Riley let out a deep sigh and rubbed her forehead. It was later than she wanted to be there with him.

Wasn’t this above her paygrade? Was she an assistant or a designer? And why did he even care what she thought? She wanted to go home.

She sat in the New York WEG office with Justin in a small side room. He had asked her to meet him there to go over some stuff for tour, which had confused her since she had been hired to handle New York only business. 

When she had arrived, she realized it would just be the two of them. He just needed a neutral space to go over stage plans that had just come through, and Johnny and his assistant had been called away to put out some sort of fire with another client. 

She had thought she would be there an hour, maybe two, but four hours had gone by with her doing her best to fully understand everything she was being shown.

“...I mean…Is this too much? I really trust these guys, but I just don’t know…I need you to be another set of eyes on this…Marin? …Hello…HELLOOOOO… RILEY!”

“HUH…What…Oh uh…Sorry yeah um…Justin I’m…not a set designer or whatever….”

He stared at her. What the hell were his eyes, even? She swore he could cut diamonds with his glare.

“Riley…I hired you to assist. I need your help…”

She adjusted on the couch and grabbed the corner of the blueprint. Justin was wrapping up planning for his Man of the Woods tour, and it was clear this was not going to be like ANY of his other shows before it.

Focus, Riley…He’s asking for your honest opinion…Give it to him….Be nice, though…You need this job…

“Hmm…Ok well…This part here…It’s pretty…long and windy for a stage…What was the inspiration here…”

“…The Mississippi River…the part that runs through Memphis…”

“…Wow. Really…” That was a nice touch. She hadn’t figured him for the sentimental type. It was common knowledge he was from Memphis, but it never would have occurred to her he would include this kind of detail.

“Yeah…Why…? Is that..”

“No!...No I mean…That’s actually really cool…Your idea?”

“Yeah…” He looked kind of proud of himself, but a little uneasy.

“Justin…Gun to your head…Do you like this stage?”

“Riley that’s why I’m asking you…”

Riley shook her head and sighed “It’s YOUR tour…”

“Marin…seriously..”

“Noooo….It’s YOUR tour…Can we be honest? You could stand on a bare wooden stage in a potato sack and people will come…and scream…and love it…”

Justin shot her daggers.

Shit...Shit…Riley why did you say that…He is your BOSS. Leave your beef out of this…

“Look…I think it looks good…This pit seems a little off…But…It looks good…”

Justin quietly scooted closer to look at the part of the stage she was looking at. She was right. There needed to be a VIP section, but the way the pit was drawn wasn’t right.

“…Yeah…Yeah that should be over here…and match the rest of the layout better.” He started to roll up the blueprint. “Can you email them and let them know…”

“Uh …yeah...yes.” She had never been in contact with his stage designers, but the tone of his voice had changed. It was deeper…Icy. Now was not the time for her to question him.

“Great…You can go home. Thank you…”

“Listen…I’m sorry I…I didn’t mean…”

“…Didn’t mean what? To imply that I’m easy? A cheap trick? “

“Justin NO…Oh my God that’s not – “

“Marin…A lot of thought goes into everything I do. I’m not a dancing circus animal…”

Wow. This was…There was CLEARLY more to this…

“I-I know that…”

“Do you?”

She didn’t know what to say. She had held a grudge against him for a very long time, and she thought she had hidden it well. She obviously had not.

“Yeah…Uh…I’ll send that email. I’ll call you tomorrow.”

“Good…Don’t worry…From now on you can stick to the easy stuff…errands…Schedules…Think you can handle that without commentary…”

There he is. Asshole.

She felt her blood go hot. Riley Marin had a temper, and her entire life she had struggled to control it. She had messed up. She knew that…But she already felt bad. He had NO right to make her feel stupid, too.

“Why did you hire me, Justin? If I am such an idiot…Why did you hire me?

He was taken aback, but his expression quickly turned to amusement. The smirk that hit his face was infuriating.

“…I couldn’t have known you had an attitude on you like this, could I? You’re a really smooth talker, Marin. Impressed everyone.”

“My name is Riley. NOT Marin”

What are you DOING, Riley…You are going to get fired and then probably blacklisted…

But she was caught in the moment. She didn’t care anymore.

“Excuse me?!” he asked, even more amused.

“You never call me by my first name. It’s condescending…”

The low chuckle as he looked down was like fuel to her fire. “Fine. RI-LEY…No one ever said this job was going to be easy. You were warned.” He took a few steps toward her until he was in her face.

“If it’s too much for you, we can find someone else. I’ll need some notice, though…”

“I’m not that easy to get rid of…MR. Timberlake…”

Wow. Her mouth had gotten her in trouble plenty in the past, but this was a new level of brave for her…

He smiled. It was half amusement and half fire. She couldn’t read his next move, but she was in too deep. She had to stand her ground.

The air was so thick she could barely breathe. At any minute, she was free to turn around and walk away, but something kept her still. She was waiting for the words from him that never came. She was waiting for him to fire her. She WOULD NOT quit.

The longer she stood there, the more she noticed about him. His breathing was heavy. She had never noticed his eyes in so much detail. They were tired. They were dark blue right now. Darker than the baby blues that used to hang on her wall. His mouth was tight. What was he looking for? She scanned his face for a clue…A cue of what she should do next, but she felt herself start to match his breathing. Uncertain...heavy…expectant.

When did he get even closer?

Why wasn’t she leaving?

Why was the room suddenly so warm?

…Why was she drawn to him…

She would never know who started it, but before she could answer any of her questions, her mouth was on his and his on hers. His hand slipped into the back of her hair, pulling her closer. She gripped the side of his shirt, unsure of what to do with her hands. Their tongues found each other in a strange kind of hunger…

RILEY…WHAT ARE YOU DOING…

A panicked voice in her head snapped her into reality, and she jerked back, pushing him away from her instinctively. She tried to slow her breathing, but was practically panting. WHOA…That was..NOT what she had planned.

She looked over to see him, a deer in headlights, with his hands up..

“Riley…Riley. I- What…”

She was on the couch again, head in her hands.

“Shit…SHIT…”

He gripped the back of his neck. This was awkward.

“Uh. What are - Are you ok…”

“NO! No I’m not okay!”

“Do you? Um…I’m sorry. Do you not…want to?”

“Shut UP…Shut UP….”

“Did you want to stop-“

“YES! No…GAWD DAMN IT”

“Riley, I don’t know what that was I didn’t…”

“Shhh…Stop. Just stop. What the FUCK do we do now? We just…WHY?! How do we even…Oh GOD…”

“…A little dramatic, maybe…?”

“Are you KIDDING ME, JUSTIN?”

“I mean…We can just…forget it..”

“NO! We can’t…”

Justin sighed. “You really are the most frustrating woman on the planet.”

“…Yeah…So I’ve been told…”

He stopped. Her body language had changed. What did she mean?

“…Wait, WHAT?”

“Nothing. Look, I need a drink. Is there a bar we can go to where you won’t get jumped?”

He laughed to himself. Riley was a little crazy. This could be fun.

“Yeah…Yeah I know a place…Get up…Let’s go…”

**

The car ride was silent. Neither Riley nor Justin knew what to say.

Riley felt awkward riding in a fancy car she had arranged. She was more an Uber girl than a private Lincoln towncar girl. This was her life now, though, she guessed. At least when he was around.

The car stopped. 

“We’re here, Marin.”

They both thanked the driver as they got out of the car, and Riley looked at the building in front of her. There was no sign indicating a bar, no one outside smoking,  nothing that said “New York bar” to her.

“Is this the part where you kill me at an obscure location?”

Justin laughed. “No way. WAY too obvious.” He flashed her a smile that was entirely too charming for her liking. “Come on…”

He led her down a small set of stairs through a door with graffiti on it.  Had she been here before, or did this just feel a LOT like a place drunk college Riley would have ended up?

Probably the latter.

Once inside, Riley was still unconvinced this wasn’t the beginning of an episode of an Investigation Discovery show. It was dark and smelled vaguely like old liquor. A long bar hugged a brick wall in what looked like an abandoned basement. Exposed lighting and a Victorian chandelier hung above them. A giant, and creepy looking rabbit painted on the wall stared at her.

“Charming. Just what I pictured..” Riley looked around.

Justin smiled “ Well I thought the ritz would be too risky…” he quipped.

“Touche, Justin.” 

They both sat at the bar, and the bartender walked over, greeting Justin first.

“Hey, my man what’s up...Been awhile…”

“Yeah man...Been outta town…”

“Right, right...Hi there” he flashed a smile at Riley. He knew Justin? This didn’t seem at all like a place Justin Timberlake would frequent.”

“Hi. Uh. Riley” she extended her hand by way of introduction. He took it and shook her hand firmly, the subtext being he wondered what she was doing there with Justin.

Justin fixed that. “Riley here is helping me with New York business. “

The bartender’s expression changed, having gotten his explanation.

“Right on..Well I’m Adam, Riley...What can I get for ya?”

“Uhh...Espolon? On the rocks?”

Adam looked impressed “Can do. Usual, Justin?”

Justin had his eyes on Riley, but answered “Uh, yeah thanks.”

Adam walked away to get their drinks.

“Tequila, huh...Goodnight, Marin” he teased.

Riley smirked “I’m Mexican, Timberlake. Lifeblood.”

“Eyyyy... “ he laughed, hands up. 

They got their drinks and Justin took a swig of his. 

“So...We gonna talk about it?”

“Can we not?” Riley winced.

Justin nodded. “I suppose we don’t have to. Less complicated.”

“Exactly. Let’s just...move on. It was a fluke.”

“Fair enough,” Justin agreed. “But ya know...Kinda glad it happened.”

“Excuse me?”

“Got us here, didn’t it? I know nothing about you, Riley.”

“Do you need to?”

“Seems like it would make things a little easier, don’t you think?”

“I’m here to do a job, Justin.”

“So, you never got to know any of your coworkers before?”

Damn. He had her. 

“I mean...Different environment, right?”

“Is it? I mean, isn’t this more personal? PERSONAL assistant…”

“Fair point.” She took another sip of tequila.

“Look, Riley...I understand I can’t do this all by myself. Nature of the beast, but I’m just a guy. Really.”

Oh, she knew that much. She had seen it on the video set.

“Just a guy. Right. “ she looked down at her glass.

“I don’t...I don’t wanna be some diva, Riley. You’re doing ME a favor, not the other way around, and I do appreciate it.”

“Ok, um, what do you wanna know?”

He thought for a second, and decided to just get it over with.

“Exactly how much do you hate me?”

Whoa. Direct shot. She was NOT expecting that. 

“What?!”

“Are you at like ‘Scum of the Earth’ or like ‘I’m mad he walked away..’ “

“English, please?” she asked.

“Riley, it’s fine. I’m used to it. I get it. I killed *NSync. Right?” There was a sadness in his eyes that threw her completely off. 

“Wow. Justin…”

“Gloves off, Riley. We just kissed, for God’s sake.”

“I thought we weren’t talking about that.” 

“We aren’t...Sorry.” He gulped his drink.

She sighed. “I mean...I’ve been upset for a long time. I know that’s not fair. I was a kid, Justin. It meant a lot to me.”

“It meant a lot to me, too. More than you know.”

“You mean that?”

“Do you think I do?”

She looked at him. Oh shit, he did.

“Yeah...I do,” she breathed. “I didn’t, but I do…”

He was quiet. “Wanna get it out? Call me whatever you need to call me?”

She seriously considered it, then took another sip.

“I think we’re past that, maybe?”

“I mean I hope so.”

She smiled, then laughed a little.

“What?” he matched her laugh.

“I just...Life surprises you.”

“You have no idea,” he laughed. 

“Hey, have you been...ya know...good?” she asked, remembering his anxiety attack.

“Yeah..Yeah I think so. Thanks.”

“Making sure,” she raised her glass. 

“To understanding each other better?” He lifted his. 

She smiled and clinked his glass “To understanding each other better.”

**

Two rounds later, they were both comfortable in conversation, the bar thankfully not being busy that night. 

“So ya know...I don’t know. I guess with my schedule I just..Hard to meet someone who’s cool with that, ya know? And the ones that are, well..I tried.” Justin continued, taking another drink from his glass.

Riley nodded “I could see that…”

“What about you? Sorry...Is that too personal?”

“Me? Hmm… Haven’t really been in the mood for all that.”

“Alright,” he said. 

“I’m kind of difficult, I guess.”

He smiled “Ya don’t say...Actually, you did. What did you mean back at the office, Riley?”

“What do you mean?”

“Well..You said you’ve been told that you’re - frustrating…”

She downed the rest of her tequila.
“Oh, that...Um. My ex. My ex fiance, actually. He uh, he shared your frustration.”

“I had no idea, Riley, I’m sorry.”

God, Justin you ARE an ass, he thought.

“No, no, it’s ok. How could you know? Anyway...I guess things just got...harder with my career for him and he didn’t like, not having me around as much?”

Justin nodded and sighed. “Yeah, that happens…”

“He cheated on me, actually, so I guess he did me a favor…”

“Ah. So he’s a dick,” Justin finished his drink.

Riley almost choked on air. “No..No he’s…” Riley sighed. “Yeah, yeah I guess he is.”

“Great girl- smart, driven, loyal, cute...but not enough? Yeah...Dick,” Justin confirmed. He might have been a little tipsy.

“Probably better, anyway. I mean , before I moved to Texas with him and all..” Riley might also have been a little tipsy.

“Oh wow,” Justin reacted. “Another round?”

Riley let some tension out of her body. She hadn’t opened up to anyone about Derek besides Katie, Emi, and her brothers before. It actually felt kind of good. 

“Yeah...I think we better,” she laughed.

**

At the end of the night, Riley didn’t know how much tequila she had drank, but she felt better. Her secret was out, and it wasn’t an issue anymore. Both secrets, actually.

Justin seemed different to her, too. More laid back. Maybe he really had wanted to get to know her a little better. She gave him the basics of her life, not more than he needed, and he gave her his.

She hoped this was real, and held the next time she had to be on a set or at an interview with him. 

Justin had paid the tab. A nice gesture, she had thought, and they got up to leave. 

That’s when she felt it. The room was spinning. 

“Whew... good night had by all,” she joked as she stumbled. 

“You ok there, killer?” he chuckled, his own eyes droopy. 

“I’m fine. Just tired. It’s late.” 

“Let’s get you home, yeah?”

“I mean...we could do that. Unless you’re hungry? I’m hungry.”

Justin laughed. Riley was definitely drunk. 

“Riley where do you live?”

“Bruhklyn”

“Where in Brooklyn?”

“By trees.”

“What trees?” he laughed. 

“There’s a park...the one...You know…”

“That...could be anywhere, Riley. RILEY.” She was fading.

“Justin I’m so tired…” She grabbed his arms. 

“Ok. Ok come on.” He grabbed her bag and wrapped his arms around her and helped her outside before they could cause a scene.

“Riley, listen. Listen to me,” he shook her lightly to wake her up.”

“Hmmm?”

“Can you give me your address? Can I trust you in a cab?”

“I’m so hungry. So tired.”

Shit. He probably should have cut her off. Maybe this was his fault. Did he get in a cab and get her to Brooklyn? Could he do that? He had a beanie on...Was that enough? The last thing he needed was to put either of them at risk. He had to make a decision quickly. He wasn’t exactly sober himself.

“Ok Riley look at me ok? My apartment is down that block. Wanna go sleep it off?”

“Yeah...Yeah...and tacos…”

He bit his lip, to keep from laughing. “Tacos later, Riley...Sleep now, ok?”

She nodded, and fell into him a little. 

“I got you. I got you.” he steadied her and held on so she wouldn’t fall. “ Come on…” 

**

It was a longer walk to his place than usual, but Justin had safely gotten Riley into one of his guest bedrooms. She had insisted on tacos again, but passed out pretty quickly once her head hit the pillow. 

There she was. He had finally gotten to see the real Riley a little bit, and he liked this version a lot more. He smiled to himself as he covered her with a blanket. 

This one was special. They were stuck with each other now, and he didn’t mind one bit.

“Yep. This is gonna be interesting,” he said to himself before heading to his own bedroom. “Goodnight, Riley…”