" Are you ok?" He asked her again, a look of concern growing on his beautiful face. She tried to get her mouth to work. To say anything.  But the only sound that came out of her mouth was 

Meep. 

MEEP? What the hell is wrong with me? Keegan thought as she lay there on the pavement. 

JC climbed off of her, and put his hand behind her head and helped her to sit up. She gripped his arm as he helped her to a stand. 

" Seriously, say something." He coxed her to say something to him so he knew that she was at least able to talk.His eyes sparked with that laughing energy that made panties drop at the sound of his voice. But, there was an edge of worry as well. 

" You knocked me down." Keegan blurted out. Way to go, way to sound stupid, she thought to Herself. 

" Yeah. I'm sorry about that. I really didn't see you until it was to late." JC replied, leaning down and grabbing his aviators off the ground and wiping them with the tail of his t shirt. He then handed her the forgotten bottle of tequila that she had dropped. To her surprise, only a little had spilled. 

Since no one was pointing , or screaming, or hyperventilating, she guessed that no one had followed him to this side of town. He should be able to move around freely down here., Not so much on the Strip. JC glanced back over his shoulder. Three women rounded the corner, all with phones on ready. Ready to snap pictures and video of anything and everything as long as he was in the frame. One of the women turned and snapped at the other two.

" Are they following you?"

" Someone is always following me." He muttered, eying the bottle that she held in her hand. 

" Do you mind?" He asked, Gesturing to the bottle iin question. 

Keegan looked down at the bottle that she held tightly in her hand, and then handed it over to him. TO her surprise he opened it and took two long drags off the bottle. He came up for air and shook his head back and forth. There was a look of displeasure on his face. 

" WOW.....That shit is nasty." He exclaimed. 

" It does the job, and right nos that's all I care about." She said, as he handed the bottle back to her. She opened it and took a swig off of it herself. The burning liquid made her cough as it went down her throat. 

JC's eyes were hidden , But his smile was not. She wanted to melt right there into the sidewalk. 

A taxi came cruising down 4th street, and grabbed his arm and pulled him over to the edge of the curb with her. 

" What are you doing?" He asked, resisting at first. 

" Getting you out of here." 

yelling for the cab would bring more attention than she wanted, so she stood there and waved it down. The cab came to a stop near the curb.She opened the door and stiffed JC inside the cab getting in after him.

" Where to?" The cabbie asked.

" Just drive." Keegan replied, not caring where the hell they ended up as long as it wasn't there at the moment.

He shrugged and pulled away from the curb. Keegan sank into the seat next to JC. He took off the aviators and reached out for her bottle again. Which she gladly gave hm. His hand brushed her, and it was like someone burned her. It felt like fire. She jumped a little in the seat., causing him to raise his eyebrow at her. 

She was in Vegas, in a cab. With JC fucking Chasez.....None of her friends were gonna believe this shit. 

This could not be real life. It simply could not.

She must have drunk more of the tequila than she realized. Or She had hit her head when she fell. Maybe that was it. Now she was imagining all of this and needed some kind of medical attention.This cold not be real.

While she mentally wrestled with her reality, JC took anther swig off the bottle. Then he dug around in his pockets of his jeans. There he came up with a premade joint. He grinned at his prize and lit the joint.  And soon the cab filled with the smell of weed. 

" What the hell?"" the cabbie said, looking int the rear view mirror at JC. " You can't smoke that shit in my cab." The driver said , slamming on the breaks. Without missing a beat, JC reached into his pocket and pulled out a wad of cash.  And continues to smoke his joint. She had no idea how much he had given the cabbie, but it was enough to shut him up.and he continued to drive.  

He offered her the joint, she gaped at it. She had half expected him to kick her out of the car, not offer her a hit of his joint. 

" NO?" he asked, amused. 

" UMM.. Sure." She replied, and took the joint from him, she put it to her lips . Praying to God that she didn't choak. She hadn;t smoked since college. taking a long drag off the joint she handed it back to him and held her breath. This did not hit like most weed she had in the past. This was some good shit.She let the smoke curl out of her lips in an "O" and he had an amused look on his face. JC studied her., and she studied him . As an Nsync super fan, she had long memorized the lines of his face. Ever since he had been on MMC.BUt, This was a different reality.

The crazy salt and pepper curls of his hair were hidden under the baseballl cap that he wore. His beard was longer than she had remembered seeing it recently. His eyes were still the same incredible blue that they always had been. The way he sat there with ease in the back of this cab, the amount of alcohol that she had just consumed, and those damn eyes of his. Sent a sexual tingle that she had not experienced in all her time with Jesse. OR ever for that matter. 

She was a respectable five foot six/ But, she felt tiny next to him . She never realized until now how much she liked that. 

He took his joint back, his fingers brushing hers again.Sending another jolt of electricity through her veins. 

" Where's your phone?" He asked., bringing her back to reality. Was it possible that his voice sounded better in real life as well? Smooth as whiskey and velvet.

She patted her back pocket. " Why?"

He blew a smoke ring in her face, and smiled that smile that had made the panties of a million girls drop for years. " Humor me." 

Keegan pulled out her phone, and held it up so he could see it. 

" Is somethig wrong?" She asked. 

He scrutinized it for a long time, his face was unreadable. Then he gave her the joint back.

" You haven't tried taking any pictures of me. Or recording or anything." He said.

" OKAAY." she replied , taking another hit off  the joint. Not sure she liked where this conversation was heading .

" But, you know who I am."

" What I said no." , She grinned, handing the joint back to him.

" It would be a real punch to my ego." He said, with a lazy smile. A smile that made girls, and quite a few men melt. She wished she were immune to it. But, if he kept looking at her like that, she would turn into a steamy little puddle right there at his feet. 

" I know who you are. In fact, I was listening to Nsync when you plowed into me."

" Again , sorry about that. Are you sure you're ok?" he asked. She rubbed the elbow that she had hit on the ground.It still hurt, but at that point she didn;t care if her arm was broken or not.

"I'm fine." Keegan said as nonchalantly as she could muster. Even though her throat was drying out, and her heart was about to pound out of her chest and go flying around the inside of the cab. Some celebrities were less pretty in real life. JC was not one of those. He was even better looking - if that were possible. IT was not fair for anyone to look this damn good. 

He took another hit off the mound, and watching him do it made her toes curl.the thought of him touching her with those hands , was almost too much.

" Want some?" Keegan blurted, trying to keep her mind off the man sitting next to her.

He grinned and gave her an amused look.

" What?" She asked, Jesus, was it getting hot in here. OR is it just me? She thought to herself. 

" You know who I am. You like my music. And yet you aren't reacting like any other fan I've ever met before."

" Let me guess. This is the first time in 25 years that  you've been alone with a woman, a fan no less, that has not mobbed you, burst into tears , or offered to have your babies?" 

JC burst out laughing, and Keegan found herself fascinated by the movement of his throat. 

" Basicly yeah." he laughed. 

Keegan kept very quiet. She was not gonna throw herself at him. She had too much pride. But she had defiantly thought about it more than once since there chance meeting. She had fantasized about licking him all over like he was a piece of candy. His hands twisting her in her hair as she slowly dropped to her knees. 

Her cheeks blazed red, when she came back to reality, as he sat there gazing at her. She still wanted all those things, she wasn't gonna lie. But, with him in close proximity like this, it all felt a bit more real. 

JC tilted his head back and took another drink of the nasty tequila.Wincing, he sputtered, " What the hell kind of cheap shit is this?"

Keegan shrugged her shoulders, and said," Well it's all I could afford. Not all of us are famous Pop stars. " A cloud shadowed over his expression for a moment, then was gone. 

 He looked out the window, and replied, " I'm the furthest thing from that now."

He looked back at her, and said," You put your phone away. "

" I did."

" You aren't gonna text your friends and tell them that you are here with me?"

" NO."

" But you will eventually."

Something in his voice made her feel like that statement was some kind of test. But, she had no idea what would happen, so she stuck with Simple honesty.

" Oh absolutely. My friends love you and the guys. I am not gonna miss my chance to rub their noses in it either." She grinned back at him.

JC chuckled along with her, and finished his joint and flicked the butt out the window. 

"Are you here in Vegas with them now?"

She hung her head, " NO." He could detect a sadness that had not been there earlier. 

" Family then?"

" No, not exactly." JC continued to watche her squirm as he asked her questions about herself. Maybe it was the tequila or the weed or the intensity of his eyes, or just the weirdness of being in the back of the cab with him. Especially after the supremely shitty turn her life had taken recently. But suddenly as she sat there everything spilled out of her. 

" This was supposed to be the weekend for my Bachlorette party. I was supposed to be getting married two weeks from today.On Friday I came home to find my Ex fiancé balls deep in my best friend, in my bed. " 

" Shit." JC said, not believing what he was hearing. 

" Yeah. So here I am , alone."

' They didn't come out here with you. No one did?"

" No. I said I wanted to come on my own. To have some time to myself. To think. Who the fuck thinks in Vegas?" She said , grabbing the bottle and taking another drink. 

" You're ex , he didn't try making this trip with your ex best friend."

 "He would not have gotten very far.  If he did. He is from Australia, and I burned his passport and all of his important papers. So he will not be going anywhere anytime soon. Except to get his sorry ass deported back to where ever the fuck he came from. " Venom was dripping off her words. 

JC laughed out loud . The deep richness of his laugh loosened the tight ball that had formed in her chest again talking about Jesse. 

" I think I like you." He said to Keegan. She had no idea how to respond to that. So she just took another sip off her bottle. 

" So, you're here alone."

" Yep." She replied, looking down at her shoes. The thought of looking up at him right nw, with those caring eyes of his, would make her cry. And that was the last thing she was gonna do in front of JC Chasez. " I did't have much of a choice. My other friend that was coming had to cancel and Tabby is not an option. So Here I am. Alone an drunk in Las Vegas. "

" How's it been?"

" Pretty crappy., to be honest. I love Vegas, But this was supposed to be a celebration. And now it's just me here alone. Drowning my sorrows in cheap tequila. " She laughed and got choaked up at the same time. " Jesse and I lived together back in LA...SO obviously that's over too. So when I get home, I have to find another place to live. Which I really can't afford to do right now."

He saw her eyes begin to tear up, and tapped the driver on the shoulder. 'Stop here please."

Keegan's heart sank.She had said too much, and her time with him was over. 

Maybe she shouldn't have told him about Jesse. Maybe he was here to have a good time, and not listen to some stranger's sob story . Still her cab ride with him would not last forever and she knew it. 

" You are really gonna tell your friends about this?" JC asked, slipping his aviators on.

"Yes, unless you don't want me too." Although it would kill her to keep this a secret.

" Will it make them Jealous?"

" Absolutely." She grinned, a single tear slipping down her cheek.

" Good. Let's give them something to talk about then. Shall we?"

" HUH?" She asked, surprised by his boldness. 

" I need a drink, and this shit isn't cutting it. Come and have a proper drink with me."

" Are you serious?"

JC snatched the bottle out of her hand and gave it to the driver , and handed him another was of cash. 

" Yes. Have a drink with me. "

"WHY?"She asked him absently, instead of squeezing " HOly shit yes!!"

They climbed from the cab in front of the Atomic Bat. The oldest bar in Vegas. 

" I need a drink, and I hate drinking alone. And from the sounds of it, you could use a stiff one too. " He paused, his lips curved up into a wicked smile. " I mean drink."

" OK" She stammered.

" Don't sound so enthused." He continued smiling at her. That damn smile that could melt butter in Alaska. " I never asked, what's your name?"

" Keegan Jameson." She said softly.

He held out his hand to her and took hers. Another jolt of electricity flew through her body. His fingers curled around hers as she followed him into the bar. Holding back a little whimper at the thought of those hands holding her down on the bed while he surged between her legs. 

DOWN GIRL!!!!!!

Whatever his hands could do to her, they had done to a lot of other girls as well. Maybe JC was taking pity on her. Or maybe this was his way of paying her back taking him away from the crazy fans from earlier. Maybe this was his way of paying back for when he knocked her down.Or , maybe he just wanted someone to have a drink with. And she just happened to be the one who was there at the time. 

Many would kill to be where she was right now. She had to keep her wits about her, and not look too much into this. 

" Right Keegan Jameson." JC said, slinging his arm around her shoulders" It is my mission to make sure that yo have at least one night in Vegas that is worth remembering." He smiled down at her as they took their seats at the bar. " Now let's get that drink."

********

She opened her eyes, She did not recognize anything around her. Her throat was as dry as dust.

OMG  WHERE THE HELL AM I?

OMG!!!!

She closed her eyes, and then opened them back up again. A beam of sunlight stabbed her right in the brain. She felt like some one was hitting her upside the head with a pickaxe. 

What the hell did I do last night?

She remembered almost nothing. Just a yawning black space of what the fuckery. Now she was laying in a room she had no recollection of ever seeing before. With the hangover from hell. And a mouth that tasted like two day old roadkill. Groaning as she sat up on the edge of the bed, She hoped the tangled mass that was her long dark hair to the side. She froze when she sal the light wink off os something on her hand.

A diamond ring.

A diamond ring that she had never seen before.

The diamond ring that sat on a very specific finger. 

Slowly she turned her head to see the person in the bed next to her. 

Joshua Scott Chasez lay in the bed next to her, His face was turned away from her. His salt and pepper hair spilled across his pillow. One hand rested on top of the covers, and also sported a ring on a very specific finger. 

HOLY SHIT!!!!!!!