Part 483

In the bedroom, Sarah was opening the medicine Billy had bought as Nick gathered Garrett in his arms. "You want the new song that I let you hear this morning, don’t you?"

"Yeah, I do. Sarah, it says exactly how I feel about her."

Measuring out the right amount, Sarah leaned to Nick to put the medicine in Garrett’s mouth. "I wrote it for Howie and I was going to sing it at the next show. If I sing it to him, she’s gonna hear it."

"I’ll make sure she misses that part of your set. Sarah, it would mean the world to me if you’d let me do this," pleaded Nick as he looked at her.

Wiping a missed drop from Garrett’s lips, Sarah sighed, "I’m so glad I’m not married to you. I’d never get anywhere with you begging like that."

Joyfully, Nick said, "I take it that’s a ‘yes’."

"Yes, Nick, on two conditions. First, it was meant for Howie. I want him to hear it FIRST and know that I wrote it for him."

"No problem."

"Second, I want to know your FULL intentions. Are you planning to use this JUST for Becca’s birthday or for her birthday AND your solo CD?"

"Well," hedged Nick. "If you’ll let me have it for my CD, it would be really cool."

"AJ and I get full credit?"

"You know it! I’d never steal a song from you or AJ."

"Fine. Get your son back to sleep, blonde boy. I’m going back out to eat my dinner."

Sarah gave Nick a kiss on the cheek then left him rocking his son in his arms. As she started to close the door, she looked back at the two and smiled as she heard Nick say, "You know, GT. Your Aunt Sarah is the second best woman in the world! Your mom’s the first of course!"

Nick was able to get Garrett back to sleep and the two couples had a somewhat peaceful dinner. Conversation was sparse since neither girl had much to say and left it to the guys to carry it.

As Sarah was clearing the dinner things, Nick asked, "Bec, are you sure you want me to go out?"

"Go have fun, Nick. Garrett’s asleep and Sarah’s here if I need help."

"I’ve got my cell phone if you need me, baby." Nick watched Becca closely for any signs that she truly wanted him to stay.

Becca stood on her toes to kiss him tenderly, "Thank you."

Meanwhile, Howie put his arms around Sarah. "Behave, okay?"

"What makes you think I wouldn’t?" asked Sarah putting on her most angelic smile.

"I know you. You’ll find something to get into," teased Howie.

"I promise to be good, ‘D’. You aren’t gonna be late, are you?"

"I doubt it. With Garrett sick, Nick probably doesn’t want to be away from Becca too long."

"What about you? You wanna be away from me for very long?"

Sarah was pouting and Howie laughed as he traced her lips with his thumb. "Angel, one hour is forever when I’m away from you but it makes coming home so much sweeter."

Sarah sighed dreamily. "You ALWAYS know exactly what to say."

"That’s because I love you, ‘Angel’." Howie cupped her chin and kissed her. Looking around to find Nick, he said, "Let’s go, Nicky."

"I’ll see you later, baby," whispered Nick as he hugged Becca close. "Sarah, take care of my girl."

"No problem."

As Howie started to leave, Sarah held on to his hand as long as possible letting her hand slide out of his. Going out the door, he looked back and gave her a wink before disappearing down the hall.

With the guys gone, Sarah plopped down on the couch. "FINALLY! I thought they’d NEVER leave."

"Uh huh! Sure!" snarked Becca rolling her eyes. "I saw you pushing Howie out the door."

Sarah laughed, "Okay, so I lied. I’m NOT really thrilled but it IS nice to have time with you. Tell me about today?"

Avoiding Sarah’s gaze, Becca said, "What’s to tell? We went to see Mrs. Chambers, I showed Nick my apartment, and we came back here. Nothing to tell."

"Uh huh, and I’m gonna leave Howie for Justin Timberlake."

Before Becca could respond, they both heard Garrett beginning to whimper. "Saved by the baby."

"Nuh uh! You aren’t getting off THAT easy. Go get the ‘Crown Prince’ and we’ll talk."

While Becca was taking care of the baby, Sarah took the chance to go change clothes. Returning to an empty room, she got a bottle of water and picked up a magazine.

Minutes later, Becca returned with Garrett and she got comfortable to nurse him.

"So, spill it about your visit."

"There really wasn’t much to it, Sarah. I swear."

"I’m assuming you and Nick talked about that time in your lives…not holding back."

"Yes MOM! We talked and thank you for being here for him today…and during that time."

"No problem, sis. I’m just glad you guys can put it in the past where it belongs. Ya know, Nick really has grown up."

Becca smiled, "I knew that when I came back but thanks for noticing."

Sarah softened, "You know, I don’t HATE Nick, never have."

"Oh, I know but giving you a hard time is fun."

"Ahahahahah…you’re so funny, " said Sarah sarcastically.

"I thought I was. So, what do you and my wonderful husband have in mind for my birthday?"

"Birthday? You have a birthday? I thought you swore off having them."

"Now who’s being funny?"

Sarah laughed, "Not trying to be."

"So, what do you have planned?"

"It’s a surprise. Stop asking."

"Oh, come on. You can’t leave me hanging," wheedled Becca. "No secrets…remember?"

"Yes, I can leave you hanging and this isn’t a secret. I’m just not telling you. Now drop it and burp your son."

"You’re dodging the subject," said Becca as she put Garrett on her shoulder.

"No, I’m not. Simply not telling you. Now, change the subject."

"To what?"

"Any thing but your birthday."

"What time is it?"

Sarah looked at her watch. "Almost eight. Why?"

"What time is it in Toronto?"

"Two hours later. Why?"

"I think we should call Lynne and see how last night went."

"What do you think happened?"

"I’d rather hear what YOU think went on. You’re the one who’s been with Kevin, not me."

Sarah leaned back into the cushions of the couch and sighed. Memories of the times she and Kevin had been together came rushing back.

"See, I can tell by the look on your face. I’m going to put Garrett down and when I come back, you’re gonna tell me what you think."

Sarah watched Becca disappear and then went back to her thoughts of Kevin. They had had fun together and she cherished the memories. Kevin was so different when he was away from the guys. Oh, he still had to be in charge and a neat freak, but he was so tender and he always made sure that she was satisfied.

"Thinking about Kevin?" asked Becca softly.

Looking up, Sarah smiled. "Yeah. You know, any one of the guys is a good catch."

"Yeah, they are. So tell me about how romantic Kevin can be."

"Well, I know he ordered roses…all the possible colors available and champagne."

"Do you think…?"

"All night long. Kevin is VERY thorough when it comes to pleasing a woman, especially if he has feelings for her. His stamina is ALMOST as good as Howie’s."

"Your most romantic night with Kevin…describe it."

"Umm…that’s hard. There were several."

"Pick one."

"Okay. Let’s see. It was probably the last time before Howie and I got back together and probably the one that made me realize that it was Howie I wanted to be with more than anything in the world. Kevin flew me to Kentucky for the weekend. The first night, we went to this quaint country inn. There was a fireplace by our table and violin music. He ordered for me too. Then, afterwards, we went for a moonlit walk along this path that went by this old mill."

Becca sighed, "I never thought Kevin could be so romantic."

"I know and he gave me a whole weekend of it. Saturday, we went horseback riding in the mountains and dirt biking…."

"Oh, now THAT sounds romantic."

Sarah laughed, "Well, okay, it wasn’t but the bubble bath he fixed for me afterwards was and while I soaked in the tub, he cooked me the most amazing Italian dinner. I can’t remember the name of the dish but it was delicious. And of course, there were candles and soft music and the dress he bought for me was absolutely beautiful. After dinner, we danced by the pool with only the moonlight."

"Did you make love?"

"Uh huh…all night long, BOTH nights and Sunday, he brought me breakfast in bed. The whole weekend was so perfect."

"How did you EVER go back to Howie?"

"That’s easy. The whole weekend, I kept thinking how nice it would be if it were Howie doing these things for me. Plus, for every day of romance Kevin gave me, Howie gives me three," smiled Sarah. "I’m SURE Lynne had a great time."

"I say we call them."

"Cool. I’ll call Kevin."

Before either one could reach for their cell phones, Garrett’s cries emanated from the bedroom and Becca rolled her eyes.

"I’ll get him," said Sarah.

"Are you sure? If he’s getting sick, you shouldn’t be around him."

"Don’t worry about me. I want to help and it could be a long night. Call Lynne before it gets too late."

As Sarah went to get Garrett, Becca dialed Lynne’s number and waited.

The phone rang only twice on Lynne’s end before she answered, "Hello?"

Becca could hear the anticipation in Lynne’s voice and knew she’d been expecting Kevin to call. "Hey, Lynne."

Trying not to sound disappointed, Lynne said, "Hey, Bec. Where are you?"

"Denver. Were you expecting someone?"

"Sorta."

Becca laughed, "Nope…just lil’ ol’ me!"

Sarah returned with Garrett as Becca and Lynne talked on the phone. She grabbed her cell phone before getting comfortable on the couch and with Garrett snuggled against her chest, she pressed the number that automatically dialed Kevin’s number.

"What the hell do you want, Sarah?" answered Kevin irritably.

"Gee…nice to talk to you too, Kevin. What the hell is YOUR problem?"

"NOTHING!" snapped Kevin.

"Geez…I’d have thought after making love to a beautiful woman all night, you’d have been in a better mood. You DID make love to Lynne, didn’t you? Or did you put your foot in your mouth again?"

Becca put her hand over her mouth to stop the laughter but Lynne still heard her.

"What’s so funny?"

"Oh, just something Sarah said."

"Sarah…BITE ME!"

Sarah laughed, "As soon as you get here. What are you doing?"

"I was HOPING Lynne would call."

"She’s hoping YOU would call. You two REALLY need to work this calling thing out."

"How do you know she was waiting for me to call?"

"Cuz Bec’s talking to her now. So, how was last night?"

That softened Kevin and he said, "It was everything I’d hoped for and more. Sarah, it was so…so…"

"Awesome?"

"And more. She didn’t have a problem with you and me and our past. Sarah, I can’t wait to see her again."

"When’s that gonna be?"

"I don’t know for sure. I mean, there’s the break while we’re in New York. Howie said you two were headed to Virginia to check on your house and AJ and Ali have plans to work on the wedding. Sonja is gonna join Brian to do some shopping. I’m sure Nick and Becca have plans too. That kinda leaves me hanging. I thought maybe I could run up to Toronto to see her."

"It sounds like a plan, ‘Boo’."

"I don’t know what I’m gonna do when we go to Japan. She wanted me to come up and spend our Thanksgiving with her but we’ll be there."

"Why don’t you take her with us?"

Becca said, "Lynne, have you got a passport?"

"Yeah but why would I need one?"

"As much as Kevin travels, you never know when he’ll want you to join him."

"Sarah, you’re a genius…that’s perfect. I’ll ask her when I visit her later this month."

"You’d better ask her sooner than that, Kevin. She may need to update her visas. Why don’t you call her now?"

"I can’t. She’s talking to Becca and I’m talking to you."

"Well, we’ll get off the phone, ‘Boo’. Before I go, I’m really glad everything went well."

"Thanks, baby. I’ll see you tomorrow."

"Later, ‘Boo’…I love you."

"Love you too."

Becca and Sarah hung up at the same time and quietly high-fived each other so as not to wake Garrett.

"Kevin’s gonna call and invite her to go with him to Japan."

"That is so cool. Y’all are gonna have so much fun."

"Aren’t you going?"

"Nick and I haven’t really discussed it but I can’t take Garrett to a foreign country. God, look at him now just touring in the US!"

"You’re probably right," said Sarah looking down at Garrett as he slept peacefully on her chest.

"Okay, so tell me what that is on your finger."

Sarah held her hand to show off the new wedding band as she smiled happily. "You wanna talk romance…Howie led me to the step at the state capital that’s exactly a mile above sea level, took my wedding band and diamond off my hand before he put this one on and then told me it was an anniversary present."

"An anniversary?"

"Of the first time I ever joined him on tour. Bec…it was so sweet how he told me how much he loved me and that he wanted to shout it to the world. THAT’S why I couldn’t stay with Kevin. It’s the little things that make us so perfect together. He told me I was his soul mate."

"Well THAT’S obvious," laughed Becca. "I’ve told you this before…Howie is DEFINITELY the catch of this group."

"Sorta. Nick’s not exactly second rate himself. Becca, they are perfect for us."

The two girls looked at each other and winked. Together they said, "MOST DEFINITELY!"

The next hour was spent talking about babies, romance, and whatever else came up before Garrett decided to make his discomfort known yet again. Becca gently picked him up and Sarah gave him some more Tylenol before Becca took him back to get him settled into the bassinet.

Part 484        Index