Casey's eyes fluttered open; JC was still sleeping up against her left side, snoring softly. She turned her head to read the clock; it was just before six in the morning and the alarm wasn't set to ring for another hour. She needed to use the bathroom but didn't want to wake him. She tried to gently extricate herself from beneath the arm he had tossed over her midsection. As she began to slide away from him and the covers, he stirred.

"Mmmm," he groaned sleepily. "You're not trying to sneak out, are you?" He tightened his grip on her waist and pressed her closer.

She giggled. "Yes, but only because I have to pee and I didn't want to wake you up."

He gave her a groggy smile that still managed to be sexy. "I guess I'll let you leave for that."

She slid out of bed and stopped to slip into the t-shirt he'd been wearing the night before, before heading into the bathroom. Once the door was closed behind her, she pulled the front of his shirt up to her nose and inhaled deeply. It smelled of softness and spice and sexiness and...JC. A little shiver ran down her spine and she smiled to herself.

Bladder emptied, Casey stared at her reflection in the mirror as she washed her hands. What am I doing? The question bounced around in her head for what seemed like the millionth time in the past thirty-six hours. The mirror held no answers; she dried her hands and smoothed her fingers through her hair, trying to pick through some of the tangles she'd amassed overnight. It was a rather unruly halo around her head and shoulders. After readjusting her bun as best she could, she grabbed the hotel-issue toothbrush along with JC's toothpaste. She brushed quickly, rinsed her mouth, and turned out the light.

"You're kind of ridiculously sexy first thing in the morning," JC said as she exited the bathroom.

She blushed, thinking the same thing about him. His hair was sleep-tousled and his eyelids were still heavy; even the indention in his cheek from the crease of the pillowcase was strangely enticing.

"I was thinking the same thing about you." She slipped back beneath the covers.

He stood up and stretched and she couldn't help but let her eyes travel the length of his body, stopping at the rigid column of muscle that was pointing almost straight up as he leaned back. She bit her bottom lip and stifled a laugh.

He looked down at his penis then back at her with narrowed eyes. "Bet you won't be laughing when I get back."

"Promises, promises." She smiled after him as he went into the bathroom.

Casey lay back in the bed with a smile on her face and listened to the sounds of him brushing his teeth from behind the closed door. She was very much looking forward to not laughing when he came back to bed and full blown desire blossomed low in her belly. She shivered, anticipating him coming back and making good on his promise. She turned toward his side of the bed and inhaled, smelling him on the pillows and sheets. The door opened and he emerged from the bathroom, glaring at her.

"What are you doing?" JC demanded as he got back in the bed, propping himself up on one elbow. He bit back the grin that was trying to spread on his face as he watched her eyes widen in confusion.

She was still wearing his shirt and the bun she had fixed in the bathroom was already beginning to come undone; curly tendrils were slipping and framing her face.

She raised an eyebrow. "Huh?"

He leaned in close to her and brushed a few curls back behind her ear. "As sexy as you may look in my shirt," he began, voice low, "--and for the record, you do--I'm gonna need you to take it off. Now." He glanced at the clock and gave her a wicked grin. "We still have fifty minutes."

Warmth flooded her and she peeled the tee off with a smile. Before she could properly settle herself beneath the covers, his hands were roaming her body. He positioned himself over her and brought his mouth to hers. She reciprocated immediately, and found his tongue with hers. He groaned into her mouth and she shivered and molded her body tighter against him. Sighing contentedly, Casey ran her fingers through the spun silk of his hair.

His kisses were amazing. No sooner were his lips, moist and insistent, against hers that she was already desiring more of him. He kissed her like kissing was more than just a necessary prologue to the main event; he kissed her as if kissing her was a main event all on its own. He lightly sucked on her bottom lip and she shuddered against him. With one hand she pressed him closer to her, and her other hand traveled down his back, scratching lightly with her nails.

As he had drifted off to sleep the previous evening, JC briefly wondered if the morning would hold some awkwardness. So far, he noticed, nothing was weird at all. She was eager, and he liked that. Eager to touch him, eager to let him touch her. And very eager to give him soft, vocal encouragement that was more sound that actual words. He liked that, too.  

He kissed down her chin, to her neck and shoulders. He moved further down her body, fingers and lips on her breasts, and an amorous moan escaped her lips. It had been less than eight hours since the last time and he wanted her again, and he was turned on even more by the fact that she obviously wanted him. The smooth, softness of her skin was a delicious contrast to the firm tautness of muscle that ran beneath the surface; her body was sculpted as a result of many hours spent dancing and so far he was enjoying every inch.

She opened her legs further, allowing him full access. He kissed a path from one already erect nipple, up her breast, collar bone and to her jaw. Her breath came in sighs and melodic whimpers and her body trembled as he rocked his erection against her.

He nibbled her earlobe and whispered in her ear. "I can't get enough of you." He pulled back just enough to be able to look her in the eye, and held her hands above her head, intertwining his fingers with hers. He held her gaze as he slid inside her. She was hot and slick and tight, and he was sure that he wasn't going to last long.

A sound, part gasp and part groan, escaped her lips and her eyes slipped close. He moved against her, in and out, slowly and watched her writhe beneath him, the expression on her face full of pleasure.

Casey kept opening her mouth as if to speak, but all she could utter were vowel sounds with no consonants. He was, in a word, good. In more that one, he was fucking spectacular. He was fire and she was melting beneath the searing heat of his touch. She squeezed his hands, still holding hers, and raised her hips, pushing up to meet him He wasn't thrusting exactly, more like sliding, and every nerve ending in her body delighted as he shifted gently against her.

She opened her eyes and his blues were still trained on her, a light smile playing at the corners of his lips. "Wh-what?" she breathed out, with concentrated effort. She ran one foot along the back of his leg.

JC smiled. "I like...watching you," he said, his breath coming in rapid bursts. She shivered and wrapped both of her legs around his waist pulling him closer.

Their bodies were covered with a light sheen of sweat and for a moment they stared at each other as they moved together. After pulling her hands from his, she brought his head back down until their lips touched briefly. Their grunts and groans grew louder and she matched him thrust for thrust, back arched, pressing them closer together.

"You're so close, aren't you?" he growled lowly in her ear.

"Y-yes..." she stammered, feeling dizzy and slightly drunk.

He loved the effort it seemed to take her to get the words out, and the way she tightened her grip on his back. "You want me to go faster?" He pumped into her faster and harder and his moans began to match hers in volume and intensity.

"Y-y" she panted and tried again. "Y-yes..."

"Or maybe slower?" He pulled out slowly and with an effort that took every ounce of his willpower, he re-entered her slowly, slowly, inch by inch.

She let out an expletive laced breath and he chuckled despite himself. "Please," she breathed, trying to force him to move faster. "JC, please..." Her hands slipped down his back to his butt and she squeezed, still trying to force him to move more quickly.

Still keeping his rhythm determinedly languid, he looked down at her with a sexy grin. He knew exactly what she was asking. He put his lips right up against her ear. "Like this?" With that, he sped his thrusts up more and Casey's voice began to rise in pitch.

The sounds coming from her were somewhere between a shriek and a whimper. "Mmmm...yes...yes!"

She was loud and it made him hot. "Tell me," he panted, his hips a flurry of movement against hers. "I want to hear you say it."

His simple encouragement seemed to be all she needed. "JC...I'm...fuck...I'm coming..."

He continued to move inside her, letting the feeling of her contracting around him bring him up and over the edge. "Fuck, Casey..." He pumped his hips until he was spent and collapsed against her.

She lightly traced patterns on his back and reveled in feeling the full weight of his body against hers. They stayed that way for a few moments more, breathing heavily, hearts thudding almost in time with each other.

With a grunt, he rolled off of her and looked up at the ceiling. What am I doing? he thought. He snuck a peek at her, her chest still rising and falling heavily, little sighs coming from her, and he smiled. She was sexy as hell, and so far, that was enough. He was enjoying being with her; the rest of it, what came before and what might come later, he figured he would eventually figure out.

"Casey." There was an urgency in his voice, as if he remembered something important and he sat up suddenly.

The bed shifted and Casey felt the rustling of covers as he moved. "Hmm?" Her eyes were closed but she inclined my head toward him.

He touched her cheek. "Casey, look at me for a sec."

She opened her eyes at the insistence in his voice. "What's wrong?".

"Nothing's wrong, I just..." He stopped and seemed to contemplate what he was about to say.

She waited for a moment before saying, "You just what?"

He laughed and laid back down on his side, head propped up on his hand, facing her. "You kind of called me out the other night." When she looked as if she were going to protest he held up his hand. "No, you were right. I mean, yeah, I'm not a saint. I like beautiful women and I love sex and I have plenty of access to both nowadays."

Saying nothing, she watched him. He chewed on a fingernail in an absentminded sort of way.

"I guess what I'm trying to say is...with this..with you...it's not just that, OK?" He laughed. "You are most definitely a beautiful woman, and I'm thoroughly enjoying having sex with you, but...I would really like to get to know you. And, um anyway, I guess I just wanted you to know that."

"I would like to get to know you, too, JC." For another moment, they continued to look at each other, neither speaking. "I should probably get going," she said softly.

JC nodded. "We both should. Are you eating breakfast?"

She was starving, but she was also sure she wasn't ready to face everyone; she couldn't even imagine the jokes they'd be subjected to, even if it was all in good fun.

She snorted derisively. "I'll grab something on the bus.

He smiled sympathetically. "That's fine, but for the record, I can promise you that the other guys will be cool, ok?"

In all honesty, she thought as she began pulling on her clothes, it wasn't the other guys who worried her.

***

Lance rounded the corridor and almost walked smack into Casey and JC who had just stepped out of JC's room. "Lance!" she squeaked in surprise. "Hi."

"Mornin', Lance," JC said nonchalantly.

Lance smiled. "Hi. What's up?"

While Casey was visibly embarrassed, JC was completely unperturbed. "Breakfast, hopefully. I'm starving!" He put his hand on the small of Casey's back. "See you later, man."

"Later," Lance echoed, watching them head down the hall.

***

"Oh, here's the wanton woman now," Jasmine said into her phone as Casey entered the hotel room.

She stuck out my tongue and made a face. "Who's that?"

"Lawrence," Jasmine replied before turning her attention back to the telephone. "You can grill her for details later. We'll see you in a bit." She hung up and looked Casey up and down. Although she didn't say anything, she wore a self-satisfied smirk on her face.

"Why the hell are you looking at me that way?" Casey laughed.

"Did you get my text message yesterday?" Jasmine queried sweetly.

"Yes, I got your text, know-it-all," she replied, giving her the middle finger. She sat down on the nearest bed.

"So he asked you to spend the night, huh." It wasn't a question.

Casey rolled her shoulders and stretched her arms up, staring at her friend but saying nothing.

"I take it we're beyond the 'it just kinda happened and we have no idea why and it definitely won't happen again' stage then, huh?"

"I don't know, Jazz!" Casey exclaimed, throwing her hands in the air for good measure. "It's so...it's crazy, OK? Last night I figured it might be a little awkward or whatever when we woke up, but it wasn't." She couldn't help the smile that came to her lips as she thought up the morning. "Not even a little bit." She shrugged her shoulders. "I have no idea what the hell I'm doing right now! This makes no fucking sense. To go from Tony, barely two months ago, to...to whatever this is with JC." She sighed. "I'm insane, aren't I? Like, I literally need therapy right now, I think. Maybe my mom was right."

Jasmine smiled sympathetically. "I think you've been stressed lately. And as long as this thing with JC isn't stressful, why not go with it? And I don't think you need therapy, either."

"Anyway," Casey began with a shake of her head, "I take it Lawrence and Mike know."

Jasmine grinned. "Yes, but I didn't tell." When Casey looked at her suspiciously she continued, "I promise. Justin already knew and I guess he kind of hinted at it to the other guys and they all kind of figured it out. We all played cards last night and at some point Chris started talking about it to Lawrence and then Lawrence told Mike last night."

"You guys are like teenaged girls."

"And lately you and JC are like rabbits," she quipped. Laughing at Casey's disgruntled expression she went on. "Two nights in a row and you didn't think anyone would put it together?"

Casey threw a pillow. "No one put it together; you just said Justin told everyone!" She took a deep breath and rolled her eyes. "Whatever. We ran into Lance on the way out of JC's room this morning and I was mortified."

"Why? Because he knows you guys were banging it out? You're both adults. Adult people have sex sometimes. No biggie."

She made a face. "It's not that." She gestured vaguely in front of her. "It's just that...Tony was here and there was that whole thing and now, a few weeks later, there's JC and I just...I don't know."

"No one is judging you, Case," Jasmine began soberly. "What happened with Tony wasn't your fault and we're all glad that he's gone.

"And I can only speak for myself, but if anything, I'm happy that you and JC are doing whatever it is you're doing. You have a real, genuine smile on your face for the first time in a very long time. If you two do nothing but have fabulous sex for the rest of the tour, I'll be thrilled for you. And if it turns out to be more, well, then I'll be even more thrilled for you."

If it turns out to be more... Jasmine's words rang in Casey's ears. "It's way too early to even think about more," she said finally. "But you're right about one thing."

"What?"

"He is spec-fucking-tacular in bed!" Casey shivered and fell back on the bed dramatically.

"Are you finally going to give me details?" Jasmine asked impatiently.

Casey snickered. "No, because you're a gossip."

"I hate you," Jasmine joked.

Casey sat up. "It's only been a few times, but he's just...he's intense. And I don't even know. He looks me in the eye and it's like, unnerving and sexy as fuck all at the same time. And the way he talks to me?" She shivered again and stared into space.

"He's into dirty talk, huh?"

Casey shook her head slowly, brown eyes introspective. "Not exactly. Not like anything disrespectful. But, just like, he tells me how I make him feel and...wow."

"Casey, you're so full of shit," Jasmine said emphatically.

Casey's head snapped up. "Why? What do you mean?"

Jasmine threw the pillow Casey had thrown back at her. "It's too early to think about more? Isn't that what you said? You're so sprung on him it's almost funny."

Casey wrinkled her nose distastefully. "No!" She paused. "I mean...it is too early and just..." She trailed off.

"Except that technically, it isn't that early; you were into him way before this tour." Jasmine pointed out.

Casey took a deep breath and let it out slowly. "I just don't want to be that girl, OK?"

"And what girl is that?"

"That girl who, like, gets attached and it's too quickly and for all the wrong reasons, you know?"

"And what are the wrong reasons?"

Casey rubbed her hands over her face. "I don't know. But I don't want to be that girl. We're having fun and that's good enough. I could use some fun."

Jasmine smiled lightly. "Whatever you say, Case." She looked at the clock. "It's almost eight; I take it you're not going down to get breakfast?"

Casey's eyes widened. "Hell no. I know they know, but I'm so not ready to see everyone. Especially not Chris and Justin; they're going to be the worst."

"They're going to be hysterical," Jasmine cackled. "The jokes will be epic."

Casey rolled her eyes and stood up. "I'll be on the bus."

***

"Man, she was so hot." Joey laughed.

"Which one was it?" Justin asked. "The brunette or the redhead?"

"The brunette," Joey and Chris replied in unison.

"How'd you know?" Joey asked.

Chuckling Chris replied, "Her dress was shorter, tighter, and her boobs were bigger. It was an educated guess."

Joey nodded, a huge grin on his face. "Yeah, well, I got her number. Told her I'd call her the next time I was in town."

And he would, they all knew, because that was just the kind of guy Joey was. It was no secret that Joey liked women, and his success in *NSYNC had afforded him access to an untold multitude of them. Joey's personal motto was that variety was the spice of life, and he was doing his best to experience as much of it as possible.

Joey was recounting his latest conquest when the door to the banquet room opened. They looked up to see JC.

He noticed all eyes turn to him and he shrugged. "What's up, guys?"

Chris smirked. "That's what we were gonna ask you."

"Yeah, man, you've disappeared after two shows now. What's going on?" Joey quipped with a wicked grin.

JC walked down the buffet line, peeking into each covered container before grabbing a plate. "I didn't disappear." He began loading his plate. "I'm starving."

Justin, though smiling broadly, remained quiet.

Chris snickered. "Vigorous activity will do that, isn't that right, Joe?"

"Oh, yeah," Justin joined in, nodding, "Joey knows all about vigorous activity."

"Seems like JC does, too, now, huh?" Joey raised his eyebrows at JC.

After grabbing some silverware from the end of the buffet line, JC joined his friends at their table. "Yeah, dude. Last night's show exhausted me." He began shoveling food into his mouth.

Chris, Justin and Joey exchanged glances. "So was this the public show that we were all in, or the private after-show that only you and Casey were in that exhausted you so much?" Chris asked, feigning concern.

JC shook his head and kept eating. "Thanks, Justin."

Justin burst out laughing. "Hey, man, I didn't actually tell them anything."

"It's true," Joey cackled. "When he told us you didn't spend Wednesday night alone, we all just kind of guessed it was Casey. It made sense."

JC stopped eating and gaped at all of them. "What do you mean you just guessed? How was Casey an obvious choice?"

The other three men groaned. "Come on now, JC," Chris began, "you've been pining after her since day one."

JC grimaced. Chris was right, but he didn't like that he was right. "I wasn't pining," he mumbled. "I don't pine."

"Oh, I think you were pining," Joey said jovially.

"Yeah, full on pining since she started the tour. I thought it would get better after Tony left, but it actually got worse," Justin explained.

JC rolled his eyes and went back to eating. "I don't pine," he muttered again. The other guys ignored him.

"So, what's the deal now? Was it a once and done deal or you guys like, a thing now?" Chris asked, stealing a piece of bacon from JC's plate.

"You mean twice and done, Chris. Or is it three times now, JC? Rumor has it she spent last night with you," Justin pointed out

"Oh, we're having sleepovers now?" Chris joked. "That's a pretty big deal."

Aaron, one of their bodyguards, entered the room. "Come on, guys; it's about to time to load up."

After finishing the bite he was working on JC replied, "We don't know what it is now. We'll see."

"I guess we will," Justin said with a knowing smile.

***

"I can't believe you weren't gonna tell us, Case!" Lawrence lamented.

They sat around the small table in the kitchenette of the tour bus; Casey was tearing into a bowl of Golden Graham's topped with sliced bananas. She and Mike sat on the side facing the front of the bus, while Jasmine and Lawrence sat opposite them. They all had drinks from Starbucks; Casey nursed a venti something-or-other with two extra shots. Lawrence and Jasmine ate pastries along with their coffee, and Mike had assembled a coarsely chopped fruit salad of apples, bananas, strawberries and blueberries that he paired with herbal tea. He was, by far, the healthiest eater among them and they sometimes ribbed him for it.

Music videos were playing on the large screen wall mounted behind Casey's and Mike's heads; the sound was muted and the only thing they could hear was an occasional muted laugh or cheer from way in the back of the bus; two of their bodyguards, Eddie and Malcolm, were in the back lounge area playing a new video game. Christoff, the other bodyguard, was seated up front near Sam, the bus driver.

Casey's phone vibrated in her hand and she looked down to see that JC had sent her a text message.

Just FYI: They all know. It'll be cool. Promise.

She replied. Thanks. L is reading me the riot act now for not telling first. It's like high school with these kids. ;-)

It's worse! Talk to you later. :-)

"You're not even paying attention, are you?"

Realizing Lawrence was talking to her, Casey reluctantly looked up from her phone with a sheepish grin. "Wh-What were you saying?"

Mike laughed. "No, she definitely wasn't paying attention."

"Obviously," Lawrence muttered.

"So, what are you guys going to do for the next two nights?" Jasmine asked with a grin.

"What do you mean?" Casey flipped her phone closed. "What happens the next two nights?" She spooned more cereal into her mouth and looked back and forth amongst her friends.

"We're traveling," Lawrence answered. "No hotel stays, so no nookie."

"Unless they get it on on the bus," Mike offered. "Tour bus sex would be hot. Kinda like the mile high club."

"We should call it the mile long club," Jasmine interjected.

"I thought the mile long club meant sex on a train," Lawrence said.

"Train, tour bus; it's sex in a moving vehicle that isn't a car," she replied.

"Is there a name for sex in a car?" Mike asked.

Casey cleared her throat, feeling her face grow hot. "There won't be any sex on any tour buses, kids. And thanks for your concern, but we'll be OK."

"I still wanna know why you didn't tell us, Case," Lawrence said. "We would've kept it a secret." He couldn't hide his smile.

Casey threw a wadded up napkin at him. "You're a liar and a gossip and that's why I wouldn't have told you." She chuckled. "It wasn't a secret, though. I just wasn't sure...what was going to happen next." She shrugged.

"And now you are?" Jasmine asked, eyebrows raised.

"No, I just mean, like, I thought it would be that one time and--" She stopped as everyone laughed. "What? Why are you laughing?"

Mike shook his head, grinning. "Casey, it's been obvious to literally everyone on this tour that you and JC were interested in each other."

"No way," she insisted, remembering their first meeting. "You guys don't even know. Anyway, I've gotta make a phone call--"

"JC?" Lawrence interjected with a smirk.

She shook her head and laughed. "No! I'm calling my family, nosy."

After clearing her spot, she left them sitting around the table and walked through the door that led to the narrow passage that housed their bunks. Before closing the door behind her, she heard the volume go up on the television.

There were two columns of three stacked bunks recessed into the wall, on either side of the narrow walkway. Her bunk was in the middle, on the left hand side, in the first column. She pulled back the black curtain covering her sleeping space, and launched herself into her bed. Having readjusted the fabric back into place, she pressed the small circular light mounted on the back wall to illuminate the dark. The light wasn't very bright, but it was perfect for reading and writing, which was how she spent a lot of time while they were on the road.

Her bunk was relatively neat; she rarely made her bed outside of changing her sheets, but other than a mass of pillows and blankets, the only other things she kept in the tiny area were some notebooks, writing utensils, and her MP3 player with headphones. She pushed everything to the bottom back corner of the bed and cuddled up with some pillows. She depressed the light again, and in the blackness, scrolled through her cell's phonebook, chose an entry and hit 'send.'

The phone rang once, twice, and a breathless voice picked up. "Casey!"

She grinned into the phone. "Matty! How are you, little bro?"

"Mom told me you called on Tuesday while I was in school; why didn't you call back?"

She laughed at the high-pitched whine in his voice. "I'm sorry, kiddo, but I couldn't. You know how it goes."

"Yeah," he grumbled. "I know."

"But I'm calling back now, right?"

Matthew was ten, and one of the people she missed most while on the road. Despite their significant age difference, or maybe because of it, she and her little brother had an incredibly close bond, and she missed him probably more than anyone or anything else while she was traveling.

"So where are you now?" He loved the idea of traveling the country by bus and she hoped that, once summer came, he would be able to join her for a couple of her tour dates.

"Well, we're on our way to West Virginia, but I'm not sure where we are exactly right now. We've been on the road for about an hour, I guess."

"What time is it?"

She smiled; every time they spoke he asked the same questions, wanting to know in which state she was, and whether or not they were in the same time zone. "I'm an hour ahead of you. And speaking of time, don't you have to be at school soon?"

He groaned. "Yeah, but mom's gonna drive me. If I had taken the bus I would've missed your call and who knows when you would've called back. I wish she'd just let me stay home anyway; we have some stupid assembly today."

"Oh, well that means less schoolwork then, right? That's a nice way to spend a Friday afternoon."

"I'd still rather just stay home," he mumbled.

"So," she began, changing the subject, "I'm counting down the days ‘til I get home."

"And that's soon, right?" His voice brightened.

"Yes, sir! A little less than two months, I think. And I'll be there for two whole days and nights, which means you have to plan something fun for us, OK? And, dude, we totally have to hit up Portillo's and Giordano's before I leave."

Second to her brother, Casey also desperately missed Chicago style hotdogs and deep dish pizza while out on tour.

Matty laughed. "Definitely. Are you gonna get to spend the night at home?"

She chewed her bottom lip; she wasn't yet sure but she didn't want to disappoint him. "I'll have to check on that, bud. But even if I can't, we'll still get to hang out, OK? And you get to see the bus."

He sighed. "Ok. Do you want to talk to mom before we have to go?"

"Yes, please. Love you, kiddo."

"You, too, Case."

She heard him calling for their mother in the background, shuffling as the phone switched hands, and then her mother's voice on the line.

"Hi, Sweetie, how are you?"

"Hi, Mom." She grinned into the phone. "I'm good; how are you guys?"

"We're great, honey. You know, same old, same old." Her mother paused a moment. "We miss you."

Casey closed her eyes, and tried to ignore the homesickness that hit suddenly and gnawed mercilessly at her. "I miss you guys, too. How's Dad?"

"He's good, working as usual. He's going to be upset that he missed your call again! He thought you were going to try to call last night; what happened?"

Shit, Casey thought. She had told her parents she'd call after last night's show, but JC had managed to push everything else out of her mind. "Oh, um," she stammered. "I, uh, got really tired after the show and ended up going straight back to the hotel to sleep." She hated lying , but there was no way she was going to tell her why she'd really forgotten to call.

"Are you sure you're alright, honey?" Her mother's voice was full of concern and Casey felt worse. Her mother and father had wanted to fly out to her immediately after the incident with Tony, and she knew they still didn't quite believe that she was OK.

"I'm fine, Mom, I promise. I'm actually feeling better than I have in awhile." That much was true; her time with JC had definitely raised her spirits. Still, she kept that part quiet.

"Well, you actually sound really good, honey," her mother admitted. "Tired, but good."

At this, Casey yawned loudly, and then laughed. "I'm actually pretty exhausted; coffee isn't even working now."

Her mom chuckled. "Well, you have a break coming up, don't you? Day after tomorrow?"

It was just like her mother to keep up with her touring schedule; if not for Matty, Casey was sure her mother would've tried to come on tour with her. Her mother also knew that when she had time off, she rarely took any down time.

"I want you to promise me you'll rest, OK, honey? Sit in the hot tub, or order room service and stay in the bed. Relax."

"I'll think about it, Mom." She chuckled at her mother's groan. "I know you need to get Matty to school, so I'm going to let you go. Tell Dad I'll call back tonight; I promise."

"Ok, Sweetie. I love you."

"Love you, too, Mom." She ended the call and stretched back in her bed. Before she realized it, she had drifted off to sleep.