AJ woke up to a banging on the hotel room door at 8:30 a.m. and an empty bed. He got out of bed & pulled on his jeans. Hearing the water in the shower turn off, he realized that he had been sleeping so soundly that he hadn’t felt Jessie leave their bed.
Opening the door he found David, who had taken over as the group’s tour manager, looking very frustrated. “What’s wrong, Dave?” he asked, covering a yawn.
“We are gonna have to find a way to get all of you guys safely out of this hotel this morning. Bri & Kev said they were going downstairs for breakfast & about 20 kids damn near tackled them! The kids were calm enough, but Kevin is more concerned about the girls. They don’t need to be caught up in that again,” David said, following AJ back into the room.
Jessie came out of the bathroom, dressed & braiding her still-damp hair. “What’s going on? Are they ok?”
“Yeah, they’re fine. Some kids who found out that the group was staying here last night just surrounded them downstairs before breakfast. It just happened that the kids recognized them. So, we are going to get the 3 of you downstairs first, the guys will follow,” David explained.
“Ok, did you talk to the others yet?” Jessie asked.
“Yeah, they’re waiting for you in Kat & Howie’s room.”
“Well, then; if you’re gonna run me off that quick, I can take a hint,” she laughed. She walked over & picked up her backpack, then walked back over to AJ, leaning to kiss him. “I will see you shortly.”
AJ wrapped his arm around her waist & kissed her passionately. “Be careful, Sweetheart!”
“I will. You know Gregg won’t let me out of his sight if you aren’t nearby. You are the one that needs to be careful, though,” she smiled. Then she moved out of his grip, walked out the door, heading to Kat’s room, Gregg close behind her.
