“Boo! Come on, Tampa Bay. Dilfer you suck,” yelled Joey at the TV sitting in her den.

“You’re supposed to be throwing to the guys in red and black not green and white!” exclaimed Nick his arm around Joey sitting on the couch.

Joey had invited Nick over to watch the Tampa Bay game as she had every Sunday for the past month that she had lived there. Nick had helped Joey move into her new house and realized that she lived right behind him, across the bay. He still hadn’t told her he was a Backstreet boy but with him recording the third album, it kept him pretty much in Florida. Nick had never really shown her around his house and she never really seemed interested in seeing it. She had talked with the guys on the phone but their conversations never got around to Nick’s job or how the guys knew Nick. ‘Thanks God,’ thought Nick solemnly. When she did ask about his job he didn’t totally lie. He told Joey he was involved in the music business and he assumed that she thought he worked at a music store.

“Hey you wouldn’t believe what happened to me yesterday,” she said pulling Nick from his thoughts as she turned to him.

“I bet I would! Nothing surprises me when I’m dealing with you,” he stated giving her a kiss on the nose.

“Ha-ha, you’re a regular Denis Leary. Anyway Natalie said that I was being commissioned out to do an album cover,” she said her eyes glowing with delight.

“Really? That’s awesome! I’m so proud of you. Pretty soon you’ll be famous and I’ll just be that guy in Ruskin,” Nick commented hugging her.

“Never,” she said giving him a long lingering kiss “You’ll always be my Nicky.”

“So who is the album for? Run Alstott!” said Nick getting back into the game.

“Backdoor or Backalley. Something with Back in it, Yeah! Way to go, Tampa!” exclaimed Joey as the Buccaneers scored a touchdown.

Nick’s face drained of color and he stopped cheering. Joey had been commissioned to do Backstreet’s album cover? ‘No, this isn’t happening.’ “Do you mean Backstreet Boys?” he asked deadpan.

“Yeah, that’s it. Why? What’s wrong, Nick? You look like you’ve just seen a ghost,” her concern for her boyfriend growing.

“No it’s nothing. It’s just...um...they’re pretty big and-”

“Nick are you getting scared that when I meet these boys, I’m going to fall for one of them?” she asked slinking her arms around his neck “If I didn’t know you better, Nicky, I’d say you were jealous.”

“Me? Jealous? I’ve never-”

“It’s you I love and you I want, not some famous singer who probably has an ego the size of Texas. So you know what just shut up and kiss me before I have to beat you,” she stated now sitting in his lap arms still around his neck.

Nick, never one to disappoint his lady, kissed her deeply but not completely forgetting about what trouble he was in.

“And now she’s been hired to do the portrait of us for the album and now you’re going to get busted,” stated AJ plainly.

“Thanks for the vote of confidence, friend,” replied Nick sarcastically.

“He’s only trying to be honest,” said Howie sympathetically “What exactly do you want from us, though?”

“Help,” stated Nick.

“Tell her,” echoed through the studio and reverberated in Nick’s ears.

“It’s the only way, Nick. If you really care, you’ll tell her,” said AJ knowingly.

“Of course, I care. Joey is one of the most important people in my life. I think I might......you know,” stated Nick softly.

“Love her?” asked Kevin.

“Yeah,” replied Nick fidgeting with his fingers.

“Then you have to tell her-no ifs ands or buts about it. Tell her straight up,” said AJ plainly ending the conversation.

Joey had set up her easel outside and was painting part of Nick’s backyard that looked out over the bay.

“Joe, can we talk?”

“Sure, what about?” she asked brushing some paint across the canvas.

“Um, well you know how I-”

“Nick, honey, hold that thought I’ve got to get some more cerulean,” Joey had left her bag next to Nick and went over to him. She searched through her bag and found the color she needed. As she got up, Nick grabbed her arm.

“You have to know something,” he said seriously.

“Nick what is it?” she questioned cautiously

“I have to tell you something important and before I say it you have to know how I feel about us.”

“You’re scaring me, Nick. What is it?” Joey asked worriedly.

“I love you,” se said boldly.

“I know,” she stated relaxing and caressing his cheek with her hand “I always have.”

The two just sat there for a second until Joey kissed him on the nose and got up to go back to her painting. After that Nick knew that he couldn’t tell her and ruin her good mood. He knew he was being a chicken but he just couldn’t break her heart.

“So what did you have to tell me?”

“We can talk later,” said Nick getting up off of the blanket they had laid out and walking up behind Joey. He wrapped his arms around her waist “Right now, I just want to hold you and kiss you and kiss you and kiss you.” Nick planted small kisses on Joey’s neck and cheek as he said this, which totally distracted Joey.

“Nick, I’ve..uh, I’ve gotta finish this. I have a deadline,” she replied breathlessly as Nick continued to nuzzle her neck. He stopped and turned to look at Joey.

“I love your work and I love to watch you paint but right now do I look like I care? All I care about is forgetting all about my problems and worries and just concentrating on you and ONLY you,” he said pulling her off her stool and picking her up so she was eye level with him.

“Gosh with all the convincing you are doing, you should be a lawyer,” she replied leaning in and giving him a deep and passionate kiss.

“Bri....but....yeah I know....I said I know....OK....I will-promise,” said Nick into the phone.

Nick and Joey had come in the house once it had gotten dark outside. They had been in Nick and Aaron’s room playing a game of ‘Goldeneye.’ Joey had told him that she loved to run around slapping the hell out of people and he just had to see it. Joey had gone to the bathroom when the phone rang.

“No, I don’t....It’s not exactly as easy as saying the sky is blue....Oh yeah Brian, just bust out ‘Sorry Joey, I love you with all my heat and soul but I lied to you. I’m really in the Backstreet Boys and we have sold millions of records all over the world and the reason I didn’t say anything was because I wanted you to know the real me,’ beauty idea Br-” exclaimed Nick turning around to find Joey right behind him.

The tears were in her eyes and her palm connected with Nick’s cheek making a loud ‘smack.’

“I can’t believe you. Don’t you EVER speak to me again,” she said storming out into the hallway.

“Joey! Josephine!”

“No, Nick. Don’t even try. If I ever see you or talk to you again, it will be too soon. Ya know I actually believed you when you said you wouldn’t hurt me. I should have known that you’d be just like the rest!” she yelled running out of his house.

“Perfect, just perfect,” said Nick rubbing the cheek where Joey had slapped him.

“Joe, you wanna go get some ice cream?”

“Not really, Mom. I’m not that hungry,” she said from her bed where she was lying on her back.

“Sweetie, you’ve gotta come out of your room sometime. You have a job to do,” her mother said sitting down on the edge of her bed.

“I’m going to call Natalie and tell her I can’t do the portrait for the album cover,” she replied calmly.

“Honey, you can’t run away from Nick forever. He does live behind us,” she stated matter-of-factly.

“I can sure try. Besides he hasn’t exactly tried to apologize,” she said flipping onto her stomach.

“Well maybe you haven’t given him a chance to. When he calls, you refuse to talk to him. You don’t hear his dejected ‘oh, thanks Mrs. Covington.’ Honey, he was just trying to protect you. To keep your privacy, your normal life. He’s used to the constant intrusion in privacy, you are not. Can you really blame him for trying to keep you all to himself?” her mom asked sweetly.

“Well no but he should have told me.”

“Did you even ask?” questioned Kat.

“You mean about his job? No I never asked but he told me he was in the music business. I just assumed...,” Joey said trailing off.

“So you both messed up. I hate seeing you so depressed, Joe. You have a real problem swallowing your pride but I know you care a lot about Nick. You’re going to have to apologize if you ever want to move on. Closure, honey, you need closure,” she said rubbing her daughter’s back.

“But what if he lies again. This is just like you and daddy,” stated Joey close to tears.

“Sweetheart, your father and I had some great times together but we didn’t love each other anymore. Things had been over even before his affair.”

“But Daddy lied,” replied Joey loudly and sitting up to face her mom.

“Yes he did but he did it so I wouldn’t find out. He lied to help himself out of trouble. What Nick did was different, he lied to show you the real Nick not some famous rock star plastered in ‘Teen Beat.’ What Nick did was to protect you,” said he mother looking into her daughter’s eyes.

Joey sat on her bed thinking. Kat just stared at her daughter for a little while longer.

“Just think about what I say, OK? Josh and I are going to go get that ice cream now-you sure you don’t wanna come?” she asked getting up off the bed.

“Yeah, I’m just going to stay here and sort some things out,” said Joe as her mom nodded and left the room.

Joey went to her desk, pulled out a sheet of paper from the top drawer and started to make a pros and cons list for Nick. She wrote for a good half hour and smiled seeing she had ton more pros than cons. She went to her easel and tacked up a new canvas. She grabbed her supply bag and got to work.

“Nick, all Journey-ed out?” said AJ as he pretended to fall over and die.

“Grow fangs and bite me, AJ,” said Nick bitterly throwing AJ a death stare.

“‘Open Arms’ was his and Joey’s song,” informed Brian softly.

“She’s still not talking to you?” asked Kevin taking off his headphones. Each boy was in their own recording booth but could still talk to each other through an intercom.

“No, it’s not like I blame her, I did lie to her. God, I was so dumb! I just wish she’d let me explain. I only did it to protect her from my life. My privacy is invaded enough, hers doesn’t need to be,” stated Nick sighing heavily and flopping his head forward.

“You really care about her, don’t you?” asked Howie a little surprised.

“Yeah, I can talk to her. I mean really talk to her. I can tell her anything and know that she won’t judge me. She understands how I think, how I feel, how I dream-everything! I can’t believe how badly I screwed up,” he said lifting his head to look at the rest of the fellas.

“Why not send her flowers with a sweet card. Maybe that would get her to talk with you,” stated Brian casually.

“No way, too typical,” said Howie shaking his head.

“Send her some chocolates. Chicks love chocolate,” said AJ.

“Ehh! Wrong answer but thanks for playing,” commented Howie sarcastically.

“Then what would you do, Mr. Latin Lover?” questioned Kevin.

“Duh-do what you do best, sing to her!”

“You really think that would work?” asked Nick hopefully.

“Well, I think it’s a start. She has to talk to you even if it is to say get out,” said Howie.

“Let’s hope it’s not that. Do you guys mind if-” started Nick.

“Go already, we’ll work on our solos,” said Kevin smiling.

“Thanks,” said Nick bolting from his booth and out of the studio.

“Hey, Tampa. This is Lisa Richards here at WKIZ Kiss 96.8. Hope you’re keeping cool in this heat, if not here’s something to cool ya down-the Backstreet Boys with ‘All I have to Give.’”

Joey smiled as the song came on the radio. She had just finished her charcoal sketch and was smudging a few areas for a shadowing effect when the doorbell rang.

“Coming!” she yelled hoping the person at the door heard over her really loud stereo. She trounced down the stairs and open the door. A smirk formed on her lips as she drank in the sight before her.

It was Nick and he was singing along with the radio. He was on his knees and in one hand he held a single white rose and in the other hand he held his Tampa Bay Buccaneers hat. His blonde hair was messy and his face had such an angelic look to it. He had on his blue Tampa Bay Devil Rays jersey with a white T-shirt underneath. Baggy jeans and white Nikes completed the outfit.

Joey felt completely ugly compared to him. She had on old ratty ripped jeans with an old plaid shirt that served as her smock. Her hair was up in a messy bun with red hairs jumping out everywhere. Her face and hands were covered in black charcoal. She looked as if she had been fighting a fire and had soot marks on her.

Nick finished singing and the radio continued to play jumping into Faith Hill’s ‘This Kiss.’

“Joey, I’m so sorry,” started Nick getting up off the ground and standing in front of her.

“Nick, you should-”

“No, Joey, I’m not going to let you interrupt me. I love you and I know it was stupid to lie to you. I just wanted you to know me-the real me. I was going to tell you, I swear, but I just didn’t know how. I was afraid you would react just like this. I know I’m the biggest idiot and I so don’t deserve you but please Joey I just know in the bottom of your heart that you love me and want to give us another shot,” Nick pleaded taking her hands in his own.

“Ya know at first I thought I never ever wanted to see you again. I thought that you were scum and didn’t deserve the love of any human,” she stated a dejected look crossing his face.

“But a great woman told me that you were actually trying to protect me. I guess I can’t stay mad at a man who was only trying to protect me,” she said with a small smile.

“So what does that mean?” asked Nick royally confused.

“Come on I’ll show you.”

Joey led Nick through the living room and past the patio doors as the walked up the stairs. She stopped a t a door decorated with red, blue, yellow, and green paint platters and the word ‘Joey’ writing in big puffy green letters. She opened the door and Nick raised his eyebrows to her.

“Don’t flatter yourself, Carter,” she said as Nick surveyed the room. Her room was really artsy. The room was painted white with red, yellow, blue, and green splatters of paint. Two paintings we hung on either side of her bed. The bed was under the window on the far side of room. Next to the bed was a small night stand with a lamp and telephone on it. Her vanity was next to the door. Pictures lined the mirror. Pictures of her and Nick together laughing and hugging and kissing. Her closet was open and in it hung colorful sporty clothes. On her closet door was a poster of Nick. A TV and VCR sat on a table in the corner along with a Nintendo 64 system.

“I just got that poster yesterday,” said Joey cracking a small smile referring to the poster of Nick on her closet door “My mom got it for me.”

“It’s a good picture,” said Nick awkwardly

“I wanted to show you this,” Joey stated pointing to the easel set-up in the middle of the room.

There sat the sketch she had been working on last night and today. It was a portrait of Nick and it was a dead on recreation of his face. She had caught the little imperfections that he thought he had hidden. She captured how the shadows sat on his face and the way his hair flopped to one side. In his eyes, it was the most perfect picture anyone had ever drawn, to Joey it was still a work in progress.

“I couldn’t quite get your lips right and well your eyes are a little close together-”

“Joe, shut up. It’s perfect. This is who I wanted you to meet not the guy on your closet door.”

“So you likes?” she asked self consciously.

“I love! It’s great but it’s missing a big part of my life,” replied Nick touching the picture lightly.

“I know, but I really didn’t know how to put your music in there, though,” she said her nose crinkling up.

“I wasn’t talking about my music, I was talking about you,” he said softly turning to look at her.

“Nick...” started Joey shaking her head.

“Please, Joe. I told you I’d never hurt you and I meant that. I know that I did by lying to you and I’m so incredibly sorry. I do want another chance with you, that is if you think you can handle the intrusion,” he pleaded standing in front of Joey.

“So you think I don’t know what it’s like to be famous?” she asked sitting on the bed “You are sadly mistaken, Blondie. You forget that I’m a rather popular artist.”

“Um..Joe, the intrusion will be a little bigger, no offense. Once I start telling people I have a girl, they are going to be curious. Then when they find out who you are, letters and phone calls will start. Rumors will spread and it could get kind of catty,” he said carefully kneeling in front of her.

“And I can’t fight back? I can’t tell a reporter that the rumors aren’t true? I can’t ignore the hate mail and crank calls? Nick, you underestimate me. I can do that better than you think.”

“Wait does that mean what I think it means?”

“Nick, when I wouldn’t talk to you it wasn’t because I was angry-no, wait, part of it was because I was angry-but the other part was me having to figure out how I felt about you and if it was the real thing. I knew that you only lied because you cared and that you were trying to protect me but I’ve got one question. Why, if singing is such a big part of your life, didn’t you want me to know?”

“As much as I love singing, it’s not my defining trait. I wanted to see who I would be without the music.”

“Well, I really like you as I know you but I think it would be a real challenge to get to know Nick, the Backstreet Boy,” she said smiling

“So you want to try this again?” he asked hopefully taking her hands in his own.

“Yeah, I do but there are two rules. One, no more lies or deception or secrets. Everything right out in the open. Two, you can forget about dating other people because I want you all to myself, Buster.” she said as she stood up and he followed.

“I think I can handle that. Now can we kiss and make up?” he replied placing his hands on her hips.

Joey grabbed a red pillow off her dark hunter green splatter painted comforter and wacked Nick in the shoulder.

“You are such a guy!” she exclaimed laughing.

“Did you just hit me with a pillow?” he asked with mock surprise.

“Yeah, what are you going to do about it?” Nick grabbed at Joey as she attempted to jump over her bed. He snatched her by her legs and pulled her back slightly. She flopped down on her bed, defeated.

“No fair! You cheat,” she said struggling in his grasp.

“Oh whatever, tell me you’re not loving this,” he said releasing her feet and placing his hands on either side of her tummy, leaning over her.

“I’m not loving this,” she said plainly. Nick started to back off but Joey grabbed him hard by the shirt.

“I’m loving you,” she stated pulling him down on top of her and kissing him passionately.

“Did I ever tell you I love the way you think?”

“Nick, shut up and kiss me,” needless to say, he did as he was told.

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