Chapter 9 

Amanda felt like she had bricks tied to the bottom of her eyelids as she sat at her desk the next morning. 

But it had been worth it… so worth it.  Even if she never saw him again, it had been worth it.  She hoped to God that shewould see him again.  But if not, she was sure she would come out a much stronger person because of it.

Oh, who was she really trying to fool, anyway?

She’d be really upset if he never called.  There was no doubt about it.  But there was no need to worry because he’d promised he would.  And he seemed like the type of guy that kept his promises.   She thought.  Or hoped.  Okay, she was keeping her fingers crossed.

He just seemed so everything to her.  And the way he kissed her.  Oh! The way those lips felt on her mouth – they were sure to fill her dreams for the rest of her lifetime.  And then some…

But today, she had to quit thinking about JC and get back to work.   Life had to go on and she had to remind herself that she did have a hotel to run and could not spend the entire time daydreaming about him.  Only once or twice or every five minutes could she do that.

Yep, she was in really big trouble.

Sitting across from Marcy at lunch was way too much.  The three cups of coffee Amanda had earlier hadn’t done a whole lot except give her a little bit of a stomach ache.  And, she was still exhausted to boot.  Of course, Marcy was going on and on about some mystery man that was in the store earlier that morning.  You’d never believe the woman was close to forty by the way that she talked.  She almost sounded more like a horny teenager.

One thing Amanda was thankful for, Marcy hadn’t asked one question about her night with JC – yet.  She was sure the woman was just dying to know every juicy detail, but was trying her best to keep her composure.

She had mentioned how tired Amanda looked – well, duh – and Amanda was sure it had been meant as a hint, but she wasn’t quite ready to take the bait. 

Finally, after another hint or two thrown in during their conversation, Marcy just down right asked the question.  “So, are we going to be seeing that sexy, hunk of a man again or what?”

Amanda took one last bite of her over-priced gourmet salad and let her fork rest just inside the glass bowl.  “He said he’d call me,” she revealed.

“Ooh, like when?  Did he say when he’d call?”  Marcy seemed to be more excited than Amanda was about the whole matter. 

Glancing across the table at her friends’ flighty grin and buoyant blond locks, she breathed in another gasp of air.  “Today.  He said he’d call me today.”

Then she braced herself for the reaction.

“Ooh!” Marcy screeched with excitement and leaned in, across the table.  “Did you guys, you know, do it?” she asked in a much more quiet tone.

“No.”  Amanda answered abruptly, a little surprised Marcy would think she would be so easy.

“What?  There wouldn’t be anything wrong with it if you had.  This is the new millennium, you know.  And women have needs too.  You have needs, Amanda.  I know you do.”

“Alright already.  Enough about my needs, jeez.”  Amanda remarked with a roll of her heavy eyes.

After finishing up lunch, the two ladies headed out to Marcy’s sporty silver convertible and the two headed back to the hotel.  As she started the engine and the radio came whispering out of the speakers, Amanda realized it was a song that she really liked.  “Oh, I love this song, turn it up,” she told her friend.

Marcy did as she said, glanced at Amanda with a strange grin and remained quiet the entire length of the song.

But as soon as it was over, she turned down the stereo and glanced over at Amanda with a chuckle.  “You know who sings that, right?”

“Huh uh,” Amanda answered nonchalantly, “I’m not sure.   I just love it.  It’s so soulful.  I think it’s called ‘Gone’ or something like that.”

Marcy nearly burst into laughter, “Jeez girl, I think you live in a bubble.”

Amanda just peered at her with confusion as they pulled into the hotels parking garage. 

“It’s them.  Them?  As in, your man’s group – them.”

Amanda’s eyes grew wide and she felt like a complete idiot.  “Oh God, them?”

“Yes, them.”  Marcy repeated.

“Oh God,” Amanda said once more, this time with an exhilarating gasp of air, “that’s them?”  Suddenly she came to the realization that they sounded incredible.  “Is that him singing?”

“No, dear,” Marcy answered, “that would be Justin.   Yep, that young hunk is more than just eye candy.  He is down right talented.  All of them are, actually.  Including your man, who usually sings the leads, as well.”

“Marcy?” Amanda asked with confusion, “how do you know all this?”

Her friend chuckled as she parked the car and turned off the engine.   “Hello?  My twelve year old daughter, Jessica, remember?  Besides, those boys have grown on me.  Actually, they’re not boys anymore.  Oh, she’d kill me if she heard me talking this way.”

Amanda was just down right in awe over that song.  Huh, just down right in awe, period.  She was dying to hear more of their music.  Really, she was dying to hear JC sing. 

She couldn’t believe she didn’t know that was them.  Sure, she had heard their songs before.  How could you not?  She’d just never paid much attention.  Well, now she had a really big reason to pay attention.  He stood somewhere around six feet tall, had a body to die for, golden brown hair with curls in the back that she’d love to run her fingers through – oh – and the most gorgeous blue eyes that had ever stared her in the face.  Yep, that seemed like a pretty damn good reason.

Oh, and although she’d never admit to it, her heart went pitter-patter, pitter-patter when Marcy had referred to him as her man.  That was a very nice thought.

“You gonna get out or did you want to stay in the car?”   Marcy asked with sarcasm as they had already been parked and sitting there for a minute or two.  Oh, but Amanda’s poor head was lost in a world filled with JC.  She’d kill to have him back on her sofa again tonight.

“Sorry,” she finally regained her composure and opened the car door.

“You have totally lost it,” Marcy remarked.  “What did he do to you?”

“Nothing.” Amanda answered defensively.

“Sure it was nothing.  That’s why you’re all spacey, because he did NOTHING.”

Amanda just rolled her eyes and tried ignoring Marcy’s comment.

“Did he kiss you?”  Of course Marcy wouldn’t drop the subject.  The girl was just out right bold when it came to words. 

But Amanda, strangely, felt enthused to tell.  She stopped in her tracks, right there in the middle of the garage, grabbed Marcy lightly by the wrist and revealed softly, “oh god, did he,” she sighed dreamily.

“Ha!” Marcy hopped off the ground with victory.  “I knew it!”

“Shhh,” Amanda sounded, bringing her voice to a whisper.  “I don’t want all the staff to know, okay?”

“Oh, of course,” the woman responded as the two continued to walk, being that a car was heading in their direction.  “Oh Amanda,” Marcy sighed, brushing a hand against her shoulder, “if things should progress between you two, I really think you’re in for the ride of your life.”

“What do you mean?”  Her innocent self was just a little confused by that statement.

The two climbed into an empty elevator and Marcy continued.  “I’ve seen him perform and this man is just oozing with sexiness.   I’d bet you a hundred bucks he’s great in bed.”

“Marcy!”

“You just wait, you’ll see.”

The plane ride that morning had been rough for JC.  Not because he was tired.  More because he seemed to be getting way too many questions from his friends.  

When he finally got everyone off his back and was able to settle into his seat, he leaned his head back, closed his eyes and thought about her.  The way she had nestled so close beside him only hours before.   The way she got all tongue-tied and shy when he’d say certain things or act a certain way.  The taste of her lips on his mouth.  Oh, just the thought of those lips made him ache with want.  He’d die to have those lips against his skin – every part of it.

In fact, that thought had brought on a full fledged daydream.  Amanda wearing that sexy dress she had on in the dress shop that day, placing kisses all over his body and doing things to him that would make his toes curl up. 

By the time he got home, all he could do was think to call her.  But his feelings surprised him, he’d never imagined a woman could invade his thoughts that way.  Somehow, he’d managed to get all caught up in thoughts of Amanda.  So much, that when he realized Jessie was waiting for him at home, a visible frown leaped onto his face. 

He had never asked for her to be there.  The girl just assumed.  Well, if things were the way they were supposed to be, he’d imagine that her surprise would have made him happy.  But under the circumstances, Jessie was the last person he wanted to see. 

Unhappily enough, he wiped the discouraging look off his face, pretended to be glad to see her, then made it clear that he was exhausted and planned on sleeping for the next three days, at least.

She was visibly upset, but he didn’t really care.  He just wanted to be alone.  He didn’t want to deal with that problem right now.  He wanted take a shower, get some rest, and call Amanda.   That’s all he wanted.  He did not want to fight or argue with Jessie, because he knew if she stayed around that’s what would happen.  Granted, it would probably be his fault because he’d been picking a lot of fights with her lately, but he just wasn’t happy with her.  He couldn’t help it.

So after a good twenty minutes, her car finally pulled out of the driveway and he was left alone.  First things first, he took his shower, scratching off the number one thing on his list.

Then he slid into his most comfortable pair of pajamas, climbed on top of his over-sized bed, in his over-sized bedroom and turned on his over-sized television set. 

And then he took a nap, a much needed nap, which also happened to be item number two.  He was saving the best thing for last, and for when he wasn’t quite so tired.

Amanda hung in there till about three in the afternoon.  By mid-day she was so tired that she nearly let her head collapse on top of her desk for a power nap. 

With everything running smoothly, especially since the crazy girls had vanished from the hotel now that *NSYNC was gone, she left the office early and went up to her apartment.

It took her less than a minute to strip out of her confining business clothing and cave in to her bed.  Of course, she first made sure the cordless phone was nearby incase he called while she was asleep.

In record time, she had dozed off and peacefully ventured into a wonderful dream world…

Tenderly he brushed a hand down her arm.  His naked chest moving towards her slowly, it seemed the only thing she could focus on.  “Amanda,” his voice was low and his tone seducing.  “I’ve been thinking about this moment since the first time we met.”

She didn’t wait for another word.  Her body on fire, she reached for him and covered his lips with ravishing kisses - kisses that were needing and passionate and hungry for more, much more.

Delicately his fingers clasped onto the top button of her blouse, popping it open with ease and her breath immediately deepening from his touch.  He traced a finger lightly down her breast bone before fidgeting with the next button, all the while his lips dancing down her neck with a smooth, erotic rhythm. 

Every nerve ending in her body was on fire as he managed to free her from the top half of her clothing.  Taking a tiny step back, he gazed at her with a look of pure adoration.  “You’re beautiful,” he told her softly.  “I’ve thought about this so many times, I can hardly believe it’s happening.”  He stepped to her again and pulled her into his arms.  “I want to make love to you,” he whispered, his breath circling her ear and sending shivers down her spine. 

Swiftly, he scooped her into his arms and carried her to the bed.  

And then the phone rang….

Wait, the phone rang.  Oh God!  Not now! 

“Ugh,” Amanda groggily rolled for the receiver, more than perturbed that she had been disturbed from that sweet visual.

“Hello?”  She answered, her voice hoarse.  Immediately she cleared her throat and repeated the greeting a second time.

“Amanda?”  Oh Lord, it was him.  She’d recognize that voice anywhere.  Besides there were very few men that called her and this voice did not belong to any of the others that did.

“Yes,” she answered, trying so hard to wipe those images of that dream out of her head.  Damn, as much as she wanted to talk to him, a big part of her still wanted to go back to sleep and finish that wonderful fantasy.

“Hi, it’s JC.”

She fell back onto her pillow with an inward sigh.  “Oh, hi,” she remarked casually, as if his call didn’t phase her the least bit. 

“Were you sleeping?”

Oh was she!

“Sort of,” she answered.  The last thing she wanted was for him to feel guilty and not want to talk to her, because now that she had him on the line she didn’t want him to go away. 

“I’m sorry.  Did you want me to let you go?”  He asked.

“Oh, no.  I’m awake now.”

The two settled into a conversation, mainly about nothing in particular.  But it was the kind of conversation Amanda found herself really enjoying because it gave her the chance to get to know him even better. 

And when he told her that he had also just woken up and was still lying in his bed, flipping through the channels on the television and waiting for his take-out to arrive that he’d just ordered – well, it sent a really nice image to her brain.  An image she’d really like to see in person.

Why did she find herself falling deeper and deeper every time she heard that sexy voice of his? 

They talked about their days, Amanda more than him because his day hadn’t consisted of too much apparently.  Just flying home and sleeping.  She didn’t get into too much detail about her lunch with Marcy – for fear of embarrassment, of course – but she did think to tell him that she discovered they sang one of her favorite songs at the moment.

“You’re gonna think I’m idiot, but I’m going to tell you this anyway,” she told him.

“What?”  he asked with a chuckle, “I would never think of you as an idiot.”

“Uh, don’t be so sure because I can’t even believe that I’m admitting this to you, but for some reason I’m going to.”

He laughed again, and she could tell that he was more than curious to hear what she had to say.  “You know you’re new single on the radio?”

“Yeah.”

“Well, I’m an idiot because I did not know that was you guys, and I feel really, well, like an idiot.”

JC laughed, but Amanda could tell he wasn’t laughing at her, he was laughing with her, so to speak.  Even though, she wasn’t laughing.  At any rate, she didn’t think he was trying to put her down.  It just struck him as amusing.

“So, do you like the song?”  He finally asked.

“Oh, yeah.  I like it a lot.”

“Well, that’s all that really matters,” he told her, and then added, “no, that’s not true.  I’m glad you like it, but if you didn’t I’d understand, I think.”

Amanda giggled at the way he was carrying on.  She was also realizing that talking to him on the phone seemed a lot easier than she’d imagined.  Maybe it was because she didn’t get so sidetracked with how gorgeous he was because she couldn’t see him.  Although, his voice was enough to die for.  God, she missed him way more than she should have for hardly knowing the guy.  Why did he have to leave after they’d just barely met?

After talking for over an hour, a conversation that included a lot of laughter and playful flirting, JC sprung the most surprising, yet intriguing question on her.   “So, how hard is it for you to take time off?”  he asked.

“I don’t know, why?”  She was too curious to answer.  What exactly was he implying?

“How do you not know?” he asked in return.

“Well, like how much time?” she clarified.

“Just a few days, like this weekend.” Now he was getting more specific.  This weekend was only three days away.

“Um, I could probably work something out if it was worth it.”

“Oh…” he smirked, “if it’s worth it?  Well, am I worth it?”

Oh, that was a bold question.  So bold Amanda didn’t know how to respond.  In fact, she could only chuckle at his outspokenness – and his obvious interest in her, which made her just a little giddy.  Because, man, was she interested in him.

“Well?”  he asked again.

“You could be.”  She finally answered.

“I could be?”  he asked, “uh huh, you better stop teasing me, girl.”

Damn, did she love it when he played around with her that way. 

“Anyway, get to the point,” she told him, somewhat dodging the inquiry about his worthiness.

“I just thought you might want to meet me in L.A. this weekend,” he finally proposed.

“Los Angeles?”  Boy, would she love to do that. 

Immediately she ran down the agenda of hotel functions for the upcoming weekend.  How hard would it be to leave?  Could she do it without her father finding out?  Not that he had ever told her she couldn’t leave, but if he found out the reason why, well, then she’d have a lot of explaining to do and she just wasn’t ready for that.

“Yeah, as in Hollywood, Beverly Hills, Disneyland…”

“Yes, I know that, thank you.”

“Well?  What do you think?”

“What would we be doing?” Her curiosity was more than peaked.  This was definitely a left turn.  She had never expected him to be so… well, forward.  Although, now that she had thought about it, he had been pretty forward with her since the day they met so it wasn’t too surprising, really.

He responded to her question with laughter, devilish laughter.  Oh, what was that mind of his thinking?  And was she ready for it? 

After that dream she had earlier, hell yes.

“JC?”

“Oh, sorry.  I do have some business matters, but nothing major,” he explained.  “Mainly we’d just be hanging out.”

“Where would I be staying?”

“In a hotel, with me.  Well, not with me, with me.  I mean, I’d get you your own room.  I’m not trying to pull a fast one on you or anything.”

Oh, but maybe she wanted a fast one?  Or a slow one?  Or an all weekend one?  Jeez, what had gotten into her all the sudden?  She knew what it was, it was that comment Marcy had made earlier.  Along with that luscious dream.  No wonder her hormones were working overtime.

“So, what’d ya think?” he asked.

“Um, can I give you answer tomorrow?”  Really, she wanted to say yes right then and there, but she didn’t want to sound too, well, over-excited.  She had to make him chase her a little bit – she guessed, sort of.  She was awful new at this stuff.

“Yeah, sure.  That’s fine.”

For the rest of the conversation, Amanda’s mind was in a whirlwind.  She’d have never expected this.  A week ago she would have never even imagined something so crazy – but wonderful – could be happening to her. 

And it was all because she had decided to go down to the bar and play the piano on that one Friday night.

Funny how one event could make such a drastic change in a persons life.  

©2001 BrandyRae