"Well excuse me if I was in the middle of doing something," Ashley said as his breathing calmed down.
"Ashley..Ashley..what have you been doing? You sound like you're out of breath. You wouldn't be doing anything..ahem naughty would you?" she asked him an evil gleam in her eyes.
He groaned at her comment before sighing. "What do you need?"
"We're going to a club tonight so be ready by eight. We'll be by to pick you up and I'm not taking no for an answer," she said before hanging the phone up.
"You're up to something," Dan said as he wrapped his arms around her waist.
"I'm not up to anything! I just invited Ashley to come to the club with us, how is that being up to something?"
He chuckled before pulling away from her and walking to his closet. "Well considering as how you didn't give him a chance on if he wanted to go or not, you're definately up to something!"
"I am not! I just know he needs to get out of that house..." she said before sighing at the look Dan was giving her. "Ok fine! I'm up to something, but I'm doing this out of the goodness of my heart!"
He crossed his arms over his chest and continued to give her the look that could bring her to her knees. She threw her hands up in the air before turning her back on him. "Don't look at me like that."
He walked around to stand in front of her, placing his hands on her shoulders so she shouldn't turn away from him. "Damn it, Dan," she cursed as she closed her eyes.
"Cait...what are you up to?"
"Its nothing big, I don't know why you think I have a plan to take over the world or something," she said opening her eyes to see that he was still looking at her. "If you'll stop with the look, I'll tell you!"
He chuckled before relaxing his face into a smile. "Tell me."
She laid her head against his shoulder before taking a deep breath. "I'm bringing along my friend...that's all..see nothing major!"
"You're not going to try and play match maker are you?"
She shrugged against his shoulder causing him to groan. "He'll like Jenn..she's very pretty...come on Dan, have some faith in me..I wouldn't do this if I didn't have faith that the two of them would click or something!"
He pulled away from her before heading back towards his closet. "I'm not going to give you a lecture because who knows you might be on to something, but you know that you shouldn't mess around with other people's lives...sometimes it backfires."
"I can't believe this! You're going to spare me the speech?" she said not believing that he was backing off this easy.
He shrugged. "What's the use? You know you're going to do it anyways, so I'm not even going to waste my precious time and energy to warn you like I've done a million times in the short time that we have known each other."
"Trust me, thank you for sparing me...now I have to go call Jenn and get ready, so I'll talk to you soon," she said before bounding out of the bedroom, leaving him there chuckling softly at her.
"She needs help but God that's why I love her," he said softly before grabbing a shirt and heading to get ready.
She groaned before snuggling closer to him. "Lets stay here," she pleaded with him as he chuckled and kissed her forehead.
"We really need to keep these reservations," he said as he went to pull away from her. She felt him moving before reaching her arm across his waist to secure him close to her. "Don't go...I don't want to leave yet," she said as she rested her head against his chest.
"Why don't you want to leave so much? This bed will be here when we get back.."
"I know it will but I can hear your heart beating right now," she said softly.
He pulled her up gently and kissed her lips lightly. "God I love you," he whispered against her soft lips before moving to stand up. "But we have plans now get your ass up out of that bed!"
She groaned before crawling out after him. "You're evil but I can't complain I've put up with you for this long," she said as she walked towards her closet. "I don't know what to wear."
"Oh dear lord..just put on something nice!" Justin said as he walked in the bathroom to get ready.
"That's easy for you to say, Justin. All you have to do is put on a pair of pants and a nice shirt and you can be dressed for casual or fancy, while I have to actually plan this out," she called to him as he eyes roamed over the dresses that were in her closer. She pushed through them and stopped when she reached a dress that she hadn't worn in years. "Perfect," she whispered before pulling it out and heading towards the other bathroom that was located down the hall.
After she was ready, she exited the bathroom and walked downstairs to meet Justin. She could see his back the closer she came to the last step, and she felt chills run through her body as he turned around to look at her. She couldn't read his expression because her eyes were locked onto his, and nothing mattered to her at that moment. He walked over and met her at the end of the stairs, smiling up at her as he tore his eyes away from hers. "I remember that dress," he said as he pulled her to him and rested his head against hers. "You wore that on our three month anniversary when we were in Memphis for a show. I drove us to Graceland and you pouted because you had gotten dressed up and I had took us some place casual."
She chuckled before reaching up to touch his lips. "Lets stop thinking about the past...besides I'm hungry," she said as she pulled his hand, forcing him to walk towards the door.
Whitney opened the door and stopped dead in her tracks when she saw a black limo waiting on the two of them. She turned around and smiled at Justin. "You're going all out tonight, aren't you?"
He nodded his head before motioning for her to enter the limo first. After she was in, he climbed in and watched as the door was shut from outside. As the limo pulled out, she reached over and clasped her hand in his and started to frown. "Justin..you're trembling..what's wrong?"
He swallowed before leaning down to kiss her lips gently. "Don't worry about it..I'm just a little tired and hungry," he said before adding silently,'and nervous as hell.' She accepted his answer and the two of them rode in silence to the restuarant, both lost in their own thoughts.
"Are you trying to say that I put time in for nothing?" Cait said from behind him, where she stood with her hips cocked and eyeing him with a challenging look.
He groaned before holding his hands up in the air. "I'm not getting into this," he said as he watched the two girls embrace each other in a hug. "I haven't seen you in a while girl..you've hooked up with Dan here and just dropped me," Jenn joked.
Cait rolled her eyes as she looked at Dan who looked amused watching the two of them. "Believe me..I didn't mean to drop you, but Dan likes as much of my time as he can get."
"Are you going to stand here all night and bad mouth me, or are we gonna go pick up Ash and go clubbin?"
She winked at Jenn before turning around and pointing a finger at him. "You listen to me..when I say its time to leave, we'll leave..got that?"
He saluted her and walked over to sit down in a chair. As soon as his butt had touched the cushion, Cait grabbed her jacket and walked to the door. "Its time to go, now come on dear."
"You're being childish," he told her as he walked out the door followed by Jenn, leaving Cait to lock the door. The three of them piled into Dan's car and headed towards Ashley's house, which wasn't that far from Dan's.
Cait turned around in her seat so she could talk to Jenn, who was looking out the window. "You're really gonna like Ash..he's a great guy."
Dan groaned causing Cait to roll her eyes. "Anyways, I will continue after I was RUDELY interrupted by Dan here, I was saying that you and Ash will hit it off."
Jenn chuckled before shaking her head. "I hate it when you try to play match maker...but please don't try to push us together," she told her. "I remember the last time you tried to set me up..it didn't work out, and not to seem ungrateful, but I doubt this time will work out too."
"Hey..last time wasn't my fault..I can't control that the guy lied about being MARRIED!" she said before giggling.
"We're here," Dan announced as he parked his car in Ashley's driveway. He blew the horn and rested his head in the seat as they waited for Ashley to come out. They didn't have to wait long, because the front door opened to reveal Ashley wearing a pair of khaki pants, a black button up shirt and his hair was spiked like usual. He walked around to the driver side and slid into the back seat, not looking surprised to see another body sitting back there. "I'm Ashley," he said extending his hand to the girl.
"I'm Jennifer, but you can call me Jenn," she said shaking his hand.
"It's nice to meet you, Jenn," he said before smiling brightly at her. "By the way, Cait..you can't do anything in secretive. You give yourself away too easily."
She rolled her eyes before Dan chuckled, but didnt say anything. "I do not!" she defended.
"Yeah when you didn't give me a chance to turn this down, I knew immediately what you were up to. You're not exactly the best match maker," he said winking at Jenn.
"Hey, this isn't all a set up..I needed an excuse to get my friend here to come see me. You should be happy that you're getting to help me!"
"Oh yeah, now let me tell you. This makes my life complete by helping the all wonderful Cait."
"You're sarcasm is not needed, Ash," Cait said before turning back around in her seat to see Dan smiling brightly at her. She slapped his shoulder before beginning to pout, only causing him to laugh at her. "Shut up."
"I'm sorry, sweetie..its just funny to see someone have an attitude with you," he said bringing her hand up to his mouth and kissing the back of it.
She pulled her hand back and crossed her arms over her chest before breaking into a smile because she couldn't stay mad at anyone. "Just promise to be nice for the rest of the night."
"I promise..now which club do you want to go to?"
"How about that new club Razzle," Jenn chimed in from the backseat as Ashley nodded his head in agreement.
"Then Razzle it is," Dan said as he pulled off the interstate and headed for the west side of Orlando. Five minutes later, Dan parked the car, and the four of them headed towards the entrance of the packed club. "Damn look at that line," Jenn said as she walked beside Ashley.
"One good thing about being famous is you never have to wait in line," Dan said as he took Cait's hand. Dan walked up to the bouncer, said a few words, and then the four of them were allowed to enter the club. As they stood beside the bar, they took time to check out to see what was happening on the dance floor. "Would you like to dance?" Ashley asked Jenn, holding his hand out to her. She placed her smaller one in his and the two of them headed off to the packed dance floor.
"I hope they hit if off," Cait said as she looked at Dan who was still smiling at her. "What?"
"Nothing, now come on lets dance," he said pulling her in the direction that Ashley had previously took. As Cait danced to the music, she silently prayed that nothing backfired tonight because she was ready to see all of her friends happy.
"Sorry," he said before opening the door and stepping outside. It was nice for a change to be able to step out from a limo and not hear people screaming his name. He reached his hand into her, and she took it before stepping out to see where he had brought her. "Justin," she whispered when she saw that he had brought her to Aimer, an expensive French restuarant that had just opened up on the outskirts of Orlando. "You didn't have to do this," she told him as his hand tightened around hers.
"I know, but I wanted to," he said before walking through the revolving doors, and heading to the desk to confirm his reservation. "I had a reservation for Timberlake," he told the older man, who smiled back at him.
"Ah, yes, the finest table for Mr. and Mrs. Timberlake," he said, grabbing two menu's and leading them towards the back. There were a few whispers when Justin walked through the door, but for most part, no one recognized him.
Whitney leaned up and whispered to him,"He thinks we're married."
He smiled back at her before nodding his head. He pulled her chair out for her, and she sat down ,awaiting him to join her on the other side of the table. "This is so fancy," she said as she opened the menu that was written in French. "And wouldn't you know it that I took Spanish instead of French."
Justin chuckled at her before pointing to something on the menu. "Have that, I don't know exactly what it is, but I've heard its pretty good."
"Then I trust you..that's what I'll have but you're going to have to order for me cause I have no clue how to pronounce it," she told him before winking. "What's wrong, Justin? You seem really uptight tonight."
He shrugged. "I guess I just know that a tour will be coming up soon and you know how I get stressed over that," he lied before the waiter came over to take their order.
"Mr. and Mrs. Timberlake what can I get for you?" the guy asked them.
Whitney opened her mouth to say something but Justin spoke up first, ordering their meal and a bottle of white wine. After that, he dismissed the waiter and turned his attention back to her, who was looking at him with curiosity. "Why aren't you correcting them?"
"If they want to assume that we're married, I don't care," he said, taking her hand and looking into her eyes. "Eventually, its gonna be true, so why correct it?"
"I love you so much," she said before letting go of his hand as the waiter brought over the wine. He popped the cork and poured them two glasses before placing the bottle back in the bucket of ice and walking away. "I can finally drink this stuff legally," she joked with him.
He raised his glass, causing her to follow suit. "I want to say that I'm the luckiest man right now to be sitting across from the most wonderful girl that the world has ever seen. I love you with all my heart," he said before touching her glass and bringing his to his lips, taking a sip of it. She raised hers up and took a bigger drink before cringing. "I don't think I'll be drinking much of this," she said before sitting her glass down on the table, causing Justin to laugh.
The two of them sat there and made small talk, making the time pass faster until their meal came. The waiter set two plates down on the table before pulling back the cover to reveal a dish neither one of them had ever seen before. Cautiously, Whitney picked up her fork and put a piece of whatever she was eating in her mouth before chewing. She swallowed and looked up to see Justin watching her. "Its good," she said before going for another bite, this one a little bigger.
Justin finally took a bite and nodded his head while he chewed. "I was right, this stuff is good!"
She chuckled before taking a small sip of the wine and laying her fork down on the table. "I have to go to the restroom, Justin..I'll be right back," she said before standing up and laying her napkin on the table. She slowly walked away from the table, and Justin motioned for the waiter to come over to their table. "Is everything set up the way I asked?"
The man nodded his head before smiling. "Everything is just how you asked. Is there anything else that you need us to do?"
"Pray for me that she says yes," Justin said wiping his hands on his pants because they were sweaty.
"You don't need prayers...she has love reflecting in her eyes for you," he said simply before walking away as Whitney headed back towards the table.
"Ok, now back to this wonderful meal," she said picking up her fork again.
Justin nodded his head and forced himself to eat, sending food into his stomach that was doing flips at the moment. After they finished off their main meal, the waiter cleared the plates and winked at Justin. "Would you two like something for dessert?"
Whitney again opened her mouth to speak, but Justin cut her off. "We'll have the 'surprise' dessert," he said, causing Whitney to look at him in confusion as the waiter walked off. "Justin..I don't think I can eat anything else..I'm stuffed."
"Just try a little of it..I've heard its very good," he said taking her hand, hoping that she couldn't feel his shaking because he knew they were. As the waiter sat two small dishes in front of him, Justin closed his eyes. This was the moment he had waited for all his life.