A knock at the door, startled them both and JC pulled back from Noelle. She quickly scurried away from the door and looked dazed. He saw the look in her eyes and he knew he was already getting to her just with his kiss.

The knock at the door was heard again and JC wiped his lips, ridding them of any lipstick that may have come off of Noelle's. Then he opened the door and put on a smile.

"Josh, you okay? Who was at the door? Are you going to come back to your own party?" Tyler spouted off.

JC rolled his eyes and looked back at Noelle for a moment. She was over by the window, looking out of it. She looked so good to him right now and he was pretty sure he didn't want to return downstairs to some drunken friends when he had her up in his bedroom.

"I'm perfectly fine, bro." He answered. "My special guest arrived and I think the real party is going to remain up here. Tell everyone goodnight and thanks for me. "

Tyler grinned at JC's response and he nodded his head, fully understanding. He was happy to hear that Noelle was there and JC was going to try and work things out....in his bedroom nonetheless.

"Alright. Well...good luck, birthday boy." Tyler patted JC's shoulder and then turned around, heading back to the stairs.

JC shut the door again and he saw that Noelle was still looking out the window. He slowly approached her and tapped her shoulder.

She turned and looked at him, her green eyes full of uncertainty. He could see the doubt and he wanted to make it go away.

"It's a good thing Tyler came by. That kiss needed to end." She spat out.

"What are you talking about?" He asked, fearing this wasn't going to end how he wanted.

"We can't be kissing, Josh. We're not together and we're not getting back together. We just can't be together."

He pulled her away from the window and lead her over to the bed. "Sit. Tell me exactly why we can't be together..again."

She watched him settle onto the bed first and then she slowly took a seat beside him. She looked at him and sighed.

" I've been seeing someone else for awhile, rather secretively and it's getting close to the point where he wants us to do People magazine and put our relationship out there."

His heart raced at the news she just gave him.

Shit, shit. She can't be in love with whomever this guy is...even if he's big enough to be on the cover of magazines still.

He rubbed his hand over his face and then looked carefully into her eyes, piercing them with his intense, blue eyes.

"Are you sure that's it? Do you even love this guy? ‘Cause I need the truth and nothing, but the truth from you. You have to be honest with me and with yourself, Noelle."

She remained silent for a moment and looked away from the intense gaze he gave her. She faced away from him as she found her voice.

"No...no...I don't love him. I mean I have feelings, but not deep enough to be true love. We met at an industry party and he was rather a charmer and all. Seeing how bad all the other girls wanted him, I knew I would be so lucky to date him. I think being with him just became a strategic move for me and not so much about just being happy with someone. You know how everyone knows everyone and it's all about making connections in this city."

Hallelujah. There's a chance after all. I can have her out of one relationship and back into another with me.

He thought to himself and absorbed the words she shared with him. He reached out and touched her chin with his fingers, forcing her to turn and look at him.

"If you don't love him, end it right now. I can't have you being unhappy and I can't have Noah being around someone you don't love. It's not worth it to pretend, just to get ahead in your career either. The Noelle I first met would've never even sunk that low."

She nodded her head slowly. "Mmm...but, why can't you have me unhappy?"

"Because....I still love you." He simply admitted.

She ignored his answer.

"Well maybe I've changed. Maybe I'm not the Noelle you first met and fell in love with. Maybe that's why we can't be together. I've turned into someone you can't respect anymore."

He sighed, sensing she was trying to derail his plan. He didn't want to hear anymore crap. He just wanted her to admit she loved him still and wanted to be with him.

"No, don't tell me that. We can be together. That kiss we just shared before Tyler interrupted, now that was a spine-tingling kiss. That was like a heated romance novel kiss. That's not just a kiss you walk away from."

She shook her head. "You're wrong. You're wrong, Josh."

"You know what's funny? You say we can't be together, but you haven't exactly said you don't love me anymore. So, maybe you really do still love me too and you're just as chicken as I was to admit it."

Before she could respond, he stood up and then pushed her back against the mattress. Then he climbed back onto the bed and hovered over her.

She looked up at him with surprise in her eyes and she tried to push him away with her hands. Yet, he gripped onto the bed tight enough that he wasn't moving.

"Come on. Don't be silly." She gave him a look.

"I'm not being silly. I'm being damn serious, Noelle. I still love you. You leave me with the memory that I still love you, every single time you drop off Noah."

He heard her gulp and knew his words were going to make her crumble. He wanted her walls to fall down and for her to just give into his love.

"Alright...so fine, maybe I've fibbed. Maybe I'm NOT dating anyone at all. Maybe I'm not saying I don't love you, because that would be a lie too." Her voice filled with grit, as if she was almost pained to admit it.

His lips mustered into a smile at the realization of what was going on here. She was being honest now and he was feeling good that they were now heading in the right direction.

"Noelle." He shook his head. "I can't believe you made up some lie about being in a relationship."

He finally settled his body upon hers, letting their bodies press up against one another's. He tenderly brushed a stray piece of hair off of her forehead. Then he pecked a kiss to her chin.

"If you still love me, just be honest. Don't give me anymore crap about fake relationships or reasons why we can't get back together. Just say you love me."

Her eyes closed in a flutter at his tender touch and the way he tried to talk to her calmly. She remained silent, in her own thoughts.

"I know deep down you're the same person, Noelle. If you weren't, you wouldn't be raising Noah so well. You wouldn't be allowing me to see him every other week. For some reason, you pushed me away though and you broke my heart." He sighed and continued.

"I haven't really seen anyone since you broke up with me and the couple girls I did see....could never even compare to you. I see you in my dreams and I see you in Noah too. I still even keep a photo of us in my nightstand so I can look at it when I have the urge to. It's been hard without you....because I sincerely, with all my heart, love you. Never stopped loving you."

He kissed her cheek and then he nuzzled his face into the crook of her neck. His hands slid down her sides and held onto her hips. He breathed in her classic scent, just feeling warmth and familiarity wash over him.

Two slender, feminine arms then wrapped around his back and squeezed him tight. She sighed and let herself relax under him, her defensives crumbling.

"I love you too. Every time I've dropped Noah off, I've been left with that same memory of still loving you. I just was chicken to ever have a real conversation with you or admit it to you, probably for the same reasons you couldn't admit your feelings until now either. I think I was fearful that you wouldn't want me back or didn't love me enough still." She let out a long, slow sigh.

"Plus I was the one that ended our relationship. I broke your heart and at the same time broke my own. I let Jive tear us apart. As soon as you left the label, I knew they wouldn't want me still dating you. I was scared they'd fire me. I dove head first into pleasing them and doing the best possible job I could. I let this whole Hollywood thing get to me and it really became clear to me tonight. There I was at this event filled with fake people and I was pretending to be fake just to fit in with them and so that Jive would still hand me over a paycheck. I was schmoozing with artists that don't even have an ounce of talent and that seemed fake themselves. While, the man I still loved was celebrating his birthday and having a genuine time with genuine friends."

Her eyes fluttered open and they were filled with tears. His eyes then met hers again and he formed a smile upon his luscious lips. He knew she was being herself now and that she was going to be his once more.

"I can't believe how stupid I was, Josh. I watched Jive treat you like crap, but I didn't say anything because I knew they'd accuse me of being biased. Then when you stood up for yourself and gave them a much needed goodbye, I just didn't have the guts to walk away too. I let them toss me around like a rag doll and make me their marketing slave. I really thought it would be beneficial to me in the long run, but I was sadly mistaken. I've been at the same position and been busting my ass off only to have no reward. I let myself become someone else and lost my lover and the privilege of raising our son together, under the same roof. It's just so twisted that the record label that brought us together, also helped tear us apart and caused both of us pain. I'm sorry. I'm so sorry."

He nodded his head and then brought his hands up to her face. He used the pads of his thumbs to wipe away the tears that had managed to fall and then he placed kisses just underneath her lower eyelids.

"It's okay...it's going to be okay. I know this was hard for you to admit, but I appreciate you finally admitting this and coming to terms with the truth. The truth can set you free now."

She mustered up a smile and the remorse and sadness that was in her eyes began fading away.

"I hope you're right. Just please don't resent me, Joshua." He shook his head.

"I could never. You have given me the gift of love and the gift of an angelic, little boy. We all make mistakes, honey. Myself definitely included. We just have to realize we're human and move on."

She rubbed his cheek in a gentle caress and sighed in relief. "So you love me unconditionally, huh?"

"Unconditionally." He firmly replied and then she let out a giggle.

"Good, because I love you unconditionally too. God...that feels so good to say." He grinned widely and then chuckled.

"I feel like we just said ‘I love you' for the very first time."

"Well in a way we did. It's been almost three years." She pointed out.

"Yeah..time does fly. "

"It certainly does...look at how big Noah is now. He's going to be four soon."

He pecked Noelle's lips. "That's right, but that gives us all the more reason to be together again, mami. We need to make up for lost time and raise him together, here on out."

She then sheepishly grinned and traced her thumb over his bottom lip. "We can do that. Ya know? I have to admit...that I watched every single episode of America's Best Dance Crew and all I could think to myself was how hot that one judge on the end is. That one that always gets booed, but always looks so sexy."

He blushed, but smiled happily. Knowing she had still kept tabs on him and paid attention to his career was heartwarming.

"Well, I think I might be able to set you up with him." She laughed.

"I'm laying beneath him right now."

He sighed contently. "You most certainly are."

She then reached out and grabbed JC's cheeks. She held his face in place and then kissed his lips. She kissed them gently and then smiled once more, staring into his eyes.

"And I also have to admit....every romance novel I've read, like the one I was reading earlier on the beach, has had a leading man with dark hair and blue eyes. I've always envisioned you as the ideal lover, Joshua Scott."

Aww...she pulled out the full name. She still does love me. I'll prove to her I am worthy of being the leading man in her real-life romance novel.

"You're so sweet. I've always known you were my ideal lover too, Noelle."

She kissed his lips again.

"So, does this mean, we're back together?" He nodded his head with nothing, but certainty.

"Definitely. I've been wishing you'd come back to me and now you're back. No ifs, ands, or buts about it."

"Good, because you're all that I need. You've given me a second chance and I'm not screwing that up, Josh. Tomorrow, I'm going to call Jive and tell them that I'm quitting. They couldn't see the beauty nor the talent in you and I'll gladly take in your beauty and listen to your talent every day from now on. I'm not going to be stupid anymore. I'm done caring what people think of me and you. I just want to be the old Noelle again. I'd rather sleep with a quote in quote has-been than be pretending to be someone I'm not."

"I'll be your has-been any day, sweet thang." He wiggled his eyebrows, playfully.

"You can be my now, my still current, sexy musician-slash-producer-slash-TV personality and whatever else you need a slash for."

He chuckled. " Slash lover. Always a lover, babe."

"I like the sound of that." She grinned and then looked back at his alarm clock. It was getting close to midnight now.

"I think I should spend the night." He grinned.

"I think you should too, but spend the night loving on me and holding me tight."

"Well.....alright. I can do that." She looked at the clock once more. "Just enough time left to give you a round of birthday sex before it's not the 8th anymore."

"Well it's a good thing we just made up and got back together then, huh?" He grinned. "So sweet thang. I still love you and want some birthday sex. You willing to help me out?"

She winked. "Oh, I'll help you out, old man."

"Hey!" She laughed.

"Just kidding, Josh. You're the hottest 34 year old to ever grace the planet. I'll gladly give you your birthday sex."

"Thank you, sugar. Thanks for making my birthday wish come true and for making this the best birthday ever." He said, sincerely and kissed her jaw.

"No problem, but I'm just glad you left me with the memory of our love, so I'd find my way back to you."

He smiled and then kissed her lips, letting his hands move to the hem of her shirt. He then began peeling it from her body, her arms raising to help him get it off all the way. The shirt was tossed to the floor and then he worked off her pants, tugging her jeans off of her long legs. Then she took her turn and peeled away JC's clothing as well and before they knew it, they were naked together once more, just like old times.

Kisses, touches, and caresses, mixed with moans, growls, and screams of delight. Their bodies pressed upon one another's and became tangled up, as they rediscovered each other and connected on such an intimate level. There was so much pleasure felt and a feeling of bliss was in the air and in their hearts. It was just like a novel, but better because they were giving there love story a happy ending...or rather a new beginning.

JC opened his eyes and a smug grin was on his face, having just had an amazing orgasm. He had Noelle back in his arms and she would be staying in his bed for good. He was more content than ever and was so thankful that his wish came true. He had his doubts, but life was always full of surprises.

He yawned and then hugged Noelle tight, as she lay under the sheets and in his warm embrace. He kissed her forehead and then caressed his nose against hers gently.

"I love you, Noelle. Rest up for another round."

She softly murmured. "Love you too. Happy Birthday, Josh."

He looked at his clock then and grinned widely.

11:59 PM

Just in the knick of time! Way to go, man. You got your birthday sex and you managed to get Noelle back.

He congratulated himself in his silent thoughts and then fell asleep against Noelle, tired and happy, but not upset about becoming older anymore. He would have this to wake up to and fall asleep to every night from now on.