The following week was filled with rehearsals and last minute details for the upcoming shows. Noah apologized to Dawn for upsetting her on the plane and they were getting along okay, although she still couldn’t forget the things he said.

D on the other hand couldn’t stand Noah and had her eye on him every waking moment of the day. She knew what he was up to, but she didn’t tell Dawn, she didn’t want to stress her out even more. Now, the problem was, deciding whether or not to tell AJ. She had talked to him once on the phone since they had been there without Dawn knowing. He wanted to know how things were going and how Dawn was holding up. He knew from talking to her every night that she wasn’t her usual self and didn’t seem to be enjoying being in Paris. D didn’t mention anything to him about the little stunt Noah pulled on the plane, she didn’t want to worry him, but remembering the threat Noah made to her and Nick’s relationship, she contemplated telling AJ just in case Noah opened his mouth, she didn’t want him to do it before she did.

They met Enrique a few days before the tour opened. They all got a chance to go out a few times. She was surprised at how down to earth and nice he was, not to mention absolutely gorgeous.

The day of the opening show, Dawn was extremely nervous, so much so that she didn’t eat a thing all day. They spent the day at the venue rehearsing and making sure everything was in working order. Dawn kept to herself pretty much all day unable to think of anything other than how much she wished AJ was there for her first show.  She was a nervous wreck and knew that AJ would understand, and would tell her how to handle it. 

A few hours before show time Dawn was sitting in her dressing room trying to relax when there was a knock on her door. She opened the door to see someone standing there behind three dozen peach roses, her favorite.

"Delivery for Miss Simon," the voice said to her as she gasped.

"Oh my God!" She exclaimed as she directed him as to where to place them.

She thanked him as he left, then walked over to the flowers. They were the most beautiful flowers she had ever seen. She breathed in their fragrance as she searched for a card. She finally spotted one and ripped it open.

"This is your day to shine, Angel. Show the world what I know you’re capable of. I love you with all my heart. Always and forever, Alex".

Reading the card brought tears to Dawn’s eyes. She couldn’t stop them as she buried her face in her hands.

"I wish he was here," she sobbed. "I’m so scared."

A few moments later, her cell phone rang. She tried to calm herself as she answered it.

"How’s my Angel today?" The familiar voice on the other end asked.

"Alex!" she exclaimed, "I was just thinking about you!"

"Oh yeah? Was I wearing clothes?"

She laughed. "I miss you so much, I wish you were here".

"I miss you, too, baby. Did you get the flowers?"

"I sure did, they just came, I’ve never seen anything more beautiful."

"I have. Everytime I look at you".

"Stop", Dawn blushed.

"So, how are things going? How do you like Enrique?" He asked.

"He’s really nice, we all went out a few times and had a good time. D and I have been hitting every store we can find," she joked.

"Oh no, I better make room for that AmEx bill in the mailbox," he teased. "So, is he as hot as they say he is?"

"Oh yeah...he’s so fine! You better tell Nick to come here and get his woman cause she’s scoping on Enrique."

"Oh shit. He’s going to be even more anxious to get to her. That boy’s driving me nuts."

"Aww...he misses her. How sweet!" Dawn sighed.

"Yeah, I’m driving him nuts too. I miss you so much, baby."

"You have no idea how much I miss you. How’s Arianna?"

"She’s doing fine. I swear, she reminds me so much of you, it’s uncanny. My mother says the same thing".

"But she’s got your attitude," Dawn said to him.

"Yeah, we’re working on fixing that," he said, laughing.

"Make sure you tell her Mommy loves and misses her".

"I will, don’t worry, I’m actually doing an okay job with this daddy thing here. Arianna may have other opinions about that, though, especially after what I did to her hair the other day with those damned clips."

"Oh no," Dawn laughed. "What are you doing to our poor child?"

"Oh, she’s young, she’ll forget it, and if not, there’s always therapy," he joked.

"Her hair is still brown isn’t it, Alex?" Dawn asked carefully.

"Ummmm....yeah, part of it still is," he joked.

They both laughed, then Dawn got quiet.

"What’s wrong, baby?" He asked softly.

"I hate this Alex, I hate being away from you and Arianna. I miss you guys so much".

"I know. Touring isn’t easy, but after a week or two, it’ll get better, who knows, you may even like it. Something else is bothering you, what is it? Tell me."

Dawn was quiet for a moment, she couldn’t get over how well he knew her, better than she knew herself sometimes. She took a deep breath.

"I’m scared, terrified actually. I’m a nervous wreck. I don’t know if I can do this. I just wish you were here.." her voice trailed off.

"You can do it, I know you can. I know what you’re capable of. Have a little faith in yourself."

Suddenly there was a knock at the door.

"Damn it," Dawn said, annoyed. "I wish I could just get ten stinking minutes of privacy. I’m not gonna answer it, they can come back later."

They knocked again, this time harder.

"You probably should answer the door, Angel. It doesn’t sound like they’re going to go away."

Dawn sighed and got up from her seat.

"This better be good," she said as she walked over to the door and opened it.

She was stunned at what she saw, AJ was standing there right in front of her eyes.

"Is this good enough?" He asked, smiling, holding out his arms.

"Alex!" She exclaimed, running into his arms. "Omigod! I can’t believe you’re here!" She sobbed into his shoulder.

"Baby, I wouldn’t miss your first show for anything in the world," he replied, placing a kiss on her head.

She lifted her face to his and gently pressed her lips to his. She savored the way his lips comfortably latched onto hers.

"Maybe we should go inside," he said with a chuckle.

"Oh yeah", Dawn laughed, looking around to see who was watching.

She kissed him once again as she pulled him into her dressing room...

A couple hours later...

It was almost showtime and Dawn was freaking out as AJ was trying to calm her. She was pacing the length of her dressing room. She had on green leather skin-tight pants and matching halter.
"It’s going to be oka,y Angel. You’re going to knock ‘em dead!"

"I don’t know if I can do this," Dawn confessed, trying to not start crying, she sat down on a nearby chair.

There was a knock at the door and the person told them it was time for her to go onstage. She froze and looked at AJ. He approached her, grabbed her arms, and squatted so he was looking her in the eye.

"You are going to be fine. I am going to be right there watching you. This is your chance to show them what you’ve got. I know you can do it."

Dawn threw her arms around him and hugged him tight.

"What would I do without you Alex?"

"You’ll never have to find out, Angel. I’m always going to be here for you."

She pulled away and kissed him tenderly. The knock came again and they left the dressing room hand in hand. There were people rushing around everywhere with headsets on and clipboards in hand. Dawn just kept a hold of AJ’s hand and followed the stagehand to where she was supposed to go onstage. Noah was standing at the entrance to the stage. He turned and saw her coming and smiled. His face fell when he saw who was holding her hand.

"AJ, so nice of you to come and cheer Dawn on." Noah told him with a fake smile.

AJ looked at Dawn and gave her an adoring look.

"There’s no where else I’d rather be than right here on her first night up onstage."

‘Oh brother,’ Noah thought to himself.

One of the techs approached Noah and handed him Dawn’s headset. He held it out to her and smiled.

"Here ya go. Put this on and you’re all set to go."

Dawn took it from him and adjusted it on her head. AJ clipped the pack around her waste and the tech tested it to make sure everything was running smoothly. When she was all set to go, she went to the side of the stage and looked out at the large crowd. The screaming was deafening. They wanted Enrique and they wanted him now! What if they didn’t like her? What if they booed her off the stage? Sensing her uneasiness AJ came up behind her and wrapped his arms around her. She closed her eyes and leaned back.

"You are going to be amazing tonight. Don’t worry. They are going to love you. Let their energy feed you."

Dawn turned around and smiled at him. He kissed her tenderly and hugged her.

"I love you, Alex. Thank you so much for being here."

"I love you too, Angel," he smiled. "By the way, have I mentioned how incredibly hot you look tonight?"

"Why no Mr. McLean, I don't think you have," Dawn smirked as she rubbed her body against his.

"Well, you just wait until I get you back to that hotel room tonight," he nibbled on her ear. "I'll show you exactly what you're doing to me in this leather outfit. Then I'll show you what I'm going to do to you out of it."

Dawn giggled and gave him a passionate kiss on the lips. Just then, D walked up and interrupted them.

"At it again, huh?" She laughed. "Do you two ever quit?"

"You just wait until Nicky comes to visit. Then we'll see who won't quit," Dawn smiled.

"Yeah, yeah. So, are you ready for your big debut?" She asked excitedly as she gave Dawn a hug.

"I think so. I feel like I’m gonna puke though," Dawn said, holding her stomach and making a face.

"You are going to be fine. Now get out there and kick some ass!"

Dawn smiled at D and gave AJ a quick kiss.

She turned to the stage and took a deep breath as she took her place amongst her dancers.

‘Here goes nothing,’ she said to herself as she wiped her sweaty palms on her pants.

Noah came up and whispered in her ear. "Good luck."

She smiled and whispered a thank you. She blew AJ a kiss and took the stage. Noah watched her for a little while and turned to leave. D was glaring at him and he gave her an innocent smile and disappeared backstage.

"I can’t stand that guy," D scoffed.

AJ looked at her with a questioning look. <> "Already? Has something happened?"

"He’s up to something,J."

AJ scowled and stepped closer to her so they could talk over the music.

"What did he do?"

"Well, when we were on the plane ride here he had a little talk with Dawn about her career and the affect it would have on your relationship. He told her that it would change when she becomes famous. The two of you would eventually grow apart. She would be meeting so many different people and that you wouldn’t fit into her life anymore. She shouldn’t rush into marriage with you.."

AJ looked at her shocked.

"He said all that?"

"Yep. Then he told her that you two getting married would ruin your career because of your female fanbase. She was pretty upset. He said some pretty harsh things."

"Fanbase my ass. Is she okay?" He asked, concerned.

"She’s fine. I told her that you loved her and not to listen to all of that bullshit."

"Good."

"I also told Noah that he better watch his mouth."

AJ smiled and crossed his arms.

"I’ll bet that went over real big."

D rolled her eyes and looked out at the stage. Dawn was on her second song and the crowd was loving it. They were cheering so loud she thought she was going to go deaf. She smiled and turned back to AJ.

"He wasn’t real happy that I said that. In fact he threatened me right back."

"What did he say?"

D frowned and felt tears forming in her eyes.

"He said he would tell Nick I was cheating on him."

AJ’s eyes got wide.

"Nick would never believe him."

"Nick thinks a lot of Noah. He would have no reason not to," D sighed.

AJ smiled and put his hand on her arm.

"Nick is crazy about you. If you denied it and told him what Noah’s up to then he’ll believe you."

"I hope you’re righ,t J," D said, forcing a smile.

"Does Dawn know about your talk with Noah?"

"No, I haven’t told her."

"Good. Don’t. She doesn’t need to know about it. She’s got enough on her plate already."

"Okay. I won’t say a word," D assured him.

They turned back towards the stage and watched Dawn finish her last song. D turned and looked at AJ. His eyes were glued to Dawn. The look on his face said it all. He was beaming, he was so proud of his fiancé.

"I can't believe you came all this way to spend just one night here".

"I wouldn't have missed this for anything in the world," he gushed.

"She misses you so much. You must have sensed how much she needed you tonight."

"She didn't need me," he replied. "She just thought she did. Noah's right, a lot of things in her life are going to change...much to his dismay, I'm not going to be one of them".

D chuckled at his comment and turned her attention back to Dawn.

"She does look great out there."

"She sure does. This is what she was born to do. She'll be fine now."

Dawn finished her set and came rushing offstage with a huge grin. She ran straight into AJ’s arms, almost knocking him over. He laughed and twirled her around.

"That was incredible," Dawn gasped as he set her down.

"You were amazing! I told you they’d love you."

"You were fantastic!" D told her, giving her a hug.

"Thanks! I can’t even explain how I feel right now."

"You don’t have to." AJ said, kissing her tenderly.

She looked at him and smiled. Now she knew why he loved his job so much. She was going to love this tour and it was only the beginning.

Chapter 18
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