THREE DAYS LATER

Kelly Fatone prided herself on the fact that she knew her husband better than anyone else on earth. She’d stuck it out with him when he was unfaithful and her friends told her to get rid of him. But Kelly knew, she just knew, that Joey was the one. And she’d been right. She also prided herself that she knew Joey’s former bandmates almost as well. They’d been around long enough that some of them had become like brothers. Josh Chasez was one of those. And she knew exactly what he would be up to coming back to Orlando for these next few days. He was going to to do anything in his power to win Becca back. She knew this only because she’d seen it from the beginning and he and Becca were meant for one another.

But she was also quite aware of Becca’s stubbornness, of her passive aggressiveness, of her independence. Kelly liked Becca and out of all the girls Josh had ever had around or dated, she preferred Becca over all of them. Becca was real and wasn’t with Josh because of who he was or represented. And even as famous as she was, Becca never used it to get her anywhere. Kelly had once overheard Josh talking to her on the phone and she heard him saying, “Just tell them it’s you. You’ll get a table wherever you want it,” and a few minutes later he’d laughed and told her, “You’re way too nice, baby.” When she’d asked Josh what had happened, he’d shaken his head and replied, “Becca’s in Vegas this weekend with a friend and wants to go eat at a restaurant in the Bellagio but they’re sold out. And she won’t tell them it’s for her because she feels bad for other people who can’t get in.” When Becca’s mind was made up, it was made up. Kelly assumed it was the same for relationships as well. 

Kelly had seen their relationship from the beginning and kept tabs on it through Joey. Joey would often say that he didn’t understand what was wrong with either of them. Why Josh would do something dumb, then watch Becca so the same thing and then they’d argue over it. Joey had known that through the years Josh and Becca had occasionally slept together and every time it happened, there would inevitably be a huge fight that almost always put Dylan in the middle. This was why, Kelly imagined, that they didn’t work. They were both stubborn and wanted things to be their way, whether the other thought so or not.

“Have Josh and Becca ever lived together?” Kelly asked Joey, as she prepared Briahna’s dinner that evening.

Joey thought about it for a second. “No,” he shook his head. “They’ve spent weekends together. That’s about it.”

“Huh,” Kelly just nodded and went back to Briahna’s grilled cheese.

“Why?” Joey plucked a grape from the fruit bowl on the kitchen counter and bit into it. He spit the seed into the sink and Kelly frowned at him.

“How hard is it for you to have just put that in the trash can?” she rolled her eyes at him.

“How hard is it for you to run the disposal and let it go down with the other crap?” Joey was teasing her and Kelly had to chuckle at him.

“Anyway,” Kelly flipped the sandwich on the griddle. “I asked that question about Josh and Becca because maybe they just need time to be in the same house longer than a weekend. And I already know he’s going to try and sleep with her this weekend and I’m dreading the outcome. I just think if they were alone, together for even two weeks, Becca might see something different.”

Joey shrugged, “I don’t know, honey. They live in the same city,” 

“That’s not the same,” Kelly reminded him. “That’s not in each other’s everyday lives.”

“Well, good luck trying to make that happen,” Joey said, and went over to the refrigerator to get out a beer.

“What if you suggested something? Like a two week vacation. That they both go on,” Kelly turned the griddle down, flipping the sandwich one more time. 

“Josh would be up for that. He’s so in love with Becca it’s sickening. And she’s just as in love, but she’s scared to death of being hurt and Dylan being hurt in the process. I don’t know how he’d ever convince her,” Joey sat down at the bar and took a swig of beer.

“Maybe you could,” Kelly raised an eyebrow at her husband. “You could say something. At least get her to open up about it.”

Joey raised his hands in surrender, “Hell, no. I’m not touching that situation with a ten -foot pole. Not on your life, babe. Sorry.” 

Kelly sighed, “You’re probably right,” she paused. Then, “You could just mention it to Josh. Then see what happens.” 

“You sure are persistent,” Joey chuckled.

“I just think sometimes people need a little push if they want to see something happen. That’s all,” Kelly called Briahna downstairs for dinner and the conversation was finished.

“Hello?” Josh called, as he walked into his house. It was late afternoon and he’d landed in Orlando almost an hour ago. Traffic had been surprisingly quick and painless, which was almost unheard of there anymore. “Bec? Dylan? Are you guys home?”

He heard a splash coming from the pool outside. Setting his luggage down, he walked over to the sliding glass French doors that overlooked the backyard. He saw Becca in the pool, her arms enveloping Dylan, who, it looked like, had just jumped into her mother’s arms. When he opened the door, Dylan nearly flew out of Becca’s embrace and paddled as fast as she could to the side of the pool. 

“Daddy! You’re here!” she squealed. Josh knelt down and picked her up out of the water, not caring if he got soaked or not. 

“I’m here,” he kissed her wet cheek and hugged her tight against him. He looked down at Becca in the water and she smiled at him, then looked away. “Have you guys eaten yet?”

“No,” Dylan answered, as Josh put her back on the pavement. “Can we have In-N-Out?” 

Josh laughed softly, “Sorry, cute girl, they don’t have that here in Florida. Maybe I’ll grill some hamburgers for us.” He glanced down at Becca. “Is that okay?” 

She shrugged and nodded, “Yeah, if you want to. You’ve been on a plane all day. Are you sure? We can order in Chinese or something.”

“I don’t mind,” Josh said. He was secretly thinking how perfect it was, him cooking dinner for his family. And no matter what Becca thought or told him, they were a family. Dysfunctional, yes. But a family nonetheless. 

He went back into the house, but not before he caught a glimpse of Becca drying off and immediately wanted to continue what they’d started a few nights ago. He watched her as she wrapped a towel around her waist, then bent over to casually throw her hair back into a loose ponytail. She sat down on one of the lawn chairs and began to dry off Dylan, then pulled her into a hug and tickled her. Josh could hear his daughter’s giggles from inside the house, but still didn’t take his eyes off of Becca.

He looked in the freezer and found two wrapped steaks, one hamburger, and something that might have been fish at one time in its life. The steaks he’d bought the last time he was in town, three months ago, so he knew they were still good, as was the hamburger. The fish promptly went into the trash. He walked outside and over to the grill next to the pool. Dylan was playing with sidewalk chalk next to the grass and Becca stood to see if Josh needed any help.

“Do you have everything out here?” she asked, sauntering over to him. “I can go inside and bring out whatever you missed.”

Josh couldn’t look at her. She was in a bikini and a towel wrapped around her for goodness sake. He’d seen her in much, much less and the way he’d been feeling lately, he knew he couldn’t concentrate on grilling and having her standing right next to him. He slowly brought his eyes up to her face, daring himself to look anywhere else. 

“I-I think I got everything,” he felt as though he were thirteen and getting caught watching a dirty movie. 

“Are you okay?” Becca eyed him with a puzzled look on her face.

“Yeah,” he nodded, and turned away to heat up the grill. 

They ate outside by the pool as the sun slipped behind the horizon on the lake. Josh and Becca were both quiet with each other and focused on Dylan and asking her about playing with Briahna. She and Briahna had become fast friends and later next week, Kelly and Joey’s mother were taking them to Disney World while Joey and Becca rehearsed for opening night, which was a week from Monday.

“More wine?” Becca asked Josh, holding the bottle in her hand after she had poured herself some.

“Sure,” Josh held his glass to the bottle and she filled it up.

“Can I have some wine?” Dylan asked.

“When you’re older, babe. You won’t like it,” Becca assured her. She looked at her watch, then at Dylan. “It’s almost nine, honey. Past your bedtime.”

“Can you and Daddy tuck me in tonight?” Dylan looked at both of her parents. “Pleeeease?” 

Josh looked over at Becca and they both smirked at each other. “Sure,” Josh said, standing from the table as Becca collected the plates. This was turning out better than he expected. He put the plates in the dishwasher and looked outside to see the moon shining over the pool and beyond that, the lake. Maybe he’d see if she’d be up for a conversation outside after they put Dylan to bed.

“Josh? Are you coming? Dylan’s waiting on you to read a story,” Becca called from the top of the staircase. He shook himself out of his daydream and started the dishwasher before he headed upstairs.

“…and Goldilocks ran all the way home. She never saw the bears again. The End,” Josh closed the book and handed it to Becca who placed it on Dylan’s nightstand.

“But why didn’t Goldilocks go back and tell them she was sorry?” Dylan asked before Josh or Becca had a chance to kiss her goodnight.

“Because they might’ve eaten her,” Josh said, then saw the look of shock on Becca’s face. “Um, no, I’m kidding. Because her mommy and daddy didn’t want her to go back again. And Goldilocks promised she’d always listen to her mommy and daddy.”

“But what if she told them she was going to go and do something good for the bears,” Dylan continued.

“She did,” Becca spoke up. “But the bears called her parents and told them it was fine and she didn’t have to come all the way out to their house again.”

“Did Goldilocks know they called her parents?” It was the same routine, no matter what book was read to Dylan. The child had questions about everything. She was much too logical for a four-year-old sometimes.

“Yep,” Josh answered, deciding this would be her last question for the night. “And she was fine with that answer. Now, it is way past your bedtime. So, goodnight, baby girl.” He reached over and pecked her cheek, as did Becca.

“Sleep tight, sweetheart,” Becca said, as both she and Josh left Dylan’s room and shut the door behind them. She looked at Josh and shook her head, laughing softly at him, “They would eat her? She already has nightmares. That’s all we need is for her to have one about the Three Bears for god’s sake.” 

Josh chuckled, “Hey, I was put on the spot.”

There was an awkward silence between them for a second and Becca finally broke it. “Ok. Goodnight,” she began to awkwardly walk away, but Josh called after her.

“Goodnight? It’s not even 9:30,” he told her, walking towards her.

“Early call,” she smiled at him apologetically. “I’ll see you tomorrow.” And with that, she left him standing in the hallway staring after her. 

He watched her walk back to the guestroom and sighed to himself as he walked in the opposite direction to his. He changed into a pair of comfortable boxers, brushed his teeth, and switched on the television. He hopped onto his bed and tried to concentrate on a random courtroom drama that was playing. He couldn’t think about anything but Becca and how he wished he’d stopped her from going to bed. There were a million things they could’ve done in that house from swimming again to watching a movie. But Josh only wanted to do one thing with her and he knew right now that could be too soon to even start trying. She’d made it clear she didn’t like his pursuit and even though they’d been fairly hot and heavy with one another on the phone, Becca had been even more clear that that was nothing but a conversation. And she hadn’t even mentioned it at  all since then.

Becca was lying on her bed pretending to go over her script. It was impossible. Her thoughts stayed on Josh. The way he had stared at her tonight was quite obvious, even if he didn’t know it. She thought back to that phone call a few nights back and still turned red at the things she’d said to him. And the things he’d said to her. It was hot and even a bit romantic. She put the script down next to her and turned off the lamp by her bedside. Closing her eyes, she clutched her pillow and tried her best to fall asleep. It was useless. Josh was fresh on her mind. And he was just down the hall. 

She began to get frustrated with herself. Why did he keep having this hold on her? She pushed the covers off of her. Why did she want him so much right now? She stood and went over to the mirror and looked at her reflection. She had to at least go and talk to him. There was no way she was sleeping right now. Her brain wasn’t going to shut off those images of what she was thinking the other night on the phone when Josh told her all the situations he’d like to be in with her. She slowly opened her door and looked down at the other end of the hall. The light was off and as she tiptoed past Dylan’s bedroom, she double- checked to make sure her daughter was asleep. 

Josh heard the knock on his door and put the television on mute. “Come in,” he called, thinking it might be Dylan. She’d probably want water or to ask yet another question about Goldilocks and the Three Bears. He was surprised to see Becca standing there on the other end. Her hair was down around her shoulders. She was wearing a pink camisole pajama top with matching boxer bottoms.

“Hey. Is everything okay?” he asked her, as he stood to his feet.

Becca looked at him and touched his cheek with her hand, gently rubbing the stubble that was left from his shave that morning. “I can’t stop thinking about you,” she pressed into him and felt his arm wrap around her waist. “I don’t want to go down that road but-“ 

Soon his lips were on hers and she was kissing him back with such passion and fervor that he hadn’t felt from a woman in a long, long time. Backing up against the bed, he crawled on top of her and as if on cue, her legs fell a part. She looked up at him and he bent down to kiss her with just as much fervor as he’d given her a few minutes back.

“Are you sure,” his voice was hot in her ear, making her shiver beneath him.

“I want this. I want you, Josh,” she nipped at his neck and he groaned with pleasure.

He didn’t want to think about the fact that tomorrow there would inevitably be a fight about something. He didn’t want to think about the fact that he was only here with her yet again for a short amount of time. All he wanted to do was please her and make love to her and not worry about what might happen. They’d suffer the consequences together.

His name rolled off her lips so easily over and over again. Their breathing was erratic and beads of sweat were forming on every inch of their intertwined bodies. Becca held on to him and let him rock within her, making her want even more. It was almost more than either of them had ever handled with one another. This time, they’d waited three years before having sex with each other and it was as if they’d been a part their entire lives. 

“I miss you,” he told her, watching her beneath him. “Becca, it’s always gonna be you.” She said nothing, only held tighter to him until he felt her let go. She gasped for breath and closed her eyes, feeling his sweaty head buried in the nape of her neck. Neither of them spoke, just lay there holding onto each other. Finally, Josh pulled himself up and looked down at her. She was looking back at him and reached up to kiss his lips.

“Josh,” she whispered, as he kissed her lips and then her jawline. “It’s always gonna be you, too.” 

He rolled off of her and she laid on her side, gazing at him next to her. “What do we do then?” he had to ask, even if it caused an argument.

“I-I don’t know,” she intertwined her hand with his and looked at his fingers wrapped around hers. She brought his hand to her lips and kissed it softly. “I just know that this was amazing tonight.”

“It’s always amazing with us,” he reached for her and pulled her to him. He felt her start to giggle against his chest. “What?”

“Not always,” she looked up at him and he looked back at her quizzically. “Remember, that time you were so ready to get it on with me and then Chris barged in and you couldn’t get it back up afterwards. That was not amazing.”

Josh had to laugh. They’d attempted sex once on the back of the tour bus when they thought everyone was asleep. Chris walked in and saw them nearly naked and it had ruined the mood for both of them. “Yeah, well, that was once. Every other time, though.”

Becca nodded and lazily began to place kisses on his chest. He didn’t want to say anything else What was it that kept them a part from one another? Instead of talking, he cupped her face in one hand and kissed her again, causing her to pull him on top of her once more.