,” he declared.

“Brian, that’s ludicrous! Why would they be willing to give me a contract after hearing just one song?” She paused. “A duet, so half a song. Actually, you sing lead, so less than half a song!”

On the other end of the line, Brian grinned sheepishly. “Nick might have been recording some of your warm-ups and stuff, too,” he admitted.

“What?! Brian, that was private!”

“I know. I’m sorry. I didn’t even know he did it until I went down to the studio a couple days ago to put some finishing touches on my album tracks before the meeting and happened upon some unlabeled tracks. The meeting was at my place, and they asked if I had something else of yours for them to hear. I couldn’t help myself.”

Annie sighed exasperatedly as she pushed through the locker room door. “Brian....”

“Annie, just meet with them. They wanted to have a meeting with you about promotion for the single anyway. Just listen to what they have to say. I’d be happy to help you in any way I can.” Annie’s favorite thing about Brian was his sincerity, and at the moment, he was laying it on thick.

“Well, if I’m going to have to meet with them anyway...okay. Come up with a couple possible dates, and I’ll check my work schedule. I just got to work, so I’m going to have to go. Just let me know, and give Leighanne and Baylee my love.” Brian told her goodbye, promising to call her back soon with meeting details. She hung up and tucked her phone into the pocket of her scrubs, then turned around to find herself face to face with Brad. Actually, it was more like face to chest. The man was really tall.

“Hey, Ann. Thank so much for switching shifts with me today. I really owe you one. There was just so much I needed to do tonight.”

Annie smirked. “So, when was Todd’s flight supposed to get in?”

“Five.” He glanced down at his watch with a dreamy smile on his face. “If baggage claim was quick, I expect that he’ll be waiting for me when I get home.”

“Well, you better get going, then.”

“Not so fast. What is it that you need to check your work schedule for? Date with Brian?” he asked, his arms crossed, as he looked down at her.

“Just some record company stuff. They want to make the song I sang with Brian his first single from this new album.”

“Annie, that’s awesome! I’m surprised they aren’t trying to get you to make an album of your own.”

“Yeah. It’s weird.” Annie shrugged exaggeratedly and attempted to push past him.

“You are such a terrible liar, Annie Morgan. I eavesdropped on your entire conversation.”

“You’ve got to quit doing that,” she hissed.

“So, are you going to do it?”

“Probably not,” she said over her shoulder as she headed towards the tracking board.

“Then you’re fired.”

She whirled around and put her hands on her hips. “You can’t do that! On what grounds?”

“You’re right. I can’t.” He walked over to his computer and sat down. Then, he opened a document and started typing.

“What are you doing?” He didn’t answer-- just kept on typing. She sighed and turned back to the tracking board, then pulled the charts of the two patients that were waiting to be seen and started looking at them. Finally, she heard the humming of the laser printer, and seconds later, Brad handed her a piece of paper and a pen.

“Sign this.”

“What is this?” she asked quizzically.

“Your two week notice.”
Chapter 26 by emily_michele
When Nick boarded the tour bus in Tampa headed for Canada, he knew that it was going to be a miserable trip. Since he was newly single and didn’t have a travel companion other than his bus driver until he met up with his bodyguard and “posse” in Toronto, he expected the loneliness, but he never anticipated this. “Tom, man, you’re going to have to pull over,” he groaned, placing his hand gingerly over his stomach as he made his way to the front of the bus. The driver widened his eyes in surprise and quickly obliged. Nick ran down the bus steps and made it outside just in time to empty the contents of his stomach into the grass. The same events repeated about ten times before Nick begrudgingly retreated to the bus lavatory. There were only so many places that a large tour bus was able to pull over along a busy interstate, and they were losing time. He hadn’t been this sick in years, and as the hours ticked on, he starting to think this was the sickest he’d ever been. After about twelve hours of being violently ill, he was really wishing that Annie had given him her number. He had a show in Toronto in less than two days, and at this rate, he was pretty sure he was going to die before he got there. A doctor’s opinion would have been nice to have at the moment.

“Hey, Nick! You doing okay in there?” He hadn’t even noticed that the bus had stopped. At least he hoped the bus was stopped, because someone was knocking on the bathroom door and Tom, his driver, was the only other person on the bus. Though, when he thought about it, he still kind of felt like the bus was moving.

He tried to speak, but nothing came out. So he licked his dry lips, cleared his throat, and managed to croak out an “I’m fine.” Then he heaved into the toilet again. The lavatory door swung open and Tom stared down sympathetically at the over six foot tall man curled uncomfortably into the tiny space on the floor with his head resting on the toilet seat.

“You’re not fine. You’ve been in here all night!”

Nick looked up at him and swallowed hard. “It’s just a stomach bug. Hopefully, it’ll be over soon. What time is it anyway?”

“Just after five.”

“In the morning?!”

“Like I said, you’ve been in here all night.”

“I need to hydrate,” Nick declared. He flushed the toilet and attempted to get up, but with the combination of his head spinning coupled with the fact that he was trying to stand up from a space that his body didn’t particularly fit in, he failed miserably. Then he tried again with the same result. “Um, Tom? I really hate to ask, but...”
Tom, who was about the same height as Nick, but packing a few more pounds around the middle, place one foot in the bus restroom and stooped down, then placed his arms under Nick’s armpits and hoisted him up. “Go to your bed, and I’ll get you some water. You know, if you give this to me, it’s you who’s going to be driving the bus.” Nick laughed weakly and turned to splash some water on his face and wash his hands, leaning on the edge of the sink to steady himself first. As he was drying his hands, Tom returned with a bottle of water. He took it from him gratefully, opened it, embarrassed at how hard he had to work to break the lid away from the ring securing it to the top of the bottle, and took a small sip, hoping his stomach wouldn’t protest.

“Where are we, anyway?”

“About twenty miles north of Knoxville.” Nick nodded and started towards the bedroom in the back of the bus. His feet felt like blocks of lead, and the lightheadedness was getting worse with every step he took. He paused and placed his hand on the carpeted wall, squeezing his eyes shut in an attempt to stop the room from spinning.

“You going to make it?” Tom asked from the doorway.

“Yeah,” Nick replied shakily. “Maybe I just need some sleep.”

Tom sighed. “Well, let me know if you need anything. I’m going to get back on the road.” Nick climbed into his bed and took a swig of his water before lying down. He knew he was getting dehydrated. His body felt like it did when he’d just completed an intense workout, multiplied by ten. He prayed that he would be able to keep the water down, but when the bus lurched forward, so did his stomach, and seconds later, he was back in the bathroom.

He must have fallen asleep eventually, because the next thing he knew, he was feeling a sense of deja-vu, his driver standing in the doorway and looking down at him sympathetically. “We’re in the parking lot of a hospital somewhere in Kentucky just a little ways off I-75. You’re going to go in and get checked out while I go have the bus cleaned. No offense, but it stinks, and like I said before, I don’t want what you have.”

“You’re right. I probably do need to get checked out at this point. At least get some meds to help with the nausea.” Nick nodded, and with a little help from Tom, managed to stumble to his feet and off the bus. Once he got him inside to the emergency department registration area, Tom took off, leaving Nick on a hard, plastic chair with a pen and clipboard in his hands. As he attempted to focus and fill out insurance information, he felt an all too familiar wave of nausea wash over him, and stood to ask the receptionist where the restroom was. Then everything went black.

When he came to, his head was throbbing, and a tall, balding man with glasses, probably just a few years older than himself, was hovering just above his face. “Welcome back, Nick,” he said warmly, but with an edge of concern in his voice.

“You know who I am?” He attempted to sit up, but the man placed a hand on his shoulder and eased him back down.

“Take it easy. You gave us quite a scare out there.” Nick looked around and realized that he was no longer on the waiting room floor, but on a stretcher in a curtained exam room. “Yes, Mr. Carter, I know who you are. What I don’t know is why you’ve passed out in my litte ER here in Podunk, Kentucky.” He held out his gloved hand for Nick to shake it. “I’m Doctor Francis.”
Chapter 27 by emily_michele
Annie entered the ER ready for her shift when Brad met her near the entrance. “Morning, Brad. How is it in here today?”

“Oh, pretty slow for the beginning of flu season,” Brad replied casually. “But, there is this one thing.....”

“What’s that?”

“There’s a patient in exam room 4 who says he knows you.”

“Really? Who?”

Brad crossed his arms and leaned against the wall. “Oh, just a certain sexy, blonde Backstreet Boy.”

Annie’s eyes widened in surprise. “Brian?”

“Nope. The other sexy blonde Backstreet Boy, and here I am in my frumpy olive green scrubs. This really needs to stop happening to me.”

“Nick? Nick’s here?” Annie paused. “Wait a minute! Did you say he was a patient? What’s wrong with him?” She started rushing towards exam room 4. “Is he okay?”

“I’m sure he’ll be fine. Sounds like he’s got a nasty case of food poisoning, though. He’s so dehydrated we’re having trouble getting an IV started. I was actually hoping you’d give it a try.”

Annie crinkled up her nose. “Oh, poor Nick. Sure, I’ll see what I can do, but.... why is he in Berea?”

Brad shrugged. “He seems pretty smitten, actually. Maybe he’s here for you?” Annie stared at him dubiously. “Actually, did you not notice the big, black tour bus in the parking lot? I honestly think he was just passing through and got sick. And by the way, why did you not tell me you met Nick while you were down in Atlanta, and that he apparently has a thing for you?”

“He does not have a ‘thing’ for me. Besides, I just figured you would be jealous.” Brad stuck his tongue out at her as Annie walked into Nick’s room and pulled open the curtain cautiously. “Hey,” she said softly, taking in the sight of him. He was pale and clammy, his hair matted down to his sweaty forehead, and his left arm was already noticeably bruised from the multiple needle sticks he’d endured as Brad and the nurses had tried to start an IV line in his dilapidated veins. Nick started to reply, but instead ended up leaning forward and retching violently into the plastic tub resting in his lap. “Well, it’s nice to see you, too,” Annie quipped jokingly as she crossed the room and picked up a wet washcloth, then placed it on the back of his neck as he finished heaving.

“Sorry,” Nick croaked. “That’s embarrassing.”

Annie took the emesis basin from him and rinsed it out before handing it back to him.

“I’ve seen much worse, let me assure you. I’d ask how you’re feeling, but I guess I can assume pretty crappy, huh?”

“That would be a pretty good assumption,” Nick replied weakly. “I’m feeling pretty puny here.......” He trailed off and watched her as she flipped through his chart. She was wearing purple scrubs, and sick or not, he couldn’t help but notice that even in scrubs, she looked great. “So, they tell me you’re pretty good at starting IVs.”

Annie grasped his right wrist and picked up his arm, studying it from all angles. “Usually, yes. Your veins are really flat right now. It won’t be easy, but I think that one might work.” She poked at a blue vein near his wrist and bit her lip in concentration, then ran her fingers along the top of his hand. Nick’s heart beat rapidly and erratically. He was sure that his being sick had something to do with it, but the feeling of Annie’s hand trailing over his skin didn’t help matters. Annie’s head jerked up to the heart monitor they’d attached him to after he fainted. “Your heart’s racing, Nick.”

“Um...yeah,” he stammered.

“That’s probably from the dehydration. We need to get you hooked up to some fluids,” she said with an air of professionalism as she pulled a pair of latex gloves out of the dispenser on the wall and started gathering her supplies. “You’re not allergic to latex, are you? Your chart doesn’t say anything about it, but it looks like you didn’t finish filling out your paperwork.”

“Yeah, I kind of...passed out I guess before I finished it.” He blushed a little, embarrassed again. “No, not allergic to latex, or anything else that I know of.”

“I’m sorry. At least you had a good reason to pass out. When Brian was in here with Baylee, I thought I was going to have to get out the smelling salts for him, and he wasn’t even the one who was hurt.”

Nick chuckled lightly. “B-Rok doesn’t do well with hospitals. That’s for sure.”

Annie nodded as she donned her gloves and pulled up a rolling stool beside Nick’s bed, laying her IV supplies out on the tray table next to it. “Anything else I need to know about your medical history?”

“Well, there’s the cardiomyopathy thing, but the last time I saw my cardiologist, everything checked out great.”

“Oh yeah. Hmm....” Annie frowned in concentration and looked up at the heart monitor screen.

“I don’t think I like that ‘hmmm’.” Despite the fact that he felt terrible, Nick had been thinking of the whole situation as a minor inconvenience that coincidentally (and as a pleasant surprise) let him spend a little time with his new friend. Now, however, he was starting to get a little scared.

“You probably don’t have anything to worry about, but I’m glad they put you on a heart monitor. We’ll watch it pretty closely for a few hours, okay?”

“How many hours is a few?” He asked. “I have a concert tomorrow night in Toronto.”

“So you were on the bus going to Canada for your solo tour, right?”

“Yes. I honestly had no idea we were stopping here. My driver made the decision that I needed to see a doctor, he just followed the first blue hospital sign he saw.” He gave her a little grin. “It’s a nice surprise, though.”

She became all business again. “Okay, Nick. I’m going to try getting that IV started. Once I get access into your vein, I’m going to draw some blood for labs before I hook up the IV line. As far as how long you’re going to be here, I don’t know. Let’s get some fluids in you and take a look at your labs. Plus, I’d like to see you keep something down before I let you leave.”

Nick’s stomach churned at the thought. “I may be here forever, then.”

Annie gave him a sympathetic smile. “When did this start?”

“Yesterday afternoon sometime. We weren’t far outside of Tampa.”

“What did you eat?”

“You think this because of something I ate? I just figured it was a stomach bug.”

“Well,” Annie paused to slip the needle carefully into his vein and draw some blood. “The way it came on so suddenly and severely sounds more like food poisoning.”

“I see.” He gestured to the top of his wrist, where she was hooking up an IV line. “You did that good.”

“I already knew which veins not to pick, so I probably wouldn’t have had as easy a time if I had been the first one to try.”

“She’s just being modest,” Brad interrupted as he entered the room with a nurse.

“She’s like that,” Nick agreed. He racked his brain thinking about what he’d eaten in the past day or two. Then, it hit him. He’d gone into an upscale Tampa grocery store to buy snacks to keep on the bus and he hadn’t been able to resist the sushi on display in the deli.
“Oh no,” he groaned.

“What, Nick? Are you going to be sick again?” Annie lunged for the emesis basin on the edge of the bed.

“Probably soon, yeah. But no, I just realized what most likely did this to me. Sushi. It’s one of my vices. Aw, man...I really love sushi, too.”

“Believe it or not, this small town Kentucky girl loves sushi, too. If it’s prepared and stored correctly, it’s just a safe as anything else,” she replied quickly.

“It was from a grocery store.” Annie crinkled up her nose. He thought she was cute when she did that.

“Then, yeah. That’s probably the culprit,” Brad cut in. “You okay here, Ann? It’s pretty slow at the moment, and Anthony’s shift starts at noon, so he’ll be here to help you get through the afternoon rush. I think I’ll head out soon. Oh, and get me an autograph? Make sure he writes something scandalous.” He winked at her.

“I’ll see what I can do, and we’re good here. Take off.” She glanced over at Nick, who had his eyes clenched shut and was taking deep breaths in an attempt to quell another wave of intense nausea. She turned to the nurse, who was on the way out the door with two vials of Nick’s blood, headed for the lab. “Margo, can you get Nick 25 mg of IV Phenergan?” She turned to Nick, who was once again hunched over the emesis basin heaving. “I usually go with Zofran because it doesn’t cause drowsiness, but he looks like he could use a nap.” She rubbed circles on his back and wiped at his forehead with a cold washcloth, then handed him another so he could wipe his mouth once he was finished.

“Thanks,” he said softly, collapsing back onto the pillows behind him.

“No problem.” She gave him a little smile and patted him on the shoulder. She gestured to the nurse who returned from the med room with a syringe in her hand. “That should help. It’s going to knock you out for a few hours, but like I said, I think you need it. I take it you didn’t get any sleep last night?”

“No, not much.”

“I’ll be back to check on you later, okay?” He licked his dry lips and nodded, watching as the nurse injected the anti-nausea medicine into his IV line. Soon after he watched Annie walk out, he was asleep.

While Nick slept, Annie got slammed with an influx of patients. “Anthony Engle, I’ve never been so glad to see you in my life!” She declared as her colleague walked into the ER three hours later.

The older man, a medical school classmate of her father’s, placed a stethoscope around his neck and tucked an ink pen into the pocket of his white coat, then looked at her over the top of his bifocals. “I see flu season is in full swing.”

“Yes. Very much so. It was slow when I came in, but picked up as soon as Brad left.” Annie handed him a chart. “This one just came in. Sixty- five year old with high fever and shortness of breath. I haven’t had a chance to see her yet, but looks like it could be pneumonia.”

“Could be. Let’s see if we can get this place cleared out, hmm?” He sauntered towards an exam room.

“So, how’s Nick doing?” She asked Margo.

“Still sleeping the last time I checked. I gave him a 1.5 liter normal saline bolus, then started D5 ½ normal saline with 20 milliequivalents of potassium at 100 milliliters per hour just like you ordered. Here are his labs.” She handed Annie a small stack of papers.

“No abnormal rhythms on the telemetry monitor?”

“No, Doctor Morgan. A little tachycardia before the fluid bolus, but nothing since then.”

“Good deal. Do you care to insert a foley in trauma 2 while I go peek in on him?”

“No problem.”

Annie studied Nick’s labs while she walked towards his room. He was startled awake as she slid the curtain open. “Sorry. I didn’t mean to wake you,” she apologized.

“Oh, you definitely don’t need to apologize,” he assured her. “How long was I out?”

“About three hours. How are you feeling?”

Nick thought about it for a minute. “Better, actually. Not great, obviously, but that medicine you gave me was pretty awesome. When can I get out of here?”

“Well....” She sat down on the edge of the bed near his feet. “Your white blood cell count and serum creatinine are elevated and your potassium is low.”

“What does that mean?”

“It means you’re sick and dehydrated.”

“Well I knew that.” He gave her a little laugh. “So....”

“When was the last time you peed?”

“What?”

“The last time you peed, Nick. I know it’s kind of a personal question, but I need to know.”

“Um....I don’t know. Yesterday sometime?”

“Hmmm....”

Nick started to panic. “Is that bad?”

“I’ll be honest. I’m a little worried about your kidneys.”

“My kidneys?!”

“Our kidneys always take a little bit of a hit when we get dehydrated. You were extremely dehydrated, which is why they had such a hard time getting your IV started, and why you fainted in the waiting room. At the moment, I’m not sure if you’re going to make it to your concert tomorrow. If you weren’t on any type of schedule, I’d admit you and watch you for a couple of days.”

“But I am on a schedule, Annie. This is my first solo tour in years, and all the Canada dates are sold out. The fans would be so disappointed if I had to cancel a show.”

“I know this is important to you, Nick, but right now, I’m more concerned about your health than your fans. Let’s watch you for a couple more hours and draw some more labs and see how they look. I’d like you to try to eat some ice chips or something, too, okay?”

Nick sighed. “Okay. I trust you.”

“Good. Now, try to get some more rest. I’ve got a lot of patients right now, or I’d stay and visit longer.”

“It’s fine. See you later, Doctor Morgan.” In a way, Annie liked it when he called her Doctor Morgan. It was kind of tongue in cheek. Definitely not professional sounding, but not like he was being facetious, either. More like a pet name.

“Doctor Morgan! 911 dispatch just called. There’s been a bad car accident out on 25. Three ambulances are on the way, and two of them are critical,” Margo announced just as she left Nick’s room.

Annie took in a deep breath and let it out. “Clear trauma one and get the code team mobilized.”
Chapter 28 by emily_michele
“Annie?” Nick watched with wide eyes as she stepped into his room and pulled the curtain closed , then leaned her back against the wall and took in a few shaky breaths, tears glistening in her eyes. He furrowed his brows in concern. “You okay?”

She faked a smile. “I’m fine. I just need to hide for a minute, okay?”

“Okay....” He watched as she blinked rapidly, then hunched over with her hands on her knees, breathing deeply. “Are you sure? Because you don’t look okay. There was a really big commotion out there a while ago. The code blue? That’s what it’s called when someone’s......” He lowered his voice. “Dying, right?” Annie closed her eyes and nodded. Nick continued on. “So, did they? Die, I mean?”

She sighed and wiped a stray tear from her cheek with her fingers. “Yeah. One of them. There’s a helicopter on the way to take another one to a larger hospital. One with a neurosurgeon. He might not make it either.”

“I guess you’re pretty used to that kind of thing, aren’t you? I mean, working in an ER and all....”

She looked down at the floor and shook her head. “I’ll never get used to it,” she whispered shakily.

“C’mere.” He motioned for her with his finger then patted the mattress beside him. Reluctantly, she walked over to him and stood beside his bed. He moved his hand up and laced his fingers loosely in hers. It was then that he realized her left ring finger was still bare, and he unintentionally took in a sharp breath. “Sit down.” He motioned to the mattress with a nod of his head.

“Nick, what are you doing?” She tried to pull her hand away, but he only gripped it harder.

He looked at her pointedly. “I’m holding your hand. When someone’s hurting, it always helps if you hold their hand. You’re a doctor. I’m sure you know that” Annie relented and sank down onto the bed beside him. She couldn’t really argue with that logic. “You want to talk about it?”

“No. Not really.”

“Suit yourself.” They fell into a comfortable silence.

“So, how’s your stomach?”

“Sore. Still a little queasy. I tried eating some ice chips, but...” He shrugged helplessly. “At least now, there’s not really anything left to come back up.”

She patted his knee reassuringly. “Eventually, they’ll stay down. Just keep trying. One or two at a time if you have to. The soreness is normal. Not exactly the kind of ab workout you were looking for I’m sure, but that’s essentially what you got.”

“Well, at least something good came out of it. Well, that....and you.” He gave her a little half smile and squeezed her hand.

She bit her bottom lip nervously and stood up. “I’m going to order another set of labs on you, okay?”

He nodded in agreement. “And then?”

“Let’s just see how your labs look.” Then she waltzed out. This time, it was a lab technician instead of Annie who came in to draw his blood

Nick ended up falling asleep again, and when he woke up, he found Annie sitting in a chair in his room in her street clothes. “Hey,” he said with a yawn. “Is your shift over?”

“Yeah. It just ended. How are you feeling?”

“Pretty weak,” he admitted tiredly.

“That’s understandable.” She stood up and poured him a small glass of water from a pitcher that had appeared on his bedside tray table. “Margo said you managed to keep down some ice chips before you fell asleep. That’s good. Now, I want you to try this.”

Nick groaned and placed a hand gingerly over his aching stomach. He wasn’t thirsty, which he hoped meant the IV fluids were doing their job. He wasn’t particularly nauseous either, and he wanted to stay that way. “I know you’re afraid to,” Annie empathized. “But if you want to get out of here any time soon, you’re going to have to.”

Begrudgingly, he took the paper cup from her and took a sip. “So, how were my labs?”

She sighed. “Better, but not great. Your electrolytes have normalized, so that’s good. Your white count and serum creatinine are down some, but still not where I would like them to be. Have you peed yet?”

“No,” he moaned.

“I’m sorry, Nick, but letting you go right now would be against my better judgement. I really think you should stay the night. Your driver’s out in the waiting room by the way. Tom, I think?”

“Yeah, Tom. What do I need to tell him? I’m supposed to do a show in...” He glanced up at the clock on the wall. It was four-thirty. “Twenty seven hours. Twenty-three, actually, if you count the sound check. And Toronto’s, what? Ten or fifteen hours from here? I need to get out of here in the next few hours if there’s any chance of me performing tomorrow night.” He was getting visibly frustrated.

“Nick....” She sat down beside him and put a hand on his shoulder. “I’m going to be straight with you. You’re looking better, you are, but ’m not sure it’s a good idea for you to perform tomorrow night at all. If you continue to improve, which I’m thinking you will, you’re still going to be pretty weak, and I’m afraid you’ll overdo it. That being said, I understand that this is really important to you.”

“I love to perform,” he told her softly.

“I know you do, but Nick, you’re sick. I didn’t really want to toss this term around in front of you, but what I’m writing in your chart is ‘acute renal failure.’ You haven’t urinated in 24 hours, and your serum creatinine, which is an indicator of kidney function, is 2.4. Normal is less than one. Your white blood cell count, which is an indicator of infection, is 14. Normal is ten or less. And they were both even higher when you got here. Nick, I can’t just unhook your IV fluids and send you on your way when we don’t even know if your kidneys are working and you’re still barely able to keep anything down.”

Nick looked up at her and gulped hard. “I’m in kidney failure?” Now, he was terrified. How could something as simple as a an upset stomach cause kidney failure?

Annie, recognizing his fear, leaned towards him and stroked his hair with her fingers in an attempt to comfort him. “Technically, yes. I think it’s just because of the dehydration and that it’s temporary. It will probably reverse itself once you get completely rehydrated, but I want to see that happen before we let you go, okay?”

Nick closed his eyes and nodded slowly, then opened them and gazed into hers seriously. “Do I need to cancel the show?”

Annie pursed her lips . “No. Call whoever you need to call and tell them it’s a possibility, but let’s see how you are in the morning, and we’ll see if there are any flights out of Lexington or Knoxville that will get you to Toronto in time tomorrow. You just have to promise me you won’t over do it, okay?”

“Deal.” Nick held out his hand so Annie could shake it.

She took his hand in hers and gave it a firm shake. “Good. Now, I’m going to go write orders to admit you to observation so you can stop taking up space in my ER. Tell your driver to go ahead and get the bus to Toronto. He can bring in an overnight bag for you.” She stood up and reached for her purse. “I need to go pick up Drew, but is there anything I can get for you before I go?”

He shook his head. “Nope. I’m good. Well, as good as I can be, I guess.”

“I’ll be in early tomorrow to check on you, and I’ll even scope out the flight situation when I get home tonight.”

Nick smiled. “Thanks, Annie. For everything. I don’t know what I would have done without you today.”

“Oh, Nick. It’s my job,” she insisted.

He reached for her hand and pulled her back towards him. “No, Annie. You went above and beyond and you know it. Thank you,” he told her seriously, staring into her eyes a little longer than what was comfortable for her.

“You’re welcome. Now, aside from getting some more rest and trying to drink some more, I need you to do one really big thing before I see you again.”

“What’s that?” Nick asked as he released her hand.

“Pee.”

He laughed. “I’ll do my best.”
_________________________________________________________________________

“Guess what!” Nick said excitedly as Annie entered his room early the next morning. He noticed he hadn’t yet changed into her scrubs and instead wore a pair of khaki pants, a denim jacket, and a flowing, colorful scarf. Her hair was straight and parted on the left side, which made it look much longer than her usually curly style. She looked beautiful.

“What?”

“I peed! Twice!”

“Nick, that’s awesome! I see they turned down your fluid rate, too. That’s really good. Have you tried eating anything?”

“Orange jello. It was disgusting, and I still didn’t throw it up. I haven’t done that at all in like, ten hours or so?”

“Sounds great. Any diarrhea?”

He blushed and cleared his throat. “Um...no.”

“Sorry, but it’s kind of important to know. Helps us to determine your hydration status and fluid deficit. I looked at your labs before I came in, and they look better. Still not normal, but I think it’s safe to discharge you as long as you promise to get medical attention if you have any problems at all. They’ll discuss all that with you when you sign your discharge papers.”

“Great. Now, can we stop talking about my bodily fluids?”

She laughed. “Absolutely, but expect another lecture short on your ‘bodily fluids’ before you leave. There is this one other little issue, though....”

“What’s that?”

“There aren’t any flights going out of Lexington or Knoxville that will get you to Toronto in time,” she lamented.

“You’re kidding.”

“Afraid not, but-”

“Well this sucks.” Nick crossed his arms over his chest and fell back against the bed, pouting.

“But-- there’s a direct flight out of Nashville leaving at 12:00 central time. Nashville’s a little less than four hours from here. Lucky for you, I have a meeting in Nashville today,” Annie told him, her eyes sparkling in amusement.

Nick grinned back at her from his hospital bed. “Annie, you rock. So, why do you have a meeting in Nashville?”

“Oh, I’m just meeting with Brian and the record company. They want to make ‘I Turn to You’ Brian’s first single off the his new album,” she replied nonchalantly.

“Annie, that’s awesome. So, have they tried to sign you, yet?”

His question caught Annie off guard. “Um...no.”

“Liar.”

“How would you know something like that? Have you been talking to Brian?”

“No, Annie. You’re just that good. Are you going to do it?”

She sighed. “I don’t know Nick. It’s complicated.” Nick dropped it and Annie had a nurse come in and remove his IV, then she helped to facilitate his discharge while he showered and changed. Within an hour, they were on the road.

“So, are you coming all the way back here tonight after your meeting?” Nick asked from the passenger seat of her Tahoe.

“No. I’m actually meeting with Brian today, then by myself with the record executives tomorrow morning. They want to show me a potential contract,” she answered with an eye roll.

“What’s with the eye roll?”

“This is all your fault, you know.”

“How is it my fault? Besides, this is a good thing, right?” Nick asked, confused.

She drummed her fingers along the dark leather of the steering wheel while she waited at a traffic light. “Like I said before, it’s complicated. It’s your fault because Brian let them listen to the recordings you did of me warming up and stuff. You know, the recordings you didn’t tell me about.” She narrowed her eyes at him as the light turned green, then turned her attention back to the road as she accelerated.

“Oh.” He grinned sheepishly. “I had a lot of fun recording you Annie. You know how photographers tell photogenic people that the camera loves them? Well, the studio loves you. For what it’s worth, I think you should do it. I’d buy your album, and not just because I think you’re cute.”

She rolled her eyes. “I don’t really want to talk about it any more. Besides, you should rest up for your concert tonight.”

Nick groaned. “I’m pretty sure I slept about 18 out of the last 24 hours. I couldn’t sleep right now if I tried. Besides, I’d like to keep you company while you drive. I at least owe you that after all you’ve done for me since yesterday.”

“Okay, fine. Change the subject, then.”

“Um...” Nick racked his brain for something to talk about. “How’s Drew?” Moms loved to talk about their kids, right? “Is he staying with Kevin’s brother and sister-in-law while you’re in Nashville?”

“Actually, he’s staying with my brother and sister-in-law in Lexington. Josh and Katie are on the fence about having kids, and I’m worried that after two days with Drew, they’ll be off the fence and running in the other direction.”

Nick laughed. “Maybe so, but Drew’s a good kid. Kinda makes me wish I had one of my own...” He trailed off and propped his chin up on his fist, then gazed out the window watching the bluegrass covered hills roll by. He did eventually fall back asleep about an hour outside of Nashville, but that was after he and Annie had spent most of the trip talking. She told him about her family and he told her funny stories about his travels with the Backstreet Boys, being sure to give her plenty of ammunition to blackmail Brian with. When they got to the airport, she insisted on parking her car and walking in with him to make sure he made his flight without any issues, although he had suggested she just drop him off at the curb. Secretly, he was glad she was with him for a little while longer.

“Now, you have to promise me you’ll get plenty of rest. Bring a stool or something onstage tonight so you can sit down if you need to and drink lots of water. Also, try to be sure you eat something, even if it’s just soup and crackers. You need your strength. You have your Zofran pills, just in case?” Annie looked up at Nick expectantly.

“Yup.” Nick patted the duffel bag hanging from his shoulder. Annie had written him a prescription for anti-nausea medication and gotten it filled at the hospital’s outpatient pharmacy before they left town.

“If you feel the least bit nauseous, don’t hesitate to go ahead and take one. Actually, you should probably take one before you get on the plane. Even if you’re not prone to motion sickness, your stomach’s probably still a little weak. We can’t afford to have you throwing up and getting dehydrated again.” Nick’s heart fluttered a little at the way she said “we.” “I gave you a few refills, and the prescription’s good for a year, so you’ll have them if something like this happens again, and hopefully, you won’t get in the shape you were in yesterday.”

Nick nodded in appreciation. “Thanks.” She kept talking.

“How long are you touring in Canada?”

“Just a few days. I’m actually going to Japan in a couple of weeks.”

Annie straightened his jacket and patted him on the chest with both hands. “Well, I want you to see a doctor before you head overseas. He...or she, will need to order a BMP. That’s a basic metabolic panel. Specifically, they will want to look at your BUN and serum creatinine to evaluate your kidney function. As long as you’re still peeing like normal, I don’t think there’s going to be any problem. Just remember to drink plenty of clear fluids. Coffee and caffeinated pop don’t count. It’ll be a week or two before you’re eating normally again and feeling one-hundred percent, so please take care of yourself, okay?”

“I will.” Nick couldn’t help but stifle a laugh. “You’re such a mother hen, you know that?”

“So, I’ve been told.” Annie replied with a little smirk. “Hand me your phone.” She held her palm out to him.

“Why?”

“Just give it to me.”

“Okay....” Nick pulled his cell phone out of his jeans pocket and handed it to her.

She tapped out her number on the screen and saved it, then handed the phone back to him. “That’s my number. Please call me if you have any questions at all or if anything feels a little ‘off.’ I don’t care what time it is.” As he slid his phone back into his pocket, Nick started grinning like the Cheshire cat. “What?” she asked, confused.

“Oh, nothing.”

“Yeah right.” She crossed her arms and waited for him to give her an answer.

Nick shifted back and forth on his tennis shoe clad feet like an impatient child and kept grinning. “It’s just that....you just gave me your number.”

She shook her head incredulously. “Don’t abuse it,” she warned while she shook her finger at him exaggeratedly.

“I won’t,” he promised, but then made a show of showing her the fingers that he had crossed behind his back.

She rolled her eyes at him and glanced down at her watch. “We better both get going. Have a safe flight, and take care, okay? I’ll see you in about a month.”

“You will?”

“Yes, Nick. On the cruise,” she answered matter-of-factly.

His cheeks were literally starting to hurt from smiling so much. He leaned down and brushed his lips against her cheek lightly. He’d considered giving her a quick peck on the lips, but just in case stomach thing wasn’t food poisoning and was actually contagious, he didn’t want her odds of getting sick from him to be any worse than they already were. “Thanks again for everything. See you on the cruise.” He boarded the plane with a little extra spring in his step.
Chapter 29 by emily_michele
“Bedtime is at 9:00. Try not to make it much later than that or he’ll get overtired and actually get up earlier in the morning. He only gets his pacifier at bedtime and naptime. Remember that he’s allergic to kiwi, and the EpiPen is in the blue diaper bag if, God forbid, you should need it. You have Brian and Leighanne’s numbers just in case you can’t get through to me, and you wrote down the number for the cruise line, right?” Annie racked her brain for any other last-minute instructions she needed to tell her parents as she walked out the front door of their Florida vacation home in Boca Raton.

“Annie, sweetheart, you forget that we’ve done this before,” her mother told her reassuringly. “We have thirty-three years of experience. He’ll be fine.”

“Now, shoo!” her father chimed in. “Go have fun with your Backyard Boys.”

“Daddy, you know it’s Backstreet Boys,” she scolded playfully.

“Eh.” He flicked his wrist nonchalantly. “I thought you were over these little fantasies of yours by the time you went to college.”

Annie blinked at his obvious chastisement and bent down to give Drew yet another goodbye kiss. “Be good for Nana and Papa, okay, baby?”

“Tay!” Drew answered happily.

“Don’t hesitate to call if you need anything.” She gave both parents quick hugs and kisses on the cheek and marched down the sidewalk to her rental car. Once inside, she plugged her cell phone into the car charger and opened up the list of mp3 files saved on her phone. First up was “Everybody,” then “As Long As You Love Me,” then “Quit Playin Games,” and so on.

When she pulled into the parking lot at Port of Miami, she kept the engine running until “This Is Us” had finished playing. Then, as she was tucking her phone and charger into her tote bag, the received a text from Brian. “Psst....black limo near the loading docks. There’s a guy named Q on the way to help you with your bags.” Annie surveyed the area around her and her eyes settled on a black limousine parked about a hundred yards away, and sure enough, there was a large man, who she hoped was Q, walking towards her car. How had he seen her pull in from so far away?

“How did you see me from so far away? Are u stalking me?” she texted back.

His next text said simply, “Nick saw you.” Feeling a little unnerved by that, she reluctantly stepped out of the car and allowed the man, who did actually turn out to be Q, to carry her luggage to the waiting limousine. As she reached for it, the door swung open, and Brian peeked his head out with a little grin. “I’m glad you made it early so you can board with us. They’re swarming,” he said, referring to the fans. For some reason, she really didn’t expect to find herself climbing into a limousine that had all four Backstreet Boys, their manager, Jen, Leighanne, Leigh Dorough, and a bodyguard crammed into it. Though, in retrospect, she might have found it a little odd if they weren’t all crammed into that limo.

In her bewilderment at suddenly being pulled into a car full of her former teen idols (former because she now called two of them her friends), she could only think of one thing to say. “What, no Kevin?”

AJ immediately started cackling. “Oh, I like her already, B-Rok. Nice to meet you, Annie, I’m AJ.”

Annie shook his hand and smiled shyly. “Nice to meet you, too, AJ.”

Howie held his hand out next. “Howie, and this is my wife, Leigh. Kevin really is just showing up for our beach party in the Bahamas tomorrow. He and Kristin are taking a little vacation there.”

“Kevin’s her favorite,” Nick pouted from the corner.

“Yep,” she answered with a wink. “And you’re my second favorite.” Howie beamed while Nick sank lower into his seat.

Brian continued with the introductions. “Annie, this is Jen Sousa, our manager. You’ll be rooming next to her and across the hall from us, and this is Mike, Nick’s bodyguard. Now that Nick’s single again, he’s gonna have his work cut out for him this cruise.”

“Don’t remind me,” Mike chuckled.

“Aw, come on. I’m not that bad,” Nick chimed in.

“It’s not you I’m worried about. It’s the fans who now think they might have a chance with you now.”

“Trust me, Mike. You don’t need to worry about me getting with any of the fans.” Then he flashed a little smile in Annie’s direction. “Well, not most of them, anyway.” Annie blushed uncomfortably while Brian turned to look at Leighanne with wide, questioning eyes. Leighanne just shrugged and smiled.

Jen checked her watch. “Okay guys. Time to board. Get some lunch. Life boat drill is at 1:00. Sail away party at 2:00. Game show at 4:30. Got it?” All the guys nodded in agreement. “Ladies, I’m going to need your help getting these guys ready for 80’s night tonight, and that includes you, too, Annie, if you’re up for it.”

“Um...sure!”

“We’re going as Sphyntker. It’s going to be epic,” Brian informed her.

“Hence, I need people who are good with hair and makeup to help with the epicness,” Jen deadpanned. “We only have one stylist on the boat with us, and he’s going to be spread pretty thin. Okay, so who’s going first? AJ?”

“Sure.” He nodded and started climbing out of the limo. The rest of them followed suit. Annie hung back, intending to wait for everybody else to board, but after Nick climbed out, he turned to her and held out his hand.

“Come on, Annie. You can walk with Mike and me.”

“Oh, that’s okay. You go ahead. I think I just want to board with the rest of the fans.”

“Annie, don’t be silly. You’re more than a fan.”

“I know, but...I just don’t want to start any rumors, okay?”

Brian interrupted. “You know, maybe she’s right. How about you board with Jen?” Nick sighed and Annie nodded in agreement.

An hour later, she found herself stuffed into a life vest and squeezed in between Nick and AJ on deck as they went through the safety drill. Later, she stood next to Leighanne and thoroughly enjoyed the boys’ antics during the sail away party. Afterwards, Nick (and Mike) insisted on walking her to her state room. “So, how many times have you called your parents to check on Drew?’ he asked.

“Just twice,” she answered. “I should probably do it again before we’re in international waters and my cell signal is sketchy. So, are you doing okay? Peeing okay and everything? Did you have your labs checked again? You brought your Zofran in case you get seasick, right?”

He rolled his eyes. “Annie, I’m great. My serum creatinine was 1.3 before I left for Japan a couple weeks ago and 0.9 yesterday morning. Everything’s back to normal. And yes, Doctor Morgan, I did bring my Zofran. I got it refilled before I left Tampa yesterday morning, and I still had a few left from the prescription you got filled for me in Kentucky.”

“Good to hear. You seriously can’t afford to get sick again so soon. So, be sure you’re washing your hands a lot, too. Cruise ships are notorious for spreading stomach bugs.”

“Yes, ma’am.” He gave her a little salute.

She used her keycard to unlock the door to her cabin and turned to face him. “I’ll see you later, okay? I really am going to call my parents and check on Drew.”
Nick nodded. “See ya, Annie. Maybe you can help me with my wig tonight.”

She laughed. “I wouldn’t miss it.” A few minutes later, it was actually Annie who started to feel a little queasy, so she quietly opted out of going to see the guys make fools of themselves playing “In it to Win It,” and instead decided to lie down and rest up for later that night.

“So, where’s Annie?” Nick asked later that evening at dinner as he unfolded his napkin and placed it in his lap. He’d looked for her from the stage while playing the game show, and hadn’t seen her with Leigh and Leighanne, but assumed maybe she was watching somewhere in the crowd with the fans.

“Oh, she wasn’t feeling very well, so she’s in her room resting up before tonight,” Leighanne answered casually.

Nick paused, his hands in mid-air holding the napkin over his lap. “Is she okay?”

“I think she’s fine, Nick. Just a little seasick is all. The boat is kind of rocking,” Jen answered. “I talked to her before I came here, and she said she just wanted to try to rest up a little bit before tonight.”

Nick gulped and twisted the napkin in his hands for just a moment before dropping it back on his salad plate, pushing his chair away from the table and standing up. “I’m going to go check on her,” he said quickly before rushing away.

“Nick! Wait!” Jen looked to the end of the long table where they were all sitting and motioned for a bodyguard to go with him. Mike jumped up and jogged after him.

“Mike, I’m good,” Nick insisted as he raised his fist to knock on Annie’s door, a prescription bottle clenched in his other hand, a couple of minutes later. “Go on back to dinner. I’ll call if I need you.”

“Jen would kill me for that, you know.”

“Well, Annie would kill me if I brought you into her room while she’s sick, and Annie trumps Jen right now.”

Mike raised an eyebrow. “Annie trumps Jen, huh? So you like this woman.”

“Of course I like her. She’s great,” Nick replied nonchalantly. “Now come on, Mike. Give me some space.”

“Okay, fine. I’m going back to dinner, but you are not to leave this wing of the ship without someone with you.”

“Deal.” Nick knocked on the door and watched as Mike strolled away. He didn’t get an answer, so be knocked again, louder this time.

Finally, Annie’s muffled voice called out. “Just a minute!” Just as he was getting ready to knock a third time, the door swung open, and Annie stood just inside looking literally green. “Nick, what are you doing here?” she asked.

“I heard you were sick. I just wanted to come check on you.”

“I’m fine, just-” She clamped her hand over her mouth and ran into the bathroom.

“Seasick?” he finished for her. He closed the door and followed her into the bathroom, his own stomach turning a little at the sounds of her retching and gagging. Yet, he dutifully sank down to his knees behind her and pulled her hair away from her face.

“Oh, Annie,” he soothed as she finished and collapsed back against his chest. “Feel better?”

She gulped and looked up at him. “Yeah. You can go, Nick. I’m f-” Then she scrambled back up to her knees and heaved into the toilet again. Again, he pulled her hair away from her face, then gathered it into one hand while he used the other to pat her back soothingly.

“You’re fine?” He taunted. She rolled her eyes, but allowed him to pull her into his lap and wipe at the sheen of sweat that had broken out across her forehead with one of the pristine, white washcloths. “I brought these.” He held up the bottle of Zofran she asked if he’d brought for himself just a few hours earlier.

“Oh, God bless you,” she breathed.

“Let’s get you to bed, and I’ll get you some water to take one with, okay?” Nick stood up slowly and wrapped an arm around her waist, then led her to the queen-sized bed in the suite that was the mirror image of his. He walked to the mini-bar and pulled out a bottle of water, then handed it and the pill bottle to her, walked back into the bathroom, and returned with a trash can. “In case you get sick again,” he told her. “I’ll be right back.”

“Nick, you should go back to dinner, I’m fine,” she insisted.

“You took care of me. Now let me take care of you,” he said simply, brushing a piece of hair out of her eyes. He waited for her to argue, but she didn’t. “So, like I said, I’ll be right back.” He walked towards the door, and swiped her key card off of a dresser on the way out so that he could let himself back in, then called Mike once he was in the hallway and out of earshot. “Mike, man, I need a favor.”

He returned to Annie’s room a few minutes later with a large glass of Sprite from the dining room and several small packs of saltine crackers. “Here. Try to drink this. No dehydration allowed on the BSB cruise.”

Annie snorted. “Well, so much for that. There’s drinking on this ship, right?”

“Yes. Lots of drinking.”

“Well, the dehydration’s going to happen regardless, then.”

Nick smiled. “True. Do you think you can eat something?” He eased down onto the foot of her bed and held out a pack of crackers towards her. “If it’s really just seasickness, it might help to settle your stomach.”

“Thanks,” she hesitantly took the Sprite and crackers and took a sip of the drink before placing it on her nightstand.

“Did you take a Zofran?”

“I took two.” She grinned sheepishly. “I don’t want to miss Sphynkter tonight.”
Chapter 30 by emily_michele
Annie awoke to the sound of a ringtone she didn’t recognize, then felt movement on her bed that, surprisingly, didn’t seem to make her nauseous. Nick bolted upright and pulled his cell phone out of his jeans pocket. “Hello?”

“Nick!” AJ hissed. “Where are you? You need to come get your hair and makeup done before we’re late!”

“Man, if I had a dollar for every time I heard that line......How sad is that?”

“Eh.” He imagined AJ shrugging in indifference on the other line. Knowing AJ, hair and makeup probably would have been a part of his daily routine regardless of his career choice. Well, the make up anyway. The hair was probably better left alone, lest more fall out. “Where are you anyway? Brian’s about to flip his lid because he thinks you’re still in Annie’s room. Are you still in Annie’s room?”

“Um....no?” He looked over at Annie who was sitting up in bed watching him quizzically.

“You dawg!”

“It’s not like that, J. She was sick. I was helping her get settled into bed, and I guess I fell asleep too.”

“Right.”

“Honestly!”

“Well, hurry up. We’re already running on Backstreet time as it is, and you’re not even dressed. We’re all in Howie’s room.”

Nick hung up and looked at Annie. “I’m being summoned. How are you feeling?”

She stretched and yawned, then sat still for a minute, feeling the gentle rocking of the boat that was still apparently in relatively rough waters. When her stomach didn’t seem to protest, she smiled. “Better, actually.”

He climbed off the bed and gave her a grin. “Good to hear. I better go. Will I see you later, then?”

“Yeah, I think so. She stood up and headed for her suitcase. Tell Jen I’m sorry I wasn’t able to help you guys get ready, but I feel gross and need a shower before I get ready myself.”

“No big deal. We’re always late for everything anyway. Will you hang out with me on deck, or are you still afraid of starting rumors?”

She pursed her lips and thought about it. “I’ll do whatever you want, Nick. I at least owe you that much for taking care of me today.”

“You’ll do whatever I want, huh?” He wiggled his eyebrows suggestively.

She rolled her eyes. “Anything platonic.”

“Oh.” He pouted dramatically. “Fine, then. See you soon.” He flashed her another smile as he walked out, but did actually feel a little bit of disappointment due to the “platonic” statement as he walked down the hall to Howie’s room.

“Hey Nick. We’ve got to hurry! How’s Annie?” Leighanne said all in one breath when she opened the door for him.

“Annie’s better,” he answered as he reached for the costume Leigh held out to him. “Where’s my wig?” Howie chucked the long blonde wig in his direction.

“You know, Nick, Leighanne or I could have gone to check on Annie if you were that worried about her.”

“Brian, don’t talk. I’ll smear your eyeliner,” Leighanne scolded.

“Annie and I are friends, Brian. After she took care of me when I got that case of food poisoning on the way to Toronto last month...” He shuddered at the memory of being so sick. “She gave me her number, and we talk a couple times a week. It’s....platonic.” He spat out that last word like it left a bad taste in his mouth.

“Seriously?” Brian turned to look at him, causing Leighanne to leave a black streak of eyeliner across his face.

“Husband, you’re killing me,” Leighanne grumbled as she grabbed a washcloth and started wiping his face.

“Yes, seriously.” Howie gave him a little smirk and shook his head. He knew better.
___________________________________________________________________________

“What are you wearing?” Nick laughed when Annie found him out on deck later that night. “Is that a New Kids on the Block t-shirt?”

“Yes, and it’s an original. I got it at a concert in 1989 when I was eight.”

“And it still fits?”

“Well, it used to be more like a nightshirt.”

“I see. You know, this is a Backstreet Boys cruise, not a New Kids,on the Block cruise,” he joked.

“And if it was 90’s night I’d wear a t-shirt from the Backstreet’s Back tour. Besides, after the NKOTBSB tour, it’s kind of like I’m still showing you guys a little love, right?” She cocked her head to the side and smiled.. He took in the rest of her ensemble as he took a swig of his beer. She wore a black New Kids t-shirt that had their faces painted on it in an Andy Warhol-esque fashion in bright neon colors. She also wore a lime green scarf in her hair with the ends tied in a big, sideways bow on top of her head, and a hot pink ruffled mini skirt atop black calf-length leggings. On her feet, she wore silver high-top Converse All-Stars with thick, scrunched neon yellow socks, and on her hands, she wore hot pink, lace fingerless gloves. For a moment, he couldn’t help but wonder what those gloves might feel like trailing over his body.

“Nick?” Annie stepped in front of him and looked up at him.

“What?” He snapped his head down towards her, embarrassed that she caught him daydreaming.

“I was telling you about how ‘epic’ your hair was. It’s very.....fluffy,” she teased, running her fingers through the ends. “And that bandana. So....shiny.”

“Well, they didn’t call them hair bands for nothin’. Do you want something to drink? Can I get you a beer, or.... one of those fruity things the rest of the ladies are drinking?”

“Eh-” She crinkled up her nose. He really loved it when she did that. “I don’t think that would be such a good idea after the afternoon I had.”

“True. Diet Coke, then?”

“Sounds great--” She trailed off as she looked over Nick’s shoulder. “Oh my gosh! Brian! Look at you! I say this should be the cover photo for your new album.” Brian stopped as he walked by and turned around in a slow circle, modeling his get-up for her.

“Very funny. So, are you having a good time so far? Aside from the whole seasickness thing, I mean.”

“Well, that definitely put a damper on today’s festivities, but I think maybe I’ve gotten my sea legs now. Plus, I get to meet Kevin tomorrow!” she squealed happily.

Nick chuckled and walked away shaking his head. He didn’t really have anything to be jealous of, did he? Still, the truth of the matter was that he was jealous. He sauntered up to the bar and ordered Diet Cokes for Annie and himself, deciding that he’d probably already had plenty of alcohol for the first night of the cruise. “So, Nicky...” Howie crept up behind him and climbed onto the stool next to him. “Sit.” Nick eyed him warily, then glanced across the deck to see Annie and Brian still talking animatedly, and sat down next to him. Howie ordered a drink and turned to look at Nick. “Platonic?” he asked with a raised eyebrow.

“Huh?” Nick feigned ignorance.

Howie sighed. “You and Annie? Just platonic?”

“Yes.”

“Liar.”

Nick sighed and took a big gulp of his soda, then slammed the glass back on the bar. “Honestly, Howie. We’re just friends. She’s a widow. Lauren and I only broke up a couple months ago. Sure, I like spending time with her…”

Howie interrupted him. “You sound like Brian.”

“Yeah, well. There’s all of that, and then there’s Brian.”

“What about Brian?”

Nick shrugged. “He doesn’t really approve, I guess.”

“And what do you think?”

“I kind of agree with him.”

“Hmm.” Howie narrowed his eyes at him in concentration. “I think there’s a but-“

“A but?” There’s no but-“ Nick insisted.

“There is so a but-“

He licked his lips nervously and looked down at his glass, then leaned towards Howie and lowered his voice. “But I’m crazy about her.”
Chapter 31 by emily_michele
When Nick knocked on Annie’s door the next morning, Brian was right beside him. “Annie Morgan!” Brian yelled playfully through the door. “This ship docked hours ago and there are two Backstreet Boys standing right outside your door. What are you doing still cooped up in your room?” Seconds later, the doorknob turned and the door swung open, but instead of Annie standing in the doorway, there was nothing but an empty room. Both men peeked their heads inside and crept into the small suite. The bed was unmade and a large suitcase lay open on the floor beside it with various items of clothing strewn about. Brian tripped over a black satin bra and blushed as his foot got tangled in it and he struggled to kick it away with his bright red high top sneaker..

“Annie?” Nick called out.

“In here!” They followed her voice to the open bathroom door and found Annie standing on her tiptoes in front of the vanity, on top of which her cosmetic bag had apparently exploded, with her face close to the mirror, her mouth agape as she applied mascara to her long eyelashes. Nick wondered why it was that women always held their mouth open while they were putting on mascara and decided to put it in the “questions to ask AJ later file.” This would be one of the more normal questions in an otherwise pretty scary place. He watched as she continued to primp in front of the mirror. Her hair was piled on top of her head in a bun with a few wispy curls hanging down framing her face and neck, and she wore a dark pink, strapless sundress over what he assumed must have been a strapless swimsuit of some sort. The dress stopped several inches above her knees, and he realized that this was the most of her skin that he’d seen so far. The thought of her potentially taking that sundress off at some point to reveal a swimsuit and even more skin underneath got him a little excited.

“So, uh.... you know we’re going to the beach today, right?” he asked her.

“Yes...”

“So what’s with the makeup?”

“Kevin’s coming!” she squealed excitedly. Nick dropped his shoulders in defeat. That was enough to put a damper on his excitement.

“For the record, Leighanne’s wearing makeup, too,” Brian told him. “And it’s definitely not for Kevin. Or me either, for that matter.”

Annie was a bundle of nerves as she attempted to eat brunch in the ship’s dining room with the Boys and their entourage. The majority of the other fans had already made their way out to the beach to scope out their places next to the stage for the beach party. It felt so surreal to her that instead of having to work for the attention of one of the Backstreet Boys, she was dining with all four of them, and instead of having to stake her claim on a spot next to the stage for the beach party, she could hang out with the wives and bodyguards as close or as far away as she wanted. Kevin, though, he was another story. While she was extremely comfortable with Brian and even Nick, and becoming friends with Howie and AJ as well, Kevin eluded her, even though she was very close to his brother. “Mr. Hollywood,” as Tim called him, always seemed just a little bit out of reach, and here she was, just a mere couple of hours away from meeting her ultimate teen idol. She felt as if she were going to wake up at any minute and the entire past three months of her life would turn out to be just a dream.

“Annie, are you still feeling bad?” Leighanne asked with concern.

“What? No. I feel great!” she assured her.

“Well, it’s just that you haven’t eaten anything,” Leighanne pointed out.

Annie looked down at her plate. Sure enough, there was just as much food on it as there had been when she sat down with it fifteen minutes ago, though it had been pushed around on her plate a little. “Oh. I guess I’m just a little nervous,” she admitted quietly.

“Why would you be nervous?” AJ interjected curiously from across the table.

“Because she’s meeting KEVIN today,” Brian teased playfully, while Nick took a hasty bite out of his banana and fumed silently.

“Ah...your favorite, right? Well, besides me, of course.” Howie winked at her from across the table and she laughed.

“Right.”

“What’s so special about Kevin, anyway?” AJ asked. “And why am I not your favorite Backstreet Boy?”

“You’re awesome, AJ,” she assured him. “I don’t know. I guess it’s mainly the whole tall, dark, and handsome thing. Plus, personality-wise, he always seemed to be the most like me, I guess. No offense, but you’re just not my type.” She shrugged with a guilty smile.

“Oh, none taken, Annie,” AJ laughed. “You’re not my type, either. I just wanted to harass you a little. Truth be told, from what I know of you so far, you’re probably more Kevin’s type than any of the rest of our types.” Nick practically buried his face in his cereal bowl and scooped spoonfuls of Cheerios into his mouth while Howie kicked AJ under the table. “What?!” Howie nodded his head in Nick’s direction. “Oh,” AJ grinned sheepishly. “Sorry. So anyway, as I was saying, Kevin’s great, but you know, sometimes he’s bit of a fuddy-duddy. If you’re looking for tall and handsome, maybe Nick’s your man.” This time, it was Brian who kicked him under the table.

“I am right here!” Nick hissed, slamming his hands on the table as he stood up. “Come with me, Annie.” Everyone, including Annie, just stared at him. “Um...please?” Annie gulped and stood reluctantly. “Bring your muffin,” he ordered.
Clutching a bran muffin in one hand and a bottle of water in the other, Annie followed him out of the restaurant, down the hallway, down a set of stairs, and out of the ship. “Nick? Where are we going?”

“To meet Kevin.”
Chapter 32 by emily_michele
Author's Notes:
Sorry it took me so long to get this update up! Life has just been nuts, and frankly, pretty crappy lately. Hope you enjoy!

 

“So...cat got your tongue?” Kevin tilted his head to the side and looked down at Annie with a smile.

 

Nick had ushered her past a gaggle of screaming girls who’d already staked out their spots for the beach party, though it wasn’t set to start for another couple hours, and into the hotel. He pulled her into the elevator and took her to the top floor, where he proceeded to bang loudly on Kevin’s door until he opened it, looking confused. “Annie, meet Kevin. Kevin, meet Annie,” he said, gesturing dramatically between the two of them. Annie stood frozen in her tracks, gripping her breakfast in each hand and looking up at Kevin in awe. His lips were moving. Was he saying something?

 

            “Oh...sorry.” She grinned sheepishly and handed Nick her water, then held her hand out to him. “It’s really nice to meet you, Kevin.” Her eyes wandered around the lush hotel room and she groaned inwardly at the stark contrast of this room’s immaculate neatness with her own room’s organized (okay, disorganized) chaos back on the ship.

            "It's nice to finally put a face with a name. Tim talks about you all the time.” Kevin motioned for Annie to follow him and turned to walk towards the small table sitting in the corner of living room in the suite. “I was just finishing breakfast...er, lunch. Brunch. Whatever the hell it is. I hardly ever sleep in like I did this morning, but I got in really late last night.” He pulled a chair out for her and had her sit down before seating himself across the table. “Have you eaten yet?”

 

She looked down at the crumbling bran muffin in her hand and shrugged with an impish smile. “No. No I haven’t .”

 

“Well, feel free to help yourself. I’d offer the same to you, Nick, but I’m going to guess you already had a bowl of Cheerios, a banana, and some protein....maybe an egg white omelet?” Nick shook his head incredulously. It was scary how well Kevin knew him, even five and a half years after leaving the group. “Would you believe that this guy, who just ate that wholesome brunch used to be able to put away more Belgian waffles than the rest of us put together?” he asked Annie jokingly as she helped herself to a few strawberries and a slice of cantaloupe.

 

“Actually, yes. I’m a fan, remember? Though, I have to say how proud I am of Nick for his dramatic turnaround.” She winked in Nick’s direction and he smiled as he plopped himself onto a couch nearby and listened to them talk about Kevin’s family, their young sons, and Kentucky in general. As they launched into the topic of their mutual love of horses, Nick once again felt a pang of jealousy and lamented the fact that the table in Kevin’s suite only had two chairs, and he was seemingly left on the outside of the conversation looking in. Granted, the two chairs were appropriate considering this was the honeymoon suite and Kevin and Kristin were.....wait! Where was Kristin?

 

            “Hey, Kev?” he asked curiously.

            “Yeah, Nick?” The older man turned his attention to his youngest “brother.”

            “Where’s Kris?”

            Kevin’s eyes widened in surprise, then he brought his clenched fist up to his lips and cleared his throat. “Um.... Brian didn’t tell you?”

            Nick raised an eyebrow in confusion. “Apparently not?”

            “Oh.” Kevin’s eyes darted between Annie and Nick and he could feel his ears burning red with embarrassment. “Kristin and I....” He shot a nervous glance in Annie’s direction and sighed, then ran his hands through his hair before bringing them together in front of him and turning the platinum band on his left ring finger with the thumb and forefinger of his right. Then, he focused all his attention on Nick, turning in his chair so that he was facing him and leaning forward so that his forearms rested on his knees. He automatically went into “Daddy-Kev” mode, speaking to him directly but gently. “We’re not together right now, Nick. I booked the honeymoon suite down here for us to try to rekindle some romance, but she decided not to come. I don’t know if Brian didn’t tell you because of what happened with you and Lauren....which I’d still like to talk to you about, by the way, or because of...” He trailed off and Nick nodded slowly in understanding.

            “That really sucks, Kevin,” he said quietly. “I need to go get ready for the beach party.” Then, he stood up and darted out of the room.

            Annie stared wide-eyed at the door as it slammed shut. “What was that all about?” she wondered, not really intending to say it out loud.

            Kevin groaned and stood up, placing his hands low on his hips and staring at the door with her. “He probably thinks this means I’m not going to come back to the group now.”

            “You’re coming back?!!” Annie couldn’t help herself. She went a little “fangirl” on him. Part of her wanted tackle him with an excited hug, and the other part of her just wanted to give him a hug because he looked like he needed one.

 

Kevin stifled a little chuckle as she struggled to compose herself. “Most likely, yes.”

 

            “So, why does Nick think you’re going to change your mind? I mean...if you don’t mind me asking.” She realized she might be getting a little personal considering she’d only actually known the man for about twenty minutes.

            He sighed and slumped his shoulders. “I’m sorry you got caught up in this. You’re not going to say anything to my brother about my failing marriage, are you?”

            Annie placed a hesitant hand on his arm. “No, of course not. Though, he might be able to help, you know.”

            “I know, but I’m a man. I like to think I can handle things on my own. So about Nick..... I had several reasons for quitting the group when I did, but the biggest one was an attempt to try to save my marriage, and it worked. For almost five years. Anyway, Nick kind of blames Kristin for my leaving, and I know him well enough know what he’s thinking now. I’ll have to talk to him later.”

            Annie shifted back and forth on her feet uncomfortably, then pulled her cell phone out of her beach bag to check the time. “You know, I should probably be going, too. It was really nice to meet you Kevin. Thanks for brunch.”

 

Kevin gave her a weak smile and a little nod, then escorted her to the door and held it open for her. “It was nice to meet you, too, Annie. I’ll be seeing you around the rest the day. Don’t tell anyone, but I’m going to make an appearance at the concert today and prom night tonight.”

 

She beamed at him happily. “That sounds great.” She started out the door, then turned back to him. “I’m sorry, by the way.  About your wife.”

 

“Me too.”

 

Annie thoroughly enjoyed the beach party, but couldn’t help but notice a bit of melancholy in Kevin’s demeanor. It wasn’t obvious to most onlookers, but knowing what she knew, she could tell he wasn’t quite himself.

 

Kevin made small talk with Nick early that evening as they got ready for the concert. “So....Annie’s cute.”

 

Nick eyed him warily as he slicked his hair back with gel. “Dude, she has the same name as your mom. Wouldn’t that be weird?”

 

“Dude, I’m married!”

 

“And separated, Kevin,” he answered seriously.

 

“I know that, Nick, but Kristin’s still my wife, and you know I’d never be interested in Annie while I’m still married. Why would you think that anyway?”

 

“Did you know you’re her favorite?”

 

Kevin let out a low chuckle. “So I’ve heard. I take it this means you’re jealous?”

 

“Of course not.”

 

“Right.”

 

“Um...Kev?” Nick licked his lips and pursed them together. Brian, Howie, and AJ looked on from the other side of the dressing room.

 

“Yeah, Nick?”

 

“Are you still coming back?”

 

Kevin placed a hand on Nick’s shoulder and stared him in the eye. “Yes. I gave this up for her once before, and I have to admit that it was one of the best decisions I ever made at the time. I wouldn’t give up the time I was able to spend with my family for anything. I still love Kristin more than you could imagine, but the ball’s going to have to be in her court, now. That doesn’t mean I’m going to quit trying with her. It’s just not going to be this that I give up for her this time. Besides, when it comes to Annie, it’s not her name that would keep me away. Oh, and call my mom Annie and she’ll deck you. Only dad was allowed to call her that, and she still didn’t like it. You guys have a great show. I’m going to call mom to check on Mason.”

 

As Kevin left the dressing room, Nick turned to the rest of his bandmates looking befuddled. “Her name isn’t what would keep him away? What does he mean by that?”

 

“You seriously don’t see it?” AJ asked with a smirk.

 

“Don’t see what?”

 

“You see it, don’t you, Brian?”

 

Brian rolled his eyes. “Uh-huh.”

 

“What?!”

 

Howie stood on his tiptoes so that he could hook his arm around Nick’s neck. “Oh, Nicky, you really do only have eyes for Annie, don’t you?

 

“You know Howie, after all these years, you’re the only one who still calls me ‘Nicky’.” He glared at him.

 

“You should be flattered that I still like you enough to have a pet name for you.”

 

“More like annoying nickname.”

 

“Ha! ‘Nick’ name!” AJ cackled.

 

“You people are nuts. Now, what do all of you see that I apparently don’t?” Nick accosted, looking at Brian for help. Brian simply shrugged and kept getting dressed.

 

“Okay, Nick.” Howie said seriously. “I want you to get an image of Annie in your head.”

 

“Like that’s going to be hard,” AJ scoffed. “Might make other things hard,” he laughed.

 

“AJ!” Brian admonished from the corner.

 

Howie rolled his eyes. “Anyway....you got that picture of Annie in your head?” Nick nodded. “Now, make her about three inches taller and blonde.” Nick gasped.

 

“There it is!” AJ exclaimed excitedly.

 

“Annie looks like Kristin,” Nick acknowleged slowly. “Huh.” He put his hands on his hips and shook his head. “It’s kind of uncanny, actually, isn’t it?”

 

“Exactly!” AJ patted him on the back. “See, Nick? You’ve got nothing to worry about. Being with a woman who looks just like his wife would be way too weird for Kevin, right B-Rok?”  Brian raised an eyebrow and kept glowering in the corner.

 

            Later that night, Kevin was in Brian’s room getting ready for prom night. “So, little man’s got it bad, huh?”

            “What? Why would you say that?” Brian stopped tying his tie and turned to face his cousin.

            “Oh come on, Brian. It’s pretty obvious.” Kevin kept looking at the mirror as he straightened his bow tie. “Nick’s crazy about Annie, and if I do say so myself, she seems pretty interested in him, too.”

            “No, she’s not!” Brian insisted. “Nick’s not her type at all.”

            “Oh, really? What’s her type?”

            “Well......” Brian shrugged. “Me.”

            “So I take it you don’t approve, then.”

            “No, Kevin. I don’t approve. Maybe that makes me a terrible, judgmental person, but Nick’s just not the type of guy she needs. Annie’s been through a lot, and she’s still such an amazing woman despite all of that. I just can’t see an actual relationship between Annie and Nick ending well.”

            “Hmm...” Kevin grabbed a comb and started running it through his black locks.

            “Hmm...what?”

            “You know, Brian, if I didn’t know any better, I’d think YOU had a thing for Annie.”

Chapter 33 by emily_michele



“Kevin, that’s ridiculous!” Brian retorted angrily, the heat rising in his forehead.

“Is it, Brian?”

“Yes!” he hissed. “I’m married!”

“Well, so am I, but that didn’t keep my wife from cheating on me!” Kevin ran both hands through his hair and groaned in frustration, pacing back and forth in the small bathroom.

Brian drew in a sharp breath of air and dropped his hands to his sides. “Oh, God...Kevin...I- I didn’t know. I’m sorry.” He pulled a tentative hand up to Kevin’s shoulder and placed it gingerly on the black tuxedo.

Kevin gritted his teeth and clenched his eyes shut. “I didn’t intend for anybody to know,” he whispered. “She said it was just sex, and that it was just one time.” He opened his eyes and flinched at the tears he saw pooling in his cousin’s blue orbs. “Yet, she’s still not sure she wants to be with me.”

“Did she...” Brian gulped. “Say who it was?”

Kevin shook his head solemnly. “I have a pretty good idea, though, and it’s ahem... a pretty big kick in the balls, if you get what I’m saying.”

Brian furrowed his brows and bit the inside of his cheek in concentration. “Famous?”

“Yes.”

“How famous?”

“A-list actor.”

“Oh.” The “kick in the balls” analogy suddenly rang loud and clear. “Older?” Again, Kevin shook his head. “So, younger?” The older man nodded. “How young?”

“Nick’s age, I think? Maybe a little younger? She acted with him in a movie a few years ago, and they still keep in touch occasionally. I could be totally wrong here, but it just....fits.” Kevin walked out of the bathroom and sank down onto Brian and Leighanne’s bed, resting his forehead in the palms of his hands. “Despite everything, I still love her. God, I love her. Even if Mason weren’t in the picture, I’d still love her. If she could do this to me, who’s to say you couldn’t do it to Leighanne?” He lifted his head up and cast a watery gaze in his cousin’s direction.

Brian sighed and sat down on the bedspread beside him. “This is me we’re talking about here, Kevin,” he said earnestly.


Kevin nodded. “And this is also Kris we’re talking about. She’s been the love of my life for the past twenty years. I don’t know who to trust anymore. It seems to me that Annie’s more to you than a friend, and that you seem to care a little too much about the fact that Nick’s interested in her.”

Brian groaned and stood up, rubbing his hands up and down his face in annoyance. He walked over to the closed bedroom door and peered out into the living area to make sure that Leighanne hadn’t snuck back in from getting ready with Annie and Leigh before he started talking. “I love my wife, Kevin. You and I both know that she’s not easy to live with sometimes, but isn’t that what marriage is supposed to be about? Loving someone unconditionally?” Kevin nodded sadly. “Sure, if I was single, Annie would definitely be on my radar romantically, but I’m not single, and I love my wife. This isn’t about me being interested in Annie. I’m not. Not like that, anyway. It’s just....it’s complicated.”
His cousin cast glanced down at his watch and back up at him. “Prom doesn’t start for another hour, and you know those other three won’t be ready by then, anyway. Start

talking.”

“Annie’s.....Annie’s special, Kevin.”

“So, I’ve noticed.”

“And Nick’s.....Nick.”

“Yeah.....”

“I just think it would really complicate matters for Annie and me.”

“Annie and you?” Kevin crossed his arms over his chest and rose from his seated position

to tower over Brian intimidatingly. “Why is there an ‘Annie and you’?” he demanded.

Brian shrank away from him slowly. “I already told you, Kevin. It’s not like that.”

“So, enlighten me.”

“Annie is more than a friend, Kevin, she’s my--my-”

“Your what?!!” the older man bellowed.

“She’s my artist, Kevin.”

“Your artist.” He said it as a statement rather than a question.

“Yes. My artist. Annie’s signed a contract with Altar Records a couple weeks ago, and she’s set to start recording at the beginning of the year. I’m going to manage her.”

“You’re going to manage her,” Kevin said flatly.

“Yes!” Brian stood on his tiptoes in an effort to stand up to his cousin, but it was just as if they were kids again. He stumbled and Kevin grabbed him by the scruff of his neck to keep him from falling face first into the colorful cruise ship carpet.

“You’re afraid that if Nick and Annie got together and it didn’t work out, then it would strain the working relationship between you and Annie. Am I right?”

“Exactly.”

Kevin nodded in understanding. “I get it. I do. But I have to wonder why it is that you think it won’t work out between the two of them.”

Brian groaned in frustration. “Kevin, you’ve met her. Annie’s not like other women.”

“So I’ve heard.”  Kevin put his hands on Brian’s shoulders and held him at arm’s length. “Like I said before, Brian, I get it.  You think Nick’s going to hurt her, right?”

“Right.”

“I think you forget how much Nick’s grown, Brian. If this were five or ten years ago, I’d be right with you on this, but he’s different now. He’s.....better.”

“I know, Kev, but you see, Annie was raised a lot like us.”

“I figured as much,” he answered with a noncommittal shrug.

“Yeah.” Brian nodded affirmatively. “The difference is that while we were getting laid in the backs of our pickup trucks on Saturday night and still showing up for Sunday school the next morning, Annie was the type of girl who was telling guys like us ‘no’.”

“Okay. So?”

“So Nick’s not used to women telling him ‘no’.”


Kevin grinned and gave Brian’s shoulders a reassuring squeeze. “Did you ever stop to think that maybe that’s exactly the type of woman Nick needs?”

Chapter 34 by emily_michele



“Oh, Leighanne, you look beautiful! So elegant!” Annie cooed at her new friend as she turned around slowly to model her ensemble.

Leighanne laughed. “Well, I at least match Brian, and somebody had to do something to offset that terrible turquoise tux.” Annie giggled as she studied her own reflection in the mirror. She parted her hair to the side and pinned some curls behind her ear carefully, then donned a pair of tear-drop marcasite earrings. “You look amazing, Annie,” Leighanne told her. “Purple is definitely your color.” There was a soft rapping on Annie’s door and Leighanne rushed to answer it. “That’s probably Brian.” She opened the door and gasped, then let out a little giggle. “It’s for you, Annie!” she said in a sing-songy voice as she slipped by the person in the doorway and across the hall to fetch her husband.

Annie traipsed over to the open door and subsequently clamped a hand over her mouth in an attempt to quell an onslaught of laughter. She failed miserably. “What are you wearing?” she managed to squeak out in between giggles. Nick simply smirked and smoothed out an invisible wrinkle on his orange lapel with the fingers of his left hand. “This is a ‘Dumb and Dumber’ thing, isn’t it?” she asked.

 

“Yep.” He flashed her a cheeky grin.

 

“The hair’s a nice touch.” She lifted a hand so that her fingers barely grazed the tips of his deliberately messy blonde locks, stiff with hairspray and sticking out in all directions. “Let me guess. AJ’s tux is powder blue,” she said with a giggle.

 

“Yep.” He rocked back and forth from heel to toe with his hands behind his back like an excited child. “What makes you think Brian or Howie wouldn’t dress as my Jim Carrey?”

 

“Well, I know for a fact that much to Leighanne’s chagrin, Brian’s wearing an obscene amount of turquoise. And Howie.....” She smiled slyly. “Well, Howie’s my favorite current Backstreet Boy. He would probably know that I hate that movie.”

 

Nick’s shoulders dropped in defeat. “You do?”

 

“Yeah. I tried to like it, I did. It was just too.....dumb, I guess.  And kind of gross.”

 

Nick pouted. “Does that mean you won’t go to the prom with me?” he asked pitifully as he pulled a wrist corsage made of tiny white roses out from behind his back. “Technically, my date is supposed to be my pre-selected prom queen, but that doesn’t happen until after the crowning. I never went to prom, you know. So, I at least need a beautiful girl to escort to the dance.” He laid it on thick, the smile he flashed down at her laden in Carter charm.

 

“Well.....” She pondered his proposition for a moment. “My red hair’s going to clash with your orange tux.”

 

“Your hair’s not red. It’s.....” He brought his hand up to the curls nestled behind her right ear and let his fingers graze them ever so slightly, much like she’d done with his hair just moments before. “Reddish......brown,” he admitted clumsily. “Like cinnamon, except... shinier. It’s nice.” Annie could feel the color rising in her cheeks as she bit her bottom lip and considered his proposition. Silently, she held her hand out towards him. He furrowed his brows for a moment then grinned in realization as he looked down at the corsage in his hands. “Is that a yes?” Annie nodded, and he beamed proudly as he stretched the corsage’s elastic to slip it carefully over her hand and onto her wrist. “Leigh told me to get white because it matches anything. I hear the trend now is for the young ladies to carry a bouquet to prom. At least that’s what the florist here told me. I didn’t even know cruise ships had florists. Anyway, who really wants to have to carry a bouquet around all night?”

 

“It’s beautiful, Nick,” she told him as she admired the tiny flower arrangement adorning her wrist.

 

Like you, he thought to himself. The words were on the tip of his tongue, but they just didn’t come out. He was taking baby steps with Annie and didn’t want to scare her away. He bent his right arm, and held it out to her. “Shall we?”

 

“We shall.” She smiled up at him as she looped her newly corsaged left wrist through his arm and clasped her fingers inside the crook of his elbow. As they started out the door, she looked down at the hand she had wrapped around his arm and noted the ring finger that had now been bare for nearly two months. She gripped his arm and stopped walking. “Nick, wait.”

 

Nick stopped dead in his tracks, his eyes wide in horror. “I knew it was too good to be true,” he muttered under his breath.

 

Of course, Annie heard him. “Nick, no...” she stammered. “It’s just that I-- I’m not wearing any shoes.”

 

“What?” He looked down at their feet. His own were clad in white patent leather oxfords, while here were nearly covered in dark purple satin that pooled around her ankles on the carpet. Her bare toes, the nails painted ruby red, peeked out from underneath and she hiked up the hem of her dress to reiterate her point. Nick took in a sharp breath at the sight of her bare feet. There was just something about a woman’s bare feet, especially with neatly painted toenails, that he found incredibly sexy.

 

“I guess I just got a little carried away with all the prom date talk.” She gave him a little wink and darted back into her state room. While Annie retrieved her shoes, Nick couldn’t help but continue thinking about her feet. He wondered what they would feel like rubbing up and down his legs underneath the dinner table or better yet, in bed with her toes grazing his bare calves.

 

He didn’t get to fantasize long, because she was back out in the hallway with him in mere seconds. “You ready?” she asked with a big smile, her eyes glimmering in excitement.

 

He smirked and held his elbow out for her again. “What are you so happy about?”

 

“Well, I always wanted a Backstreet Boy to take me to prom.”

 

“Except you hoped it would be Kevin, right?”

 

She sighed dramatically. “Yes. But I guess you’ll do.”

 

Their “date” didn’t last long, as the Boys were kept busy entertaining their “prom queens.” Nick made sure to act like his goofy self, but still lavish attention on his “queen,” effectively making her dreams come true. After hours of cheesy prom dancing to the likes of “YMCA” and “Electric Slide,” the party started to wind down. Nick had to admit to himself that he’d had a good time, but he found himself scanning the deck in search of Annie. His “queen” thanked him for an incredible evening and headed for bed after taking one last picture of the two of them together with her cell phone.

 

Soon after, he spotted Annie. His breath hitched in his throat as he studied her. Her hair was now windblown, her curls a little wilder than the beginning of the evening, and her previously glossy red lipstick was now more of a muted pink. While he’d found her gorgeous all dolled up at the beginning of the night, it was this look-- just a little undone- that he found irresistible. Her earrings glinted ever so slightly in the moonlight, and the skin of her bare shoulders seemed to glow. His eyes trailed down to the bustline of her strapless dress, where a sparkly brooch rested between her breasts. He gulped nervously and tugged at his orange bowtie, removing it and stuffing it in his pocket, then undoing the first couple buttons on his ruffled tuxedo shirt, suddenly feeling very warm and uncomfortable. He wanted to approach her, but instead stood still on the dance floor in the exact spot his prom queen had left him seconds before, watching as she talked animatedly, her eyes dancing with laughter as she danced ......with Kevin.

 

Chapter 35 by emily_michele
Author's Notes:

Wow!  I can't believe that the last chapter pushed me over 100 reviews!  You guys are awesome, and thanks so much for reading and taking an interest in my little story.  I know exactly where it's going from here, but don't have any more written yet, so bear with me as I work on it.  I'm toying with the idea of a sequel, but also think that where I'm planning to end it is a pretty good place to do so.  Maybe ten or so more chapters.  Keep reviewing, and thanks again!

 

 

 

 

Nick felt like his shoes were filled with lead. He stood on the black and white checkered dance floor and continued to study Annie and Kevin. They looked like they belonged together-- Kevin in his classy black tux and Annie in her elegant purple evening gown. Nick looked down at his own ensemble and let out an exasperated sigh. While Annie had been a good sport about it, he wondered whether she really just thought he looked ridiculous. Who was he kidding? He did look ridiculous, but that was the point, right? Nevertheless, he couldn’t help but notice how not ridiculous she and Kevin looked dancing together. They looked....well, hell, they looked good together. Really good. His large right hand rested comfortably on the small of her back and his left gripped her right gently, while her left arm rested atop his right, her fingers grazing his broad shoulder, leaving them in a perfect ballroom stance. Their feet floated gracefully across the black and white checkerboard dance floor as Kevin led her in some effortless ballroom dance Nick couldn’t identify. They continued talking and laughing, their eyes never leaving each other.

 

 

 

“Well, isn’t that interesting.” Brian’s dumbfounded voice echoed in Nick’s ear, sounding much further away than it actually was. He turned to find Brian standing beside him, watching the pair with equal intensity.

 

 

 

“Should I be worried?” Nick asked him quietly, forgetting for a moment that Brian wasn’t his biggest supporter when it came to Annie. Frankly, he wasn’t his supporter at all when it came to Annie.

 

 

 

Brian looked at Nick, then back to the couple on the other side of the dance floor. He opened his mouth to speak, then closed it back. The little devil on his shoulder told him that this was quite the opportunity to perhaps scare Nick away from Annie. The younger man’s intimidation when it came to Kevin Richardson was intense and far-reaching, spanning over 18 years. He imagined that if Nick thought Kevin was truly interested in Annie, he’d probably back off immediately. In the end, though, Brian’s good conscience won out. “I doubt it, Nick,” he said simply, giving him a firm pat on the shoulder before turning and walking away.

 

 

 

Seconds later, Kevin whispered something in Annie’s ear and planted a soft kiss on her cheek as he pulled himself away from her. He gave Nick a little wave and a nod as he walked towards Brian and Leighanne. Annie, on the other hand, started walking toward Nick with big smile on her face. He looked behind him, not quite believing that she was approaching him after the dance he’d just witnessed between her and Kevin. “So, how was your first and only prom?” she asked as she closed the distance between them.

 

 

 

Nick laughed. “It was a lot of fun, actually, though....” He paused for a beat and leaned toward her. “I wish I’d gotten to spend more time with my date.”

 

 

 

Annie placed a hand on his arm and squeezed it gently. “You know, despite the fact that it’s late, I’m pretty wired. You want to buy me a drink? One of those fruity things all the girls are drinking?”

 

 

 

Nick raised an eyebrow. “Well, if you think your stomach can handle it tonight...” he replied, half teasing, but also concerned.

 

 

 

“I’m good, Nick. Let’s go.” She yanked him by the wrist and pulled him off the dance floor, then led him into a small bar below the deck. “I’ll have a pina colada,” she told the bartender as she sank onto a bar stool in the corner by the wall.

 

 

 

The bartender, a short man with no hair and large biceps, looked at Nick expectantly, obviously amused by his get-up. “Um...Sam Adams...and a water,” he said as he eased onto the bar stool beside Annie.

 

 

 

They sat in uncomfortable silence until the bartender slid a frothy white beverage in front of Annie, complete with a little umbrella, followed by Nick’s glass of beer and a bottle of water. Annie leaned forward and took a long sip of her drink through the hot pink straw. “Mmm....” she moaned appreciatively. “I hardly ever drink these. Too much of a triple threat.”

 

 

 

“Triple threat?” Nick asked with a raised eyebrow.

 

 

 

“Yeah. Fat, sugar, and alcohol.”

 

 

 

“Ah. I see. Well, you’re on vacation,” he reasoned before taking a gulp of his beer.

 

 

 

“Exactly.....” She studied her drink, bending the straw back and forth with her fingertips “So, you had a good time tonight?”

 

 

 

Nick sighed and placed his glass back on the shiny lacquer bar top. “Yeah..... for the most part.” He eyed her warily. “Can I ask you something?”

 

 

 

“What is it Nick?”

 

 

 

Here we go, he thought as he braced himself. “Do you have a thing for Kevin? And by a thing for Kevin, I don’t mean a he’s your favorite Backstreet Boy kind of thing, I mean, are you interested in him...romantically? Because he and his wife are separated, and he is your favorite Backstreet Boy, and the two of you were looking pretty comfortable with each other out there on the dance floor. I mean, I know he’s your type and all,” he rambled on, pausing only to take a breath as Annie looked at him with wide eyes, taking a long drag on her straw. “But I haven’t tried to hide the fact that I like you, Annie, and I know I’m probably not your type, but it kind of seems that maybe you like me, too. But like I said, you were looking pretty cozy with Kevin, and if you’d rather go for him instead of me, I’d understand. I just want to know whether I need to go ahead and give up or not.” He gasped, having only taken one other breath during his entire spiel, then grabbed his beer and downed the rest of it, more than half the glass, in two large gulps. He slammed it on the bar and wiped his mouth with the back of his orange tuxedo jacket.

 

 

 

“Are you finished?” Annie asked with a bemused smirk on her face.

 

 

 

“Drinking? No. I think I’ll have another.” He motioned to the bartender, who shook his head and chuckled as he filled another glass with amber liquid from the tap.

 

 

 

“I meant with your little spiel about me and Kevin,” she clarified.

 

 

 

“Um...yes. I think.” He picked up the new glass of beer that the bartender had just delivered and tossed back about half the glass.

 

 

 

“You want to know what Kevin and I were talking about while we danced?”

 

 

 

“No. Not really.”

 

 

 

Annie took another sip of her drink to cover up her knowing smile. “Too bad, because I’m going to tell you, anyway.”

 

 

 

“I figured as much.” Nick finished his second glass of beer in as many minutes and his hand shook violently as he set the empty glass down gingerly on the cocktail napkin in front of him. He watched as beads of sweat rolled down the highball and onto the wet paper beneath it.

 

 

 

“Nick, look at me.” Annie placed a finger under his chin and directed his face up so that he was looking at her, scared blue eyes meeting brilliant kelly green. “We were talking about you.”

 

 

Chapter 36 by emily_michele
Author's Notes:

Sorry for the long hiatus! Life has been happening. Hope you enjoy and drop me a line to let me know what you think!

 


 


Once he’d picked his lower jaw back up off the bar, Nick started to stammer nervously. “Y-you were talking about me?”


 “Mmmhmm,” she answered through tight lips.


 "But....but why?”


 Annie bit her bottom lip in an attempt to stifle her laughter. Jealous Nick was pretty entertaining. “Well...”


 “Well, what?!” he shrieked.


 “Kevin seems to think you’re quite the catch.” She took another sip of her pina colada and waited for his response.


 Nick looked at the two empty beer glasses in front of him and reached for his untouched bottle of water. He flushed as he struggled to unscrew the cap, his hands still shaking after Annie’s (or was it Kevin’s?) declaration. As he took a large gulp and shook his head in an attempt to clear it, then gave her a little smirk as he placed the bottle back on the bar. “Well..... I’d say Kevin has impeccable taste, wouldn’t you?” Ah! There was the cool and confident Nick she knew. She’d been missing him the past couple of days. So, why was he making her so nervous? “I mean, he’s your favorite and all. You trust him, don’t you?” He inched a little closer and boldly put his head on her shoulder, his quick alcohol intake obviously lowering his inhibitions.


 Annie looked down at him and shook her head incredulously. “It’s not him I don’t trust.”


 They were interrupted by the sound of muffled giggling coming from behind them. Knowing he’d been spotted, Nick groaned as he relinquished his spot on her bare shoulder, disappointed to have had such a short stay there. “Five minutes. Ten, tops,” he said quickly as he placed his palms on the bar and pushed himself off the stool. Annie busied herself with ordering another drink and fiddling with her straw, occasionally stealing glances at Nick and the group of seven or eight fans gathered around him just a few feet behind her. She watched with admiration as he dutifully signed autographs, posed for pictures, and made small talk, then politely excused himself.


 “So....” Nick said as he sauntered back towards her. “Which one of us is it that you don’t trust? Me? Or....you?”


 Annie gulped and blinked her eyes at him. “I plead the fifth,” she answered shortly, reaching for the rum and Diet Coke she’d opted for instead of a second pina colada. She mirrored Nick’s actions from earlier and downed about half of it in one gulp.


 “Um...what?” Nick blinked rapidly and placed his hands on the bar on either side of her, effectively pinning her in. “You don’t trust.... yourself? With me?”


 “I plead the fifth,” she squeaked, her heart clambering in her chest at his close proximity.


 “Heh,” Nick laughed with a smirk as he removed his hands from the bar and gave her a little breathing room. “Annie Morgan, you’re full of surprises,” he said, shaking his head incredulously. She downed the rest of her drink. “Whoa, slow down there, champ. It’s...” He looked up at the clock on the wall above the bartender’s head. “Almost three in the morning and we have a full day left on the ship tomorrow. You don’t want to miss any of the Backstreet Cruise experience, do you? We can get plastered tomorrow night,” he said with a wink. Annie rolled her eyes and hopped off her bar stool, only to stumble directly into Nick’s arms. He steadied himself as her hands landed on his biceps and hooked his hands around her waist. “I could definitely get used to tipsy Annie,” he mused with a wink.


 “Walk me to my room, Carter. And by my room, I mean my door.” She pulled away and tapped her forefinger on his chest pointedly. “Got it?”


 “Yes ma’am.”


 __________________________________________________________


 


 “Nick, what are you doing?” Nick jumped at the sound of Howie’s voice behind him in the dressing room that was typically reserved for the cruise ship entertainment staff. He turned around quickly and discreetly tucked both hands behind his back as he looked down at the older man.


 “What? Nothing. I’m doing nothing,” he insisted.


 Of course, Howie wasn’t fooled. He’d seen that whole “Nick caught in the headlights” look before. In fact, during Nick’s teenage years, he’d seen it at least daily. “So, what are you holding behind your back?”


 “Nothing.” Nick quickly shoved the contents of his right hand into his left and pulled his right hand in front of his body, his long fingers spread wide. Then he put it back behind him and repeated the process with his left.


 Howie rolled his eyes. “You’re talking to me, Nick, not my two year-old son. Now what’s behind your back?” He grabbed one of Nick’s wrists and pulled. The younger man easily relinquished an empty hand. The other wrist proved to be more difficult, but with a hard tug and a grunt, Howie pulled Nick’s right hand out from behind his back just as the pen and paper Nick had been holding fluttered to the ground. With an exasperated flourish, Howie stooped down and picked up the folded red piece of paper. “What’s this?” he asked as he unfolded it carefully.


 “Nothing.”


 “Grr...” Howie growled in frustration. “You may not be talking to my son, but I feel like I am. Now, why do you have a little piece of red paper with Annie’s name on it?”


 “Nothing,” Nick responded quickly.


 Howie suppressed a chuckle. “That’s not even a valid response to my question, Nicky.”


 “Stop calling me Nicky!”


 “Stop acting like a child! Now what are you up to?”


 Before Nick had a chance to answer, Jen, Q, Brian, and AJ sauntered into the dressing room. “Okay guys, who’s ready for Backstreet Karaoke Duets?” Jen asked enthusiastically. “Brian, I think this was an awesome idea! I mean, what girl didn’t grow up dreaming about singing a duet with her favorite Backstreet Boy?”


 Brian gave her a knowing smile and took over for her. “So does everyone remember how this is going to work? There are ten names of random ladies who signed up for karaoke on folded pieces of paper in this..... Hey, where’s the fish bowl?”


 Nick sprang into action and retrieved the bowl from the table behind him, then held out his hand to Howie. Howie’s eyes widened in realization as he looked down at the red piece of paper in his hand. “She’s going to kill you,” he asserted quietly as he dropped it into the bowl of brightly colored paper.


 “Who’s going to kill him?” AJ asked excitedly.


 Nick laughed nervously as he handed the fish bowl to Brian. “Oh. nobody.”


 “Nick what did you do?” Brian fished out the red piece of paper and clumsily unfolded it with one hand, then read the name on it. “No. Absolutely not,” he declared. “She did not sign up for karaoke.”


 “Aw, come on B-Rok. She needs to let loose and have a little fun. Besides, it might be some good exposure for her, and don’t you think it would be nice to have at least one woman who can actually sing up there?” Nick pleaded.


 Brian contemplated the idea for a moment and sighed as he dropped the paper back into the bowl. “She’s going to kill you.”


 “And I’ll kill one of you if you pick that red piece of paper out of the bowl. There’s one red one, and it’s mine. Got it?” Nick said, eyeing his bandmates warily.


 AJ rubbed his palms together sneakily. “Oh, this is going to be fun!”


 “I’m serious, AJ,” Nick hissed.


 “And she’s seriously going to kill you. I’m just glad I’m going to be there to witness it!”


 Nick shrugged nonchalantly. “I think she’s going to like it.”


 

Chapter 37 by emily_michele

 

Karaoke had never really been Annie’s “thing,” mainly because she couldn’t understand the allure of watching and listening to people who knew they couldn’t sing stand on a stage and do it anyway. Even worse were those who thought they could actually sing but couldn’t carry a tune in a bucket, as was the case currently. Still, she couldn’t help laughing in spite of herself as she watched Howie grin and bear it through Elton John and Kiki Dee’s “Don’t Go Breaking my Heart” with a girl who very obviously had no idea she sounded like a dying cat. Not being a karaoke fan, she had found a little bistro table tucked into a corner on the upper deck, far enough away that she wasn’t in the lower deck, standing room only madness, but close enough that she had a decent view of the boys, though from several yards away. Plus, she was actually sitting, her elbows propped up on the table as she sipped hot tea from a styrofoam cup.

 

Though they were in the Bahamas, the air was only lukewarm, with a cool drizzle falling from the sky, and she’d opted to wear jeans and an oversized UK sweatshirt, attempting to keep a low profile. She giggled as Howie cringed through the final note and the guys fell back into the witty banter they’d been exchanging throughout the afternoon in between songs. It was Nick’s turn to draw a singing partner’s name out of the fish bowl and he gave Annie a wink as he pushed his large hand into the small opening and grabbed one of the colored pieces of paper with a fan’s name on it. He momentarily got his large hand stuck underneath the fish bowl’s rim, which caused the crowd to erupt in laughter, then pulled it out with a dramatic flourish and handed a little red slip of paper to Q.

 

“They tell me this is going to be the last karaoke act this afternoon so that the guys have time to get ready for the concert tonight,” Q rumbled into the microphone he was holding as he fumbled with his free hand to unfold the paper. “So I hope Nick picked a good one.”

 

“Oh, I’m sure I did,” Nick mused confidently. AJ stifled a laugh while Brian rolled his eyes and shook his head.

 

“Alrighty then. Let’s see who the lucky lady is.” Q looked down at the paper, mainly to appease the crowd since he already knew the name he was going to be reading, and read the name written across the slip of paper in Nick’s characteristic scrawl. “Annie Morgan!”

 

Annie’s mouth dropped open as the cup of tea she was holding clattered onto the tabletop below it. She thanked her lucky stars that at least it was almost empty and didn’t make much of a mess. Had she just heard that right? Was Q really calling her name to come on stage and sing karaoke with Nick?

 

“Where are ya Annie?” Q asked with enthusiasm as he and the other guys searched the crowd for Annie. Nick, however, had already found her soon after karaoke had started was now looking on with a bemused smirk as she hid her face behind her hands. A low murmur buzzed across the sea of fans as they discussed who this “Annie Morgan” must be, since she didn’t immediately squeal in delight and rush the stage at her opportunity to get up close and personal with the Backstreet Boys. It may have been a first in Backstreet history.

 

Nick grabbed the microphone from Q. “Annie Morgan, get your booty up here and sing with me!” he bellowed lightheartedly in her general direction.

 

Annie rolled her eyes and shook her head. She looked down at the new tea stain on her sweatshirt and blew a loose curl out of her eyes with an exasperated sigh. “I’m going to kill you,” she mouthed at him as she stood slowly.

 

“Oh here comes the lovely lady now!” Howie declared, pointing towards the upper deck.

 

As Annie made her way down to the stage, Nick beamed proudly, knowing that getting her on stage was more than half the battle. He was actually impressed with how easy it had been. Meanwhile, Annie grumbled under her breath as she made her way towards the stage. “I didn’t sign up for karaoke. How the heck did my name even end up in that bowl? What was I supposed to do? Refuse to go up there?” She shot a glare in Brian’s direction, and he simply shrugged and shook his head in response. Nick, on the other hand, grinned widely and gave her yet another wink as she trudged up the stairs and had a microphone thrust into her hand.

 

The guys went into performance mode, making sure to have the fans think this was the first time they’d laid eyes on Annie Morgan.. “Looks like we have a Kentucky girl!” Brian crooned, eyeing her sweatshirt. “I like Kentucky girls,” he said with a wink.

 

“Dude! Your wife’s right over there!” AJ quipped, pointing in Leighanne’s general direction. “And she’s from Georgia.”

 

Brian grinned sheepishly and gave a little finger wave in Leighanne’s direction. “Hi honey,” he squeaked. Leighanne crossed her arms over her chest and shot daggers at him with her eyes, though he already knew that wasn’t about the “Kentucky girl” remark. It was about his allowing Nick to bring Annie up on stage.

 

Nick held his hand out to Annie and she played along, giving it a firm shake. “Nice to meet you, Annie. What are we singing today?”

 

Annie’s face dropped and her eyes widened in horror. The other fans had pre-chosen their song selections in the event that they were picked to participate. She, of course, hadn’t done so since she hadn’t even signed up for karaoke at all. “Well, um...” She stammered into the microphone she was holding and shifted back and forth on her feet nervously. “I didn’t really imagine that I would make it up here, so..... I didn’t pick anything. You choose something,” she insisted.

 

Nick grinned like the Cheshire cat. “Well... there is one duet I’m really liking right now...”

 

“So, let’s sing it.”

Nick turned to the DJ operating the sound and video equipment. “Do you have ‘Run’ by Matt Nathanson and Sugarland?”

“I’m not sure I know that song....” Annie told him as the DJ set to work preparing the song.

Nick smiled and put a friendly arm around her shoulders. “So I guess it’s a good thing we have the words on the screen, huh?” he said as the first notes of the song blared through the speaker above their heads. “So, just look right here.” He pointed to the small screen on that had been set on the stage near their feet with his microphone and began singing.

Annie groaned. “Nick, I---” She totally knew the song. It was one of her favorites. She just wasn’t so sure it was appropriate to be singing it with Nick.

I wanna watch you undress...” Nick crooned, his arm still draped over Annie’s shoulder.

“Well that’s not suggestive at all,” Brian thought to himself. Then across the stage, AJ said it-- directly into his microphone for the whole ship to hear. Brian slapped his palm against his forehead and closed his eyes, laughing to himself while he shook his head. Leave it to AJ.

I wanna watch you glow.” Annie shrugged Nick’s heavy arm off of her shoulders as he sang the second line. He turned to face her and touched the end of our of her auburn curls ever so gently with the fingertips of his free hand.

 

Let your hair down all around and cover us both.”

You come in waves....”

 

“Like I said, not suggestive at all,” AJ interjected. A few whoops and cat calls came from the audience.

We crash and we roll.”

 

Howie elbowed him hard in the ribs. “Ow!” AJ hissed, pulling his mouth away from his mic. “What was that for?!”

 

“Look at that,” Howie whispered, nodding his head toward Nick and Annie. Annie was biting her bottom lip nervously and staring directly into Nick’s eyes as he sang to her.

 

You surround me, pull me, drown me, then swallow me whole.”

 

“Suggestive!” AJ mouthed at Howie.

Annie gulped and licked her dry lips before joining him for the chorus-- with a scared vibrato, but in perfect harmony.

You turn, turn, turn, turning me on.
Like a slow fire burn. I know that it’s wrong.
Still I run, run, run, run right into you.
Yeah I run, run, run, run right into you.”

Howie led the crowd as they burst into applause then silenced quickly as Annie

picked up with the third verse.


“You pull me in close...” Nick grinned wickedly and hooked his arm around her waist,

 pulling her towards him.

Buckle my knees...” And her knees literally buckled. Nick let out a little laugh.

And I shake, and I shiver just to feel you breathe.” She shuddered at the feeling of Nick’s breath hot on her left ear.

 

Annie pulled the microphone away from her mouth. “What do you think you’re doing?” she hissed quietly through clenched teeth. Nick just gave her a little shrug, loosening his grip on her waist slightly.

“You trace my lines.”

“I trace your lines,” Nick echoed as he let go of her waist and ran his index finger up her spine.

She jumped and took a step backwards, faltering just slightly on the next line.
Stirring my soul.
Shoot sparks at the heart of the world
And I watch it explode.”

Nick’s voice took on that raspy quality she loved so much when he echoed her with

“I watch you, I watch you,” as they went back into the chorus. His face contorted with

passion as it always did when he really got into a song he was singing.

 

You turn, turn, turn, turning me on...”

AJ darted across the stage behind them and whispered into Brian’s ear. “The ship probably has a waterhose, right? Like for fires and shit?”

Brian furrowed his brows in confusion. “Um, yeah. I’d say so... for fires and stuff. Why?”

“Well, in case we have to hose them down!” He cackled and trotted back across the stage to stand beside Howie, where he presumed he was much safer. “Yo, B-Rok! Let’s give them a little back-up!”

O-oh, o-oh, o-oh...” Brian, AJ, and Howie chimed in at the bridge, with Howie even leading them in a little Temptations style backup dancing

I’m amazing.
When you’re beside me.
I’m so much more!” Nick belted.

And I feel your fingers...” Annie clenched her eyes tight as Nick ran his knuckles

down her cheek.

Pound like thunder.
And I am so much more.”

 

Nick took in a deep breath and let it out, his hand literally shaking as he pulled it

away from Annie’s cheek. “I’m so much more....” He took in the sight of her. Rain dripped off her messy curls and little rivulets of water ran down her forehead and across her cheeks and nose before spilling onto her gray sweatshirt with the faded blue ‘UK’ symbol emblazoned across the front. He watched a drop of water spill down one of her closed eyelids and hang onto her eyelashes before splashing onto her cheek. He swiped at it with the pad of his thumb and she opened her eyes to meet his as they sang the chorus together one more time while the music faded into the background.

You turn, turn, turn, turning me on.
Like a slow fire burn. I know that it’s wrong.
Still I run, run, run, run right into you.
Yeah I run, run, run, run right into you.”

Nick smiled genuinely at her, his hand still resting on her cheek, as she sang.

You’re turning me on.”

“Like a slow fire burn.” He finished with panting breaths, never tearing his eyes away

from her as the rain poured steadily around them. Throughout their performance, it had turned from a slow drizzle into a downpour. The first few seconds after they hit the last note together were filled with dead silence except for the drumming of their own hearts in their ears and the pitter patter of the rain on the deck. Then, finally, someone started clapping, then someone else joined in, and someone else until the entire ship roared with the shouts and cheers in appreciation of their performance.

Nick discreetly turned off his microphone and dropped it to his side. “You’re shaking,” he whispered.

“The rain’s cold,” she whispered back with a shrug.

“Is that all?” he taunted.

“I’m going to kill you.”

“I’d prefer you kiss me.”

Chapter 38 by emily_michele
“What did he say to you?!” Leighanne squealed as she followed Annie into her state room. She’d been hot on her heels as soon as Nick had whispered something in her ear, prompting her to literally jump backwards out of his arms, take a stiff bow, and dart off the stage.

Annie marched into the bathroom and jerked a towel off the shower curtain rod. She flipped her head over and started drying her hair. “Oh my god! Does it matter what he said to me? Did you hear what he sang to me?”

“Actually, he sang it with you,” Leighanne pointed out.

“Against my will!” Annie straightened up and flipped her damp hair out of her face. She reached for the hem of her heavy, wet sweatshirt and started to pull it over her head.

“You seemed pretty willing to me....”

“Umph!” The rain had made the fibers of Annie’s usually soft and stretchy sweatshirt stiff and unforgiving-- not to mention freezing. Her face was covered up by the inside-out sweatshirt and her elbows were stuck inside. “A little help here?” she whined.

Leighanne laughed. “I believe you’re avoiding the subject.”

“I’m absolutely avoiding the subject. I’m also absolutely stuck in this sweatshirt!” Annie’s muffled voice replied pleadingly. Leighanne grabbed the sweatshirt and gave it a yank. “Stupid sweatshirt,” Annie grumbled as it dropped onto the tile floor with a thud. “It’s been great old friend, but did I really have to be wearing that old, ratty thing when I sang on a stage in front of hundreds of people with Nick freakin’ Carter?”

Leighanne cocked her eyebrow, looking amused. “Nick freakin’ Carter, huh? I’ve used that term plenty of times myself. Though, the sentiment may or may not have been the same. So, what exactly is going on with you and Nick freakin’ Carter?” Annie pretended to ignore her as she finished changing into some dry clothes. “All I’m saying is that you looked pretty cozy up there singing with him ‘against your will’.”

Annie started pacing. “Who the heck does he think he is? What was I supposed to do? Refuse to go up there? What right does he have to man-handle me up there in front of all those people?”

“What woman doesn’t want to be man-handled by Nick Carter?” Leighanne joked.

“Now you sound like Beth.”

Her expression softened. “I know you’re freaking out about this whole Nick thing, Annie, and I really wish Beth could have been here to more than likely give you better advice than I can, but...what a good reason to have to miss the cruise, right?”

Annie gave her a weak smile. Beth, whom she’d known almost longer than she’d known herself, and whose bed she used to lay on and stare at the Backstreet Boys posters on the ceiling and share her dreams with, had called her in a panic two weeks ago because there were two lines on that pregnancy test when there should have only been one. Then, her panicked fiancé, Aaron, had called a week later because Beth had literally had “morning sickness” all day and night for five days straight. Then, a couple days later, Annie called Beth to confirm her suspicions that the morning sickness wasn’t getting any better and ended up having to convince her oldest friend that while the Backstreet Boys cruise would be a lot of fun, being on a cruise ship for three days while seven weeks pregnant would not.
“Actually, Leighanne, it’s probably better that you’re trying to give me advice about Nick because Beth would tell me to ‘quote’ get the stick out of my ass and have a little fun with the Backstreet Boy. I hope you’re going to tell me to show a little more restraint.”

Leighanne pursed her lips in an attempt to stifle a laugh. “You tell Brian I said this, and I’ll deny it till the day I die.”

“Tell you Brian you said wh-”

“Get the stick out of your ass and have a little fun with the Backstreet Boy,” Leighanne interrupted her.

“Excuse me?”

“You only live once, right?”

“Leighanne Littrell, you’ve lost your mind.”

“Have I?”

“Annie!” Nick’s voice bellowed through the door, accompanied by the sound of his fist pounding on it. “Are you in there?”

Leighanne started for the door, but Annie grabbed the back of her shirt as she walked by her. “Let him sweat for a minute,” she said with a little smirk.

“Annie! Listen baby, I’m sorry I did that. I didn’t mean to embarrass you.” Nick lowered his voice a notch and pressed his forehead against the door as he spoke.

“Baby?” Inside Annie’s cabin, Leighanne raised an eyebrow. “He calls you baby?”

“Occasionally, yes,” Annie replied nonchalantly as she scooped her wet clothes out of the floor and started hanging them up to dry.

“Annie?” Nick’s voice echoed through the door once again, this time sounding smaller and perhaps a little defeated.

“I’m opening it,” Leighanne announced, reaching for the doorknob. Annie didn’t have time to protest before the door swung open and Nick braced his hands on the doorframe to keep himself from falling inside.

“Hi,” he said quietly, with a guilty grin.

“Remember what I told you,” Leighanne told Annie as she traipsed out the door.

“Are you mad?” Nick closed the door behind Leighanne and took a couple of tentative steps in Annie’s direction.

“Nick, you’re soaked.” He had bolted off the stage and jogged straight to Annie’s room after helping the other guys thank everyone for coming to karaoke and announcing times for the concert and pajama party later that night. Annie ducked into the bathroom and grabbed a towel, then approached Nick and stood on her tiptoes as she dried his hair. Nick bent his head down and shut his eyes as she ran the towel across his head, her fingers massaging his scalp through the white terrycloth. She draped the towel across his shoulders and swiped at a drop of water on his nose with a damp corner as he opened his eyes to look down at her.

“Are you mad?” he asked again.

Annie sighed and dropped her shoulders. “I don’t know what I am, Nick. That was......”

“Intense?” He took a step closer to close the gap in between them and a breath hitched in her throat.

“Yeah, and....embarrassing,” she whispered.

He moved a damp curl out of her eye with his fingertips and tucked it behind her ear. “I didn’t mean to embarrass you. I thought it would be fun,” he answered softly.

“You know, it would have been if it weren’t for the hundreds of Backstreet Boys fans watching, and the rain, and the.....”

“The what, Annie?” Nick’s face was mere centimeters away from hers.

“The, um....” She licked her lips and took breath as she parted them. “Intensity?”

He laughed. “That wasn’t really my intent either. Well, not quite like that anyway. I just got a little carried away, I guess.” He paused. “You’re good at that.”

“Good at what?”

“Carrying me away.”

Annie shifted her weight back and forth on the balls of her bare feet. “Nick, you’re like twice my size,” she jested with a smirk. “There’s no way I’d be able to carry you away.”

Nick leaned in closer so that the wetness of his jeans soaked through the legs of Annie’s sweatpants, and she shivered at the sudden coolness on her thigh. “Oh, really? Because I’d say I’m already pretty far gone.”

“Nick....”

“Shh.” He placed a finger on her lips. “Can I ask you something?”

“What?”

“If we hadn’t had an audience....”

“Nick-” Again, with the finger on her lips.

“If we hadn’t had an audience, would you.....?”

“Would I what, Nick?” He didn’t respond, but instead have her an impish grin for just a second before crashing his lips down on hers.
Chapter 39 by emily_michele

Despite the fact that Nick’s wet clothes were now pressed up against what seemed like every inch of the front of her body, Annie felt warm. His hands fisted in her wet hair and his tongue trailed over her lips before he finally pulled away to take a breath. They both stood there gasping, and when he realized that she hadn’t been the one who pulled away, he smiled. Then, she did too. So he kissed her again. She responded with a little moan and leaned into the kiss as he clasped his arms around the small of her back and pulled her even closer. When she didn’t resist, his lips curled into a smile against hers. “I like you,” he breathed, resting his forehead against hers. “I like you a lot.”

“I know,” she sighed, resting her hands on his broad shoulders. “You shouldn’t.”

“I shouldn’t?”


She shuddered at the feeling of his breath on her cheek. “No.”

“Why is that?”

“Nick....” He loosened his grip on her and looked down at her quizzically. “I’m not what you need.”

He shrugged. “Maybe so... but right now you’re exactly what I want.”

“Nick, I...”

“Ssh.” He dropped his fingertip onto her lips for the third time in as many minutes. “Me thinks you doth protest too much.”

Annie giggled. “Is that Shakespeare you’re quoting there, Mr. Carter?”

“Are you surprised, Mrs. Morgan?” She flinched as his calling her “Mrs.”, though technically, that was what she was. She was still using her late husband’s surname, and Nick was well aware of her hesitation to move on after Andrew. Yet, somehow, over the past few months she’d gotten to the point that she didn’t really feel like a “Mrs.” anymore. Still, “moving on” was something she wasn’t quite sure she was particularly ready for.

“Actually, yes. I’m a little surprised that Nick Carter is quoting Shakespeare,” she answered him quietly, getting back to the subject at hand.

“Well, don’t be. Shakespeare was one of those subjects I was required to learn according to the homeschooling guidelines. While most of it still doesn’t make a lot of sense to me, he would have made a hell of a songwriter.”

“I see.”

“So, back to my question....” He stared down at her with a little smirk. “If we hadn’t had an audience, would you have kissed me at the end of our performance?”

She gulped. “Maybe.”

“Maybe?” Nick raised an eyebrow. “It didn’t feel like ‘maybe’ two minutes ago,” he chided.

Annie bit her bottom lip in an attempt not to smile at his sudden confidence. “Um...probably?” she squeaked.

He thought about it for a minute. “I’ll take probably.” He paused and took a breath. He imagined that had he gone to high school, this is how it may have felt when he asked the head cheerleader to go steady. His palms were sweaty and his heart was racing. He wondered if she actually had been a cheerleader. She didn’t really seem the type, but one thing was for sure-- She would have been a knockout in one of those little uniforms. “So, what do you say, Annie? You and me?” He figured he’d better go ahead and say it before he lost his nerve.  However, when he felt the muscles in her lower back tense up under his grasp, he realized he may have come on too strong.

“What?” Annie’s eyes got a big as saucers, and if it weren’t for Nick’s firm grasp around her waist, she would have stumbled backwards. She glanced at down at that all-important (and still bare) finger that was poised hesitantly on his right shoulder and fought the urge to pry his long fingers off her waist.

 

“Listen Annie, it’s not like I’m proposing marriage here, but I was planning on letting loose and letting myself have an amazing time tonight, and those plans include you. Like I said last night, I’ve not made it any secret that I’m attracted to you, and after that duet we just finished a few minutes ago, you can’t deny the chemistry here.” He gave her a little squeeze to emphasize his point. She gulped and squeezed her eyes shut in response. He loosened his grip on her and brought a hand up to her cheek. “Annie, look at me.” She opened her eyes and stared at him blankly, her expression completely unreadable. “We’ve been tip-toeing around this for weeks now, and I just want to know whether I should keep trying or give up and run away with my tail tucked between my legs.”

 

Annie could hear Leighanne’s voice echoing in her head. Have a little fun with the Backstreet Boy. Oh yeah-- and get the stick out of your ass. She looked up at Nick and took in a sharp breath. His proximity was overwhelming, yet she suddenly felt calm. “Keep trying,” she said softly. “At least for tonight, keep trying.”

 

Nick felt like like the skin on his cheeks might crack under the sheer pressure of his smile. “That’s what I was hoping you’d say. It’s a good thing, because I’m not so good at that ‘tail tucked between my legs’ thing.”

 

“So I’ve noticed.” She realized they were both shivering, and wondered whether it was simply because of their wet clothes in the air-conditioned suite or a little something more. “You should probably get out of those wet clothes,” she cautioned. “No hypothermia on the Backstreet Boys Cruise.”

 

“Why, Annie Morgan, I didn’t know you had it in you! Care to help me out?” He backed away from her and started shimmying out of his shirt.

 

She rolled her eyes but took just a moment to look beneath the raised hem of his damp gray sweatshirt and get a peek at his abs before clasping hands around his wrists. “Not so fast, mister. This is still me we’re talking about here.”

 

He dropped the hemline he was grasping and gave her a shrug. “It was worth a shot. You can’t blame a guy for trying.” He walked towards the door and she followed, holding it open as he started out into the hallway and turned back to face her. “Meet me backstage after the concert?”

 

Annie hesitated, but only for a moment, as Brian passed by in the hallway and paused to study them, his eyebrows furrowed in.... confusion? Distaste? She wasn’t sure, but it occurred to her that she really didn’t care. Plus, Nick had his back turned and didn’t even see him. She wondered if there was some kind of “Frick/Frack” sense that made him know Brian was there and choose to ignore him. In reality, the younger man didn’t have a clue. All of his attention was focused solely on Annie. “Sure. I’d love to,” she responded.

 

He smiled and bent over to plant a kiss on her cheek. “I’ll be looking forward to it. Tell me you at least brought some of those little ‘shortie’ pajamas to wear to the party tonight?” She laughed and pushed him on out the door.

 

Chapter 40 by emily_michele
Nick and Annie kept stealing glances at each other throughout the onboard concert that evening. She was well aware that there were three other Backstreet Boys on stage, but Nick could have been doing a solo show as far as she was concerned. She recalled the Backstreet Boys concerts she’d attended as a teenager and remembered the feeling of excitement when one of them seemed as if they were singing right to her. It didn’t matter that she was probably one of fifty girls in his direct line of sight-- she would always carry with her the belief that at that particular moment, he’d been singing to her. This time, though, there was no question. As far as Nick was concerned, she could have been the only woman in the room.

During the final number, Annie snuck out of her seat and found Mike in the darkness on the side of the stage. “Ah! Miss Morgan! Nick told me to watch for you. He’ll be glad you showed.” Annie found the last statement a little odd. Did he really think she wouldn’t show up? She said she was going to, didn’t she? She followed Mike down a narrow hallway and into a green room that was actually painted light blue, reminiscent of the ocean on a clear day. Shortly thereafter, the final notes of “Drowning” resounded throughout the small auditorium and the audience erupted in cheers. Annie took advantage of the moment and allowed herself to go a little “fangirl,” suddenly feeling butterflies in her stomach with the anticipation of waiting backstage for none other than the Backstreet Boys themselves.

She recalled a similar scene in her first and only attempt at writing fan fiction as a teenager. The only difference was that the Backstreet Boy she was waiting for was Kevin (or was it Howie?), and she was seventeen instead of thirty. Nick was the first one off stage, and when he saw her, he stopped dead in his tracks and grinned widely. “Nick!” Brian grumbled from behind him as he nearly ran face first into his back. “What are you----oh.” He looked around Nick’s shoulder and spotted Annie. Leighanne breezed into the room from out of nowhere and yanked him by the collar into a nearby broom closet.

Howie laughed and stepped around Nick. “I swear those two act like they’re seventy sometimes, and then other times they act like they’re seventeen.”

“The broom closet thing happens a lot, actually,” Nick said with a shrug.

“Maybe you two could find one!” AJ exclaimed. He ducked as Nick swatted at his head then scampered away. Annie loved watching the guys interact with each other. She imagined that a similar move had probably happened umpteen times in the past, except with Nick in AJ’s role and Kevin in Nick’s. My, how the times had changed.

Howie quietly excused himself, leaving Nick and Annie alone, save for the handful of crew members milling around. “It was a great show,” Annie said as Nick sauntered towards her. “I like that it wasn’t highly rehearsed, yet you guys still looked and sounded awesome. I hope I’m that skilled of a performer one day.” She picked at a piece of lint on his shoulder and flicked it onto the carpet. “I imagine I’ll be a wreck before every concert.”

Nick cocked his head to the side and narrowed his eyes at her. “You’re going to have concerts?” he asked. She nodded and his face beamed in realization. “So, you’re going to give this record deal thing a shot.”

“Yep. I head to Nashville at the beginning of the year to start recording.”

“Annie, that’s awesome!” He lunged forward and started to hug her, but remembered he’d just performed a full concert, and that he’d been wearing a leather trench coat for half of it. He was surprised she hadn’t gotten a single whiff and started running in the other direction. “I, uh...” He pulled his hands away from her and ran them through his sweaty hair. “I need a shower.”

“Yeah...” Annie crinkled up her nose dramatically, her lips twitching up into a smile.

Nick laughed. “You act like you’re joking, but I know I stink. I’ll just be a few minutes if you want to wait here. I was thinking maybe we could catch a late dinner before the pajama party tonight-- just the two of us. There’s this little restaurant near the captain’s quarters that is strictly VIP, so we wouldn’t have an audience. Well, other than Mike, who promises to make sure that we really don’t have an audience.”

“Sounds good.” Annie flopped into an oversized arm chair nearby. “Now, go take that shower before I get another whiff and start running in the other direction.”

“You better not!” Nick walked away laughing and shaking his head. For his own sanity, he hoped this woman would be sticking around for a while. Yet, he feared that maybe he shouldn’t get his hopes up.

Seconds later, Brian and Leighanne stumbled out of the broom closet giggling like teenagers. Leighanne situated Brian’s hat atop his mussed-up hair and gave him a little slap on the behind as they shuffled past. “Um, hey Annie,” Brian stammered, blushing furiously as Leighanne gave her a little wink. Annie stifled a giggle and shook her head incredulously as the couple left the room. She was glad that Leighanne and Brian were a package deal and that she was going to be able to keep Leighanne around. Aside from Beth, she didn’t really have “girlfriends,” and Leighanne was a welcome confidante, even if she was her manager’s wife. She wondered if Leighanne’s plan was to keep Brian “occupied” for the rest of the night while she and Nick went on their second “date.”

A few minutes later, Annie and Nick were seated in an intimate corner of a tiny restaurant called “The Captain’s Plate,” sipping glasses of red wine. “I kind of miss the Elvis hair.” Annie commented after the maitre d’ had taken their orders.

Nick’s wine glass stopped just shy of his lips. “The what?”

“The slicked back hair you were sporting during the concert. There was this little piece that fell down in the front, and it kind of reminded me of Elvis.” Annie pushed his blonde locks to the side and away from his eyes.

Nick laughed. “Our stylist hates that I’m growing my hair out. He said that was ‘the best he could do’.” He held his fingers up in air quotes. “So, the Elvis hair.... good or bad?”

“I love Elvis.”

“So...good?”

“Yeah.” Annie ran her thumb and forefinger up and down the stem of her wine glass casually. “I mean, it’s probably not a look you should sport every day, but I liked it.” The waiter set their appetizer down on the table between them and they both dove in. Annie found herself eating much less than she had on their first date. The first one had been completely casual-- no strings attached. This time..... well, Nick had made it pretty obvious that there were strings, and that made her nervous. Nick was great, not to mention very nice to look at, but could she really see herself forging a relationship with Nick Carter? A couple months ago her answer would have been a resounding ‘no,” but now she wasn’t so sure.

“So, Nashville in January, huh?” Nick asked in between bites of bruschetta.

“Yeah,” Annie confirmed. “After I get back home, I’ve really got to get busy with packing boxes and finding child care for Drew. Not to mention, I haven’t even found a place to stay yet.”

Nick chewed thoughtfully and took a swig of his wine. “Well, coincidentally, I happen to know a guy who owns a place in Franklin. It’s a few miles south of Nashville, but the commute’s not bad and it’s probably better than living downtown if you have a kid. I mean, it’s got a fenced in yard and all of that. Plus, the owner’s almost never there, so he’d probably rent it to you for pretty cheap.”

“Oh really?” Annie leaned forward eagerly. “Do you think you could hook me up with him? That sounds perfect!”

“It’s me,” Nick replied matter-of-factly. “And as far as the ‘hooking up’ part, I guess that’s up to you.”

Annie furrowed her brows in confusion and chose to ignore the second part for the time being. “You? I thought I read somewhere that you sold your place in Tennessee.”

“Wow. Sometimes I forget you’re a fan,” he remarked. “I was an idiot to let a magazine write a piece about my Tennessee house and publish a picture. The place was crawling with fans, so I put up a for sale sign and mentioned in an interview that I was selling it. That seemed to take care of the problem.”

“Nick! That’s kind of mean, don’t you think?”

He shrugged. “I guess, but when you move in, you’ll appreciate the lack of twenty-something women standing on the sidewalk out front with binoculars. Ooh... maybe we can put a sold sign up when you move in!” He rubbed his palms together excitedly.

“Nick, we can’t do that. And besides, who says I’m moving in?” Annie brought him crashing back down to earth.

“But you just said it sounded perfect!” he protested. “It’s not like I’m asking you to move in with me. I’m just offering my house until you find something more permanent.” He paused. “Well, for now anyway.” He grabbed her hand from across the table, wiggled his eyebrows suggestively and smirked, being sure to make it obvious he was joking.

Annie rolled her eyes. “Nick, you are too much.”

Nick leaned forward expectantly. “Is that a good or a bad thing?”

She tapped her fingers on her chin and narrowed her eyes in mock concentration. “It’s a good thing.” Then she pointed her finger at him. “As long as you continue to behave.”

Nick grinned and batted his eyelashes innocently, then squeezed her hand. “Don’t I always?”
Chapter 41 by emily_michele




When Annie opened her stateroom door an hour later after changing into her pajamas, she found herself face to face with......a Ninja Turtle. The red one. What was his name? She racked her brain trying to remember the names of the Ninja Turtles. They were all artists, right? Nick, through the eye holes in his red bandana-mask, studied Annie’s getup. She wore bright pink flannel pajamas with white polka dots, complete with big pink sponge rollers in her hair. “Those aren’t shortie pajamas,” he deadpanned.

Annie, still a little tipsy from the three glasses of wine she’d had at dinner, burst into a fit of giggles. “And those are Ninja Turtle pajamas! Where did you find a set that big?”

Nick smirked. “I’m going to behave and try my best not to turn that into something dirty, but you should know that in here...” He tapped on the side of his green, hooded head. “I’m strutting like a caveman.” She laughed again and rolled her eyes. Nick looked down at her feet. “Are those bunny slippers?”

“Why, yes. Yes they are.” She held a foot up and wiggled it back and forth.

“Where’d you find a pair that big?” he quipped suggestively.

“Behave,” she warned, giving him a playful push on the chest.

They met Mike and Howie at the end of the hallway, and he ushered them towards the atrium bar where the pajama party was being held. Halfway there, Nick casually grabbed Annie’s hand and looped his fingers through hers. She held his hand in return until they got so close to the atrium that she could feel the thumping of the music in her chest, then tentatively pulled away and slowed down so that she was a couple of steps behind him. He stopped and whirled around, his eyes searching hers in disappointment. “What are you doing?”

“Go on,” she mouthed.

He started to protest. “But, what about--?”

“Later,” she promised. He smiled and shuffled ahead to catch up with Mike and Howie. She watched as Nick and Howie entered the bar and began mingling with the fans, and Leighanne soon waved her over to a high top table where she and Leigh were sipping on cosmos.

“Cute,” Leighanne commented on Annie’s pajamas as she slid into a bar stool and ordered a drink. “The rollers are a nice touch.”

“Ooh! Bunny slippers too!” Leigh pointed to Annie’s feet. “Though I guess I, myself, should have worn bunny ears, considering my husband thinks he’s Hugh Hefner.”

Leighanne snorted into her martini glass. “Have you seen mine yet?” Annie shook her head.

 

“Elmo pajamas. Before we left the room, he asked me if I wanted to tickle him.”

“Isn’t it weird that AJ looks the most normal out of all of them?” Leigh asked. They all laughed.

Soon after, the Boys and announced that they would be playing truth or dare, and it was of course, a riot. That is, until Nick got tired of the dares and said, “Truth.”

 

A fan standing right beside the bar he was standing on took the microphone and cleared her throat. “Nick, we all really enjoyed your karaoke performance today, but it’s really got everybody talking...”

 

Annie had to struggle not to spit her screwdriver all over the table. “Oh, no,” she gasped and stared at Leigh and Leighanne in horror.

 

“She wouldn’t!” Leighanne hissed.

 

Across the room, Nick gulped and licked his lips. “Oh really?”

 

“Yes. What we all really want to know is...... Did you know that Annie girl you sang with before she got up on stage? I mean, you just seemed really comfortable with each other.”

 

The temperature of the room suddenly seemed to rise by twenty degrees. Annie fanned herself and gasped for air while Nick’s vision seemed to blur as he searched the crowd for her. He frowned apologetically in her direction and turned to Brian.

“Um, Brian?”

“What is he doing?” Leigh whispered.

“Oh, good boy, Nick,” Leighanne sighed.

“How is this good?” Annie asked.

“Just watch and listen.” Leighanne said, squeezing her arm reassuringly.

A collective, chatty murmur spread across the sea of women in the bar. “Well, ah, you see...” Brian’s voice cut through the chatter. “Annie Morgan is actually a dear friend and colleague of mine. You can hear her singing with me on the first single for my new contemporary Christian album, which will be released early next year. When I heard she was a pretty hardcore Backstreet Boys fan, I bought her a cruise ticket.” He was sure to leave out the part where buying her a cruise ticket had actually been Nick’s idea. That would only add fuel to the fire. “So, of course by now she’s acquainted with the rest of the guys as well.” AJ and Howie eagerly nodded their heads in agreement as Nick and Annie shared a simultaneous sigh of relief. Brian’s answer seemed to satisfy the inquiring fan and the game of truth or dare continued for another half hour or so before the guys called it a night.

 

Nick was the first one to make it to the table where the ladies were still sitting and drinking cocktails. He untied his red eye mask and threw his hood off, then swiped his hand across his forehead as if wiping away sweat. “Well that was a close one,” he sighed.

“Word,” Brian chimed in from behind him. He dove at Leighanne and planted a kiss on her lips, then everyone laughed as he lost his grip on her purple silk pajamas and crashed into the table. Luckily, all the ladies’ cocktail glasses were more than half empty and they weren’t left cleaning up a mess. Annie momentarily tensed up when Nick came up behind her and looped his arms around her waist, but ended up tossing back the rest of her drink and relaxing with her back against his chest. He nuzzled his head in next to hers and smiled.

“Hey, Bri, can I ask you a question?” Leighanne asked sweetly.

 

“Yeah, babe?” He tore his eyes away from Nick and Annie to look at his wife.

 

“Would it have really been that bad for the fans to think Annie and Nick were together?”
Annie nearly choked on her alcohol and Nick raised a surprised eyebrow in Leighanne’s direction.

Brian looked at his wife, then at Nick and Annie, then back at his wife. Leigh and AJ looked on with amused smirks. “Well, the fans who missed out on karaoke might be pretty upset to know that was staged....”

“Good point.” Nick’s chin tickled Annie’s shoulder as he spoke.

“And you’re not, are you? Together, I mean?” Nick could tell that Brian was choosing his words, mainly because Leighanne was staring at him with that “motherly” glare she tended to give him sometimes when he was in trouble. He knew the look well-- if not from his own mother, then definitely from Leighanne.

Annie looked up at Nick expectantly. Were they? She wasn’t really sure, herself. What did Nick think? Nick gave her a wink and turned his attention back to Brian. “We’re casually having a little fun right now, Frick. Don’t get your panties in a wad.” Annie breathed a little sigh of relief. “But, I have to say I’m a little confused about why you care so much.” Well, so much for that sigh of relief. Annie braced herself for Brian’s response.

 

“Well Nick, I--whoa!” Leighanne’s hands had suddenly disappeared underneath the table and Brian’s eyes widened in surprise. Annie pursed her lips in an attempt to keep from laughing as she watched his demeanor completely change. He looked at Leighanne and winked, then took a swig of her drink and tipped the glass in Nick and Annie’s direction. “You kids have fun tonight!” he blurted out as he yanked Leighanne off her bar stool and led her away.

 

Howie approached the table carrying a large bottle of liquor. “The bartender loves me,” he said proudly.

 

“I’d say he does,” Annie remarked with a laugh. “Is that a whole bottle of Smirnoff you just bought from him?”

 

“Um, no,” Howie answered seriously. “It’s Grey Goose! Wanna drink?”

 

“Meh-” Annie crinkled her nose in the bottle’s direction as Nick unwrapped himself from her and took it from Howie. “I’m not much of a straight vodka kind of girl.”

 

“Just a second.” Nick jogged to the bar and started talking to the bartender.

 

“What’s he doing?” Annie asked Howie.

 

“Beats me,” he shrugged. “I quit trying to figure him out a long time ago. He’s weird, but seriously....he’s great.”

 

Annie bit her lip and nodded. “Yeah. He is,” she admitted softly.

 

“Here,” Nick shoved a brandy snifter full of cherries in Annie’s hand.

 

“What are these for?”

 

Nick grabbed a cherry and bit it off the stem, then tossed the bottle back and took a long drink. “Now, you try.”

 

“That’s quite the girly way to drink vodka, Nicky,” Howie snickered.

 

“Watch it, D. I can still drink you under the table, and you know it.”

“Is that a challenge?”

“No.” Nick turned his attention back to Annie. “What do you say? Have a little fun with a Backstreet Boy tonight?” Annie nearly did a double take. Had he been eavesdropping on her and Leighanne’s conversation earlier? Did it matter? She shrugged and grabbed a cherry. “Now, don’t bite into it until you get the vodka in your mouth. Then chew and swallow.”

 

Annie held the cherry in her mouth and took the bottle from Nick. She took a quick drink and bit into the cherry. Surprisingly, even though it still burned on the way down, the cherry added enough sweetness to make the pure alcohol taste pretty good. Oh, I am in trouble, she thought to herself.

Chapter 42 by emily_michele

 

“Dear god, woman,” Nick groaned. Annie grinned and pulled the knotted cherry stem she was holding between her teeth out of her mouth. She handed it to him with a flourish. He looked down at his palm and licked his lips. “You tell me to behave tonight, then you do this?” Across the table, Howie and Leigh erupted in laughter.

“I gotta pee,” Annie said abruptly, obviously feeling the effects of the alcohol in more ways than one. She toppled off her bar stool onto unsteady feet, and Nick’s hand shot out to steady her.

“You okay there, champ? Need an escort?”

Annie placed a hand on his shoulder to steady herself while she willed the room to stop spinning. When it finally did, she looked at him with a smile. “No, I’m good. I won’t be long.”

 

Then, she traipsed over to the nearest bathroom. She was definitely a little dizzy and feeling the effects of the alcohol, but actually feeling quite chipper. While in the stall, she couldn’t help but overhear the gossipy chatter that was happening amongst some fans out by the sinks. “I think he’s still single. I mean, he and Lauren were together for how long? It’s only been a couple of months. There’s no way he would move on so fast.”

“I don’t know. They seem pretty cozy to me.”

“But there’s really no PDA going on. Maybe this Annie chick’s just a decoy girlfriend.”

“A decoy girlfriend? Like making himself look unavailable so we don’t pounce?”

“Exactly!” Annie placed a hand over her mouth to keep from laughing. Any other time, she might have been a little annoyed to be the subject of gossip and speculation, but nothing was going to ruin her drunken happiness at the moment. When she flushed and pushed the door open, she found three girls standing in front of the sinks and immediately recognized one of them as the fan who’d asked about her during Truth or Dare. All were wearing renditions of those “shortie pajamas” Nick had been talking about earlier and applying various types of makeup. The one on the right, who was wearing what could only be described as a negligee under a short, open silk robe, saw her first. Her lip gloss wand stopped midway between the mirror and her gaping mouth and the reflection of her eyes met Annie’s for just a moment before she nudged the girl next to her with her elbow and the three of them quickly scampered away.

Annie went about her business washing and drying her hands, then caught a glimpse of her sponge-roller laden hair in the mirror. After several hours in, those were going to have to go unless she wanted to be sporting a full-on afro in her already naturally curly hair in the morning. One by one, she unrolled them from her hair and did her best to smooth the wild auburn curls with her fingers. It wasn’t a look she’d be satisfied with out in public, but for tonight, it worked. Tonight was for fun. Did it really matter that she looked like? She was the decoy girlfriend of a Backstreet Boy, gosh darn it! She looked at the pink sponge rollers on the countertop and shrugged, tossing them in the trash one by one. They were a dollar store set bought solely for pajama night on the cruise, so she didn’t mind just throwing them away.

Nick was standing in the hallway waiting for her when she walked out of the restroom. “Well, that’s a nice look,” he chuckled, reaching out for one of her unrealistically bouncy curls. He pulled it straight and let it go, laughing as it sprang back into place, sticking out of the side of her head haphazardly.

“Better or worse than the sponge rollers?” she asked with a sheepish grin.

“Oh, definitely better. I mean, the rollers were cute, but I’d guess this is the closest I’ve ever been to seeing you with bed-head,” he said, wiggling his eyebrows suggestively.

She laughed and rolled her eyes. “By the way, they think I’m your decoy girlfriend.”

“Who thinks you’re my what?”

“Some chatty fans in the bathroom. They think you’re using me as a decoy girlfriend to make yourself look unavailable to them.”

He put his hands on his hips and cocked his head to the side. “Well, that’s an interesting theory. I’d be lying if I said it wasn’t even at least half true, though.”

“Oh really?” Annie pressed her hands against his chest and leaned in towards him. “So, is that what this is? You’re using me to keep the crazy fangirls away? Hate to break it to you, but I’m still a little bit of a crazy fangirl myself.”

“Well, that part I’m pretty excited about, actually,” he laughed, wrapping his arms around her shoulders. “Seriously, though, I was a little worried about being the only single guy. Technically, it’s been that way for a while, but for the most part, they’d pretty much accepted that Laur--” He hesitated. “She and I were a package deal. I have to admit it’s been pretty nice that you apparently seem to make me look unavailable. Of course, you already know I’d like it if you made me actually unavailable.”

She cast a goofy grin up at him. She’d heard him of course, but the tipsiness from the alcohol made his words seem not so scary at the moment. “Dance with me?”

“I’d love to.” He planted a quick kiss on her forehead and grabbed her hand to lead her towards the dance floor. First, though, he stopped by the bar. “Howie stole the vodka bottle and took it with him to go mingle, and it was almost empty anyway, so...”

“Rum and diet coke,” she told the bartender quickly.

“I was kinda hoping you’d want to do tequila shots,” Nick quipped.

“Let me guess...body shots?”

“That would be awesome!”

“Well sorry, but I’m not that drunk.”

“Drats.” He snapped his fingers and swung his arm in front of him. “Guess I’ll have to do one by myself.” She sipped her drink and watched as he licked his wrist, salted it, and licked it again. Was it just her, or was he being a little slow and overzealous with the licking? She gulped down a long drink of rum and diet coke and looked on as he took the shot and slammed his shot glass down on the bar. For the second time in the past 24 hours (the first being their duet, of course) Nick seemed to just ooze sexiness. He bit into the lime wedge and gave her a cheesy grin with the rind still covering his teeth. Well, so much for the sexiness, but she had to admit that she liked his ability for go from giving her bedroom eyes to acting like a goofball in mere seconds.

“Time to dance!” Nick grabbed Annie’s hand and yanked her off the barstool as she finished the last drop of her drink and slid the glass towards the bartender. She couldn’t help laughing as the first notes of “Just One Kiss” rang out just as they made it to the dance floor. “Huh. Is this song even dance-able?”

“Of course it’s dance-able! What do you do when you’re singing it on a stage?”

“Well some might call it dancing, but I feel like I’m pretty much just spazzing out up there usually. Give me something chore-chorgraph-- No that’s not right.” The alcohol was starting to catch up with him.

Annie burst out laughing. “Having a little trouble with your words there, Nickers?”

“Knickers? Aren’t those underpants?”

“Nevermind. Choreographed? That the word you’re looking for?”

“What was I talking about?”

“Dancing.”

“Oh yeah-- Give me something choreographied and I’m good, but I suck at the freestyle stuff. Lucky for you, drunk Nick’s a pretty good dancer.”

“Of course he is,” she laughed. “Or at least that’s what he thinks.” Had he just said “choreographied”?

“Oh, it’s on!” Nick wrapped an arm around her waist and twirled her around with him to the beat of the music. She wiggled out of his grasp and stepped away, matching her steps with his, but jazzing them up a little. “Show off!”

Annie smiled and shrugged. “Fifteen years of dance lessons had to pay off sooner or later.”

“So you were a dancer?”

“Yep. No cheerleading uniform for me!”

“Well, there goes that little fantasy I had earlier today.”

“What?”

“Nothing.” He grasped her hand and spun her around until her body settled back against his. She didn’t question him, his statement pretty much forgotten as she draped her arms across his shoulders. It wasn’t long until she spotted the chatty fans from the bathroom staring them down and whispering back and forth to each other just a few yards away.

 

“Wanna have a little fun?”

 

His face contorted in confusion. “I thought that was what we were doing?”

 

She turned them ninety degrees so that his back was no longer facing the fans and turned his cheek with her hand so that he was looking at the whispering fans. “Those would be the ones who think I’m your decoy girlfriend.”

 

Nick’s eyes widened when he recognized the one that had asked him the question about Annie earlier that night. “That’s the one, isn’t it?”

 

“Yes, I believe so.”

 

Nick sighed. “I love our fans, but some of them are into meddling in our lives a bit too much. So what do you say, Annie?” he asked as the song ended.

 

“What do I say about what?”

 

“Just one, just one?” he sang. Annie smiled and stood on her tip-toes, then planted a long, feverish kiss on his lips. He pulled her body in close to his and returned the kiss with just as much fervor. “Now, that was even better than the first time.”

 

“You tricked me the first time!” she exclaimed.

 

“Yeah, but you liked it.”

 

“Maybe I did.” She cocked her head to the side, smiled, and shrugged, then pulled away. “Go say hi to your fans, Nick. I’m going to go get another drink.”

 

“Annie-” He grasped her wrist gently with his hand. “Are you sure you want another? I mean, we’ve had....a lot.”

 

“I thought you told me last night we could get plastered tonight,” she replied with a little glint in her eye.

 

He was a goner. “Get me a Jack and Coke, then.” She nodded and sashayed towards the bar. He laughed to himself as his eyes trailed from the bunny slippers still on her feet up the legs of the flannel pajama pants that hung loosely around her hips and lamented the fact that she hadn’t taken him up on the “shortie pajamas” suggestion-- or at least worn a tight little camisole. Still, dancing so close to her felt amazing. He turned on his heel and started walking towards the trio of fans talking with each other a few feet away. “How’s it going ladies?” he asked casually.

 

Annie watched from the bar as Nick chatted with his fans while she sipped on yet another cocktail. This time she’d told the bartender to “surprise her with something fruity,” and he’d delivered. She had no idea what she was drinking, but it tasted awesome, and she had finished one and ordered another before Nick returned from his chat with the meddling fans. “How’d it go?” she asked as she slid the Jack and Coke towards him while he settled into the stool beside her.

 

“They asked if you were my girlfriend.”

 

She paused her glass in front of her lips. “Oh, really?” She kind of wondered what the answer to that question was, herself. “What did you tell them?”

 

“The truth,” he said simply.

 

“And what would that be?”

 

“You’re not my girlfriend.” For a moment, she felt a little unexpected pang of disappointment. Then, he gave her a sly smile. “Yet.” He tipped his glass in her direction then took a drink.

 

She laughed. “You sound pretty sure of yourself there, Mr. Carter.”

 

I’m not at all, he thought to himself before taking another drink. “Can I ask you a question, Annie?”

 

“Sure.”

 

“Who’s your favorite.....” He paused and grinned. “Ninja Turtle?”

 

“Donatello,” she replied without missing a beat. Earlier in the evening, she’d racked her brain to try to remember the names of the Ninja Turtles while the guys played Truth or Dare with the fans. The only one she’d been able to remember for sure and match with the correct color ensemble was Donatello, because he had, in fact, been her favorite.

 

Nick pouted. “Not Raphael?”

 

Annie shrugged. “Donatello had the purple mask. I was a little girl. I liked purple. I thought you were going to ask if I had a new favorite Backstreet Boy.”

 

“Oh, I’ve already accepted that one will always be Kevin, but might I try to change your mind on the Ninja Turtles?”

 

“Well, you can try....” she teased.

 

“Dance with me again.” He tossed back the rest of his drink and Annie did the same, then he lead her back onto the dance floor. Annie started giggling hysterically when the opening notes to “Burnin’ Up” blared through the speakers. “What is this? The frickin’ Nick Carter dance party?” he asked aloud.

 

“Are you ladies enjoying the Nick Carter dance party?” Howie yelled from the DJ booth. He was met with a roar of appreciation.

 

Nick rolled his eyes. “Figures,” he scoffed. “Now, where were we?” He placed his hands on Annie’s hips and pulled her towards him. “Here we go, oh-oh...” he sang.

 

Annie threw her head back and laughed. The room seemed to spin under the influence of her alcohol intake. She’d definitely hit her limit a couple of drinks ago, thought one might argue she’d actually done so much earlier while eating cherries and drinking vodka. Even Nick was feeling pretty sloshed, himself. While he’d claimed to Howie that he could still “drink him under the table,” he’d actually become quite the light-weight after cutting out alcohol entirely for a while after his cardiomyopathy diagnosis. He was happily way past “buzzed” as he settled Annie’s hips against his own and began leading her in a dance that could only be described as “bumping and grinding.”

 

“Is it hot in here?” Annie’s face flushed under the flashing disco lights as Nick’s thigh settled between her legs, and her hands flew to the top button of her pajama top.

 

Nick gulped and licked his lips as he watched her start to unbutton the oversized pink flannel shirt. “Um....yeah. Hot. Very...hot.  Burning up, actually,” he stammered. Was she stripping? Here? Now? He knew she was drunk, but....oh. He caught a glimpse of a lace-edged white camisole once she reached about the third button and felt himself blush for actually thinking she was disrobing in front of him. Of course, good judgement probably wasn’t his strong suit at the moment. “Can I help you with that?” She laughed and pulled the pajama top off her shoulders, then tossed it haphazardly behind her to reveal the tight-fitting camisole complete with perfect cleavage. Nick fought the urge his hands suddenly had to settle on her breasts and instead wrapped them tighter around her waist, though he still couldn’t seem to pry his eyes away.

 

Annie smirked, suddenly thankful for the push-up strapless bra she’d decided to wear just in case she’d gotten hot and decided to shed her outer layer of clothing. She took a step back so that their bodies were no longer touching each other and gave him a teasing little wiggle with her hands above her head. Nick chuckled and grabbed one of her hands with his own, then spun her around so that her back was nestled against his chest and ran his hands down her bare arms and down the sides of her torso while her hands found themselves in his hair. He groaned and settled his palms back on her hips, then nipped at the side of her neck with his lips. Annie gasped as he pulled her against him, the pajama bottoms he was wearing doing nothing to hide his arousal pressing up against her behind.

 

Neither of them spoke as they danced and eventually slowed, despite the fast pace of the song, to about half tempo. He slipped his hands underneath her camisole, his fingertips grazing the warm skin on the sides of her waist and his thumbs massaging circles on the small of her back. Annie’s drunken senses were foggy at best. The lights flashed in blurry orbs around her and the beat of the music, though blaring, barely seemed to reach her ears. Yet, every touch from Nick seemed to be magnified and set her skin on fire. It had been nearly five and a half years since she’d been touched like that, and she’d be lying if she said she wasn’t enjoying it.

 

Nick felt like he was in some sort of dream as he heard Annie’s breath hitch in her throat at his touch. Never in a million years had he imagined that she’d be responding to him on the dance floor like this. Her hips moved sensually under his hands as her behind rubbed up against the erection he wasn’t even trying to hide anymore. She didn’t seem to mind it, and her body effectively covered him from the eyes of the crowd of fans dancing around them. Howie was dancing on the bar and nobody even really seemed to notice them. He boldly let his hands travel further upwards until they settled just below her breasts on her ribcage and waited for her to tense up. When she didn’t, he moved them on upwards and cupped her breasts as kissed and licked at the dip of her collarbone, eliciting a little mewl from her that drove him crazy.

 

Suddenly, he grabbed her hair with one hand and pulled until her head was turned enough that his lips could reach hers in a searing kiss. She reached her hand up to his jawline and returned it, her tongue dueling with his as he freed her hair and turned her body around to face his, pulling her as close as humanly possible, and grinding himself against her lower abdomen while she straddled his thigh and ran her fingers through his hair. He moaned and tore his swollen lips away from hers to trail them down her neck to her chest. She massaged his scalp with her fingers and watched with hooded eyes as he caressed the mounds of her push-up bra-induced cleavage with his mouth. “Annie,” he murmured against her burning flesh.

 

“Nick....” He brought his lips up to her ear and whispered.

 

“Come back to my room with me.”

 

Chapter 43 by emily_michele
Author's Notes:

This one is super short compared to the last one, but I think it best stands alone.

 


They slipped out of the ship’s atrium and headed to the elevator without being noticed, but their mission was temporarily thwarted when the elevator door opened to reveal a gaggle of fans who seemed just as inebriated, if not more so, than the two of them were.

“Hi Nick!” several of them squealed.

He shrugged, put on his masked hood, and pulled her in front of his body to hide his crotch. Then he turned around and dragged her onto the elevator backwards. Annie struggled to contain her laughter while they rode down two floors in silence, save for the drunken, high-pitched chatter around them. When the door opened on their floor, they practically ran out into the hall. “What’s with the hood?” she asked him as he fumbled with his keycard.

“It’s my disguise,” he told her seriously, kicking the door open and pulling her inside with him.

They fell into a laughing heap on the carpet just inside Nick’s door. “You are such a dork,” Annie told him in between kisses. Nick’s hands felt like they were everywhere, first squeezing her breasts through her shirt, then slipping underneath to graze along her stomach, then running down the front of her pajama pants. She responded by running her hands along his back. Then, she realized that she was fondling a stuffed turtle shell, she fell into an uncontrollable fit of giggles, despite the fact that Nick’s lips were still on hers. He pulled his mouth away and propped himself up on his hands so that he could look down at her though his mask. This only prompted her to laugh harder..

“What?”

“I’m sorry,” Annie paused, then giggled some more. “It’s just that-” More giggles. “I’m on the floor of a cruise ship making out with a Ninja Turtle!”

Nick grinned. “Heh,” he chuckled. “Well, you’re wearing bunny slippers!”

“Actually, one fell off.” His eyes trailed down her legs to her feet. His breath hitched in his throat at the sight of one bare foot with glittery pink toenails, and he nearly lost it when she began running it along his calf. He grunted as he thrust himself against her and jerked his shirt off. Annie took in a sharp breath at the sight of his toned chest and ran her hands along his pecs, eliciting a shudder from him before he crashed his lips back down on hers.

Within minutes, they’d found their way to his unmade bed, both of them pantsless. Nick ran a hand up her toned, smooth leg and hooked a finger into the side of her panties, but removed it quickly when he felt her tense up, and instead pulled her camisole over her head, lavishing attention on her chest until he felt her relax again. He moved one hand behind her back and deftly unhooked her bra, then let it drop to the floor as he took in the sight of her.

“I- I know I’m probably not what you’re used to,” she stammered nervously. “I mean, I carried a baby for nine months and breast-fed him for longer than that. Nothing’s quite like it used to be. I mean there are stretch-”

“Ssh.” Nick dropped a finger onto her lips to stop her rambling. “You’re gorgeous.” He captured her lips in a sensuous kiss and reached down to slip a hand inside her panties.
She nearly came undone at the feeling of him touching her so intimately. If she thought it had been a long time since she’d been touched the way he’d been touching her on the dance floor, it felt like it had been an eternity since she’d been touched like this. Yet, not even for a fleeting moment, did she think about Andrew while Nick’s expert fingers brought her to the edge and back. While she came back down from her high, he quickly slipped off his boxers and plunged himself inside of her.

He started slow, but soon it was fast and furious and Annie found herself shattering all over again, Nick quickly following with a quiet yell. He collapsed onto her shoulder, both of them panting. “You’re amazing, Annie Morgan,” he breathed into her ear.

She smiled. “Wow. I just...I don’t even know what to....I am so going to Hell,” she panted, laughing.

Nick grinned and rolled over, pulling her into his arms and on top of him. “Then take me with you.” He pulled the down comforter around them and kissed her on the tip of the nose. “So who’s your favorite Ninja Turtle?”

“Raphael,” she whispered. They both soon fell into a restful sleep, Nick’s arm wrapped tightly around her waist and his chin resting on her bare shoulder while they shared one pillow. Annie felt sated and safe in his arms, but though she hadn’t thought of him while in the moment with Nick, she dreamed about Andrew.

Chapter 44 by emily_michele
Author's Notes:
I took a little creative liberty with this chapter. I just thought that the "morning after" emotions would be conveyed so much better in first person!




The Morning After- As told by Annie

I groaned as the sunlight streaming through the porthole above my head assaulted my eyes. Seriously? We were going at it for the third- no, fourth- time, and the unnaturally bright sun was suddenly interrupting us? Weird. winced in pain and rolled over, snuggling against the warm presence curled against my body. Then, I remembered. Fuzzy pieces of the previous night’s events invaded my mind, mixed with snippets from the amazing dream I’d just awoken from. I choked back a sob when I realized that the blonde head of hair I was haphazardly running my fingers through was a couple inches longer than the short, cropped hair I’d caressed in my dream, and the warm body I was laying against was a few inches taller, the shoulders a little bit broader. Suddenly aware of my nakedness, I shivered, despite the fact that Nick’s arms were wrapped tightly around my waist and his legs were intertwined with mine beneath the white down comforter. Oh God, what had I done?

 

 I carefully wiggled out of his grasp and slipped out of bed, then went about in search of the clothing I’d been wearing the night before. I found my bra on the rug beside Nick’s side of the bed and my camisole draped across the arm of a chair in the corner. My pink pajama pants were in a wad on the floor just a few feet from the door. I slipped on my bra and cami, and hugged myself, rubbing my upper arms with my hands. Nick’s room was freezing. I went in search of my flannel pajama top, but quickly realized that I had recklessly left it somewhere on the dance floor. One of my bunny slippers was sticking out from under the bed, and the other was just inside the bathroom door- about twenty feet away. How in the world did that happen? And where the heck were my panties? I scanned the room once more for my underwear and jumped when Nick groaned and rolled over. I stood still until I was sure he was still asleep, then slipped my pants and slippers on and tip-toed out of Nick’s suite. I grasped the doorknob, being careful not to let the door slam, then raced to my suite on the other end of the hallway.

 

“I’m so sorry, Andrew,” I whispered, leaning against my door as I shut it. I felt like I was going to throw up. I raced to the bathroom, and hovered over the toilet, but nothing came up. With hot tears flowing, I splashed some cold water on my face, and as I was toweling myself off, I noticed the bottle of Zofran on the sink that Nick had left in my room on the first night of the cruise. I shook one out in my hand and walked to the mini fridge to get a bottle of water. Then, I went to my suitcase to find some ibuprofen for my pounding head and took three of them, along with the Zofran with one big gulp. After I’d showered and gotten dressed, I fumbled through my suitcase again, this time digging all the way to the bottom. After I found what I was looking for, I went outside, figuring that my hungover self could probably use some fresh air.

 

I settled into a lounge chair on the empty deck by the pool and started talking. “I know it’s silly, but I kind of feel like you’re not going to hear me because I’m not at your gravesite. Yet looking out at the sun shining over the ocean kind of feels like heaven, even though right now I’m in my own personal hell.   So, I guess I’m going to give it a try. What was that all about, Andrew? I hadn’t dreamed about you in months, and you show up like that? Was it to remind me that technically, you’re still my husband until I marry someone else? If I marry someone else. Well, don’t worry Andrew. Your message is loud and clear. It was my first coherent thought when I woke up this morning. Are you trying to send me a message?” I sighed and wiped away some tears with the corner of the cashmere throw I had draped around my shoulders. I don’t even know why I’d brought it with me. Perhaps subconsciously I knew I was going to need it?

 

“You know how I am when I’m drunk. Inhibitions aren’t something I possess when you get a little alcohol in me. Of course, you always said that all you had to do when you wanted me to be perfectly honest was make me a cocktail. So, what does that mean about what happened with Nick? I’m not proud of it, but... God. There’s only ever been you, Andrew. Saving myself for marriage was something that, as a Christian, I’ve always been proud of. For over five years, I’ve been completely alone, then I go and do this. Is that why I dreamed about you?” I looked out at the harbor the ship had docked in and watched the sailboats bob up and down in the waves. “I like Nick. I like him a lot, but he’s kind of the ‘anti-Andrew’. Yet, then again, so many things about him remind me of you, and it’s not just the blonde hair and blue eyes. He has such a big heart, and he’s a big goofball, and he makes me feel like a princess. I haven’t had a man look at me like that since, well, you.” I took a sip of my coffee and stared out at the ocean, allowing my tears to flow freely. Then, I felt a presence beside me.

 

“Hey,” I looked to my right to find Leighanne settling into the lounge chair beside me.

 

I stared back out at the water. “Hey.”

“Penny for your thoughts?”

I sighed. “You don’t have enough pennies for all of my thoughts,” I scoffed.

 

Leighanne looked around the deck to make sure we were alone. No worries. I’d already done that before I started talking aloud to my dead husband. “How was your night?”

 

I turned to face her and gave her a suspicious glare. “I don’t want to talk about it.”

“Why not?” I feared that she already knew where this was going.

“I was really drunk, and I think I did something really stupid last night,” I said quickly.

“You think?”

I dropped my shoulders in defeat. “I know.”

Leighanne pursed her lips. I knew she was wondering whether she should go on, and truth be told, I kind of wanted her to. I really needed a friend at the moment. “Would that something happen to be 6’1” and blonde?” I couldn’t help but smile at her interpretation.

“Is it that obvious?”

“Well, yes, but....” Leighanne sighed, her eyes apologetic. “Brian saw you leaving his room this morning. He’d gone to the ice machine and was on his way back.
I drew in a sharp breath through my teeth. “That’s bad, isn’t it?”

“Well, he’s not happy about it. I tried talking to him, but right now he’s thinking like Annie Morgan’s manager and not like Nick and Annie’s friend. He was saying something about your image when I got mad and walked out on him.”

“He doesn’t need to worry about it. I don’t think I’ll be doing that again.”

“Why not?” I nodded towards my left hand clutching my coffee. The thin platinum band glinted in the sunlight and Leighanne gasped. “Oh, Annie,” she whimpered. “What happened?”

“I dreamed about him,” I murmured, unable to look her in the eye. “I was sleeping in Nick’s bed, and I dreamed about Andrew.”

“What kind of dream was it?” I flashed her a “look,”-- the kind of look that only another woman would understand, and Leighanne widened her eyes in realization. “Oh. So, not a G-rated dream, I presume?”

“No. Not at all,” I answered, blushing, with my voice barely above a whisper.

“And now you feel guilty about what you did with Nick last night.”

“Yeah.”

 

“I understand,” Leighanne told her, leaning forward. “As a Christian, I’m not going to condone what you did with Nick, but this-” she pointed at Annie’s wedding band. “Is only going to make you miserable. I know you miss him. I know you love him, and I’m sure you had your reasons for bringing that with you on this boat, but it’s been five years, Annie. You’re only thirty years old. I didn’t know Andrew, but I think I know enough to know that he wouldn’t want you to do this to yourself.” I gave her a weak smile and wiped a few tears away with my fingertips. Everything she was saying was true. “Now, go fix your face and come to breakfast.”

 

“I’m not so sure I want to face Brian just yet,” I admitted.

 

“You let me take care of Brian.”

Nick

Even though I was terribly hungover and still pretty much zonked out, I knew it the second Annie left my bed because I suddenly felt cold, despite the heavy down comforter that still covered my body. Then, when I actually woke up an hour later to find her gone, I knew it was bad news. I silently cursed the sunlight streaming through my tiny window and held my head in my hands, massaging my temples to try to stop the pounding. Still, I couldn’t help but smile when I remembered what I’d experienced just a few hours ago. The memories were foggy at best, but what I did remember was fan-freakin-tastic. When I stood up to head to the bathroom, I wondered whether the boat had already docked or not, because it sure felt like it was still moving to me. I grabbed a bottle of water from the mini-fridge and downed about half of it with two aspirin before I trudged to the shower.

 

After showering and getting dressed, I sifted through my shaving kit in hopes of finding the bottle of Zofran Annie had prescribed for me before I attempted to eat breakfast. I groaned when I realized I’d left it in Annie’s room the first night of the cruise, but headed for breakfast anyway. I’d been in this predicament enough times to know that having something in my stomach to combat the alcohol was probably a good idea. I hoped that she’d at least remember to take one. When I got to the dining room, I spotted her immediately. She looked tired... and beautiful. Leighanne was seated to her left, AJ to her right. Howie was sleeping with his head on the table across from her. I headed for the empty seat beside Brian.

 

“I wouldn’t do that if I was you,” he muttered under his breath.

I paused, leaving my chair pulled out, but stayed standing and looked down at him with wide eyes. “What? Why?”

“Taking advantage of a drunk woman, Nick? One we know and care about, no less? Really?”  I’m pretty sure Leighanne kicked him under the table at that point because he hissed an “ouch!” but kept staring me down.

I looked at Annie who only glanced at me for a moment and blushed before continuing to shovel fruit salad into her mouth while staring down at her bowl. In fact, nobody at the table was looking me in the eye except for Brian, his huge nostrils flaring. Suddenly, I was embarrassed that he’d basically announced to the entire table that Annie and I had slept together, and I was even more embarrassed that his perception of the situation was that I had taken advantage of her. Oh dear god, had I taken advantage of her? No. No. That’s not what it felt like at all. So, I’m not proud of it, but when I’m embarrassed, my first inclination is to get angry, so I slammed my hand on the table and whispered harshly at Brian. “Not that it’s any of your business, but if I took advantage of her, that certainly wasn’t my intention. Now, I believe this is supposed to be between Annie and me and not the whole damn table!”

“Nick-” Annie’s soft, apprehensive voice echoed in my ear, but I was on a roll.

“Now, what happened between Annie and me is not now, nor has it ever been, or will it ever be any of your damn business!” I don’t know how I went from whispering to shouting, but it happened.

“Actually Nick, it is my damn business.” Brian retorted, standing up and puffing out his chest.

“Oh, really? Well, mister holier-than-thou, explain that one to me!”

“Okay. I will!”

“WILL YOU TWO STOP IT?!” This time I heard Annie loud and clear. She jumped out of her seat and marched over to us with her hands on her hips. Is it wrong for me to say that I was a little turned on by this “fiery red head” persona she’d taken on? She pointed her finger at Brian. “You, Brian Littrell, are not my father., and you aren’t my big brother. You are my manager, and as your client, I’d appreciate it if you’d leave Nick the hell alone!”

He’s her what? “He’s your what? Your manager? Really?” I stammered, completely bumfuzzled. I mean, it made sense, but I felt like this was the type of information that my- my-- whatever the hell Annie was- would have shared with me.

“Yes, Nick. As a matter of fact, I am, so imagine my surprise when I see her leaving your room early this morning and flying back to her own like a bat out of hell. I’d expect this from you, but from Annie...How could you, Nick? She was drunk and vulnerable, and...” Suddenly, he was raising his fist, and what was I doing? Clenching my own. To think that Brian- my Frick- could actually think that I would do something like that was completely ludicrous. Maybe to a groupie a few years, ago but Annie? Annie was in an entirely different league. I wasn’t going to throw the first punch, but if the little prick so much as laid a hand on me, I wasn’t above swinging back. Leighanne had leapt to her feet and put her hands on Brian’s shoulders in an attempt to hold him back.

“Stop it!” Annie waved her hands in front of her body as if to say “Time out!”
“For the love of God, stop it! For the record, I wasn’t that drunk, so if anybody took advantage of the situation, it was me. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I need to go pack. “Brian, I’ll call you tomorrow when I get back to Kentucky and we’ll talk about Nashville. Nick, come with me.” She held out her hand, and I took it willingly. Yes!  Is it wrong that I wanted to stick my tongue out at Brian while we walked away?

Chapter 45 by emily_michele
They were standing outside Annie's stateroom door before either of them spoke. "So you took advantage of me?" Nick asked with a smirk, placing his hands on her hips and leaning into her as she unlocked the door and pulled him inside.

"You need to understand something, Nick," she answered, placing her palm on his chest and holding him at arm's length.

"Okay.... What's that?"

"That's not the type of thing I do, okay? I was drunk and not thinking straight. I had a good time last night. I mean that, but it can't happen again."

"But, but-- you told Brian-"

"I know what I told Brian, and I meant it."

"So, you really did take advantage of me?" He stepped towards her, closing the gap between them, and smiled.

"In a way, yes. I think I did, but you need to know that it probably wouldn't have happened if I hadn't been drunk."

His shoulders dropped in defeat. "I see," he said quietly, stuffing his hands in his pockets and staring down at the carpet.

"I'd be lying if I said I remembered everything that happened last night."

"I don't remember a whole heck of a lot, either," he admitted softly.

“But-” He looked up at her expectantly and she motioned for him to sit beside her on the edge of the bed. He hesitantly obliged and crossed the room then settled stiffly on the bed a few inches away from her. She turned to face him and took a deep breath. “But I’d also be lying if I said I didn’t enjoy all of the parts I do remember.”

“Me, too.” He gave her a weak smile. Where was she going with this? “But you already said it can’t happen again, so...?”

She placed her hand on his knee and gave it a little squeeze. “Nick, I think you’re great. I’ve had amazing time with you on this cruise, I really have. It’s not you--”

He jerked his knee away from her hand. “Are you giving me the ‘it’s not you, it’s me’ speech? Because I don’t really want to hear-”

“It’s Andrew,” she interrupted him.

“Oh,” he answered abruptly. His eyes darted to her left hand resting on the bedspread beside him.

Annie noticed Nick’s imploring eyes checking to see if she was wearing her ring and was silently glad that she'd slipped it back off and stowed it away before coming to breakfast. That would have definitely freaked him out, but on the other hand, it probably would have also given her some space to try to sort through all of this. She hadn't really planned what she was going to say next. It wasn't like she could just come out and say, "Oh, by the way, after I had sex with you last night I had a sex dream about my late husband." So, she just sat there staring at a picture of the ocean hanging on the wall. She found it a little odd, considering the view out her window was the actual ocean. Still, as they sat there in silence, she found herself wondering what Nick was thinking.

Truth be told, Nick kind of felt like an ass for sleeping with a woman who was very obviously still pining for her dead husband. His heart literally broke for her, but he couldn't just sit there and deny everything that had happened between the two of them, either. "Annie-" She turned back towards him, and his eyes locked on hers, an ocean of blue meeting a sea of brilliant green. "I want to be able to tell you I'm sorry about what happened last night, but the truth is.... I'm not."

"You're not?"

"No. Not at all. Now, don't get me wrong. I'm sorry that what you and I did last night has apparently brought up some painful memories for you, but I'm not sorry that we did what we did.” He leaned into her and ran his fingers through the ends of her hair around her shoulder. “As a matter of fact, I'd love to take you back to my room right now and do it again so that I can remember every second of it this time."

Chills literally ran over as his hot breath tickled her cheek. She squeezed her eyes shut and gulped. “Nick, stop.”

“Annie, look at me.” She kept her eyes clenched shut. How in the world was she supposed to explain to him all the emotions she was feeling? Guilt, grief, anger....desire? One second, all she could think about was Andrew, and the next, she was thinking about how amazing her night spent with Nick had been. “Annie, please.” He said in a strained voice. She opened her eyes and found his still locked on hers. “I’m not Andrew,” he said firmly.

“No, you’re not.”

“I don’t want to be.” She drew in a shaky breath. Even after all the tears she’d shed that morning, she could feel them coming on again. “I would never want to try to replace him, but I can’t just sit here and pretend that there isn’t something between us. I know that I can’t even begin to imagine what you’ve been through, but I have to tell you that I never imagined that I could possibly feel like this about another woman after Lauren, especially so soon. Then, somehow, for some reason, I ended up literally sleeping in your bed the very next day.” Through her tears, Annie smiled at the memory of their first meeting. “Maybe it was fate. Maybe it wasn’t, but I find it hard to believe that this God you sing about would take away your husband when you were so young and not intend for you to find somebody else. I’m not saying that person’s me, but if you don’t take a chance, how are you ever going to know?”

“Nick, I--” He grabbed her hands with both of his and leaned towards her expectantly.
“I need some time to think about all of this.” He frowned and dropped her hands, but not before giving them a little squeeze.

“Fair enough. How much time are we talking about? A few hours? A few days? Weeks? Months?”

“I- I don’t know.”

He nodded sadly, then stood up and cleared his throat. “I, uh- I’ll call you. About the house. I still want you to take the house, okay? And, um, will you let me know what you decide? Whenever you decide?” His eyes searched hers, pleading with her, and hoping maybe she’d change her mind.

“I will, Nick.” Her eyes fell on the cashmere throw she’d neatly folded and placed in her open suitcase. Tucked inside the folds was a ring box. It literally felt like a fist was clenched around her heart. “Don’t feel like you have to wait around for me, okay? Have fun on your tour.”

Nick’s hand paused on the doorknob and he gave her a little smile. “You know, when I was a teenager, Kevin was always telling me that the best things in life are worth waiting for. I’m pretty sure he was talking about sex, but-” He paused, and a bitter laugh escaped his lips. “Well, I guess that’s a little ironic, isn’t it?”
Chapter 46 by emily_michele



“Nick really wanted to be here to help you move in, but he’s had this tour planned for months, and he’s wrapped up in rehearsals out in LA right now.”

Annie paused, the newspaper she was unwrapping from a glass vase crumpled in her right hand. “You’re talking to Nick?”

Brian placed another box on the countertop beside her and hopped up into a barstool on the other side of the kitchen island she was standing at. “Of course I’m talking to Nick. He’s... Nick. I’ve been calling him every Wednesday night to see what he’s up to since he was thirteen. Of course, you’d know that if you were talking to Nick.”

“Really? Even when you guys took that long hiatus?”

“Yeah. I mean, I’m not going to lie to you and say that I didn’t forget it was Wednesday a few times or that he didn’t blow me off occasionally, especially during the Dark Ages.”

She raised an eyebrow and shot him an amused glance. “The Dark Ages?”

“When he was with Paris,” Brian replied matter-of-factly.

Annie couldn’t help but laugh. “I see.” Then, she turned serious. “It’s just that the last time I saw you two together, it looked like you were about to kill each other.”

Brian sighed and leaned his elbow on the granite countertop, propping his chin up with his hand. “That’s what brothers do.” He shrugged. “We tell each other when we’re being jerks, swing a few punches, roll around on the ground like dogs, then scratch each other behind the ears, give each other ‘man-hugs,’ and make up."

Annie laughed. “Well, that’s an interesting way to put it.”

“It’s true.” He pulled his pocket knife out of his jeans and cut through the tape on the box sitting in front of him.

“You were, by the way.”

He held the box flaps open and looked up at her. “I was what?”

“Being a jerk.”

“You’re right. I was. First, it was you who told me, then Leighanne, then Howie pulled me aside and gave me a talking to, and I’m pretty sure he must have called Kevin, because he called and talked to me as soon as we pulled into the driveway at home that evening after the cruise. I got to sleep on the couch that night, by the way. It was Nick who really let me have it when I called him that Wednesday, though."

“Oh, really?”

“Yeah.” He blushed, the tips of his ears turning red as he traced his finger along the pattern in the granite before looking back up at her. “He’s really crazy about you, you know.”

Annie leaned across the counter and peered into the box Brian had just opened. "I think I'll put the sippy cups in the corner cabinet above the sink. The rest of it can stay in the box and go down in the basement. This kitchen's already pretty well stocked."

Brian raised an eyebrow as he watched her pull an armful of sippy cups out of the box and head for the aforementioned cabinet. "Are you avoiding this conversation?"

She unloaded the sippy cups onto a shelf and slammed the dark cherry cabinet door shut, then twirled around to face him. "He may have been crazy about me at one time, but I'd guess he's pretty fed up with me by now."

"He says you're not calling him anymore."

"I never called him much to begin with. He did most of the calling."

"He says you needed some time to think and that he's trying to give it to you. Something to do with Andrew?" Brian's voice dripped with concern.

Annie sighed heavily and leaned back with her palms on the countertop behind her. "I don't understand, Brian. I thought you were opposed to the whole Nick thing."

"I was."

"Was? As in past tense?"

“Um, yeah....was.” He gave her a sheepish grin. “I already told you I was sorry, Annie, but you didn’t want to talk about it. You said we could talk it about it when we got to Nashville. Remember? Well, we’re in Nashville.” Annie turned around and started unloading the dishwasher. “Annie?”

A fork clattered onto the floor. “There’s nothing to talk about, Brian.” She stooped down to pick it up, but he’d already crossed the floor and knelt down to pick it up before she got to it.

“Oh really? Because it sounds to me like you slept with my best friend, then dropped him like a hot potato.”

“Excuse me?!” She shot upwards and planted her hands on her hips as she glared down at him. “What’s your deal, Brian? I thought you’d be happy about that! First, you’re getting ready to throw punches at him because we got drunk and had sex. Now, you’re trying to make me feel bad about breaking things off with him? What gives?”

Brian stood slowly and brushed imaginary dust from his knees. “I can’t help feeling a little overprotective of you, Annie. You were my friend before you were my client, and my cousin gave me explicit instructions to look out for you. He hinted at the fact that you were kind of fragile emotionally before you even told me about what happened with your husband. I’ve known Nick a long time. I’ve seen him at his best....and his worst. The thought that the two of you could make a good couple just seemed a little crazy to me. As your manager, I kept imagining Nick parading you around on his arm at awards shows and the media getting the wrong idea about your image. I mean, his past isn’t exactly what I would call ‘squeaky-clean,” and like it or not the Christian music world is looking for squeaky clean. On top of that, despite Nick’s big turnaround in the past few years, I just couldn’t imagine the possibility of him going back down that road and eventually hurting you somehow.”


Annie gave him a tight-lipped smile. “I appreciate your looking out for me. I really do. But, that’s not what I want or need from you. I need a friend. I need a manager. My personal life is none of your business unless I indicate to you that I want it to be, okay?”

“Fair enough.”

“Furthermore, if the Christian music world decides to judge and reject me because of the man I may or may not be with, what kind of Christians are they? If every person was judged by God based in his or her past, we would all be unworthy, wouldn’t we?”

“You’re absolutely right,” Brian agreed quietly.

“So, why the sudden change of heart? Is this because you don’t want to sleep on the couch?” Annie continued. “Not that it really matters, because I’m not ready for a relationship with Nick or anybody else right now.”

“So, this is about Andrew.” Annie turned around and grabbed a cabinet knob, but Brian placed his hand on the door to prevent her from opening it. “Annie--”

She slammed the stack of bowls she was carrying on the counter and groaned. “What?”

“Nick,” Brian said simply.

“What about him?”

“He’s the reason for my sudden change of heart.”

“And also the reason you were acting like a jerk?”

Brian chuckled. “Well, yeah. He’s Nick. He’s weird like that.” Annie rolled her eyes.

“Seriously, though, Annie. You should hear the way he talks about you. I didn’t see it until I started really listening to him. Leighanne claims to have seen it all along, but obviously it took me a little longer. Call it woman’s intuition or something. I certainly don’t have it.”

“Brian, what are you talking about?”

“You know exactly what I’m talking about.”

“Brian, don’t. I can’t.” Annie attempted to slip past him, but Brian stepped in front of her.

“He’s dead, you know.”

“Real nice, Brian. Thanks for the compassion,” she scoffed.

“It’s been five and a half years, Annie.”

“I’m painfully aware of how long it’s been, Brian.” Annie brushed by his shoulder and headed for the stairs.

“For the record, I’m not worried that he’s going to hurt you, anymore. I’ve never heard him talk about another woman the way he talks about you. And that includes Lauren!” Brian yelled at the back of her head from the landing at the bottom of the stairs. “You can’t feel like you’re cheating on your dead husband forever!”

Annie slammed her bedroom door shut and leaned against it, her breath coming in shuddering gasps. “That may be the most messed up conversation I’ve ever had,” she said aloud to no one in particular. She rushed across the plush carpet to the top dresser drawer and pulled out the ring box she’d stashed there. She opened it and stared at the two rings nestled inside as hot tears cascaded down her cheeks. The diamond on her engagement ring glinted in the January sunlight, made brighter by the fresh coat of snow that covered everything outside, but the platinum metal that made up her wedding band had started to dull. She hadn’t had her rings cleaned or polished since Andrew died, but this was the first time she’d noticed the gray cast that made them seem to lose their luster.. She sighed and closed the box, then placed it back inside the drawer and tiptoed down the hallway to the master suite.


Nick had suggested she take the master bedroom, but the thought of sleeping in his bed was just too awkward for her. Actually, this was the first time she’d even been in his room since moving in two days ago. “The French doors at the end of the upstairs hallway go to the master suite,” Nick had told her when he called to discuss the logistics of her moving in the week after the cruise. So far, she’d avoided those doors like the plague, but when she pushed them open and peered inside, she couldn’t help but let out a little gasp. The rest of the house was cozy and traditional, like it may have graced the pages of Southern Living magazine, but this room was modern and undeniably Nick. Steel gray walls with stark white trim contrasted with a dark walnut hardwood floor and large area rug with a pattern that looked suspiciously like a Japanese anime scene in shades of red, black, and white. A rich red comforter topped the Californa king-sized bed and black and gray throw pillows were situated haphazardly against the black leather headboard. On the opposite wall was a flat-screen television of epic proportions. Undoubtedly, an interior designer must have had a hand in this room, because she just couldn’t imagine any other way that a room decorated around that hideous rug could have actually turned out looking classy.

She half-expected to see a layer of dust covering the oversized bedroom furniture since Nick mentioned it had been quite a while since he'd been there when they last spoke. However, everything looked pristine, save for a half-full glass of water sitting on a stone coaster on the nightstand. She paused to contemplate how long that glass must have been sitting there and how much bleach she would have to use to kill any potential organisms swimming around in there. Then, she noticed the white envelope with her name scrawled across the front propped up against the lamp on the dresser to her right. Apparently, Nick had been there since the last time she'd talked to him. At least, she hoped it was Nick. Otherwise, she had bigger problems. With trembling hands, she reached for the envelope and opened it. Tucked inside was a letter written on blank sheet music paper. She couldn't help but let out a little laugh as she started to read. Leave it to Nick to not have actual paper lying around the house.

"Annie,
I assume that even though I told you to, you didn't take the master suite. You're probably staying in the room two doors down on the left with the green walls, right?"

Annie smiled. Yes, that was where she was sleeping.

"So, hopefully, if you find this, it means you were thinking about me and snooping around in my room. Well, snoop all you want. There are a few skeletons in my closet, but not in the Tennessee house. I don't think I ever stay there long enough for that. I'm glad you decided to go ahead and take the house. I'm never cashing that rent check you mailed me, by the way, so don't send any others, okay? I figure you're the type of woman who wants to see all the check numbers in order on your bank statement, so I'm only trying to help you out."

Annie noticed an ink smudge on the first letter of the next line, as if he had hesitated. “I miss you.”

She smiled sadly. “I miss him too," she whispered to the empty room.

“I miss your smile. I miss your beautiful green eyes. I miss the way your hand felt in mine. God, I sound corny, don't I?" Annie didn't really think so. Despite the fact that she thought she’d met the love of her life at eighteen only to have her heart shattered into a million little pieces three years into her marriage, she still considered herself a hopeless romantic. Yet, she’d given up on her own love life the day she watched them lower her husband’s body into the ground shrouded in smooth mahogany.

“I miss talking to you. Mostly, I just miss you.” He underlined “you” for emphasis.

“My tour starts on January 30th in Nashville. Lauren was planning this big birthday party for me in Vegas to kick off the US leg of the tour, but we broke up before anything was set in stone and it felt a little ridiculous to throw myself a party. So, I was thinking about maybe being in town for a few days before the show, and I’d love to see you. I understand if the answer is no, and who even knows if you’re ever going to see this letter, but I thought I’d give it a shot. Love, Nick.”

Annie felt a little twinge of disappointment that he’d stopped writing and unconsciously flipped the page over to make sure there was nothing on the back. She read over it one more time, then folded it slowly and tucked it in her pocket before heading back downstairs. She found Brian unpacking a set of Thomas the Train DVDs and placing them in the cabinet underneath the entertainment center in the den. “Hey Brian?”

When he heard her voice behind him, he whipped his head around, letting out a relieved breath. “Are you okay? I’m sorry if I seemed insensitive, I just-”

She interrupted him. “Have you seen my cell phone?”

Chapter 47 by emily_michele




Nick felt his phone vibrating in his back pocket and reached for it haphazardly while he clutched his microphone in the other hand. When he saw the contact name on the screen, his eyes widened in surprise. “Take ten, guys!” he quickly announced to his band as he jogged off the makeshift stage. “Annie?”

He sounded out of breath. “Hey,” she said hesitantly. “Is-is it a bad time?”

“No!” he said a little too loudly and eagerly. “No,” he repeated himself, this time much quieter. “It’s a great time. How are you?”

“I’m,” she paused and looked back at Brian, who was being nosy and peeking his head around the corner from the hallway. “Good. Still unpacking boxes.” She retreated out the back door onto the deck and shivered in the cold January air. “Thanks again for letting us stay here. It’s so much better for Drew than the little apartments I was looking at in the city.”

“You’re welcome. I’m glad someone’s using it. I haven’t been there in a while.”

“Oh really?” Annie was trying not to smile, but she couldn’t help being a little sarcastic with that question.

Nick’s heart started to pound in his chest and he held his phone between his ear and shoulder while he subconsciously wiped his sweaty palms on the legs of his jeans. Had she found his letter? Did she like it? Hate it? He’d been waiting for her to call him for over a month. Maybe this was the moment of truth. Maybe he wasn’t going to like the truth. “Have I been caught?” he asked guiltily. He stopped pacing and sat in a little metal folding chair several yards away from where the band was mingling, but his right knee still bounced up and down rapidly in time with his nervous heart.

Annie let out a little giggle and Nick felt warmth flood his entire body. “Well, now that I think about it, it was a little odd that the room I ended up putting Drew’s stuff in still had dents in the carpet from where you moved the weight bench to the bedroom at the end of the hall.”

“Well, I knew you wouldn’t take the master suite, and I didn’t figure you wouldn’t want him to be that far away from you,” Nick told her.

“Thank you.”

“You’re welcome.”

“Nick?”

“Yeah?”

“Can I ask you something?”

“Anything, Annie.”

“Are you still planning to come to Nashville for a few days before your tour starts?”

Nick gulped and wet his suddenly dry lips. “Well, that depends...”

“On what?”

“On you.” He took in a deep breath and braced himself for her response.

“Where are you planning on staying?”

“I, uh... I haven’t decided yet.”

“Well, it is your house....”

Nick’s face broke into a huge smile. “Is that an invitation?”

Annie stifled a laugh. Brian had his nose pressed up against the sliding glass door, leaving a huge foggy spot on the glass. “Well, no one’s using your room, so....”

“Annie?”

“Yes, Nick?”

“Did you just say Nick?” Brian’s muffled voice asked through the glass. She waved him away and turned her back to him.

“What does this mean, exactly?” Nick asked quietly.

“I--” Her breath hitched in her throat. “I’m scared, but--” She kicked at the powdery snow coating the deck with her Ugg boots. “I think I’m ready to give it a try.”

Nick shot up to his feet excitedly. “Really?” Every head in the room turned towards him and grinned sheepishly. “Sorry....um...really?” he whispered.

“I don’t make any promises,” she admitted quietly.

“We can take it slow this time, okay?”

“Sounds good.” She smiled genuinely. “I need to go. It’s getting dark and Drew’s still at the babysitter’s. Plus, I’m outside trying to keep Brian away and I’m freezing.”

“You should know I told Brian not to say anything to you,” he told her earnestly. “But you should also know that I know him well enough to know he wouldn’t listen.”

Annie laughed. “Well, for the record, I’m glad he talked to me.” She turned and gave Brian a little finger wave, and he smiled.

“Me too, Annie. Me too.” Annie could practically hear his huge smile in his voice.

“You know what else I’m glad about?”

“What’s that?”

“I’m really glad the half-full glass of water you left on your nightstand isn’t months old and moldy.”
_______________________________________________________________________

Annie hummed the new song she’d recorded in the studio that morning as she examined her reflection in the mirror and smoothed an imaginary wrinkle out of her sweater. Nick had called when his flight landed in Nashville about an hour ago and she was trying to calm the bundle of nerves that had settled in the pit of her stomach while she made sure every hair was in place and every swipe of makeup looked perfect--but not like she was trying too hard, of course. Nick, with her permission, had resumed calling her almost every night, and for the past two weeks, they’d gotten reacquainted by talking about work (now that they had that in common), Drew, their likes and dislikes-- the type of stuff any other newly-dating couple would talk about. They’d been slowly building up anticipation for their reunion over the past two weeks, and now that it was almost here, Annie felt both ecstatic and terrified at the same time.

Outside on the front porch, Nick stood with his fist poised over the brass door knocker, wondering whether he should knock or just let himself in. It was his house, after all, and he did have a key. But, now it was Annie’s house, too, and the thought of just walking in her seemed a little awkward. What if she was naked in there? Not that he didn’t welcome the thought, but they’d agreed that they were taking it slow this time, and barging in on his potentially naked (dare he say it?) girlfriend would not be “taking it slow.” Therefore, he knocked. The door seemed to fly open before he’d even brought his hand back down to his side, and his knees nearly buckled at the sight of her. She wasn’t naked, but it’s not like he was actually expecting that anyway, and that fact didn’t make her any less desirable at the moment. Her hair was neatly curled and tucked behind one ear and she wore a baby blue sweater that fell off one shoulder and revealed the strap of a lacy white tank top underneath. Dark-washed skinny jeans hugged her curves in all the right places and disappeared beneath tall, brown leather boots. She literally took his breath away.

Annie bit her bottom lip nervously, licking off the cherry-flavored lip gloss she’d applied so carefully just minutes before. Leave it to Nick Carter to look amazing after a five-hour flight. His golden blonde hair had grown out another inch or so since the cruise and was no longer in the awkward in-between stage, but instead tucked neatly behind his ears and grazing his neck, his bangs perfectly coiffed. She’d never really been attracted to men with long hair, but she suddenly had the urge to run her fingers through Nick’s. She leaned into the door and let out a breathy “Hey.”

His smile started at the corners of his bright blue eyes and flitted across his California sun-kissed cheeks until he was giving her a huge toothy grin. “Hey.” A pregnant pause hung in the crisp late-January air around them for several moments before she motioned for him to come in. He shifted the bag on his shoulder and rolled his suitcase over the threshold, then bent down to kiss her cheek ever-so gently as he crossed through the doorway. He blindly situated his suitcase against the wall in the foyer and closed the door behind him. Then, he couldn’t help himself. He threw his shoulder bag onto the hardwood floor and wrapped his arms around her waist in a fierce hug. “I’ve missed you,” he breathed, just before capturing her lips in a long, and long-awaited, kiss.

Chapter 48 by emily_michele





Annie responded by hooking her arms around his neck and leaning into his kiss. “It’s good to be home,” Nick said quietly after he pulled away from her, breathless.

“Um--” Annie gulped and licked her swollen lips, a little unsure if there was some sort of hidden message behind his statement. “I made lunch.” She pointed towards the kitchen. “You haven’t eaten lunch yet, have you? I know it’s almost two, but I figured since it’s only noon in California you probably hadn’t...”

“Lunch sounds great.” Nick casually took her hand and followed her into the kitchen. He stood back and leaned against the island while he watched her pull a bowl of chicken salad out of the refrigerator and retrieve plates and glasses from the cabinets. He couldn’t help but notice how at ease she looked bustling around in his kitchen-- almost like she belonged there. He lunged forward to help her when she reached for a loaf of whole grain bread, grabbing a butter knife from a drawer on the way.

“Can I help you with that?” He gently took the Tupperware bowl of chicken salad from her and removed the lid. “This looks awesome.” He started slathering it on the bread she’d placed on their plates alongside some pieces of fresh fruit.

“Well, it’s not much, but it’s what I could throw together after I got back from the studio this afternoon. What do you want to drink?” She opened the refrigerator and peered in.

“Water’s good. And the lunch is great!” He carried both of their plates to the kitchen table and set them down at side by-side spaces, then pulled a chair out to find a booster seat strapped into it. He quickly slid their plates over one place setting and hurried to pull an empty chair out for Annie as she approached him carrying two bottles of water. “So, where’s Drew?” As if on cue, a loud wail blared through the baby monitor that he hasn't noticed sitting on the window sill until that point.

“Mama!”

“Well, he was napping,” Annie laughed. She placed the water bottles on the table and turned towards the stairs. “I’ll be right back,” she said over her shoulder as she jogged towards Drew’s room. She paused when she heard footsteps echoing hers on the stairs. “You can go ahead and start eating,” she insisted. “We’ll be down in just a little bit.”

Nick cocked his head to the side and smiled. “I’ve missed the little guy. Besides, I don’t want to eat without you.”

“Suit yourself.” She shrugged and opened the door to what had previously been Nick’s workout room. A crib was up against the wall where his weight bench used to be and a toy box covered the floor space where his treadmill had been. Sesame Street decals adorned the wall above it.

“The room suits you, Big Bird,” Nick said aloud.

Drew giggled from his crib. “Mama!” He thrust his open arms towards Annie. “Nick!”

Nick’s mouth dropped open in surprise. “He remembers me?”

“Well, I did tell him you were coming to visit, so maybe he remembers your name because of that. He did say ‘uh-huh’ when I asked him if he remembered Nick, so who knows?”

“Wow. He’s grown!” Nick exclaimed when she hoisted him out of the crib.

“It’s been three months since you’ve seen him. They do that.” Annie chuckled as she set Drew on the floor and he headed for the door.

“Bye Nick!” he exclaimed with a wave in Nick’s direction.

“Wait a minute mister! Do you need a new diaper?” Annie chased after him and grabbed him by the belt loop.

“No, I dwy!” Drew insisted.

“Right.” Annie gathered him up into her arms and mashed on the front of his pants. “You are wet, Drew.” Then she lifted him up so that his behind was in her face. “And dirty,” she choked out.

Nick was a little disturbed by her actions, but couldn't help laughing. "That's how you check his diaper? By sticking his butt in your face?"

"How would you suggest I do it?" she quipped.

“Well, I remember my mom used to stick her finger in the backs of Aaron and Angel’s diapers and look inside.”

Annie raised an eyebrow. That was the first time he’d mentioned his family around her at all. “And how many diapers did you change?” she asked as she laid Drew down on the floor and reached for a diaper and wipes in a basket on the bookshelf.

Nick knelt down in the floor beside her and gently placed his hands on Drew’s shoulders as he struggled to get away from his mother. “A lot. I changed a ton of diapers when I was a kid. I was kind of like the live-in baby-sitter.” Annie gave him a little closed-lipped smile that didn’t quite reach her eyes. She envisioned a nine or ten year old Nick struggling to change the diaper of a wiggly toddler, much like the one on the floor in front of her, without an adult nearby to help, and her heart broke.

“Did you ever change one that exploded all the way up their back?”

Nick curled his lips in disgust. “Yeah.”

“That’s why I don’t use my finger to peek in the back. The sniff test is much more sanitary.”

He chuckled. “I’ll remember that in the future.”

After Drew was changed, they went downstairs for lunch-- very slowly, as Drew insisted on walking down the stairs “by himself,” which meant grasping the index finger of an adult on either side of him while he toddled down. After they bumped elbows for the umpteenth time as a result of trying to fit three people on the width of one stair, Annie glanced across at Nick and gave him an apologetic smile. “Sorry. I thought he’d stay asleep at least until we finished eating. I’m sure this isn’t exactly the reunion lunch you were expecting.”

The smile Nick returned was one of pure joy. “This is perfect, actually.”

Hours later, while she dried her hands on a dish towel after cleaning up the kitchen post-dinner, Annie stood in the doorway looking into the den as Nick and Drew rolled around in the floor. Drew squealed in delight as Nick wiggled his “Tickle Me Elmo” fingers, as he was calling them, tauntingly and attacked Drew’s rib cage for about the hundredth time. Drew seemed to giggle harder and harder each time Nick tickled him, to the point that he was literally gasping for air. Her eyes panned across the room and she smiled, kind of wishing she’d skipped over this room in her mad dash to straighten up the house before Nick got there that afternoon, considering the mess it was in now. Blocks were strewn from one end of the room to the other, toy cars were stuck in between the couch cushions, and every throw pillow in the room had somehow ended up in the floor. She hated to interrupt the fun, but it was getting late, and she knew that if Drew didn’t start settling down for bedtime soon, it was going to be a long night. “I hate to break up the fun, but it’s bath time.” She walked towards them and stooped down on the rug beside them.

Both of them looked up at her with bright eyes and flushed cheeks, their matching blonde heads mussed up and wild. “I’m not dirty!” Nick whined with a glint in his eye.

“I not dirwy!” Drew echoed.

“Well, I beg to differ,” Annie insisted. “For both of you!” She pointed to a spot of dried pizza sauce on Nick’s cheek for emphasis.

Nick cocked an eyebrow. “That’s kinky.”

“Kinky!” Drew squealed.

“Great,” Annie muttered under her breath.

Nick’s eyes widened in horror. Leave it to him to do something like teach his girlfriend’s kid a word like “kinky.” At least it wasn’t “fuck.” “Sorry,” he mouthed.

She shrugged and smiled. “Could’ve been worse.” Fifty “kinkys” later though, she was pretty exasperated.

An hour later, Annie tip-toed out of Drew’s room and pulled the door together carefully. “Can I give you a peace offering?” Nick whispered from the top of the stairs. He extended a blue mug of hot chocolate towards her.

“You taught my twenty-month old son how to say kinky,” she snapped, but she couldn’t hide her smile as she accepted the cocoa and took a sip. “This is really good.”

“I found some packets of some fancy mix I bought last year in the back of the pantry.”

“Well, yay for fancy hot chocolate mix.” Annie said as Nick leaned down and kissed her on the tip of the nose.

“He went down pretty easily,” he commented. “I was afraid maybe I’d gotten him too riled up to sleep.”

“More like wore him out.”

“Do you have to go to the studio tomorrow?” Nick asked her as he followed her back downstairs.

“Actually, I’m supposed to be at a radio station downtown at noon. Brian’s calling in and we’re talking to KLOVE about our single. It comes out next week.”

“Awesome. It’s a great single,” Nick said as he reminisced about the first few days he ever spent with Annie.

“Well, we had a great guy at the soundboard.” She gave him a little wink as she turned the corner at the bottom of the stairs and headed for the den, intending to straighten up the mess Nick and Drew had made earlier. She stopped short of the doorway when she found that Nick had already done so, and flashed him a smile. “Thank you,” she said softly.

“No problem.” He tilted his head in the direction of the living room across the foyer. “There’s a piano in there.”

“Yeah.”

“It’s not mine,” he observed.

Annie smiled. “I couldn’t bear the thought of leaving it in Kentucky. I’ve been playing that thing since I was ten.”

“Play something for me?” He gave her a hopeful grin.

She took a sip of her hot chocolate and shrugged. “Why not?” He followed her into the living room and took her cup as she pulled out the piano bench and sat down. He placed both half-empty mugs on an end table and leaned gingerly on the top of the mahogany upright piano as she lifted the cover and poised her fingers over the keys. Then, she started to play an upbeat jazz rhythm he didn’t recognize. Then, to his surprise, she started to sing.

My heart beats, standing on the edge.
My feet have finally left the ledge.
Like an acrobat, there’s no turning back....”

Nick hoped this was her song, because it fit her voice like a glove.

I’m letting go of the life I planned for me, and my dreams.
I’m losing control of my destiny.
It feels like I’m falling and that’s what it’s like to believe...
So I’m letting go...”

The chords got softer and she looked up at him expectantly. “What do you think?”

“Well, don’t stop!” he chastised jokingly. She laughed and kept playing.

“This is a giant leap of faith.
Trusting and trying to embrace.
The fear of the unknown.
Beyond my comfort zone.”

As she launched back into the chorus, he couldn’t help drumming his fingers on the piano’s frame in time with her. As she started the bridge, she clenched her eyes shut and let her voice soar.

“So I’m letting go...
Giving in to Your gravity.
Knowing You are holding me.
I’m not afraid....

Nick literally felt chills run over his entire body.

“So I’m letting go of the life I planned for me, and my dreams.
I’m losing control of my destiny.
It feels like I’m falling and that’s what it’s like to believe, yeah.
It feels like I’m falling and this is the life for me....”

She opened her eyes and looked up at him inquisitively with her fingers still hovering over the ivory keys. “So, how was it?”

“Fantastic!” Nick answered brightly. “Yours?”

She smiled and nodded. “Well, half mine, anyway. It was the first time I really tried my hand at writing, so I had some help from Francesca.”

Nick raised an eyebrow. “Battistelli?”

“You’ve heard of her?” Annie asked in surprise as she stood up and picked up her now lukewarm hot chocolate.

“I know she’s a Christian artist, but that girl’s good. I met her at an event in Nashville a couple years back, actually. I think you may give her a run for her money, though. You’re gonna be huge, Annie Morgan.”

“Especially if you keep making me cocoa that tastes this good,” she quipped.

“Dork.”

________________________________________________________________________

“Nick, where are we going?”

“My room.” He was balancing a bowl of popcorn on top of two fresh, piping hot mugs of cocoa while he teetered carefully up the stairs.

“Nick-” She looked down at the Finding Nemo DVD in her hand and sighed. “I don’t think taking me up to your room is exactly what I’d call ‘taking it slow.’ Let’s just watch it in the den, okay?”

“Annie, I’ve got a bowl of popcorn and hot chocolate in my hands, and we’re getting ready to watch your little boy’s copy of Finding Nemo. There’s no hidden agenda here. I just want to watch it on the 60 inch big screen on my wall instead of the little 42-inch down there. It’ll be kind of like we’re in the ocean with them!” His eyes glimmered with excitement, and she laughed as she started climbing the stairs after him.

“Okay. Fine. But no funny business, mister.”

“I’d give you a scout’s honor, but I don’t have any free hands.” He gestured down to the popcorn bowl that set precariously on top of the two ceramic mugs in his hands.

“You better not spill that hot chocolate! Those were the last two packets.”

“I have a feeling I’ll be going out in search of more while you’re at the radio station tomorrow.”

“If you find it, buy all they have.”

_________________________________________________________________________


Nick awoke the next morning feeling a strange sense of deja-vu. Annie had fallen asleep about halfway through the movie with her head lying on his chest and her arms wrapped around his waist. After the movie was over, he’d sat there with his back against the headboard and his arm around her shoulders staring down at her and smelling her hair for over an hour before he eventually drifted off as well. In his sleep, he could feel the warmth leave his body as she unwrapped her arms from his waist and slipped out of bed. He stretched in an attempt to get the crick out of his neck from sleeping sitting up and suddenly felt an overwhelming need to find her and tell her good morning, just to make sure that she hadn’t woken up in his bed and freaked out again like she did on the cruise several weeks earlier. Sure, the circumstances were different, but he still couldn’t help being a little apprehensive about the situation.

Halfway down the hall to her room, he felt something warm and wet soak into the bottom of his sock and looked down. His heart started pounding in his chest and he felt like he was going to be sick as he sprinted the rest of the way to her closed bedroom door. “Annie!” he screamed. He didn’t bother knocking and instead burst through the door in a panic. His eyes darted around the room frantically and all the color drained from his face when they settled on her limp form lying on the floor near the foot of the bed in a growing puddle of blood.

End Notes:

"I'm Letting Go" is 100% Francesca Battistelli's, but if I were a Christian artist, I'd hope to be like her:)

Chapter 49 by emily_michele
Nick let out a strangled cry as he rushed to her side and sank down to his knees. He brushed her hair out of her face with trembling hands to find that she was pale and clammy, but still breathing. “Annie!” he shouted, giving her body a gentle shake. Her eyes fluttered open and she looked up at him with a blank stare. “Annie, baby, what happened?” He wondered whether he should be worried about an intruder in his house, but found it odd that he’d never heard her scream.

“I’m bleeding,” she gasped.

“I know. What happened?” He ran his hands over her body in attempt to find the source.

“I was going to get a tampon,” she whispered, curling herself into a fetal position. “This isn’t normal.”

Holy shit! Nick thought to himself. This amount of blood certainly wasn’t normal, and she was slowly slipping back into unconsciousness. “I’m going to call for help, okay?”

“Tell them I’m A positive,” she croaked as her eyelids closed.

He stood and ran to his room, grabbed his cell phone off the night stand, and raced back to Annie’s room. With trembling, bloody fingers, he dialed 911.

“911. What’s your emergency?”

“My girlfriend. She passed out and she’s bleeding. She’s bleeding a lot,” Nick panted as he dropped back down to his knees beside her, the blood soaking into his pants.

“Is she injured?”

He gulped. “I-- I don’t think so,” he stammered.

“What’s your location?”

After giving the dispatcher his address and confirming his phone number, he stroked Annie’s hair and bent down to kiss her on the forehead. “Help’s on the way, okay, Annie? Just hold on. You’re going to be okay,” he soothed quietly. In his heart, he prayed that was true.

The next few minutes were a blur. EMS workers arrived and loaded her onto a stretcher while Nick looked on helplessly and answered their questions to the best of his ability.

“What’s her name?”

“Annie. Annie Morgan.”

“How old is she?”

"Thirty."

"Do you know her blood type?"

"Um...." Suddenly the last words she uttered to him made sense. "A positive! She's A positive!"

The EMT gave him an affirmative nod and reached for the handheld radio strapped to his belt. "Dispatch 119 to Vanderbilt emergency department. We are en-route with a thirty year old female with severe vaginal bleeding. Temp 97.4. BP 84/55 and dropping. Pulse 140 and irregular. Blood type A positive."

Nick ran to Drew's room and scooped the still-sleeping toddler out of his crib. He raced down the stairs and was in the driveway headed for his rental car from the airport when he realized he was going to need a car seat. He burst through the back door and searched frantically for Annie's keys. A diaper bag was sitting on the kitchen counter, and thankfully, a set of keys was resting on the dark granite beside it. He swiped them from the countertop and slung the blue paisley tote bag over his shoulder before darting back out to Annie's Tahoe. Drew woke up and started crying as Nick was attempting to strap him into his car seat.

“Morning buddy,” Nick huffed as he fumbled with the straps. “It’s probably going to be a weird day, okay?” Drew stopped crying and looked at him with wide eyes-- Annie’s eyes. Nick didn’t know why he hadn’t noticed it before. The child really didn’t look anything like his mother, except that he had her eyes. He choked back a sob and gave Drew a little pat on the head. “Hold tight, Drew.” He jumped in the driver’s seat and sped away, struggling internally with the fact that he felt like he was driving too fast to have a baby in the car, but not fast enough to keep up with the ambulance.

Nick pulled Annie’s car into the emergency department parking lot and screeched to a halt just as they were wheeling her inside from the ambulance bay. He jumped out and unbuckled Drew from his car seat, settled him on his hip and tore across the parking lot towards the sliding glass doors with the red “Emergency’” sign posted above them. He didn’t see Annie, but could hear a commotion behind the curtain in front of him and immediately knew that was where she was.

“Her pressure’s still dropping. Hang the blood and type and cross-match another four units STAT!”

“Call ultrasound and get them down here ASAP. Did someone page doctor Andrews?”

“Is there anyone here with her?”

“There was a man with her. Husband or boyfriend or something.”

“Someone go see if you can get any information from him.”

Nick headed for the closed curtain while Drew clung to him and let out a scared cry, startled by the flurry of activity and noise in the busy emergency room. He was intercepted by a doctor in green scrubs who stepped outside and yanked off a pair of bloody gloves. “Are you with Annie Morgan?”

“Yes. Is she okay?” Nick asked in a shaky voice.

“What’s your relationship to Ms. Morgan?”

“I--I’m her boyfriend.”

“Listen, Mr.--?”

“Carter,” Nick finished for him. “Nick Carter.”

“Mr. Carter, I’m really not supposed to release any information to anyone that isn’t family.”

“Mama...” Drew whimpered, clutching Nick’s sweatshirt tightly in his tiny fists.

The man raised an eyebrow in the toddler’s direction. “Is he hers?”

“Yes,” Nick nodded affirmatively. “We live together.” Technically, that was sort of true and if it got him more information about Annie, he was willing to say anything at that point.

He pursed his lips and studied Nick for a moment. “When was her last normal period?”

Nick stood frozen like a deer in headlights. “I--I don’t know,” he admitted solemnly. The doctor sighed exasperatedly. “I’ve been away on business for a few weeks,” Nick added quickly.

“Do you know if she has any history of problems with her reproductive system? Anything that could cause her to bleed like this?”

Nick looked down at Drew and recalled the story Annie had told him and Brian about how the baby was conceived. “She had an ovary removed a few years ago. I think she has a family history of cancer in that...area.”

“Okay.” The doctor gave him a solemn nod and turned back towards the curtain.

“Wait!” Nick pleaded. “What’s going on with her? Do you think she has cancer?!”

“I don’t know until we give her a thorough examination. Right now, our priority is to try to stop the bleeding and replenish the blood lost. The problem is that we have to find the cause before we can stop it.” He paused to acknowledge a tall woman in a white coat. who was jogging towards them. “Dr. Andrews, this is Annie’s significant other. He says she had an ovary removed a few years back and a family history of female reproductive cancers.”

“Do we have an ultrasound?”

“They’re performing one now.” Dr. Andrews nodded and disappeared behind the curtain.

The emergency room doctor turned back to Nick. “Nick, there’s a waiting room over there.” He pointed across the hall. “I’ll ask a nurse to find you some scrubs to change into.”

Nick looked down at his clothing. It looked like something out of a horror film. “I need to know if she’s okay...” he begged.

“She’s unstable right now due to the blood loss. We’re doing everything we can to make sure nothing happens to her, okay?” he replied curtly and walked back behind the curtain.

Suddenly, Drew was screaming and Nick’s head was swimming. The doctor he had been talking to was replaced by a friendly young female nurse with flowing brown hair. “I’m Emma. I’m going to go see if I can find a set of scrubs that will fit you, and there’s a smaller waiting room down the hall. I’m sure you don’t want to draw any attention to yourself, right?” Nick breathed a sigh of relief. Truth be told, the thought that he might get recognized hadn’t even crossed his mind, but he was thankful the nurse had known who he was and offered to take him somewhere more private.

“What’s his name?” she asked, pointing to Drew.

Nick looked down at the crying child in his arms. “Drew.”

“He’s really cute. Is he yours?”

“No. He’s Annie’s.”

Emma leaned towards Drew and gave him a big grin. “Crazy morning for a little guy, huh? Have you had breakfast?”

Nick smacked himself in the forehead with his free hand. “I didn’t even think that he might be hungry.”

“Of course not. You were worried about Annie. I have a two year old, so I’m used to this kind of thing.”

“I have a diaper bag,” Nick said, gesturing to the bag on his shoulder “But I have no idea what’s in it,” he admitted clumsily.

“Well, I’m sure his mama has it well-stocked. How about I take him while you get changed?”

Nick handed Drew over, grateful to have someone who seemed to know what she was doing there to help him out. He changed clothes quickly in a nearby locker room and washed his hands. As he watched her dried-on blood swirl down the white porcelain sink, he did something he hadn’t done in a long time. He prayed. “God, I know you’re not used to hearing from me, and after all the crap I’ve done over the years, I probably don’t deserve anything from you, but I know you know Annie. And Annie’s special. Please take care of her. Don’t take her away from me. She’s the greatest woman I’ve ever known.” He grabbed a paper towel and dried his hands, then wiped hastily at the tears that had fallen down his cheeks and walked out the door and down the hall to the small waiting room Emma had shown him.

Drew seemed to be in a miraculously better mood. He was no longer in his pajamas, but in a little pair of jeans and a blue, long-sleeved t-shirt and held a sippy cup of juice in one hand while he rolled a little red ball across the carpet towards Emma. “I changed him and got some juice from the cafeteria. He ate a muffin, too,” she told him.

“Thank you,” Nick breathed.

“No problem. I need to get back to work, but is there anything else you need? I made some coffee.” She gestured to a coffee pot in the corner of the room. “And there’s a clipboard on the table with some admission forms if you can try to get them filled out.” Nick’s eyes widened. He didn’t think he’d be able to fill out much information at all. “Her wallet’s in the diaper bag, by the way,” Emma interjected. Nick nodded and started rooting around in the diaper bag.
“The cafeteria’s that way if you want anything to eat,” she offered.

Nick shook his head. “I don’t think I can stomach anything right now, but thanks for the coffee.”

She gave him a sympathetic smile. “I understand. I hope Annie’s alright.”

“Me too,” he said quietly. “Me too.” He stayed busy for the next hour filling out paperwork and attempting to entertain Drew. Drew had settled onto the couch watching cartoons that Nick had found on the television mounted to the wall, and Nick was pouring his second cup of coffee when the middle-aged woman he recognized as Dr. Andrews appeared with Emma in the doorway wearing scrubs and a surgical cap. He stopped pouring and set the coffee pot down, then crossed the room to meet them.

“How is she?” he asked quickly.

“Mr. Carter, let’s sit down.”

Nick’s hands started shaking, and he bent down to put the half-full styrofoam coffee cup on a nearby end table, but he remained standing. “How is she?” he asked again, this time with more urgency.

“Nick, Annie experienced what we call a subchorionic hemorrhage. I’ve been an OB-GYN for twenty years, and it’s the most severe case I’ve ever seen. She lost a really substantial amount of blood, as I’m sure you’re already aware.” Nick gulped and nodded, his heart now pounding erratically in his chest. “We had to transfuse eight units of blood, but she’s stable now.”

“Oh thank God.” Nick closed his eyes and let out a breath he didn’t even know he was holding.

Dr. Andrews gave him a weak smile and went on. “However, I had to perform an emergency dilation and curettage, or D&C, to get the bleeding under control. I’m sorry, but the fetus wasn’t viable.”
Chapter 50 by emily_michele

Nick’s knees literally buckled underneath him and the color drained from his face. “The what?” has rasped as he lowered himself onto the couch behind him.

Dr. Andrews raised an eyebrow. “I take it you didn’t know she was pregnant?”

“No,” Nick answered quietly. He buried his buried his face in his hands then ran his fingers through his hair in frustration. “I don’t think she knew either.” In Nick’s mind, there was no way she could have possibly known she was pregnant based on the way she’d carried herself around him the previous day. She seemed too comfortable to be hiding a secret like that.

“That would explain her confusion as we were taking her to surgery, then. She regained consciousness after we transfused some blood, and I was able to explain to her what was going on, but she didn’t take it well. It’s a little odd to me that she didn’t realize she might be pregnant. She was eight weeks along, so most women would have missed two periods by now. Though, based on the fact that she only has one ovary, I’d guess she was pretty irregular, so maybe it’s not that much of a stretch to say she was unaware.”

“Oh my God....” The gravity of the situation started to sink in for Nick, grief weighing heavily on his shoulders. “When can I see her?”

“She’s still sedated from the procedure, but I expect that the anesthesia will wear off within the next hour or so. After I examine her, we’ll be moving her up to the third floor. Usually, a D&C would be considered an outpatient procedure and we’d be sending her home, but considering the extent of her blood loss, I’d like to keep her at least overnight to monitor her hemoglobin and hematocrit-- her blood counts-- to make sure they don’t drop back down to critical levels. She’s naturally going to be a little anemic for a while, but I think watching her from an impatient perspective would be wise after what her body's been through today. You can check in on her after we move her.”

Nick gave her a silent nod. “Thank you.” Dr. Andrews gave him a sympathetic smile and walked out. He glanced across the waiting room to find Emma sitting with Drew and playing “pat-a-cake." Once he was assured that Drew was okay, he broke down. He turned his back to them and pulled his knees up to his chest, creating the perfect “shelf” to bury his face in to hide his tears. He had no idea what to say to Annie, and couldn’t help feeling like this was all his fault. The idea of using protection hadn’t even crossed his enamored mind that night on the cruise. He was well aware that it only took one time to conceive a child, but the thought that she might have gotten pregnant was just some distant unreality he had never even considered. This, however, was reality, and reality was very, very bad.

He was pulled back from his silent reverie by the sound of a phone ringing, and it wasn’t his. He recalled that he’d seen Annie’s phone in the diaper bag and lunged for it, not sure whether he was going to answer or not. When he saw the name lit up on the screen, he let out a tortured sigh. Brian.

_________________________________________________________________________

Nick took slow, tentative steps from the elevator to the counter at the nurse’s station on the third floor. “Can I help you, sir?” a pleasant, older woman asked, eyeing him above the rims of her reading glasses

“I’m looking for Annie Morgan,” he said hoarsely.

She glanced at her computer screen. “I don’t see anyone by that name...”

“Andrea Morgan. Her real name’s Andrea,” he corrected himself.

She nodded and pointed to her left. “She’s in room 324.”

Her door was closed, and Nick took in a long, shuddery breath and let it out before he grasped the handle and pushed it open carefully. “Annie-” His voice cracked when he saw her. Sunlight streamed through the window blinds and cut across her pale face, highlighting the dried tear tracks that ran down her cheeks, made darker by remnants of mascara she hadn’t removed before falling asleep the night before.

“Where’s Drew?” she asked immediately.

Nick closed the door behind him and crossed the room to her bed. “Drew’s fine. I called the babysitter. She picked him up a few minutes ago.”

“How’d you know her number?” she asked, her voice flat.

“In your cell phone, it says ‘Ashleigh- the babysitter’.” He gave her a cautious smirk, but she just stared at him blankly in return.

“Oh.”

“Annie....” He placed his hand over hers, but she jerked it away.

“Go away, Nick,” she spat, her eyes never meeting his.

“Annie, don’t do this,” he pleaded with her. “I’m so sorry.”

“Don’t be. This wasn’t your doing.”

“Well, not exactly, but.....”

“Brian!” she exclaimed abruptly. “I need to call Brian. We were supposed to do that radio show today.”

"He called about half an hour ago."

"Wh-what did you tell him?" she stammered, looking up at Nick with wide eyes.

"He thinks you have the flu," he assured her.

"Good. That's good." She rolled over and gathered her pillow into her arms, turning her back to him.

He sighed and leaned over the bed railing to gently run his fingers through the mess of curls on the back of her head. She tensed and shrugged him off. "I'm sure you're exhausted," he soothed. "We don't have to talk about it right now if you don't want to."

"There's nothing to talk about, Nick."

"Annie, you know that's not true...."

"What is there to say, Nick?” She sat up and turned towards him hastily. "I'm a frickin doctor and didn't even know I was pregnant!"

"Well, Doctor Andrews said...."

"I don't want to talk about Dr. Andrews!" she hissed

Nick held up his hands in defense. "Okay! Sorry. We won't talk about Dr. Andrews.” He had no idea where the disdain for the doctor who may have very well saved her life came from. “Like I said, we don't have to talk about it right now, but we are going to have to talk about it."

"I already told you, Nick. There's nothing to talk about.” She winced and placed her hand on her lower abdomen, curling her knees up towards her chest.

He immediately jumped to attention, hovering over her as if she were a small child and he the overprotective father. "Are you okay? Do you need anything?"

"I need a nurse. Tell her to bring me something for the pain."

"Absolutely." He started heading for the door. "Anything else?"

"I need you to leave."

___________________________________________________________________________________

Nick trudged through the back door tiredly and dropped Annie's keys on the kitchen counter where he'd found them that morning. The patient belongings bag that held his soiled clothing from that morning dropped to the tile floor as he placed his hands on his hips and scanned the room. It was like she had invaded every corner and crevice of his house. Unassembled sippy cups lay in the wire dish rack by the sink and a half-burned scented candle rested in the window sill. A green cardigan sweater was draped across the back of a kitchen chair, and her purse was on a hook by the back door. She’d fallen asleep in his arms the night before, yet, she had practically had him thrown out of her hospital room half an hour ago. He eyed the small corner cabinet he’d used as a liquor cabinet for the rare occasion that he still drank, and tried to remember whether or not he still had anything stashed in there. Moments later, he was pouring himself a double shot of whiskey, knowing he wouldn’t be able to do what he was about to do next sober. He tossed the drink back with downed it one gulp, the whiskey burning his esophagus all the way down. Then he poured himself another.

He took his third glass upstairs with him and set it on Annie’s nightstand while he fell to his knees and attempted to scrub the blood stains out of the carpet. Hot tears fell down his face and dripped onto the carpet, mingling with the strong cleaning solution he found under the kitchen sink. After several minutes of hard scrubbing with limited success, he raised himself up to sit on the edge of her bed and take a few more sips of alcohol. While he drank, his eyes settled on a framed 5x7 on the dresser of Annie smiling warmly and cradling a brand-new baby Drew in her arms. He paused with his glass of whiskey hovering just short of his lips and in his mind, contrasted the Annie in the picture with the one he’d left at the hospital that afternoon. The day’s events, combined with other painful memories, played over and over in his mind like a movie as exhaustion and sadness eventually gave way to anger. He clenched the short glass of whiskey in his fist and hurled it at the wall on the opposite side of the room. It shattered into a thousand little fragments and fell to the floor, the amber liquid dripping down the wall. Then, he pulled his cell phone out of his pocket and did something he never imagined he’d do again. He called Lauren.

“Nick?” her startled voice answered after only two rings.

“Lauren-” he slurred.

“Nick, are you drunk?”

“I need to ask you a question.”

“Okay....”

“What was it exactly that made you think I’d be a terrible father?”

Chapter 51 by emily_michele

“I- uh--- I rented a carpet shampooer this morning, so your room’s clean, but if you’d be more comfortable staying in mine, I’d be happy to stay in here or on the couch, or....” Nick trailed off and gazed hesitantly at the tired woman leaning into the doorframe beside him. She stared into the room and squinted at the carpet next to right side of her bed.

“This is fine.” She sighed and dragged her feet across the freshly shampooed carpet, hugging herself as she shivered against an imaginary chill in the air.

“Can I get you anything? Maybe some water or a snack? I think every hospital must have it in their by-laws that they have to serve terrible food.” He gave her a cautious smile. “I’m sure you’re probably hungry.”

“I’m fine.” Annie stared stoically ahead of her and dropped onto the edge of the bed. Nick sighed and eased himself down beside her.

“You’re not fine.” He placed his hand tentatively atop the black sweatpants covering her knee and she immediately tensed under his touch.

“Can you go check on Drew?”

“I just put him in his crib. He fell asleep in the car on the way home, remember?”

“Just go check on him, okay?”

“Okay.” Nick grunted as he stood and headed towards the door. “We’re going to have to talk about this eventually, Annie,” he said firmly as he walked out.

As he was leaving Drew’s room just a few moments later, he was startled by the sound of “Brickhouse” blaring from his back pocket. He jumped to answer it quickly, hoping that
the noise hadn’t woken the little boy. “AJ?” He glanced over his shoulder and saw that Drew’s eyes were still closed, and his body still in the same position, his expression serene.

“Why are we whispering?” AJ whispered back with a little chuckle.

“Drew’s asleep,” Nick answered matter-of-factly, as if naptime was something he worried about every day.

“Oh. So, you’re with Annie?”

“I’m at Annie’s, yes. I told you I was coming to Nashville for a few days before my tour starts.”

“Right. And how are things going with Annie?”

“They’re... fine. Everything’s fine.”

“Fine?”

“Yes. Fine!” Nick hissed. In uncomfortable silence, he bounded down the stairs, headed for the kitchen.

“So, uh-- the women. They talk.”

“Okay...”

“They talk,” AJ reiterated. “About everything.”

“Yeah. So?” He rummaged through the pantry in search of a can of chicken noodle soup. Sure, Annie had said she was “fine,” but he knew better, and she needed to eat. He assumed she’d say she couldn’t stomach anything, but anyone could stomach chicken noodle soup, right?

“Ro and Lauren are still pretty close, you know.”

“Yeah, I know. Sorry about the whole having to rearrange the wedding march thing.”

“No. I’m sorry. I should have thought about it before the rehearsal. It’s my bad. Really,” AJ reassured him.

“AJ, why are you calling me to talk about chatty women? You know you’re worse than all of them, so just spill it.”

AJ sighed and cleared his throat. “I know things. Because of the chatty women, I know things.”

A can of peas that Nick had picked up to look behind clattered onto the granite countertop. “What kinds of ‘things’?”

“Things like the fact that you drunk dialed Lauren last night.”

“You know I do crazy-assed shit when I’m drunk, AJ.”

“True. But why were you so drunk last night that you were doing crazy-assed shit like calling your ex while you’re in Tennessee shacking up with your new girlfriend and her kid?”

“I’m not ‘shacking up’ with her,” Nick rebutted.

“Stop avoiding the question. What happened yesterday?”

“Annie has the flu. She's been sick in bed and I got bored, so I drank."

"Bullshit."

"AJ, what do you want?" Nick returned the peas to their spot on the shelf and slammed the cabinet door shut.

AJ's voice softened. "You never told me about what happened with Lauren."

"That's all water under the bridge, AJ." Nick opened the next cabinet door in line.

"Is it?"

"Of course it is." He silently cheered when he found a neat little row of the characteristic red and white cans stashed on the middle shelf and started skimming the fronts of them. Tomato, cream of celery...

"Calling your ex to talk about it makes it water under the bridge? Sounds like crossing over the bridge to me. Maybe the bridge has a few boards missing? Or some cracks in the concrete? Are you about to fall off the bridge, Nick?"

"Jackpot!" Nick grabbed the can of chicken noodle and thrust it into the air triumphantly.

"Jackpot you're off the bridge? Holy shit, do I need to come down there?! Is the bridge kind of like the wagon?" AJ asked in a panic.

"What are you talking about? Jackpot-- I found the soup!" Nick stooped down and retrieved a small pot by the handle from a cabinet underneath the counter.

“Is soup code for something?”

“No. Chicken noodle, man!”

“What?”

“What?” Nick paused with the pot hovering over the burner on the stove. “Did I miss something?”

AJ groaned. “You’re obviously distracted. I just wanted you to know that I know some things, and if you ever need to talk, I’m there for ya, okay? Don’t get out of control, Nick. Call me before that happens, okay?”

“Um...okay. Thanks, I guess.”

AJ sighed. “Take care of yourself, Nick.”

“Sure thing, J,” Nick said casually, his head spinning from the cryptic and weird conversation he’d just had with his bandmate. He was a little pissed that Lauren had apparently chosen to blab all their secrets to her friends, his brother’s wife included, but he figured AJ didn’t know everything. He couldn’t, because he hadn’t told Lauren everything..... had he? Besides, he had bigger problems at the moment. Namely, the broken woman in bed upstairs.

He waited for the soup to come to a boil and spooned it out into a bowl. Then, he arranged it, along with a spoon, a napkin, some saltine crackers, and a glass of water, around the smiling face of a blue dinosaur that adorned the top of a tray he’d found in the closet and walked carefully upstairs. Annie’s door was cracked open just slightly, and a thin, faint beam of sunlight from her window streamed onto the carpet in the darkened hallway. He used his shoulder to gently nudge the door open and peeked inside. Annie was laying on her side with her head propped up in one hand while she turned the flimsy page of a dark pink, leather-bound bible that rested on the sheet beside her. “Hey,” he said softly.

She glanced quickly in his direction, then focused her eyes back on the bible. “Hey.”

“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to interrupt you. I just.....” He gestured down to the tray he grasped in his shaking hands. “I brought you some lunch.”

“I really don’t think I can stomach anything right now,” she said without looking up.

“I knew you’d say that.” He crossed the room and placed the tray on her nightstand. “But it’s just chicken noodle soup. Surely, you can stomach chicken noodle soup.”

“Fine.” She sat up and placed the ribbon sewn into the spine of the bible to keep her place, then sighed as she pulled the tray into her lap and picked up the spoon.

Nick stood beside the bed and looked down at her with his hands on his hips. Even when she was sick and sad and avoiding him, he couldn’t look away. Her auburn curls were tied away from her face in a low ponytail, and her cheeks were still ashen, but he found her beautiful anyway.

“What are you doing?” she asked him with the spoon poised just in front of her mouth.

“Um.... nothing. Just...watching you.” He groaned and stepped closer. “I need to know if you’re okay. And if you’re not okay.....” He ran the backs of his fingers across her jawline. “I wanna be here with you through it.”

She clenched her eyes shut, but a single, stray tear tumbled down her cheek anyway, and she turned away as he attempted to wipe it away with the pad of his thumb. “Nick, please. Not now, okay? I just can’t...” He sighed and stuffed his hands in his pockets and gave her a silent nod before leaving the room and closing the door behind him.

And so it went for the next two days. Annie holed herself up in her room, burying herself under the comforter, and avoiding all of Nick’s attempts to talk to her by answering his questions with one-word responses and turning her back to him when he walked in her room. Nick kept himself busy by cooking, cleaning, and playing with Drew. He found himself growing even more attached to the little guy, and in the back of his mind, feared that once Annie had regained her strength, she would march down the stairs and kick him out. He’d never see either of them again. Yet, that couldn’t really happen, could it? It was his house, right? Maybe that was the only reason she hadn’t done it yet.

Day three was the turning point. An hour or so into Drew’s afternoon nap, Nick tip-toed into his room to check on him. He had worked his way down to one end of his crib and was sleeping on his stomach with his knees pulled up to his chest and his diapered behind sticking up in the air. His breath came in and out in even waves, yet his eyelids fluttered open when Nick’s soft footsteps stopped just below the crib railing, and he looked up at him with a sleepy smile. “Shh, buddy.” Nick dropped his hand down on the toddler’s back and rubbed it in small circles . “You can go back to sleep.” Drew rolled onto his side, reached for a nearby teddy bear, and clutched it to his chest. As his eyes closed again, he uttered a single word.

“Daddy.”

Chapter 52 by emily_michele



Nick gasped and gripped the crib railing until his knuckles turned white. He stood there in shock for a few seconds, then whispered ever-so softly to the sleeping baby below him, “I’m not your daddy, Drew..... but that doesn’t mean I wouldn’t like to be someday.” It was like a fire had been lit under him. He had to talk to Annie. He tore himself away from Drew and raced down the hall to Annie’s room, flinging the door open, only to find that the bed she’d inhabited for the past three days was empty. “Annie?”

The bathroom door was wide open, and he carefully peeked inside. “Annie?” Nothing. He sauntered back out into the hallway and past Drew’s room, headed for the extra bedroom at the end of the hall. “Annie!” Still nothing. He glanced at the stairs as he headed towards his bedroom. It was a long shot, but he figured she’d be more likely to be in his room than downstairs. He and Drew had been playing down there all morning, and he hadn’t seen hide nor hair of her all day. “Annie?” A draft of cold air hit his face as he threw the door open, and the curtains next to his bed billowed inside towards him. “What in the world?” he asked himself as he raced to the window and stuck his head outside. “Annie!”

She didn’t move. Not even an inch. Her messy, auburn curls blew wildly in the biting January wind, and a dingy, ivory cashmere throw was pulled taut across her shoulders. Nick grabbed a jacket that had been draped on a bedpost, placed a foot on the windowsill, and hoisted himself up and out onto the roof of the covered porch in the front of his house with a grunt. “What are you doing? It’s freezing out here,” he said as shrugged into the jacket and eased himself down the slight slope to where she was sitting and knelt down beside her.

“Did you know you can see the highway from here? And you don’t have any neighbors across the street-- just in back. So, no one can see me here.” She stared straight ahead, only acknowledging his presence by speaking.

“That’s part of what sold me on the place,” he answered as he shifted his weight from his knees to his behind and sat down on the cold shingles beside her. He leaned into her and she turned to look at him. “It’s time for you to talk to me now, Annie.”

She nodded slowly, but said nothing. They sat in silence for what felt like hours, Nick staring down at his lap and occasionally stealing glances at Annie, and Annie peering straight ahead of her, watching vehicles zoom by. Finally she whispered, “Dr. Andrews.”

“What?”

“Dr. Andrews. How ironic is it that my doctor’s name was Andrews? What kind of sick joke is that, anyway? As if I didn’t feel guilty enough for what happened on the cruise, this had to happen. Then, to add insult to injury, my doctor has the same name as my dead husband!”

Well, that explained her outburst at the hospital when he had mentioned her doctor. Of course, he’d never really put two and two together and realized that might have been quite a blow to her already bruised heart. “Annie--” Nick placed a hand on her shoulder, but she jerked away.

“Don’t!” She snapped.

“Sorry.” He held his hands up in defense, then stuffed them in his pockets.

“I’d thought about it, you know,” she said softly.

“About what?”

“Babies. Maybe one day-- giving Drew a baby brother or sister. I mean before Andrew......” She trailed off and pulled the blanket even tighter around her shoulders. “I always imagined we’d have three or four-- each of them maybe two or three years apart. But then there was a plane crash, and Drew certainly didn’t happen the way I expected him to, and then there was Brian, and you, and...... Haven’t I been through enough already? I mean, I certainly didn’t plan for something like this to happen, but.....” She took in a deep, shuddering gasp. “How do you miss something you never even knew you had?”

Nick’s head snapped in her direction, and he stared at her incredulously as the pent-up anger and grief he’d been holding in for the sake of Annie and Drew over the past few days bubbled up inside of him and started to spill over. “Damnit, Annie! This was my baby, too!” he hissed as he jumped to his feet and started pacing in the space behind her.

Annie flinched at his sudden harshness and loosened her grip on the cashmere throw around her shoulders as she turned to face him. “I-- I know, Nick,” she stammered. “I’m sorry.” She watched with wide eyes, following his angry stomps back and forth as he grunted and groaned, clenched and unclenched his fists, and ran his hands through his hair in frustration.
“Nick, he careful,” she pleaded. “It’s still wet up here from the snow last week. I don’t want you to fall.”

Nick stopped in his tracks and glared at her. “Ask me about Lauren,” he demanded.

She blinked in confusion. “What? Lauren? No! She doesn’t have anything to do with this. If you want to go back Lauren, fine, but...”

Nick schlepped back over to her and stooped down to her level, grasping her shoulders with her hands. “I want you to ask me about what happened with Lauren!” he growled through clenched teeth.

Annie gulped and placed her palms on his chest gently. “Okay.” He loosened his grip on her shoulders. “What happened with Lauren?” she asked softly.

“I bought a ring,” he told her. This was no surprise to Annie. He’d already told her months ago that he had wanted to marry Lauren. “I saw it in the window of Tiffany’s on Rodeo Drive, and I walked in and dropped a shitload of money on it, then walked out with it in my pocket. That night, Lauren told me she was late.”

Chapter 53 by emily_michele

Annie pursed her lips in an attempt to stifle the gasp that rose in her throat. “Lauren was like, really regular. I mean, every 29 days you could pretty much set your watch by her. I think we both already knew she was pregnant even before the five positive tests. She was scared shitless.”

“And you?”

Nick sighed and fell to his knees in defeat. “I was scared, too. But, I was also...” He paused. “Excited. Maybe this was my chance to be the dad my dad wasn’t, you know?” She gave him a silent nod. “Of course, I couldn’t propose to her because then she would think I was just doing it because of the baby. So, I just let it sit for a couple weeks, and I got online and bought this tiny little Bucs jersey, since they don’t sell Tampa Bay gear in LA, and decided I was going to give it to her when I finally proposed. But one day I was at the gym and she’d stayed home because she had wicked morning sickness, and she called me because she was bleeding. It wasn’t anything like....” Annie’s eyes darted downwards and she pulled her knees up to her chest, hugging them tightly. “Sorry,” Nick lamented.

“It’s okay,” she whispered.

Nick sighed and inched closer to her. “It wasn’t all that bad, you know? I’d read in that What You’re Expecting book that a little bleeding in the first trimester can be normal, so I just figured that’s what it was, and everything would be fine.” Annie raised an eyebrow, a little surprised to hear that he’d been reading “What to Expect When You’re Expecting.” Nick furrowed his brows and looked away. “But everything wasn’t fine. I took her to her doctor’s office, and when they did an ultrasound, there was no heartbeat.”

Annie placed her hand gingerly on his knee and gave it a little squeeze. It was a gesture that said “I’m here. It’s okay. Keep talking if you want to.”

Nick looked up at her, his eyes glistening with unshed tears, and she blinked back a few tears of her own. “I was devastated, of course, but I felt like I had to be strong for Lauren.” He hesitated and bit his bottom lip. “Just like I feel like I have to be strong for you.” Annie gazed down at her lap and fumbled with the fringe of her beloved throw, ashamed to look him in the eye. “But Lauren didn’t need me to be strong for her. She was…relieved. Relieved that she wasn’t going to have to keep that appointment at the abortion clinic she’d made without telling me.”

“Oh, Nick...” Annie gave him an anguished sigh.

“I decided to go ahead and propose to her. I thought that maybe if the circumstances were different the next time.....” He trailed off and let out a bitter laugh. “I thought there would be a next time!” He took a minute compose himself before he went on. “I thought maybe the next time she’d want to keep it-- That she’d actually want to have a family with me if I showed her how serious I was about it.” He drew in a shaky breath and looked up at the overcast sky, then pressed the palms of his hands against his eyes in an attempt to quell the onslaught of tears that threatened to fall. “How stupid could I be?”

“You’re not stupid, Nick.” Annie brushed away a single tear that had managed to escape his left eye and cascade down his cheek.

“She laughed at me,” he said abruptly. “When I tried to give her the ring, she laughed at me.”


Annie didn’t know what to say. All these months she’d considered herself the victim- the one with all the emotional wounds in need of healing. Yet Nick had been hiding something so devastating for months. “We of course had this big fight, and I ended up packing a bag and heading to the airport. When I left, I had no idea where I was going, but somehow I ended up on a plane headed for Atlanta, getting sloppy drunk, and going to Brian’s. Then, there you were. You were...” He cleared his throat and swatted at the tears that were now coursing freely down his face. “Are everything I needed to start over. To have something-- someone better than I could have ever imagined. We were together one time and we made a baby! Now, there’s your irony. I managed to get two different women pregnant in four months’ time, and God took both of those babies away. Maybe Lauren’s right. I probably would be a terrible father.” He hung his head in defeat and sniffled.

“I wasn’t relieved,” Annie told him firmly. She tilted her head towards Nick’s and placed her hands on either side of his face, making him turn to face her. “When I found out that I was pregnant, and that I was miscarrying on the same day-- in the same minute-- I wasn’t relieved. I was devastated. Yes, I felt guilty because of Andrew, and yes, I wanted to push you away because of it, but when I thought of the possibility of what might have been-- that I could have ended up having a baby with you, I was not relieved that it was over. I’ve seen you with Drew, and with Baylee, and I happen to think you’d make a great dad. I was not relieved. And for the record, one out of every two pregnancies ends in miscarriage, so yeah, it totally sucks that this happened to you, but please don’t go blaming God and saying He did this because he thinks you’ll be a terrible father. I believe that’s the furthest thing from the truth. These things happen. Please don’t go getting down on yourself because of it.”

Nick raised his eyebrow and gave her a weak smile. “Isn’t that what you’ve been doing?”

Annie returned the smile with a little silent laugh. “I guess so.”

“So....” He brought his hand up to her cheek and palmed it warmly, then turned to kiss her fingers that rested on his own cheek.

“So?”

“What do you say we try again?”

Her eyes widened in surprise and she quickly jerked her hands away from his face. “Try again? Now?!”

Nick shrugged. “Well, not right now, but yeah. Why not?”

“Why not? Why not?!” Annie nearly shrieked. This wasn’t at all how she’d imagined this conversation going. “Nick..... it was a one night stand.” As soon as she said it, she regretted it, but it was too late.

“A one night stand?!” Nick erupted, his face turning bright red in anger as he jumped back to his feet and started pacing again. “Is that what you think it was?! Jesus Christ, Annie! It’s like two steps forward and seventeen steps back with you!”

“Nick, sit down,” she pleaded. “I didn’t mean it like that.”

“You didn’t mean it like what, Annie? I don’t really know any other way you could have meant it. That was quite possibly the best night of my life, and you go calling it a one-night stand!” he roared. Again, he wiped away tears. “I have to be honest with you, Annie. When I told you we could take it slow this time, I didn’t mean it. I said it because I knew it was what you wanted to hear-- what I thought you needed to hear--” He stopped pacing and stooped down to grab her hands and pull her up to her feet in front of him. The cashmere throw fell off her shoulders and fluttered onto the damp roof. Her fingers felt like ice, but all he wanted to do was warm them up for her. “Andrea Elizabeth Donohue Morgan, I have been falling in love with you since the second I first laid eyes my drunken eyes on you. What happened with Lauren totally sucked, but now I feel like maybe it happened because it was you I needed all along. I have tried my damndest to be patient with you, but I feel like all you ever do it push me away. I can’t do this anymore.”

“Nick, don’t...”

“I want to marry you.” Annie gasped and attempted to pull away, but he gripped her firmly and pulled her closer. “I’m not proposing. I’m just saying that’s what I intend to do someday. I want to marry you and have a houseful of kids with you. I know I’m not Drew’s father, but

I--” He choked back a sob. “But I want to be his Daddy one day, Annie. Please.... Don’t push me away any more.”

“Nick, slow down,” Annie coaxed. “I love you, too, but we’ve only actually been together, for what? A few weeks, figuratively? In a literal sense.... a couple of days? It’s been a really emotional past few days, and I don’t want you to get ahead of herself.” She paused and studied him. “Nick?” He was giving her his dreamy, goofy grin, and it was obvious that he couldn’t possibly be processing what she was saying to him.

“Say it again.” He beamed happily and gave her hands a little squeeze.

“What?”

Chapter 54 by emily_michele
Author's Notes:

Once upon a time, about twenty chapters ago, I said that there were oh, about ten chapters left in this story. It didn't quite happen that way, but now I can safely say that there are only two chapters left...and maybe an epilogue.

“Say it again, Annie.”

“I don’t want you to get ahead of yourself, Nick.”

“No, before that.”

“Slow down. We’ve only been together a few weeks.”

He laughed. “Oh, now you’re going to be a comedian? After that.”

She gulped and replayed their conversation in her mind. “What?”

“Just say it, Annie.”

She groaned. “Nick....”

Nick’s hands landed on either side of her head so that she couldn’t look away from him and he leaned into her until he was so close that she could feel his breath on her cheek, his eyes searching hers desperately. “That song you sang for me the other night-- the one you co-wrote. Did you mean it? About letting go of the life you’d planned for yourself and all of that?”

“I did.”

“So let go, Annie.” He tousled her curls with his fingers and gulped. “Do you love me?”

"I--" Her breath hitched in her throat as she shifted her weight from one foot to the other nervously. "Yeah. I do."

"Say it, Annie," he coaxed.

She felt goosebumps that started at her toes and ran up to the top of her head. She hadn't said those words--other than to Drew or her family, or Andrew in her own private sanctuary, in five and a half years. She wasn't sure she even still knew how, but right there in that moment on top of Nick's roof in the middle of Franklin, Tennessee, with the cold January afternoon air whipping her hair and the winter sunlight warming her face, it felt right. "I love you, Nick," she breathed. "I don't know if--"

"Shh-" His index finger fell on her lips to quiet her. This was a move he seemed to have mastered with her, and truth be told, she kind of liked it. She stifled a grin beneath the pad of his finger and fought the urge to pucker up and kiss it. "I love you, too.” He grinned and literally started laughing out loud. “We’re in love!” he whooped as he lunged forward and wrapped his arms around her waist, then picked her up and planted a kiss on her lips. "Technically, you said it first, you know," he jested with a smirk as he set her back down.

"What are you talking about?" Annie laughed. "You totally said it first!"

"Nuh-uh!" Nick rebutted, waving his finger at her. "I said I was falling in love with you. You were the one who said the words ‘I love you’." Annie laughed and gave him a playful little shove, accompanied by an eye roll. "I've fallen hard and fast, though," he said, his eyes suddenly serious and smoldering as he leaned in to close the gap between their lips again.

“Mama! Nick!” Nick sighed, but grinned against Annie’s lips as Drew’s shouts pierced the air through the open bedroom window. He was secretly a little relieved that Drew hadn’t chosen that moment to call him “Daddy” again. Annie had come a long way in the past half hour or so, and while he’d just told told her that he wanted to be Drew’s daddy one day (a move he wasn’t so sure he should have made quite yet), he feared that Drew’s actually calling him that might just send her back over the edge. He helped her climb back inside the window and followed her down the hallway to Drew’s room. The little boy, ecstatic to see his mommy, started jumping up on the crib mattress happily and gave them a toothy grin as they entered the dark room.

“Hey kiddo,” Nick said casually, giving him a little pat on the back as Annie scooped him up into her arms and planted a kiss on the top of his little blonde head. “So, what now?” he asked her as they headed downstairs after the compulsory post-nap diaper change.

Annie paused on the stairs and looked up at him with a comfortable smile. “We’ll go downstairs and play with Drew for a little while, then you can entertain him while I get dinner started. Is lasagna okay?”

He wrapped his arm around her waist and gave her a little squeeze. “Sounds great.” It wasn’t the answer he was looking for at all, but in that moment, he understood what it meant. They would go on with their lives-- together.

_________________________________________________

Annie awoke early the next morning with her heart beating wildly in her chest and sweat dripping down her back. After an evening of making dinner, relaxing with Nick, and playing with Drew, she’d kissed her boyfriend goodnight and gone to her own bed the night before, where she dreamed about Andrew.....again. She jumped out of bed and raced to the dresser drawer where she kept her wedding rings, pulled it open, and grabbed the velvet ring box. She studied them for a few moments, then took a deep breath and tucked them away again. She tip-toed down the hallway to Nick’s room. The door was open just a crack, so she pushed it open and stood in the doorway. He moaned in his sleep, then rolled over and hugged his pillow, burrowing his face into it and went back to taking slow, rhythmic breaths. She couldn’t bear to wake him up, as she assumed he most likely hadn’t slept well in a while, and she hated to leave him like this, but she knew what she had to do.

Nick awoke a couple hours later feeling more well-rested than he had in weeks. He sauntered down the hall and poked his head into Annie’s room, glad to see that she was already up and had even made her bed-- a stark contrast from the past few mornings. Then, he peeked into Drew’s room, and his crib was empty, save for a teddy bear and a blankie. He noticed that the house seemed strangely quiet as he trotted down the stairs, but breathed in the sweet aroma of freshly brewed coffee and cinnamon rolls. Perhaps, Drew just had his mouth full, and that was why he couldn’t hear his usual happy morning chatter. As he neared the landing at the bottom of the stairs, he smiled at the pile of toys on the rug in the middle of the den floor-- evidence that Drew had been playing in there that morning, since he and Annie had cleaned up turning in the night before. However, when he rounded the corner and entered the kitchen, he found it empty. “Annie?” he called out. There was no answer, but he noticed a red envelope propped up on a canister beside the steaming pot of coffee. Inside, he found a sheet of blank music paper, with her neat, almost calligraphic handwriting scrawled across the staff. He let out a little chuckle before he actually started reading. He thought it was rule that all doctors had to have horrific handwriting. Annie’s looked like it more like it might belong to a Disney princess. “Happy Birthday, Nick,” it read. “Don’t freak out.”

He’d totally forgotten about his birthday, and he assumed that maybe up until that morning, Annie had too. Maybe she and Drew had gone to the store. There was a basket on the other side of the coffee pot, and inside it, he found a pile of unfrosted cinnamon rolls wrapped tightly in paper towels to keep them warm. He licked his lips when he saw the bowl of gooey white frosting nearby, and lunged for the silverware drawer to retrieve a butter knife to spread it on with. After frosting three cinnamon rolls and arranging them on a plate, he poured himself a cup of coffee and headed into the den. He plopped down on the couch and put his feet up, then turned on the tv to watch Sportscenter while he waited for Annie and Drew to get home. When Sportscenter was over and there was nothing left on his plate but crumbs and cinnamon-speckled grease, Annie and Drew still hadn’t made it back yet, so headed upstairs to take a shower. After his shower, they still weren’t back, so he called his manager, arranged rehearsal for the next day, and confirmed a television appearance to promote the start of his tour in a couple of days. Still, Annie and Drew weren’t home. One hour turned into two, and two hours turned into three as countless calls and texts to her cell phone went unanswered. He was freaking out.
Chapter 55 by emily_michele
Author's Notes:

This is the last chapter (sans very small epilogue), and I'm so sad to see this one end. I am overwhelmed by the response to this story, and can't wait to see what you think of the ending. Thank you so so much for reading!

 

“This better be good, Nick.”

 

“I love you, too, Kevin.” Nick let out an exasperated sigh, drumming his fingers on the steering wheel impatiently as he waited for the light to turn green. “And it’s not good. It’s bad. I think it’s really bad.”

 

Suddenly, he had his older brother’s full attention. “What’s going on, Nick?” Kevin asked pointedly.

 

“I lost Annie and Drew.”

 

“You did what?”

 

“I woke up this morning and they were gone. She left a note. It said not to freak out, but that was four hours ago, and she still isn’t answering her phone. I called the studio, then I called the hospital and the police station, and then I didn’t know what else to do....” Nick told Kevin in one hurried breath.

 

“Slow down, Nick,” Kevin coaxed calmly.

 

“So I called Brian.”

 

“Seems reasonable. Brian and Annie are close.”

 

“Well, he seems to think maybe I’ve scared her back to Kentucky.” Nick flipped on his turn signal as he guided his rental car towards the exit for the interstate.

 

Scared her back to Kentucky?” Kevin challenged, his voice on edge.

 

“Long story.” Nick paused as he focused on clearing the near 360-degree loop of asphalt.

 

“AJ called me, by the way.”

 

Nick groaned. “What did he tell you? He knows something, but what I don’t know. Something about bridges and soup.”

 

“He talks in code, I know. He didn’t tell me anything I didn’t already know. Am I the only person you’ve told about Lauren and the baby?” Nick and Kevin had spent a great deal of time together in LA in the weeks after the cruise, with Nick actually staying with Kevin and Mason for a while.

 

“I told Annie..... But I didn’t call you to talk about this. The reason I called is that I need your brother’s number.”

 

“Tim’s number? Why didn’t you just get it from Brian?”

 

Nick let out a strained chuckle. “Something about Baylee and a mud puddle, and he lost all his contacts when he got his new phone. I’m on my way there, but I just got on I-65, and I think I’m something like three-and-a-half hours away. Kev, if she’s freaking out, somebody’s going to have to be there to talk her down.”

 

Talk her down?”

 

“It’s been a really long week, Kevin. Maybe we can talk about it later, but right now I’m really worried about Annie. Are you going to give me Tim’s number or not?”

 

“How about I just let you talk to him?”

 

“What? Where are you?”

 

“Tim’s guest room.”

 

“You’re in Kentucky?”

 

“Well, my family lives here, you know.” Kevin ducked out of the bedroom and into the hallway in search of his brother.

 

“Right. So, can I talk to Tim?”

 

“Just a sec.” Kevin entered his brother’s living room just in time to hear the doorbell ring. He followed behind Tim as he crossed the room to answer it, trailing close enough to let him know he needed him, but not so much that he would be interrupting if whoever was at the door was a parishioner who needed him more.

 

Tim glanced over his shoulder to acknowledge his little brother as he reached for the doorknob, and swung the door open. “Annie?”

 

Kevin stared wide-eyed at the rain-drenched young woman standing on the doorstep. Her hair stuck to the sides of her head and rivulets of water trailed through the mascara streaks that ran down her cheeks. Her coat was slung over one shoulder and Drew’s tiny arms reached out from under it and clutched her neck. “He’s gonna have to call you back, Nick.”

 

“What?” Nick screeched.

 

“Just keep driving, okay? He’ll call you back.” Kevin hung up the phone and shoved it in his pocket.

 

“It’s raining,” Annie panted. “I came all this way, and it’s raining. What do you think that means?”

 

Kevin held the door open for her as Tim lunged forward to remove her dripping coat and retrieve Drew. “I don’t really know what you’re talking about, but...” Tim hesitated as Annie looked up at him with tearful eyes. “I’d say it just means that it’s raining,” he finished with a shrug.

 

“I had plans,” Annie told him, still not even noticing Kevin’s presence. “I had plans, but now it’s pouring the rain, and I couldn’t take Drew out with me in that mess, and maybe I’m not so sure if I can go through with it.”

 

“Well, I don’t know what your plans were, but it looks like the clouds are already starting to break up.” Tim told her as he peeked his head out the door and pointed skyward, where sure enough, there was a tiny sliver of bright blue above his outstretched finger.

 

_________________________________________________________________

 

Nick chucked his cell phone angrily at the seat beside him and pushed the accelerator to the floor board. “What does he mean- he’s gonna have to call you back? Did Kevin really just hang up on me? He didn’t even tell me Happy Birthday. What a douche,” he muttered under his breath. He eyed the phone that teetered haphazardly on the edge of the passenger seat and lunged for it just before it fell to the floor. “Come on, Annie. Pick up,” he begged, dialing her number for what felt like the hundredth time that day. Only this time, he heard the tell-tale click of someone answering in the middle of the fourth ring.

“Nick.”

 

“What the-?” Nick pulled the phone away from his ear and glanced down at the screen. He’d been sure he dialed the right number, but as life seemed to be going lately, maybe he shouldn’t be so sure of anything anymore. “Kevin?

 

“Nick, she’s here. At Tim’s. Right now,” Kevin’s rich voice soothed across the line. Nick’s foot instinctively eased up on the gas pedal as he breathed a sigh of relief. “You didn’t dial the wrong number.” Kevin chuckled lightly. “And slow down.”

 

Nick tensed and instead pressed his shoe back down to the floorboard. “Is she okay?” he asked quietly.

 

“She’s.....” Kevin trailed off and sighed. “Freaking out.”

 

“I knew it.” Nick groaned.

 

But--” Kevin interjected. “She did tell me to answer her phone and talk to you.”

 

“Is this her way of letting me down easy? Sending in the big brother?”

 

“Uh-- I don’t know,” the older man admitted clumsily.

 

“You don’t know,” Nick stated flatly.

 

“She seemed a little overwhelmed. Tim and Kristin are talking to her out on the porch.”

 

“Tim and Kristin?” Nick raised an eyebrow. Was Kevin losing it, or was Tim’s wife named Kristin, too? Surely, he’d remember Kevin mentioning something like that.

 

“Yes, Kristin.”

 

“As in your wife, Kristin?”

 

“Yes, Nick. My wife, Kristin. It’s been a pretty long week for me, too, okay? Maybe we can talk about it some other time, but right now I have to go stop Mason from trying to feed Drew dog food. Cute kid, by the way.”

 

“He is,” Nick agreed, just as he noticed the flashing blue lights in his rear-view mirror. “Crap.”

 

“Crap, the kid’s cute?”

 

“No! Crap, I’m getting pulled over.” Nick hit his brakes and moved over into the right lane.

“I thought I told you to slow-- Mason, no!”

 

_________________________________________________________________

 

Nick pulled his rental car into the small gravel lot and parked it beside a beat-up, older model red Jeep. Kevin and his brother leaned up against one side of it casually. “What’s this all about?” Nick pleaded as he opened his door and climbed out, stretching awkwardly. After driving straight there from Franklin, with only one stop to take is speeding ticket and go on without a fight, Nick’s back and neck felt like a tightly coiled spring that needed to be unwound. An hour outside of Berea, he’d gotten a text from Annie that was simply an address. So, of course, he’s programmed it into his GPS and driven a little faster, hoping that maybe fate thought one speeding ticket in a day was enough.

 

“She’s over there.” Tim pointed to a narrow path through the leafless trees that were still wet with rain and glistening in the sunlight.

 

Nick nodded and tucked his keys into his pocket, then wiped his palms, which were sweating despite the chill in the air, on the legs of his jeans as he made his way through the trees, the wet gravel crunching under the weight of his tennis shoes. His breath hitched in his throat and he stopped dead in his tracks when he saw her. She was kneeling on the ground about a hundred yards away with her back to them, her hair dancing in the wind, and facing a large, rounded slab of marble. Nick whipped his head in Kevin and Tim’s direction as hot tears pricked at the corners of his eyes. “She wanted to meet me at a graveyard?” Both Richardson men nodded. He gulped. "Andrew’s grave?” This time, only Tim nodded.

 

Suddenly, Nick’s breath started coming in short, shuddering gasps, and his hands hit his knees as he bent forward in an attempt to pull more air into his lungs. “Why would you let me come all this way for this? So that I can have my heart broken again. What the hell’s wrong with you?” he growled, more at Kevin than at Tim, who he’d only met a small handful of times.

 

“Nick, breathe,” Kevin coaxed gently.

 

“I can’t!” he panted in return. “Most of the time I can barely breathe when I’m around her under the best of circumstances! Now, she’s brought me to her husband’s grave so she can tell me she’s changed her mind and that she can’t be with me!” In the distance, Annie whipped her head around at the sound of Nick’s voice.

 

“Is that what you think this is?” Tim asked gently, as he stooped down to look Nick in the eye and place a hand on his shoulder.

 

“What else could it be?”

 

“Maybe you should go find out.” Kevin gestured in Annie’s direction, and Nick turned to look at her. Their eyes locked, her expression unreadable. Yet, she beckoned him to come to her with a “come-hither” motion of her index finger.

 

“Oh, God,” he breathed quietly. “What do I do?” his eyes searched those of both Richardson brothers.

 

“Go to her, of course,” Kevin answered quickly.

 

Nick nodded and straightened up, then turned and walked slowly towards Annie. He hesitated and turned back to them for just a moment. “I don’t think I can handle this.”

 

“Go on...” Tim coaxed with a shooing motion of this hand. “Trust me.”

 

“And Happy Birthday,” Kevin echoed after him with a wink.

 

Nick’s heart beat wildly in his chest and he walked a little faster. Annie had turned back to the headstone in front of her, and he could hear angelic voice murmuring quietly, though he couldn’t yet make out the words. He suddenly realized that he wanted to hear them, and knowing that the next few moments would likely seal his fate one way or another, he started to jog. By the last few yards, he was at a dead sprint, closing the space between them as quickly as possible. She had yet to turn back around, so he stopped just a few footfalls behind her, placed his hands on his hips, and listened. Her curls danced in the cold breeze, whipping around her face, and her hands were in her lap, toying with what he recognized as the same cashmere throw she’d clutched around her shoulders yesterday afternoon. Since he couldn’t see her face without interrupting the sweet cadence of her voice that was now practically surrounding him, he instead gazed at the wisps of auburn hair that danced along the nape of her neck and longed to run his fingers through them.

 

“I think you’d really like him, Andrew,” she said to the base of the intricately engraved tombstone. “He’s not at all like I’d imagined him in my dreams so many years ago. Instead, he reminds me of you, and I think that’s what made me so afraid of having a relationship with him in the first place. That’s until I realized that the things about him that reminded me of you weren’t so much the things that made you who you were as a person, but the things that made you who you were as part of ‘us’--- Like the way he smiles at me when I walk into a room. His demeanor completely changes. It’s like for some crazy reason I’ll never understand, just my presence makes him happy. But I’ve gotta say, maybe I kind of understand that, because when he runs his fingers through my hair, I shiver. Every single time I shiver. Only you used to be able to do that to me.” She paused, and Nick took a few tentative steps towards her, stopping just short of the space directly to her left. “And when I’m talking, he looks at me like I’m the only other person in the entire universe. I guess what I’m trying to say is that he treats me the way you treated me-- The way you’d still want me to be treated. So, I want you know that while I’m always going to love you and cherish every single second I had with you...” She trailed off and looked up at Nick with a smile, then reached for his right hand that was hanging at his side, grasped it with her left, and gave him a gentle tug. “I think that now it’s time to give my heart to someone else.” Nick smiled back and took a step forward so that there was no longer any distance between them, then sank down to his knees in the grass beside her.

“Andrew, meet Nick,” she said. She leaned in to give Nick a soft, reassuring peck on the cheek. “Nick.... Andrew.”

 

Nick cast his eyes downward at the engraved marble in front of him. “Nice to meet you, sir,” he said reverently. Annie gave his hand a little squeeze.

 

“I didn’t really plan on him being here for this....”

 

Nick cast his eyes towards hers. “Sorry,” he said meekly.

 

“But I’m kind of glad he is.” Nick relaxed, but only for a moment. “Because I might need help with the shovel.”

 

“What?” Nick hissed, his eyes as big as saucers.

 

Annie couldn’t help it. She burst into an uncontrollable fit of giggles. She knew what his knee-jerk reaction to such a statement would be. That was why she said it. She needed to break the tension in Nick’s presence beside her, and figured Andrew would probably get a kick out of it, too. She gestured down to the blanket in her lap. “I want to bury something. Not dig something up!”

 

Nick breathed a sigh of relief, but still felt a little uneasy. “Here?”

 

Annie shook her head. “No. There are regulations about that. Over there actually.” She pointed to a large, sprawling willow tree in the far corner of the fenced in cemetery.

 

Nick eyed the willow tree and nodded. “I’m going to give you a minute, okay? I’ll be right back.” He stood, and she stood with him, still grasping his hand. Then, he bent down to plant a kiss on her cheek and turned to jog towards his car. He noticed that Kevin and Tim had long since gone, as their vehicle was nowhere to be seen. He grinned even bigger than before when he realized that the two of them must have known how this was going to end all along. After grabbing something out of this car, he returned to Annie quickly and found her standing beneath the leafless willow tree. Her hand was outstretched, and her index finger traced a carving in the trunk. When he got closer, he was able to see that it read “AD + AM.” Those were the initials of Annie and her husband, and he could imagine Annie looking on as Andrew etched the rough carving into the tree with a pocketknife years ago. “So, this is a pretty special place,” he said somberly as he stopped beside her.

 

Annie nodded. “This is where be proposed.”

 

Nick cocked an eyebrow. “In a cemetery?”

 

Annie laughed. “It wasn’t a cemetery then. When I found out they were going to build a cemetery here, I was mortified, but in the end I was glad that this was Andrew’s final resting place.” She bent over to pick up the shovel that was resting on the ground beside her. “Let’s do this. It’s time to let go.”

 

Nick watched as she angled the tip of the blade into the soft ground and pushed down on the shovel with her foot. The grass below gave away easily, and she scooped and tossed a patch of soggy earth away. After the first few scoops, Nick took over for her, and soon there was a hole large enough to hold the cashmere throw tossed on the ground beside it. Annie hit her knees and let out a little sob as she picked it up and started to lay it inside. “Wait.” Nick stooped down beside her and grasped her wrist just as she was about to let the blanket go. “Let’s do this together.” He reached into his back pocket and pulled out a tiny, red and black football jersey.

 

“Oh,” Annie gasped as she recognized the Tampa Bay Bucs jersey Nick had alluded to buying for Lauren when she was pregnant.

 

“I’ve been carrying this thing around for months. Not all the time, but for some reason, I did today. Now I know that it’s because it’s time for me to let go of something, too.” Annie looked on as he stood and grabbed the shovel again to quickly dig a hole beside hers, almost equal in size. “You know, maybe I should have done this somewhere else. Do you think Andrew would mind? I mean, this is kind of like sacred ground for you two.”

 

Annie quickly shook her head. “No. This is good. I honestly think he’d be fine with it.”

 

“Okay,then. You ready?” Nick held the jersey up and looked at Annie expectantly. She nodded and dropped the cashmere throw into hole in the ground. Nick followed suit and laid the Bucs jersey into the soft earth, then pulled a few handfuls of soil over it. He looked up to find Annie looking down at the throw with a ring box in her hand and tears coursing down her cheeks. “You don’t have to bury those,” he said softly. “I mean, don’t keep them in your dresser drawer anymore, but maybe box them up and put them in the attic. Drew might like to have them someday.”

 

Annie smiled through her tears. “That’s exactly what I was thinking. Thank you.” Nick nodded and brushed her tears away, leaving faint, muddy smudges on her cheeks. She tossed a few handfuls of dirt over the throw, and they stood up, taking turns with the shovel until both holes were filled back up. Nick reached for Annie’s hand and gave it a squeeze, and in turn, Annie let go of his hand and threw her arms around her waist. He wrapped his own arms around her shoulders and planted a long kiss on her temple before resting his chin against the top of her head as they stood and examined their handiwork. There in the upturned soil, they’d unknowingly filled their holes so that they converged in an almost perfect heart.

 

Epilogue by emily_michele

 

“Alright. So.... Everybody listen up for a minute.” Nick eased down onto the black wooden stool behind him and situated the strap holding his new guitar around his neck. “I want to take the opportunity to thank you guys... Well gals, most of you, for coming out tonight and making the first night of my US tour totally awesome.” The crowd cheered. “You might not know that this was actually supposed to the the second stop on my tour. We were going to do a big birthday bash in Vegas a couple nights ago, but things didn’t quite work out as planned, and we ended up pushing the Las Vegas date back to near the end of the tour.”

 

There was a collective “Awww....” amongst the fans.

 

“But-” Nick interrupted them with his finger in the air. “But--- My birthday turned out even better than it could have possibly been if I’d had a big party in Vegas, and that’s why I want to sing this next song. I did this one a few times at the Q&A sessions for a few shows on the Canadian leg of the tour, and got a really great response, so I decided to add it to the set list for you guys.” Again, the crowd cheered. “However...” He looked up at Annie, who was perched on the front row of the balcony with a perfect view. “In light of some recent changes that have been going on in my life, I’ve decided to change it up a little bit. I hope Mr. Petty doesn’t mind if I mash his song up with one of mine to reflect how I’m feeling right now.” He winked at Annie as he started to play the opening riff to the loud approval of the crowd.

 

“She’s a good girl. Loves her mama

Loves Jesus, and America too.

She’d a good girl, crazy ‘bout Elvis.

Loves horses, and her boyfriend, too...”

 

Annie swayed to the music and locked eyes with Nick as he continued to sing. He’d occasionally look around and play up the crowd, but he always kept coming back to her.

 

“...I wanna glide down, over Mulholland.

I wanna write her, name in the sky.

I wanna free fall, out into nothing.

I’m gonna leave this world for a while...

 

Cause I’m falling in love again,

I’m falling in love again

I’m falling in love again

Don’t stop baby, cause I’m falling in love again.”


Annie couldn’t help but laugh at the creative liberty he’d taken with the song, but had to admit she loved it. Many years ago, she’d dreamed about being serenaded by a Backstreet Boy at a concert, and while the guy was different, and she technically wasn’t even at a Backstreet Boys concert, the reality was so much better.

This story archived at http://absolutechaos.net/viewstory.php?sid=10872