* Chapter 2 *
The following Saturday, after daily phone calls, lunch and a mid-week movie/dinner date, Kevin decided it was time Mariah met the rest of his friends. The couple had bumped into Brian and his girlfriend Leighanne at Downtown Disney’s AMC movie theatre on Wednesday and the two women were quickly becoming friends. Meanwhile, the other bandmates had slowly learned about Kevin’s relationship. Their curiosity forced them to wonder who had been the woman to capture his heart.
On this particular afternoon, a week after the destined meeting, Kevin invited a small number of his friends to his house for a poolside barbecue.
Kevin and Mariah were in his kitchen fixing the burgers, marinating the chicken and tossing the salads. He watched as she folded the mayonnaise and mustard into the potato salad. She had been almost silent for the last hour - answering his questions with the least amount of words possible. He knew she was nervous about meeting his friends, especially his bandmates.
With the hope of reassuring her, Kevin stood behind her and reached around her shoulders pulling her to him. “They’re going to love you,” he assured her in a quiet voice.
“How can you be so certain?”
He gently removed the wooden spoon from her grasp laying it on the counter. Kevin turned her body toward his. “I know these people. I love you; they’ll love you.”
“I don’t know…” she muttered.
Kevin kissed Mariah’s nose. “Well, I do. Look at Brian and Leighanne. They know you and love you already. Trust me.”
She wrapped her arms around his waist and leaned into him. “I do trust you..oh, and for the record I love you, too.” Kevin smiled at her upturned face and kissed her lips gently.
The guests began arriving at 3 p.m. Nick and his sister B.J., an aspiring model visiting from Los Angeles, were among the first. “So, Train, this is the young lady?” the young man asked.
Kevin draped an arm over Mariah’s shoulder. “Sure is.”
“Actually, I remembered you from the charity gig. Old Kev over here forgot to tell us he was trying to get in good with the entertainment coordinator.”
“He’s sneaky that way. You know, I should thank you in person for that afternoon. The kids haven’t stopped talking about it. A couple of the candy strippers still have their eye on you…hoping you might come by again.”
“In that case, when are visiting hours?” He wiggled his eyebrows up and down. “Oh, I should thank you too.”
“Why?”
“For making Kev easier to deal with,” the blonde laughed at the scowl on his friend’s face before heading to the backyard. Brian and Leighanne arrived next. The two men watched as their ladies walked onto the patio and began to talk.
“Looks like we’re in trouble, Kev.”
“Yep, no telling what’s going to happen now.” He glanced in Mariah’s direction. “I’m glad they have each other, though. I’ve often wondered about Mariah’s friends. She never mentions them.”
“What are you thinking? That she doesn’t have any? That she’s ashamed of you? I mean, how realistic is that?”
“I know. I just worry about her. With our relationship, she needs to know who she can trust. A lot of acquaintances will come out of the woodwork trying to get closer.”
“From what little I know about her, I’d say she’s a smart woman. And now she’s has Leigh. My girl will show her the ins and outs.”
“I guess.”
“One thing is for sure. If this gets out, she’ll be more popular with her students.”
Kevin couldn’t help but smile. “The most popular teacher in Central Florida.”
A.J. McLean and Howie Dorough were among the last of the arrivals. By that time, the other guests had settled into comfortable chatter while Kevin and Mariah made the rounds to each group.
“What’s this?” A.J. asked no one in particular. “I think it just proves you can’t send Train to do Bone’s job.” He smirked as Nick and Howie laughed and in doing so, showered each other with their drinks. “See,” he said pointedly. “Now where are Kev’s tunes?” A.J. went back into the house in search of musical entertainment while Howie went to properly introduce himself to Mariah.
“Hi,” he greeted. She turned to acknowledge him. “You must be the lovely Lady Calliope Kev told us about. I’m…”
“Howie Dorough,” she interrupted and smiled at the quizzical expression that graced his features. “Kevin told me enough about each of you. I figured the crazy one who just left was A.J. By process of elimination, that makes you Howie.”
“Nice deduction, Mr. Holmes,” Howie returned with a wink. “Hey, Kev, you did well. She’s cute and smart. That’s two up on you.”
Mariah blushed then laughed. Kevin left his previous group of guests to join their conversation. “Just remember who saw her first, Dorough,” he teased taking her hand.
“If you ever tire of him, know I’ll be waiting in the wings.”
Mariah was quick to assure both men that it wouldn’t happen. “I love you too much,” she whispered in Kevin’s ear after his friend disappeared. He unconsciously shivered at the feel of her warm breath against his skin.
“Riah, that goes double for me.” He kissed her nose then her mouth.
Chapter 3
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