The kiss was quick. Chaste, even. Just a short, closed lipped kiss, but more than a peck on the lips. It was soft, and lingered for just a second or two. Annie couldn’t believe what had just happened. “Thank you,” she said softly. “For the ‘happy birthday,’ I mean. I kind of figured you didn’t know since you didn’t say anything about it today, and because you didn’t insist on having the waiters and waitresses sing to me and embarrass me to death at the restaurant,” she rambled on.
Nick laughed. “I thought about it. I really wanted to, actually, but I promised Brian I’d behave myself. Of course, it’s only...” He glanced down at his watch. “8:30. It’s still your birthday for a few more hours. So, when’s Drew’s bedtime?”
“Nine....give or take a few minutes. I should probably go in and check on him.” She looked down and realized that they were still holding hands. As a matter of fact, Nick was holding her hands quite tightly. She looked back up at him and raised her eyebrows.
“Oh. Sorry,” he quickly let her hands go, the heat rising in his cheeks, then followed her inside.
“Happy birthday!” Brian, Leighanne, and Baylee all yelled happily as they walked into the kitchen.
“Ap day, mama!” Drew squealed, clapping his hands. He wore a paper birthday hat atop his head and had a helium balloon tied to his wrist.
“We worked on that all day,” Brian told her. “That’s as far as he got.”
“I think that’s perfect.” Annie immediately stooped down and pulled her toddler into her arms, then planted a kiss on his cheek, leaving a lipstick mark. Out of the corner of his eye, Brian caught Nick wiping at his lips subconsciously and stifled a laugh. “Thank you, Drew-baby,” she cooed. She looked around the room, noting a two-tiered birthday cake on the table and a bowl of punch on the countertop. Streamers hung from the chandelier above the table, and balloons were tied to the chairs. Above the window seat behind the table was a handmade banner that read “Happy Birthday” in a child’s writing. “Did you make that, Baylee?” He nodded proudly. “It looks awesome!” she praised him.
“Drew helped!” Baylee exclaimed. “See?” He pointed to a crayon squiggle on the right-hand side.
Annie laughed and gave Drew another kiss. “Good job, Drew!”
“And there’s presents!” Baylee blurted out, pointing to the window seat. Sure enough, there was a small box wrapped in pink paper with white ribbon, a floral gift bag, and a yellow envelope resting on the wide windowsill. “Open them!” he yelled, unable to contain his excitement.
“Don’t you think she might like to get a piece of cake and sit down first, Baylee?” Leighanne admonished.
“I like to do the presents first, too, Baylee.” Annie gave him a wink and reached for the envelope.
Baylee held his hand out in front of hers. “You’re supposed to open that one last,” he said seriously. “Here.” He handed her the pink box. “This one’s from mommy and me.” She removed the ribbon and made a big show of letting Drew tear the paper off the box, then pulled out a necklace with an antique-looking opal pendant (her birthstone).
“Oh, wow. This is beautiful. You shouldn’t have,” she said to Leighanne.
Leighanne smiled. “I wanted to. Besides, Baylee and I agreed that it looked like you.”
“Well, thank you.”
Baylee beamed and handed her the large gift bag. “This is from Drew.” Annie mouthed a “thank you” to Leighanne. She let Drew pluck out all the tissue paper, and pulled out a large handbag. “Is this a Wylee bag?”
“That was Brian’s idea,” Leighanne said with an eye roll.
“Now you’re a real fan!” he laughed.
“It’s big enough to use as a diaper bag, though,” Leighanne explained. “And it has a lot of pockets to stash all your stuff.”
“It really is nice,” Annie remarked as she examined it. “I’ll definitely use it.”
She turned back to Baylee, who proudly presented her with the envelope. “This is from Nick and daddy.”
The men both leaned forward with big grins on their faces as she opened the envelope and pulled out two tickets. She eyed them carefully and gasped in realization when she read the words “S.S. Backstreet.” “Are these---?”
“Two VIP tickets for the Backstreet Boys cruise in December,” Brian said proudly. “I figured you might want to bring a friend, maybe that Beth you were talking about who has a thing for AJ?”
“Wow. This is...Thank you!” she stammered.
“It was Nick’s idea.”
She looked at Nick, who gave her his million dollar smile. “You deserve it. Plus, I thought it would be a good way to make you feel young again on your, ahem...thirtieth birthday. We are having and 80’s night, you know.”
She rolled her eyes and shook her head. “This is just too much, you guys. I could always help you watch Baylee, and...”
“You’ll do no such thing,” Brian interrupted her. “We want you to go to all the fan events and really enjoy yourself. Besides, we’ve all decided that this cruise is going to be a kid-free zone.”
“I’m going to grandma and grandpa’s in Kentucky!” Baylee announced.
“Oh.” Annie’s face dropped. “Then, I’m not sure I can go.”
“Why not?”
She looked down at Drew sadly. “It’s just that I don’t know if I can...”
“You’ve never been away from Drew before, have you?” Leighanne asked her gently.
“No. No I haven’t,” she answered quietly. “Never for more than the length of my shift, plus an hour or two.”
“Then, I think it’s time,” Leighanne coaxed. “I know how hard it is, but I honestly believe that getting a little time away from your child every once in a while makes you able to be a better mother. Everyone needs a little break now and then.” Brian nodded in agreement.
“I’ll definitely think about it,” Annie assured them.
After everyone had cake and ice cream (Drew even got a few bites), Annie excused herself to go put Drew to bed. After she’d changed him into his pajamas and put him in the crib, she walked over to the drawer she’d stashed her ring in earlier and opened it. She sighed as the thought about the kiss she and Nick had shared earlier. It had taken her by surprise for sure, but if she was being honest with herself, she kind of enjoyed it. She didn’t really see herself starting a relationship with Nick, but it did make her realize that maybe there was the chance that she could be attracted to another man again. She pulled the platinum band out of the drawer and grasped it in the palm of her hand. “I’m not letting go, Andrew,” she whispered. “But I know you, and I’m pretty sure you would have told me it was time to take the ring off a long time ago.” She tucked the ring securely in a zippered pocket in her new purse and started to head back downstairs.
Nick met her in the hallway just outside the door. “Hey.”
“Hey,” she answered, stopping just a few inches in front of him.
“Are you really considering not going on the cruise?”
“I....I don’t know, Nick. I mean, I’ll probably end up going. It’s an opportunity I can’t really justify turning down, but it depends on whether or not I can get off work, and if I can find someone to watch Drew. Maybe my parents will want to show him off to their neighbors in Boca Raton. But like I said, I don’t know yet.”
He nodded in understanding. “Is it okay that I..... kissed you out by the car? I mean, you really didn’t say anything about it, so....” He trailed off and stuffed his hands in his pockets, looking down at her expectantly.
“Well.....it really took me by surprise, but it wasn’t bad....”
“Not bad? You get kissed by Nick Carter, and all you can say is ‘not bad’?”
“Don’t be like that, Nick,” Annie sighed.
“Oh, come on. You’ve got to give me something better than ‘not bad’.” Before she had a chance to reply, he had closed the distance between them and placed his hands on the back of her head. Then he brought her face close to his and crashed his lips onto hers. This time, the kiss was anything but short. For a moment, she started to pull away, but Nick tightened his grip on the back of her head and held her in place. Against her better judgement, Annie found herself responding to the kiss. She let out a little sigh as he slipped his tongue into her mouth and raked his fingers through her hair. In response, he moaned and pressed his body into hers, pushing her back against the wall. She was thankful for the new support, because her knees literally buckled underneath her. Nick pulled away, breathless, and smiled. “Goodnight, Annie.”
Chapter End Notes:
I am working for the next 6 days straight (which may very well kill me, since I usually only work part-time), so this may the last update I get up for a week or more. I hope you enjoy, and let me know what you think!
