…Days Later…

JC rolled over and picked his phone up from the nightstand, rubbed his eyes, and looked over at Delaney’s sleeping figure beside him. He debated on hitting snooze but knew if he did, he’d be in danger of never getting out of bed. Leaning over Delaney, he pecked her cheek and then slowly stood to grab his clothes that were thrown over the armchair in her bedroom.

“What time do you have to be in today?” Delaney’s voice was muffled in her pillow but JC could make out what she was saying.

“Seven. It’s six now. I still need to grab some stuff from my place.” He sat down and pulled his jeans on. “When are you going in?”

“I’m off today.” Delaney mumbled and rolled over to face him. He could see her peeking out beneath the sheets and smiled at her.

“Lucky you.” He stood to his feet and slipped on his shoes before walking over to her. He leaned over, pecked her lips, and then walked into her kitchen. He’d become familiar with where she kept everything and immediately took out a coffee mug from the shelf above the stove. He turned on the Keurig and was deciding what coffee to brew, when he heard footsteps behind him. In a second, Delaney’s arms were wrapped around his waist and she was pushing him against the stove.

“Don’t rush off.” She kissed his back and JC could feel himself getting turned on by the way she was pressing up against him.

“You know I can’t be late.” He was still messing around with the Keurig but snickered when he felt Delaney’s fingers messing with his zipper. He turned around and put his coffee mug on the counter behind him.

“What are you trying to do?” He was backing her into the island as he spoke. Delaney was wearing nothing but a white cotton robe that was falling off of her shoulder.

“Make you late for work.” She hopped up on the counter and pulled JC toward her. Her robe fell off easily and JC smirked at her when she laid back on the empty island counter. He pulled her knees toward him and Delaney let out a soft moan when she heard his jeans drop to the floor.

Soon his legs were intertwined with hers and he was pulsating in and out of her at a rapid pace. The only goal was getting off and they both knew it but didn’t care. It was rough and not at all like the lovemaking they’d done the night before. No, this was pure fucking.

Delaney reached out to grab onto something and the only thing that was within her reach was the faucet. Water droplets fell into her palm as she clutched it, feeling the edges burn into her fingers. She let go of it and dragged her nails across JC’s shoulders, baring down so she wouldn’t fall off the edge of the counter.

JC jumped at her nails piercing his skin. They were going harder than he’d ever gone with her before. He bit down on her neck and she yelped in pain but when he looked at her, she was biting her lower lip and gasping in ecstasy. He sucked on her neck, his thumb going in circles around her clit.

Delaney let out the closest thing to a scream that JC had ever heard out of her. She was still shaking when JC collapsed on top of her. They were panting and Delaney looked down to see a puddle of sex beneath them when JC rolled off of the counter.

“Can you move?” JC was stumbling over to his jeans.

“I think…so.” Delaney eased herself up and JC handed her the robe that had been tossed onto the floor just minutes ago. She looked at their evidence and smirked at him. “Guess I’ll be cleaning on my day off.”

“That was hot, D.” He cupped her chin in his forefinger and thumb. He kissed her once more and backed away. “I gotta get to my house and change. Otherwise, I’ll miss the first meeting.”

Delaney watched him leave and chuckled to herself. She’d never experienced anything like JC Chasez.

Andrea walked into the Human Resource office at 7:30 the next morning. It was her first day in the new department. Todd had helped her secure a new position so that she didn’t have to see JC in the lobby anymore and it would mean she was far away from Morgan.

The position wasn’t anything fancy. She would basically be a glorified receptionist, answering phones, making appointments, and seeing people to their interview. But the HR office was located a mile away from the hotel property and she wouldn’t have to worry about running into Morgan or JC, at least not as much.

After she’d been shown around, she made a cup of coffee and settled behind the desk that faced the entrance of the office. She signed on to the hotel website and began to pull up the calendar for that day.

She squinted and did a double-take upon seeing Morgan’s name listed as the first meeting of the day. What the hell could she possibly want in HR? Even worse, Andrea would be the first person Morgan would see when she walked into the office. It was all Andrea needed to start off her first day of work.

She sipped her coffee and pretended to busy herself in case Morgan walked in before the appointment. Then again, it was Morgan and if Andrea had known anything about her old roommate, it was that she couldn’t be on time to save her life.

But of course the one day that Andrea was hoping Morgan would be late, she wasn’t. In fact, she was earlier than expected. And she waltzed into the HR office as if she were a wounded lamb. Andrea could see right through her act but willed herself to play nice.

“Andrea? What are you doing over here?” Morgan’s wounded act was quickly dropped upon noticing her ex-roommate.

“I work here. Today’s my first day on the job.” Andrea’s response was terse and her face gave away no hint of any sort of emotion.

“Hm.” Morgan signed her name on the sheet by Andrea’s desk to indicate she was present.

“You can take a seat over there.” Andrea cocked her head to the side to point to the group of chairs in the waiting area. “Mr. Bass will be with you shortly.”

Morgan muttered a ‘thank you’ and walked over to a chair, sitting down and casually flipping through a tabloid magazine. Andrea eyed her and shook her head. There was no telling why she was here. It couldn’t be good; Andrea knew that much.

Lance Bass walked out of his office. As the head of HR at one of the largest resorts in America, he had seen and heard his fair share of stories. He felt he was pretty good at seeing through people and the first thing he noticed about Morgan was that she looked like a handful. Upon seeing him, Morgan tried flashing a flirtatious smile but it didn’t get her anywhere. Lance had been married to his partner for a good three years now and women had never done anything for him in that way.

“This way.” Lance had no time for being polite. He had a full day and this girl looked like nothing but trouble.

“Thanks for seeing me.” Morgan said just above a whisper. She took a seat across from his desk and Lance clasped his hands together and looked at her.

“Go on.”

Morgan grimaced. She was hoping for a bit more sympathy from this man. After all, she was about to tell him she was sleeping with the boss and was pregnant with his love child.

“Um, well, you see, this isn’t easy for me to say.” Morgan tried to wipe away fake tears but when she looked up at Lance, he was giving her an apathetic stare.

“Well, then, I suggest you find an easy way of saying it.” Lance was trying to show her he had no time for a long, drawn out story.

“Oh, ok.” Morgan cleared her throat. “So, I started sleeping with JC – er Mr. Chasez, a month or so ago. We were more or less together and now I’m pregnant with his child, except he wants nothing to do with me.”

Lance stared at her as if she’d lost her mind. What happened next was shocking to Morgan. Lance leaned back in his chair and let out a guffaw. “You, you expect me to believe that JC Chasez, the GM of this hotel, was sleeping with you?”

“Uh, well, yeah.” Morgan snapped back at him. “I’ve got a lot to offer.” She leaned forward trying to expose her breasts but Lance held up a hand.

“You’re wasting your time with those.” He gestured towards her bosom. “And do you know how many tales we hear about women sleeping with Mr. Chasez?”

“They’re not tales. He fucks every woman he can in this hotel!” Morgan raised her voice but didn’t care. “Regardless of my pregnancy, I slept with him and did it several times.”

“Fine. I’ll speak with him.” Lance sighed and brushed her off. “If that’s all, then you’re dismissed.”

Morgan sat there, flabbergasted. How in the world had this crumbled before her very eyes? This was not at all the way it was supposed to go.

“That’s it?” She looked at him in disbelief. “But-“

“That’s it.” Lance began to type something on his iPad and Morgan had no choice but to get up and walk out, completely defeated.

She walked past Andrea’s desk and out of the HR building. Before she got into her car, she let out a long sigh. She’d have to take other measures somehow.

Lance made sure Morgan had left the building and picked up the phone to call JC. He had been longtime friends with the boss and was often bailing him out of trouble when it came to women. The stipulation had been easy – Lance would cover for him and JC would let him keep his job.

When JC saw his office phone light up, he looked at the ID and rolled his eyes. Lance only called him when something had gone awry with an employee. Usually a woman. For a split second, he wondered if someone had found out the affair with Delaney, but quickly brushed it off to answer.

“Hi, Lance.”

“Some girl from the coffee shop was just here. Claims she’s pregnant with your child. I basically told her in the nicest way possible to get the hell out. But you’d better hope she’s lying.” Lance could hear the hesitancy in the pause on JC’s end.

“Uh..yeah. Yeah, I know it’s a lie. She doesn’t know the word ‘truth’.”

“Good. Just wanted to make sure you knew.”

“Yep. All good.”

“Ok, boss. Talk to you later.”

JC looked at the phone after he hung up. He felt a twinge of guilt but shook it off. There was nothing to worry about. He and Delaney’s affair was secure and the fling he’d had with Morgan was well in the past. He had nothing to worry about.

Three Days Later

Justin Timberlake stepped out of the limousine and stared up at the gleaming structure of The Chancellor Hotel. His great-great grandfather had built the hotel in hopes to compete with Henry Flagler’s hotel, The Breakers, in Palm Beach. It had worked. The same clientele who flocked to The Breakers also came down to The Chancellor.

After his father’s retirement two years ago, Justin had been given sole ownership of the hotel. While he and his family resided in Tennessee, he came down to Islamorada as often as he could. He knew his friend JC was doing a stellar job of keeping up the hotel as General Manager, but with the rumors floating around of multiple and countless affairs, Justin knew it was time to step in.

He chuckled to himself as he walked through the back entrance. He and JC had had their share of women back in the summers as college coeds when they would run the valet desk. There were plenty of women to share and take back to the old part of the hotel where no one worked. Yes, it had been fun. And even though Justin still had a mistress hidden away in Miami, he was by all accounts a family man now and for the hotel’s sake, he had to admonish JC’s behavior.

He continued the familiar path up to the second floor where the main hotel offices were. JC’s office was locked and it seemed nobody was on the other side. Just to make sure, Justin pressed his ear to the door. It was quiet.

“Oh well.” Justin sighed and turned away, deciding to get back to the family vacation home and settle in for the evening. He’d deal with JC tomorrow.

“Don’t look now but here comes the boss.” Ashley muttered to Delaney. They had been chatting about new spa packages in Delaney’s office when JC approached. Ashley had started to feel like Delaney was back to herself again. If anything, she was a lot more cheerful than usual and that made Ashley feel better about how secretive it seemed Delaney had been acting.

Delaney looked up and hid a smile as JC came up to the desk.

“Ms. Nixon, you need to see me before you leave today.” JC’s voice was firm and only Delaney could note the slight gleam in his eye.

“Sure. Ok.” Delaney shrugged and glanced away from him back to Ashley, who rolled her eyes.

“Ashley, I assume you’re here for a good reason?” JC hated sounding like he did now, but Delaney warned him that he couldn’t just overnight turn into a different person. Besides, it helped him keep the bad ass persona he was known for.

“Yes, if you must know we’re discussing new spa packages.” Ashley didn’t bother to look at him, only went back to Delaney and the pictures of the proofs that were to go in a new brochure.

“As long as you’re working.” JC cleared his throat and looked at Delaney. “My office at five. See you then.”

Delaney gave a brief nod but JC winked at her as he left the office and headed back to his.

“What do you think he wants?” Ashley asked Delaney.

Delaney shook her head. “I have no idea.” And it was the truth. She had no idea if they were finally going to fool around in his office or if he was really going to talk about issues at the hotel. “Anyway, I think these proofs look good. We’ll discuss it at the next meeting on Tuesday.” Delaney checked her calendar to make sure. “Yes, Tuesday. But I’m pretty sure everyone will agree.”

“Thanks, Delaney.” Ashley beamed and took her proofs. “I’ll talk to you later. Are you coming to Chancey’s tonight?”

Delaney would have to see what the night held for her and JC before she committed. “Um, I think. It depends on what JC wants with me.” Delaney hid a smirk.

At five o’clock sharp, JC looked up to see Delaney entering his office and closing the door behind her.

“What’s up?” She appreciated the casualness behind closed doors with him. It was one of many aspects she liked about their relationship.

“Do you have plans tonight? I mean, are you going to Chancey’s?” JC looked up from his laptop and smiled warmly at Delaney.

“Depends.” Delaney sauntered over to him and sat on the edge of his desk. “On what my boyfriend wants to do.”

JC grinned. “Well, I was going to ask if you-“ he stood up from his chair and leaned in to kiss Delaney –“wanted to take tomorrow off. I wanted to take you down to Key West for the night.”

“Oh, a road trip? Are we there yet in this relationship? Going out of town together?” Delaney wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him.

“Honey, I think we were there the night we fucked at the convention.” JC whispered into her ear. He pulled away from her. “Seriously, can you take the day off?”

“I just had a day off.” Delaney frowned and JC sighed. “And how would it look if both of us took off the same day?”

“You’re right.” JC met her forehead with his. “Then I’m making you dinner tonight.”

“Really?” Delaney brushed her fingers along his jawbone. “Should I bring my toothbrush?”

JC kissed her. “Mmhm. But don’t worry about pajamas.”

Delaney giggled against JC’s lips. “I never do.”

While JC was busy in the kitchen chopping up vegetables, Delaney took the time to look around at the pictures scattered about his house. Lots of framed ones of JC and who she assumed were his parents and siblings. A few of JC with big-wigs like Pharrell Williams, who’d stayed at The Chancellor last year, and Bruce Willis who’d vacationed there a few months before Delaney. She then spotted and old one –JC with a younger looking version of Chris. They were both laughing and behind them was The Chancellor. Delaney would recognize that façade anywhere.

“Hey, JC?” Delaney called to him from the living room.

“Yeah, baby?” JC looked up from his cooking and into the living room.

“Is this you and Chris?” Delaney held up the frame and JC grimaced.

“It is.” He gave a quick nod and went back to chopping.

Delaney looked at the frame and then back at JC. She placed it back on the table and walked back to the kitchen. “What happened?”

“What do you mean?” He didn’t look up from chopping the red peppers and pretended to be intently focused on the task.

“I mean what happened with you and Chris? You used to be friends or so it looks like from that picture.” Delaney motioned back to the group of pictures on the coffee table.

JC shrugged. “We grew apart.”

Delaney waited to see if he would continue, but she could see he was shutting down. “JC….”

“What? We grew apart. It happens.” JC looked up at her and caught her eye. “He was jealous that I got the promotion. And, well, I kind of wanted to date Ashley. But he got her first.”

“Well, for my sake, I’m kind of glad he did!” Delaney was trying to make light of the situation, one that seemed to still plague her boyfriend.

“Does he ever talk about it?” JC pushed the cutting board aside and looked at Delaney. “It’s fine if you can’t say anything. I’m just curious.”

“He’s mentioned it before,” Delaney said. “Just that you guys were friends.” She paused and reached across the island to touch his hand. “What happened to you? Did it just go to your head?”

JC shrugged and licked his lips. “I don’t know, Delaney. I was…I was angry about a lot of stuff.” He walked from behind the island and over to her, taking her hands in his. “And I’m not just saying this. But until a few weeks ago, I didn’t think I’d ever feel anything but resentment towards anyone.” He kissed her cheek. “You changed me.”

“JC-“Delaney knew she was blushing.

“I’m serious. You know it’s different.”

“Well, yes, we’re having sex and we’re in a relationship. It’s a lot different.”

“You know what I mean.”

Delaney looked up at him and smiled. “I know. I just like giving you a hard time.”

JC searched her eyes. “Thank you. I don’t know what I’d do without you.” He kissed her again. “I mean that. You’re probably the best thing I can say that’s happened to me and that hotel.”

JC was the first one at the hotel the next morning. He’d left Delaney asleep in his bed because he wanted to get to his office to finish up a few things before the day started.

He did a double-take upon seeing Justin Timberlake waiting at his door.

“Justin?”

“Hi, JC. Mind if we step in your office?” Justin’s tone was short and to the point.

JC looked at him questioningly but unlocked his office door and both men walked inside.

“Is everything okay?” JC took a seat at his desk and held his hand out for Justin to sit in one of the chairs in front of him.

“Well, I’m hoping it will be. I got a disturbing phone call a few weeks ago.” Justin crossed his leg over his thigh and leaned back into the chair. “Supposedly, you’ve been sleeping around with the staff. More than just one or two.”

JC looked at Justin with wide eyes, trying to hold back any indication that would give him away. “That’s ridiculous!” JC scoffed and rolled his eyes. “You know I try to always maintain a professional attitude whether in my personal or business life!” JC shook his head, wondering who had given that information to Justin. It had to have been Morgan. She was so intent on getting back at him for dropping her. ”Who in the hell would even suggest such a thing?”

Justin cleared his throat and looked at JC. He didn’t bat an eye when he replied, “Delaney Nixon.”