Part 279

For the next two hours, Nick and Howie did their best to occupy Jesse. They played games with her, colored with her, and watched a movie in an effort to keep her distracted so Sarah could rest.

Nick eventually gave up when Howie found the right movie for Jesse. He got Sarah’s laptop and connected to the Internet and for the next half-hour, occupied himself with that, not telling Howie what he was doing.

As Sarah made her way back out to join them, Nick giggled to himself and disconnected from the Internet. Sarah looked at him curiously but didn’t say anything. Instead, she sat down beside Howie and leaned against him as he put his arm around her.

Howie had seen the signs that she hadn’t slept but he asked anyway, "How was your nap?"

Sarah shrugged, "Fine."

"No dreams?" questioned Nick with that infamous ‘Carter’ smirk.

"Not really a dream…more like a nightmare about YOU," shot Sarah.

Innocently, Jesse asked, "Mommy, how come you dreamed about Uncle Nicky?"

"Yeah, Sarah…how come you dreamed about me?"

"I said it was a NIGHTMARE…and it was because YOU were in it…you fell off the stage during ‘The Call’."

Howie laughed, "Sounds about right. Angel, we’re gonna be stopping for lunch in a few. Anything in particular you want?"

"No…not really. I’m gonna work on the computer. I need to check on some stuff for the cruise and check my email. Julie also said she was gonna post a letter to the list today about Becca and me. Guess I should field some of the questions."

"That’s fine…Nick and I can help if you want. Raoul is gonna get our lunch for us."

"Okay."

Sarah gave him a kiss then moved to where Nick had left her laptop on the table. She quickly logged on and began downloading her email. As she waited, she combed Jesse’s hair out getting her ready to get lunch.

As Sarah’s email downloaded, Nick watched over her shoulder … 90%… 93%… 97%… 100%…there it was and then, "Hey baby, you got mail."

Howie and Sarah looked up simultaneously, both surprised to hear Kevin’s email wav that they both knew was floating around out there in cyperspace.

"Mommy, what was THAT?"

"Uhhh…it was Uncle Kevin," answered Sarah seeing Howie’s aggravation.

"When did you put THAT on there?" scowled Howie.

"I DIDN’T!" snapped Sarah defensively.

"Then how’d it get on there if YOU didn’t do it?"

"I don’t know…somebody…." Sarah stopped and looked at Nick who had his hand over his mouth trying NOT to laugh. "Oh, I think I KNOW….NICKOLAS?"

Nick couldn’t contain himself and broke out into hysterics. Both of them hurled pillows at him without warning.

"Payback, Nick," growled Howie.

"And you don’t have Becca to defend you," reminded Sarah.

"Guess I’d better warn you about your instant messenger then," laughed Nick.

Sarah rolled her eyes, "WHAT did you do?"

"When someone comes on line, you’re gonna get ‘Hi, We’re the Backstreet Boys’," giggled Nick.

"Oh for god’s sake, Nick. This is MY computer…NOT YOURS!" groaned Sarah.

"Angel, that’s NOT so bad. I can deal with that."

"But I can’t! I’d rather hear Kevin’s ‘Hey baby, you got mail’. Do you know just how DORKY y’all sound when you do that? It’s like…DUH…we KNOW who you are."

"Dorky? You think its DORKY? I’m HURT," pouted Howie with his hand over his heart.

"Oh, get over yourself," laughed Sarah.

Tommy stuck his head in, "Boss, we’ve stopped."

"Mommy! Can I go play on the playground?" pleaded Jesse.

"Not this time, Princess. We’re kinda pushed for time and we’re not gonna get off the bus. Raoul is gonna go get our lunches for us."

Sarah questioned, "Why aren’t you getting off?"

"If Nick and I get off, it’s gonna cause a commotion."

"True," nodded Sarah. Then to Raoul who was standing behind Tommy, "What’s out there for food?"

"There’s a Subway, a McDonald’s, and some local burger joint."

"You KNOW what I want," said Sarah.

"Yeah, I do," laughed Raoul who had become VERY familiar with Sarah’s cravings lately. "Howie?"

"The usual…with extra hot peppers."

"Oh god…spicy," groaned Sarah.

Howie laughed, "Like my woman!"

"Eddie…here, the usual, from Mickey D’s," said Nick handing his bodyguard some money.

Sarah looked at Jesse who was now pouting because she couldn’t get off the bus. "D, why can’t Tommy take Jess to the playground while Eddie and Raoul are getting our lunches? She needs to get outside for some fresh air and exercise."

"Someone needs to stay with the bus, Angel…so we don’t get any unexpected visitors."

"Billy can stay with the bus," suggested Nick.

"God…all of a sudden, we have an OVERABUNDANCE of bodyguards," groaned Sarah.

"Yeah, and for the next week, get use to Billy being around," said Howie.

"Why?" asked Sarah suspiciously.

"Because he’s YOUR shadow for the next week and BEFORE you start arguing with me," said Howie covering Sarah’s mouth with his hand, "DON’T! You’ve become EXTREMELY popular with all the media coverage of what happened."

Sarah wanted to protest but she saw the look in Howie’s eyes so instead, she asked, "What about Becca? Doesn’t she need someone?"

Nick shook his head, "Nah….she REALLY can’t go anywhere this week and besides, we pulled out of town…the fans aren’t gonna suspect she’s still in Toronto."

"Oh goody…Billy," mumbled Sarah.

Howie laughed at his wife and then looked at Jesse who was now climbing on Raoul happily. "Jess, you mind Eddie and Raoul."

"Yes sir," giggled Jesse as Raoul turned her upside down.

With the bus empty save Nick, Howie moved to sit behind Sarah watching over her shoulder as she answered her email. This was her private account that she used for family and business so he was interested in who had emailed her. It was mostly family wanting to know if she was okay.

Finally, when she was done, Howie wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her back against his chest. He whispered, "Wanna tell me why you didn’t sleep?"

Sarah sighed and leaned against Howie. "What gave me away?"

"You looked as tired when you came out as when you went in to take a nap," said Howie as he stroked her stomach under her shirt.

Closing her eyes and enjoying his touch, Sarah whispered, "I’m scared to sleep, Howie. I’m afraid of the dreams."

Nick was listening too and cracked, "The one you had yesterday couldn’t have been SO bad considering your moans and the way you rubbed against me."

Sarah grinned, "To a certain degree, it was HORRIBLE but it was also my subconscious telling me that you guys, all five of you, are here for me."

"What was it about?"

"Never mind that, Nick," said Howie not wanting to get into Sarah’s dream. "Angel, you need your rest. You haven’t had that much sleep since this all happened and you’re pushing yourself to perform. Last night was too much with the dancing too. You can’t keep going at this pace."

Nick was just as concerned after hearing Howie say Sarah wasn’t sleeping. "Sis, you’ve got to take care of yourself. Those twins are pretty special and we want to get them here safe and healthy."

Sarah knew they were both right but it didn’t make the nightmares go away. She said softly, "I know but every time I close my eyes, I see Danny smiling as he talked about Kellie and the baby and then planes crashing into the towers. I see all those people in the airport that were waiting for the flight with me. How could ANYONE be so heartless?"

"It’s a question we’ll never be able to answer, Angel," soothed Howie. "Stop trying to answer it yourself."

Sarah started to say something but Howie’s cell phone rang and he answered it. "Hey, Hey, Hey…Whaz Up?….Yeah, we’re on the way, Kevin…Whad ya think, we were still in Toronto or something?…..We’ve gotta eat you know and having a four year old means you HAVE got to stop SOME TIME…..Shit, she hasn’t had any sleep…I know I did. Don’t remind me…No, she needs to go ahead and still do her set too. Tomorrow’s a travel day. I’ll make sure she sleeps….We’ll see you when we get there. Later, Kev."

"What did Kevin want?" asked Nick after Howie hung up.

Howie shook his head, "Fatima’s replacement can’t get to Ottawa because of all the problems in the States. Sarah’s gonna have to do the Ottawa show and the Montreal show. Angel, I want you to try…."

"Howie, please! I’ll be okay as long as I stay busy. You know I have to exhaust myself to be able to sleep."

"Why don’t you take something to help you sleep?" suggested Nick.

"NO!" said Howie emphatically knowing how Sarah felt about taking something. Even when she’d been through this after Chrissy hit her, she was hesitant and it would only be after several days of no sleep that she’d take something over-the-counter. He covered now by saying , "She can’t take anything being pregnant. We’ll get through this somehow."

Sarah put her hand on his, "Thank you for understanding and I am trying to deal with this. While I was in the back, I tried my hand at some fan fic."

Nick laughed, "Oh god!! NOT you too!"

"What did you do, Angel?"

"A short story…set in the Old West," grinned Sarah. "Wanna hear what I’ve done so far?"

"Sure," chorused Howie and Nick.

"Hang on…I left it on the bed."

Sarah went to the bedroom and returned quickly. Settling in with Howie’s arms around her, she began to read.

"Oh cool! I’m a good guy," laughed Nick.

Howie laughed, "Yeah, but they’re the ones who usually get it first."

"Nah…man…what westerns have YOU been watching? The good guys ALWAYS end up killing the bad guys….you, Kevin, and AJ in THIS case!"

"You idiot! Sarah’s writing this. Do you REALLY think she’s gonna kill US off?"

Sarah continued reading the rest of the first part that she’d written and asked, "What do you think so far?"

"Pretty good, Angel. You gonna send this out to the lists?"

"Yeah, I think Becca will get a kick out of this."

"Whoa…Brian’s the REAL bad guy," contemplated Nick. "This ought to be interesting."

"So, the female, and I’m assuming it’s you, is Brian’s wife?" asked Howie.

"Yeah, I’m the female but I didn’t say she was his wife."

"Well, is she?" asked Nick.

"You’ll just have to wait and see, won’t you?" teased Sarah.

"I think you should share this with Brian, AJ, and Kevin," said Nick.

"Not a bad idea," said Howie. "Is it gonna have sex in it like the ones we’ve read though?"

Sarah shrugged her shoulders. "Not sure!! Why?"

"Cuz, if it’s with Brian, you might embarrass him."

"NO! NO BRIAN SEX!" said Sarah emphatically. "The only one I’m gonna write sex with is YOU!"

Howie laughed, "That’s okay, but you might still embarrass him."

Part 280        The Dance Index(3)