CHAPTER 6
 

The next morning, Deb awoke to find Justin gone, his side of the bed... empty and cold.  He'd obviously been gone awhile.  She pulled her sweats and a t-shirt on and walked around, looking at his things.  His house smelled like him and it reflected his personality....she felt totally at ease.

But she couldn't find Justin.  He wasn't out by the pool or anywhere in the house so Deb busied herself poking around his kitchen and making coffee.  It wasn't long before she heard the front door open and close. Justin had on gray sweats and a holey white t-shirt and was carrying a newspaper as he came around the corner into the kitchen, obviously returning from a morning jog.

"Hey baby!" he said with a huge smile on his face.

He was all sweaty, but Deb didn't mind at all as she hugged him.   Justin kissed the side of her neck a few times and then stepped back.  "We have a lot to do today.  Are you ready?"

Deb looked down at her rumpled clothing and shook her head.  "I need to shower."

"Which bathroom do you want?" he asked.  "There's two."

Deb didn't care how sweaty he was.  He still looked at her with his deep blue eyes that twinkled as if he knew what she was thinking.  When the grin appeared on his face, she knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that they were thinking the same thing.  "Why don't we share?" Justin teased and began to slide Deb's shirt up while wetly kissing her.

"What are you doing?" she said, giggling as she attempted to keep her shirt on.  "We have to meet YOUR mom in 30 minutes.  We don't have time!"

With a quick kiss to his smiling lips, Deb ducked into the bathroom and locked the door before he could stop her.  She listened to him whine at the door for a few moments and then took her shower.  When she came out, he was nowhere to be seen, so she dressed and dried her hair.  She found him 5 minutes later, drinking a cup of tea in the kitchen.  He wore clothes that she'd seen on men around Myrtle Beach, but they just looked better on Justin.  Everything always looked better on Justin.

"I'm ready," Deb said as she slipped a hand into one of the back pockets of Justin's holey jeans.  He had on the usual sneakers and t-shirt but the t-shirt hugged every muscle in his arms and chest.  She couldn't help but lick her lips, which he caught as he turned to look at her.

"You look nice," he said sweetly.  "Let's go."

They drove to the little cafe where his mother was already waiting.  They had a pleasant lunch and Lynn even complimented the light blue print summer dress Deb wore, saying it matched her eyes.  Deb laughed when Justin, across the table from her, noted that it was baby blue.  Deb blushed and said, "I loved baby blue before I even knew you existed.  That's the ONLY reason I bought it."

Deb thought she could get used to having lunch with them both.  They were cute together, having a closeness that was evident.  Lynn didn't broach the subject of just what Deb's intentions were toward Justin.  It seemed to be a subject off-limits at the moment though Deb intuitively knew it would have to be dealt with at some point if a long-term relationship was to be.

The next order of business was for Justin to introduce her to the rest of his *NSYNC buddies.  As they walked into Johnny's house, they were greeted by Joey and Lance who almost knocked them both over as they ran out the door.

"Hey!  Curly!  It's been a long time," Joey shouted as he hugged Justin in a big bear hug.  "I can't believe I missed you even though we were on tour for the last three months."

Justin was laughing with Joey, hugging him back.  Lance hugged him too and looked at Deb, who was standing there trying not to scream like a teenybopper.  Here was three fifths of *NSYNC in front of her hugging and joking with each other.  They obviously missed Justin even though he'd only been gone a couple of weeks.

"Justin, who's the lady?" Lance asked, his green eyes meeting Deb's as he smiled at her.

Joey and Lance clamored around Justin to greet Deb, almost tripping over him in their haste.  Deb caught a glimmer of jealousy in Justin's eyes as he watched them fawning over her.  THAT was delicious!  She turned on her most charming smile and introduced herself, since Justin seemed to be unable to do so.

"I'm a friend of Justin's, from Myrtle Beach," she said, smiling shyly at Lance and Joey.  She couldn't see Justin anymore or the daggers he was throwing at his friends with his stormy blue eyes.  Lance and Joey got the hint though and turned it down a notch.

"So is Justin playing tour guide?" Joey asked, looking at Deb and then at Justin.

"Yes, I'm the tour guide.  Weren't you guys going somewhere?" Justin asked them tersely.

Lance said, "Yeah, we're going, we're going.  Nice meeting you, Deb.  I hope you have more luck with Justin when he's pissy like this, than we do."

Joey shook her hand again and mumbled under his breath to Lance as they walked away, "I knew he wouldn't be long without female companionship."

Justin heard the comment and gave Joey an evil eye, before turning to Deb again.  He sighed in relief when he realized she hadn't heard Joey.  She looked a little overwhelmed so he slipped his arm around her waist and kissed her softly on the cheek.  "You okay, babe?"

Deb nodded.  She wasn't necessarily angry at Justin for not having mentioned her to Lance or Joey either, but she wasn't too thrilled.  Justin, at times, seemed like your typical clueless male, and at other times, was sensitive and sweet and worrying about making her happy.

Inside the house, Deb heard music blaring from deeper inside the Compound.  Justin grabbed her hand and began walking toward the commotion.  As they walked into the recording studio, JC waved at them and came out to give Justin a quick hug.  JC's eyes were amazing, Deb noted, and he said, "Hey!  Are you the 'someone' J met at the beach?"

Deb nodded, unable to speak with those eyes of his twinkling at her.  Justin had always been her favorite, hands down, but she had definite JC issues too.  She finally found her voice and said, "Yeah, that would be me.  Nice to meet you."

"Ok, Chasez, that's enough.  Give her room to breathe.  You guys all act like you've never seen a woman before," Justin said, pushing JC away playfully.

"Well, it's just not everyday we see YOU with someone other than your mom or Britney..." JC said.  He noticed the look that fleeted across Justin's face.  "Oh, sorry, J."

JC shrugged his shoulders and sadly said to Deb, "I'm an insensitive brute.  Really, I didn't mean..."

Justin just shook his head and said, "It's ok, man."

Deb, not caring what JC thought, automatically wrapped her arm around Justin's waist and buried her face against his chest.  She knew that Justin was still the walking wounded where Britney was concerned.  She had never asked him for any details.  The pain she'd seen on his face that day on the beach was enough.  He wrapped his arms around her and rested his chin on the top of her head with a sigh, saying nothing.  JC quietly went to the control panel and sat down.  A few moments later, Deb excused herself to go search for the bathroom and Justin joined JC.

"Deb IS the someone I was talking about on the phone, you realize that, right?" he said, sitting on the chair next to JC.

JC nodded but looked at his younger friend in that parenting way he was famous for.  "She's very cute.  How did you two meet?"

Justin avoided JC's intense gaze, saying, "On the beach.  Jon and I were shooting each other with water guns and she walked by."

JC squinted, "Oh, come on.  I know when you are playing coy, J.  We, specifically YOU, do not meet chicks on the beach and bring them home to mommy."

"It's not like that.  I can't explain why we clicked like we did, but the point is we did.  She's great.  She's not high maintenance like Britney.  She's not clingy.  She's normal and real and makes me feel good.  Why do I get the feeling that you don't approve?" Justin said.

"She's a fan, Justin.  *NSYNC doesn't seriously date fans, remember?  We made that pact way back in the day after Amanda finished her number on you."

Justin had crossed his arms and was looking at his feet.  He had the infamous pout in full effect, which didn't slip JC's notice.  "Deb isn't like Amanda and I'm older now," Justin said defensively.

"But she's still a fan, right?  You didn't even try to defend that statement," JC noted.

"So what if she's a fan?  She's not Amanda.  Amanda was all about glamour and money and status.  She was a gold digger.  She didn't want me for me."

JC smirked at his friend.  "Has Deb told you that she loves you?"

Justin's frown grew noticeably deeper and he shifted like a kid under the principal's attention.  His look said all JC needed to know.

"You haven't told her you love her, have you?" JC said, incredulous.

Justin's head snapped up and he loudly said, "NO, JC.  I haven't."

"Thank the Lord for small favors," JC said, sighing and running his hand over his hair.  "Justin, before you say anything remotely close to 'I love you', talk to me ok?  THIS is why we don't date fans.  They are already so far down the path that they skip all the relationship building stuff and dive right into LOVE.  If she wasn't a fan, she wouldn't be saying it already."

"But, I..." Justin stammered.

"Don't say it!  You just broke up with Britney.  It's way too soon, I don't care how wonderful Deb is.  It's not that I don't like her.  I barely know her.  But the same can be said for both of you.  Don't rush anything simply because you know she wants to hear it," JC said loudly.  "I can't believe you forgot this."

Justin rolled his eyes.  He was sick of people running his life and telling him what to do and who to date.  Evenly, he said, "I didn't forget.  I just made a little modification because Deb is so awesome.  I didn't want her to slip through my fingers."

JC shook his head again, grinning at Justin.  "Man, I hope you are right.  You do look pretty smitten with her.  What does Mama Harless think?"

Justin shrugged again.  JC knew that meant Lynn's son had neglected to mention it.  "She came over last night and met Deb then.  We had lunch with her today."

"Did you tell..." JC began.

Justin rolled his eyes again.  "No, I didn't.  Talking to you is like playing twenty questions.  I'm going to go find her."

JC nodded.  He knew Mr. Timberlake was very good at dodging questions and changing the subject.  JC could tell when he was being given the same runaround.  This situation had all the potential of a soap opera and he thought for a little while about what he could do.  He resolved to get to know Deb better before he made a final judgement.  He wasn't going to stand by and let Justin crash and burn again though.

Meanwhile, Justin found Deb reading a magazine in Johnny's living room.  When he plopped down beside her, she looked up and gave him a smile that soaked into his bones, making him feel warm all over.  She pushed the magazine aside and turned her attention to Justin's head lying in her lap.  She gently combed his hair with her fingers and noticed the softness of his thick curls.  "What's wrong?" she said.

"JC is being...JC," he mumbled, not really looking at her but snuggling into her lap like a cat.

"He doesn't like me, does he?" she asked sadly, concentrating on a curl in her fingers.

Justin turned over and looked up at her.  "JC doesn't make snap judgements, don't worry, ok?" he said, looking at her sleepily.

Deb turned just as JC stopped beside the sofa.  He looked a little uncomfortable as he looked at Justin and then at Deb. "I don't think we got off on the right foot here, so I'm inviting everyone to my house for dinner.  I've got some steaks and stuff to throw on the grill.  Are you two interested?"

Justin sat up, smoothing his hair.  He looked at Deb, "Wanna go?"

She nodded and smiled at JC.  "Looks like we'll be there.  Thanks, JC."

JC came around the sofa, held his arms open and motioned for Deb to stand up.  "I look forward to getting to know you, Deb," JC said as he smiled and hugged her.  "Any friend of Justin's is a friend of ours."

JC waved and walked back toward the studio and Justin reached out to pull Deb onto his lap.  "What are you doing?  Let me go!" Deb squealed as he held her in place.

When she looked at him again, he had a huge smile on his face.  "JC throws great parties. I hope the rest of the guys are as easy as he is," he said.  "JC's a pussycat compared to Chris."

"Uh oh, should I be worried?" Deb said as the smile fell off her face.

Justin reached up to cup her cheek in his hand and then leaned toward her to tenderly kiss her already open lips.  One of her arms went around his neck and Deb stroked his face with her other hand while returning his sweet kisses.  "I'll protect you," he mumbled with a smile.

JC cleared his throat as he tried to get the kissing couple's attention again.  Deb looked the other way, while Justin stood up and looked at JC questioningly.

"Joey and Lance are back and Chris just got here, so do you wanna come to the meeting, J?" JC said, smiling, before walking back into the studio.

Justin grabbed Deb's hand.  "Come on.  If I have to go, you have to come too."

The meeting took a few hours while they discussed changes for the second leg of the No Strings Attached tour, starting in about two weeks, and what to do for the MTV Video Music Awards in less than a week.  Deb watched and listened with great interest, while trying not to show how much.  Johnny got them all to agree to meet daily until they left for New York in about 3 days.

Deb was surprised at how soon they'd be leaving.  She had to wonder what the future held for her and Justin.  Hell, she didn't even know what he really felt for her.  She was beginning to wonder if she'd made a mistake, throwing caution to the wind and following him to Orlando.  He had a million things to do and an equal number of reservations about their relationship, it seemed.  When around the rest of the guys, she felt like she was in the way and a distraction all at the same time.

They had a few hours of the afternoon left when they drove out of Johnny's driveway and headed down the freeway.  Justin showed her around Orlando and they had fun driving with the top down and singing along with the radio.  As Deb watched him from across the car, she realized that this is what most of Justin's fans would kill to do.  Hang out with him, flirt and sing...just to be normal people enjoying each other.  She threw Justin a naughty smile when she realized that they'd been around other people and had managed to keep their hands off each other (for the most part) for over 16 hours.

The next stop was Justin's house so he could make some phone calls and so they both could change clothes.  As they left, Deb headed for Justin's car, parked beside the garage but Justin went in a different door.  The garage door opened and Justin pushed out a big, black, shiny Harley.  He had two helmets and let Deb hold the bike up while he closed the garage doors.  He walked on the other side of the bike and pushed the helmet down on Deb's head, crushing her recently styled hair.  'Oh well,' she thought.  'Watching Justin stick his tongue out while he snapped it under my chin was worth it.'

He put on his helmet and then took the bike from Deb.  "Climb on...or do you need help?" Justin teased as Deb noticed the bike seat she had to climb onto was higher than her own waist.  Justin laughed and then swung his leg over and Deb's mouth instantly went dry.  Harleys and Justin really did go well together.  Too bad he didn't have on leather pants, but, she noticed that his jeans pulled tight looked good too!

He balanced the bike and told her where to step to get up on the bike.  He offered her one of his muscular arms which she grabbed for support as she climbed up behind him.  She snaked her arms around Justin and scooted closer, grabbing on to him with her knees too.  He turned to look at her.  "You okay?  Are you ready?  Just hang on tight...yeah, that's good.  Really good!" he said, leaning back to kiss her on the nose.  Guys and bikes!  As Justin roared the Harley to life, she clung to him tightly.  He was solid as a rock and she kissed the back of his neck, where his curls were peaking out from under his helmet.

"No distracting the driver!" she heard him yell and with a yelp of her own, they took off down the road.

Deb didn't think she'd ever held on to anyone as tightly as she was holding on to Justin.  It was electrifying and the energy was throbbing under her and between her legs.  She didn't know what was better....the feel of all the power beneath her or how Justin felt in her arms.  They took the long way to JC's and Deb had more fun than she thought possible.  Was it the harley ride?  Or was it because of the man she held so tightly?

They met everyone else at JC's house at around 6:30.  The atmosphere was very relaxed and Deb had fun getting to know the other four fifths of the group. Lance and Joey were sweet and real and made her feel right at home.  They got her drinks and danced, sometimes in threesomes, for most of the night.  JC was much more civil and showed her the sweet personality she always knew he had.  She got to talk to him and Bobbi, his girlfriend, about everything from music and movies to politics and sports.  He was easy to talk to and so much more intelligent than anyone ever gave him credit for.  After the things Justin said about Chris, Deb was a little nervous when Justin wove through all the people at the party, leading her over to where Chris was sitting with Danielle and Johnny.  Johnny took Danielle out for a twirl by the pool where other couples were dancing.  As Justin walked up, Chris' impish grin met Deb's anxious one.

"It's about time you let me meet Deb, Justin.  What's taken so long?" he said with his eyes playful.  He abruptly stood up and gave Deb a big hug, shocking her.

She and Justin spent the rest of the night laughing with Chris.  She listened to tour stories from the beginning all the way up to the most recent tour.  She had more fun than she ever thought possible and ended the night dancing with Chris to some old Beatles songs.

It was way past midnight when she and Justin left the rest of them who were still playing a game that looked like a cross between charades and quarters.  Justin hadn't drank anything but bottled water and Deb was just glad to snuggle up against him on the motorcycle.

* * * * * * *

Deb awoke early the next morning and felt soft lips kissing her, trailing down her neck and lingering there just long enough to have his breath warm the trail he'd kissed.  She didn't let on that she was awake.  She wanted to see what Justin had in mind as a wake up call.  Next, he was nuzzling around her nipples and every so often his tongue would lick and his lips would kiss and suck.  He was only lightly touching her with his lips and his fingers, but it sent jolts of electricity through her whole body anyway.  The man had an electric touch.

His journey of attention came to a halt at Deb's stomach as he lingered there for a moment and then proceeded.  His breath on her most private areas almost made Deb give herself away with a gasp but she managed to regain her senses and lay perfectly still.

Justin knew she was awake.  He'd felt her tense up a little as he nestled himself between her legs and touched her.  After the initial contraction, her legs slacked for him wider and there were goose bumps that moved up her body.

Deb felt him hovering between her legs...and his breath warming where she was already hot.  She caught herself gripping the sheets and biting her lips a few times and hoped Justin hadn't caught her playing sleepy.  She couldn't help the reaction her body had to those lips kissing every inch of her body awake.  She took the chance and glanced down, catching a look on Justin's face that made her want to give in to his lips and fingers right then.  His beautiful face had slackened with desire and his lips were full...and glistening with her own wetness.  His eyes, in that brief moment, were full of love and sex and as he leaned back where he was kneeling, he licked those lips and grinned.

He stroked his cock, stiff and full, and leaned back, gazing at her spread before him.  It was the sexiest thing she'd ever seen...she'd never seen him look quite like that.  The blueness of his eyes blazed into hers as he noticed her watching him.  He grinned again, looking at her with the hooded sexy look she'd just discovered and stroking himself, fully erect.

Deb raised herself and crawled up, where she stradled against him.  Her hands, buried in his sun kissed curls, her mouth kissing his soaked lips like a ravenous animal.  His hands had left his cock sandwiched between them, and were gripping her tightly.  Deb had gone slack with desire as she could only drape her legs on each side of his hips.  She felt his strong hands lift her up and pull her down on him with a raspy grunt that made her feel like losing her composure totally.  In one more motion, she found herself lying on her back on the bed with Justin burying his cock inside her, repeating words like 'fuck' and 'God' and 'Deb' over and over like a mantra.

Deb's orgasms sent colorful explosions off behind her eyes but she couldn't rip her eyes from Justin's face as he finally let himself go. The only thing more beautiful than Justin's face when he laughed and sang was Justin's face when he came, hard, letting it overtake his control.  There was no tenseness in his face and his eyes burned with hot desire and a sexuality Deb had only previously caught glimpses of.  His famous pout was only more pronounced as he concentrated on emptying himself into her.  Watching him made Deb horny all over again.

With him still inside and leaning heavily into her, Deb kissed him over and over...covering his face and lips with alternating warm wet kisses and long deep toe-curling ones.  And Justin didn't back down, accepting and returning them with abandon.

Just kissing like they were brought Deb to orgasm again.  Justin didn't seem to need to rest and they made love a few more times before passing out, still in each others' arms.

* * * * * * *

Deb awoke with Justin still asleep behind her and his face still nestled into her neck.  It all still seemed like a dream as she turned in his arms so she could watch him sleep.  He reminded her of one of those little cherub angels that she'd seen in books, with his curls and beautiful face.  But his lips...My God!  Sweet as they were, Deb gently touched them and whispered, "I love you."

Justin immediately felt guilty as he heard Deb's words and felt her cuddle up to him again.  He opened his eyes and considered her sleeping form.  He knew he'd be lucky if he got any sleep.  Those three words made him feel a little uneasy and he didn't really know why they terrified him so much.  Was he afraid of hearing them, or saying them?