The next day, before lunch

 

------

 

She leaned out of her cherry red Audi and pressed the call button on the keypad next to the gate.  She waited for a minute and then heard a familiar, happy voice come over the small speaker above the numbers.

 

“‘Yello…”

 

She smiled and readjusted her sunglasses.  The day before had been oddly rainy but today it was hot and sunny.  Just like a summer day in the hills was supposed to be.  She cleared her throat and said, “It’s Darcy.”  She got a strange feeling, like she was at a drive through window or something.

 

“Hey girl!”  He said in a chipper tone.  The gate made a noise and started to move before he said, “See ya in a sec.”

 

The gate took a few seconds to completely open and she inched her car impatiently through it.  He was walking from the front door to a large light blue Cadillac truck parked in the middle of the driveway.  Next to the truck was a Mercedes-Benz SUV with the back hatch open.  Boxes and large Tupperware containers were piled in the back of both vehicles.  She smiled as she watched him slide a box off his truck bed, into his arms and carried it over to the steps.  He sat it down, straightened himself and turned to her car.

 

She put it in park and turned the engine off.

 

“Damn girl, nice wheels.”

 

She shrugged and pushed her door open.  “Lucky for me, I’m a daddy’s girl.”

 

“How you gonna get this sucker back to NYC? Cross country trip?”

 

The door slammed shut and she put her hands on her hips and tossed her keys into the front seat, knowing they’d be safe there.  “Nah.  This is just being rented or something.  I have my baby back home.”

 

She watched as he turned his back to her and walked to get another box from his car.  “What kind is it?”

 

She licked her lips at his arm muscles.  He was wearing track pants like her and a white wife beater.  His body looked fabulous and she was surprised she was just now noticing.  Sure she had felt his body a little bit the afternoon before, but lying in a hammock didn’t give you the best view, and he had been more covered as well.

 

He glanced at her and she snapped out of it, not wanting him to notice her drowning in her own puddle of drool.  “Just a little dinky BMW.” 

 

“What model?”

 

“Hell if I know.”  She chuckled. “I don’t drive it much in New York.  Just to go home and stuff.”

 

“Oh ok.” He sat the box down on the steps and turned to walk towards her.  He sauntered over to her slowly and he got rather close to her.   “So…”  He stretched out, reaching his hands to touch hers.  He smiled.   “How you doin’ today?”

 

“Good.  And you?”

 

He shook his hips towards her and she giggled.  “Gooood.  You look cute.”

 

She looked down at her baby blue fitting Adidas track pants and white t-shirt.  “I’m just wearing work clothes.”

 

She looked back up and he licked his lips at her.  “And sexy…”

 

“Sexy?”  Her teeth bit down on her lips and she was forced to sit a little bit on the hood of her car.   His head tilted down and she felt his arms come around her after they pulled her sunglasses off.  His lips brushed over her neck slightly, nuzzling his nose into her skin there. 

 

“Mmmhmm.”

 

“What are you doin?”  She giggled.

 

He pulled away with a cocky and stupid little grin on his face.  “Tellin’ my girl hello.”

 

“So I’m your girl now?”  She raised her eyebrows and he just smiled at her. 

 

The night before, well after his breakdown, had been really, really great.  They had made out a little more, dozed off twice, and finally rose from the netting, stretched themselves and went to the lower level of the house to figure out what to do next.  Since she was starving they went out at about 4:30 to pick up dinner and brought it back to his place.  They ate at the kitchen table and she listened to him animatedly discuss his thoughts on the album he was working on.  When they were done he dragged her to the piano and played her some of his ideas.  Most of them were just choruses or intros to songs, but she was really excited that he would share all that with her.  And to have him hum along and occasionally try and sing some words too, made her melt. 

 

It reiterated the fact that he was really who he was and not just some part of her imagination.  He really was Justin Timberlake.  But on the other hand, listening to him sing and watching his fingers move across the keys, it proved to her he was much more.  And to have him share all that with her gave her more evidence that he really did like her. 

 

He begged her to play something and she protested but after a few long kisses and promising smiles, she gave in and played what she could remember of Beethoven’s Sonata 14.  She was sure she bored him.  She caught him yawning half way through it and knew he could tell she was a bit rusty.  It had been a long, long time since she had played anything.

 

By seven she was staring to yawn as well and he took her home.  He had to pick his mother up from the airport later on that night, so reluctant they had to leave.  They made out a little in the car in the parking lot of her brother’s place and finally they parted and she went inside, giddy as ever.  She had a hard time falling asleep.

 

And now here they were, in his drive way, kissing heavily on the hood of her car.  One of his hands was on her hip holding on to her sunglasses and the other was running up underneath the back of her shirt and touching her skin.  She got goose bumps and knew that if he kept moving his tongue that particular way, she was going to have to force him to the ground and do something about it.

 

She found a moment to pull away and little and looked into his bright blue eyes, keeping her hands on his shoulders for balance and to keep him from dipping in again.  “That’s quite a big hello.”

 

“I’m not done,” he whispered.  He started to chuckle and tickled her sides a little.  She squirmed on the car and he just started to kiss her cheeks.

 

Sto-op...”  She whined. 

 

But her whining ceased and she sat up straight with widened eyes when she heard a sweet southern voice call out into the driveway.  “Justin do you know what box…”  Her speech stopped and Darcy peaked over Justin’s shoulder to see his mom standing on the small front porch staring at them.   “Oh...I’m sorry.”  She finally said a little shocked.

 

Darcy’s eyes moved back to Justin. “Shit.  That’s your mom.” He rolled his eyes.  She wondered if he was mad because his mom interrupted or mad at her for seeming so upset.

 

He pulled away from her and turned towards the house.  She slid from the car and straightened her clothes and wiped her mouth, hoping none of the lip gloss she had put on while veering off the freeway had smeared.  Her hand grabbed at his for her sunglasses and she covered her eyes once more.

 

“Momma, come here,” she heard him say in an adorably southern accent.  It flowed freely and he seemed truely at ease.  She wasn’t though.  She was nervous as hell.  Here was his mother, the famous Lynn.  Everyone who knew a little something about Justin knew he and his mom were butt buddies.  She knew that if she wanted this relationship with Justin to last, she was going to have to make a damn good impression on his mother.  And she was pretty sure making out on the hood of your car wasn’t a good impression. 

 

She watched the small woman approach them, dressed in jeans, a red shirt that might be considered a little too tight, and with her curly mess of hair pinned up on the top o f her head.  She kept her hands on her lower back, making her elbows stick out and squinted in the California sun to look at Darcy.  She wasn’t smiling, but Darcy hoped it was just because of the bright sun.  Justin was kind of squinting, too.

 

 “Momma this is Darcy…”  He said.

 

“Hi Darcy,” His mother stuck a hand out and Darcy shook it lightly.  “It’s nice to meet you.  I’m Lynn.”

 

“You as well.”  She tried to sound as proper as she knew how.  She had never met a real mother before.  Well, she had met real mothers, but never a down to earth mom.  All the guys she dated before had nut jobs for moms or step moms.

 

“So what were you asking for momma?”  Justin asked.

 

“Where’s the box with the extension cords in them?”

 

“Oh, I’m bringing them in.”  He pointed over to the boxes on the steps and Lynn turned to see where he was pointing.  When she turned back around he asked, “When’s Trace coming back?  I want him to meet Darcy.”

 

“Baby, he just left a little bit ago,” she said, putting a hand on his back and rubbing it affectionately with a smile.  “He’ll be back soon.”

 

“He’ll take forever,” Justin whined, which made Darcy giggle and shake her head.

 

Lynn shook her head a well but sighed instead of laughing.  “Good lord, you’re acting like you’re five.  I’m sure you’re not impressing your girlfriend.”

 

Darcy didn’t want her to get ahead of herself.  She was a little shocked by what his mother had just said.  She really wouldn’t have considered herself Justin’s girlfriend.  They were dating, yes, but girlfriend was a level she was pretty sure they hadn’t reached yet.  “I’m not his-” She began to say, but Justin cut her off. 

 

“Come on!  I’m putting you to work again.”  He reached and snatched her hand.  Maybe his mom really was as laid back as she seemed in all the interviews she had seen of them.  There had only been a couple with her in it, well of the ones Darcy had seen, but she seemed extremely friendly.  Today she didn’t seem overly friendly.  She didn’t know if that was good or bad.  All she knew was she felt a little awkward being this affectionate with Justin, even though it was just hand holding, when the woman who gave birth to him was only a few yards away.

 

They were walking towards the opened front door when Darcy heard a bark and the scampering of clawed feet. Then Justin’s hand clenched hers as his mother yelled out, “Bearlie!  No!”

 

She saw a little flash of brown run past her and Lynn’s voice say, “Aww hell, Justin get the dog before he runs out the gate!”

 

Justin dropped her hand at an instance and ran after the dog.  He caught up with the little yapping yorkie and swept it up in his arms, letting it wiggle and finally settle against him, licking his neck, making Justin laugh.  “Bear…stop showin' off for the lady.  This is my dog.”

 

“I see that.”  She reached over and petted the little dog’s head.  The pooch craned his neck to sniff her hand and then let her scratch his neck a little.   She smiled at the dog and walked beside Justin as they entered the house.

 

Lynn held the door open for them and closed it behind them, saying, “He’s a little upset because Bella’s been getting all the attention lately.”

 

“How’s she doin’?” Justin asked, letting the dog down.  He smelled Darcy’s tennis shoes and then scampered off, his nails clicking on the hard wood floor.  The three of them walked towards the kitchen.

 

“Ok.  Still drowsy.”

 

Justin turned his head to Darcy and said, “She’s an old doggie and just had to have surgery.  She’s still in Memphis with Gramma.”

 

“Aww.”

 

“Yeah…” Lynn rested her hip against the kitchen counter and watched as the little dog came back in and started smelling the floor, tracking some hidden trail of scent.  “So Bear has been acting up because we’ve been babyin’ Bell.”

 

“Wow…”  Darcy looked around.  The house had boxes everywhere.  Pictures were hung, furniture was placed, and ABC store boxes were exploding with newspaper that dotted the floor.  “You all have done quite a bit of work.”

 

“We got up early.”  Justin put an arm around her and brought her into his side.  She glanced at Lynn who seemed to look at them cautiously and then off to the side.  She wasn’t smiling and Darcy was sure that wasn’t good.

 

“Too early,” Lynn yawned.

 

“I was excited.”  He rubbed her back a little and looked down at her.  “You wanna drink?”

 

She smirked and poked his side. “Got anything more than just beer?”

 

“Yes…”  He stuck his tongue at her and said, “When I picked momma up last night she made me go to the grocery store before we came home.”

 

“I knew he’d only have beer and pizza.”  Lynn smiled and turned towards the fridge.

 

“Ooo, momma you should make some sweet tea.”

 

“Baby, do you want me to cook or unpack?  I can’t do both.”  She opened the refrigerator and brought out two Sprites, setting them on the counter.

 

Justin laughed. “You don’t gotta cook tea, you just pour and stir some stuff together.”

 

“Well I can’t do that and all this.”  Her hand waved over the kitchen to all the boxes and stuff lying about.

 

“Nevermind.”  Justin sighed and went over to grab a Sprite.  He handed it to Darcy, winked and then said,  I need to get the computer before it gets too hot in the car.”

 

“I’ll help ya.”  Lynn piped up.

 

As they started to walk out, Darcy didn’t know what to do. She followed them to see if they needed any help but before they got to the door, Justin whipped around and said, “Shit.   I forgot to tell Trace to get something.”  He looked at Darcy and smiled.  “Will you go bring my phone down?  It’s in my room on my bed.”

 

“Sure.”  She shrugged and smiled when he mouthed “thanks” to her and turned and walked out the door.  As she walked through the house and up the steps, Bearlie followed her.

 

She smiled at how homey Justin’s house was starting to look.  He had some wonderful paintings hung on walls and a couple that were leaning against them, not yet put up. Tables and other pieces of furniture were scattered about.  She could tell his house was going to be very nice when they were finished with it.  It was starting to look like a home.  His room didn’t look too much different.  There was a wooden dresser with some boxes on top of it, but most of the room was filled with clothes and suitcases.  The floor was almost unwalkable with all his shoes thrown out on the floor.  She thought the rumor about his shoe obsession was blown out of proportion.  But it wasn’t.

 

Bearlie seemed to not want to mess with the chaos that was his room and trotted off back down the hallway.   Darcy stretched her leg to climb over the shoes and reached to grab his small silver phone off his bed.  There was an open suitcase right by the phone exploding with boxer briefs and boxers.  She started to giggle.  It was his underwear.  Apparently he liked the color black and boxers with little cartoon figures, like the devil ones peaking out over the edge.

 

She would have snooped some more, but figured it would look bad if Justin, or worse, his mom walked in.  So she kept the phone in the palm of her hand and jumped over his mountain of shoes, padding quietly from his room back towards the steps.  She was in the hallway that over looked the front room with the piano when she started to hear their voices coming from the kitchen. They were hushed, but excited in the type of way only an argument could carry.

 

She strained to hear.

 

“Baby, I’m not trying to ruin this for you.”

 

“Yes you are.”  Justin whined. 

 

“I just want you to be careful.  You aren’t ready for this yet.”

 

“How can I just leave her or let her walk away?  I’ve been waiting for her for years.”

 

Darcy leaned against the railing and tried to bend down a little to peak into the kitchen, but she couldn’t see anything.  She wondered who they were talking about.  She thought for a moment that it might be her, and at that thought her stomach started to churn.  Lynn didn’t seem happy.  Maybe she didn’t want her son dating a slut that would make out on the hood of her car.  But that wasn’t that bad.  That was an honest mistake.  She hoped the lady wasn’t that uptight and over protective about things.

 

“Oh please Justin.  You’ve been fantasizing for years.”

 

“She’s the perfect woman for me.  Don’t you see that?”

 

Darcy’s mind started racing.  The perfect woman?  That wasn’t her.  It couldn’t have been.  They had to be talking about someone else.  Either way, it didn’t make her feel any better.  If it wasn’t her, then he must been seeing someone else, and that would mean she’d have to leave him.  She couldn’t deal with just been a side dish.  But if they were talking about her…

 

She wasn’t perfect, and didn’t want any man thinking her that way.  She had spent her adolescence being molded and formed to be the perfect young woman.  In the end, the mold as impossible and she had failed.  She didn’t need that pressure again.

 

“No Justin.  I see a normal girl, who seems to be a little nervous around me, which is acceptable, and who seems to be nuts for you.  But baby, how do you know she’s really nuts for you and not for you know…the celebrity stuff?”  She didn’t like it, but could see where Lynn was coming from.  She wondered if all of Justin’s girlfriends got this type of critical dissection from his mom.  She figured so.  After heart ache like he had had, the woman couldn’t help but be protective.  Plus, there were women out there that were money hungry and lusted after fame.

 

But she wasn’t one of them.

 

“Because she’s Darcy, mom.”

 

“What the hell does that mean?”  Darcy cringed at the hushed hiss in Lynn’s voice.  “Ya know, you were the one that decided you didn’t want to go to therapy anymore.  I accepted that because you were doing so much better.  What about that girl Kelly?”

 

“Mom.  She was just around so I could get laid.”

 

Darcy rolled her eyes.  Typical dickheaded boy.  “Oh, please Justin.  I raised you better than that.”  There was a pause, and Darcy held her breath, waiting for whatever was next.  It was probably a little wrong of her to spy on their conversation, but she couldn’t help it.  She didn’t want to bust up down there awkwardly and they sure as hell weren’t doing a good job concealing their voices.  They were trying, but she was an expert spy, it being her favorite childhood game. “All I’m saying is I wouldn’t trust her.”

 

“She’s not a fucking serial killer!”

 

Shh, I’m not saying that!  She seems like a wonderfully nice girl Justin, but you’re blinded with this obsession you have.  You know I wish you’d go back to Dr. Bateman.  That hurt me when you finally told me the real reason why.  Because of this new, new…girl.”

 

She heard Justin sigh and could imagine him looking up at the ceiling, acting like the weight of two tons had been thrown on his lowered shoulders.  She imagined him licking his lips, shaking his head while he said, “I…I’ve found her mom.”

 

“Justin, you’ve found the first sweet girl since Britney, but that’s it.  There are millions out there.  You’re just gonna get hurt.  I mean, if you fall in love with her or whatever, how will you know it’s for the real reason, and not just your head is messing things up?”

 

“Don’t you believe in fate, momma?”

 

Darcy’s eyebrows rose.  She knew he liked her.  But Lynn was right.  He was being a little obsessive.  She didn’t mind.  She thought it was wonderful how much he seemed to like her, but it was a little unsettling how much he seemed to depend on her so quickly after they started dating. 

 

“I believe in all sorts of things, Justin.  And right now I believe you’re making a big mistake.”

 

She didn’t want to hear anymore.  It was good to know Lynn didn’t hate her, per say.  But it was going to be hard work trying to convince her she wasn’t the biggest mistake of Justin’s life.  Maybe she was right.  Maybe she wasn’t worthy of Justin. 

 

Maybe it was a mistake coming over to help him that day.  She was almost ready to go home.  Her stomach hurt and she had the strangest urge to break down and cry.

 

What if Lynn was right?  What if he had just found the first girl since Britney?  It would explain at lot.  She knew he was still hung up on that relationship; the night before in the hammock solidified that.  But she didn’t think he still was in love with her.  So maybe he had some fear issues and didn’t want to be alone, but no one wants to be alone.  Maybe they want alone time, like a couple days to themselves, but deep down, no one wants to be by themselves, forever.

 

It made hr think about whether he really liked her or not.  But there had to be some sort of attraction or he wouldn’t bring himself to kiss her.  They laughed together, he seemed happy, and that was what was most important, right?  It didn’t matter if he was on the rebound or a little messed up in the head.  If he was happy, then it was ok.

 

She kept repeating that to herself as she took a deep breath and walked across the hallway towards the steps.  She tried to make noise with her tennis shoes as she walked down, so they wouldn’t suspect her of spying.  Bearlie heard her first and came barking towards her.  He ran up the steps to where she was and then back down with her, right on the heels of her feet.

 

When she made it down to the bottom of the stairs and looked up, he was there, smiling a smile at her that seemed to be a little sad.  He licked his lips and stared at her pretty hard.  “Find it?”

 

“Yup.”  She waved the phone in her hand and handed it to him with a wink.  She forced a smile and tried her best to cover up the fact that she had just heard their conversation.  She couldn’t let him know, especially since he was looking kind of worried.  “Got a lot of shoes up there, Mr. Timberlake.”

 

“Yeah…thanks.”  He took the phone from her and sighed.  He looked distraught and she hated seeing him so upset.  She tried to think of something to say to make him smile and started giggling at the thought that came in her head. 

 

“I saw your panties too.”  She winked.

 

He let out a shocked chuckle.  “My panties?”

 

She reached forward and tickled his stomach a little, “I like the devil ones.”

 

He grabbed her hands in his and laughed as they play fought at the foot of his steps. “Maybe one day you’ll get to see them on me.”

 

“I hope so.”  She winked and leaned in to whisper to him seductively, knowing flirting would help any man get their mind off things, “I hope I get to see them thrown on the floor of the bedroom.”

 

“Don’t tease.”  He pulled her into him and wrapped his arms around her.  “Come here.”

 

He sighed and held her tightly, resting his cheek on top of hers. They stood there for a moment and she hoped his mother wasn’t around to walk in on them.  They were just hugging, sure, but he was holding her tightly and it wasn’t really the type of hug you just randomly gave someone you were dating. 

 

“You ok?”  She whispered,

 

He moved his head down to her shoulder and kissed her neck and then her cheek.  “Yeah.  Momma went outside for a minute.  She’s…”  He pulled away and looked down at the floor.  His arms dropped from around her and he shrugged.  “Well, she’s not gonna be rude to you Darcy, but she’s really protective over me.  I guess it’s um, the Britney stuff.  She just doesn’t want me to get hurt again.  So she might say something or act in a way that seems bitchy.  But she’s really not.”

 

“I don’t wanna be a problem,” Darcy replied.  She was going to say that she could leave if it would make things better, but she didn’t want to.  She didn’t want to cause a fight between him and his mother, but she couldn’t help be a little selfish.  She wanted to spend time with him.  She really, really did.

 

“Hey…”  He nudged her with his elbow and then reached down to grab her hand so she could walk with him back into the kitchen.  “I said that yesterday.  And like you told me, I like you way too much.”

 

She felt him kiss the top of her head and she sighed. “I know you do.” She normally would be thankful to have a guy be as into her as Justin was, but something about the way he was so needy scared her a little and she hoped that wherever he was leading her it wouldn’t end with another broken heart. 

 

------

Much Later

 

Justin wanted his pants separated, so she sat on the middle of his bed in between a pile of jeans and a pile of khakis.  She thought she had a lot of clothes, but her wardrobe didn’t compare to his, and he was a guy!  He also wanted them folded so he could either hang or store them neatly in his closet.  She looked up to the guy that was sitting in a comfy chair in the corner of the room near the fireplace.  He was messing with his cell phone and looked completely uninterested in her.  He had been that way all day and it made her heart sink a little. 

 

It was one thing to have his mother hate her but to have his best friend as well, well, that just made her feel like something was wrong with herself.  He hadn’t said much to her and every time she had attempted at conversation he had only responded in one word answers. The only solace to the situation was that he was acting the same way towards Justin.  He talked a little more to him, but they had been very snappy at each other all day.  She just hoped, like she did with his mother, that she wasn’t going to be a problem.

 

She had been assigned to mainly unwrapping newspaper from things that has been in boxes.  After Trace had come back and they had all eaten lunch, the two boys had gone to lift and move some heavy furniture and she and Lynn had been left alone to unwrap china, glasses, and other kitchen utensils.  They had had a nice conversation, but she definitely felt like Lynn was prying with her million questions.  But she thought her asking questions was better than her not saying anything at all.

 

Like Trace, who was trying his best to ignore her.

 

The best part of the day had been the quick run her and Justin had made to get dinner.  She let him drive her car, since his and his mom’s were blocked in, and they put the hood up so that no one would see them.  He held her hand as he drove and on the way back, as they were driving up his long street, he pulled off to the side or the road and tugged her almost completely into his lap, which was hard to do in the bucket seats.  He made out with her a little bit, holding his hands to her ass and tugging at her lip with his teeth.  When he pulled away with a cocky smile she knew he was up to no good, trying his best to turn her on.  He didn’t have to try hard.

 

But when they got back, something had changed.  She thought Lynn had warmed up to her a little bit before, but during dinner she was back to being very short.  Trace wouldn’t look at her and she knew that they must have been talking about her while she was gone. 

 

It made her feel awkward, and she suddenly wished she had spent the day at home.

 

Trace glanced up at her and caught her staring at him.  She looked down to the pile of pants in her lap and smiled when Justin walked in with some hangers.  She cleared her throat and said to Trace, “So you’ll be living in the guest house?”

 

“Yeah...” he mumbled.

 

She decided since he was still not talking to her, she’d talk to the only person in the house who liked her, besides Bearlie which was curled up on the pillows of Justin’s bed.  Bearlie had followed her all day, and she didn’t know if the dog was just interested in her because she was new, or if he really liked her.  Either way, he had been with her all day and even stared to whine when she left with Justin to get food. “You didn’t show me the guest house the other day.”

 

“Too busy with other things.” Justin winked and started to hang up his khakis, walking a couple feet to hang them on his closet door and then back to get another pair.

 

She smiled at him and licked her lips, trying her best to tease him.  It had been one interesting part of the day, flirting with him.  They had been very, very tame around Lynn and Trace, but whenever they were alone they had been flirting non-stop.  It was so much fun sneaking around with him like that. 

 

She turned her attention back to Trace who was now staring at her.  “Well that’ll be cool.  You’ll get to have your privacy but still be close to hang out.”

 

“Yeah.”  He sighed and widened his eyes a little. 

 

“So uh,” Justin went into the closet and she was forced to make more conversation or return to the awkward silence like before.  “Are you dating anyone?”

 

“Nah.” He flipped his phone shut after playing with it for what seemed like half an hour and lifted his hips to slide it into his pocket.  “Not everyone is as lucky as Justin.”  He started to chuckle and narrowed his eyes slightly at her.   “I mean, he gets girls all the time, ya know?

 

“What are you talking about Trace?” Justin said, reentering the room.

 

“You know what I mean.  You got girls all the time, all over you.”

 

She watched Justin roll his eyes.  “Whatever.  Those girls are just obsessive freaks.  If they knew me, you know what they’d do.  They’d run the hell away.”

 

“Call them obsessive freaks, but you were the one who was in therapy.”

 

“Shut up Trace.” Justin boomed.  She knew that if any louder it would have probably echoed throughout the room.  He seemed hurt by that comment and she knew that he should have been.  She didn’t know how Trace was normally, but if he was anything like he was now, she didn’t really know why Justin was such good friends with him.

 

Trace shrugged and then pushed himself out of the chair. “Well, I probably should go.” 

 

“What?” Justin asked a little dumbfounded.

 

“Oh, I forgot.  I promised Sean I’d go hang out with him tonight.  We might go shoot some pool or something.”

 

Justin nodded and started to smile, excited about the idea. “Awesome.  That’d be cool.”

 

“Well, ya know.  He’s having some girl trouble and well, whatever.”

 

“Oh…”  She watched Justin carefully and could tell by the lowering of his eyelids that he was hurt.  Apparently, he assumed that they were invited along for the fun.  She realized then how much time he and Trace spent together and how close they were.  “…ok.”

 

“So, I would invite you guys, but I mean, ya got your lady here.  Ya need to trick her into thinking your hot shit.  But uh, I’ll probably start moving my shit in this weekend.”

 

He was out of the bedroom and walking through the hallway towards the steps when Justin stormed past her, braced himself in the doorway by holding onto the mantling and called out, “Hey Trace.”

 

“What?” She heard Trace say but couldn’t see him because of Justin body blocking the way.

 

“What the fuck man?”

 

“I’ll talk to ya later.” She heard Trace say.

 

She decided to pipe up and give him at least a nice parting thought of her.  She didn’t want him scurrying off to tell everyone Justin was dating a bitch.  “It was nice meeting you, Trace,” she called out.

 

“Yeah. Later y'all.” He replied back with a southern drawl.

 

She watched Justin slump his shoulders, shake his head and pivot around, pulling the door half way closed as he did so.  She stared at him and said, “So, he hates me.”

 

Justin rolled his eyes and started to walk towards the bed. “He’s being a prick.  Just fucking pissed I got a hot girl and he just had his fucking hand.”

 

“Don’t be upset. Maybe it’s me.”  She watched him take the small piles of jeans and khakis and cradle them in his arms towards the closet. “I mean, you’re mom doesn’t really like me either.”

 

“No, no it’s not that.”  He threw the pants onto the floor of the closet, flipped off the light inside and walked back towards her.

 

“Then what is it?”

 

He stopped beside her and ran a hand through his hair.  “I…”

 

“More Britney stuff?”

 

“Yeah…” He sighed and then rubbed his eyes with is hands.  His voice was weird, as if he was trying to convince himself of what he was saying.  “Yeah.”

 

“Well I hope they learn to like me.”

 

“They will Darcy.”  His crooked smile appeared and he rested a knee on the edge of his bed and then his hands for balance. He crawled over to where she was perched Indian style in the center of his mattress.  He crawled over her and she was forced to uncross her legs.  She stretched them out in front of her, in between his legs and leaned back on the bed.  He was smiling devilishly at her and she started to smile back at him. 

 

The next thing she knew they were making out. He was laying on top of her with his mouth on hers and his hands up the back of her shirt.  They remained this way for a while until they started to roll a little on the bed.  She laughed when he rolled the wrong way and they almost fell off.  Finally, they switched positions and she found herself on top of him, straddling him. Bearlie sighed, sneezed a little, and moved off the bed.  Darcy opened her eyes.  She pulled away from him and sat up.  Her hands were on his bare arms, admiring how sculpted they were and the cross tattoo on his left arm.  She moved them to his cotton covered chest and took a deep breath. 

 

He smiled at her and puckered up, making kissing noises towards her.  She glanced at the clock that was beside his bed and noticed it was late, much later than she thought.  She couldn’t believe she hadn’t noticed it was already getting dark outside. 

 

“Shit…”

 

“What?” He asked concerned.

 

“It’s late.”

 

He craned his neck to look at the clock and then relaxed back underneath her.  “Only 9:15.”

 

“I know.  I just, damn…”  She ran a hand through her messy hair, pulled back into a ponytail and sighed, “We’ve just been so busy and talking and…”

 

“I told you I was gonna put you to work.”  He smacked her ass promptly and she jumped a little bit.

 

“I know.  I’m beat.”  With that she leaned down and curled up underneath his chin, closing her eyes and wishing some how, someway she could stay with him that night.  She knew it’d feel so nice to curl up to his warm body. 

 

“That’s why I kissed ya, so you could rest.”  He moved from underneath her and smiled boyishly as he leaned on his side beside her. 

 

She laughed and felt his hand rub her stomach underneath her shirt.  “Was this some secret ploy to get me in your bed?”

 

“Maybe.”  He leaned down and kissed the side her head, relaxing completely beside her.  She felt his hand move up a little and touch the under wire of her bra. 

 

“You can touch.” She whispered.  She smiled as his eyes widened.  It reminded her of the first time she ever fooled around with a boy.  It was her first boyfriend, her first everything, and he was so shocked when she let his hand wander up her shirt that she laughed and ended up having to apologize for hurting the guy’s feelings.  She felt his hand cup one of her breast on top of her bra and she started to laugh.  She didn’t mean to, but it just amazed her how men could always be so cocky and sex-crazed while they flirted but once they started doing things, could act like it was their first time.  Being careful was always a good thing, but she couldn’t help but laugh at how most men were over-cautious.  His face fell a little and she put her hand on his arm and used her other to lift her bra up, tucking his hand underneath.   “I meant underneath.”

 

His warm hand on her soft skin made her sigh and she closed her eyes.  He squeezed her softly and then breathed out, “Boobies…”

 

She started to laugh even more.  “Oh my god.”

 

He moved his hand to the other one and squeezed it twice.  “They’re nice.”

 

They laid there for a moment and he kept his hands on her breasts until finally he nudged her head and she turned her face to his and they began to kiss.  His hand left her bra and tickled on the center of her chest.  When he realized it was a front clasp he undid it.  Her bra popped open and she felt his hand push the material away as his tongue and lips touched hers.  His hands massaged her breasts sensually and he pulled her against him.  All shy, boyish behavior had vanished.  She could feel him getting excited and pushed her thigh against him, causing him to groan.

 

It was then when she realized that they might be there a while making out.  It was already late and she didn’t want to leave him yet, but she didn’t want her brother calling the police reporting a kidnapping.  She pulled away and sighed against his lips.  “I should call my brother.”

 

He stopped all movement and pulled away a little, asking, “You’re thinking about your brother?”

 

“Well, I mean…if I’m gonna be late tonight.”

 

“Oh ok.” He pulled away from her and removed his hand from her shirt to lie on his back. 

 

She did the same and lifted her arm to start to push herself from the bed so she could go find wherever it was she had left her cell phone.  But then her arm flopped back on the couch and she rolled over and curled herself into his side saying, “Shit, I don’t wanna move.  This bed is too comfortable.”

 

“Then don’t.”

 

“I gotta go home.”

 

“No you don’t.”

 

“What?”

 

“Stay with me tonight.”  He said simply.

 

She looked into his eyes and saw utter desire there.  And when he licked his lips, she suddenly got scared.  It wasn’t that she didn’t want to sleep with him.  Hell yes, she wanted to, but what that would mean?  Just the other day they had talked about just letting it happen, and now he was roaring to go. 

 

“I thought we were gonna go slow.”

 

He chuckled, “I just meant with me in this bed with ‘jammas on.”

 

jammas?”  She smiled.

 

“Ya know, pajamas.”

 

Mmhmm.”

 

He pulled her down against him and kissed her briefly.  “I’m not saying that I might not make out with you a little.  But I’m not asking for anything more.”

 

“What if I wanna give you more?”  She started to tickle his sides, making him laugh and grab at her hands to get her to stop. 

 

“Tease.”  He growled out and soon she found herself pinned underneath him, his fingers wiggling at her sides and her bladder about to explode.

 

“Stop!  You’re gonna make me pee all over you!” 

 

He stopped and pulled away from her.  “Grody girl!”

 

“I feel grody.  Since I’m staying here, could I take a shower?  I’m gross.”

 

“Sure.” 

 

She curled herself from the bed and stretched, yawned and then went in search for her phone.  His mom was in his office, putting up all his awards.  It was neat to see all the Moon-men and Billboard awards he had won over the years.  They had found her phone beside his, which was being charged up, on the kitchen counter.   She called her brother and he didn’t answer, so she left him a message, thankful she wouldn’t have to have him yell at her for not coming home.

 

She then went back upstairs and he showed her how to work the shower, left her two towels and then left her alone, closing the door behind him. 

 

The shower was wonderful and she felt so much better once she turned the water off, stepped out, toweled off in the steam filled room.  She pulled her hair in a towel, rubbed her feet on the plush bathmat and looked around for her clothes.  She really didn’t want to put on her sweaty clothes again and pouted, realizing she had nothing else to put on.  She rubbed her hair vigorously, hung up her towel and took the other one and wrapped it around her torso.  She stepped carefully to the door and cracked it open.

 

She called out, “Um, Justin…”

 

“Yeah?”

 

She peaked out into the room and pushed the door open when he walked from the closet.  She smiled and leaned against the doorway.  “Do you have anything I can wear to sleep in?”

 

He stopped in his tracks and his mouth dropped a little.  Finally, he pulled himself together and managed to squeak out, “Shit…”

 

“What?”

 

“You’re…”

 

“What?”  She realized then that she was in a towel. She looked down and then back up at him and cringed.  “Oh...I’m sorry.”

 

He started to smile and stepped forward, “Are you trying to make me horney?”

 

“No.”

 

“I think you are.  What do you want to wear?”

 

“I don’t know.  A t-shirt, boxers…whatever.”  She paused and winked at him.  “Silk nighties.”

 

He was halfway turned to go back into the closet when he stopped and stuttered, “Wh-what?”

 

She shrugged and pulled up the towel that was starting to sag. “Ya know, I’ve always wanted those.  But no.  For some reason I have a tendency to wear long tee shirts and boxers, or biker shorts.  Those are the best.”

 

“Well I don’t have any biker shorts.”  He went into the opened closet door and came back with a white shirt and some plaid cotton shorts.

 

“I hope they’re clean.”  She snatched them from him and then closed the door to the bathroom so she could change in private.

 

As she changed she thought back on the past few minutes and what was about to happen.  She wondered what would happen once they got into bed together.  She wondered what he’d sleep in and wondered if he’d touch her again.  She hoped so.

 

When she came back out he had pulled back the bed but was no where in sight.  She took the moment and jumped in the bed, crawled under the covers and pulled them up to her chin.  It was so comfortable and cozy and warm and she was excited to go to sleep.  She always got the same giddy feeling when she got into bed, whether it was her own or whatever.  She loved to feeling of closing her eyes after a long hard day, underneath cool sheets that would soon warm her up and lying on a soft mattress.  She pulled her damp hair out from behind her head and shoulders and twisted it up and laid it beside her so it wouldn’t keep her too cold.

 

“What are you doing?”

 

She turned towards the door to the room and watched as he came in, closed the door and walked towards her. “Sleepin’,” She replied.

 

He sat down on the side of the bed and leaned towards her.  “I’m gonna take a shower and then get in with ya, ok?”

 

“Okie dokie.” She smiled.

 

“You’re happy.”

 

“I love bed.”  She snuggled deeper into the covers.  “I’m never leaving.”

 

He dipped down and kissed her deeply.  Mmmm. Please don’t.”

 

When he pulled away he rubbed his nose against hers and finally left the bed.  He flicked off the lights to the room and then entered the bathroom.  The door clicked behind him and she was covered in darkness. She closed her eyes but couldn’t get tired if she was getting paid to do it.  She was too excited about sleeping next to him.  She listened to the shower run for a few minutes, heard it click off and listened carefully as she curled on her side.  She heard him clear his throat, heard what sounded like the sink running.  It turned off, and then she heard the sound of material moving.

 

She kept her eyes closed as a change of light entered the room and then flicked off again.  She heard him sigh and then felt the bed move.

 

She started to smile and it soon turned into a giggle she couldn’t control herself.

 

“Why you laughin’?”

 

She turned and tried to make him out in the darkness but could only see a shadow of his head.  “I don’t know. Just excited.”

 

He paused for a moment and then when he spoke she could see his white smile. “Excited how?”

 

“Perv.  No, I just…I’m really happy.”

 

“Me too.”  She felt his hands and arms reach for her and willingly went with him.  But when her hand moved down to brace herself from the intense kiss he was landing on her, all she felt was warm moist skin.

 

She pulled away with a gasp, “Are you naked?”

 

“No...” He chuckled and found her lips again quickly.  “I have on boxers.”

 

She laughed against his mouth and relaxed her body half on top of his. “Rats.”

 

“You need to stop teasing or you’re gonna get yourself into trouble.”

 

“How?”

 

“Thanks for helping me today.  Don’t worry about Momma and Trace, they’ll come around.”  He changed the subject and when her leg curled up over his hip and her knee bumped into his cotton-covered lap, she figured out why.  She thought about it for a moment, wondering if she should go for it.  She wanted to, and she was ready and definitely willing.  He seemed to be as well.  But something in her stomach told her it just wasn’t time yet.  That one word made her smile, yet.  That meant someday it would happen.

 

“I hope so.  You’re mom probably thinks I’m some sort of slut staying the night and all.”

 

“Nah. When you were in the shower I went to talk to her and she said she’d make us breakfast in the morning.  I hope you like French toast.”

 

She smiled and lifted her head off his shoulder.  Her eyes had adjusted and she could see him ok.  She leaned down and kissed him quickly.  “I love it.”

 

“Great.”  She felt his hand surge up the skin of her back and she leaned down to kiss him fully.  She felt him poking into her hip and giggled as his hands moved around to cup her bare breasts underneath her tee shirt.  She ended up on her back some how, his hands on her and her legs around him, kissing furiously with him.  It felt wonderful and she couldn’t help herself give in when he began to rub his hips against her.  It was a lot different feeling than the day before.  Jeans restricted and were difficult to move in, but soft cotton boxers left little to the imagination.

 

She called out his name in a breathly sigh when his lips started to travel down her neck. “Justin…”

 

“Yeah...” His voice was gravely.

 

She closed her eyes and didn’t think before she said, “I’ve fallen for you so damn hard.”

 

He stopped massaging her and kissing her and paused all movement as he laid over her.  She felt his hands fall from underneath her shirt and then had to move a little as his arms wrapped around her and squeezed her tightly.  “Thank you,” he whispered.

 

“For what?”

 

“For being  ...” She couldn’t hear what he was saying because his words were mumbled against the skin of her neck, but it sounded like he was saying the word “real.”

 

“What now?” she asked for him to repeat.

 

“For, for being…”  He pulled her to where she was laying on his chest again and sighed out, “here.”

 

She listened to his heart beat for a long time.  It slowed down and he started to breath deeply within a few minutes.  She whispered his name and got no response.  Her leg was curled over his lap again and she felt him soften underneath her knee.  She could feel the blood pumping through his sensitive area, but soon it slowed, like his breathing and finally stopped.  There was no way she would get to sleep that easy.  She was too excited to be lying with him and still way too turned on.  But mostly she wanted to memorize very carefully the feeling of his skin and his warmth and the sound of his heart, just incase it was all some huge, wonderful dream.

 

 

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