MKG: A Love To Remember - Chapter 16, Part D
"Get Ready...Tonight...Gonna make this a night [love] to remember." by Shalamar
My Kinda Guy
A Love To Remember
Chapter -- 16, Part D
by [JT Poole](mailto:jtsplace@nctv.com?subject=Story: My Kinda Guy) and Nicole Brown
Jan 30 -- Washington, D.C. -- The Essence Hotel - The Nursery
Nikki's POV
After I'd dealt with Josh, I felt an overwhelming urge to go sit with my boys for a few minutes at least, but I still had some packing to do. JC stood watching me like I had all the answers—like if I said everything was going to be okay then it would be okay. But the truth of the matter was that I was just as scared as he was—if not more so. My mind was going at about a million miles an hour, and all the fussin' in the living room ain't helping either.
"Lawd, we don't have time for this foolishness! We're supposed to be leaving soon!" I said in exasperation, smiling at Josh briefly before I kissed him quickly and led the way out of the kitchen, stopping just outside the door. "Josh, you go finish packin' ya'lls stuff so we can get everything to the doors for the pick-up while I check on the boys."
"Okay," he said, sounding relieved to finally have something to do. He headed towards their room, stopping and smiling at me before he went inside and closed the door. I sighed, my mind finally tuning in to what Johnny was saying.
"You two were having sex? Kevin, Nick you two know about this?" Johnny asks a look of sympathy on his face as he looked at Kevin and Nick.
Oh crap! The shit is about to hit the fan big time, and I for one don't want that stuff splattering on me, so I just walk back to the nursery as fast as I can and close the door, leaning back against it.
"You know, sometimes I think I need a long vacation away from all this craziness," I muttered as I went over to where Joshua and CJ played quietly.
The moment they saw me, toys were forgotten as they ran to me, pulling me down so that they could kiss my cheeks and then went back to their blocks. I couldn't help grinning as they babbled back and forth, real words creeping into the conversation every now and then, but for the most part, they were in their own little world.
"They're really good kids Mrs. Dorough," Leticia said as she finished packing the last of their clothes in a suitcase which she sat near the door. I grinned at her, sitting on the bed and watching the boys play briefly before a thought made me stand abruptly.
"Leticia, I'll be taking care of the boys for the next few hours, so you can feel free to go finish your packing and do whatever," I said as I knelt next to them. "How would you guys like to go see Daddy?"
"Dada! Dada! Dada!" they chanted in unison, their cherubic faces sporting huge grins.
I took their hands and led them to the bedroom where D and Tony still sat side by side, not having moved from the spot where I'd left them nearly a half hour before. Howie looked back at me, smiling at the boys briefly before his eyes became sad as Tony sat staring out the window on the DC landscape.
I walked Josh and CJ over and we stood in front of Tony, whose eyes were focused on some point beyond where any of us could see. He was as silent a s a ghost, and I knew he was feeling guilty about not having given Kelly what she'd really wanted—his last name—but I couldn't let him sink into this kind of despair when Briahna needed him... and so did his sons.
CJ was the first to let go of my hand and go up to Tony, rubbing the side of his face gently and saying, "It `kay Dada... lub wou," over and over again as he tried to comfort his father in the only way he knew how... the very same way Tony had comforted him many times since he'd been kidnapped and returned to us.
Joshua joined his brother, climbing up into Tony's lap and hugging him around his neck. "Lub wou Dada," he says softly as he lay his head on Tony's chest. Something in the way his sons held him finally managed to cut through the haze Tony was in as he hugged them both tight and began to cry.
"God, what am I gonna tell Bri?" he sobbed, cuddling Joshua against him. "How can I ever make her understand that as much as I loved Kelly, I couldn't marry her because she wasn't the one I wanted? How do I make her understand that she's my heart and soul?"
"Anthony, you have to tell Briahna the truth—that you followed your heart and it led you to true love with Josh," I said softly as I sat down beside him and hugged him. "Tell her that you and Kelly loved her with everything you had, but that you both knew that you couldn't live together because that wouldn't have been what was best for her."
I paused here, turning him to face me now as I said, "But most importantly, you tell you daughter that you love her with all your heart, no matter what anybody else might have told her! You do everything in your power to make sure that she's a happy, healthy little girl again, because at the end of the day, she's what matters most."
"Will you help me?" he asked softly, pulling me closer to him now.
I looked over at D, who stood watching silently, and then to Josh, who was crying too. I reached out to him, hoping to help the two of them come together again. He came slowly, almost reluctantly, but when his hand touched mine, I knew that things between them would be okay again.
"We'll all help you," I whispered as JC put his arms around us. D knelt in front of Tony, taking his hand. "After all, we're a family now."
Howie's Tour Bus -- 2 Hours Later
"How is he?" Howie asked as I shut the door to the room where Joey had finally fallen asleep. I smiled, my face tired and sad as I sat down next to him, laying my head on his shoulder.
"He's okay I guess," I replied, smiling as I sat up and tried rolling my shoulders to release some of the tension there. "He's asleep with JC and the boys in the bed back there... hopefully he'll sleep all the way to New York."
Howie pushed me forward and I slid to the floor, almost purring when he began massaging my shoulders. He rubbed gently at first, not wanting to hurt me, but when he saw that the gentle pressure wasn't working, he began to work a little harder to relax me. I rolled my neck, more tired now than I'd realized with all the chaos going on around me.
"D, I feel so horrible about all of this," I said with a sigh as he worked at getting the muscles in my neck and shoulders to unknot. "I'm the reason that Tony never married Kelly, and no matter how much I tell myself otherwise, I still feel this enormous guilt about being in his life for so many years when we should have been over years ago."
"Baby, there's nothing for you to feel guilty about," he said as he kneaded my shoulders. "Joey told me while you were gone that he wouldn't have married Kelly even if you hadn't been around simply because he didn't love her enough to want to spend the rest of his life with someone he didn't love. So stop with the guilt trips babe."
I had a killer headache now, but there wasn't anything I could do about it since I'm not allowed to take any kind of medication while I'm pregnant. I leaned back, pulling him down and we shared a passionate kiss, nuzzling each other before he went back to rubbing my shoulders again.
"That's enough," I said, giggling when he tickled my neck. I closed my eyes and laid my head in his lap, letting the rocking motion of the bus lull me briefly. "D, why is it that every time we're all together as a family something awful happens? It's like somebody's trying to tell us that we don't need to be together."
"I don't know baby," he replied with a sigh. "I wish I did know because Joe doesn't deserve the kind of pain he's in... hell none of us deserve this kind of craziness."
"I just wish all of this was behind us so we could go back to being happy, you know?" I said as I got up and went to get a bottle of water. I went back to my seat next to D, resting my head against his shoulder as I watched the miles go by. "I really just miss being at home with you and the boys, with no drama. How much longer do we have to be out here?"
"Just a few more days," he replied, kissing my forehead. "We get to New York tonight, do the show there, and then we're heading back out for home. We can probably stay at home since the concerts are in Orlando."
"You mean no more sleeping in hotel beds?" I asked, looking up at him with a grin. His answering grin made me snicker, but then I got very serious as I straddled him. "Not to mention that we get to make love in our own bed again... I miss our bed, don't you?"
"What are you up to missus?" he asked, nuzzling the side of my face. He began unbuttoning my blouse, fingers teasing me as I squirmed away from him. I stood over him, stretching and yawning.
"I think we'd better stop before someone catches us doing this," I said, about to go sit on the chair next to him when arms closed around me and I was pulled back to rest against my husband's chest and his lips went to my neck, sucking and licking there. "Honey cut it out! The boys are in the bedroom... not to mention JC and Tony are in there too."
"Honey, considering that you've had sex with both of them already, I don't think they'd mind seeing you naked again," Howie stated with a grin as he captured my lips again, nibbling on them before slipping inside my mouth.
I sighed against his lips, nuzzling against him as we held on to each other. When our kiss ended, I rested my head against D's shoulder, my heart content but my mind troubled. My headache was long forgotten now, but I was still having some crazy mood swings. D flipped the stereo on and Lenny Williams filled the room. I giggled against his neck as we began to dance together, totally absorbed in each other.
"D, I feel really weird about helping Tony raise his daughter with a woman who hated me," I said softly as we danced. He looked down at me, the understanding in his eyes making me feel weepy as I tried to explain what I was feeling. "I just think that maybe I shouldn't really be too involved in her life—especially since I don't know what Kelly might have told her about me. How do I know that she doesn't hate my guts?"
"Bri doesn't hate you Nikki," JC said from behind me, slipping up behind me and wrapping his arms around me too. "Joe tried to make sure that Bri knew how much you loved him, and that you would love her too, so stop worrying about that."
I relaxed between the two of them, swaying slowly to the music as we danced together. My mind knew that Josh was telling the truth, but I had a bad feeling about getting too involved in the raising of a child who was not mine I would help Tony as much as I could to help Briahna to adjust to the transition of living with her father full time, but beyond that, I was wary of getting too involved in the life of someone Phyllis loved as much as she did Bri.
"Is he still sleeping?" I asked softly, not wanting to disturb the peaceful vibe in the room by raising my voice.
"Yeah, they all are," Josh replied, smiling for the first time. "And you Mrs. Dorough need to teach your sons some serious bed etiquette. Those two were all over the bed! CJ kicked me in my shins twice and Josh almost maimed me with his fists of fury!"
"I-I'm sorry," I gasped, trying to catch my breath from laughing at him. "I should have warned you that they tend to be rough sleepers... are you okay?"
"I'm fine... and it's not funny," he said with a suitably affronted look. D and I looked at each other and then burst out laughing for real. JC tried to maintain the angry look for as long as he could before he started laughing too.
When the bus stopped suddenly, I sat down, feeling that icky nauseated feeling I always get when I'm about to get into a fight with someone. I looked out the windows, surprised to see that we weren't yet in New York, but instead we had stopped in a Roanoke, VA gas station to get gas.
"I wonder what's going on?" I asked as I went back to the bedroom to check on the boys and Tony. "Why don't you guys go see what's up while I check on the boys?"
They were all still asleep, and CJ and Josh had managed to turn themselves almost upside down in the bed. I smiled as I straightened them up, putting one on each side of Tony and tucking the cover over the three of them. I kissed CJ and Josh, smoothing their hair back before I looked down at Tony and saw that he was awake and watching me.
"Hey sleepyhead," I said softly, kissing him tenderly and sitting on the side of the bed. "I didn't think you'd wake up until we hit New York."
"I'm not really sleepy... just tired," he stated, smiling down at the boys before looking at me again. "Do you know how many nights I dreamed of us here like this? You, me, a bunch of kids sharing my bus while I was out touring the world with *NSync..."
"That was my dream for a long time too," I told him, lowering my eyes. "I used to pretend that I was the wife that all the fans loved. Remember how you would send me postcards from all over the world? I'd take them and tell all my girlfriends that as soon as you came home you were gonna take me away from Brooklyn... but you never did."
"I know baby... and I'm sorry," he said softly, pulling me down, he kisses me with so much tenderness it makes something inside me twist just a little at the thought that he and I will never be together like I'd always dreamed... but I have D and that's enough.
"You don't have to be sorry Anthony," I stated, smiling at him through my tears. "I know I messed up what we had when I married Michael... God I hate that I ever married that disgusting bastard!"
"But if you hadn't married him, we wouldn't be here right now `Licia," Howie said from the door where he and JC stood watching us. He came over to me, kneeling before me and wiping away my tears. "You wouldn't have the boys, and you wouldn't be my wife... and baby, I can't imagine my life without you."
"I love you!" I cried, hugging him so tight I think I might have cracked a few ribs, but he didn't care and I didn't either as we held on to each other as the bus began moving again. I settled back on the bed and D sat between my feet as the bus moved out onto the highway again. "What was the hold up anyway? Why'd we stop?"
"One of the other buses was having some trouble," Josh replied, smiling down at me where I sat rubbing my tummy. "Richard says we still have a long way to go, so we might as well get comfortable back here."
"Well, you guys can sit back here if you want," I said with a grin as I pushed D away and stood up. "But I and the little person in here are hungry. I think I'll fix us all something to eat."
"I'll come with you," Josh said, reaching out to help me out of the door. "We can fix dinner for everybody, that way when the boys wake up they can eat too."
"Good idea, Joshy-poo," I said, giggling when he smacked me on my ass. "Hey! No smacking of the ass unless it's in bed!"
"Stop giving him ideas!" Howie called after us, snickering when I gave him the finger.
Josh and I made dinner, waking the boys when it was done. We all sat around laughing and talking for awhile, with the noticeable exception of Tony that is, until I fell asleep in D's arms. I slept the rest of the way to New York, only waking when I needed to potty. I had a feeling I was going to need all the rest I could get.
Albany, NY -- JT and Kevin's House
Kevin's POV
What the hell is going on around here? How the hell did Simon get in here and what's he doing in our home anyway? From the looks of things, JT was looking at some pictures in the envelope. Oh my God, we just left him out there with Simon as the two of them struggled for his gun. If it hadn't been for Jaken walking out into the hallway, JT wouldn't have jumped him the way that he did, and we wouldn't be back here now, not knowing what's going on in there. Please God keep my husband protected.
When JT told me to get Jaken and told Nick and Justin to scatter, they ran into their room and I grabbed Jaken, went into their room and grabbed Toby and jumped into the closet. Under different circumstances, this could have been very funny. A scared white man, hiding in the closet with his two kids while his husband is fighting over a gun with a crazy maniac. Before another thought could pop into my head, I heard a gunshot and what sounded like Justin screaming.
Getting scared now, I got up and told the boys to stay put and not to leave. Both of them nodding at me, I opened the closet door and stepped out, looking around the room. Opening the bedroom door, I tipped out into the hallway and closed the door behind me. Bumping into Justin and Nick as they were tipping through the hallway too, we all ended up in the living room to see JT standing over Simon's body as the man laid on the floor coughing and spitting up blood. Running over to JT and hugging him, he held up his hand while he spoke on the phone.
"Just send a bus over here and get him, he's bleeding all over my carpet. I want him out of my house and away from my family," JT says, speaking to someone on the phone as the doorbell rings and he walks over to open the door, letting Tyler in. "That's right, he tried to extort money from me, my husband and our friends. He held us up with a gun...when my son came out into view from his room; I tackled his ass so he wouldn't hurt one of my kids."
Listen to him talk like that. I knew there is hope for us yet. To hear him say he was protecting his family, his kids, like that just made me feel all bubbly inside. I don't care what anyone says, our little family is going to work. I just know it is.
"Good, I'm here along with one of my security agents," JT says as he walks past Simon, kicking him on his leg as the jerk started twitching. "Yeah I think you best get that bus here as soon as possible. He took a bullet in the gut. He's still moving and breathing, but I don't know for how long."
"You two stay here, I'm going to check on the boys," I say as Nick and Justin held each other as they watched JT and Tyler work.
30 Minutes Later (And Some Crying) -- The Backyard
Nick's POV
Things are still a little bit on edge since the ambulance came and took Simon away. Justin and I were scared as hell when all of this shit started. I thought I was going to piss my pants when Simon appeared at the door with the gun. We both thought it was Chrissy, but it was his fucking ass. When JT came back into the room and found us up against the wall, a wave of relief washed over me, but that was soon replaced with fear when Simon started hitting JT in the chest with the gun and slapped him in the face with the envelope. I didn't know what to think about the pictures. How in the hell did he get those and when? Things took a turn for the worst when JT saw Jaken walk out into the hallway. My heart was in my throat when JT tackled him and the two of them started wrestling for the gun.
Kevin ran and grabbed Jaken on JT's command and me and Justin ran to our room and closed the door. As his rule, when he tells us to scatter, we're supposed to get the hell out and do what we can to keep out of dangers way. Sitting behind the door with Justin in my arms, the two of us heard a gunshot and Justin started screaming, fearing that JT has been shot. Not wanting to sit around anymore, we got up off the floor and slowly opened the door as we tipped back into the hallway, bumping into Kevin as we went. We joined JT in the living room to see him talking on the phone while Simon lied on the floor bleeding.
Kevin left us out with JT while he went to go check on the boys. As soon as he opened the door, Jaken ran out of the room past him, running over to Tyler. Catching a glimpse of Simon being taken out of the house, he thought it was JT instead. Screaming at the top of his lungs, (boy can he scream), JT came out of the kitchen, looking around, expecting more trouble.
"Jaytee!" Jaken screams in Tyler's arms, struggling to get down.
"Jake I'm here," JT says, taking Jaken out of Tyler's arms and hugging the boy to his chest. "Everything's going to be alright Jaken."
"Jaytee!" Jaken screams again, hugging onto JT like his life depended on it. "Don't leave me."
"I'm okay buddy," JT says, looking Jaken in the eye, smoothing his hair back.
"Okay Jaytee," Jaken says, hugging JT tightly again as Toby cried too in Kevin's arms.
"Guys everything's going to be okay," JT says, as Toby looked at him and then back at Kevin.
"Why don't we all just calm down and take a few minutes," Kevin says, putting Toby down in the lounge chair next to me as JT sat Jaken down in Justin's lap.
"Since you two are up again, we might as well have some fun," JT says, pulling his shirt over his head and hanging it on a hook next to the door. "Would you like to get into the pool with me?"
"Ummm hmmm," Jaken says, nodding his head as JT took his shirt off, pulling it over his head, messing up his hair as Jaken started giggling. "Is Tobee coming in too?"
"Kevin, you going to bring Toby in too?" JT asks him, holding Jaken in his arms as he walked around the pool to the steps and rail.
"Toby you want to go into the pool?" Kevin asks the little boy as he just nods his head, still wiping his tears. "Okay we're going in too."
"Alright," JT says as me and Justin went into the pool house to change into something to swim in.
"Is the food ready?" I ask, looking over at Justin, who then looked over at Tyler. "I'm starving now."
"Well with the events of the night, I bet you are," Justin tells me as Tyler walks over to the grill and lifts the lid.
"The burgers are ready, but the steaks are still cooking," Tyler states, picking up the fork and poking the steaks. "I say about another ten or twenty and the steaks should be done."
"Are you guys' hungry?" JT asks, wading in the water with Jaken.
"Me not hongree," Jaken says, still hugging JT around the neck.
"I want Lucky Charms©," Toby says as Kevin shakes his head.
"You can't have that tonight," Kevin says, hugging Toby to his chest as he and JT got closer and kissed.
"Icky," Toby says, pushing JT and Jaken away from him and Kevin.
"Yeah, you might say that, but we like it," JT says, laughing at Toby as he turned up his nose, just as Nick and Justin jumped into the water, splashing the four of them. "Hey!"
"Trying to drown us?" Kevin asks, sticking his tongue out at Nick.
"I wouldn't drown you, I need you around for other things," Nick says, sticking his tongue out at Kevin as Tyler stood there at the edge of the pool, moving a lounge chair around so that he could sit in it.
"Tyler, aren't you going to come in?" Justin asks, turning around to look at Tyler.
"Naw, I'll stay up here where it's dry," Tyler answers him, getting up and walking back to the grill.
"Oh well, I did ask," Justin says, turning his attention back to me and the others. "So what's going to happen tomorrow?"
"Well we have a radio interview in the morning and then we'll go check out the venue," I tell him as I lean in and kiss him.
"So that mean it's going to be me, JT and the boys here while you two are gone?" Justin asks me, wrapping his arms around me from behind as Kevin and JT held the two little boys as they played with each other in the water.
"I guess so, well unless you want to come with us," I tell him as he shakes his head no.
"I'm going to rest up tomorrow," he tells me, kissing my neck. "I think the last few days have tired me out big time."
"Probably so baby," I tell him as Tyler walks over to the edge of the pool.
"Everything is ready guys. Come and get it," Tyler says, almost in a seductive tone. "I'm going inside to get the other things."
"Okay," I say as me and Justin swam over to the steps to get out of the pool.
"Alright you two we're getting out," JT says, pulling Jaken and Toby apart. "
Back in New York City -- The Hilton NY Hotel -- The BSB Suite
JC's POV
I'm glad we're at the hotel now, that drive was just too damned long. I don't know who decided to take the long route, but next time, don't. I don't really like being cooped up on buses for too long these days. If I have to go somewhere, I would rather fly and get there already. I don't always like to fly, but it beats riding on those damn buses.
I'm so tired right now I don't know what to do. It's not that I'm sleepy or anything, it's just that riding on the buses drains me somehow. Looking over at Nikki, D and Joe coming in, it looks like they feel just about the same as I do. Walking over to Joe and hugging him, he kisses me on the cheek and just sits down on the sofa in the room. Little Josh crawled up onto the sofa and sat in Joe's lap, hugging the man that was responsible for him being here, then looked up at D and Nikki with a sad expression.
Picking one of the rooms closest to the main door, I took our things in and just threw our bags on the floor. Sitting down on the bed, I pulled out my cell phone and noticed that I had twelve messages waiting to be listened to. Pressing the voicemail button to listen to them, I hear the first one from Tyler telling me that he missed me and that he couldn't wait for me and Joe to show up for the family reunion next weekend. With all that's going on, I'd totally forgotten about that. He also went on to tell me about the new love interest in his life. I tell you, my brother just doesn't know what he wants in a lover. One week he has a guy and then the next he has a girl. Maybe one day he'll figure out if he likes clit or dick.
Moving on to the next message, it's mom and she's calling to remind me of the family reunion in a week too. Saving her message to listen to later, I move on to the next one and it's from Kalin Taylor back at Pleasant Valley Sanitarium. She's a little upset that Joe and I haven't returned to Orlando yet. Since I was released to him on a three day pass and that time has already run out, she states that if I'm not back in Orlando in the morning, she's coming to find us. Saving her message too, I move on to the next one and it's another one from her. She's basically restating her previous message to me and that I should give her call. After writing the number done on the pad from the night table, I sigh as I get up. Walking to the door, I see that Joe is sitting next to Nikki as he's talking to someone on the phone.
"I might as well call Kalin and tell her where I am and that I can't come back right now," I say to myself, walking back over to the bed and sitting back down.
Getting myself in a good frame of mind to talk to her, I take a breath and dial the number she left for me. Waiting for her to answer, I sat there with my eyes fixated on Joey and Nikki. I have to admit, now that we've shared something special I feel closer to her, but I just feel a little bit jealous. I know I shouldn't feel that now, but I should be with him now helping him through this, not Nikki.
"Hi Kalin," I say to her, hearing Joe sniff in the other room. "I'm returning your call."
"Hello Mr. Chasez, I'm glad you remembered to return my call. Where are you and your husband?" Kalin asks me as I just lean up against the headboard of the bed.
"Kalin we're in New York City right now," I tell her, looking back in Joe's direction. "I don't know if you've gotten the news there in Orlando, but Kelly Baldwin, the mother of Joey's daughter, was killed recently and we're here getting things taken care of so that he can take custody of his daughter Briahna."
"Oh my God, I'm so sorry to hear that Josh," Kalin says as I could see Nikki hugging Joe to her bosom. "When did all of this happen?"
"A few days ago," I tell her, looking down at my lap as I could feel tears burning the corners of my eyes. "But he didn't find out until this morning."
"Oh my, I haven't seen any kind of news coverage of it," Kalin tells me as I get up, trekking to the door and closing it.
"Well it happened and we're trying to get things taken care of with his daughter," I tell her, sitting back down on the bed now, letting a few of my tears fall as I was sad about Bri too.
"Well Josh do you need any help?" She asks me as I took my shoes off and pushed the covers back and got into bed, pulling the sheets up to my chin as I lay on my side, clutching the pillow. "I'm here for you and your husband if you need me. If needed, I can come to you to help the both of you through this."
"I...I don't know what to do right now," I tell her, something snapping in my mind and my tears started to flow. "I don't think...I don't think I can do this. I'm not strong enough."
"Josh calm down. Remember the breathing techniques we talked about. Just relax and take things step by step," she tells me as I held on to the pillow tighter.
"I...I can't calm down Ms. Taylor, things are happening too fast," I tell her, gasping for air as my tears took over.
"Josh? Josh you need to get control of yourself and calm down," she tells me as I start to sniffle, wiping my eyes on the bed sheet.
"I can't get control. I can't...I can't handle all of this," I tell her as I just let the phone fall.
"Josh...Josh speak to me," I can hear her say as I just tuned her out and pulled the covers over my head as I cried.
TO BE CONTINUED...
STORY WARNINGS & DISCLAIMER
I don't know any of the members of «N SYNC, Backstreet Boys or any other celebrities mentioned. I don't know anything about their sexual orientation or the orientation of any other celebrities in this story (even though I wish some of them were gay). This story is fiction and you shouldn't take it for anything else but that. This is for entertainment value only folks.