Nick slept late the next day. The cumulative effects of a long day on the water and the number of beers he’d consumed while listening to Pete’s story were that he slept dreamlessly until well past ten in the morning.
Nick threw on some clothes, pausing over yesterday’s shirt and then deciding in favor of a clean one. If he might be running into people he knew…
Nick made coffee and ate a bowl of cereal standing up over the sink. He rinsed the bowl and left it in the sink. He thought about making himself some lunch before he went topside but decided against it. He grabbed two bottles of water and put them in the cooler. Then he took his coffee and went upstairs to greet the day.
It was a beautiful morning. The sun was shining, and there was a gentle breeze. It might get hot later in the day, but right now, it was comfortable.
Sure was different from Florida, thought Nick. Even first thing in the morning at this time of year, it was already hot. And in the summer…July and August…the heat was so stifling it took your breath away.
And they were starting the tour in Florida…in July…in outdoor venues. They’d be sweating like pigs throughout the whole show. At least, he would be, thought Nick.
Nick smiled and finished his coffee. Getting on the road with the fellas…he could hardly wait. The mini-tour they’d done in the spring had whet their appetite for more. The album would be out soon, and then they’d be doing rehearsals, video shoots and then show after show after show.
Smaller venues this time, thought Nick. A little bigger than the general admission shows…and a little more crowd control. Sometimes it was scary looking out at those bodies in the front row crushed up against the security barrier, literally taking their life in their hands so they could be closest to the stage, to the Boys, to Nick…
Yeah, Nick thought, those were my fans…mine and AJ’s…Kevin fans were way too smart to get crushed in like that. They were all hanging out near the back…hearing the same music, seeing the same dances, but able to breathe and move a bit. Of course, mused Nick, those fans were missing the big opportunity to have BSB water thrown on them…or AJ sweat…or Nick spit.
Nick went below, rinsed out his coffee mug and put it in the sink beside the cereal bowl. He picked up the cooler and climbed to the top deck. He turned on the boat, checked all the switches and gauges and placed the navigation chart for this part of the trip in the plexiglas holder beside the wheel.
“Hey, Man! Want me to shove you off?”
Nick looked down to see a teenage boy standing on the dock. He was wearing cut-off jeans and a T-shirt that said ‘Rock on!’ A fishing rod and a tackle box sat on the dock beside him.
Nick smiled and waved. “That’d be cool, Man!”
The boy unlooped the mooring rope from it’s stanchion and tossed it up on the deck. He pushed hard on the boat and then leaned back, regaining his footing.
“Thanks,” called Nick, reversing the boat away from the slip.
“Nice rig,” said the boy, nodding his head appreciatively.
Nick nodded his agreement and his thanks and then turned the boat out into the canal. He pressed the throttle slowly forward. He waved to the boy again. The boy waved back. When Nick cleared the channel, he looked back over his shoulder. The boy was still on the dock, gazing admiringly at the Lenore.
Nick smiled. He remembered being a kid, looking at every boat he saw, wanting one in the worst way. He was younger than this kid. This kid looked to be about sixteen. By the time Nick was sixteen, he’d been on the road for three years, and that was after years of auditions, fits and starts, bit parts, being nagged endlessly by his mother.
No, I’m not going there, thought Nick. I’m not letting her wreck this trip.
Nick looked down at the chart. He traced his finger down the route. He looked at his watch.
Beaufort.
That would make this a slow, lazy day. Nick consulted the ICW Handbook, looking over the list of rivers, inlets and coves. Yeah, here were a couple…Tom Point Creek, SC at Mile 496. Excellent depth and shelters, totally deserted…Rock Creek, SC, Mile 516, good depth, marsh grasses…
As with everything in his life, once Nick made his decision, a calm settled over him, and all the jumpy nerves went away. He was going to take it slow and easy today.
As Nick left the marina, he passed the slip where the Sunset Voyager had been berthed. The slip was empty. He wondered how much of a head start Pete and Jo had. Nick wondered if he would catch up to them during the day. He wasn’t going to try. He didn’t really care. He’d see them in Beaufort…or not. It didn’t really matter.
Nick wondered how he would react to Jo if he did see her. Would he be able to keep a poker face and not let on that he knew her secret? Would she be mad at Pete if she knew he had spilled the beans to Nick?
Well, too bad, thought Nick. I’ll face that if I get to it. Right now, I’m just going to enjoy the ride.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~As Nick moved along the Waterway, he let his thoughts wander, but he never lost his concentration on driving the boat. His mind drifted along various pathways, hopping from one subject to the next, sometimes with no discernible connection. Sometimes it was the beauty of nature that occupied his thoughts, sometimes it was his personal life, and sometimes it was his business – the business of being Nick Carter.
Nick saw an egret standing in the shallow water of a marsh, and its skinny legs made him think of Jordana. What was it Pete had said? “Still twenty pounds shy of where she should be?”
Nick tried to imagine Jo that skinny. He couldn’t. If she even lost ten pounds, she’d be skeletal. It would be suicidal.
Nick wondered about that. Pete had hinted at that the night before but had not come right out and said it. But really, when you looked at it, could you really get yourself into a state like that and not be aware of it? Could you be so close to death that you couldn’t even stand up and not think there was something wrong?
Nick pondered that for a moment. Five more pounds. That’s what Jordana had said when they found her. On the way to the hospital, she had told Mickey that she was okay, there was nothing wrong with her, she didn’t think she was fat any more...and that she figured she just needed to lose five more pounds.
Five more pounds.
Nick ran his hand across his stomach. Five pounds. It was weird how that was the number everyone used when they talked about weight loss. Woo hoo! I lost five pounds. Maybe because the number was achievable. Anyone could lose five pounds, right? Ten pounds. That would be twice as difficult, right? It would be better to shoot for five…twice.
Nick knew that losing ten pounds was more than twice as difficult as losing five. Putting on five pounds. Whole different story! Easy as pie…or cake…or pizza…or beer…
Beer.
That thought brought Nick back again to Pete.
Poor Pete.
He’d planned this trip to take Mickey on a romantic getaway and propose to her. Now, not only did he not have Mickey, he was stuck with her anorexic friend who wouldn’t eat anything and had to be watched carefully so that she didn’t exercise herself to death.
Nick thought about that. He didn’t think there was much opportunity for strenuous exercise on the Sunset Voyager, unless Jo leapt into the Waterway and swam alongside the boat for a few miles. It didn’t seem like she was into exercise anyway, thought Nick. She seemed to spend most of her time sleeping. You couldn’t use up many calories that way.
Exercise.
Boot camp.
Nick grinned to himself. Boot camp. Brian.
Poor Brian.
For once, it had not been Nick who arrived at the first training session the most out of shape. Brian had gained quite a bit of sympathy weight during Leighanne’s pregnancy and had arrived at boot camp with chubby cheeks and a tummy roll that he called his ‘Baylee Bulge’. For once, someone else was the target of the sadistic devil hired to get them in shape.
Howie arrived in perfect condition and then worked out harder than any of them. AJ was as skinny as a bone and worked out when he felt like it. He was very careful of his knee, but Nick and the others knew it was only when he wanted to be. When the going got tough, AJ headed for the sidelines with a wince and a wink.
As for Nick, the trainer had run his eyes over him and then pursed his lips.
“I’ll do the exercises, and I’ll sweat like a pig,” said Nick. “But I’m stocky! Get over it!”
The others fell about laughing, but Satan the Trainer only said, “Yeah, you’re gonna sweat!”
Kevin arrived in perfect condition and announced that he really wanted to get a program going because he wanted to lose five more pounds.
