I really should tell them. I'm sure they'd want to know. I mean, if it were me, I'd want to know my only daughter had been accepted as an intern to Seventeen magazine in New York City, at the other end of the country. As far as they knew, I was still going to be working at my father's real estate agency, living only thirty minutes away from them. I sighed and folded the paper of my dreams and placed it back on my dresser. Today wasn't the day to tell them. I would do it another time. I had three months to break it to them, and then they had three months of summer to get over it. Six months was a long time. I was sure everything would end up okay. I decided to wait to tell them. This was a family picnic and big family gatherings like this one had enough drama included. Extra chaos and stress would only ruin the day.

"Rachel! Rachel!" My ten-year-old cousin, Abigail, ran towards me, her blonde pigtails swaying behind her. She was being chased by the man who made my heart skip a beat. Ryan Anderson, the Prince Charming in my fairytale life. The curly blonde-haired girl quickly hid behind my legs, trying to stifle the giggles that were rumbling up her throat. I laughed as Ryan approached me. He was my type, as my mother would say. Tall, blonde and handsome. He had these piercing blue eyes that could stun anyone or anything in his path. His smile was so wide and so bright, covering up my bad mood or sadness any day. He was my dream come true.

"Have you seen a ten-year-old...about this tall?" He asked me and motioned with his hand to Abigail's height. He knew perfectly well she was standing right behind me.

"Nope, I'm sorry, I haven't," I shrugged playfully. He laughed and rubbed his chin, as if he were in deep thought.

"Well then, I guess I'll just have to take you hostage, Miss. I hope you don't mind," he smiled and picked me up off my feet as if I were a baby or something. I laughed hysterically as Abigail attacked his legs, ordering him to put me down and let me go. I wrapped my arms around his neck and held on for dear life as he cradled me in his arms.

"Ryan! Put Rachel down!" Abigail yelled furiously as she charged his legs over and over again. She rammed her head into his knee caps until we both fell down laughing to the sand below us. I fell on top of his chest and he fell laughing on his back.

"Oh! Are you okay?" I laughed as I lifted my head from his chest. His chest heaved with laughter as he nodded. "That was kind of a hard hit." I couldn't stop laughing.

"Nah, she's only ten," he laughed. I could tell he was trying to catch his breath, no matter how old she was. "I'll live."

"Okay, you two love birds," I heard my mom from behind us. I laughed and rolled off Ryan. We helped each other up and smiled at my mom. She was the perfect mother, the perfect wife, and the perfect neighbor. Her shoulder-legnth blonde hair sat perfectly on her shoulders, a little gray creeping out at her roots. Her big blue eyes could read a person in a matter of seconds. God knows she read Ryan when I first brought him home. Good thing, for me, at least, was that she fell in love with him. Sometimes I think she's more in love with him than I am.

"Dinner!" Dad yelled from the grill. I smiled and hurried over to the picnic table where Abigail was climbing onto the seat. We all grabbed a plate and began to fix food for each other.

"I have something I need to talk to you about later," Ryan whispered in my ear seductively as we both made our plates. I looked deeply into his eyes, looking for a hint or clue as to what it was he wanted to talk about.

"Is everything okay?" I asked him. He nodded and smiled. It reassured me enough. I couldn't help but look in my parents' direction and see cheesey grins planted firmly on their faces. "Is there something wrong?" I asked them. They both shook their heads no. I frowned and laughed, but kept the buffet line moving along.

"Uncle Ryan, help me make my plate!" Abigail exclaimed and tugged on his pant leg. He laughed and took the plate from her hands. My heart nearly stopped. She had just called him Uncle Ryan and I wasn't sure if I was happy or scared by that.

"Hey Ray, can I talk to you for a second?" Ryan asked me. I wasn't quite sure why he would always call me Ray. I guess because I told him not to call me Rach. That name had died as an old memory with an old friend. No one called me Rach anymore.

"Yeah, just let me finish cleaning up," I smiled and continued to pick up paper products off the picnic table. My mom cleared her throat and I looked up at her.

"Your father and I have it under control. You two go talk," she winked. By this point, I was fully aware she knew something I didn't. I had never really been a fan of surprises, so I wasn't sure what to expect.

"What's up, Ryan?" I frowned as we headed down the quiet beach. The sun had already started setting and the view was absolutely beautiful. I had never seen anything so beautiful before. I focused in on his stunning blue eyes and waited for him to start.

"Well, we've been dating for almost a year and a half now," he slipped his hand into mine and intertwined our fingers. "And I've come to realize that whenever I'm with you, I can be myself. The real me, you know?" He asked and I nodded. "I love being around you, I love being with you and your family, and I don't want to spend my life with anyone but you." His voice was lowered to almost a whisper. "So, Rachel LaRoe, will you marry me?" He faced me completely and held both of my hands with his. He let go for an instant to reach into his pocket for a little black velvet box.

It wasn't that I couldn't find the words to say, it was that I didn't know which words to use. Yes or no. It seems so simple, right? I should know this! Yet it was almost like one of those dreaded pop quizzes in high school, so unexpected and, sometimes, so hard. Sure, I loved Ryan. But I had felt stronger feelings for someone else at one point in time.

"Baby?" Ryan frowned. I suppose my silence was worrying him...it was worrying me, that's for sure.

"Sorry!" I laughed lightly and looked at the ring he had slid up my ring finger. "Yes! Of course! Yes, I'll marry you!" I exclaimed happily. He laughed, and it almost sounded as if relief had come over him. He picked me up off the sand and spun me around, then kissed me tenderly in his arms. A grin formed over my lips as he placed me back down on the sand. I giggled as I watched my mom and dad run over from the picnic table.

"She said yes!" Ryan yelled back towards them. I fell into a fit of laughter as I realized they had known about this the entire time. We all exchanged hugs, dad telling Ryan how excited he was that he would be joining the family and mom already discussing wedding dates with me.

But there was something in my heart I was trying to cover up or hide. Some feeling that I was trying to look past. A feeling of guilt, maybe? Feeling guilty because I was hiding my true feelings? Of course not...I love Ryan. But still, there seemed to be something missing.

"I still can't believe you're doing this," my mother muttered as she sat on the edge of my bed and I zipped up my suitcase.

"Mom, I'll be gone for a few months. I'm not officially accepting the internship, I'm going to be living in New York for a few months to see how I like it, and then if I'm really that interested, I'll apply again. They already said I could come in and work when I want to work for the first few weeks. They're being very flexible with me and I couldn't be more grateful," I sighed as I pulled my suitcase towards the door.

"You're engaged, Rachel!" My mother exclaimed. I could tell she was really disappointed in me. I rolled my eyes and turned towards her.

"What's that supposed to mean, mom? Yes, I am engaged. But just because I'm engaged doesn't mean I can stop my career and my life for Ryan. Ryan is fully aware of what I want to do with my life and he's fully supportive. He's coming to visit me next month in New York. Plus, I think this will be good for us. It gives us a little break away from each other to sort through things," I shrugged and pulled my luggage down the stairs.

"I don't understand you," my mother's words were dripping with hurt and anger. She was so frustrated with me. At this point, I didn't care. My mom was the kind of person that was never satisfied. She always found something that I had done that was wrong or irresponsible in her eyes.

"Well, there are a lot of confusing things about me," I replied sarcastically as I headed to the living room. Ryan smiled at me from the couch and stood up, his hands in his pockets.

"You ready?" He asked me. I nodded and smiled back.

"Mom, Ryan's going to be dropping me off at the airport this morning. I'll call you when I get to New York and we'll keep in touch from there," I smiled and kissed her cheek. "I love you mom, no matter how mad you are right now."

"You're a good man, Ryan. Standing by my daughter even though she's being awfully stupid at the moment," my mom commented with her arms folded firmly across her chest. I tried to stifle a laugh as I helped Ryan take some of my bags out to his car.

"Bye, dad," I smiled at my dad and wrapped my arms around his neck. I kissed his cheek as we pulled apart.

"If you need anything, Rachel, you just call, okay? And don't worry about your mom. She'll get over things quickly," my dad whispered in my ear. I could only hope and pray that he was right. I kissed his cheek one last time and walked towards Ryan's Durango. "I love you, Rachel."

"Love you too, dad," I smiled back at him and loaded my things into the car. I climbed up onto the seat and watched out the window. What a sight that would be. My stubborn mother with her arms crossed over her chest. Then my sympathetic father with a small smirk over his lips. I smiled and waved once more to the happy couple and waited as Ryan started the car. "I'm sorry about my mom." I sighed as we had started our journey to the airport. "She's just like this."

"It's okay. I mean, I understand why you want to do this and everything, but I also see her point of view," he added in nonchalantly. Maybe it was me overreacting, but I took offense to his comment. Was he really defending my mother?

"What do you mean, you can see her point of view?" I frowned. His head spun quickly to catch my gaze. He knew that I was being defensive by my tone of voice.

"Oh, no, honey! I mean, I can understand both viewpoints, that's all. It's not like I'm taking sides or anything," he tried to fix his words, but in my eyes, he only made the situation worse.

"Well gee, thanks for taking my side. It's not like we're engaged or anything," I swear the words flew from my mouth much quicker than I had hoped. I really should have thought that one over.

"Sweetie," Ryan sighed. I could tell he was partly hurt that I was getting this worked up about it and partly annoyed that we were actually arguing about this. "You know how much I love you. Where is all of this coming from?"

"I don't know, Ryan! I mean, maybe this is good. Maybe I need to get this off my chest and vice versa. Maybe I need to go to New York and sort through things," I rambled.

“Honey, you can’t be serious,” disgust dripped off every word. He didn’t think I was serious? Why didn’t he try to understand what I was saying?

“Oh, but I am,” I laughed sarcastically. He was really beginning to frustrate me. For the rest of the ride we were both silent, waiting for the other to say something more. As we approached the airport, I decided to give my last line. “I’ll call you when I get there.” And with that, I got out and grabbed my luggage and he didn’t dare follow.

“It’s not that we’re mad at each other,” I sighed into my cell phone as I pulled my carryon suitcase behind me. “We didn’t really say anything we’d regret later, but still…it was awkward and uncomfortable.”

“Well, at least you are getting through this before you got closer to your wedding. Marriage isn’t easy, Rachel. You’ll figure that out,” one of my best friends, Leighanne Littrell, said over the phone.

“I know, Leigh. But still, it just makes me angry that he was taking my mom’s side on the whole thing. And it even made me wonder,” I muttered as I watched the big screen above my head to check my plane and make sure there weren’t any delays.

“If I know you as well as I believe I do, then you were wondering before this little argument,” Leighanne said, hinting at what I had been hiding for so long.

“What are you talking about?” I frowned, trying to deny the obvious.

“Oh please, you know I can read you like an open book,” Leighanne laughed on the other end. “Oh, wait! Brian’s here. He wants to say ‘hi’. Hold on a second.” I could hear her laugh in the distance as the phone was taken away from her.

“Hi Rachel,” Brian said. I could tell that there was a large, cheesy grin planted across his lips. This made me smile.

“Hello, Brian,” I laughed. I smiled because him and Leighanne were so happy. I could hear her laughing in the background, struggling to get to the phone. But in the bottom of my stomach, I felt a wave of nausea washing over me. I only wished I had what they did.

“Congrats on getting engaged!” He exclaimed. “You must be so excited. I know Leigh’s excited enough for you.”

“I’m thrilled!” I exclaimed. “You’ll be at the wedding, right?”

“I’ll try my hardest, sweetie,” he said. He always called me that. Sweetie. Like the night my life changed forever.

“He didn’t mean it that way, Rachel,” Brian sighed, a look of pure sympathy overcoming his usually bubbly smile. “You know him better than that.”

“That doesn’t change anything, Brian!” The anger in my voice scared him and he hid his face, not wanting me to see the sadness and pain. “I-I didn’t mean to yell at you, Brian.” I hiccuped, tears cascading down my rosy cheeks.

“I know, I know,” he soothed. He rubbed my back to try and calm me down, but it wasn’t working in his favor. “It’s okay, it’s all going to be okay, sweetie.”

“Rachel?” I heard his voice and I closed my eyes momentarily, trying to rid my mind of those memories.

“Yeah, sorry. I think I was getting beeped or something. Uh, well, as long as you try to make it, that’ll make me happy enough,” I smiled. “Listen Bri, I better get going. Tell Leigh I’ll call her when I get to New York and we’ll talk some more, okay?”

“Okay, I’ll talk to you later,” Brian said. I heard Leighanne begging him for the phone in the background. “She has to go, honey.” He told her.

“Bye B,” I said and hung up. I sighed out-loud and noticed my plane had a thirty minute delay due to rain in New York. I found a hot-dog stand and got myself some lunch, then found my gate and sat down. Finally. Peace and quiet. Or so I thought.

What is that noise? I asked myself. I looked all around and found a mob of girls, some as young as ten and others as old as twenty-five or so. What the hell? I frowned and turned completely around in my chair to try and catch a glimpse of what (or who) these girls were chasing. I watched as the mob came closer to my gate and were finally blocked off by three or four large guards. I watched in horror as I saw him. Him, of all people, just had to be here…at this very gate…at this very moment. Maybe it’s not him? I thought to myself. But then he just had to take off those glasses and reveal his ocean blue eyes. Of all people, why Nick Carter?

Maybe he won’t see me. I hoped, no, prayed, silently. I fumbled around the glass table next to me for a magazine, newspaper, hell, anything in reach. I found an old newspaper and quickly opened it and put it in front of my face. Everything about me was trembling and my breathing was much quicker now than it had been.

“Rachel LaRoe, you have a call awaiting you at the Services desk,” a woman came over the loudspeaker.

“Shit,” I mumbled under my breath. I closed my eyes and slowly put the paper down in front of me, being sure not to make any form of eye contact with the man sitting in front of me. I hurried over to the guest services booth and smiled. “I’m Rachel LaRoe.” They handed me the phone. “Hello?”

“Ray? It’s Ryan,” I heard him sigh. “I tried calling your cell phone, but it went straight to voice mail. You must have been on the other line.” I realized he must have called when I was on the phone with Leighanne and Brian. I rubbed my temples in hopes to rid myself of the pounding headache that was beginning to throb there. After I didn’t say anything, he decided to continue. “Listen, sweetheart, I’m really sorry about everything. I should have been more sympathetic.”

For some reason, I wasn’t able to concentrate on any of the words coming out of his mouth. Instead, I could only concentrate on the stares burning a target on my back – a target for his eyes. “Don’t worry about it. We both were a little stressed and it’s okay now.”

“But I want you to know that I’m really proud of you for making this decision on your own, and I’m really not upset with you at all,” Ryan said. I could tell it was coming from his mind rather than his heart. A small smile struck my lips.

“Really, though, it’s okay,” I smiled. “I forgive you if you forgive me?”

“Of course,” I could tell he was smiling.

“Okay, well, I love you and I’ll talk to you later, okay?” I smiled.

“Okay, sweetheart. I love you too,” and with that, we both hung up. I sighed and closed my eyes. As soon as the feeling of relief left my body from recovering from the fight I had with my fiancé, the feeling of fear overcame me as I realized who was behind me.

“Rach?” I heard him say.

I turned around slowly, almost too slowly and bit my bottom lip, wondering if this was really happening. “Nick, wow, hi,” I smiled breathlessly. “What are the odds? You and I both at the same airport, at the same gate, at the same time.” I rambled.

“I-I know,” he managed to stutter out. “Weird, huh?” He rubbed the back of his head; a nervous habit, I assumed. I rocked back and forth on my heels a few times and looked around the lobby to the gate. “How have you been?”

“Good, very good. How about you?” I asked back. There wasn’t any harm to casual conversation, was there?

“Same, doing well. Busy touring with the boys again,” he said. I couldn’t get over how mature he looked since the last time I saw him. His voice was the same. It still made the butterflies in my stomach flutter more than usual and my heart beat faster than it should.

“It’s good that you guys got back together again. I’ve talked to Brian a few times, and he tells me it’s going well,” I smiled. I bit on my bottom lip as I watched him run his fingers through his hair. God, why does he have to be so damn sexy?

“Yeah, Brian mentioned he had been talking to you a little bit,” Nick nodded. My breath got trapped in my throat as I watched his eyes travel to my left hand. He would see the ring. “Oh, wow! I see you’ve been busy. You’re married?”

“Engaged,” I corrected him, an instant flow of blood quickly flushing my cheeks. “Yeah, I got engaged about a month ago.”

“Oh, well, congratulations,” maybe it was just me, but I could almost sense a hint of sadness in his voice.

“Thanks,” I smiled. It was then that I realized the sadness wasn’t just in his voice, but my voice, as well.

“Hey, we still have about forty-five minutes until the plane will get here since there’s a delay and everything. Do you want to go grab a cup of coffee?” Nick asked me. I looked back at the screaming girls. It had been almost ten minutes since Nick and I had started talking and they still hadn’t gone away.

“Oh, I don’t know. I mean, won’t your posse want to join?” A smirk crossed my lips. A chuckle escaped his lips and he blushed.

“I think my body guards have it under control,” he smiled, his cheeks turning a deep crimson color.

“Body guards, eh?” I laughed lightly as we made our way over to a coffee shop, the mob of young, hormonal girls inched over, only to run into the fence of guards. The men blocked off the door to the coffee shop.

“What’ll you have?” Nick asked me. For some reason, my mind was racing a mile a minute, thinking of all the reasons why this was so wrong. But for some other reason, my heart was racing a mile a minute, thinking of all the things I wanted to say to him and all the reasons why I wanted to be with him.

“Oh, you don’t have to buy anything for me,” my mind spoke up. “I’m going to get myself a hot chocolate, though.”

“Let me pay. I haven’t seen you in years, Rach. Please, let me get it,” he practically begged. A small pout formed over his lips and it made me laugh softly. “What? What’s so funny?”

“It’s just, I was waiting for the immature side of you to pop out. I knew it was hidden deep in there somewhere,” I laughed. He couldn’t help the smile that crossed his lips.

“Oh, trust me. It’s not buried too deep down in here,” he chuckled. He stepped up to the cashier and smiled. “I’ll have a regular coffee with cream and sugar as well as a regular hot chocolate, extra whipped cream.”

My heart rose into my throat and I barely found the ability to spit out words. “How did you know…?” I lost my ability to speak as my sentence turned into four words and trailed off at the end.

Nick shrugged, slightly impressed that he had just rambled off the words, “extra whipped cream.” “I guess I just remember a lot more than you and I both think I do.” He handed her the cash and I looked around the coffee shop. It had been at least two years since I had last seen Nick Carter and now here I was in a coffee shop with him.

“I guess so,” I managed to mumble before a man covered in the coffee shop’s logo walked up to us and cleared his throat.

“I’m really sorry to bother you, but after you get your drinks, I’m going to have to ask you to leave. You see, you’ve kind of created a blockade around my shop, and I need the customers. So, if you could find somewhere else to go, I’d appreciate it,” he tried to put as kindly as possible. I laughed as I realized we had, indeed, created a fence around the entrance where no one could get in or out.

“Sure, no problem,” Nick nodded. “Sorry about that.” The man nodded and walked away.

“Gee, you can’t even get a cup of coffee without being bothered,” I nudged him as we took our drinks and exited the shop. He rolled his eyes.

“It’s not funny,” he muttered. “You try living the life of a Backstreet Boy.”

“Oh, I remember,” I laughed, “I was a Backstreet girlfriend, remember?” It was then that the uncomfortable silence fell over us and my cheeks felt flushed. Maybe it was too soon to bring that back up.

We walked back to our gate in that awkward silence that no one really enjoys. The security guys were close behind us, trying their hardest to keep each girl away. The crowd had dwindled down now, most of the girls assuming they weren’t going to get any closer to Nick Carter than they already were.

“So, what are you doing going to New York City?” Nick asked me. I took a sip from my hot chocolate and looked up at him with a sense of hope in my eyes. Maybe he would understand my passion and be proud of me for going.

“I got accepted as an intern for Seventeen Magazine,” I smiled, proudly at him.

“Oh, wow! That’s so awesome, Rach! I’m so proud of you,” he exclaimed. I beamed back at him, soaking up his praise. The way he said Rach hit a nerve, in a good way, of course. More like, it hit my heart in a place I hadn’t been touched in a while. “I always knew I’d find you working for some big magazine or something.”

“I wish my family had the same reaction you did,” I laughed lightly and fumbled with my Styrofoam cup, almost sending it to the floor below me. Luckily, my coordination wasn’t off and I caught it before it spilled any.

“Aren’t they proud of you?” Nick frowned.

“You know my mom,” I muttered. “She always manages to find something to be disappointed with.”

“Ah, yeah, I remember,” he laughed lightly. I think he was laughing more because he was nervous rather than he found what I said humorous.

“The only thing she hasn’t disowned me for yet is my fiancé, Ryan,” I sighed and caught Nick’s eyes with my own. He looked a little hurt at the mention of Ryan, but I figured we were both mature enough to get over what had ended years before. “Sometimes I think she’s in love with him. It kind of bothers me only because she seems closer to him than I am.”

I could tell Nick didn’t want the conversation to end, but we didn’t know each other as well as we used to, so he left it at that. We sat in silence for a few more minutes and watched as the planes landed and took off again, some coming from the same direction and taking off in completely different directions. It was ironic, really. “You look good. I mean, not that you didn’t look good before, but you just –.”

“I know what you mean, Nick,” I laughed. “Thank you. You look good, yourself. I really am happy for you and the boys.”

“Thanks. We love what we’re doing,” he smiled. “I’m happy for you, too. I mean, look at you. You’ve landed a spot at a big time magazine company and you’re engaged.”

I smiled and nodded. I mentally slapped myself for thinking, Yeah, only I’m engaged to the wrong person.

Part of me wondered, silently hoped, that Nick and I would be relatively close to each other on the plane. I guess the thought of him being famous enough to afford first class slipped my mind. I tried my hardest to rid him from my mind, but it was impossible since only a few rows of seats separated me from him. I thought if I closed my eyes I could focus on sleep and get him out of my head. No such luck, however. Every time I closed my eyes, I would drift to sleep and picture Nick and I together again.

“We will be landing in New York, New York in approximately thirty minutes,” the pilot’s voice came over the loud speaker. For a moment, I thought I had dreamt about the entire thing – meeting Nick and everything. “Currently it’s a warm eighty degrees in New York City. We hope you’ll enjoy your time here.” He rambled off a few other facts about the beautiful city, but my eyes were drawn to the window of the amazing city that I was in love with. My French manicured fingernails brushed along the window as a breath got caught in my throat. This wasn’t a dream. It was reality.

“Excuse me, Miss,” a flight attendant smiled down at me across the row. I turned towards her. “There’s a man in first class that asked me to give you this.” And with that, she passed across a piece of paper with writing on it. I had to laugh at the idea.

“Thank you,” I smiled back at the attendant and excused myself for reaching across the two passengers on my side. I unfolded the paper and looked at the words.

Rach –
I’m not sure if I’ll see you after the plane lands. I told the attendant where you were seated (I really hope this gets to you…if you’re reading this and you’re not Rachel LaRoe, please give it back to the attendant.) Wow, I will feel incredibly stupid if this comes back to me. But anyway, I wanted to tell you that I’m really glad I saw you, and I want to see you again. I’m going to be in New York for a little while. I’m going to be staying at the Iroquois in Manhattan. I missed you, Rach.
- Nick

The way he practically talked to himself in the note made me laugh. I was flattered. Really, I was. He was right; we probably wouldn’t see each other again after the plane landed. How did he know where I was sitting? I didn’t remember telling him. And he had given me the name to his hotel. Should I be worried? I thought to myself. Of course not, I am a grown woman. It’s not like I was cheating on Ryan or anything. The thought hadn’t really crossed my mind.

As the plane came down to a landing, I tried my hardest to gather my carryon and belongings and push my way to the front. “We all want off this plane, lady. Wait your turn,” an older man yelled at me as I tried to squeeze between him and the seat.

“You don’t understand, I just, I need to get to the front,” I muttered, trying to explain myself to him. I wasn’t sure why, it wasn’t like he was worth my explaining.

“We all need to get to the front,” he spat back. “Just wait your turn!” He began to raise his voice. Other passengers around us began to chime in. I sighed, feeling defeated and fell back into the crowd, waiting my turn.

As I finally made my way off the plane, I hurried down the ramp and into the gate terminal area. People were all around, hugging loved ones, smiling and laughing. Where could he be? I hurried to baggage claim. Maybe he would be there? I don’t understand why I’m looking for him. I laughed to myself. It was then that I realized my feet were running towards baggage claim. As I got there, I saw a horde of screaming girls crying and screaming near the automatic doors. I watched as a tall man in a baseball cap and sunglasses ran across the street and got into a car.

My heart sank deep down in the pit of my stomach. But it wasn’t just there that it left off. No, it drove away in that car with him.

“Why didn’t you tell me he would be in New York?” I exclaimed in the receiver of my cell phone as I walked through the empty halls of the hotel I was staying at.

“I didn’t know he’d be there,” she replied innocently.

“Bullshit, Leighanne!” I tried to get across as calmly as possible. “Put your husband on the phone.” I muttered as I found my room and struggled to get my key in the door.

“Bri, Rachel wants to talk to you,” I heard Leighanne mutter on the other end, a sense of laughter behind her voice.

“I’m not here,” I heard him whisper. I rolled my eyes.

“I heard you!” I yelled loudly so he would hear me just as I got my door open. He sighed heavily and took the phone. “How could you do that to me? Not even warn me Nick was going to be on that plane?”

“I didn’t think you’d see each other. It really didn’t seem like that big of a deal,” Brian muttered. I could tell by his tone that he was sorry he hadn’t mentioned it.

I sighed, not being able to stay mad at any of them for too long, especially Brian. “Fine,” I replied in defeat as I plopped down on my bed. “Well, in case you didn’t realize just yet, we did run into each other and it was really awkward. Especially after he found out I’m engaged.”

“Oh yeah, he didn’t know about that. I kind of forgot,” Brian sighed. His voice was filled with sympathy as he realized he hadn’t just hurt me, but one of his best friends, as well. “I’m really sorry this got screwed up, Rachel.”

“It’s okay, Brian. Like you said, you didn’t realize it’d be that big of a deal,” I sighed. “To be perfectly honest, I didn’t either.” I paused and fumbled with the comforter with my fingers, tugging on loose strings. “What exactly is he doing in New York, anyway?”

“Well, we got a break from the tour for a while, so he decided to go up there for a bit before we head back into the studio,” Brian explained. “Leighanne, Baylee and I are actually going to be up there in a few days for my solo tour. We’ll be seeing him then. Leigh said she really wanted to see you, too.”

“That would be nice,” I smiled and fell back on the bed. “Well, I’ve had a really long day and I’m exhausted. So I think I’ll get some rest.”

“Okay, well, I’ll talk to you later,” Brian said. “Oh, and Rachel?”

“Yeah?” I frowned, catching myself in the middle of a yawn.

“He really missed you.” From my exhaustion, I wasn’t quite sure what he was talking about. But then I realized. Nick.

*A/N: Sorry it's kind of short. If I get a chance to write more at work, I will. As of right now, I'm thinking this may become a series...I'm not sure, though.

“And this is the main meeting room. Whenever Mr. Burnham calls a meeting, this is normally where we meet,” the girl explained. I had been on a tour of Seventeen’s headquarters for almost a half-hour now. The girl giving the tour was lovely, very warm and kind. However, I couldn’t get the conversation I had with Brian out of my head. “And if you ever need anything, this is my office.”

“Thanks,” I smiled a small grin. I was a little shy and nervous about being here, so my entire heart wasn’t in it just yet.

“Where are you living?” She tried to make small talk.

“Oh, right now I’m just staying at an Embassy Suites not too far away,” I explained. “I kind of wanted to see how all of this worked out before I went out and bought an apartment. I already spoke with Mr. Burnham and he said he was okay with it.”

“Oh yeah, I think everyone does that before they make something permanent. No harm in that,” she smiled a large, warm smile. “Your name is Rachel LaRoe, right?” I nodded. “So you’re all the way from Florida?” I smiled and nodded once more. “Wow, long way from home. I’m just from Pennsylvania. It’s still kind of far, but not as far as Florida.”

“I’m sorry, I forgot your name,” I said. She seemed nice enough. Maybe I had met a new friend.

“Alexia Rhodes,” she smiled. I made a mental note in my head, putting her name with her heart-shaped face, emerald green eyes and millions of freckles. Her red curly hair just barely touched down upon her shoulders. She was a good three inches taller than me, possibly more, putting her somewhere around 5’9” or so.

“I’m really glad I got to meet you, Alexia,” I smiled and put my hand out for her to shake. She shook it and smiled back.

“It was really nice meeting you, Rachel. But please, call me Allie,” she tucked a red curl behind her double-pierced ear. “I guess I’ll see you tomorrow?”

“Yeah, Mr. Burnham asked me if I could come in and just sort through some files for him for a few hours,” I explained. “So I’ll be here.”

“Great!” She smiled. She walked me to the main doors and we said goodbye. I took a breath of fresh air as I stepped outside. Everyone seemed really nice – almost too nice, to be honest. I guess I just wasn’t used to the friendliness in the work place. However, I always thought it was the opposite. New Yorkers plus stress from work would equal complete chaos in my mind, but maybe I was wrong.

I passed a quaint coffee shop on one side of the street. A car zoomed by and splashed water up near my feet, causing my attention to change from the side of the street I was on, to the opposite side. And there, as if it were fate, was The Iroquois. I bit my bottom lip gently and contemplated whether or not to cross the street. As if on cue, the light changed on the corner of the street and the walking sign lit up.

Could fate knock on my door any harder? I decided to let fate in as I walked across the street.

The outside of the hotel was beautiful, but didn’t do the hotel itself justice. It was a quaint hotel, stashed away in the midst of New York City, but it was gorgeous. My heels clicked lightly on the tiled floor below me. The lobby was decorated in dark green colors, but the light from the windows made the place seem so beautiful and so alive. The receptionist at the front desk smiled at me. “Is there anything I can help you with?” She asked softly.

“Yes, actually,” I smiled and walked over to her, flattening my gray business skirt in the process. “A friend of mine is staying here for a little while. He asked me to stop by. His name is Nick Carter.” I could tell the receptionist was trying her hardest not to laugh at me. “I know, you probably get hundreds of teenage girls in here asking this, but is there any way you could call up and tell him I’m here?” As the words rolled off my tongue, my brain told me to turn around and walk away. But this time, my heart stood in the way of the door, blocking my escape.

“Could I have your name?” She asked me. She hadn’t picked up the phone, and ninety-nine percent of my heart told me she wouldn’t call.

“Rachel LaRoe,” I sighed and tapped my fingernails on the ceramic counter. Her eyes grew wide and her cheeks became pink.

“I-I’m so sorry, Miss LaRoe. I’ll call up right away,” she hurried to pick up the phone and dial a room number. My heart began to pound in my chest and the color in my complexion rose to meet hers. “Mr. Carter?” She paused. Oh God, he answered the phone! I screamed out in my head. “Rachel LaRoe is in the lobby to see you.” She paused once more. What am I supposed to do now? It was almost like my brain was having a battle with my heart. My brain wanted nothing more than to pick up my body and walk out the revolving glass doors. But my heart, on the other hand, wanted nothing other than Nick Carter himself. “Okay, I’ll tell her.” She hung up. “Mr. Carter asked me to tell you he’d be right down.” She smiled.

“Oh, that’s not necessary,” I smiled and grabbed my purse off the counter, realizing I had set it down when I got there. “I really need to be somewhere anyway. I’ll come by another time.” Liar! My heart yelled out.

“No, please don’t. He’s on his way down now, and if you leave, then you might not catch him for a while. His guard said he was going to be busy the next few days,” she explained. Maybe she was right. I had come in here and she had already called him down, so I may as well stay. I sighed in defeat and took a seat on a sofa in the lobby. I clicked my nails together, the nervousness creeping into my stomach and up through my throat almost feeling like a wave of nausea. I looked at the clock on the wall. 12:14.

“Rach?” I heard him say. I tore my eyes away from the clock on the wall and smiled up at him. He smiled as his eyes fell upon me, almost as if he didn’t believe the receptionist when she told him I was here.

“Hey, Nick,” I smiled and stood up from the sofa. “Sorry to bother you, I was actually walking down the street and saw the hotel.”

“You didn’t bother me,” he laughed softly. “I didn’t think you would come, actually. So, it was a pleasant surprise.” He smiled.

“Good,” I smiled back. There was that awkward silence again.

“Have you had lunch yet?” He asked me. I shook my head ‘no’. “Well, there’s a restaurant here at the hotel if you’d like, or Time Square’s only a five minute walk from here if you want to go find something in that direction.”

Did he even ask me to lunch? I pondered in my head for a moment. He could see the confusion on my face and began to question it.

“Oh, sorry. I, uh, I meant to ask if you’d like to go to lunch with me,” he blushed. “I mean, not like a date or anything…just a casual lunch with an old friend. I mean, you’re not old --.”

I laughed out loud as he scrambled to find the right words. That was always Nick, trying to find the right thing to say, yet I knew what he meant in my heart. And I really knew what he meant this time. We both wanted more than just a casual lunch with an old friend. But only the Lord knows I wouldn’t admit it.

We decided on eating at the restaurant at the hotel. I figured he would be less likely to be recognized and mobbed there. Nick ordered the seared fillet mignon with potatoes and zucchini while I decided on the pan roasted shrimp with different beans and vegetables I hadn’t necessarily seen mixed together like that. He, of course, helped me with my shrimp and dumped the majority of his zucchini on my plate, not being much of a zucchini eater. “This is the biggest lunch I’ve ever had,” I laughed to myself.

“Hey, at least we don’t have to try to go out and find a big dinner,” Nick shrugged. I nodded, agreeing with him as I took another bite of shrimp.

“I feel so underdressed,” I whispered across the table as I watched a couple enter the restaurant. The man was in khaki dress pants and a collared blue shirt and tie, and the woman was in an elegant, yet casual, summer dress. I looked down at my own business coat and skirt.

“You feel underdressed?” He laughed. We both had to laugh as I realized Nick had on a simple t-shirt and jeans. “You want to get the rest to-go?”

“Sure,” I nodded, figuring it would be the best considering our surroundings. Nick called over the waiter and told him our plan. The waiter handed Nick the bill.

I pulled my wallet out and handed Nick twenty dollars, covering my plate. “It’s on me,” Nick shrugged off the money, refusing to take it.

“No way, you’re not paying for this on your own. It wasn’t cheap, Nick,” I whispered and pushed the money towards him. He pushed it back.

“It’s really not a big deal,” he pulled out his credit card and put it on top of the bill. “Plus, I don’t have any cash. So it’s easier to pay all together this way instead of separating the bill.” He shrugged. I sighed and put my money away and waited for the boxes to put away our food.

We walked out of the restaurant and I couldn’t help but enjoy the feeling I had when I was with Nick. I smiled to myself as we walked back into the hotel. “I’m going to go upstairs and put this in the fridge so it doesn’t go bad. Then we can go to your hotel so you can put yours away.” He said. I nodded and walked up to his room with him. I couldn’t believe how amazing it was. It was beautifully decorated. Nick walked into a separate room I assumed was the kitchen and I took the chance to look around. I noticed across the hall that someone had put his or her shoes outside the door.

“What’s with the shoes?” I whispered to Nick.

“Some of the hotel staff comes around at night and shines all the shoes in the hallway,” Nick explained, completely aware of the situation. My eyes bulged and I tried to stifle the laughter.

“Are you serious?” I managed to get out before laughter overtook me. He laughed and nodded as he shut the door to his room and we headed downstairs. “Sorry, I’m just not used to this fancy hotel stuff.” I shrugged as we stood in the elevator waiting to touch down on the first floor.

“I’m not a huge fan of it. It gets kind of annoying and old after a while. Someone’s always there to wait on you and do stuff for you,” he shrugged with a disgusted look on his face. I couldn’t believe how much he’d changed. When he was younger, he was so upset if someone wasn’t there to wait on him hand and foot.

We got off the elevator and made our way through the revolving doors and to the side of the street. He caught us a cab and I gave the driver directions to my hotel. As we pulled up in front of the building, Nick pulled out his wallet and I caught a glimpse of the green cash he had stashed away in there.

“Hmm, so you don’t have any cash, do you?” I eyed him suspiciously. He blushed and shrugged. I studied his face as he studied mine and I felt my heart flutter into my throat. What was this? Okay, okay, I admit it. Nick Carter was getting to me.

“Home, sweet home,” I joked as I opened the door to my hotel room. “Can’t say it’s as beautiful as yours, but it’s a place to sleep.” I shrugged and tossed my key on the counter. Nick laughed.

“It’s not all about money, Rach,” he said seriously. I frowned in his direction as I put my Styrofoam container in the mini fridge. “What?” His brow furrowed.

“It’s just…you’ve changed,” I shrugged. “A lot.”

“Good change or bad change?” He asked me. His voice seemed to be full of nervousness, just waiting for my answer.

“As of right now?” I thought about it for a minute. “Good.” I nodded and smiled at him. I saw him blush at the thought of me approving of him, and I looked around the small room. Then I realized we hadn’t really made any plans for the afternoon, so I was kind of clueless as to what we were doing. “So, are you going to go back to your hotel now?” I asked him, wondering what he had in mind.

“Oh, uh, if you want me to,” he shrugged and stood up from one of the uncomfortable chairs placed around in my room to simply take up space.

“No, I didn’t mean it that way,” I mumbled as I glanced around the room. I looked down at the phone on the nightstand. The red light on it was blinking, informing me I had a message. “Oh, hold on a second.” I went and picked up the phone, checking messages. It said I had five messages. I began listening to them, starting with the oldest one.

“Hey Ray, it’s me,” I recognized Ryan’s voice. “I’m not too worried, maybe your flight had a delay or something. Your cell service must be off because I can’t get through on your phone. Call me. Love you.” I slapped my forehead. I had forgotten to call Ryan when I got in. Hell, I forgot to call everyone when I got in.

Next message. “Rachel? It’s Ryan. Okay, your plane was supposed to land an hour or so ago. I’m getting worried,” this message was from last night. I hadn’t even gotten to the hotel yet. “Please call me.”

Next message. “Rachel? It’s dad. Ryan called and said he hasn’t heard from you yet. You’ve really worried your mother and I. Please call home, at least.”

I bit my bottom lip. I must have really lost my mind if I hadn’t even thought to call my family or my fiancé. What was I thinking? “Rachel, it’s Ryan,” his voice sounded so hurt and so confused. “Listen, I’m not sure if you’re mad at me or not. I thought we had worked this all out at the airport. But listen baby, I’m really very worried about you and I need to hear your voice. Please call me. I love you.”

I couldn’t even bring myself to listen to the last one. I hung up quickly and looked over at Nick. “I really need to make a few calls. Can I meet you somewhere later?” I asked him.

He looked somewhat hurt and that made me feel bad. “Uh, yeah, sure.” He scribbled something down on a piece of hotel stationery. He handed it to me. “That’s the number to the hotel and then you dial that number for my room.” He explained.

“Thanks for lunch, Nick,” I smiled warmly. He nodded, still slightly disappointed that I asked him to go, but he exited my room. I quickly dialed Ryan’s number, praying he would understand.

“Hello?” Ryan answered the phone quickly. I bit my bottom lip and took a deep breath.

“Ryan? It’s Rachel,” I said.

“Oh, thank God!” He exclaimed. “Rachel’s on the phone, everybody.” I heard him explain to people talking softly behind him. I rolled my eyes.

“Who all’s there?” I frowned.

“Everybody. Your mom and dad, your brother, two of your cousins and the police,” Ryan explained.

“You called the police?” I asked him, anger quickly building up in my voice. I couldn’t believe him! Why would he do that?

“Well, yeah. I mean, after this morning, none of us had heard from you. The receptionist said you were checked in but she didn’t know where you had gone,” Ryan tried to explain.

“Ryan, I told you I needed to get away for a little while,” I sighed and rubbed my temples. I could feel a headache growing there. “So do you not trust me?”

“Honey, it’s not you that I don’t trust. It’s the hundreds of other people in New York City I don't trust,” Ryan explained, trying to sound as sympathetic as possible.

“Let me talk to my brother,” I muttered and sat down on my bed. I could feel tears in my eyes. I felt so much more stress just talking to Ryan. After spending time with Nick, I had felt so carefree about life in general. And now Ryan was adding on so much stress.

“Ray, baby,” Ryan practically whined.

“Ryan, I just need to talk to Brad right now,” I sighed into the receiver and continued to rub one side of my forehead with my free hand.

“Fine, but I want to talk to you later,” Ryan muttered. “I love you.” Those words seemed so automatic from him. It sounded like he was rambling off from his thoughts rather than from his heart and soul.

I heard a voice in the background and someone coming towards the phone. “Hello? Rachel?”

“Hey Brad,” I sighed, a sudden wave of relief washing over me.

“Listen, I need some space. Let me talk to my sister,” Brad said to the people around him. I giggled at how serious he sounded, knowing he wasn’t serious most of the time. Brad was the first child in our family. I guess he’s twenty-nine now, going on twelve. He’s the biggest kid I’ve ever met, besides Nick, of course. My mom “disowned” him first, I guess you could say. He went off and dropped out of college, breaking my mother’s heart – over dramatized if you ask me – and married a wonderful woman named Samantha. “Wow, you must have really pissed mom off if she came to me to talk.”

“Yeah, I guess you could say that,” I sighed. I picked up the base of the phone and climbed onto the hotel bed, relaxing a bit. “Mom just overreacted, what’s new?”

“Yeah, so much to the point that she called me home and called the police,” Brad sighed. “Listen sis, I completely understand the fact that you aren’t a kid anymore, but running away from mom is not the answer, even if I thought it was.”

“Brad, I didn’t run away from mom,” I muttered.

“Then how the hell have you been in New York for the past twenty-four hours and yet you didn’t manage to call?” he asked. He wasn’t yelling or even being firm. Brad, of all people, knew and understood that yelling and being strict wasn’t the answer.

“I ran into Nick,” I said softly, even though I was the only person in the room. It sounded sinful to even say.

“Nick? As in the Nick?” Brad whispered. He probably knew my mom was outside the door with a glass cup, listening for every detail. “Well, how the hell did that happen?” He sounded nervous.

“I ran into him and we decided to catch up,” I twisted the cord on my fingers, trying to find a distraction in anything I could. I heard him sigh. I could sense the confusion from him. “Are you mad?” I bit my bottom lip. His approval mattered to me so much more than my mother’s did because I knew his was real.

“Of course not,” he whispered. “Please tell me you decided to leave the sorry jackass waiting back here and do something brilliant for a change.” A smile formed upon my lips.

“Okay, I swear I’ll call again in a few days to let you know I’m still alive, then you can pass the word on to mom, dad and maybe Ryan,” I said after I had talked to Brad for a few minutes.

“Bradley LaRoe! You open this door this instant!” I heard my mom yell from the closed door Brad was standing by.

“Are you sure you can handle mom?” I sighed, the guilt beginning to wash over me as I realized what, rather who, I was leaving my brother with.

“I’ve put up with her for twenty-nine years,” he laughed. “I can handle just about anything.”

“Okay, well, thanks for everything,” I smiled. “I love you.”

“Love you too,” I could feel his love through the phone. “Bye.” He hung up. I smiled, feeling refreshed again, and hung up as well. I glanced around the hotel room feeling victorious over my family problems. A small smile began to creep up on my lips as my eyes fell upon the piece of paper Nick had left his number on. I picked up the phone, once more, and dialed the number.

“Hello?” I heard his voice answer the phone. I could hear the faint sound of a television in the background.

“Hey, it’s Rachel,” I smiled and twirled the cord around my index finger, a nervous habit I had caught. “Um, I’m not bothering you, am I?” I tried to stifle my laughter as I heard him clear his throat and scramble off the bed. The television had been turned off, leaving silence on the other end for a moment.

“No, of course not,” he laughed. “Is everything okay back home?”

“Oh yeah, everything’s fine,” I lied. “Sorry you had to leave so soon.” I truly felt lousy about making him leave so quickly. If I had it my way, he would have stayed.

“It’s not a big deal,” he tried to play it down, but I knew he had felt hurt that our hanging out had ended so soon. “I understand what it’s like, being busy, and all.”

“I still doesn’t really make me feel any better about it,” I sighed. “And plus, I really enjoyed having lunch with you this afternoon. It was really fun.” I smiled.

“Yeah, it was,” he agreed. The butterflies had been set free in my stomach. But then there was that awkward silence, once more that I couldn’t seem to escape. It was my turn to take a leap of faith.

“I was thinking, since you covered lunch today, it would be only fair that I return the gesture,” I bit my bottom lip, another nervous habit taking over. “So, how about we order pizza at my place tonight? Something light but fulfilling?”

“I-I’d love to,” I could sense him smile through the phone. “How about six o’clock?” He asked me. I nodded, then shook my head, realizing he couldn’t see me through the phone.

“Sounds great!” I exclaimed. “Just in case you forgot since earlier, my hotel’s called the Embassy Suites and it’s on 102 North End Avenue. And my room number is 307.”

“Don’t worry, I didn’t forget,” he muttered softly. I think he meant for it to be inaudible, but I heard every word. I couldn’t control the soft laughter that erupted from my mouth. “S-Sorry, I mean, I have a good memory.” We both laughed at how false that statement was. “Well, I’ll see you at six.”

“Okay, bye, Nick,” I smiled and hung up after he said ‘bye’. I placed the phone back on the side table and fell back on my bed in a fit of laughter. I couldn’t believe how happy I was. No, that was wrong. I couldn’t believe how happy he made me. And the scary thing was, I didn’t want it to ever end.

At 6:05, I heard someone knock on the door. “Shit,” I mumbled as I tried to scrunch my hair once more in the bathroom mirror. My wavy brown hair fell right below my shoulders. I had finally changed into an old vintage ACDC t-shirt and faded blue jeans. I hadn’t overdone the make-up so I wouldn’t make too big of a fool out of myself. I applied a little mascara and lip-gloss to add a little shine. I hurried to the door as he knocked again. “Coming!” I called out. I unbolted the door and opened it, smiling at Nick. “Hey.” I smiled.

“Hey,” he smiled back. He was so gorgeous. He had on a dark navy blue t-shirt and faded blue jeans. His hair was styled with gel in a messy way, a few spikes shooting up here and there. I felt my cheeks blush under his ocean blue stare. “Here, I brought this.” He handed me a two-liter bottle of Mountain Dew, my favorite.

“Thanks,” I smiled, appreciative of the gesture. “The pizza got here a few minutes ago. I got one with cheese and pepperoni and one with just cheese. I wasn’t sure what you liked these days.”

“Hasn’t changed much. I’m still a pepperoni lover,” he smiled a wide grin as we continued to discuss the pizza. “So, you wanna let me in?” He laughed. I blushed an even darker shade of pink as I realized I hadn’t asked him to come in yet.

“Oh, yeah, I’m sorry,” I laughed as I pulled the door open wider. He walked in and I shut the door behind him. I put the Mountain Dew down on the dresser counter and tucked a curl behind my ear. I smiled as I realized Nick was staring at me. “So, uh, how about we just help ourselves? Are you hungry?” I asked him as I handed him a paper plate. I had gone out to a convenient store earlier that afternoon and gotten a few paper products.

“Do you even have to ask?” He smirked as he heaped three slices of pepperoni pizza on his plate. I smiled and shook my head.

“Guess I just figured it was polite,” I shrugged and laughed as I put two slices of cheese on my plate.

“Come on, Rach. You know you don’t have to be polite with me,” Nick laughed and followed suit as I sat down on the bed. He plopped down next to me and we turned to face each other. A smile formed over my lips as I realized he had called me Rach. “What?” He frowned, holding the smile on his lips.

“Nothing,” I shrugged. I looked up into his deep blue eyes and laughed. “It’s just, no one calls me Rach anymore, that’s all.”

“Oh, I’m sorry,” he muttered. “I didn’t know.”

“No, I didn’t mean it that way,” I corrected myself. “The reason no one calls me Rach anymore is because I asked them not to. And I only did that because it reminded me of….” I trailed off, not really wanting to tell him why anymore.

“Of us,” Nick finished for me and looked down at the comforter. He took a large bite out of his pizza, a string of cheese dangling from his mouth. I laughed at his attempt to catch the cheese with his tongue. It was a nice distraction, and I knew he had done it on purpose.

“I’ve missed this,” I smiled up at him as I took a bite out of my own pizza, being careful not to let any strings of cheese fall from my mouth.

“Missed what? Me?” He laughed sarcastically. “Yeah, try telling the guys that. They’d think you were insane.” He joked.

“Well, yeah, I missed you, Nick. I missed talking to you and catching up,” I shrugged and stood up to pour myself a plastic glass full of Mountain Dew. “I feel like I barely know you anymore. We kind of stopped talking after everything.”

“I know,” he nodded and smiled as I handed him a glass. “Thanks.” I smiled back and sat down on the bed again. “But we’re here now…so, get to know me.” He smiled a big cheesy grin in my direction. I laughed and threw a balled up napkin at his face, hitting him square in the nose. “Oh, you’re asking for it.” He laughed and tackled me on the bed, tickling me. At the same time, he spilt over his Mountain Dew. “Shit.” He laughed.

I laughed hysterically as he patted the carpet with a napkin. I held my stomach and rolled over on the bed in laughter. This made him laugh even more and he shook his head. He continued to clean up the sticky mess as I finally got control of my laughter. “So, what’s your favorite thing to do these days, anyway?” Nick asked me to start conversation.

I contemplated it as I poured him another glass of soda. “I-I don’t know,” I shrugged and a frown creased over my face. “I used to love writing, but I don’t really get a chance to do that much anymore. Ryan’s just now working for my dad’s law firm. He graduated law school and so now he’s making a life for us this way.” I shrugged. “So, I guess I’ve been busy following him and helping him get adjusted.”

“Yeah, but what about you,” Nick frowned. “I mean, no offense, but I asked about you, not your fiancé.” I didn’t really know what to say. He stared at me for a really long time before either of us said anything.

“It’s not that Ryan doesn’t want me to do anything,” I answered as I thought about it for a few seconds. “It’s just he’s so busy and I fall into his life like that. I don’t mind it. You know me, I enjoy helping out wherever I can.” I smiled. I folded my legs under me as I sat back down on the bed. “And now with this job, I’ll really be able to write a lot more.”

“That’s good,” I could tell Nick still wasn’t satisfied with my answer, but he wasn’t going to push it any farther.

“What about you?” I asked him. “What do you enjoy doing?”

“I still love getting out and playing a good game of basketball against Bri any day. Or even a game of Nintendo,” he laughed. I rolled my eyes.

“Those dumb video games,” I shook my head. He laughed. His voice got quiet as I took another sip of my drink.

“Why’d you do it?” He whispered. I could sense the hurt in his voice as a frown came over his brow.

“Why’d I do it?” I frowned. “What do you mean, why did I do it? Do what, Nick?”

“Move on,” he said, even though I knew that was what he meant in my heart. I sighed and frowned up at him.

“I thought it was ‘for the best’,” I sighed, quoting what he had told me years ago. “Plus, look at you. You’ve been with Paris Hilton and other blonde bimbos since me. So, you can move on but I can’t?”

“Am I engaged?” He shot back. I sighed and rubbed my temples.

“You’re the one that said goodbye, Nick,” I muttered, trying my hardest to swallow the lump in my throat. The tears were quickly filling my eyes but I didn’t want them to fall.

“Your mom was horrible to me, Rach,” he exclaimed. I stared back into his eyes, watching as they filled with tears. That was the final straw for me. As soon as I saw the tears captured in his eyes, mine began to fall freely.

“I’m sorry,” I muttered softly and wiped away at my cheeks. “But just so you know, I would have given up my mom for you any day.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?” Nick frowned, the same sympathetic look plastered on his face.

I sucked in a deep breath as I tried to control the tears. It was no use. I couldn’t control anything at this point. “My mom can be a bitch, Nick. I know that. My mom and I had been having problems understanding us for a while. She told me from the beginning that I had to leave you. But I refused. I would refuse her forever, Nick. Ever since she had first met you, she told me to leave you. She said she wouldn’t support me if I continued to see you.”

He looked down, obviously ashamed that he had never known this before. I continued.

“But then I didn’t have to refuse her,” I whispered. “Because you left.”

“I left because of your mom,” Nick touched my hand with his. “She came to me. The night before it happened.”

I turned the ring box over in my hands and continued to open and close it, making sure everything was real. The diamond ring shimmered back in my eyes. I heard a knock at the front door and a smile crept across my lips, expecting Rachel. I opened the door and my smile quickly fell as I realized it was Rachel’s mom. “Oh, h-hi, Mrs. LaRoe,” I smiled. She plastered a fake smile on her lips as she stared back at me.

“Nick,” she muttered. I opened the door wider and she walked in.

“Is everything okay? Is Rachel okay?” I asked her. She sat down on my couch and I sat down on the one across from her.

“Actually, things aren’t okay, Nick,” she said dryly. “You see, my Rachel is very special to me. She has big hopes and dreams and I don’t want anything to ruin those for her.”

“Of course, I understand,” I nodded. “I feel the same way. She has an amazing talent when it comes to writing.”

“She doesn’t want to write, Nick,” Mrs. LaRoe muttered rudely. “She wants to be a lawyer for her father. She wants to make a life for herself. And frankly, you aren’t helping her. You’re hurting her.”

Even though I knew she was only saying that to make me feel bad and it wasn’t true, I couldn’t help but find the truth in the statement.

“I think you should leave, Nick. It’d be best for you and Rachel, both,” she said and stood to her feet quickly. It was apparent that she didn’t want to stay any longer than she had to. “You’re ruining her life by staying with her. If you truly love her, you’ll let her go.”

After Nick told me what had happened, I lost it. All the anger and sadness poured out of my soul and onto the bed we were sitting on. I could almost feel Nick’s comfort through his stares, but it wasn’t enough. So he pulled me close to him as he finished the story. I rested my head on his shoulder, feeling safe being this close to him again. “The next day I went to your house to tell you about what had happened and how much I hated your mom,” he began.

“I can’t believe you!” I heard Rachel scream from outside. “How could you just send me away like this? Do you actually believe it’ll change the way I feel about him?”

“Rachel, people like him are meant for girls not like you,” Mrs. LaRoe yelled back. “As long as you live under my roof you will do what I say.”

“You can’t send me off forever,” she yelled. I could tell she was crying.

“It was then that I realized I needed to step back and leave. I couldn’t hurt your relationship with your mom, even though I hated her. I couldn’t be the person that caused any kind of hatred between you two,” he explained.

“Too late,” I muttered and wiped at my eyes as I pulled away from him. “Sorry.” A small smile formed over my lips as I looked down at his shirt and saw tearstains splashed over it.

“Ah, it’s just a shirt,” he laughed and shrugged it off. His facial expression became sober and he looked deep into my eyes. “I’m sorry I left you.”

“I’m sorry you left me, too,” I grinned. I gasped as his lips overpowered mine in a soft, sweet kiss.

“This is so wrong,” Nick whispered as the kiss broke; however he didn’t pull away or try to escape.

“But it feels so right,” I mumbled against his lips. He pulled away quickly and looked down at my left hand. A smirk formed upon his lips. “What?” I laughed even though I knew what he was looking for and what he couldn’t find.

“You aren’t wearing your ring,” he muttered and I shook my head ‘no’. I bit my bottom lip and watched his eyes. I couldn’t help but feel the tears well up as I realized what was happening.

“I don’t love him,” I said. I felt guilty just saying it, and I watched Nick’s hand travel up to wipe away the tears. “I, honestly, don’t.” I said as the pad of his thumb quickly brushed away a falling tear.

“Shh,” he hushed me and placed a finger over his lips. “I don’t want to make you feel any worse. So maybe I should go, okay?” I went to protest. “I’m serious, Rach. Maybe you need to think it over. I don’t want to pressure you into anything.” I could see the sadness in his eyes as he went to stand up. I quickly put my hand on his arm, begging him to sit back down.

“Please don’t go,” I whispered. “Just sit with me? Just watch a movie and sit with me?” I pleaded. I could see right through his ocean blue eyes. I knew he wanted to stay; he wanted to be with me. His soul was yelling at him to sit his ass back down. But he didn’t want anything to happen that we’d regret. “I promise. Just a movie.” He hesitated, but sat back down as I turned on the TV to see what was on Pay Per View. I snuggled up close to him and rested my head on his shoulder, taking in his scent. He couldn’t resist and snaked his arm around my waist, pulling me even closer.

“Ugh, I never agreed to this,” he laughed as I landed on The Notebook.

“Oh, but it’s a classic,” I laughed and watched as his fingers played with the hem on my shirt.

“Yeah, a classic chick flick to you. To me it’s just another hopeless romance that doesn’t stand a chance in reality,” he mumbled with a smile. He was right. Unfortunately, it didn’t stand a chance in reality.

As the movie played on, I couldn’t help but think about how close to home this hit for me. The mother hates the boyfriend, the boyfriend leaves, boy doesn’t see girl for a long time and then they hook up. If only reality could accept this beautiful fairytale. I couldn’t help but feel myself drifting further and further to sleep. Dreaming of no one other than Nick.

I rolled over on my side and moaned as I hit something. “Ow,” the ‘something’ muttered under his breath. Then I realized it wasn’t something, it was someone. And that someone happened to be Nick.

“Sorry,” I laughed as I looked around the room, squinting in the early morning sunshine. “Oh wow, looks like we both fell asleep.” I yawned and glanced at the clock. 8:15. I had thirty minutes to get ready for the day and leave for work. “Ugh, I have to go.”

“I should probably go, too,” he mumbled, ending his sentence with a yawn.

“Yeah, but you can call me later,” I smiled. He smiled back and kissed my cheek before he left. I sighed and fell back on the bed. This felt so perfect.

I slipped into a pair of black gaucho pants, a cream-colored camisole top with lace on the edges and a black business jacket with black pumps. I pinned my bangs back with a few black bobby pins and smiled at my reflection in the mirror. I wanted to look nice, considering this was my first day on the job. As I headed outside my hotel room, I spotted a familiar face.

“It couldn’t be,” I muttered to myself as the person slipped behind the wall and out of my sight. I tried my hardest to run towards the person, but running in pumps isn’t easy. I realized whoever it was had disappeared and it was no use finding him, anyway. I brushed my hair over my shoulder and headed to the elevator, trying to clear my head.

Later That Day

“Miss. LaRoe?” One of the secretaries asked me as I was putting pictures into files. I smiled up at her. “You have a call on Line 1.”

“Thank you,” I smiled and picked up the phone on my desk, taking the call. “Hello?”

“Good afternoon,” I smiled at the voice I heard. “How’s your first day at work?” Nick asked me.

“Stressful,” I sighed. “How’s your day?” I asked as I held the phone between my ear and shoulder and continued to organize photos.

“Not too bad. I just got off the phone with Brian. Him, Leighanne and Baylee get in this afternoon. Leighanne’s mom is coming with them for a little while, so she promised to keep Baylee tonight so they could go out. They told me to invite you, as well,” Nick said. “Are you up for it?”

“Absolutely,” I smiled. “I get off work at six today, so I could run home and get changed before we leave.” I explained.

“Yeah, I think Bri and Leigh said they would want to meet around 7:00 at a club to do some dancing. So, do you want to grab a bite to eat beforehand?” Nick asked me. I bit my bottom lip and smiled.

“Absolutely,” I nodded. “Pick me up at 6:00?”

“Sounds good to me,” Nick said. I could sense his smile through the phone.

“Okay, then I’ll see you at 6:00,” I smiled. After we both said ‘bye’, I hung up. I sighed out loud and rested my head in the palm of my hand.

“Your fiancé, I assume?” I heard someone behind me. I jumped nearly out of my chair and giggled when I saw it was Allie.

“Actually, an old friend,” I corrected and continued sorting the pictures. I saw out of the corner of my eye as her eyebrows rose curiously.

“An old friend, huh?” She sat down next to me. “You looked pretty lovey-dovey to be talking to an ‘old friend’,” she laughed.

“It’s no big deal,” I blushed. I realized it was a big deal. I hardly knew Allie, though. She didn’t need to be pulled into my love life problems.

“Yeah, whatever,” Allie laughed. “Listen, I think you’ll be able to leave earlier than Mr. Burnham had planned. He said that he has to leave around 4:30, so if you can stay until 5:15 to help clean up, then you can probably leave by 5:20.”

“Okay,” I smiled. I couldn’t wait to see Brian and Leighanne, and Nick, of course.

A/N** THIS IS VERY IMPORTANT! I'm leaving tomorrow for a 2 week family vacation. I won't be able to update the entire time. I didn't want you guys to think I abandoned the story, because that's not what I'm doing at all. I'll try to put out at least 1 more chapter tonight so you guys can get your fill of the story, but after that, don't expect any updates until July 10th. Sorry! I'll miss the story but I'll write as much as I can on loose leaf paper while I'm away! Keep the reviews coming!!

By 5:20, I was definitely ready to leave. I couldn’t rid the thoughts of Nick from my mind. I caught a cab after taking some work home with me and hurried back to the hotel. I wasn’t sure what to wear. Nick had said we would be going clubbing, so I decided on something sexy and seductive, but not too flashy. I found a black and white camisole-like tank top that crisscrossed in the back. It went down below my waist. The entire shirt was black except for a white design on the side. I found a short jean skirt that had been ripped in a few places. I found a pair of black high-heels, but not so high that I would trip and kill myself. I figured it we were going to be dancing I’d be really hot, so I pulled my hair back in a somewhat high ponytail and added a little mascara and lip gloss to finish off my appearance.

I sighed, happy with my choice in dress and waited for Nick to come and get me. Right when my patience started to wear thin, there was a knock at the door. I walked over and smiled to see Nick standing there. He was wearing a black button-up long sleeved shirt with faded jeans. His hair was perfectly styled, of course. He was breathtaking. “Hey,” he smiled and enveloped me in a big hug. I felt my knees grow weak as the scent of his cologne rose off his collar and into my nostrils.

“Hi yourself,” I smiled and pulled back. “Just let me grab my purse and I’m ready to go.”

“Great,” he smiled back. We left the hotel and headed out to catch a cab.

“So, where are you taking me?” I smiled curiously. He laughed and smiled as he helped me into the cab first.

“Well, it was supposed to be a surprise, but I guess I could tell you,” he smiled. “It’s this amazing sushi place called Hatsuhana Park. It’s amazing. Aaron and I went there last time we were in Manhattan.” He looked so excited. I had to laugh at how cute he was when he got excited. “What?” He laughed.

“Nothing, you’re just so adorable,” I shook my head as the driver took off for the restaurant.

“Adorable?” He laughed. “I was hoping for sexy or incredibly hot. But adorable?” I laughed even harder.

“Okay, Mr. Self-centered,” I shook my head and giggled.

“Hey!” He joked. For some reason I had this weird feeling that we were being followed. “You okay?” He frowned. I smiled and nodded, taking my mind off the weird feeling.

“Yeah, I’m fine,” I lied. “So, did Brian and the family get in okay?” I asked him.

“Yep,” he nodded. “I guess Baylee was wiped, so he was asleep by the time they got to the hotel. Leigh’s mom is going to sit with him while we go out.”

“That’s sweet that her mom is here with them,” I smiled.

“Yeah, it is,” Nick nodded.

“I can’t wait to see them! I haven’t even seen them for a while,” I sighed. “I really missed everybody.”

“The feelings there are mutual,” he smiled. Even though Nick and I weren’t together, it still felt so right. I had some serious feelings to sort through the next few days.

We made it to the sushi restaurant. Nick and I both ordered the California roll special and we each got a side of white rice. It was delicious, just like Nick had said.

“Okay, okay,” Nick laughed after I had said something funny about him. “But do you remember that time for your birthday I threw a surprise party for you. But when you got there, you were in a really bad mood because you thought I had forgotten your birthday and your car had broken down. So you came into the house yelling and everyone was laughing.” He laughed.

“Oh shut up,” my cheeks grew red. “That was definitely your fault. You should have at least called and told me happy birthday so I knew you remembered.”

We laughed and reminisced over different things that had happened over the years as we finished eating. I couldn’t help but continue to feel like this was so perfect.

As we pulled up to the club, I noticed all the fans. For a split second I was worried that we would have to make it through those fans on our own. But as the taxi door opened, I spotted Marcus. I laughed as Nick helped me out. “What?” Nick asked me.

“Nothing, for a second there I thought we were on our own,” I said but hinted towards Marcus. Nick nodded and smiled.

“Come on,” he pulled me through the door to the loud club. We made our way to the VIP room and I immediately spotted Leighanne and Brian in the corner. I squealed and hurried over to hug Leighanne.

“Oh my, gosh! I missed you so much!” She exclaimed as she squeezed me in a big hug. I laughed as we pulled away.

“I missed you too! We have so much to catch up on!” I smiled. My gaze went past her to Brian. “Brian! Hi, how are you?” I hugged him afterwards, letting Nick hug Leighanne.

“I’m good! We missed you. Thanks for coming,” he kissed my cheek and smiled as we all pulled apart. I nodded and smiled.

“I’m glad I could be here,” I replied and tucked a fallen strand of light brown hair behind my ear. “Should we get some drinks and sit down?”

The others agreed and we found a booth and sat down. “I’ll go get some drinks. Rach, what do you want?”

“Uh, see if they have a Kokomo Joe, and if they don’t, then I’ll just have a Martini, dry,” I explained. Nick nodded and winked, and I had a feeling he remembered the Kokomo Joe was my favorite drink.

“I’ll join you. Leigh, baby, you want your normal?” Brian asked. Leighanne smiled and nodded and the two boys left us to our own.

“So! How are things?” Leighanne asked me, nodding towards Nick. I couldn’t help but let the crimson color fill my cheeks. “Oh my, gosh! Did you kiss him?”

“Well…” I trailed off and I heard her gasp. I laughed and hurried to continue so she wouldn’t get any crazy ideas. “It wasn’t a passionate kiss. It was just…refreshing and it made me think. This is only the second day I’ve spent with Nick and I feel so completely comfortable around him. It almost scares me.”

“Honey, that’s a good thing,” she laughed. “I’m so happy you two hooked up again. What are you going to do?” She asked, realizing I wasn’t wearing an engagement ring.

“Honestly?” I sighed. “I have no idea. Nick is being so patient. Hell, I don’t even know what he wants out of all this. All I know is that my feelings for Nick are stronger than my feelings for Ryan.”

“If that’s not a sign, I don’t know what is,” she mumbled. I looked in her gaze and saw the boys were already headed back to our table. Nick smiled and handed me a Kokomo Joe and squeezed into the booth next to me as Brian did the same with Leighanne.

“Nick told me that your job’s going well,” Brian smiled and I nodded after I took a sip of my drink.

“I love it,” I smiled. “It’s right up my alley with the whole writing thing.”

“Absolutely,” Brian nodded. After a few minutes of catching up and drinking, Brian held his hand out to Leighanne. “Dance with me, baby.” He kissed her softly. She blushed and took his hand as they headed out to the dance floor. I laughed softly and took another sip from my drink. Then I saw a hand in my face. I looked up to meet Nick’s gaze.

“Dance with me?” He smiled. How could I resist? I put my hand in his as a smile crept over my lips.

Nick had my hand gently in his as I followed him out onto the dance floor. I couldn’t help the butterflies in my stomach as he turned me around. “Hips Don’t Lie” by Shakira was blasting in the speakers as Nick pulled me close to him. I finally remembered Nick’s “dancing side”. His eyes would become very dark and stormy-like, as he would stare back into my eyes every time we went dancing. I felt my breath catch in my throat as he pulled me even closer to him and let his hand rest on the small of my back. I let him control me as we began to grind to the beat. I knew how to drive him wild. I brought my mouth up to his ear and sang the words softly to him as I shook my hips to the beat.

He turned me around and brought his lips down to my level as he left a small, gentle kiss in the crook of my neck. He kept his hands planted firmly, yet securely, on my stomach and moved my hips to match his. I couldn’t help the warmth growing within my body as I brought my arms up around my head and rested them on the back of Nick’s neck. I played with his hair as we danced. I laughed as he nibbled on my ear playfully. A smile crept over his lips as I brought one hand back down and rested it on the hands on my stomach.

“I missed you,” he whispered in my ear. I closed my eyes as I pretended it was just Nick and I in that crazy club. As the song wound down to an end, “Temperature” by Sean Paul came on and Nick slipped away. I frowned in his direction but he smiled back. “I’ll be right back.” He mouthed and hurried off. I felt kind of ridiculous standing there without anyone to dance with, so I headed over to the table to get a drink. I saw Nick talking to the DJ and wondered what he was saying. I took a long swig and watched as Brian and Leighanne enjoyed themselves.

Leighanne saw me and frowned as she realized Nick wasn’t with me. “Where’s Nick?” She mouthed. I shrugged and took another drink from my drink. The music stopped and everyone sounded disappointed.

“Okay, we have an odd request. Rachel, Nick wants you to know that he remembers,” the DJ said. At that moment, “Unchained Melody” came over the speakers. People made it known that they were hurt and upset that the DJ would play something like this. I felt my hand go up to my mouth as tears filled my eyes. I saw as Nick approached me.

“Do you remember?” He asked me, barely above a whisper as he took my hand and led me to the center of the dance floor.

“Of course I remember,” I gasped and let him wrap his arms around me. I pulled him closer to me as I put my arms around his neck. “I can’t believe you remember.” I laughed lightly. My expression became more serious as I saw how serious he was.

“I remember everything, Rachel,” he sighed. I leaned my head up against his chest and listened to his heartbeat. Nick rubbed little designs on the small of my back and rested his head on top of mine.

“Nick, are you crazy!” I laughed as he pulled me down the dock towards the water. “It’s practically midnight! Sharks feed at this hour!”

“We don’t have to worry about sharks. We aren’t getting into the water,” he explained as he stepped onto his boat. He reached out for my hand. I laughed and took it, stepping onto the boat with him. “Wait here.” He whispered. I bit my bottom lip in anticipation as he disappeared behind the cover in the back of the boat. All of a sudden, I heard the opening sound of “Unchained Melody”. I smiled.

“Why this song?” I asked him shyly as he approached me again, this time with two glasses of champagne.

“Well, I remember when we first started going out, that you said you would love to have this be your wedding song one day. And, well, I know we aren’t getting married or anything,” Nick shrugged. “But, I wanted it to be our song.”

“That’s so sweet,” I whispered as he handed me a glass of champagne. “What are we celebrating?” I asked him just as softly.

He looked at me long and hard, then I watched as a smile crept on his lips. “My love for you.”

As the memory faded and the song began to come to and end, I felt the tears begin cascade down my cheeks. I didn’t want this moment to end. I realized I never wanted it to end at all. As I pulled away from Nick, I saw the tears in his eyes. Some people applauded and I felt as though they were watching Nick and I. But then I realized it was probably because the sappy song was over. I wiped at my eyes as Nick knelt down and whispered in my ear, “I love you, Rachel LaRoe.”

Perfect moment, right? Think again. “Ray?” I heard from behind me.

I spun around quickly to see a very confused and very hurt Ryan. “R-Ryan? What the hell are you doing here?” I asked quickly. I immediately wished I hadn’t said that as I realized how incredibly rude it came off.

“I was about to ask you that,” he yelled, partly because he was angry and partly because the music was blasting through the speakers. “Can I see you outside?” I sighed and nodded, then turned to look at Nick. He looked confused, yet I couldn’t blame him.

“Ryan, I live here now,” I muttered, answering his question about what I was doing here.

“Okay, that makes since. You live here now, so of course you’re going to go out and grind with other guys. I mean, you’re engaged but who cares?” He spat out sarcastically. I sighed and closed my eyes.

“I didn’t mean it like that,” I said and looked down at the ground. “It wasn’t a big deal.” I lied; clearly knowing it was a huge deal.

“It wasn’t a big deal? Rachel, are you serious? We’re engaged, for Christ’s sake! You’re all over some other man and we’re engaged!” He yelled.

“Ryan, Nick’s just an old friend!” I lied, once again. He was an old friend, but he meant more than that to me. I knew it and he knew it.

“You know what, I don’t know who to believe right now,” Ryan folded his arms across his chest and stared at me. I had never seen him so angry before. “Your mom was right. She told me after you left that I should be worried. I tried to push her thoughts to the back of my mind, but after you didn’t call and didn’t call, I got worried.”

“Worried about me or worried about what I was doing?” I placed my hands on my hips. The anger was beginning to build up in me.

“Both,” he answered. “Your mom told me all about Nick. When I saw you at the hotel I figured I had nothing to worry about, but then you went to go get sushi and…” he trailed off, realizing he had blown his cover.

“You’ve been following me?” I yelled loudly. That was it. I knew I had blown Ryan’s trust, but he had just blown mine. “I can not believe you. I understand you’re upset and mad, but that’s not any reason to stalk me, Ryan.”

“Sorry for thinking you were hurt or something terrible had happened to you!” He yelled back sarcastically. “How do you think I felt when I saw you with him? Huh? Do you realize how much you hurt me?”

I, honestly, didn’t know what to say. “I’m sorry.” I muttered. “But do you realize how hurt I am to know that you didn’t trust me enough to go away for a while and sort through a million different feelings and emotions? You’re supposed to trust me, Ryan.”

“I did trust you, until now. I went to the hotel to find you and make sure you were okay. As I was sitting in the lobby, I just happened to see you and that blonde man whore walk by, so I followed you,” he spat in my face.

I was a bitch. That was the end of my sweet, kind, loving side. “I-I’m sorry.” I stuttered. “I know I hurt you and I’m sorry. I got cold feet, Ryan. That’s the honest to God truth. I got scared. I needed to sort through these feelings.”

He seemed to soften since I began to soften. “And what did you find?” He asked me.

“I-I don’t know,” I looked down at the pavement to try and hide the tears that had started to fall. “I don’t know yet.” I repeated.

He took my hand in his. “I love you, Ray. I, honestly, do. But if you still don’t know by tomorrow morning what you want, then I’ll be headed back to Tampa on a plane by 9:00. I won’t expect our relationship to continue.”

I sat up staring out at a midnight thunderstorm that had started only a few minutes ago. There were so many different thoughts running through my head and I didn’t know what to do. Maybe deep down there was an answer waiting at the pit of my stomach, but no matter who I decided to be with, someone had to get hurt. I loved both of these men for different reasons, so if one of them were to be hurt, then I would be hurt. Nothing seemed to work in my favor. Ryan was my sensible, realistic love. Ryan was the man that saw the good in me, even when no one else could. He was the man that never left, even if he had the right to. He had a good, stable job. My family was practically in love with him. What more could a woman ask for?

Then there was Nick. My Nick. He was so full of life, creativity and love. He wanted me to be happy, and that was all that mattered to him. He was an angel in disguise whenever I needed to get away from my mother. He told me how she was wrong and I was right. He was my dreamer, the one that would open my eyes to a new life. He had grown so much in the years that we were a part, and that made my love for him grow. He was capable of being my husband years ago, but now made it even better. He truly loved me in a way I hadn’t been loved in a long time. He was able to love my like no one else.

I ran through my feelings as I traced a raindrop on the window. My life had felt so planned out the past few years. Ryan’s proposal shocked me, but I knew it would be coming eventually. If I hadn’t taken the job in New York, my family would have my life entirely planned out like a map. I was tired of following their stupid map. It was time for a change. I needed someone new in my life.

And I knew exactly who that someone new would be.

**A/N: I know it's short, but that's why I called it Part I. Part II will be out after I get a review or two.

I carried my entire luggage behind me and went to knock on Nick’s door. I took in a deep breath before I brought my fist up to the door. Before I could even knock, the door flew open and I was staring face to face with Nick. He looked flustered and exhausted. I felt bad knowing that he had probably been awake all night. “I was just about to come and see you.” He sighed. He looked down at my bags. “I see you’ve made your decision.” The color in his face began to diminish.

“Yes, I have,” I nodded and sucked in one last deep breath before I started the speech I had practiced so many times before. “Nick, I need a man that’s going to be there for me always, not just when he feels like it. I need someone to love me unconditionally, no matter what. I need someone to trust me and vice versa. I want to love me forever. I’m the kind of girl that wants someone to open her eyes to something new all the time. It’s all about what I want and what I need.”

Nick looked kind of hurt and sad. “I understand.” He mumbled.

A huge grin covered my lips. “Good, I’m glad. Because that man is you.”

His eyes lit up like I had never seen them before and he laughed. “S-Seriously?” He stumbled over his words and I nodded. I couldn’t help but giggle at his excitement. He picked me up and spun me around in the middle of the hotel hallway. As he planted my feet back down on the carpet, he bent down and kissed me passionately.

“I take it you’re happy with my decision?” I bit my bottom lip as he smiled and nodded profusely. He bent down and kissed me again, reassuring me he was extremely happy with my decision.

He caught a glance at my left hand and noticed the ring was gone. “Did you tell Ryan?” He asked me and I nodded. He helped me bring my bags into the hotel room.

“I checked out of my hotel this morning and went to his hotel to tell him. I just told him that I thought he was a great man and I was sad to tell him goodbye, but my heart and soul belonged to someone else,” I muttered and glanced in Nick’s direction. He looked genuinely happy. “I gave him the ring back. I asked him if he wouldn’t tell my mother. I called the airport and got a ticket to fly back to Tampa in a few hours to get my things out of Ryan’s house. I’ll tell my family then.”

“Wow,” Nick sighed and ran a hand through his hair. “You really thought about this, huh?”

“Yep,” I laughed. “I think I slept a total of three hours last night. I had a lot of time to think things through.”

“Well, I’m glad you thought it through and you’re one hundred and ten percent sure about all this,” he almost sounded nervous and I laughed.

“Nick, I love you,” I reassured him. Then I realized it was really the first time I had said that to him since we were together before. I knew it, and I figured he knew it, too. But I hadn’t really said it.

“I love you, Rachel,” he smiled and kissed me softly.

“I, do, think we should take it slow,” I mumbled. He pulled away hesitantly. “I mean, we can be together. But I just got out of my second engagement and I need some time to feel comfortable and not so vulnerable.”

“I understand,” he nodded.

“I called my boss this morning and told him I had a family emergency back home, but I was planning on returning to work in a few days,” I bit my bottom lip. “I took the job, Nick, not just the internship. They offered me an actual job as a secretary. I know it’s not much, but it’s a start. So I’ll be living in New York all the time now.”

I wanted to know how he would react to this. He would travel with the boys all the time, but in his free time, he spent it in Florida with his friends and family. “I’m proud of you. I would never want you to run from your dreams.”

“Are you going to run? Knowing that I’m staying here?” I frowned. I needed to know.

“Absolutely not,” he exclaimed. “Rachel, I couldn’t be happier for you! You’re accepting my life as a Backstreet Boy and I’m accepting yours as a secretary in New York! I’ll be here all my free time!”

“Thank you for understanding,” I smiled and kissed his cheek softly. “Listen, it’s 10:45 now. My plane is scheduled to leave at 4:00. I took off work today through next week. I hope to get to Florida, empty out the house, get a moving truck to drive up here and move into an apartment somewhere. I don’t have that much stuff at Ryan’s, mainly just clothes. And I’ll have to buy new furniture…” I trailed off as I realized what a hassle all of this was going to be.

“Hey, don’t worry about it,” Nick draped his arms around me and pulled me close. “I’ll help you find a place and get you situated before I leave for recording. I’ll make sure you’re all set before I go.”

“Thanks, Nick,” I sighed and leaned into him. “I feel bad…about letting Ryan go.”

“Did you follow your heart?” Nick asked me softly and kissed the top of my head. I nodded.

“Completely,” I whispered.

“Then you have nothing to worry about,” he hugged me tightly. “You were right letting him go before it was too late. Plus, I love you too much to let you go.”

“So, you’re sure you want to go without me?” Nick asked me for the hundredth time as we sat at a small table in a café eating sandwiches for lunch. “Because I can go to the airport and get a last minute ticket if you want.”

“Nick, you’re so sweet to worry about me, but I really need to do this on my own,” I sighed. “I don’t think it would go over well if you helped me move out of Ryan’s place. And I really need to tell my mom by myself. It’s one thing that I’m breaking off the engagement, but it would be so much worse if I brought you home at the same time.”

“True,” Nick nodded. I smiled and touched his hand across the table.

“Don’t worry. No one’s going to talk me out of anything. Everything’s going to work out,” I smiled. He smiled and nodded.

“I know,” he mumbled through a mouthful of a turkey sandwich. I laughed and threw a napkin at him. “So, what can I do for you while you’re gone.”

I sighed. “Well, if you want, you could look for an apartment for me in a reasonable price range. I’ll need somewhere to live. And just tell Bri and Leigh that I’ll call them in a few days once I get things settled in Florida. I feel bad that I just took off last night.”

“They understand,” he reassured me. “It’s all going to be okay. I don’t want you to worry about a thing while you’re gone, okay?”

“Okay,” I smiled. “Thanks for everything.” I rested my hand on his.

“No problem,” he winked. We both finished our sandwiches and walked hand-in-hand down the street. As we passed by a pet store, I hurried back to the window and squealed over a litter of puppies.

“Aw! They are so adorable!” I exclaimed as I touched the glass where one’s nose was resting. “Nick, aren’t they adorable?”

“Yeah, yeah, yeah,” Nick sighed and wrapped his arm around me. “Come on, Rach.”

“Aw, but I want one!” I exclaimed in a fake pout and he laughed.

“Nice try. There’s no way I’m letting you bring home a puppy so I can stay here and take care of it while you’re away. I don’t feel like being responsible for anything any time soon,” he joked and I rolled my eyes.

“Fine,” I muttered. I always wanted a puppy. My dad was always ‘allergic’, as my mom would say. She never let me have a dog when I was growing up. I figured it was really because she didn’t want to have to worry about it.

“I’ll get you a stuffed animal instead,” he tried to make me feel better and I laughed.

“Okay, yeah, that’ll fool me,” I replied sarcastically. “Nice try, my mom pulled that one until I was seventeen.” I laughed. He chuckled and shook his head. “We better get back to your hotel so I can get my things together and get to the airport.”

“Yeah, you’re right,” Nick sighed and nodded. We caught a taxi back to the hotel. I knew this entire week was going to be strange. Nick and I wouldn’t be seeing each other for a little while, but it wasn’t like we weren’t used to being away from each other. Then it would be weird explaining everything that transpired between Ryan and I to my family and friends. I still didn’t know how I was going to tell my mother the wedding was off. When I had decided on accepting a new life, I really meant “new life”. New home, new boyfriend, new job…everything. I would be leaving the only home I ever knew – Florida and my family.

I glanced over at Nick and watched as he looked out the window. His gaze caught my eyes and he smiled, placing his hand over mine, trying to comfort me.

It was then that I realized it was all worth it in the end.

“The entire crew here on Delta would like to welcome you to Tampa, Florida. Currently it’s 7:30 PM in Tampa and a warm 75 degrees. It’s a little cloudy with a chance of scattered thunderstorms,” the pilot announced over the loud speaker. “We hope you enjoyed your time flying with us and you enjoy your time in the Sunshine State. Thank you for flying Delta!”

I sucked in a deep breath and glanced around me. There were families all over the place, as well as a few businesspeople here and there. I called my brother, Brad, earlier and he promised he’d be here to pick me up. I felt the plane as it came to a landing and I gathered my carryon items together.

As I walked off the plane, I immediately spotted Brad. A huge smile came over my lips as I ran towards him and jumped into his arms. “I missed you so much!” I exclaimed.

“I missed you, too,” he smiled back. He glanced down at my left hand and I figured he knew before he looked that I had broken off the engagement. “I’m proud of you.” He wrapped his arm around me and we headed to the luggage claim.

“Thanks,” I smiled back at him. “I’m proud of myself. But hey, did you know Ryan was coming to see me?”

“Not until he got home this morning. Mom told me he went to Georgia to visit old relatives,” he rolled his eyes. “I guess she knew I would give you a fair warning if I knew.”

“Does mom know about me breaking it off?” I bit my bottom lip.

“No. She wasn’t home when Ryan got back this morning. She knows he’s back, but she thinks that everything’s fine between the two of you,” Brad sighed. “But don’t worry,” he began when he saw my face drop. “Everything’s going to be fine. I’ll be right there with you when you tell them. I’ll help you pack up and I’ll even drive you up to New York next week. Sam can handle our house.”

“Thanks, Brad,” I smiled and leaned into his warm embrace.

“No problem,” he smiled. “What are big brothers for, anyway?”

I smiled as we gathered my luggage together off the moving belt. After we got it all together, we headed back out to the parking garage for Brad’s 2006 Honda Civic. “How is everything at home?”

“Crazy, but I guess you’re probably used to that,” he sighed. “When mom called me to come home for a little while, I was surprised. But then I realized it was just because she wasn’t speaking to you and she had no one to bitch at besides dad.”

“Yep,” I laughed. “That would be the main reason why I left.”

“Well, she’s been in a wedding frenzy, not to freak you out or anything,” he sighed. “But she’s practically planning it for you.”

“I knew she would,” I rolled my eyes as we headed off for home. Lightning struck and a boom of thunder was heard off in the distance.

“Well, just break the news to her lightly,” Brad said as he watched the road. “She’ll still freak out, but she’ll get over it.”

“She never got over you and Samantha,” I looked over at him and he shrugged.

“It’s tough not to have your own mother’s support in life,” he said. “But you get through it. I talk to dad every week. We talk about baseball and stuff. Whenever he’s in town or vice versa we go to games together. You can always find a way to work around mom.”

“True, I guess,” I sighed. “Thanks for supporting me, Brad.”

“Of course! You were always there for me when I dropped out of college and married Sam. I’ll always be here for you,” he smiled over at me. “I love you, Chel.” I smiled. When we were kids, I called Brad “Rad” because I couldn’t say the “B”. So Brad came back and would call me “Chel”, pretending like he could say the “Ray”.

“I love you too, Rad,” I smiled. I had to admit I was glad to be home.

I tried to be as silent as possible as I walked into my own home. I was scared; I’d admit it. “Rachel, that you?” I heard my dad’s voice bellow through the foyer.

“Hey daddy,” I tried to sound as excited to see him as possible. He enveloped me in a big hug and I smiled.

“Baby girl! I didn’t know you were coming home! Brad, you knew about this?” He questioned my brother. Brad nodded with a smile. I watched my mom come downstairs.

“Rachel? You’re home!” She exclaimed and hurried towards me. A nauseous feeling came over me and I had to use every muscle in my body to hold back my vomit. I don’t think I had ever been this nervous before.

“Yeah, I’m home,” I sighed.

“Well, why didn’t you come home with Ryan this morning? He came by to see your brother earlier,” she frowned.

“I had some things to finish up at work,” I explained. “But I’m home now. I really need to talk to you guys about some things, though.” I sighed. I glanced back at Brad for a reassuring nod.

“Rachel, why aren’t you wearing your engagement ring?” My mother’s voice tensed up. I sighed and played with my fingers. A nervous habit, I suppose.

“Can we go sit on the couch?” I asked, quickly changing the subject. They had to know it was coming, though. We walked over to the couch. On the way, I tried to find the words I would say. Brad and I sat next to each other on the leather, cream colored, love seat, while my parents sat across from us on the matching couch.

“What’s going on?” My mother frowned, worry dripped from each word.

“Mom, Ryan came to New York to see me,” I began. “We got a little time to talk through some things and we both decided that things weren’t working out. It was completely mutual.”

“You, what?” She exclaimed and clenched her fists together. Her knuckles turned insanely white and fear began to bubble inside me. Words just started rambling together and flying out of my mouth.

“It was all so soon and so unexpected. If I would have known he was coming…” I trailed off. It was then that I realized my mother had brought it all upon herself. “If you wouldn’t have sent him after me like that, maybe things would have worked out on its own.” I shot back. I should at least try to defend myself.

“Rachel Marie, don’t you dare put this on me!” She yelled across the room.

“Why shouldn’t I?” I yelled back. “You sent him there! You told him that he shouldn’t trust me! You told him all about Nick.” I spat in her direction.

“Why is that such a problem? He is your fiancé, you know,” she muttered with anger.

“Was, mother. He was my fiancé. Besides, I don’t know everything about all his ex girlfriends, why does he have to know about my ex boyfriends? Nick had nothing to do with Ryan and I,” I folded my arms across my chest.

“Didn’t he?” A mischievous grin came over her lips. “I know you, Rachel. I know you better than you think I do. I knew that boy was still in love with you and you were still in love with him.”

“That’s right,” I muttered. “You were the one that broke us up! How dare you go to him yourself and tell him to leave me! I know your type. I don’t know how I can be your child when you are like this!”

“Get out,” she muttered through her teeth.

“Gladly,” I stood up and walked towards the front door. I stopped and turned around. “I feel sorry for you, mom. I really do. You have such a wonderful husband and two great kids. It’s sad you don’t want what’s best for them.”

“Ryan is what’s best for you,” she mumbled as she walked up to me. “And if you let him go, you shouldn’t expect to ever talk to me again.”

I stared into her eyes as mine filled with tears. My mother was rude, insane and unruly, but in the end, she was my mother. Part of me wanted to apologize, but then I thought back to Nick and how my own mother had watched my cry for months after we broke up – he left. She told me she didn’t understand why he had left. She lied to me. She watched me hurt and be depressed. “Goodbye, mom.”

I sat in my brother’s car and let the tears fall down uncontrollably. We sat in silence as we drove to Ryan’s house. There really wasn’t much to say. “I’m sorry about everything,” he whispered. “I wasn’t prepared for it to happen like that.”

“That makes two of us,” I muttered and glanced back out the window. “Did I really do the right thing?” I looked over to him. “I mean, giving up my relationship with mom for a guy?”

“Is Nick ‘just a guy’?” Brad glanced over at me. A smile curved on my lips as I remembered back to all the reasons why I loved Nick so much. I shook my head ‘no’. “Rachel, I know you and I know you’re brilliant. You think through everything before making any kind of major decision. You had to think about choosing between Nick and Ryan really hard, and if you thought about it and truly followed your heart and soul, then there’s nothing to worry about. Mom will come around. I know her. She can’t live without talking to you. Things will get better.”

“They didn’t get better for you,” I glanced at him.

“Well, mom and I never had the greatest relationship in the first place,” he laughed softly as we pulled into the driveway. “Remember back in middle school when I brought home my first ‘F’?” He asked. I winced and nodded.

“Mom didn’t talk to you for a month,” I sighed.

He nodded. “That’s just mom. You’ve always been her favorite. You always will be. Ryan’s just a guy. She can’t dwell on him forever.”

“I guess your right,” I sighed. We noticed that Ryan’s car was gone.

“I told him you were coming in so it wouldn’t be awkward,” Brad explained as we got out. I smiled weakly in his direction and sighed as we approached the front door. “You still have a key, right?”

“Yep,” I sighed and unlocked the door. It was very strange to be back in that house. The last time I had been in the house, things were fine – in fact, better than fine. Things had been perfect. I had only been living in the house for a short time; my mom was weird about it since we weren’t married yet. So most of my things were at my parents’ house. But when I left for New York, my mom tried to “surprise” me and she moved all my things into Ryan’s place.

“You okay?” Brad asked and put a supportive hand on my back as I took in the scent of the house. I nodded.

“Yeah, I’m fine. Let’s just get this over with, okay?” I asked and he nodded. He brought in some of the boxes he had found and we began to pack up my things – most of which were clothes. I never owned my own furniture because I never lived on my own. This was all Ryan’s stuff.

We finished packing and I put my key on the kitchen counter. I wrote a note on a post-it note on the counter.

Ryan,

Thanks for everything. I hope you understand everything that happened between the two of us, and I want you to know that I will never forget you. Thank you for loving me like you did. Please don’t let this hurt you. That’s the last thing I would ever want to do.

Goodbye,
Rachel.

I couldn’t help the tears that filled my eyes as I put the remainder of the boxes in Brad’s car. To be honest, I wasn’t crying because I was sad about leaving Ryan. There were so many things put together. I was leaving. I was giving up the only home I had ever known and the man that loved me so much.

“Keep thinking about Nick,” Brad interrupted my thoughts.

“It’s like you can read my mind,” I giggled as I wiped away the stray tears. He shrugged and draped his arms across my shoulders.

“It’s an older brother thing,” he laughed. “Come on, let’s get you out of here.”

I smiled and nodded as we headed off to a hotel. I would stay in town for a few more days to transfer my bank accounts and say goodbye to good friends. Fortunately, the worst part was over. But I needed to see Nick, or at least talk to him. My heart was hurting.

“Hello?” He answered on the third ring. Just hearing his voice made my face light up.

“Hey,” I smiled and bit my bottom lip. I wanted to see if he recognized my voice.

“Rach! How are you? Are you okay?” Nick asked and I smiled. He sounded so concerned and so kind.

“Yeah, I’m fine,” I sighed. “My mom didn’t take the news too well, but that was to be expected. Right now I’m at a hotel with my brother. We’re going to finish up some things around town and head back to New York in a few days.”

“Well, I’m sorry about your mom,” he sighed. “I feel bad about it.”

“Don’t! Please, don’t. I don’t need both of us all worried about it,” I sighed. “I just needed to hear your voice. I miss you so much, which is weird, considering we just spent so many years apart.”

“I know what you mean,” he laughed. “Brian’s about to strangle me. All I can talk about is you. Hell, even Baylee knows who you are and exactly what you look like.” I had to laugh. He was so cute.

“Well, thank you,” I smiled. “I didn’t tell my mom about us…although I’m pretty sure she has an idea.”

“I figured she would,” he laughed. “But seriously, don’t worry about it. She can’t tell you who to be with. You’re so much better than her, anyway.” He tried to boost my confidence a bit.

“Thanks, Nicky,” I immediately went to slap myself. I only called him that when we were together.

“I missed that,” he said, barely above a whisper. “Surprisingly.” He laughed lightly.

“I’m sorry, I mean, I know…” I stopped talking as I realized what he had said. “You missed that?” I frowned.

“Coming from you? Yes,” he said. “I’ve missed everything about us, Rach. The way we used to curl up on the floor, me resting back on the couch and you leaning up against me. I miss the way we would lie awake in bed at night whenever we weren’t at your place and we would talk about the future – how we wanted to get married and the number of kids we wanted to have.”

“I-I know,” I whispered and looked around the hotel room, big tears in my eyes. “I miss it too.”

“I just want to be with you, Nick,” I sighed. I felt relieved after I said it, even if it sounded somewhat cliché or corny. I bit my bottom lip to try and shove the tears back. “But I can’t.” I whispered.

“Please don’t cry,” he said. I couldn’t get over the fact that he knew me that well to pinpoint my exact feelings and emotions. “I hate it when you cry.”

“I can’t help it!” I exclaimed as I wiped away the tears hastily. “I miss you! I need to be with you, but I can’t! When I get back to New York you’re going to be heading back into the studio and then going on tour, and we’ll never get to see each other and our relationship will die.”

“Only if we kill it,” he shot back. “You have to give it a chance, Rachel. You have to open up to me again.”

“You don’t think I’ve opened up to you?” I exclaimed. My tears of sadness and hurt had turned into tears of pain. I couldn’t believe him. He was asking me to open up to him and I thought I had over the past few weeks. “Nick, I left my fucking fiancé for you!” I yelled. “I told you how I felt! Am I supposed to just tell you I love you a day after I broke off my engagement?”

“Rach, I didn’t mean it like that…” he trailed off.

I took in a deep breath and realized I was just mad because of everything that was happening. It wasn’t at Nick, directly. It was the entire situation. I just wanted to be with him without the added on stress. “I’m sorry, I’m just upset right now.”

“I know,” he whispered. “I’m sorry, too.”

“I’ll see you sometime next week, okay?” I rubbed my temples and looked up at Brad. He had, obviously, heard the yelling and come in to see if everything was okay.

“Okay,” Nick agreed. “Oh, and Rachel?”

“Yeah?” I muttered.

“You don’t have to say anything back, but I want you to understand that I couldn’t be happier knowing that you’re coming home to me,” he said. “And I want you to know that my feelings for you have never gone away. I love you.”

“Thanks, Nick,” I smiled. I knew it wasn’t what he wanted to hear, but I wasn’t willing to give that to him just yet. “I’ll see you soon.”

“Bye,” he sighed.

“Bye,” I smiled weakly and hung up. I immediately put my head in my hands and let more tears fall. Brad hugged me tightly and whispered encouraging words in my ear.

The remainder of the week had flown by, thank goodness. I had finished closing up loose ends and I was ready to finally get back to New York. Brad and I had to drive it. I needed to bring my car up there and he was helping me transport my things. It was a long drive, but we finally arrived in Manhattan around 8:00 PM on the last day.

“Hey, it’s me,” I smiled after Nick answered his cell phone on the last ring.

“Hey! Are you back in town?” He questioned eagerly. I smiled.

“Yep, I’m in Manhattan now. Are you still at that same hotel?” I asked him. “I didn’t make reservations anywhere just in case.”

“Actually, right now I’m at this apartment complex I found and wanted you to look at,” he explained. I couldn’t help but smile. I had completely forgotten about having him look for an apartment.

“Where is it?” I asked him curiously. He gave me directions and I told him I’d meet him over there to check it out. I called Brad and told him the plans. I pulled up to the complex. It was absolutely breathtaking. It was tall, probably seven stories, at least.

“You can afford this?” Brad raised his eyebrows in my direction as we made our way inside. I just shrugged. I knew Nick wouldn’t look at anything outside my price range. He never wanted me to feel inferior to anyone. The woman at the front desk smiled at me. I immediately spotted Nick with what looked like a real estate agent. She was shaking his hand.

“Nick!” I exclaimed and ran towards him. Seeing him in person made me feel so safe and so comfortable. He spun me around in his arms.

“God, I missed you,” he whispered and kissed the top of my head as he set me back down on the ground. I smiled up at him and looked at the agent.

“It was nice working with you, Nick,” she smiled and headed for the automatic doors. I frowned up at him, very confused.

“Brad, it’s nice to see you again, man,” Nick smiled towards my brother and shook his hand. My brother greeted him, as well. I continued to stand there, completely confused as to what the agent meant by, ‘it was nice working with you.’ Had Nick purchased some kind of apartment already?

“Uh, Nick?” I frowned and touched his arm gently. “What was that about?”

“Oh! I have something to show you,” he smiled. We walked to the elevator and stood there. Brad had a smirk on his face.

“Do you know something I don’t?” I frowned in his direction. Come to think of it, he had been acting awfully suspicious lately. Almost like he knew something but he wasn’t going to say anything. When we got on the elevator, Nick put some kind of a key in a hole and pressed ‘P’.

“No, why would you think that?” He tried not to laugh.

“Okay, that blows it. What’s going on?” I looked at both of the men. Both of them couldn’t control their smiles. The elevator stopped and the doors opened – on the floor labeled P. “What does P stand for?” I frowned. I gasped as the doors opened and before me stood an incredibly large, yet incredibly beautiful penthouse. “Because usually that stands for Penthouse, but usually only the owner of the Penthouse is allowed on that floor.” I gasped.

Nick handed me the key he had used and smiled. “Welcome home.”

“What do you mean, welcome home? I can’t afford this!” I exclaimed as I looked around the beautiful home. It was completely decked out with new furniture. It seemed like everything screamed ‘Me’ as I looked at it.

“Yes, you can,” he smiled and winked. I heard a bark and my heart skipped a beat.

“Nickolas Gene Carter,” I muttered as a small, Sheltie puppy like the one we had passed at the pet store ran up to my feet. I scooped it up in my arms. “Aw! It’s so cute!” I couldn’t help the tears that came to my eyes. “I can’t believe you did this for me.”

“It’s the least I could do. I knew that leaving your place back home would be kind of hard for you, so I wanted you to come back here and immediately feel comfortable in a new place,” he smiled.

“You know I hate it when you spoil me,” I laughed lightly.

“Yes, but you know me. I love to spoil,” he smiled and nudged my arm playfully as I played with the puppy. “Who’s going to be here to help me train it, though? I mean, it’s such a sweet gesture, but I’m going to be out of the house most of the day. I’ve never trained a dog before.”

“I’ve trained plenty,” Nick shrugged it off like it was no big deal.

“That’s nice, Nick. But, it’s not like you’re going to be here to help me,” I rolled my eyes playfully in his direction.

“Oh, but you’re so wrong there,” he gently touched my arm and pulled me over to a bedroom. I saw it was painted blue with a matching bedspread and all. I couldn’t believe my eyes. Better yet, I couldn’t believe what he was saying.

“Nick, this is moving way too --.” He cut me off before I could continue.

“I know, I know,” he brought his hands up in defense. “But it’s not like we’re going to be living together. I’ll just have a place to stay whenever I’m in New York. I’m not trying to make it seem like we’re living together at all. And I don’t want you to feel inferior because in a way, you’re helping me out by giving me somewhere to stay.”

“Only you paid for the whole thing,” I laughed softly and shook my head at him. He knew I didn’t have the money to have a place to stay. “I can’t accept this.”

“Yes, you can,” he bit his bottom lip trying to find another reason as to why I should take it. “Just look at it as you’re staying in my house. I bought it but you’re going to stay in it while I’m away.”

I laughed. He was too cute for words. I finally fell into agreement. Like I had said earlier, without this place, I didn’t really have anywhere to go. “Fine,” I sighed. “You win. Thank you.” I kissed his cheek.

“No problem,” he smiled and took the puppy from my arms. “What are you going to name her?” He asked me. I smiled and bit my bottom lip in contemplation.

“I’m not sure…” I looked around the penthouse to try and figure out some kind of name. My eyes landed on a movie that Nick had obviously gotten for me. It was my favorite Disney movie as a kid. The Little Mermaid. “Ariel.” I replied with a grin.

“I should have known,” Nick chuckled. Brad looked confused.

“Ariel?” He frowned.

“From that Disney classic,” Nick rolled his eyes. “It’s her favorite movie.”

“Ah,” Brad nodded as he remembered the movie.

“Wait! There’s more!” Nick exclaimed. I rolled my eyes and followed him down a hall to another door.

“More? Nick, when will this stop? You have already spent so much on me, I don’t want your money…” I trailed off as he opened the door for me to see.

It was a pale orange color – almost a little pinkish, like a peach color. There was a bookshelf on the back wall stacked with all my favorite books. There was a beautiful cream-colored, leather couch beside the bookshelf. There was a big bay window along one wall that overlooked Manhattan. In front of the window there was a large oak desk and a comfortable computer chair. There was a computer on the desk, as well as a stack of notebook paper and rows of ink pens. I bit my bottom lip and walked inside. On the wall were wooden letters that spelled out “Rach’s Room”. Nick walked me over to the bookshelf and handed me a book I had never seen before.

“Open it,” he whispered.

As I opened it, I saw a picture that was taken of Nick and I back when we were together. I recognized the book now. I had given it to Nick years ago for our anniversary. It said: ‘To my Nicky, love your Rach.’ He had added something below it that read: ‘Rach, may all your dreams come true – starting with this one.’ As I opened the book, I saw Nick had put a collection of my short stories together. Inside was a contract with a publisher. “O-Oh my God,” I mumbled as I saw the contract.

“Congratulations,” Nick whispered. “They want to be your publisher.”

I cuddled up on the couch with Ariel on my lap, fast asleep. Brad came in and sat down next to me. “You’re glowing.” He chuckled. I rolled my eyes and hit him with a pillow.

“Whatever,” I muttered and tossed some popcorn in my mouth.

“I’m dead serious, Rachel,” he said. I glanced over at him. He even looked serious. “I’m really happy for you. I’m so glad Nick talked some sense into you.”

“Nick didn’t talk anything into me,” I shot back. “I made the decision myself.”

“Why does it matter? Either way, you look amazing,” he said. “Just thought you might want to know.” He shrugged his shoulders and stood up from the couch. I hit ‘Play’ on the movie and watched as the screen filled with one of my favorite movies - Sweet Home Alabama.

“Mind if I join you?” I heard a low voice behind me. I smiled back at Nick and shook my head ‘no’. I realized that I probably looked like a train wreck. I had gotten comfortable in my gray Old Navy drawstring jogging pants and a white camisole top. I had pulled my hair up into a high ponytail and hadn’t bothered to mess with my makeup any. Then I noticed he hadn’t dressed up any – just blue and green plaid jogging pants and a white wife beater. “What are we watching?” He asked as he adjusted his seating on the couch to get comfortable.

“Sweet Home Alabama,” I smiled and ate some more popcorn. He threw a handful of popcorn in his mouth and let his hand fall and rest on my knee. I eyed his hand there and then glanced back up at him. A smile tugged at the corners of my mouth and I snuggled into his shoulder.

There was no way I could actually concentrate on the movie. Every second my mind was racing. I couldn’t help but wonder what Nick was thinking about or what I should do. I carefully moved Ariel over to the cushion beside me so I could get closer to Nick without waking her. As soon as I turned my head back around to face Nick, his hands went to cup my face and I felt his lips massaging mine. I moaned hungrily into his mouth and pushed him back up against the couch and straddled his waist. “Too fast?” He questioned between kisses.

“I trust you,” I got out between kisses once more. “With everything…inside of me…so show me…that you love…me.” I finally got out. Our intense short kisses subsided and he looked me in the eye.

“Like, love-love?” He asked me and I nodded.

“Love-love,” I nodded my head once more. I bent my head down and kissed him again, this time testing something new. I pushed my tongue against his lips and waited for them to let me in. He growled softly in the back of his throat and flipped me onto my back so he was laying on top of me. I heard a bark and a whine and realized I had landed right on Ariel.

“Don’t worry, I’ll take her outside,” I heard Brad sigh and come in from the dining room.

“Were you watching?” I laughed as heat rose in my cheeks.

“No. I was reading and I heard something, so I came to see what it was,” he shrugged. “By all means, please continue.” He laughed and took Ariel to the elevator door with the key. As the doors closed, Nick took my hand and pulled me up.

“Are you sure about this? I mean, it’s only been what, three weeks since I saw you last?” Nick sighed as I pulled him towards my bedroom. We both sat down on my bed.

“First of all, I’ve known you for years. I’ve loved you for years. I know, now, that I love you. Sure, I might still be sad for Ryan, but I don’t regret breaking up with him. I love you, Nick. No one else but you,” I kissed his lips softly. “Secondly, it’s not like we haven’t done it before.” I smirked.

He laughed and shook his head. “It’s not like I don’t want to do it,” he rubbed the side of my face gently. “I just don’t want to rush into anything.”

“Yeah right, Nick Carter,” I rolled my eyes with a grin. “You, of all people, should be taking me up on this.”

“Yes, but you are Rachel LaRoe, and you’re different. Plus, if I did anything to hurt that,” he put his hand over my heart. “I would never forgive myself.”

I bit my bottom lip and smiled. “Just kiss me already.”

Okay! Well, it's been nearly forever since I last updated, and I apologize. I hit a major case of writer's block and I didn't know where to pick up the story at. Even just recently, I tried reading it and re-reading it to find somewhere to actually bring it to an end, and I can't. It seems like the last chaper I posted seemed to end it quite well, actually. So, I apologize to all of you that have been waiting for an update. BUT I will be writing a sequel because I know exactly where to start with that. In fact, I've already started -insert mischievous grin-. I will try to post the first chapter to that either tonight or tomorrow.

I'd like to thank all my constant reviewers - you guys are amazing and I hope even though I made you wait, you'll check out the sequel.

Thank you for all the support! I love you guys!