JC wasn't in the hotel room when Casey arrived, which was just as well. She wanted to get the last bit of pre-concert business out of the way without first having to delve into the previous evening's disappearing act. She was able to shower and change with no distraction, and even spend a little time planning out what she'd say to him. Genevieve and Eloise met her up in the room for hair and makeup respectively, and an hour and a half later she was making the short trip to Sam Goody.

The vehicle rolled down Chicago's Magnificent Mile on an unseasonably warm spring day. On the one hand, she was thrilled to be home. The buildings towered up into the sky seemingly forever and her heartbeat in excitement and familiarity. Taxis drove furiously, riding bumpers and honking horns obnoxiously. Crowds of people were everywhere, tourists stopping to take pictures, business men and women on their way to the next meeting. Everything about the city--the sights, the sounds, even the smells--was familiar to her. Nostalgia welled up in her almost as a physical ache; she really did miss being home.

On the other side of that, she was nervous. This wasn't her first album signing, but it was the biggest, and the first one in her hometown. Silly as it was, she was preoccupied with the prospect of running into someone she didn't want to see. Someone like Tony. It was ridiculous, really. Even if only counting the city limits Chicago was huge, teeming with millions of people; the likelihood of running into anyone she knew was slim. But it was a possibility. And today of all days, that thought was anxiety inducing.

"Please don't let me see anyone I know here," Casey murmured with her nose pressed to the window so she could take in the city view as the sport utility vehicle made it's way to the record store. .

Dara glanced up from the papers that held her attention and raised an inquisitive eyebrow. "I thought you were excited about being home, Casey. Seeing old friends and all that."

Casey turned to her manager, a sour expression on her face. "I am happy to be home; that's not it."

"What is it?" Dara asked the question almost as an afterthought; she'd already returned her attention to her paperwork.

Casey groaned and looked back out the window. "It isn't my friends I'm talking about."

Dara looked at her sharply. "You haven't heard from him, have you?"

Casey turned away from the window again and let her head rest on the seat back, closing her eyes. "No. I just...I don't know."

"It'll be fine. I'm sure he won't show up."

The car pulled up to the curb and she glanced through the window, a little surprised to see a rather generous crowd lined up outside. Some people had even made signs. The anxiety she'd been feeling gave way to excitement. These people were here to see her. It was awesome.

"OK, Casey." Bruce turned around in his seat to face her. "Christoff is gonna get you inside through the crowd."

"No stopping. They'll have an opportunity for pictures and autographs and to talk to you after we get inside," Dara said, reaching for the briefcase at her feet.

Casey nodded and rubbed her hands together. "Let's do this!"

***

She inhaled and exhaled a few times and then bent over to touch the floor. When she straightened up, she swung her arms up toward the ceiling and balanced on her tiptoes. She repeated this motion a few times and then rolled her head and shoulders around a few times.

"You're nervous, aren't you?" Bruce, who was standing by the door,  laughed in her direction. He was a more imposing physical presence than Christoff, which was saying something as Christoff was more than six feet and 185 pounds of muscle.

She grinned wryly and shrugged. "Is it obvious?"

His gaze was wide-eyed and he shook his head in disbelief. "You get onstage night after night and perform for literally thousands upon thousands of people and you don't bat an eye. But you're nervous, to the point that you're almost physically shaking, about signing some CDs for a crowd that's less than half that. I don't get it, Casey."

"It's completely different when I'm onstage," she began slowly. "On this tour, those crowds are there for *NSYNC. It's not even about me."

He nodded, waiting for her to continue.

"Today? This is about me. And it's just different being home." She shrugged again. "I don't know why, but it is."

Bruce nodded at her with a patronizing smile. "Sure, Case, whatever you say."

She narrowed her eyes and threw an empty paper cup at him; his peal of laughter made her smile. "Almost time to go out there, huh?"

At almost that exact instant Dara stuck her head through the door. "They're announcing you now. All set?"

Applause and the sound of a cheering crowd rose up somewhere behind her manager and Casey nodded. "Game time."

***

The light on the keycard reader turned green and JC opened the door. The scent of Casey's perfume wafted from inside the hotel room. It was Givenchy or Cartier, or something else French. Though he couldn't precisely remember the name, the slightly heady fragrance of jasmine was now very familiar to him.

He entered the room, smiling as he emptied his pockets on the small coffee table in front of the couch. Even without her signature scent filling his nose, it was clear that she'd been there. Her things--clothes, shoes, hair products--were scattered on various surfaces. Casey had a tendency to leave a trail behind her. He smiled and sank down onto the the loveseat. He picked up the remote from the table in front of him and, after powering up the television, mindlessly flicked through the channels. His thoughts wandered back to the second time he met her.

She's impressive; he has to give her that.

There are no shortage of aspiring popstars these days, but while many of them are high on style, most are severely lacking in substance. She doesn't appear to fall into that category. For starters, she can sing. She's doing it live in the small rehearsal space, with nothing more than a simple microphone and no pre-recorded vocal tracks to help her out. And she sounds good. Really good. And she's dancing, too. She's gone through three songs so far, with starts and stops to smooth out the kinks.

"Hey, Lawrence, kill the music a moment." Dara gestures to the man standing upfront. "Casey, come here a sec."

Casey stops mid-step as the music dies, and she whirls around. Her eyes meet his briefly before dropping to the floor. She grabs a towel from the floor, blotting at her face before wrapping it around her neck.

He watches as she walks over to them, notices the way she's obviously avoiding his gaze.

"Casey," Dara begins with a smile, "JC says you two weren't properly introduced last night. Casey Whitaker, JC Chasez. JC Chasez, Casey Whitaker."

He smiles and extends a hand. "Nice to meet you, Casey. Officially."

She hesitates for a second before shaking his proffered hand and giving him a polite, yet guarded smile of her own. "You, too. Officially." She nods briefly and turns her attention back to her manager.

"Um...I don't mean to be rude, but we really need to run through ‘Games' a couple more times. The bridge is still tripping me up."

He's surprised; she's not brusque, exactly, but she's not exuding friendliness and warmth either. In fact, it's pretty clear to him that she's trying to get as far away from him as possible.

Dara gives her a puzzled stare. "I'm sure that's fine, but I figured...well, never mind. Is that all right with you, JC?" She turns an inquisitive eye on him.

"That's, um, yeah, that's great." He rubs the back of his neck. "Do you mind if I hang out and watch the rest of your rehearsal?"

There's an almost imperceptible narrowing of Casey's eyes, but her smile widens and she nods affirmatively. "Not at all. Nice meeting you, JC."  She runs back over to the mirror and takes her position with her dancers as Lawrence restarts the music.

Like many other things, they'd never had a conversation about that encounter. Maybe I'll ask her about it later. Not, he figured, that she'd want to talk about it.  With a sigh, he changed the channel again.

***

"Hi, sweetie, what's your name?" Casey asked the little girl in front of her. She looked to be somewhat younger than Matty, and Casey pegged her for being around seven or eight.

She broke into a wide smile, showing off the two front teeth that had obviously recently been lost. "My name's Lauren and you're my favorite singer in the whole world!" she gushed.

Her dimpled smile was contagious and Casey broke into one of her own. "Wow! Thank you so much, Lauren!"

"Oh, Mommy, where is it?" Lauren whirled around to face the woman that was standing slightly behind her.

"Right here," she said, putting something in the girl's hand.

Lauren turned back around and placed a multi-colored, intricately braided friendship bracelet on the table in front of Casey. "I read that your favorite colors are blue and purple so that's why I chose those colors."

Casey picked up the bracelet and grinned. "These are my favorite colors and I love this, Lauren! Thank you so much!"

Lauren beamed proudly as Casey held the bracelet in one hand, and with the other she began autographing a photo for the girl. "So are you going to the show tonight or tomorrow?" As Casey looked up, Lauren's face fell.

"Tickets sold out before I was able to get them," Lauren's mom said.

"I love *NSYNC, too, but now I won't get to see either of you," the little girl said dejectedly.

Casey nodded sympathetically and gestured for Bruce to come closer. "I think I can do something about that, Lauren," she said conspiratorially. "I know some people."

Bruce leaned down and Casey whispered in his ear. "As soon as we're done can you ask Dara to put them on VIP list? I know there's plenty of room in my skybox still if giveaway tickets are all out."

He grinned at her. "You're such a softy."

Casey nodded in the direction of Lauren and her mother. "So in just a minute, I want you guys to go talk to that big guy right over there." She cocked her thumb at Bruce, who had moved back slightly behind and to the side of her table. "But shh," she said, putting a finger to her lips. "You can't tell anyone, OK?

Lauren and her mother wore near identical expressions of happy surprise. That is so kind of you!" the mother gushed. "Thank you so much!"

Lauren clapped her hands together. "Yes! Thank you so much!" she said in an excited whisper. "Can I please take a picture with you?"

Casey stood up from her chair and came around to kneel next to Lauren. "We're friends now, so of course!" She put her arm around the little girl's waist, and Lauren hooked an arm around her shoulders.

On the count of three, Lauren's mother snapped a photo. "Thank you so much, Casey. Seriously, you just made her day."

Casey shook the bracelet she was still holding. "And thank you for this. I'm going to be wearing it tonight, so you have to look for it, OK?"

With a little squeal, Lauren spontaneously gave Casey a huge hug, which she immediately reciprocated. "I'll see you tonight!"

Dara was already waiting next to Bruce, and the little girl and her mother moved to speak with them while the next person in line was motioned forward.

"You seem calmer," Christoff whispered in her ear. "Bruce says you were practically pissing your pants earlier."

Casey snickered and greeted the two young men in front of her. It was true though; now that she was out here in front of her fans she was completely in her element. The sense of foreboding she'd felt earlier had evaporated.

Almost done, she thought with an emotion akin to glee. She was so thankful for each and every person that had come through the line, but it had been a long signing and her hand was beginning to cramp up. Not to mention, the almost nonstop smiling had her cheeks aching. She was looking forward to relaxing for a few hours before the show.

"Hey, whoa. Hold it!" Bruce bellowed. There was a sudden commotion as both he and Christoff came forward to approach the person in front of her.

"What--" the words died on her lips as she recognized the next person in line.

"I just want to get my autograph, guys," the familiar voice said. "I waited out there just like everyone else."

Blood pounded behind Casey's eyes. She was cold and shaky, and she had to concentrate to make her voice come out normally. "Bruce," she said softly. When he didn't immediately respond she was louder. "Bruce. Christoff, it's cool. Just, um...let him come forward."

She could tell that some people in line were watching the unfolding scene with wide-eyed interest. "It's fine, OK? Just let him through."

Both of her bodyguards stared at her as if she had grown a second head. "We don't have to do that, Casey," Christoff said, still staring at the interloper menacingly.

Casey shook her head once, emphatically, and scrawled her name across the black and white photograph in front of her. "Who should I make this out to?" she said, not looking up, but sensing that the person had moved closer.

"Casey."

Her name on his lips made her feel nauseated. She didn't respond. Her bodyguards continued to flank him on either side.

"Come on, Casey. You're not even going to look at me? Is that how you greet an old friend?"

Her head snapped up and her eyes narrowed, scowling at him. The trance was broken and now the only thing she felt staring at him was raw hatred. Remembering that other people in line could still see her, she plastered a smile on her face.

"What the hell are you doing here, Tony?" she asked through clenched teeth.

He looked at her in puzzlement. "What do you mean? You're my favorite singer, you know."

She rolled her eyes and scrawled his name at the top of the photo. "What do you want?"

He stared down at her for a moment without saying anything, the easy smile on his face dropping.

"I think you're done," Bruce said, taking Tony by the elbow.

"I just wanted your autograph." Tony said, deftly moving his arm away from the massive bodyguard.

Casey snorted and slid the picture across the table to him. "Thanks. And since it is my sincerest hope to never see you again, you go have a terrific life, OK? Or, you know, don't. Whatever."

His eyes narrowed and he picked the photograph up. "You've always been a funny girl, Casey." He blew her a kiss and turned to leave. "Take care of yourself." Without a backward glance, he stalked off through the crowd.

***

Amber glanced at the clock, willing it to move just the slightest bit faster. She had another thirty minutes left on her shift and although that wasn't much, time seemed to be inching by. She sighed, and folded what seemed like her five-hundredth sweater of the day.

"So you're really friends with Casey Whitaker, huh?"

She turned around to put a face to the voice that had interrupted her internal complaining. Chuck, a coworker a couple of years her junior, was standing behind her with a perplexed expression on his face.

"And you were on tour with her for awhile?"

Amber smiled and turned back to the circular table of shirts. "Is it that hard to believe?"

He came up next to her and grabbed a sweater to fold. "Well...yeah, kind of. She's like, pretty well-known. It's just weird that someone I know knows someone famous. And those *NSYNC dudes...they're huge, right? So just the fact that she's on tour with them...I know that's big." He whistled low. "Is it weird? Like when you're out with her are people chasing her down for autographs and pictures and stuff?"

She chuckled and tucked a shiny blonde strand behind her ear. "Nah, it's not too weird. I've been out with her a couple times where people have recognized her and wanted an autograph or something, but it's not like she's getting mobbed or anything." She shook her head. "Now *NSYNC, on the other hand. Whew." She blew out a breath. "Their fans are a completely different story."

"I think what's strange," Amber continued, "is just...I'll turn on the radio and hear her voice. Or seeing her in a magazine or something? It always catches me off guard and I have this moment of remembering my best friend is famous."

Chuck picked up another top to fold. "What's she like? Like...is she the same as before or has she changed?"

Amber blinked slowly for a moment, the question catching her off-guard. "No, she hasn't. Not really. Casey's always been...Casey." She chuckled.

He nodded and absently tugged at one hugely gauged earlobe. "Her CD is pretty good. I like her voice," he announced suddenly.

Amber's mouth fell open comically as she took in her co-worker. Aside from the earrings, Chuck was heavily tattooed, with a distinctly punk rock sense of style. From the barbed cuff he wore around one wrist, to his daily uniform of metal band t-shirts and jeans with pocket chains, he looked like he belonged on the pages of Punk Magazine.

"You have Casey's CD? I don't even believe it." She shook her head as if to emphasize her disbelief.

Chuck's smile was sly. "I was flipping channels and saw her video for Games. It was right after I found out you know her, actually." He shrugged. "She was sexy as hell so I bought the CD."

Amber rolled her eyes. "You bought the record because she's sexy? You know, she'd hate to hear that. She really wants people to hear her and not just see her."

"Well, she is sexy, but her album is really good. She has a cool sound."

Amber watched him, completely flummoxed by his admission. The saying was true, she supposed, but she had definitely been judging the book that was Chuck by its cover.

"She's cool." He smiled shyly. "Maybe you can tell her I said that."

Amber eyed him for a moment before raising her eyebrows. "I could. Or maybe you could tell her yourself. Tonight if you're free."

Chuck clear blue eyes widened to saucer sized and his chin dropped nearly to his chest. "What?"

"Well, I know it's not your scene exactly, but I've got another pass to the afterparty tonight. It's at Shadow Lounge tonight."

"You're shittin' me?" He blinked rapidly, and absently ran his fingers through his dirty blonde locks.

"Not at all." Amber laughed. "I think the official start time is 10:30 and I'm heading over after the show. If you can meet me there, it's yours."

"And you'll introduce me to Casey?" His expression was one of dumbfounded amazement.

"Sure," she said with a shrug of her shoulders.  

"Amber..." He moved closer and eyed her intensely. "I owe you."

She grinned. "I'll remember that next time I need someone to cover my Saturday shift."

He nodded fiercely. "Seriously. You got it. Thank you!"

***

The clicking of the door being unlocked roused JC from his thoughts. He looked up to see Casey coming into the room.

"Hey," he said, standing up and stretching. "How was it?" He stopped, noticing the pained expression on her face. "What happened, Case?"

He closed the door behind her as she flung her keycard and phone onto the coffee table.

"Today sucks," she groaned.

He grabbed one of her hands and led her toward the french doors that separated the bedroom from the rest of the suite. The room was decorated in soft, mint green and eggshell, with mahogany accents. Before crossing the threshold of the sleeping quarters, he grabbed the remote off of the coffee table and clicked off the TV in the sitting area.

"What's wrong, honey?" he asked.

She let him lead her over to the bed and collapsed onto it theatrically. "Everything." She rubbed her temples with closed eyes.

JC took a seat next to her inert form. "Where're your mom and brother?"

With her eyes closed she mumbled something he didn't understand.

When she flopped over onto her stomach he leaned over and began gently rubbing her back and shoulders. "I'm sorry I missed meeting them at soundcheck."

"Me, too," she said. "But they'll get to meet you tonight. After the show."

"Where are they now?" he asked softly.

Her nerves were shot after the signing. What she had wanted at first, more than anything else, was to throw a temper tantrum in solitude. Now that she was here, she was glad not to be alone; JC was a much better alternative to pitching a solitary fit.

"They went straight to the Rosemont. I told them I had some things to take care of here." She sighed heavily and didn't say anything more.

"What happened, Casey?" he whispered finally. "Do you want to talk about it?" he continued, when she didn't immediately respond.

She mumbled something incoherent but didn't move from her spot so he continued massaging her shoulders. He glanced at the clock on the bedside table and bent down to bring his lips to her ear. "We've got a little under two hours before they shuttle us off," he said quietly. "That's plenty of time to talk, if you want."

Casey's response was in the form of a pleased moan as his hands made magic of the tense muscles of her back. "Keep doing that," she murmured. "That feels fantastic."

"All right."

His massage took on a decidedly more sensual tone. He leaned over her and began placing soft kisses on her neck. After a few moments she turned over and guided his mouth to hers. She moaned softly as his hands found their way under her shirt, stroking her breasts through the fabric of her bra. He kissed down her chin, across her jaw, and back to her neck and she tilted her head back.

Eyes still closed, she said, "Tony was there. At the signing."

JC stopped abruptly and sat up. "He...what? Did he--"

Casey shook her head quickly, opening her eyes to meet his. "Nothing happened, really. Bruce was going to kick him out, but I didn't want to make a big deal out of it. I signed a stupid picture for him, he said some shit and he left." She tugged JC's arm. "Don't stop, please."

The expression on her face was so pitiful that he momentarily pushed Tony out of his thoughts and bent back down to kiss her again.

"I'm annoyed, JC," she whined against his mouth.

He chuckled. "I can tell."

"Un-annoy me? Please?"

He pulled back to look her in the eye before returning his lips to her skin. She was more than annoyed; that much was obvious to him. But it clearly wasn't the time to force a conversation about her ex. The image of Tony shaking her in Orlando months before came back to him, and he had to forcibly suppress it. They were going to have to talk about things though. He knew that. In the mean time though, she was responding to his touch in all the usual ways. And she had initiated it, and she clearly wanted to not think about Tony as much as he did. And sex was as good a distraction as any.  And he really, really enjoyed having sex with her.

JC pushed her shirt up, sliding his body down to kiss the exposed skin beneath it.

"All you had to do was ask," Casey quipped, wriggling out of the shirt and tossing it to the floor beside her.

JC's fingers followed his lips, dipping down to her navel and rising back up to her collarbone. Casey closed her eyes again and tried to let his touch wash away her feelings.

"I can't believe he showed up like that," she said softly, eyes still closed. "Just out of the blue, like nothing ever happened."

He continued to kiss her lightly, but opened his eyes. He scooted down again, landing kisses on her stomach, and she played with his hair.

"I hate him," she said in the same small but very matter-of-fact voice. "I don't think I've ever hated anyone before. But when I heard his voice and then saw him grinning down at me, the only thing I wanted to do was knock the smile off his face. Along with his teeth. With like, a brick."

When several minutes went by with her saying nothing, JC moved back up and brought his lips to hers. The kiss was deep and insistent, and in no time Casey's body was reacting. She was no less angry than she'd been when her ex showed up unceremoniously--and uninvited--to her record signing. But her anger was currently taking a backseat to her arousal, and in a big way. JC was turning her on and she wanted him. She groaned against him as she felt his fingers brushing over the clasp of her bra. Her mind flew back to her conversation with Jasmine. Maybe it really was just about sex.

She pushed at JC suddenly and sat up. "Are you listening to me?"

He stared at her wide-eyed with the hint of a confused smile on his lips. "I...yes."

She stared at him even as he stared back at her, and she began to feel foolish.

"I was listening to you, Casey," he repeated calmly. "About...Tony showing up. And wanting to hit him with a brick." He cracked a smile at that. "I don't blame you. No one would."

Her shoulders sagged and she shook her head. "I know you were. I just..." she sighed. "Never mind."

JC moved to sit next to her on the bed. "What's wrong, Casey? And I don't mean Tony. Why'd you disappear last night?"

She exhaled deeply and stared down at her lap, careful to avoid his gaze. "I know we talked about it a couple of nights ago, and I know what we said. But are you absolutely sure that what this is isn't just sex?" Her words tumbled out on one breath. "I mean, it's OK if it is, you know? I'm Ok with that. I just...I guess I just want to be sure."

JC furrowed his brows and stared down at her for a moment, silently. "Casey," he said finally, quietly. When she didn't respond he said it again, taking her chin in his hand. "Casey."

He tilted her chin back but it took a moment before she would meet his eyes.

JC shook his head slightly, a small and vague smile on his face, and kissed her slowly.

"So is that a yes or no?" she asked somewhat grimly.

He rubbed one hand on the back of his neck and searched the ceiling for his next words. He finally looked down at her, unblinking. "What did you think of me the second time we met?"

Casey's eyebrows knit together in confusion. "What do you mean?"

"I mean," he said leaning back, "what did you think of me? When Dara let me into your rehearsal."

She made a face. "Oh. That."

He chuckled. "Yeah. I was thinking about that earlier today, actually. How the first couple of times we met were...awkward."

"Putting it mildly." She shook her head, eyes closed.

"So what were you thinking? When I came in there? You were kind of short with me."

Casey covered her eyes and lay back on the bed. "I was thinking about the night before. What you saw. With Tony. And I was thinking that, after what you saw, there was absolutely no way in hell that I was still going to be going on tour with you.

"I figured you'd tell Johnny, and Johnny would tell whoever he needed to tell at the label. And I was thinking that my career was over before it began because of my stupid, fucked up relationship."

"Hmm," JC hummed quietly.

"And I was nervous, too," she said softly, uncovering her eyes. "Having JC Chasez show up at my rehearsal with no warning was intimidating, to say the least."

JC laughed in surprise. "What? I'm not intimidating at all."

"OK, JC," she said sarcastically, lifting one eyebrow.

"Seriously, Casey." He stretched out next to her on the bed. "No one would describe me as intimidating."

"Well, not like how I know you now. But then?" She blew out a breath. "I was-- I am -- a big fan, OK? And the prospect of me going on tour with you guys, opening for *NSYNC...that was huge, JC. It's still huge. And then you show up at that rehearsal unannounced--considering what you saw the night before..." She shook her head. "I was terrified and embarrassed. I'm sorry I was also so rude."

JC was quiet for a moment and Casey hooked one of her legs over his. "That night--the one before the rehearsal--what happened, Case?"

"It wasn't as bad as you probably think it was."

"He was shaking the hell out of you," JC pointed out quietly.

"I know," she huffed impatiently. "I just mean that what you saw was the end of it. We left and he passed out. It's not like he, you know, beat me or something."

JC made a little noise of disgust but as he opened his mouth to say more Casey interrupted.

"Can we not, though? I know you probably have questions about all that and I'll answer them. But not now. Please?"

He turned his head to see her looking at him intently and he let out the breath he'd been holding. He nodded slightly. "Ok."

"Thank you," she said softly. She brightened. "Well, other than thinking I was a bitch, what did you think of me that day? At rehearsal?"

"I didn't think you were a bitch." He smiled. "Actually you reminded me of...well, me."

Casey turned on her side to face him fully, a grin on her face. "Yeah? How so?"

"The way you just kept hammering at it until you got it perfect and everyone else did, too. To be honest..." He glanced at her sideways.

"What?"

"I was kind of intimidated by you," he admitted.

She snorted incredulously. "No way! Why?"

"In that small rehearsal space you were just huge. Your presence was huge. I don't know. I was nervous, but I was also pretty, uh, attracted to you."

"Are you still attracted to me?"

JC turned on his side to face her and traced her bottom lip with the tip of his index finger. "Maybe a little bit." He leaned in and placed a soft, slow kiss on her mouth.

Casey closed her eyes and leaned into the kiss before he pulled away.

"I was jealous. Later," he said softly.

Eyes still closed, she raised one eyebrow. "Of what?" she asked, her voice as quiet as his.

"Of how well you clicked with the other guys. With everyone else but me. There was always this unspoken tension hanging over our heads and I didn't know what to do about it. So I kept my distance."

She opened her eyes and looked into his for a moment before turning her attention to the Leo pendant around his neck, fingering it lightly. "I'm going to tell you something but you have to promise not to laugh, OK?"

"OK." He nodded.

She looked up at him, eyes big and somber. "I had a crush on you. A gigantic one. Like going all the way back to when you were on MMC." Her voice was low and earnest.

JC's jaw dropped and he burst out laughing.

Casey slapped him on the leg. "You said you wouldn't laugh!"

"I'm not," he sputtered, "not laughing at what you said, OK? It's just the way you said it!"

She narrowed her eyes and frowned. "How did I say it?"

He hooked an arm around her waist and pulled until she scooted right up against him. "You're so dramatic, Casey. The way you just told me that. The way you brought up Orlando at the ice machine that night." He wriggled his eyebrows and kissed her.

"Even the way you flew home without telling me." He watched as her eyes dropped. "Why'd you do that?"

She sighed. "Because I'm confused."

"What are you confused about?" he murmured.

Still looking at her lap she said, "After Tony, I'm not sure I can or should trust my own judgment." She stopped and met his eyes again.

"You're afraid I'm a bad choice?"

She shrugged. "You could be." She went back to playing with his necklace.

"Casey," he said in the same soft voice. "Look at me."

She closed her eyes briefly before opening them and looking into his.

JC rubbed a gentle hand across her cheek. "I like you a lot. And..." He trailed a finger across her lips. "I kind of think you like me, too."

She smirked. "Is that what you think?"

He smiled and leaned in to kiss her. It was slow and gentle. "Yes," he breathed, pulling away. "I'd put money on it, actually."

She sighed softly. "Yeah, well..."

"I think we're pretty good together. Don't you?"

She bit her lip and nodded slowly.

"I like this." He kissed her again. "I like you. And I meant what I said the other night."

She smiled and leaned forward to kiss him this time. "Just...if you change your mind about that, or about me...just tell me. OK?"

"Does that mean yes?"

She nodded. "Yes."

"Does that also mean we can stop having this discussion?"

"Yes," she laughed.

"Good," he said softly, leaning in for another kiss.