"I will call you every night," Nick whispered holding Alesha close to him.
Alesha nodded and smiled, trying to hold back her tears. "Besides, it's only 2 weeks, right?"
"I want you to come with me," he whined.
"Maybe when ya'll get settled back into touring," she said smiling softly.
"Promise?" he asked pulling away and looking her deep in the eyes.
She laughed. "Sure," she said kissing him.
"I promise," Lori whispered, tears falling freely.
He reached up and brushed them away with his thumb. "I've never had this hard of a time saying goodbye," he laughed sadly. "I don't know if that's a good thing or a bad thing." She smiled softly as he wrapped his arms around her. "I love you," he whispered.
Pulling back, she looked at him, surprised. "Wha-what did you say?"
He blushed and mumbled, "I love you."
"I love you too," Alesha mumbled into his shoulder.
"This sucks dammit," he grumbled quickly wiping his eyes.
"No," she said smiling up at him. "It just surprised me."
"Why would it have surprised you? Because you don't feel quite the same?" he asked quietly.
"NO!" she exclaimed. "I DO feel the same. I just…didn't…think you did."
Wrapping her tightly in a hug, he whispered. "I do, baby. I do."
"You do that," she said laughing and hugging him back.
"And Lori," he said turning to her. "It was nice meeting you. Thank you for not smacking me. And thank you for putting a spark of life into the old man there."
Lori laughed and hugged him. "You're quite welcome."
AJ walked up to Alesha and said, "Be expecting a call. I'm gonna need a new dye job soon."
Alesha grinned. "I'll be waiting," she said embracing him.
"I'm sorry about yelling at you," he whispered. He pulled away and glanced over at Lori. "At least she's happy."
Alesha winked. "You'll find someone darlin'."
He shrugged and looked at Lori. "Good luck putting up with her," he said nodding towards Alesha.
Lori laughed. "Thanks."
He hugged her and said, "I'll keep an eye on Kevin for ya. He gets out of line, I'll kick his ass." He let go and walked off.
"Guess it's my turn," Howie said winking.
"Lori, it was awesome meeting you. You've made Kevin quite happy. He hasn't smiled this much in the whole time I've known him." He hugged her as she laughed. He walked over to Alesha. "Come here," he said. He handed her a slip of paper. "That's my cell phone number and my email address."
She looked at him funny. "Okay."
He shrugged. "Never know when they might come in handy." He smiled softly. "Come here and hug me."
She walked into his embrace. He squeezed her close and whispered, "I'm going to miss you. I hope that you will keep in touch."
"I will."
"DUDE. Why do I always catch you with your arms around my woman?" Nick asked walking up. "I'm beginning to get a complex."
Alesha laughed and snuggled up to Nick. "No need to Nickums. I'm not going anywhere."
"Come on ya'll. Time to go," AJ called from the bus.
Nick kissed her quickly and ran off. She walked over to Lori who was locked in Kevin's embrace. He finally let go and hugged Alesha tightly and whispered, "Thank you." And he got on the bus.
Nick was about to climb on, and looked back. He ran back over and said, "One more." He pulled Alesha close and kissed her hard on the mouth. "I love you baby," he said and ran back to the bus leaving her breathless.
Leighanne walked over and hugged both Alesha and Lori. She was lucky enough to be travelling with the guys on the first part of the tour. "Ya'll call me if you need anything. I know it's going to be rough. Stick with it though. It can be a fun ride."
Lori laughed. "Thanks."
Alesha smiled. "Is it always this hard?"
Leighanne nodded. "Hits me hard everytime. Don't believe em when they say it gets easier. You just learn to deal because you love them." She hugged them again and walked back to the bus.
As the busses pulled away, Lori looked at Alesha and said, "Back to reality, I guess."
Alesha nodded. She looked down at the necklace Nick had given her. She traced the charm with her finger. "It's going to be a loooong two weeks."
