"Mackenzie, I'm sorry," Denise said. "If I had any idea you had decided to stay in Orlando, of course you could have had the job permanently." Mackenzie tried hard not to let her disappointment show. She had come in to the office early today to talk to Denise about keeping her job. Instead she had found that Denise had hired someone to replace her. "That's okay," she told her. "My decision to stay was pretty sudden. There's no way you could have known before you hired Janice."
"AJ told me about Charles last night," Denise said sympathetically.
"You talked to AJ last night?" Mackenzie asked curiously.
"We talk almost every night," Denise told her. "Why?"
"Oh, no reason. I just thought he was out with Marissa last night," she said.
"Well, if he was, they made it an early night," Denise laughed. "Um, Mackenzie, AJ also told me that you two had an argument this weekend."
"That's a new word for it," Mackenzie said under her breath. Denise watched her speculatively. "You know," she said, "I think I do have a position for you here. Let me go run it past Brendan and see what he thinks," she said, getting up from her desk. "I'll be right back."
* * * * * * * *
Howie stopped short as he entered Mackenzie's office. Instead of Mackenzie, a petite blond woman was sitting at the desk. "Hello," Howie said, curious as to who she was.
"Oh, hi!" she said.
"I'm Howie D," he told her, reaching out his hand.
"I know," she said. "I mean, I'm Janice. Janice Roberts," she said, taking his hand.
"Hi Janice," Howie said, intrigued by the woman's English accent. He continued to hold her hand as he ran his eyes over her. "Are you a friend of Mack's?" he asked her. "Because I'm going to be awfully upset with her if she hasn't introduced me to you before now," he said suavely.
* * * * * * * * *
Mackenzie closed her eyes and leaned her head back against the couch. She hadn't slept much the night before, and now along with being out of a job, she probably looked like hell too. "Damn AJ," she muttered to herself. She sat up as she heard Denise come back in the office. She was surprised to see AJ following his mom. She hadn't realized he was here. He looked tired too, she noticed. Although why she cared she didn't know, she told herself.
Alex gave her a wary glance as he sat at the opposite end of the couch. He didn't know why his mom had insisted he join them. Denise sighed as she looked at first one and then the other. "This has got to stop," she told them.
"What?" AJ said.
"No, don't play innocent with me, Alex," Denise scolded. "You know what I'm talking about. You're not eleven years old anymore. If you're going to work together, you're going to have to get along." Mackenzie glanced over at AJ. He shifted uncomfortably on the couch and gave his mother a contrite look. "We'll work it out, Mom." he told her. Denise arched her eyebrows. "We will, promise," AJ assured her.
"Well, I hope so," Denise told him, "because Mack will be joining you on tour."
"What!" Alex and Mack cried at the same time.
"Brendan needs an assistant to help with the meet and greets and it'll help take Mackenzie's mind off of Charles," Denise explained. "But," she told them, "it's your decision, Alex. You have to agree to it."
AJ stood up, shoving his hands in his pockets and walking over to the window. "That's easy," he said, his attention focused somewhere outside, "she's not going."
"Alex," his mother said, "you promised you'd work out your differences." AJ shrugged in response. "At least make an effort," she said. "I'll leave you two to sort it out," she told them on her way out the door.
The silence between them lengthened as AJ continued to stare out the window. Mackenzie hadn't particularly cared for Denise's idea herself. But knowing that AJ didn't either, made her all the more determined to go. She finally made the first move. "AJ," she said, "it's not like we'd see each other that much on the road. I mean, you'll be busy, I'll be busy," she told him "you'll hardly even know I'm there." AJ tensed in response to her comment.
"You're not going," he repeated. Mackenzie tried another approach.
"AJ," she said pleadingly, "I really need this job. I have a small income from my parents and Howie won't let me pay him any rent for the house, but I've got to have a job in order to make it. And Denise pays really well," she added, "better than anything else I could find quickly." She sighed when AJ didn't answer her. "What is it?" she asked. "Do you want me to beg? Okay, I'm begging you, then," she said.
Alex closed his eyes and remembered the last time she had begged him and how he had obliged her. He groaned beneath his breath, laying his forehead against the cool glass of the window as he felt his body begin to respond to the erotic images in his mind. He took a deep breath and said "Fine! Go on tour!" He turned to face her and threw his hands up in the air. "Do whatever the hell you want! You always do anyway! But just remember," he said pointing his finger at her, "I'm not a babysitter! When you decide you want a grown up relationship, come find me! But until then, stay the hell away from me!" he said, storming out the door. He passed his mother on the way out and told her, "She's coming," before stalking down the hall.
"Well," Denise said cheerfully to Mackenzie as she came in the office door, "I'm glad that's all settled."
"He's not happy about it," Mackenzie told her.
"Of course he is, dear," Denise told her, "He just doesn't know it yet."
* * * * * * * *
They were three weeks into the tour and Mackenzie was still awestruck every time she saw the show. She had known the guys were good, but she hadn't realized just how good until that first show. And their fans absolutely adored them.
She was really enjoying working with the fans too, arranging the meet and greets and the fan conferences. At today's conference though, she seemed to be having a hard time concentrating and staying awake. She let her mind wander as one fan droned on and on about how she used to like N'sync and now she didn't because the Backstreet Boys were so hot. Mackenzie smiled to herself. She wondered what some of those girls would think if they could see the guys sitting around having belching and farting contests as they did regularly. She shook her head. They'd probably think it was dreamy she decided, biting her lip to keep from laughing at the picture in her head. She snapped back to attention as she heard the same fan ask Brian about his sleeping arrangements with his girlfriend, Bev. She couldn't believe how incredibly nosy some of the fans could be. Good Lord, what was she going to ask next? Whether he preferred the top or the bottom?
She stole a quick glance at AJ, surprised to find him watching her. They still hadn't made up even though she had tried to find an opportunity to talk to him. She had thought over his remark many times about what she should do when she was ready for a grown up relationship. But either he truly didn't have a minute to spare or he was doing a terrific job avoiding her. Mackenzie could tell that he was glad that it was B-Rok being interrogated by the fan and not him. She nodded towards Brian and gave Alex a slight smile. He surprised her by winking and grinning broadly before turning his attention back to the fans. Encouraged by his response, she made up her mind to talk to him tonight and let him know how she felt about the way things stood between them.
* * * * * * * * * * *
Mackenzie made her way down the hotel corridor looking for AJ's room number. She knew it was late, but she also knew that AJ had gone clubbing after the show. He usually did if they didn't have to leave that same night for the next venue. Howie had told her it was AJ's way of winding down after the excitement of performing.
She finally found his room and hesitated a few moments before getting up the courage to knock. She hoped he wasn't asleep or still out. She waited a few minutes, knocking one more time without getting a response. She sighed, and turned to leave. At that moment, the door opened and AJ stuck his head out. "Mackenzie!" he said, obviously surprised. "What are you doing here?" he exclaimed as he stepped out into the hall, pulling the door almost to behind him. He held a towel draped around his hips. Mackenzie ran her eyes over him, wetting her lips. "You told me when I was ready for a grown up relationship, to come find you. So. . . . here I am," she told him. Alex reached out to caress her face with his hand. "I've missed you, baby," he told her, as he stepped closer. As he was about to kiss her, the door behind him suddenly swung open. "Come back to bed, AJ," a half-naked woman whined.
Mackenzie stepped back in shock. "I'm. . . .I'm sorry," she told AJ, who had closed his eyes and laid his head in his hand. "I didn't know you had . . .. you had . . . . .company," she continued, backing away. She turned and ran down the hall.
"Mackenzie, wait!" she heard AJ call after her. She ran past the elevators and darted into the stairwell. She didn't know how many flights she ran down before she finally stopped to catch her breath. She sank down onto the steps, feeling tears prick at her eyes. She took a few deep breaths to calm herself. She hadn't been kidding when she had told AJ she hadn't cried over him since she was twelve, and she didn't intend to start now.
* * * * * * * *
Howie tossed and turned in his bed. He was worried about Mack. He knew the tension between her and AJ was really stressing her out. On top of that, she wasn't used to the rigorous touring schedule either. Hell, he'd been doing it for seven years and it still wore him out. He could imagine how tough it was for someone new at it. She had almost fallen asleep at the fan conference this afternoon. He sighed. He couldn't do anything about the schedule but maybe he could help her with AJ. He'd ask Brian and Nick for their help, too. They were always good at cooking up schemes and maybe between the three of them they could get Mack and AJ to make up.
Having settled on that plan of action, Howie's mind drifted to Janice, Denise's new assistant. He had talked to her on the phone several times since they'd been out on the road, but he was beginning to run out of excuses to call the office. He tossed and turned some more in the bed. He ought to just get up and go down to the hotel's club. It stayed opened all night anyway. Yeah, he told himself, that's what I'll do.
Howie entered the club to the blare of loud dance music. So far no one had recognized him. Or if they had, they hadn't approached him. He stopped at the bar and ordered a Corona. The club was really foggy, he thought, looking around. Evidently somebody had overdone it with the fog machine.
As he scanned the room for a likely dance partner, he noticed a pretty, blond woman in a short, black knit dress standing at the side of the dance floor. He couldn't see her face but what he could see, he liked. He made his way around to where she was standing, swaying to the music. "Excuse me, miss," he said, touching her arm to get her attention. She turned and smiled at him. "Janice?" Howie said, confused.
"Hello, Howie," she said seductively.
"What are you doing here?" he asked. She didn't answer as Boyz II Men's "I'll Make Love to You" began playing. She slid her hands up his chest. "Dance with me, Howie," she said, pressing her body next to his. Howie sat his drink down on a table and led her out onto the dance floor. He slipped his arms around her waist and pulled her close. He couldn't believe she was here in his arms. And God, the woman smelled like heaven itself, he thought to himself. He closed his eyes and breathed in her scent. When he opened them, he found they were in an outdoor courtyard. The fog out here, he noticed, was even thicker than it had been inside. He stopped moving to the distant music and lowered his mouth to hers. He groaned as she slid her tongue between his lips.
Janice unbuttoned his shirt and ran her hands across his bared chest. She pushed his shirt off his shoulders and leaned up to kiss his neck, working her way down to his chest. Howie ran his fingers through her hair as he watched her suckling his nipples. When she unbuttoned his pants and would have slid to her knees, he drew her back up. "You smell so sweet," he told her, biting her earlobe and running his hand up her thigh and under her dress. He was surprised, but pleased to discover she had on no panties. He ran his finger up her cleft, feeling how hot and wet she was for him. He backed up to a stone bench, pulling her with him. Before he sat down, he pushed his pants and boxers off his hips, freeing his erection. Janice moved over him, straddling the bench. Howie pushed her dress up over her hips and began to lower her down on to his swollen member. . . . . . .
Howie sat up breathing heavily. He looked around the darkened room,
disoriented. The only illumination came from the red glare of the
clock
radio. He reached down feeling the wet stickiness on his chest and
abdomen.
Hell, he thought to himself, he hadn't had a wet dream since he was
fourteen. He closed his eyes, trying to recapture the dream. He was
definitely going to have to get to know Janice better when he got back
to
Orlando.
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