Prologue

She had known him long before he became a Backstreet Boy. He had shared everything with her except the one thing he wanted to share most. His love. He thought that to be impossible, she would never go for it. At least that�s what he would tell himself. To control his desire, he decided the best thing to do would be to stay away from her. She on the other hand wanted nothing more than to be close to him. He had never been around her long enough in the last few weeks for her to tell him. Her name is So�Cy, his name Howard.

Chapter 1

As Howard kept distancing himself from So�Cy, she sought comfort in their friend AJ. He was now the one she talked to and spent time with. As she yet again walked over to AJ�s house, something different in the air caught her attention. She didn�t quite know what it was so she dismissed it. She knocked on the door and he answered wearing his legendary wifebeater and jeans that were about three sizes too big. A look only he could pull off to perfection.
�Was up white boy?�
�Hey babe, come on in.�
She came in and lightly kissed him on the cheek. The sensation from her small gesture was intense, at least for him. It sent shivers down his spine other parts of his body reacted as well. �Not yet McLean,� he told himself as they sat on the couch. He sat next to her and she immediately laid her head in his chest and wrapped her arms around him. He immediately thanked God that he wore pants three sizes too big.
�Are you okay So�Cy?�
�No, it�s just the thing of why is D avoiding me?�
�You know he must have a good reason. He wouldn�t just not talk to you. You�re his best friend.�
�You think so.�
�Yeah, you two are meant to be together.�
Just as it came out, he damned himself for saying it even if he knew it was true.
�I want to do something to keep my mind off of my impending drama.�
�We could play pool.�
�That sounds good, where�s the table?�
�In the basement.�
�I don�t think so. I�ve heard about your basement.�
�What�s wrong with my basement?�
�AJ, your basement is legendary. They go down there girls and come up women is what I�ve heard.�
�There is nothing for you to worry about. We are just going to play pool.�
�Okay.�
As they went downstairs AJ hit a switch against the wall. When they finally got to the lower level So�Cy noticed that one side of the basement was pitch black. The side of the basement they were on was lit by a small lamp hovering over the pool table. �Don�t worry about what�s over there babygirl.�
They began to play pool and she could feel AJ watching her. It was a feeling she had missed since Howie started avoiding her. She knew that she had all of his attention. Her curiosity started to get the better of her as she wondered what exactly, was AJ hiding from her, as he went to take his turn she found a switch.
�Hey AJ, what does this switch do.�
�Don�t flip that �.�
Before he could finish, she flipped the switch and walked over to the other side of the basement where she stopped dead in her tracks.
�AJ . . . ?�
Her voice seemed to fade as she observed the room. There was a king-size bed surrounded in candles. The bed was made in leopard print linen, with a leather strap marked as the center piece. A small dresser sat next to the bed it was adorned with an array of lotions, and whip creams. In the small corner of the room stood the most shocking of his toys. There were chains that were connected to hooks on the wall. Handcuffs hung from the ends of the chains. There were four in all enough to hang a person from, more pacifically a woman. There were whips and other devices all around.
�AJ, you are a pervert.�
�You weren�t supposed to see that.�
�What? I�m not good enough to see your play things.�
�You�re more than good enough. I just didn�t want to scare you with my toys.�
�So how many girls have you had down here?�
�None since you and I became closer.�
He walked up behind her caressing her back.
�We are closer, aren�t we?�
�Yes we are.�
�How close are we?�
She was stunned with the sudden change in his tone. She turned around to look at him.
�What are you hinting at AJ?�
�Well, since you�ve been coming over and hanging out with me I�ve been having these feelings for you. I know that your destiny is intricately entangled with Howie�s but I couldn�t keep it in anymore. I�m falling for you So�Cy.�
She just looked at him for a while, then she reacted to him the only way she knew how. She walked over to him and kissed him on the lips. He looked at her and blinked. He was shocked by her forwardness. He then grabbed her around her waist pulling her close to him as he kissed her. They ended up in the middle of his bed engaged in a deep kiss. When he moved to proceed forward, she stopped him.
�AJ I don�t think that would be a good idea.�
�Why not?�
�AJ, you know why, I�m not that type of girl.�
He instantly got up from the bed and walked upstairs. She followed behind him.
�Please, don�t be mad at me AJ.�
�I�m not mad at you.�
�Yes you are, I can see it in your eyes.�
He took her hand and guided her over to the couch where they sat down.
�I�m not mad at you. I�m mad at my inability to control myself when I really like someone.�
So�Cy laid her head in his chest. He in turn wrapped his arms around her.
�I should apologize for making you think I was upset with you.� �It�s okay AJ.�