Justin tucked Gia beneath the covers of the hotel bed and kissed her forehead. She mumbled something before snuggling down into the sheets and falling back asleep.

After she had calmed down enough to give him directions back to the hotel, he drove while she slept in the passenger seat.  Exhaustion was written all over her face and she looked not unlike a zombie.  Really, Justin couldn’t blame her, because what she had just gone through with her mother would be difficult even on the strongest person.

He quietly stepped into the bathroom to take a shower.  He was hoping to ease away some of the stress of the morning.  He had expected things to be awkward with her mother, and he was even expecting yelling, but what had just taken place wasn’t something he’d ever imagined.

He was in a shock of his own.  He had just found out that his girlfriend had been raped by her step father, and to make it worse, her own mother blamed her for it, too.

This new piece of information explained a lot.  When he and Gia had started dating she had been apprehensive when it came to anything sexual.  She had explained that it had been a really long time for her and she was unsure of herself.  Of course Justin had done what he could to make her comfortable.  The strange part—that now made sense—was that once their relationship became physical, Gia was almost always the aggressive one.  She liked to be in control and even if Justin would initiate something, Gia would take over.  He wasn’t going to complain, but he did wonder sometimes.

Now he understood.  She probably felt that being in control of the situation would erase the memory of being taken advantage of by another man.

Tipping his head back, Justin let the hot water run down his face and over his body, rinsing off any soap.

He tried to stop thinking about the times he and Gia had been together.  It wasn’t helping his frustration.  And now, he was worried about doing something to hurt her or push her. 

With a huff, he stepped out of the shower and dried off, quickly getting into some comfortable clothing.  It was only around eleven in the morning, but he figured he and Gia could nap for a while to help relieve some of the stress.  Standing there listening to Gia’s mother berate her daughter took more out of him than he thought.

He stepped out of the bathroom and glanced at the bed.  Gia’s back was turned to him and he smiled when he heard her snore lightly.

He padded over to the bed and pulled the covers back before sliding between the sheets.  Gia stirred and rolled over to face him, her eyes heavy with sleep.

“Hey, I didn’t mean to wake you.”  Justin reached over and pushed some hair out of her eyes before kissing the tip of her nose.  She smiled.

“It’s ok; I was waiting for you to get here.”  Her voice was thick and she seemed ready to fall back asleep any minute.

“I’m here now, go back to sleep.”  He kissed her soundly before pulling her to him and tucking her into his chest.  Gia wrapped her arms around his torso and breathed in deeply.

“Justin,” she mumbled but he heard.

“Mmm?” he pulled back a little to look at her sleepy face.

“I love you.”  A grin spread across his features and he pulled her close again.

“I love you too.”

~*~

They spent the rest of the day hanging around the hotel and relaxing.  They ordered room service and watched movies, deliberately keeping the mood light.  There were things that needed to be talked about, but neither Justin nor Gia were up to facing those demons yet.

Currently, Justin was getting ready to meet James for a day at the golf course.  Gia was going to spend the day with her sister and the kids while the boys played.  She had left a few minutes earlier, and Justin was waiting for James to get to the hotel to pick him up.

He was a little nervous.  For one, the man was huge and intimidating.  He was also Gia’s brother-in-law, and Gia had mentioned how close they were.  Apparently James was a big part of Gia’s life and she cared about her as if she were his little sister.

He finished getting ready and grabbed his clubs.  He didn’t like to think of himself as a spoiled pop-star, but when James had mentioned golfing Justin had placed a call to LA and had his clubs shipped out.  Golfing was his weakness.  He also figured it was a good way to get to know Gia’s family.

He headed toward the lobby and met James out front.

The car ride to the golf course was filled with talk about the previous evening’s sports news and other random chatter.  Justin really liked James and he hoped he was liked in return.

Twenty minutes later the two men were on the course getting ready to start their game.  Justin watched James tee up and he couldn’t get over the man’s size.  He had shoulders wider than some of his body guards and hands that looked like they could bend steel. 

“So Megan said that you and Gia had a run in with her mother yesterday?”  The bigger man asked.

“Yeah.  Gia told me some of the things her mother had done…I guess I didn’t realize how horrible the woman was until I listened to her talk to Gia.  It makes me sick just thinking about it.”  He tried not to visibly shutter, but the memory gave him the chills.

“She also told me that you found out about Rick.”  James eyed the man carefully, wanting to gauge his response.

“Yeah.  I had no idea.”  He paused for a moment to think before looking James in the eye.  “It makes me want to protect her even more.  I wanted to save her from whatever was getting to her before, but now I want to make sure nothing ever hurts her again.”

James stared for a moment before he turned back to his ball and swung the club.  Justin flinched at the power behind the hit and cleared his throat.

“What’s young longest drive?”

“Uhm…my buddies and I were just fooling at the driving range once and I hit one over 300 yards, I’m not sure what my best is on the course.”

Justin whistled with an impressed sound.  He walked over to the tee and got ready to take his turn.

“I have to be honest with you, Justin, I wasn’t sure if I was going to like you or not.”  James started and Justin paused at the tee.  “Gia is my little sister and I would do anything to make sure she’s safe.  I’ve seen that girl deal with a lot of shit in her life and I will do anything in my power to keep her from having to deal with anymore.”

Justin finished through with his swing and the two men started walking toward their balls.

“I feel like I’m a teenager and I’m being interrogated by the father on the first date.”  He let out a nervous laugh but stopped when James didn’t reciprocate.

“Gia’s a big girl and she sees something in you, but I swear, if you do anything to hurt her I will find you and end your singing and dancing career.”

Justin swallowed hard.

“I love her, more than I’ve loved anyone in a long time.  Having to spend three months without her just made me realize how much I need her in my life.  I would end my career myself before I would do anything to hurt Georgia.”

James eyed Justin after he finished his speech and Justin prayed that it wasn’t obvious how profusely he was sweating.  After what seemed like hours the bigger man gave Justin a huge grin and slapped him on the back.

“I knew I liked you, Timberlake.”

Justin let out a huge breath.  Now that the interrogation was over the two men proceeded to finish their game and have a good time talking sports and music.

 ~*~

“Madison, stop teasing your brother!”  Megan scolded her 5 year old and then picked up her screaming 18-month-old to try and sooth him.

Gia watched her big sister with a smile.  It was never dull being with her sister, and even when they were being brats, Gia adored her niece and nephew. 

“Here, let me take Ryan.”  Megan gladly handed over her youngest and proceeded to take Madison by the hand as they walked through the mall.

“So, Gia, I have to tell you that Justin is much more attractive in person.”  The older sister grinned and Gia blushed a little.  “I mean, I know we were pretty close when we went to that concert of his, but damn!”

“OK, you can stop drooling over my boyfriend.  I don’t say things like that about James, do I?”

“No, but he’s your big brother, that would be gross.”

Gia had to smile at her older sister’s antics.  Even though they were five years apart in age, Megan was one of Gia’s best friends.  She and her sister had grown very close growing up and that hadn’t changed one bit when Gia flew cross country.

“So, how are things with lover boy? Lordy, I never ever thought that you would be shacking up with Justin Timberlake.”

“Way to be tactful, Meg.” Gia laughed, “Things are better.  I mean, it was strange starting over again, but we’ve made more of an effort this time.”

“How did he handle the news about Rick?  You said you weren’t sure if you were ever going to tell him.”

“After we left Mom’s house he told me that he loved me and no matter what she said it wouldn’t change his opinion about me.  We haven’t talked about it yet, but I know I need to.  I’m sure he has questions and I think he deserves some answers.”

They walked in silence a little while, stopping to browse through a cart of jewelry.  Ryan started to fuss and babble the few words he knew for “hungry” and when her brother started getting attention, Madison started to complain about being hungry too.

“All right, we’ll go get food.”  Megan strapped Ryan back into the stroller and the group walked to the food court.  Gia waited with the kids while Megan ordered and when the food was at the table and everyone was settled, their conversation resumed.

“What are your plans after leaving here?  Are you headed back to L.A?”

“No, Justin’s Mom wants to see me and he thinks I need a mini vacation, so we’re spending a week in Tennessee.”

“You’re close with his mother?”

Gia nodded.  “She’s been more of a mother to me than anyone else.  Lynn and I hit it off when we first met, I don’t know how.  She just took me under her wing, so to speak, and we’ve been close ever since.  Even when Justin and I took that break, she would still call to check up on me.”

“Why did you take him back, after he left you, I thought you were pissed at him?”  Megan dipped a french fry in ketchup and handed it to her son, who then proceeded to smear it all over his face.

“I thought I was pissed too.  I was ready to write him off as a part of my past and I thought that the only way I could move on and get over all of my issues would be to forget about him.  When he helped me with that panic attack though, and I was sitting there in his arms…none of it mattered.  I forgave him for leaving without even having to think about it.”

The young girl let out a wistful sigh before finishing off her sandwich. 

“Gia, I wanted to tell you that James and I are behind you one-hundred percent.  He told me that he wants nothing to do with Mom anymore, either.  He said that I can take the kids if I want to, because she is their grandmother, but he will never set foot near that woman again.”

Gia sat back in shock and struggled with something to say.  She never imagined that her issues with her mother would affect so many people, but they had.

“He doesn’t need to do that, Meg, and you don’t need to stop taking the kids over there.  The only person mom’s ever failed was me, don’t punish your kids for that too.”

Megan shook her head while taking a sip of her soda.

“James hates the woman, Gia.  After everything she put you through, he said he can’t be trusted to go near her.  I’m not sure how I feel about it all yet, but I’m not happy about how she treated you.” 

Gia sat back in her chair and closed her eyes for a moment.  Even though the past 24 hours had been absolute hell on her, she felt light, somehow.  Having Justin with her and hearing that her sister and brother supported her made it all worth it. 

She felt like she was finally moving past everything, and even though she had a ways to go, she knew she was capable of making it.