“Leslie?” Pushing open the front door Kristin loaded in three large shopping bags as well as her gym bag depositing them in the entryway.
“Hey stranger.” Grinning down over the upstairs railing Lily came down the stairs Nate curled up in a bundle in her arms.
“I’m sorry I’m so late.” Signaling to the bags on the floor Kristin sighed. “After my workout I could just hear Bloomingdales calling my name!”
“Oh what did you get.” Feigning interest Lily waited while Kristin dragged hanger after hanger out of the bag showing her each item, never once stopping to give Nate a kiss or to tell him hello.
“So what do you think?”
“I think you had fun.”
“Oh hey little Man, how’s my boy doing?” Reaching out Kristin pulled Nate into his arms his bright eyes shining.
“Les, will you take this stuff upstairs for me please.” Kristin asked planting soft kisses all over Nate’s cheeks.
Picking up the bags a scowl on her face Lily wondered when she had become the woman’s maid instead of nanny.
“Oh hey Leslie.” Lily stood up a big smile on her face, the bags draped over her arms. “Did my husband call while I was gone?”
Shaking her head Lily headed upstairs. “Nope, you got a few calls from salesmen but that was it.”
“That’s strange.” Kristin mumbled to herself following behind Leslie upstairs. “I wonder why he wouldn’t call?”
* * *
Kevin walked out onto the balcony of his hotel room his cell phone in one hand a good stiff drink in the other.
Looking up at the sky, so thick with pollution he thought he could make out the tiniest smattering of stars desperately trying to blink their way through to the city below.
It wasn’t like nights growing up in Kentucky. The nights where he and his friends would climb up onto the roof of his home and count the stars until they fell asleep.
Punching the digits of his home phone into his cell he waited patiently as it rang the mandatory four times until the voice finally picked up. Frustrated he pushed the end button and tossed the phone to the chaise lounge in the corner.
“Where the hell are you Kris?” Taking a swig of his Gin and Tonic he braced his elbows on the balcony railing watching the lights from the traffic below.
For some reason he had just assumed that this wife would be sitting by the phone waiting for him to call for an update on her and their son. He expected her tone to be frazzled, her mood to be sentimental. He expected to hear his son whimpering in his mother’s arms wishing his daddy would scoop him up in his arms and sing him a lullaby.
But instead all her heard was the monotone computer message on the other end of the line taunting him with the fact that he was hundreds of miles away from the ones he loved.
Shifting his weight from one foot to the other he winced at the pain in his back. Pain from sitting on that god forsaken bus all day long with nothing to do but try and avoid a “hopped up on Fun Dip” Nick.
Sure he was able to stretch out in the Queen sized bed in his room and rest once and awhile. But even then the bumps of the uneven road made him uncomfortable and the hum of the tires on the blacktop irritated him so he wound up back up front sitting on the couch staring at the t.v. until his head hurt.
God how he hated the road.
He hated the confinement and the rigidity. Especially after being free to do as he pleased for so long. The only time he had really enjoyed the road was when he and Lily had been together.
Lily.
Fuck, he hadn’t thought of her name in so long it made his stomach clench.
Whenever he found himself wandering back to that time in his life he was quick to snap himself back to the present before her name could stroke his consciousness.
How the hell had it slipped through?
It had slipped through because the last time the band had been on tour was during her pregnancy with Kayden.
At the time Kevin craved each hour, each minute, each second with Lily and being on the road was magical to him, knowing what awaited him at the end of each small journey.
He loved the feeling of sneaking away from the prying eyes of his bandmates, the media and the fans to return to the home he and Lily had shared in St. Thomas. It was his own little world in the middle of the madness of being a Backstreet Boy. Everything had been so perfect.
Glancing back up to the sky again he thought he could see a few stars breaking through the thick layer of pollution. It reminded him of Lily and how much she had loved the stars. How she liked to lie in the grass, feet bare, arms outstretched and let the stars overwhelm her.
The first night Kevin had seen her doing it he remembered laughing.
“What are you doing baby?” He smiled as he stood over her blocking her view of the night sky.
“Kevin, you’re in my way!” She giggled tapping his ankle with her foot. “If you’re going to be out here you have to either lay down and share the moment with me or go back inside.” Looking around as if to make sure nobody was watching them, Kevin sat down rolling onto his back beside her his hand resting on her swollen belly.
“So if I’m choosing to share the moment with you what do I do now?”
“Okay, just close your eyes and relax your body.” Her voice was smooth as silk making him want to do a hell of a lot more at that moment then relax his body.
“Are you relaxed?”
“Not exactly.” Moving his hand up her body he rested it on one of her breasts a smile on his face.
“Kevin! I’m serious.” Picking up his hand she tossed it off of her. “If you aren’t going to take this seriously then you have to go back inside.”
“Okay, okay. I’ll be serious.”
“Thank you. Now, are your eyes closed.”
“Yes Baby.”
“And is your body relaxed?”
Exhaling he let his body melt into the thick carpet of grass beneath him.
“Yes baby.”
“Okay, now on the count of three open your eyes and let the stars overwhelm you.”
“Huh?” Opening his eyes he propped himself up on one elbow trying to etch a permanent picture in his memory of her at the moment. Lying on her back in the grass the moonlight casting a pale glow around the silhouette of their unborn child.
“When you open your eyes your going to feel like the stars are surrounding you, pulling you up to meet them. Overwhelming you.”
“Have you been drinking?”
“Kevin for once just trust me.” He could see her lips part in a smile making him grin.
“I always trust you Lily.” Lying back in the grass he again relaxed his body, closing his eyes as he slowly counted to three.
“Okay Kevin open your eyes.”
Opening his eyes he expected to see the same black sky with it’s twinkling stars but instead what he was experiencing was incredible.
The stars were overwhelming him.
“Do you feel it?” She whispered taking his hand in hers.
“I feel it Lily.” Kevin smiled, as each star seemed to find its place around him making him one with the sky.
“What do you feel Kevin?”
“Lily, I feel alive.”
“Kev?”
Jumping, Kevin dropped his glass to the balcony floor.
“Shit.” A.J. lunged forward to try and save the glass but it was too late as tiny shards of glass mixed with liquid shattered into a zillion tiny pieces all over the stone floor.
“Sorry.” A.J. shrugged as Kevin reached for the phone and dialed the front desk.
“Yeah, can we get a someone up to penthouse three. I dropped a glass on the balcony and need it cleaned up immediately. Thanks.”
Looking at A.J. with a scolding look on his face A.J. just smiled.
“Those looks don’t work on me anymore you know.”
“Yeah I know but I thought it was worth a try.”
“Did you get in touch with Kris yet?” Moving to the side to let Kevin back into the penthouse as A.J. fell in step behind him.
“Nope, Nate’s probably asleep and she’s letting voice mail pick up.” Throwing himself on the couch remote control in hand Kevin turned on the t.v.
“Didn’t the nanny start today?” Flopping down beside him A.J. kicked his feet up onto the iron and glass coffee table signaling for Kevin to change the channel.
“Yup.” Despite pretending to not be uptight about not being able to get in touch with Kris A.J. could tell it was burning Kevin up inside.
“So maybe they all went out to dinner or something?”
“You could be right.” Stopping on a baseball game A.J. reached for the remote yanking it out of Kevin’s hand.
“Next.” He deadpanned quickly flipped the channel.
“So where’s my roommate?” Even though he had to share the bus with Nick he had wound up with Brian for his roommate on the tour.
“He and Nick and drawing straws to see where he go for dinner.”
“No, really?” Grabbing for the remote control Kevin punched it forward off of the VH1 documentary on Debbie Harry that A.J. had selected.
“They have to get their kicks somehow. This tour is going to make us all feel like we’re twelve again.” Rolling his eyes A.J. stood up stretching out his legs.
“So you going to come with us to dinner once those two decide?”
“I don’t know.” Glancing at the silent phone in his hand Kevin willed it to ring.
“Hey Kev, she has your cell phone number and you have your cell phone. You can call from the restaurant.”
Feeling his stomach growling Kevin smiled.
“You’re right. I could use some fresh air after being cooped up on that bus all day anyway.” Standing he grabbed for a hat and his cell phone and followed A.J. out the door.