"Not yet, 'J. Let's get inside first baby." Anna teased as she slipped the key into the door.
With his lips in a playful pout he responded, "But what if I can't wait that long Anna? I want you now and forever."
With that, she turned to face him and allowed their lips to meet forcefully. He put more of his weight on her as he leaned her againist the door. His hands became tangled in her autumn hair, as her fingertips excited him with every touch. Detaching himself from her body, he let her turn around so she could open the door to let them into his NY apartment.
Before they entered, AJ stopped her. "Wait baby, let me sweep you off your feet ."
As soon as that left his lipstick stained lips, he scooped her up and carried her over the doorway and brought her inside to his bedroom.
As he laid her down on his bed, she whispered, " 'J, honey are you ready to sweep me off my feet now?"
"Only if you promise to knock my socks off, baby" he teased with his too-seductive-for words- grin.
***At a nearby coffee shop***
" So, that'll be two hot chocolates with marshmallows, and a cinnimon bun with extra icing please." Brian told the waiter, as he and Michelle sat in a corner booth of a nearby coffee shop.
The waiter walked away to turn in the order, and Michelle found it hard to concentrate on her story. As she spent more time with Brian, the story became less and less important to her. She hoped that her story would clear his name, but in reality, she had no idea how the public would react to the truth. It could backfire, and destroy Brian's career. Maybe it was better left alone, to let time take its course and wait for it to blow over. Afterall, soon another head-lining story would come and the people would forget about Brian's mishap. But this could be the promotional story.
She was lost in thought when Brian interrupted their silence, "So Michelle, I'll ask you again. How do I get to know you?" he asked flashing his incredible smile, along with his deeply blue eyes reaching inside her.
Michelle began to have second thoughts. She was too emotionally attached to this man, who'd she known for less than a day. She couldn't hurt him in any way, whether it was for a story or not. She may have had proof that Karen was lying about Brian, but she had no guarantee that the public will believe the real truth. Her mind was made up...NO story. No story was worth losing what they could have. She just had to make sure that Brian felt something for her too. He did. She was almost sure of it. She could see it in his eyes.
"Hey...umm Lucen. Calling you back to planet earth. Come on...snap out of it. Come back to my world!" He exclaimed with a silly voice and a small laugh.
"I'm sorry Brian. I was just spacing out for a sec." she said nervously.
"I noticed. Don't worry about it. I know you writers can get lost in your own little worlds sometimes," he added, teasing her and enjoying every second of it.
"Yeah, Brian...my own little universe. You seem to be at the center of it right now," she announced in her mind, as she quickly shook the thought from her head.
"Well, since you know us writers so well, I can assume that you know I would never print a story that wasn't truthful?"
"I'm not sure, I think I may have skipped that chapter, Michelle" he said with a laugh.
"But seriously Brian, what do you want to know?"
"Everything." he answered simply, as he took in the full sight of her extra green eyes, unable to find a trace of dishonesty.
***Backstage at the concert Arena***
"Nick...how dare you!!!! I can't believe this. I trusted you. I gave you my heart. You're such a...ugh..there are no words to describe you Nick Carter!" Liz yelled in fustration as she came closer to the couch where Nick and Melanie sat.
Kevin stared at Becca. Howie stared at Selena. Their mouths dropped open in shock. Nick turned away from Liz, unable to look her in the eye. Melanie sat motionless in the corner of the couch. She sat there frozen, unsure of how to react to Liz's sudden outburst.
"Ok, everyone...just calm down!" Howie offered, only to be shouted at by Liz.
"Calm down, Howie. Calm down. Cut all the shit, guys! You knew all along didn't you. You knew he would do this to me!" Liz screamed.
In a low voice, Kevin cut in, "Look Liz, whatever problems you and Nick are having..that's between you two. We had no idea you had a fight."
"No Kevin, you look. We had more than a fight. Nick broke up with me." she said in a earth-shattering tone.
Kevin and Becca stared at her blankly, not knowing what to say. Selena got up from her seat on Howie's lap and walked over to where Liz was standing. (Liz and Selena had been friends way before either one of them started to date a bsb. In fact, Liz was the one to introduce Selena to Howie.)
"Liz, ohmigosh...what happened?" Selena questioned, her hatred building up for Nick.
"He told me he didn't love me anymore. That's it, no explanation or anything. But do you wanna know the worst part?" she asked, her voice now strained, with the tears pouring down her face.
Selena nodded.
"He left me the message on the damn answering machine! He just waited for the beep and said he didn't want to be with me."
With that, Liz wiped away her tears and moved over to where Nick stood. She looked him in the eye, and found none of the love she had once seen. With one last glimpse into his now tearing blue eyes, she slapped him hard against the cheek.
"That, Nick Carter is what I feel like inside!" she shouted as she ran out the door and slammed it as hard as she possibly could.
Nick just stared blankly as the door shut. He reached up to feel the red mark left by Liz's ring. Without having to guess, he knew it was their promise ring that had left the mark.
Melanie got up to comfort Nick. She put her arms around him, as she gently brushed the tears away from his now reddened face. He laid his head on her shoulder, and let his tears fall freely.