I knew something was up. Josh had locked himself into his studio, which I admit, was not unusual, sometimes I think he does it to get ten minutes of solitude. But then I turned around and he was sitting on the bed, sorting through some of his files in his finances folder, the safe visible and open in our closet. Talking softly on the phone with someone. I set our laundry basket on the floor and gestured to it when he glanced up. He nodded silently, listening to whomever was on the phone.

“But why me?” he asked as I left.

He was off during dinner as well. He barely said more than two words, beyond “Pass the salt.” After I had excused the kids, I asked him to help with the dishes. We waited for the kitchen to clear out before talking.

“Do you want to tell me what's going on?” I asked, finding places in the fridge for the leftovers.

“They're trying to tell me I owe quite a bit in back taxes. In Mississippi.”

I blinked. “Mississippi?”

“Yeah.”

I stared at him, my mouth opening and closing, nothing coming out. He glanced over eventually. “Two hundred thousand,” he added.

“How?”

“Property taxes.”

“But...you never owned any property there!”

“I know.”

“So how can you owe that much for not owning property in a state you never lived in?”

“That's what I'm trying to find out. As far as I can tell it's from back when *NSYNC was still around.”

“So they probably want Lance.”

“I don't know.”

“It has to be. He's the one that owned that house in Jackson.”

He put the plate back down in the sink and leaned against the counter. “It could also be you they're looking for.”

“Me?”

“You lived there too,” he pointed out gently.

“Four months. My name was never on that house. I was still driving with a Florida license until I moved back to Ohio.”

“There could be laws that made that house yours since you were married.” He pushed himself off the counter. “I don't think that's the case though. Probably some sort of miscommunication from a tour, fees not paid or something.”

I laughed bitterly. “Two hundred grand. Must be one huge interest rate.” I paused. “Do I need to quit school?”

“No. I'll get to the bottom of it, honey. We'll get it worked out and you do not have to quit school.”

“I can though, if we need to.” I bit my lip. “I can teach at private school without state certification. I've got my bachelors and more than half of my masters done, I'm more than qualified for it.”

He crossed the kitchen in three steps and took me into his arms. “You're not going to drop out of school. Don't ever worry about having the money for that.”

I laughed into his shoulder. “You do remember we have seven kids living here most of the time, right?”

“Lance will pay for the twins.”

“That leaves five.”

“You've got college funds already for Celine and Scott. We'll worry about the girls and Harry when the time comes.”

“I'll only have enough to cover their tuition if they go to community college. And only if they don't decide to live with Scott,” I told him.

“Scholarships exist, hon.”

“I suppose.”

“We'll be okay.” he tucked his chin on top of my head. “Don't even think of dropping out, okay?” I nodded.

“I love you,” I whispered.

“I love you,” he whispered back.