Chapter 20

Amanda climbed into the roomy Ford Excursion between JC and Joey, presumably riding back to their hotel. She hadn't really asked too many questions. Maybe because she had given him one hundred percent of her trust and was sure that if they were going somewhere else, it wouldn't be anything she would mind.

They were barely on the road when Joey pulled out his wallet and started handing Amanda pictures. "This is my baby girl," he said, "isn't she cute?"

Amanda couldn't disagree with that, although she'd had no idea he had a daughter. "She's adorable," Amanda remarked, "how old is she?"

"Just six months," Joey explained, a gleeful grin slapped across his face. "Do you have any kids?"

That was probably the last question Amanda would've ever expected to hear.

Obviously JC hadn't informed his friends about her inexperience, which was kind of nice to know.

"Joey," JC called to him, "what the hell kind of question is that?"

Big John chuckled from the front seat. Amanda imagined the conversation probably did sound a little funny.

"I didn't mean anything by it," Joey assured leaning forward to look at JC. "I was just curious," he continued, leaning back into his seat and returning his attention to Amanda. "I know you're a little bit older, so I thought - "

"It's okay," Amanda told him. "No, I don't have any kids."

"Yeah, I kinda got that."

"Joey's just a proud papa, that's all," JC remarked.

"And he should be, she's very cute," Amanda commented.

"And smart, too," Joey added.

"She must take after her mom," Big John teased from the front, a deep laughter bellowing from his throat and spreading throughout the vehicle. Even Joey had enough sense of humor to laugh at himself.

The conversation continued as they sat in the car for the next twenty minutes. Joey rambled on about his daughter while Big John surfed through the radio stations. Amanda was beginning to realize that JC had really great friends as everyone had been genuinely nice to her so far. And Joey was making a definite effort to get to know her better. He made her feel very comfortable.

When they finally arrived at the hotel, Amanda realized she was witnessing things from a completely different aspect than she'd been accustomed to. Screaming fans adorned the street, security keeping a secure path open to the front entrance. The two big security guards got out of the vehicle first while the others sat there and waited. "Don't worry," Joey remarked, looking back at Amanda with a grin, "it looks a lot worse than it is."

"Just concentrate on the doors," JC told her as his hand fell to her shoulder and soothingly massaged her neck. "I'll be right behind you."

"Okay," Amanda replied, wishing nothing more than that hand to stay right their on her tension-filled shoulder. But of course, as soon as Big John opened the door for them, JC let go.

Joey stepped out first and Amanda followed, concentrating on the back of his head the entire time and trying her best to block out the screams. It was amazing the energy coming from all of the fans. She'd never experienced anything like it. Sure there had been some crazy girls at her hotel, but she really hadn't gotten a taste of it from the other side. Walking through them while they were screaming "JC!" and "Joey!" and tons of other things, was something completely different than she'd ever felt before.

When they finally made it inside the hotel, things calmed down quite a bit. Only guests of the hotel were allowed inside and, not surprisingly, there were a few fans that had obviously gotten a room just to get a better chance of seeing one of the guys. But security held them back and Joey and JC went straight to the elevators where one was being held open for them so they didn't have to wait.

As soon as the doors closed, JC looked down at Amanda and gave her a reassuring smile. "I told you my life was crazy," he remarked.

"Crazy's not exactly what I would call it," Joey said, "to me it's just busy and fulfilling."

"Well, yeah. That too," JC agreed.

Amanda only looked up at him with a grin, she wasn't sure how to respond. All she knew was that he was letting her into his life and showing her things that she had never seen before. After all she'd experienced over the last two weeks, it would be hard to go back to her normal routine at the hotel - if there even was a hotel after things settled with her father.

"Sorry if my room's a little messy," JC told her as he unlocked his room door. "I was in a big hurry this morning."

"Thanks to me," Amanda remarked with a shy grin.

"Yeah, thanks to you, sweetheart." He looked at her with that twinkle in his blue eyes, an undeniable sexiness in his voice as he spoke, and Amanda could've melted right there on the spot. And the way he called her sweetheart, well she couldn't even explain what that did to her insides.

She followed him into the room, which was a little messy, but not too bad. Housekeeping had obviously done their job because the bed was made and there was no trash lying around. Actually, the only thing unorganized about it was his clothing laying over the back of a chair and a couple of shopping bags setting against the dresser.

"I'm gonna hop in the shower," JC told her as he kicked off his sneakers, "make yourself comfortable. It won't take me very long. Oh, and you should probably call Terra and find out when would be a good time to pick up your rental."

"Yeah, I probably should."

JC looked at her with a devilish smile and winked playfully before disappearing into the bathroom. Amanda's head spinning thanks to the cute gesture. She sat down on the edge of his bed and just breathed for a minute or two. Then she pulled out her phone to call Terra at the office.

After being transferred by the receptionist, finally Amanda's cousin came on the line. "Terra Williams," she answered professionally.

"Terr, it's me."

"Oh, hold on, let me close my office door."

A half a minute passed and then Terra was back on the phone full of cheer.

"Okay," she gasped, "let me just tell you that watching those boys shake their thangs made me feel like I was fifteen again. I haven't been able to concentrate at all since I got back to the office."

Amanda chuckled with amusement. "They were pretty spectacular," she commented.

"And I must tell you that I was a little unsure about this whole thing of you dating some gigantic pop star or whatever, but he's a nice guy so I give you my approval."

"Thanks," Amanda replied, as if she had been looking for her cousin's approval.

The girls talked a little bit more about nothing before finally deciding that Amanda could pick up the car in a couple hours, after Terra had made it home.

Just as Amanda hung up the phone, the bathroom door opened and JC's head popped out of the doorway, his hair practically dripping wet and steam floating off of his bare shoulders. Every time she looked at him she was reminded of how absolutely gorgeous he was, and every time she was reminded, she nearly had to pinch herself to be sure it was all real. To go from no attention at all from the opposite sex, to attention from probably the most attractive man she'd ever met, was quite a stretch. But she wasn't complaining about it, that's for damn sure.

He grinned at her, still peeking around the door frame. "I forgot my pants," he remarked boyishly.

"Would you like me to grab them for you?" she asked.

"Please?"

Amanda spotted a dark blue pair of warm up pants folded neatly on top of his suitcase and immediately rose from the bed to grab them. As she turned to head towards him, she couldn't help but notice his absence of clothing, the only piece of material covering his muscularly fit frame being a thin white towel. Boy, you'd think they'd have nicer towels. Never the less, she certainly didn't mind the fact that it wasn't the plushiest piece of white terrycloth. In fact, she was more than a little excited about it.

She handed him his pants, trying her best to wipe away the goofy grin stamped across her face and bring her eyes away from his nakedness, but it was tough.

"Thanks," he said with a chuckle and disappeared back into the bathroom.

Amanda plopped down on the floral print bedspread with that cheesy smile still glued to her face. Aimlessly she flipped through the channels, although television was definitely the farthest thing from her mind.

JC came out of the bathroom a few minutes later, vigorously rubbing the towel over his head. "Did you talk to Terra?" he asked.

Amanda only stared dumbfounded, thoughts of him in that towel intermingled with the image in front of her - JC wearing only his warm ups and the muscles in his arms and chest constricting and flexing with every move he made.

"Hello?" he asked her with an amused grin after not receiving a response the first time.

"Oh, yeah. Yeah, I did. She's gonna call me in a couple hours when she gets home," Amanda finally explained.

Dropping the towel onto the floor, his hair damp and curly, looking more tempting than ever, JC crawled onto the bed beside her and fluffed a couple pillows behind his back. "So, what did you want to do?" he asked. "Did you need to go back to your place?"

"I dunno," Amanda shrugged.

"You don't know what you wanna do?" he asked, letting his hand fall to her shoulder and applying just the right amount of pressure to her tension-filled muscle. Immediately Amanda's head fell forward and her eyes automatically shut. It had been a stressful day and his touch was just what she needed. "Baby, you are really tense," he said, his other hand joining in on the opposite shoulder.

Amanda couldn't help but let out a satisfying moan, "you don't know how good that feels."

"Lay down and I'll give you a back rub," he suggested.

Amanda had no hesitation on that one. "Okay," she agreed hastily.

Before she felt the strong touch of his hands, she felt the weight of his body crawling over her and taking a seat on her behind. His fingertips brushed over the back of her neck, goose bumps forming immediately, as he scooped her hair out of the way and then began to work the stress out of her shoulders and neck.

She swore she must've died and gone to Heaven. His fingers kneaded and pressed into her flesh as if he were an expert. She was beginning to wonder if there was anything he didn't do well, because from what she'd seen so far he was absolutely perfect. Or maybe she was just completely blinded by love...

That was a scary thought.

Amanda wasn't sure how long her wonderful massage lasted, it felt too good to worry about time. All she knew was afterward her body seemed to have turned to complete mush. He rolled off her back and returned to his seat at the head of the king-sized bed. Amanda remained completely still. She felt way too relaxed to move.

"You asleep?" he asked softly.

"Uh, not quite," she answered, her head still not budging an inch. "Are you sure you're a singer and not a professional masseuse?"

JC chuckled, "well actually..." he joked.

Finally Amanda found the energy to gaze in his direction, but her head still laid planted in the pillow. "I keep waiting for you to do something bad," she told him,

"is there anything you're not good at?"

"Not that I can think of," he answered with a playful grin.

"I didn't think so," Amanda agreed, only she was being serious.

"I'm far from perfect. Trust me."

With a sigh Amanda rolled onto her side and propped her head up on one arm.

"JC," she said with a deep breath, "all this crap that's going on with my dad. Does that make you a little nervous to be around me?"

JC KNEW HE HAD to tell her the truth. He wasn't exactly thrilled with everything that was going on. In all honesty, he'd love for the whole situation to just disappear. But it didn't make him want to stop seeing her. That he knew for sure.
"Honestly," he breathed, "I'd definitely be a lot more happy if it weren't happening. You know? It'd be nice if there were no complications, but I guess that just wouldn't be life, now, would it?"

He paused for a moment and glanced up at the ceiling. The last thing he wanted to do was say the wrong thing.

"It definitely, in no way, makes me want to not see you anymore. To answer your question, it doesn't really make me nervous. I guess it makes me more mad than anything. Your dad is definitely NOT on my list of favorite people. I know that's your dad and all, but I can't help it Amanda. What he's putting you through is just wrong. Dad's aren't supposed to do these kind of things to their daughters."

Amanda sat up, staring at him with those pale green eyes and visibly taking in a deep breath. She tucked a strand of her auburn colored hair behind each ear and brushed it away from her shoulders. He could see the tension in her face as she let her gaze fall to her lap, crossing her legs Indian style in front of her. "You're right," she sighed. "We've never been close, but I never imagined him getting involved in something so incredibly wrong. I'm just really sorry that I've got you involved in this."

"Sweetheart, you don't have to apologize to me. I'm glad to be here for you. Okay? The time that we've spent together may not seem like that long, but I feel a connection with you that I've never felt with anyone else. Don't worry about what you're putting me through. That's the last thing on my mind and it should be the last thing on yours."

He watched as she took in another deep breath, hoping that she would accept his words for the truth, because they most definitely were.

Tenderly he grabbed onto her arm and smiled, "come here," he said, pulling on her gently. Her body scooted closer, but it still wasn't good enough. Opening his arms wide, he repeated it again, "come here."

"Where?" she asked, a little unsure.

"Here." He patted his hands against his thighs as he said it one more time. Finally she complied.

As she straddled him, taking seat directly on his lap, he tried hard not to think of the reasons he really wanted her there. Instead he wrapped his arms around her and pulled her against his chest, hugging on to her slender frame and stroking the back of her head.

"Don't worry, it will get better. All this will end soon and life will go back to normal."

"Will it?" she asked, her voice a little shaky. "What if they take the hotel? Then what? Then what will I do?"

"Whatever you want to do, sweetheart. You don't need that hotel to live your life. You can do whatever you want. Hey, maybe it would even turn out for the better." He knew it would turn out for the better, but he wasn't going to just out right say that.

"Maybe," she sighed, the warmth of her cheek against his shoulder as she spoke. Her breasts pressed against his skin as she leaned all of her weight into his body. It took every bit of his control to fight off the arousal from just her sitting on his lap.

The cold hit his skin as she drew back enough to look him in the face. "Amanda, you have the power to do whatever you want with your life. Don't be afraid of the future. The future's what you make of it," he assured her.

"I know," she replied, looking at him with weary eyes. "It's just ever since my mom got sick, I had the security of the hotel. Before that I didn't care. I didn't want to stay in that hotel. But after she died, that's all I wanted. To just run the hotel and live my life where..." Her voice drifted off as she turned away, glancing off into space.

"Where what?" he asked caringly.

"Where she did," Amanda finally answered softly, refusing to look him in the eye.
Suddenly he understood. Amanda didn't want to leave the hotel because that was the one attachment she still had to her mother. Without that she'd feel as if she'd lost all ties to the one person who loved her more than anything else in the world.

His heart ached just thinking about how she must feel.

Affectionately he traced his fingers across her cheek and nudged her chin in his direction. "Baby," he spoke softly, "no matter what happens with the hotel, you'll always have the memories of your mom. No one can take those away."

"I know that," she said, a tear trickling from her eye as she blinked.

Her tears only made him feel more vengeance towards her father. As far as JC was concerned, it was all his fault. All of it. He pressed his lips to her cheek, catching her salty tear. "Don't cry, sweetheart," he told her quietly.

"I'm sorry," she said, "I'm being a big baby. I know. My life is just a mess."
Her watery eyes blinked and more tears fell. Immediately JC wiped them away with his fingers. "You're not being a baby," he told her softly, "it's not good to hold in your feelings. Let it out and you'll feel a lot better."

"I'm not a person who cries often and in the past two days you've seen me cry twice," she sniffled, obviously a little frustrated with herself.

"It's okay," he told her, but he was having a hard time getting the right words out himself. Really, he just wanted to tell her that he wanted to be the one that she came to when she was feeling down. That there was no need for her to feel upset about showing him her feelings. He wanted to be there for her, no matter what.

"It's not okay," she said, shaking her head with aggravation as she slid off his lap.

"I need a tissue," she mumbled as she hopped off the bed.

"Damn Jace, that didn't come out right at all," he scolded himself quietly after she vanished into the bathroom, the loud echoing of Amanda blowing her nose penetrating through the thin walls. He had to chuckle a little at that, only because she sounded similar to the roar of an elephant and he would have never expected such a loud noise to come from such a small nose.

When she finally stepped out of the bathroom, that smile was left smeared across his face. Not just because of her loud nose blowing, but also because he was realizing that she was absolutely adorable when she was so frustrated with herself.

"What are you smiling about?" she asked, stepping towards the bed with a wad of extra tissue in one hand.

"You're not gonna blow that thing out here, are you?" he asked teasingly, "you might throw me through a wall or something."

"Oh my god, you heard me?" she asked with surprise, stopping dead in her tracks.

"Yep."

"Sorry," she grinned with embarrassment.

JC hopped of the bed and trotted towards her in a hurry. "You know I'm just playin' with you, right?" he asked, "Besides, don't feel bad, you think you're loud? You should hear Justin. He's really bad."

Finally a smile broke through, her watery eyes glistened as her stare locked with his. "Really?" she asked, "or are you just saying that to make feel better?"

"Really," he answered, "I won't EVEN tell you what other disgusting habits those guys have."

"Because you don't have any disgusting habits, right?" she asked.

"No, I'm perfect. Remember?"

AMANDA WAS MORE than thankful when the call came in that Terra was home, it would be Big John giving them a ride, not Mike. Apparently, JC had told her, Mike had been really grumpy for the past month and JC was a little upset with him. Big John, on the other hand, always seemed to be smiling. Amanda liked him much better.

It was after seven when they finally arrived at Terra's apartment. Big John walked them up to Terra's door and then said good bye. He didn't even heed a warning about going out in public like Mike would have. He was definitely much more laid back.

Terra had been expecting them and answered the door immediately, almost as if she'd been standing there waiting. She let them inside, grasping on to a bowl of steaming white rice with broccoli and chicken on top. Instantly Amanda's mouth began to water. They hadn't eaten yet and she was starving.

The plan was to order take-out when they got back to her apartment. JC had packed an overnight bag and already made arrangements for Big John to pick him up in the morning.

"Did you guys eat yet?" Terra asked, "I've got more if you're hungry."

"Thanks, but we're gonna order something when we get home," Amanda answered, even though her tummy was rumbling with each whiff of Terra's food.

"Okay, well your keys are on the counter. Let me grab ‘em." Terra scurried to the opposite end of the room, grabbing the set of rental keys off the bar area that divided the living room and the kitchen. Terra's apartment was neatly decorated and tidy, but it was also pretty obvious that not a lot of time was spent there.

Terra was a workaholic, which was clear from the stack of files and the laptop sitting on her kitchen table.

Terra came back with the keys and gave Amanda a hug. "Call me tomorrow," she told her.

As the couple headed down the elevator to the parking garage, JC grabbed Amanda's hand and sneakily worked the keys from her fingers. "I'll drive," he said with a grin.

"That's fine." Amanda didn't mind if he drove. There was certainly no fight there.

All she really wanted was to get home - to her temporary home, that is - put on something comfortable, eat dinner and relax, with JC of course. She was more than thankful that he would be spending another night with her. His presence not only made her feel safe and secure, but it also helped her to sleep better for some reason. It was as if nothing in the world mattered when his arms were wrapped around her tight, nothing but the two of them.

Chivalrously, JC unlocked Amanda's door and opened it, waiting as she hopped inside the mid-sized rental car. She watched as he leaned down and his face closed in towards hers. The warmth of his soft lips pressed against her forehead, his hand sweeping back her hair simultaneously. "It's been a long day, hasn't it?"

"Yes, too long," Amanda agreed as he backed away.

He smiled as he shut her door and then jogged around to the driver's side.
The drive back to her apartment was quiet. Every so often he'd look over and smile, or reach to brush his fingers against her thigh, Amanda melting with every touch and gesture he made. She couldn't help but notice that every word he said or move he made exuded a caring that was so deep she was having a difficult time not mistaking it for love. But surely he couldn't love her already.

Even though she was pretty damn sure that she already loved him.

CURIOUSLY AMANDA peered out at the dark street through one of the living room windows. "You think they're watching me right now?" she called to JC, who was sprawled out comfortably on the sofa. With their bellies filled with Chinese food, neither of them had been very motivated to do anything except lay around. Looking down at a few cars parked on the street, she stuck her hand out to the side and waved, as if she were signaling to one of her closest friends. "Hello FBI men," she muttered playfully.

The coldness of the glass chilled her fingertips as she rested them against the window. For a moment she only stared, wondering what it was her father was doing right at that very moment and if the FBI had any clue where they could find him. She certainly did not.

With surprise, JC's strong hands graced each side of her waist, his body slowly pressing up behind her. Immediately Amanda felt the arousal he brought on so suddenly. "We could give ‘em something to watch," he remarked suggestively.
His arm wrapped around her waist from behind, locking her body up against him as he planted his feet right against her own. "Or we could..." With skilled softness, his fingertips trailed down her body, skimming across the side of her breast before eventually curling against the other side of her waist, where he hugged on to her snugly. "...go to bed and do anything but sleep," he continued, his voice a breathy whisper as he leaned into her ear, every syllable dripping with scandalous seduction. Amanda had grown warm just thinking about what that meant.

"Exactly what would that entail?" she asked, not quite ready for their little game to end. Her hands, which had been hanging free, reached behind her and grasped onto his trim, muscular thighs. In turn, he pressed himself against her even harder, his heightened sex pushing against the roundness of her backside.

The tip of his tongue traced along the outside of her lobe and immediately Amanda's breath sharpened. His hand sneaking just underneath the hem of her short t-shirt, he whispered something seductive and enticing into her ear. She moaned softly in return, a jolt of need swirling low in her belly as his soft touch inched up her stomach.

"But enough about what I want," he finally told her, his voice still dangerously low and inviting as he breathed against her neck. "What do you want?"

"I want you."

"I know that, sweetheart," he said, nipping at her neck lightly as he spoke, "tell me how you want me. Tell me what you want me to do to you."

Amanda's breath was heavy and her heart was racing off the charts. He wanted her to actually tell him what she wanted? Well what the heck did he think she wanted? Didn't he realize she was still new to all this? "You know what I want."
One lone finger trailed down the side of her face as he leaned to try and get a glimpse of her from the side. "Don't be shy." His lips fell to her cheek in a soft and sultry gather. "Trust me, anything you ask I will do."

If he was trying to break her out of her shell, it was working. If nothing more because she was so incredibly turned on, at that point, she would do just about anything to make him give her what she wanted. Anything you ask, I will do. She wondered how many women would kill to hear words like that.

"I want you to touch me," she whispered, the words barely falling from her lips.

"That's a good start," he replied with a hungry moan. "What else?"

Closing her eyes, she relished in the strength of his hand against her abdomen, anticipating its climb as it wavered against the underside of her breasts. "I want you to kiss me," she spoke softly

"Where?" he asked, planting a tender kiss to the side of her neck.

Amanda moaned at the touch of his lips against her skin, but also because he was teasing her terribly and it was absolutely driving her insane. Desire surging through her body like an overload of electricity, she turned around quickly in his arms, immediately covering his mouth with her lips, riding that wave of arousal and pressing every inch of her body up against him. Consuming him and every ounce of sexual desire that he emitted.

"Everywhere," she finally breathed, tearing her lips away just long enough to speak.

As their mouths and tongues meshed together in a fiery dance of passion, JC effortlessly hoisted her into his arms and carried her to the sofa, where he laid her down gently and then met her body with his weight, their lips barely parting for a second.

Suddenly it was as if they couldn't have each other fast enough. Clothing flew off quickly, as if it were a race to the finish. It wasn't long before he was inside her, her hips bucking to meet his rhythm as he undoubtedly brought her over the edge, waves of ecstasy flowing through her body, one right after the other as she screamed his name with pure delight. He followed quickly with a sensual moan, breathing obscenities under his breath as he clutched onto her tightly, his hands pressed into her hips and controlling every tiny move she made until he was completely spent.

Breathily, he collapsed against her, their bodies still united as his weight rested against her. "I really did plan on doing all of those things to you," he finally spoke, his chest heaving against hers with each breath he took, "but once you kissed me, I just couldn't wait."

"I guess will just have to keep trying until you get it right, then," Amanda suggested, "I mean, I do have a lot of lost years to make up for. You think you can help me out?"

JC groaned in agreement, "I'm sure as hell not gonna let someone else help you in that department."

(c) 2001 BrandyRae