[chapter seventeen]
(The following weekend)
Caitlin stepped from the cab with a smile and pounding heart. After several
flight delays, she had finally managed to fly from Orlando to Boston. Allison
had proved invaluable in getting her a flight, reserving a hotel room and
letting the staff know that Caitlin was there on a "covert mission".
She wanted to surprise JC, and she couldn't wait to see his face when she
walked in. After tipping the cab driver and having her bags taken by the bellman,
she checked in at the front desk. Nervously, she took the elevator to the
17th floor of the Park Plaza hotel. The guys and their bodyguards all had
rooms on the 16th floor, and after Caitlin dropped off her luggage and freshened
up a bit, she was going to head down to surprise them all.
Tipping the bellman gratefully, she sank down on the soft queen sized bed with a smile. She couldn't believe she was actually in Boston, and that JC was only a flight of stairs away. Bouncing up, she quickly touched up her hair and makeup and changed clothes from her comfortable jeans and tee-shirt "flying gear" into black knit pants and a sleeveless black and white shirt. She slid her feet into her black sandals, and, grabbing the key, locked the door to her room. She walked down the hall, then timidly knocked on the door of the room four down from hers. Allison had told her this was Johnny's room, and she wanted to check in with him on the schedule for the guys and let him know she had arrived.
Johnny pulled open the door a few minutes later and smiled warmly when he saw Caitlin. "Hey there. Glad you made it all in one piece." Johnny said easily, wrapping an arm around her shoulders and squeezing affectionately.
"Hi Johnny. I just wanted to let you know I was here, and to find out what the schedule for the guys is like tonight. I don't want to be in the way or anything." Caitlin said.
"Well, I've got a VIP pass for you for the concert tonight. They have sound check in about 3 hours, and then they usually hang out at the venue until the concert starts. It's safer than trying to come back to the hotel." Johnny explained. "You're welcome to go with them anywhere today--sound check, hotel, whatever."
"You're sure?" Caitlin asked skeptically.
"Somehow, I don't think JC will let you out of his sight, even if you wanted to leave." Johnny said, laughing. "He's got it bad for you."
Caitlin grinned and blushed slightly. "Thanks." She said quietly.
"They are downstairs in Justin's room now. They all have separate rooms this tour, and yet they still hang out in each other's." Johnny said with a grin. "I think they are just relaxing, writing letters, all that stuff. Room 1672."
"Thanks so much for this, Johnny. I can't tell you how much I appreciate this." Caitlin said earnestly.
"Nothing to thank me for. Now go surprise the hell out of those young men of mine." Johnny said, pushing her playfully towards the stairs. With a wave and a smile, she walked down the hall and into the stairwell. Her heart began to pound again as she walked onto the 16th floor. She immediately saw Lonnie walking down the hall and smiled.
"Hey there, Lonnie." She said as she approached.
"Hey yourself. I didn't know you were arriving today." Lonnie said.
"No one did. It's a surprise." Caitlin said in a stage whisper.
"Well, they're all in there, so just go on in." Lonnie said, gesturing to the door of room 1672.
"Thanks. I'll see you later." Caitlin said. She gently opened the door and walked in a few steps. Chris and Justin were playing a Nintendo game--rather intently, Caitlin noticed. Both were concentrating hard on the screen in front of them. Lance had his back turned and was talking on his cell phone. Joey was nowhere to be found but judging from the closed door, Caitlin surmised that he was in the bathroom. JC sat, alone, on the couch in the center of the suite, pen and paper in hand. Justin and Chris began yelling at each other, and Lance turned to watch them. JC glanced up from his notes just as Caitlin stepped into the room so he could see her.
He blinked his eyes several times, as though he couldn't believe them. Caitlin smiled and crossed the room towards JC as he stood up. She stopped just out of arm's reach. She smiled slowly. "Hi." She said simply.
"Hi." JC replied.
"How's it going?" Caitlin asked, as though this was the 18th time they had spoken today.
"Alright. You?" JC asked, playing along, sensing that she was teasing him.
"Alright. Kinda tired." Caitlin replied. "But I wanted to stop by and say hi."
"Hi." JC said, a smile threatening to break across his face. "Hey guys, say hi to Caitlin."
"Hi Caitlin." Came a chorus of voices throughout the room. Joey, who had emerged from the bathroom, smiled and waved at Caitlin. They sensed there was some kind of game going, and they weren't a part of it.
"Well, I'm outta here." Caitlin said. She turned to head for the door. "See you guys later."
"See ya." Joey said, throwing a weird look to JC. He grinned and waited a few seconds before charging out of the room after Caitlin. His band mates jumped up and followed him into the hall, which was deserted. Caitlin was walking away from them, and the four of them skidded to a halt just outside the door. JC ran ahead and swiftly caught up with Caitlin and, grabbing her shoulders, spun her around. Without a moment's hesitation, he wrapped his arms around her and pressed his lips to hers urgently. She responded immediately by enveloping him in her arms and returning the kiss eagerly. JC walked them forward slightly until her back was pressed against the wall of the hallway, and pressing his entire length against her, continued to kiss her deeply. She moaned softly as his tongue explored her mouth, then his lips rained down on her neck, making her weak in the knees. They continued to kiss for another 30 seconds or so, before finally breaking apart slightly. At that, hooting and whistling came from the doorway of Justin's room, where the other singers had been enjoying the "show". Caitlin blushed slightly and JC laughed, before wrapping Caitlin into another tight hug.
"Hi baby." He whispered.
"Hi baby." She echoed quietly, snuggling into his chest. "Miss me?" She asked flirtatiously.
"More than you know." JC said, loosening his hold on her slightly. "What the hell are you doing here?" He asked with a wide smile. "I can't believe it!"
"Surprising you, of course." Caitlin replied as she and JC walked back down the hall arm in arm. Moments later she was hugging Chris, Justin, Joey and Lance and greeting them as well. "Hi guys!"
"I can't believe it!"
"How long are you staying?"
"It's great to see you!"
"You guys need to get a room!"
Caitlin and JC laughed at Joey's comment after their display in the hallway. "Not a bad idea." JC said, pulling Caitlin to him again. "You want to throw your luggage in my room?" JC asked her.
"Uh. I don't know. Should I?" She asked, not sure what the 'overnight guest' policy was for the tour.
"Oh yeah." JC said, smiling. "We'll catch up with you guys in a couple of minutes." He said to his friends.
"Couple of minutes? You better take longer than that!" Justin teased. JC merely winked and took Caitlin's hand in his own, steering her towards the other end of the hall, where his room was located. The other guys went back into Justin's room and closed the door behind them.
"This is me." JC said, gesturing to another hotel room. He hastily dug the key out of his pocket and turned to fumble with the lock, so Caitlin took the opportunity to wrap her arms around him from behind and press herself into his back. He moaned at the contact of her soft curves on his back and quickly opened the door. Moments later they were sprawled on the bed in various stages of undress, Caitlin's luggage completely forgotten.
***
(An hour and a half later)
"Why didn't you tell me you were going to visit?" JC asked, nuzzling Caitlin's neck. They were snuggling together on JC's bed, having only recently caught their breath and gotten dressed again from their 'reunion'.
"I wanted to surprise you. And I didn't want to be in the way." Caitlin said.
"You? Never." JC said, wrapping his arms tighter around her. "I can't wait for you to see the show."
"Me neither! After all the secrecy, I'll finally get to see it!" Caitlin said happily. "Do you want me to go to sound check with you, or would that be bad?"
"Why would that be bad?" JC asked.
"Your fans. And I might distract you…" Caitlin ventured.
"Not at all. I want you there." JC said thickly. "I need you there."
"I was kind of hoping you would say that." Caitlin smiled.
"How's everything in Orlando?" JC asked. "How's my Baron doing?"
"He's doing fine. Mrs. Fatone is taking care of him this weekend. But I think he misses you." Caitlin said. "The roomies say hi, by the way."
"Tell them hi back." JC said. "How's work?"
"Pretty slow at the moment. But I'm trying to keep busy." Caitlin said. "Don't freak out, okay?"
"Uh-oh." JC said, sitting up. "What?"
"I got another phone call from my favorite stalker." Caitlin said, rolling her eyes.
"Ray called you?" JC said, his voice tinged with anger. "Again? What did the bastard say?"
"Same old, same old. Wanted to know when we were getting back together. Wanted to know if I had a boyfriend." Caitlin said.
"What did you tell him?" JC asked with concern.
"I told him I was dating this, like, famous guy. Oh, and I gave him your cell number." Caitlin said, trying to lighten the mood. JC merely raised his eyebrows at her and said nothing. "I didn't tell him anything. Just to get lost. I promise."
"What about…" A pounding on the door drowned JC's question out. Shaking his head, JC slowly climbed off the bed and walked towards the door.
"Yo C! Let's go! We gotta sound check in a few." Justin's voice came through the thick wood. JC pulled open the door to admit his younger friend. Justin anxiously looked into the room, and visibly relaxed when he spotted Caitlin, fully dressed, going through her backpack.
"We'll be in the lobby in a few minutes, okay?" JC said.
"Okay." Justin agreed. "When do I get my own personalized greeting from you, Peck?" Justin teased.
"Oh baby. My room, after the show. I'll be your own personal groupie." Caitlin teased, turning around with a wink and a smile.
"I'm so there." Justin breathed as he walked out of the room, JC's laughter following him down the hall.
"Bad girl." JC admonished, shaking a finger at Caitlin.
"But that's why you love me, right?" Caitlin said, flashing a million-dollar smile.
"Absolutely." JC said, looking at her lovingly.
"Come on, loverboy. Let's get rollin'!" Chris said from the open doorway. "Hey stranger." He said to Caitlin with a grin.
"Hey geek." Caitlin replied easily.
Chris looked at her for a long moment, then spoke again. "She's…she's a therapist."
"Oh. Yours?" Caitlin replied, picking up the dialogue easily.
"Christ, you couldn't resist, could you?" Chris spat back.
"What? I'm not saying you need therapy." Caitlin said.
"What? Wait, wait, wait, I need therapy?" Chris replied.
"I didn't say that." Caitlin answered.
"What could I possibly need a therapist for? Huh? You're the doctor, tell me!" Chris said, his voice rising.
"I don't know…inability to finish things?" She spat back.
"'Inability to finish things'!" Chris answered.
"Maybe rushing into things you can't quite commit to." Caitlin added.
"Commitment?" Chris said. "At least I showed up in the first place!"
"Can I drive?" Caitlin asked softly.
"No!" Chris shouted.
"Then would you?" Caitlin said.
"Whoa!" Chris yelled, then burst into laughter. He crossed the room and wrapped Caitlin in a hug.
"Hi Jo!" He said, laughing.
"Hi Bill!" Caitlin replied, taking on the names of the characters from Twister, the dialogue they had just recited from memory. It was the last movie they had watched before Chris left for the tour, and they had laughed over that scene together.
"You soundchecking with us?" Chris asked excitedly.
"I think so." Caitlin said.
"Awesome! Let's get out of here! You ready to go, C?" Chris asked, grabbing Caitlin by the hand and pulling her out the door.
"Yep. I'm ready." JC replied slowly, not acknowledging the slow burn of jealousy he felt looming inside him as he watched the antics of his girlfriend and his best friend.