Rylee made her way downstairs and into the kitchen, finding Justin at the counter making a sandwich.

“Hey.”  Her soft voice grabbed his attention for a moment and he turned his head to look at her.

“Hi.” 

She could tell that he was upset, and she couldn’t really blame him.  He was just trying to help and she was biting his head off.

“I’m sorry about before, I’m just having a tough day.”

Justin brushed the crumbs off the counter and into his palm.  He shrugged.  “Whatever, Rylee.  If you don’t want to talk to me, it’s fine.”  He grabbed the plate that his sandwich was on and the glass of milk next to it.  “I’m going up stairs, I’ll see you in the morning.”

Rylee watched as he left the room and traveled up the stairs, his back rigid and his shoulders taut.  She felt the familiar burn behind her eyes and she closed them against the oncoming tears.  She would not cry again.

Taking a few deep breaths, she calmed down a little and made her way over to the fridge.  She didn’t feel very hungry; in fact, she felt a little sick to her stomach.  It was probably because she hadn’t really eaten anything and she’d been crying all day.  Letting out a long sigh she started for the stairs again, turning off lights on her way.

She paused outside of Justin’s room, the lights of the TV drawing patterns on the carpet under the door.   She hesitated for a second, her hand poised on the knob, but the look on his face flashed through her mind and she took a step back.  A million thoughts were running through her head and she couldn’t decide which one to address first.

She shook her head to rid it of those thoughts and turned down the hallway toward her room.

The sky was dark with clouds and there were no stars visible.  There was little light in her room from the outside and everything seemed muted and dull.  The ache in her body had lessened to a tightening between the shoulders, where he stress usually seemed to settle.  She shut her eyes tightly, hoping to keep out the memories of watching Christina walking away, but he mind was working against her and the scene kept playing over and over again.

The rain tapped lightly on the window, reminding her that the world was still spinning even though she felt like it should’ve at least stopped to acknowledge her misery.

She knew she was being dramatic, but she couldn’t stop the feeling from festering.  The worst of it all was the guilt that was eating its way through her insides.  Never before had she felt so incredibly guilty about something, she didn’t know how to handle it.

Usually, if she and Christina fought, they would go a day or so without really talking and then they’d both break because they’d realize how stupid it all was.

That wasn’t going to happen this time.

Rylee tossed around in the bed again, letting out a frustrated grunt.  She glanced at the door, even though it was difficult to make out in the dark, and decided to stop trying to make herself sleep.

She got up from the bed and padded back down the hallway, watching the light that was still underneath Justin’s door.  It wasn’t latched all the way, so when she rapped her knuckle on it, it moved open a little bit.

Justin was seated at the head of the bed, propped up against some pillows.  He stared in her direction and Rylee suddenly felt nervous.

“I can’t sleep.”  She waited for him to respond, afraid that if she moved he would continue to ignore her.  But he didn’t.  He reached over and patted the spot on the bed next to him.

“C’mere.”  The smile on his face was small, but it sent a warmth through Rylee that she hadn’t felt all day.  She climbed up on the bed and snuggled under the covers when he lifted them for her.  “Are you OK?”  His concerned eyes penetrated through her own.

Rylee shook her head and shrugged.  “I saw Christina today.”

Justin’s lips formed into an ‘O’ but he didn’t say anything.

“She came back before I was finished packing, and…I don’t know.  I just, I keep replaying the look on her face over and over in my head and it hurts so much to know that I’m the person that put it there.  I’ve never seen her look like that, Justin.  I have never seen her look like someone had killed her best friend…or something.”

Justin wrapped his arms around her shoulders and pulled her into his chest.

“I’m sorry, Ry.  I wish I knew how to help you fix this, but I think that she’s going to need some time first.”

“Time so she can forget me and pretend I never existed?”  She looked up at him, tears filling her eyes again.  She felt pathetic.

Justin’s lips pursed in thought and he tilted his head to one side.

“Maybe, I don’t know.  And you can’t know either.  Just try and not think about it for a while, relax, try talking to her again in a couple of days.”

Instead of arguing with him, Rylee hugged him tighter and buried her face in his shoulder.  She knew that there was little chance of fixing things with Christina, even if she gave the girl time to cool off.

“Rylee, look at me.”  Justin waited until her blue eyes were locked on his own.  “I know what you’re thinking, and even if you and I aren’t together, it’s not going to fix any of this.”  He licked his lips and took in a deep breath.  “Please don’t give up on me because of her.  Pushing me away isn’t going to magically fix things with Christina.”

His words were heavy, burdening.  He was right, but she wasn’t ready to hear something like that yet.  She tried to push away from him but his arms held fast.

“Stop, Rylee.  Stop!”  She froze in place.  “I know you’re hurting, I do.  And believe me, baby, I would do anything to take all of that away, but you can’t push me away, you can’t.”

“Let me go.”  Her voice cracked and the tears spilled down her cheeks.

“No, I’m not letting you leave so you can go think up more ways to shut me out.”  Justin shifted on the bed so he was facing her more directly and he grabbed her wrists in his hands.  “I know that you don’t want to hear this, but I can’t help you if you’re pushing me away.  OK?”

She stared at him a moment, her eyes wide and wet with tears.  Her breathing was shallow and broken, her pulse beating rapidly underneath his thumb.

“I’m sorry.”  The damn broke and all of the emotions that she had been fighting off for the better part of the day came flooding through.  Justin pulled her into him and held her tightly.

“Don’t apologize, Ry, just stop pushing me away.  We’re in this together, remember?”

She wiped her eyes and gained a little of composure. 

“This is ridiculous, I feel like I haven’t smiled since this whole thing started.”  Justin leaned over and kissed her forehead, rubbing her back gently.

“How about we finish up what we have to do in the studio and then take a vacation of sorts.  I think we should be able to wrap up on these tracks in a couple of days.”

She stared at him with wide eyes.  “Vacation?”

“Sure, I think getting away from LA would be good for the both of us; give us a chance to relax a little.”

She thought about it for a second, liking the idea but worrying about everything else that was going on.

“Where would we go?”  She picked at the comforter, her hands a bit shaky and her breath ragged.  It had been a long weekend and she was exhausted, emotionally and physically.

“Well…I’ve been thinking about visiting my brother, he called me the other day and he wanted to get together…”

“That would be perfect.  I think we should do that.”  Justin smiled as he watched her eyes light up.

“Really?”  He nodded and she leaned forward to hug him close.  “Thank you.”

Justin pulled her back a little and grinned before capturing her lips in a kiss.  “You’re welcome.”  He kissed her again, holding her close.

When the kiss broke, Rylee sat back and let out a huge yawn, giggling slightly afterward.  “I guess I’m more tired than I thought.”

Justin helped her slid further under the covers, bringing them up and tucking them in around her.  He kissed her forehead softly, then the tip of her nose.

“Goodnight, Ry.  Get some sleep.”

~*~

There was a soft humming coming from somewhere in the bedroom and it stirred Rylee from her sleep.  She cracked open and eye to see Justin standing in the bathroom, shaving.  The door was open just enough so Rylee had a perfect view, and she took a little time to appreciate Justin when he wasn’t aware.

Apart from having one of the best bodies she’d ever touched, Justin was probably the nicest man she’d ever been with.  He had proved his worth by sticking with her through all of this, and she was entirely grateful for his presence in her life.  And it didn’t hurt that he had an amazing set of abs that were now on show.

Rylee stretched and slid out of the bed and onto the carpet.  She quietly made her way into the bathroom and over to Justin, wrapping her arms around his chest and pressing her cheek against his shoulders.

“Mornin’ you.”  He smiled at her reflection, his face covered in shaving cream.

“Hey.”

“Did you sleep OK?”  He stopped shaving for a second and caught her gaze in the mirror.  Rylee nodded and grinned at him.

“You have the most comfortable bed I’ve ever slept in.”  He laughed and continued to shave, his hands moving slowly over his face.

“So, are you ready to get into the studio and finish up these tracks?”

Rylee removed herself from his back and hopped up on the counter next to the sink.  She watched, mesmerized, as he moved the razor down his chin and neck.

“Yeah, I am.  I can’t wait to see how this all turns out, I’m really excited for this bad.  I think this is going to really make their album take off.”  She reached over to dab some of the shaving cream off of his chin and plop it onto his nose.  Justin stopped what he was doing and gave Rylee a strange look.

“Woman, what do you think you’re doing?”  She giggled and picked up the canister of shaving cream, shaking it and spraying a little in his direction.  Justin lunged toward her and grabbed at her sides, tickling her and wiping shaving cream all over any place he could get to.  Rylee’s giggles and screams sounded throughout the bathroom and it was the happiest sound Justin had heard in a long time.

“Stop! Stop!” She cried for mercy. Both stopped to catch their breath, chests heaving and faces covered in white foam.

“Look what you made me do.”  He grinned at her, his eyes glinting with mischief.  “You got us all dirty.”

Rylee couldn’t help but return his grin, her skin growing warm under his intense gaze.  She leaned forward on the counter and brought him closer to her, straddling his hips with her thighs.  She touched her lips to his and laughed when all she could taste was shaving cream.

“You taste bad.”  She wiped at his lips but only succeeded in getting things more messy.  Justin grabbed her under the butt and lifted her off the counter, bringing them both further into the bathroom.

“How about we clean up in the shower?”  His eyes deepened in color and Rylee could feel herself flush with anticipation.

Justin stepped into the shower stall, letting Rylee slid down his body until her feet were on the floor.  He wasted no time in taking off the tank top and shorts she had on, exposing her beautiful skin to his needy gaze.  Rylee pulled down his shorts and watched as he stepped out of them, taking her time to appreciate the rest of the view afforded to her eyes.

Justin reached behind Rylee, bringing their bodies flush as he reached to turn on the water.  Seconds later they were both standing under the spray of water, the white cream sliding down their bodies and to the drain.  Justin wiped the rest of the foam off of their faces so he could properly kiss Rylee.

She moaned into his mouth, smiling as his hands tickled her sides.  She pushed him so he was under the shower head, running her hands over his head and through his hair.  She sighed when his lips started to attack her neck and shoulders, goose bumps forming on her skin. 

Justin guided Rylee over to the wall of the shower, trapping her against him as he continued to rein kissed over her body.  He couldn’t get enough of her and he couldn’t wait any longer to connect their bodies.  He lifted her leg, bringing it up and over his hip before he slowly entered her waiting body.  Rylee’s head fell back and she let out a moan.

She had never felt anything as erotic or passionate as the things that Justin made her feel.  All thoughts flew from her mind as he continued to grind into her, his lips blazing a trail across her chest.

Rylee forgot all of the drama and stress she’d been experiencing over the past few days and just allowed herself to feel.  What she felt was incredible, and it was all because of this man; the man that was quickly capturing her heart.