The rest of the week flew by. It wasn’t long before Brian and Noelle were headed to Canada to start the North American leg of the tour. AJ still didn’t know that Noelle was coming. Neither Brian nor Noelle had wanted to mention it to him. AJ had called them both a couple of times throughout the week. Noelle was the only one that spoke to him.

She told him about the long flight back to Atlanta and how she had left the plane to chase after Brian once it had landed. She even told him about how Leighanne had been there in the airport the next day and how Brian had given her the divorce papers that afternoon.

AJ had been so overwhelmed by the progression in Noelle and Brian’s relationship that she hadn’t wanted to spring it to him that his kid sister would be following him around another continent. Especially since this time, she’d be in one of his best friend’s beds. That might have been a little too much.

It didn’t take long for AJ to find out that Noelle was with Brian, though. It seemed that the Boys’ management had timed Brian and AJ’s arrivals so that they could take the same shuttle to the hotel. AJ was shocked when Brian walked out of the airport wheeling both his and Noelle’s luggage with Noelle trudging along behind him. Brian and Noelle would have been equally as shocked to see AJ had Brian not listened to his voicemail minutes before and found out that AJ was already waiting for him outside of the airport.

When AJ spotted Noelle and Brian, his jaw fell to the floor. He walked over to them quickly and pulled his sister’s arm so that she was made to keep her distance from Brian—at least in public. He had learned to be okay with them being together if that’s what they both wanted, but AJ wasn’t going to have his sister’s name dragged through the tabloids about being a home-wrecker if he could help it. They could go public as soon as Brian’s divorce was final.

“What are you doing here?” he hissed.

“I’m here with Brian, Alex,” Noelle replied, jauntily. “I thought I told you.”

She tried to smile, but she’d always been a terrible liar.

AJ shot her a look, knowing that Noelle knew that she’d kept him in the dark.

“And you,” he directed at Brian, “You think this is a good idea? Bringing my sister out here like this? You’re about to get divorced. Do you know how this is going to look?”

Brian sighed as he handed his and Noelle’s luggage to the driver of the van that was going to take the trio to the hotel. “I’m not stupid, AJ. I know that we have to be careful.”

“Yeah, flying over here together was really careful,” AJ replied sarcastically, rolling his eyes.

“I sat next to him on the plane. We weren’t making babies in the seats.” Noelle mocked AJ’s eye roll while AJ simply clenched his jaw.

“I guess I should have known that you wouldn’t let him leave you in Gainesville,” AJ replied bitingly.

“What’s that supposed to mean?” Noelle snapped, offended by his remark. “I’m a big girl. I don’t have to follow Brian around the world.”

“Um, hello,” Brian broke in, “if we’re trying to be inconspicuous, I don’t think that screaming at each other in the airport terminal is the best way to go. Get in the van if you want to fight.”

Noelle and AJ looked at each other and then jumped into the van, both pushing each other out of the way so that he or she could get in first. Brian rolled his eyes and smirked to himself. Seeing the two of them like this made it really hard to believe that they hadn’t grown up together.

AJ managed to get in first. He slid all the way over to the far side of the seat. Noelle slipped in next to him and Brian climbed into the far back seat of the van. He could have shared the seat where Noelle and AJ had staked their claim, but he decided he was going to let those two duke their problems out on their own. Brian had enough fighting for a lifetime, especially over things that were going to prove to be inconsequential.

“As I was saying,” AJ continued as the driver pulled out of the airport terminal and into the Canadian traffic. “I should have known that you wouldn’t let him leave you in Gainesville.”

Noelle rolled her eyes. “You’re a jerk. Brian’s my boyfriend, Alex. I have a right to be here if I want to be and if he wants me to be, which he does. Right Brian?”

When Brian started to reply, AJ cut him off. “Brian also knows how dangerous it is for you to be out here. You were worried about your name being dragged through the local news with what’s-his-face, what about when your name makes international news? Right Brian?”

“That is for us to worry about, right Brian?” Noelle and AJ glared at each other.

This time, Brian didn’t even try to answer. He sighed and slowly shook his head. Obviously, he was going to have to be the adult.

“Okay,” he broke in once he knew for sure that they had both made their points and were finished screaming at one another. “That’s enough. AJ, I understand your concerns, but please understand that I’m not going to thrust Noelle out into the paparazzi spotlight. I know the ramifications of anyone finding out about her. They won’t wait for the truth; they’ll print what they want.”

Noelle nodded, obviously assuming that Brian was on her side.

“And Noelle,” Brian continued. He leaned up and propped his arms on the seat in front of him in between AJ and Noelle. “AJ is right. We didn’t really talk about this, but we need to be careful.”

This time, AJ nodded.

“So what?” Noelle snapped. “We hide away? I stay in the room like an unwanted stepchild until someone finds the time to come and play with me?”

Brian sighed and shook his head. “No, things can be exactly how they were before. No one knew that I was in Gainesville. It was easier to go out unnoticed, but the photographers will be looking for things here. That’s all I’m saying.”

“And I suggest separate rooms. I don’t care what you do on your own time, but they’ll be looking to see who’s going in and out of our rooms and they’ll know for sure that you’re not his blonde-haired, blue-eyed wifey,” AJ broke in.

“You’re joking right?” Noelle asked, looking between them both. “We can’t even sleep in the same damn bed?”

“Noelle,” Brian replied softly. He reached over the seat and took her hand into his. “We can and we will. We just need to be careful about it. Truth be told, we were lucky in Europe that more information didn’t come out about us.”

“Get adjoining rooms. No one will be the wiser,” AJ suggested.

Brian nodded, agreeing.

Noelle shrugged in defeat. “Who’s going to pay for this extra room?”

Brian and AJ spoke as the same time, “I will.”

Brian glanced at AJ and then back at Noelle. “AJ and I will share the cost. It’s really for the best, Baby. You don’t have to sleep there.”

“I just—I don’t want to have to feel like we’re doing something dirty, or hiding something,” Noelle replied softly.

“As soon as the mess is behind us, I’m all yours and the whole world will know it,” Brian answered. He kissed her softly as AJ rolled his eyes, pretending to gag. Brian laughed.

I guess some brother-sister things don’t have an age limit, he thought to himself.

Noelle sighed again.

“Fine, you win. Separate rooms.” Noelle turned to AJ. “Any other rules daddy dearest?”

“Oh yeah,” AJ replied. “Get comfortable, because it’s a long ride to the hotel.”