Justin paced the room nervously. He couldn’t understand why he was feeling so much anxiety all of a sudden. This is what he wanted to do. It felt right to him but at the same time, he didn’t know why her image continued to flash through his mind. He sat down on the edge of the chair as he ran his hands over his head trying to think of anything else. There was suddenly a knock at the door and he lifted his head at the sound. “Yeah?”

The door opened slightly as Trace stuck his head in. “It looks like it’s gonna be a while. Ava is running late and I guess there’s a lot of traffic.” He shrugged slightly offering his friend a lopsided smile.

“Great.” Justin muttered under his breath as he let out a sigh. Trace left the room and shut the door realizing that his friend wanted to be alone. He just wanted to get this over with. He hated waiting around because his mind always found a way back to her. He took a deep breath deciding to concentrate on the present. He thought about Ava and the time they had spent together. He honestly loved her. She was like him in many ways, which is why they probably got along so well. They never seemed to fight and he never had to make any guesses when it came to her. Their relationship was safe and comfortable.

He let the memories they shared together come rushing back to him. There was the time they went to Universal Studios and she screamed her head off on any rollercoaster they went on. He remembered laughing at her even though she didn’t think it was so funny. He thought about the first time he met her parents and how nervous he had been. For some reason he was afraid they wouldn’t like him and it turned out he was like the son they never had.

He could see the scene of them first meeting running through his head. They were lost in conversation at a party. She wasn’t someone he would probably look twice at but she knew how to keep a conversation going. He could vividly see the outlines of her smile as she laughed at one of his jokes but this is when his memory started to change focus. While talking to Ava, he saw someone out of the corner of his eye. The girl who he let get away. The girl with the dismayed expression on her face. He saw her as if she had just walked through his door right this very minute. The images of her face encompassing his mind. He couldn’t stop thinking of her no matter how hard he tried so he just gave up. He let the memories of her take over him. He didn’t know what else to do. She was all he could ever think about. Before he knew it, his reminiscences took him back to the beginning.

“Yes mom, I hear you.” Allie nodded her head as she touched up her makeup in the car. “Well I’m going to be late if you don’t let me get off the phone now.” She rolled her eyes at her mother’s words before stepping out of the car. She walked over to the entrance of Starbucks and opened the door letting herself in. She had to have her coffee before she could fully function. “Alright, I’ll call you after the appointment. Love you. Bye.” She cut her mother off so that she wouldn’t be able to get another word in. She let out a sigh as she made her way to the counter.

“Hi, what can I get for you?” The person behind the counter asked her.

“Could I get a grande iced mocha marble macchiato?” She smiled sweetly before taking out her money to pay for the drink. She was sort of in a rush this morning. She hadn’t woken up on time and she had to meet her realtor in about ten minutes to finalize the details of her new apartment. She liked the sound of that. Her own very new apartment.

She paid for the drink and tried to wait patiently as they made it for her. When they had finally brought her drink over she thanked them and tried to make a quick exit, which didn’t work to her favor. She spun around only to encounter another body, spilling her drink all over the front of the man’s shirt. Her eyes widened at the sight of the coffee dripping down his clean white shirt and she heard him swear underneath his breath. She looked up to the man’s face only to realize who it was. Justin Timberlake. ‘Great,’ she thought, ‘I had to spill it on him of all people.’

“Listen, I’m really sorry about this. I had no idea you were so close behind me.” She reached for some napkins before trying to pat his shirt dry.

“Yeah, sure you didn’t.” He took the napkins out of her hands and threw them on the counter. “It’s not like those will help.” He raised his eyebrows at her before stepping around her to order his drink. She didn’t know what else to do, she felt horrible for doing that but it wasn’t like she had done it on purpose. And did he have to act like such an ass about it?

“I guess what they say is true…” She whispered under her breath before walking towards the door, empty cup in hand.

Justin turned his head around at the sound of her voice. “Oh, and what is that?” He knew this was directed toward him.

She threw her cup away before looking over at him. “That you’re an arrogant asshole.” She gave him a sweet playful smile before pushing the door open.


***********


Later that day, Allie walked out of her appointment with a new sense of satisfaction. She had just signed the papers to her very own apartment. Finally, it was time to start her brand new life on her own. Only about three ago Allie had graduated from Boston University receiving her B.A. in English. She always wanted to be an editor for a big publishing company and she was ready to live her dream.
She moved back to Los Angeles, her hometown, to build the foundation of her new life. She was constantly sending out resumes to different publishers in the hopes of someone hiring her. It was beginning to look optimistic for her so she decided it was about time for her to move out of mom and dad’s house and get a place of her own.

She drove back to the house that she had lived in since she was born, and admired the exterior before going inside to greet her mother. She threw her keys on the counter and began to recount the details of the apartment to her mother.

“I’m excited to see this new place of yours.”

“Yeah, I think you’re gonna love it. It’s exactly what I wanted. It’s not too big but it’s not too small either. Just the right size.” Allie nodded as she raided the refrigerator taking out an apple. She bit into it before turning back around to face her mother. “Oh and you’ll never guess who I ran into today… literally.”

“Who?” Her mother gave a puzzling look.

“Justin Timberlake.” She smirked before taking another bite of the apple in her hand. When Allie was about fourteen, she fell in love with *NSYNC, especially Justin Timberlake. He was only three years older than she was and she was sure they were going to get married some day. She quickly grew out of that stage when she got her first boyfriend at the age of sixteen.

“Did you tell him how much you loved him?” Her mother joked around with her.

“Actually no. I spilt my drink over his shirt and called him an asshole for not accepting my apology. I always heard he was rude to his fans.” She shook her head before finishing the apple.

“Well I guess he deserved it then.”

“Oh he did. Trust me.”


***********

The next morning Allie awoke bright and early certain to begin her day on the right foot. After running late yesterday she felt as though she owed it to herself to get up at a good solid time. She sat at a small table in the same Starbucks that she had found herself at yesterday. It was about eight in the morning and she was thumbing through her resumes trying to piece them together. She received a couple follow up interviews and she wanted to make sure she was extra prepared.

She didn’t however, notice when he walked through the doors. He had just got back from the gym, a routine that he had picked up once his tour had ended. He wanted to stay in shape so that when it was time for him to go back on tour he was ready. He ordered his drink and glanced around the shop noticing that it was bare, just the way he liked it so that no one would bother him. He saw her sitting at the table but didn’t recognize her from yesterday until she lifted her head to look out the window. He looked away at first not wanting to her to see him. He had been in a pissed off mood yesterday and she had just been the person that he saw first.

He paid for his drink and started to make his way to the door before he stopped, looking back at her. He sighed and walked over to the table she was at, sitting in the chair across from her. “The asshole has returned.” He smiled slightly.

She lifted her head as she sensed someone across from her. Her eyes met his and it took her a moment to comprehend the fact that he was sitting with her.

“Not talking to me. Guess I deserve that. I just wanted to apologize for yesterday. You just caught me at a bad time.” He licked over his lips as he searched her face for any sort of emotion.

She finally managed to find her voice. “You didn’t come here just to apologize to me, did you?” Of course he hadn’t. She didn’t know why she just asked him that.

“Umm… no.” He laughed softly, shaking his head. “I just happened to see you and figured that I’d apologize. I’m really not an ass all the time, I promise you that.”

Her cheeks blushed at his reaction to her question. “I accept your apology. No big deal, really.” She managed a smile before looking back at her resumes.

“This is usually the part when the girl starts to tell me how great I am.” He noticed the red tint in her face and knew she was warming up to him.

“Well maybe I’m not like most girls. I’m not the type to throw myself at your feet Mr. Timberlake.” She grinned up at him as her nerves began to calm down, feeling relaxed in his presence.

“I guess I’m gonna have to try a little harder then huh?” He stuck out his hand toward her as a smile formed across his face. “Hey I’m Justin. Now let me buy you a cup of coffee.”

She eyed him for a minute before shaking his hand. “I’m pretty sure I already know who you are.” She laughed softly, shining her white teeth at him.

“Yeah, but I don’t know you and I think we should start over.”

“Alright, fair enough. I’m Allie.”

“Nice to meet you Allie. Now what will that drink be?”

“Yeah so I walk into my hotel room and throw my shit on the bed deciding to take a shower. I start to take off my clothes when I hear a noise. I look around and hear another noise so I walk over to the closet and when I opened it a girl was standing there with her mouth hanging open just staring at me.” Justin shook his head laughing softly.

“What? Are you kidding? How the hell did she get into your hotel room?” She stared at him in disbelief before laughing along with him.

“I have no clue. You wouldn’t believe how many girls get into my room though.” He shrugged giving her a smile.

“Damn, you have some pretty insane fans. They all want to see you naked.” She tapped the top of her cup lightly as she continued to laugh.

“Yeah you got that right.” After Justin had bought Allie a cup of coffee, they had talked for a little over an hour. She told him about herself and he told her about his life as a celebrity. They didn’t seem to have too much in common but they were very comfortable with one another.

Allie pushed her cup to the side making a mental note to throw it away when she left. It was at this point that her eyes came in contact with her phone. She looked at the time and it didn’t register at first but she was going to be late for her interview. She did a double take finally realizing what time it was and swore under her breath. She pushed her seat away from the table and tried to gather her things together as quickly as possible. “I have to go.”

“Is everything ok?”

“I’m going to be late for a very important interview. I can’t believe I lost track of time.” She shook her head as she frantically put on her jacket.

“Is there anything I can do?” He stood up helplessly not knowing what to say. He was the reason that she was going to be late.

“No it’s fine, I just need to go.” She grabbed her bags and made her way to the door. “Thanks for the coffee.” She called over her shoulder.

“Yeah, maybe I’ll see you around.”

“Yeah… maybe.” She swung the door open and rushed to her car. She knew it was very unlikely that she would see Justin again. It was just a coincidence that they had bumped into each other twice. She threw her things into the passenger side before getting in herself. She flew out of the parking lot and made her way to the place where her interview was being held.

She couldn’t believe that she had let herself get so distracted. It was important that she went through her resume and prepared herself for what she would say when it was time for the interview. Now she didn’t feel ready and all for some guy. A guy that she would never see again. She shook her head and let out a sigh promising herself that something like that wouldn’t happen again. Guys were a second priority to her.

She finally arrived at her interview and rushed inside trying to stay calm but not succeeding very well. She checked in with a woman at the front desk and sat down waiting for the person who would be giving the interview. Luckily for her she was only ten minutes late. A few moments later she heard her name being called.

“Allie? We’re ready for you.” Allie took a deep breath and stood up hoping that everything would go all right.

***********


“I know! I can’t believe it!” Allie paced outside of the building where her interview was held, talking to her mom on the phone. “I really thought there wasn’t a chance they would hire me.” She smiled widely ecstatic at the way her interview went. She had been offered the job on the spot and there was no way she was going to decline. “Yeah, I think I’m gonna go out and celebrate tonight.” She nodded to herself. “I’m gonna call Josh and see what he’s up to.” She licked over her lips. “Uh huh. I’ll see you soon. Bye.”

She hung up with her mom as she walked toward the parking lot. She was in complete disbelief. She had no idea why they had given her the job but she was happy nonetheless. She quickly began to dial Josh, her best friend. She knew he’d go out with her tonight. She waited as it rang into her ear hoping that he would answer. Just as she was about to hang up she heard a voice on the other end of the phone. “Josh?”

“Hey, what’s up?”

“I got the job!” She knew he’d be happy for her. The two of them had grown up together and were practically inseparable. They did everything together and told each other everything.

“Really? That’s great Allie! I knew you’d get it though.”

“Thanks Josh. But you know what this means, right? We need to go out and celebrate.”

“You know I’m there. How does dinner sound? We could even hit up a club later.”

“Music to my ears.” She laughed into the phone softly. She had always been a sucker for dancing. When any of her friends mentioned going to a club she was the first person to say she was going.

“I thought you might like that.” He laughed with her. “So how about I pick you up around seven?”

“Sounds perfect.”

“Alright, I’ll see you then.”

“Ok, bye.” She hung up her phone as she leaned against her car. She smiled to herself and let out a sigh of relief. She couldn’t believe everything was going her way.

***********

“Oh come on it’s not a big deal.” Allie shook her head before downing the shot of vodka that she had in her hand.

“You talked to the guy for over an hour. He could have just apologized and then left but instead he sat down with you. That’s a big deal.” Josh nodded at her before taking a shot himself. After going out to dinner they decided to stop by one of the more popular clubs in LA. They had been inside for a while just dancing and having some drinks when Allie decided it was about time to leave.

“I think we should stop talking about him. We had some coffee and talked. It was interesting but it’s over.” She put her shot glass on the bar as she looked down at her watch. “We should probably get going.”

“Ok, fine. Let’s go.”

They made their way through the crowded club trying to find the way they had come in. Allie looked back to make sure Josh was behind her but in the process she ended up walking into someone else. She turned her head to apologize when her eyes met a familiar set of piercing blue eyes.

“We need to stop meeting like this. Lucky for me you weren’t holding a drink this time.” Justin looked down at her with a wide smile.

“Hey…” She didn’t really know what to say to him. “Sorry for bumping into you again.” She tried to speak over the volume of the club.

“Nah, it’s fine. I’m just messin’ around with you.” He looked over the crowd of people before looking back down at her. “You should come over to the VIP section with me, I’ll buy you a drink.”

“Thanks but I should get going. I’m here with my friend and we were just on our way out.” She shrugged her shoulders as she motioned over to Josh. She didn’t think it was a good idea if she stayed at the club with him. She found him extremely attractive but she just assumed he was trying to be nice. She was always very hesitant when it came to men. Now more than ever did she want to keep her distance since he was famous and in a matter of minutes he would have his eye on some other girl offering to buy her a drink as well.

“Oh come on. It’s still early and you can just stay for one drink.”

“I don’t think so. Thanks but…”

“I think we could stay a little bit longer. I could use another drink.” Josh spoke up from behind her. He knew that she would regret it later if she didn’t stick around. He could tell that she became uneasy when she was around him, almost nervous as if she didn’t want to make a fool of herself. He knew her like no one else did and in his eyes he was doing her a favor.

“See, the man could use another drink. Let’s go then.” He smirked down at her before moving through the crowd to the back of the club. Allie turned around to face Josh as her eyes narrowed at him. She wanted to kill him.

“Why did you do that?” She said to Josh as they followed Justin.

“I know you want to stay.”

“No I don’t. I was ready to go and he’s probably going to go off with a bunch of girls. He’ll forget about us in a few minutes.”

“Well if he does, who cares? We can just leave. Unless of course it bothers you that he’ll be dancing with other girls.” He grinned slightly.

“Why would it bother me? It’s not like I have a thing for this guy. I don’t even know him!”

“Good, then we should have a good time.” He knew that Allie didn’t have anything else to say to that. He hit a nerve.

They made their way passed the roped off area and caught some envious glances thrown their way. Allie took a seat crossing her arms over her chest suddenly feeling very self-conscious. She didn’t know why, normally she was very outgoing and flirtatious not giving a damn what others thought of her.

“Alright, so what do you guys want to drink?” Justin pointed to her and Josh.

“Umm… I’ll have a rum and coke.” Josh nodded over to him.

“I’ll take a few shots of vodka.” She wasn’t kidding either. She had already had some earlier in the night but she needed to loosen up and she needed to loosen up now. She didn’t want to feel so uptight.

“A girl after my own heart.” Justin laughed before leaving to order the drinks.

Allie looked around the VIP area noticing the group of people that he had with him. There were mostly guys but he did have a few girls wandering around. She noticed his friend Trace right away, remembering him from the days when she liked *NSYNC. He was talking to a girl who he kissed every now and again. She assumed it was his girlfriend. Her eyes then focused on the bodyguards he had with him. They glanced over at her every once in a while as if they didn’t trust her. They were making sure she didn’t do anything funny.

A few moments later Justin returned with the drinks. He placed them on the table before taking a sip of his own drink. “I think that’s everything.”

“Thanks.” Allie took one of the shot glasses downing it quickly before placing it back on the table.

“No problem.” Justin looked over at Josh. “I don’t think I caught your name earlier. I’m Justin.” He stuck out his hand shaking Josh’s hand.

“Oh hey, I’m Josh.”

“Nice to meet you man.”

“Yeah you too.”

Justin looked around the club moving his head to the beat of the music. “So do you guys come here a lot?”

“Yeah pretty often. Allie is the one that’s always dragging me here. The girl’s always in the mood to dance.” He laughed taking a sip of his drink. Allie had just finished another shot as she caught Josh’s eye.

“Oh yeah? You like to dance?” Justin almost sounded intrigued at the idea of her dancing.

“Yeah… I’m not good or anything though.” She shrugged.

“What? You’re full of shit.” Josh shook his head at her before looking at Justin. “She’s a great dancer, don’t let her fool you.”

“Really now? Maybe you should show me.” Justin raised an eyebrow at her.

“What?” She looked over at him with a puzzled look.

“Dance with me.” He laughed at the blank look on her face. “I don’t think it’s that difficult of a concept to grasp.”

“No, no, no.” She shook her head finishing another shot. “I’m really not good and compared to you I’ll look like a fool.” She laughed softly.

“I doubt that.” He put his hand out to her waiting for her to take it. “Come on, just dance with me. One song.” She felt as though his eyes burned right through her skin. It was almost like she couldn’t say no to him.

“Go Allie.” Josh nudged her. “You two behave yourselves.” He laughed.

“I make no promises.” Justin winked before grabbing her hand, pulling her up off her seat. He took her over to the dance floor as Allie looked back at Josh with a ‘please help me now’ look plastered on her face. Josh just shook his head at her knowing that she would enjoy herself. The music would relax her.

They walked out onto the floor as people looked at the two of them wondering who she was to be dancing with Justin Timberlake. He started to move his body to the beat of the song as they found a spot on the floor. She looked at him not knowing what to do. She was usually the first one to start dancing and at the moment she couldn’t seem to get her body to function.

“I thought you danced?” He yelled over the noise.

“I do…”

“Could have fooled me.” He noticed that she seemed a little uneasy and he wasn’t sure why. Earlier in the day she was perfectly calm and carefree showing her true personality. He found it very attractive that she didn’t seem to care he was a celebrity and how she was kind of a smart ass. Now she was a completely different person. She just needed to relax. The song started to blend into another song as a slow pulsating beat shot through the speakers. Justin moved closer to her as his arms found their way to her hips. If she wasn’t going to move herself, he would do it for her.

She bit her lip lightly as his arms wrapped around her thin frame. He began to move her hips with the motion of his and for a few moments she was resistant to his attempts. She finally started to relax beneath his touch as her body loosened up so that she could move with him. She draped an arm over his shoulder as she moved closer into him feeling the music run through her body. She was starting to come out of her shell and Justin liked it.

Their bodies were pressed together as the music continued to play around them. They danced together for quite some time and it was like no one else existed around them. When she was dancing she tended to get lost in the music and now she wasn’t only caught up with the music but also caught up with him. He was probably the best dancer that she had seen and she had seen a lot. It made him seem incredibly sexy to her and the more she tried to fight the fact that she wasn’t starting to warm up to him the harder it was to deny and she hated herself for that.

After a few more songs played, they finally decided to take a break and get some air. He led her outside of the club feeling the cool air hit their skin. Allie ran her hands through her hair as she let out a sigh thankful to be outside.

“So I guess you aren’t such a horrible dancer.” Justin shrugged clearly joking around. She hit his arm playfully.

“Oh shut up. I didn’t hear you complaining when we were out there.” She raised an eyebrow.

“I don’t complain when I have good-looking girls dancing with me.”

“Well I can’t believe I lowered my standards for the night and danced with an average guy such as yourself. Us good-looking girls can’t just dance with anyone.” She smirked.

“Average guy huh?” He laughed. “I’ll remember that for next time.”

“Next time? Who said there was going to be a next time?” She crossed her arms over her chest amused by his statement.

“I did.”

“Oh really? And what if I say no?”

“You won’t. I don’t take no for an answer.”

“You are one cocky bastard.” She laughed under her breath.

“Cocky and proud.” He smiled.

“I can see that.”

“So what are you doing tomorrow night?” He asked her seriously this time.

“Hmm… washing my hair.” She fluttered her eyes at him before laughing.

He shook his head at her. “Do you always make it this hard for a guy who wants to take you out?” He laughed smiling at her.

“Actually, I make it harder. You must be special.” She winked at him.

“Oh well don’t I feel good.”

“You should.”

“So do you think you could wash your hair some other time?”

“I guess I could move it up a few hours.”

“Does this mean you’ll let me take you out then?”

“Sure but only on one condition.”

“And what is that?”

“You need to get permission from Josh.” She smiled widely and he raised an eyebrow.

“I think that could be arranged.”

The next day Allie got up early so that she could start moving her things into the new apartment. She kept replaying last night’s events in her mind smiling to herself at the thought that Justin Timberlake had asked her out. It seemed almost surreal to her and yet it was real. She tried to keep her distance from him but he had a way of getting under her skin and before she knew it, she was agreeing to go on a date with him. She did make the right decision… didn’t she?

“Could you just put that lamp on the table over there?” Allie pointed over to the bedside table before she pulled her hair back into a ponytail.

“Right here?” Josh asked as he walked over to the table.

“Yeah that’s perfect.” Allie let out a sigh as she sat down on the bed. It was about four in the afternoon and she was exhausted from the move. Her parents and Josh had graciously lent her a hand and everything was pretty much set now. Well almost everything. She did have a few more boxes to unpack and her apartment could use some decorating but at the moment, it wasn’t looking too bad.

“It looks good.” Josh said as he looked around her room, taking a seat next to her.

“Yeah, it’s coming along.” She smiled over at him, nudging his shoulder. “Thanks for helping me with everything by the way.”

“No problem. You knew I couldn’t leave you hanging. But I do want some type of repayment.” He let out a laugh.

“What kind of repayment?”

“Well since I did help you move in and I gave my blessing to Justin…”

“Oh god.” Allie rolled her eyes at him, laughing softly as he continued.
“I want all the details of this date tonight and I mean everything. Don’t leave anything out.”

“What do you think is gonna happen? We’re gonna get some dinner and maybe see a movie. The end. Doesn’t sound all that exciting.”

“I don’t care. I just want to know everything. It’s not everyday your friend dates a celebrity.”

“I’m not dating him. It’s just one date.”

“Which will lead to another date and another one and then you’ll be dating.”

“Thanks for rushing everything for me.” She laughed shaking her head.

“So what time is he picking you up?”

“He said he would be here at seven. I need to start getting ready soon.”

“You need three hours to get ready?”

“Well I haven’t showered yet and I need to pick out something to wear.” Josh gave her a face before he started laughing. “Shut up! I’m a girl, we take longer to get ready. And he’s Justin fucking Timberlake, he could have any girl he wants and I have to compete with them.”

“You don’t have to compete. He asked you out and damn, I’ve never seen you get this worked up over a guy.”

“Yeah, I know.” She let out a sigh. “To tell you the truth I almost called him today to cancel our date. I have too much going on right now. I don’t want to add something else to the mix.”

“I’m glad you didn’t do that. Just relax; you’re going to have a good time. I think you’re just making a big deal out of nothing.”

“You’re probably right.”

“I know I am.” He hit her leg before he stood up again. “I’m gonna get going so you can start getting ready. Have a good time.”

“I will.” She stood up and walked him out of her room and over to the door. “I’ll make sure I call you tomorrow.”

“Why not tonight?”

“Are you kidding?”

“Yeah.” He laughed. “I’ll talk to you tomorrow and you better not forget!”

“I won’t! See you later.” Allie shut the door behind him and leaned against it letting out a breath she didn’t know she was holding. Only three more hours.




Justin shut his car door and walked toward the studio, twirling the set of keys around his finger. He was meeting Timbaland to work on a song that they had written together. He had less than three hours to start recording the song but he figured that he had plenty of time before he needed to pick up Allie. He opened the door to the studio and walked inside greeting the familiar faces that he saw. He walked into the recording booth were Timbaland was and smiled at him.

“Hey man, how’s it going?”

“I don’t know… I think we need to work on these lyrics.” Timbaland looked up from the soundboard tweaking the music of the song.

“What? I thought the lyrics were fine.” Justin’s face furrowed in confusion. They worked their ass off on those lyrics and now they weren’t going to work. He didn’t understand.

“If we want to keep the music then we need to change the lyrics. We have a good solid beat for the song but the lyrics don’t match.”

“It’s the only way around it?” Justin leaned forward and ran his hand over his face feeling stressed out.

“Yeah, we just need to work on the hook and the second verse. We can work on it now or we can just come back tomorrow.”

Justin looked over to the clock thinking about the amount of time he had. “Let’s work on it now.” He was a perfectionist and if he didn’t work on it now, it would bother him for the rest of the night.

“Alright let’s do this then.”

He knew he was pressed for time but he was going to make it work. He couldn’t be late for his date; he would just have to focus.




Allie finished putting on her mascara before she ran into her room to change her shirt. For the past three hours, she had been frantically running around her apartment trying to do her make up and fix her hair as well as finding a decent outfit to wear that night. She pulled the shirt over her head and threw it to the ground as she looked for a different one.

“Shit, why don’t I have any damn clothes?” She glanced at the clock. “Are you fucking kidding me?” It was seven on the dot and she wasn’t ready. He would be there any minute and she still hadn’t picked a shirt to wear. She started pulling shirts of her hangers before finding one that she didn’t love but was willing to accept. She pulled it over her head quickly then proceeded to put on her shoes and grab her purse determined to be ready when he arrived.

She walked out to her living room and checked herself in the full-length mirror deciding that she didn’t look too bad. She took a deep breath and then sat on the couch waiting for him to come. She tapped her foot lightly obviously very impatient. She kept her eyes on the clock not daring to look away. It was currently 7:15, he was fifteen minutes late but she just assumed that he hit some traffic.

Fifteen minutes turned into thirty minutes that turned into forty-five and then finally an hour had passed. It was eight and there was still no sign of Justin. He had stood her up. She was crushed but at the same time, she sort of expected it from him. He was a celebrity and she was just some girl who bumped into him. It wasn’t meant to be. She grabbed her cell phone deciding to call him; maybe there was a reason for him not showing up. She dialed his number and waited as it rang into her ear. It quickly went to voicemail and she hung up frustrated with the situation. If there was a reason, he wasn’t going to show up he should have called her but he didn’t. He probably didn’t give a damn about her.

She leaned back against the couch staring up at the ceiling. She didn’t know what to do with herself. She couldn’t bring herself to get up and change because deep down she was holding out hope for him. He seemed like such a good guy but why was he doing this to her? She waited a little longer before slumber took over her body and she fell asleep on the couch.


Justin sung the last line of the song in the recording booth before Timbaland stopped recording. “Ok man, I think we got it.” Timbaland said glad that they were able to complete the song.

“I think it came out well.” Justin said as he walked out of the recording booth.

“The song is fucking awesome!”

“Ok you’re right.” Justin laughed. “Hey Tim, can you check the clock over there?” He pulled his phone out of his pocket noticing that he had a missed call. He saw that it was from Allie and he raised an eyebrow before looking over at Timbaland.

“It’s 10:15.”

“You’re fucking with me right?” Justin’s eyes widened. It couldn’t be that late.

“Nah, it’s 10:15. Why, what’s the problem?”

“I had a date at seven. Fuck.” He grabbed his keys making his way to the door.

“Damn, you better do something good for her to make up for this.”

“Yeah, you’re telling me. I’ll call you later.” Justin rushed out of the studio and over to his car. He tried to dial Allie’s number but she wasn’t answering her phone. Was she ignoring him? He didn’t blame her if she was. He got in his car and pulled out of the parking lot trying to figure out something to do. He needed to think of something and he needed to think of something fast. He figured there wasn’t anything that could really make up for his mistake but he was at least going to try.


Allie awoke to knocking on her door. She looked around the room, her eyes barely open. For a minute, she forgot about her date until she looked at the clock and noticed that it was eleven. He never called or anything. She couldn’t believe it.

The knocking continued as she made her way over to the door. She let out a yawn before she opened the door only to see Justin standing in front of her. She didn’t say anything right away. She just stared at him with a blank expression.

“Hi…” Justin tested out the waters trying to see just how mad she was.

“Do you know what time it is?”

“Yeah and I’m really sorry. I didn’t mean to lose track of time.”

“You should have called or something but instead you just left me waiting here like an idiot.” She shook her head realizing how hurt she was. “You should probably just go…” She started to the shut the door but his arm blocked the door.

“Please just let me explain.”

“No Justin, there’s nothing to explain just leave.”

He brought his other arm out from behind his back and he put out his hand, which held three bags of McDonald’s. “It’s not a lot but I had to bring something and that was the closest thing I could find to real food.” His eyes bore into her hoping that she would forgive him.

Allie looked down at the bags before looking back up at him. She wanted to be mad at him but for some reason she found it extremely amusing that he had brought her McDonald’s as a form of retribution. A smile formed at the corners of her lips and Justin looked at her obviously confused by her expression.

“You really know how to woo a girl don’t you?” She asked him sarcastically.

“Yeah, I know but it was the best thing I could come up with. But I do have more.” He handed her the bags before leaning down to pick up another bag, which held some other things inside it.

“What’s in there?” She tried to look inside but he held the bag behind him.

“No, you can’t look unless you forgive me and let me redo this date.”

“I don’t know… it’s a little late for a date don’t you think?”

“It’s never too late. Just let me set up.”

“Set up?” She crossed her arms over her chest as she eyed him.

“Yes, set up. Trust me.”

“Fine, you get one more chance but that’s it.” She stepped out of the doorway to let him inside.

“Thank you.” He walked in and looked around her apartment trying to figure out where he was going to do this. He could do it in the kitchen but it was too small. Maybe in the living room but it might be a little cliché. He looked around a little bit more until he saw her balcony. He smiled to himself and then looked over at her. “Do you mind going into your room while I get everything together?”

“You’re going to make me wait longer than I already have?” She laughed softly.

“I promise it won’t take long.”

“Ok… but I’m timing you this time.” She walked into her room and when Justin was sure she was out of sight he grabbed the bags and walked out to the balcony setting up a mock date. When he thought he had everything under control he walked over to her room to get her.

“I’m done.” She walked out of the room and looked him over.

“What did you do?”

“You’ll just have to see.” She cautiously made her way over to the living room and looked around not noticing anything out of the ordinary. She looked back at him confused about this whole thing when something caught her eye out on the balcony. When she moved in, she didn’t have any furniture for the balcony except a small table that sat alone but now when she looked out there the table was covered with a tablecloth and two small candles were placed in the middle. She smiled knowing that the tablecloth was plastic and that he probably just picked up all of this stuff a few minutes ago but it didn’t matter to her, the thought he put into it was nice. She walked out on the balcony and laughed looking at the McDonald’s bags.

“You really are something else.”

“It would have been better if I had been here on time. I really am sorry about that.”

“It doesn’t matter anymore; I think this might have made up for it. It was a sweet idea.” She smiled at him.

“Well I’m glad you approve. Why don’t you take a seat? You didn’t have any chairs so I used some pillows from your couch. I hope you don’t mind.”

“Interesting idea.” She laughed and shook her head. “I don’t mind.” She took a seat on one of the pillows and he sat down across from her. “So I hope you have a quarter pounder in one of those bags.”

“I have one of everything in these bags.” He laughed and looked through the bags before he pulled out a quarter pounder. “Here you go.”

“Thanks.” She opened the wrapper and grabbed some fries before taking a bite of her burger.

“And I have a chocolate and vanilla shake. Which one do you want?”

“Chocolate please.” He handed her the shake and she took a sip from it. He grabbed a big mac for himself and he started eating. Allie smiled over at him and he caught her eye.

“What?”

“Nothing, I just realized why all the girls want you.”

“Because I’m so damn sexy they just can’t resist?” He wiggled his eyebrows.

“What? No!” She laughed throwing a fry at him. “It was nice of you to do all of this. You could have just called and apologized but you actually came over.”

“I honestly didn’t mean to miss our date. I was looking forward to it.”

“Well I think it all worked out in the end. You redeemed yourself I think.”

“Good to know that all you need is some McDonald’s to make you feel better.” He smirked and laughed. She glared at him slightly before throwing a few more fries at him.

“Next time I’ll expect more.”

“Next time?”

“Yeah, next time.”

“So you’re calling the shots now?” Justin grinned.

“I am. Do you have a problem with that?”

“Not at all. I’m just glad you’re actually thinking about next time.”

“I guess you have me intrigued.” She smiled at him before taking another bite of her burger.



They finished their meals and talked for hours telling each other different stories and sharing their interests. There was never a dull moment shared between the two of them. It was now four in the morning and they were sitting on her couch clearly becoming exhausted with each passing minute.

“Is it really four?” Allie rubbed her eyes. “You kept me up passed my bed time.”

“Yeah, it’s passed mine too. I should probably get going so you can get some sleep. He stood up from the couch and put on his jacket. Allie got up too, disappointed that the night was over but was thankful that she could get some rest. She walked him to the door and looked up at him.

“Thanks for the night Justin. It might have been one of the best dates I’ve had… might being the key word.” She winked at him.

“Thanks for giving me another chance. I promise I won’t let this happen again.”

“I know you won’t.”

“I’ll give you a call tomorrow.” He smiled as he leaned down placing a light kiss on her lips, a kiss that she wasn’t expecting but welcomed nonetheless. “Goodnight.” And with that he left and she stood there speechless. All she could think about was Justin and the amazing night that they had shared together.

Justin smiled as he remembered their first date. He had screwed up that night but for some reason she forgave him completely and even laughed at the fact that he had brought her McDonald’s. Most women he knew would probably take it as an insult but not Allie. She was different. She understood him like no one else had before which is probably why he couldn’t understand the reasoning as to why he had ended their relationship in the first place. There was a lot of tension shared between them near the end but he never stopped loving her. Why had he let his stubborn nature get the best of him? He then heard another knock at the door and he mumbled under his breath for the person behind the door to come in.

Trace opened the door and looked inside at Justin. “Hey, Ava just got here so you might want to start getting ready. We should head downstairs now.”

“Alright, I’ll be right there.” Trace nodded at him before he left the room. Justin sighed and stood up from the chair. He walked over to the mirror and fixed his tie staring back at his reflection. Shouldn’t he look excited and happy on such an important day as this one? He was getting married after all. Maybe it was just nerves. That had to be it. He loved Ava and wanted to spend the rest of his life with her. He was making the right decision. He calmed himself down and took a deep breath as he walked over to the window. He looked out and saw everyone setting up for the wedding. He smiled to himself as he saw his mother talking to Ava’s mother. It was at that moment that he knew everything would be fine. But just when he thought he got Allie out of his head, he saw a woman who seemed to resemble her. She was laughing as a guy wrapped his arms around her frame and placed a kiss on her neck. This seemed to trigger another memory and as much as he wanted to push it aside and go down there to marry Ava, he couldn’t help but relive the reverie that wouldn’t seem to fade away.

*****

Ever since their first date, Allie and Justin couldn’t get enough of each other. They spent any free second they had together. At first, it scared Allie because she had never been this dependent on a guy but when she was with Justin, she felt safe and happy. He treated her like no guy before him had and she loved him for that.

It was now about two months after their first date and every day it seemed to get better. Allie was at work trying to organize all of the papers that she had thrown across her desk. She was becoming extremely frustrated with the amount of work that she had but she just continued to remind herself that it was Friday and she would be able to leave soon. She smiled trying to decide on what her and Justin would do over the weekend. Maybe they could just stay in and watch movies. She felt like being lazy this weekend. She figured she would run the idea by him later.

Suddenly her phone started ringing and it caught her off guard. She quickly picked it up and placed it against her ear. “This is Allie.”

“Hi Allie, it’s Mary from the front desk. It seems as though you have a delivery down here, would you mind coming down here to pick it up?”

“Umm… I really can’t right now Mary. I have this huge pile of papers on my desk. I’ll come get it on my way out.”

“Well… we would prefer that you come down and pick it up now.”

“Oh. Well then do you think someone could bring it up here? Normally I would have no problem but I have a ton of things to do and want to get them done before the weekend.”

“Uhh… yeah, sure. That will be no problem. We’ll send someone up right now.”

“Thanks Mary.” Allie hung up the phone and raised her eyebrow in confusion. She thought Mary seemed to be acting funny but thought nothing of it and continued to go about her work.

A few minutes later while Allie found herself frantically looking for a file, her delivery had arrived. She noticed something out of the corner of her eye and turned around slowly to see Justin standing there with a small bouquet of flowers. Her eyes widened slightly before she bolted out of her chair and threw her arms around his neck.

“Nice to see you too.” He said with a soft laugh.

“What are you doing here?”

“I figured I’d do something nice and bring you some flowers.”

“They’re beautiful Justin but you didn’t have to do that.” She smiled up at him as she took them from his hand.

“Yeah, I know but I wanted to.”

“Well thank you. It was a nice thought.” She placed them on her desk and made a mental note to find a vase to put them in later. “So do you want to do dinner or something tonight? I was thinking that maybe we could rent some movies.” She shrugged her shoulders slightly and looked over at him.

“Actually… I had something else in mind.”

“Oh? What did you want to do?” She asked thinking that he just didn’t feel like watching any movies.

“I planned a small vacation for the two of us. I thought that we could use some time to get away since you’re stressed out from work and I need a break from rehearsals for the tour.”

“We’re going away?” Her eyes immediately lit up at thought of them running away on a romantic weekend. “When do we leave and where are we going?”

“Well we leave… now.” He laughed noticing the expression on her face. “And we’re going to Napa Valley.”

“Napa Valley? I’ve always wanted to go there. But Justin, I can’t leave now, I’m working and I haven’t packed yet.”

“You are packed actually.” Allie gave him a questioning look hoping that he didn’t pack for her. “I had your mom help me out and put a bag together of what she thought you might want to wear.” He smiled at her. “Can’t you get out of work a little bit early?”

“I don’t know Justin…” She looked around at all the work on her desk biting her lip softly. She really shouldn’t be leaving it this way. It would only make things worse for her when she came back on Monday. She let out a sigh before looking back at him. “Ok, I guess I can leave early but don’t go making this a habit! I can’t do this again.”

“I promise. Scout’s honor.” He held up his fingers giving her the sign and she laughed shaking her head at him.

“Uh huh, sure.” She shut down her computer and grabbed the things she thought she might need before leaving the building with Justin. They got into the car that was waiting for them and made their way to the airport. “When did you plan all this?” She asked curiously, amazed at everything he had done.

“Only about a week ago. I wanted to go somewhere before I left for the tour and decided that you should come too.”

“Well thanks for thinking of me. I never get to go on vacations anymore.” She shook her head and glanced out the window. She hadn’t really thought about him going on tour. She knew he was but it always seemed so far away and when they first started dating she didn’t really think it would go anywhere. But here they were now going away together. Were things moving too quickly? She didn’t think so. They had been together for two months and things seemed to be great. She was going to follow her own rules and not worry whether or not things were getting too heavy too fast.

A little while later they arrived at the airport and were immediately led inside by two of his bodyguards. People automatically knew it was Justin and would point and throw questioning glances her way. In the tabloids she was known as the “Mystery Woman”. He never talked about their relationship to the press. In his eyes what was their business should remain theirs. She grabbed his arm instinctively hating the fact that all eyes were on her. It was the worst part of their relationship. She hated the fact that they were always followed and that people were always watching them. They couldn’t even get through dinner without someone coming over to bother them. As much as she hated this, she never told Justin. Their relationship was still so new and she thought that by telling him how she felt things would go down hill. This was who he was and if she wasn’t willing to accept this was she denying that she wanted to be with him?

They finally arrived at his private jet and when Allie stepped onboard, she was in awe. She had always flown coach and envied those who sat in first class but this was way better than first class. Justin noticed her expression and started laughing.

“I take it you like it.”

“Uh… yeah.” She laughed. “This is great.” She sat down in one of the large leather seats and leaned back smiling contently. “I could get used to this.”

“Well when you’ve had it for so long, it starts to lose its appeal.” He took a seat next to her and put one of his bags down.

“That’s because you’re spoiled Mr. Superstar!” She smirked and gave him a wink.

“Hey, it’s not my fault that people want to jump me when I go on a regular plane. I can’t help that I’m good-looking baby.” He grinned and gave a nod.

“Oh please, you’re not that great. Now if we were talking about Ryan Gosling then it would be a different story.”

“What? Ryan Gosling? Are you serious? More girls liked me on the Mickey Mouse Club back then, what makes you think that’s changed now?”

“Have you seen The Notebook? That should answer your question right there. He was gorgeous and not to mention that every woman wants a guy to love her as much as he loved Allie.”

“Oh now I get it. You just like it because she has your name.”

“No, I like it because Ryan is hot and because he looks amazing in the sex scene.” She wiggled her eyebrows. “And maybe because I like to pretend he’s talking to me when he says Allie.” She laughed softly as the plane began to move.

“See, I knew it.” He shook his head. “And by the way, no guy is really like that. He was way too corny and sentimental. He was almost like a girl.” He laughed licking over his lips.

“I refuse to believe that. I think every guy has the potential to act like him. Is it so wrong to be in love?”
“No.” He looked into her eyes and smiled slightly. She felt herself blush and quickly turned her attention out the window as the plane began to move quickly down the runway. Taking off was her favorite part of going on a plane. She knew many people had a fear of flying but not her, she found it exciting. She smiled widely as the plane picked up speed and began it’s ascent into the sky. Justin noticed her excitement and began to laugh.

“Have you ever flew before?”

“Yeah, but it never gets old.”

“It’s just a plane. It goes into the air and takes you to your destination. Not that exciting.” He gave her a look as if she was crazy and she hit his arm playfully.

“Leave me alone. I’ll enjoy it if I want to.” She stuck her tongue out at him and continued to look out the window. After a while she settled into her seat and enjoyed the remainder of the flight even though it wasn’t long at all. When they had finally landed they got their things together and left the plane only to be met by a car that would take them to the place that they were staying at. Allie was anxious the whole car ride wondering where they were going. She loved staying at new places; it was always the highlight of her vacations.

After a short drive, they pulled up to a beautiful resort that was surrounded by lavish cottages. Allie’s eyes widened at the sight and she immediately turned to Justin. “Are we staying here?”

“Yeah, why? You don’t like it?” He laughed joking around.

“This is amazing. You really know how to spoil a girl.”

“Better than Noah in The Notebook?”

“I’m not sure I’d go that far.” She smirked as the car pulled up in front of the resort. They got of the car and walked inside the resort to the front desk where they checked in. He grabbed the keys for them and the woman behind the desk said that someone would help them to their cottage with their bags. They thanked her and set out to find their cottage. After walking along a short path, they came to a decent sized cottage that sat along a pond. Allie smiled at the sight and glanced over at Justin who was looking at her. “You really outdid yourself.”

“Let’s just say I’m making up for our first date.”

“You did that a long time ago but thank you anyways.” She took one of the keys from his hand as they walked up to the door. She unlocked it and pushed it open, trying to get a look of the inside. It was relatively dark inside but she could see a light coming from one of the rooms. She walked inside toward the light and was completely awed at what she saw. In the living room, the fireplace was lit and on the floor in front of the fireplace sat a blanket and a tray filled with various deserts accompanied by a bottle of wine. Allie looked at the display in front of her and didn’t know what to think. She had really lucked out when she met Justin. He was like no guy she had ever met. She felt his arms wrap around her waist as he rest his chin on her shoulder.

“I wanted to make it perfect.” He placed a kiss on her neck gently.

“Justin, this is the nicest thing anyone has ever done for me.” She turned into his embrace and wrapped her arms around his neck. “Maybe you have a little more Noah Calhoun in you than you thought.” She smiled up at him before leaning in to place a kiss against his lips. She pulled away as a man brought their bags in and Justin thanked him by giving him a generous tip. After he had left, Justin and Allie sat down on the blanket sharing a glass of wine and trying every dessert that was on the tray. When they finished their wine and the desserts, they pushed the tray to the side and lay by the fire together wrapped in each other’s arms.

“I think I could get used to this.” He murmured against her lips before he kissed her softly.

“Mhmm… I was just thinking the same thing.” She kissed him back deeply loving the feeling of them being so close. They were always very affectionate with one another but they had never been intimate. Allie had been sure from day one that Justin would have tried to sleep with her but he never did. At first she thought that maybe he just wasn’t that interested but the more they spent time together the more she realized this wasn’t the case. They both felt a desire for each other but for some reason they never acted on it. The time had to be right.

Justin pulled her body closer to his as he kissed her hungrily. His lips trailed its way from her mouth over to her neck placing soft kisses along her skin. Allie shivered beneath his touch as his mouth pressed against her skin. He kissed along her collarbone and right above the edge of her shirt. She bit her lip gently unsure of his next move. She wanted more than ever to feel his bare body against hers but at the same time, she was nervous and scared. What if he had been waiting for this only to be disappointed? Would it ruin the rest of their weekend?

He slid his hand underneath her shirt and ran it up the side of her body. He looked up at her with so much passion and desire in his eyes that she quickly abandoned all hesitation and doubt. They both wanted this equally. He slowly began to pull her shirt up her body and she lifted her body so that he would be able to take it off her. He threw the shirt to the side as he continued his trail of kisses down her body. Her hands soon found the edge of his shirt as she began to lift it over his head wanting to feel their skin pressed together. She threw his shirt over by hers before she pulled him down on top of her reclaiming his lips for her own.

They followed each other’s motions as he unclasped her bra and she undid her pants. They were in no rush just intent on exploring each other’s bodies. Once their clothes had been discarded and their bodies were pressed together, they just stared at one another for a moment taking everything in. Their bodies were then joined as one as they began to make love in front of the fire.

*****


The next morning Allie rolled over onto her side just to find her self up against Justin’s body. She wrapped the blanket around her and smiled at his sleeping figure. Last night had been nothing but perfect and it only seemed to confirm her feelings for him even more. She listened to him breathe softly for a few moments before she leaned up to place a kiss against his lips. His face furrowed slightly and he rubbed his eyes before letting out a yawn. He slowly let his eyes open as they met hers. A smile formed at the corners of his mouth and he draped his arm around her so that he could rub her back.

“Hey baby.” He said in a groggy voice as he kissed the top of her head.

“Good morning.” She ran her hand over his chest lightly loving the feeling of her waking up to him.

“What time is it?” He glanced around the room for the nearest clock.

“Umm… eleven.”

“What? It’s already eleven? Damn, we need to get up.”

“Why? What’s wrong?”

“Nothing we just have a winery tour at twelve. I don’t want us to be late.”

“Really? That sounds like fun. I should probably get in the shower then.” She started to sit up pulling the blanket around her naked body.

“I need to take one too so I’m getting in with you.”

“If you just want to shower with me just say so, no need to make excuses.” She grinned at him.

“Ok, I want to shower with you.” He laughed sitting up.

“Alright… but I’m taking the blanket.” She jumped up and pulled the blanket tightly around her as she ran to the bathroom leaving him naked. She laughed as she found the door to the bathroom and ran inside to turn on the shower.

“You are dead.” He laughed getting up and following close behind her. When he reached the bathroom, the shower was already on and she was inside. He quickly got in and let the water beat against his body as he took Allie into his arms. They washed each other’s bodies and were very loving toward one another as the water fell over them. If they could have, they probably would have stayed in the shower all day but they had things to do. When they were done showering, they got out and got ready for the day ahead of them. In Allie’s eyes, the weekend couldn’t get any better than it already was.

*****

After getting a tour of the winery, Justin and Allie decided to walk through the grape trees. They walked hand in hand enjoying each other’s company. “This place is gorgeous.” Allie said as she looked up at all the trees around them.

“Yeah it is. I wouldn’t mind spending the rest of my life here.”

“You just want to spend it wrapped up in bed.” She laughed glancing at him.

“Mhmm… yes I do. Wrapped up in bed with you.” He pulled her to him and she laughed a little louder as he kissed her neck. He stopped after a moment and looked down at her. “I’m glad we did this.” He said seriously.

“I am too.” She stopped laughing and looked back into his eyes.

“You know for a moment there I was worried about going on tour.”

“You were? Why?”

“I didn’t want to leave when we had just started all of this. It’s difficult getting into a relationship when you have to leave so soon. I was afraid that we wouldn’t be able to make it.”

“We’ll be fine.” She nodded reassuringly. “It won’t be so bad.” She wondered if she was saying this for him or for herself.

“I know it won’t, at least I do now. Everything will work out.” He smiled before giving her a gentle kiss.

*****


Justin shook his head as the memory faded away. At the time, he didn’t know that when he went on tour their relationship would start to break at the seams. Not enough that it’s what ended it but if he had to pick a starting point, it was after he left. He stepped away from the window and walked over to the door taking a deep breath. He saw images of Allie laughing under the trees, in the shower, and making love to him flash before his eyes. He rubbed them softly and groaned trying to push her out of his head. He sighed before opening the door just to come face to face with Trace. “Let’s do this.” He said before pushing passed his best friend and making his way downstairs.

Justin reached the bottom of the stairs and looked around at everyone running around frantically trying to get everything ready before Ava walked down the aisle. He took a deep breath trying to get his bearings before he turned the corner just to find Ava putting on a veil in the room down the hall. She was looking in the mirror as her mother helped her put it on and she was fully dressed in her wedding gown. A moment later, Ava caught his eyes in the mirror and she quickly turned around.

“Justin! It’s bad luck to see me in my dress before the wedding!” She ran over to the door and shut it before he could respond.

“I didn’t mean to!” He rubbed his head gently thinking that it was just as bad to think about your ex-girlfriend on the day that you were getting married. He walked outside and glanced around noticing people just beginning to arrive and take their seats. Out of the corner of his eye he saw his mom approaching him with a wide smile placed across her face. He turned toward her as she put her arms around him. “Hi mom.”

“Hey, how are you doing?” She pulled away and looked over his face as she furrowed her eyebrows. “What’s wrong?”

“What do you mean? I’m fine.” He nodded managing to put on a smile for her.

“I think the nerves are getting to you.”

“Alright, maybe a little.” He let out a sigh and shrugged slightly.

“Just calm down and relax. The hardest part was asking her to marry you and you’ve already gotten over that hurdle. Everything will be ok now.” She tried to reassure him.

“I hope you’re right.”

“I’m always right.” She smiled before taking a deep breath and putting her hand on his cheek. “I still can’t believe you’re getting married. I didn’t think you’d ever settle down.” She let out a laugh as she moved her hand away from his cheek to rest on his hand. “But I’m glad you are.” She smiled as her eyes watered up and a few tears fell down her cheeks.

“Mom are you crying?” He smiled down at her.

“No I’m not crying.” She shook her head and wiped away the tears as she heard someone calling her name. She looked toward the source and saw Paul her husband motioning for her to come over. “Honey, I have to go but you’ll be fine I promise.” She kissed his cheek and squeezed his hand before leaving Justin standing there thinking things over. Something that his mother had said brought him to another point in his relationship with Allie. It seemed that no matter what he did, everything continued to bring back memories they shared together.


********


It had been a month since Justin left to go on tour in Europe and in the beginning Allie didn’t know what do with herself. She had become so used to planning her weekends around him and when he left it was as though there was nothing for her to do. She hated this more than anything. She had let herself become very dependent on him and she had made a promise to herself that she wouldn’t let this happen. Well she did and now she had to get out of this moping around the apartment bit. It wasn’t like they broke up or anything. She had nothing to be down about. It was at this realization that she threw herself into her work. She began staying later than usual, offering to do more things, and because of this her boss as well as other co-workers started to take notice.

Her boss began giving her special projects to work on which made Allie really excited because being an editor was what she always wanted. It was nice to finally be living your dream. She didn’t let herself forget about Justin though. He always had a way of coming into her thoughts. He was the first thing she thought about when she woke up and the last thing when she went to bed. They called each other every day usually around the same time unless he was busy doing something. She was starting to become accustomed to him being away until one day when she was grocery shopping.

She was just getting a few things for her apartment since she and Josh were going to have a horror movie night together. She walked up and down each aisle grabbing every form of junk food in existence since this was going to be an all night thing. Sometimes it was nice to just stay in with one of your closest friends. She looked down into her carriage deciding that she had everything that she needed and began to make her way to the cashier. While she was passing through one of the aisles, a couple of magazines caught her eyes. She stopped walking and immediately picked up one of the magazines narrowing her eyes at the cover. She quickly focused on the picture of him and Jessica Biel walking down the street in England together. She flipped through the magazine coming to the article about him. The title read: “It’s True, They’re a Couple”. She read through the article and how it stated that many eyewitnesses confirmed that Jessica was staying at his hotel with him and they were seen kissing here and there. She closed the magazine and put it back down as she bit her lip gently. She felt the jealousy rush over her, which was very unlike her. Was he seeing her while Allie was all the way over in the States? But then again, the pictures did end up all over the magazines so how could he be so stupid? She quickly fished through her purse and looked for her phone. She needed to call him. Once she found her phone she dialed his number and waited for him to answer.

“Hey baby. I didn’t think I’d be hearing from you for a couple more hours.” She heard his voice come through the phone and she was immediately calmed.

“Uh… yeah I know but I just thought I’d call you a little earlier today.”

“That’s fine. You can call me whenever you want. But now that I do have you on the phone there’s something I wanted to ask you.”

“Oh yeah? What’s that?”

“I wanted to know if you wanted to come out and see me in a couple of days. I know it’s last minute but I have a few days off before my next show. We can spend some time together and then you can come to one of my shows. What do you think?”

“I don’t know Justin… work is crazy right now and I already went away with you once when I probably should have stayed here.”

“I know but please think about it. I miss you and I don’t want to think about how long it will be before I get a chance to see you again.”

“I don’t either but I should stay here. I don’t want my boss to get mad at me.”

“What if I put in a good word for you?” He laughed softly.

“I wish that’s all it would take.” She smiled slightly before her eyes returned to the picture of him and Jessica Biel again. She felt a sinking feeling in her stomach and before she knew it she was agreeing to fly to Europe. “Actually I’ll come.”

“You will? That was a quick change of heart. I thought your boss was going to be mad at you.”

“Um… I can probably make it up to him when I get back.”

“Ok well then I’ll call you tomorrow with all the details. I’m glad you’re coming out by the way. I really miss you.”

“I miss you too.” She smiled.

“Alright well I’ll talk to you then. Enjoy your night.”

“You too. I love you.” And with that he hung up not returning the sentiment, which drove Allie even more crazy. What if he was just asking her to come see him because he wanted to break up with her? He wasn’t like that though, was he? She shook her head trying to get the insane thoughts out of her head before she went over to the cashier to pay for her things.


********


A few days later Allie found herself roaming around an airport in England searching for baggage claim. She continued to follow the signs that would lead her to her bags but for some reason it seemed to be taking forever. Finally, after what seemed to be a never-ending journey, Allie found baggage claim and waited until she spotted her bags. She had been waiting for a few minutes when she felt two arms wrap around her from behind. She jumped slightly and let out a soft yell of surprise before turning around to see Justin standing there laughing at her reaction.

“Just the reaction I was hoping for.” He smiled down at her.

“You were hoping to scare the shit out of me?” She hit his arm. “How nice.” She gave him a glare before a smile started to form at the corners of her mouth. He then leaned down and gave her a soft kiss. When he pulled away Allie looked around her. “Shouldn’t you not be doing that? I didn’t think you’d want to call so much attention to yourself.”

“Usually I don’t but you know what? I don’t give a damn right now.” He laughed. “I’m just glad you’re here.”

“I am too.” She smiled deciding to put her jealousy of Jessica behind her. She turned her attention back to the bags that were coming out and pointed to hers. “Now be a good boyfriend and get my bags.” She smirked.

“Already bossing me around I see.” He shook his head as he walked over to the carousel and grabbed her bags. “Alright let’s go.” He carried her bags and led her outside of the airport over to the car that was waiting for them. He opened the back of the car and put her bags in before shutting it and getting in the backseat with her. Once the car began moving Allie turned toward him.

“I’m surprised not too many people paid you much attention in there. I thought you were some big celebrity. You must be losing your touch.” She grinned and then laughed.

“I’ll never lose my touch.” He shook his head sure of himself. “But if you just walk in there like it’s no big deal no one will really bother you. I don’t know why but I’m not complaining about it.”

“You’re so cocky.” She rolled her eyes at him before laughing. “So what do you have planned for us while I’m here?”

“I figured we could just stay in bed every day and have sex.” He wiggled his eyebrows at her.

“Justin!” Her eyes widened as she laughed. “Sorry but I don’t think I’d be able to go twenty-four seven. And I know you’d like to think you can but I know you can’t.” She smirked.

“Thanks for the blow to the ego.”

“No problem. Someone needs to keep that ego of yours in check.” She nodded. “But really, what are we doing?”

“Well tonight I thought we could just stay in the hotel together. I’ll order some room service. I would take you out but I want to be greedy and just have you for myself.”

“I guess I can’t really argue with that then.” She smiled as the car pulled up in front of the hotel he was staying at. “And you’re lucky because I’m starving right now.” She laughed as they both got out of the car.

“Yeah I am too. I didn’t realize you’d be getting in this late.” He looked at his watch noticing that it was now 7:30 at night. He opened the back of the car and grabbed her bags as she shut the door for him. They then made their way into the hotel and through the lobby where they reached the set of elevators. They waited until one of them opened and they went inside, pressing the button to his floor.

“You stay at some nice hotels.” She nodded looking around the elevator. “The elevator is even beautiful.” She laughed.

“I can only have the best you know.” He laughed and gave her shrug. “I don’t even pay for these hotels. I just stay where they tell me. Luckily for me they don’t make me stay at the Holiday Inn or anything.” The doors then opened to his floor and they walked out making their way to his room. Once at his room he unlocked the door and walked inside placing her bags in the bedroom. Allie looked around completely awed.

“I didn’t know you stayed in a suite. I thought it was just gonna be a room.”

“No, I always get a suite.”

“So spoiled Mr. Timberlake.” She placed her hands on her hips as he came over to her and wrapped his arms around her waist. She smiled up at him before placing a kiss against his lips. “Now go order us some food.” She grabbed his ass before pushing away from him.

“Yes ma’am.” He laughed as he walked over to the phone. “What do you want?”

“I really want steak right now.”

“Good choice, I think I’m gonna get that too.” He nodded and called room service placing their order.


********


When their food came they shared a nice intimate dinner catching up with each other. Allie told Justin all about work and how they were finally starting to look at her as an important component to their company. Justin was proud of her and was glad that she was happy with the way things were working out. He told her about the tour and how it was going over here in Europe. Allie took notice of his lack of mentioning Jessica coming out to visit him but she didn’t say anything about it. She just tried to think of something else to talk about instead.

“So where’s dessert?” Her eyes brightened up as she looked over at him.

“How can you think about dessert after eating that steak? I feel so full right now.” He laughed resting his hand on his stomach.

“Oh there is always room for dessert J.”

“If you say so.” He stood up from the table and walked over to the phone again. “What will it be this time?”

“Um… I think chocolate covered strawberries sound good right about now.” She grinned. “They’re my favorite.”

“Do you think I could steal one?”

“Oh I thought you were too full.” She raised an eyebrow as she stood up.

“Well one won’t hurt.”

“Uh huh.” She laughed as she gave him a quick kiss on the cheek. “I’ll be out on the balcony. I need to go see this view.”

“Ok I’ll be right there.”

Allie walked through the bedroom and over to the balcony where she opened the door and stepped outside taking in the view. She smiled as she walked over to the rail and looked down at the people walking by. It was definitely beautiful but she couldn’t help but wonder if Justin had shared this view with Jessica before she got here. She hated that she let it get to her so much. But even though she tried to push the thoughts out of her head they kept finding a way back. She rubbed her face gently deciding that she just needed to be upfront with Justin and ask him. She didn’t want him to think she was jealous but it was the only way she was going to stop worrying. A few moments later she heard the door open behind her and she glanced over her shoulder giving him a half smile.

“What’s wrong?” He looked at her concerned.

“Why do you think something’s wrong?”

“I can see it in your face. Is everything ok?”

“Well there was something I wanted to ask you…” She bit her lip gently as she looked at the ground diverting her attention from him.

“What is it?” He furrowed his eyebrows getting a little worried.

“I know I’m going to sound crazy but it’s been bothering me for the past few days and I just can’t stop thinking about it.”

“Ok you’re scaring me here.” He let out a nervous laugh. “Just tell me.”

“Is there anything going on between you and Jessica Biel?” She felt her cheeks blush.

“What? No.” He shook his head and laughed softly. She held up her hand before continuing.

“Just let me finish. I saw pictures of you together in the magazines and how they said she was staying with you in the hotel. They said you were kissing and everything. And I know they’re just tabloids and you’ve told me they lie to get a story but I saw the pictures Justin. She was here. All I could think of was you cheating on me with her and it drove me crazy and now here I am rambling. But you don’t know how jealous it made me. I’ve never been this jealous before and it really scared me.” She rubbed her eyes as she felt them tear up. She didn’t know why she was getting so emotional over this. Justin leaned in trying to see behind her hands hearing her sniffle slightly.

“Baby are you crying?”

“No I’m not crying!” She turned around and walked off of the balcony and into his room as she quickly wiped away the tears not wanting him to see her cry over something so stupid. He quickly followed behind her not wanting to see her so upset.

“There’s nothing going on between me and Jessica. She’s just a friend who came to visit me. They got some photographs of us walking down the street and assumed that we were together when the truth is I couldn’t stop talking about you when I was with her. I don’t cheat Allie. I know how it feels and I don’t believe in it. I made a commitment to you and I’m not about to break it. I love you.”

She just stood there with her back toward him not knowing what to say. She let the silence fill the room before she turned back around letting him see her red puffy eyes. “I know you wouldn’t. I always knew in the back of my mind that you wouldn’t do that to me but I couldn’t help but think the worse.” She took a deep breath as she walked over to him. “Justin, what if we did move too fast? I think I fell too fast and that scares me more than anything. I’ve always been independent and with you it’s different. Maybe we should take a break while you’re on tour or something.” She shrugged her shoulders as she looked up at him with pleading eyes.

“We moved at our own pace. I don’t think we moved any faster than what we were ready for.” He brushed a few strands out of her face before he wiped away some tears. “I don’t want to take a break. I want to be in this relationship with you and it’s not going to matter whether we stay together while I’m here or get back together when I return. I’m still gonna feel the same way. If you want to take a break then I’ll do it but I don’t want to.”

“I don’t think I really want to do that either. I think I just needed to hear you say it.” She let out a soft laugh as she looked down again. He lifted her head as he gave her a kiss.

“You don’t need to worry about me. All I think about is you while I’m here. I promise you that.” He reassured her.

“I know. I’m sorry for thinking otherwise. I love you and I do trust you.”

“I love you too.” He pulled her into him as he rubbed her back gently.


********

Justin let out a sigh as he let the memory slip away. He was a stubborn guy he knew this but there he was telling Allie that what she saw in the magazines was completely false and expected her to believe him when he couldn’t do the same for her. She told him that what he thought was just a figment of his imagination but he wouldn’t just accept this and take her word for it. He thought there was something else going on and he became increasingly jealous something that he never really had to experience before. A feeling that he hoped would never happen to him again. He hated what it did to him and what it did to his relationship with Allie. It was the one memory he didn’t want to return but he couldn’t hold it back anymore. It was time for him to relive the moments that he had screwed up for himself.