And now I cling to what I knew

I saw exactly what was true

But oh no more.

That's why I hold,

That's why I hold with all I have.

That's why I hold.

                   “After the Storm” – Mumford & Sons

“When are you coming back to me?”  Shelby’s voice sounded distant over the phone line, and Justin wished he could be with her face to face.

“Don’t know yet, B.  They’ve got a few more meetings set up for me, but I swear I’m pushing as hard as I can to get back to New York.  I don’t want to be in L.A. right now.”

Her delicate sigh of disappointment had Justin feeling terribly, but he had a job to do.  He was still feeling pretty confused about the whole thing, but his feelings toward Shelby were overshadowing his doubts at the moment.  It also irked him that he felt like he was being controlled.  He wasn’t a teenager in a boy band anymore; he was a grown man with a solid career and he didn’t need to be told what to do or who to date. 

“I’ve got to get to class in a little bit, Jus.  I’ll call you later?”

Justin nodded, even though she couldn’t see him.  “Yeah, I don’t think I’ll be busy.  You have a good night, okay?”

“I will do my best.  You too.”

Justin slipped his phone back into his pocket, glancing around the restaurant.  Trace was supposed to be meeting him for lunch, and he was getting very close to being late.  Taking a sip of his ice water, he settled back into the booth he was sitting in and let out a long sigh.  His talk with Johnny had helped somewhat, but he still felt like he was making a bad choice.  Peter Edge should be able to separate business from personal, but it felt like he was holding Shelby over Justin’s head.  For whatever reason, the man wasn’t going to be satisfied until Justin left his daughter alone.  Maybe it would be better for the both of them if Justin did just leave Shelby alone.  It would suck, sure, and he knew they would both be hurt by it…

But then he remembered how much he enjoyed being around her.  She was honest, and real.  She wasn’t fazed by his celebrity, and she had this knack for understanding him.  Being with her was the most fun he’d had in a long time.  Was that so wrong? 

“It’s hot as fuck outside and it’s only April.”  Trace’s voice broke through Justin’s thoughts, bringing a grin to the singer’s face.

“I’m so happy to see you, dude.”  They bumped fists, settling back into their seats.

“Rachel says you’ve gotten yourself into some deep shit.”  So much for small talk, Justin mused.

“Does that girl ever keep her mouth shut?  I mean, seriously.  She airs my shit out worse than the gossip rags.”  He wasn’t that upset, if only because he knew his cousin had his best interest at heart.

“She also says that Shelby is a pretty chill girl and her daddy is being a douche to you.”  He browsed the menu, watching Justin out of the corner of his eye.

“That about sums it up.  I’m so fucking confused, man.  I just…I don’t know what to do.”  Their conversation paused while the waitress took their orders, and Trace sat back in his seat and carefully took in the condition of his best friend.

Justin looked exhausted, which was a sure sign that he was really messed up about this situation.  Shelby must be extremely important to him, otherwise it would’ve been a no brainer for him.  His career had always been a huge priority for Justin, and he didn’t often let women get in the way of things needing to get done.

“What do you think you should do?”  Trace had no advice to give on this one, but he was curious to see what Justin was thinking.

The other man shrugged.  “I have no idea.  On the one hand, I don’t want to upset the Label and piss off my boss.  It’s not my usual style, and I understand that this record is important.  But on the other hand, I don’t think it’s right for them to tell me who to date.  I’m not a little boy, I can handle my shit.”

“But the kicker is, the boss is her Daddy.”

Justin let out a heavy sigh.  “Exactly.  I think he wouldn’t normally have an issue with my relationships, but he’s completely pissed that Shelby and I are hanging out.  He thinks she’s like the plague or something.  I don’t know.  He made it pretty clear that he disapproves, which makes me think that I’m going to be on a pretty short leash.”

“That’s fucked, dude.  Shelby and Pete have some serious issues to work out.  Are you sure you want to get in the middle of that?”

The look that Justin sent at Trace was dirty, to say the least.  “What girl have I ever been with who didn’t have Daddy issues?”

“Touché.” 

“I can’t just leave her high and dry because Peter scares me.  I like her, dude.  She makes me happy, and I’m really enjoying getting to be with her.”

Trace gestured toward Justin, “then there you go.  There’s your answer.”  Again, their conversation was halted as their food arrived, but Justin’s mind was still reeling.  Was it really that simple?  Was the answer to just be with her and fuck everything else?

Somehow, it didn’t seem that easy.

~*~

It had been a hellish week for Shelby, and she didn’t want to admit it out loud, but she was missing Justin something fierce.  They talked on the phone at least once a day, but he’d been held up in L.A. and still wasn’t sure when he was getting back.  She wouldn’t put it past her father to keep Justin so tied up that he couldn’t make it back to New York and had to complete his album on the West Coast.  And since Shelby was stuck in New York for another month until school finished up, they would have to be separated. 

She had a sneaky suspicion that was his plan.

With a weary sigh, she stepped off the subway and started the rest of the walk back to her apartment.  This was her long day, with three classes.  She’d spent the majority of the day on campus, working on assignments and catching up on reading between lectures.  Her brain was fried, and she just wanted to put on her pj’s and curl up with a glass of wine.

About a block from her apartment, her phone buzzed in her pocket.  She grinned when she saw the number.  The only thing that could make this day better was Justin.

“Hey, you.”  She leaned into the phone, almost as if she could feel him through the device.

“Hey!  What are you up to?”  He sounded lighter than he had in days, and Shelby hoped that was because he was on his way back to her.  She had her fingers crossed.

“I’m just getting home from classes.  It was a brutal day, I just want to crash.”

“One more month and you’re done.  You can make it.”  Shelby smiled at his encouragement, wishing it were in person.

“So, how are things out West?  Any idea when you’ll be back this way?”  She tried to keep the hope out of her voice, but it was difficult.  She missed him.

Justin sighed, which wasn’t a good sign.  “I’m hoping to be on a flight sometime tomorrow night.  I’m sorry it’s taking so long.” 

Shelby’s smile was bitter sweet.  She trudged up the steps to her apartment building, slipping the key in the lock.  “It’s okay, I know you’re trying.”

“Hey, I’ve got to get going.  You just slip into those red fleece pants of yours, and sip some merlot; I’ll be in New York before you know it.”

“Okay…good night.”  Shelby started to hang up, but something snagged at her attention.  Something Justin had said was standing out, and it took a moment for her to process.  “Wait, how did you know I have red fleece pants?”  Her question was answered by a dial tone.  He’d already hung up.  She shrugged, figuring he must have seen them one of the times he’d been over…but still…something felt a little off.

That feeling only increased when Shelby entered her apartment.  Candles were lit throughout the entire entry way and on into the living room.  Soft music played in the background; Bach.  This was not how she’d left things this morning, and alarm bells were starting to sound in her head.  Who was in her apartment?

“Uh…hello?”  It was probably a bad idea to announce her presence if there was some crazy stalker in her house, but she couldn’t think of anything else to say.  Her brain was processing extremely slowly.  “I have the cops on the phone right now, whoever you are.”  She called, hoping to scare of whoever was making themselves at home.

“You do not, and you know it.”  A voice came from the kitchen, and Shelby turned sharply.  Her bags dropped to the floor, and she put her hand on her hips.

“Are you trying to scare the shit out of me?”  Her tone was harsh, but the smile that was stretching across her face betrayed her anger.

“You really think a burglar is going to light candles and play music?  Really, B.”  Justin set the glass of wine he’d been holding down on a small table in the entry and placed his own hands to mock Shelby’s.  “Hey you.”

Forgetting her previous worry, Shelby launched herself into his arms, holding him as close as she possibly could.  Justin’s own arms wrapped protectively around Shelby’s waist and he settled his face in the bend of her shoulder.  She smelled like home.

“You lied to me.”  Her voice was muffled by his chest, but she didn’t dare let go for fear he might disappear.

“I wanted to surprise you.”  Gently, he put a little distance between them so he could look at her face.  There were dark circles under her eyes, and her face was pale.  “You look absolutely exhausted.”

Shelby sighed, letting her head fall back against his shoulder.  “I’ve been working on my colloquium and trying to get through the rest of my classes.”  She gave him a small smile.  “I had to keep myself busy while you were gone so I didn’t miss you so much.”

Justin pulled her back into him, happy to have her in his arms.  After another few moments, he stepped back and took her hand in his.  “Well, come on.  I have just the thing.”  He picked up the discarded wine glass and handed it to her, gently tugging her through the house and toward the bathroom.  “A nice hot bath to start, with wine, of course.  Then, I’ve cooked up some food and I’ve got those red fleece pj’s for you to put on.”

Shelby laughed softly.  “I think you’ve been snooping through my drawers.”

His grin was playful.  “I was tempted to grab the lacy black number I found…but I figured you needed this more.”

Against her will, tears started to well up in Shelby’s eyes.  After the hellish week she’d had and the worry she went through about Justin and her father, she was spent.  This…this was the sweetest, most thoughtful thing anyone had ever done for her and she was speechless.

“Thank you.”  Her voice was a whisper and she sniffled, laughing slightly at herself.  “I’m such a goober.”

Justin placed a gentle kiss on her forehead, pulling her into him.  “Yeah…well, you’re my goober.”  He gave her another chaste kiss and carefully propelled her into the bathroom where a bubble bath awaited.  “Sit.  Soak.  Relax.  I’ve got to finish up dinner, so take your time.”

“You are way too good to me.”  She grabbed his arm before he could leave, planting a deeper kiss on his lips.  “I’ll have to make this up to you later.”

Justin’s eyebrows went up and a sly grin slid onto his face.  “That was the plan, darling.” 

Shelby laughed, pushing him from the bathroom so she could undress and sink into the bathtub.  It looked heavenly, and she couldn’t wait to immerse herself in the hot water.  This was exactly what she needed, and having Justin here made the night the best it could be.  Without haste, Shelby stripped off her clothing, losing layers of stress and worry as the garments were discarded.  When she was finally bare, she carefully lowered her body into the hot water, sighing with relief when she was immersed up to her neck.  “Oh my god.” 

There was lavender floating in the air, inviting Shelby to close her eyes, and the soft music lulled her into a state of oblivion.  Her aches and pains started to melt into the water and she let her body relax for the first time in over a week.

Shelby would’ve been content to sit in that tub all night, but the water started to get cooler and delicious smells were wafting in from the kitchen.  In their time together, Shelby had discovered that Justin was an incredible cook and it was something he really enjoyed doing.  He often told her it was a nice escape from the normal routine, and it helped him to eat healthier.

Patting her skin dry with a towel, Shelby slipped on her bathrobe and padded into the kitchen.  Justin was humming softly, swaying as he stood at the stove, stirring something.

“It smells incredible in here,” she spoke softly so she didn’t startle him.  He glanced at her over his shoulder, sending her a grin. 

“You’re right on time,” he turned the burner off, removing the skillet from the heat.  “Have a seat, the food is just about done.”

Shelby did as she was told.  “You’re going to spoil me, Jus.  A girl could get used to being treated like this.”

His answer was another smile. 

The candles that had been placed around the house had been put out, the only glow coming from the ones on the table.  It was completely romantic, and Shelby couldn’t quite get used to the pampering.  Being with Justin was an entirely new experience, but she was happy to go along with whatever he had in mind. 

“Feeling better?”  Justin’s voice broke through her thoughts and she smiled over at him.

“Much.  Thank you so much for all of this.  You really didn’t have to go through all of the trouble.”

Justin shrugged, looking a little embarrassed.  “I missed you.  It was a long week.”

“How was L.A.?” She asked, even though she wasn’t sure she wanted the answer.  She had no idea what her father had spewed at Justin while he was out there, but she was sure it wasn’t good.

“It was busy.  I’m happy to be back in New York.”  He started to pick at his food.

“And my dad?  He wasn’t too much of an asshole, was he?”

Justin set his fork down, sitting back in the chair to look carefully at Shelby.  “He was very professional and we didn’t discuss you at all, if that’s what you’re asking.”  He didn’t want to be short with her, but he didn’t really care to discuss her father.  He just wanted to enjoy her company.  “I have a lot to do to get this album finished, but I would really like to just forget all of that right now and spend the night with you.”

Shelby held up her hands in surrender.  “Sorry.  I guess I’m just worried that he’s poisoned you against me.”

The grin that spread across his face was nothing short devilish, and it sent chills down Shelby’s back.  “I think we should test that theory, B.  And we’ll have to be extremely…thorough.”

“What do you have in mind?”  She was suddenly feeling quite warm.

Instead of answering, he stood, took her by the hand and blew out the candles on the table, plunging them into darkness.