Brian pulled Nick off to the side as soon as he could. “I need your car.”
“What?” Nick still had a massive smile plastered on his face. He ripped his attention away from Baylee and the rest of the guys who were still rehashing the events of the hearing and focused his eyes on Brian’s anxious face. “When? Why?”
“Right now.” Brian pleaded. “Please.”
Nick fished in his pocket for his keys. “Are you going to see Kayla?”
Brian nodded. “If I can keep Baylee, I can keep her too.”
“What are you going to do?” Nick deposited his keys in Brian’s outstretched hand. “What are you going to say?”
“I’m going to tell her what AJ already told her for me.” Brian was grinning like an idiot, buoyed on by the confidence that had come with retaining primary custody of Baylee. “I’m going to tell her that I love her.”
Nick grinned back at Brian; his smile mirroring the one that was plastered across his best friend’s face. “You’re such a nerd.”
Brian curled his fingers around Nick’s keys as his smile intensified. “Thanks.”
“Go!” Nick pushed Brian gently towards the door. “We’ll take Baylee home.”
Brian didn’t hesitate. He grabbed his jacket and hurried out of the courthouse. It had been snowing all morning and his feet slipped in the fresh powder as he hustled towards Nick’s car. An unblemished coating of snow covered the windshield and the back window. Knowing full well that Nick probably didn’t own a snow brush, Brian pulled his hand into his sleeve and used his arm to clear the windows. The fluffy flakes collected on his jacket and pushed inside his sleeve; chilling his skin. Brian barely noticed.
The tires crunched on the snow as Brian backed out of the parking spot and drove past the now completely frozen parking attendant. The car skidded and Brian tightened his grip on the steering wheel as he pulled out into the early afternoon traffic. He prayed to God that he wasn’t going to total Nick’s car as the tires hit a patch of ice and the car drifted towards the centre median. He didn’t want to waste time waiting for a tow truck.
It should have taken him thirty minutes to drive to the condominium complex where Kayla lived. It ended up taking him an hour and a half. By the time Brian pulled up in front of the building, his nerves had gotten the better of him. All of his grand intentions that involved rushing up to Kayla’s front door and sweeping her off of her feet had disappeared. He was now a panic stricken mess; a sweaty, nervous, shaking mess. Brian was pretty sure that he looked like death warmed over, but he also knew that it was too late to change his mind.
He swung Nick’s car into a parallel parking spot in front of Kayla’s building. The tires scraped against the curb and the front bumper banged against a large pile of snow. Brian cringed; he would likely be paying to have some dents banged out. He took a quick glance at his handy work as he exited the car. Thankfully, his less than impressive parking skills didn’t appear to have caused any damage, and he breathed a sigh of relief as he hustled through the still falling snow towards the condominium’s main entrance.
“Unit number or last name?”
Brian stopped brushing the snow off of his shoulders and stared at the bored looking concierge. The man was in his early twenties, and he looked as though he would rather be anywhere besides stuck behind the expansive wooden desk that was tucked neatly into the corner of the lobby.
“Pardon?”
The man sighed. “Can I have the unit number or the last name of the person who you’re here to see?” The man paused. “Please.”
“Ford.” Brian supplied Kayla’s last name. He realized that he actually had no idea what unit she lived in. He clearly hadn’t thought this whole thing through.
“Is Ms. Ford expecting you?” The man tapped lazily at a keyboard.
Brian nodded vigorously. He hoped that his face looked calm and believable. “Yup.”
The concierge waved his arm in the direction of the elevator. “It’s all set up for you. You don’t even have to push the button.”
“Thanks.” Brian stepped into the elevator and let out a long, slow breath as the doors slid closed.
True to the concierge’s word the elevator started moving without him having to lift a finger. Less than a minute later, the doors slid open and a mechanical voice informed him that he had reached the seventh floor. Brian stepped out into the hallway and looked quickly in both directions. There looked to be about twelve suites on the floor and he had no idea which one was Kayla’s. Brian turned to his right with the intention of knocking on every door until Kayla finally opened one of them, but he stopped in his tracks as the door closest to him swung open.
A young woman with short brown hair stepped out into the hallway. She was wearing yoga pants and an oversized sweatshirt. Both of her hands were wrapped firmly around a bag of garbage. The woman’s eyes widened in surprise as she caught sight of Brian standing in front of her.
“What the fuck?”
“Hi.” Brian offered. “I was wondering if you would be able to help me.”
“You – You need help?” The woman was still staring at him with wide eyes. “You ARE Brian Littrell, right? Brian from the Backstreet Boys?”
Brian laughed softly. The woman was slender and petite with a soft face. She looked as though she should be an elementary school teacher. “Yes. I’m Brian. Brian from the Backstreet Boys.”
“Wow.” The woman’s eyes were now searching his face. “I would ask you for a hug, but I’m sick. Hence, the reason why I’m home on a Friday afternoon in my sweats holding two bags of garbage.”
“Ahhh” Brian smiled. He figured that it would work in his favour to make small talk. “What do you do when you’re not sick?”
“I teach second grade.” The woman replied. “It’s the kids who made me sick.”
Brian could feel his smile growing. God, he was good! “What’s your name?”
The woman hesitated. “Jessica.” She smiled widely before she continued. “But everyone I know calls me Jess.”
“Well, Jess, I was wondering if you could tell me where someone lives.” Brian’s heart rate had picked up speed. “I’m looking for Kayla Ford. She’s tall and slim with long red hair. She has a little girl, Liliana.”
“She lives down the hall in 714.” Jessica nodded in the opposite direction. “I don’t actually know if her name is Kayla, but the girl who lives there fits your description. Her hair is crazy gorgeous; deep red. I would kill for hair like hers!”
“Thanks.” Brian’s smile crinkled at the corners. “I should let you get back to your afternoon on the couch.”
“Do you know her?” Jessica seemed to be debating about whether or not she was being too nosy. “Kayla, I mean.”
“Yeah.” Brian’s smile pulled at his cheeks. “I know her.”
“She’s lucky.” Jessica breathed. “Really lucky.”
“I’m not sure if she thinks so at the moment.” Brian began backing away in the direction of Kayla’s unit. “Thanks again, Jess.”
“Any time.” Jessica coughed lightly and turned her head. She began walking away in what Brian assumed was the direction of the garbage chute. “Goodbye, Brian.”
Brian waited until Jessica had disappeared around the corner before he turned around and began walking towards unit 714. He paused in front of the door and sucked in his breath before raising his hand and knocking firmly. Kayla pulled open the door sooner than he had expected, and he took a step back as their eyes locked.
Kayla was on the phone and her eyes popped open in surprise. She stood deathly still for a moment before directing a rapid stream of French into the phone. Brian could hear the person on the other end answer just as rapidly and he shifted uncomfortably from one foot to the other. Maybe he should have called first.
“Brian?” Kayla disconnected the call and switched to perfect, unaccented English without missing a beat. “What are you doing here?”
“I came to see you.” Brian felt like an idiot for supplying such a ridiculously obvious answer. It was hot in the hallway and he was sweating uncontrollably in his heavy winter coat. “Can I come in?”
“Sure.” Kayla’s face was uncertain, but she stepped back into her unit and held the door open for him.
Brian followed her inside and quickly shrugged out of his jacket. He hung it next to hers on the row of pegs to the right of the front door without even asking. He kicked off his wet shoes and stepped forward to allow Kayla to close the door.
Kayla clicked the lock into place and stared at the back of the door for a few seconds before turning around and repeating her question. “What are you doing here?”
“I won.” Brian took a few more steps into Kayla’s condo and leaned against the edge of the counter. It was such a small, open concept space that Brian couldn’t quite determine if he was standing in the kitchen, the dining room, or the living room. Not that it really mattered in the grand scheme of things. “I get to retain primary custody of Baylee.”
“What?” Kayla’s face registered her surprise. “Brian, that’s amazing! What happened? I thought for sure that I had ruined everything for you.”
“I ruined everything for you.” Brian frowned at the distance that Kayla was purposefully keeping between them. He reached out and gently grabbed her hand. She didn’t resist, but she didn’t tighten her grip either. “I’m sorry about your job.”
Kayla shrugged, but her eyes betrayed how upset she really was. “I was half expecting it to happen anyway.”
“I couldn’t do it.” Brian tugged at her hand and she took a few cautious steps towards him. “I couldn’t lie to your face. I couldn’t tell you that I didn’t care about you.”
“Brian ...” Kayla shook her head. “... don’t do this.”
“Kay, I miss you.” Brian took her other hand in his and continued to pull her closer. “I care about you ... a lot.”
“I’m not staying.” Against her better judgement, Kayla was allowing Brian to pull her against him. He released her hands and dug his fingers into her hips. Kayla could feel every inch of him pressing against her and she struggled to control her feelings. “I can’t stay here without a job. Once C.P.S. registers my dismissal, I will lose my work Visa. I can’t stay in the States without a Visa. I have to go home.”
“This is my fault.” Brian’s voice wavered. “I know that you’ve lost your job, but you can’t leave.”
“I don’t have a choice. I’m not eligible for unemployment benefits.” Kayla’s eyes locked with Brian’s. She moved her hands to his chest. The soft fabric of his suit felt good under her fingers; the hardness of his chest felt even better. “I have Lily to think about.”
“Kay ...” Brian licked his lips. His heart was racing. “... I know that AJ talked to you.”
Kayla’s fingers were fiddling with Brian’s tie. “Yeah?”
“I know that we haven’t been together for very long and I know that I’m probably going to come across sounding like a crazy person, but ...” Brian’s voice seemed to have developed a permanent tremor. “ ... but I love you.”
Kayla stared back at him in silence. She had known what Brian was about to say, but she still hadn’t been completely prepared to hear him say the words. He was right; he did sound like a crazy person. It was too soon, too early for him to think that he was in love with her. At least that’s what her brain was telling her. Her body, on the other hand, was screaming at her to say it back. Her heart was beating too hard and too fast for the confines of her chest; her heart knew that she loved him back, even if her brain didn’t.
“It’s too fast.” Kayla whispered. “You can’t possibly be in love with me.”
“I am.” Brian smiled and pressed her against him. “I knew from the moment that you handed Baylee that five dollar bill on his first day of school. I’ve always known.”
“I still have to leave, Brian. I’ve already spoken to my friend in Ottawa. She’s going to let me stay with her until I can get myself re-established.” Kayla was trying to ignore the fact that Brian looked beyond sexy in his suit. She was trying to ignore the feeling of his fingers sliding around her hips and onto her back. She was trying to ignore his obvious desire that was pressing against her.
“You can live with me.” Brian kissed her lightly on the lips. It took all of his willpower to pull away and keep talking. “I want you to come and live with me. I want you to come on tour with me next month. I want us to be a family.”
“I have Liliana. She gets into everything and she still doesn’t sleep through the night.” Kayla attempted an excuse.
“I have a pre-teen son who insists that I have to keep my shirt on in all of my future music videos.” Brian shot back.
“I’m thirty-one years old and I’m unemployed.” Kayla tried again.
“I’m thirty-eight years old and I’m in a boy band.” Brian countered.
“Lily has a lot of stuff. It would take up a lot of space in your house.” Kayla struggled to keep a straight face.
“I have an annoying blonde roommate who already takes up too much space in my house.” Brian bit his bottom lip as Kayla’s hands snaked their way through the hair on the back of his head. His mind flashed to their first kiss in his mom’s kitchen. He could feel his pants becoming increasingly tight. “I might have to kick him out.”
Kayla dropped her mouth to Brian’s neck. She started kissing him slowly, working her way along his jaw-line to his ear. “I have a pink duvet. It’s my favourite. I would have to bring it with me.”
Brian struggled to pull his mind back to the conversation. Kayla had stopped kissing him and was staring at him expectantly. Brian tightened his grip on her back and gave her a boyish smile. “I have pink shoes.”
Kayla grinned. “Brian?” She rested her forehead against his.
“Yeah, Kay?” Brian swallowed hard. He knew what was coming.
Kayla pressed her lips lightly against his. “I love you, too.”
Chapter End Notes:
What can I say? I'm a sucker for a happy ending. :) I've left things open for a sequel, and there may very well be one in the near future. However, a sequel is not my next project. I've already started working on another idea, but it's a completely different genre. We'll see how things go. I just wanted to take a minute to say "thank you" to everyone who took the time to review. It means SO much to me to see all of your feedback and to know that people are enjoying the story line. If it wasn't for the reviews, I would have no motivation so: THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU!!! xx
