“Pizza all right for dinner?”
“Pizza’s great.” Nick climbed out of the truck and stretched to remove the kinks from sitting in the very back seat. He grabbed his duffle out of the truck.
“Why am I not surprised?” Meredith grinned as they all headed for the house. Once inside, she dropped the mail onto the hall table.
“Hey, Stasi. How ya doin’, girl?”
Stasi laid down on the floor on her back to allow Meredith to scratch her belly. Nick bent down to join in, and Stasi was in doggie heaven.
“Anything in particular you guys like on your pies?”
“Whatever’s fine. If we don’t like it, we can pick it off.” Kevin headed for his room with his duffel.
“A man after my own heart.” Meredith stood, leaving Nick to play with the dog. She grabbed the phone and pressed a couple of numbers on the keypad.
“Bonjourno. Come stai, Giuseppe {how are you}? Meraviglioso {wonderful}. Vorrei ordinare il solito, piu' alcuni grissini e della salsa {I’d like to order my usual, plus some extra breadsticks and sauce}. Grazi.”
Howie watched as she chatted, adding another item to his list of wonderful surprises that he had discovered about Meredith. She looked up from her conversation to find the young man staring at her. When she hung up the phone, she made her way over to him.
“D, can I ask a favor of you?”
“Sure.”
“Will you go with me to pick up the food? Arianna will be there, and I’d kind of like to ease her into seeing all of you tomorrow when I baby sit her.”
“Arianna?” Dealing with a hysterical fan wasn’t high on his list of favorite things to do, and it showed on his face.
“Relax, she’s not going to jump you or anything.” Meredith laughed at the look of relief that shone on his face. “She’s nine, sort of my goddaughter. She and her little brother, Tony Jr., will be here for about five hours tomorrow afternoon.”
“How old is Tony?”
“He’s six months old.”
“Why do you need to ease her into this?”
“Well, she’s a very quiet child, and she’s exceptionally shy with people she doesn’t know. When we went to see y’all in concert a few months ago, she didn’t scream, she didn’t cry, she just sang along quietly. You’re her favorite, and if she can meet you one-on-one, without the rest of the guys to overwhelm her, she’ll be much better tomorrow.”
Listening to Meredith talk about the little girl, Howie could see how much she loved her. “Sure, I’ll come with you. Do I have time to change?”
“Yeah. We’re going out later to meet the guys anyway.”
Everyone scattered throughout the house. By the time Meredith came out of her bedroom, the guys had met up in the game room. She wandered to the door and found Brian and AJ starting up a game of pool. Standing there, she watched them have some fun.
Kevin turned around and saw her, doing a double take. He hit Nick’s arm.
“What?”
Kevin nodded towards the door, and Nick looked over to see what had Kevin silenced.
“Wow.”
At his friend’s soft exhalation, Howie turned around. He was also stunned into silence for a moment.
“Wow.”
Nick slapped him on the arm. “I said that already.”
“Some things just bear repeating.” Howie watched her as she entered the room.
They’d seen in her uniform, they’d seen in grungy workout clothes, they’d even seen her in a bathing suit---sort of---but they never imagined she’d look like this.
Meredith sauntered into the room, unaware of the impact she was making on three of the boys. A dark green baby tee clung to her breasts, and a short black skirt hugged her hips and thighs, showing off well-toned legs. Bright red toenails peeked out from black sandals, and a thin silver chain was draped around her right ankle. Long auburn curls cascaded down her back.
She finally made her way to the table, watching Brian lean over and position his cue. He stared at the various balls before sighing.
“I don’t think I’ve got a shot.” He was disgusted by the fact that it looked like AJ might have already beaten him with the opening break.
Meredith stared at the table, tilting her head as she studied it. “May I offer a bit of advice?”
Both Brian and AJ looked up at her, surprised she’d gotten so close without them hearing her. AJ was very surprised at how different, make that how good she looked. Brian cleared his throat as he felt his body react to her closeness.
“Sure, I could use the help.”
“You’re gonna aim for the 4. Tap the cue ball right there.” She pointed to the right side of the ball, then stepped back to let Brian position the cue.
“I don’t think this is going to work.” He studied the two balls and didn’t think he’d be able to make the shot.
She stepped back over to him, close enough that Brian had no problem smelling the faint odor of the body wash she’d used that morning. Meredith gazed at him for long moments.
“Do you trust me?” It was a softly spoken question that asked about more than just the game.
He studied her as well, and she dropped the veil of calm neutrality she usually kept to let him peek into her soul. “Yeah, I do.”
“Turn around and get into position to take your shot.”
Brian turned around and leaned forward, placing his left hand on the table and letting the tip of the pool cue glide between his fingers. His right hand gripped the handle loosely. He had to close his eyes and take a breath when he felt her press her body against his back and her thigh slide between his.
Meredith’s left hand settled over his left, and she reached around his side and across his arm to entwine the fingers of her right hand with his so that they both gripped the handle. Her voice was low in his ear, and the sweet warmth of her breath brushed against his cheek.
“Nice and easy, slide the cue back and push it forward.”
Together, they drew the pool cue back and let it slide forward through their fingers. Brian watched as the cue ball rolled toward the 4, gracefully knocking it into the side pocket. They remained motionless for a moment before Meredith uncurled her fingers from Brian’s and stepped away. He remained where he was, still watching the table. After another moment, he straightened and turned around to face her.
“Thank you.”
“You’re welcome.”
The shared grin spoke of more than just pool advice. AJ cleared his throat to break their moment.
“Can I get some help like that?”
Meredith slid her gaze across the pool table to where AJ stood leaning on his cue. An eyebrow rose as she smirked.
“McLean, I don’t think your stroke needs any work.”
Nick choked on his soda, Kevin’s eyebrows rose, and Howie stifled a laugh; Brian did nothing to hide his laughter. Meredith walked back towards the door.
“D, are you ready to go?”
“Yes, ma’am.”
They could hear the rest of the guys laughing at AJ as they left. To Howie’s surprise, they didn’t go out the front door. Meredith grabbed her purse off the hallway table and turned back around. Confused, he followed her through the kitchen to the garage. With the click of a button, the garage door rose to reveal two more cars. The Honda in front of him received a momentary glance, but the Porsche Boxster S caught and held his eye. He whistled appreciatively.
“I’ll let you drive it on the way back.”
They climbed in, and Meredith started the sleek red machine, letting the engine rev. “I love this car.”
“Did it belong to your husband?”
She shook her head. “No, I bought my first Porsche about a year after he died. We had talked about buying one, but never got around to it. At the time, we were talking about kids, and a car seat doesn’t exactly fit.”
She backed out of the garage and closed the garage door before slipping on her sunglasses. “Ready?”
Howie grinned as he slipped on his shades. “Let’s rock.”
She didn’t gun the car as they left the driveway; she waited until they were on a little used back road that had more turns than Le Mons. He watched as she easily handled the car, shifting gracefully to make each turn. He was almost sad when they pulled up to the restaurant. It was cool inside the building, and they removed their sunglasses so that they could see through the dusky light.
Giuseppe Aberti made his way to the front of the room and pulled Meredith into his arms. “Sei stato lontano troppo a lungo {You’ve been away too long}.”
“Mi dispiace {I’m sorry}, Giuseppe. E' stato occupato con il lavoro {It’s been pretty busy at work}.”
“Tu lavori troppo.dovresti rilassarti di piu', trova un buon uomo e sistemati {You work too hard. You should relax more, find a good man, settle down}.” He looked Howie up and down, judging his merit.
“Sì, Giuseppe. I’d like you to meet a friend of mine. This is Howie Dorough. I’m training him and his friends for the next few weeks.”
Giuseppe stared at the young man, trying to figure out where he’d seen him. The moment recognition dawned, Meredith had to smile.
“This is the young man from the singing group that Arianna likes.”
“Yes, he is. Is she around? I wanted to introduce her before tomorrow.”
“Is it too much, tomorrow? You don’t have to baby sit the children.”
Meredith smiled as she laid her hand on the old man’s arm. “I *want* to baby sit them. They give me such joy, and you know Arianna’s looking forward to it.”
“She’s been talking about it all week. I’ll go get her.” He disappeared into the backroom.
Howie looked around the restaurant and decided this was definitely some place he wanted to visit again. The walls were washed in a deep blue, with silver sconces holding white candles that provided a warm glow. Crystal and china decorated tables adorned with white damask cloth, and soft music gave the whole room delightful ambiance.
At the sound of childish laughter, he turned to see the little girl that had Meredith’s heart all locked up. He could see her head resting against Meredith’s chest as she wrapped her arms around her waist. He had to smile at the way Meredith stroked the dark curls.
“Arianna, I want you to meet someone.” Meredith turned her around to face Howie, holding the young girl’s shoulders in a show of support.
“Hi, Arianna.” Howie bent down and held out his hand.
Silently, she placed her hand in his, staring at him in wonder. He brought the delicate hand up and kissed the back of it. Arianna gasped slightly, then smiled shyly.
“Hello.”
Meredith wrapped her arms around the girl’s shoulders. “Howie and the rest of the guys are staying with me for some training stuff, so I wanted you to meet him before you come over tomorrow.”
Arianna looked up at Meredith, then back over at Howie. “I’m very honored to meet you, Mr. Dorough.”
“You can call me Howie, Arianna.”
“Mama wouldn’t want me to do that. She says it’s disrespectful.” Pursing her lips in thought, she stared at him. “I could call you Mr. Howie…if that’s all right.”
“That’d be fine, Arianna.”
Howie stepped back to give them some more time to talk.
“How’s your dad?”
Arianna’s face lit up. “He’s good. He comes home in two weeks. We can’t wait. He’s been at sea for so long.”
“I know, Sweetie. Have you planned the party yet?” Meredith moved to a padded bench against a wall, pulling Arianna with her. Howie sat on a bench next to them as they waited for their food.
“Yes, Mama, let me plan the food and everything. We’re even going to have music. Are you coming?” Arianna leaned against her friend, letting her head rest against Meredith’s chest.
“It depends on how training’s going. If at all possible, I’ll be there.”
“’kay.”
Every so often, Arianna peeked over at Howie to make sure she wasn’t dreaming him. A few minutes later, Giuseppe appeared with their food.
“Thank you so much, Giuseppe. I’m sure we’ll enjoy it immensely.”
“Siete benvenuto, bella {you’re very welcome, beautiful}. You enjoy, and I’ll see you tomorrow if I drop the children off.” He gave Meredith a kiss on the cheek before turning to Howie.
“You take of my girl, now.”
“Yes, sir.”
They left the restaurant loaded down with bags and boxes. Howie could smell the delicious aroma and could hardly contain himself.
“Good thing you’re driving, or I’d have to remove temptation from you.” Meredith could read the intentions on his face.
His expression fell into a pout as he listened to her. “But it smells so good.”
Meredith had to laugh. “All right, one breadstick.”
Reaching into the bag, she pulled out a breadstick drenched in butter, garlic, and parmesan. She also fished out a napkin for him. She pulled one out for herself, and they ate them before Howie started the car.
“Mmm, that’s good.” He licked his fingers, stopping in mid lick as he saw Meredith watching him. “What?”
“Nothing.” She smiled at him, a gleam in her eye.
The drive back to the house was not long enough for Howie; for both the reasons of company and car. The one-on-one time was important to him. He needed to feel completely comfortable with Meredith in order to trust her for the upcoming weeks. He felt that he was well on the way to trusting her.
They pulled into the driveway, and he opened the garage door to pull the car into its parking spot. Shutting off the engine, he caressed the steering wheel before getting out and helping Meredith with the food.
She had to laugh at him and was still laughing when she entered the kitchen. “You can drive it anytime you’d like, D.”
“Drive what?” Kevin was gathering plates, napkins, and utensils, setting them on the counter.
“My Porsche. He liked driving it.”
“Hey, it’s a fabulous car.”
“Not to mention you look mighty fine driving it.” Meredith set the food on the counter and separated it out.
Howie stared at her after she spoke, not sure what to make of it. Kevin stared at both of them.
Leading the way into the dining room, Meredith set the dining room table and allowed Howie and Kevin to bring in the food and drinks. She stepped over to the archway leading into the hall and yelled “Dinner’s on” before stepping out of the way to avoid being trampled.
Boxes were opened and plates passed around as the delectable scents wafted through the air. Once everything has distributed, Meredith was surprised to look up and see the boys staring back at her.
“What is it?”
“Would you like to say grace?” Brian smiled at her.
She smiled back and nodded. Lowering her head and closing her eyes, she began to speak. “Heavenly Father, we give thanks for the food you have laid before us. Please use it for the nourishment of our minds, bodies, and spirits. We ask your blessing on each day as we go about doing your work and will. Bless the family and friends who surround us, bless those who are far away, and bless those no longer with us. In Jesus name we pray, amen.”
The “amens” filled the room, followed by the rustling of napkins and silverware.
AJ dug into his pizza, opening his eyes wide at the taste. “This is incredible.”
“Giuseppe’s family has been cooking for so long. I refuse to go anywhere else.” Meredith pulled a pepperoni off her pizza and chewed on it slowly.
Dinner was peppered with conversation about their lives. It was nice for the guys since Meredith knew some things about them because of their dossiers, but very little about the things that fans usually know. She enjoyed listening to them talk about working on the album, the whole process of writing, and how hectic touring could be.
The phone rang, and Meredith reached over to pick it up. “Hello?”
“Hi, reeny-beanie. What’s going on?”
The name “reeny-beanie” immediately caught the guys’ attention.
“Haven’t I told you not to feed Potiphar the beef jerky? You know how he gets. I also told you not to buy that thing. He’s taunting you with it.”
The cryptic conversation raised many an eyebrow.
“Yeah, gotta go. Love you, too.”
“Problems?” Nick stared at Meredith.
“Just my sister, Irene. She’s been feeding beef jerky to her cat; he doesn’t cope with it too well.”
“I wouldn’t either.” Kevin shook his head at thought of feeding a cat some jerky.
“What thing did she buy?” Nick found the whole conversation fascinating.
“She bought one of those automatic scoopers for the litter box. Potiphar figured out that movement activates it, so he’ll sit in front of it and stick his paw in and wait for the scooper.”
There was silence, then snickers as each guy pictured a cat doing that. “Potiphar’s a pretty cool cat. He’s perfect for Irene.”
“Do we get to meet Irene?” Brian finished eating a slice and reached for another one.
“I’m not sure when she’s going to be up here. Probably.”
They concentrated on eating the fabulous dinner Giuseppe prepared. When the last piece of pizza was devoured, AJ leaned back in his chair and belched. Kevin rolled his eyes.
“Very nice, Bone.”
“Hey, in some countries, that’s considered a sincere and true compliment.”
Another belch rumbled through the room. Five pairs of astonished eyes turned towards the head of the table.
“Excuse me.” A cheeky grin greeted them.
AJ grinned back at Meredith.
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Clean up was quick with six pairs of hands. Once the dishes were safely stacked in the dishwasher and the empty food containers disposed of, Meredith ushered them towards the den.
“I told the team I’d buy the first round, and they should be at the bar now. Does anyone want to stay here?”
Each of them wanted to meet the guys who’d be helping train them, Nick especially. As they got ready to leave, Meredith tossed the Porsche keys to Howie. “Remember, no tickets.”
He saluted her, and she applauded the accuracy. “Nice to see you were paying attention. Now, who’s riding with Howie, and who’s riding with me?”
Kevin quickly volunteered to ride with Howie since he wanted a chance to test out the Porsche himself. Everyone else followed Meredith to the Land Cruiser.
“Oh, man, why does he get to drive that?” Nick stared at the red sports car as Howie backed it out of the garage.
“Relax, Carter, you’ll get a chance to drive it, too. You’re going to be here for five weeks, I imagine everyone will get a chance.”
The little caravan made its way down to a bar close to the base that was a favorite haunt for Navy personnel. The group parked in a corner of the lot away from most of the cars, and Meredith gathered her charges together.
“Okay, here’s the deal. Since a lot of Navy guys hang out here, there are more than your average number of women looking for a free ride courtesy of the Navy. With the number of celebrities here for this training thing, there are going to be even more. If you decide to hook up with one of them---and I’d sincerely advise against it because a number of girls have been working this bar for a while---do *not* bring her back to my house, capisce?”
“Got it.” Kevin nodded, as did the other four.
“Well, I guess we’re ready.” Meredith turned and walked towards the bar, knowing the boys were following closely behind.
She stepped into the crowded building, her head starting to bob in time to the music that blared from the jukebox. She looked around, spotted her friends, and slowly made her way towards them and the bar. She stopped at the mahogany counter before turning to face the guys.
“What’ll you have? First round's on me.”
Kevin, AJ, and Howard all asked for a beer. Nick looked at Meredith’s face and knew better than to ask for any type of alcohol and settled for a coke. Brian asked for a coke as well. She turned back to the bartender with a smile.
“Hey, Joe, I need 10 beers, two cokes, and my usual.”
Joe quickly popped the tops on the beer bottles, pulled two sodas from the fountain, and served up an ice water with lemon and lime wedges. “Here you go, Commander. I’ll put it on your tab.”
“Thanks, Joe.”
Handing each of the guys their drinks, she gestured at her glass. “Carter, grab that for me, please.”
Meredith slid her fingers around the seven bottlenecks and headed for a back table. “Heads up, gentlemen.”
She distributed the beers, took her glass from Nick, and watched as the two groups of men sized each other up.
“Backstreet Boys meet SEAL Team 2.” Handshakes were exchanged, and Meredith was glad to see that the testosterone didn’t rage out of control.
Brian stared at Hawkins. “Weren’t you the guy who showered us this afternoon?”
Hawkins smiled. “Yep. Get used to it. I’ll be surprising you a lot during training.”
Brian gulped as he nodded. Hawkins cackled as Ramos and Leary joined in, causing the younger man to worry.
“Made the assignments yet?” Commander Jim Curran leaned over to talk to Meredith.
“Nope, not yet. I want to observe them a bit more, but I think I’ve got it figured out. I do believe Carter will enjoy playing with the guns, and McLean will be pretty excited about the explosives.”
“I don’t doubt it a bit.” Curran looked back at the group of men he’d be helping train. They looked fairly sturdy, but training had a way of weeding out the weak and making even the strongest man cry.
Nick tried not to be too obtrusive, but he was dying to ask questions of the SEAL team. Meredith watched him soak up all of their stories, a familiar gleam in his eye. With a shake of her head, she realized that Andy looked like that whenever got together with his team members. She looked to her right to find Curran staring at Nick as well.
“Remind you of anybody?” Meredith leaned closer to Curran so that no one else heard her question.
He grinned as he turned towards her. “Kind of scary, isn’t it?”
“Just a bit. Can you go talk to him? He really wants to ask some questions, but he can be rather shy, I’m discovering.” Meredith had picked up on this fact earlier that day when she realized that he was pretty outgoing when all of the guys were around, but when it was just the two of them, he got very quiet.
“Shy? The man performs in front of thousands of people night after night.”
“That’s all part of the act, I think. But he really is fascinated by the teams. I believe he wanted to be a Seal when he was younger---he’s practically a fish.”
Curran nodded and looked back at the youngest member of the Backstreet Boys. “You owe me one, Davenport.”
“Guess that cuts down the number of times I’ve saved your ass, doesn’t it, Curran?” She grinned at him. “Want another beer?”
“Think I’m gonna need it.”
Meredith got up and headed back to the bar for refills. On her way there, she had to sidestep several young sailors who were obviously away from home for the first time. One of them grabbed at her, and she moved around him.
“What’s your name, sailor?”
“OS-1 Willoughby at your service.”
“My name’s Commander Davenport, and unless you want to be scrubbing heads for the next four years, I suggest you remove your hand from my ass. Got it?” Meredith stared down at the young man.
A flush of red crept over his cheeks as he backed away and sat back down in his chair. “Yes, ma’am.”
She nodded at him and continued on her quest. AJ watched the whole thing from his seat, understanding why the young man had reached for her. He certainly had the same idea, if not more charm to carry it off, but he realized that he would have to tread carefully.
Meredith was back with refills in a matter of minutes, noticing how the groups had shifted yet again. Nick was now deep in discussion with Commander Curran, while Hawkins, Ramos, and Leary were comparing “girl in every port” stories with AJ’s and Howie’s stories of what groupies were willing to do to get to them. The remaining Seals just sat back and observed.
Kevin was watching the people, and Brian was watching Nick as he talked with Curran.
Another hour was spent talking and getting to know each other. Meredith wanted the Backstreet Boys to feel like they could trust the SEAL team, but she didn’t want them to become too buddy-buddy, which might cripple them when it came down to the business of training. Seeing Howie yawn one more time, Meredith nudged Curran with her elbow.
“I’m ready to head home. You guys about ready?” She looked at her five trainees.
“Gettin’ soft in your old age, Davenport?” Hawkins took a swig of his beer as he stared at her.
“You’ll never find out, Hawkins.” She smirked at him.
“You guys still coming over on Sunday?”
“We’ll be there, and we’re bringing the beer.” Curran saluted her with his bottle.
“See you then.”
An exhausted group made its way back to Meredith’s house. Few words were spoken as each of them made their way into the foyer.
“I’m going to bed, guys. Kevin, Brian, I’ll see you early. The rest of you, pleasant dreams.” She gave them a little wave at the chorus of “goodnights” that followed her down the hall.
Heaven. Meredith pulled off her clothes and fell into bed, falling asleep quickly.
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Her eyes popped open, and she laid there for a moment, trying to figure out what had awakened her. The gentle splash told her someone was in the pool. Glancing at her clock, she wondered why someone felt the need for a swim at two o’clock in the morning. She pulled on a t-shirt and a pair of shorts before unlocking her balcony door and walking toward the pool.
The lights were always left on so that people would feel welcome to swim at any time, and she was grateful for it as she watched Brian slice through the water. Sitting on one of the chairs, she pulled her knees up to her chest and rested her chin on her knees. For a long time, he floated on his back and stared at the stars, relishing the peace and quiet of the summer night. When he let his mind finally rest, Brian straightened and headed for the ladder to climb out.
“Don’t DO that!” He held his hand to his chest as he stared at Meredith.
She’d handed him the towel, surprising him. “Sorry about that. I heard someone out here and came to investigate.”
He quickly finished drying off, draping the towel around his neck and holding on to the ends so that they covered his scar. It was an unconscious gesture around new people, and he didn’t even realize he’d done it. She looked up at him, then turned to stare at the stars. Brian dropped into a chair next to her and leaned back.
“Isn’t it just amazing?” Her voice was soft in the night.
“Yeah, it is. The magnificence of God.” The reverence in his voice made her smile.
“Amen.”
They looked at each other for a moment before she sat back up. “Well, since I didn’t have to scare off any burglars, I’m going to bed.”
Brian smiled apologetically. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to disturb you.”
She nodded. “It’s okay. I just have to get used to people being here. It’s been a long time.”
Meredith got up and headed for her room. “Good night, Brian.”
“Good night, Meredith.” He stood and made his way back into the house.
Table of Contents
Chapter Two