“Josh, no.” Annie pulled away from him.

JC sighed and shook his head at her. “Don’t be so damn stubborn.”

Annie folded her arms across her chest and looked down at the ground, then back at him. “You know we’re no good together.”

“That’s bullshit. We’re great together.”

They were still standing inches from one another as if in a standoff. Annie stared at him as if he were crazy.

“We were great together.” She turned her back to him and, as though nothing had just happened between them, walked over to the pool and began to pick up discarded napkins and plates left over from birthday cake.

JC followed her and grabbed her arm gently, pulling her away from cleaning. “We still are great together. Give it another chance.”

Annie responded with an incredulous laugh. “Another chance? Josh, come on. That’s ridiculous. I gave you a lot of chances and you blew every one of them.”

“You know what? Fine. If that’s how you want to play this.” JC moved away from her and stormed over to the other side of the pool.

“I’m not playing anything!” Annie called over to him. “I’m just being honest!”

“I told you I was sorry.” JC muttered, loud enough for her to hear him.

“And I get you’re sorry. But I can’t do what I did again. My heart is too important to go through what I had to go through with you. And if I had to lose Emma again…” Annie trailed off and looked back at the house as though she were looking at Emma-Claire. “Well, I can’t. I’m sorry.”

JC could only nod in response. “Fine. Fine, if that’s how you want to do it.” He grabbed more trash next to the pool and off the patio furniture, then went over to the picnic table and threw everything into a large trash bag. He slung the nearly full bag over his shoulder and headed back into the house.

Annie watched him and knew he was beyond upset. There was nothing she could do. It had been hard enough to come back for Emma-Claire’s birthday. And as much as she wanted to ignore the kiss that had just happened, she couldn’t. It had felt incredible and if she had been honest with him, she would have told him not to stop. But Annie’s sanity and her heart were more important right now than getting caught up once more in JC Chasez.

Reluctantly, she took the trash she held in her hands and went back into the house. JC was standing in the middle of the kitchen looking off into space.

“Here,” she said, tossing the plates and cups into the garbage bag. “I’ll go and see if there’s anything else.”

JC didn’t say anything in response, instead went into the living room with Emma-Claire.

Annie huffed and turned back around. She checked her phone and saw no messages from Megan and that made her more irritated with her friend. It was nearing six in the evening and Emma-Claire went to bed in two and a half hours. She could ask JC to take her back, but she wanted to be with the child until it was time for tuck in. She already knew Emma-Claire would ask her for that. And then what was JC supposed to do? He couldn’t leave his child alone and Annie already knew Megan wasn’t coming back.

“Hey.” Annie appeared in the doorway of the living room and JC looked up from watching an episode of The Magic School Bus with Emma-Claire. He waited for her to continue. “I’ll just sleep in the pool house tonight. I’d like to tuck in Emma-Claire and after that, it’ll be impossible for you to leave. And I don’t think Megan’s coming back.”

“You’re gonna spend the night, Annie?” Emma-Claire jumped up on her knees and smiled from ear to ear.

Annie smiled back at her. “Yeah, I think so. If it’s okay with your dad.”

“Fine with me.” JC turned away and went back to the television.

“And everything’s cleaned up outside.” Annie continued. “I’ll take some of these garbage bags to the garage.”

“You don’t have to, Annie.” JC turned and faced her again. “I’ll get it. I think Emma would rather you come in here and hang out.”

Annie moved a piece of hair behind her ear and walked into the living room, sitting on the couch across from them. She stared at the television but wasn’t paying any attention to anything on it.

“I’m hungry, Dad.” Emma-Claire announced a few minutes later.

“Hungry? Em, you ate a ton of birthday cake and I saw you sneaking pizza all day.” JC laughed at his daughter and she sighed in frustration at him.

“But that was a long time ago!” She told him in protest.

“Well, baby, I can see what we have or –“

“I can make pancakes.” Annie spoke up and Emma-Claire’s eyes widened and immediately she jumped off the couch.

“Yay! I’ll help you, Annie!” She was in the kitchen before Annie had a chance to get off the couch.

“Is that okay?” Annie looked over at JC.

“Sure. As long as you don’t mind.” JC turned off the television and stood up. “I’ll handle the trash while you’re cooking.”

In a half hour, they were all sitting down at the breakfast nook with a plate of pancakes in front of them. Annie had made chocolate chip pancakes and the kitchen table was adorned with whipped cream, syrup, butter, and powdered sugar.

“So much for a diet.” JC chuckled, taking three pancakes off the stack.

“Diet? Please.” Annie shook her head at him. “Judging from the looks of things, you need to eat all of these.”
“No!” Emma-Claire interrupted. “No, Daddy, you can’t have all the pancakes. Save some for me!”

“Don’t worry, baby doll. You can have as many as you want.” He covered his pancakes with whipped cream and dug into them. “Mmm. Annie, these are awesome. You always make good pancakes.”

Annie grinned at him. “Thanks.”

Dinner went well and Annie started to relax a bit more. It almost felt like old times. Annie and JC were able to be cordial to one another and conversation became easy once more.

“I’ll clean up.” JC offered, standing and collecting the plates. “That way you and Emma can start bedtime.”

“Already?” Emma-Claire whined. “But I’m five now. Can’t I stay up longer?”

JC smiled at his daughter. “Maybe in a few months. But you’ve had a long day and you’ve been yawning all through dinner. Go get a bath and Annie will tuck you in.”

Emma-Claire obeyed and hopped down from the bench and headed upstairs.

“Thanks,” JC said to Annie.

“I love cooking.” Annie just shrugged and went to follow Emma-Claire.

“No, I mean, you didn’t have to come back. I’m sorry about earlier. I’m just...”

“Used to getting your way?” She couldn’t help but jab him a little.

JC pulled a face and stared at her. “Yeah. Sure. If that’s what you call it.”

“I call it like I see it.” Annie turned away and headed upstairs.

“When will I see you again?” Emma-Claire wanted to know, once Annie finished reading her a story.

Annie placed the book on her nightstand and placed a hand on Emma-Claire’s arm. “I don’t know, babe. Maybe I can come out this summer.”

Emma-Claire’s eyes filled with tears and she sniffed. “I thought you were gonna be my new mommy. Cause you were my daddy’s girlfriend.”

Annie could only give a slow nod in response. She leaned down and pecked Emma-Claire’s cheek. “I love you, Em. And one day you’re going to have an awesome new mommy, I hope.”

“I love you, too.” Emma-Claire yawned and Annie wiped away a single tear on the child’s cheek. “Can you stay til I wake up tomorrow?”

Annie smiled. “I promise I won’t leave until I hug you goodbye.”

“Okay.” She seemed to be satisfied with that response and closed her eyes. Annie got up from the side of the bed and walked out of the room, checking back to see Emma-Claire already turned on her side and asleep.

She walked downstairs and found JC in the kitchen scraping pancake batter off the griddle.

“Um, I’m gonna go to the pool house.” Annie told him. “See you tomorrow.”

JC sighed and put the griddle in the sink. “Ok.” He regarded her. “Can I talk you into a glass of wine?”

Annie shook her head. “No. But thanks.”

“Ok.” JC didn’t know what else to say to her. “Well, goodnight, I guess.”

“Goodnight.” Annie smiled at him and walked over to the sliding glass doors. It felt all too familiar. She’d just done this a few months ago, before she and JC were anything more than boss and employee. And Emma-Claire was just a little girl that she was nannying for.

“Wait,” JC said and Annie glanced over at him.

“What?”

“Thanks again. For coming out here and for dinner and all.”

“No problem. I’m glad I did.” Annie opened the sliding glass door and walked outside. The sun was just slipping behind the clouds as she made her way to the pool house. She felt his eyes on her until she slipped inside.

It hadn’t been used in months now and Annie noticed a few items she’d left behind. An old bathing suit hung in the bathroom. A coffee mug was in the sink and Annie immediately threw it away from mold growing in it. She made a face at how she’d left the place. It was obvious she was in a hurry to move over to JC’s.

Settling on the couch, she turned on the television and aimlessly flipped through the channels. She was still in her shorts and top from that afternoon and knew she’d just have to sleep in her underwear that night. There wasn’t anyway she was going back to the main house to ask JC for a t-shirt now.

JC stood in the kitchen and had watched the activity in the pool house, or what he could see anyway from his vantage point. The light was on and he knew she was probably curled up on the sofa. He groaned inwardly and wished she’d just slept upstairs in the guest room. He still had so much to say to her.

After a few more moments, JC turned off the light in the kitchen and headed into the living room.

Annie realized just how often JC even ventured to the pool house judging from the lack of anything in the refrigerator, the bathroom, and the loft upstairs. The sheets had been stripped from her last time in that bed and were in a ball on the floor next to it. It was getting close to 10:30, but for Annie and jet lag, it was more like midnight. She was tired but she didn’t want to sleep on old sheets that had been rolled up for months on end.

“Fine.” She huffed and opened the door to go outside and across to the main house. The kitchen light was off and she figured JC was upstairs by now. She would just go to the linen closet by the half bath downstairs and grab the needed sheets. It wouldn’t take long and she could finally go to sleep.

She opened the sliding glass door and crept inside.

“Hello?” JC called from the living room.

Shit. Annie thought to herself. He was still downstairs.

“It’s just me. I’m coming to grab some clean sheets.” Annie replied and went into the living room. “You don’t really hang out in that pool house too often, huh?”

“Nope.” JC answered. “Need help?”

“No, I got it.” Annie headed down the hall and grabbed a fitted sheet and a duvet. It was only when she came back into the living room she saw what JC had been watching. The 2013 VMA reunion. He’d paused it but there it was, plain as day. All five members of Nsync standing in a row.

“You caught me.” JC smiled sheepishly at her. “Sometimes I watch it when I get homesick for the stage.”

Annie leaned against the wall, holding the sheet and duvet against her. “That was a great performance you guys gave.”

JC nodded and looked back at it. “Wish it had been longer.”

“I think most of America wished that, too.” Annie agreed. “My sister went crazy mad when it was only five seconds long.”

JC laughed. “Yeah, well, remember who we were dancing with.”

“Whatever. He wouldn’t be where he is today without you guys.” Annie scoffed. “And really, Josh, you gave a hell of a performance. You should think about going solo again.”

JC brushed off her comment. “Hell no. I did that. It backfired. I’m content. I’ve got my kid and Girl Radical.”

“I don’t believe you.” Annie heard herself saying to him. “I think you’d rather be a solo artist. Maybe you just don’t know it.”

“Well, now’s not the time.” JC answered. “But thanks for your vote of encouragement.”

“Sure.” Annie wanted to leave, but for some reason, she felt compelled to stay. “Rewind it. I want to watch it.”

“No way.” JC shook his head. “It’s embarrassing enough you saw me watching a performance of myself.”

“Oh stop pretending you’re above that. Rewind it, please.” Annie put the sheet and duvet on the floor next to the couch and sat down next to him.

“Fine.” JC rewound it and stopped it right when Justin took the stage with the other four. Annie looked from the TV to JC and saw him mouthing the lyrics to “Gone” and “Girlfriend” and “Bye, Bye Bye.” She could see the spark in his eyes as he looked at his friends dancing and singing. It was clear they were all enjoying themselves, but particularly JC.

“Okay. There.” JC stopped the YouTube clip. “You’ve seen us all making asses out of ourselves.”

“Shut up.” Annie playfully hit his arm. “You were not making asses of yourselves! The general public was hoping for a tour!”

“Yeah, well, we knew how that would turn out. We’d just be Justin’s back-up singers.” JC mumbled and Annie could see the hurt in his eyes.

“You miss it, don’t you?” Her voice and tone were both soft.

He looked at her and then back at the television. “Yeah. But Justin told us before we went on, ‘Enjoy it. It won’t ever be like it was.’ And he’s right. It wouldn’t be the same. We’d be his back-up singers and he knows it.”

They sat in silence for a few seconds and Annie grabbed the remote out of his hand. “Here.” She pointed it at the TV. “Let’s watch stupid YouTube videos. That always makes me feel better.”

JC watched as Annie scrolled through YouTube and finally landed on the Buzzfeed channel. “Here’s one. Guys Explain the Vagina.”

“Are you kidding me?” JC shook his head. “This is stupid. I know about the vagina.” He eyed her and then said, “You should know that.”

Annie blushed but ignored his comment. “It’s funny. You need funny right now. You’re sad and I don’t want to leave you sad.”

“Fine.” JC leaned back against the couch and the clip resumed.

An hour later they had watched at least six Buzzfeed videos and had now moved on to clips from The Tonight Show. Annie had moved closer to him, her arm touching his, and every time she laughed, JC could feel her body move against his. Before she knew it, Annie was snuggled against him and they were both laughing at a sketch Jimmy Fallon was doing with Ryan Reynolds.

“Oh shit.” Annie yawned and looked at the time on her phone. “Josh, it’s past midnight. I have to go to bed.” She looked at the pile of sheets on the floor. “I also have to make the bed.”

“Just sleep in the guest room. It has sheets on the bed and it’s all made up.” JC urged her.

Annie agreed, forgetting that she had been trying to ignore anything other than surfaced conversation with him earlier. They both stood at the same time and Annie was so tired she bumped into him. He wrapped his arms around her and chuckled.

“Come on, sleepy. Let’s get you upstairs.” JC turned off the television and the lights in the living room and followed behind Annie.

She stopped at the guest room and turned around. “Thanks for tonight, Josh.”

“It was fun.” JC moved closer to her. He held his arms out for a hug and Annie obliged.

“I’ve missed you.” JC whispered. “I’ve missed this.”

Annie felt everything in her turn on. The feelings that she’d been trying to shut off all evening were now coursing through every vein in her body.

“I’ve missed it, too.” She knew if she lifted her head it was all over. She could feel his heart beating against her cheek.

“Look at me.” JC’s voice was low and just above a whisper. “Please.”

Annie let out a shaky sigh. What had she been thinking would happen? That she could come back here and not let herself be affected by him? The kiss from earlier that day was proof that there was still something between them. She’d tried her hardest not to let herself slip back into that habit of being turned on by JC Chasez. But she was failing. She was failing hard.

Looking up, her eyes met his and JC didn’t move to kiss her, which took Annie off guard. He chuckled instead.

“What?” She asked, her voice groggy.

“You puckered your lips.” JC’s thumb circled her cheek. “You want me to kiss you or something?”

“No.” Annie lied.

“You’re still gonna be like that, huh?” JC moved his other hand around her waist and pulled her against him. He could feel her starting to sweat.

“I can’t. We can’t.” Annie couldn’t form a sentence. She was too tired and it was Josh for god’s sake. “I-you-you can’t…I can’t…”

“Shut up, Annie.” JC bent down and kissed her. This time she didn’t pull away. She opened her mouth and let his tongue meet hers. She was dizzy and when he pulled her down the hallway to his room, she didn’t stop him.

“What should I do about your flight tomorrow?” JC asked in between undressing her and kissing her. He threw his shirt over his head and sat down on the bed, pulling her between his legs.

“What do you mean?” Annie unhooked her bra and straddled him. She was a little embarrassed for having worn old panties and a bra that didn’t match. Then again, the thought of having sex with JC that night had been the furthest thing from her mind.

JC took one of her breasts in his hand and bent down. His tongue circled her nipple, slowly and deliberately. He stopped for a minute and said, “I mean I don’t think you’re going back to Ohio.” He took her other breast and gave it equal attention. Then he took both in his hands and rubbed his thumbs gently around both of her nipples. Annie was slowly moving against him and gasping at his gesture.

“What…what makes you say that?” Her arms clung to his neck and she looked down to watch him continue to pleasure her. JC moved one hand between her legs and placed his thumb in the middle.

“I don’t know. Just a hunch.” He moved the wet fabric aside and his thumb found her clit. “What do you think?” He began to rub her there and Annie rolled off of him onto her back so that he had better access.

JC hovered over her, one hand propped next to her head, the other in between her legs. He moved her hair from her neckline and his lips began to suck the skin below her earlobe.

“I can’t think.” Annie groaned as JC rubbed her clit with more pressure.

He pulled his thumb away and placed both hands on either side of her. He kissed his way down her body, stopping at her stomach to suck the skin around her navel before moving down further. In one swift gesture, he tore her panties away from her body and was soon face to face with her center.

“You can’t think? Huh. That’s a shame.” JC moved her legs apart and parted her center. His tongue teased her slit and Annie arched her back and slapped the bed. He hadn’t even made her come yet and she was already like this. He licked her and his hands wrapped around her thighs, bringing her even closer until his face was buried in between her legs.

“Joshhh.” Annie moaned above him and JC looked up at her.

“You’re already saying my name, mama? I ain’t even started yet.” His tongue did a dance from her clit to her insides and continued in a slow and deliberate manner. He would stop every so often and blow on her, which only made Annie groan and pull at his hair.

“Baby, please!” Annie gasped and felt herself about to let go.

JC twirled his tongue around her clit. He let go of one of her legs so that his fingers could inch their way inside of her.

“Ohhhhh.” Annie moaned, feeling his tongue and his fingers at the same time.

JC slid two fingers in and moved them in and out before adding a third, which made Annie scream.

“Shh. You’re really loud.” JC mumbled between her thighs, knowing it was driving her crazy. “You almost there, baby?” He started going in and out at a faster pace and flicked his tongue on her clit over and over until Annie couldn’t take it anymore.

“Uhhh!” She held onto the sheets next to her as her body convulsed beneath him. JC kept going and didn’t stop until Annie stopped shaking.

“Did you like that?” He began to crawl on top of her and somewhere between him going down and moving back up, he’d lost his jeans and boxer briefs.

“What the hell, Josh?” Annie was still twitching and coming off of her orgasm, but JC didn’t give her a chance to stop before he pushed himself inside of her.

“I just wanted…to remind you…of what we were like…together.” JC grunted as they began to make love. “Oh god, Annie, you feel so good.”

Annie moved with him and wrapped her legs around his waist, arching her back so that she could feel him completely inside of her.

“Go slow, baby. Make it last.” Annie whispered, and JC slowed down the pace, feeling just how good it felt to be inside of her again.

“It’s hard when it’s you.” JC sighed and continued to pump into her. “You make me come so fast, baby.”

He pulled out of her before he came. “Get on top of me.” He told her. “I want to watch you.” He lay on his back and Annie deftly rolled on top of him, sliding down on his hardened member. She began to ride him and he watched her moving on top of him.

“Annie.” JC moaned. “Baby, that feels so good.”

Annie moved faster and splayed her hands on his chest. “Are you almost there, Josh?”

“Uh huh.” JC closed his eyes, his hands clutched the bedframe behind him and soon his release came. He moved within her, his fingers on her clit again, causing her to come seconds later. Collapsing on top of him, they both smiled at each other.

“So.” JC finally spoke and Annie rolled off of him. “About that plane ticket?”

“Cancel the damn ticket.” Annie stood and looked down at him before she went into the bathroom. “I’m not going anywhere.”